The Narwhal's Tusk

This is a different version of "The Monkey's Paw" in which a couple has received a strange package on the anniversary of their son's death and must cope with it.

“Pull her up!” Captain Sutherland bellowed. It was a crisp, dreary night, much too chill for the likings of a crew in the summer night of 1898. An eerie fog blocked the view of the violent ocean all around them. Only the moon shined directly above their schooner, vibrant in the mist. The crew yanked on the ropes as hard as they could, the pulleys squealing at the effort. The crew gasped and knelt on the ground in awe as a male narwhal, his moist skin glistening in the moonlight, appeared over the bow of the S.S. Salient. However, that is not what blinded the crew. Protruding from the narwhals upper lip, slightly to the left, was a sparkling, spiraling horn with a shimmering that seemed to draw all radiance and beauty to its one, long shaft of allurement.

The year was 1905, seven years after my son’s ship, the S.S. Salient, disappeared from the face of the Earth. I listened to the radio every night since, but no news of the discovery of their schooner had yet been reported. Still, I hoped. My husband, Alistair, gave up hope seventeen months after its disappearance.

On the night, the anniversary, of the S.S. Salient’s vanishing, a hollow thumping echoed through the house. At first, I thought I was imagining things during my mourning. Then, the knocking came again. Eager to see my Alec once more, I sprinted to the front door, followed by a sauntering Alistair. In my excitement, I fumbled with the lock, and swung the cedar door open wide, nearly knocking Alistair off his feet.

Nothing was there.

I glanced around until I finally spied a small, tightly wrapped, leather package on the ground before my feet. Slightly disappointed, I leaned over and gingerly picked it up, surprised by its sudden weight. I stared at the package, pondering whether to open it immediately or not, when I saw a note carefully written in the cursive of a gentle hand on the back. It read:

“This was found in 1903 on the deck of the sunken S.S. Salient. After many arguments, the government has decided, as this is your son, Captain Alec Sutherland’s property, you shall be allowed to keep it. But beware, for this artifact grants three wishes, all with an evil twist. Use this wisely and speak clearly, as the foolish always use the third for death.”

I glanced behind me to Alistair who, recovering from a state of shock and anxiety, nodded slowly. Gazing at the package with a newfound fear, I carefully unraveled the soft, brown leather wrapping. I was blinded as the artifact came into view. I held in my hands a sparkling, spiraling horn of ivory with a shimmering that seemed to draw all radiance and beauty to its single shaft of allurement.

I scrutinized the beautiful work for an unknown time until I heard Alistair speak, and I jumped as I was snapped back into reality. “What should we wish for?” he said, a hint of stupefaction still clinging to his voice.

I immediately knew what to say and did not hesitate to speak. “I wish our son, Captain Alec Sutherland, was alive again and here,” I affirmed, clutching the narwhal tusk to my chest.

The spiral of the horn suddenly seemed to twist in an almost soothing, yet painful way. At first, I relaxed my grip on the tusk, and my knuckles returned to their normal color, but then the friction of its movement burned on my hand. I dropped it with a brief scream to discover the horn was glowing a fiery blue.

Alistair and I stood stiffly staring at the tusk until it stopped glowing, but it seemed to have no effect. Eventually, I made my way to the white wooden porch, its peeling paint clawing at my bare feet. After gazing unblinkingly at the street for hours, Alistair came out to call me inside, and my weeping resumed.

I figured I had eventually gone to bed and fallen asleep, because I awoke hours later to a faint glow. My hand had accustomed a spiral imprint on it that began to glow first a warm red then screamed a fiery blue. I saw the same echo of the luminosity nearby, but would not investigate for fear of what may await me.

After lying in bed with a faint burning in my hand, I heard a hollow thump, thump, thump. At first I thought I was just hearing my heartbeat pounding in my ears, but it starting to become louder and louder until it was distinctly a knock on the front door.

Cautiously, I crawled out of bed and crept down the hall. I reached for the doorknob and coiled back several times until I built up the courage to touch its cool metal. I heed the note’s warning before finally twisting the doorknob, the creak screaming a warning in my ears.

I augmented all my bravery to swing the door open wide, then gazed breathlessly ahead. The sight before my eyes finally registered and I gasped. A man stood before me, his skin a sickly pale, eyes gazing into the distance although directed right at me, his clothes drenched and tattered, but still my lovable, funny, long-lost son, Alec.

“Alec!” I screeched, flinging my arms around the hollow shell of my son. He did not move as I did so. He merely stood limply, his now pale blue eyes gazing into the distance. After a moment that was brief, yet lasted forever, I held my son.

When I let go, he fell to the floor.

“Alec! Alec?” I knelt before him, shaking his yielding body. “Speak to me Alec!” He rolled onto his side, and weakly coughed up a puddle of water, entwined with blood.

“You can’t be gone! Not now! Not after I just got you back!” I turned around and Alistair now stood beside me after being awakened by the commotion. “Ali! Narwhal tooth! Now!”

Although he seemed ready to reject, Alistair rushed to the back of the house and retrieved the glowing narwhal tusk, tossing it from hand to hand as though it were a hot coal.

Without a second of thought, I grabbed it and screamed at the tusk, “I wish Alec were immortal, never to die again!”

After a few seconds of staring at the horn’s fading glow, it sparked again, and Alec sat up abruptly. He rubbed his raw hands against his pale unblinking eyes, causing me to flinch, disturbed.

“Alec? Are you alright, honey?” I inquired, for fear he would die again.

“Mother? What happened? Did I sleep in again? I had the strangest dream… It was cold and dark. There were sudden flashes in the sky. One hit the mast and we were all wet. I was in charge of a whole ship of crew and had to give them orders, but I failed, Mom. I failed. The next thing I knew, I was swimming in red waters with Great White Sharks,” Alec rambled aimlessly.

“It’s okay now. You’re okay,” I assured him, pulling him into an embrace that caused him to erupt into a coughing that racked his frame and sent a burning sensation throughout my hand.

For days, we went on with our former routine, acting as though nothing had happened. However, no one could hide the fact that Alec was so pale and weak. He had become sickly and erupted into coughing fits constantly, each fit more violent than the last.

One day, no one could stand it any longer. Alistair had lightly patted Alec on the back, sending him into a rapture of hacking, gasping for air. Eventually he didn’t make a sound, so Alistair decided the best choice was to force whatever was choking him out of his lungs. He pounded Alec’s back and performed the Heimlich until a mixture of blood and water was finally disembogued from his mouth, more than ever before.

Knowing we had no other choice, I solemnly stated, “Get the spiral.”

Fortunately, Alistair automatically understood my command and scurried to our bedroom. Within a few seconds, he was right next to me once more, his chest heaving and Alec screaming. “No! Not that foul thing! It killed him! It killed them all! It murdered every soul in my  It took a few minutes of soothing remarks to finally convince Alec that it would save him and the horn was good. However, we nearly risked speaking how it had brought him to life. The horn already vibrated impatiently as though it was anxious to answer my next and final wish.

“I wish Alec would no longer be tortured by this foul curse,” I whispered, the words echoing in my mind. My hand burned until I thought I would burst into flames. The wood around the tusk sparked and sizzled. Then, the glow of the tusk and burning sensation in my hand ceased. I looked at my right palm to find the glowing spiral imprint had disappeared.

Nothing happened.

Then, we all noticed Alec hadn't coughed. Thankfully, Alistair and I grinned excitedly. Then, I saw the excitement fade from his eyes. I turned to gaze upon in pure horror what he was so struck by. I wanted to tear my eyes away, but couldn't.

Alec lay limp and lifeless on the floor, and all our wishes were gone.

Author's Note

This was a one-page story we had to write for class. However, I may have gotten a little carried away and written a four-page story instead.

Reviews

[JadeForever]

love the ending...bitter but AWESOME!!!! but, why is there a different font here and there...its kinda distracting...OTHER THEN THAT..its :D SAD and ENTERTAINING.lol ok im done now. ROCK ON!!! :DDDDDDDDDDDDDDDD

[Artiste de Mots]

Thanks! I think the only time there was a different font was for the note, but I don't know I'll check and try to fix that. Thanks!

[Dream Hunter]

woah.... awesome story. the ending was so.... mysterious... and sad, too. you had me hooked for that story! :) good work

[Artiste de Mots]

Awesome. Exactly what I was going for. Thanks!