Stellar Wishes Chapter 3- A Knight to Remember, a X-overs + Disney Crossover fanfic

Darkness filled the screen as a bright yellow glow slowly appeared, followed by numerous gold and silver stars illuminated the center, taking the form of letters with every passing second.

And lo, in perfect cursive were the words...

Stellar Wishes

Yet as the words shimmered to life, a small ball of light flew towards the title and tapped the title, causing it to burst into bright gold stardust as everything went black.

Stellar Wishes: Chapter Three, A Knight to Remember.

Series/Film: Sleeping Beauty

Scenario: What if Aurora decided to become a knight before her 16th birthday?

Inspiration(s): The Bad Girls Club Sleeping Beauty The Dragon Slayer and Girl With Sword -Sleeping Beauty- Images by Xin Yingzong/Yingzong_Xin (Kiddo_Hah) on X (formerly Twitter) [No seriously, go see their art! It's good!], the original unicorn heraldry/monster from medieval and ancient world mythology/folklore, Sigurd/Siegfried from the Völsunga Saga in Norse/Scandinavian mythology and from the opera Siegfried, paladins from DND.

Xxxxx

-Europe, Somewhere in France, Forest, Woodcutter's Cottage-

The sun shone downwards from the canopy of a deep forest as the dawn began to fade into morning light.

The sound of crickets and the occasional chirp of a bird echoed across the forest as the camera zoomed downwards towards the forest floor.

"Alright Aurora, we won't be gone long, we just need to grab more food." called out a feminine voice from outside a quaint wooden cottage, the deep woods around it stretching on for miles in every direction as three older women began to lock the front door behind them.

"Be careful until we get back!"

"And don't try to raid the cupboard!"

"Ok!"

Click!

As the locks were put into place, the camera zoomed towards a corner of the cottage, the kitchen to be exact, as a pair of yellow eyes stared at the screen with amusement.

"Seems we found a little girl left ALL alone on her own. Oh the chaos and mess kids cause all by themselves is a treat." the eyes 'said' while taking the form of a winged cat, who sat on the stairs and smirked. "Especially when they start playing with reckless abandonment."

Clank.

"And speaking of reckless abandonment, it looks like our protagonist is about to run down the stairs."

The camera panned towards the staircase, a young figure running down them with reckless bliss.

That figure being a short fair skinned young girl with short wavy blonde hair that went down to her ears, violet eyes, faint red lips, wearing a long sleeved light brown kirtle that went to her feet, a dark gray bodice, a black headband and was completely barefoot, who was smiling to herself as she ran down the stairs towards the kitchen.

And right towards the cupboards.

She got down and opened it, reaching inside for the back of it.

And pulled out a small jar of honey from within.

"Huh, didn't expect her to like honey like a certain bear." Chaos muttered while watching the girl pull out a loaf of bread and then began making a honey sandwich on the nearby table as she made sure to slather the honey all over the slices with a smile.

Splat.

"Mmmm, it seems like Briar Rose is enjoying the calm of her meal." Chaos said while watching the girl make a mess on the table. "Mmmm...needs a little chaos."

Crack.

Briar blinked as a cup of vinegar cracked right next to the honey and spilled right onto her sandwich. "NO! My sandwich!"

As she quickly pulled the sandwich away, her hands accidentally slipped from the gooey substance and-

SPLAT!

Landed right on the nearby wall as it fell, slowly, towards the floor.

"Oh no no no no!" She yelled before slipping on some honey and fell backwards, crashing right into the table and causing the jar of honey to land on her head. "Oooh, this...is...OOOH!"

"Hehehe. Yep, just like Pooh." Chaos chuckled while noticing the door opening up, making him snap his fingers and turn into a coo-coo clock.

Creak!

Just as Briar's guardians ran back into the cottage, extremely on edge due to the loud crash.

"What happened?!"

"Briar! What-oh dear!"

"What happened to you?!"

"Ooooh...heh heh...hi." She said sheepishly while still trying to get the jar off her head.

The three women quickly came over and got to work on cleaning her up, waving their wands, hidden from the girl's view via the jar covering her eyes, and using their magic to tidy the mess up.

All the while Chaos was watching the entire scene play out as he looked at the screen.

(A few minutes later)

"Ow." Briar groaned while currently rubbing her head on a nearby chair, her guardians looking over her with a concerned yet harsh expression on their faces.

"You could have gotten seriously injured."

"And we told you not to raid the cupboards."

"But Aunty Flora, Aunty Fauna. I was hungry." Briar said with an embarrassed look on her face.

"You could've waited."

"But Aunty Merryweather-"

"No buts young lady." Merryweather said sternly. "You chose to steal from the cupboards and that led to you getting hurt."

"But-"

"That's why you're grounded from any sweets for one week."

"But-"

"And if you keep saying 'but' then it will be a month."

The girl pouted and deflated on the spot.

"Now, we will be off again to the market place." Flora said while crossing her arms. "And we will be expecting you to stay here, with clean clothes, and be in bed by the time we return."

"Do you understand?"

"...yes." Briar said with a pout as the three aunts walked towards the door.

"Do you think we were a little too harsh on her?" Fauna whispered to Flora.

"If we aren't firm with her, she won't learn and might get into more trouble."

"True, but it was only a jar of honey."

"Right now. But if she does it again, it might be something more dangerous than a jar, like a timber or a knife."

"Are you sure you're not being just a little paranoid?"

"Fauna, with Briar, we can't be too careful. Especially when you know who is still searching for her." Flora said while locking the door behind her. "It's better to be too worried than too laxed."

As the voices of the three aunts faded away, Briar felt...sad.

Sad and a little foolish, given she did disobey her aunt's instructions and got hurt in the process.

But as she stewed in her sadness...a sudden thought entered her head.

Why DID she have to stay in the cottage?

Sure they told her to, but there had to be more to it than that.

Why leave her alone here when she could join them in their shopping?

It was odd and...strange. Where do they go? What is a marketplace? Are there others like her out there?

All these thoughts...and in the ten years of her life, she never acted upon them.

She held a finger to her chin and looked up at the ceiling. "Hmmm, I wonder..."

As she stared at the ceiling, she didn't notice that the cat-like clock behind her vanished in a puff of smoke.

Just as the sound of...music echoed in her ears, making her run to the window and listen to it with wonder.

"What's that?" Briar muttered to herself before her curiosity took over and she grabbed a nearby cloak from the coat rack and ran out of the cottage towards the music's source.

(Later)

-Edge of the Forest-

Crack.

As quick as a hare, Briar reached the edge of the forest, the music so loud she swore she was right in front of it.

'What beautiful music.' She thought to herself while carefully climbing over a large log, the lines of trees fading away to reveal an expanse of flatlands and the occasional rock formation. 'I wonder who's playing it.'

Russle.

And lo, on the far left side of the nearby dirt road, resting under a large rock formation, was a large wooden cart filled with strange objects of various sizes and shapes as several white cloths were spread across the ground with several objects rested upon them.

'What the?' She thought before seeing a gray haired man with a thin goatee and wearing a light blue tunic and shoes playing a flute on top of a resting donkey's back without a care in the world.

Feeling nervous and a little suspicious of the man's intentions, she decided to try and stay low as she moved closer towards the cart.

The man, whose yellow eyes were looking at the flute for a second, turned his head to the right and saw Briar walking towards him. 'Ah, the heroine arrives.'

'Just who is he?'

"Ah! Welcome!" He called out as the girl froze in fear. "Come, take a look at my wares. The finest in all the world, all fair in price or your money back."

She stayed there, just staring at him with uncertainty.

"What? Got something in my teeth?"

"N-No..."

"Then come and check out my wares. I promise they won't bite, growl or squark unless commanded." The man said while playfully pointing to a stuffed boar right next to him. "Especially Old Dante here. Isn't that right Dante?"

Silence.

"See? Nothing to worry about."

Briar looked at the man, then the forest, then back to him before coming closer with curiosity.

"So, what are you looking for? Accessories? Gems?" the man asked while Briar looked around the endless merchandise with curiosity. "Maybe some new clothes?"

"I don't need new clothes."

"Oh? Just looking then?"

"Yes." Briar said while looking at a set of tapestries on her left side. "But...what is this place?"

"My shop, my traveling shop to be exact." the man said with a smirk. "The name's Carlos, a traveling merchant and bard from a distant kingdom. My wares are one of a kind and have seen places you'd never imagine before. Some even come from the end of the world."

"Really?" She asked as her eyes lit up hearing that.

"Yep. From swords from a land of sunrise to a drink sweet as the blood of its kingdom. I have everything under the sun, and then some." He said with a smile. "All for a few coins that is."

That made her deflate in disappointment.

"I...I don't have any coins."

"Ah. Well, you can still check my wares regardless. I'm not a tax collector, you don't need to buy anything if you don't want to."

Briar sighed in her head before turning her head to the left.

Only to notice a large brown book with gold foil around the covers, right next to a strange curved sword...the words 'Knights of Old' written on the cover.

"What's this?"

"Mmm? Oh, that's a book."

"I know that but what is it about?"

"It's a book about knights."

"...knights?"

"Wait? You don't know what a knight is?"

"No, what is it?"

"Well, a knight is a person that wears armor, uses a sword in battle and serves a ruler with honor. Sometimes they are evil, sometimes too noble, but they are warriors that fight for what they think is right." Carlos said with a smile. "But it takes a lot of training to become a knight, usually starting at your age."

"So anyone can be a knight?"

"No, only men become knights."

"But why?"

"That's because people think women are...not suitable as warriors. Personally, I think anyone can become great if they try. But that's how society is right now, men are on top and women are on the bottom." Carlos said with a shrug. "If you ask me though, women are a little more sane than some of the men ruling the world right now."

Briar nodded in confusion while looking at the book, a strange feeling in the back of her mind compelling her to pick the book up and take it.

But without any money, it wouldn't really amount to anything.

Yet she felt a desire to read it, just to know what a knight really was.

'What should I do? Steal it? But my aunts would be ever so upset if I did that.'

'Hmm, it seems she might need a little push.' Carlos thought before coughing a little to get her attention. "If you want, you can take it for free."

"...eh?"

"You heard me, if that book is what you desire, then you can have it for free."

"But...But I can't. I don't have-"

"I insist. Consider it a 'discount' per say." He said while Briar felt a little guilty at this current situation. "All I ask in return is that you take the book's themes to heart and follow your dreams, not the dreams of others. Especially from overbearing aunts and 'true love' strangers."

"What do you mean?"

"Oh you know, the overprotectiveness and blind faith aspects of life. If you want to be free to make your own choices, you need to escape the cage of safety and become your own person." Carlos said with a smile. "As much as you don't want to hear me, a stranger, tell you how to live your life, you must admit to yourself that the world isn't all that nice, sure, you might trust others and expect them to trust you in return, but that's not how life works. You need to become independent, less dependent on others to make you happy because if you don't, you will find out that you, as a person, will become unsatisfied and bored of life and trust me, being free to do your own thing is much better than staying cooped up in a cottage in the middle of nowhere. Look at me for example, I used to be a priest in some fancy city before I stole a donkey and began traveling the world...and you can do the same thing too."

"...by stealing a donkey?"

"No! By following your dreams and escaping the gilded cage that you're currently incapable of seeing. Tell me this, do you ever want more in life than just what you're told to do?"

"Well...actually yes."

"Then keep the book, follow its message and become more than just a simple child. Become something more." Carlos said with a smile before resuming his flute playing.

She looked at him, then back at the book with awe and wonder. 'Should I really?'

As the man continued to play his flute, Briar realized that her aunts might be back soon and would be worrying about her at the moment.

"Thank you so much!" she bowed her head before she took off running back into the woods.

The man chuckled a little before calling out to her. "Any time, Lady Unicorn!"

She barely registered his voice, all she could focus on was getting back to the cottage before her aunts saw she was gone.

(Later)

-Woodcutter's Cottage-

Click.

"We're home!" Flora called out while the three aunts entered the cottage, a basket full of honey and strawberries in their hands.

Yet as they entered...they heard nothing at all, not even footsteps.

"Briar?"

Silence.

"Maybe she's asleep?" Fauna suggested while Merryweather shook her head.

"Or she's hiding in the closet with a snack."

"Briar! If you're hiding, come out right now young lady." Flora called out as she heard no reply, making her worry a little. "Briar?"

"Do you think she's ok?"

"Maybe Maleficent found her?"

"Don't even say her name!" Flora yelled before hearing a low moan from upstairs. "Briar?!"

And as quick as lightning, the three women ran up the stairs and towards a small room in the far corner, opening the door to reveal...

A sleeping Briar, her hair poking out from beneath a mass of gray sheets and pillows as she snored a little like a tiny chipmunk.

All of them sighed in relief as Flora moved over and gently caressed the girl's cheek.

"Zzzzz."

"Cute little thing."

"And here we were worrying over nothing." Merryweather sighed in relief.

"Let's leave her alone and get some rest."

"And get the supplies put away too. Although I still don't know if strawberries should be put in a jar or not." Fauna whispered as the three women slowly walked out of the room.

Click.

As soon as the door closed, Briar peeped out from her blanket and smiled.

'And they're gone.' She thought to herself before ducking back under the covers, where the book from the traveling merchant's shop was laying on her lap, and giggled softly to herself.

[Ah, the end of one chapter and the beginning of a new one. Oh Briar Rose, a child filled with curiosity for all things, you will soon deviate from canon and become something more than just a princess.]

'I wonder what this book will show me?' she pondered before slowly opening it up.

Only to see the words 'Historia regum Britanniae' written on the first page.

'What language is this? This isn't...wait.' She thought to herself as suddenly, as if by magic, she could understand the words written in the book as if she had studied said language for years. "Wow..."

[Oh yes, she's going to love it. But let's speed up the clock a little, a few weeks perhaps?]

(Several weeks later)

The moonlight fell upon a dark forest cottage as Briar, the only one up at this late hour, looked out the window with...longing in her eyes.

Ever since the merchant allowed her to keep the book, the girl felt herself becoming enamored by its contents, from heroic knights that stood for justice to grand adventures into mystical realms, she had read the tales front and back until she knew them by heart.

Yet now...she desired something that even a book couldn't give her.

A chance to become a knight.

To go on adventures, save people, and see what the world had to offer.

But...should she? Should she go out and become a knight?

Her aunts would never understand her desire and might reprimand her for such 'inappropriate thoughts'.

Yet...she WANTS to follow her dreams, even if they are against the norm.

This led to her being torn between staying or going.

Yet as she looked out into the forest, she felt the call for knightdom too strong for her and she made up her mind.

She needed to become a knight...and she needed to do something drastic.

Briar sighed as she turned around and carefully walked towards her nightstand, her left hand reaching towards the nearby scissors and grasping them between her fingers. "Girls can't become knights, but."

Snip!

"No one will know once I become one on the outside." She said to herself as she carefully made sure not to cut herself as she cut more and more hair off bit by bit.

All until she had nothing but scalp length hair, a necessary change that will help her look less like a girl.

"There. Now...to get some 'boy clothes'." She muttered to herself as she took the scissors and began cutting some of her clothes into a more 'masculine' tunic and trouser combo. "I just hope I don't cut too much..."

[Snip snip snip. Look how she snips away at her old identity and becomes someone else. Just like a caterpillar.]

Snip!

Briar sighed as she carefully snipped the final piece of cloth off, allowing her to put on the gray and brown tunic and trousers on with relative ease.

Yet as she put them on, she felt a small bit of guilt at what she was doing...but chose to ignore it as she put on a cloak, grabbed a large piece of cloth and quickly, with the nimbleness of a mouse, ran downstairs in search of supplies, leaving her book on a nearby table in the process.

'Let's hope no one hears me.'

(A few minutes later)

'Ok.' She thought to herself as she tied the now stuffed cloth on top of a large broom handle, which she unfortunately broke off, and looked around the room as she slowly moved towards the front door. 'You can do this. Just walk out and find the nearest town or castle that is in need of a page.'

Creak.

Freezing in place, the young girl stood still and held her breath as soon as the sound of creaking wood went off.

'...must be my imagination.' She thought to herself as she opened the door and slowly closed it behind her.

Click.

Briar sighed a little before putting the hood on her head and walked away from the only home she knew, knowing that this was the last time she'd ever see her aunts again. 'I'm sorry, but I have to do this.'

The camera slowly zoomed towards a nearby tree as a certain winged cat looked on with delight.

"Young Briar Rose, or as her 'aunts' know her as Aurora, is doing something that not many versions of her want to do...become the agents of their own fate. To grab it by the neck and strangle it for cheating at poker, I know I'd do that if I had the chance." He chuckled while looking at the screen. "But don't worry, she'll make it out of the forest. And eventually, she'll locate her destination."

(A few days later)

-King Stefan's Castle, Front Gate-

'There it is, the castle.' Briar thought as she looked upwards, the high castle walls making her feel small as she tried to look for a guard to signal to. 'And it's kinda...intimidating. But you can do this, just look for a guard-oh!'

The camera zoomed upwards towards the nearest watchtower as a lone guard, his lips coated in a thick brown beard, moved to the left in boredom, his spear resting in his right hand like a makeshift cane.

And he looked ready to pass out too.

'Ugh, endless nights looking for any sign of the princess. Ugh! Why can't the king and queen realize that she's properly dead by now and produce another kid?! I'm getting tired of just looking at this post all day long for TEN years!'

Briar moved over to the gate and tried to keep herself from backing out.

All the while trying not to fall into the moat, given the drawbridge was raised upwards at the moment.

'And why can't that stupid fairy curse someone else?! Yes, she's the 'Mistress of all Evil' but some people have LIVES to live through!' the guard thought in anger while not hearing or seeing Briar trying to call out to him. 'I need to pay taxes and having a fairy curse on a baby is just agitating! Especially when I have to do extra work JUST TO KEEP HIS MAJESTY SANE!'

Briar groaned before picking up a rock and chucked it at the guard.

SPLASH!

Which failed as it fell into the moat below.

'I'm not giving up!' She thought while grabbing more stones and chucked them at the guard's direction.

Each one however missed and dropped back into the moat.

SPLASH!

'And I mean seriously! Looking for a possibly dead baby princess is as ridiculous as the sky falling-'

CLANG!

"GAH!"

"Hello?! Hello!"

"Who's down there?!" the guard yelled before looking down from the ledge and frowned. "Were YOU the one that hit me?!"

"Sorry! I needed to get your attention!"

"For what?!"

"I want to join the king's royal knights!"

"...what? That's why you threw a rock at me?!" He snapped in disbelief. "Just for an audience with the king?!"

"Yes! Can you lower the drawbridge?"

"Why should I?!"

"So I can come in!" Briar called out in desperation. "I want to become a member of the royal knights!"

"Go away!"

"Please!"

"Leave now or else!"

"Please! I want to be a knight!"

"Piss off!" the guard yelled as the camera panned downwards towards the castle's main gate, the chains slowly moving backwards as the portcullis rose upwards.

Clank.

CRASH!

"Huh?! Why is the drawbridge down?!" the guard yelled in a panic as Briar saw her chance and raced through the gates into the castle as fast as she could. "Who opened the gate?!"

"Yes! I'm in!"

"Guards! Intruder at the gates!" the guard called out before tripping on something and fell into the moat, a small blue tail curling outwards for a second before disappearing into nothingness.

'I need to find the captain of the knights, or at least the knights. Now where-' she thought to herself before crashing head first into the king's leg, causing her to land on her butt on the dirt coated ground.

SWISH!

And came face to face with a circle of drawn swords pointed at her, courtesy of the knights surrounding the king on his early morning walk.

"Halt intruder!"

"Oh no." Briar said nervously while King Stefan raised an eyebrow at her, seemingly confused by the whole situation.

"State your business."

"Um...is there room on the royal guard for a page?"

The knights eyed her like she was nuts as the king held his left hand to his chin.

"..."

'Please consider it!'

"I don't know, you don't seem like page material."

"But I am! I'm a fast learner and I'll follow the code of chivalry to the dot!"

"Sir, I don't trust this lad." One of the knights said coldly. "He seems too eager for a boy his age. For all we know, he's just a thief trying to steal from the castle staff or worse, is an assassin from a neighboring kingdom."

"I swear! I'm no thief!"

"Then why did you run into the king?!"

"I'm sorry! I didn't see him there!"

"And you will not see him again, guard-"

"Hold on now, Sir Edward." King Stefan said calmly. "This lad is no spy, nor is he an assassin. He's just over excited for being a knight, just like you when you were his age."

"But sir-"

"He, like any other boy his age, has the potential and chance to become a knight." King Stefan said calmly. "Turning him away would just deprive us of a royal knight in the future and that would be unfair. Thus, he will become a page, under your watch Sir Edward."

"Yes sir."

Briar sighed as the king stared at her a little, making her slightly uncomfortable. "My liege?"

"Mmm...have we met before?"

"No sir."

"I see...come...um, what is your name?"

"...Brian, just Brian."

"Brian, come. I will show you around the castle, to get yourself acquainted with your surroundings before starting your training with Sir Edward."

"Y-Yes sir!" she bowed her head before following behind the king and trying to keep her excitement in check.

As the group walked away, a pair of yellow eyes appeared behind the group and looked at the screen.

[Ah. Looks like my job is done for now, the young princess will learn the ways of the sword and soon enough become the kingdom's greatest warrior...in about a few years at any rate. But as you know, I dislike repetition so let's head into the future, to a time of festivities!]

(Five years later)

-Town Square-

Wooosh!

The cold wind of winter time moved throughout the town as numerous inches of snow, some about a foot deep in some places, littered the various houses and shops like frosting on a cake.

Yet as the camera turned to the right...the sound of music could be heard while various colorful tents and stands were lined all around the streets.

And in the very center was a large cylindrical stadium with several large stands lining the sides and ends.

Clop clop clop clop clop clop!

CRASH!

All the while, knights of different sizes and colors were busy jousting for glory and prizes, as currently a knight coated in black and a knight sporting red hues just collided with their lances.

The opposing knight went flying off his horse and crashed into a hay stack as the people applauded the winner with festive joy.

"The winner is Sir Duncan of Denain!"

As the crowd cheered for the knight, a certain blue cat appeared next to a stand and smirked a little.

"Ah, I love this time. It's Christmas and it's a time of chaotic partying, brawls on the streets and tournaments galore. Nothing like those 'low fat' Christmases in the future, my kinda thing." Chaos chuckled while seeing the red knight getting to his feet and limped out of the stadium. "Alas, poor Sir Peter of Loos, he didn't win this year. Oh well, let's see the next one!"

"Announcing visiting knight, Sir John of the Holy Roman Empire, Duke of Milan!" The announcer called out as a silver and yellow knight holding a double headed eagle emblem on his shield rode out into the arena on a speckled colored black horse.

Sir Duncan took the reins and held his lance out at the ready. 'This will be easy, I am the best knight here.'

"Announcing Sir Brian, the Unicorn Knight!"

Clop clop clop!

The crowd cheered as a tall semi bulky figure covered in dark blue armor with a horse-like enclosed helmet with a long silver horn on the forehead, curved horn-like spikes on the pauldrons and holding a black shield sporting a snarling unicorn with lion-like back legs and a broken chain in its jaw in his left hand, rode out atop a pure white stallion, his right hand holding a large black lance that seemed to be coated in dried blood.

"Competitors, to your ends!" The announcer called out as the two knights went to their opposing sides, Sir Duncan on the left and Sir Brian on the right.

"Oh, this will be fun." Chaos chuckled to himself while seeing the knights getting ready to charge.

"And...begin!"

Clop clop clop clop clop!

The sound of hooves against stone echoed across the arena as the knights pointed their lances towards their target.

"Mmmm, this will be good." Chaos chuckled as Sir Brian's lance made direct contact with Sir Duncan's shield.

CRACK!

Obliterating it as the knight cursed his luck and turned around, one of his squires quickly giving him a new one.

"You shall fall!" Sir Duncan yelled out in annoyance as the Unicorn Knight simply turned around and charged at him.

Clop clop clop clop clop clop!

CRASH!

And quickly dismounted the knight as Sir Brian jumped off and drew a sword from his scabbard, waiting for the opposing knight to bring out his weapon for close combat.

"I'm not done yet!" Sir Duncan yelled while pulling out his own sword and charged at Sir Brian.

CLANG!

Both blades clashed and formed sparks, the people cheering louder in anticipation.

CLANG!

Yet as the two knights continued to fight, the Unicorn Knight quickly jumped back, forcing Sir Duncan to thrust outwards into empty air as the blue clad knight quickly slammed down on his sword hand.

CRACK!

Breaking bone and steel with a single strong chop.

"AHHHHH!" He screamed as his hand was mangled from within his gauntlet, making him fall to his knees as Sir Brian pointed his blade at his visor.

"Surrender or I will gouge out your eye and feed it to the bitches, you son of a cur." Sir Brian growled with bloodlust.

"I...I...shall not-"

Squish!

"AHH!" Sir Duncan screamed as the blade pierced his left eye.

"Then enjoy being half blind...now SURRENDER!"

"I yield! I yield!"

Sir Brian stared at the sniveling knight before pulling his blade out and sheathed it. "Pathetic excuse of a knight."

"The winner, Sir Brian!" The announcer exclaimed as the crowd cheered, the blue knight ignoring it as he took his horse's reins and walked away.

"Ah, Sir Brian. The Unicorn Knight, and no he's not all sunshine and rainbows you silly modern day fools, he's a crude and violent knight that slays anyone that harms the king." Chaos said while a random villager noticed him and screamed 'Demon Cat!' in fear. "Yet this is only on the battlefield, or in brawls. For he is the most respected knight in the kingdom, and no one dares to question his actions."

Clop clop clop.

"The Holy Roman Empire must be lacking in good men if they sent a boy to do a knight's job." Sir Brian said to himself while looking at his horse. "Isn't that right Solomon?"

The horse let out a neigh followed by a huff.

"Yes, he would look better with an eyepatch. Come, the tavern is open right now and we both need something to drink before the finals." Sir Brian said before whispering into the horse's ear. "I'll add some wine to the water trough, the way you like it."

He neighed louder before rearing back and took off running.

"Hey come back you dumb horse!" Sir Brian yelled while running after the horse in anger.

(Some time later)

-The White Rose Tavern-

"What'd you say to me!?" yelled a drunken man with a missing left arm as the Unicorn Knight sat next to him, seemingly ignoring the fact that he just started something.

"You heard me, you're the son of a swineherd and just as repulsive."

"Tough talk comin' from a dead man!"

"Do you know my name?"

"It's dead man!"

"No, it's Sir Brian and." He said before chuckling a little. "I doubt you can even punch me, much less hit me. And even if you could, you'd hit like a baby."

"Oh yeah? Just watch me!"

"Then do it, or are you a chicken?"

The man growled before taking a swing.

POW!

Only for the knight to duck under the arm and punch the man in the face, knocking some teeth out as he crashed into a nearby table.

CRASH!

And caused some glasses of ale to go flying on some of the tavern's patriots, along with several wooden splinters.

"I warned you." Sir Brian said before getting hit on the head by a chair. "...WHO DID THAT?!"

"FIGHT!"

"GRRR!" growled one of the patrons before grabbing Sir Brian by the sides and tried to lift him.

POW!

Only to get headbutted in the face and then thrown across the room.

"Wrong move."

CRASH!

"Get him!"

"Rip his helmet off! I want to see his eyes while I punch out his teeth!"

Sir Brian shook his head in anger before decking one of them off and ducked when another dove at him.

POW!

Only for the knight to punch the man in the chest and throw him into a wall, just as two more men tackled him into a table.

All the while a man with a twisted goatee watched on from the other side of the tavern.

"Ah, Sir Brian is really showing them. It also helps that he fought and won several battles and participated in at least one war." the man said with a 'cat-like' smirk as he looked at one of the ladies at his side. "Oh did you know that he once slew a troll with nothing but a knife and a candle?"

"Oh come now, isn't that just some silly rumor?"

"Well the candle is a lie, he actually used a barracuda as a sword against it."

"You lie!"

"It's all true, or my name isn't Charles the Drunk!"

"...is it?"

"I'll tell you that after another drink." the man smirked before a random patron crashed onto the table with a groan. "Oh? Looks like it's raining men tonight!"

POW!

"That's nothing!" yelled one of the men before getting hit with a bottle, causing him to get knocked out as Sir Brian started strangling one of the patriots with one arm.

"GAH!"

"You'll be begging for salvation after I break every part of your body, and then everyone else that-" he growled before getting kicked in the face, sending him right into the nearest barrel of wine and breaking it. "GAH!"

All the while, a short figure loomed behind one of the door frames, that being a...hog-like gremlin with black armor whose expression was a mix of confusion and semi mindless stupidity, mostly the latter.

[Ah, a goblin. I wonder what it's doing here?]

"Hahaha! How's that?!"

"You little." Sir Brian growled before getting up and changed towards one of the patrons, his helmet falling right off his head in the process.

Revealing his face in the process, which consisted of short blonde hair, violet eyes, and several thin cuts around the nose.

This actually caused the goblin to go wide eyed as it recalled its mistress's words.

Find a human with golden hair, fair skin, and red lips.

Granted this knight didn't have red lips, but two out of three did seem pretty close.

Plus from what it heard, the knight in question was a big deal. Maybe the child that eluded them for fifteen years could be made to serve them?

With that set in mind, he turned and made his way out of there before darting off to the shadows.

POW!

All the while Sir Brian was busy giving a guy a new hole in his face!

"GAH!"

"DIE DIE DIE! YOU SON OF A DOG!"

(Elsewhere)

-Forbidden Mountains, Maleficent's Castle, Throne Room-

The Mistress of All Evil sat on her throne with a frustrated look on her face, her trusty raven familiar perched on her left shoulder.

Her thoughts were dark and agitated, for she knew not where the princess was in the world. For fifteen years, she has used every means known to man and beast, natural and unnatural to locate the child and yet...nothing.

Not even a single mention of the child, and it made her stew in her own rage. Yes, her actions were a little overboard given she cursed a newborn for not getting an invitation to a christening but...it was still painful to be forgotten, spurned and hated for just being one with power, power that could do anything she desired or saw fit.

And after so many years of frustration and anger, she was in no mood to leave her castle for anything, even to cause great acts of destruction upon hapless fools that think they're above the fay.

All she wanted was some 'good' news, even if it came from unexpected places.

That's when one of her minions came rushing to her, panting and looking frazzled.

"Mistress!Ifoundthechild!Ifoundthechi-"

"SILENCE!"

CLANG!

The goblin stiffened in fear while the fay glared at it.

"What business do you have with me?"

The goblin gulped and stuttered a little.

"Speak clearly or I shall make you toil in a pit of tar."

"I-I found the baby." the goblin said quickly, making the fay raise an eyebrow in confusion. "Gold hair, fair skin. Um...in the kingdom."

"Oh? And where was this 'baby', pray tell? An orphanage? Scrounging for scraps in some godless alleyway?"

"The White Rose Tavern." the goblin said as his mistress stared at him in confusion. "In blue armor, decorated in unicorn horns."

"..."

"Mistress?"

"...you idiot! I am looking for a GIRL of fifteen, not a BOY in armor! And who is this knight that made your pea sized brain think it was the princess?!"

"S-Sir Brian, Stefan's loyal knight!"

"I'm looking for a princess! NOT a knight!"

"B-But the hair, the skin, the feats!"

ZAP!

BOOOM!

"Imbecile!" Maleficent snapped in rage while sending a bolt of lightning at the goblin, sending him flying across the room in a burning heap of flames.

Yet before she could deal the final blow on the unfortunate goblin, a sudden thought entered her mind.

Sir Brian, the Unicorn Knight, was Stefan's most brutal fighter and is a force to be reckoned with on the battlefield. Fields of blood would form when he entered battle, death permeated his hands if a simple thief tried to steal from him, and his heartless fury was only rivaled with her own calculated fury.

If he could be swayed into her services, then perhaps she could find the princess faster, since a human in a human kingdom could move undetected, unlike her own forces of evil.

"Sir Brian...yes...a powerful warrior indeed." she hummed, rubbing the top of her scepter with a smile. "Perhaps he can be of use to me."

The goblin groaned in pain as the other goblins snuffed out the fire with their hands or claws, only to notice that Maleficent was staring right at him.

"You! Return to the village, get the knight to leave the safety of the castle and bring him to the abandoned tavern outside the borders of the two kingdoms. I will personally meet with this...Sir Brian, the Unicorn Knight." Maleficent said with a calm smirk. "Make sure no harm comes to him or you shall be turned into a weed, one so useless that even livestock will pass you by."

"Yes mistress!" he bowed his head before scampering out of the room.

"...soon, I will have a competent minion in my employment. And then the princess will be mine." She chuckled darkly as the raven nodded in agreement.

[Welp, that went dark. But given the fact that goblins are kinda dumber than a drunk rhinoceros...well...it will take a while.]

(A few hours later)

-Stefan's Castle, Courtyard-

Clop clop clop.

"Solomon, you really need to stop making me ride you across the countryside in the middle of the night." Sir Brian said with a yawn as he rode atop his mount. "His majesty is noticing my tiredness and thinks it's from my brawls...not from a stir crazy stallion like you."

The horse let out a huff, but didn't seem too concerned.

"Ugh, look I might be a calm person half the time, mostly during the times I don't blackout for some reason." Sir Brian sighed while not noticing a group of goblins trying to climb the drawbridge via a made shift stick ladder. "But you really need to stop making me do this. It's affecting both me and the king, especially when I'm already in hot water for stabbing a 'representative' of the Holy Roman Empire in the eye during the tournament."

The stallion snorted as the goblins' ladder suddenly broke apart from the drawbridge crushing both the goblins on said ladder and the unfinished construct in the process.

"Oh, you're also on the king's side? Look, I don't know why I did that, I don't even KNOW how I did it! One moment I was putting my armor on and the next thing I'm bruised black and blue in an alleyway, coated in blood and trying to punch a guy's face in. Thankfully no charges were placed on me but still, I'm on thin waters right now and you aren't helping."

It clopped its hooves on the ground with the knight looking offended.

"I am not blaming you for nonsense! You're not helping with my ongoing blackout situation and after this ride, you and I are going to have a chat with the royal stableboy about your midnight rides!" Sir Brian said before noticing a goblin hanging for dear life on the drawbridge's ledge. "What in the world...?"

The goblin gurgled in fear before seeing the knight and whistled, causing it to fall into the moat as more goblins appeared from under the drawbridge and began harassing the horse's legs with their claws.

"Hey! Get away!" Sir Brian yelled as the goblins kept on harassing his mount.

The goblins cackled before suddenly running away, seemingly tempting the knight to ride after them.

"Get back here!"

[Yep, hook line and sinker.]

CLOP CLOP CLOP CLOP!

"You will be executed, you goblin scums!" the knight called out while brandishing his sword.

The goblins ran faster as the knight rode away from the castle and down an uncertain path.

(Later)

-Border between three two Kingdoms, Abandoned Tavern-

CLOP CLOP CLOP!

"Get back here!" Sir Brian yelled while chasing after the goblins, his mind slowly calming down a little and being very confused why he's chasing them in the first place.

His steed on the other hand began to slow down, the run wearing him out.

Clop clop clop!

"Come on Solomon! We are almost upon them!" the knight yelled before noticing the goblins were running into an abandoned tavern and slowed the stallion down. "...um, doesn't this feel off, Solomon?"

He let out a neigh before he stopped altogether and layed down on the snowy ground.

"...mmm. I did come this far, for some reason, so I better see this through to the end." He muttered before getting off his mount and walked towards the door, his right hand resting upon his sword hilt as he opened the door.

And saw nothing but blackness inside.

"Hello? Hellooooo."

Silence.

"Hello?" Sir Brian called out while entering the building.

SLAM!

Just as the door closed suddenly behind him.

He pulled his sword out and glared behind his visor. "Who's there?! Show yourself now!"

"My my, what do we have here?"

Sir Brian quickly turned around to his left as he saw a ball of green fire in the center of the room, which slowly grew brighter as his eyes widened in shock.

For Maleficent, ruler of the Forbidden Mountains, was standing right in front of him with a calm yet cold smile.

"Sir Brian, the Unicorn Knight. And here I thought my minions were chasing a simple beast for their supper."

"You!"

"Oh? It seems my reputation precedes me."

"Why-"

"It is quite simple Sir Brian." Maleficent said while moving closer to the still defiant knight. "I have heard of your exploits, the slaughter of thousands for your lord and the brutality against your fellow man. A rare trait amongst the so-called chivalrous knights wandering around the continent like stray sheep."

'Brutality? Wait...she means when I blackout?!'

"The reason you are here, Sir Brian, is such." She said with a small smile. "I want you to swear fealty to me."

"...what?"

"Did I stutter?"

"No."

"Then you heard me quite clearly."

"...but I serve the king. Why would I even join you?"

"You crave bloodshed, it's your very nature."

"...um, no. I'm not that sort of man." Sir Brian said bluntly, his anger fading away every few seconds. "I don't even act violent."

"You blinded a man in single combat, attacked drunken rabble in a blind rage and almost caused a war by attacking a neighboring king."

"I have no idea why I did the first one, wait I did what to a rabble and that king called us 'scared rabbits' it was justified."

Maleficent raised an eyebrow at the knight, seemingly trying to read his intentions and...finding no ill will behind his words.

[Yeah, as we will soon find out, there is a reason for our hero's blackouts...and it's not because of the ale.]

'Maybe I should grab the staff and bludgeon her? No, I can't. These goblins might attack if I do so.' the knight thought before seeing the dark fey moving closer to their face. 'Oh lord in heaven, why does this evil woman have to be so...attractive?'

"...you puzzle me, Sir Brian. A man known for death has no recollection of those events, a curious mystery you always wanted to solve, is that right?"

"Look, whatever you try to say to get me to serve you won't work." He said with a frown. "My loyalty is to King Stefan, not you."

"You mean the heirless king? His powers pale in comparison to my own, and think wisely, Sir Brian. Do you not want answers to your blackouts? A reason why they plague you?"

"And how do I know what you speak is the truth and not a mere lie?"

"Mmm, your loyalty is admirable. However, King Stefan's powers only go so far, I, however, can make your dreams come true."

"My dream is to be a knight and I accomplished that already." Sir Brian frowned. "Even if you knew-"

"Your blackouts stem from your own mind, something I have pleasure studying from." Maleficent said while her staff's orb began to glow, a small cyclone of energy manifested from within. "And with my magic, your will shall be torn asunder-"

"If you're trying to woo me like a common whore, it's not going to work." Sir Brian interrupted with anger, their eyes glazing over and revealing cold rage within. "Because you might be lovely but your heart is as black as ya snatch, you miserable hag of a temptress!"

[...oh boy. Now that I DIDN'T expect them to say!]

"How...DARE you." Maleficent spat out in anger, narrowing her eyes with her tone going cold.

"What? You are a hag, I am just speaking out on that matter."

"You will suffer for those words." She bellowed in rage, the goblins all around her moving back in fear as she attempted to blast the knight with purple lightning.

ZAP!

TWANG!

Only for the lightning to suddenly bounce off a barrier of thorns as Sir Brian, seemingly fueled by supernatural strength, lifted the ropes, goblins and all, and broke through them like they were made of silk.

The goblins screamed in fear as Sir Brian pulled out his blade and began slicing them into pieces, all the while the blasts of magical energy from the fey's staff were bouncing off him without actually hurting him.

"I will end your bloodlines on this day!"

"Not today, you hag!" Sir Brian yelled before quickly throwing his sword at Maleficent, causing one of her horns to break off when it collided with the headdress, as he jumped out the window and ran towards his horse. "Solomon! We are riding out of this unholy place! NOW!"

The horse let out a loud cry, galloping towards the knight, who quickly got on his back.

CLOP!

And rode away into the forest as the goblins, now only numbering about fifty out of the original one hundred, looked on in fear.

However, as Maleficent narrowed her eyes at the insufferable fool that insulted her beauty, she slowly picked up the sword and..smiled.

"Mmm, a shame he chose the noble path. But no matter, I have what I need." She said while looking at her pet raven, perched on her right shoulder. "With this blade, I shall create a brew that shall uncover the knight's apparent protection from my spells. You, my loyal pet, shall follow Sir Brian, watch his every movement and once you find a weakness, return to me at once."

"Caw." it let out before spreading its wings and took off flying out of the window and into the unknown.

[Mmm, it seems like that bird is going to make things difficult for Sir Brian...oh well, drama is key to stories like this so let's fast forward this a few weeks shall we?]

(Three weeks later)

-Somewhere in the forest, Local River-

SPLASH!

The high noon sun rose over the slowly melting New Year's snow as the white stallion, Solomon, was currently standing guard near a large riverbank, its rider currently in the bushes as its hooves splashed the ground...keeping any newts from even getting onto the land.

"Solomon." Sir Brian said with a sigh. "Stop being overprotective, newts don't have any concepts of attraction to men, especially me."

The horse snorted in annoyance as the knight's armor laid near the bushes...along with a tunic and trousers on a nearby tree branch.

"You are just the strangest horse on God's good earth. Always teasing me at every opportunity yet always overreacting to even the most harmless thing." He said while panting a little, his helmet still on his head as they placed their boots on the snow lined ground. "If I didn't know any better, you're somehow my long lost mother turned into a MALE horse."

He let out a snort and huff before nearly trampling on a stray fish in the stream.

SPLASH!

"It was a joke, really." He said while placing his shield and sword, recently bought after losing the first one, on a nearby rock. "You need to relax Solomon."

The stallion snorted as the knight finally took off their helmet and stepped out of the bushes.

Only to...reveal that they were...a woman!?

Said woman was a tall fair skinned young woman with short blonde hair that went down to her ears, violet eyes, several thin cuts around the nose, a D cup chest and small ass and had several hundred blackish brown scars of various sizes lining her entire body, including a deep scar in between her cleavage.

As the woman made her way to the river without a care in the world, a small blue bird with cat-like eyes landed on a nearby branch and smiled.

"Yep, that's Aurora. And for those that only read halfway to this point, yes, she disguised herself as a knight. Been doing it for years, and as you can see." The bird said as the Unicorn Knight dove into the deeper end of the river to bathe. "She grew up fine...sans the fact her entire body is scared from many battles and brawls."

SPLASH!

"Ahhh, a nice wash in the river is just what my muscles need after a long day." She said with a sigh before looking at her trusted steed. "Now be a good horse and turn around. You're on guard duty and make sure no 'romantically inclined' knights show up to 'save me' from the river. We don't want a repeat of last time."

"Fun fact, there was only one knight that saw the real Sir Brian...let's just say after getting trampled by Solomon, no one ever found the body." Chaos said with a smirk before noticing a raven landing right next to him. "...so, how's life?"

"Caw."

"Hey, no need to call me a pest, I was being friendly."

"Caw caw."

"You kiss your mother with that beak?"

"Caw."

"...you are a sick mind, you know that right?"

"Caw caw."

"You have issues, and no I'm not going to offer myself to you as a meal. I'm not that dumb."

"Caw."

"Look I'm busy here watching the heroine so just keep quiet so she doesn't notice you."

"Caw!"

"What? You're looking for a knight, not a maiden? News flash pal, the girl in the river is a knight."

The bird tilted its head and looked at the woman with curiosity and confusion.

"Just look under the tree." Chaos said while pointing downwards with his left wing, revealing the armor and clothes of Sir Brian. "And then it might dawn on you."

"Caw?"

"Trust me, this isn't a lie. I don't lie." 'Much.'

The raven stared at the bird before flying off with a determined look in its eyes.

"Hey come back! You're missing out on the good stuff!"

"Caw caw!"

"What do you mean her chest is so so?!" Chaos yelled, making the knight panic from the noise as her horse dragged the tree branch down with its teeth and brought the bird towards its snout. "...oops, forgot to stay in character."

TWANG!

"I regret nothing!" The bird yelled out while getting sent flying across the forest via being launched from the branch like a slingshot.

(Elsewhere)

-Forbidden Mountains, Hidden Laboratory-

The sickening green sky looked outside the nearby windows, a thunderstorm a brewing in the distance as the camera zoomed inwards, revealing a massive room filled with various tomes, magical relics and long decayed skeletons from all across the world and beyond as a single black cauldron sat in the middle of room.

Guggle.

A viscous green slime bubbled from the cauldron as the lady of the ruinous castle placed a great sword within the cauldron and watched it melt into slag.

"And it's done, this brew of power shall grant me the power of ten thousand devils upon consumption." She said with a smirk as the green slime slowly transformed into a bluish red substance, not noticing a pair of cat eyes forming on the side of the cauldron itself. "Enough power to undo whatever powers Sir Brian's unnatural protection."

[And she's not joking either. That brew is called Chernombog's Blood and anyone that drinks it...well, become a monster. Real bad stuff.]

"Caw."

The dark fey turned as her familiar flew into the room and perched on her staff, seemingly filled with confidence. "Ah, I take it you've returned with some insightful news?"

Yet as she listened to the raven's unintelligible squawks, her expression slowly changed from calm to shocked to angered within a fraction of a second.

For she knew who Sir Brian really was...

It was the lost princess, Aurora, the very same child she cursed many years ago.

And she realized one thing that made her blood boil...the curse that was supposed to put her into an eternal sleep...WAS PROTECTING HER FROM HER MAGIC!

"So that's why she was so violent, why my spells have no effect on her! My curse of fifteen years has been PROTECTING her from death's doors for many a moon." Maleficent frowned while slamming her staff onto the ground. "The rules of magic backfired upon me, for once a curse is cast upon the unfortunate soul, no other curse can overtake the current till its conditions are met. Such irony is this twisted existence known as my life is!"

[Yep! The curse that was supposed to put our heroine to sleep had a positive benefit, for the curse was supposed to keep Aurora alive till her sixteen birthday and as such, her violent outburst and blackouts? That was the curse taking over to keep her alive till the final hour of her birthday passes. Kinda funny really, our villainess gave our knight a boon of invincibility and didn't KNOW about it!]

"And now she has taken up arms against me, chose the path of a warrior instead of a simple princess...and I almost recruited her to my side no less." She muttered in frustration as she walked towards the window and stared into the vast mountain range that was her domain. "I fear that after our last encounter, she will one day confront me and succeed in her efforts to kill me."

However, as she looked upon the landscape in front of her, her eyes widened with realization.

The princess' birthday was in two days and once the sun sets upon the second day, her curse will end and she shall be powerless against her magic once more. Yet it wasn't so simple as just appearing in front of King Stefan's throne room and blasting the insolent princess to death upon the stroke of midnight...no.

That fool insulted her beauty, called her a hag in front of her own minions.

No...Sir Brian, the crossdressing princess, needed a more fitting punishment for insulting her honor...and her new concoction was the key to that punishment.

"Mmm, Chernombog's Blood is a little disproportionate of a punishment for that fool." She said while turning around and walked towards the cauldron with a smirk. "But if I can draw her out and prevent her from resting for two days, then she shall be unprotected and at my mercy."

"Caw caw."

"Yes, drinking the brew will cause my sanity to slip but it needs to be done. That fool and her lineage have insulted me for the last time." She said before placing her staff onto the ground and...walked into the cauldron itself before seemingly sinking into it like a stone.

[Huh, that's one deep cauldron.]

Seconds became minutes and minutes became hours as the raven perched itself on the edge of the cauldron, seemingly waiting for its mistress to reveal herself once more.

Yet-

Splash!

RUMBLE!

The slime began to boil and froth as the entire room began to shake, the entire castle quickly vibrating as the entire mountain started to break apart from its foundations.

CRASH!

BOOOM!

RUMBLE!

Bits and pieces came undone and broke to pieces, said pieces going down the slope as the goblins inside panicked and began running away in a frenzy.

RUMBLE!

CRASH!

The raven, panicking at the chaos in front of it, attempted to fly out of the now collapsing room.

CRUNCH!

Only to get squashed by a falling stone, its pulverized body falling into the endless chasm below as three pairs of green eyes were staring from the void towards the screen before everything was consumed by green flames.

(Elsewhere at the same time)

-Stefan's Castle, Courtyard-

"I am telling you my liege." Sir Brian said while accompanying their lord and master down the open courtyard, seemingly talking about an important matter. "Prince Philip shouldn't be here for the anniversary of your daughter's disappearance. He's too headstrong and becomes a drunk for such festivities."

"And I say he will come. Besides Sir Brian, the anniversary will not happen until ten moons pass, it's far too off to worry about that now."

"But my liege-"

"I know you and Philip butt heads over the stupidest of things, but please don't start anything when the day arrives like you always do."

"But he starts it!"

"And you can prevent it, that is my decree."

"...very well my liege." the knight reluctantly complied with a sigh.

"Now, for other matters, such as the matter of your drinking habit."

"I'm not that bad!"

"You drove five taverns into bankruptcy in the last week."

"It's just me trying to unwind!"

"By drinking them out of business?"

"...I was thirsty."

WOOOSH!

Yet before a retort could be made, a blast of hurricane wind battered the castle, shaking it to its foundations as glass, stones and other assorted things were shattered and sent flying in every direction.

Both dropped to the floor, getting knocked over from the ground shaking as Sir Brian tried to shield the king with his body.

Yet as the wind died down...it quickly returned as the castle walls and towers began to collapse, killing several servants and knights in the process.

WOOOSH!

'What in the?!' Sir Brian thought before looking up towards the sky.

Only to see a ginormous obsidian scaled three headed dragon with six long curved horns the size of small mountains as one of the horns on its middle head was broken around the base, nine deep green pupil-less eyes on each head, long dagger-like black fangs that interlocked across the jaw-like like rows of overgrown thorns, a dark purple underbelly that ran from the lower jaws to the base of the tail and seemingly glowed a faint sickly green energy, thick black rib-like protrusions jutting along the underbelly, thick black spines lining down the enormous serpentine necks and down its back like pine trees, thick webbed fins attached to the undersides of the heads, massive bat-like wings with dark purple membrane, massive black hook-like claws the size of small hills and a massive three pronged tail covered in thick black spines about the size of a fully grown man, flying towards the castle...about fifty miles away from the castle itself as thunderstorms formed around its beating wings.

WOOOOSSSSSHHHH!

[...wow. Now that's one hell of an upgrade!]

"GGGGGRRRRRR! RRRRRROOOOOOOAAAAARRRRRRRR!"

'A dragon...no, a demon!' Sir Brian thought as the wind picked up again, destroying a large part of the castle gates as he was sent flying into a wall.

FIIIISSSSSSH!

Only to see an eruption of green flames pour out of the three head's bright yellow lined jaws and collide with the ground, setting the entire countryside and castle ablaze instantaneously.

"My liege!" Sir Brian yelled while trying to stand up, only to see the flames getting closer and closer to the lord of the castle...which caused the knight to quickly stand up and dash towards Stefan.

WOOOOSSSHHH!

And quickly blocked the flames with his body, thorns quickly covering his body as the flames failed to burn him...only scorching the knight with intense heat.

Yet as Sir Brian was going to pass out from the heat..he noticed that he and the king were covered in a bubble of red, blue and green energy that quickly flew away from the castle.

WIIISH!

And quickly landed on a nearby hill, unscorched by the fire and protected by the same multicolored energy as the Unicorn Knight saw half of the castle inhabitants safely watching the destruction outside the wall of magic, including the queen herself.

"What in the?" Sir Brian said before turning to his left and saw...Merryweather, Flora and Fauna appearing next to the king and queen, their true fairy forms visible to the world once more. 'Wait...why are my aunts here?! AND WHY ARE THEY FEY?!'

"Oh dear! Are you alright dearie?"

"I am so sorry for being late, your majesty." Fauna said with a solemn expression. "But we were too slow acquiring our wands and because of that, your castle fell."

"It's alright, but what is that foul beast?" Stefan said while not noticing Sir Brian's dumbstruck expression from within his helmet.

"That is Maleficent." Flora said gravely. "But oh dear...this is not her usual dragon form."

"Meaning she somehow doused herself in foul magic for some reason." Merryweather said with a frown. "But what would it be?"

"She hunts for me." Sir Brian said while shaking his head. "She attempted to sway me to her side but took offense when I called her a hag." 'Keep calm, don't let them realize that I'm their lost niece!'

"You called her a hag?!"

"Indeed."

"...well you're not wrong."

"Merryweather!" Fauna yelled in disbelief.

"But it is true-"

"You know good and well that Maleficent isn't that old. Your hate for her is disturbingly obsessive."

"Ladies, please. We don't have time for bickering." Flora said while pointing to the burning castle in the distance. "We have an issue to clean up before it gets out of hand."

"Quite right." Fauna said while looking at Sir Brian. "Are you able to fight?"

"Yes. But Solomon isn't here-"

And cue the stallion snorting at the knight's face, seemingly fine despite its tail no longer there due to the flames burning it away.

"...nevermind. But I don't think any mortal weapon can harm...that thing."

"Not to worry, let us help with that."'Flora said with a smile, only for Merryweather to squint her eyes at the knight.

"Mmmm, you seem familiar to me."

"Uhh, well, I'm merely one of many knights serving his lord."

"Mmmm...you remind me of our ward, before she ran away. But it couldn't be, she isn't a knight."

'Oh no oh no oh no!'

"Merryweather! We have more important things at the moment!" Fauna yelled as the blue clad fairy grumbled. "Now Sir Brian, you are correct. No mortal weapons can defeat Maleficent at this point, so we grant to thee, enchanted armor."

SIISH!

And in a quick wave of the three fairy's wands, the knight's armor changed from a dark blue armor to a pure white armor with golden blue accents on them.

"A Shield of Virtue."

SIISH!

Sir Brian blinked as a large shield of pure white sporting a golden cross in its center appeared in his left hand.

"And a Sword of Truth."

SIISH!

And lo, appearing in the knight's right hand was a massive claymore with curved edges running down the sides and a golden hilt which gleamed with almost divine light.

"With these items, you shall triumph over any foe."

"...um, so no Crossbow of Holy Annihilation?" Sir Brian said in a half joking manner, hoping the fairies DID have something like that in their arsenal.

"Not today."

'Damn it!'

"But we can prove your steed with armor to protect it from the infernal flames."

"That would be appreciated." He said while seeing the fairies hit Solomon with multicolored magic beams.

SIISH!

Only to see the horse now covered in thick white armor that covered every part of it, head included.

"Now Sir Brian, you must defeat Maleficent before the magic protecting us ends on the stroke of midnight of the second day. To do so, you must stab her in the heart." Fauna said with a stern look in her eyes. "But beware, if the blood falls upon you during the battle, even we will not know what will occur."

"Then it shall be done." Sir Brian said before climbing upon his stallion and rode off, passing through the barrier and into the forest of flames towards the direction of the village.

[And so, the final battle begins.]

CLOP!

(A few minutes later)

-Village-

WOOOOSH!

Flames and hurricane gales ravaged the once large village like a swarm of locusts as the Unicorn Knight rode through the abandoned streets.

WOOOOOOSH!

The gale force winds made it hard for him to keep him and the horse on the ground as in the distance, the unholy monster formerly known as Maleficent continued to spew flames across the land in the safety of the sky itself.

"Don't let up! We can't falter no matter what lies ahead of us!"

"Neigh!"

"Go Solomon! Go!"

CLOP!

"FOR KING STEFAN! FOR GOD AND HIS ANGELS!" Sir Brian yelled while charging towards the dragon, whose many heads moved towards his direction with rage. "AND FOR THE SWORD I'LL SHOVE UP YOUR ASS, YOU UNHOLY ABOMINATION OF GOD!"

[Ha! You just made her MAD now!]

The dragon let out a roar of anger before letting out a torrent of flames at the knight and stallion.

SOOOOOSH!

Only for the flames to bounce off the armor, thorns of pure magic erupting from the knight's body as the dragon began to descend to the ground, flattening everything in its path upon contact with the earth.

"Your flames are no match for me!" The knight yelled while feeling the earth shake beneath him. "And you shall perish this day, you scaled hag of a dragon!"

SOOOOOOOSSSSHHHH!

The knight quickly held his shield upwards as the stream of green flames made contact with it, seemingly being repelled by the shield's holy energy.

SOOOOOOOOOSSSSSSHHHHHH!

Yet as Sir Brian got closer towards the massive beast, he saw its massive tail slowly rising upwards towards the sky in an attempt to crush him.

He quickly pulled his sword arm back and waited right as it came down towards him.

Yet as he tried to anticipate the tail's descent-

WOOOSH!

It suddenly collided with the ground like a thousand ballistas, shaking the earth and nearly causing Sir Brian to fall off his horse as he rode towards the tail and jumped upon it, using it to ride up the beast's body like a road.

"GRRRRRRRRR!" All three heads growled before turning towards the knight on its back and attempted to eat him with their jaws.

He swung his sword, clashing against their raised teeth at him, making them flinch back.

However, as he attempted to ride towards the middle head, the left and right heads' jaws began to crackle with green energy as lightning began to form within their mouths.

'LIGHTNING?! WHY?!' He thought in disbelief before getting shot off his horse by twin blasts of green thunder, sending him flying into the beast's left wing.

CLANG!

BAM!

With grunts of pain, he bounced off the leathery wing and started falling down it, the armor getting dented in the process.

RRRRIIIIPPP!

Only for him to use his blade to cut into the thin membrane and prevent himself from falling to his death...but accidentally made the dragon even MORE angry at him.

All three heads roared out in anger and pain, trying to launch him off by swinging the wing around as the wind began to violently pick up around the beast.

But Sir Brian was stubborn as he made sure to keep hanging on for dear life, trying to look for an opening as the flames burned around the dragon in the form of flaming twisters.

"Come on...come on..." Sir Brian grunted before seeing one of the heads moving towards his left and decided to pull his sword out, causing him to fall off as he landed above the head's right eye. "I have you now!"

SQUISH!

"RRRRRRRRRRROOOOOOOOOOOOOOAAAAAAAAAARRRRRRR!"

Blood oozed from the now destroyed eye as Sir Brian used his own momentum to quickly slice the right side of the dragon's head, flesh and bone seamlessly cut as the knight used the force of gravity to spin towards the left...

SWWWIIISSSHH!

Slicing the entire face off as the dragon's right face fell to the ground...but SEEMINGLY DIDN'T DIE as it thrashed around in pain, its blood and parts of its brain oozing out like a waterfall of gore.

As Sir Brian tried to use the momentum to move to the dragon's left head...the middle head suddenly tackled him out of the sky and allowed him to collide with the ground, face first.

BOOOOM!

"AHHH!" He cried out in pain before turning around, only to see the right head falling towards him in a final death throe.

CRASH!

Which he avoided via rolling out of the way, as he quickly got up and saw the dragon's two heads glaring at him in rage.

"Not this time!" Sir Brian yelled before seeing the dragon's right foot moving towards him in an attempt to crush him, only for him to stab his sword into the foot, causing blood to ooze from it.

SSSSSOOOOOOOSSSH!

Although, that small victory was short lived as a blast of green flames shot towards the knight and sent him flying into a burning building, causing the armor to dent even more.

"AHHHHHH!"

[Oooh, that's gotta hurt. Now normally I don't skip the final battle but this particular battle will take two days. So I'm fast forwarding to the last hour of the second day.]

(One and a half days later)

Sir Brian panted heavily, on his last leg as his armor riddled with cracks.

Flames licked across the ground as the enormous dragon, its second head now sliced off around the neckline as its wings were somewhat damaged by various tears in its membranes, growled in the knight's direction...it's jaw slowly forming sparks of purple lightning as it began to charge towards him with aggression.

Both weren't going to last much longer, they needed to end this once and for all.

[Well they better hurry, they only have thirty minutes until midnight and then Sir Brian's protection will fade away. Mmm, I wonder what she tastes like when cooked?]

'This is getting me nowhere...I need to get towards the beast's heart and end this now. But how?!' He thought before noticing the bony rib-like protrusions running down its underbelly.

And quickly discovered that...there's a small opening in between the upper scales, about the size of a full grown man to be exact.

'That's it! I can climb those scales and THEN stab the unholy beast right through the heart!' he thought before letting out a grunt, pushing himself to straighten his back and bend his legs before he started running towards the dragon.

The dragon, its singular head staring at the knight with rage and determination to stall for time, began firing both bolts of lightning and green fire at the mortal's direction.

Sir Brian stumbled as he narrowly avoided the blasts, but nearly fell over in the process.

Yet, feeling his strength fading with every passing minute, quickly repositioned himself and continued running, dodging blast after blast of lightning and fire as he saw the protrusions and jumped towards them with determination.

"YAAAAAAAAHHHHH!"

ZAP!

BOOOM!

WOOOOOOOSH!

'I need to win! For everyone's sake!' Sir Brian thought as he got closer and closer to the protrusions.

CLANG!

And successfully grabbed onto them as the dragon attempted to scratch him off with its talons.

"I'm ending this!" He yelled while using his strength to climb the protrusions towards the dragon's heart, the sword hilt still in his right hand and thus making it harder for them to climb.

The dragon roared with rage and quickly resorted to shaking her body as best as possible to prevent the knight from succeeding.

Yet even as the beast continued to thrash around, Sir Brian was steadfast in his endeavors as he made it towards the heart and raised his blade upwards for the final blow.

"This. Ends. NOW!"

SQUISH!

"RRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRROOOOOOOOOOOOOAAAAAAAAAAAAAAARRRRRRRRRR!"

Sir Brian yelled in triumph before using the forces of gravity to slice the underbelly downwards, causing a flood of dark green blood to ooze from the cut and drench the battlefield with its ichor.

The dragon cried out in agony, feeling its hold on life leaving with each gallon lost as it began to fall on its belly in pain.

WOOOSH!

Gusts of gale force winds arose from its wings as...the dragon began to shrink in size, losing its draconic features as Sir Brian noticed that...the dragon was transforming back into its original form.

The dark fey, Maleficent, battled, bloodied and currently naked as the sword was lodged in between her chest.

"What in-"

"Ah...ah...ah...damn you...princess..."

"I am...no...princess...but...a knight..."

"Ha...you fool only...yourself. I was...there when you were christened, the child of...King Stefan himself..." she cackled as Sir Brian's eyes widened. "Cursed...to die by spinning wheel...I never imagined my...curse would make you a warrior...one capable of killing me...such irony."

"No...you...you lie!"

"Ha...why would I lie, Aurora?" She cackled in pain as her skin started to turn ash gray. "Only...the fairies that raised you...would do such a thing."

Sir Brian stared at the fey in shock before recalling all the times her aunts kept her from the outside world and how...familiar the king and queen were to her.

[Mmm, it seems like she's finally getting the bigger picture. Good thing too, she deserves answers anyway.]

"It...It...It can't be..." Sir Brian said in shock as the fey's body started to turn to dust.

"It is...and now...you are my heir." Maleficent said while pointing to the knight's armor, now repaired and repainted with dark green and gold accents as the sword was now tainted pure ebony black. "You slayed...me, now you are...my heir, my...Paladin of Darkness..."

"No! I refuse such a title!"

"You...have little choice...paladin. The spoils of battle...belong to the victory...you are that...vict...or..."

Sir Brian tried to retort again before in an instant, Maleficent turned into dust, leaving nothing at all to indicate her existence except for the armor he now wore. "No! NO! Come back!"

Crackle.

[Sorry Aurora, but she's dead. Can't talk to the dead you know...well you could but that's a different scenario and one I don't think we have time for.]

"...damn it." He muttered while taking off his helmet, revealing their true feminine face to the world once more.

Yet as she stood there, confused and horrified at the revelations made on this day, she realized something.

If she revealed her true identity to her...parents, then they might strip her of her knighthood and possibly keep her in a gilded cage like when she was with her 'aunts' many years ago.

And she didn't want to lose the freedom she had for anything in the world, even the possibility of reuniting with her long lost parents.

She bit her lip and gripped the helmet tightly. "Damn it...damn you foul fae..."

As she stared at the ground with a frown on her face, she decided at that exact moment to...

Continue keeping her existence as a princess secret from the world, to allow Sir Brian the Unicorn Knight to remain her identity till the time was right.

She didn't know how long that would last but...she just wanted to remain free to help the weak and serve her...father from the shadows of a forged identity.

Even if it meant she had been stained by the cursed fae's foul magic.

"...very well." She said while whistling for her stallion, Solomon, who slowly trotted over with a limp on its back leg, towards her. "I shall become the knight, but the title of Paladin of Darkness will be used for good, not ill."

The stallion snored in pain as Sir Brain stared at the horse with concern in their eyes.

"Will you be alright Solomon?"

"Neigh." It said with a low groan while Sir Brian patted the side of the stallion with their left hand.

"Mmm, perhaps we should just walk back to their majesties, instead of riding."

The horse gave a nod before Sir Brian grabbed the reins and gently led the way.

"Hopefully that leg of yours heals." He muttered as the two wounded warriors hobbled away from the battlefield, the screen fading to black in the process.

(Three weeks later)

-Stefan's Castle-

The sound of grunting men and creaking wood echoed across the still grassless landscape as hundreds of workers continued to use ropes and pulleys to reconstruct the castle...which was only a quarter of the way fixed as the left side wall was the only thing related at the moment.

All of them were working to the best of their ability to get it back in top form as soon as possible.

Yet as this was occurring, the camera quickly zoomed towards the dilapidated royal stables, where Sir Brian was placing a saddle on the now healed Solomon's back.

All the while the knight didn't notice a familiar traveling merchant standing right behind him with a cat-like grin.

"Hey, long time no see."

"GAH!" He yelped in fear before turning around and blinked. "Carlos?! W-What the-"

"It's been a while, but where's that book of knights I gave you? The one you took from me?" He said with a curious smile. "And relax, no one's watching so no need for secrecy, Briar."

"Oh! I...Right, I've just been busy lately." He said with a nervous chuckle.

"You lost my book didn't you?"

"...I left it back at the cottage."

"Ah, so look at you. A knight, a female knight." Carlos said with a chuckle. "And from what I can see, the slayer of Maleficent herself."

"Yeah...although I feel...weaker. I no longer have my blackouts-"

"Ah, so the curse was broken." He said while Sir Brian's eyes widened in shock. "What? I've seen the world, magic is something I picked up on my trek across the continent. But even without that curse of yours, you're still powerful with the fey's abilities embedded in your body."

"..."

"So you're still feeling weird about being a princess?" Carlos asked while chuckling. "Oh relax, I knew from the start. You might've not known this but your aunts were training you to be a noble lady for your sixteenth birthday. The body posture and grace in each step made it clear to me you were of noble birth, even when you were acting like a peasant."

"...I'd rather not say." They said with a sheepish tone.

"Oh come on, you can tell me."

"It's...awkward, the idea of being more...lady-like."

"Given you are more guy-like, right?"

"Yeah."

"Well, don't worry about that right now. You have a lot of adventures ahead of you. And who knows, you might find a nice gal to settle down with."

"Don't be silly, I've got more important things to worry about."

"Like what?"

"Courting barmaids."

"...isn't that the same thing as courting a dame?"

"No. Barmaids have no strings attached and are merely there for pleasure and nothing more."

"Yet they favor you greatly, meaning they might ask for YOUR hand." Carlos said playfully. "Especially that one barmaid with the large tats, Katrina. Told me herself that she's waiting for you to sweep her off her feet and make sweet love in the woods."

"She's cute, I won't lie, but...we both know she'd be disappointed."

"Oh? Have your heart set on someone? Mmm?"

"No, I just don't have what she might want, down there."

"A dick, right?"

"Yeah."

"Fun fact, love between women IS possible. Bbbuuutttt...the church hates same sex marriage at the moment so...ya might want to keep it a secret."

"It's better if I don't take the chance." Sir Brian said while getting on his horse.

"Oh well, you would've had a happy time, with a lot of daughters." He said with a chuckle. "But it might happen in the future."

"What are you? A fortune teller?"

"Mmmm, you can say that. But be warned, if you keep this up without settling down, one day." Carlos said with a smirk as he vanished from sight. "The God of Wishes will sever your dreams before their time."

Sir Brian stared at the spot with wide eyes behind his helmet.

Only to quickly take off his helmet and rub his eyes in disbelief.

"What...did I just witness?" he muttered before shaking his head, putting the helmet back on. 'Whoever you are Carlos, I'll have time to ponder on it for another day.'

CLOP!

Yet as he rode off, away from the castle for his next...'conquest', he failed to notice someone riding after him from behind.

That being a red haired barmaid with large breasts and a large ass, riding a black mare as her eyes were filled with passionate fury.

"SIR BRIAN! YOU WILL MARRY ME THIS DAY!"

'Shit! Katrina!' the knight thought in fear. "Run faster Solomon!"

"GET BACK HERE!"

CLOP!

"SIR BRIAN!"

"Can't hear you! I have an adventure to complete!" He yelled while riding right into the sunset on the horizon.

"SIR BRIAN YOU BASTARD!"

"CAN'T HEAR YOU!"

"SIR BRIAN!" She yelled as a winged cat appeared on a nearby fence, chuckling a little in the process.

"Welp, the adventure continues as our heroine finds themselves racing against..their love interest. Welp." He said while waving at the screen, which quickly faded to black. "See you in the next chapter of Stellar Wishes, where princesses get hitched with barmaids!"

Xxxxxx