This week, on the Mythos and Legends podcast, it's a Russian folk tale where Epic Heroes quest for a flying ship in the hand of a beautiful princess.

The quest involves bears, a trooper on the world, and way too much off-key singing in Vodka.

Then, on the creature of the week, it's a monster from Fort Worth, Texas, until either throw tires at you or invite you out for ice cream.

This is the Mythos and Legends podcast. Episode 49. I pity the fool.

This is a podcast where I tell stories from folklore. Some are incredibly popular stories you think you know,

but with surprising origins. Others are stories you might not have heard, but really should.

Today's story is a simple one. It's about heroes, a flying ship, and a quest that's really just one big party train,

which kind of reminds me of Jason and the Argonaut. It's set in Russia, probably in the 16th or 17th century,

but time period doesn't really matter since it's a fairy tale. Like most stories of this type,

it starts with two young men, our heroes, getting the call to adventure.

There were once some brothers, the two were smart, really smart. They could borrow money and not be

cheated. That's how smart they were. Really, that's the only metric we have in the story,

but their parents told them how smart they were from a young age, and they grew up not just believing,

but knowing that they were special. The parents loved the two and gave them every advantage in life.

One day, word came from the Tsar, who was kind of like a king. He was giving his daughter away in

marriage to someone who could bring him a flying ship. The two smart sons, that's all that this

was definitely not clearly a play for the Tsar, did not give his daughter away in marriage, sending out a

fairly impossible task. They knew that this was their shot. Mom and dad baked them fresh rolls,

cooked them all types of meat, and filled their bottles with vodka. The best horses, the poor family

could afford were outfitted for them, and the village came to the crossroads to see them off.

Mom and dad hugged their sons, and told them that they, and only they, could make their family proud.

The village cheered for the young men as they rode out of sight. To go find a flying ship,

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