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Alden rolled his ten-foot body over, his head throbbing from the fall. What had happened? He scratched his head, trying to remember. Slowly, the memories returned.
He had been climbing down the giant beanstalk. He was chasing someone…for something important.
Ah, yes. That young human boy who had stolen both the golden harp and the hen that laid golden eggs.
But something before that…oh.
Many years ago, he and his wife Inge farmed peacefully in the fields of Owenwald. They lived a quiet life of soil and seasons, not fear.
One day, an old, withered woman with a pet hen came to their home seeking shelter for the night. Alden and Inge welcomed her in and provided her with basic food and protection. In the middle of the night, something went wrong.
There had been a crash outside. When Alden went out to investigate, he saw a man running off with the old woman’s satchel and pet chicken! Alden, being a giant and nearly twice this man’s size, had no trouble catching and subduing him, returning the woman’s possessions to her.
Suddenly, the woman was no longer old and withered, but young and beautiful!
“You have shown yourself worthy to be the protector of my most prized magical items: a hen that lays golden eggs and a golden harp that plays such beautiful music that it can sedate the fiercest warrior. You will be taken to my castle where you will protect these items. In order to ensure their safety, you will be angry and mean so no one would dare come near. Always be wary of this man, Greencloak. He is not above using trickery to steal, and he is not permitted to take these items directly.”
With that, Alden and Inge were whisked away to the castle with the hen and harp.
Many years later, Alden came in after a long day working in the fields, and noted the distinct smell of human, “Fee Fi Fo Fum. I smell the blood of an Englishman.” Inge quickly tried to hide the fact that a young boy named Jack had found his way to the castle via some magic beans. She knew it had to be the work of Greencloak.
After eating his steak dinner, Alden completed his nightly routine: guarding the hen as she laid her golden egg and then allowing the harp to calm him for an after dinner nap.
Alden awoke with a start. The harp was yelling for help! A young boy was running across the clouds with the harp and hen closely in tow. He was almost at a giant beanstalk that was still growing higher and higher in the sky.
The chase was on. This young boy was swift. Jack was far down the beanstalk before Alden could stop him.
Then came the crash that landed him here on the ground.
He realized the curse of being angry and mean was no longer on him because the hen and harp were no longer his to guard.
Jack!
Jack is in danger!
If Greencloak finds him, he will con the hen and harp away and use them for evil, and he may even kill Jack in the process!
Alden knew he had to act fast. He got up, ignoring the dizziness from hitting his head in the fall, and started looking for Jack.
Jack was home with his mother, waiting for the hen to lay a third golden egg. Greencloak was watching from the window.
Alden had to approach with caution. He spoke loudly from a distance, “The hen and harp are cursed. All who possess them will never be truly happy.”
This voice startled Jack, his mother, and Greencloak.
Alden slowly approached the house.
“Return the hen and harp to me, and all will be well.”
Jack timidly replied, “But sir, my mother and I are very poor. If we return the items to you, we may die of starvation!”
Greencloak stepped forward, offering more magic seeds, and even the return of Jack’s cow, in exchange for the harp and hen.
Suddenly, a female voice entered from the distance, “Return them to the giant, and you will be rewarded. You will never face hunger again.”
The sorceress who had cursed Alden was standing there in her beautiful form, having returned to seek justice for her stolen items. She presented a bag of gold coins to Jack and his mother.
Greencloak was stunned. He couldn’t believe his plan had failed.
The sorceress looked at him, “You, Greencloak, have proven to be no more than a cunning thief and liar. You are hereby banished from this land, trapped in this golden egg and thrown into the haunted forest.”
Upon seeing Greencloak disappear in a cloud of magic, Jack and his mother decided to return the hen and harp to Alden and accept the reward of gold.
Alden was sent back to the castle with a warning that if the hen and harp were ever stolen again, he would not fare so well in the end.
Alden, no longer cursed with anger, and Inge hired guards for the castle. At last, they lived in peace.
Greencloak suffered in fear, unable to escape the horrors of the forest.
Jack and his mom lived, if not without fear, then at least without hunger.
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