the quest for the golden cobra , or over the hills and into the mist

even numbered chapters by nooshin azadi
odd numbered chapters by rhoda penmarq

chapter 1: a dreary morning

illustrated by rhoda penmarq

once upon a time there was a beautiful young princess. she lived in a faraway castle at the edge of a faraway sea. everybody in the kingdom loved her, because she was so good and beautiful, and they hoped that she would become queen some day. the reigning queen, her aunt, was totally wicked and had cast a cloud over the kingdom for many years. every morning the princess went for a walk along the seawall. she was usually accompanied by her two most faithful servants, a troll and a witch. she walked along the shore every day hoping for news of her twin brother, prince carlo, who had been on a quest to recover the golden cobra, which had been stolen from the royal zoo many years before... the day dawned dark and dreary. princess jimelda awoke. the bird that been at her window every day the past week was not there. she smiled. "it must have gone home to its friends," she said aloud. in the corner of the chamber, by the fire, geova shook her head. "what time is it, geova?" "well i guess it is time to go down to the dock and see if prince carlo has arrived." the princess frowned slightly, then smiled. "you are in a hurry this morning." "if we get the visit to the dock out of the way, we might avoid the rain." the princess sat up in the bed and yawned. "a little rain never hurt anybody. but if you wish, we will go down early." "are you sure you don't want to eat something first?" "we will go down to the kitchen and get something to take with us." the princess threw the covers back and got out of bed. her feet hit the cold floor. "that feels good," she said.

chapter 2