After recklessly gambling away their entire tuition fund, Jay and Roy were desperately in need of cash. They decided to seek out help from their rich friend, Ryan. "I don't have that much in cash, but I might know something that could help you." Jay and Roy's faces perked up as Ryan continued, "A few months ago my family bought a millionaire's mansion. He killed himself after his son died in a car accident. We found a map in his basement, we thought it might lead to something that was his," Ryan explained. "Steal a dead man's treasure? Why not?" Roy pumped his fist in the air.

 

The two friends ventured through the mountain with shovels ready, prepared to discover their newfound fortune. As the sun sets, the two friends found the tree with a noticeable "X" carved into it. "Hurry, before the sunlight goes out!" Roy said, running towards the tree. They quickly got straight to work, digging and digging with all their might until Jay's shovel clashed with something hard. "This is it!" Jay quickly swiped the dirt off the old wooden treasure box. The two friends lifted the box outside the surface, both curious and scared of what this treasure box might hold. "We should think more about this Roy. I don't think this is such a good idea," Jay's voice shook in anxiety, a sudden dread creeping inside his heart. "Shut up Jay! We need this money," Roy said as he impatiently tinkered with the box, desperate to open it, "Here it is."

 

As the box opened, a crowd of pigeons started screeching in the air as the box let out a thick cloud of dust. The two friends jumped back, startled at the sudden change in atmosphere. It was as if the whole world turned a few shades darker. "What is it?" Jay walked forward. The two friends peeked inside to a box that seemed to be empty, except for an object perfectly placed in the middle. It was a clay pot which held three incense sticks, anchored by a substance within that emitted a foul odor.  "What is that terrible smell?" Roy pinched his nose in disgust. "There's nothing inside," Jay commented. "Wow, what a genius!" Roy sarcastically said, "Now how are we supposed to pay for our tuition?" In anger, he pulled the three incense sticks and threw it away, "Useless scum." "Hey, let's just get out of here before it gets dark," Jay said, ushering his friend away from the box.

 

A few days later, a frantic knock came on Jay's dorm room. It was Roy. He collapsed on the floor, crying. "What happened?" Jay knelt next to Roy, shocked at his friend's sudden reaction. "My parents just died, Jay!" Roy screamed as he collapsed on the floor. "Hey, hey. Come inside alright? Just come inside," Jay placed his arms on Roy's shoulders, lifting him up to sit on the bed. "What happened?" Jay asked. "It was a car accident. A truck hit them from the middle of nowhere," Roy said in a frenzy panic, a wild madness in his eyes as he struggled to cope with the situation. Jay tried his best to comfort Roy but he knew that it would be pointless. No man could ever fully bear the death of a loved one. Roy eventually calmed down as his cries faded into a slow sob, "I'm telling you Jay. There is something wrong with that box. I'm telling you." "What? What's wrong?" Jay asked. "I had a dream last night. There was an old man staring down at me. His eyes glowed red, and he was laughing at me with the most sinister look on his face. I couldn't move. I couldn't breathe. I tried shouting and it was no use. I was forced to see him all night long," Roy said, "When I woke up, I heard the news." Jay's heart squirmed with unease but trying to give comfort to his friend, he said, "Try getting some sleep Roy. It's only a dream, that's all."

 

That night Jay dreamt he was back in that mountain forest. Directly in front of him was the treasure box. An old man with red eyes was hugging the box with all his might. His pale skin gave a deathly aura while his monstrous teeth relentlessly clawed into the box, but to no avail. He turned his attention away from the box and looked directly at me. His mouth was unnaturally large, and his smile, even more chilling, had a sinister quality that sent shivers down my spine. "The ritual is complete!" the monster cackled. Jay ran away as quickly as possible. As he glanced back into the darkness, he saw red eyes following him, bouncing as if galloping closer. Just before those crimson eyes closed the distance, he jolted awake from the nightmarish horror. A call came in from Ryan, his static voice echoing throughout the room, "Roy's dead." Jay dropped his phone, feeling his life energy draining away from his body. It was his fault that Roy died. "Are you there Jay?" Ryan said softly. "How?" Jay asked. "It was a car accident. He turned the wrong way and crashed into another car. They say it was suicide."

 

There was a knock on Jay's room later that day. "Why did you call me?" Ryan said as he sat on the bed. "I think Roy and his family's death is connected to what we found in the mountains. He said an old man came to his dream the night before he died. I think I saw the same man in my dream. What else do you know about it?" Jay paced back and forth frantically. "The treasure box? Nothing much, just that it was owned by a dead millionaire," Ryan's voice filled the small space. Jay suddenly had a quiet realization as he nervously said, "I never said anything about a treasure box." The room was eerily quiet. Jay looked back, "Ryan?" A sudden bang cracked through the air as a sudden pain flared through Jay's chest. It felt as if fire was spreading from inside his chest through all of his body. He collapsed on the floor as his only line of sight was Ryan's revolver pointed to his face. "Why?" Jay spat out, blood coughing out of his mouth.

 

Ryan's face turned from shock to sadness, tears streaming down his face as he saw his friend's helpless expression of despair, "That box, it belonged to my grandfather. He was a very poor man. He made a deal with something..." Ryan took a deep breath, "With someone to become rich. The shaman told him to put that treasure box in the middle of that mountain as an offering to it. But, there is a price to be paid. For every direct descendant of my grandfather, a sacrifice needs to be paid or they would die. I didn't want to die Jay," Ryan sobbed, collapsing to the floor next to his friend, "I didn't want to end up like my father! Please forgive me Jay. Please forgive me." Jay's eyes turned more and more grey as he started to lose more and more blood. "I was the one that rigged your game! I was the one that sent you to that mountain! When Roy opened that box, I transferred the curse to him. He and his direct family bloodline were destined to die! I had to do this Jay, I had no choice!" Ryan's eyes, which were red with tears, turned to face his former friend. Jay was already dead, his eyes lifeless yet filled with horror. Ryan knew that this scene would forever be ingrained in his memory. He wondered if he should have just surrendered to death, for he knew he would never again live fully with a free heart for the rest of his life.

 

Ryan cut off Jay's body into pieces before burying it in the mountains on a spot near the treasure box. He walked over to the opened box, planted three incense sticks on the small pot and closed it again. As the box awaits its next victim, Ryan let out a sob of despair as he pictured the day that his children would one day suffer the same fate as he did, continuing the endless cycle of the family curse.