Chapter 7 The Firebird There once was a deep, dark forest.
It wasn't a spooky one, but it was just strange enough that no one from the kingdom chose to live there.
The ground of the dark forest was rarely ever walked upon.
In fact, even the animals of the forest—rabbits, foxes, deer, squirrels—chose to make their homes elsewhere.
Sunshine rarely made it through the thick trees.
Few flowers bloomed.
Occasionally, a hearty daisy might peek her head through the shrubs.
Sometimes a wildflower would come out.
But for the most part, the woods were empty of Earth's colorful life.
However, there was a tree in that forest.
It was a very special tree that followed none of the forest's rules.
Tree was average in height and size, but there were other things about it that made it special.
Its leaves were spectacular.
They had such a variety of colors and not just the usual autumn ones.
These leaves glistened.
Each one sparkled as if it had been polished.
The shapes of the leaves were just as unusual as the colors.
Some leaves looked like those of a maple tree, a few resembled oak leaves and others looked like they came from a birch tree.
But the strangest and most wonderful thing on the tree was its fruit.
It didn't bear just one type.
There were apples, oranges, pears, plums, to name only a few.
The branches bent over with all the tasty choices.
The tree was a mystery to anyone who heard about it.
Few actually saw it, of course, but those daring people who visited the forest found it incredible.
One day there was a strange flutter in the woods that had never been heard before.
The unusual sound grew louder and louder.
It was like a low thunder.
Suddenly a great golden bird flashed like lightning through the leaves of the unusual tree.
It was a bird that looked as if it were made of fire.
Its feathers were bright red and orange.
Its eyes were like hot glowing marbles.
The tail of the bird was like a shooting star in the night sky.
A more beautiful sight would be hard to find.
On the outskirts of the forest there lived a prince.
Prince Ivan was a kind and handsome man.
Occasionally he walked the forest paths, which reassured the people in the kingdom of his bravery.
On the night of the firebird's arrival, Prince Ivan happened to be taking one of his walks through the forest.
He saw the spectacular bird flash through the trees and settle on a low branch.
He figured it would be a great prize to take it home and show his kingdom.
He hid in the bushes and within minutes the bird swooped down and Prince Ivan caught him in his arms.
The bird struggled, but the prince held on tight.
Then something very strange happened.
The large creature began to talk.
Let me go, said the firebird.
Let me go, and I will give you something wonderful.
What could you give me that could possibly be so special that I would let you go?
The prince asked.
Every man, woman, and child in my kingdom would like to see a fine creature like you.
What if I gave you this, said the firebird, plucking a golden feather from his breast?
It is a beautiful feather, said the prince, but how can it possibly do anything for me?
It's just a feather.
I promise it will someday prove special to you.
Perhaps it will even save your life, the firebird said.
The prince laughed at the thought of a feather actually doing such a thing.
But it is too lovely to turn down, he added.
I will take the feather and you can keep your freedom.
The firebird heard these words and flew off.
The prince was about to leave too when he heard a sweet song sweep through the forest.
It took the prince a few minutes before he could actually find where the music was coming from.
Finally, he spied twelve lovely maidens singing the melody.
The girls were dressed in long white gowns.
They wore wreaths of pink and white flowers upon their heads.
The most beautiful things about them were their voices.
They sang as sweetly as angels.
Never had the prince heard anything like it.
He sat down, gazing at them.
They seemed perfect in every way.
The lovely group of women created a circle around the mysterious tree.
There they were joined by a lovely princess.
She wore a white and gold robe, which hung loosely over her shoulders.
They all took turns shaking the tree and catching the falling fruit golden pear, silver peaches and ruby apples.
They threw one to Prince Ivan, and he took a bite.
Prince was delighted by the company and the delicious fruit.
He stopped chewing and introduced himself to the princess.
The lovely princess curtsied but then told the prince she was quite scared for him.
This was odd because the princess herself didn't seem frightened at all.
Don't stay here, she warned him.
This is a dangerous place.
Look.
Glancing over to where the princess was pointing, the prince saw the walls of a large grey building.
Although it was almost completely hidden by trees, it wasn't far away.
That, the beautiful princess said, is the castle of Ketch-Jay.
And who exactly is Ketch-Jay? asked the prince.
Haven't you heard of him? the princess asked in a disbelief.
He ain't. is a monster, I guess I should say.
He sometimes looks human, sometimes animal, but most of the time he looks like a demon.
He will do terrible things to any man he finds on his land, and we are on Ketch'day's land.
That doesn't bother me, said the prince.
I will stay here.
No sooner were the words out of Prince Ivan's mouth than there was a crashing sound, as if by magic, the girls disappeared.
The trees began to shake, the earth quaked, and everything went black.
The prince tried to find an escape path in the darkness, but he could find no way out.
In a blaze of light, a crowd of dark, devilish monsters appeared.
The creatures had strange faces.
Their mouths were shaped like circles, and their low growling voices came out as a great howl.
Their eyes, tiny and green, seemed to glow like candles.
They had long, bony fingers with jagged claws, and the prince was surrounded by them.
He had nowhere to run or hide.
In a matter of seconds, the group grabbed him.
He struggled to get free, but he found it impossible.
Then, in a crash of thunder and a flash of lightning, the most horrible of the monsters appeared.
He was terrible to look at.
He had the shape of a man, but wiry black fur covered his entire body.
He resembled the rest of the monsters, but he appeared to be much stronger.
He looked meaner than the others, if that was possible.
"'Are you Ketch-J?' the prince asked, not actually expecting an answer.
The monster growled.
The princess had not lied.
He certainly was a terrible demon.
Why are you here in my forest?
The creature barked, surprising Prince Ivan with a human voice.
The prince's mind was racing, searching for answers.
The demons were so much bigger than he was, he would never stand a chance in a fight.
Why are you here? the demon growled again, seeming even angrier than before.
I don't know, the prince said honestly.
He was looking at the group, still trying to find a way to escape.
It's no use trying to get free, the beast said.
No one who enters my land may ever leave it.
When I cast my spell over you, you will become one of my devilish crowd.
Ketchti raised his hand as if to hit the prince, but the prince remembered the firebird's life-saving feather.
He quickly pulled it from his jacket and waved it in front of Ketchti.
In an instant, the glorious firebird appeared.
The creature looked like a ball of fire as he swooped down.
The monsters forgot about the prince while they watched the brilliant bird.
They became almost powerless in his presence.
Ketchi also stood very still, shaking with fear.
The firebird looked to the prince and flew close to him whispering Go to the bottom of the tree that bears the many fruits.
There is a hole there.
Crawl into it and bring out what you find.
Hurry, while I distract the demons.
The prince ran to the tree, tempted to continue down the path and all the way out of the forest.
But the firebird had seemed sure of what he was asking.
The prince decided it best to follow the bird's request.
Quickly Prince Ivan returned with an iron box.
Ketchji was still in the same spot, his hands trembling.
Open the lid. said the firebird.
Prince Ivan did as he was told.
Inside was an enormous egg, which the prince took out of the box.
This is the reason why Kutchji is shaking with fear, said the firebird holding up the egg to show the prince as he began to tell the story.
Many years ago, a princess lived in the cottage in this forest.
More than anything else in the world, she loved to sing.
She invited a group of twelve lovely maidens to live with her.
Together, they sang beautiful songs under the apple tree by the cottage.
They always sang for the birds and other animals.
One day, Ketchji, the evil one here, came upon the women.
Trying to impress the ladies, he began to sing too.
He began howling, his voice quite sour compared with the maidens' voices.
The women laughed at him and covered their ears.
Ketchi became so angry that he began to throw apples from the tree at the maidens.
As he threw them, the strangest thing happened.
The apples turned into different types of fruit, and not just types of fruit to eat.
They also turned into peaches, sparkling with ruby dust and plums with crystal dew.
The maidens were overjoyed.
Of course, Ketchi didn't want them to be happy.
He was so mad that he climbed up onto the higher branches of the tree.
There he saw me, sitting in my nest.
The prince was so involved in the story that he did not notice Ketchy standing behind him.
The magician took a few steps toward Prince Ivan.
The darkness of the forest was hiding him well.
What happened then? the prince asked.
He saw what a beautiful bird I was, and he tried to capture me, just as you did.
But I was ready for him.
I flew quickly from my nest.
When I did, he grabbed my egg, jumped down from the tree and started to run.
And then, asked the prince, still unaware of the demon moving closer to him.
Aside from being a wonderful singer, the princess was also magical.
She performed a spell that captured the spirit of Ketchi and put it into the egg, and his spirit has been there ever since.
To get rid of Ketchji, we would need to... Look out!
The firebird shouted suddenly.
He'd noticed that Ketchji was about to attack the prince.
Ketchji jumped at the prince, trying to take the egg before it could be destroyed.
But he was too late.
The prince threw it to the ground, egg smashed into pieces and as a piercing scream filled the air, everything went completely dark.
When the light finally returned in the morning, everything had changed.
Ketch-2 was gone.
Even his castle had disappeared.
The mob of monsters was now a group of handsome young men and lovely girls who had all been under his spell.
Beautiful princess returned with her twelve maidens just as magically as they had disappeared.
The maidens carried a crown and royal robe for their lovely princess and they knelt when they stopped before Prince Ivan.
They thanked him for his bravery.
The princess explained that they had to escape when Kechte appeared because they feared for their lives.
He would have destroyed them.
But the princess knew in her heart that Prince Ivan could defeat the evil one.
I'm sorry we abandoned you in his presence, the princess said quietly.
Do not worry about that now.
Think of this instead.
Will you be my lady? the prince asked, drawing the princess close to him.
Yes, said the princess.
The crowd cheered.
It seemed the maidens and noblemen were not the only ones happy to see the royal couple together.
At the moment the two were united, a burst of fireworks lit up the sky.
Sparkles of red, orange, blue, and green rained down over them.
Some say it was a spirit of Ketchte, broken forever, sprinkling light down upon the dark forest.
Prince, looking skyward at the fireworks, thought for sure he saw a bird, once made of fire, fading into the bright orange sunset.
