Waste of Beauty

Princess Pantarikaranet sat and stared at herself in the mirror. She was beautiful, so men thought, so everybody in the kingdom of Mondyn thought. She had curly, golden hair, crystal blue eyes, luscious red lips, and the fairest skin in the whole kingdom. She wore a magnificent royal blue dress embroidered with silver designs. Expensive jewels hung around her neck and writs and from her ears. A glittering tiara sat on top of her golden locks and the best shoes money could buy adorned her perfect feet. She was truly a vision of beauty.

In looks, Princess Pantarikaranet was perfect, but in looks only. The truth is, the princess was a spoiled, cold-hearted brat. If she did not get her way she whined until she did. Servants who defied or upset her often found themselves on the sharp end of the executioners axe. It was not uncommon to hear Princess Pantarikaranet yell, "I'll have your head for that!" It was her favorite phrase and often spelt death for servants. Many a handsome suitor was lost after hearing the princess order a servant's execution.

The princess was tough on her servants and went through many. Her current servant, who is picking up the princesses dirty laundry, was getting fed up and was going to quit, soon. This servant spent her days running around getting things for the princess without a moments rest. Plus she had to constantly take verbal abuse. It was definitely the worst job ever.

"Servant," Princess Pantarikaranet said snobbishly. Two weeks and she still hadn't learned the servant's name.

"Yes your highness?"

"Hand me my hair brush."

The servant looked and saw the hairbrush sitting on the table next to the princess. She'd had enough to do already and this request was too much for the poor old maid.

"Your highness, the hair brush is not but six inches from your hand. Can you not get is yourself? I am very busy with you're laundry," the servant said ever so politely.

The princess grew angry. "You dare defy me?! I am Princess Pantarikaranet! You are but a lowly servant who must do my bidding?" the princess yelled loudly.

"Princess Pantarikaranet? Ha! More like Princess Pain-In-The-A-"

Pantarikaranet gasped. "How dare you! I'll have you're head for that!"

And so it was. Another servant had gone and lost their head. But, the princess was troubled. Too much lately had she been called a spoiled brat or a pain in . She did not like this for it meant people were not focusing on her beauty. The princess needed to prove she wasn't a spoiled brat. But how?

It was late one night when Princess Pantarikaranet finally thought up a plan.

"I know what I'll do. I'll go on a quest! Surely that will get people to believe I'm not a spoiled brat." The princess was happy with her plan and spent the rest of the night making preparations. She would leave in the morning.

A quest, to prove she wasn't spoiled. How exactly would that prove anything, no one really knew. But, if it meant no princess for a while, everyone was for it.

As planned, the princess left in the morning. She rode her pure white horse, Snow, out of the city amidst cheers from the townspeople. The whole city came out to see her off. As soon as the princess was out of sight, though, they threw a huge party.

The princess traveled the winding road to the East alone. She endured the hardships and pains with head held high. She slept on the cold hard ground without so much as one complaint. If only her parents could see her now. They'd be so proud of their daughter. But then again, why complain if you have no one to complain to?

She traveled for five days until finally the princess reached a huge forest. The road led through the forest, shadowed by the trees and seeming almost haunted. The princess was not afraid, for she was in fact a princess. Nothing could harm her royal personage.

As confident as she was, Pantarikaranet rode straight into the forest without a fear in her heart. Her eyes focused straight ahead, daring the darkness to even try and harm her. She failed to see the sign. "Warning," it had said, "Elven territory. Humans will be shot."

Pantarikaranet moved Snow slowly through the darkness of the forest. She was not afraid, or so she kept telling herself. Did that bush just rustle? Were those eyes glaring at her off to the side? The dark has a way of causing even the toughest hero to imagine hideous beasts lurking about.

The princess though she heard a stick snap to her left. What was that that just dashed behind a tree? Pantarikaranet's heart began to beat wildly as fear over took her. "Surely," she thought, "Surely there are monsters in these woods, or ."

Stories of peddlers filled the princesses mind. Peddlers, they peddled around selling goods of fantastical qualities. You'd spend all your money only to find out after the peddler left that what you bought was not what is seemed. Magical amulets suddenly became glass and cheap metal, expensive fabrics turned into the same stuff you were already wearing, wonderful toys transformed into piles of junk painted bright colors. Pantarikaranet was one who feared peddlers and there false goods.

She gripped Snow's bridle tightly. Was that a sale pitch she heard?

"I should turn back now," the princess thought. No, she couldn't. She'd be the laughing stock of the kingdom. Go on, she must, her reputation was at stake

With this thought in mind the princess's fear subsided. "This is all nonsense. Nothing dangerous lurks in these woods," she said confidently.

Something whizzed through the air. Pantarikaranet's body fell limply to the ground. Removed of his burden, Snow stopped to nibble upon some grass.

A figure materialized out of the shadows and moved towards the princess's body. It was an elf, a female who went by the name of Targt. She had light green skin, dark green hair, and the palest of greens as a color for her eyes. Elves are very green. She was dressed all in browns and had a quiver of arrows and a bow with her.

Targt stopped and looked down at her query. An arrow protruded from the princess's neck and blood seeped out of the fatal wound.

A laugh escaped the elf. "Foolish human." Then Targt proceeded to remove the jewelry from the slain girl. "These shall fetch a hefty price," Targt said as she gazed at the sparkling jewels. She then turned to the horse, "And so will this magnificent beast."

Laughing, Targt took her treasures and went deeper into the woods. The body of the princess was left behind. The princess, a thing of beauty, in body but not in soul, was left in darkness as black as her heart.