Prism

Rumors and Revelations

The second day of the contest began much like the first, albeit with a smaller crowd. The knights were more creative this time – one had put spikes on his mount's hooves, while another had attached sandpaper to them. A third knight had forgone his charger in favor of an ornery-looking mule who snapped at the nearby warhorses. When his turn came, the mule made it three steps up before balking and sitting down, sending the knight tumbling head over heels and making Rapunzel laugh.

Moira snickered. "He'd have better luck trying to ride a mountain goat," she murmured. She and Ellen had joined Rapunzel at the top of the mountain today, while Ben was circulating through the crowd below in search of rumors. Every so often, he'd glance up at the pyramid and shake his head – he wasn't having any luck.

Unfortunately for Rapunzel's peace of mind, neither were Moira and Ellen. Plenty of the knights carried small charms of varying efficacy on them, but none of them resembled the copper knight from the day before.

"Maybe he's not going to show up again," Ellen mused, idly twirling a bit of wind around her finger.

Rapunzel shrugged. "Maybe, but I doubt it. He got pretty far the first time; why wouldn't he try again?" If his horse hadn't stumbled, he could have easily made it to the top, from what she had seen.

The herald bawled out Prince Eric's name and Moira leaned forwards. "Isn't that the prince who kept bothering you?"

Rapunzel nodded, leaning forward as well. "Yep, that's..." She trailed off. "What does he think he's doing?" She frowned. "And what is he holding?"

The answer to her second question soon became clear as Prince Eric guided his mount up the pyramid, luring it forwards by means of a carrot on a stick. Every time the charger reached out his neck to take a bite, Eric pulled the carrot away, and the charger took another step forward.

Moira burst out laughing. "Well, that's one way to convince an obstinate mount to move!"

It wasn't working very well, though. Unlike last time, Eric was moving at a snail's pace in an attempt to get farther, but each step sent his mount sliding backwards. Admittedly, he was making progress, but at a rate of approximately an inch a minute.

At last his charger had had enough. When they were about fifteen feet up, it snapped its head forward and snagged the carrot between its teeth, yanking the stick out of Eric's hands. He swore, loudly enough to be heard at the top of the mountain, as his charger trotted back down the pyramid, contentedly munching its carrot.

Ellen nodded approvingly. "Smart horse."

"Smarter than his owner," Rapunzel muttered.

***

The day dragged on, growing hotter and hotter as the sun rose higher in the sky. The crowd quickly dissipated, only a few steadfast supporters remaining to cheer on their favored knight. Even Ben's attempts to cheer them up by pulling out his fiddle failed to rouse much enthusiasm. The poor herald's voice grew hoarse as knight after knight failed to summit the pyramid, while his announcements grew more and more lackluster.

But then, like before, a cloud of dust materialized on the horizon. The herald perked up. "Ladies and gentlemen, could this be the mysterious challenger from yesterday?" He swiped a hand over his brow, dashing away sweat, then raised a hand. "Indeed, I do believe it is!"

Rapunzel rose to her feet. "Is it..." She let the words die away as the knight galloped into view. He rode an elegant silver stallion today, and wore pure silver armor, but it had to be the same person – who else would ride a gorgeous horse like that like a sack of grain?