Have you ever heard the story of Sin Klepton?
It was a famous tale of a doll 19 years ago. It was a chronicle about me that was told to hundreds of kids every night to make them squirm under their quilt and shut their eyes in fear of having Sin get them.
It was the only thing I knew about myself ever since I regained consciousness. I had no recollection of my past, and what I only had was the tale fabricated for me to believe that my previous life was what made this the present.
As soon as I opened my eyes one day I was staring at this sinister toy in the mirror.
And it turned out that the creepy-ass doll was me.
I was a toy but no child desired to play with me.
I had vermilion colored fur. The clothing I was put in was black with two horns on top. My harmless tiny claws went past the long sleeves. I had a tail that had four pointed edges with the first and last tine bent into an elegant curve. My feet were red hoofs while my unaligned and jarred teeth grew out from my sewn lips that were curved into a grin. There was a star sloppily sewn on my forehead and it left me thinking:
'Why the fuck do I look like this?'
I was in a room that seemed like a tent nearing its collapse. There were holes in the tent that let the rays of sunlight pass through.
An old and filthy single sized bed was situated at the corner. Other uncanny looking dolls sat with me on the shelves with a full length mirror sitting across us. Other playthings were either strung or caged. Some of them were missing a leg, a head, an eye, and an arm while the others had an excess evolution of it.
A caped individual entered in a flash. A wrinkled old hand lashed out and grabbed my head in a tight squeeze. His rickety laugh accompanied with a dying cough emanated during which he maintained a curved posture.
"Grim reaper, grim reaper, grim reaper!" he screamed ecstatically. "You're finally a part of my collection. I can truthfully die in peace now...Hehehe..."
'That's great. So when will we hold a funeral?' I asked him through my mind.
The old man sauntered, leaving a trail of mud and dirt as he walked. He must have escaped death so many times but death managed to kill a part of him every time.
The doddering creep sat on his wobbly chair, slamming a book on the table. There was an aquarium of octopuses that was on the insect-infested desk. He submerged his hand to haul one to its doom. He squeezed the ink into his jar and tossed the octopus aside as it served its one-time purpose.
He reached out in front of him and plucked a feather from the starved and unmoving bird inside its cage. It let out a weak and exhausted complaint, but it looked like it was ready to die at any time and was more than willing to do so.
The old man brought out his pale tongue and licked the tip of the feather, before dipping it into the jar of ink. He began to write on the blank pages and as he wrote he spoke his words out loud.
"In days of yore, a God had created His most magnificent servant. He was neither good nor evil. He was neither light nor dark. He was neither a demon nor an angel. His real name was a curse to whoever would mention it. His power was unrivaled. His mercy was nonexistent. His loyalty was perpetual. He wore the cloak of darkness yet performed the acts of good in the name of His Lord.
With his scythe he took the lives of those opposing. With his scythe he finished the lives of those who his Father deemed ending. He was a tamed animal under his Lord's word, yet he turned into a wild beast with one command from the heavens.
The weaker creations of his Lordship were not happy with the rules laid out for them. They became rebellious. They became traitors. They had tried to persuade The Magnificent to join their side but ended up being ruthlessly slaughtered for their betrayal.
For years the weak stayed submissive and gave false praise to his Lordship. They sacrificed their young and gave offerings to appease his wrath. In time they befriended The Magnificent who despite his callousness desires companionship. The Magnificent was joyous of his new friends; however, as if in wolves in sheep's clothing, they bought a cursed item from a wandering peddler that is said to seal the most powerful. The Lord's most magnificent was sealed into the most maleficent—bringing fear and bad luck to those who would anger him.
No longer was he the most magnificent. No longer was he the most devoted. He became cunning, deceitful, and the master of trickery. He would steal the life of those children who turn deaf to their parents' words as a form of vengeance for the weak ones who disobeyed his Lordship. He acted out on his own will, no longer acknowledging the presence of his creator. He became sinful. He became a thief.
He is now known as Sin Klepton— the cursed taker of souls."
"He hides under the beds of little kids, watching if the children will obey their parents and sleep. Once he sees you still awake in the middle of the night, he will come out, reach out, and then...GRAB YOUR SOUL!" the idiot holding me, attempted to scare his two offspring. He vehemently shook me for the effects.
The female child was looking bored out of her life while the story had effectively scared the wits out of her brother.
"That story sucks papa. Sin Klepton is nothing but a sham. The weaker creations must have noticed that he was only using the name of his Lord to hurt people. He only got what he deserved," the young female elf commented negatively. Her brother hid behind her in fear.
"Well whatever his reasons were, Sin Klepton is no joke," the father of the two sighed, disappointed that he wasn't able to get his daughter scared. The girl brightened up and bounced on her bed.
"I want to hear about the story of the Prince and Princess of the Northern Kingdom and how they got married!"
"Sweetheart, again?"
"I-I...can you get that toy away from me now, papa?" the son asked. He hesitated to look at me.
"Alright then, I'll keep Sin Klepton on the top shelf in the kitchen so that he wouldn't get Elwin," he assured and stood up with a soft huff.
"Papa, what about my princess story?" she whined.
"We'll have that tomorrow night, Vionola. Get some sleep, you still have studies tomorrow."
The father tucked his children in their respective beds. He grabbed me and the thin book that came along with me. He blew the candle and turned to look at his children one last time.
"And remember, if Sin Klepton asks you to play with him, always say no."
A groan of disbelief came from the daughter; the son further hid under his blanket.
"Good night..."
Instead of placing me on the top shelf of the kitchen like he said he would, the father placed me on the dinner table.
"Such a scary toy but I can't blame Vionola for not believing this story. Sin Klepton? What a joke," he laughed out loud and headed to his room.
I sat in darkness, hearing some soft taps of feet in the children's room. A girly giggle emerged from inside. My soft and cotton-filled body fell on the floor. Before I knew it, I was walking towards their room.
"Vionola, papa said we should sleep! What if Klepton hears us?!" Elwin asked his sister.
She made her lips vibrate. "You believe that ruse? I can't believe you. Adults always use that kind of story to fool little kids like us. Now come on, let's play! I'll be the princess and you'll be the prince."
"I don't like this game. I don't want an ugly princess like you," he mocked in an upset tone.
"What do you mean ugly? May I remind you that I'm the most beautiful Princess the Elven race has? Just you wait, once I grow up I'll have so many princes and they will all be fighting for my love."
"That's such a scary story, Vionola. I had enough scary stories in one night," the son whined.
"Ugh! I don't want to play with you anymore, I'll play by myself," Vionola spoke gruffly.
"Enjoy lying to yourself big sis," Elwin yawned.
"I hate you!"
"No one wants your love in the first place."
The girl continued to whine and cry pathetically on her bed. Her younger brother tried to get some sleep despite the ruckus she made.
I looked up and the doorknob twisted by itself. I squeezed myself into the small gap that the door made. Her head was buried into her pillow and I climbed up before patting her head.
"What do you want?!" she asked in a gruff tone.
"Peace and quiet. Shut up sis," Elwin replied.
I continued to tap on her shoulder which caused her to snap but didn't move her head from its place.
"I already stopped, why do you keep on tapping on my shoulder?!" Vionola asked.
Elwin snorted, sitting up only to pale once he saw the culprit that was annoying her sister so much.
"Vio...Vio-Vionola..." he gasped.
"What do you want now?"
Elwin was making squeaky noises, much like a mouse.
"Vionola!" he screamed, falling from his bed.
Vionola jolted from her brother's scream. Her eyes widened when she saw me standing beside her.
"Do you want to play with me?"
A piercing scream erupted from the girl's throat which alerted their father and their neighbors.
Once the door opened with a slam, I was already lying down. Vionola and Elwin ran to their father's arms with a few neighbors knocking on their door to check if everything was alright.
"Klepton is alive! He was going to get Vionola!" Elwin cried.
Vionola was having a panic attack until she fainted. The mother of the two quickly came to take her children before blaming everything on her husband.
"I told you not to buy that stupid toy! Now look at your children believing in some ridiculous tale!" she shouted.
The father swallowed in fear. He poked me and withdrew his hand quickly as possible as if I would bite his hand off.
"Who took Klepton from the dinner table?" he asked.
Elwin was racking with sobs.
"No--No one did papa. Klepton came on his own."
"Throw that toy away, Tanyth. I don't want to see that ugly thing in my household ever again!" the wife shouted, dragging her kids away.
Tanyth grabbed me from the bed with cold sweat sheathing his skin. He picked up the book from the table and had concerned neighbors accompany him to the forest.
They threw me to the stream along with the book and then walked away while murmuring:
"Kids these days have wild imaginations."
"My Falael wouldn't be scared of something like that."
"Yeah right, your son fainted when he saw a fish gasping for air. You can't fool us."
Their voices gradually faded and a trickle of thoughts filled my mind.
'I only wanted to play with them…'
Days passed by and the stream dirtied upon the steps of a rotting corpse. The forest decayed with the dark aura brought by its presence and headed towards the village where those kids were.
They were the eleventh family who threw me away like this.
And they were the eleventh family who had perished because of the bad luck I brought.
'I didn't want them to die…'
More days had gone by and a family of seven went through the forest. I was grabbed by the youngest despite his mother's protest. He had played with me until his brothers decided to tyrannize him. I was tossed out after they ripped my arm and the pages of the book that told my story.
More hands had gotten a grip of me and each family that sheltered me either threw me out of fear or died in an atrocious death.
Was I really the harbinger of bad luck?
The old man who had sold me found me along the way. He clicked his tongue in displeasure as he tried to dust me a bit with his creased hand. He was carrying luggage on his back that was even bigger than his own body.
"This world does not appreciate art. Throwing you out like that, how does it feel to become derisory? Isn't it humbling?"
"Fuck you old man."
He built his tent in the nearby village, fixing the damages done to my body. He rewrote my tale with new pages and put me on display along with his other atrocious toys. People took notice of the peculiar tent. They entered with curiosity and left with pure antipathy for this man's masterpieces.
Once I thought that everything was hopeless for him, a pale man with bleached ivory hair entered. His scarf was wrapped around half of his face while he looked around.
"Hello master, please take a look around," he welcomed.
The visitor's opaque blue eyes wandered as he flicked the toys hanging above him.
"These are wonderful. You made all of these?" he asked.
"You have a good eye, sir. Yes, I made them. Aren't they magnificent?"
"Aramastus!" a deep snarl erupted from outside of the tent. An equally tall man with a darker shade of blond hair burst inside with a deep scowl on his face.
"Master Lucius, have you found the perfect gift for the young master?"
Lucius winced once he saw the things displayed.
"Not yet, but I was thinking of buying him a toy. What the heck is this place?"
"Welcome, sir. This is a toy shop. Each toy has its very own story to tell. Why don't you take a look around?"
Lucius swayed his head in firm disapproval.
"No thank you. I don't want my little brother to play with these weird...scary toys. Let's head out Arah," he commanded. He spun on his heels, exiting the area without lasting a minute inside.
"Forgive him and his lack of taste, I was also looking for a gift for the young master. Can you suggest the perfect toy for a four-year-old child?"
The old geezer gave out another one of his rickety laughs that resembled a squeaky door. He brought me out from the shelf.
"Why not take Sin Klepton? He is a popular toy of mine, only the very best for the young child with exquisite taste."
"I'll take it," Aramastus approved.
"Excellent sir, wise decision," the old man praised.
"A wise decision to die in the Master's hands if he ever finds out what I bought for his precious brother," Aramastus added.
I was put inside a bag with my tale and was taken for a long ride. These two men were traveling with a hybrid horse– a combination of a pegasus and a unicorn. They made a lot of stops before reaching their destination.
"Stay here, the stratiotes will hunt you down if they see you," Lucius told his subordinate.
"As you wish, master, but could you please hand my gift to the young master? I'm sure he will love it."
"You got Lucian a gift?" Lucius asked in a tone of suspicion.
"Do not worry, it is nothing dangerous. You can even check what is inside before handing it to him," Aramastus assured.
I felt the bag I was being kept get snatched.
"It better be normal or else I'll be skinning you alive on a normal sunny day," Lucius grunted.
The deep rumble of what I assume was a door sounded its opening. The hoofs of the pegacorn clicked.
The door rumbled into a tight shut. An innocent child's voice greeted Lucius.
"Onii, welcome back!"
"Chii!" Lucius answered joyously. "How have you been? Have you been a good prince?" he asked.
His younger brother chuckled.
"Yes, the goodest!"
I could almost hear Lucius swoon for his sibling.
"Of course you have been. Look, your big brother got you a present."
The boy gasped in joy. "How pretty! Is that really for me?" he asked.
"Of course! Only the best for my chii! And, my subordinate also got—"
'I know...he wouldn't want to play with me. Children liked pretty things, didn't they?'
Once Lucius opened the bag and took a peek at what was inside, his skin paled and his eyebrow twitched in annoyance.
"N–Never mind!" he sheepishly chuckled.
"What is it, onii?" he asked with much innocence dripping from his voice.
'I only wanted to play. It was my purpose wasn't it?'
"No--Nothing, nothing at all."
'But I was given nothing but frightened gazes by the people who I was supposed to please.'
"Is it another gift?" he asked with a hopeful tone.
Will I get thrown away again like last time?
"Ah...well yes but you wouldn't like it. I'll just get you another gift okay? I'll get you anything you want."
'I only wanted a friend.'
A woman's voice greeted Lucius in his arrival and for a moment of his distraction he dropped me to the ground. My spirits were already in the depths of deep dismay of being stuck alone. The light came inside the bag again and two blue and sparkling eyes stared at me with interest.
The most beautiful and purest of smiles spread across his pink petal lips. Where disgust and dread would usually be painted once I was seen, there was only adoration and bliss on his expression.
Was that smile really for me?
Was it truly for me?
But...I was ugly, wasn't I?
"So cute!" he chirped, reaching for me inside the bag.
He grabbed me with his small and beautiful hands. I stared at his loveliness and suddenly felt something beating inside this fluffy body I had.
"Won't you play with me?" he asked lovingly.
"Lucian, that toy that's—"
Lucian gave his brother a bright and grateful smile that made him jelly on his knees.
"I love it, onii. Thank you very much!"
"Eh?" Lucius questioned in bewilderment. His entire face reddened. "O...Okaa please say something!"
A long-haired blonde woman merely giggled at his plea.
"You know how Lucian is, his depiction of cuteness is entirely the opposite of ours. Perhaps he just sees the world in a different way than we do."
"How? I don't understand. How can he find that thing anywhere near attractive?" he questioned.
His mother leaned against her knuckles, watching Lucian play with me.
"Like I said Lucius, he just sees the world from a different perspective. That's what makes him even more special, don't you agree?"