The Young Knight

A quest was given to a young knight to slay the beast of the
twilight mountains, a most dreaded behemoth of a creature with the
head of a bull. Armed only with a rusted sword in dire need of a
blacksmith's touch, the hero bravely accepted the charge, for no
other reason than to impress the lovely princess, a magnificent
creature blessed with all the gifts of the gods, whom he hoped to
engage in marriage after his valiant efforts over the creature he
was to slay.

His first order of business, then, was to prepare for the journey
ahead, for he could not well enough get by with his aging sword
alone. One hundred copper pieces he had, half of which was given to
him by the King whom had bestowed the quest upon him, as a means to
aid the valiant adventurer. His first stop was to the
blacksmith, whom he gave a quarter of his purse to; ten gold pieces
to enhance the sword, which now seemed much more prepared to the task
of vanquishing a moderate foe, if not the behemoth itself. The rest
was spent on some shabby armor, the best which the meager shop had
in stock, which was not saying much. Still, he was far better
prepared for the task ahead, and left the shop grinning from ear to
ear, believing that the journey ahead was looking brighter indeed.

Left now with still thrice of what had been spent, his next stop was
the travelers inn of the town, were he hoped to hire some
experienced sell swords who could aid him in his quest. Greeted by
the charming young patron of the shop, a slender maid by the name of
Charla, he entered the adventurers abode, and surely there was no
shortage of able bodied heroes ready to jump at the opportunity;
doing a good deed, and earning some gold in the process. Surprised
then was he when shot down he was, one by one, by the adventurers,
who were not the least interested in the task. A fool's errand,
some said, for the behemoth of the twilight mountains had slain many
a brave hero in the past, and it had been two winters since the
menace first showed itself. He pleaded his case, saying he would
gladly give all the gold left to him if only one hardy adventurer
would accompany him; for only thinking about the lovely princess
made him not lust for any other reward than her sweet embrace.
Nevertheless, no one would step up to the task, and he left the
travelers inn, shoulders slumped.

He had scarcely left the town behind him, resolved that he must face
the challenge ahead of him in solace, when an adventuress by the
name of Karina approached him. A great sword with runes attached to
the hilt of the blade strapped across her back, she introduced
herself to him as one seeking glory in battle, and nothing else.
The beast of the twilight mountains was known to her, she said, and
she offered her services at no charge, only that he would let her
know honor by playing a part in the monster's demise. He heartily
agreed and, the pact being formed, the duo set of on their
adventure.

The first challenge that presented itself to the pair was the dark
swamp, a dreaded bog home to all the creatures favorable
to such an environment. Not half a day passed in their journey
through the miserable area before they were attacked by a group of
bog slime. The young knight, sword in hand, slashed furiously at
the creatures, but to no avail. Karina, more experienced by far in
battling the myriad of monsters throughout the land, relayed to the
young knight that bog slime were impervious to the touch of a blade,
their only weakness being fire. Cursing his luck for not thinking
of bringing a torch or some other means of starting a fire, Rollin
gave in to despair. As luck would have it, however, the adventuress
imparted to him that her mighty great sword was enchanted with a fire
spell, which she thus demonstrated by expertly swinging her blade
and igniting the foul slimes, who fell quite easily beneath her
attack. And so, the pair continued through the swamp.

Several more encounters were met by the duo and summarily
vanquished. The young knight, however, played no part in
vanquishing the foes; realizing that Karina could dispatch the
minions of the swamp with ease, he decided to save his strength for
the task ahead. Not a full three days passed before they became
clear of the swamp and continued onward.

At the base of the twilight mountains sat a small hamlet where the duo rested
to regain their strength and to prepare for the journey ahead. Here
the young knight was approached by a middle aged swordsman by the
name of Gerard. The seasoned warrior was a mercenary, who offered
his services to the hero for a mere fifty copper pieces, after
inquiring as to the means of the quest. The hero readily agreed,
joyful indeed that he had found another able hand to aid him in
slaying the beast of the twilight mountains. With the remaining
twenty five copper spent on supplies, the trio ventured forth.

The treacherous mountains proved quite formidable; orcs, goblins,
and other manner of vile beasts gathered here, due to presence of a
mighty creature such as the behemoth. Gerard and Karina fought
valiantly, cutting down the vermin by the dozen; the young knight,
however, was partial to staying behind the pair as they did their
part. He believed that when the time came to do battle with the
object of the quest, he would be far better prepared if he was not
previously exhausted by the slaying of minor minions.

Having worked their way up the mountains, the trio finally came face
to face with the monstrosity. Towering above the heroes, the
behemoth gave an ugly roar. A gleam in his eager eyes, the young
knight drew for the first time this entire journey his sword, and
ignored the cries from his companions, who advised him against
meeting the creature head on. Ignoring their pleas, he charged at
the behemoth. Surprised he was indeed when, striking at the lower
limbs of the creature, his sword did nothing by annoy the monster.
Thinking he must have not put enough force into it, he swung again,
but to no avail. He questioningly looked to his companions, who
informed him that it was to be expected; he had played no part in
their earlier triumphs against the minions of the behemoth, or the
creatures of the swamp. He was not prepared to challenge the mighty
beast.

The two adventurers sought to rescue the foolhardy young knight from
his predicament, but before they were half the distance to the
unfortunate hero, the behemoth roared and crushed the poor lad
beneath its mighty hoofs.

The End