till the sun was at its highest, and then went forth to
battle. The Genii that were on guard fled at the sound of his voice,
and he went on without finding any to resist him till he came to the
great cavern of which the King had spoken. It was a terrible place
to see, and he stood for a while with his sword in his hand, doubting
what he should do. No one would choose such a spot for battle; and as
for escaping from it, that was beyond all hope. Long he looked into
the darkness, and at last he saw a monstrous shape, which seemed to
reach across the whole breadth of the cave. It was the White Genius
that was lying asleep. Rustem did not attempt to surprise him in his
sleep, but woke him by shouting his battle-cry. When the White Genius
saw him, he rushed at once to do battle with him. First he caught up
from the ground a stone as big as a millstone and hurled it at him.
For the first time Rustem felt a thrill of fear, so terrible was his
enemy. Nevertheless, gathering all his strength, he struck at him a
great blow with his sword and cut off one of his feet. The monster,
though having but one foot, leaped upon him like a wild elephant, and
seized him by the breast and arms, hoping to throw him to the ground,
and tore from his body great pieces of flesh, so that the whole place
was covered with blood. Rustem said to himself, "If I escape to-day
I shall live forever;" and the White Genius thought, "Even if I
do deliver myself from the claws of this dragon, I shall never see
Mazanderan again." Still he did not lose courage, but continued to
struggle against the hero with all his might.

So the two fought together, the blood and sweat running from them in
great streams. At last Rustem caught the Genius round the body, and,
putting out all his strength, hurled him to the ground with such force
that his soul was driven out of his body. Then he plunged his poinard
into the creature's heart, and tore the liver out of his body. This
done he returned to Aulad, whom he had left bound with his lasso,
loosed him, and set out for the place where he had left the King. But
first Aulad said to him, "I have the marks of your bonds upon me; my
body is bruised with the knots of your lasso; I beseech you to respect
the promise which you made me of a reward. A hero is bound to keep his
word."

Rustem said: "I promised that you should be King of Mazanderan, and
King you shall be. But I have much to do before my word can be kept. I
have a grea