Part 13

Then news reached Afrasiab that fire had risen out of a sea of water. From Kamus, Manshur, and the Khan of China, a fresh defeat had come upon the land of Turan. An army had come from Iran to make war, one so vast that even the turning sky found its path narrowed. For forty days the fighting stayed the same; day and night the world wore a single color. The sun was hidden by the dust of the horsemen, as if waking fortune had fallen asleep. In the end, of that countless army not a single rider was left fit for battle. The great men and the famous chiefs were all bound, one and all, in heavy chains. In disgrace they were thrown onto the backs of elephants; the troops had gathered across two miles. So thick lay the dead on the battlefield that no one had room to pass along the way. And on this side Piran went off toward Khotan with a company of the famous. No man of Kashan, Sughd, or Wahr was left whom the writ of Rostam's sword had not summoned. And on this side the army pressed in hard, with vengeful Rostam at its front. If that host should come to fight us, the mountain will become plain and the plain a mountain. When Afrasiab heard these words, his heart filled with pain and his head with smoke. He summoned all the priests and wise men and spoke at length of what had passed. How a warlike army from Iran had turned its face against those famous men. That heavy host was broken, for all its array and its boundless numbers. The grief of Kamus and the Khan of China, he said, has as good as bound me to the ground. Such an army was chained and wounded; two thirds of my proud chiefs were taken captive. They dragged them off to Iran on the backs of elephants; the earth was soaked in blood for miles. What shall we do, and how shall we cure this? We must not take it lightly in our hearts. If Rostam is the one leading them, no thorn or blade of grass will be left on this soil. For I have seen his handiwork myself, and I have heard of it too from those in the know. Of what he did on the day of battle to the great men of Iran, for all their skill. Of what he did to the king of Mazandaran, and what his mace brought down on those chiefs. The nobles prepared their answer, and all rose together from their places. They said: if the famous men of Saqlab and China sought war and vengeance against Iran, not one man of our army has been lost, nor has this land run steadily with blood. Why do you keep fearing Rostam, and grant the enemy's wish so cheaply? We were all born from our mothers for death; once we tied our belts for war, we have not loosed them. If they trample our soil beneath their feet, they will pay the price for that deed of theirs. If from now on we gird ourselves for revenge, not one of the Iranians will be left alive. The king heard the answer of his nobles, and chose an eloquent man from the army. He summoned the brave and the proud, and gave up sleep, rest, and food. He opened his treasury and handed out gold coins, feeding his own soul on heart's blood. The ground grew so crowded with warriors, you would think the very heavens had come out for vengeance. When the key came to unlock this cruel bond, Fariborz reached Rostam. Glad at heart, he came with the king's robe of honor, and in it a crown adorned with jewels. At this the elephant bodied hero rejoiced, and the great men of the army gathered around. They gave praise to the champion: may the land flourish because of Rostam. Through him may the soul of the world's king be glad, and may the land and realm of Iran flourish. We are all your servants and your slaves, our heads bowed to your command and will. From there he led the army on in joy, came to Sughd, and stayed two weeks. He hunted the wild ass and reached for wine; in this way for a while he ate and took his measure of life.