English
Section 13: The Armies Gather at Mount Hamavan
When the sun pitched its tent of yellow silk across the deep blue dome of the sky,
a loud cry rose from the watchtower: 'Gudarz, commander of the army!'
'An army has come, the road grows near; the day has darkened from the dust their horses raise.'
Gudarz stirred from his place and brought forth his swift steed.
He turned his face toward the dark dust cloud, his heart pierced with worry as he searched the way.
When he came near them, he saw the banner of Fariborz, son of Kavus,
who was the vanguard of Iran's army, esteemed, and their newly appointed commander.
Old Gudarz dismounted, that wise, army-cheering leader who welcomed knowledge.
They took one another in their arms, and a mournful cry rose from them both.
Fariborz said: 'Old general, you are forever bound to war.'
'You have suffered loss over the vengeance for Siavash; alas, the riders of the house of Gudarz.'
'May you be greatly rewarded for them; may the head of your enemy's fortune be brought low.'
'Thanks to the Lord of sun and moon that I find you alive and in your place.'
Gudarz wept tears like blood for them, for they lay slain and buried in the earth.
He said to him: 'Look how, through cruel fortune, misfortune strikes my head at every hour.'
'In this war neither son nor grandson remains, no army, no banner, no war drum remains.'
'I have forgotten that former battle; now is the time for combat, now is the work.'
'There is so vast an army on this plain and meadow that the face of the earth has turned black like a raven's wing.'
'The whole army of Tus against this host is like a dark night beside the moon's light.'
'From China and the Slavic lands, from India and Rome, from the ruined and the flourishing corners of the world,'
'it seems not a single living soul remains that has not girded its belt to fight us.'
'Now, until you tell me where Rustam is, my back will not straighten under these sorrows.'
Fariborz said: 'He set out after me from his place, and had no thought but battle.'
'Through the dark night until dawn he presses on the road, wasting no time.'
'Now where shall I take my rest, and where shall I lead this feeble little army?'
Gudarz said to him: 'What did Rustam say? For his words must not be hidden.'
Fariborz said: 'O world-experienced man, the mighty one ordered us not to fight.'
'Stay,' he said, 'in that battleground; do not advance before the army.'
'You must rest on that battleground until my banner appears.'
He set off, and Gudarz went with him; they marched swiftly along the road to Hamavan.
When the army became visible from the watchtower, the lookout hurried to the army of Turan.
'An army has come from Iran onto the plain, and from that side has crossed toward Hamavan.'
The general went to the Khaqan of China: 'An army has come from the land of Iran.'
'We do not know its size or who its commander is; what shall we do, and what is the cure for this?'
Kamus the battle-tester said to him: 'Wherever you, as chief, take your stand,'
'with the great nobles of Afrasiyab's court, an army like a sea of water,'
'you know what you accomplished in these five months on this plain against that feeble little army.'
'Now that the earth from end to end is all army, with the Khaqan and the hero of Kondur here,'
'wait, and we will show our skill; you locked the door, and we will bring the key.'
'If from Kabul and Zabul and Persia and India the face of the earth turns to Roman silk,'
'surely they are not more than I alone; tell me, who exactly are these Iranians?'
'You are afraid of famous Rustam; I will be the first to destroy him.'
'If I once trap him in my snare, I will leave no name of him in the world.'
'You have been wounded by the army of Sistan; you have set your heart on fighting them.'
'Watch my hand once in battle, and see the dust rise from the plain.'
'Then you will know who is a man in this world, who the brave ones are, and what real combat is.'
Piran said to him: 'May you live long; may misfortune's hand stay far from you always.'
The Khaqan of China said thus to Piran: 'You have opened Kamus's path to vengeance.'
He put into deeds all that he had spoken, this man who was a match for a mountain and a mate for an elephant.
'There is not so much to say about the Iranians; do not dishearten the warriors like this.'
'We will leave not one proud head in Iran; we will raise its dust from valley to peak.'
'All who hold rank and dignity we will send to Afrasiyab,'
'their feet all bound in heavy chains, and many of their chiefs cast down.'
'We will leave in Iran not a leaf on a tree, no throne, no king, no crown, no seat of power.'
Piran laughed and offered his praise to those famous men and to the Khaqan of China.
He came to the camp with a joyful heart, and the Turks went off at once.
Men like Human and Lahhak and Farshidvard, the great ones and the lions of the day of battle.
They said: 'An army has come from Iran, with a vanguard bearing a black banner.'
A famous, spirited scout went out and returned at once.
They said: 'It is Fariborz, son of Kavus, with a proud, king-worshipping army.'
'As long as Rustam is not there, there is no fear of him; his breath is no antidote to this poison.'
'Even Kamus, on the day of battle, does not count the mighty-bodied one as a real man.'
'May Rustam not come here to fight, however much Kamus is a crocodile in war.'
'Neither Rustam nor the army of Sistan is here; here there is only dust and blood for Fariborz.'
Piran said thus: 'I have grown sick of throne and power, and weary of the sun and moon.'
'For when I heard that an army had marched from Iran and reached this battleground,'
'my soul and the marrow of my head filled with pain, and a cold sigh rose from my heart.'
Kalbad said to him: 'What is this grief? Why should one weep over Tus and Rustam?'
'With so many maces, swords, elephants, and troops, there is no room even for a breath of wind between them.'
'What are the Iranians before us? Mere dust. Why fear Kay Khosrow, Tus, or Rustam?'
They scattered from that place and made their way toward their tents.
After that, when word came to Tus that the face of the land was filled with the sound of war drums,
that the mighty hero had come from Iran, along with Fariborz, son of Kavus, and that gathering,
he ordered the war drums beaten; from the army's dust the mountain turned black as ebony.
A roar rose from Mount Hamavan, and the earth churned with the thunder of horses.
The general opened his tongue to them and spoke much of Mazandaran,
of what Rustam did in his war with the demons, and what he brought upon them on the day of battle.
The army called blessings upon the champion: 'Be watchful of heart and bright of soul.'
'For this good news, if you asked for our very eyes it would be right, for this news is the adornment of our souls.'
'Now that the mighty-bodied one has come to fight, this army cannot stand against such a crocodile.'
'Let us wage, each one of us, such a battle that we wipe this shame from the Iranians.'
The proud banner of the Khaqan and his crown, the golden shields and that ivory throne,
the golden crowns of the elephant-drivers, the golden spearheads and golden belts,
the golden bells, both great and small, such as no one in the world has ever seen,
and the parasol woven from the tail feathers of a male peacock, set all over with countless gems,
'and more besides we will seize, when we risk our lives and press the fight.'
Watchful Tus said to the army: 'We are both fearful and full of regret.'
'The whole skirt of the mountain is full of the enemy's army; the heads of our famous men are caught in a bind.'
'When Rustam comes, he will reproach us; perhaps he will inquire into this matter,'
'how I was caught like a bird twisting in a snare, everything gone wrong, every fight half-baked.'
'The general was the same, the army the same, yet I saw not one of the spirited heroes.'
'Let us make one charge like fierce lions, so they are uprooted from the mountain's foot.'
The army said: 'Do not seek this glory for yourself; say nothing at all of this kind.'
'Let no one advance beyond this mountain until Rustam has looked upon this battleground.'
'Let us stand before God, for He is the guide to all that is good.'
'By the command of the Keeper of sun and moon, the mighty one will come to this battleground.'
'Why keep your star clouded and grim? Give coins and gold to the poor.'
In joy, from the heroes of Iran's host a great cry rose up from the mountaintop.