All Wise and Glorious King Nydon has a problem. His daughter was (allegedly, cough, cough) turned into a goose, and while a magician duo has restored her form, the poor girl still has a bird brain. The magic twins tell the king only a quest with the one who found the goose-girl can restore her memories, the irritated pair being tasked with taking her to Wraithvine (who’ll get a few choice words in private).
Sequel to this: @internutter/challenge-04580-l196-the-best-kingdom-in-the-world -- Deathshead419
It was another beautiful day in Bevuran, and the Princess was a horrible goose. The mage that cursed her had done a thorough job. She hissed at her attendants, she spent a majority of her time in the castle fountain. She grazed on the castle lawn instead of eating off of gilded plates. Her father had to clip one of her wings so that she wouldn't fly off.
Something had to be done.
His majesty King Nydon offered an enormous sum of riches to anyone who could break the curse on Princess Regintrude. To restore her to her human form. Which the twin mages Henkar and Molys did. It was a simple enough transformation, honestly. The extra pounds had to be provided from various foodstuffs, but that was a relatively small matter. There was just one small issue.
The Princess, returned to human form, still had the mind and manner of a goose. She hissed at her attendants, and tried to graze on the castle lawns. She insisted on spending a lot of her time in the castle fountain. She had extreme difficulty with clothing at all, using her hands, and anything remotely related to manners.
It was a curse beyond the twins' grasp. They could only belay the inevitable with excuses for so long. And finally, in desperation, they begged permission for a quest.
"This is deeper and more involved than we initially believed," said Molys. "We must track down the very source."
"We have to find the immortal Elf," added Henkar. "Only ze knows the source of the curse. With the source identified, we might be able to unriddle her completely."
"As long as she at least behaves like a Princess. I've had it with her hissing. Take everything you need, and come back with a solution... or not at all."
They took the essentials to start a new life wherever they washed up... and two of the king's best horses. They fled for their lives for an entire tenday before they dared spend any time on scrying. Not looking for the Princess, because that had failed miserably.
Wraithvine had been very smart to leave Bevuran. The twins recognised this and elected to follow hir lead. It was better than staying in Bevuran. They didn't encounter many dangers untold, and could still enumerate their hardships when they found Wraithvine's camp.
There was Madrigal, the Hellkin Bard, playing a spell of protection over the clearing. Wraithvine stirring up a cauldron of stew... and a figure of noble bearing petting a cat. This young man looked... astoundingly familiar, but neither twin could connect where they'd seen him before.
He looked like he knew them, and almost reached for his blade.
"Calm," said Wraithvine. "I knew they were coming. Gentlemen? Fleeing the wrath of King Nydon? Welcome to the club."
"We couldn't restore the Princess you returned," complained Henkar.
Molys put it all together when the young man with the cat snorted. "Your... highness?"
One hand drifted back towards his sabre's grip. "My name is Reginald, and I will never go back to dresses or being expected to be a bargaining chip for my father. I'm not to be sold to a different kingdom."
"The king's not going to like this," said Henkar.
"He did say to come back with a solution or not at all," said Molys.
"Do you need some royal mages, your highness?" asked Henkar.
[Photo by Jugro Scarlett on Unsplash]
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