Kundin Tsatsuba Book 2 by Madakin Gini

Description

KUNDIN TSATSUBA BOOK 2

Just seeing that they moved to fly into the sky, Sorcerer Hafsil Habar let out a cry and said, "Have mercy on me, untie me! I also beg you to carry me on your jinn and take me with you."
Upon hearing this, everyone burst into laughter. Jinn Nargaz extended a single finger and snapped the magical ropes binding Hafsil Habar, then scooped him up with that same finger and placed him on his back. Immediately, Nargaz spread his wings and flew upward. Swiftly, Princess Sima and Vizier Kaddaru also mounted the back of Durfus, who also flew up, following behind Nargaz. Within a few seconds, they soared into the clouds.
Now, the journey consisted of five humans and three jinn: Jafar, Yelisa, Sima, Kaddaru, and Hafsil Habar. On the jinn side, there were Nargaz, Durfus, and Gulzum.
When they had been traveling for a day and a night, Jinn Nargaz looked at Jafar and said, "O my leader, I am reminding you that in three and a half days we will arrive at the Kalkim desert. Therefore, before we enter, I want you to remind us again of those seven laws, which, if we violate any, we will all perish together."
Jafar replied, "Indeed, Nargaz, you have brought up a matter worthy of consideration. For now, what I want from you is to keep moving with us without making a halt anywhere. Everyone must be patient and endure their fatigue, because making a stop anywhere could cause a massive waste of time."
Upon hearing this, everyone agreed. Thus, they continued traveling day and night, until there was exactly one day left before entering the Kalkim desert.
It was then that Jafar said, "Alright, listen carefully. I will remind us of the seven laws for when we find ourselves inside the Kalkim desert. The first thing is: none of us must dare to try and fight the Marids (giant demons) in this desert. The second law is: when they capture us, everyone must seal their lips—do not speak a word until we are taken to wherever they are taking us. The third law: if we are placed inside a wooden cage, we must not eat or drink anything they bring us for three days, even if we feel like hunger and thirst will kill us. The fourth law is: none of us must dare to attempt using sorcery. The fifth law: whenever the Marids are looking at us, everyone must cast their eyes down; we must not lock eyes with them. The sixth law is: we must bow down in prostration to the golden tree positioned at the entrance of the house of Magulus, the father of the Marids, every single morning. The final law, which is the seventh: on the day they come to take us out of the wooden cage to devour us, none of us should argue or be stubborn. The moment we are being marched past that golden tree, we must raise our heads up and look at its leaves. Instantly, the leaves will rain down to the ground in countless numbers, as far as the eye can see. When this happens, all the Marids will freeze and turn into statues, including their father Magulus and his wife. At that moment, we will have the opportunity to enter the house of the Marid Magulus and retrieve the Sword of Sarjis."
When Jafar reached this point in his speech, he looked at everyone one by one and said, "I hope we have all memorized what I said? You must surely know that a mistake or forgetfulness by any single one of us regarding these laws means our collective destruction. Anyone who knows they cannot keep them should say so now, so we can descend and drop them off before we reach the Kalkim desert."
All of them remained completely silent; no one showed any sign of weakness. Yelisa smiled and said, "Well, a person has only one life. Anyone who recklessly loses theirs, that is it—they won’t get another. As for me, I don't care, for they say 'the death of a multitude is a festival.'"
Hearing this, Jafar burst into laughter and said, "You too do not know the bitterness of death. If you knew it, you wouldn't make this speech."
"Oh, modern one who knows death, why don't you tell us about the time you tasted it?"
Jafar smiled and said, "So you have already forgotten when Hafsil Habar cast a blind-strike spell on me? Ah, at that time, my eyes shut, and I saw strange stars floating in the sky. After that, my hearing and sight left me entirely. Truly, that state I entered was exactly like the taste of death."
Yelisa burst into laughter, looked at Hafsil Habar, and said, "Well done, old man with an iron life! You are the cure for the meddler."
Laughter broke out among all of them, and they giggled intensely, especially Jinn Nargaz and Jinn Durfus, to the point you would think they would never stop laughing for the rest of their lives.
"Oh! You jinn are malicious. What is this wicked laughter for, as if you were given cotton to hawk?"
Suddenly, everyone sealed their lips because of what they spotted ahead of them. It was nothing other than the Kalkim desert. From above, they could see the desert floor covered with countless Marids.
The Marids were massive and possessed terrifying features. No matter how stubborn a person was, if they locked eyes with them, they would be terrified. As Jinn Nargaz and Jinn Durfus drew closer to this desert, they felt they could no longer move their wings properly as they should. Their speed continued to drop repeatedly. Panic gripped them. Unexpectedly, they felt themselves plummeting downwards... as if pulled by a hook.
Instantly, they all fell into the hands of the Marids. The Marids began a type of growling that could cause a pregnant woman to miscarry on the spot. They also began to drool out of sheer greed. There, Jafar and his companions were carried like a corpse on a bier—these Marids passing them to those, and those passing them to others, marching them forward. Jafar and his crew remained completely limp; no one made a move, and no one uttered a sound. After a long journey like this, they arrived at the entrance of the house of Magulus, the father of the Marids. Upon arrival, they met him standing firmly, waiting for their arrival, as news had already reached him that some human beings had been captured today.
When Jafar and his group were brought before Magulus and threw their eyes upon him, everyone’s stomach churned with terror due to the frightening nature of his form. Magulus was tall; because of his extreme height, if a person looked up, they would see his face looking like a bird at the highest peak of the sky. The width of his chest was eighty-three cubits, and the thickness of the heel of his foot resembled a massive baobab tree. If he lifted a single foot of his, he could crush a hundred of his own children at once, even though they too were not small—the size of each one of them was five times larger than Princess Sima.
Magulus gestured for them to be placed inside a giant wooden cage. Immediately, his children fulfilled the command. They were thrown inside and locked up like chickens thrown into a coop, and then everyone dispersed, leaving them all alone in the area.
Jinn Durfus put his head between his knees in frustration, then raised his head, looked at Jinn Nargaz, and said, "Hey, whoever hasn't traveled the world hasn't seen wonders. Now look at me, despite all my size, the strength of my biceps, and the power of my sorcery, today I am locked up in a wooden cage, and in the hands of some creatures other than jinn. Their malevolence surpasses ours."
Nargaz replied, "Hm... as for me, that isn't even what surprised me, but rather that father of the Marids. Look at his extreme size—he is like a mountain. Why, when I spotted the nostrils of his nose from afar, I thought they were two massive mountain caves."
As for Gulzum, he said, "For me, when I saw his eyes, I thought the sun and the moon were going to collide in the open sky."
Upon hearing this, Jafar and the others burst into laughter. Jafar said, "Indeed, you are the most confused of all. Where have you ever seen the sun and the moon meet? Ah, it is something that can never happen, because there is no peace between heat and cold; if they were to meet, one must dissolve the other."
Princess Sima cleared her throat and said, "Indeed, it seems your minds are completely at ease. Have you already forgotten the situation we are in, to the point you have the chance to chat? Remember, our lives are hanging in the balance. It would be better if you seal your lips so we can have peace of mind and continue to observe the laws of this desert—you know that keeping silent is part of it."
Jafar said, "That is true, but since the Marids are not nearby, we can have our chat. The conversation is a mercy to us, as it will reduce our fear and anxiety. This reminds me of the story of three princes who set out in search of their father's weapons, which were lost to the world, sought after, and missed."
Upon hearing this, Yelisa said, "Hey Jafar, what kind of wondrous story is this? Share it with us so we can enjoy it."
Jafar cleared his throat, adjusted his voice, and said, "The origin of this story is from a history book called Karon Batta. In an era long ago, there was a famous king named Jamnash, who in his time conquered many countries through war. He left the world without his country ever being defeated in war, and he ruled the land of Lahamas for ninety-two years. One night, morning came, and he was gone without a trace. King Jamnash had three sons: Sahal, Fazmal, and Husmal. All of them were true warriors because they led the way whenever they went out to war. Each had a different mother, and they did not get along at all among themselves due to the bitter jealousy plaguing their mothers, because each preferred her son to inherit the throne. Four years after the disappearance of King Jamnash, the royal house descended into chaos over the..."
(Text cuts off contextually here regarding the story, then resumes back to Jafar)
"...'we have not met here within sixty days.' Having finished saying that, he turned his horse's bridle and followed the path leading east. Fazmal, on his part, followed the path leading west. Husmal followed the south, traveling while thinking with sadness about the situation they found themselves in—of intense lack of family bond and hatred for one another, simply due to the greed for power."
When Jafar reached this point in the story, Vizier Kaddaru interrupted him and said, "Look, stop right there. Now, what is the meaning of this story? Where is the wisdom in it?"
Jafar hissed and said, "Ah, you see? That is human nature—a lack of patience. If you had followed me slowly, you would have seen where the meaning of the story lies. But since you have interrupted me, I will not continue until another time if a similar opportunity arises."
Jafar fell silent and said nothing more. By that time, night had begun, so they all surrendered to exhaustion and went to sleep.
The next morning, Jafar and his crew were brought a type of foul-smelling water in a large clay pot, along with some small stones, as their breakfast. The way the water and stones were placed was exactly how they were taken back, because no one even looked at where they were, let alone ate them. When the sun rose, the Marids began coming in rows, staring at the prisoners inside the wooden cage. The prisoners, however, cast their heads down, refusing to lock eyes with the Marids. When it was midday, another type of food was brought and placed for the prisoners, and they refused to eat it as well. When evening came, a different kind of food was brought, and they still refused to eat it. This routine continued for three days. The prisoners became severely exhausted from extreme hunger and thirst, looking as though they might not survive. Every morning, Jafar and the others looked toward the golden tree and bowed in prostration to it.
On the evening of the third day, the prisoners were brought out of the wooden cage, and they were marched forward. When they were about to pass in front of the golden tree, all of them raised their heads up and looked at the leaves of the tree. No sooner had they done this than the leaves began pouring down to the ground in heaps, filling everywhere. The moment this happened, all the Marids froze and turned into stone statues. Seeing this, joy gripped Jafar and his companions.
They headed straight into the house of Magulus, the father of the Marids. They threaded through the middle of the petrified Marid statues until they entered the innermost room of Magulus. Upon entering, they saw countless human skulls scattered on the floor, and they also spotted the Sword of Sarjis hanging on the wall. Jafar bent down, picked up a human skull, and threw it at the Sword of Sarjis. Instantly, the sword fell to the ground, and he rushed to pick it up. Holding it, he turned to exit, and everyone followed behind him. Wherever Jafar placed his footsteps, Jinn Durfus, Princess Sima, and the others placed theirs, until they traveled for about an hour.
Jafar stopped, looked at Jinn Durfus and Jinn Nargaz, and said, "Quickly, carry us and get us out of this desert."
Swiftly, the two jinn crouched down. Gulzum, Jafar, and Yelisa mounted the back of Nargaz. Princess Sima, Kaddaru, and Sorcerer Hafsil Habar mounted the back of Jinn Durfus. Simultaneously, the jinn spread their wings...

Summary of the Story

This excerpt follows an adventurous party—consisting of five humans (Jafar, Yelisa, Princess Sima, Vizier Kaddaru, and the newly freed sorcerer Hafsil Habar) and three jinn (Nargaz, Durfus, and Gulzum)—on a perilous quest to retrieve the legendary Sword of Sarjis from the Kalkim Desert.

• The Blueprint for Survival: Before entering the desert, Jafar reminds the group of seven strict, life-saving rules required to defeat the desert's residents, the Marids (giant demons), and their monstrous leader, Magulus. These rules include absolute silence upon capture, fasting for three days, avoiding eye contact, and daily prostrations to a magical golden tree.
• Capture and Confinement: As they enter Kalkim, a supernatural force saps the jinns' power, causing the group to crash-land. They are captured by terrifying, gluttonous Marids and brought before the mountain-sized Magulus, who locks them in a giant wooden cage. While imprisoned, the group uses banter and an unfinished story by Jafar to cope with their fear while strictly adhering to the rules (refusing foul food and bowing to the golden tree).
• The Heist: On the third day, as the Marids prepare to eat them, the group triggers the final rule: they look up at the golden tree's leaves. This triggers a curse that instantly turns all the Marids into stone. Jafar and his companions safely navigate the petrified giants, locate Magulus's innermost chamber, and successfully retrieve the Sword of Sarjis. The story ends with the party mounting the jinn to make a swift aerial escape.