Synopsis Rewrite
The day begins as Squash rolls over in bed, looking outside his large 2nd floor window. The morning sun casts down upon him, filling his spirit with warmth. He rises and goes to school like normal, and everything is perfect and fine for 3 weeks. Then the Cucumbers arrive in droves, a stench filling the air. Hired as mercenaries by the evil and bewildered Apple King of the Fruit Empire, they roar through the village like a plague, devouring its resources and separating the people. Led by Captain Serendipity, the Cucumbers pillage and burn everything in their path, capturing slaves and getting the land ready for sale. With the one eyed master tactician Sergio as Serendipity’s right hand man, this band of Cucumbers is different than the raunchy bunch of hooligans the Squash Village had grown accustomed to in the past. Squash and his family are split up in the chaos, but the fighting is suddenly stopped as a cavalry unit of the nearby Pumpkin Tribe decides to intervene on its way home from defending territory in the south. Squash is miraculously rescued by a young and mysteriously heroic mercenary pumpkin named Ibrahim, who carries a strange confidence, and simply could not bear witness the reality of carnage, injustice, and cruelty on his first trip to the battlefield, so running from his own army, and departing the country, he drops Squash off in the care of his own mother, Aspasia, and departs for ancient far away realms, presumably the Land of our Ancestors.
An extremely wise and happy widowed woman, it quickly becomes apparent that Aspasia is where Ibrahim gets most of his good qualities. She is an outspoken teacher of peace, but, being a woman during times of war, she is careful to not draw much attention, and she is the sole teacher at a small school she runs out of her own wages from working at the nearby Iron mill as a coordinator. Squash is the only yellow student she has, and being a fellow gourd, there is a natural rivalry between him and the pumpkins, but with Aspasia’s influence, the other kids become very easy going and show Squash unexpectedly genuine hospitality. They will all eventually forge a tight bond through many greetings and goodbyes, remaining true brothers and sisters throughout the story.
In seeing the world as it could be, this is where Squash begins to believe in himself. He has seen Aspasia lift ignorance from his classmates and bless them with vision, so he sits back and watches, thinking if Aspasia can be such a teacher, and attain such a goal as to help turn these profoundly clouded pumpkins into genuinely carefree ambassadors of unconditional love, (who will overtime prove to carry an astonishing capacity in understanding their own situation and how it relates back to everything around them), than Squash feels he can realize his own goals of helping the community that has helped him grow and has helped him become proud of being alive. Absorbing sadness and lingering in bliss, Squash eventually becomes every emotion, basking in each peculiarity and spreading it like a sprinkler, dripping it upon everything, the houses, schools, the factories, the people, a scared and confused community, biting off more than they can chew; asking for help.
He eventually gains a job helping Aspasia with everyday tasks and saves the money to get his own small hut near the school. Studying hard, he quickly becomes a good and clever student. He reads every chance he gets down by the river, and during breaks, practices with his sling, setting up sticks and trying to break them in half without uprooting them. He begins to gain confidence as the years pass. He starts to take part in the local combat competitions. His unique and impressive repeat performances lead him to be noticed by the leader of the Pumpkin Tribe, Duncan III. He is allowed to join the military academy as an honorary citizen after Duncan declares him a kindred spirit. Squash begins to tell him all about his past tribulations and the growing resolve in finding his parents and taking back Squash Village from the clutches of Serendipity and Sergio in the now controlled Fruit Empire province of Squash-On-Yah, A heavily fortified city-state where his home once stood. Squash also desperately wants to earn peace within him self while helping society to regain its balance during these dark times of a new breed of scarily honest and purely, manipulatively, poignantly, evil, spreading its fear through the self-created, desperately alone, hopelessly bewildered souls that wander life in a stupor, never looking past random reflections.
End of episode one
After 1 year in the academy he becomes well respected by his mentors and fellow students. After proving himself in a duel against one of the best young warriors in the tribe, he earns a prized position, becoming captain of the 1st sling regiment. He continues to earn respect, proving himself in small skirmishes against bands of Cucumbers along the northern border. He gains a reputation with the enemy as a particularly fierce sling warrior, drawing the attention of Serendipity, and even the Apple King himself. He has been known to engage armed soldiers in hand-to-hand combat, using just a rock in his hand, and never losing. With his charisma, he quickly gains a following among his companions. He comes to lead his band of 24 through many battles and he maintains the best survival rate of any band in the tribe, the leader again takes notice and sets him aside.
It soon becomes clear that Duncan III has bigger plans for him than a simple captain or even a general. He wants him to depart on a long and dangerous quest. A mighty journey through territory unknown in search of a lost object, an item rumored to be so powerful it could end any war before the battle begins. Though he must first seek out a wise man currently living in Olive Town who goes by the surname Onizuka, and consult him on how best to sneak through the captured territories and into the largely abandoned, forgotten, Continent of the Ancient Ancestors.
Squash is allowed his pick of 4 of the best soldiers in the tribe, along with a controversial gift personally from Duncan III, a royal gemmed sling stone that symbolizes an intelligent leader with unmatched perseverance. It is said to have belonged to King David himself, kept by his son Solomon and housed within Solomon’s Temple. Such an object intimidates Squash, he is not sure he can live up to this gift. Squash accepts it gracefully though and feels a profound change within his thinking, he suddenly sees that all the trials in his life so far were only trying to prepare him for this epic journey through space and time, lasting generations and maintaining its grasp, pulling him along with the stars. Pushing him unbound towards the future, he begins to dance with the clouds.
Squash deliberates on his gift along with which companions to bring for many days. He eventually decides on Rumplestiltskin – his most trusted friend at the academy, an axe-wielding maniac with a heart of gold who has never lost a duel. Stonewall – the absolute top archer in Squash’s graduating class, and the carrier of first place awards in each of the top 4 events for archery 3 years running. With gorgeous long black hair and a defiant attitude, he has earned a reputation for honesty and brutality, he has begun to feel a sense of rivalry with the fun natured captain, Squash, possibly leading to feud. Next he decides upon choosing Ping yang – a young tactician and performer of eerie magic. She eventually shows profound untapped abilities to see into the future. On account of her naturally mystic nature, the tribe ignores her out of fear, leading her to become very quiet although quite content and consistently happy. Leaving Last but not least, Pistachio – the comedic relief and master of potions, chief witch doctor in the tribe. He has the strange feature of appearing very large sometimes, and extremely small on other occasions. Depending on his mood it would seem his entire physical structure changes slightly. His energy can sometimes expand so far and be so true to their owner during battle that they cast shadows on his faults, exposing only his strengths, and making him look gigantic and intimidating, scaring the enemy and his companions alike. He is rarely in a fighting mood though, and chooses to act on his light hearted, goofy, and strangely poetic states of being even during battle.
End of episode 2
So the group gathers and decides on a plan before setting out, to be continued in episode 3 with the groups first deadly encounter, a band of warrior grapes from the fruit empire have gotten lost and see Squash and the gang as an easy meal! See what happens next time, on Squash Wars!
