Exalted mid the warriors of Rúm
Was one—a chieftain younger than Mírín,
A man of haughty nature named Ahran,
Of brazen body and illustrious race.
He sent a message unto Cæsar saying:—
“O famous monarch! I surpass Mírín
In treasure, prowess, swordsmanship, and all;
Give me thy youngest daughter as my spouse,
And make thy realm and crown revive through me.”
But Cæsar said: “Thou surely must have heard
What I have sworn by Him that watcheth o'er us
That this girl shall not choose her spouse, but I
Will quit the custom of mine ancestors.
Thou must perform some action like Mírín's
That we may stand on an equality.
Infesting Mount Sakíla is a dragon,
Which is that region's bale the whole year through;
If thou wilt rid the land thereof, my daughter,
My treasure, and my kingdom are thine own.
It matcheth with the lion-quelling wolf:
Its venom-breath is Áhriman's own snare.”
Ahran replied: “I will perform thy hest,
And pledge my soul to execute thy will.”
Then to his friends: “The blow that slew the wolf
Was from the scimitar of one of valour.
How could Mírín accomplish such a deed?
But Cæsar thinketh one man like another.
I will go ask Mírín; that shifty one
May haply tell the shift that he employed.”
So to the palace of Mírín he went
Like dust, with one before him to announce him.
Mírín sat in a chamber, which the Moon
Throughout her orbit hath not one to match.
The ambitious man was in a warrior's garb,
And crowned with an imperial diadem.
The servant said: “Ahran, the elephantine,
Is coming with a train of followers.”
Mírín thereat adorned his chamber more,
While all his worthiest servants went to meet
Ahran. Mírín, on seeing him, embraced him,
And then began to pay him compliments.
When nobody remained within the hall,
Save those two chieftains sitting on the throne,
Ahran said to Mírín: “Come tell me this,
And, whatsoe'er I ask, dissemble not.
My heart is set on making Cæsar's daughter,
Who is the chief princess of Rúm, my wife;
But when I asked him he returned this answer:—
‘First battle with the dragon on the mountain.’
If thou wilt tell me how thou didst destroy
The wolf thou wilt assist me mightily.”
Mírín was troubled and considered thus:—
“If I tell not Ahran what that young hero
Achieved, the matter still will get abroad.
The sum of manliness is being upright,
And dark, deceitful ways are cause for tears.
I will inform him. Haply that brave horseman
May lay the dragon's head upon its breast.
Ahran will be my friend and back me up,
Our enemies will only clutch the wind;
Then will we raise this horseman's heart in dust,
And this affair will for a time be hidden.”*

He thus addressed Ahran: “I will inform thee
About the wolf, but first of all require
A mighty oath that thou wilt not reveal
This secret night or day, but shut thy lips.”
Ahran accepted what Mírín proposed,
And swore the mighty oath. Mírín set pen
To paper, wrote a letter to Híshwí,

And said: “Ahran, who is akin to Cæsar,
An atheling possessed of throne and treasure,
And just withal, demandeth Cæsar's daughter,
The youngest and the only one remaining,
In marriage; Cæsar maketh of the dragon
A snare to catch Ahran and take his head;
Ahran hath come to me to ask assistance,
And I, to help him, have revealed the secret
About the wolf and that brave cavalier,
Who, having done so well for me, no doubt
Will do as well for him too, will create
Two princes in the land, and crown two Suns.”
Ahran departed with the schemer's letter
And sought Híshwí. As he approached the sea
The veteran ran to meet him, welcomed him,
Received the flattering letter, loosed the band,
And said thus to Ahran: “Dost thou not know
That 'tis our friends who desolate our gardens?
A youth—an alien and a man of name—
Made his own life a ransom for Mírín,
And yet may not escape, strive as he will,
Against the dragon. Be my guest to-night,
Here set thy candle, and enjoy the sea.
When that fame-seeking hero cometh hither
To-morrow, I will tell him what thou wilt.”
They lit the surface of the sea with candles,
And called for wine and meat, till topaz dawn
Rose in the vault of lapis-lazuli;
Then by the sea the famed Ahran beheld
A warrior-horseman coming in the distance.
As he drew near both went with joy to meet him.
Dismounting he requested meat and wine
From famed Híshwí who made all haste to say:—
“Rejoice, illustrious man, both day and night!
Behold this warrior of Cæsar's kindred—
The darling of the ever turning sky.
Not only is he of imperial race,
But he hath wealth, Grace, fame, and everything.
He fain would be the son-in-law of Cæsar,
And would have one to guide in that emprise.
He hath no equal save in Cæsar's kindred;
A youth is he with Grace and thews and stature.
He asked for Cæsar's daughter's hand in marriage,
And he was answered by a new expedient,
For Cæsar said: ‘Be thou a dragon-catcher;
If thou art of my race display thy prowess.’
Before the mighty men by night and day
No name except Mírín's is on his lips,
And only those will illustrate his throne
Who are in fame and fortune like Mírín.
Near is a lofty mountain, once a place
For mirth and feasting; now upon the summit
There is a dragon feared by all in Rúm.
It draweth down the vulture from the sky,
Up from the deep the savage crocodile;
Its poison and its fume consume the ground,
And all the region is unblessed by heaven.
Now if by hand of thine it should be slain
The deed would be a wonder in the world;
Nathless, if holy God shall be thy helper,
And if the sun revolve as thou desirest,
Thou with thy stature, form, and might of hand
Mayst lay that dragon with the scimitar.”
He said: “Go make a sword five cubits long,
Including hilt, toothed like a serpent's teeth
Upon both sides, and pointed sharp as thorn.
The sword must be of finely tempered steel,
Of watered metal and exceeding keen.
Provide me too a mace, a barded steed,
A gleaming glaive and royal garniture.
By God's victorious fortune and decree
Will I suspend that dragon from a tree.”