Forty years before the decreed end of Zahhak's tyrannical reign, the shadows of fate began to close around his realm. On a prolonged night, while slumbers wrapped the serpent-king as he lay beside Queen Arnavaz, a harrowing vision shattered his sleep. In his nightmare, three exalted warriors emerged suddenly from the royal palace—two elder kings and between them a younger prince of cypress stature and divine glory. The youth bore a heavy mace shaped like the head of a bull; he charged Zahhak with fierce fury, struck him down, cast a heavy halter around his neck, and dragged him bound and humiliated toward Mount Damavand.
Zahhak let out a terror-stricken shriek that made the palace of a hundred columns tremble to its foundations. The sun-faced Arnavaz leapt up in alarm, comforting the trembling tyrant and begging him to reveal what dread vision had shaken his soul. Zahhak confessed his dream, fearing that its retelling would strip away his very spirit. Arnavaz wise and reassuring, reminded him that the seven climes rested beneath his seal ring, obeying his command over demons, spirits, and mortals alike. She advised him to summon all Mobads, astrologers, and sorcerers across the empire to decipher the dream and find a remedy.
When the dawn unraveled its ruby rays across the azure dome, Zahhak gathered the wisest sages of the realm. He bared his heart's trauma and demanded to know when his rule would end and who would inherit the crown. For three days, the Mobads stood mute, frozen by fear; to speak the bitter truth meant instant death, yet to conceal it meant absolute ruin under the tyrant's wrath.
On the fourth day, as Zahhak's anger flared, a courageous Mobad named Zirak stepped forward. He reminded the king of mortality's relentless law and boldly unveiled the decree of the heavens: a radiant hero named Fereydun would soon be born. Fereydun would grow like a fruitful tree, wield a bull-headed mace, avenge his father and his beloved foster-nurse—the noble cow Barmayeh—and strike down Zahhak, binding him in irons. Upon hearing the name of Fereydun and his terrifying destiny, Zahhak collapsed unconscious from his throne. Awakening to despair, he launched a relentless search across every realm to find the child Fereydun, as his bright days turned to dark despair.