The Memory Thief
It began with whispers.
At first, people attributed it to the stress of modern life—long hours, constant pressure, and feeling overwhelmed. However, concerns grew when Mrs. Norris, who had never forgotten a name or a face, started calling her son by the wrong name.
Then, one by one, memories began to slip away.
People have forgotten their childhoods, parents have forgotten their children, and lovers have forgotten their promises. But this time, it wasn’t dementia; it was something darker. A shadow moved through the town, leaving blank spaces where once there were vivid recollections.
Eli had been skeptical of rumours, but could no longer ignore them when his brother Noah began forgetting weeks at a time. The boy who knew the names of every type of tree and every nook in the forest behind their house had become a stranger in his own life.
“Someone is taking them, Eli. They’re taking our memories.”
At first, Eli laughed him off, thinking Noah was just confused. However, when Noah began describing a figure — a tall man cloaked in shadow — who had been lurking at the edges of his thoughts, watching him, it became clear that Noah wasn’t just imagining things. There was something — no, someone — out there.
Desperation set in as Eli began his search, but the deeper he dug, the worse it got. It wasn’t just a local problem, it was an ancient creature of folklore, a thief who existed in the memory gaps, stealing fragments of lives and leaving behind nothing but emptiness.
They called him the Memory Thief, a phantom who could slip into minds unnoticed, weaving in and out of recollections, taking what he pleased and leaving confusion in his wake.
Eventually, Eli’s search brought him to the old cemetery on the edge of town. Amid the crumbling headstones, he found the Thief’s mark—a symbol carved deep into the earth, a twisted spiral that appeared to swallow itself—an ouroboros.
Eli waited. Hours passed, and the air grew thick. That’s when he saw the figure—a tall, gaunt shape with eyes that gleamed like fragments of forgotten stars.
“You’re too late,” the figure said, its voice echoing in Eli’s mind as if it were implanting thoughts.
Eli’s heart raced. “Give them back.”
The Thief smiled, and Eli felt his memories slipping away—his brother's face, his father’s voice, and even his name. But then Eli remembered something Noah had said:
“You have to fight to remember."
Eli clung to the thread of his past, unwilling to let go, and the Memory Thief recoiled. Eli lunged forward, breaking its hold on him. The figure crumpled, and the shadow over the town lifted with it. The memories slowly returned—not all at once, but in pieces. Eli collapsed, gasping for breath, but he had won. He had reclaimed the memories of those he loved. And he would never forget again.
