The Last Damsel

As Prince Cedrix approached the base of the latest imposing stone tower, he swore to himself that this would be the last. No more quests, no more towers, and please, please, please, no more damsels in distress.

The first hadn't been too bad, although admittedly he had been twelve at the time, and even his father had been forced to admit that maybe marriage wasn't quite on the cards just yet. The second had fortuitously fallen in love with his younger brother, and what an awkward best man's speech that had been. The third had been a close call, but apparently not actually slaying the dragon was classed as cheating. Cedrix had felt a little guilty seeing the princess cry upon being told she'd have to go back to the tower, but it wasn't as if there was a shortage of princes out there. Someone far more bloodthirsty than him was bound to happen by sooner or later.

The forth, fifth and sixth had all been narrow escapes, and the seventh had only been avoided with flat out lies. Needless to say, Sir Perrin had been rather surprised to find himself bestowed full credit for the heroic rescue when he distinctly remembered volunteering to stay outside and guard the horses, but if his postcards were anything to go by it seemed he was more than happy in his new marriage.

Eight through fifteen Cedrix had escaped by the skin of his teeth, but this was now the sixteenth potential bride he'd been sent to rescue, and quite frankly he was running out of ideas. His only unwed brother was not yet seven, his knights had all be ordered to stay behind, and any hopes for a monstrous creature he could fail to slay were somewhat thwarted by the fact nothing was currently trying to eat him. He waited a while longer, on the off chance that the monster had just been delayed slightly, but the tower remained suspiciously unguarded. Reluctantly abandoning that plan Cedrix tethered his faithful steed, leaving the saddle in place in case a quick getaway was required.

Possibly from the princess herself.

Sword in hand, Cedrix trudged toward the tower's entrance, entertaining the idea that maybe if he hacked at it a while, he could give the whole thing up as a bad job and get back to embarrassing his knights on the training field. To his disappointment however, the door was not only so flimsy it would disintegrate should his sword so much as look at it, it was also unlocked. An unusual oversight, but not enough to make Cedrix lower his weapon. Towers designed to hold princesses rarely skimped on the security, and an open door with no guard simply meant that all the traps would be waiting for him inside. Touching the small scar above his left eyebrow, and making a mental note to watch out for swinging axes, Cedrix closed the door behind him and started on up the winding stone staircase.

His ascent was painfully slow, testing each stair before he put his weight on it even as his eyes scanned the walls for any holes or crevices that indicated he was in danger of being shot, stabbed, set on fire, or attacked by a downpour of baby alligators. To his surprise, he made it to the top unscathed, with the exception of a small yet painful bruise on his right shin where he'd misjudged a step. The stairs ended at a second wooden door, and Cedrix paused, partly to catch his breath but mostly to mull over his so-far unheeded progress. This sort of negligence was uncommon in parents who thought imprisoning their daughter in a tower a good matchmaking scheme, and he dreaded to think what horrors awaited him beyond the doorway.

Preparing himself for the inevitable, Cedrix readjusted his grip on his sword and pushed open the door, only to groan in dismay as the lack of defences became all too clear. The room itself was lovely; full of bookshelves with a curved, open window that looked out across the fields beyond. In the middle of the room, however, on what looked less like a bed and more like a large, oak table, led the princess. Her black hair cascaded over her shoulders, and her brown hands were gracefully clasped atop her pale pink dress. Cedrix couldn't make out her features, but he had no doubt that she would be beautiful.