Atondido Stories
As soon as she was gone, the stranger changed into a horrible
looking creature with a third eye in the middle of his forehead.
"Good heavens!" Batcha gasped in fright. "He's the wizard of
the mountain! Now what's going to happen to me!"
Batcha had often heard terrifying stories of the wizard, how
he could himself take any form he wished and how he could
turn a man into a ram.
"Aha!" the wizard laughed. "I see you know me! Now then,
no more lies! Tell me: where have you been all winter long?"
At first Batcha remembered his triple oath to the old king ser-
pent and he feared to break it. But when the wizard thundered
out the same question a second time and a third time, and grew
bigger and more horrible looking each time he spoke, Batcha for-
got his oath and confessed everything.
"Now come with me," the wizard said. "Show me the cliff.
Show me the magic plant."
What could Batcha do but obey? He led the wizard to the
cliff and picked a leaf of the magic plant.
"Open the rock," the wizard commanded.
Batcha laid the leaf against the cliff and instantly the rock
opened.
"Go inside!" the wizard ordered.
But Batcha's trembling legs refused to move.
The wizard took out a book and began mumbling an incanta-
tion. Suddenly the earth trembled, the sky thundered, and with
a great hissing whistling sound a monster dragon flew out of the
cavern. It was the old king serpent whose seven years were up
and who was now become a flying dragon. From his huge
mouth he breathed out fire and smoke. With his long tail he
swished right and left among the forest trees and these snapped
and broke like little twigs.
370