The Tale of Goremika—the Great Eater

There was, and yet there was nothing—
There was a song thrush,
He was a busybody for everyone.

Once upon a time, there lived a husband and wife, poor and destitute. They had a son, and they named him Goremika (Sorrowful One); but they had nothing to feed the child, for he turned out to be a great eater. And his mother’s milk dried up from need and hunger. What could they do? They took him to the city, hoping someone might take pity on him.

The king took Goremika in and kept him by his side.

But this child was such an eater that no matter what, they couldn’t feed him enough. As he grew, even a whole batch of bread and a ram weren’t enough for him. And when he became a young man, it was impossible to satisfy him: he could eat several oxen in one sitting and drink as many jugs of wine, yet it was as if he hadn’t eaten a single bite.

The bakers and cooks were exhausted trying to keep up with him.

The king grew tired of it. He called Goremika the Eater, gave him some money, a plow harness, and sent him on his way with good wishes.

Goremika returned to his home, but what was there for him to eat? He couldn’t last even two days.

He got up and went back to the king.

The king hadn’t even had time to rejoice at being rid of such an eater when Goremika was back at his doorstep. What could he do?

The king thought and thought and decided that only cunning could rid him of Goremika.

Now, this Goremika was strong, and no one dared to challenge him. The king called him and said:

— On such-and-such mountain grows a forest. Go there and bring back firewood, and make sure it’s a lot!

But this was a forest guarded by two hundred-headed devs.

No bird flew there, no breeze blew, so fearful were all of those devs. But Goremika wasn’t bothered.

— Give me an axe, — he said, — and I’ll go.

They brought him a diamond axe. Goremika struck it against the wall, and it turned to dust. They brought him another, a ten-pood axe, and he smashed it too. Finally, they brought him a twenty-pood axe. Goremika slung it over his shoulder and headed to the devs’ forest.

He arrived and began chopping, and the beeches and sycamores flew like splinters.

The devs heard him and came running, roaring with rage.

Goremika didn’t even bat an eye.

The devs reached him, and Goremika grabbed them both under their arms, carried them off, yoked them like oxen to a cart, loaded the chopped wood onto it, and drove the hundred-headed devs back.

With a rumble and roar, he rolled up to the king’s palace.

They reported to the king:

— Your Majesty, come and see how much firewood Goremika has brought.

The king came out and nearly fainted from fear.

— Release them, release them! — he cried.

Goremika unloaded the firewood, unyoked the devs, took off their harness, and set them free.

— Just make sure I don’t hear that you’ve harmed anyone! — Goremika shouted after them.

Time passed.

The king summoned Goremika and said:

— You must go and fetch the water of immortality.

Goremika didn’t refuse.

But that water was guarded by two enormous buffaloes. As soon as they saw someone approaching the water, they would charge from both sides and trample the unfortunate soul to death.

Goremika said:

— I’ll go, but give me something to carry the water in.

They brought him jugs, each holding twenty buckets. Goremika smashed them together, turning them to dust.

— What am I, a child? — he said. — It’s embarrassing to carry these little jugs. Bring me something bigger.

They brought him enormous tubs.

He clashed the tubs together, and they turned to dust.

Finally, they brought him two buffalo-skin waterskins, each holding a thousand buckets. Goremika slung them over his shoulders and set off for the water of immortality.

The buffaloes saw him and charged, ready to trample him to death. But Goremika grabbed them by their ears and forced them to the ground. Then he uprooted an entire sycamore tree, yoked it onto them, twisted two other trees together, tied the waterskins full of the water of immortality to them, and made the buffaloes drag the waterskins.

They reported to the king:

— Goremika has returned alive, and he’s yoked those buffaloes to carry the water.

The king looked at the buffaloes and nearly died of frustration.

— I could barely feed this Goremika, and now I have to feed buffaloes too? Tell him to release them.

Goremika removed the yoke from the buffaloes, gave them a couple of whacks with a club, and set them free.

— Go, live freely.

But the king kept thinking of how to get rid of Goremika, how to destroy him.

There was a field belonging to Saint Elijah the Thunderer.

The field was a hundred days’ work in size, surrounded by a fence, and sown with wheat.

The king said to Goremika:

— Take my flock of sheep to Saint Elijah’s field and graze them there.

Goremika drove the sheep to the field. He herded them inside the fence and lay down to sleep.

Elijah looked down and saw the sheep scattered across his field, eating the wheat. He sent down hail. The hail fell and fell, breaking all the branches off the beeches, killing the entire flock—only one sheep remained, hiding under a bush, and that’s how it survived.

But Goremika the Eater slept on, and the hail didn’t bother him.

Elijah thundered and roared, but the Eater didn’t wake up. Enraged, Elijah descended to earth, rushed at the Eater, and pinned him to the ground.

Goremika woke up, grabbed Elijah, threw him to the ground, and sat on him.

— Let me go, — Elijah pleaded.

The Eater didn’t release him.

— Let me go, — Saint Elijah begged. — I’ll grant any wish of yours!

— I’ll let you go if you bless me so I don’t eat so much, — said Goremika the Great Eater.

Elijah then blessed Goremika, decreeing that half a loaf of bread, half a pound of meat, and half a jug of wine would be enough to satisfy him.

Goremika released Elijah.
Now Goremika went to his father and mother, no longer afraid that he would eat them out of house and home.

He came, lived with them for a while, but soon grew bored at home. The young man wanted to go to war and test his strength.

He set off, whether he walked for a long time or not, he passed through one kingdom and entered another.

He sees a dev (a giant or demon) walking, carrying a huge mountain as if it were a ball in his hands.

Goremika stopped and asked:

— Where are you carrying this whole mountain as if it were a ball?

— I’m going to test Goremika the Eater, who lives with the king.

Goremika took the mountain from him, swung it, and threw it over three mountains.

— Do you want to be my brother or my servant? — he asks the dev.

— A brother, — the dev replies.

They became brothers and went on together.

As they walked, they saw another dev running, carrying a mountain twice as big as the first one.

— Where are you rushing, friend, and why are you dragging this mountain when I’m ready to collapse from exhaustion? — says Goremika.

— I’m going to test Goremika the Eater, who lives with the king.

Goremika took the mountain from him, swung it, and threw it over two mountains.

— Do you want to be my brother or my servant? — he asks the dev.

— A brother! — the dev replies.

They became brothers and continued on together.

As they walked, they saw yet another dev carrying a mountain twice as big as the second one. Goremika says to him:

— Stop, friend, why are you hauling such a heavy load when I’m ready to collapse even without a burden, so tired am I?

— I want to test Goremika, who lives with the king — they say he’s very strong, — the dev replies.

— You won’t have to go far, — says Goremika.

He took the mountain from him, swung it, and threw it over a high mountain.

— Do you want to be my brother or my servant? — he then asks.

— A brother, — the dev replies.

They became brothers, and all four went on together.

They walked for a long time or a short time, but eventually, they reached the domain of the White Dev.

They entered a forest. They had no food, no fire.

Goremika said:

— Go and find some bread and firewood somewhere.

But the devs were afraid, trembling.

— We’d rather starve to death than go to the White Dev, — they said.

— Fine, I’ll go myself, — said Goremika, stood up, and went.

As he walked, he saw smoke in the distance. He headed toward the smoke. He walked and walked until he reached a house. The mother of the White Dev came out, and Goremika said to her:

— Mother, for the sake of all mothers and children, give me some bread and fire, I’m hungry.

— Who are you? — asks the mother of the White Dev. — No bird even flies here, everyone is so afraid of my son. How dare you come here? Run away quickly, save yourself, or else the dev will return from the hunt and eat you.

— And in which direction is he hunting? — asks Goremika.

The old woman pointed in the direction where the dev was hunting and added:

— If you can cross the river, you’ll live, but if not, you won’t escape the dev.

Goremika went straight to where the White Dev was hunting.

He saw the White Dev riding back from the hunt on his horse. On one shoulder hung a deer, on the other — an entire plane tree for firewood. He rode, muttering something under his breath.

Goremika hid under a bridge, then suddenly popped out and shouted:

— Hvit!

The horse got scared and stumbled.

The dev got angry. He urged the horse on, but the horse wouldn’t move, too afraid.

— Oh, you good-for-nothing, — the dev shouted, — what are you afraid of? I’ll kill even Goremika, who lives with the king, without breaking a sweat.

Then Goremika jumped out:

— Well then, let’s see how you’ll kill him — here he is, Goremika!

The White Dev and Goremika grappled. They wrestled for a while, then Goremika lifted the dev, swung him, threw him to the ground, and killed him. He then tied him to the horse and drove it back to the old woman.

— Here, take a look at how strong your dev is!

Goremika took some bread and fire and returned to his brothers.

They were sitting there, not expecting to see Goremika alive again.

Goremika arrived, they lit a fire, warmed themselves, ate, and continued on their way.

They walked and walked until they reached the domain of the Red Dev.

They stopped to rest. Again, they had no bread, no fire. Goremika said:

— Go and find some fire and bread somewhere.

The devs wouldn’t go, too afraid:

— Only the Red Dev lives here, and we’re not going near him.

— Fine, I’ll go myself, — says Goremika.

He went and came to the mother of the Red Dev.

— Mother, give me some bread and fire, — he says.

— How did you get here? No human spirit dares come here, everyone’s so afraid of my son, — the old woman says, — run away before he returns, and look: if you can cross the river, you might survive, but if he catches you on this side, you’re done for.

She gave him bread and fire and sent him on his way.

Goremika didn’t go to the bridge; he waited for the Red Dev on this side. The dev rode in, a plane tree on his shoulder, a dead deer on his horse’s back.
The Red Demon saw Gorymyka and shouted:

"Who are you? Even the birds above don’t fly here, and the ants below don’t crawl—everyone fears me, so how dare you come here?"

The Red Demon jumped off his horse, and they grappled. They fought for a long time, but in the end, Gorymyka overpowered the demon, slammed him to the ground, and killed him. He slung the body over the horse and took it to the old woman, saying, "Look, no one can defeat your son."

He cut some meat from a deer for a shashlik and went to his comrades.

They celebrated all day and night, and the next day they got up and continued on their way.

They walked, wanting to test themselves.

They reached a place where they saw a black mountain, a black forest on the mountain, and black birds flying in the forest.

They stopped to rest.

Gorymyka said:

"Go and fetch some fire and bread."

But his companions were barely breathing from fear and said:

"Do you see that black mountain? The Black Demon lives there. There’s no one in the world who can fight him. We tried once and barely escaped with our lives. Let’s leave this cursed place and go far away."

"No, brothers, I don’t like to retreat. If you don’t want to, I’ll go myself."

"Don’t go," his brothers pleaded.

But he went anyway. He arrived and saw the Black Demon’s mother.

"Mother, for the sake of all mothers and children, give us some bread and fire," Gorymyka said.

"Who are you?" said the Black Demon’s mother. "I have no fire or bread. Go back where you came from, or my son will come and eat you."

"From which direction will he come?" Gorymyka asked.

She pointed the way.

Gorymyka entered the house, took bread and fire, and went in the direction the Black Demon would come from.

He approached a river and hid by the bridge.

The Black Demon was riding, carrying a deer and a chinar tree on his shoulder, singing as he went.

He rode onto the bridge, and Gorymyka suddenly popped his head out and shouted, "Hvit!" The horse spooked, stumbled, and wouldn’t move.

"Ah, you lazy beast," the demon shouted, "what are you afraid of? Even Gorymyka, who lives with the king, wouldn’t escape me alive. What are you scared of?"

"Well, let’s see about that!" Gorymyka shouted and jumped out.

They grappled. They fought for a long time. Gorymyka even grew tired. It seemed defeating the Black Demon wasn’t so easy. Summoning all his strength, he slammed the Black Demon to the ground and killed him.

Gorymyka cut some meat from the deer for shashlik and returned to his brothers. The demons were amazed that Gorymyka had returned alive. They rejoiced, unable to believe their eyes.

"How did you survive?" they asked. "How did you defeat him?" They couldn’t believe he had overcome the Black Demon.

"That’s how," Gorymyka said.

The four of them ate well and rested. The next day, the demons said to Gorymyka:

"There’s no end to this journey. We won’t go any further. If you want, go on alone, but we’ll stay here."

"Alright," Gorymyka said, "I’ll go alone."

He settled the demons, marrying one to the White Demon’s wife, another to the Red Demon’s wife, and the third to the Black Demon’s wife. After arranging everything, he prepared to leave.

"Don’t forget me," Gorymyka said as he left. "I’ll hang this sword here. If blood drips from it, know that I’m in trouble, and come to my aid."

With that, he set off.

After some time, he arrived in a city and noticed how quiet it was. There were no men, only children.

Gorymyka stopped at an old woman’s house.

"Why have you come here, son?" she asked.

Gorymyka told her everything about himself.

The kind old woman took care of Gorymyka like her own son. He noticed that she was sealing all the cracks in her hut so tightly that not a ray of light could penetrate.

Gorymyka was surprised and asked:

"Tell me, mother, why are there no grown men in this city, only children?"

"I don’t know, son," the old woman said. "They all just die; they don’t live long." She didn’t want to tell the truth, trying to protect him.

But Gorymyka persisted: "Tell me, why are there no men here?" Finally, the old woman gave in and explained:

"There’s an Iron Man living in the sea. In his tower, he keeps a captive, a beauty so radiant that when she appears, she lights up everything like the sun. That’s why I sealed the cracks—you’re still young, and if you saw her, you’d perish. Our king has been trying to win her for a long time, fighting the Iron Man, but he can’t defeat him. He’s only wiped out our people. The Iron Man has killed everyone, and only children remain. No one can defeat him; everyone just dies."

"Well, I’ll be a fine hero if I don’t rescue that beauty from him!" Gorymyka said.

He spent the night at the old woman’s house, and in the morning, he went to the sea.

Soon, the beauty came out of her tower and lit up everything around her. Gorymyka approached the tower. At that time, the Iron Man was in the heavens, talking to God and praying.

Gorymyka climbed the tower.

"Who are you, such a brave soul?" the beauty said. "If the Iron Man sees you, he’ll destroy you. You won’t survive."

She watched as he walked around the room, and roses bloomed in his footsteps. She liked him, but she feared the Iron Man would kill them both.

The kind old woman had taught Gorymyka, as he entered the tower, to ask the beauty to find out from the Iron Man where his strength lay and what could kill him.

"Tell me, where does his strength lie, and how can he be killed?" Gorymyka asked.

"I don’t know," the beauty said. "He won’t tell anyone."

"Try to find out," he pleaded.

She gave in.

"Alright," she said. "Go hide, and I’ll figure out what to do."

At noon, the Iron Man returned, and the beauty rushed to him, embracing him, flattering him, and saying:

"Tell me, my dear—we have so many enemies, and I fear for your life, always in danger—tell me what you fear, so I can better protect you."

The Iron Man said:

"Don’t worry. The only way to kill me is with my own axe, and only by striking under my arms. Otherwise, I’ll live forever and never die."
The Iron Man went again to pray to God in heaven.
And Sorrowful came out, and the beauty gave him two axes. He prepared himself and waited.
The Iron Man returned. They clashed and wrestled.
They fought for a long time, and sweat poured from them like a river.
In the end, Sorrowful overpowered him, struck him under the arms with an axe. The axe broke, but it did not break the Iron Man.
Then Sorrowful grabbed the second axe, struck with all his might, and killed the Iron Man.
Sorrowful entered the tower and lived with the beauty. He lived without sorrow, never leaving her alone.
The king of that city learned that the Iron Man had been killed and that the beauty had been taken by another. He gathered all his courtiers and warriors and said:
"By any means necessary, bring me the beauty."
"We cannot defeat Sorrowful, who killed the Iron Man," they said. "Only by cunning can we overcome him, not by force."
A cunning old woman came to the king and said:
"Great king, order me to be tied to a plank and thrown into the sea. I will bring you the beauty."
The king was delighted. They tied the old woman to a plank and set her adrift in the sea.
The old woman floated toward the tower and began to cry out:
"Help, help, I'm drowning, have mercy!"
Sorrowful looked out from the tower, saw the old woman drowning in the sea, and said to his wife:
"I will go and rescue the poor old woman."
"Do not," said his wife. "Leave her be, lest she bring us ruin."
"How can a poor old woman harm us?" said Sorrowful. "I will go and save her."
"Beware, it will end badly. Do not blame me then," said his wife.
Sorrowful did not listen. He went, rescued the old woman, and brought her to the tower.
The old woman served them, worked, and pleased them.
One day, she prepared a meal and laced the wine with poison. She served the husband and wife their meal. She drank the wine herself but poured the poisoned wine for the young couple. They fell asleep as if dead.
The old woman was a witch. She knew that three goat hairs grew on the crown of Sorrowful's head, and he could not be killed unless those hairs were plucked.
She crept up to the young man, found the goat hairs, plucked them, wrapped them in a red cloth, and threw them into the sea.
Sorrowful died, and the old woman tied up his lifeless body and hung it upside down in an empty barrel. She carried the sleeping beauty to a boat and sailed to the king.
They brought the beauty to the king. She awoke, saw that her Sorrowful was gone, and found herself among strangers. She wept and grieved, refusing to look at anyone. She sat alone in the dark, speaking to no one and seeing no light.
The king tried to persuade her, showered her with gifts, but all in vain. He could not win her heart.
Meanwhile, blood dripped from the sword that Sorrowful had left with his brothers, the devas.
"It seems our brother is in trouble," said the devas, and they immediately set out on their journey.
They followed the roses that bloomed along Sorrowful's path and reached the tower. They entered and saw their brother hanging upside down in the barrel.
They took him down, wailing and beating their heads and chests. But who can help grief with tears?
The devas said:
"We must find those three hairs."
One said:
"I will search on land."
The second said:
"I will search in the sky."
And the third said:
"I will descend to the bottom of the sea."
They searched for the hairs on land, and all the animals searched—they were nowhere to be found. They searched in the sky, and all the birds searched—they were not in the sky either.
The third deva descended to the bottom of the sea. He came to the sea king and said:
"Find out for me if anyone in your kingdom has swallowed three goat hairs."
The sea king summoned all the fish. Big and small fish came, countless in number.
"Has any of you swallowed goat hairs?" asked the king.
"No, none of us have seen those hairs," they replied.
"Are all here?" asked the king.
"All are here, great king," said the fish, "only one old fish remains at the very bottom. She is too frail to move."
The king swam to that fish and asked:
"Have you seen three hairs?"
The old fish said:
"Yes, my lord. Just now, the water carried them by in a red cloth, and I swallowed them. But do not kill me. Send some smelts into my stomach—they will bring them out."
They sent smelts, and they brought out the hairs.
The deva took them, thanked the fish, and hurried back to Sorrowful.
All three devas returned, placed the hairs on the back of Sorrowful's head. The hairs took root, and Sorrowful jumped up, rubbing his eyes.
"Oh, how long I have slept," he said.
"You would have slept much longer had we not arrived," said the devas.
All four brothers went after the beauty.
They destroyed the king's palace, killed the king, took the beauty, and carried her away.
Sorrowful celebrated a grand wedding, married the beauty, and they lived together long and happily.
Courage and faithful brotherly friendship always overcome any adversity.

More fairy tales

• The Frog Bride
• How the Wolf Saved His Soul
• The Wonderful Hat
• The Old Carpenter and His Daughter-in-Law
• The Daughter of the Sun