The Prince's Test

A prince should know better. It was too late for Dagiel, as he had already gone too far. Years of training and discipline taught him that fate was a fallacy, and self-control was a highly respected virtue. After all, was he not the master of his own destiny? He had every right to learn all he could about the kingdom he would someday rule. The tenacious young heir of the Sandehliel dynasty was about to take the final test before he could occupy his father's throne. If he failed, the life he always knew would become a precious memory. His new life would find him banished from his family and friends, forever.

Dagiel's mother, Shandara, was said to be the most beautiful female in the kingdom. Eons of careful breeding and superior education made her the perfect mate for Dagiel's father, King Drogandiel. Together their leadership over the Sandehliel race kept the inhabitants prosperous, and the city gates on Dragon's Cove, safe from fierce predators. Outside the gates, there was no guarantee of survival. Outside the gates, death was inevitable.

Bedtime stories of mysterious creatures were told to every youngling in every Sandehlien dwelling. Not to frighten them to sleeplessness, but to instill the prospect that to venture outside the craggy walls of Sandehliel, would be the worst, and last choice one would ever make. Dagiel's nanny, Pagury, spent every night telling tales of great Sandehlien warriors guarding the castle. It was considered unbefitting for a Queen to do such a common task as preparing the younglings for bed, or to be telling bedtime stories. That is why Dagiel loved Pagury so. She was more like a mother to him than the beautiful, yet unapproachable Shandara. It wasn't her fault; it had been done this way for centuries. Her responsibilities were to the King and his people.

Pagury also reminded him what happened to those who thought they could take on the outworld creatures by themselves. Tales of underwater demons that tricked their prey into thinking they were harmless and fragile. Enchanted by the creature's beauty, their victims would find themselves ensnared in a watery trap. The Sandehliel race had once dwelt in the sea. But as the number of predators increased, their population decreased. Faced with certain extinction, the Sandehliens walked out of the sea, never to return to their underwater home. They quickly adapted to the sandy dunes they now call home. The only sign that these gentle people had once populated those deepwater caves was their finned ear gills, now rendered useless. Their skin retained an iridescent glow, but the scales that once shined like gold, had taken on a pale opal hue.

Dagiel was handsome from birth. His mother spared no expense and spoiled him with every advantage a royal son deserved. But her job was not to nurture or raise the child, but only to love him and prepare him as Sandehliel's future leader. King Drogandiel's health began to decline when Dagiel was in his early teens. The queen feared what could happen if Dagiel was forced to take his father's place too soon. Drogandiel spent the first 80 years of his reign building up the city, to make it safe for his people. Now over 200 years old, the frail king was ready to let his son take the throne and lead the people into the next century.

"Mother, I don't understand why it has to be now. I've passed all my tests. Can't I have some time to have fun with my friends?" Dagiel rarely backed down to a good fight. He wasn't going to let his mother intimidate him this time. Shandara's face grew hot as she paced the terrace. "I am sorry, but you knew this day would come. It is up to you to prove to the people that you can lead them. They won't find comfort in a king who is trying to catch up on his childhood. You MUST face the death dragon!"

Dagiel's true test would not be the dragon, but standing up to his mother. "I know father doesn't have long. But the people must know I won't let them down. You know me better than that!" He turned away so that Shandara would not see the real pain he had held within for years. "Pagury would understand if it wasn't for her..."

"Okay, so you think you know what it takes? Show me, show Pagury!" Shandara stormed back into the drawing room. Dagiel could tell his mother was crying. She was a tough woman, but this was all too much even for her. "Mother, Mother I'm sorry. You have to let me do this my way. I truly believe the people will respect me more if I do. Times do change and I think they are expecting changes!" He put his arms around his mother, a rare show of affection. "I'll face that dragon, but know this. I will face another dragon outside the arena. And he won't be wearing any chain. Trust me." With that he wiped a tear from her cheek and walked out of the room.

Ever since the Sandelhiens had lived on Dragon's Cove, the final test of adulthood was proven in the arena. And if the future king could not prove himself brave, then what future might be in store for their race? For Dagiel, this would not be enough. He wanted to give the people hope. Hope for a better future. Hope for a life outside the walls of the city.

"The moon is bright tonight," thought Dagiel. "Good, I'll have the advantage!" After everyone was asleep, Dagiel slipped out of the servant's entrance near the palace's kitchen. A guard was slumped over in his chair, snoring. Dagiel had to keep himself from chuckling out loud. "Great job Jib, I feel so much safer now!"

It felt good to step onto the soft sand. Only on special occasions was the young prince allowed to venture outside the palace gates, and even then, only with an entourage of the royal guard. He looked out across the gentle sea, the moon reflected upon it like a mirror. Smelling the salty air, he could see how easily others had been coaxed into a false sense of security. It was in their blood. Their veins still contained the salt of the sea. Their strange ears could still hear the songs of the winged Bragas. Even after all these years.

Dagiel made his way past the sandstone bridge and underneath the Dead Tree, then...SPLASH. "Hellooo! I have been watch, watch, watching you! You're not like the rest. Come, sit here and talk with me in the moonlight!" The shrill voice of the creature gave Dagiel a start. But the Mahldrills could smell fear from miles away. They fed on it. "Hello yourself! So you are one of the famous Mahldrills? Or should I say, infamous?" The prince figured if he were sharp with the creature, he'd appear to be braver than he was.

The creature uttered a purr and raised its head above the water. Paintings don't even do justice to the beauty of these creatures thought Dagiel. Its eyes seemed to be looking right into his soul. He found himself staring back, but his mind began to wonder. Suddenly visions of glittering underwater fountains, splashing in a rainbow of colors in a cavernous palace filled his head.

"I won't pretend, I won't. I am what I am. You know me. I am the one true test dear Prince. For you and I are one." The creature's arms lengthened, becoming huge tentacles. Embracing Dagiel in a tight grip, he first struggled to let his mind break free from its mental grip. Suddenly, he felt water dripping down his forehead into his eyes.

"I've come to have a chat with your elders. The time has come for the fight to be over." Dagiel's resolve to stop his people's oppression was stronger than ever. "What is your name? We might as well get to know each other as this could take awhile!"

The Mahldrill was perplexed by the prince's relaxed nature. "I am called, Gandutiana. My sisters call me Ti. Why should you care about the name of your killer?" Dagiel found that the creatures grip was loosening. "I care because you have chosen not to kill tonight. I care, Ti, because you and I are now friends."

"Oh, and what makes you think I'll have more mercy on a prince, than the filthy mongrels he serves!" Ti's grip tightened again.

Dagiel's eyes began to glow. Staring at the beast he could see that these things really did have feelings. If this was the case, then they must have a conscience. "Ti, for hundreds, thousands of years, our races have fought over territory. Your kind drove us out of our homes and nearly to our end. So here we are. I'm about to be king, and I am here to tell you. Enough is enough." He felt his heart race but this is what he was meant to do.

Ti had fully released the prince by now. It gave a shiver, and then came up out of the water and sat upon a stone. It was obvious to Dagiel now that the creature was female. Nobody that had ever ventured out of the city had ever returned to tell their secrets. "Never have any of your kind, any at all, stood up to us before." Ti found herself intrigued by this young prince. "I will go to my family and tell them your plan. I don't know why I believe you, but I do. We always thought, we always knew your people would kill us if we came to you. So we wait, in these rocks, to kill you one by one."

"I know. Nobody ever returned, so we figured there must have been too many of you." Dagiel couldn't help but pity the young thing. "We miss our old home, but we will never return, you must tell them that. Ti, your world is your world, we're of no threat to you. Please go tell them the King says so."

One of Ti's tentacles returned to its original shape, resembling Dagiel's own arms. She touched his cheek, then slithered back into the water and swam away.

He was certain he heard the faint song of a Bragas. It was just that. Turning back toward the city, he felt a calm rush over him. Dagiel had passed the test that would change the Sandelhiels forever. The gates now remained open. The guards were no longer needed. After King Drogandiel's wake, his queen remained in the palace. She got to know her son better. The young king never had to face the dragon. He slew the dragon the day he met Ti.