The Fallen Prince: A Prince's Mistake

Her

I had gone through a whole lot of stuff to reach this moment. But none of it would matter if I lost against the assassin. Full of hope and excitement, I fought the hardest I could against my true rival.

The assassin rolled backwards, snapping twigs. I charged at them, ready for a hard battle. They were on their knees and did an upwards slash. To dodge, I spun and connected our swords, sending sparks flying. Counterattacking, the killer added unmatched strength to their push. My arms were out wide, my entire body exposed. Attempting to stab me, the assassin jabbed at my chest. However, I turned sideways and kicked their leg. Miraculously, they kept hold of their weapon and even countered with a double kick to my stomach. I crashed against the tree, hitting my head again. This time, I couldn't get back up and fell to the floor, my lip bloody. To be honest, I thought I'd last a little longer before dying, but the assassin had done a lot less fighting than me. My eyes closed, teleporting me to the past.

*

I was on the floor of an arena, my head sore. Eric had his hand out. Reluctantly, I took it and brushed the dust off of me. 'Come on, Castor, you have to do better than that.'

'Eric, with all due respect, I'm eight. I don't know what you want me to do against the best fighter in Highsilver. Can't you train with Archie or something?' I asked.

Archie was in a seat eating an apple and cheering me on. He waved when he saw we were looking at him. 'You don't get it. This is to help you. If something happens to me, you're next in line for the throne. Kingdoms will try and kill you by sending assassins, and you need to protect yourself.'

'Why? I'd have hundreds of protectors at my disposal, Archie included. He's top of all his classes, and I trust my life with him. He'd sacrifice his life for me in a heartbeat.'

'And he would die because you couldn't defend yourself, like every prince, princess, king, and queen out there.' He kneeled down to look at me. 'I'm looking out for you, buddy. I wouldn't be very happy if you ended up dying because you can't tell which way to hold a sword.'

'I know which way to hold a sword, Eric!' I outrageously shouted, pointing my sword against his chest.

He smiled and pushed my sword down with his finger, flipping it around. 'That was the wrong way.'

'Whatever.'

'Alright, fine, Prince Castor. One more thing, and then we can end the day.'

'Finally.'

Eric walked up to a pillar and tapped it, gesturing for me to stand there. 'This is an extremely advanced move.'

'So why am I being taught it?'

'Because,' he began as he took seven or eight steps from me, 'if you learn this, you'll already be considered talented. Now, you trust me, right?'

'Of course I do!' I replied.

'Okay, whatever you do, don't move. I want you to see my form as I jump.'

'Exciting,' I muttered.

He began running, constantly looking at me and the pillar. When he was a yard or two away, he leapt up and kicked away from the pillar.

'You see how I was positioned?'

'Yeah,' I muttered.

The leg he had jumped off of was extended out as the other was tucked in, ready to jump.

'Now I'm going to teach you how to counter this move,' Eric explained. 'Go to where I was and jump off the pillar, trying to hit me with your sword.'

I followed his order and began sprinting. The next part was outstanding, and it was from that day I was obsessed with swords, but I woke up.