Nobody had seen Beowulf for years. After he had defeated Grendel's mother, he had simply left the kingdom. It's almost as if he had a feeling that nothing would attack the kingdom in his absence. He had told no one about where he was going or what he was going to do for the rest of his life. He simply left without saying goodbye to anyone.
At first, people were upset and confused. Beowulf had grown up around them and defeated monster after monster for them. He was always there to save the night and kept the people safe. When he left, everyone was forced to think of the question: Who will protect us now? There were armies in place for the kingdom, but everybody knew the monsters that had attacked the kingdom in the past were beyond the soldiers' capabilities.
The first few months were difficult for everyone to adjust and to get over the fear that someone or something was going to attack them. After that, people began to live their normal, fearless lives, and were able to go about daily activities without being afraid. Although Beowulf was not present, everybody still missed him and families throughout the kingdom prayed for him every day.
On one cold, winter night, there came a visitor to the castle. His shirt was completely ripped to pieces and one of his pant legs were cut short. He seemed to be a homeless person, and King Hygelac was about to throw him out of the castle, when the Queen, Hygd, stopped him. Something in his face caught the queen's interest, and she told him to come inside to tell his story.
Once inside, the visitor refused food or water. He began his story:
"Great king, I have no name and am but a poor escaped slave from a Frankish galley, and I am seeking my own home in the Northland. Along my journey I discovered, sleeping, the hugest dragon, surely, in all the wide world. At first I was so overcome with fear that I fled from the place. But after a while, when I got back my breath, I went back to the sleeping dragon to observe. The dragon was laying on a heap of treasure, so many gold and jewels. I went to grab some, and in doing so, I awoke the beast. I fled immediately, but not before I saw his glowing yellow eyes. I would not be surprised if he has found my scent along my journey and has followed me here. Please save me, Great King of Geatsland."
The visitor was immediately taken inside and given a bed to rest on, for although he may have caused a dragon to awake, he had warned the kingdom in advance.
The next few days were full of chaos, as everybody had heard of the news that a dragon may come to destroy their home. People were afraid and wished and wished that Beowulf was here to defeat him. The armies were getting ready with all the weapons they could find and placed extra protection around the entire castle.
Finally, on the third night since the visitor arrived, one of the guards spotted the dragon flying above the castle, circling it as if he wanted to see how many people he would get to kill. As soon as the dragon was close enough to shoot, the soldiers began shooting arrows at it, trying to wound him at the least. They found that every arrow they shot just bounced right off of the dragon's scales.
The dragon's tail swiftly snipped trees in half as he was flying around in the forest and around the kingdom. Then came the fire. The dragon expelled a huge breath of fire on the land, causing many homes and cabins to be destroyed. Finally, when all hope was beginning to fade away, the dragon let out a piercing shriek. Everybody looked up, and they saw the dragon's head fall to the ground, while his body slowly withered for a minute, then fell back lifeless.
The kingdom was astonished. Just a second ago, they were all about to lose their lives and were running out of resources, and now, the dragon had just magically been destroyed? No way. With another glance up, the people of Geatsland saw Beowulf standing on a hill, sword in hand, looking at the castle and everyone in it. With a swift nod, he turned around and fled into the forest once again.
Bibliography: Beowulf Unit; the Arrival of the Dragon.
Author's Note: I decided to retell part of the Beowulf stories, mainly the part of the dragon. The original story mentioned how Beowulf had been gone for years, then came back after his adventures in the Danes. He was greeted with immense respect and festivals, and everything was calm until one night, a visitor came to the kingdom and spoke of how he saw a dragon laying on a heap of treasure. The visitor explained the story of how he came across from the dragon and Beowulf and the whole kingdom soon went to slay the dragon and find all the gold. Beowulf ends up dying near the end. In my story, I focused more on how Beowulf didn't come back after defeating Grendel's mother and only comes back when the dragon is attacking the kingdom. Also, I took the part where the visitor is talking about his encounter with the dragon and changed up a few parts of it. Some of the wording I took directly from the original story, while the other parts I came up with my own little backstory. Hope you al liked this rendition of Beowulf :)
At first, people were upset and confused. Beowulf had grown up around them and defeated monster after monster for them. He was always there to save the night and kept the people safe. When he left, everyone was forced to think of the question: Who will protect us now? There were armies in place for the kingdom, but everybody knew the monsters that had attacked the kingdom in the past were beyond the soldiers' capabilities.
The first few months were difficult for everyone to adjust and to get over the fear that someone or something was going to attack them. After that, people began to live their normal, fearless lives, and were able to go about daily activities without being afraid. Although Beowulf was not present, everybody still missed him and families throughout the kingdom prayed for him every day.
On one cold, winter night, there came a visitor to the castle. His shirt was completely ripped to pieces and one of his pant legs were cut short. He seemed to be a homeless person, and King Hygelac was about to throw him out of the castle, when the Queen, Hygd, stopped him. Something in his face caught the queen's interest, and she told him to come inside to tell his story.
Once inside, the visitor refused food or water. He began his story:
"Great king, I have no name and am but a poor escaped slave from a Frankish galley, and I am seeking my own home in the Northland. Along my journey I discovered, sleeping, the hugest dragon, surely, in all the wide world. At first I was so overcome with fear that I fled from the place. But after a while, when I got back my breath, I went back to the sleeping dragon to observe. The dragon was laying on a heap of treasure, so many gold and jewels. I went to grab some, and in doing so, I awoke the beast. I fled immediately, but not before I saw his glowing yellow eyes. I would not be surprised if he has found my scent along my journey and has followed me here. Please save me, Great King of Geatsland."
The visitor was immediately taken inside and given a bed to rest on, for although he may have caused a dragon to awake, he had warned the kingdom in advance.
The next few days were full of chaos, as everybody had heard of the news that a dragon may come to destroy their home. People were afraid and wished and wished that Beowulf was here to defeat him. The armies were getting ready with all the weapons they could find and placed extra protection around the entire castle.
Finally, on the third night since the visitor arrived, one of the guards spotted the dragon flying above the castle, circling it as if he wanted to see how many people he would get to kill. As soon as the dragon was close enough to shoot, the soldiers began shooting arrows at it, trying to wound him at the least. They found that every arrow they shot just bounced right off of the dragon's scales.
The dragon's tail swiftly snipped trees in half as he was flying around in the forest and around the kingdom. Then came the fire. The dragon expelled a huge breath of fire on the land, causing many homes and cabins to be destroyed. Finally, when all hope was beginning to fade away, the dragon let out a piercing shriek. Everybody looked up, and they saw the dragon's head fall to the ground, while his body slowly withered for a minute, then fell back lifeless.
The kingdom was astonished. Just a second ago, they were all about to lose their lives and were running out of resources, and now, the dragon had just magically been destroyed? No way. With another glance up, the people of Geatsland saw Beowulf standing on a hill, sword in hand, looking at the castle and everyone in it. With a swift nod, he turned around and fled into the forest once again.
Bibliography: Beowulf Unit; the Arrival of the Dragon.
Author's Note: I decided to retell part of the Beowulf stories, mainly the part of the dragon. The original story mentioned how Beowulf had been gone for years, then came back after his adventures in the Danes. He was greeted with immense respect and festivals, and everything was calm until one night, a visitor came to the kingdom and spoke of how he saw a dragon laying on a heap of treasure. The visitor explained the story of how he came across from the dragon and Beowulf and the whole kingdom soon went to slay the dragon and find all the gold. Beowulf ends up dying near the end. In my story, I focused more on how Beowulf didn't come back after defeating Grendel's mother and only comes back when the dragon is attacking the kingdom. Also, I took the part where the visitor is talking about his encounter with the dragon and changed up a few parts of it. Some of the wording I took directly from the original story, while the other parts I came up with my own little backstory. Hope you al liked this rendition of Beowulf :)
Hi Akriti! I like what you chose to focus on in this story. Focusing in on one septic aspect/ element gives it a stronger voice and I really like your choice. I like how you added in your own back story and incorporated it into the traditional story. I think that you could have rewritten the sections that you pulled directly from, but that would be my only suggestion.
ReplyDeleteHey Akriti!
ReplyDeleteI really enjoyed reading your story “Beowulf Returns.” Further, I thought your story flowed very well, however if you added some more dialogue between your characters I think it would make your story just that much better. Also, the image you used complemented your story really well! Overall, I think you did a great job on your story and I can’t wait to see what you come up with next!