by Kira Bacal
the way down the narrow trail. It led to the far side of the castle and stopped at a seemingly blank wall.
Zev examined the walls closely, and his painstaking review paid off when he spotted a shallow depression at knee height. He pressed it and was rewarded by having a section of the wall pivot outwards. He quickly moved inside, his well-trained horse at his heels, and within moments found himself in the central courtyard. All was deserted – dead leaves blew about, the buildings on all sides were lifeless and decrepit. Not a soul stirred. Not even a whisper of sound could be heard, save Zev’s uneven breathing and the clip clop of his horse’s hooves.
There, in the center of the yard, Zev saw a central dais, with a crystal coffin upon it. Inside lay the motionless body of a beautiful young woman, her creamy skin lightly tinged with a rosy hue, her hair the color of spun gold. Zev’s breath caught in his chest. His heart skipped a beat: his Destiny was finally at hand! He managed to start forward, one hand outstretched, as if only by touching the casket could he believe in its reality.
His fingers had just brushed the crystal cover when a stooped, scrawny figure shot out from a broken-down building and barreled into him. “Get away!”
Zev stumbled, then recovered, raising his sword as he turned to face his opponent. The sword faltered as his eyes fell upon an elderly man, dressed in ragged finery with a tarnished crown upon his head.
“Begone!” the old man ordered, wheezing hard from his exertions. “I am King Ignarus – I order you to leave my realm at once!”
“Oh, unnatural father!” Zev cried angrily. “It was your black hearted evil which caused your fair daughter to be so foully enchanted! You have no authority here!” And with that, he thrust the king aside – but gently, because the man was frail and Zev had been raised to respect his elders – and knocked the lid off the coffin. It shattered upon the paving stones, drowning out Ignarus’ cry of defeat.
Zev bent over the princess’ still form and kissed her ruby lips. Within seconds, her delicate eyelids fluttered and opened, revealing eyes as clear and blue as the summer sky.
“My princess,” Zev breathed.
She blinked, a slight frown creasing her perfect brow. “Who are you?” she asked, her clear contralto voice rough with disuse.
“I am Zev, the hero who rescued you with a kiss,” he replied proudly, helping her out of the casket. Behind him, he heard Ignarus groan in despair. “It was my Destiny.”
Lyrella looked around the empty courtyard, her beautiful eyes narrowed. “Oh, really? Well, you certainly took your own sweet time about it, didn’t you? Look around, I must have been out of it for a while! What were you waiting for?”
Zev’s jaw dropped.
“Hmf.” Lyrella regarded him disdainfully. “I don’t suppose you’re of royal blood?”
“N – no. I come from humble –“
“I knew it! You can practically smell the pig poop on your boots. Oh, well!” she gestured dramatically. “I suppose I’ll have to marry you anyway. It’s tradition and all that nonsense. Still, it keeps the peasants happy, and a happy peasant pays more taxes.”
‘But – but I have fought through mountains and swamps to reach your side – “ Zev tried desperately.
“What do you want, a medal?” Lyrella snapped. “I already said I’d marry you. And besides, if you had something other than potatoes between your ears, you’d have realized that if you approached from the south, it’s an easy day’s sail from Keddala. You didn’t bother to look at a map, did you? Can you even read?”
“I – I – I set out on horseback from Elderbranch –“ Poor Zev began, only to be interrupted again.
“And a straight line between two points is always the fastest? Is that it? Oh, boy, did I strike it rich with this one,” Lyrella announced sarcastically. “Let’s hope the children get their brains from my side of the family. I can see you didn’t think it necessary to bring flowers and chocolate either. I suppose you didn’t think this was anything special?” Zev gulped and spread his hands helplessly. He had no idea what to say. “Typical. Why do I even bother? Father, stop that sniveling!”
Zev’s frantic eyes fell upon Ignarus, now sobbing on the steps of the dais. “I don’t understand,” he said piteously, offering the old man a hankie.
“Why do you think I had her enchanted and hidden here?” the king wept. “She made my life and the lives of our subjects a living hell! But what else could I do? She’s my daughter – I couldn’t harm her. So I had a wizard –“
“There he goes again! ‘Ooh, ooh, look at me. Aren’t I clever?’ “ Lyrella interrupted, marching over and poking Zev hard in the ribs. “Don’t encourage him! It was the old poisoned apple trick and I fell for it. Well, that’s not going to happen again, let me tell you. Good gods, Father, you really let this place become a pit! What’s wrong with you? You couldn’t bring along a few servants?”
“Er, maybe I could go and find –“ Zev offered hopefully.
“Not so fast, buster! If you think you’re going to go off adventuring and whoring while I stay home and raise a bunch of your brats, you’ve got another think coming! You’re not going anywhere. Even if you can’t find your way out of a box canyon, I know exactly where we are. This is the summer palace, you twit; the main court is just twelve leagues to the north. It won’t take us any time to get there. Hmmm.” She eyed Zev’s horse, who returned the look with alarm. “Is this old nag the best you could do? Well, the glue factory always needs new supplies. I never could stand grey horses – they make me look pale. I insist upon nothing but black horses in my kingdom. They always show off my lovely hair to its best advantage.” She glared at Zev. “I said, ‘my lovely hair’!”
“Oh! Er, yes, your hair is more beautiful than –“
“Blah blah blah. Too late, mister. You’d better be faster off the mark if you expect to get any kissy kissy in the bedchamber. Do you read me?” She looked around. “Where did that stupid horse go?”
Zev stared about wildly, but it was too late. His faithful steed, staunch ally in a hundred battles, had fled.
Ignarus elbowed him in the side. “See why I couldn’t get anyone to stay here with me? All these long years I languished here alone, guarding her tomb, but I was content, because I knew that my lands were at peace and my people were happy. But now, you destroyed all that! What were you thinking? Didn’t it occur to you to wonder why no one else had ever tried to rescue Lyrella? Didn’t you bother to ask why I would enchant my own flesh and blood? What did –“
“Put a cork in it, Father!” Lyrella barked. “No one wants to hear some old fossil bemoan the passage of time. A new day demands a new ruler. Now, where was I? Oh, yes. Bev or Lev or whatever your name is, tell me you were bright enough to bring a carriage with you. You can’t possibly be stupid enough to expect me to walk out of here. Now then, here’s how it’s going to be: the wedding will be held in a week. That should give me enough time to have a gown made and hire the caterers and send out invitations… Oh, your parents won’t attend, of course. They would just be an embarrassing reminder of your unfortunate origins. We’ll have seven bridesmaids, and I think our color scheme will be – are you listening to me?”
And Zev finally understood the meaning of Destiny, finally realized what his parents had tried so hard to tell him. He thought longingly of his family’s farm, of the genial innkeeper’s daughter with whom he might have lived out his days, and the beautiful princess for whom he had spurned her. He bowed his head and, with a voice choked with tears, uttered the phrase by which he accepted forever the Destiny he had chosen for himself: “Yes, dear.”
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About the author:
Kira Bacal is a physician and scientist who has worked at NASA and the US Senate, among other odd and wonderful places. She currently lives among towering trees in New Zealand with her two children and a vandalism-prone Leonberger.
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