Short Stories

To Become a Bandit

She used to be a princess, always going to parties in precious gowns that were just a little too long for her short legs. Elaine would pin her hair up with just the right accent pieces to show off the shining black mass properly. By the time our story began, however, she was on the run from her own father, the king. Elaine could remember clearly the night she had confronted him. The air was damp with mist as they went on their morning horse ride. She had told King Maron, quite bluntly, that she didn't approve of his behavior concerning the kingdom's people. There had been hangings every day for the past month because it was a rather bad year for crops, and the people had been unable to pay their taxes. In response, her father had thrown her in the dungeons. Elaine's ten-year old brother had saved her and ensured her safe passage out of the kingdom, and so she was living in the woods, constantly on the run.

She had just found a suitable hiding place. She'd been on the run for a year at this point.

Elaine stumbled into the cave, a sob slowly building up in her throat. What if I just gave up, she thought as she slumped down onto the sad little pile of grass that she was using as a bed.It would be easier. I could turn myself in, deal with the consequences, and continue living out my life. But she knew she could never do it. The hangings were getting out of control. There were as many as three hangings a day now. Elaine had just witnessed one of them. That man had given her food, and somehow the soldiers had found out. He'd been hung today because he'd refused to give away her location. She couldn't understand why. The way she saw it, she was too busy running to help them, so why should they protect her so? The sob finally tore loose from her throat. She was just so tired of running. Why couldn't they leave her alone?

Elaine fell asleep there, on the pathetic pile of grass in the dark, dismal cave. Perhaps, she thought, I'll turn myself in in the morning.

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In her dream, she was back in the palace courtyard. The mist surrounded her and her father. The worry-lines clearly defined his face, and his wrinkled brow, she knew, hadn't always been there. Slowly, she gathered her courage, creating an awkward silence for her father, but for her, there was an internal struggle: to tell or not to tell. Finally, she decided that if she didn't do it now, she never would.

"I don't think you should be killing so many of the people!" The words tumbled out of her mouth clumsily. She regretted her outburst the instant she saw her father's face. It darkened considerably, and the king suddenly looked absolutely miserable.

"You don't understand. I don't think it's any more right than you do," King Maron whispered, hoarsely. "I do what I have to for this kingdom. The crops are failing. We can no longer afford to feed everyone. This is just one way we can keep the kingdom from sinking into poverty until I can marry you off to a richer king."

"But the kingdom might as well fall apart at that point!" cried Elaine. "The people are afraid! Perhaps we should try to think of a better solution, like rations or something."

"This is the only way," Maron replied, the hoarse whisper gone, replaced by a firm tone.

"No it is not, Father." Elaine's voice was suddenly sharp as a sword. "Killing off the people isnever the correct solution. There is always--"

"ENOUGH!" Maron shouted. "I have explained myself, which is better than you should have hoped for. I need not explain my actions, I am King!"

Though the conversation was obviously over, Elaine retorted.

"Well maybe you shouldn't be king anymore! You obviously can't put the people's needs before your own! Maybe it was time someone else took the throne."

That part of the dream ended there, as her father turned around to look at his eldest child, sitting proudly, almost regally, upon her white steed. He could imagine a crown on her brow, and the regality with which she held her head frightened him. Perhaps she was right.

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Then her dream changed, morphing into a horrifying vision of what appeared to be the future for the people of Elaine's kingdom. The king would not stop the hangings, instead increasing them. They grew to at least twelve a day. People were being kept under curfew, and no one had enough food. Millions dead. What was left was starving. The beggars stood out in the street asking for food that nobody could spare. A few began raiding houses.

And Elaine was to blame.

"Why couldn't have the Princess just married a rich man," they said. "It's all her fault. She never should have run away, and we should never have supported her."

They were right. Elaine had turned herself in, but even after being released from the dungeon she'd been ignored by her father. There was nothing she could do for the people.

Suddenly Elaine was bolt upright, shaking, in her makeshift bed, and she realized what she had to do to save what would one day be her kingdom, for she was now certain it would.

She put on a cloak and ventured into the night, in the direction she knew the smallest village would be.

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Only hours later she stood in the tailor's shop. Her anxiety had caused her feet to move faster, and she had cut a day's journey down to only four hours. She now stood, impatiently waiting for the tailor to come out.

"Can I help you?" the tailor asked as he walked out of the back room.

"I certainly hope so," replied Elaine. Her hood still covered her face. "I am in need of a mask."

The tailor looked surprised. She had only asked for a mask, after all, and usually the ladies asked for whole party gowns, including the mask. He had none that were singular.

"I'm afraid that I cannot help you unless you are willing to buy a whole costume or gown. Or I could make you a new one, but I would need to see your face to get an accurate measurement."

She hesitated, then lowered her hood.

The tailor smiled, and muttered something as he went to get the tools for measuring. Elaine thought it might have been "I knew you'd come around."

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Back in her cave the next day, she examined the mask. It was black and only covered the eyes. The outside edges had been modified. The whole mask was fairly hardened on the outside, but the inside was soft against her skin. The edges, however, were as hard as steel, all the way through. They gracefully curved up and around into two points.

The tailor had included a new, pitch black cloak, made from a velvety material for free, and she tried this on as well.

Elaine strode out of her cave to the nearby pond. Looking at her reflection in the surface of the water, she pulled on the mask, letting her black hair loose over the top of the strap in back. She smiled, pleased at her reflection. She was unrecognisable to all with the hood up and the mask on.

Elaine would become a bandit. She would steal from the king, giving to the rest of the kingdom. She would weaken him slowly until the day when she was ready to take the crown. By weakening him, she would help the people. By helping the people, she would gain their trust. And then? Then Elaine would take her rightful place as their ruler, but it would be more than that. She would be their queen, but she would also be their friend, and that would make all of the difference.

She understood now why the king feared her so. If she wanted to, Elaine could win over the hearts of all the people, and with the entire kingdom on her side, she would make quite a fearsome foe.

If her father wanted to make an enemy out of her, it was an enemy he would get.