First the bear slipped through, after him Aipina and Aderke. The passage was cut out in the rocky part of the mountain and was so close and small that it was necessary to go one behind the other and to stoop over. Having advanced a little farther they joyfully came out on a small square with a much higher cupola-like ceiling. Through a little crack a dim ray of light was seen. They sat down to rest and having looked about somewhat they came to notice something gleaming, yes, burning like gold. This turned out to be a fine glass vessel with four pretty handles. It was of gold color with thin white patterns and filled to overflowing with ancient Greek silver coins.
“The first thing found is naturally due to thee,” said Aipina in a very gracious tone. And the bear having taken up the vessel on his long thin beak again set forth on his journey. It was necessary to follow on by just so narrow and low a passage—only fully twice as long—as the first. It led them into a large round cave, which was exceedingly high. At the very top there was a rather large opening, through which the light could easily penetrate. At the side of one wall stood a wooden grave without a roof, and in front of it an old, old candlestick of red clay. To the tremendous surprise of our travellers, the whole room was illuminated by the fine blue flame of a very rare wick. They went nearer and saw that in the tomb there lay a hermit, very likely a saint, because his body was splendidly preserved. “Let us take a rest,” said the exhausted Aipina, sitting down on the floor. The bear slowly lowered his vessel to her feet, but Aderke did not let his eyes lose sight of the deceased, as though he was trying hard to remember some familiar features, and suddenly he succeeded in his mental researches and with awful screeching and jumping threw himself on the bare floor in front of the grave.
“Forgive me, oh, Holy God,” he cried out, “forgive me that severe insult which I inflicted upon thee in my state of craziness and for which I have been so cruelly punished.” And with most sincere and hearty repenting he prayed to God and the Saint to pardon his terrible sin. Aipina heard him with eyes and mouth wide open, but on her the words of Aderke produced quite a different impression. He understood how fearfully he had offended God and his proud heart was filled with perfect remorse.
He fell down on his knees by the side of the monster and wept bitterly and long over his wicked actions and earnestly implored to be pardoned. The all-merciful God accepted the tears of both great sinners and sent them a deliverance which was quite as marvellous as the punishment. An unusual light was shining into the cave and in a second blinded the praying men; when, however, they again began to be able to distinguish the different things, Aipina was no longer to be seen, but on the spot where she stood there shone a blindingly magnificent comet.
Aderke glanced at the bear—he had been transformed into a very handsome youth, in his hands, under the rays of the comet, burned and played with various colored fires the remarkable, ancient glass vessel. In an instant the comet began gradually to draw nearer to the opening in the vaulted ceiling. The gleaming windings of her long, long tail safely guided both the astonished persons and attracted them after her. Soon they had successfully completed the march through the long and narrow entrance road of the cave and began to rise higher and higher until they had triumphantly reached the summit of the mountain. Then the comet let herself down to the doors of that same temple, in which Aderke had so terribly misbehaved on his arrival in the said region. Aipina was again transformed into a simple woman and began to request Aderke that he should make her a slave and servant of the omnipotent God who had accomplished such great deeds of creation.
In the meantime the sunrise service was just beginning and the monks began to come out of their cells to celebrate their morning devotions. The first stroke of the bell was then heard. Aderke and his faithful companion took off their caps and reverently made the sign of the cross. In this minute to them came up the monk who usually stood at the tomb of the Saint, when poor Salougvari had taken speedy refuge near it. He found out Aderke and furiously looked at him. But the most humble and submissive speech of the really repenting man quickly quieted his anxious feelings. Aipina was converted and really and truly became the wife of Aderke, while his comrade in the hour of trial, who had made use of his fortune in order to buy up a very extensive vineyard near the poor saklia (hut) of Salougvari, happily married her and took over into his house her widowed mother. All three lived long and happily and very frequently visited Aderke and Aipina, who were by no means behind them in sincerity of love and perfect harmony.
X. The Jewel Necklace
It was the twenty-second of December, the day of our holy “Fate-decider” Anne. In a poor saklia (native hut) not far from the road leading into town there sat a very young, beautiful girl, surrounded by a number of children. She was bitterly crying. On this day the father of this unhappy family died in jail; and that same terrible day, when he was taken away from his home and locked up against his will, the poor mother breathed her last breath. For what reason they had imprisoned him, the children did not know. They tenderly loved their father and in their true childish imagination it seemed to them as though he could not be wrong in any department of life whatever. The last time that they had seen him, he informed them that people would come and punish him even before the fête, and so they diligently prayed for his deliverance and salvation to the holy martyr Anastasia—and, behold! on the day of her celebration, she cut the cords and bands which prevented him from enjoying the blessings of home life and delivered him forever from prison as well as from the terrible punishment.
“Zenobi!” remarked one of the children, “I want to eat.” “Sit ye all down,” replied the young girl, rising and drying her mournful tears. She covered the table with a simple blue cloth with white flowers and placed on it a star-formed vessel, on which a whole mountain of rice was seen.