A meditative nighttime tour through a swamp to the title song. A stork walks slowly through the water, takes a brief flight, and lands again; we examine the ripples his movement makes. A second stork joins in on a second slow, sweeping flight.
The rats are out of control in Hamlin; they've taken over the kitchen, but when they take over the King's bedroom, that's the last straw. He posts a $5 reward, which the rats change to $5,000. Alice and Julius accept the challenge; they play a tune and the rats gather around, but they won't fall for the old "follow me into the river" trick. Fortunately, a very powerful vacuum cleaner is nearby, and Alice and Julius suck all the rats into it. The king gives them their reward: $5.
Two Japanese survivors of the Khmer Rouge massacres in Cambodia vow to find a sanctuary, even if they have to build it themselves. Returning to Japan, they take seemingly opposite paths: one becomes a politician, the other a gangster. As Asami and Houjou work through the linked worlds of politics and crime in modern Japan, they don't hesitate to do anything necessary to secure their own positions and stay true to their vow. Loyal to no one else, they find their friendship increasingly tested as they rise in their chosen fields.
About friendship, betrayal and hidden resentments that have befallen the protagonists during their stay in the royal army. For instance, one employee, Ivan, was bestowed a very high reward for bravery. But not everyone had it to their liking. Soon Petro, his sworn brother, took all the money from Ivan having contributed to Ivan’s falling into the precipice. Petro has now become rich, but this is only the beginning of his story. Based on Gogol's short story "Terrible Vengeance".