🧚 Opening, part 24 · page 2

Iván Tsarévich got up, went into the stable, and lay behind the crib.77

Bába Yagá made a tremendous stir and cried out to her mares: “Why did you come back?”78

“How should we not come back?—all the bees from every part of the world, visible and invisible, flew round us, and they stung us till our blood flowed.”79

Bába Yagá went to sleep; and that same night Iván Tsarévich stole the mangy steed from its stall, mounted it and flew to the fiery river.80 He reached that river, waved the cloth three times to the right; and, at once, from some strange source, a lofty, splendid bridge hung all the way over.81 The Tsarévich crossed the bridge, waved the cloth to the left twice, and all that was left of the bridge was a thin thread.82

In the morning Bába Yagá woke up and she could not see the mangy foal, so she hunted to the chase: with all her strength she leapt into her iron mortar and she chased after with the pestle, and very soon she was on their track.83 When she came to the river of fire, she looked across and thought, “Ah ha ha! a fine bridge!”84 Then she went on to the bridge; but as soon as she got on to the bridge it snapped, and Bába Yagá slipped into the river, and it was a savage death she had.85

Iván Tsarévich fed his foal on the green, and a splendid horse grew out of him; then the Tsarévich arrived at the palace of Márya Moryévna.86 She rushed out, fell upon his neck and said, “How has God blessed you?”87 And he told her how it had gone with him.88 “I am frightened, Iván Tsarévich; if Koshchéy catches us up you will again be torn to atoms.”89

“No, he will not catch us up now; I have a fine knightly horse which flies like a bird.”90 So they sat on the horse and went.91

Koshchéy the Deathless came back home, and his horse stumbled.92 “Oh, you sorry jade, why do you stumble, or is it that you fear some evil?”93

“Iván Tsarévich has arrived, and has taken away Márya Moryévna.”94

“Can one catch them up?”95

“God knows; now Iván Tsarévich has a knightly horse better than me.”96

“No, I will not stand it,” Koshchéy the Deathless said.97 “We will up and after him!”98

And, sooner or later, so soon he caught up Iván Tsarévich, and he leapt to him and was going to cleave him with his curved sabre; but then the steed of Iván Tsarévich kicked Koshchéy the Deathless with all his might, and clove in his head, and the Tsarévich struck him down with his club.99 Then the Tsarévich gathered together a mass of timber, set fire to it, burnt Koshchéy the Deathless on the pile and scattered the dust to the winds.100

Márya Moryévna then sat on Koshchéy’s steed, and Iván Tsarévich on his own, and the two went and stayed as guests, first of all with the Crow, then with the Eagle, and lastly with the Hawk.101 Wherever they went they were joyously received.102 “Oh!103 Iván Tsarévich, I am so glad to see you!104 We never expected to see you back.105 And your work has not been in vain; such a beauty as Márya Moryévna might be sought for all over the world and you would not have found any other.”106

So they were as guests and junketed well, and arrived into their own kingdom, reached it and began to live a life of joy enduring and to drink good mead.107

THE REALM OF STONE108

In a certain kingdom, in a certain state, once there lived a soldier who had served long and faithfully and knew all about the Tsar’s service, the reviews, and always came up to parade looking clean and smart.109 The last year of his service came along, and, to his ill-luck, his superior officers, great and small, did not like him, and as a result he was soundly thrashed.110 This grieved the soldier, and he thought of deserting.111 So, with his wallet on his back and his gun on his shoulder, he began to bid farewell to his comrades, who asked him, “Where are you going?112 Do you want to enter a battalion?”113

“Do not ask me, my brothers; just buckle my wallet firmly on, and do not think evil of me.”114

Then the good youth set forth whither his eyes gazed.115 May be far, may be near, he went on and on, and arrived at another kingdom, saw the sentry-guard and asked “May I rest here?”116

So the sentry-guard told the Corporal, the Corporal told the Officer, and the Officer told the General, and the General told the King himself.117 And the King ordered the soldier to be brought before him in order that he might see him with his own eyes.118 And the soldier appeared before him in his proper regimentals, with musket on his shoulder, as though he were rooted to the ground.119

Then the King asked him, “Tell me on your faith and oath, whence are you and where are you going?”120

“Your kingly Majesty, do not have me punished!121 Bid the word be not spoken.”122 And he told the whole story to the King, and asked to be admitted to the service.123

“Very well,” said the King; “come and serve me as sentry in my garden.124 All is not well in my garden: somebody is breaking my best-loved trees, and you must endeavour to preserve them; and, as to the reward for your labour, you shall not fare ill.”125

So the sentry agreed and stood as sentry in the garden.126 For a year, for two years, he served on, and all went well.127 But in the third year, as he went out, he went to look in the garden, and saw that half of the best trees had been shattered.128 “My goodness!” he thought to himself, “what a fearful misfortune!129 If the King observes this he will instantly have me pinioned and hanged.”130 So he took his gun in his hand, went to a tree, and began pondering very hard.131 Then he heard a crackling and a rumbling.132 So the good youth glimpsed down, and he saw a fearful, huge bird flying into the garden and overthrowing the trees.133 The soldier fired at the bird, but could not kill it; and could only wing it on the right wing, and three feathers fell out of the wing, but the bird took to flight.134 After him the soldier dashed.135 The bird’s wings were swift, and very speedily it flew into a pit and vanished from sight.136 But the soldier was not afraid and dived down after him into the pit, fell into the deep crevasse, fell down flat and lay for whole days unconscious.137