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Once upon a time the sky was green, as green as the rolling sea. And the earth, in those days, foamed like the oceans. In this time there was a mighty king who ruled the whole wide world. The world had no borders at all, and this king was good and kind and brave and strong.

Everyone around the world, from sea to sea, loved the king, for he was honest and wise. The king had never let his people down.

Then one morning the king made a confusing and startling announcement. "My people.'' he said, "our world will be destroyed very soon. We have only one solution, and you must listen closely to me."

Of course, the people gathered close to listen. They listened hard and gasped as their beloved king went on. "Someone among you must come to me neither clothed nor naked, neither walking nor on horseback. This person must speak to me neither indoors nor out. If this does not happen, all of our land, our trees, our rivers and forests, the sky above our heads and all of us will be destroyed!"

With that the king walked sadly into the palace.

The people stood and stared, amazed by the king's commandment. No one knew what to do.

No one, that is, but a young peasant girl, the daughter of a poor firewood collector. The girl heard of the king's announcement and she went to her father. "Father," she said softly, "you must let me go to the king. I know how to save the world."

The wood collector tried to keep his daughter home, but she was firm. Reluctantly he sent her off from the tiny cottage at the edge of a forest.

When the girl arrived at the palace, she lay down at the gates and cried out, "King, come out! I am here to save our kingdom. You must speak to me!"

The king went to the gate. There he saw the girl lying across the threshold. "There, sir," she said, "you see that I am neither in nor out."

The king nodded.

"And so I have fulfilled one request."

"But what about being neither clothed nor naked?" asked the king. "Look closely," said she, and he saw then that she was wearing a net that covered her body but actually did not.

"Young woman, how did you come here? Did you come on horseback or on foot?" asked the king.

"I was dragged by a mule," said the girl, and the king asked that she enter the palace, for she had fulfilled all his requests. There, the king explained.

"Oh clever girl," he said sadly, "I am bewitched by a ghoul who says he will destroy our world. He made the requests I announced."

"And what else must I do?" asked the girl.

"You must answer riddles," said the king. "They are terrible riddles, but the ghoul will not be stopped until they are answered."

"Go on," said the girl.

"How many stars are in the sky?" said the king.

"Simple," said the girl, and she smiled. "There are as many stars in the sky as there are hairs in the, wicked ghoul's head. Pluck them out and as you do, count off each star, one by one."

"Very well," said the king. "But here is the second riddle. How far, my dear, is it from here to the end of the Earth?"

"How much easier can these riddles be?" the girl said. "It is as far from here to the end of the Earth as it is from the end of the Earth back to here!"

"Fine," the king smiled. "But the ghoul has one last riddle. How high is the sky?"

"Your majesty, my goodness!" gasped the girl. "You and I both know that the sky is as high as the ghoul can kick himself.

"He is welcome to try, if he does not believe me."

And so the king went to the ghoul and told him the answers to his riddles. The ghoul was furious! He fumed! He raged! And then, in a thunderous voice, he cried, "How clever you think you are! Oh, but there is one last test. "How do you kill me?"

The king trembled and silently prayed that the clever girl could help him once more.

"Know, king," roared the ghoul, "that I am to be killed only by someone who is neither man nor beast, by someone who does it neither by day nor night, by someone who offers me a gift that is not a gift, and neither by metal nor rope nor poison nor fire nor water nor stone. And my killer must be neither eating nor fasting at the time."

Then the ghoul went to sleep, satisfied that he had won. The king returned to the clever peasant girl and told her of the last riddle.

"How simple, king," said she. "I shall soon begin."

At twilight — which was neither day nor night — the girl went to the bottom of the tree where the ghoul slept. She cried up to him: "Wake up! Your last moment has come!"

The ghoul sneered. "Foolish girl!" he said and went back to sleep.

"Wake up!" she cried. "You see that I am neither man nor beast. And it is neither night nor day. And here, ghoul, here is my gift that is no gift," and at that she held out a beautiful bird with plumes of gold and silver. The ghoul, dazzled by the bird's beauty, reached to take the creature. It quickly flew away.

The ghoul raged. This was a gift and not a gift.

"Ahh," he roared, "you must be neither fasting nor eating," and he began to laugh.

"I am chewing a piece of bark!" said the girl, and at this the ghoul, shaking with fury, fell from his tree to the ground. He was so heavy, so fat and full, that he smashed to the ground and fell through.

And so it was that the ghoul was killed neither by metal nor rope nor poison nor fire nor water nor stone, but rather by his own fury and greed.

*****
Adapted by Amy Friedman; Illustration by Jillian Gilliland. Copyright 1993 by Universal Press Syndicate. From the Milwaukee Journal, March 7, 1993