"Only the coffin can save us Midar, she repeated over and over again".

"I love you and you must do exactly as I say, you must".

It was evening and their miserable supper was thrown in through the opening in the iron door. Midar wasn't hungry but Luna succeeded in persuading him to eat.

"You must eat", she said.

"You must be big and strong so that you can help to kill many of our enemies".

The cold evening air entered their room and the royal children froze. They needed warm porridge but the mean Smirgul only allowed them salt meat and salt herring. Late in the evening the iron door was unlocked and a black coffin was carried in by the executioners. Their parents' heads had been nailed to its lid. The horrible executioners sneered at the poor children and wished them sweet dreams. Luna tried, but couldn't hold back her tears in the face of such barbarity. Her mother and father were headless inside the coffin.

Luna was unable to sleep during this horrible night. She knew there was a risk that their attempt to escape might fail. Although her father hadn't said so, she understood there was a possibility that they might be buried alive.