Storytelling for Week 5: The Two Thieves

Once upon a time, in an ancient kingdom, there lived two thieves. These thieves mostly spent their days pickpocketing in the market square, or stealing candlesticks and jewelry from the houses of the wealthy while they were away. However, the two thieves were not picky about how they made their living; if they saw an opportunity, they would almost certainly seize it.

One day, the thieves saw a wealthy looking man from a foreign kingdom enter the marketplace. The thieves were certain they had spotted an easy target, and they closed in on the man to steal his belongings. While one thief distracted the man by pretending to be a beggar, the other swooped in from behind and surreptitiously lifted the man's coin purse. When the thieves opened the coin purse, they found not gold, but instead a map. Examining the map, the two thieves saw that it outlined the surrounding area. Looking closer, they noticed an "X" scrawled onto the map as well as a single word: "treasure."

Never missing an opportunity for monetary gain, the thieves set out to the location marked on the map. When they arrived, they found a small crypt containing a single stone casket and a series of levers on the back wall.

"Surely if we put these levers in the correct position, the treasure will reveal itself to us." said one thief to the other. "If only this man was alive to tell us what he knows."

"I may have an idea." replied the other thief. "Grab the skeleton from the casket and let us return to the kingdom."

The two thieves took the skeleton to a wise scientist in the kingdom.

"We need to speak to the man to whom this skeleton belonged." said one of the thieves to the scientist. "Is there anything you can do for us?"

"I can add flesh to this skeleton, but I cannot add skin or hair." replied the scientist. "For that you will have seek a colleague of mine."

The scientist added flesh to the skeleton, and the thieves quickly left to seek out the scientist's colleague. The next scientist they found added skin and hair to the flesh covered skeleton, but he was unable to add organs. The thieves sought out a final scientist, who completed their corpse with all the organs needed for life, but the corpse still did not breathe.

The thieves lastly sought out a mystic who lived in a tall tower in the kingdom. The thieves brought the corpse to the mystic and asked him to return life to this long dead man.

"I can provide you a potion that does what you ask," said the mystic. "But beware, life is not so easily returned."

(Potion Bottles. Wikimedia Commons)

Eagerly, the two thieves poured the potion into the mouth of the corpse. Instantly, the corpse sprung to life. The newly resurrected man began yelling in a language that the thieves could not comprehend, and immediately grabbed the two of them. The thieves were not weak by any mans standards, but despite their struggling, they could not overcome the seemingly supernatural strength of this resurrected monster. The man lifted the two thieves off their feet and threw them out of the mystic's tower. As they plummeted to their demise, the thieves forsook their greed.


Author's Note: This story is based on The Four Brothers from Twenty-Two Goblins by Arthur Ryder. This story tells of four brothers who each know a different type of "science." One brother can add flesh to bones, the second can add skin and hair to flesh, the third can add eyes and organs and the final brother can bring the organs to life. The four brothers bring a lion to life, which kills them all!