Immortality: Tales of the Undead- Sleeping Beauty

THE CHARACTERS AND SETTINGS ARE THE WORKS OF AN ORIGINAL FICTION.

Immortality: Tales of the Undead- Sleeping Beauty

Once upon a time, there lived a lonely prince, who had tried to look for a beautiful princess. But in this day and age, it became too hard to search for the right woman at any cost. After all, the prince had the notion that not anybody could fit right into his kingdom, for their manner was to be judged upon both their appearance and intelligence. However, his parents had told him that he would have to find one immediately, before it became too late. Because, the prince would also become old as the time went by, and thus an heir would be lost in their kingdom.

The prince arrived at the scholar's room, where an old man had taught him the ways of the kingdom, since both The King and Queen had traveled north, to engage a peace treaty between the warring kingdoms of late. It was a long journey for them alright. But when they came back home, they had said to the prince, it wasn't easy for them, for they had to spend hours and hours of talking, and negotiating with the neighboring kingdoms in order to prevent a devastating war. The Queen had said, "We have seen their lovely daughters, and talked to them, of course. They seemed nice to us and all. But... one of them is a spoiled brat, and I should not say it in front of you, my dear son, and yet it is true, that they are beautiful indeed and that you must see the rest for yourself." The prince didn't know what to say. He had said yes, that he shall go there towards the north, and speak with the women themselves. When he had gone there, the past summer, all well had not been good for the prince. He was too unhappy that he couldn't say a word about these women. Yes, his mother was right about them. They were indeed, beautiful, and one had turned out to be a spoiled brat, after all.

Both the King and Queen sighed, and said to the prince, their only son that someday the right woman shall come to him. However, the prince must search for her in time. Only then, the entire kingdom at his hands shall not perish. This was no easy task for the young man himself, now that his parents had passed away due to their old age and of ill-health. And thus, they had died on their deathbed, together and happily ever after.

The prince asked his scholar, and teacher to find the other kingdoms, where a beautiful woman awaits. If that were true, of course. But the scholar said to him, "It shall take time to find her, I assure you, your majesty. It is not easy to say the least of what I can do for now. But I shall do my very best." The prince nodded and smiled at him. "Yes, my dear teacher. I know you shall. For I have waited long enough to find the right woman of my heart. It is only time that could tell, when the right woman shall come to my arms." Then he sighed. "Oh, dear teacher, when shall this happen? It seemed to have taken ages ago, and yet I do not know if I could take it anymore."

The old scholar walked towards the prince, and squeezed lightly on his shoulder. "Do not worry, your majesty. All is well shall come to you. And like you have said, time can only tell. But..." He paused, and stared at the bookshelves. "I must tell you, your majesty, that there is a certain kingdom that you have not visited yet. This one is quite special indeed."

The prince looked at him. "What is so special about it?"

The scholar laughed. "Your majesty, this kingdom had been... Um... How shall I say this?" He thought about it for a while, and then said, "The entire kingdom had fallen asleep."

The prince stared at him, as if he were confused by the notion that the only kingdom that he ever heard of, had fallen into deep slumber. "Fallen asleep? But... How is that possible?"

"Yes, indeed," the scholar said, wondering too. "Remember, your father had once told you the story, when you were a child. Yes, that is the story I am talking about. This entire kingdom has been sleeping for 100 years."

The prince didn't say anything. Of course, he could remember tiny bits of information, which came from his father a long time ago. That story proved to be false, as others would say and deny at the same time. In fact, any story could be utterly false these days. But it had turned out to true, and that this old scholar knew many things, regarding the wonderful world of books of hidden secrets and forbidden magic. After all, he had a huge library where he studied alone, and decipher the information in strange languages of the utmost sense that only he and others like him could understand on a daily basis. After all, he was the best teacher in this kingdom, and taught the prince well.

"Do you have any information on this kingdom?" The prince asked him, with such excitement in his voice.

"Yes, your majesty," the scholar said. "For I shall bring it to you." He went toward the shelf, and climbed up the ladder. He was old enough to climb it, and that the prince thought that he might fall at any moment. But the old man stood firmly as always, searching for the right book.

When he found it, he grabbed it and climbed down the ladder. It was to be the largest book that the prince had ever seen, despite the fact that he had learned all the books from his only teacher, in terms of preparation and advice.

The scholar handed the book, titled, "The Lost Kingdoms" to the prince. The book was old, and quite dusty, which made the prince sneezed.

"I am sorry, your majesty," the scholar said. "I should have known that these books can be too old, like they had never been cleaned before."

"That is alright, my dear teacher," the prince said. He opened the book, and flipped the pages, one by one.

"There are a lot of kingdoms, handwritten down in this book for ages. But they were destroyed and long gone, except for one."

"Just one?" The prince looked up at his teacher with astonishment. "That is... fascinating, and quite sad, I should say."

"Yes, you could say that," the scholar said. "However, this kingdom was cursed by a powerful witch named Sagrella. She was the one, who destroyed these kingdoms, until your grandfather banished her to the dark realm, where all forms of evil reside."

"My grandfather..." the prince said. "He had vanquished Sagrella? So it is true, then. My father had told me these stories, when I was a child."

"Yes, that it is, your majesty," the scholar said.

"But..." The prince paused, and then looked down at the book. "Why only one kingdom? It doesn't make sense."

The scholar shrugged. "No one knows, but I guess you'll have to find out for yourself. And it shall also be quite a long journey to be taken. Do you intend to go alone, and perhaps search for a princess at hand?"

The prince thought about it for a while, and then said, "Yes, I must. After all, I had the courage to face many battles before, and this one should be no different than that."

The scholar laughed again. "Yes, that is true, your majesty. I do trust that you shall conquer your enemies at any cost, given the fact that you are well-trained in combat. But you must take some food, and clothes with you, in case you need to change during the course of this long journey."

"Yes, I shall," the prince said. "And do not worry, my dear teacher. I shall come back after..." he paused, hoping that he could find a sleeping princess in the lost kingdom, if it were true, of course. "After, I find the right woman."

"Ah yes, I forgot to tell you."

"Yes? What is it?"

"There is a legend of the curse that says anyone who kiss the sleeping princess, shall ease the spell, and that she, and the rest of her kingdom shall awake, even after a 100 years."

"Yes, thank you," the prince said. "You have been grateful to me, my dear teacher and that I shall never forget it."

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The next day, the prince had made preparations for his long journey. He had eaten quite a bit, even before he started off toward the sleeping kingdom, so that he could save some for later. Nowadays, he expected to fight some men, who may have no food and shelter; the local bandits who either take loot or kill him for it. That happened the past summer, when he had to meet the women at the north. Of course, he had a few men with him, because the north could be so cold, and dreadful, and that the prince had to be protected at all times. The guards were experienced soldiers alright, and also the right-hand men of The King. But the prince was now alone, riding in the dark woods of the forest.

The prince relaxed for a while, and tended his black horse. He called him, the Black Beauty for some unknown reason. It was handed down from his father, when he was a child. And from that point on, the horse had never failed the prince. Without Black Beauty, who knew what dangers could bring down upon the prince? Now that he had no human company to pass the time, he felt truly alone for the first time in his life. Maybe, I should have brought my men with me, just in case... But it had become too late for that.

The prince was given an old map by his teacher. And as it had been said beforehand, this map would lead the trail to the lost, sleeping kingdom. The sky became dark, and the prince had a hard time to see where he was now heading. The thought of Sagrella loomed before him. Sometimes, he could hear her laugh constantly, or cry or even do whatever those evil witches did back in those dreadful days of pure nightmarish quality. But that happened a long time ago, which his grandfather had stopped the wicked witch from destroying the other kingdoms, which were both still alive and well.

The prince came upon the forest, which had thorns all around them. Luckily, he brought a sword with him on this unexpected occasion. The old, shiny sword that helped him in many battles, and yet they may be more to come. But this time, it could be different. Who knew? The prince had to prepare himself. He cut these vile, thorn branches, one by one. It was hard work for the prince, and he sweated gradually to the point, that he wanted to take his clothes off, and then take a bath. He thought, Yes, I shall do that. I do have a change of clothes.

After cutting through many thorn branches, and bushes, the prince felt weary. He had noticed the cuts from his own tunic. He could have brought an armor to protect himself. But it might have been too heavy, and too hot to ride on such a long journey. Yes, I should have brought my men, he thought again. But no matter. He took his clothes off, and dipped himself in the nearby water, where the fall came upon him. It felt wonderful. Entirely naked, and composed of natural strength, which came from a warrior prince himself. He closed his eyes, and then relaxed.

He found himself in a dream. He walked towards the castle, and found at last, the sleeping princess. But this was no ordinary dream. It was both erotic and tempting. The sleeping beauty turned out to naked, and ready to make love at any time, that the prince had ever wanted in his life. It was the way of love. He kissed her lips, and after a little while, she woke up and said, "Oh, my dear prince! My prince! You have saved me from this wretched curse! I love you!"

The prince said the same, back to her. But a rumbling sound came over the skies, and lightning flashed his eyes. It woke him. In his new clothes, he realized that he wasn't naked at all, and also knew that it was only a dream. Nothing more than that.

He stared at the sky, and thought, Look at that! What heavy thunderstorm it is! I must take shelter! He tried to find a place, where he could protect himself from the hard rain. Sprinkling and sprinkling... The prince could now feel the heavy drops of rain, drenching his new tunic, and thus making it wet all the same. Not my tunic! This is the only change I have brought!" Yes, it was the only one alright. But what did he expect from this long journey? Maybe, the prince wasn't fully prepared, after all. The prince sighed, and went running, and searching... Until then, he stopped, and found a cave. Yes, I have found my shelter. Thank God for that!

The prince brought his Black Beauty with him, slowly, as he tried not to frighten his only pet with the heavy thunderstorm aside. "Be as well, my Black Beauty. The sky shall clear the next day, and we shall continue our long journey." The horse nodded, as if he had said, "Yes, master. I know." And thus they both slept.

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As the prince had predicted, the sky became clear as day. Now he and his Black Beauty must continue venturing forth into the deep forest of the unknown. It was just what the old scholar had told him; the various deeds of a man, who had tried to cross into the thorn bushes many years before. Unluckily, that man was killed, and whoever he was, the prince didn't allow himself to be scared of such a thing. He had to find the lost, sleeping kingdom, and be ready for any dangerous outcome of this long journey.

After what seemed like an hour or so, the prince stopped, and there stood a castle far than any man had ever seen before. He thought, Yes, that must be it. Riding forward excitingly, he was being careful for not to trip himself down from his Black Beauty, as he had remembered falling down as a young man, while being taught by his own teacher.

All was peace and quiet when the prince have finally reached his destination. Not a sound came from the sleeping kingdom itself. The prince had noticed something strange about it, but not only that. He also noticed that there weren't any animal noises to be heard of. All was quiet, indeed.

"Come on, Black Beauty," the prince said. "We must carry on." Yes, they have carried on towards the castle itself. He wondered, Everyone must be still sleeping. It certainly looks that way. But he had no time to find out, whether they were still sleeping or not. After all, his quest was to find the sleeping princess.

When the prince reached the entrance of the castle, he noticed two guards were still sleeping on the ground. He looked at them and gasped. My God, what has happened to their faces? He could not make sure of it, but thought that it could have been the witch's curse. Yes, it has to be. Then he came down from his horse, and went inside the castle.

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The interior of the castle looked huge and enormous, like the one which the prince was currently staying. There, lie the two thrones of the King and Queen of their only princess. But the prince wondered where she could be. And yes, he had to search for every room, and corner to find her. He even had his sword ready, for any enemy that he might see, and dangerous enough to engage in a battle to come. He continued checking every room there was, and found several maids and servants, sleeping on certain places where no man or woman should sleep. It was the same, and not to mention, they all looked pale.

Finally, he found a room, and opened it. And from here, he noticed a glass case, filled with beautiful flowers, which he had seen in his erotic dream. When he slowly approached it, he gasped.

"My God!" The prince said to himself. "It is she! And she too is pale. The witch had done her dirty work, indeed. Now I must lift this curse, and all else shall be well." He remembered of what the scholar had said before the journey. He carefully opened the glass case. This wasn't the dream, that the prince would have expected, because the princess had her clothes on. He stared at her sweet, and precious red lips. Then he came closer and kissed her.

At the moment the prince waited for his kiss to wear off the effect of Sagrella's curse. Then the princess slowly opened her eyes, and saw the prince himself. He stepped back and said, "My dear princess, I have come for you. I..." He stopped and saw her, opening her mouth, which was then to be revealed as white fangs!

What the devil is this? The prince thought wildly. I have awakened her, and yet she still looks pale!

"Whatever is the matter, my dear prince?" the princess spoke out to him. "You said you have come for me. I want you dear. I want you..."

"NO!" The prince raised his voice. "No, this must a trick."

"Come to me, my dear prince!" She got up from the glass case, and stared at the prince with her red eyes. "COME!"

"NO! I SHALL NOT!" The prince raised his sword and slashed her chest. She cried out painfully and fell down on the floor. The wailing screams of a demon had reached towards the young warrior's ears. He couldn't help it, and thus ran away from the room.

But as he ran, there were people such as soldiers, maids, and others, whom they had also awakened from the spell, were staring at him, and snarling... Yes, the spell had been broken, but these people were monstrous beings. What madness that the prince have brought upon himself?

"Get away! GET AWAY!" The prince kept shouting at them. He hacked and slashed, no matter who they were, or had been. But it was too many of them. One of them said, "We must have your blood!"

"NOOO!" The prince cut off his head, and then stabbed a woman on the chest. He ran away from the castle, and fought the once, sleeping guards.

The pale figures were approaching behind the prince. "WE MUST HAVE YOUR BLOOD!"

"For the love of God, get off me!" the prince said to one of the villagers, who had arrived at the nearby castle. And the rest of them pounced on him.

"GET OFF ME!" Then as he slashed every single creature, he saw his poor Black Beauty, currently being drained of blood.

"BLACK BEAUTY! NOO!" The prince hacked and slashed the villages away. But more had come from the other side, and one of them, who lied on the ground, bit his leg. The prince cried out as he stabbed on it's head.

There are too many of them! The prince grew so weary that he wished he hadn't come to this cursed kingdom, for he never thought to this day, that this battle would become too much for him.

All of these pale creatures surrounded the prince, reaching out, and holding him, for there was no escape. The prince screamed.

Next story- Eternally Yours.

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