Can a ring tell a whole story?

The sun had just risen. While the whole village slept, Jim was awake, like every other day. The boy stopped for a moment to admire the valley that appeared in front of him. He was living in a quiet village, the same since he could remember, no one new was coming in, no inhabitant was leaving. Everyone knew everyone and did the same thing every day. Jim took the wooden bucket from the house and started his usual trail to the fountain, about 15 minutes uphill. It was a well known journey for him, doing it at least three times a day. Although the climb was hard, the view made everything well deserved. From there you can not only see the whole village, but you can see beyond it, the surrounding mountains and the horizon. The boy could not help but wonder what may be beyond his little village, the mountains that separate his boring life from the unknown and more interesting adventures and undiscovered places. He longed for the life after the horizon.

His contemplation was interrupted by the pressed steps of a silhouette that was coming towards the fountain. It was unusual for another resident to come here at this time, but what was even stranger was this person was not a villager. While he got closer, the boy could discern the features. He was an old man with a rattling sack behind him, breaking the silence around him. The old man's face was gentle, his eyes still tender like a child s. He was poorly dressed and held something in his right hand. When he got closer to the fountain, he put the bag down and took out a goblet made of something that looked like gold. The old man took the goblet and filled it with water, drinking with a great thirst, and not even noticing the young boy sitting next to him and studying him with unparalleled curiosity. After the old man quenched his thirst, he realized that he wasn't alone on the hill. When he saw the boy studying him, his face dropped and his eyes started tearing up. He turned white as if he saw a ghost. Jim stood motionless and stunned in front of the old man.

"You ... is it possible? Oh, so many years have passed, look at how big you've grown." The traveler's voice trembled.

"I'm sorry, I think you mean someone else ... I don't ..." but he didn't finish his sentence because the old man collapsed on the ground. His poor clothes were now blood soaked and the man could barely speak. An arrow pierced his body, but when the boy went to see who the killer was, he saw only a figure dressed in black, riding away on a white stallion. He knew that he could not go after him, so he turned to the old man. His body was cold when Jim put his head on his lap. The old man looked at the boy and, with a last effort, put a ring in his hand and said:

"Everett ... find it, take the ring .... north of Gray Mountain ... watch out ... watch out for ..." and he gazed on the spot where the killer ran away. He looked back to the boy that was holding him in his arms and took his last breath. Jim opened his fist where he held the ring so hard that you could see little bruises filled with blood on his hands.

The boy got up and, covered in the old man's blood, he went home in search of a shovel to bury the lifeless body of the traveler. The old man's last words were repeating in his mind. Everett, north of the gray mountain ...? Not only he did not know what all that meant, but what scared him it was that he needed to find something. 

When he got home, his father saw him, full of blood as he was, and, astonished, noticed the ring on his finger.

"Jim ... where were you? Where did you get this? "

The boy told his father the story. He told him about the old man's last words and the search in which he had to go. His father did not seem surprised, but rather worried. He looked up at the boy and, with tears in her eyes, returned to the house and brought an envelope to the boy.

"I think it's time to give you this." He handed him the envelope and said, "I'll take care of the funeral. You read this and start packing."

 Jim stood in the middle of the yard with the envelope in his hand, noticing that a star was stamped on it, the same star you could see on the ring, looking at his father, who was behaving incredibly strange. He sat down on the wooden bench in front of the house and opened the envelope, which was written with elegant letters "for James." He pulled out the carefully wrapped paper. Despite his expectations, the letter did not have more than a few lines: “I know you are confused, but we all need you. You are our only salvation. I am sorry for everything I have done, but I have done it for your own good. Your family needs your help. You were brought to this house by our faithful servant, the same one who, according to the plan, informed you of what you have to do. I love you!”. At the bottom of the page, was the signature of the author of the letter. Emily Everett. 

His natural mother.

When his father returned from the fountain on the hill, the boy was already saying goodbye to his adoptive mother. Jim was barely coping with the flood of information, the fact that the family he had known so far was in fact false, and his real family needed his help. Even more frightening ... beyond the horizon?

The boy said goodbye to his adoptive parents. He knew that whatever he found in his journey, he would return to his real home and his real family in the small village.

And so ... the boy began his journey

.

It had been several hours until the boy started to get tired. It was his first important trip, in addition to the rare hikes he made with his father from one village to another. His thoughts suffocated him, feeling as if he paid too much attention to them, he would collapse on the side of the road and stay there forever. He didn't know what he was looking for, or whom. He didn't know where he was going. He looked again at the ring on his finger, trying to find clues, but besides the massive crest you could see immediately, nothing else was noticeable. The crest had a majestic star in the center, being surrounded by ribbons. It was the same sign you could have seen on the envelope. The Everett family crest. He didn't want to think about his family, he didn't want to think about the old man who died in his arms or the mysterious killer ... so he started walking faster. When he walked, when he focused on his steps, on the road, his thoughts stopped.

Once the sun went down, the boy thought it was time to make a stop. He was tired, so he entered an inn, where he was served a huge portion of food. He thought about how far away his home was, his small, poor bed. While enjoying his dinner, two men sat down at the table next to him. Unwittingly, he listened to their conversation uninterestedly. One of the men was short and stocky, with tousled hair and bushy eyebrows, while the other was tall, slender, and wore a hat covering his face so you could barely see it. The short one spoke first:

"I do not think my plan will work. I can't get to Everett that fast. Plus everyone knows that the kingdom is cursed since ... "

"You can't give up now. You need to find the medicine for your wife. It's the only way for her to survive."

But Jim stopped listening ... He had received a crucial clue. Everett Kingdom ... is it ...? Was he part of a ... royal family? He? A simple poor young man from a small village? It was very clear to him that he had to find this kingdom.

The next morning, Jim was awake very early. He knew he had to cross the Gray Mountain, so ... he continued his journey. He asked several people about the kingdom he is looking for, receiving the same answer every time “you will see it as soon as you cross the mountain. But do you really want to go there? ” 

... Somehow ... he was already halfway up the mountain, and, exhausted, he paused to catch his breath. The lack of training made things a little complicated for him.

The boy managed to go down the mountain a few hours before the sun would set. The kingdom of Everett appeared sad, gloomy, and lifeless. Jim imagined that once it was absolutely gorgeous, with flowering trees, gardens full of roses and beautiful houses, full of happy inhabitants. But now, everything seemed to be ... abandoned.

 You could barely see the people on the bleak streets. All with their heads bowed, sad, trapped in a city that looks more like a prison. He descended into the valley and enters the city. A permanent cold lingered in every corner of it. He knew he had to find something. Only if he knew what ...

The ring started to burn his finger, leaving a bleeding wound. Suddenly, Jim felt his finger almost catching fire and took his ring off with a cry of pain. The ring fell and rolls in front of a fence. The boy picked it up and put it on his finger again. It didn't burn anymore. He looked up and noticed in front of him a building that looked like a castle, but just a little smaller. It was covered with green plants and seemed to have been abandoned. On the stone fence was a slate on which were inscribed the following: “THE EVERETT FAMILY. ”Forest fortune adiuvat" - "fortune favors the brave". The quote seemed to have been crossed by a thin blade, and below it was carelessly carved "Tempus edax rerum" .... Time devours all things.

The boy entered the gate, on to the garden that seemed completely abandoned, as was the house. The door of the house was black, but the handle was golden. What surprised the boy was the fact that the door was open, as if the house invited him inside.

He entered a high hall, in front of him was a huge staircase that probably led to the upper part of the castle. Around the corners you could see spider webs. The house seemed uninhabited, each object being covered in a thick layer of dust. Jim continued his search, taking it to the right, in a room that would probably have been the living room. But he was alone. It was just him. When he turned around, he saw a tapestry on the wall, which he somehow knew, it represented a family tree. In the middle there were a man and a woman. His parents. Below them was him, a child named James Everett. The tapestry was full of faces and the names of his cousins, grandparents, great-grandparents and other relatives of his. For the first time since learning the truth about his past, he truly realized that he was not alone. His eyes filled with tears.

Looking at the fabric, he couldn't help but notice, next to his father's name, there was another person, but in the place where his face should be seen, Jim saw a hole. Someone had burned the tapestry where his uncle should have been. But who could do something like that?

"They burned my face off the tapestry when I resisted doing the cruel things they made me do." The voice came from behind Jim. The voice was familiar. He turned around and recognized the tall, slender man from the inn where he had taken refuge the other day. He had the same hat that covered his face.

"We were waiting for you ... James" the man smiled and approached him. He raised his palm to the ring and said, "I think you're very confused about what's going on. As you may have noticed, I'm your uncle, my name is Charles."

"Where ... where are my parents?" Where are the others? They told me they needed help so I came ... I came to save them."

"I'm afraid you arrived too late ... 19 years later, in fact. The rest of our family was killed. I still remember that evening ... I had left home, I had just had an argument with your father. When I came back later that night I saw dear,familiar faces covered in blood. I knew it was too late ... when I got back here they were all dead ... and you, you were gone. "

Jim was speechless. He felt sick and could faint right there.

"You said they made you do cruel things...what...what were you referring to?„ his voice trembled and he tried not to burst into tears

„Just before the sad thing happened..my family ... our family.. had done some bad things ... and, well they paid dearly for them..the details are painful."

The man's face was visibly sore. Jim expected he would find his whole family ... but at least he had an uncle.

He couldn't sit still. He was agitated and overwhelmed. He went to the window and now looked at the neglected garden. The thorns had grown on the fence and you could only see a few wild flowers growing in places. Suddenly he noticed something in the garden that was not there when he came. It was a horse, he realized immediately that it was probably his uncle's horse. But ... he recognized him from somewhere ... it was the same white stallion he saw the old man's killer riding. That would have meant the killer was in the house ... it would have meant that the killer was really ... Charles.

He returned to the living room, where the man sat down on a dirty armchair and stared at the tapestry. Without taking his eyes off the wall, Jim heard him say:

"And I was really hoping you wouldn't see George, the stallion I mean ... I was going to leave before you and you wouldn't see him ... but I guess I have to kill you now."

"Who are you? You're not my uncle, are you? You ... intentionally sat down next to me in the inn. You are an impostor! "

"Oh no, no, I'm really your uncle, but I have to admit..the conversation in the inn was fake..so I could get you to come here... You see.. when you were born, the family agreed to name you the next leader ... so I had no choice ... and I killed everyone ..unfortunately you escaped ... but not this time. The ring you are wearing should have been on my hand, not yours!”

And the man got up, and in a split second drew a shining golden sword from its scabbard. Jim knew he was lost. Something shone out of his field of vision. A sword on the wall to his left. With a quick movement, almost unseen, he took the weapon of the wall. The only problem was that he had no idea how he should wield a sword. Charles attacked with a gracious movement, Jim not only defended himself, but he attacks his uncle who loses his balance and almost falls over the table. In a moment of inattention, his uncle brought the sword to Jim's neck. The boy dropped his sword and felt his uncle snatch the hot ring from his finger. He didn't realize the ring had burned his finger until it was removed. Charles put it on his finger, which was much larger than the boy's. In his eyes you could see the desire and pride he felt when he put it on his finger. Like he's been waiting for this his whole life.

"Finally ... after so many years ... it's mine ...". But Jim wouldn't know what he meant because suddenly the ring tightened on his uncle's finger and turned into flames. The man tried to get it out, but he couldn't. It was blocked. He dropped his weapon from his hand and his whole body disintegrates. there was a heartbreaking shout and the ring fell to the ground in the pile of ashes that had been no more than 5 seconds ago his uncle, Charles.

Now Jim was sitting in the middle of the living room, alone, again. He took the ring and put it on his finger. It was not burning, he was its rightful owner. He remembered the words scribbled on the stone fence ... time devours all things. Time, power, had devoured his uncle, destroyed the family he didn't even know he had. Suddenly, he saw a ray of sunshine caressing his face through the window. The sky was blue again, the garden was green again and full of flowers. He ran down the street and saw a bunch of people in groups. People were happy. They smiled, sang and most importantly, they were no longer afraid. Jim went back into the castle. He sat down on a chair and realized he had no idea what he would do next...all that he knew was that he succeeded... The curse was broken.