KORRUPT

 

Once upon a time in a certain village, there lived a girl named Isha. She was very beautiful and in all the lands throughout the west coast of Africa, everyone talked of what a special beauty she was.  

Although she had been born to a wealthy family, she behaved humbly towards everyone. Her beauty and warm nature made the villagers fondly call her 'Priye' meaning "a god-child.’ Priye was like a great title for someone that is loved by everyone, something royal or with a handsome beauty. Everyone loved Isha and held her in high esteem. As she grew up into a lady, she also excelled in many aspects of life from sports to work.

 

She was thirteen when her parents set sail on one of their sea travels, being gemstone dealers. Young Isha had been their only child and having no relatives that lived nearby, her parents entrusted the key to their highly valued estate to their daughter.

The key had been made of the rarest jewels and shaped into a medallion. On it was etched the letters ‘B.E.T.T.E.R.L.I.F.E’

Although most of the elders of the village had knowledge of the key, no one had ever seen it. The key held the only way to enter the family’s mighty estate through it’s tall enchanted gate. The estate was filled with all kinds of treasures in the world.

In this estate were rocks of gemstones, rich farmlands and healing waters. Even the air was said to have a calming effect to be a troubled mind. It is indeed a place of everlasting happiness and peace. The treasure-filled estate was meant to be Isha’s when she came of the accepted age for inheritance.

Before her parents left, they warned her earnestly about trusting anyone especially unfamiliar persons who may pretend to be extended family members from the surrounding villages. She bade her mom and dad farewell on their trip while they in turns promised to bring her good gifts on their return home.

As the days turned to month, many people from the village and faraway lands approached her. They knew she now had the famed key to mighty family estate and wanted to be her friend for their personal gains. She declined such friendship politely one-by-one as they came.

The seasons came and went while her parents were on their trip yet she maintained her usual calm and respectful manners. Soon, the wicked villagers who had wanted to trick her gave up their bad intentions of dispossessing her of the precious key.

This had gone on until only a few weeks when this key; worth a life of prosperity for Isha, was to be transferred in her name. A certain woman had approached young Isha at her home.

It had been a rainy day. It had poured all day and in the evening a woman walked towards the door to young Isha’s house. The woman appeared sickly, old and tired.

‘koi! koi!! koi!!!’ The old woman knocked almost inaudibly. She was shivering in the rain like a leaf on a windy Harmattan morning.

Isha, against her usual resolve to entertain strangers ran to the door. When she saw the frail woman caught in the harsh weather, she was full of compassion and pulled the woman into her home.

For several days she took care of the strange old woman. Soon, the old woman got better. She warmed young Isha’s heart with ancient tales – only the stories were intended to deceive young Isha.

It took several days until the old woman, seeing she had successfully won the trust of young Isha, pleaded with the young girl to see this precious key she talked so heartily about.

Unsuspecting the motive of the request, the young girl got into her secret safe and reappeared with the medallion-shaped key. Young Isha handed the key to the old woman smiling timidly at her soon-to-be treasure-estate The old woman also returned the smile as best as she could. The woman inspected the medallion for a few moments.

Knowing she may never again set eye on the key, the old woman saw her opportunity and quickly transformed into great eerie-looking bird. The bird laughed hysterically and vanished into thin air with the precious medallion key around her neck.

Young Isha had been so frightened she fainted immediately at the terrible sight of the animal.  When she finally awoke, seeing the key was gone, she threw herself to the ground violently and wailed much to the attention of the rest of village.

Slowly, the people gather and she told them of her encounter. It had been a bad experience and everyone felt pity for the young girl. Some of the villagers wept with her. Nobody could have imagined such a fate for the young girl everyone loved.

At last, the elders of the village confirmed that the strange old woman had been the five thousand-year old fairy. She had been named Korrupt, for all the wickedness she caused everywhere she went.

The fairy was so powerful it had never been defeated. In fact, ancient wisdom held it that the evil fairy had been responsible for the death of thousands of brave warriors from the village and beyond. She had made the people from many villages in the west coast of Africa and across the sea suffer many grave diseases, wars and hunger. She was evil…very evil.

Hearing this words, the young girl wept harder. The entire village felt sad for her. It had been a terrible encounter. How was young Isha ever going to find this fairy, defeat her and reclaim the key to the treasured estate – her future – her inheritance?