Utapri Short Stories

Gold - Part 1

Many, many years ago, in a distant and hidden kingdom, which was in a valley in the middle of two high mountains, an extremely greedy king lived. His greed was so great that one day, upon meeting a fairy in the forest at the foot of the mountain, he asked her to grant him a wish. In those lands the fairies were like the genie of the lamp.

The fairies did not like humans very much and rarely granted them wishes, but this time it was different: the king had an extraordinary speech and managed to deceive the fairy. He convinced her that he was asking for a good cause, that he wanted to save his people, and the fairy believed it.  With her magic, she fulfilled the king's desire to become even richer. But all magic comes at a price.

The greedy king would become the richest of kings, but he could never again touch objects or people without wearing the magic gloves that the fairy gave him. Everything he touches would turn to gold. But after a while the fairy found out about the king's lie and punished him.  His gold magic would be passed down from generation to generation always to one of his family members as a curse.

That's how Prince Kira grew up, never being able to touch anything without his magic gloves. His father had been in an accident and died the previous year;  the following year Kira would rise to the throne in the place of his mother, who had become ill after her husband's death. The boy was very studious and intelligent, but he lived in fear of his powers and never smiled.  Some said that he had no emotions, as his face was always impartial.

The queen's health was getting worse and worse and the prince was very concerned. The kingdom would never go hungry, as they always had a lot of gold to invest in new ways of producing and buying food.  Unfortunately, no gold was capable of healing the queen. The kingdom's doctors said that her condition was irreversible and that she would soon die.

Kira was desperate at the news and went to the village elders to ask for their advice. The elders advised him to seek help at the foot of the mountain, in the fairy’s forest. Only their magic would be able to reverse the situation in which the queen found herself. The young man had already heard of the magic of fairies, but he was not sure if he believed that they would help him.

Despite so many doubts, Kira went on a journey alone to the forest at the foot of the mountain. The only one who accompanied him was his horse, as he knew this was going to be a risky trip. He knew what the fairies had done to his family. They are cruel creatures that curses people. At least, that's what his father always said.

The climate in the forest was much hotter than the climate at the top of the mountain, so the prince and his horse were suffering a lot from the heat.  As if the heat weren't enough, it also rained a lot in the forest, but that only served to make the air more muffled. Days had passed and he had yet to meet any fairies. Were they really real?

On the sixteenth day of the trip, the rain that fell in the forest was so intense that it caused a flood. The prince and his horse were taken by surprise and had to fight to keep from drowning ... Until they gave up the fight and let themselves sink. Kira thought he would never open his eyes again and an enormous sadness came over his heart when he thought about his mother.

However, after a coughing fit, he heard a melodious voice call out to him and finally opened his eyes. “Hi. I'm glad you woke up.” The young woman who smiled standing beside him was undoubtedly a fairy. “Don't try to move, please. You're hurt.” She explained and continued to treat the wound on his chest. He was silent for a while, until he realized that his gloves were gone.

“Do not touch my hands!” He spoke in alarm and the young woman was startled. “Why not? I will not hurt you.”  And she smiled again. “I was cursed.  Everything I touch turns to gold.” Kira explained with a sad look. The young fairy did not look surprised. “I know.  It's fairy magic. I recognize it when I see it. It cannot affect me.” She explained and shrugged.

“Can not...?” Kira looked uncertain, although the young fairy seemed to trust her own words. “Still, I think it's better not to touch me.” The boy looked away and hid his hands. The fairy sighed and continued to treat his wound delicately. Kira still felt a little pain, but tried not to move. “Why are you taking care of me?” He asked at last.

The fairy seemed surprised by the question and took a while to answer.  “Why wouldn't I take care of you? You are hurt.” And her answer puzzled the prince. He grew up thinking that fairies hated humans. Why was that fairy treating him so well? “Where are the other fairies?” Kira asked after a long time.

“I live alone in that part of the forest.” She replied with a sad look. Kira asked her name next. “Haru.” She replied with a gentle smile. “I am the flowers and spring fairy.” And she continued to treat the horse's injury, which she had also rescued from the flood. Kira was completely silent while Haru took care of his horse. He was in awe of her kindness and beauty.

Until their wounds healed completely, Kira and his horse had to live with Haru in the forest. The young fairy lived inside the hollow trunk of a huge ancestral tree. The place was small and very simple, but it was cozy. Kira told Haru what he had come to do there and the young woman looked a little sad to learn that he, too, had come after the magical power of the fairies. Still, she promised to help him.

Kira was already much better when something terrible happened: the other fairies found Haru's hideout and discovered that she was harboring a human. The fairies were angry and threatened Haru, ordering her to hand over the human or else she would suffer the consequences. Kira wanted to help her, but he didn't know what to do. Fighting was useless. Fairies were very powerful!

[Continue in the next chapter...]

•••

Chapter cover edited by me!