The King’s Lament and the Celestial Omen
In an era lost to the shifting sands of time, there reigned a Sultan of immense power but hollow spirit. His palaces were draped in silks and his vaults overflowed with gold, yet his halls remained silent, echoing with the absence of a child’s laughter. The Sultan’s heart was a barren garden, and his hair grew silver not with wisdom alone, but with the heavy burden of a dying lineage.
One spring afternoon, while wandering the emerald outskirts of his capital with his Grand Vizier, the Sultan lifted his gaze to the heavens. There, cutting through the clouds like a shimmering blade, flew a magnificent Dragon. It was followed by five smaller drakes, their scales glinting like jewels in the sun.
The Sultan let out a sigh that seemed to carry the weight of his entire kingdom. "Oh, Divine Creator," he whispered, his voice trembling with envy and grief. "You have bestowed upon this beast of the air a brood of many heirs. If only I could trade my kingdom for but one child—even if that child were as strange as the dragon’s own kin—I would die a content man."
As the sun dipped below the horizon, painting the sky in bruises of purple and gold, the Sultan returned to his Seraglio. He did not know that the universe had heard his plea, and that the threads of fate were already beginning to twist into a dark and marvelous tapestry.
The Shadow in the Palace
Months passed, and a miracle occurred: the Sultana conceived. However, as her time drew near, a mysterious and terrifying malady struck her. She lay in her golden bed, her skin as pale as marble, gasping for breath. The Sultan, frantic with fear, summoned the most renowned healers and midwives from across the seas.
The first midwife arrived with satchels of herbs, but the moment she crossed the threshold of the Sultana’s chamber, she dropped dead as if struck by an invisible lightning bolt. A second was brought, and then a third; each met the same gruesome end. The palace whispered of a curse.
Within the palace lived a servant woman, a creature of cold ambition and bitter heart. She harbored a deep-seated hatred for the Sultan’s household, particularly for a humble woman in the village who was the second wife of her own husband. Seeing an opportunity to rid herself of her rival and perhaps gain favor through chaos, the wicked servant approached the Sultan.
"My Lord," she said, her voice dripping with false concern. "There is a woman in the outskirts, the wife of a commoner, who is whispered to possess the ‘Old Knowledge’ of birthing. If all others have failed, perhaps her peasant hands can succeed where scholars have died."
The Sultan, desperate and hollow-eyed, ordered a royal carriage to fetch the woman immediately.
The Voice from the Heavens
The woman, whose name was Amina, was terrified. She knew nothing of medicine or magic. As the royal carriage rattled toward the palace, she turned to her young daughter, a girl of ethereal beauty named Ward al-Khal (The Rose of the Vale).
"My sweet Rose," Amina wept, clutching the girl’s hands. "You are my soul’s light. If the Heavens do not decree my return, stay close to your father. You are our only treasure."
Amina climbed into the carriage, her tears flowing like a river. As the carriage entered the dark woods near the palace, she cried out to the heavens for mercy. Suddenly, the wind died down, and a voice—crystalline and ancient—echoed from the clouds.
"Fear not, daughter of Earth. When you reach the Sultan, ask for a pitcher of milk. Drink one cup before you enter the chamber. When the task is done, drink another cup before you leave. Only then shall you be safe."
Amina felt a surge of peace. However, she did not see the wicked servant’s shadow lurking behind the palace gates, having crept out to eavesdrop. The servant heard the celestial instructions and smiled a jagged, cruel smile.
At the palace, Amina did exactly as the voice commanded. She drank the milk and entered the room. Hours later, the palace shook with a roar that was neither human nor beast. Amina emerged, trembling but alive, announcing the birth of a Prince. But the Sultan’s joy turned to ash when he saw the child: he was a creature of scales and claws, a Serpent Prince with the golden eyes of a dragon.
Amina reached for the pitcher to drink her second cup, but the wicked servant had already hidden it. Deprived of the celestial protection, Amina collapsed and died on the spot, leaving young Ward al-Khal an orphan in a world of shadows.
The Education of the Dragon
The Serpent Prince grew with terrifying speed. He was intelligent but volatile. The Sultan, determined to civilize his heir, hired the finest tutors in the land. Yet, one by one, the tutors disappeared. The Prince, in fits of draconic rage, would devour his teachers before they could finish a single lesson. Soon, no man in the kingdom dared to enter the Prince’s tower.
The wicked servant, now older but even more malicious, saw a second chance to destroy Ward al-Khal. She approached the Sultan again.
"Your Majesty, remember the woman who birthed the Prince? Her daughter, Ward al-Khal, has grown to be exceptionally bright. Since her mother brought the Prince into this world, perhaps the daughter is the only one who can teach him."
Ward al-Khal was summoned. Before going to the palace, she visited her mother’s grave. "Mother," she sobbed, "I am being sent to the dragon’s den."
Suddenly, a spectral hand emerged from the earth, holding a gnarled wooden staff. A voice whispered from the soil: "Take this, my Rose. If the beast lunges, wave this staff, and he shall cower."
At the palace, the Serpent Prince lunged at her with bared fangs. Ward al-Khal did not flinch. She raised the staff, and a blinding light emanated from the wood. The Prince recoiled, his golden eyes wide with shock. For months, she taught him the arts, the languages, and the histories, protected by her mother’s love. The Sultan was so pleased he showered her with gold and allowed her to return home—for a time.
The Marriage of Thorns
The time came for the Prince to wed. But the curse remained: on the first night of each wedding, the Serpent Prince would succumb to his beastly nature and devour his bride. Three noblewomen perished this way.
The wicked servant, relentless in her cruelty, whispered to the Sultan: "Only Ward al-Khal can survive him. She has the magic to tame him. Make her his Princess."
Ward al-Khal returned to the grave once more. This time, the voice said: "My child, you must wear the skin of a hedgehog as a mask. When he tries to strike, the needles will bite him. He will command you to undress. Tell him: 'I shall shed my skin only when you shed yours.' When he steps out of his scales, throw them into the fire. Only then will the man emerge from the monster."
On the wedding night, the Serpent Prince hissed, "Remove your mask, little Rose!"
"I shall remove my mask," she replied, her voice like steel, "only when you remove your layers of skin."
Intrigued by her defiance, the Prince began to peel away his draconic hide. As the last layer fell, a man of breathtaking beauty stood before her. Ward al-Khal seized the discarded scales and flung them into the roaring hearth. The room filled with the scent of ozone and ancient magic. The Dragon was gone; the Prince was human.
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The Treachery of the Letter
Peace was short-lived. War broke out on the borders, and the Prince, now a man of honor, insisted on leading the army. While he was away, Ward al-Khal discovered she was with child.
The wicked servant, desperate to strike one last time, forged a letter in the Prince’s handwriting. It arrived at the palace, addressed to the Sultan: "The woman I married is a witch. My heart has turned to ice against her. Cast her out, for I never wish to see her face again."
Heartbroken and believing her husband had abandoned her, Ward al-Khal took her few belongings and fled into the wilderness. She wandered through brambles and over mountains until she reached a secluded spring. There, she saw a strange sight: a magnificent glass coffin holding a beautiful, unmoving youth.
As night fell, forty white doves descended from the sky. Upon touching the earth, they transformed into forty ethereal Fairies. One of them tapped the youth with a golden scepter, and he awoke. They played and laughed all night, but as dawn approached, he was tapped again and fell back into his death-like sleep. The Fairies flew away, leaving the scepter behind.
Ward al-Khal emerged from hiding, took the scepter, and woke the youth. "Who are you?" she asked. "I am a Prince stolen by the Fairies," he replied. "They keep me in a trance to be their playmate. You must flee, for if they find you, they will tear you apart. Go to my mother’s house in the city; she will protect you."
The Fire of Liberation
Ward al-Khal found the youth's mother and was taken in. That night, she gave birth to a son who bore the mark of the sun on his brow. Soon after, the youth—now transformed into a bird by the Fairies during the day—visited her window.
"Is there no way to break your chains?" she asked the bird. "There is," the bird chirped. "You must build a great furnace. Throw my feathered skin into the fire. The Fairies will sense their 'Sultan' is burning and will dive into the flames to save me. If you lock the door then, they will perish, and I will be free."
Ward al-Khal followed the instructions. As the feathers burned, the forty Fairies shrieked and dove into the furnace. She slammed the iron door shut. A great explosion shook the house, and the youth stood before them, finally free from the fae.
The Reunion and the Forty Mules
Meanwhile, the Serpent Prince returned from war, his heart yearning for his Rose. When he found her gone, he nearly went mad. He traveled for six months, searching every village and valley. Eventually, he reached the city and heard rumors of a woman who had defeated forty Fairies.
He found the house and sent a message: "Tell the lady that The Eye of the Black Snake is at her door."
When Ward al-Khal heard the name—his private name from their wedding night—she ran into his arms. Their reunion was a storm of tears and joy. The Prince met his son for the first time, his heart finally whole.
They returned to the Sultan’s palace in a procession of gold. The truth of the forged letter was revealed. The Sultan, enraged by the wicked servant's lifelong cruelty, gave her a final choice: "Do you wish for forty sticks or forty mules?"
The servant, thinking she was clever, replied, "Forty sticks for my enemies, but forty mules for me, so I may ride away in wealth!"
The Prince ordered her bound to the tails of forty wild mules. They were driven in forty different directions, and the evil that had plagued the family was torn asunder.
Ward al-Khal and her Prince lived for a hundred years, their love a legend that proved even the fiercest dragon can be tamed by the heart of a Rose.
Keywords: Sultan, Serpent Prince, Dragon Prince, Ward al-Khal, Magic, Folklore, Fairies, Transformation, Treachery, Justice, Arab Tales, Enchantment, Mythical Creatures, Heroine's Journey.
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