Three brothers near the castle playing ball
We played in the morning
And Lady Ellen, their sister,
I looked at the game.
Roland caught the ball with his knee,
I knocked him down with my toe,
Hit harder - and the ball
I liked the church.
Ellen went after the ball,
Frisky and cheerful, Ellen rushed off after the ball -
And she never came again.
The brothers searched day and night
Everywhere we could
And they cried bitterly,
But Ellen was not found.
Then the elder brother went to the wizard Merlin and asked if he knew where to look for Lady Ellen.
“The beautiful Lady Ellen,” answered Merlin, “was kidnapped by the elves because she walked around the church the wrong way, that is, against the direction of the sun.” Now she is in the Gloomy Tower of the Elf King; it takes a lot of courage to rescue her from there.
“Even if I myself perish,” exclaimed the elder brother, “but I will save her, if possible!”
“It’s possible,” said the wizard Merlin. - But woe to anyone born of a woman - warrior or knight - who dares to do this without knowing in advance what he needs to do and what to beware of.
Lady Ellen's elder brother was a brave knight; danger could not stop him.
He began to ask the wizard to tell him everything he needed to do and what to be careful of in order to free his sister. He repeated, remembered every word of the wizard and went to the land of the elves.
And for a long time in the castle they waited for the day,
When my brother returns,
But - woe to loving hearts! –
He didn't come back.
Finally the middle brother got tired of waiting. Just like his older brother, he went to the wizard Merlin, asked him about everything and set off on a journey to look for the country of the elves.
And we waited a long time for the day when
The middle brother will return,
But - woe to loving hearts! –
He didn't come back.
Then it was time for young Roland - the youngest of Lady Ellen's brothers - to get ready for the journey. He came to his mother, the good queen, and asked her blessing. At first she did not agree to let him go - after all, he was the last son she had left, and also her most beloved. But Roland begged and pleaded until his mother gave him her blessing. She handed him her father's sword - a blade that strikes without missing a beat - and spoke to him with an ancient spell that brings victory.
Young Roland said goodbye to the good queen, his mother, and headed to the cave of the wizard Merlin.
“O wise Merlin,” he said, “do not refuse to tell me once again how a warrior or knight born of a woman can free Lady Ellen and my two brothers from the power of the king of the elves?”
“Good, my son,” answered the wizard. “I’ll tell you what to do and what to be careful of.” This is what you need to do: whoever speaks to you in the land of the elves, you need to draw your sword and cut off his head from his shoulders. This is what you need to beware of: not a piece of food or a sip of water can be swallowed in the land of the elves, no matter how much hunger and thirst torment you. Whoever eats even a piece or drinks a sip will forever remain in the cursed country and will never see the world again.
Young Roland repeated and learned these words by heart, thanked Merlin and moved on. He walked and walked and traveled a long way until he came across a herd of horses grazing in the middle of a meadow. By their wild, sparkling eyes, he immediately recognized the horses of the king of the elves and realized that he was not far from his goal.
“Tell me,” he asked the herdsman, “where can I find the Gloomy Tower of the Elf King?”
- I won’t tell you that. Go further, you will meet a cow herder; “Maybe he’ll tell you,” answered the herdsman.
Then, without saying another word, Roland drew his sword - a blade that strikes without missing a beat - and cut off his head from his shoulders. He went further, met a shepherd with a herd of cows, and asked him the same question.
“Go further,” answered the cow shepherd. - You will meet a bird lady; maybe she will say.
Then Roland drew his sword again and cut off his head from his shoulders. He went further, saw an old woman grazing geese, and asked:
– How can I find the Gloomy Tower of the Elf King?
“Go further,” answered the birdwoman, “until you see a round green hill, going in ledges from the foot to the top.” Walk around the sun three times and repeat three times:
Open, gates! Let me through!
The third time the gate will open and you will enter.
Roland thanked the old woman and hurried off on his way, but remembered the wizard’s order, pulled out his sword and cut her head off her shoulders.
And he did well, for these were all werewolves and ghosts sent by the king of the elves to lure him into a trap.
He walked further and soon saw a green hill in front of him, rising in ledges from the foot to the top. He walked around it three times, against the direction of the sun, and repeated three times:
Open, gates! Let me through!
The third time the gates opened, let him through, and again slammed shut behind him with a clang. Roland found himself in the dark. True, it was not complete darkness, but rather twilight. A faint flickering light came from God knows where - after all, there were no windows, no torches, no candles in the Gloomy Tower. A long corridor led into the distance, and its arches of translucent blocks sparkled with veins of mica and golden pyrite. But although there was stone all around, the air inside the hill remained warm, as is always the case in the land of the elves.
Roland reached the end of the corridor and saw iron-clad double doors. At his touch they suddenly opened wide, and an unprecedented sight appeared before him - a huge hall, so spacious that it seemed to span the entire width and height of a green hill.
The dome of the hall was supported by mighty columns decorated with gold and silver carvings, and between the columns hung garlands of flowers made up of - what do you think? – from diamonds, emeralds and all kinds of precious stones. The crowns of the high arches sparkled with clusters of gems. In the middle, where all the arches converged, on a golden chain hung a lamp in the form of a huge pearl, hollow inside and completely transparent. And in the center of this pearl, a giant red carbuncle stone rotated and shone. Its rays spread throughout the hall, painting the air and walls in the flaming colors of sunset.
The hall was decorated with marvelous luxury; at the far end, on a bed of purple satin and silk, sat Lady Ellen, combing her golden hair with a silver comb. But her face was motionless and impassive, like a stone mask. When Roland appeared, she did not move from her place, but only said in a dull, sepulchral voice:
Unhappy, simple-minded fool! Why are you here? What do you need?
Roland's first impulse was to rush to his sister and embrace her, but harsh words stopped him. And suddenly he remembered the lesson of the great wizard Merlin. Without hesitation, Roland pulled out his father’s sword, closed his eyes and struck with a flourish at this obsession in the guise of Lady Ellen.
And when he looked again, trembling and horrified, - oh joy? – his sister stood in front of him, alive and unharmed. Tears flowed from her eyes as she hugged Roland to her chest and said with deep sadness:
Oh, what are you for, dear brother,
Have you left your home?
You don't have a hundred lives,
To sacrifice one.
Your sister will cry for you
And the mother bursts into tears;
When the sorcerer king comes,
You're in trouble!
They sat down next to each other, and young Roland told his sister about his adventures, and Lady Ellen said that their two older brothers also reached the Gloomy Tower of the Elf King, but an insidious sorcerer bewitched them and imprisoned them alive in a tomb. Alas! They were unable to exactly carry out Merlin's order and did not dare to strike with the sword when an obsession appeared in front of them in the form of their sister.
So they talked for a long time, and after a while young Roland felt how hungry he was on the road, and asked his sister to bring food.
Lady Ellen looked at him sadly, but did not say anything - for the witchcraft spell still dominated her; she got up and brought bread and milk on a golden tray.
Roland extended his hand to the bread and milk, but at the last moment he looked up at his sister and read such melancholy in her eyes that, illuminated by a hunch, he jumped to his feet, threw the tray with the treat on the floor and exclaimed:
“I will not drink a sip, nor swallow a bite, until I free Lady Ellen and my brothers!”
As if thunder thundered in response, as if a whirlwind made a noise - the doors swung open, and the king of the elves burst into the hall:
Ugh! Phew! Ugh! Wow!
I smell the human spirit! Fight or flight, I'll blow his brains out!
- Well, try it, you demonic spawn! – Roland shouted, grabbed a blade that struck without missing a beat, and rushed forward.
They fought long and fiercely; Finally Roland brought the elf king to his knees and forced him to beg for mercy.
“I will spare you if you remove the spell from my sister, free my brothers and let us leave here freely.”
“I agree,” answered the elf king. He rose from his knees, opened his chest and took out a crystal bottle with a blood-red potion. With this potion he smeared the ears, eyelids, nostrils, lips and fingertips of the two brothers lying in the golden tombs. And they woke up and stood up as if nothing had happened.
Then the sorcerer whispered a spell over Ellen. And so three brothers and their beloved sister came out of a huge hall, filled with scarlet sunset light, walked along a long corridor along shimmering stone arches with veins of mica and golden pyrite, and the heavy gates of the Gloomy Tower, clanging, let them in to freedom.
They returned home to the good queen, their mother, and from then on Lady Ellen was careful not to go around the church the wrong way.
Translated from Russian · original on wisdomlib.ru