The Story of the Little Goblin, Art, from the Iron Land
Translated from Romanian by Andra Fundulea.
Once upon a time, there was a secret place on earth, well hidden from the eyes of men, and this place was called the Iron Land. It was a kingdom hidden between the darkest mountains and deepest chasms of the six kingdoms, surrounded by wild and dark forests, numerous caves and chasms, and inhabited entirely by goblins: hideous little creatures who shunned the gaze and company of other enchanted creatures.
In this fantasy land, things were not usual: here night was day and day was night for the little goblins. They slept by day in dark caves—because for many hundreds of years their eyes could not bear the strong glare of the sun—and they worked at night.
Night after night, tirelessly, the goblins descended into hidden caves in the mountains of the Iron Land and collected diamonds, gold, silver, and other precious metals for their neighbors, the elves, receiving nectar and fruit in return.
Goblins were ugly creatures, only half a meter tall, black-skinned with red eyes and pointed ears, capable of striking fear into any human who saw them. Ruled by a tyrannical king, the goblins earned their daily food by toiling night after night and spent their days sleeping.
Their only amusement took place at the dawn of each day when the night twined with the morning. Only then would the goblins sit around a big fire and tell each other stories. Horror stories, of course, because that was all these creatures liked.
And the goblins knew hundreds of stories, each more horrifying than the other, not only from the six enchanted kingdoms, but also from the human world. They had the power to enter the dreams of any mortal, bringing terrible nightmares and bad dreams. They were amused by the fear of evil and lying men, for, I forgot to tell you, goblins only appeared in the dreams of men who did evil deeds, and the powers of these beings could not touch good people.
Amongst all these mischievous goblins lived Art, a goblin so physically similar to his brothers and yet so different from them all.
It was said that when Art was born, two hundred years ago, as the old men told at the fire between the twining of the days, three bright stars of an unusual shape had lined up in the sky, shining brightly in the black night. This happened very rarely, once every few thousand years, and then it seemed, as the old legends said, that someone special was born into the world.
And Art really was special. He was a good goblin, gentle and very peaceful. He did not like to take part in the eternal fierce quarrels between the goblins or to kill the little creatures that lived in the caves: earthworms, moles or other not so nice creatures of nature. He didn’t even like haunting the dreams of bad people.
For all these reasons, plus his gentle nature, Art was so different from them that the other goblins had isolated Art, and not understanding him, always picked on him so that he was often the target of other’s taunts. The goblins always tormented him by putting dead animals under his pillows or leaving him alone in the most dangerous caves without a lantern or any other source of light. In fact, hey had once locked him in one of the chambers hidden deep in the heart of the earth for several hours.
His brothers were mean, and they always got revenge because Art refused to participate in all their cruel and pointless customs.
But, for as long as he knew, Art lived with a burning desire. He wanted to see the vast forests, the deep lakes, and the enchanted mountains with white peaks without fearing and shielding his eyes from the bright sunlight.
He wanted to go around the whole earth, travel everywhere and make new friends, but this was not possible. No goblin could stand the sunlight, and no goblin had ever left the Iron Land.
It was said that if any subject of the kingdom left these lands, he would never be allowed to visit the land again, and what’s more, the evil goblin king would punish him and turn him from a goblin into a gnome, another ugly but powerless creature. Gnomes were on the lowest rung of darkness of all the enchanted beings.
Day after day, life went like this in the land of the goblins: they slept during the day, worked at night, and occasionally spent the mornings at the campfire.
At the end of each week, a goblin would cross the entire Iron Land, carrying in his carriage the things so preciously gathered with hard work from the deep caves in the earth: gold, silver, and diamonds. He was taking them all to their neighbors, the elves.
After long pleas, one fine day the goblins agreed that Art would also carry the precious cargo for the first time.
Art prepared his knapsack with food, got some sturdy clothes and shoes, and led the little horse harnessed to the loaded cart to the Diamond Kingdom.
Located on the borders of the Iron Land and separated from it by a snowy mountain, the Diamond Kingdom was built entirely of precious stones: gold, silver, and diamonds. Old elves with great wings and unprecedented powers guarded its borders, while young elves roamed the entire land.
Elves were good friends with fairies, but also with leprechauns. Along with them, they cast powerful spells and shackled the evil creatures that roamed the land.
After several hours of walking, Art reached the edge of the Diamond Land, left the cart at the golden gate, and then hid in a small pit, waiting.
After an hour or two, three beings of unparalleled, unearthly beauty descended from the sky and stood beside the goblin’s cargo of gold and diamonds.
At that moment, Art realized in amazement that he could see them, although it was known from the elders and the old stories told around the fire that goblins could not see high-ranking beings of light. Art could not only see them but hear them. And so, standing there and animated by a sudden courage, he made a decision. He was going to talk to them and ask for their help to escape from the dark and terrible place in which he lived and could never find peace.
If the goblins were beings of darkness and lower rank, the elves were beings of light and higher rank, and that is why their powers far exceeded those of goblins. For this very reason, he knew that the elves were the only ones who could help him escape the tormented life in the Iron Land.
Coming out of his hiding place, with fear and timidity in his soul, Art addressed the oldest of the elves with downcast eyes, “Magnified Master, servant of light, forgive me for my audacity. I know I am a creature of darkness and am not allowed to speak to you, but unlike my other brothers, I can see you in full, not just as air forms, and I can hear you. That is why I humbly dare to ask you for a precious gift.”
The elves studied the little goblin very carefully, saw the star that barely illuminated its aura, and realized that they were dealing with a special creature.
Half-light and half-dark, half-good and half-evil, Art was unlike anything they had ever encountered in their travels through the enchanted lands. And the elves had many hundreds of years in which they had roamed the earth.
“What’s your story, little goblin?” asked the strongest of the elves.
“I wish, ever since my birth, to see the light, to travel, and to know other lands too. I do not find myself among my goblin brothers. They frighten me and drive me away with their wickedness. It depresses me to work in the dark, and it is very difficult for me to be with others, night after night, in the dark caves. I want with all my heart to be a part of and live in a much better world.”
“That’s because you’re different,” answered the old elf. “At your birth, three ancient stars aligned in the sky and gave birth to a new constellation called Aora, and you were gifted with two parts of light and two parts of darkness. Beings born on the night of Aora are said to have special qualities. That is why you do not find your place among your brothers, the dark goblins. This is not common in the Iron Land.”
“You see, we can help you, but we want in exchange for these things your immortality,” said the second elf. “We urgently need it to give to our king, Almor, who after some battles with powerful forces of darkness, was touched by an evil shadow spell and lost his immortality. You will only live two hundred years on this earth if you give us your immortality, but during this time, you will be able to do whatever you want for a lifetime. You will be able to fulfill all your dreams and travel all over the earth.”
Art thought for a few moments, not very long, and made up his mind. Rather than an eternity of darkness and a life in the hidden caves of the Iron Land, it was better to have two hundred years of light, joy, knowledge, and goodness.
He told the elves what his decision was and then they cast a powerful spell. Art immediately fell into a deep sleep. When he woke up, his heart was filled with wonder. He could already see the world with different eyes!
The sun shone brightly, and he could gaze unhindered into the bright rays. He could smell the fragrant flowers and the fresh air, and he could see everything much more clearly. Everything created a state of intense happiness in his little goblin soul, a happiness he had never experienced before.
Cheerfully, he got up from the grass where he had been sleeping and, full of curiosity, started on his way.
Over the course of over a hundred or so years, Art traveled the land far and wide and learned untold stories that add to his wisdom and goodness. He visited all six enchanted kingdoms, roamed the vast plains of the Diamond Kingdom, indulged in long baths in the crystalline springs of the Land Between Waters, and befriended the merry goblins and bright fairies of the Crystal Kingdom.
With only a few decades left to live, he decided to settle in a wonderful forest on the edge of the Crystal Land where he built a small house. All the animals of the forest, all the birds, and even some of the younger beings of light came to the wise old goblin for help and advice. Not even a day passed without Art not doing a good deed: helping an animal in need, taking care of someone sick, or participating in the work in the forest.
But one night, as Art was getting ready for bed, he heard a heartbreaking moan. He took a lantern from his little house and hurried out to see what was happening.
In the middle of the forest there was a great fire, a huge commotion, and in the middle of this fire in an incandescent circle, lay wounded on the ground a little elf.
His wonderful wings were scorched, his skin was burned, and the poor thing could barely breathe. Art looked fearfully at the powerful fire, then at the little elf moaning in pain, and decided on the spot to risk his life to save him. He jumped determinedly into the fire, but blinded by the light of the flames and dazed by the smoke, he fell to the ground.
With the last of his strength, he pulled the elf out of the flames and threw him away from the flame, then lost his breath.
Somewhere in his soul he knew that the end had come, and he did not try to resist. He had serious injuries, severe burns, and everything was going dark around him.
At least I’m not dying in vain, Art thought with the last of his strength. I saved a life far more precious than my own. And then he passed out.
Suddenly, he felt surrounded by a cold steam that soothed his wounds and found himself lifted into the sky by an invisible force. In the blink of an eye, Art found himself in the Diamond Kingdom. He no longer felt any pain or burning, and looking around, he saw that he was in the Elf Palace. In front of him in the throne room, lit by a powerful aura, was Almor, the King of the Elves.
“Come closer, little goblin,” said the king. “I have wanted to meet you for a long time and to reward you for such noble deeds. You saved my life by giving me your immortality, and now you risked the few years you had left to save my son, the only heir to this kingdom. You are a kind and gentle being, and so to repay you, I will give you immortality again, but also a goblin maiden to stay by your side for eternity. She is just like you, two-parts light and two-parts dark, and with a being like you, you will be happy. You’ll never be alone again, even if you won’t have the goblin family you were born into anywhere near you. Call Azaleea,” the king called and then clapped his hands.
The doors opened and a cute, smiling little creature appeared in front of Art. Her face showed kindness. She smiled at Art in a way that lit up the whole room. Seeing her, Art immediately fell in love and asked her to be his wife.
And so, Art and Azaleea had a big wedding attended by elves, fairies and goblins, as well as other enchanted beings from all six kingdoms.
Then they went off together to their lovely little house in the woods and lived happily for many hundreds of years.
These are the wonderful stories of the Iron Land. Trials, confrontations, fights, love stories, all these happened a long time ago, at the beginning of the world. Kings and queens, princes and princesses, enchanted beings and humans, they all fought so that good would forever defeat evil, so that nothing could destroy and disturb the balance of life on earth.