A Prince in Shining Armour
Chapter One - The Rescue
Prince Endymion had been out with his Guards checking the perimeter of the Royal lands when they all heard a faint scream. His horse bolted forward as he dug his heels into the horse's flank, his four companions right behind him.
The unshaven bandit leader grinned savagely as he backhanded the girl he and his men had found again. He was starting to enjoy her spunk. She whimpered with pain.
"Now, let's have a look at your goods, girl," he said with a hard laugh. The beautiful silver-blonde girl in his arms twisted and squirmed to avoid his touch.
"Enough of this," he growled and took hold of the neckline of her now dirty and torn white gold-trimmed dress. He tore it off and away from her and began to kiss her with an animal lust.
She began to scream and cry, only inflaming him further. Gathering her strength, she kneed him in the groin. With a cry of pain, he systematically began beating her, his pain spurring him to more savagery. Soon the girl was on the ground, unconscious from the brutal beating he was giving her. The dark-haired bandit leader towered over her body, continuing to beat and kick her by turns until he heard something behind him and turned to see what was happening.
Endymion and his Guards came upon the clearing, and stopped short, taking in the scene that confronted them. The young prince gave a gasp of horror. A beautiful young girl was being assaulted by one of the bandits which had been terrorizing the neighbouring towns and villages, one of the reasons they'd been on patrol. They couldn't allow this to continue and with hisses of anger, they drew their swords. The bandit leader left off from his occupation with the girl and drew his own sword.
"These are Royal lands and you have no business being here, much less attacking a vulnerable girl," Prince Endymion shouted as he advanced on the man. "Will you see to the others?" he asked Lord Kunzite, the leader of his Guards.
"With pleasure," Kunzite replied with a gleam in his eye and motioned for the others to spread out. That taken care of, Endymion raised his sword and prepared to attack.
With a cry that he hoped would intimidate the younger man, the bandit leader began to run towards the young prince with sword held high. Their swords met with a clang and Endymion forced his opponent back. With each blow they exchanged, the bandit leader was coming to the realisation that he was vastly outmatched by the prince and finally lost his nerve. With his men either swiftly dispatched by Kunzite and the other Guards or running for their lives, he turned tail, grabbed his horse and fled.
Wordlessly, Endymion motioned to the fleeing bandit and the other Guards mounted and gave chase. He turned his attention to the still unconscious and badly beaten girl. Her extremely long hair was spread out like a river of gold-chased silver and he found himself falling to his knees beside her. Taking off his cloak, he covered the naked girl with it to preserve her dignity and waited for his men to return. He stroked her hair and whispered to her that everything would be all right. She really was quite pretty underneath the dirt and bruises he realised.
Kunzite and the others returned soon after, wiping their bloody swords on their cloaks and sheathing them.
"The bandits have been dealt with according to their crimes," he told the prince with some satisfaction. "However, Zoicite and Jadeite sustained some minor injuries during the fighting," he told Endymion.
"We'll be fine," Lord Jadeite, a slightly built blond man, said with a grimace, favouring his right leg which was dripping with blood.
With a nod, the young prince asked his men to help him with the girl. He mounted his horse and waited while the tall, platinum-haired Kunzite carefully lifted the girl and passed her to Endymion. Endymion cradled her gently to his chest and began the ride back to the palace.
His mind reeling from the audacity of these latest attacks on Royal lands, he telepathically contacted his parents. His father was outraged.
"Where are these brigands coming from and why are they so bold as to attack within our purview?" the King fumed.
Endymion's mother was more concerned with the well-being of her son and the girl he'd rescued. "I'll make sure the healers are prepared for her," she told her son. Gratefully he thanked her and broke their telepathic connection. They made their way in strained silence, Lady Zoicite and Lord Jadeite nursing their wounds gingerly. Zoicite, a slight, dirty-blonde haired woman, held her left arm close to her chest and periodically grimaced with the pain. Jadeite had his right leg free of the stirrup and held it straight out along his horse's neck, trying to avoid scraping the leg wound on his horse's tack.
"Mother is having the healers prepared, they'll see to your injuries," the tired Prince told his Guards as they rode. They nodded their thanks and Lady Zoicite looked at the girl in his arms.
"Will she be all right, Endymion? Did we make it in time?" the Guard asked with concern in her voice.
Endymion sighed. "I certainly hope so. She didn't deserve to be treated like that, no matter who she is. Which reminds me, we need to find out who she is and where she belongs so her family can be contacted."
Lord Nephrite spoke up. "I don't recognise her, which means she's either visiting someone or isn't from anywhere near here at all. For all we know, she could have been kidnapped and brought here." he said.
The prince looked at him in shock. Nephrite made a habit of studying the different physical characteristics of the people they came in contact with; their looks, their accents and their clothing, and could usually tell pretty accurately where someone came from just by looking at them. For him to admit to not being familiar with the girl came as a surprise to Endymion and the others.
He sighed again and rubbed his forehead impatiently. "We'll find out soon enough who she is, I'm sure," he said tiredly.
Soon they came to the palace walls. The Guard at the gate waved them through, having been warned to expect them. They nodded quietly to him and continued on to the palace proper. Except for the prince, they all dismounted, Jadeite with some assistance from Kunzite and led their horses to the stables to be seen to by the grooms.
The Queen came out personally with the healers to see to the welfare of the girl and the injured Guards. After the girl had been taken into the care of the healers, Endymion dismounted, gave the reins to one of the grooms, and followed them into the palace.
Chapter One - The Rescue
Prince Endymion had been out with his Guards checking the perimeter of the Royal lands when they all heard a faint scream. His horse bolted forward as he dug his heels into the horse's flank, his four companions right behind him.
The unshaven bandit leader grinned savagely as he backhanded the girl he and his men had found again. He was starting to enjoy her spunk. She whimpered with pain.
"Now, let's have a look at your goods, girl," he said with a hard laugh. The beautiful silver-blonde girl in his arms twisted and squirmed to avoid his touch.
"Enough of this," he growled and took hold of the neckline of her now dirty and torn white gold-trimmed dress. He tore it off and away from her and began to kiss her with an animal lust.
She began to scream and cry, only inflaming him further. Gathering her strength, she kneed him in the groin. With a cry of pain, he systematically began beating her, his pain spurring him to more savagery. Soon the girl was on the ground, unconscious from the brutal beating he was giving her. The dark-haired bandit leader towered over her body, continuing to beat and kick her by turns until he heard something behind him and turned to see what was happening.
Endymion and his Guards came upon the clearing, and stopped short, taking in the scene that confronted them. The young prince gave a gasp of horror. A beautiful young girl was being assaulted by one of the bandits which had been terrorizing the neighbouring towns and villages, one of the reasons they'd been on patrol. They couldn't allow this to continue and with hisses of anger, they drew their swords. The bandit leader left off from his occupation with the girl and drew his own sword.
"These are Royal lands and you have no business being here, much less attacking a vulnerable girl," Prince Endymion shouted as he advanced on the man. "Will you see to the others?" he asked Lord Kunzite, the leader of his Guards.
"With pleasure," Kunzite replied with a gleam in his eye and motioned for the others to spread out. That taken care of, Endymion raised his sword and prepared to attack.
With a cry that he hoped would intimidate the younger man, the bandit leader began to run towards the young prince with sword held high. Their swords met with a clang and Endymion forced his opponent back. With each blow they exchanged, the bandit leader was coming to the realisation that he was vastly outmatched by the prince and finally lost his nerve. With his men either swiftly dispatched by Kunzite and the other Guards or running for their lives, he turned tail, grabbed his horse and fled.
Wordlessly, Endymion motioned to the fleeing bandit and the other Guards mounted and gave chase. He turned his attention to the still unconscious and badly beaten girl. Her extremely long hair was spread out like a river of gold-chased silver and he found himself falling to his knees beside her. Taking off his cloak, he covered the naked girl with it to preserve her dignity and waited for his men to return. He stroked her hair and whispered to her that everything would be all right. She really was quite pretty underneath the dirt and bruises he realised.
Kunzite and the others returned soon after, wiping their bloody swords on their cloaks and sheathing them.
"The bandits have been dealt with according to their crimes," he told the prince with some satisfaction. "However, Zoicite and Jadeite sustained some minor injuries during the fighting," he told Endymion.
"We'll be fine," Lord Jadeite, a slightly built blond man, said with a grimace, favouring his right leg which was dripping with blood.
With a nod, the young prince asked his men to help him with the girl. He mounted his horse and waited while the tall, platinum-haired Kunzite carefully lifted the girl and passed her to Endymion. Endymion cradled her gently to his chest and began the ride back to the palace.
His mind reeling from the audacity of these latest attacks on Royal lands, he telepathically contacted his parents. His father was outraged.
"Where are these brigands coming from and why are they so bold as to attack within our purview?" the King fumed.
Endymion's mother was more concerned with the well-being of her son and the girl he'd rescued. "I'll make sure the healers are prepared for her," she told her son. Gratefully he thanked her and broke their telepathic connection. They made their way in strained silence, Lady Zoicite and Lord Jadeite nursing their wounds gingerly. Zoicite, a slight, dirty-blonde haired woman, held her left arm close to her chest and periodically grimaced with the pain. Jadeite had his right leg free of the stirrup and held it straight out along his horse's neck, trying to avoid scraping the leg wound on his horse's tack.
"Mother is having the healers prepared, they'll see to your injuries," the tired Prince told his Guards as they rode. They nodded their thanks and Lady Zoicite looked at the girl in his arms.
"Will she be all right, Endymion? Did we make it in time?" the Guard asked with concern in her voice.
Endymion sighed. "I certainly hope so. She didn't deserve to be treated like that, no matter who she is. Which reminds me, we need to find out who she is and where she belongs so her family can be contacted."
Lord Nephrite spoke up. "I don't recognise her, which means she's either visiting someone or isn't from anywhere near here at all. For all we know, she could have been kidnapped and brought here." he said.
The prince looked at him in shock. Nephrite made a habit of studying the different physical characteristics of the people they came in contact with; their looks, their accents and their clothing, and could usually tell pretty accurately where someone came from just by looking at them. For him to admit to not being familiar with the girl came as a surprise to Endymion and the others.
He sighed again and rubbed his forehead impatiently. "We'll find out soon enough who she is, I'm sure," he said tiredly.
Soon they came to the palace walls. The Guard at the gate waved them through, having been warned to expect them. They nodded quietly to him and continued on to the palace proper. Except for the prince, they all dismounted, Jadeite with some assistance from Kunzite and led their horses to the stables to be seen to by the grooms.
The Queen came out personally with the healers to see to the welfare of the girl and the injured Guards. After the girl had been taken into the care of the healers, Endymion dismounted, gave the reins to one of the grooms, and followed them into the palace.