Petru stood and stared as a man does when he sees something that he has never seen, and of which he has never heard.
Then he rode right into the wood. On each side of the way the rows of flowers began to praise Petru, and to try and persuade him to pick some of them and make himself a wreath.
"Take me, for I am lovely, and can give strength to whoever plucks me,"
said one.
"No, take me, for whoever wears me in his hat will be loved by the most beautiful woman in the world," pleaded the second; and then one after another bestirred itself, each more charming than the last, all promising, in soft sweet voices, wonderful things to Petru, if only he would pick them.
Petru was not deaf to their persuasion, and was just stooping to pick one when the horse sprang to one side.
"Why don"t you stay still?" asked Petru roughly.
"Do not pick the flowers; it will bring you bad luck; answered the horse.
"Why should it do that?"
"These flowers are under a curse. Whoever plucks them must fight the Welwa(1) of the woods."
(1) A goblin.
"What kind of a goblin is the Welwa?"
"Oh, do leave me in peace! But listen. Look at the flowers as much as you like, but pick none," and the horse walked on slowly.
Petru knew by experience that he would do well to attend to the horse"s advice, so he made a great effort and tore his mind away from the flowers.
But in vain! If a man is fated to be unlucky, unlucky he will be, whatever he may do!
The flowers went on beseeching him, and his heart grew ever weaker and weaker.
"What must come will come," said Petru at length; "at any rate I shall see the Welwa of the woods, what she is like, and which way I had best fight her. If she is ordained to be the cause of my death, well, then it will be so; but if not I shall conquer her though she were twelve hundred Welwas," and once more he stooped down to gather the flowers.
"You have done very wrong," said the horse sadly. "But it can"t be helped now. Get yourself ready for battle, for here is the Welwa!"
Hardly had he done speaking, scarcely had Petru twisted his wreath, when a soft breeze arose on all sides at once. Out of the breeze came a storm wind, and the storm wind swelled and swelled till everything around was blotted out in darkness, and darkness covered them as with a thick cloak, while the earth swayed and shook under their feet.
"Are you afraid?" asked the horse, shaking his mane.
"Not yet," replied Petru stoutly, though cold shivers were running down his back. "What must come will come, whatever it is."
"Don"t be afraid," said the horse. "I will help you. Take the bridle from my neck, and try to catch the Welwa with it."
The words were hardly spoken, and Petru had no time even to unbuckle the bridle, when the Welwa herself stood before him; and Petru could not bear to look at her, so horrible was she.
She had not exactly a head, yet neither was she without one. She did not fly through the air, but neither did she walk upon the earth. She had a mane like a horse, horns like a deer, a face like a bear, eyes like a polecat; while her body had something of each. And that was the Welwa.
Petru planted himself firmly in his stirrups, and began to lay about him with his sword, but could feel nothing.
A day and a night went by, and the fight was still undecided, but at last the Welwa began to pant for breath.
"Let us wait a little and rest," gasped she.
Petru stopped and lowered his sword.
"You must not stop an instant," said the horse, and Petru gathered up all his strength, and laid about him harder than ever.
The Welwa gave a neigh like a horse and a howl like a wolf, and threw herself afresh on Petru. For another day and night the battle raged more furiously than before. And Petru grew so exhausted he could scarcely move his arm.
"Let us wait a little and rest," cried the Welwa for the second time, "for I see you are as weary as I am."
"You must not stop an instant," said the horse.
And Petru went on fighting, though he barely had strength to move his arm. But the Welwa had ceased to throw herself upon him, and began to deliver her blows cautiously, as if she had no longer power to strike.
And on the third day they were still fighting, but as the morning sky began to redden Petru somehow managed--how I cannot tell--to throw the bridle over the head of the tired Welwa. In a moment, from the Welwa sprang a horse--the most beautiful horse in the world.
"Sweet be your life, for you have delivered me from my enchantment,"
said he, and began to rub his nose against his brother"s. And he told Petru all his story, and how he had been bewitched for many years.
So Petru tied the Welwa to his own horse and rode on. Where did he ride? That I cannot tell you, but he rode on fast till he got out of the copper wood.
"Stay still, and let me look about, and see what I never have seen before," said Petru again to his horse. For in front of him stretched a forest that was far more wonderful, as it was made of glistening trees and shining flowers. It was the silver wood.
As before, the flowers began to beg the young man to gather them.
"Do not pluck them," warned the Welwa, trotting beside him, "for my brother is seven times stronger than I"; but though Petru knew by experience what this meant, it was no use, and after a moment"s hesitation he began to gather the flowers, and to twist himself a wreath.
Then the storm wind howled louder, the earth trembled more violently, and the night grew darker, than the first time, and the Welwa of the silver wood came rushing on with seven times the speed of the other.
For three days and three nights they fought, but at last Petru cast the bridle over the head of the second Welwa.
"Sweet be your life, for you have delivered me from enchantment," said the second Welwa, and they all journeyed on as before.
But soon they came to a gold wood more lovely far than the other two, and again Petru"s companions pleaded with him to ride through it quickly, and to leave the flowers alone. But Petru turned a deaf ear to all they said, and before he had woven his golden crown he felt that something terrible, that he could not see, was coming near him right out of the earth. He drew his sword and made himself ready for the fight. "I will die!" cried he, "or he shall have my bridle over his head."
He had hardly said the words when a thick fog wrapped itself around him, and so thick was it that he could not see his own hand, or hear the sound of his voice. For a day and a night he fought with his sword, without ever once seeing his enemy, then suddenly the fog began to lighten. By dawn of the second day it had vanished altogether, and the sun shone brightly in the heavens. It seemed to Petru that he had been born again.
And the Welwa? She had vanished.
"You had better take breath now you can, for the fight will have to begin all over again," said the horse.
"What was it?" asked Petru.
"It was the Welwa," replied the horse, "changed into a fog "Listen! She is coming!"
And Petru had hardly drawn a long breath when he felt something approaching from the side, though what he could not tell. A river, yet not a river, for it seemed not to flow over the earth, but to go where it liked, and to leave no trace of its pa.s.sage.
"Woe be to me!" cried Petru, frightened at last.