Beyond the Woods

Beyond The Wonderful Woods of Siramisa is a children’s fantasy story set in Africa. Set in the ancient kingdom of Great Kiang, Beyond the Wonderful Woods of Siramisa is an epic fantasy adventure following twin brothers Sainey Duto and Sanna Bairo — one calm and thoughtful, the other bold and restless — as they journey to fulfil a prophecy and destroy an ancient evil. Their village of Siramisa is protected by a guardian spirit that dwells within Bantang-Wullah, a great silk-cotton tree. Beyond the village woods, however, no such protection exists. When a supernatural storm shakes the village, the elders reveal that a wicked wizard named Jankosiranding — defeated in battle forty years prior but never destroyed — is growing in power. An ancient prophecy holds that only the bravery of twins can end him. Duto and Sanna, eavesdropping on the elders, resolve to leave Siramisa and face their destiny. Their mother, who knows the full horror of Jankosiranding's power, begs them to stay. She relents only when she cannot dissuade them, blessing their journey and entrusting them with the family's magical crow — a supernatural companion of immense loyalty. On the outskirts of the woods, a talking mouse, grieving his own father's disappearance beyond the trees, gives the twins two powerful knives forged in the valley of the dwarfs. What follows is a series of seven deadly trials, each set by Jankosiranding to destroy them. The twins escape enchanted grasses that trap all who enter, survive capture by a kingdom of ferocious monsters (rescued by the crow and saved by a dragon), and outwit a wicked old witch who tries to boil them alive — killed when the crow rolls a boulder onto her head. They battle their way through a cursed forest filled with giant insects, man-eating hyenas, and a monstrous ape-like creature that, moved by the power of their mother's love, refuses to harm them. In a dark tunnel, they kill a snake princess who transforms into a giant black mamba. At a treacherous river, the crow carries them over two enormous crocodiles. Finally, the twins reach Jankosiranding's magical domain, where they are shackled and imprisoned. The good old witch of Dawutoto — who has long opposed the wizard and prophesied the twins' victory — arrives with the crow, frees them, and equips them for battle. They destroy the wizard's army before pursuing him to the summit of the giant Rock of Prai, where he casts them into an underworld beneath the earth. There, after one final confrontation, the twins seize the wizard and sever his head. Jankosiranding crumbles to dust. Victory comes at a cost. The good old witch, her life's purpose fulfilled, dies peacefully. The crow, its strength spent, turns to dust — and from that dust rises a cyclone that carries the twins home on the back of a great eagle. They return to Siramisa as men, having left as boys. Seven years have passed. The king rewards them with his daughters' hands in marriage, and they become princes of the kingdom. Bantang-Wullah still stands, and on quiet evenings, the people say they can still hear a crow calling from its highest branches.

Disclaimer: This show may contain expletives, strong language, and mature content for adult listeners, including sexually explicit content and themes of violence. This is a work of fiction and any resemblance to real persons, businesses, places or events is coincidental. This show is not intended to offend or defame any individual, entity, caste, community, race, religion or to denigrate any institution or person, living or dead. Listener's discretion is advised.Less