Iron Axe

Once upon a time, there lived a man named Alan. He resided in a remote village, always cold and starving. Despite that, he never tried to steal from his neighbors. Though, he wasn't much of a looker, he was quite popular. He was honest and always tried to resolve conflict in a righteous way.

Adored by both men and women of the village, one man was envious of him. The person Alan believed to be his closest friend and mentor.

One day, Alan was out chopping wood. Accidentally, he lost his grip on the axe and it flew towards the river. The river was deep and fast-flowing, he immediately lost sight of his axe.

Losing the only job he had, he fell into despair. He kneeled down on the shore and stared blankly into the raging water.

He was about to turn around and head home crestfallen, but before he could even fully stand up, he heard the voice of an angel.

"You, poor man, who had lost his way of life. Tell me, what do you desire?"

He looked up and saw the most beautiful woman he'd ever seen. If he had to describe her, goddess would be an understatement.

With her and her pure white dress standing over the river, he immediately realized who came to help him in his time of need.

He kneeled down once again and bowed his head low.

"O Goddess of the River, I've lost my axe! Without it, I do not know how I would continue working! I am but a poor woodcutter who barely gets enough to feed himself in a days' worth of work! Please help me!"

He'd cried at the top of his lungs.

Seeing the man's pitiful state, the Goddess had agreed to help him.

She disappeared into the river and a few moments later, she came back with a golden axe in her hands.

"Is this the axe you've dropped?"

"No, it is not"

Again, she disappeared into the river and came back. This time, with a silver axe in her hands.

"Is this the axe you've dropped?"

"No, it is not that either"

She disappeared into the river once again and came back holding a bronze axe.

"Is this the axe you've dropped?"

The man's face lit up when he saw the axe he thought he would never see again.

"Yes! Yes, it is! Thank you, dear Goddess!"

When she handed over his bronze axe, he looked as happy as a rich man, despite being offered something more expensive than what he already has.

The Goddess was pleased with his honesty and how content he was even when his position was as poor as dirt.

Therefore, along with his bronze axe, she gifted him both the silver and golden axes.

When Alan went back to the village, the people couldn't help but notice how happy he was. And perhaps, even brighter than his face, was the golden axe shining under the sun.

Intrigued by how he got such an item, the villagers gathered around him as he started to tell the story of how he lost his axe and the Goddess that helped him.

He'd even told the people about the Goddess with a face like he had fallen in love.

A little further away from the crowd of people was Jack, staring hatefully at Alan's joy-filled smile. He hated that man.

He hated that Alan was more popular than him. He hated that Alan was adored by all the villagers.

When Alan was only starting the job, he was the one who taught him the ropes. He was the one that trained him to be the him now. Marc was just a scrawny boy but now, look!

Jack felt that the praise and attention of the crowd should always be on him. After all, where would Alan be now if it wasn't thanks to him?

Therefore, Jack went to the river and threw his iron axe into the water. He had hoped that the same Goddess would appear and grant him his wish, but he was appalled when the once raging river had suddenly stopped. The river that could kill a man by just how fast it was running became still.

As he looked around him, he noticed the thick fog enveloping his body. In his panic, he ran along the river in hopes of getting back to the village but no matter how much he ran, all he could see was smog and the now seemingly endless river.

'Was the river always this big before?'

He'd thought to himself.

Finally running out of patience, Jack ran away from the river. He doesn't care if he gets lost, he just doesn't want to see that body of water anymore. But in a few minutes, what he was met with was the same still river.

Was he going crazy? Or maybe he's already lost his mind?

While such thought were swimming around his head, a splash was heard from the water ahead. He turned his attention towards the source of the noise.

Bubbles were coming from a spot ahead of him, and just in a few moments, it was followed by large ripples.

Jack was frightened. The forest's silence was broken by whatever was under the water, and it scared him more than the dead silence of the stagnant river. He wished for it to go back to how it used to.

Surprisingly, it did. The water once again became stagnant. Jack breathed a sigh of relief, but as the waves calmed down and the water didn't obstruct his view anymore, what he saw would forever remain etched into his mind.

It was Alan.

He was floating there.

An iron axe, embedded into his skull.

==================================

As you might be able to tell, this was inspired by a fairytale/folktale.

I kinda wanted to add a little more but I'm pretty content with this one.

Please interact with the book by leaving a vote or comment~!