Tale Of The Magical Bird Read online

Tale Of The Magical Bird

  Mehrdokht Amini

  Copyright Mehrdokht Amini 2013

  Table of Contents:

  Part one-The Beginning

  Part two- In Search of Destiny

  Part three- The End

  Part one: The Beginning

  Once upon a time, in a far away land on the edge of a magical realm, where tortoises could fly up side down in the sky and donkeys were proud of their intelligence, there lived a very old king who had seven sons. The youngest Malek was the bravest and closest to his father’s heart.

  Everyone in the kingdom was happy except the king who had a secret worry: Which of his sons was the most suitable to succeed him on the throne after his death?

  For long the king brooded on this dilemma in private, until one day he summoned his sons to the court. They came, one by one, and kissed the ground before the sultan and waited for his command.

  "My dear sons, for years I have dreamt of a magical singing bird in a golden cage and now I wish you to seek it for me. The one that succeeds in this quest will sit on the throne after me."

  They all became very excited and took leave to make preparation for their quest. Next day before sun rise they bade farewell to their father and set off on their journeys. The older brothers went in pairs.

  The first two took their sheepskin coats along with their bows and arrows and headed towards the north planning secretly to hunt a few gazelles first on their way and have them roasted by a legendry wine flowing spring that runs along the valley of the north mountain. After that they would of course look for the singing bird.

  The other two went towards the western sea. Enticed by the stories they had heard many times from sailors about the mysterious creatures living in the sea .So if they couldn’t find the singing bird at least capturing one of those beautiful mermaids was a possibility.

  The last two planned to take the southern direction to the Kingdom of silk and spice with its golden fruit trees and exotic animals.

  Malek had no other choice but to go toward the east and it’s notoriously hostile barren desert with no other companion but his faithful swift horse and his sword and lasso by his side.

  He rode for days and spent the nights among desert dwellers he met along the way to listen to their poetry under the moonlight and drink the fresh goat milk they kindly offered him. He asked of the singing bird from everyone he met but they said it is only an old legend and doesn’t really exist. But Malek wasn’t the kind to give up.

  On the twelfth day of his journey, he reached a kingdom on the edge of the desert. Riding through the streets he saw to his surprise that the walls were covered with black sheets and all the people were dressed in black mourning clothes.

  He dismounted from his horse and asked an old woman who was passing by where he could lodge for the night. She kindly led him to her own little house in a narrow alleyway and helped him to tie his horse to a tree in her tiny garden.

  After supper Malek asked the old woman the reason for the sadness and mourning in the town. She replied, "There is a ferocious Div that comes to the city every month. To keep this demon satisfied we must sacrifice a girl each month to him. Tonight it is the king’s beautiful daughter who is to be fed to the Div and that is why we are all in black."

  "Hasn’t any body tried to fight the Div?" Malek asked puzzled.

  "Many of our best warriors have been killed fighting the Div and the others are too scared to come forward."

  Malek got to his feet, his heart overwhelmed with pity “I am going to save the king’s daughter and get rid of this cruel demon.”

  "No please have mercy on yourself. You are too young to be killed, no one can defeat that beast." pleaded the old woman.

  But Malek was determined, and nothing could deter him from what he intended to do.

  He asked for direction to the Div’s hideout, said good-bye to the old woman who was crying for him and mounted his horse.

  Malek rode to the city gate from where he could see a dome-shaped tower up in the mountain where, according to the old woman, the princess was held captive. He galloped swiftly to the foot of the mountain, tied his horse to a tree and continued his journey on foot.

  Once he reached the tower he searched everywhere for an entrance but found none. He threw his lasso over the railing of a balcony high above and having secured the rope, climbed up to the balcony.

  In the tower he found a beautiful girl sitting by the wall sobbing silently. She was startled by the sudden appearance of the young man and asked why he had come.

  "I am here to set you free from the hideous demon." Malek replied.

  "God have mercy on you. Go before it is too late or else it will gobble you up too in no time." cried the girl.

  "I am not scared of any Demon and will defeat him tonight." Malek said bravely.

  He was so insistent that the girl gave up and said, “If you are so determined to fight the beast you must be aware of three signs. When he rises to fly the sky becomes dark, when he is flying it becomes unbearably hot and when he gets near the foul smell of his body makes it impossible to breathe."

  "Do not worry I will defeat him but I am tired now and must sleep, wake me up when you see the first sign of its approach."

  Having said this he laid his head on her lap and it wasn’t long before fell fast asleep. After midnight clouds covered the moon and it become dark then extremely hot. The girl did not dare to wake Malek but started crying instead. One of her tears dropped on Malek’s face, he woke up instantly just in time to see a huge Div with two sharp horns sprouting from his head, eyes like two burning torches and long razor sharp nails, flying toward them roaring fearfully and smelling disgustingly.

  Without delay Malek pulled out his sword and taking the monster by surprise swung it with all his might against the creature’s leg. It howled with pain and drew back in fear. The prince raised his sword again to finish the beast off, but as quickly as a flash it disappeared into the thin air. Malek took the shivering hand of the girl who was too scared to utter a word, and gently helped her down from the tower and together they returned to the city.

  Upon their arrival to the city mourning turned into celebration. The king thanked Malek for his help and asked him earnestly to stay with them and wed his daughter.

  Thanking him Malek replied, “I have promised my father to return home once I have found the magic bird in its golden cage.” So having paid his respects to the king and his daughter he rode off again in search of his destiny.