Broad had not been expecting such a fall and was not prepared for
it. He gasped and choked, and then the sea he had swallowed rose all
about them; it filled the valley and washed up over the foot of the
mountains. Long was so tall that he was able to wade out of it, though
the water was up to his waist, and Sharpsight too was safe, for he was
on Long’s shoulder; but Broad was like to have been drowned. He only
saved himself by catching hold of Long’s hand, and so he was drawn out
of the water and up on dry land.
“That was a pretty trick to play upon me,” he gasped and spluttered.
But Long had no time to answer him, for already Sharpsight was
whispering in his ear that the Magician had awakened and was now on
his way to the Prince. He caught Broad by the belt and swung him up on
his shoulder, and this he could easily do, because now Broad was so
shrunken that he was quite light.
[Illustration: THERE WAS A GREAT BLACK RAVEN IN THE ROOM WITH THEM]
In two more steps Long had reached the castle, but already the Magician
was opening the door of the chamber where the Prince was.
“Quick! Quick!” cried Sharpsight. “Throw the pearl in at the window.”
And indeed there was no time to be lost. Long threw the pearl in
through the window, and the moment it touched the floor it turned into
the Princess. She stood there before the Prince, no longer pale and
sad, but smiling and as rosy as the dawn.
Already the Magician was in the room, with an evil smile upon his face.
When he saw the Princess standing there he gave a cry so loud and
terrible that the whole castle shook with it. And now the third iron
band that was about his waist broke.
At once the black velvet robe that had been held about him by the bands
rose and spread into two great black wings. His eyes shrank, his nose
grew long and sharp, and instead of the Magician there was a great
black raven in the room with them. Heavily flapping, it rose from the
ground. Three times round the room it flew, croaking mournfully, and
then out through the window.
And now through all the castle arose a stir and hum of life. The stone
figures in the hall stirred and looked about them, and stepped down, no
longer cold dead stone, but living, breathing people. They were those
who had come to the castle to search for the Princess, and had been
bewitched by the Magician and turned into statues; the evil charm was
broken, and they were alive once more.
When they found that it was the Prince and his followers who had
delivered them they did not know how to thank them enough. They could
not even grudge the Princess to the Prince, for it was he who had
brought them back to life. They all said they would return with the
Prince to his own country, so as to be at the wedding when he was
married to the Princess.
And what a wedding it was! There was enough cake and ale for all to
feast to their hearts’ content.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
Reviews
Reviews
No reviews yet
Be the first to share your thoughts on this work.
Join the Discussion
Join the discussion
Sign in to leave a comment or review.
Sign InorCreate an account