Chapter Five - The Princess and the Pig

"The wax of this green candle is bound to your life force. Obey me, Tommy Oliver, or I will light it and when the wax is gone, you will be consumed with it."

Tommy woke in a cold sweat, uncertain of where he was, the woman's rough but familiar voice echoing in his ears. It was still pitch dark. He felt dazed and disoriented, his heart pounding hard in his chest as the last vestiges of his dream - nightmare, really - faded. It slowly came back to him that he was traveling, camped alone in the forest and on his way to the capital to participate in Princess Kimberly's tournament.

He sat up and looked around, trying to clear his head. Everything was quiet. His fire had burned low while he slept, and he built it back up now. He wouldn't get back to sleep for a while anyway.

Originally, Rita had used dreams to communicate with him, to give him instructions. But after only a few days the dreams had become nightmares. He'd been having them every night since he began to prepare for the tournament. And now that he was on his way, it was just getting worse. He couldn't understand it. He had done nothing to give Rita, his sworn lady and mistress, cause to doubt him. If anything, he had obeyed her orders to the letter.

But Rita seemed disinclined to enlighten him with regard to her motives. And with good reason, no doubt. There was no way he could understand the subtlety of her thought or the precision of her scheming. The only thing he could do was do his best to help her overcome the bonds that had been set on her... and ignore the nightmares.

It would be easier once he got to the capital and got to work. Just a few more days, and then he would prove himself once and for all. He'd show Rita that she had no reason to doubt him.

-x-

Kimberly was officially not happy. The whole Princess thing was not nearly as grand as it was cracked up to be. She had spent the past two days dodging would-be suitors, trying to oversee the final plans for the tournament before everything got started, and trying to figure out what new trouble she had caused by breaking the crown (aside from Trini's newly... enhanced wardrobe). It was, she decided, not easy to deal with stupid magic and its even more stupid rules.

Apprentices and junior archivists scattered out of her path as she wandered through shelf-lined aisles. It was highly unusual for a member of the royal family to enter the archives at all, but she was past caring. She wanted to talk to Trini, and she wanted to talk to Trini now. And if Trini was currently in the archives, then so be it. She would go in after her.

Let the archivists talk. She didn't care much for the way things were done, anyway. If she had to set the example to change the way things were done, then she would.

Unfortunately, she was beginning to doubt the brilliance of her plan, being that she was now completely lost and wondering if Trini and Billy were down in the archives at all, when she stumbled into an open area at what might have been the center of the enormous room. There were tables and wooden benches strewn with books and, thankfully, Billy and Trini were there.

"How do you ever find anything down here?" she asked. The shelves were all marked, but the symbols were weird and arcane and she had no idea what they meant. And it had taken her forever just to find this place.

Billy and Trini both jumped at the sudden sound of her voice. It was deathly quiet in the archives, save for the occasional scrape of parchment as someone turned a page in some book, or the quiet scratching of a quill as someone made note of something. She was surprised that they had not heard her approach.

"It's simple, really," Billy volunteered. Trini gave him a look that clearly said, not now.

"What's the matter, Kim?" Trini asked, getting up from her spot beside Billy.

Kimberly decided it would be best to just cut to the chase. "You have to do something. I'm going out of my mind with all these men around. I can't get anything done without someone offering to do it for me, or handing me a bouquet of flowers or some other totally lame token of love, and -"

Trini laughed. "Kimberly, there's nothing I can do about that. They're trying to get any advantage they can before the tournament starts. You're just going to have to deal with it."

"Can I make a decree that anyone that annoys me is automatically disqualified?"

"If you do that, there'll be no one left in the tournament," Trini pointed out.

Kimberly sighed. Trini just had to try to be reasonable about everything. Most of the time it was one of her most useful attributes. But sometimes it got really annoying. Like right now.

"Why don't you try giving them a chance? Get to know them a little bit before the tournament starts, so you can start to feel out who might be better suited than others," Trini suggested gently.

It sounded like a whole lot of work for a lot of nothing to Kimberly. If they were trying to win her over, they would be on their very best behavior around her, and only do and say things they thought would gain her favor. Which was not exactly conducive to figuring out what they were really like, aside from appearances.

She considered telling Trini that the idea of being with any of the knights she had had the misfortune of meeting thus far gave her a gut-churning feeling of wrong and that she rather thought they were all utterly useless, but there would have been no point. Trini was, at least, partly right. She had ordered all of the knights to the castle to compete for her... they would not be here bugging her if not for that. And as their hostess, she probably did owe them some sort of courtesy even if they were driving her insane.

That didn't mean she had to like it. "Fine."

"Maybe we should discuss this somewhere else," Trini suggested.

"I don't see why this isn't as good a place as any..." And she didn't. It was quiet and dark and felt secretive enough, almost claustrophobic, down here in the archives... and it was well away from the annoying court gossips.

"Well... You've probably given all the archivists enough gossip for a week already." Trini didn't say it, but Kimberly got the picture. Someone had been stealing material from the archives for quite a while. The only one they knew for sure they could trust to be on their side and show a little discretion was Billy. He had been a loyal friend of both Trini and Kimberly for long enough that he was beyond suspicion, at least so far as Kimberly was concerned.

Unfortunately Billy's unquestioning loyalty wouldn't stop the others from leaking what they had seen and heard, and eventually word would trickle up to the rest of the castle.

"Point taken," Kimberly said, a bit sourly. Trini's rational line of thinking might be unpleasant, but it was giving Kimberly ideas.

Sure, she might have to play the good hostess to the knights she had summoned. And she might have to wine and dine them to be polite. No one had said she couldn't have someone on the inside trying to help her out, to make certain that the not-right knights didn't make it through the tournament. And she had a very good idea of who might be able to pull such a thing off. Maybe she should talk to Trini in private...

-x-

With the castle courtyard filled to brimming with villagers come to market, no one noticed when a small but hungry pig wandered away from its owner in search of something to eat. It was one of many pigs brought to the market for sale or slaughter on this day: an inauspicious day for the pig, but a ripe opportunity for mischievous magic.

The spark, little more than a mote of dancing light near the courtyard wall shimmered with glee as the pig meandered closer. The light shifted first one way and then another, fading and brightening in an excited dance before dimming almost completely.

The pig made small snorting, snuffling sounds as it probed the hard-packed ground, looking for a tasty morsel. There was no food to be had over in this neglected corner of the yard, but the magic beckoned.

Closer, closer...

The pig took one more fateful step...

As soon as it touched the dancing mote of light, it began to change...

-x-

"Hey, Trini, will Billy be okay without you for a while?"

Trini smiled slightly. "Kim, I'm supposed to be your maidservant, not Billy's assistant."

Her expression darkened when Kimberly said, "Oh, good! That's just what I wanted to hear. We're going to go upstairs and have a little chat, then." But she followed without question in spite of her obvious trepidation.

As they wound their way up from the archives and through the castle to Kimberly's chambers, really one of the few halfway private places in the entire building, the Princess found her thoughts growing dark. Did no one trust her? The answer was obvious, if unpalatable. They didn't think she had any sense. Well, she would have to add that to her list of things that needed to change.

There were guards stationed outside the door to her chambers, so she went all the way back into her bedroom and shut the door as soon as Trini was through it. Hopefully no one had scaled the wall outside on the off chance of eavesdropping on any conversations she might have in her bedroom.

"I need your help," she said.

"With what?" Trini asked.

Kimberly felt bad asking Trini for yet another favor. She had already asked enough of her friend in the past few weeks, but she needed someone she could trust to do this for her. And Trini had one huge advantage over everyone else Kimberly might ask: the magic topaz had given her the ability to change her appearance to anything she could imagine. Including, Kimberly was willing to bet, a knight of the realm. A knight that could participate in the tournament, weeding out unworthy opponents, and getting a valuable second opinion for Kimberly.

She could only see so much of the knights' personalities to begin with, and the fact that most of them were trying to woo her would only make it worse. In fact, it was already making things worse. Or at least a lot more annoying.

"You're not going to like it."

Trini gave her a skeptical look. "Try me."

"I want you to enter the tournament."

"What?"

"Just hear me out, please," Kim pleaded. "You're the only one I can trust."

Trini frowned. "Why not Jason or Zack? You know they'll both look out for you."

"And I'd have to marry them if they win."

"Kim..."

"Trini, please. I need someone that can report back to me about these guys. They're not acting like themselves around me," she pointed out. "I need someone to tell me what they're like when they aren't trying to win me over."

"I still don't see why Jason or Zack couldn't -"

"Because they have a stake in this."

"Kim, you can't be serious. Jason and Zack wouldn't lie to you about something like this. If any of the knights turn out to be dangerous or untrustworthy, you know those two will be the first to tell you."

"But -"

Trini sighed. "Look, this idea is insane. I'm sorry, Kim. Look at me. There is no way I can pass for a man, much less a warrior, and do you really think no one would notice that your handmaid suddenly and conveniently vanished every time this guy showed up?"

"Yes, you can. And it's not as if we have to actually commission a set of armor for you. You've already showed me what that topaz can do. The only person who would have to know is Billy." Billy was serving as arbiter of the tournament and was in charge of creating the match-ups and checking to make sure all the entrants were who they said they were. He was not going to be particularly happy with this idea, either, now that she thought about it.

Trini was still unconvinced. "So let me get this straight. For some reason you have decided that Jason and Zack would lie to you to further their chances of becoming King. You know that Jason doesn't really want to marry you, right? He'll do it if it's what's best for the kingdom, but he's not exactly thrilled by the idea. And Zack... really. I know you're busy a lot of the time but have you not noticed how he moons over this girl -"

"Power does weird things to people," Kim interrupted quietly. "It's not that I don't trust them. I trust them with my life. And I don't think they're out to get me, not really. I'm just... I'm afraid, Trini. You're the only one I really trust to look out for me, to think about how I feel, instead of just stopping at 'oh, she's alive, that's good enough'. Jason and Zack want what's best for the kingdom, for everyone else. You're the only one that will be looking for what's best for me."

She just couldn't marry a man she didn't love. The thought of it made her want to curl up in horror, but she could not seem to find the words to adequately explain that to Trini. Jason and Zack were some of her best friends, but they were just... not good at figuring out what Kim wanted or needed. They might be able to tell which were honest and trustworthy, but there was no way they would be able to tell with any degree of accuracy if she would be compatible with any of the knights. The only one that could do that was Trini.

And Trini knew it, probably at least as well as Kimberly did, though she did not look very happy about it. "I need some air." She turned and left immediately, without waiting to be given leave, which in Trini-speak translated pretty clearly to, I'm really mad at you right now.

Feeling a strong pang of guilt, Kimberly followed after her at a safe distance. She followed through most of the castle and then down and into the courtyard. Why anyone would choose to go into the courtyard to get some air was beyond Kimberly's comprehension, particularly because today was market day and the yard was much busier than normal. Then again, maybe she had headed here because she knew Kimberly hated it and was hoping not to be followed.

Well, if that was the case, Trini was out of luck. There was no way Kimberly was going to let this end with a fight. She needed Trini's help too much to let this divide them. If it came down to it... she would rather face the alternative than lose Trini's support, even if the idea of marrying some of these knights (worthy or no) made her want to be physically ill.

She let Trini have a few moments of solitude, or what passed for solitude in the busy courtyard, before she worked up the courage to approach. "Trini... I'm sorry. I shouldn't have asked you for that. I've already asked so much of you..."

"I can't say no, Kim," Trini murmured, refusing to look at Kimberly, her tone unreadable. Obviously she had used their trek through the castle to do some thinking of her own. "I may not like it at all, but this is the first really rational thing you've asked me to do when it comes to your future husband."

Kim didn't know whether to feel ecstatic that Trini was agreeing to go along with her plan, or hurt that Trini ordinarily found her judgment so lacking. "Really?"

Trini finally turned to look at her, nodding as she went. "Usually it's 'oh no, I have to marry Jason! That's so gross!' or 'why do I have to get married now?' or 'I'm the Princess, why is everyone always bossing me around?'" Trini elaborated, doing an impression of Kimberly that even made the Princess giggle. "But you want me to give you an honest, insider's opinion on which of these knights would actually make a good husband... and I can't fault you for that, even if I don't like that it's me that has to get you this information."

"I'm sorry," Kim said, and she genuinely was. "But I don't have anyone else I can turn to with this..."

"As long as you don't ask me to like it and Billy can find a way to pull it off, I will do this for you. But please, no more favors for a while after this."

"Oh, thank you!" Kim flung her arms around Trini and squeezed her into a happy hug.

Trini laughed. "Uh, Kim, honey? People are staring. Might want to remember your public decorum a little bit better in the future."

"Oh, who cares about public decorum?" Kimberly grumbled.

Trini never got a chance to respond. The courtyard suddenly dissolved into chaos around them, and for no reason that Kimberly could see. Trini stepped back abruptly, her expression somewhere between shock and horror. "What in the world is that?"

Kim whirled to see what she was talking about, only to be confronted with something unspeakable. A pig-man emerged from between two of the market booths, half-chewed food overflowing from its gaping mouth.

"Oh, gross," Kimberly managed, making a face of disgust. Just what she needed: some sort of absolutely nasty monster running loose in her castle. And why not? Just about everything else in the universe seemed dead set against letting her have a good day or a happy life.

Any hope she may have had that the creature would not notice them was shattered a moment later, when it turned and raced toward them.

"Get back," Trini warned, putting herself between the princess and the pig. Kimberly stumbled several steps backward, unable to look away. There was next to nothing Trini could do, except try to provide a distraction to give Kimberly time to escape. But Kim couldn't bring herself to flee and leave Trini in danger. She could only watch in horror as the monster caught Trini by the arm and tossed her aside like a rag doll...

-x-

It was market day when Tommy arrived at the castle. The courtyard was bustling with activity, and filled with people. If he hadn't had a copy of the letter from the royal messenger, he wouldn't have had a clue where to go or what to do. The letter made it clear that he would be welcome to pitch his own camp outside the city, or else lodging would be provided for himself, his servants, and his animals within the castle. And since he had not brought any gear for a long-term camp out, he first sought out the royal stables.

Wading through the crowd with two horses and a mass of gear while attempting to find a building he had never seen before was not the easiest thing he had ever done. And it only became worse the longer he tried to push his way through.

Something was going on, he realized a bit belatedly. It wasn't that the throng was particularly thick or hard to get through, it was that most of the people were fleeing in the opposite direction from the way he was trying to go. Some of them were even screaming and shouting, but he had been too wrapped up in his own little world to notice.

Interesting.

The crowd was already thinning as people fled out the main gate and across the drawbridge, so Tommy kept pushing his way forward. It wasn't long before he saw what everyone was running from: a bizarre, deformed creature that resembled a pig. A pig combined with a large human. Very large. The thing was nearly as wide as it was tall.

It was not exactly the most appetizing thing one would expect to see in a market. And it was bent on finding something good to eat, which amounted to a lot of destruction. It knocked over one of the ramshackle merchant stalls as it raced down an aisle, grabbing whatever looked edible. The flimsy structure must have had a lantern or something inside, because it burst into flames as it collapsed.

The pig ignored the billow of black smoke as the stall was consumed and the blaze spread to the others that had been tightly packed against it. The pig just kept shoving food, or anything remotely resembling food, in its mouth.

With each object it gobbled down, it grew larger and larger until it loomed over the people that fled from it, standing a good ten feet tall. It snuffled its way through the courtyard, overturning market stalls and consuming whatever edible goods it could find. It seemed to have no interest in people, at least not until it came upon a young woman in a jewel-encrusted dress in an obnoxious shade of pink that had to have been the Princess.

She was standing in front of a fruit cart, another young woman beside her, when the monster charged. The second woman, probably a maidservant, attempted to intervene, but the monster merely tossed her aside. When the Princess ran after her maid, the monster went after the fruit cart and went back to devouring everything it could find that was even halfway edible. After a moment or two, it occurred to Tommy that someone ought to put a stop to it. And, whoever that someone was, they would probably impress the Princess a lot by doing so.

"Win her tournament, win her heart... do whatever you have to do to get me that crown!" Rita's command echoed in his head.

Seeing his opportunity, Tommy drew his sword.

-x-

Trini hit the wall hard and fell back with a groan.

"Trini!" Kimberly cried, racing after her. It occurred to her that it was probably a phenomenally bad idea to turn her back on a monster like that, but she didn't care (it had probably been just as stupid to try to confront it in the first place). Trini's safety was more important.

"I'm okay," Trini said, rubbing a hand against her head where it had hit the wall. "Be careful."

"It's not following me," Kim pointed out, as the pig went straight for the fruit stand they had been in front of. "I think it's more interested in eating everyone's food than coming after me."

"Princess Kimberly! Trini! Over here!" It was Billy that shouted, indicating a relatively sheltered spot near the far edge of the courtyard by the main gate. It was hard to see through the thick black smoke that was rising up from somewhere, but from that vantage point they could watch within easy reach of an escape route.

Letting Trini lean on her for support, Kim led the way to where Billy was waiting. She wondered for a moment what he was doing up here instead of in the archives, but the large bundle of fresh parchment he carried seemed to explain it. The latest delivery must have arrived with really unlucky timing.

The pig monster did not seem to notice the humans as they crept past it, much less care. It was too busy stuffing its face with whatever it could grab. As long as they didn't try to interfere with its eating, it was content not to bother them. For now.

Something still had to be done about it, but Kimberly wasn't sure what.

"Trini, are you alright?" Billy asked as the girls crouched down beside him. Trini let him take a look at the bump on her head, but nodded in response to his question. After a brief inspection, he seemed to accept the answer as truthful and let that matter drop. With regard to the monster, however, "What is that thing, and where did it come from?"

"I have no idea what it is, and I don't care where it came from," Kimberly muttered darkly. "I want to know where my knights are and why they aren't taking care of this."

Most of the guards had disappeared during the chaos, and the few that remained seemed unable to muster the courage to attack the creature and were instead guarding the lines of retreat for the townsfolk. The doors to the castle proper were shut tight, and probably barred from within, to prevent the monster from gaining access, but at the same time leaving Kimberly and the others stranded in the courtyard.

Brilliant. Just leave the Princess all alone outside with the monster.

At least she had Trini and Billy, but there was only so much they could do to protect her. Trini knew how to fight, but in a dress and without weapons or armor it would be pointless. And Billy, while his intentions might be good, was a scholar and not a warrior. And it was fairly clear that they were dealing with magic here, so who knew if even a warrior would do them any good?

Zordon would know what to do, but he was still missing in action. Everyone always seemed to be conveniently absent when she needed them.

But there was one figure amidst the chaos that was not fleeing for his life: a young man dressed in fine clothes of green and black, with a sword in his hand. He alone dared to approach the pig monster, in spite of its insatiable appetite and ever-increasing size.

"Who is that?" Kimberly asked.

Trini just stared silently.

Billy followed the Princess's gaze. "Judging by the colors he's wearing and the fact that he is carrying a sword, I would say he's a knight of the Oliver family, probably the current Lord Oliver's son, Tommy."

"He is really cute," Kimberly gushed.

"He's not wearing armor," Trini murmured. "This is probably not going to go well."

"Then someone should go help him," Kimberly muttered angrily. Where were the kingdom's knights when they were actually needed? She just knew those guys were useless. But oh no, no one would believe her...

But even as she spoke she started to wonder if reinforcements would be necessary. The pig monster - so gross - might have size on its side, but it also grew slower the bigger it got. The knight in green was quick on his feet and even quicker to strike, feinting this way and that while he tried to find the best angle of attack.

Kimberly found herself holding her breath with anticipation just watching the fight - it was a sight to behold. Against a creature that size, the lone knight had to be careful. It would take more than one blow to take it down, where without armor it would only take a single well-placed smash from one of its huge limbs to kill him. And she really hoped he wouldn't die before she got a chance to meet him.

-x-

The castle was a welcome sight after so long on the road. That wasn't to say that Zack and Rocky and the others weren't good company, but Jason was glad to be home. With the tournament looming so close, he needed to get back into his training routine. He had managed to squeeze in a little sparring with Zack, Rocky, and Rocky's squire Adam on the return trip, but he could still feel the lack of practice...

He let his mind wander a little as he led the group up the road to the castle. It would be nice to sleep in his own bed for change, to practice on a familiar field, see his friends again...

"Hey, Jase, something's not right," Zack said, urging his horse up alongside Jason's. "I think we better get up there, and fast."

Looking up, Jason saw immediately what had caught Zack's attention: there was a cloud of black smoke rising up from the castle, not to mention the crowd of people fleeing out the main gate, and that was definitely not normal. "You're right. Let's go. Rocky!"

"Hey, don't even think about telling me to stay here and help with the porters," Rocky said, before Jason could even finish what he had been saying. "Adam and Aisha can handle this. I'm going with you."

"Then let's go."

The three knights rode on ahead as fast as their horses could carry them. People threw themselves out of the way, shouting as the royal knights charged past. At first Jason thought they might be angry shouts, but he soon realized that the peasants were cheering them on. Yet another bad sign...

"I never should have agreed to play messenger for Kimberly," Jason muttered. Everything had been fine when he and Zack set out, but now it was all falling apart.

The courtyard was nearly empty as they crossed the drawbridge and passed through the main gate. It was market day, and the yard should have been filled with people and goods, but everyone (or nearly everyone) had already fled. Several market stalls were on fire, which explained the smoke, and at the center of the mess was what could best be described as a storybook monster. There was no sign of any castle guards, only a single young man dressed in black and green doing battle with the beast.

Jason did a double-take when he saw it, scarcely believing his eyes. He reined in his horse, Rocky and Zack following suit just behind him.

"Jason! Zack! Over here!"

He looked to the left to see Kimberly, Trini, and Billy huddled together near the wall. He knew better than to ask what they were doing outside the castle proper at a time like this, but led Zack and Rocky over to them anyway. That spot seemed as good a base of operations as any. There was not a lot of room to maneuver with the courtyard set up for market, so they would need somewhere to leave their horses while they dealt with the monster. How convenient that there were three friends waiting for them, and three horses, though Kimberly probably wouldn't like being given horse-duty.

Trini took the reins from him while he dismounted without question, guessing what needed to be done before he had to give orders. Billy and Kimberly followed suit with Zack and Rocky's horses.

"You're a sight for sore eyes," Jason said quietly. Trini nodded. Turning to look at where the pig was still doing battle with the knight in green, he added, "But that's not. Any idea what it is?"

She shook her head. "None at all."

He could feel Kimberly's glare, though he couldn't see her past his horse. "Could you maybe help that guy first and ask questions later?"

"I don't think he needs any help," Zack piped up. "Look!"

The knight had moved in for the kill, tearing the creature open from sternum to hip with one well-aimed blow. It shrank as it died, reverting into an ordinary pig. No one dared to say it out loud, but everyone knew that magic had to be behind such an occurrence. This sort of thing wasn't supposed to happen. This was what the royal magic was supposed to prevent. Nothing like this had happened in living memory.

A monster, like something out of a fairy tale...

No wonder Zordon had cautioned Kimberly to move swiftly. With the royal magic on the loose and no one to control it, there was no way of knowing when the next beast would rise up, or what else might wind up bewitched. They had been lucky today. They might not be so lucky next time.

Jason watched with a frown as, heedless of any potential danger, Kimberly hurried over to speak with the knight that had slain the beast. He didn't recognize the young man, but knew already that he must be here for the tournament. While this was certainly an interesting turn of events, he couldn't help but feel a little annoyed that this new guy had saved the day and stolen his thunder.

Trini patted him comfortingly on the arm, but even that didn't help much.