The Knight and the Kingdom, a fairy tale

The Knight and the Kingdom


Once upon a time, in a land not far away, a young knight stood anxiously watching out over the kingdom, enjoying the smell of the flowers and the chirping of the birds. The knight was a handsome young man, filled with images of glory and honor, and the kingdom rested safely in his mind.

One day the kingdom was ravaged by a plague, a dragon and the dreaded black knight. All three of these evil beings seemed to work together. The knight became sickened with the plague, but still drew his sword to defend the kingdom. He was knocked down by the black knight and roasted by the Dragon, who laughed as he breathed hot flames from his mouth.

The knight fled. His shining armor was blackened from flame, his courage had fled and his ears burned from the laughter of the black knight.

The kingdom itself began to crumble, yet all did not fall completely before the blows of the black knight, or the flames of the dragon, or the crippling sickness of the plague. The knight, who had fled in shame, finally picked himself up and began to watch from afar as his beloved kingdom shook off the effects of the evils that threatened it, but still the kingdom clung to life. Slowly the knight regained his strength and composure. He resolved after some time had passed to return to his kingdom and fight to restore the beauty that he once knew.

First he rode to the forest, to understand how the trees could withstand the fire of dragon. The trees were not as lush as he had remembered, and small animals did not play in them as before, but still they stood. There he met the princess of the forest, her name was Innocence. She smiled a heavenly smile and restored the innocence back to the armor that the knight had carelessly brushed off when he was polishing it years ago to a shine as a young man. He yearned to stay with the princess who he had come to love, but felt guilty at abandoning the rest of his realm. Vowing to return, he took his leave.

As he left the forest, coming into a clearing he met the dragon, who laughed mightily when he espied the knight.

“So, you dared to come back and now you think you are safe because of some fool child’s blessing,” the dragon roared. “Know ye now, Sir Knight, that I, the great Dragon Conformism, slayer of most of mankind, will turn you into ashes.”

The knight stood his ground, and tried hard not to doubt. He had seen the trees of his forest withstand the fiery blast of Conformism, and instead of dreading the mighty dragon before him, he thought of the lazy smile of the Princess Innocence.

The Dragon blasted him with fire, but it dissipated around him. His armor no longer blackened from the blasts, protected by the innocence that now cloaked him. The knight grew braver at this, and drew his sword and charged. The great dragon Conformism, seeing that his fire had no effect, took flight in reckless confusion and left the kingdom.

Riding forward, our knight came to a village. The knight had often visited this village as a child. The houses now were falling apart and the marketplace that had been so rich with laughter and the smells of good things to eat now was listless. A kindly old man, one that the knight had once known as the Mayor and Healer of the village, approached him. The knight remembered that his name had been peaceful.

“Peaceful, you look healthy, but our village looks dreadful. Why are you not sick with the plague like the others?” asked the knight. In the distance he could see that some people were sick, yet Peaceful was obviously healthy.

“They suffer from the great plague of doubt,” answered the man. “They have forgotten to smile and remember that love is all around and that doubt is but temporary. When they remember this they will be cured, and our village will return to its former glory. If you remember this, to smile and know that love is all around us, then the plague of doubt will not affect you.”

The knight thanked the old man and rode toward his castle, which was on the horizon. In route he came upon the Plague of Doubt, who was toyfully terrorizing some of his villagers.

The Plague of doubt is hard to describe. It takes many shapes, and appears as an ever changing blob. The Plague looked up, and seeing the knight, lunged at him. The knight sat on his charger and smiled at the Plague, remembering the old man's advice. “Why do you terrorize my people. Why not instead enjoy all that is good?”

The plague looked at him suspiciously. “You are trying to trick me, knight. All around me I see conspiracy. You are evil and trying to trick me.” With that, he unleashed a venom at the knight, who sat there smiling. Like the fire of the dragon, the venom had no effect.

“Go, my friend,” said the knight. “This is a kingdom of love, not of conspiracy and doubt. You have no place here.”

The plague, realizing that his venom was having no effects at all on the knight, became worried. Perhaps this knight might not fear him after all, and might instead attack him. Doubt turned and fled the kingdom. The villagers which had been sick began to recover, and flowers began to bloom once again. In the distance the knight heard laughter coming from the marketplace.

The knight rode on, coming at last to his castle. The walls and battlements had been blackened during his absence, and black flags flew high on the turrets. The ground near the castle was barren, but flowers were beginning to reappear on the road that the knight had taken.

A butterfly landed on the knight as he rode in thought. He feared the Black Knight most of all. It had been him who had finally chased him from his kingdom, sneering at him as he fled. The butterfly fluttered around the knight’s visor, and the knight reined up. He smiled at the butterfly, which then fluttered to some flowers near by. The knight no longer had doubts and he was reminded of his innocence. This was his kingdom, and he was not going to be chased from it again.

Down came the draw bridge with a clang and out rode the Black Knight. He was immense in size. His war horse snorted fire and the ground thundered as its hoofs hit the ground.

“How dare you come back here, little man,” roared the Black Knight. “This is no longer your kingdom. Begone now, or I will drag you through the streets of the village, then back to the moat and feed you to its monsters.”

The knight looked at the behemoth sitting on a charger across from him. “You are occupying my castle, Sir Ridicule, and I am here to take it back.”

“So, knave, you know my name, do you,” bellowed the black knight. “And you are looking for another beating, just like the last time we met? I am going to enjoy this.”

The two knights both drew swords and charged. Their swords met with a crash, and the black knight hammered our hero with blow after blow, but all of them bounced off. The knight swung his sword and the Black Knight fell from his charger, looking up at the knight in shock. Ridicule was not used to being unseated.

“Begone Sir Ridicule. I no longer fear your blade or your presence. Leave my castle and my kingdom in peace.” The knight then left Sir Ridicule muttering in the dirt and rode into his castle. Upon his entrance, the battlements once more became white and the banners above the turrets once more became colorful. Trumpets began to sound, as the knight rode onto the draw bridge.

Greeting him as he rode into the courtyard was Mother Nature, who flew down from above. The barren landscape was changing and birds flew once again in the skies. “Welcome home, Sir Knight, we have been waiting for you.”

After this the kingdom prospered and was at peace. The knight returned to Innocence and all lived happily ever after.