What it Takes to Kill a Unicorn

The magician, Jebediah, dressed the like of a character from the past. His tan leather knee-high boots were always polished, with deep green pants slightly covering their tops. The man's broad belt was onyx black with a gold buckle, which he often turned toward the sky in order to peer at his majestic face. His button-down shirt was a light green, almost tan when looked at quickly. Ivory buttons, depicting legendary animals of magical origins, were all over his shirt. They looked as if they had been thrown carelessly on the shirt at some point and sewn in the same pattern of mayhem. Every button held a bulging pocket shut. He wore a thin leather vest that came down to his thighs. On it were swirling, faint green designs that started to move if stared at too long. His long hair was a deep red. His mouth was always smiling, but his dark cold eyes never showed the warmth his mouth portrayed. Any emotion he showed was only skin deep, unless it was grief.1

Jebediah came into town riding in the front of an old wagon. In faded green paint it read, "The werewolf tamer, brownie catcher, and master of mythical monsters!" Then his name was written in elegant gold lettering. When Jebediah rode through the center of town, all of the children all of the children came out to pet his horse. None of the children had ever seen a horse with wings before. 2

I knew he was a fraud. All of the children were petting it gingerly, with reverence, but I just walked up and tore the wings off of the poor horse. The thinnest strings attached the wings to the horse and when Jebediah pulled the reigns, they would flap. All of the children in front, who were wrestling through the crowd suddenly melted back into the mayhem of children retreating from me. I looked over at the young magician and saw the reason why. The man who rode in a second ago was now shaking violently and his face was presently only a shade lighter than his hair. I could only think of one thing to do. I ran away.3

4


Jebediah became the new form of entertainment for the town. He bought land on the outskirts of our village and made a wooden stadium. He did not make it himself, he had the carpenter do it for him. He was rich and always paid for other's services in gold. When people came to his shows, he always had a new animal to show, that he had altered in some way, rendering it magical. 5

I made it a habit to avoid that side of town. I begged my parents to move away, but they loved their "local magician." It seemed all too convenient that his land was across the road from the schoolhouse. Every morning and afternoon when I walked by, he would stop what he was doing and stare at me. No one noticed though; they were too busy staring at the animals in his show. 6

It got worse. Whenever there was not a show on, I would find him following me. He did not try to hide it, and no one realized he was stalking me. The oddest part was that normally there would be a crowd around him, but it was as if no one could see him. No one besides me. 7

My parents ran out of money, but Jebediah accepted gold as entry fees. My grandmother’s wedding ring was going to be given to him today. When my grandmother died last year, my mother saved the ring so that she could remember her mother always. As it has been so clear in our town so recently; magic is more important than family. 8

This Friday night I went to the show for the first time with my parents. It was rubbish, but the congregation that had gathered there was leaning forward as if he was the only person who could explain the meaning of life to them. I sat there, watching him smile at the audience with his beautifully shaped lips, and glare at me with his eyes that one could fall into if they were not careful. Maybe I was the only careful person in town.9

Even though he was sending malicious looks in my direction I was not scared of him anymore. Part of it was because he looked so ridiculous with the two contradicting expressions on his face at the same time, and the other part was that I knew that I was the last hope for everyone who lived in the area. 10

Something dropped. It came from him, but it blended in with the sand before I could see what it was. Then, all of a sudden, the show was done. Everyone stood up at the same time, and left. I was left sitting there, staring at Jebediah and wondering if I should just go and come back later. Before I had a chance to leave, he called out , “Why have you come, Nonbeliever?” 11

“I believe in magic,” I yelled from the stands, “just not your kind.”12

“Fair enough,” he replied, and quickly turned around, headed toward the wagon he lived in these days. 13

Who did he think he was, coming here and ruining everything? Anger usually causes rash actions, but sometimes it gives you the strength you did not have before. I raced down the wooden bleachers and up to the railing and the sign that stated “No spectators beyond this point: some magical animals are vicious and will bite.” I tore the warning down and leaped over the barrier. I was going to storm up to the door and try to open it with all of the force I could muster; if the door came off, that would be an extra bonus. But then I was grateful that I sat through the long “magic” show. There it was! I could see it twinkling in the faint light of the sunset. 14

The gold almost blended in with the sand of the arena. I ran over and picked it up. It was a necklace, or more specifically, a locket. I tried to open it, but it was shut tight. I flipped it over, trying to see if I could loosen it in some way, but I stopped. There was an inscription that I did not see before. There was a long list of instructions, but I could only read the title in the light. The title was all I needed. I suddenly got cold as I continued on my way to the wagon that looked so warm and inviting. 15

As I was about to knock, the door was opened by a gust of wind. He called, “Come in!” from inside the cavernous wagon, and I entered. 16

“I believe that you have something that belongs to me?” he stated, as if expecting me to hand it over, like a little child. 17

“It belongs to me until you tell me what’s going on. Then, you can do whatever you want with it.” It was a scary move, but I believed that his mind controlling tricks could not harm me. I risked everything, but I was right. 18

“Long or short?” he questioned me as he turned around to face me. 19

“I wouldn’t have come here if I wanted a short explanation.” It was so hard to sound sure. I realized that this was the first time that he did not have a grin on his face. Even when I ripped the wings off his horse, he kept smiling for the children. 20

“I come from a race of warriors. Every so often we would get an all-powerful leader who could speak with magic and make it listen. It was said that they could control the tribe with their will. There were many great leaders, but eventually a person overstepped their place and took advantage of the people who were weak and could not use magic. After a particularly horrible leader, the council of the tribe decided to split up the powers so that no one person would have them all. The next leader to obtain the special powers agreed with the council and split up the powers, leaving the ability to call magical beings from the other realm for himself. My father was a descendent from the last great leader. One night when he was calling a werewolf for his next show, a candle went out and when the werewolf came through to our world, the protection from the triangle of candles he created was broken. The werewolf did not see me, but he saw my father and killed him instantly. He knew my father would send him back. I have vowed to bring my father back and for that, I need to bring a unicorn into this world. I am not gifted in summoning beasts, so I must offer the magical powers gold. I finally have enough gold to do it. Once the unicorn comes into this world, it can help me save my father. Now I need that locket.” His hands twitched to his side, where I could see a knife hanging on his belt. I quickly gave it to him and he told me that I should go home. He also said that no one would believe me if I told them about this, so I better keep quiet. 21

I went out and hid behind his wagon. At twelve, when the moon was high above in the sky, he came out and systematically set the wooden stands on fire. After about ten minutes, it was apparent that the bleachers were used to hide all of his gold. In about an hour, all that was left from the fire, was a ring of gold on the ground. The circle fogged up until it seemed to be a cylinder of clouds reaching to the sky. Suddenly, the clouds started swirling toward the center of the circle until they formed a unicorn. It was white, like the clouds, but it’s horn was like the sun, and painful to look directly at. 22

For once, Jebediah seemed unsure of himself, but entered the circle and slowly pulled out his knife. The magical horse had a sweet disposition and came forward to meet him. He was going to kill it!23

I lost control. I had to save it, even if doing so killed me. I dashed into the circle. Surprised by the sudden movement in the middle of the night, Jebediah looked up. The unicorn did not seem surprised at all as I jumped on it’s back. I had no idea what it would do, but it seemed to feel my urgency. It raced out of the circle and into the woods, but I could hear Jebediah’s words in my head, like he was right next to me. “I need her blood, but if I can’t have her, you will feel my wrath. If you return her now, we will not punish you.”24

We rode on and on, until I fell off. I tried to force the Unicorn to go on, but she refused. Deep in the forest, she waited. Not even a stray wind broke the silence. I could not go on. 25

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There was a light off in the east. I thought that maybe I could find strength in the growing light, but it was not the sun. Soon I could see lanterns and the figures of people. The town people were coming after me, with my parents at Jebediah’s side. 27

A small girl came forward out of the crowd with Jebediah’s knife. The journey had taken a toll on her. The unicorn was startled at first, but when she heard footsteps, she looked up, sighing deeply, not caring the hunters heard, her long wait over.28

When the blanched, weary girl sat, the unicorn gratefully moved forward, putting her head into the promised lap. The tiny girl was the one to kill the unicorn and Jebidiah got his revenge.