A devil? A witch? Or a savior?
In the enigmatic village of “Unbon”, shrouded in mystery, the tale unfolded…
Mid-14th century, Joshua, was deemed the chosen one and stood as a beacon of hope. People believed he was chosen by the god.
Amid peaceful times, an unspoken agreement restricted movement post-dawn.
Elliote and her husband, fearing their ailing son’s worsening health, sought reassurance from Markie, the village’s doctor.
As dawn approached, the child’s pain intensified. Elliote, driven by the love towards her child, defied the church norms, urging her husband to seek the doctor’s aid.
In response, “Elliote, We are not allowed to step out in darkness. I’ll check out our son tomorrow morning.”
Elliote was unyielding because the child was in too much suffering to endure. To improve her son's health, she and her husband decided to walk to the doctor's office.
“Elliote. We cannot risk stepping out.”
"I can't see my son suffer. What happens if he passes away? We cannot allow the witch myth to take our son's life. We must visit the physician to ensure our son's health. We must leave right now!"
Elliote cradles the child in her arms, urging her husband to accompany her to the doctor. As her husband opens the door, Elliote rushes towards it, clutching the child tightly.
She departs from their home, sprinting towards the doctor’s house.
Upon arrival at the doctor’s house. She knocks and knocks, and screams for help but she gets no response.
The confused poor mother turns to speak with her husband, only to find no one beside her. Glancing back at her house, she noticed her husband had closed the door and stayed inside.
He gazes from the window of their home, tears in his eyes.
Confused Elliote continues to plead with the doctor to open the door. Minutes pass with silence.
Desperate to save her son but without guidance, dense fog obscuring all visibility, she stands in the cold, freezing climate Unable to bear her son’s pain, she gently places him on the ground and calls out his name, attempting to wake him, but in vain. She can sense her son departing, his soul slipping away.
She sobs…
She weeps for an extended period, holding the child in the dense fog. The air becomes increasingly difficult to breathe with each passing second. No helping hand is in sight. Anger, sadness, despair, and pain surround her as the already dark climate grows even darker, shrouded by depressed clouds. No light penetrates the overcast sky as the moon hides above the dark clouds.
Hope wanes. Her son’s life has not been saved.
Regret begins to consume her from toe to soul.
In the absence of any visible light but darkness, she holds her son to her chest and screams.
Unfortunately, no one appears to rescue either her or her son. All she perceives is a pervasive sense of death.
She saw a light from the forest.
Undeterred by the despair, she cradles her son in her arms and moves forward, guided by a faint light emanating from the forest. With nothing left to lose, she embraced the inevitability of death and walked towards the inviting forest.
The light intensifies, becoming a beacon of hope. Wiping her eyes, she smiles as she discerns someone in the forest ready to offer assistance.
No one ever saw a solitary light from the forest before, but the desperate mother, consumed by the need to save her son, becomes oblivious, following anything that might lead her to him.
Approached and delved deeper into the dark, dense forest, she stumbles upon a house constructed from rocks. Concerned only with saving her son, she bravely knocks on the door and disregards the legends and myths surrounding the witch in the forest.
She cried and pleaded, “Please save my son! Please…”
A distinctive clock resonates, but no voice invites her inside…
Mother takes the child holding him hard, opens the door, and steps into the house.
Inside, she discovers numerous skulls hanging, worms crawling on the table, and dead meat scattered on the floor. A fireplace provided enough light to illuminate the entire eerie place.
Elliote witnessed the witch seated on a chair at the corner of the house in the dark.
Kneeled before her and cried, “Can you save my son please?”
The witch rose from her chair.
Walked towards the mother.
A swollen face with crumbled hands and broken fingers accentuating the poignant tale etched upon her visage bore the marks of a turbulent past. This grotesque manifestation was the most unsettling form Elliote had ever encountered.
In a strange paradox of beauty and deformity, the witch bent down, reaching out to embrace the child with a tenderness that contradicted her ghastly appearance. The atmosphere seemed to hold its breath as the two connected, the fragility of the moment encapsulating a myriad of emotions in the dimly lit room.
The next day morning
The husband reached out to the church community and explained to them about the incidents that happened the previous night.
Joshue-the priest rose from this frontier seat and made a statement, “We don’t know where Elliote and her child are. We need to search for her and execute her in the name of thee lord. Whoever comes out of the house at night is a feeding soul for the witch. We cannot let the witch gain power.”
People became furious, and the husband stood with the community. All sixty people from the village armed themselves with knives, axes, rocks, and tools used for cattle.
Everyone gathered at the center of the village with all the possible tools for executing mother and child. Markie, the doctor informed the people that she went near the woods.
People were scared to go near the woods. Joshua called the men and announced that if Elliote had made contact with the witch by any means, it's a sin for the whole village.
“Your wife, kids, and everyone you’ve ever loved will be devoured by that witch. Now or never, we must stop Elliote and ensure she is dead. Devils prey on the weak, Elliote is weak. So we must set aside our fears to live peacefully…
We have witnessed the elderly perish due to the witch’s poison from the forest. She was weak and unable to capture our kids until now. If the witch feeds on Elliote, it will become more powerful. In the name of Micheal, the archangel, we shall fight the devil and save our future”
|’ Scared people are the true blind ones.’
Joshua led the people toward the forest and noticed the child running toward the village smiling.
The kid's father noticed it and he felt happy that the child was cured. The father smiled and attempted to walk but Joshue stopped him, saying
“Kid is now the servant of the devil”
Knowing the seriousness of the child’s condition and the helpless state of the mother, everyone understood that the kid was saved by the witch. The father believed Joshua’s words and prepared to harm the child.
Elliote reached the child and embraced him with a smile. She noticed the angry crowd with weapons.
The scared mother held her son, lifted him to her chest, and hugged him tightly.
Joshua asked, “Did you meet the witch?”
Knowing the foolishness of the people and their misguided perspective, she replied, “Yes we did. She saved my son’s life.”
“You’ve committed a sin, Elliote. Our forefathers warned that dealing with the witch is consorting with the devil. You’ve made a pact with the devil.”
“Please listen to me Joshue. You’re mistaken, she is the savior of our village.”
“Hand over the son and surrender yourself to us Elliote.”
“I won't let any of you come near my child”
Elliotte was further shocked as she witnessed her husband, the father of the child, ready to kill both of them.
Husband, Joshua, and a few other men approached Elliotte and the kid with axes.
She asked, “Why?”
Husband replied, “You shouldn't have left the house.”
Joshua swung the ax.
—----
A loud sound echoed from the forest. A distinct yet powerful sound frightened everyone, forcing them to step back. Joshua’s ears bled, and he dropped the axe.
Everyone except the mother and child couldn't bear the painful sound. They tried to run back to the village, but none could move. Their ears bled, and fear gripped their hearts.
Dark clouds gathered, filling up the sky once again. A person in the back screamed,
“Look over there!!!!!”
All eyes turned to Elliotte, and they noticed someone standing at a distance in the woods, slowly walking towards them.
The kid smiled and pointed at her.
Elliote said, “She’s coming”
Joshua felt sweat on his temples as the witch walked towards them. He couldn’t move, and neither could anyone else.
She drew near to the mother and child.
The child hugged the witch. She smiled and cast an angry glance at the people.
Joshua couldn’t move but could talk, “You witch! What did you do to us?”
She spoke for the first time, “Don’t bother the weak.”
Joshua retorted, “You are a curse. The devil is upon you!”
She chuckled, “Your lord told you that? Pity you. I was not born witch, I was raised to be one to protect innocents like this child”
“Liar!”
“My face. Did it scare you? Or is it your forefathers?”
“You made our children die”
“Did you see it?”
“No”
“I could mutilate any of you right here, right now if I wished. Yet, you all have survived all these years without a single king's guard breaching the sanctuary of your forest or village.”
“You cannot deny the fact that you are a witch”
While she may be branded a witch, she rescued the boy. The entire village condemns her presence, yet she remains undisturbed. Despite her unconventional appearance, her heart was pure.
She turned to the kid, knelt before him, saying, “This is a cruel world, where beauty extracts a price, and women are treated as mere playthings. Remember, young one, you are not one of them. You shall never be one. You judge humans by their heart not by their genitals or their beauty.
One day neither today nor tomorrow you will become a warrior. Always remember to retain your humanity. Condemn those who harm your mother, despise the foolish, and aid those in need.
You are not a mere follower of tales spun by the feeble-minded; you are not a mindless follower. Our destinies are intertwined for eternity. I will stand beside you, instigate change, lead change.
I might be a witch but not evil…”
She turned to Joshua and others and said, “You and your people are born to be goats. Change is an expectation too great for you all. Take heed, priest; an inch near the child or the mother. Your village shall be burned alive and buried deep.
Lay your hand upon them in the name of God, I shall turn you into dust in the name of your god.”