A Jack Frost Promise
Ever wondered what suffering feels like? The kind of suffering that eats away at your very soul and breaks even the toughest of minds? Do you want to feel it? Yes? There is prerequisite that must be fulfilled before such pain can be felt. What is it you may ask? Its joy. To know what suffering feels like, you have to know what joy feels like. The feeling of longing for joy as you are enduring torment and anguish - that is true suffering. Never knowing when the pain will end, cursing god himself and wondering what you ever did to deserve that agony in His eyes. When you know joy, you know true pain and will do whatever it takes to grab hold of that joy. This is a story of an ignorant soul, making a deal with a god, of which he was not ready for. But in essence, no one could ever ready themselves that pain no matter how numb you may believe yourself to be.
Wondering through the streets London, was a lost soul. Having escaped the cycle of life, its memories all fading with time. Weaving itself through the crowd, watching the passer-by’s holding hands and laughing, it craved for such a thing. But being a soul, it could not be seen by anyone nor anything. As time passed by, days became weeks. Weeks became months. Time kept on passing and as it passed, its desire to seek warmth of another was greater than ever.
As it was taking its daily route, it stumbled upon a certain store, that of which he had never seen before. It wondered when such a store opened as it had seen neither the construction nor the very building itself. As it stood outside the windows, it saw a vast collection of dolls and puppets. Beautiful, it thought to itself. As it fazed though the windows, it began to take in the exquisite site it had just found and to its surprise, it saw a life-like doll on a table. Next to it, a figure could be seen. As it started it looking up from the doll to the figure, it noticed the figure was staring straight at it. It then noticed it was a man. A well-dressed man. As it noticed this, the lips of the man started curve ever so.
“Lost Soul, I welcome thee to my humble store. To what do I owe the pleasure?'' asked the man. Having not spoken to anyone nor anything for so many years, it could no longer speak properly and just remained motionless.
“No reply? No matter. My store is special, it can only be found by those who desire something greatly. What is it you desire, Lost Soul?” the man asked. Having been asked such a question, it looked out the window and started staring at the people passing by. The warmth reflecting off its eyes.
Having understood what it desired, the man spoke. “You desire life and you desire joy. That of which cannot be achieved in your current state. As I said, this is a special store. I can grant you whatever you desire, should you be able to afford it. The price for life is life. I shall grant you the means to return to the living but when that ends, your soul is mine. Do you agree?” he asked.
Having been wondering through the streets for so long, an end was finally in sight. It immediately agreed and bowed to the man. The man started laughing and said, “The deal is done, I shall grant you life for 1 week and give you everything you may desire for that time. Family, wealth, prestige, excitement. They are all yours. But remember…you are all mine”. With a flick of his fingers, everything went dark.
This story has been stolen from Royal Road. If you read it on Amazon, please report it
She began to open her eyes. As rays of light started passing through the windows that seemed so alien yet so familiar, she found herself on a large bed. As the realization of what had happened finally dawned upon her, she rejoiced. She was finally alive. Finally able to feel the air on her skin and the heat from her own body. Suddenly the sound of the double doors in the room she was in opened and with it, came a group of people, she recognized none of them. But the joy in their faces upon seeing her, she realized they meant her no harm.
Following that day, her life was bliss. She enjoyed the company of her parents, her siblings, her pets and most of all, she relished in the heat of her loving husband. They went on trips together, reveled in the most minor of things, as spouses do. She was at the highest point of her life. She faced no problems, no issues, nothing. Just pure joy of being with the ones she loves and those whom love her. Without her realizing, a week had passed. In her elation, the thought completely slipped her mind. As she slipped under the covers into the arms of her beloved, she savored the warmth of the man besides her. As she stared into his eyes, the sound of the clock striking twelve rang and she felt her very core shake and then the world went dark.
She opened her eyes again, only to realize she was standing in front of the cause of her joy, the store owner. As she realized what was underway, her mind went blank and she screamed. Begging the man to let her continue living, even if it was for just one more day. She screamed her heart out, but the man before her was no man. As if he was used to such a sight, he did not even react or even show a sliver of mercy or sympathy.
“The deal has been made, the price must be paid. I have granted you life, now you are mine” he said. Despite the impact it would have on her, he said it devoid of emotion. He flicked his fingers and despite her screams and pleads, she began sinking into the ground and her consciousness began to fade...
As she started to awake, she realized she could no longer move. She tried forcing her body to move, only to realize that she was now in the body of the puppet that she first saw. She was on display by the window of the store and as before she watched the passer-by’s. She then saw the husband whom loved her so during the time she was alive. She saw him walking down the street alone with bags under his eyes and his hair ruffled. She tried to reach out to him, she tried to call for him but to no avail. She was a puppet. No longer the wondering soul nor the loved woman. She was now just a doll. Except now she knew joy. Except now, her true suffering had only just begun. As if to show how much pain she truly felt, a tear started rolling down her now porcelain cheeks and a new world of torment was introduced to the poor lost soul and in her torment, she cursed god and fate for she could no longer think, as her mind had now broke.
Suffering can only be felt by those whom no joy. Beware, for you might face the same fate as our poor lost soul. The Fate of Jack Frost whom cursed the gods and fate. Pray that your joy is not suddenly taken and that you aren’t thrown to the abyss. Pray that you never face such agony, lest your mind shall break.