Published as a part of Allero week over at tumblr. Be sure to give it a look.

THE GREAT RESCUE

Turmoil shook the fair Kingdom of Lenoa like an Earthquake as the news of the Princess' abduction swept through the land. Peasants groaned and merchants moaned, as the common folk waited with bated breath to see what this would do to their marginally lovable King. The monarch of Lenoa, the questionably wise Cyril, first of his name and foremost father of the Kingdom, doted on his child like a senile granddaddy. While bets were placed in pubs and places of questionable repute as to how long it would take before he went stark, raving mad, pragmatic souls prayed fervently and sacrificed sweetmeats at the altars of their Gods for the Princess' safe return, for they knew that at the first hint of weakness from their King, the neighbouring Kingdom of Exorcia would swoop down upon them like a pack of starving dogs and tear them to pieces. They had never managed to forgive the King Cyril's Grandsire, the reverend Adam, the Enlightened, for accidentally feeding their then Lord a poisoned lollipop. It had been an honest mistake.

In the castle, whispers ran amok like cocaine addicts. "Abducted by a dragon, they say" whispered a cook to the scullion as he handed her a ladle. "Right under the nose of our finest man, the King's brother himself. They say he gave chase like a hound in heat and was never seen after that. It must've gotten him too. We're doomed!" moaned a guard to his companion as they manned a corridor. In the throne room, all was chaos as the King sat on his throne, trying to strangle anyone who came within reach. "My sweet Road!" he screamed pounding his fists on the wall. The courtiers assembled in a frightened knot at the other end of the room, their attempts at consoling their monarch having ended in asphyxiating failure.

"Oh, Cyril!" sang a voice from behind the King. He whirled like a bulldog, screaming "My Daugh-" which ended abruptly in a choked scream as Adam, the Enlightened drove his venerable knee into the King's crotch. Hauling him onto his shoulder, the old man carried him to his throne, and with a surge of his broad shoulders, threw the king onto its embroidered cushions.

As the King whimpered like a burned cat, his grandsire grabbed him by his royal collar and shook him like a rag doll. "You will cease this madness" he told him in a voice that would have made ice seem warm, "and you will bring back my little Road or I will gut you like a dog and hang you from the parapets. Is that clear?" For a moment, the King looked like a little boy who'd just seen his worst nightmare, which wasn't all that off the mark, then he seemed to compose himself. He sheepishly whispered an apology to Adam and a look of steely determination entered his eyes as he barked "Yes sir!" and turned to his sister and foremost adviser, Lulubell, the lady of the cats.

"Find a man. Find a man who's man enough to wrest the Gem of Lenoa from the vile claws of this wicked dragon!" he ordered. The Lady of the Cats bowed low and left.

Lulubell seated her royal behind on the divan and sighed. The man opposite from her stood straight, his spear at attention, his eyes roving the room. "At ease, Captain." she said, softly stroking the cat that had leaped onto her lap. It purred in contentment. Captain Keethrax relaxed, but his eyes still swept the room, his hand gripping his weapon firmly. "What do you require of me, your highness?" he asked. "A man" she replied, dropping her head in her hands. For a moment, there was silence.

"Your Highness, I understand a woman at your age has certain...needs, but I'm not particularly suited to..." He trailed off as she fixed him with a death glare. "My apologies, your Highness. It was too ripe an opportunity." He said, bowing deeply, a slight smile on his features. "If it weren't for Tyki valuing you highly, I'd have you neutered and hung." she said, her eyes shooting daggers.

"Anyhow," she continued, "You heard the King's orders. 'A man who's man enough' to kill a dragon and get the Princess back." "I presume" the captain observed, "that finding such a man wasn't easy." "Not a single man with a backbone!" the lady of the cats declared, disgust dripping from her every word. "I heard a couple of rumours about somebody stepping up" the captain said, his features neutral. "Bilge rats!" she cursed "One day they're all ready to go save her. The next day they're gone without a trace. Run away like deer. Damn cowards!"

"And you want me to find somebody?" Keethrax asked, a slight smugness tinging his voice. "Keethrax, Captain of my brother's Butterfly guard," Lulubell said, her voice dripping venom, "You're a snake and I despise it, but you get the job done. That's why you're Tyki's most valuable asset. So I'm asking you, for the loyalty you bear my missing brother, find a man."

Keethrax's scarred face grew solemn and his eyes seemed contemplative as he rubbed his chin. "May I ask, why you haven't just sent out an army?" he asked. "You know why as well as I do. If we reduce our forces here, we'll be just begging for Exorcia and its insufferable ruler to invade us. And this is a dragon we're talking about. If we're to believe legend, if we give it such a big target, it'll just fry it. A covert operation will be better. The Princess may be precious, but your King will not sacrifice the lives of half his soldiers just to get her back." Her eyes grew soft. "He's torn, is Cyril. Torn between the love he has for his daughter and the duty he owes his people."

"I'd volunteer some of my men itself, but it's a suicide mission and I couldn't send those men in full conscience." admitted Keethrax. "So, no one?" asked Lulubell, a note of despair entering her voice. "Well..." said Keethrax. "Go on" she prompted.

"I've heard Lord Tyki talk of someone."

"Who? Who is it? Tell me?" she begged.

"In the Tower of the Clowns, there was rumoured to be a great warrior. A man of unmatched skill and manliness. It is said that he had a disciple, an apprentice to whom he passed on his skills before he disappeared one fine day. Lord Tyki often said that if there was one person who could best him, it was that warrior."

"Will he do it?" she asked, new hope entering her words.

"If the King commands it." he replied. Her face fell. "You know he would never willingly ask someone to walk to his own death." she said.

"No. You don't understand the apprentice. He will not go if the King does not command him. He does not perform favours. But if his monarch does tell him to do it, you can be sure it will be done. He will not fail."

"The Tower of Clowns, was it?" asked Lulubell, getting out a parchment.

"Yes. And he doesn't like to be disturbed. So it might be difficult for your men to find him. I'll go along with them. And remember. The King is to show no weakness before him. He is to Command. And Allen will obey."

Allen watched from the branches of the tree as the men made their way to the base of the tower. What were they here for? Were they debt collectors? Must be. His master had a proliferation of variegated debts that had fallen on his head now that the old man had disappeared. One day he would have words with him about that. If they ever met again that is. Two years and not a single rumour.

He watched as the men knocked on the front door. Wait...Why did their clothes seem so familiar? Of bloody course! They were soldier uniforms! Those men must have gotten some so people wouldn't get in the way when they dragged him away screaming. Because he didn't have the kind of money it took to pay off Master's debts. No one did, he suspected.

No matter. Those men would not find him. He had been hiding from people like them for the last two years and had become quite skilled at it. He had a variety of hiding places scattered all about for situations like these. But, not for the first time, he asked himself why he still lived in that old tower. The answer came quite easily. Because it was the only home he had ever had.

That sentiment was going to get him killed someday.

He dropped down from the tree and fell straight into a net.

As he struggled in vain, a part of his brain thought "Not someday. Today."

Keethrax looked at the boy struggling in his net. No matter how you looked at it, he didn't look like a hero. Oh well, looks could be deceiving. Or so he could argue. He pointed his spear at him. Immediately his struggles ceased.

"Not a sound out of you. Or I'll skewer you."

He nodded.

"The King wants you."

This really seemed to take him by surprise. He opened his mouth as if to ask something, but Keethrax moved the spear closer and he shut up. "No questions." said the captain "And whatever the King says, do not deny it. He doesn't take that sort of think kindly. Got it?" The boy nodded.

"Good. Now I'll let you out of that net. No funny business. I've got a man hidden in the tress. You'll be dead before you know it."

He nodded again.

Allen's brain worked furiously as the scary man with the scarred face cut him loose. And did not come up with anything useful. If the scary man really had an archer or somebody hidden in the trees, then he would die if he tried to escape. It would be in his best interests to go along with it.

Once Allen was free of the net, he stood up very slowly, so as to not alarm any itchy fingers. There were so many things he wanted to ask the man, but he kept his mouth shut like he'd been told to. No point in aggravating him. Well, on the bright side, if he were being taken to the King, these fellows really were the King's soldiers.

The man unfolded a ragged looking cape from his pack and tied it on Allen's shoulders. Stepping back, he gave him a critical look and muttered, "Well, that ought to do"

"Look here boy" he said, grabbing Allen by his scarred arm and dragging him close, "Remember what I said. Don't antagonize the king. You might...no, you will not live to regret it." Allen simply nodded. Don't say no to the King. Yup. He got it, alright.

"Now", said the scarred man, "Let's go."

Adam, the enlightened Grandsire, watched, his eyes showing nothing as Allen, the Apprentice, was brought before the King. He did not understand what was so special about this lad. For all practical purposes, he looked fairly normal. Discounting his snow white hair. And he did not seem especially strong. He did have that litheness about him that you'd associate with someone accustomed to lots of running and gymnastics, but not exceptionally, dragon slaying strong. The only thing that gave him a bit of hope was that he did not walk like a brash warrior, as any one so young and accomplished in the fighting arts would, radiating an unspoken challenge to anyone in his vicinity, which accomplished nothing but trouble, but rather with a certain wariness about him, as a wiser man would.

Well, he would see. Appearances could be deceiving.

His Majesty, King Cyril, did not look the very picture of misery. Allen had heard the rumours about the princess being abducted. He had even seen her once with her uncle, Lord Tyki, when she had visited his town. There was a little meadow by the tower and as they had passed by, Allen had a look at her from one of the windows. She'd looked like an angel and he'd spent the rest of the day in a dreamy haze before his Master had come back and sent him out to earn some coin. It was a pity that she had been taken. The common folk said it was by a dragon but Allen laughed it off. Dragons did not exist. They were myth and nothing more. Anyway, from what he had heard, the King's love for his daughter was nearly religious in its intensity, but this man before him radiated nothing but a sense of purpose and command. He looked like someone born to rule.

"Of course" Allen thought to himself, "He was born to rule. Silly me."

He couldn't help himself from studying him as the King looked him up and down. This was the first time he'd seen a King this close up. He watched as the King turned to a lady near him, the Lady of the Cats, maybe, judging from the cat that purred on her lap. He whispered something to her and she nodded, seeming perplexed as she too studied Allen. He couldn't help but blush under that stare. She was a very comely woman.

A couple of exchanges later, the King turned to Allen and asked him "Are you the one they call Allen Walker?"

He nodded, his voice suddenly failing him at being addressed by his monarch.

"Speak when the ..." a man started to shout from the King's side, but a curt gesture from the King silenced him.

"The Apprentice of the One in the Tower of the Clowns? The Crown Clown?"

Allen did not understand why the King had to sound so formal about that and he didn't know what that last part was about. But the soldier, whose name he'd later learned was Keethrax, had told him not to antagonize the King, and looking at the man now, Allen thought that'd be a good idea. He nodded once again, despite a growing feeling of wrongness in his gut.

The King glanced once at someone behind Allen, then looking straight at him, in tones that could've commanded a rock to move and not gotten unsatisfactory results, he said "Allen Walker, the Apprentice! You will go to the Isle beyond the Mist and you will slaughter the vile dragon who dared to abduct my daughter and you will bring her back home, safe and sound! This is your King's command!"

Allen's mind went on automatic and he heard himself blurting out, "Yes, Master!" A bad time for his voice to come back and a bad time for his habits from the time he was Master Cross' apprentice to come back, some distant part of his mind noted as the rest of it started screaming in panic at what he'd just done and one miniscule part observed that the King had said 'Dragon'. His eyes darted around and from the corner of his vision, he caught sight of Keethrax smiling.

"The man and his advice be damned!" Allen thought as he managed to get the screaming in his mind under control. "The King said 'Dragon'. Meaning they aren't as mythical as I thought they were. Heck, forget dragons, I wouldn't be able to save a piece of cheese abducted by a mouse, less a princess! Oh, I've gotta do something..."

But before, he could say anything more, anything that might've saved him from this predicament, the entire hall went up in a great cheer and the King beamed like a star as he came down from his throne and clapped Allen on his shoulders, nearly driving him to his knees. "You're the hero I hoped you were!" he declared and the look of relief and hope that Allen say on his face told him that doing anything to break it now might result in potentially unpleasant consequences in the immediate future.

"Well," he thought, "I'll..." and his mind went blank. Seriously, what was one supposed to think under these situations?

And then, from the depths of his memory rose a scene.

-
His master, half his face hidden by the enigmatic mask he always wore, standing at his window bathed in the dying rays of the setting sun, hands behind his back and facing Allen.

"Allen"

It was the first time his master had called him by his name.

"Master?" he asked, confusion tinting his voice.

"Turn around and look at that wall."

He did as told.

"What do you see?"

"The wall of your study, master. It's made of stone and mortar."

"Tap it, apprentice."

Allen rapped it sharply with his knuckles and was rewarded with a dull note.

"All along its length."

He carefully kept tapping it along its length and at one point was rewarded with a hollow note.

"When nothing seems to make sense and you don't know what to do, seek this out idiot apprentice. And now..."

Allen never heard what the last word was because all he remembered after that was an explosion in his head and waking up a few hours later to find Master gone.

"I will need to visit the tower first. I have something to do there, your Majesty" he said, his voice filled with the conviction of a drowning man grasping at a straw, believing that it would keep him afloat.

"As you wish!" the King agreed.

"I'll accompany him, your Majesty" Captain Keethrax offered "My Lord would never forgive me if he heard that his best captain stood by while a stranger rode to save the Princess"

"Keethrax!" the King exclaimed, "I see now why my brother always believed in you! Go forth, the both of you and bring back my daughter!"

"And I hope," said Keethrax, "My Lord as well."

Back at the tower, once the surrealism of the situation had faded away, Allen plopped down on the bed in his Master's study. "What have I done?" he asked in a whisper, pulling at his hair.

Keethrax stood at a corner, silently watching him.

"Don't just stand there!" pleaded Allen. "Say something!"

"What's done is done. Now we should focus on..."

"Don't give me that!" screamed Allen, "You got me into this! What have I ever done to you? I've never fought so much as a barnyard cow! How do you expect me to kill a bloody dragon?! Hells bells and buckets of blood, I didn't even know dragons existed until now!"

Keethrax's hand flicked out. A knife buried itself up to the hilt in the mattress between Allen's legs. He fell silent, staring at it for a long minute.

"You will come." Keethrax said.

"Why should I?"

"Because nobody else will."

"You seem like a pretty good fighter. Why don't you go alone? I'll just be dead baggage?"

"No you won't." said Keethrax firmly. "I knew your master. Not personally, but enough about him to know that if you are his apprentice, then as sure as the Sun rises in the east, you know two things. How to fight."

"And the other one?"

"It's something to do with women."

Allen blushed. "Now look here. He may have taught me a few things but that doesn't mean I'm anything remotely like..." he trailed off as he realized the trap he'd fallen into.

"And there. You do know how to fight." Keethrax said with an air of smugness.

"I abhor violence." Allen said, his right hand massaging his left as unpleasant memories threatened to surface.

"You will." agreed Keethrax, "Right until the moment you have to kill to save yourself."

Allen remained silent.

"Now that we've established the fact that you're not dead weight, I'd also like to throw in that I know about your debts."

Allen's head shot up at that.

"And consider" Keethrax continued, "how handsomely the King would reward you if you saved his daughter. You'd be a free man."

Allen licked his lips. That was tempting. But...

"And also consider, a girl, all alone out there..."

"No." Allen thought, as his mind conjured up an image to match Keethrax's words. He regretted having seen the Princess.

"hanging on to sanity with her fingertips..."

No. Stop.

"...as the dragon and her minions do God knows what..."

"Oh alright! Fine! I'll come!" he said, a sinking feeling in his gut. Sentimental fool. He was going to get himself killed. "But only because I need the money!" he added.

Keethrax smiled, his teeth glinting eerily.

Keethrax watched as Allen moved to the wall and began tapping along it.

"What's he doing?" he though, but kept it to himself. Time would tell.

He reached a particular spot where it sounded hollow. Marking it with a chalk, he hunted around until he found a hammer. A few blows and a small section of the wall crumbled to show a secret chest.

"Does this have a key?" Allen wondered out loud. He looked around for a keyhole and when there seemed to be none, he grabbed the lid. As soon as his hand touched the crest, that of a clown, on the lid, a spark seemed to fly from it to his hand and the lid sprang open. The boy snatched back his hand.

"That tingles" he said in no one to particular and moved to inspect the contents. There were several cloth wrapped bundles. As the boy lifted them out and unwrapped them, Keethrax's eyes grew wide.

"Apocryphos' glowing balls!" he swore, in a voice filled with wonder.

Allen stood before the old mirror in one of the rooms in the tower. "It's..."

"Something I cannot fathom how you came to possess." said Keethrax, his voice back under control.

"But what's even more baffling is, how did it fit so well?" asked Allen to no one on particular.

"You don't know?" asked Keethrax, his voice slightly disbelieving.

"I don't have the foggiest idea about it. All I know is my master told me to seek whatever was behind that wall out when things stopped making sense. And they had."

"Hmmm" said Keethrax contemplatively, "Well, it was not bad advice."

"Huh?"

"It's spell-forged. So is the sword. You'll be safe." he said, not elaborating further. "Come. Now let us go see the King."

Lulubell's breath caught in her throat at the sight before her.

A figure clad in white chain mail, resplendent as the sun that glinted off its links. Bracers and leg greaves made of the same metal, engraved with hypnotizing symbols. A half mask that covered the upper half of its face, of the same colour. A bastard sword was belted at its hip. A white cape swirled in the wind behind it. And from it all emanated an aura, an aura of purity and power so strong it made her knees go weak. One word rang through her mind. 'Spell-forged'

It went down on one knee before the King and removed its mask. She gasped. It was the Apprentice. He seemed... nothing like what he seemed before, his snowy locks like a match to his armour, seeming to radiate confidence. "With your leave, your Highness." he said.

"Godspeed, Apprentice." the King said in a hushed voice, taking his ring off and bestowing it to him.

"Well, that went well." said Keethrax to Allen, as they rode out of the capital.

"I don't know why, but for some reason, I feel like a swindler."

"I have no idea why" said Keethrax with an absolutely straight face. In all the time Allen had been with him, the man only exhibited the barest of emotions. It was unnerving. Oh well. At least he seemed like a competent fighter.

"So, what's the plan?" asked Allen.

"You're the hero of this adventure. Come up with one." said Keethrax, slumping comfortably in his saddle.

He stopped his mount with some difficulty and looked at Keethrax for one long moment.
"What do you mean?" he asked in a quiet voice.
"What I said. Figure something out." replied the captain.

Allen took a deep breath. And then another. Then he exploded.

"This is all YOUR DAMN DOING!" he screamed "How am I supposed to figure out how to kill a dragon?!"

"You'll think of something." said Keethrax, unruffled "After all, that is what was ordained for you."

That stopped Allen short. "What?" he asked, perplexed.

"You'll see." said Keethrax, a mysterious smile on his lips. "For now, know that I brought you here on the words of the Abominable Seer. And if you're open to some advice, I'd tell you to stop worrying and go with it. In my experience people who are supposed to do something will end up doing it. Now, no more questions." The last line was delivered in a tone that brooked no argument and Allen, having nearly been emasculated back in the tower, wasn't in any hurry to brook one. And hey his explanation was somewhat...a little...well, satisfying even if it was not even barely so. That did not make sense, but hey, nothing had.

"And you still have the armour. That should probably keep you from dying for some time."

It seemed that news of their mission had spread through the land. In a couple of villages, Keethrax hadn't even needed to use the King's decree. They were given all that they could want and more to help them get by. And so the days went until they reached the Shadow coast.

"This is a bloody wasteland!" Allen declared as they rode towards the ship...well, since it really couldn't be called that, large boat that Keethrax had procured for them. All around, there were only a few scraggly trees and bushes, the occasional scampering rodent and no sign of civilization.

"It's been that way since the Lord Adam's battle with the Shadow Count all those decades back. Burned, salted, razed to the ground. The King's Grandsire was ruthless in ensuring that no trace of that madman Count and his demon worshipping followers remained. The only remnant are the ruins of his castle on the Isle beyond the Mist. It's where we're going." supplied Keethrax.

"Why do I get a bad feeling about this?" Allen asked no one in particular.

"Oh, you should." observed Keethrax. "The site is supposed to be cursed, damned and what not and nobody in his right mind goes there. A few people who tried went mad. And according to the Seer, that's where the dragon is."

At the mention of the dragon, Allen felt his hands go cold and clammy. "Are you sure about this? We may be going to our deaths, for all we know?" he desperately asked Keethrax.

"As sure as I can be. The fates don't lie, boy. Worry not. When the time comes, you will see."

Allen gulped and nodded.

"No more yapping now" ordered Keethrax. "The Captain approaches. Put on a brave face and keep it on for the rest of the journey."

They had been dropped off a few metres from the shore. As the horses slushed through the water, Allen looked back and saw the boat's crew make the sign they had been making all along the treacherous trip through the mist surrounding the Isle. "A peasant's sign to ward off evil." Keethrax had supplied, with some measure of disgust, when he asked him about it.

There were on the island. And Allen still hadn't the foggiest clue what to do. Well, as Keethrax had kept saying on their long journey till now, "Time would tell." Allen sincerely hoped it would.

As they rode their horses through a road long abandoned, Allen looked around and saw nothing but half burnt buildings and the occasional, very much so, tree. A few bones here and there made morbid accessories to a city long dead.

"Three days of laying waste with steel and fire." Keethrax said, more to fill in the eerie silence than anything.

"Not a single soul around." Allen whispered. The environment demanded it.

Scarce had he said it, then there was a scurrying sound to his right and Allen gave a shout and nearly fell off his horse. Righting himself, he tore his sword out of its scabbard and turned to come face to face with the most evil looking rat he had ever seen.

"That's the first time I've seen a dragon look like that." Keethrax observed in a droll tone.

Allen flushed. "I'm just...it's just..."

"Nerves. I understand boy. It takes time to get used to this line of business." Keethrax said, not unkindly.

"Where are we headed anyway?" Allen asked, uncomfortable with this sudden change in the usually cold captain.

"In the Isle, all roads lead but to one place. Look ahead."

In front of them loomed a hill. As Allen watched, a strong wind blew, clearing the fog to reveal the summit, on which stood the evillest looking castle Allen had ever seen. Well to be fair, he had only seen one castle till now, and that had been the King's, but this one just seemed to radiate cruelty with its black, pockmarked stones, spiked battlements, crows and all round air of ruin. Yup, it was, without a doubt, evil.

Allen gulped. "Is there any chance that's NOT where we're going?" he asked in a hopeful voice.

Keethrax just bared his teeth in a grin and pointed at a gap between bushes. "That's where the path starts. Let's go kill a dragon."

The path up the hill was, surprisingly easy. No steep climbs where they'd have to leave the horses behind. No sheer cliff face they'd have to climb up risking life and limb. Most importantly, no dragon raining unholy fire upon them. It was akin to the calm before the storm.

Once above, Keethrax turned to Allen and said, "I'll tie up our horses somewhere. You go on. I'll catch up." Allen hesitated and started to protest, but Keethrax gave him a look of absolute disgust, like one would give a slug and he turned and started walking. The wall around the castle seemed in surprisingly good condition from this close. No huge defects where men had burst through and slaughtered and been slaughtered in turn. Allen guessed that they must've gotten somebody to lower the drawbridge or something during the battle with the Count.

As he walked across the drawbridge, it creaked ominously beneath him. A part of the drawbridge was missing and Allen saw that he would have to jump across. He thanked Cross for the spell forged armour, because one of its benefits seemed to be a near weightlessness and he leapt across, clearing the edge by a good foot. But no sooner had be landed, than the part of the drawbridge he was standing on cracked. Allen scurried across just in time as it went crashing down into the moat behind him.

"Oh no!" he groaned as he turned and saw a wide chasm separating him from Keethrax, who was standing at the other end of the drawbridge with a bemused look on his face. "Fate acts in mysterious ways!" he called out from the other end. "Oh no it doesn't!" Allen screamed back from the other end, "Please, get over here!" "'Twas spoken in jest, boy. Go on ahead. I'll find some other way to get inside. Fret not, I'll not be far behind!" the captain assured him from the other end.

Allen cast one last look at Keethrax and turned, suddenly feeling very alone. He hadn't realized how much solace he'd drawn from the scarred captain's solid presence at his side. Of course, at times he had seemed like an unreadable, murderous madman, but he'd also offered Allen some support in his own strange way. And hell, whatever else the man may have been, he always gave Allen the impression of being someone you could depend on in a fight. And when you were going against a dragon, having someone like that at your side was comforting, even if you were going to die horribly anyway.

He slowly walked across the courtyard strewn with the debris of a past battle and stepped past the wreckage of what remained of the gates into the castle. Cold stone all round radiated death from dried blood stains and did not do much to improve Allen's disposition. Suddenly, he remembered the sword he had belted at his waist and unsheathed it. Naked blade in hand, he advanced through the dark corridors, flinching at every sound, stabbing at every shadow.

Very suddenly, he entered a huge room, part of its roof blown away, exposing it to the elements. And equally suddenly, something large hurtled from the ceiling towards him. Fear fuelled his reflexes and he swung his sword in an overhead arc shearing the thing in two. And showering himself with feathers.

Allen got into a coughing fit as some went into his mouth. When his airway had cleared itself of invading poultry plumage, he raised his eyes and beheld...the Princess.

If anything, she looked even prettier than the last time he'd seen her. Which was rather strange if you thought about it. She'd been kidnapped by a dragon after all. But Allen didn't think about it. He stood there with his mouth open as she screamed, "You're not Allen!"

"Huh?" Allen thought. His mind wasn't functioning very well now. Or he'd have been surprised at her knowing his name. He dropped his sword and took off his mask. "No, no, your Highness! I am Allen!" he assured her. "Allen!" she exclaimed, "You've come to save me!" And she ran and threw her arms around him and kissed him soundly on the mouth. The mask dropped to the floor with a clatter and Allen's legs gave way beneath him and they both sank to the ground.

"Oof!" the Princess cried out and scrambled to her feet. It was then that Allen slowly stood up and grabbed his sword from where it lay. He put on his mask and turned to face the Princess. "Your Highness, I heard you needed saving. Where is this dragon?" Amazing what womankind could do to men.

"Oh, you've saved me." she said dismissively, "And that's the dragon." She pointed to either side where the remnants of whatever had fallen from the roof lay. It was a stuffed dragon.

Allen's mind went blank. "Eh?" he asked. She walked up to him. He instinctively sheathed his sword. You shouldn't play with pointy things or people could get hurt. She draped an arm around his neck and pulled him into a hug. "That's the dragon," she said "And you've saved me from it. So why don't we get back home so we can get dad to proclaim you a hero and then we can get married?"

Allen pulled back and stared at her. She smiled at him, an innocent little smile.

"What's going on?" he asked her. That seemed to be as good a place to start as any.

Road Kamelot, Princess of Lenoa, eyed her prize appreciatively. He looked so cute when he was confused, she just wanted to jump on him and give him another kiss. Instead she let him stare blankly for a while and then he asked, "What's going on?"

"Oh you naive little thing!" she thought. "Well," she said, "Now that you're a hero, seeing as you've rescued me from a dragon and all, and I'm pretty sure that the news will spread like wildfire through the Kingdom, nobody in the royal family can stop me from marrying you."

He seemed just as confused as ever. "Your Highness," he said, "I think you've got me confused with someone else." Your Highness. So formal. Why didn't he just call her Road? She wondered how it'd sound.

"Oh, I'm sure I haven't" she replied, "You're Allen from the Tower of the Clowns aren't you?"

"Yes." he replied hesitantly.

"Then I haven't gotten the wrong person. Besides, how can I not recognize the boy I love?"

He staggered a bit at that.

"You LOVE ME?" he asked. Well, sorta screamed really.

"Ever since I saw you looking out forlornly from the window in the Tower of the Clowns a year ago. You looked so lonely and so lovely and I just wanted to carry you away! But uncle Tyki told me that the world didn't work like that and I couldn't marry you just like that. He told me that while if I cried and threatened to kill myself Daddy would agree, Aunt Lulubell would probably have some footpad off you before it went that far. Something about having to build political alliances and what not. But he also told me if we made you famous enough, with the right amount of momentum we could pull this off. So we made this whole thing up. We've been making it up for most of last year actually." she confessed.

"What about the Abominable Seer?" Allen asked, remembering the captain's words.

"Oh, him? He's just a drug addict my uncle keeps around for various purposes" she said.

He looked flabbergasted. He tried to say something, faltered and then simply sat down.

"Are you alright?" she asked, concern creeping into her voice.

"We can't do this." he whispered.

"What?" she asked, a horrible feeling in her gut. Something of what she must have been feeling must have made its way into her voice, because he looked up at her, his face conflicted.

"Don't you like me?" she demanded, her voice trembling.

"No...I mean, yes, I like you! But it's not about that! I mean, we can't just scam people like this!"

"Yes we can!"

"No, we can't! I... this is wrong!"

"Love isn't wrong!"

"But...cheating all those people doesn't seem fair!"

"Everything's fair in love and war!"

"You don't understand! I'm no hero! The person who marries you will one day rule Lenoa and for that, you need a better person than me!"

Oh God, he was so damn noble! She'd found that particular quality very endearing when she'd spied on him in the months that followed her first glimpse of him, his good heartedness. And she found it so now. But it wasn't helping her cause. She had no choice. She'd have to pull out the secret weapon her uncle gave her.

"I know about your debt." she told him, her voice suddenly under control. That seemed to silence him. "If you don't marry me, I'll turn you over to the creditors and they'll do horrible things to you!"

"You wouldn't!" he cried out, suddenly afraid.

"I wouldn't." she agreed. She loved him too much. "But my Uncle would." Well, her uncle wouldn't too, because she wouldn't let him do it, but he needn't know that.

"Wait! Won't the King save me from my creditors? After all, I've saved his daughter!"

"Not if you say no." she disagreed. "If you say 'no', Keethrax and my uncle will beat you up ad carry you back to the castle unconscious and say that they did all the dirty work and you were a coward." She pretty much had him cornered.

His face fell. Oh, she hated herself for doing this to him, but he was giving her no other choice. Oh well, once they were married, she'd shower him with lots of love and she was sure all would be forgiven.

Allen wracked his head trying to come up with some way to outsmart the princess, but to no avail. Finally he sighed and gave up. He had no idea such an evil mind hid behind such an angelic face. Oh well, it wasn't a bad deal anyway. He'd just have to hang his conscience for a while.

"And if I do marry you?" he asked.

"We'll take care of your debt."

"Okay then" he said in a small voice.

"Yay!" she cried happily.

And that was how the Kingdom of Lenoa nearly went bankrupt.

Nearly.

Keethrax killed off all the creditors in the end.

He really was a murderous madman.

THE END

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