Historical fiction; Hungarian fiction -- Translations into English; Transylvania (Romania) -- History -- Fiction
But now a bound of his horse brought Feriz alongside of the Prince, and
regarding Kemeny with flashing eyes, he aimed a blow at his neck with
his supple Damascus blade; while Kemeny, with a lowering countenance,
seized his sword with both hands, and dealt a tremendous backward blow
with all his might which was meant to cut his presumptuous young
assailant in two. It was as though a young eagle had brought a flying
panther to bay, and forced him to a life-and-death struggle. At the
moment when both swords sped hissing through the air, Kemeny's horse
again stumbled and fell forward with a broken foot, causing Kemeny's
blow to fall wide, and strike not Feriz but Feriz' horse's head, which
it clove in twain, while Feriz' blow flashed down upon the Prince's
forehead.
The Prince as he sank from his horse looked darkly up into the face of
his youthful opponent. The blood flowed in streams from his frowning
forehead. Once more he gave his horse the spur, but the maimed beast
only reared on its hind legs, fell over with its sinking rider, and both
were instantly trampled under-foot by the enemy's cavalry.
In the wild rout no one noticed the spot where the Prince had fallen. It
was only after many days that his torn and tattered mantle and his
broken sword were offered for sale in the market-place of Segesvar by
Turkish hucksters, purchased by Michael Apafi, now sole Prince of
Transylvania, and subsequently preserved in his museum at Fogaros. Apafi
also ordered search to be made on the battle-field for the corpse of
the fallen Prince in order to give it decent and honourable burial, but
no one could recognize his body among the naked and mutilated slain.
* * * * *
The battle won, Kucsuk by a flourish of trumpets recalled his squadrons
from pursuing the beaten foe. The Turkish horsemen came galloping back
at once, quite contrary to the usual practice of Turkish armies, which
are generally as much demoralized after a victory as the vanquished
themselves. Kucsuk had inured them to the strictest discipline.
Back they came, black with smoke and red with blood, but the bloodiest
of all was Feriz Beg. His mantle was riddled with bullets, and the horse
he rode was the third that he had mounted since the action began, two
had already been killed under him.
Kucsuk, without a word, embraced his son, kissed him on the forehead,
fastened his own Nishan Order on his breast, and exchanged swords with
him, then the highest conceivable distinction.
Ferhad Aga, the leader of the right wing, was brought dead, on a litter
of lances, before the general. His body bore wounds of every shape and
size; he was literally covered with gunshot wounds, sabre-cuts, and
lance-thrusts.
Kucsuk sprang from his horse, bent weeping over the corpse, covered it
with kisses, and swore by Allah that he would not have given this man's
life for the whole of Transylvania.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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