Swan Lake. Dragon Empire

`` It’s time to start, «» he said dryly, `` where is His Highness now, or has he forgotten about his own wedding, but I swear I will do everything to prevent it from happening, «» he boldly declared right in the face of his enemy, who, however, was afraid to answer him, because all the kingdoms knew the valor and courage of Richard.

«Oh, I’m sure he…» the lord drawled, but he himself did not know what to say, «I’m sure that His Highness is now delayed due to the fact that he sat for too long surrounded by his books.»

This lie succeeded, and the lord sighed with relief, but to be honest, he himself did not know where Prince Etienne was spending his time. He has already sent his people, a whole convoy, to search for his unlucky and windy master.

In the tavern, noise and commotion reigned, one could hardly find a noisier place, and although this did not befit his royal person and upset his mother, Etienne was sitting at one of the tables, next to the wine, of course, the lord could call any place a library. but now Etienne himself did not know where he was. Some kind of drunken brawl, in which both sides were crippled and bruised, several bottles of wine and the coquetry of those who were called the most accessible girls, and Etienne even forgot that he was a prince, how could he remember about his own wedding.

«Etienne,» ran up to him his faithful friend Fritz, who often covered him before the wrath of the queen and even the late father, «Etienne, I beg you, let’s go from here.»

The prince only grabbed his head with his hand. The wine he had drunk made itself felt, and he became completely drunk, and, moreover, he was again drawn into a fight. It was full of those whom he considered his enemies.. The prince proved his bravery in a rather unusual way, fighting with drunks, playing and drinking. Unfortunately for the parents, their handsome son only did what he dragged around the taverns, drank, swore and played. But it was worth noting that this required more courage than even entering the battlefield.

«Hey, you,» Etienne shouted to one of the drunken, tall and powerful pub-goers. As Fritz did not try to restrain him, he threw himself into a fight and almost killed his rival. The latter’s friends arrived in time. Etienne received several cuts and countless blows before being thrown out of the tavern with a friend. Everyone was comforted in their own way, and Fritz prayed to God that no one would find out where they were that night. He dragged the prince past other drunks, with whom Etienne immediately tried to start a fight. He still managed to pull his friend out of danger, but even the fresh air could not sober the intoxicated head of his young comrade, about whom, however, one could say that he was the bravest prince of all who came before him.

He did not even remember about any princess and the wedding. The girls didn’t bother him. Their beauty did not evoke hot feelings in him, which, however, woke up in him during fights and drunken skirmishes. His mother, the queen, tried many times to re-educate her very handsome and even more unlucky son, but all this ended in complete failure, and Etienne returned to dice and fights with strangers.

But today everything should have been different, it had not yet struck midnight when the knights from the king’s personal guard broke into the roadside tavern, was it worth describing the commotion they caused among drunks and ladies of easy virtue, although they were looking for only one person in this place but he was the hardest to find.

The head of the guard, inwardly, mercilessly cursed the fate that had brought him to such a place, but he was a determined person and was going to carry out everything to the end, although it turned out to be even more difficult than he had expected.

Their task was to get the young prince out of the pub and bring him to his own wedding, while not allowing him to get drunk or fall asleep, the queen has long tried by all means to do this, but, in the end, more experienced people had to be brought in here. who, however, were themselves a little afraid. After all, who did not know how well their crown prince could fight for his life.

If his father remained alive, who could always bring him to his senses, but, alas, he died, and there was no one to watch over his unlucky son. No firm hand could any longer hold back the frantic impulses of his young heart. It would seem that such a handsome man as he could not behave in this way. The prince was beautiful, all the girls admitted it, but he didn’t care about them. He did not even want to know about some kind of princess Odette, who was chosen for him as his bride, he did not care about her. He did not yet know that she, too, remained indifferent to this choice made by others for her.

Soon the tavern was in complete disorder, but the knights could not find out from anyone where Prince Etienne was, finally, they found him in one of the rooms in a hangover, he was fast asleep, and a girl was sitting next to him. As always, the prince was handsome, but in a state in which the queen was better off not seeing him.

While the knights were figuring out what to do, their leader was barely able to wake the prince.

«Congratulations, your highness,» he said as politely as possible.

But Etienne could hardly understand his words, he slightly raised himself, quickly glancing around everything around him and vaguely realizing where he was.

«With what?» he could barely say.

«With the fact that the date of the royal wedding has already been appointed. A worthy bride has been found for you.»

Well, he no longer had salvation, he was waiting for a marriage to an unloved girl and eternal torment, he could never find that beautiful princess he dreamed of. She did not exist in this world, and he will forever remain alone, and now, God knows what fate is preparing for him, probably someone even more ugly than those he has already seen. It was early for him to marry, he understood this, and Fritz, who had also already been taken, as politely as possible under escort, looked at him with regret. He sympathized with his best friend, with whom he spent so many anxious nights in different taverns. Etienne could barely recover from grief, but there was nothing to do, and he involuntarily got out of bed, it was time to go to his unchanging and bitter fate.

And in the chambers of the palace everyone waited for midnight, the very time when Odette would become their queen. Why the coronation was scheduled for midnight, no one knew, it remained a mystery even to Richard. He looked at Odette with despondency, and his gaze became more and more sad every minute, the time was approaching when he would lose her forever, but he decided on madness.

«Why,» Odette quietly whispered to her friend so that others would not hear, «why should I ruin my life, Richard.»

And at that moment he made up his mind.

«Odette,» he said quietly, «listen to me, Odette, you want to stay with me.»

«With you,» she looked at him full of sorrow. Of course, she wanted to stay with her friend. Better he than some prince she had never seen.

«Then run with me,» burst out from him, «we will run away together, and no one can find us, everyone knows that there is a curse on the throne of this country, and it will not let you go, and if you leave with me, then I will save you from it.»

«Yes,» Odette whispered into Richard’s pleading face, «yes, I will run away with you.»

Odette squeezed Richard’s hand in a friendly shake, or maybe it was a shake of love that suddenly flared up with a bright fire in the darkness of the witchcraft and cold night over the beautiful, but damned royal palace.

The time had come, only a few minutes remained before the fatal midnight, at midnight the young princess was supposed to become the queen of a huge country, although her heart did not want this, she felt a threat to her life in the future, and it was a strange disturbing feeling.

«You won’t forget your words, Odette,» Richard asked her anxiously and excitedly.

«No,» she whispered softly to him and involuntarily looked away.

The crown was already shining on her head, and she was about to sit on the throne, but suddenly a scarlet arrow pierced directly into the royal arms in front of her. The knights grabbed their swords, but they were powerless against witchcraft, blood dripping from the poisonous tip of the deadly weapon. Diana would have recognized this arrow if she were alive, she saw her in a golden goblet with poisoned blood, but Odette has not yet faced the power of black magic.

A strong gust of wind burst into the hall, it swept away and blew away everything in its path and tore in different directions the clothes and hair of those present. The throne room was filled with a dull howl of the wind and whispering voices, but no one could catch a single word in their dull, monotonous whispering. They called some kind of curse on the palace. They whispered and screamed, but it was not clear where they were coming from or what they were looking for in the royal chambers. They were strange cutting sounds, piercing right through the ears. Those who stood in the hall seemed to find themselves in a dark hell blazing with blue fire and ash.

But then the smoke cleared, and everyone saw the grim figure of the woman, she was dressed in a long blue cloak with a hood that almost completely covered her face from prying eyes. She stood calmly, as if waiting for the moment when horror paralyzed everyone who saw her, completely, but then long hands with black claws lowered the black hood, and Odette saw the ugly face of the red-haired witch.

«The hour of reckoning has come, princess,» the witch hissed angrily, «I have come for you.»

Odette looked anxiously at Richard, but everything was useless, all the knights were paralyzed with horror, although they were brave in battles, but the gaze of the red-haired witch brought them all to death.

Meanwhile, the red-haired witch slowly moved towards the throne and towards the frightened princess.

«Your mother has betrayed both us and her love,» his burned lips pursed, «now the hour of your death has struck, there will be no mercy, Princess Odette.»

The witch walked slowly, but without pausing for a moment. Her eyes threw lightning, they killed at first sight into their bloody depths. They made the heart of a common man tremble with horror, and Odette did not know how to escape from them, from whom to ask for help, and who could help her now, she was trapped, from which there was no way out.

When the witch’s hand almost touched her, Richard, as if waking up from some numbness that suddenly seized him, he could not understand what was wrong with him, he seemed to be mesmerized, but now he has become the same again. He stepped forward, blocking Odette from the witch, not letting the terrible creature come to the princess.

The witch did not expect such an act. A vicious hiss escaped from her black chest. She raged, but this could no longer help her, Richard was going to either win or die.

«Move away,» she hissed, «the princess belongs to me, and there’s nothing you can do.»

«No,» he answered firmly and clearly, looking into her bloody eyes with unshakable dignity, and the witch realized that he would rather die than give in to her.

«Brave knight,» she burst out, «dark battle prince, you’re really just an unfortunate lover, right?» she asked so that everyone could hear her words, but Richard was silent. He had nothing to say or answer to this, the witch was speaking the truth, and how bitter this truth was.

Odette stood behind him, but even at such a distance, she was terribly frightened by the eyes of the creature who came from the world of darkness to take her soul and life, was it really all true, and not a dream. Why was Richard silent, why he could not answer her a word, were her words really bitter and undeniable truth.

The witch with an insidious grin looked into Richard’s bold eyes, she laughed, she rejoiced, she felt her victory over human love and triumphed. She knew what lie or truth she had to tell in order to destroy and frighten to death a common man.

«Do not you understand?» she chuckled. «The princess is dressed, she is not available to an ordinary person, one look at her, and your heart is already broken, and I want to make sure that no one else suffers because of her beauty, I want to take her with me to the world of death.»

«Never,» Richard answered with a selfless gleam in his eyes, nothing frightened him.

«Well, well,» the insidious voice sounded in the silence, «be it your way, dark knight, if I don’t take her with me, then someone else will come in handy.»

For a minute she stood, grinning so smugly and viciously that the laughter was breathtaking, and then something bright and dazzling flashed in her hand, and she threw a pinch of gold dust in Richard’s face, which immediately flew in different directions and gilded the stuffy air of the throne room.

Immediately a long hand reached out to the princess, but Odette dodged and ran away across the marble floor of the hall, but in front of her, as if out of the ground, a red-haired witch rose again, as if she knew how to move in space easily and imperceptibly, like a ghost.