Day and night, the name of Fereydun lingered upon Zahhak's lips; the dread of his inevitable downfall haunted the tyrant's every waking hour. Desperate to bolster his fragile legitimacy, the Serpent King summoned the sages, mobads, and chieftains of the realm, demanding they sign a forged scroll testifying that he was a just monarch who had sowed nothing but righteousness. Cowed by terror, the nobles bowed their heads and set their seals to the falsehood.
At that very moment, a clamor for justice echoed outside the palace gates. Kaveh, a grief-stricken blacksmith whose seventeen sons had already been sacrificed to feed the serpents upon Zahhak's shoulders, burst into the hall to save his last remaining child. Confronted with the false scroll, Kaveh’s anguish exploded into defiant fury. He condemned the cowed nobles as servants of demons, tore the parchment into pieces, trampled it beneath his feet, and marched out with his son.
Zahhak sat stunned in his high throne, paralyzed by an uncanny dread. He confessed to his court that as Kaveh spoke, it felt as though a mountain of iron had risen between them. Leaving the palace, Kaveh lifted his leather blacksmith's apron atop a spear and raised a battle cry in the marketplace. The oppressed populace flocked to his side. Leading the crowd, Kaveh marched to find Fereydun.
Upon beholding the leather banner, Fereydun recognized it as an omen of victory. He adorned the raw leather with glittering jewels, golden fabrics, and Roman silks, inaugurating it as the revered 'Derafsh-e Kaviani'—the eternal banner of Iranian freedom. Preparing for war, Fereydun bade a tearful farewell to his mother Faranak, entrusting her to God's care. He then called upon his elder brothers, Kiyanush and Purmaye, and gathered the finest artisans of the realm. Drawing the shape of a bull's head upon the earth, he commanded them to forge a heavy mace in its likeness. The smiths set to work, crafting the magnificent Ox-Headed Mace that gleamed like the sun, arming Fereydun for his holy vengeance against the serpent tyrant.