A Collection of Short Horror Stories

14

TLDR: "Women and children first!" Rang through the loudspeaker.

And so they lined the gallows.

A long, long time ago, there once was a farmer who dreamed of becoming the richest man in the capital. However, this farmer had no talent and was lazy. He played all day and all night, and eventually settled down and married a young and virtuous wife. Together, they had a son. They named him Amon.

Unlike his father, Amon was smart, talented, and hardworking. The farmer realised this, and raised Amon with his hopes and dreams.

Soon, the young boy grew into a fine, young man. While he was overflowing with youth and vitality, the farmer was lying in his bed frail and weak. Before the farmer took his last breath, he imparted his dying wish to his promising son.

"Amon, venture to the capital to the East. Only that is where our hopes and dreams will come true."

Amon promised his father, and so the farmer passed away in peace. With no family left, Amon packed up his meagre belongings and left the small village he spent his childhood at. He encountered dangerous creatures and perilous paths, but he overcame it all and finally made it to the capital.

Amon was elated that he could finally set forth to fulfil his father's wish. However, it was not as easy as he had thought it'd be. Though Amon was clever, he had yet to experience the world. He was ignorant and naive, no different from a plump white sheep waiting to be picked out by ravenous wolves and poisonous snakes.

Amon suffered failure after failure, and eventually he lost everything. He couldn't understand how and why. He had learnt from every failure, and made up for the lack of knowledge since he stepped foot into the capital. That is until a kind soul imparted some wisdom to the poor boy.

"You trust too easily, not everyone is a friend."

Amon took this lesson to heart, and bled sweat and tears to finally build his riches. This time, he made no friends and slaved alone, and hence couldn't be taken advantage of. His life was finally sailing smoothly and he was close to his goal of becoming the richest man in the capital.

However, he came to blows with an influential family and lost everything he slaved for overnight. Dumbfounded and angry, he couldn't understand why he had lost again. He was richer than every member in that household combined, yet they could take away everything in a single night. While he was at his lowest point, he bumped into the figure responsible for his downfall. The figure looked at him with disdain and sneered.

"So what if you're richer than us? Without power, you're nothing more than a fattened pig in a slaughterhouse."

Enlightened by his enemy and fuelled with anger, he strived to rise up higher and stronger than before. After many twists and turns, blood spilt in the shadows, and life burned under the sun, he tore down the wretched family and rose to the highest point in the capital.

Staring at the head of his enemy on a platter, he feared one of the descendants plotting his demise in the shadows. Thus, he sentenced every member to their deaths. From the young to the old, both male and female, all were captured to be beheaded.

Small heads rolled, females bled, and males cried to the heavens. Maybe their cries were heard, as Amon lived to a ripe old age surrounded by only his gold.

As Amon laid on his deathbed, he realised there was no one to hold his hand and bid him goodbye. Amon was filled with regret and a tear rolled from the corner of his eye. It flowed along the crevices of his wrinkles and landed on his wrinkled hand.

Before Amon breathed his last, however much he loved his father was how much Amon hated him. Amon cried bitterly in his heart.

'I fulfilled your hopes and dreams, but for that I am now dying all alone.'