Once a king set out on a long voyage, with a fleet of his seamen.
They went straight on night and day and arrived at an island which was covered by large trees.
The king and his men were shocked to find a lion under every tree.
As soon as the king and his people landed on the island the lions all rose up together and tried to attack the men.
After a long battle the king and his men managed to overcome the wild animals.
But the king had lost far too many of his men in this battle.
Those who remained alive now went through the forest on the other side of the forest. There was a beautiful garden on the other side, in which all the plants of the world grew at the same time.
In this garden there were three springs. The first spring flowed with silver, the second with gold and the third with pearls.
The men took out their knapsacks and filled them with these precious items.
In the middle of the garden there was a large lake.
When the men reached the edge of the Lake a voice was heard by all of them. “Who are you and what brings you here? Are you here to visit our king? “
However, the king and his men were too terrified to answer.
Then the voice came again. “I am the lake of this island and you do well to be afraid, for you have a lot to fear. Our king has seven heads and is now asleep. But he will wake up in a few minutes and he will come here to take his bath. Once he sees any of you it is impossible to escape him.” The king and his men looked at each other wondering how they could escape this predicament when the Lake continued, “take off your clothes and spread them on the path which leads from here to the castle. The king will then glide over the soft clothes. The king likes this and he will be so pleased that he will not eat you but instead he will give you some punishment.”
The men did exactly as they were told and they waited for some time.
At noon they heard the very Earth shake and tremble and open at many places. Out of the openings appeared lions, tigers and many beasts, which surrounded the castle and many beasts followed the king.
The king was a seven headed serpent. The serpent glided over the clothes that was laid out for him and wondered who had put such soft things on his path.
The serpent asked the Lake the same question the lake answered that this was done by people who wanted to honor him.
The king and the men were brought before the seven headed serpent.
On hearing how they came to the island the serpent was angry. “You have dared come here so I will punish you. I will not eat you but in return every year you must bring me among your people, twelve men and twelve maidens so that I can eat them. If you do not do this I will destroy your entire kingdom.”
Adapted from Greek Folk Tales
No comments:
Post a Comment