With Dalan's unique abilities, he revealed to the King where his wife, Etain, was being held prisoner. They discovered that she had been kidnapped weeks before by the neighboring kingdom of Nagano. This treachery did not surprise the King, for the two peoples had always harbored ill feelings for one another. Nonetheless, he believed their actions to be unforgivable and prepared his army for battle.
Meanwhile, poor Etain had been locked away in a lonely tower within the Nagano castle walls. Guards watched over her every move, and her treatment was very poor. Dalan foresaw this too; he felt her pain and understood her sorrow. She longed for her freedom, yet she realized that she might never achieve it again. She was like a caged bird; the captivity would soon kill her. Dalan could see this, and the King was more enraged than ever from this horrible news. He left for Nagano immediately with his army.
That night, Etain had become very desperate. She looked out from the window of her cell and saw mountains in the distance. From behind them, she heard the wind trying to escape from the mountain's great mass. She understood how the Spirits of the Wind must have felt, for she too did not have her freedom. It was then that she climbed into the window and called to the Spirits of the Winds. She pleaded for freedom of her fears, of her suffering, and of her captivity. Tears escaped her eyes as she called to the wind once more before stepping forward.
As she fell, she closed her eyes and begged the Spirits of the Winds to aid her. All of a sudden, the wind seemed to pick up from below her! She was swept into the sky and she began to soar with the birds. The feeling was incredible, she felt untouchable. She smiled and started to laugh, something she had not done for a long time. Her heart filled with so many emotions, thoughts, and worries and yet she still felt carefree.
It was then clear, as her heart changed, so did her appearance. No longer was she a woman, but a beautiful phoenix with wings of gold. Her golden tail feathers changed colors as she flew through the sky. She glowed and shimmered, sparkled and shined. She called to the Wind Spirits once again to thank them for their help.
By now, the King and his army had made their way to the kingdom of Nagano. Their attack upon the kingdom was brutal; the kingdom was almost completely destroyed. One final battle ensued between the two rulers of each kingdom. Unfortunately, the King was so livid that he began to fight sloppily. His anger blinded his judgment, and that was fatal.
Etain witnessed this battle and flew down to her dying husband. She covered him with her wing as he spoke to her slowly. He looked to her eyes and smiled as he whispered her name. She was so surprised that he could tell it was she; she did not understand how it was possible. Yet it was almost as if he could read her thoughts. He said to her that although her physical form had changed, her soul was as bright as ever. He knew this himself even if he barely understood how. She listened intently as he told her his story of Dalan and his magic.
The news of the demise of both the King and Queen came to Dalan the next day. Deeply saddened, he decided to take a long walk in the forest. After a while, he stopped at a comfortable spot in the forest and took a nap. He was blessed with dreams that day. He saw a gorgeous phoenix with golden feathers. Its tail feathers, however, seemed to change color at random. He saw a young woman become a beautiful bird, and a brave king die in battle, and the two walk off together hand in hand.
Dalan awoke in peace. He had been enlightened. He stood up to walk home, but at that moment, a beautiful tail feather fell from the sky into Dalan's hands. He was shocked, especially when it began to change color! With this feather, Dalan created a beautiful quill, which changed color as he wrote the story of his beloved King and Queen.
~Meryn