A true heart conquers all!

​

[The Reflection in the Mountain]

For decades, the kingdom was isolated from the world by a dark curse. High in the only mountain pass stood a Beast made of jagged, black glass.

The King sent his strongest armies to destroy it, but they always returned broken and bloody. The Beast possessed a terrible magic: it reflected whatever was given to it.

When the soldiers swung iron swords, the Beast grew iron limbs and struck back. When the archers fired arrows, the Beast’s glass body shattered into a thousand flying shards, piercing armor and skin. When the generals shouted in rage, the Beast let out a scream that shook the stones loose from the cliffs.

Force only bred more force. The kingdom remained trapped, and the people began to lose hope.

[The Man with Open Hands]

One day, a humble man who tended the royal orchards approached the commanders. He was not a warrior; his hands were rough from soil, not hilt leather. He carried no armor, only a simple woven basket.

"Let me pass," the man said quietly. "I will go to the mountain."

The soldiers scoffed. "We have sent our bravest knights. What can a gardener do against a monster that breaks steel?"

"Steel breaks against steel," the man replied. "I do not bring steel."

He walked the long, dusty road to the pass. As he neared the summit, the Beast rose up, towering over him. It was a swirling vortex of sharp edges and dark reflections, sensing an intruder. It formed a massive, spiked hammer from its glass arm, waiting for the man to attack.

The man felt fear, but he did not let it rule him. He knew that to fight was to die.

[The Offering]

Instead of drawing a weapon, the man sat down on a flat rock. He placed his basket between himself and the monster.

Slowly, deliberately, he took out a loaf of fresh bread and a pitcher of cool water. He broke the bread in two. He poured the water into two wooden cups.

He looked up at the terrifying creature and pushed one half of the meal toward it.

"I am weary from the climb," the man said, his voice steady and warm. "And you have stood guard for a long time. Please, eat with me."

The Beast froze. It vibrated with confusion. It waited for the trick, the poison, or the hidden knife. But there was only the man, offering sustenance with an open, honest look in his eyes.

The magic of the curse began to work. It had to reflect what was given.

Because the man offered nourishment, the Beast’s hunger for violence vanished.

Because the man offered rest, the Beast’s jagged spikes retracted and smoothed.

Because the man offered trust, the Beast could no longer be an enemy.

The black glass turned clear and bright. The monster did not strike; instead, the swirling form settled down, mimicking the man’s posture. As the man took a drink of water, the Beast dissolved into a gentle mist, washing over the pass like a cool rain.

The curse was broken. The pass was open.

The man walked back down the mountain, leaving the way clear for his people. He had no shield and no sword, yet he had achieved victory. He proved to the kingdom that while a warrior can conquer a soldier, only a true heart conquers all.