Bedtime stories:
Ring of Rabinaph
“The Mongols surrounded the squadron from all sides. It was a slaughter; the Romans had no chance at surviving the ordeal. Thousands of men were cut in half. Their heads slide off their bodies and the entrails of their bodies were laid out in massive…”
“Father, stop telling that grotesque story to my daughter. She is only ten, and doesn’t need to hear about gross things from your twisted mind.” My mom comes to my bed to tuck me in. “Goodnight honey.” She gives me a kiss on my forehead. She looks at grandpa, “Now I don’t want you to tell the rest of the story when I leave for work now.” She leaves my room and Grandpa follows her.
“You have my word darling.” He says this smiling an innocent smile, with his fingers crossed behind him. “Have fun at work and I will tuck young Steph here in, wake me up when you get home. Judy was worried sick when I didn’t come home last week.”
My mom left shortly after speaking with grandpa, and like always he came into my room to finish the story. “Okay Steph, where was I?”
“We are at the Mongols grandpa.” I look up at him anxious to hear what happens next.
“Well, it would seem hopeless for any of the Romans to escape the onslaught. But…one man did survive the ordeal.”
“Really? How did he do that grandpa?”
“Well…” He thinks for a little while, and then begins again. “When his comrades fell next to him he fell to the ground and faked being dead. He even used the blood from his comrades. When the Mongols had finished killing the Romans they moved their ranks down the river heading to the city of Muja.” He looked at me as if expecting me to know where that city would be. “I can see you have no clue where that is.” I nod, “Well, it is in the current country of Mongolia. Now the Romans never officially made their way to Mongolia, but the Emperor at the time wanted to make new trade routes to China. Now, Rabinaph gets up, seeing that his fellow soldiers have been slaughtered, starts to run north toward the Gobi Dessert. He had heard that there was a Roman outpost there.
“He ran for many miles, slept when he needed to and ate what he could find along the way. Exhaustion started to overtake Rabinaph. He began to drag his feet as he made his way.” Grandpa looked at me, “Now you see he had gone further north than he had expected. He had passed the outpost by 500 miles. Now, getting back to the story. On the morning of the third month he was wondering blindly north, Rabinaph heard drums beating behind him, he turned around and saw a line of men on the horizon. Then he saw a black cloud rise above his head like he had just fallen into the black abyss. He knew what was to come next, impaled by hundreds of arrows, bleeding, lying gasping for breath. He could only turn and run to try and get far away before the arrows penetrated his back.”
Grandpa looks at me, “Now this part is the best part of the whole story. Are you ready?”
I nod because I’m too excited to speak. Grandpa continues, “So the first arrow falls into the center of his back. The second separates his spine as it lodges right underneath his nervous system. The rest just randomly enter his already dead body…”
“AHH! Grandpa is there a happy ending to this horrible story.” I hide underneath my covers.
“Of course there is honey. Now, when Rabinaph fell dead on the ground, hundreds of arrows entered his body. But he landed on a magic ring. When his body touched the ring the arrows started to pop out of his body and he started breathing again. He waited countless hours until the last of the Mongols had left the horizon, he sat up, and opened his hand. There shining in his palm was a gold ring with a black jewel in the center. He noticed that in the band was an engraving, it read; “To all who where this ring, great power will be bestowed unto you.” He slipped the ring on his index finger. It was too big, so he slipped it on his ring finger again too big. He then slipped it on his middle finger and he felt a charge of energy run through his body. Just then the ring shrunk to the size of his middle finger.
“He pulled at it but it wouldn’t come off, then he felt dizzy and fell over.”
I interrupted him, “Grandpa this is boring, and I’m tired can you finish tomorrow?”
“Well, I guess I can.” He sounds surprised and sad. But I don’t care because I’m just to tired to keep listening.
The following night he comes over again to watch me as my mom goes to work. “Now dad, make sure Stephanie gets something to eat.”
“Yes Emily, don’t worry about it I will feed her dinner.” My mom kisses my forehead and leaves. “Who’s hungry,” he looks at me and I smile. Grandpa looks in the cupboard, “Now, what to make.” He grabs out a box of Mac and Cheese. “How’s this?”
I nod, “That’s good Grandpa, and while it cooks you can tell me the rest of the story.”
He looks at me, “Oh can I now I thought you were bored with that little story of mine.”
“No I wasn’t I was just tired from a long day at school. Please grandpa.” I look at him with puppy dog eyes.
“Okay, you know I can’t resist the eyes.” He laughs, “After dinner then I will finish the story.”
As soon as the food is done and on my plate, I scarf it down. “Okay grandpa can you finish the story now.”
“Very well.” We sit on the sofa by the fireplace. “Where was I?” He grabs his chin and thinks awhile.
I can’t stand waiting any longer, “You were at the part where Rabinaph fell over from being dizzy.”
“Ah, yes, now I remember. So he felt dizzy and fell over. When he awoke he was in the middle of a small hut. Lying on a cot. He got up and walked out into the cool breeze, he saw a busy small town surrounded by the Gobi Desert. A woman walked up to him from her garden, ’How are you feeling’ she asked him. ’I am doing fine’ he replied. ’That’s very good to hear. My uncle says you can take all the time you want to recover. You were out in the Desert unconscious for a long time, I’m surprised you are still alive.’ ’I’m wondering the same thing miss’ he replies. He looks down at his finger and sees that the ring is still on his finger. Then he asks the lady another question. ’Miss do you know anything about this ring’ he holds up his hand and she gasps and runs away. Now Rabinaph is allowed to stay and recover some more but by the end of the week the people of the town won’t even look at him anymore.”
I interrupt grandpa, “So this ring is bad?”
“I’m getting there dear, just listen.” He takes a deep breathe and continues. “Now after another week of no one to talk to or see, Rabinaph decides to leave the town and head back to Rome. The strange thing is, that the ring seems to know the way. When he is heading the wrong direction the ring pulls at his finger in the right direction. Also it seems he never gets hungry or thirsty, tired or sick. A scorpion had stung his foot a week into his journey and he felt no pain. He thought he was going to die from the sting but later in the journey he had forgotten all about the incident.
“By the end of the third month of his journey he had finally returned to Rome. When he walked in the front gate he was seized by the guards. They led him to the Emperors Palace, and into the Emperor’s Chamber. ’Rabinaph so you do live.’ ’Yes my brother,’ he replies. ’This is a tragic day for you brother, you should have stayed away.’ ’What do you mean a tragic day, I have returned. The only one of my battalion,’ Rabinaph replies. ’Yes you have returned, that is the tragedy,’ The guards then stab Rabinaph in the back and he falls to his knees. ‘Finally,’ the Emperor states, ‘My brother is finally dead and I will rule this land.’”
Grandpa is looking at me, I am frightened. “Rabinaph is only pretending to be dead Steph I promise. Anyway, the guards drag his body out of the city gates and throw him into a ditch. Once the guards leave he carefully crawls along the ditch. He circles the city once. He realizes he is at the front of the City and puts his head down and sobs. He pounds his fist on the ground and hits metal. He quickly realizes that this is the entrance to the underground sewers and opens the cover and heads in.”
“Why would he go to the sewers grandpa?” I ask.
He sits back and thinks about this for awhile. Then leans forward, “Because dear, he needed to get back into the city to over throw his brother the Emperor. Now, down into the dark, smelly sewers. He feels the walls of the sewer for any exits that might be his way out of the darkness and into the city. After hours of inching along in the dark underground he feels an empty gap in the wall. This gap could be his way out, so he follows this passageway for many more hours. I remind you he is going at a very slow speed.”
“Grandpa, why is he going so slow?”
“Well, he doesn’t want to trip and fall in the filth,” he looks at me seriously. “How would you like going into a sewer and falling into the mess down there. You wouldn’t like it very much would you.” I shake my head. “I thought so. Now, back to the story. At the end of this passageway he saw a light. He followed this light all the way to a dead end. The light was shining through the roof of the passage but there was no way out. He looked around for any type of ladder or rope that might help him climb out. Then he notices the ring is glowing. It is shining blindingly bright now. He closes his eyes, while the ring flashes. When he re-opens his eyes he is standing in the center of a crowded Roman street. ’How in the world?’ He thinks to himself. People stop and stared at him, before anyone was able to confront him about the magical appearance he quickly ran into an alley.
“He found his way back into the palace grounds by staying in the shadows and using the guards blind spots to his advantage.”
I interrupt him again, “What is a blind spot grandpa?”
“It’s a spot where one is unable to see anything,” he sees I am still confused. “Okay it is like when your mom has to look over her shoulder when see drives because she can’t see behind her if she is looking forward.”
“But mommy never looks behind her when she is driving.”
Grandpa just laughs, “Well in any case, a blind spot is a place where you can’t see. So, continuing on. Once Rabinaph was in the Palace he made his way to the Emperor’s chamber. He entered and found it empty. ‘Where are you brother’ he thought to himself. He walked for hours checking every room he passed. Occasionally he had to avoid being caught by wondering guards. Of course they never spotted him, so he just continued looking.
“After many hours of searching he was exhausted and was running out of rooms in the Palace to check. Then he heard a loud laugh, ‘I know that laugh anywhere’ he said to himself.” Grandpa looks at me, “It was the laugh of the Emperor, his brother.”
“Yeah I know please continue.”
“Okay,” he smiles. “Rabinaph entered the room he heard the laugh come from. His brother was lying on his bed with a beautiful woman. ‘Brother I have come back from the dead. You tried to kill me, so now I will return the favor.’ Rabinaph jumped on the bed and stabbed his surprised brother through the heart. The woman fled and Rabinaph knew he had little time to escape. So he jumped through the window next to the bed. The fall was a long one, once he landed though he felt nothing. Not one single done had been broken. He looked up and saw that the window was at least three stories up. Then he remembered and looked down at his finger and kissed the ring that lay there. Rabinaph escaped the Rome undetected by the dead Emperor’s guards and never returned.” Grandpa gets up to leave, “Okay that’s the story now its off to bed with you.”
“What, no that can’t be the end. Tell me does he ever die, where did he go since he couldn’t go back to Rome.”
He looks at me and reluctantly sits back down. “Fine, After escaping the City of Rome. Rabinaph is followed by the best tracker in all of the Roman Empire. Boroc, had come from the Greek City States, ten years ago to serve the Emperor. Now the head of the Emperor’s army, he wasn’t going to let an assassin disgrace him. So he rode out into the country side, with his army, looking for Rabinaph. Every village he passed that he knew had aided Rabinaph he destroyed. ”
“But how did he know that they had helped Rabinaph, grandpa?” I ask.
“Well, remember I said he was a great tracker.” I nod, “Well, He followed his tracks through the towns and if Rabinaph appeared to enter a house or drink from the well then Boroc burned down the village.”
“A pretty mean guy if you ask me.”
“Yes Steph, a very mean guy. Anyway, he followed Rabinaph to the edges of the Roman Empire. All the way to the British Isles. There Rabinaph was cornered, he had no chance of escape.” Grandpa looks at me, “At least that is what Boroc thought. But, as it turned out Rabinaph had found a secret about the ring. One day while hiding in an old fortress in present day France. Rabinaph stumbled upon a portrait of a woman wearing the ring on her finger. He searched throughout the fortress for more portraits of this woman, but he came across none. He was ready to leave and as he was walking out the front gate he spotted Boroc and his men on the horizon. Rabinaph was in a panic, what was he to do. If he tried to escape then Boroc’s men would run him down, but if he stayed then Boroc would find him. He was dead either way. Rabinaph retreated from the door and headed back into the room with the portrait. He looked frantically around for something to hide in. Then as he was running around the room he tripped over a rug on the floor. When he got up, the rug was under his foot and was half way off a wooden door. Rabinaph went to the door and climbed down.
“Once in the chamber Rabinaph quickly looked around, he saw a light at the far end of the tunnel and a smell of sweet air. He looked up and could hear the footprints of the soldiers on the stone floor. He closed his eyes and prayed. When he opened his eyes the wooden door which he had opened was now closed. He heard Boroc speak, ’He must have stayed here over the night then left early in the morning, if we hurry we can catch up to him.’ He heard the men leave the fortress and then all was silent. He thought to himself, ’that means the rug must have been put in place, but how?’
“How did the rug move back in place grandpa?” I ask.
“I don’t know, I have wondered that…err I mean Rabinaph wondered that as well. But he didn’t care how it happened as long as he was safe. So down the tunnel he went, with every step he took the tunnel seemed to grow longer. Finally after many hours of walking he exited the tunnel, and he saw the most beautiful water fall. The water was crystal clear with birds flying and singing. He walked into the water, and felt the cool liquid around his body. Then he bent down to take a drink. When he cupped his hands in the water the ring began to glow. Rabinaph quickly withdrew his hands from the water but the ring continued to glow. Then he noticed something about the ring. The black jewel had turned blue. It was as blue as the water. Then a strange mist rose up out of the water. Rabinaph was scared so he ran to the shore.
“It was no use the mist followed him to the shore but didn’t float over the sand. The mist never took any recognizable form but it did speak, ’I am Aurora, guardian of the waters. I have waited for many a millennia for a Champaign to arrive here. And finally the fates have brought one such Champaign.’ Rabinaph replied, ’I am no Champaign, for I am being hunted.’ ’Those who hunt you shall never find you, that ring you wear will always lead you away from danger. The ring will give you a special power. A power over all your enemies. Use it wisely.’ The mist started to leave but Rabinaph had two more questions. ’Wait Aurora, this ring you know what it is.’ ’Yes it is one of the five magical elemental rings, the one who wears the ring into one of the sacred temples of the elements will gain the power for their ring.’”
“Grandpa, what are the five elements” I ask.
“Hold on dear I am getting to that part. So Rabinaph asked his second question, ’What are the five elements Aurora?’ ’Wind, fire, earth, and yours water. The fifth is the dark element, if that element should fall into the wrong hand then all hope is lost. Brave Champaign I ask a favor of you. Go forth and collect the other four rings. Keep them safe.’ Then Aurora vanishes. Rabinaph is shown the way out, led by a trail of mist. Once out in the open Rabinaph collects himself and thinks about what to do next. He sees a shimmer of light coming out from behind a shrub and checks it out. The shining is coming from the sun reflecting off piece of paper.”
“Why would a piece of paper shine grandpa?”
Grandpa looks at me and smile, “This piece of paper Steph, is made out of gold. That is why it shines. Anyway, on this piece of paper is a map, of the world. And on the map are five markers. One of the markers is the fortress where he got his elemental powers. He folds the map up and puts it in his pocket, ’Okay, now to find the four other rings.’ Rabinaph sets out on a quest to find the four other elemental rings. Boroc never finds Rabinaph, and Rome falls into a long line of corrupt emperor’s. The end,” grandpa gets up to leave.
“Grandpa, I have a question,“ he stops at the door and turns. I think, “Where did he go to find the rings?”
“Rabinaph traveled around the world. He visited exotic lands like China and the America’s, even before the first European’s sent foot on those lands.”
“Wow,” I’m so excited by the answer. I’m picturing the places grandpa had just told me in my head and how cool it would be to be the first European to set foot there.
“Any other question before you have to hit the hay.”
Snapping out of my excitement and remembering my other question. “Oh, yeah, did he ever die, and did he find the other rings?”
Grandpa thinks about this answer for awhile. “I can’t say that he did. I have heard though that if he takes off his ring he is able to age like everybody else and eventually die. But I don’t know if that has happened. As for the rings, he only found three of them, the forth he was never able to find. Did someone else find it before him, I don‘t know. But it may still be out there” Then he stands up. “Okay Steph, it is time for bed. If your mom knows I let you stay up past eleven she will kill me.” He tucks me in and kisses my forehead.
“Goodnight grandpa.” I roll over and I hear him put something down on my night stand and leaves. Once he is gone I roll back over and see that on my night stand he left a letter for me. I turn on my light and I open the envelope. Out slides a gold ring with a black stone. I see the inside is engraved and I read it; “To all who where this ring, great power will be bestowed unto you.” Then I read the note it says; “Love Grandpa.“ I put the ring on and fall asleep, felling a strange energy flow through my body.

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Tag der Veröffentlichung: 03.04.2010

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