Once upon a time, there lived a king who ruled over a vast kingdom justly and wisely. The king, however, was old and frail and his best days were behind him. He had a son, who was barely of age and hardly ready to take the throne, for he was selfish and headstrong. The king also had a younger brother who had always been envious and spiteful for he had been second to him ever since they were born. Thus, the king was fearful that should he died before his son and heir was ready to take the throne, his wicked brother would seize the opportunity to become king himself.

One day, the king decided that the time had come for his son, the prince to prove his worth or else he would have with a heavy heart to bequeath his kingdom to someone worthy, for he could not permit his brother to take over. It was thus decided that the prince would go on a journey and encounter three tasks, upon the completion of which he would inherit his father’s throne. The prince was defiant and believed the throne belonged to him by birthright regardless. Not wanting to challenge his father though, he accepted.

Alas, on the eve of his departure, news of his father’s death reached the ears of everyone in the kingdom. Worst of all it was whispered that the king’s own brother, his uncle had murdered him in his sleep. The prince enraged but unable to act in fear of his own life too went to visit the town’s wizard for advice.

‘Oh, mighty wizard, you who had so often given invaluable advice to my father the king, enlighten me. What am I to do?’

The wizard who it was said was older than time itself spoke to him vaguely and in riddles: ‘You shall have no help from me, nor reassurance,’ the wizard spoke in a dreamy voice. ‘But heed my words, boy. If you ever wish to sit upon the throne your father once sat, you must leave this place and seek the tasks that will make you worthy and capable of deposing the usurper, your uncle.’

The prince could not believe his ears. ‘Leave here and permit my uncle to rule over the kingdom, whilst I go about searching for some pointless tasks?’

‘These tasks are designed to test you more than you think, boy. Should you fail to complete them then everything shall be lost to you and your uncle will rule. You would be an outcast until the end of your days. However, success is not guaranteed nor is failure. Nothing is pre-determined nor is not. Everything will depend on you and your choices,’ he continued, his shadowy eyes fixed on the prince’s handsome face.

‘Oh great wizard, will you not provide me with anything?’ asked the prince, desperation in his voice.

‘What you seek is not what you need and what you need is not what you seek!’ answered the wizard mysteriously.

Hence, the prince set off into the open country in search of his three tasks, but with less confidence and more doubt in his heart. He was dressed in his mail coat and armed with a shield and a sword; however, he began wondering whether these would be enough for him to accomplish the tasks.

The prince travelled long and far and for longer than he cared to account for looking here and there for his supposed tasks that were bound to test him, and even though he met various villains and cutthroats that he thwarted, he felt that he had yet to find what he was looking for…

One day, in what felt years after he had set out on this so far pointless quest, he came upon a group of three bandits at the edge of a vast forest. The bandits who had lit a fire and appeared to be cooking something over it did not hear him approach. The prince thought that it would be another easy prey for his sword; he despised thieves of all kind. He, then hid behind a bush to eavesdrop and discover what they might have been up to.

‘I wish we’d stolen more gold!’ said the first of the bandits, who had a handful of gold coins in his hands, looking at them with greedy eyes.

‘You shut it! Fire’s more important. I wish we’d stolen more woodfire to light our swords and make them stronger and also cook our food,’ said the second one, who was clearly the fattest one and who was prying over the fire to check if their game was cooked thoroughly yet.

‘You’re both hopeless! Neither is more important than power! And once we ransom this wee lassie back to her father, we shall be the most powerful in all the kingdoms, for she’s the daughter of the richest king of all,’ the third one said pointing towards the ground where a young ragged woman was laying, her hands and legs tied up.

‘You will have as much gold as you can fit in your greedy old trousers,’ he said pointing to the first one. And you will have as much woodfire to keep your sword alight forever and cook all the food you can fit in this big belly of yours,’ the third bandit pointed to the second one.

At that very moment, the prince jumped off his hiding place brandishing his sword towards them. ‘Release this woman at once or suffer my wrath!’ he cried.

The three bandits laughed loudly.

‘We shall sell you and make more coin,’ said the first one.

‘We shall cook you and devour you to fill our bellies,’ said the second one.

‘We shall destroy you and empower ourselves with your own weapons!’ said the third one, and all at once unsheathed their swords but despite their skill, they were no much for the prince who with three swift movements of his sword disarmed them all and sent them running towards the woods.

Then the prince hurried towards the princess and gently untied her. ‘Oh, you poor defenceless woman, what have they done to you?’ he asked her.

‘Nothing that cannot be expected of wicked men!’ she declared defiantly and raised her head to look at the prince. Her auburn hair was swept back by an unexpected blow of the wind, and her brown eyes stared as if directly at his soul in a way he felt naked. ‘Now set me free for I must return to my father, for he must be worried sick.’

The prince as if awoken by a slap was taken aback by this abrupt and rather rude behaviour from the princess; he had, after all, saved her life.

‘I did not need saving!’ she said proudly as if she had read his very thoughts.

‘Well! And I did not need any distractions,’ he replied, his head high arrogantly. ‘I am on a mission to save the kingdom of my late father. So, you are welcome to clear off my path so I can carry on.’

‘Oh, I most certainly will, sir!’ the princess announced, but when she looked around at the falling darkness she felt wary and thus she added in a more polite and soft voice: ‘I am grateful of you rescuing me, kind sir. Might I ask you where you are headed?’

The prince puzzled about this sudden politeness and enquiry he answered: ‘Alas, I do not know. For years, I have been wandering aimlessly searching for some tasks I was told I should accomplish in order to regain my rightful place in my kingdom. You see my uncle murdered my father and usurped his throne.’ His head fell, looking on the ground, and despair overtook him momentarily.

‘Perhaps, we may cross this forest together,’ suggested the princess, who dared not cross the dark woods by herself.

‘What is it in this forest? What is it beyond it?’ the prince inquired curiously.

‘I have no knowledge of its interior, kind sir, for no living human has ever crossed it and come out alive. But beyond it lies the great kingdom of my father, and he shall reward you grandly if you would return him his daughter safe and sound.’

The prince looked at her suspiciously. It seemed dangerously foolish to go through the unknown woods. ‘Why not go around it?’

The princess sighed in frustration for what she had considered obvious. ‘It is but the fastest way to my father’s kingdom,’ she answered eventually.

‘So be it!’ said the prince. ‘Perhaps I shall encounter my tasks in this forest. But first, we must eat and rest.’ The princess nodded reassured and together they sat down to eat the bandits’ well-cooked meat.

The next morning, with a blue sky and a shining sun, they entered the forest, soon to discover that it could not be a normal forest, for it was dark as if the sun had forgotten to shed its light on it. The trees were so tall and dense that obscured all the sunlight. Stepping carefully between tree roots and fallen leaves, they set a course due north.

‘The sooner we cross these woods the better,’ exclaimed the prince. ‘I have an ill feeling about it.’

Indeed, sooner than later, they came across a clearing, but oddly enough the sky was not blue and sunny, it seemed that the laws of nature did not apply inside it. There was something there that produced such a bright light that it could not be just the sun itself. It was a glistening and eye-watering golden light. Then they heard a deep, booming voice:

‘Who dares enter my clearing?’

The two of them did not answer, for there was nothing visible to answer to.

Then suddenly, a ten-foot ogre appeared through the light. It was so tall and ugly that they both jumped from fear.

‘Oh, mighty ogre of the clearing,’ said the young courageous prince. ‘We mean you no harm. We wish only to cross to the other side of your clearing.’

‘None who enters my nest
may leave or rest,
unless they pass my test!’

The ogre declared loudly, bogies coming out of his nostrils.

‘Let us hear it, then!’

Thus, the ogre presented them with two choices. The first one was a handful of gold coins and the second an ordinary-looking old sack. Then the ogre spoke with his deep booming voice again:

‘Now choose between the two,
but choose wisely, for if not
you shall perish like the rest of your lot!’

Then he pointed with his fat index at a low hill, as yet unnoticed by the prince and the princess, which was apparently made by human carcasses, deformed; clearly having been crashed almost to dust by the ogre’s mighty tusk.

‘We should choose the gold!’ said the prince hastily. ‘It is obviously the best of the two. Wealth shall buy us a mighty army to crush our enemies. What use would we have with an old sack?’

The princess, who was not convinced and thought that a handful of gold coins would run out eventually, looked suspiciously at the ogre and asked: ‘Oh, bone-crushing ogre, what properties does the old sack have?’

And the ogre answered:

‘Should you not choose to open it,
you shall never know
what magic it can grow!’

‘We should choose the old sack, sir,’ said the princess. ‘Hear me, sir! It is the right choice.’

‘What use would it have?’ repeated the prince.

The princess, without waiting for the prince to make a decision, yelled at the ogre: ‘Oh, tallest of the ogres, we choose the old sack!’

The prince reproached her. ‘This is my quest, princess, it is not you who makes the decisions.’ But the ogre had heard the princess and declared this to be their choice. And so, he said:

‘The old sack that you see
is not what is expected to be;
you need only open it wide
to reveal treasures beyond your mind!’

‘It is a magic sack that produces infinite gold to its bearer,’ pronounced the princess while taking the sack in her hand; and the moment she opened it, countless coins burst out in a waterfall of gold. Then the ogre moved away with his huge legs to clear their path ahead.

The prince turned to the princess and said: ‘My dear, I am amazed, for your wit seems to be as quick as your pace.’

‘I thank you, sir. Acknowledging that you were wrong, makes you worthier as a man,’ the princess replied and for the first time since they had met, she smiled at him.

Moving deeper into the forest they came across another clearing. This time instead of being glistening bright, the sky here was red as if touched by fire. What was more, they felt a sudden heat against their skins that made them sweat instantly. Before having time to even ponder on this wondrous new effect, a hoarse bodiless voice pierced the air:

‘Who dares enter my clearing?’

The two of them looked right and left but did not respond. Then suddenly, a red fiery dragon landed in the middle of the clearing. It was so huge and terrifyingly looking that they both flinched.

‘Oh, terrible dragon of the clearing,’ said the courageous prince. ‘We mean you no harm. We wish only to cross to the other side of your clearing.’

‘None who enters my nest
may leave or rest,
unless they pass my test!’

The dragon declared loudly, smoke coming out of his nostrils.

‘Let us hear it, then!’

Thus, the dragon presented them with two choices. The first one was woodfire and the second a set of ordinary-looking stones. Then the dragon spoke with his deep hoarse voice again:

‘Now choose between the two,
but choose wisely, for if not
you shall perish like the rest of your lot!’

Then he pointed with his claws at a low hill, as yet obscured from view, which was apparently made by human carcasses, all blackened; surely having been burned to the death by the dragon’s hot breath.

‘We should choose the woodfire!’ said the prince hastily. ‘It is obviously the best of the two. Fire shall light our army’s arrows and swords to burn our enemies and will keep our people fed with cooked meat. What use would we have with a couple of stones?’

The princess, who was not convinced once more and thought that woodfire would burn itself out eventually, looked suspiciously at the dragon and asked:
‘Oh, flesh-burning dragon, what properties do the stones have?’

And the dragon answered:

‘Should you not choose to smack them,
you shall never know
what magic they can grow!’

‘We should choose the stones, sir,’ said the princess. ‘Hear me, sir! It is the right choice.’

‘What use would they have?’ repeated the prince.

The princess, without waiting for the prince to make up his mind, yelled at the dragon: ‘Oh, most magnificent of all dragons, we choose the stones!’

The prince turned angrily now towards her. ‘This is my quest, princess, it is not you who makes the decisions.’ But the dragon had heard the princess and declared this to be their choice. And so, he said:

‘The stones that you see
are not what are expected to be,
you need only hit one another
to spark fire incomparable to any other!’

‘They are magic stones, that produce fire at their carrier’s will,’ pronounced the princess, while taking the stones in her hands, and no matter how many times she smacked them between them she was able to produce flames every time. And the prince, accepting the common sense of the woman, nodded.
Then the dragon stretched his wide wings and flew high into the air leaving the path clear ahead of them.

The prince, then, turned to his companion and said: ‘I must say, I am impressed, princess, for your wit seems to be as sharp as your looks.’

‘I thank you, sir. Acknowledging that you were wrong again makes you even worthier as a man,’ the princess said, this time giving him a soft kiss on the cheek.

As they moved even deeper into the forest, the prince thought they must be coming close to the exit of the woods, but he knew it in his heart, their trials were not yet completed. No sooner had he made that thought that they came upon a third clearing. This time a thick mist engulfed them, so thick that they could barely see each other. Then they heard a high-pitched voice that gave them goosebumps:

‘Who dares enter my clearing?’

The two of them came closer to each other, fear of the unknown overtaking them. No one answered.

Then suddenly, a short, big-nosed witch flying upon a magic broomstick, appeared through the mist. Her nose was so large that it almost touched them from five feet distance.

‘Oh, horrible witch,’ said the courageous king to be. ‘We mean you no harm. We wish only to cross to the other side of your clearing.’

‘None who enters my nest
may leave or rest,
unless they pass my test!’

The witch declared loudly, spiders coming out of her big nose.

‘Let us hear it, then!’

Thus, the witch presented them with two choices. The first one was a phial of a glowing-purple potion and the second a phial of a blood-red potion. Then the witch spoke again with her high-pitched voice:

‘Now choose between the two,
but choose wisely, for if not
you shall perish like the rest of your lot!’

Then she pointed with her bony index at a low hill, as yet hidden from view, which was apparently made by human carcasses, quartered; clearly having been munched by the witch’s revolting crunch.

‘We should choose the purple potion!’ said the prince hastily. ‘It is obviously the best of the two. Purple is the colour of power, which we shall yield through the ages and destroy our enemies. What use would we have with a bloody-red potion?’

The princess, who was once more not convinced and thought that power corrupts even the purest of hearts, looked suspiciously at the witch and asked: ‘Oh, human-eating witch, what properties does the blood-red potion have?’

And the witch answered:

‘Should you not choose to drink it,
you shall never know
what magic it can grow!’

‘We should choose the blood-red potion, sir,’ said the princess. ‘Hear me, sir! It is the right choice.’

‘What use would it have?’ repeated the prince.

The princess, yet again without waiting for the prince to make a decision, yelled at the witch: ‘Oh, most powerful of the witches, we choose the blood-red potion!’

The prince could not believe his ears. ‘I have told you, again and again, this is my quest, princess, it is not you who makes the decisions. But the witch had heard the princess and declared this to be their choice. And so, she said:

‘The blood-red potion that you see
is not what is expected to be,
you need only take a sip
to feel love’s pointy sting!’

‘It is a magic potion that makes the drinker fall in love with the first person they lay their eyes on,’ pronounced the princess while taking the potion in her hand. ‘Love is our greatest ally!’ she added, while the witch flew away on her broomstick to clear their path ahead.

The prince had his reservations about their choice this time: ‘How will that help me win back my throne, pray tell?’

‘It was the lust for power that led your uncle to murder his own brother. But you should rule with love in your heart,’ the princess said, and she gave him another kiss, this time on the lips.

The prince felt dazzled by the princess’s rosy lips, and suddenly he gazed at her with different eyes, with the eyes of a lover. The princess, without him releasing, had drunk the love potion before she had kissed him, thus sharing its power, making them both fall madly in love with each other. She knew the only way they could conquer their enemies was by being united with love. Now nothing could stop them…

At long last, they arrived at the exit of the forest, and beyond it, there was a vast valley, her father’s kingdom. However, they both looked different, they seemed to have grown older than they had been upon entering the forest. The prince’s hair and beard were long and full of grey touches, while the princess had wrinkles under her eyes.

Once they had reached the castle, they presented themselves in front of the king who welcomed them most enthusiastically. After he hugged his daughter and her saviour, he promised to provide them with all his army in order for the rightful king of his neighbouring land to take his crown back from the usurper. But there was one condition. The prince and the princess would have to marry when all was over and sign an indefinite peace-treaty between the two kingdoms.

Everything was agreed, and so on the morrow, they marched on.

The prince having paid the whole army handsomely out of his magic sack of gold and having lit their swords and arrows with fire using the magic stones, and with his heart guarded against any fear with his everlasting love for his queen to be, arrived at last at the doorstep of his uncle’s usurped castle.

A mighty and bloody battle was fought there, a battle that would echo through generations, but in the end, his uncle had no hope to win. When there was no one left in his army but himself, he yelled out loud and cursed his nephew but never renounced nor regretted his actions.

The queen to be asked her husband and king to be to show mercy to his uncle. However, there was no love lost between him and his father’s murderer, and thus it was decided that the usurper would be executed at dusk with a swift blow of an axe. And that was mercy enough, for a traitor’s fate is not swift but long, while the torture must be strong.

And here comes the end of the story,
there was plenty of gore and glory.
King and queen, they were proclaimed
and so, the kingdom was reclaimed.
And no villain or cutthroat dared challenge them anew,
for there was love in their hearts so the evil withdrew.

As the years went by,
their end was nigh,
but sons and daughters they did produce
that carried on their legacy without abuse.

All that glitters isn’t gold,
whether magical or not.
And who that power only seeks,
shall find nothing but misdeeds.

The End