THE TALE OF THE THREE BROTHERS

A great and noble chieftain had died victorious in battle, and as is the custom of the sons of the barbarians, he gave his lands in equal portions to his three sons. Before the funereal pyre of the great chief had fully cooled, these three fine eager youths set off to put their affairs in place and to establish themselves upon their domains, each of them as a king unto his people and his lands.
Soon however, strange and troubling news came to the eldest son that a huge lion had been seen prowling in the forest, a creature magnificent, wild, ferocious, and untamed. The peasants grew mad with terror. So the young king considered the stars carefully, and he studied the ancient texts for a sign, and he sought the council of his great men to determine what he must do to bring peace once again to his lands.
After three days it was decided that nothing could be done to guard against the threat of such a creature and that their only hope would be to shun the beast completely and lock it out of the land and thereby only might they remain safe from its claws and its wild howling in the night.
So a great and massive wall, impenetrable and fortified with stone, was built up around the beautiful forest. No food or water could be brought forth to feed the people of the city, but at least the lion was confined deep and hidden within. Neither peasant nor noble nor king was allowed to enter or approach the wall or the forest, or to even speak of it and soon it was all overgrown with weeds and darkness and invisible to the eyes of the young king and his people.
But then, the maddened roaring of the caged beast began to reach the ears of the king and the children began to suffer the terrors of the night and awaken crying in their dreams. And then at last, great holes begin to appear in the wall surrounding the forest which contained this fierce lion, now mad with rage and starving. It was even rumored that a child had been killed and its body lay torn and bleeding near the wall where the great cracks had appeared, yet none dared approach from fear. And some swore they had even seen the beast prowling the streets freely by night, but that it had changed its form and was monstrous and terrible to behold. But none would see it, for they remained locked behind their own walls and doors, so great was their fear to venture forth, and a terror gripped the land like the dark cloud of locusts which descends and feeds until naught but dust remains.
Now, the middle son lived some leagues away, but he too was brought this curious news of a lion hunting his forest and roaming the streets of his city by night.
“My brother is a fool,” said the young prince. So he organized a great hunt, and he and his nobles set forth out of the city with spears and swords and with all manner of display of their might and their great power and accompanied by the beating of many drums. And soon of course, they came to the lion’s cave where he slept in peace during the hot summer’s day.
They rushed upon the great beast and they slew him with ease as he slept and dreamed of the night and the hunt. They cut his body into many pieces, and they brought it back to the city where they made a great show of their victory and peace once again prevailed within the land.
But soon, another and similar beast of its kind was seen to roam in the land and hunt in the forest by night, and sheep were found killed and people disappeared often from their beds while they slept. Various old women went mad and spoke of a terrible and unquenchable vengeance that would come upon them for the slaying of the lion. And the sons of the lion were rumored to be too many to count and that they came in secret and in dreams and possessed no form that could be seen with the eye.
And a terror gripped the land like the cloud of locusts that descends from nowhere and feeds until naught but dust remains.
The youngest son heard these sad tales and grieved with pity for his brother’s terrible misfortunes. The lad was known to be wise for his youth and a lad of many and well considered thoughts and virtues. He studied with the greatest philosophers of the day and he sat with monks and with priests and he was possessed of eyes and a heart which act as one.
So the youth called for his council and together they rode into their own forest where they knew a great lion, magnificent, ferocious and untamed, prevailed. And with much patience and with the cunning of good men, they won the trust of the lion. And they subdued him with food and with a kind hand.
With time, the lion grew docile and quite tame and fed from their hands like a pet. And soon the lion grew fat and lazy and no longer dreamed of the hunt. He lay about like a great dog, eager for a pat on the head or a bit of cooked meat and he ceased to be a lion at all.
And the king and his nobles grew soft and their lion roared no more and boredom and sloth descended upon the land like the kiss of the opium poppy and all the people felt contempt for the lion because it was tamed. But the lion felt an equal measure of rage and contempt for the nobles, his masters, because they had robbed him of his soul. And all was quite tame and still in the land.
But it was rumored that the lion dreamed at last once more and that his dreams touched the deepest souls of the nobles and their king but they were dreams of death and of decay and of horror. But they heeded it not for they could not remember their dreams. And a terror of something unknown gripped the land like a cloud of locusts that swells up from the caves of the darkest earth and blackens out the sky and feeds until naught but bones remain.
And at this point in the story, the good storyteller pauses in his tale to quaff the last dregs remaining at the bottom of his wine cup as his audience begins to rise, ready to take their leave.
“But wait,” he calls. “do you not know that these three brothers had a sister?”
Oh yes, and she as well took an equal portion of the lands of her father, the dead and victorious king. And she too heard the curious news of a great lion, ferocious, magnificent and untamed, hunting wild in the forests of her home. Delight and curiosity swept the heart of the young queen with joy, and she called to her all of her maidens and girls in waiting, all of her dancers and nobles and together they made a grand procession of singing and dancing and merriment and ventured forth out deep into the forest to better see this wonder for themselves.
The queen and her friends watched in fascination as the lion crouched and lunged and stalked its prey, as was its nature. And they laughed with delight as the beast washed itself after feasting and then rolled and played in the tall grasses and slept on its back without a care or a worry or a fear.
And when the lion awoke, the young queen leapt upon his back and clasped his magnificent body to her own and dug her fingers deep into the thick fur of his mane and whispered her name into his ear with a kiss. And the lion sprang into the woods and carried her away on his mad and glorious chase of the hunt. Together they rode, wildness and wanton.
And late into the cool star-filled night the lion returned her safe and happy to her home. And it was agreed between them and a pact was formed, that by day, the lion would hunt as his nature demands, magnificent, ferocious and free. And together by night, they ride to the hunt as one.