A Dark Trade - S01 E08

Story 3 months ago

A Dark Trade - S01 E08

Read Story: SEASON 1 EPISODE 8

Episode 8: A Dark Trade

The giant shadow stood in the middle of the warehouse. It looked like a hole in the world. It was a darkness so deep that even the moonlight could not touch it. When Chidi dropped the iron bar, the shadow did something terrible. It did not just disappear. It began to shriek. The sound was not like a human scream. It was a shriek of pure rage. It was a sound that tore through the quiet night. It was so loud and so sharp that it felt like it was cutting the air. The rats ran away in terror. The birds in the trees flew into the sky. The very walls of the warehouse began to shake from the power of that scream.

"Then you choose the rags!" the shadow hissed.

The voice was cold. It was the sound of a promise being broken. It was the sound of a door slamming shut forever. The shadow looked at Chidi with its invisible, burning eyes. It looked at the wooden plaque in Chidi’s hand. It hated the light of the friendship. It hated the choice Chidi had made. In an instant, the giant shadow began to shrink. It pulled itself together into a tiny point of blackness. Then, with a loud pop, the shadow vanished. It was gone as if it had never been there. But the danger was not gone. The danger was only just beginning.

In the far corner of the warehouse, there was a pile of dry burlap bags. They were old and dusty. A small spark appeared on top of the bags. It was a tiny, orange spark. It looked almost beautiful in the dark. But it was not a normal spark. It was a spark made of magic and anger. Before Chidi could even blink his eyes, the spark exploded. It did not grow slowly. It became a wall of roaring orange flame in one second. The fire was hungry. It began to eat the dry wood of the warehouse. It began to climb the walls like a thousand orange snakes.

"Run, Emeka! Run!" Chidi screamed.

The heat was already hitting his face. It was a heat so strong that it felt like it was melting his skin. Chidi did not think about himself. He did not think about his expensive coat. He only thought about his friend. He grabbed Emeka by the arm. Emeka was still frozen in shock. He was still looking at the place where the shadow had been. Chidi pushed him. He shoved his friend toward the big wooden doors.

They ran as fast as they could. The floor was starting to burn beneath their feet. Behind them, the fire was getting bigger and bigger. It was making a sound like a hungry beast. It was crackling and popping. Huge clouds of black smoke began to fill the high ceiling. Chidi and Emeka reached the doors just in time. They tumbled out onto the grass. They rolled on the ground as the cool night air hit their lungs.

Just as they got away, a terrible sound filled the night. CRACK! The roof of the warehouse could not hold the heat anymore. The giant wooden beams broke into pieces. The entire roof collapsed inward. It fell with a giant thud that shook the ground like an earthquake. A huge shower of sparks flew up into the dark sky. It looked like a volcano was erupting in the middle of the town. The warehouse was gone. It was now just a giant bowl of fire.

But the fire did not stop there. It was not a normal fire that stayed in one place. Chidi watched with wide eyes as the flames did something impossible. The wind was not blowing, but the fire began to move. It was as if an invisible hand was reaching out and guiding the flames. The orange fire leaped across the wide street. It jumped over the trees. It raced toward the other side of the town.

Chidi’s heart stopped. He knew where the fire was going. It was moving toward his big house. It was moving toward the mansion with the gold gates. It was moving toward the place where all his riches were kept.

"No!" Chidi cried. "Not the house! Please, not the house!"

He began to run. He ran faster than he had ever run in his life. His lungs were burning. His legs felt like they were on fire. He reached the street where his mansion stood. He stopped and fell to his knees. The sight was too much to bear.

The fire had reached his home. The flames were climbing up the white walls. They were breaking the glass windows. They were eating the silk curtains. The gold gates were starting to turn black from the smoke. Chidi looked at his driveway. His five luxury cars were parked there. They were his pride and joy. But the fire was eating them too.

The paint on the red car began to bubble and peel. The tires on the blue car exploded with loud bangs. The silver car began to melt like a candle. The gold car, the most expensive one of all, was covered in a thick layer of black soot. Chidi watched in total horror as his wealth literally turned into smoke. He could see his dreams drifting away into the dark sky. Everything he had worked for was disappearing.

"My money! My life!" Chidi wailed.

He thought about the big iron safe inside the house. It was full of the cash and gold the pot had given him. He thought if he could just get inside, he could save a little bit. He could save enough to still be rich. He tried to stand up. He tried to run toward the front door. He wanted to jump into the flames to save his gold.

But the heat was too intense. It was like a giant wall that pushed him back. He could not get within twenty feet of the house. The air was so hot that his hair began to singe. He fell back onto the dirt. He cried and screamed. He pulled at his hair. He felt like his heart was being torn out of his chest. He realized that the pot was taking back everything. The trade was being undone in the most painful way possible.

People began to gather from all over the market. They had seen the giant glow in the sky. They came to watch the spectacular destruction. They saw the richest man in the town crying in the dirt. They saw the mansion burning like a giant torch. They saw the five cars melting into puddles of metal. No one tried to help. No one brought water. They just stood and watched. They remembered how Chidi had treated them. They remembered his pride and his cold heart.

Emeka was the only one who did not just watch. He walked through the crowd. He found Chidi lying in the dust. Emeka did not say I told you so. He did not laugh at Chidi’s pain. Instead, he knelt down in the dirt. He reached out and took Chidi’s hand. He held it tightly. He stayed by Chidi’s side as the fire consumed everything. He was a true friend, even when there was nothing left to gain.

The fire burned all through the night. It was a fire that could not be put out. It burned until there was nothing left to eat. It burned until the very stones of the house turned to powder. Chidi sat there the whole time. He watched every flame. He watched every spark. He watched his life turn into a pile of nothing.

By the time the sun began to rise, the fire finally grew small. The bright orange light was replaced by the pale yellow light of the morning. The air was quiet again. The only sound was the occasional hiss of a dying ember.

Chidi stood up slowly. His bones felt old. His body felt heavy. He looked at the place where his mansion used to be. There was nothing left. There were no walls. There were no rooms. There was only a giant pile of gray ash. The ash was deep and soft, like a gray snow.

He looked at his driveway. The five luxury cars were gone. In their place were five twisted, melted shapes. They did not look like cars anymore. They looked like giant, rusted insects that had died in the heat. The wheels were gone. The engines were melted. The beautiful paint was just a memory.

Chidi looked down at himself. He was no longer wearing a silk robe. He was no longer wearing expensive shoes. The fire had singed his clothes while he sat in the dirt. His shirt was torn and black with soot. His pants were in rags. He was covered in gray ash from head to toe. He looked just like a beggar. He looked exactly like the people he had looked down upon.

He stood in the middle of the ruins. He had no money. He had no house. He had no cars. He had nothing but the singed rags on his back. The dark trade was over. The pot had taken its debt. Chidi was back where he started, but he was not the same man. He was a man who had seen the darkness, and he was a man who had lost everything to find his soul.

Chidi looked at the rising sun. It was a new day. He was a poor man again, but for the first time in a year, the heartbeat in his head was gone. The silence was the most beautiful thing he had ever heard.

Chidi lost everything in the fire. Do you think this was a fair punishment for his greed?

If you were Emeka, would you let Chidi live with you after everything that happened?

The shadow said "Then you choose the rags!" Do you think being poor and honest is better than being rich and cursed?

What do you think happened to the brown pot? Did it burn in the fire, or did it return to the old man?

Is this the end of Chidi's story, or is it just a new beginning?

To Be Continued...