Meanwhile, the Bathing Lady - Night spread her dark wings over the world. Tired of the work, Veles and Yarila went home to sleep - to rest, and to gain strength. Buka with a doze set to work, the brownie and the courtyard began to bypass the property, and Semargl with his fiery sword interceded to guard the world until dawn.
But Semargl does not guard the light from shishig, kikimor and banniks, but he is watching so that the army of Zmeev, Chernobogov does not penetrate the obvious world. The dark forces are ineradicable and will always oppose the light ones. As there is no night without day, so also good does not exist without evil. As long as there is Belobog, Chernobog will also build his intrigues. But if Chernobog does not exist, then Belobog himself will turn into absolute evil. Therefore, the battle between good and evil never stopped.
And then one day the Fiery Serpent, the eldest son of Goryn Zmeevich, whom Dazhdbog struck with a spear with the help of Semargl, crept past the guards into the clear world from the underworld. He wanted to find a bride for himself from the human race. He wanders around the courtyards, looks into the windows. He is looking for one that will be to his liking, in order to turn into a good fellow in the morning, and come to woo.
Walking - wandering, everything is useless. He looked through one window, and there a brownie was sitting on a bench, talking to a shishiga. People sometimes do not see brownies with shishigs, and they cannot see the snakes of Chernobogovich. But they always see each other. I saw the Fiery Snake outside the window and shishiga. She began to giggle and make faces. The brownie waved his hands, hissed like a cat, but shouted: - “Pshol out of here cursed! Otherwise I'll make a lizard out of you now!"
The Fire Serpent, of course, is not afraid of brownies, however, so as not to raise a noise, he flapped his wings, and flew to another village to look for his prey. And the brownie began to scold him, saying that there is nothing to weld all evil spirits, even if they are relatives, but worthless.
The fact is that all kikimors, both forest and domestic, come from women whom the Fire Serpent seduced, pretending to be a good fellow, promising to marry, and not fulfilling the promise. But not all serpentine children turn to kikimor, but only unborn girls who died before their birth. Mara-Morena tidies them up in her palace. There, the future kikimors have been broadcasting their fairy tales for seven years, and Mara's servants have been teaching witchcraft wisdom. At the end of the training, newly converted kikimor and shishig are determined to live in the swamps and in the houses, so that they do not age in the slabs and behind the stoves, but like little children they play naughty and indulge in them.
Brownies appear like this: A person thinks to become like a parent to his glorious god Rod, and to build his own little world, takes an ax and goes into the forest. He asks the goblin and Svetibor to let him cut down trees for the dwelling. The tree for the hut must always be selected in winter, in bitter frosts. You can't take creaky trunks, because restless souls groan in them. If a house is made of such trees, then its inhabitants will always be sick. Souls crying in logs will suck the strength and health from people all their life.
You can take only those trunks that sing loudly when you hit them with a butt. Strong and hardy. Trees suitable for construction are taken from the forest, and rest until summer, waiting under the tutelage of the devil in their hour, when a new owner arrives on a cart for them. They are fed with the spirit of the former owner - Svetibor, so that the brother of the goblin domovoy could be born in a new place.
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Before building a new hut, the head of the family buries the horse's head in a consecrated place, and places a stone on it. This is the eastern corner of the future hut. When all the stones have been set, a crown of the finest logs is placed on them. And then from the horse's skull from the spirit laid in the logs, a new brownie is born. The brownie was given power over all the fiery snakes, including over Zmiulan, who is born from the arrows of Perun that fell into a tree. Zmiulan looks like a man, only instead of legs he has a fiery serpentine tail.
The Magi say that the beginning of the history of fire serpents was still tied up by Makosh herself. Once she predicted to Mother Raw Earth the birth of a god of courage and fearlessness, a warrior god, a werewolf god …
Once in the spring, when Yarilo was on the rampage, the soul of the Raw Earth turned into a wonderful bird. She whirled over lush forests and green fields as a beautiful maiden. But the Fiery Serpent saw her, and love of unprecedented power flared up in him. Inflamed, shone like the sun. He scattered fiery sparks on the ground. And he wanted to make the girl his wife. He turned into a kind fellow, and by deceit, by gentle words, he took possession of the Damp Earth. He took her to the underground kingdom.
I understood then Cheese Earth, who took her as a wife, and wanted to run away from him, it was not there. No matter how she resisted, she carried a child from the Snake. Although the Earth did not voluntarily become the wife of a reptile, the son, whatever one may say, is dear to her. Cheese Earth contrived, and she sent a message to the Most High Rod himself, so that he could help her make her son fearless, wise, powerful, so that he would not go into character in his father.
But Rod answered the Earth that the fate of her child is only in his own hands. Even Makoshi does not know which path he will choose: whether to be light with Truth, or dark with Krivda. Knowledge, wisdom and boldness are measured to him in full measure. But how to apply them, for good or for evil, only he can decide.
The Earth was saddened, she grieved and cried while she carried her son under her heart. But Makosh took pity on her, and promised to help her dear son. She punished to call her son the Fiery Volkh.
Volkh was born in a shirt and with a tuft of wolf's hair on the top of his head, because his father, the Fire Serpent, rewarded his son with the ability to turn around in any earthly and underground creature. At the same hour, all three kingdoms shook, heavenly, earthly, and subterranean. The sea overflowed its shores, the peaks collapsed from the high mountains, and the stars began to fall from the heavens.
Animals, birds and reptiles began to reach out to Mother Raw Earth from all over the world. Everyone went to bow to Mother, so that she and her son Volkh bow. Volkh immediately spoke up, and ordered to forge chain mail for him, with a golden shell, an iron club and a damask sword.
He grew by leaps and bounds, and by the time a club was forged for him, he had turned into a mighty giant - a knight. He picked up a club, turned it around playfully, and ordered it to be forged ten times harder. Says to mother:
- The Fire Serpent is not my father. For all the insults that he brought you, my dear, the miracle Yudo will pay with his worthless life. I will launch a club directly into his forehead, and I will beat him to death.
- You dare Volkh, but you are not reasonable. You cannot defeat the damned Serpent without skill. He is too strong, cunning and resourceful.
“Don't worry about that, mother. I'm not a bastard either.
- You grow up while my son, be smart to reason. Satisfy yourself with knowledge and skills, while in Svarga a new club is forged in a hot blacksmith. Svarog personally for you chain mail, with a shell and a sword.
Volkh bowed his head in front of his mother, and with zeal began to study. He took over all the secret knowledge from Mother of the Raw Earth. Mokosh learned to read the knots and tie notifications with strings. From her he took over how to honor elders and praise the gods. He studied military wisdom from Perun, and everyday from Veles.
Yaga Vievna melted away at the sight of a handsome young man. As if in childhood she got into the habit of singing and dancing, collecting flowers and herbs together with Volkh, and taught him all her wisdom. In her hut on chicken legs, a knight became a frequent guest, and learned to understand the language of animals, birds, insects, fish, stones and plants.
The Fiery Magus became the great sorcerer. He learned to soar in the skies as a swift-winged falcon. Finist - Clear Falcon, born from a golden egg at the beginning of the world, became his friend-assistant. The Fiery Magus flew around the whole earth, turning into a falcon. Prowled through the dense forests and endless steppes, turning into a gray wolf. He rode through the mountains in the guise of a unicorn. He dived into the okiyan, turning into a fish, and there were no obstacles for him.
So he became powerful, skillful, wise and fearless. And his glory grew more and more among gods and men. But the underground creatures also found out about Volkh. The Fire Serpent began to gather an army for a campaign against Iriy. From behind the Black Mountains, thick smoke poured down, and seeing it, Volkh realized that his time had come.
Hit the ground, turned into a basilisk dragon, and soared into the sky. He fell like a stone at the snake's den, and began to listen. In a cave under the Serpent Mountain, the Fire Serpent talked with the serpent Paraskea.
- Until Volkh has gained the proper strength, I will attack today. All the creatures flying and creeping at once will hit Iriy when everyone is asleep. While the firemen will burn the area from the summer, I am a sacred apple tree, on which golden apples, giving eternal youth and power over all kingdoms. Then the time will come for my power over the feasts. Then both gods and men will be in my service. Only Volkh will not spare. I will crush like a morel!
- You will not see wonderful apples, Fire Serpent. As long as you are in your lair, and Volkh is with the Irian gods, you will not have any trouble. But if you decide to invade, then you will be your son Volkh Zmeevich. And if he invades you with a club, you will defeat him. But no one can finally defeat anyone. Your destiny is to either fight and bleed, or endure each other with small losses.
- What do you prophesy, undercap snake ?! Not to happen, the son will not raise his hand against me!
Hearing this, the Volkh ignited. He flew into the cave and said:
- You are not my father, you filthy miracle Yudo! My father is an all-powerful Rod. And for having offended my mother, I do not intend to forgive you. Come out into the light, we will fight!
They came out into the light, and Volkh hit the ground. Turned from a basilisk dragon into a good fellow. The Fire Serpent hissed in surprise, thundered with iron scales, vomited flame at his son, but he dodged. He contrived, and he lowered the club directly to the Snake's crown. Stunned him, and while he was unconscious, twisted him into a ram's horn. But he didn't kill. Again he turned into a dragon with a bird's head and four legs with a snake's tail, grabbed the bound Fire Serpent with his claws, and rose high into the sky. Flew to where the sun rises from across the sea.
There, in middle-earth, where from one coast to the other above clear water from dawn to dusk, a stone dungeon was prepared at the Volkh at the very bottom of the okiyana. Having reached that place, Volkh turned around like a toothy pike, dived to the bottom, holding the Snake in his teeth, and imprisoned him in a stone dungeon.
There, at the bottom of the okiyan in the thickness of the stone, the Fire Serpent untangled, and well, flutter, beat against the walls. From that fluttering, a rumble and indignation went all over the ocean. The water heaved, and fell in a great wave on both banks.
And the fiery Serpent sits to this day in his dungeon, cursing the day when Paraskei did not obey the snake, and looked up to the golden apples. Now, as the Fiery Serpent spews out the flame from his mouth, so the stone melts, and seeps to the surface of the earth with fiery streams. But when all the walls of the stone dungeon go out with liquid fire, the Fiery Serpent will be freed, it will break out, and then there will be a new battle with the Fiery Magus.
Author: kadykchanskiy