The Eagle and the Arrow
A free B1-level English story for language learners, readable online in 7 languages, with an option to listen via the free Storyteller app.
An eagle is shot and killed by an arrow — and realizes in his final moment that the arrow is feathered with eagle feathers.
An Eagle sat perched on a lofty rock, keeping a sharp look-out for prey. A huntsman, concealed in a cleft of the mountain and on the watch for game, spied him there and shot an Arrow at him. The shaft struck him full in the breast and pierced him through and through. As he lay in the agonies of death, he turned his eyes upon the Arrow. "Ah! cruel fate!" he cried, "that I should perish thus: but oh! fate more cruel still, that the Arrow which kills me should be winged with an Eagle's feathers!"
一只鹰栖息在高高的岩石上，警惕地寻找猎物。一个猎人藏身在山间的裂缝中，正等待着猎物出现，他发现了那只鹰，便朝它射出一箭。箭矢正中它的胸膛，将它彻底穿透。鹰躺在那里痛苦地垂死挣扎，把目光转向那支箭。“啊，残酷的命运！”它喊道，“我竟要这样死去；可更加残酷的是，杀死我的这支箭，箭羽竟是用鹰的羽毛做成的！”
