Aluxe could no longer recall the name of the farmer that had created him to protect his crops from Siyak. Such was the way of corruption sickness. It had been eating at him for the last year and a half that he’d been past his contract. His creator had died before their seven-year contract had ended. Aluxe became free of his boundaries, and would never be sealed away.
Though the contract seemed cruel, it was in place to prevent him from becoming evil. After seven years spirits could no longer resist the evil magic in the air produced by Siyak. Their masters sealed them away to prevent corruption sickness.
After his master passed, Aluxe convinced himself that corruption sickness was a myth. A cruel joke made up to dispose of the protective elven spirits when they had served their purpose. But, as his seventh year passed, he began to change. He did his best to resist the darkness growing inside him and came up with a compromise. He asked travelers for favors, usually annoying or difficult to fulfill. If they didn’t agree, he would cause them mischief until he found his next victim. If they appeased him, the guilt-fueled part of himself that clung on, would give them a favor in return.
That compromise had led Aluxe to become somewhat of a popular legend of the jungle. The trouble with that was that awareness about him made travelers this way few and far between. The darkness inside him grew restless without prey.
The rustle of leaves caused Aluxe’s pointed ears to shift. His head whipped around to face the traveler foolish enough to enter his jungle. His prey was a sweaty man navigating a torn map. As the man noticed Aluxe, he stopped short.
“Oh,” the traveler said, startled.
Aluxe’s agreement with himself was only allowed if the traveler initiated conversation. He would need more than that to justify satiating his growing evil. When the silence didn’t elicit the greeting he was waiting for, Aluxe began to wonder if his ears were poking out from his carefully placed hat. He reached a hand to the side of his head to find that the pointy offenders were still concealed. His ears, and his silence upon meeting were the two things that gave him away. Though, most of the time once people realized who he was, it was too late.
“Are you lost as well?” the traveler asked as he swiped his brow with the back of his hand. “I’m afraid my map is no longer what it used to be. Moths got to it last night while I was asleep.” He held up his moth-eaten map. “Uh- but I believe if we just keep this way,” he said as he pointed in the direction he’d been going. “Then we’ll come to the town of Tikal. Is that where you’re from?”
That would be more than enough. Aluxe stepped closer to the traveler and took off his hat. His scraggly blonde hair fell around his shoulders, his pointed ears poking through. He relished the moment his victims realized who he was, but a very small part of him hated being feared.
“I am lost no matter who has found me, traveler,” Aluxe said.
The sweaty man began to shake as his map fell from his grip. “N-no, I-I didn’t know. Please,” he begged as he backed away.
“I’m in need of the obsidian from the temple of B’alam. Would you be so kind as to fetch it for me?”
“T-that’s impossible. I can’t do that. No one has ever survived the temple of B’alam.” The pathetic man’s panic reached a peak as he let out a yelp and began to run.
Curse him. Aluxe felt the need reverberate through his bones. He needed to- he took a step forward. He needed to- and another. He-
“No!” Aluxe shouted. He stumbled back, his foot catching on a vine, and crashed to the jungle floor. He clutched his head in his hands and willed the thought to go away. Sure, he was bad, but he’d never cursed anyone before. The deal he kept with himself had always worked at keeping his dark in check before, so why now? After a corrupt elven spirit cast its first curse, it was rumored to join Siyak’s army.
Your prey is getting away.
Aluxe’s eyes snapped upward and the concerns in his head went mute. He almost had his feet back under him before he came to his senses. “No! I’m staying on the ground until this passes. Only then can I cause my mischief.”
Aluxe sat for hours as the urge only grew. By the time the sun had set, he had begun to dig his nails into his skin to keep himself rooted in reality.
Get up and curse him, you know you want to. You need to.
“Are you all right?” Aluxe heard a voice ask. He looked up, disobeying the protests of his aching neck that had been stuck angled down for hours. A boy around the age of 14 or 15, stood a foot away staring right at him. Hope flared in his chest. This was what he needed. A new target. And the poor sap had already spoken to him.
As Aluxe stood to face his newest prey, he was surprised to see that the boy was unafraid. Not a trace of recognition flashed across his face, and Aluxe was certain his ears were showing.
“Boy, do you know who I am?” Aluxe asked.
“Well, no. We’ve only just met.”
A smile found its way to Aluxe’s lips. He’d thought for sure everyone on this island had been warned of his existence. It had been so long since a traveler thought they could safely say no to him. Crushing this boy’s hope would surely satiate his thirst for darkness.
“You’re bleeding, sir,” said the traveler.
Aluxe looked down to see that his fingernails had left deep, crescent-shaped wounds in his flesh. He feared he didn’t know how much longer he could control himself; he needed to make his request fast.
Instead of coming up with a new request, he recycled the impossible task he’d given the last traveler. “Do you think you could fetch me a piece of obsidian from the temple of B’alam ?”
“You mean that temple?” The boy asked as he pointed to the stones that just peaked over the jungle trees.
“I don’t see any other temple’s around here,” Aluxe said, trying to play off his anticipation with sarcasm.
“Sure,” the kid said as he began to rifle through his bag. It took a moment for the word to process in Aluxe’s mind, and a beat later, the boy was holding out a shiny black stone. “I just came from there. You can have this if it will make you feel better.”
Aluxe’s lips parted in surprise as he took the gem. It’s real. He couldn’t believe it, For the first time in a long time, someone had completed his request. Not to mention with record speed and lack of bodily injury. He felt something inside him shift. His darkness melted into curiosity.
“You’ve never met an Aluxe before, have you?”
“You’re an Aluxe? The storyteller told me of your kind. What are you doing without a master?”
Aluxe opted to ignore the personal question and jump straight to the point. “What is your request?”
“My request? What do you mean?” Leo asked, confused.
“You completed my task, now you get a request.”
“Oh the obsidian? Don’t worry about it, I had no use for it,” Leo said as he waved his hand dismissively.
“No!” Aluxe shouted. Surprised by the force in his own voice, he cleared his throat. “Um I mean, I insist.”
“Well, I guess I could use a hint,”Leo said.
“A hint for what?” Aluxe asked as his curiosity piqued.
“My journey. I was supposed to come here with my father in search of treasure and adventure, but,” Leo looked down with a sudden sadness. “Our ship wrecked and I don’t know where he is. I have to continue our journey alone.”
Aluxe sighed. “Your journey, it will not be an easy one. For Siyak has control of these lands and its treasures.”
“Who is Siyak?” Leo asked.
“The evil and powerful demigod that has cursed these lands and conquered armies. Prepare yourself young adventurer, for if you are to complete your mission, you will have to face Siyak,” Aluxe said in a grave tone. “My hint is that you find your father and sail far, far away from here.”
“I can’t do that!” Leo said with strong determination. “This was my fathers dream. I must see it through!”
Hope flared in Aluxe’s chest. If Leo could defeat Siyak, Aluxe and all his brethren would be set free. He’s only a child, though. He had his doubts if Leo could survive here on his own, let alone defeat a demigod. “If you are so determined to explore these lands, then you should head for the town of Tikal, Southeast of here. There you can get supplies and directions for your journey.”
“Thank you, Aluxe,” Leo expressed his gratitude. “I’ll be going now.”
“Good luck, young adventurer,” Aluxe said under his breath as Leo made for the town of Tikal. Perhaps he should follow him, to ensure his safety. After all, it was in his best interest for the child to succeed. His feet started after Leo before he was even aware of what he’d decided. He would follow the young adventurer on his journey to keep an eye on him. He secured his ears back into his hat.
For the first time since his seven years of sanity ended, his darkness didn’t feel so dark.
Though a contract for seven years out of a lifetime to live unsealed seemed cruel, that part of the contract was in place to prevent him from becoming evil. After seven years, spirits could no longer resist the evil magic in the air produced by Siyak, and would spend the rest of eternity sealed away in their homes to prevent corruption sickness.
After the farmer had passed, Aluxe tried convincing himself that corruption sickness was a mere myth, made up to dispose of the protective elven spirits when they had served their purpose. But, as his seventh year passed, he began to change. He did his best to resist the darkness growing inside him and came up with a compromise. He asked travelers for favors, usually annoying or difficult to fulfill, and if they didn’t agree he would cause them mischief until he found his next victim. If they appeased him, the guilt-fueled part of himself that still clung to existence would sometimes give them a favor in return.
That compromise had led Aluxe to become somewhat of a popular legend of the jungle. The trouble with that was that awareness about him made travelers this way few and far between. The darkness inside him grew restless without prey.
The rustle of leaves caused Aluxe’s pointed ears to shift. His head whipped around to face the traveler foolish enough to enter his jungle. His prey was a sweaty man navigating a torn map. As the man noticed Aluxe, he stopped short.
“Oh,” the traveler said, startled.
Aluxe’s agreement with himself was only allowed if the traveler initiated conversation. He would need more than that to justify satiating his growing evil. When the silence didn’t elicit the greeting he was waiting for, Aluxe began to wonder if his ears were poking out from his carefully placed hat.. He reached a hand to the side of his head to find that the pointy offenders were still concealed. His ears, and his silence upon meeting were the two things that gave him away, though most of the time once people realized who he was, it was too late.
“Are you lost as well?” the traveler asked as he swiped his brow with the back of his hand. “I’m afraid my map is no longer what it used to be. Moths got to it last night while I was asleep.” He held up his moth-eaten map. “Uh- but I believe if we just keep this way,” he said as he pointed in the direction he’d been going. “Then we’ll come to the town of Tikal. Is that where you’re from?”
That would be more than enough. Aluxe stepped closer to the traveler and took off his hat. His scraggly blonde hair fell down around his shoulders, his pointed ears peeking through. He relished the moment his victims realized who he was, but a very small part of him hated being feared.
“I am lost no matter who has found me, traveler,” Aluxe said.
The sweaty man began to shake as his map fell from his grip. “N-no, I-I didn’t know. Please,” he begged as he backed away.
“I’m in need of the obsidian from the temple of B’alam. Would you be so kind as to fetch it for me?”
“T-that’s impossible. I can’t do that. No one has ever survived the temple of B’alam.” The pathetic man’s panic reached a peak as he let out a yelp and began to run.
Curse him. Aluxe felt the need reverberate through his bones. He needed to- he took a step forward. He needed to- and another. He-
“No!” Aluxe shouted. He stumbled back, his foot catching on a vine, and crashed to the jungle floor. He clutched his head in his hands and willed the thought to go away. Sure, he was bad, but he’d never cursed anyone before. The deal he kept with himself had always worked at keeping his dark in check before, so why now? After a corrupt elven spirit cast its first curse, it was rumored to join Siyak’s army.
Your prey is getting away.
Aluxe’s eyes snapped upward and the concerns in his head went mute. He almost had his feet back under him before he came to his senses. “No! I’m staying on the ground until this passes. Only then can I cause my mischief.”
Aluxe sat for hours as the urge only grew. By the time the sun had set, he had begun to dig his nails into his skin to keep himself rooted in reality.
Get up and curse him, you know you want to. You need to.
“Are you all right?” Aluxe heard a voice ask. He looked up, disobeying the protests of his aching neck that had been stuck angled down for hours. A boy around the age of 14 or 15, stood a foot away staring right at him. Hope flared in his chest. This was what he needed. A new target. And the poor sap had already spoken to him.
As Aluxe stood to face his newest prey, he was surprised to see that the boy was unafraid. Not a trace of recognition flashed across his face, and Aluxe was certain his ears were showing.
“Boy, do you know who I am?” Aluxe asked.
“Well, no. We’ve only just met.”
A smile found its way to Aluxe’s lips. He’d thought for sure everyone on this island had been warned of his existence. It had been so long since a traveler thought they could safely say no to him. Crushing this boy’s hope would surely satiate his thirst for darkness.
“You’re bleeding, sir,” said the traveler.
Aluxe looked down to see that where he’d been digging his fingernails into his flesh, had deep crescent-shaped wounds. He feared he didn’t know how much longer he could control himself; he needed to make his request fast.
Instead of coming up with a new request this time around, he recycled the impossible task he’d given the last traveler. “Do you think you could fetch me a piece of obsidian from the temple of B’alam ?”
“You mean that temple?” The boy asked as he pointed to the stones that just peaked over the jungle trees.
“I don’t see any other temple’s around here,” Aluxe said, trying to play off his anticipation with sarcasm.
“Sure,” the kid said as he began to rifle through his bag. It took a moment for the word to process in Aluxe’s mind, and a beat later, the boy was holding out a shiny black stone. “I just came from there. You can have this if it will make you feel better.”
Aluxe’s lips parted in surprise as he took the gem. It’s real. He couldn’t believe it, For the first time in a long time, someone had completed his request. Not to mention with record speed and lack of bodily injury. He felt something inside him shift. His darkness melted into curiosity.
“You’ve never met an Aluxe before, have you?”
“You’re an Aluxe? The storyteller told me of your kind. What are you doing without a master?”
Aluxe opted to ignore the personal question and jump straight to the point. “What is your request?”
“My request? What do you mean?” Leo asked, confused.
“You completed my task, now you get a request.”
“Oh the obsidian? Don’t worry about it, I had no use for it,” Leo said as he waved his hand dismissively.
“No!” Aluxe shouted. Surprised by the force in his own voice, he cleared his throat. “Um I mean, I insist.”
“Well, I guess I could use a hint,”Leo said.
“A hint for what?” Aluxe asked as his curiosity piqued.
“My journey. I was supposed to come here with my father in search of treasure and adventure, but,” Leo looked down with a sudden hint of sadness. “Our ship wrecked and I don’t know where he is. I have to continue our journey alone.”
Aluxe sighed. “Your journey, it will not be an easy one. For Siyak has control of these lands and its treasures.”
“Who is Siyak?” Leo asked.
“The evil and powerful demigod that has cursed these lands and conquered armies. Prepare yourself young adventurer, for if you are to complete your mission, you will have to face Siyak,” Aluxe said in a grave tone. “My hint is that you find your father and sail far, far away from here.”
“I can’t do that!” Leo said with strong determination. “This was my fathers dream. I must see it through!”
Hope flared in Aluxe’s chest. If Leo could defeat Siyak, Aluxe and all his brethren would be set free. He’s only a child, though. He had his doubts if Leo could survive here on his own, let alone defeat a demigod. “If you are so determined to explore these lands, then you should head for the town of Tikal, Southeast of here. There you can get supplies and directions for your journey.”
“Thank you, Aluxe,” Leo expressed his gratitude. “I’ll be going now.”
“Good luck, young adventurer,” Aluxe said under his breath as Leo made for the town of Tikal. Perhaps he should follow him, to ensure his safety. After all, it was in his best interest for the child to succeed. His feet started after Leo before he was even aware of what he’d decided. He would follow the young adventurer on his journey to keep an eye on him. He secured his ears back into his hat.
For the first time since his seven years of sanity ended, his darkness didn’t feel so dark.