I arrived at the village and leapt onto the roof of a hut. From behind it, I saw a horse land, the lifeless body of the warrior draped across its back.
On the other side, I heard the voice of his wife, Mirta, crying out:
"Capelli! Where are you? I've searched everywhere in the village!"
The villagers stood beside her, their faces pale with worry.
From a distance, I noticed soldiers approaching, heading toward the warrior's body. When they spotted the horse, they slowed their pace, whispering to each other:
"Our leader has arrived before us."
They reached the horse, and when they saw the warrior's still body, two of them carefully lifted him down, laying him gently on the ground.
Suddenly, Mirta's voice rang out again, echoing through the streets:
"Capelli! Where are you?"
The soldiers stepped forward, blocking her view of the body.
"We have returned," one of them said.
Mirta, still calling for her son, demanded, "Why did you return alone? Where is the warrior?"
"We are waiting for warrior Sula to arrive," they answered.
"I miss my son, Capelli," Mirta said, her voice trembling. "He left the hut to look for his father and never came back. Have you seen him?"
"The warrior was injured in battle with the monsters," one soldier replied.
Mirta's eyes narrowed. "Did something happen to him?"
"Perhaps… he lost his life. He faced a dinosaur monster," the soldier admitted.
Her eyes widened in shock.
"My key is lost… We must go to the castle. I fear the key to my hut—my son, Capelli—will be lost forever."
"We escaped from the small monsters roaming the land, devouring everything in their path," another soldier said.
"Cowards!" Mirta spat. "The warrior's daughter fights alone!"
"I climbed with the Tall Tree Warrior," one of them added.
"My Tree of Tears… I miss you," Mirta whispered. "I will go to it."
"No!" the soldier warned. "A dinosaur monster is guarding it. It caught the warrior and threw him here."
"Here? Where?"
"He's behind us."
The soldiers stepped aside, revealing the warrior's lifeless body.
Mirta rushed forward, collapsing to her knees. She wrapped her arms around him and wept:
"My dear… don't leave me.
You are my key.
Without you, monsters will flood my life.
My dear… don't leave me.
Your keys followed you,
and if they are lost, nothing remains.
Get up! Don't leave me!
Your keys are broken…
Who will open my house?
Who will close it?
Take my father's castle…
They have reached for my key.
My dear… don't leave me."