There was once two gods who looked over the world. One was sweet, gentle, and kind. Her name was  Alyssa. She grew crops every spring and made people fall in love with each other. She sent rainbows as a message to the people, telling them she was happy for them. The other was rotten, sly, and full of bad luck. He did not have a name, for he was too mysterious but the people called him Sorte which means “bad luck” or “misfortune” in Latin. He pulled spirits out of people when they died so they could move freely out of their lifeless bodies. He loved warfare and sent storms and other catastrophes when people were being cruel or lazy.

One day, Destiny decided to change the world a bit. The gods were all immortals and the world was always terribly dull for them as they lived on and on. So destiny gave Sorte and Alyssa creatures to help do their jobs. Sorte got lions; brutal  creatures that prowled the villages, growling at anyone who was doing what they weren’t supposed to do. Alyssa got horses with gleaming coats who came in times of hopelessness and danger to help. Horses seemed to be magical creatures for the villagers who were always treating them with absolute care whenever they came, giving them stables and juicy apples to eat when they stopped by. Sorte’s lions were also treated well, though the treatments stopped when the lions started attacking other animals within their stables. Soon, however, the humans got angry with the lions. They decided to hunt them down for they came so frequent that the mothers were afraid they would steal their children, the fathers protective of their livestock which always decreased in number every year. Soon people were sending out hunters to capture and kill the vicious beasts.

As for the horses, they soon became reliant on them. When there was trouble, the horses’ presence seemed to clear them away. So the villagers eagerly sought out to capture wild horses, forcing them to drain their power within the village. There was no sicknesses in the village anymore to remind children to wash their hands or lions to scare away thieves. Destiny was starting to become furious at the other gods, warning them that, if he must, he would remove their helpers and they would have to do their jobs themselves. The two gods, alarmed, begged mercy and Destiny reluctantly gave them another chance. Then the two gods decided to make their animals more powerful so that the villagers would not capture them. Sorte mixed his lions with eagles, giving them the head of a bird and the body of a lion. They escaped out of their stables with roars and soared into the sky where they circled, their acute eyes searching for any bad behavior; if any happened they would dive, beaks snapping, and rip the person with powerful, brutal claws. He called them griffins. As a goddess of kindness, Alyssa decided her creatures would not escape with force but with magic. She gave them horns. People watched, their mouths gaping, as their fortunes vanished before their very own eyes.

There were three particular unicorns who lived in three particular stables for a very long time. As soon as they were given the power, they vanished into the woods. One, a male, was named Thunder. He had been a transportation vehicle for the villagers and loved the freedom of galloping, sending goods from one place to another for trade, within minutes. He hated the weight he had to drag, however, so his escape was a good one. As soon as he was out, he knew his passion was running. So he transformed into a great stallion and galloped away. The second unicorn, Cloud,  had had a stable stationed next to where the Griffins patrolled the sky. She loathed the horrible creatures but secretly marveled at how they could stay aloft with their majestic wings. So once she was out of her horrid prison, she grew wings and flew herself across the sky, laughing with pure joy.

The last unicorn, unlike the other two, was satisfied with who he was. He just wanted to be wild and free and away, like Cloud, but did not want to change his form. He had a name, Rusty, but quickly disposed of it. Rusty was a name given by humans and he wanted to forget them. So he became nameless.

One day, while soaring beautifully across her favorite river, Cloud spotted Thunder sipping some water quietly. As soon as she saw his handsome form, something made her glide down. Perhaps it was because of loneliness, but the two instantly fell in love and mated, having lots of children. Happier than ever, Thunder and Cloud settled in a comfortable cave with a perfect view of the sunrises and sunsets. The third unicorn decided to visit his fellow companions a few days after. Seeing them so in love reminded him of his own loneliness so he became their children’s uncle, living in the cave with his friends.

The griffins meanwhile, were bored with coming every year or so to the village to chase away a couple of rowdy kids. So they took to hunting in their spare time, seeking the best meats for themselves. They hunted in packs, glaring at any poor creature before lounging for the first bite then attacking each other for the leftovers. It happened that one day, they smelled the blood of Lily, a fair unicorn and the daughter of Thunder and Cloud. As soon as they lumbered into the unicorns’ cave, the parents neighed an alarm and Lily and the others ran for their lives.

But the griffins weren’t interested in the children. They were more or less hungry for the parents. Cloud screeched a warning to her mate and flew out of the cave, zooming out of sight. Some griffins took off to chase her but failed to catch her fleeting form as she raced below the open sky, a master of air. The last unicorn simply vanished on the spot, confusing the griffins as they looked around stupidly. Poor Thunder, however, was a powerless pony against a pack of ravenous griffens. He could run but not nearly enough and the griffins soon caught up with him, tearing him into bloodied flesh. After a minute or so of scrambling to get a bite from the griffins, he was no more.

Sorte found the whole event quite amusing. He decided to play with his griffins, sending them after the unicorns’ foals and placing a curse on them saying that they could not eat any other prey. Cloud and Thunder had many arguments about weather or not to mate for their species’ sake. Cloud, anguished by her terrible loss, refused to even look at her companion who, despite his grief, knew the job must be done. So they finally mated for their species and unicorns lived on.

 

The Lesson Learned

The Three Unicorns, by me, was written not only for your entertainment but for us to realize how lazy we’ve become. Sorte represents the majority of the population; the ones who are never bothering to recycle or even work. Cloud represents my mom and Thunder represents my grandfather who, as he grew older, also grew less in strength. My grandfather was hit with cancer and we do not know if he is going to even survive. The majority of cancer can not be helped, like Thunder’s epic death. Thunder wanted to be a horse because he couldn’t help it: He loved running. I hope this story makes you realize how deadly things can be.