The Price of Greed

### **Title: The Price of Greed**

**Character:**

- **Name:** Elias Thorn

- **Background:** Elias is a young man from a poor village. He was orphaned at a young age and grew up with little to his name, often going to bed hungry. Despite his hardships, he remained kind-hearted and hopeful, dreaming of a better life. However, as he grew older, the sting of poverty began to turn his dreams into desperate desires.

**Story:**

On a pitch-black night, under a moonless sky, Elias Thorn trudged through the thick forest near his village. The wind howled, and the trees whispered secrets that only the night could understand. He held a small oil lamp in his trembling hand, the only source of light in the oppressive darkness. His heart pounded, not from fear of the forest but from the cold grip of hunger that gnawed at his insides. He had no food at home, and the village had nothing to offer but empty promises of tomorrow.

Suddenly, a fierce gust of wind extinguished the flame of his lamp, plunging him into darkness. Elias stumbled forward, blind and lost, until his foot struck something solid. Startled, he bent down and felt around in the darkness, his fingers brushing against the coarse fabric of a large, heavy bag.

Curiosity piqued, Elias fumbled with the bag, finding a matchstick inside. He quickly struck it, relighting his lamp. The flickering light revealed a pot inside the bag, gleaming gold in the dim glow. He opened the pot, and his breath caught in his throat. It was filled with gold coins, more wealth than he had ever imagined. The greed in his heart bloomed, blinding him to the absurdity of his find.

Without hesitation, Elias took the pot and hid it back in the bag. He returned home, his mind racing with thoughts of the life he could finally live. Upon reaching his small, dilapidated house, he buried the pot in his floorboards and burned the bag, eager to erase any trace of the night’s events.

The next morning, Elias woke with a start. To his shock, the bag he had burned the previous night was lying in front of him, untouched. He shook his head, dismissing it as a figment of his imagination. But as the day wore on, strange things began to happen. He found no food in his home, despite his earlier stockpiling. In frustration, he kicked the bag and was startled to find it heavy with rice. He cooked and ate the rice, bewildered but grateful. As he continued to use the bag, it produced everything he desired—food, clothes, jewels. The bag began to change color, from black to red, with each use.

Years passed, and Elias’s life transformed. He married a beautiful woman named Lily, whose love brought him moments of true happiness. He became wealthy, living in a grand house far removed from the poverty of his youth. But the bag’s demands grew as well. Every time Elias used it, the color deepened, and the shadows in his home lengthened.

On the night of his 30th birthday, a date that coincided with the night he found the bag, Elias was awakened by a strange sensation. The bag, now a vibrant red, stood in the center of his room. As he watched in horror, a demon emerged from the bag, towering over him with eyes like burning coals.

“You have indulged in your greed, Elias Thorn,” the demon growled. “Now, it is time to pay the price.”

Elias fell to his knees, trembling. “I have nothing left to give you! Please, spare me!”

But the demon’s grin only widened. “You have everything I want.”

One by one, the demon took everything Elias cherished—his wife, Lily, their young daughter, the wealth he had amassed, and the friends he had made. All were sucked into the bag, their screams echoing in the night. The house crumbled around him, leaving Elias alone in the ruins of his greed.

Paralyzed by the horror of his loss, Elias was left to live in the darkness, unable to move or end his own life. The bag, once vibrant red, turned black again, absorbing the grief and despair that surrounded it. And as the bag vanished into the night, so did the last remnants of Elias’s hope.

No one in the village knew what happens to Elias Thorn. His house lay in ruins, his wealth gone, and the man himself was a ghost, trapped in his own misery, forever haunted by the voices of those he loved. The bag, too, disappeared into the shadows, waiting for the next soul driven by greed to stumble upon it.