The Fire Bird
In a far away land a thief was
stealing golden apples which had the power of bestowing youth and beauty from
Tsar Berendey `s magic Garden. The guards of the Tsar were unable to stop this,
for as hard as they tried, the thief always got away. None of the guards could
even see this thief. The Tsar was frustrated for he needed the golden apples
for himself, as he was married to a very beautiful young Queen.
The only person who spotted the
thief was the Tsar's son, Prince Ivan Tsarevich. As the night came upon the
Garden, the young Tsarevich hid under a water bucket and listened closely to
every sound around him. At dawn, the Prince almost fell asleep, but the silence
was broken by a magical being. The Prince pulled the water bucket up slightly
so he could just see through the thin opening. And there it was; The Fire Bird.
In the depth of night the Fire Bird
would fly into the garden with its feathers blazing with a silvery of golden
sheen. Its eyes were shining like crystals and would light the place as
brightly as a thousand burning fires. The Tsarevich crawled up to the
unsuspecting bird, and rushed to grab it by the tail.
The next day Prince Ivan told his
father the old Tsar, about the Fire Bird. He showed his father the only feather
he had managed to get from the Bird's tail. As the Bird was too smart and flew
away. From that day on the Tsar was obsessed with the idea of capturing the
Fire Bird for himself. In order to find the Bird he sent his three sons on a
journey to another Kingdom.
Ivan Tsarevich's adventure begins
when after a long day's ride he falls asleep, only to awake in the morning and
find his horse gone. Wondering through the woods he meets a gray wolf who
confesses that he ate the horse. Grateful that Ivan had spared his life, Gray
Wolf offers to let Ivan ride on his back. Grey Wolf takes Ivan to Tsar Afron's
kingdom, where the Fire Bird is kept in a golden cage inside the Tsar's walled
garden.
The Prince warned by the Gray Wolf
to take only the bird, and not the cage, takes the cage as well and triggers an
alarm. Captured by Tsar Afron, he is told that in order to have the Fire Bird
he must pay for it with the Horse of the Golden Mane, which is in possession of
Tsar Kusman.
The Gray Wolf carries Ivan to
Kusman's palace and advises him to acquire the horse but not the bridle. Once
again the Prince is tempted by the gold and diamonds in the bridle, so he
ignores the advice. He again becomes captured by Kusman, who now says he will
only give him the horse in exchange for the fair Princess Elena, who was
residing with Tsar Dalmat.
This time the wolf does the work
himself and seizes Elena. He brings her back to Ivan and the Prince falls in
love with her. The wolf offers to trick Kusman by assuming Elena's shape and
also to trick Afron too by assuming the form of the horse.
Ivan returns, with Elena, the horse
and the Fire Bird, however when the wolf leaves him he is ambushed and killed
by his brothers.
The wolf then returns and revives
him with the Waters of Life and Death, the brothers are banished, and Ivan
Tsarevich meets Tsar Berendey to tell his tragic story. When the Tsar's grief
fades, the Prince marries Elena the Fair and they lived happily ever after.
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