Ravens Curse

The Ravens Curse

Darn birds! Dale say’s to himself, they just sit there on the fence a “creaky, crock, crow” all day like mindless zombies. It is as if they are calling for something or someone. He picks up a stone and tosses it into the bunched birds stacked on the fence. He almost hits one, but only manages to scare them away. Dale is use to living in the city and was not very fond of the idea of living on a farm. He hated the early rooster waking him, the dusty roads and most of all the lifeless small towns. He would resort to Games on His X-box just to escape the boredom of living on a farm.

Therefore he was very happy when he received a new game for his birthday two days ago. He decided that he would play the game quarter to five and then rumble off his homework so that when mother came home at five thirty he would be finished. There he sat on his bean bag gaming away the time. When he finished the level he jumped up and ran to the fridge to grab a bite. He opens the fridge and while browsing for a snack when Ben (a fox terrier) barks furiously at something in the yard. He sneaks over to the window to have a look at what Ben is barking. BLASTED CROWS! He says to himself. The crows would dive down on Ben and then fly up again, teasing the dog. Dale said to himself “That’s it I’m going to sort out these birds once and for all”.

He ran up to his parents room, opened the safe and then took his fathers shotgun. He loads the gun and hurries down and out the kitchen door.

He decides to hide himself behind the garage wall. He takes a peep at the mischievous birds teasing Ben and then hides himself again; he kept on doing this until the right moment would arrive for him to take a shot. The birds soon became tired of teasing Ben and were now gathered together on the fence, pruning their feathers and quarrelling amongst each other. This is it; I’ve got them now, the scum sucking squeaking feather stoppers! He points the gun at the crow sitting in the middle of the bunch and pulls the trigger. “BANG” The gun goes off. The after shock hits Dale so hard he lands on his bum a meter or so away from the wall, with his shoulder pins and needles and his out of breath. Holy Smoke that hurts like crazy; he says while standing up. He takes a look around the wall and sees three dead crows on the grass. Yes I’ve killed three of those squeaking feather balls. He walks over to the crows and with a smile on his face says “squeak now stupid feather balls” and starts laughing while pointing at the dead crows. Dale; Yip and another one and another and another one bits the dust he sings while dancing around the birds. His eye catches a black small figure while dancing and he stops. He looks to the fence and there a crow sits, staring at Dale. The tension so thick you could cut it with a knife. The bird squeaks and the flies away into the corn lands. “That’s right fly away feather ball or you will taste the fire of Dale Hudson” Dale taunts at the bird.

The day was approaching night and Dale as usual was watching cartoons on TV. He loves cartoon especially the ones with wizards and all kinds of magical monsters. The couch became even softer than usual and Dale was slowly floating to dreamland. He was just about to close his eyes, when his mother started screaming. He stood up and ran to his mother’s room. There he found her standing beside her bed holding a silver ring in her hands. What’s wrong mom? Well I was cleaning the bedside table when a large crow flew into the room, unto the bed and dropped this ring, then looked at me and flew away. They look at the ring and find strange looking marks; almost like ancient symbols, printed inside the inner of the ring.

This is actually a very beautiful ring; I think I’m going to keep it for myself. No mom what if it’s stolen or something. Don’t be silly Dale don’t you know that crows collect all kinds of shine things to decorate their nests? No really mom? Yes, besides whom do I give the ring back to if I don’t know who to give it back to? But still I don’t like the ring mom, throw it away! Don’t be silly Dale! Now go and set plates for dinner while I finish up her. But mom! No buts get down there or you’ll have to do dishes for a week. Okay mom, but I don’t like it! Dale walks to the kitchen wondering about the mysterious ring, he could not stop thinking why the crow brought the ring to his mom. Why? Why? Why?

That night he sneaked into his mother’s room to get the ring that has been bothering him without end. He sneaked out and went straight to the computer in the study. He searched until three AM that mourning and was just about to give up, when he stumbled upon symbols, identical to the symbols on the ring. He looked at the ring again and then searched the site for them. Then after some time he translated the symbols. The ravens curse. “THE RAVENS CURSE” he reads aloud “According to legend the ravens curse is a………..” No! Don’t Nicole! What are you doing don’t! Then a loud burst resonated from upstairs in the hall across the study. The sound made Dale stop, then there was silence and split seconds later a loud pounding sound followed; like the sound of someone falling. He ran as fast he could to his parent’s bedroom. The door stood half open, he walks towards it slowly; fearing of what he may discover. There his father stood in shock beside his mother’s body, the gun smeared with blood beside her. She had shot herself in the heart. She gasps for air while looking at Dale; you’ll be next HA... Ha...Ha she laughs like a sick person pointing her finger at Dale. His father shocked looks at him and says “what just happened here Dale” I don’t know but I think I know what caused it.

He grabs the gun and darts down the stairs out the front door, and runs into the barn. The crows all sitting in nests looking at him as if they were smiling. The words Ravens Curse, Ravens Curse, Ravens Curse played over and over in his head. The words became louder and louder until, he shouted STOP! The crows looked at him and squeaked. The noise turned into chants like monks at a sanctuary “Ravens Curse, Ravens Curse, Ravens Curse”. He points the gun at them then loses control over his body, almost like being hypnotized. He points the gun towards his head and then a silence… Click, he pulls the trigger.