The Princess and The Archer

Once upon a time ….

            The day finally arrived for the Princess of the North Kingdom to be wed. Her shimmering, gold hair made the men swoon, but she was betrothed to the Prince of the South Kingdom despite her protests. A man named Archer who had the best aim in the kingdom was able to convince the King to initiate a challenge for the Princess’ hand instead. Why not give all honorable men an opportunity? The King proclaimed that the first man to return to him in three days time with a scarlet gemstone to fit the Princess’ oval crown would win her heart. Archer had already won her heart though. He just needed a scarlet gemstone to prove it to the world. He climbed mountains with peaks touching the blue sky and searched vast, green forests. With no luck in finding any gemstones, he sauntered into the shadows were he had seen flames dancing among the trees. An enchantress rested by the fire where around her neck hung a ruby. Archer gaped at it in awe. The enchantress could sense his desire and offered him an exchange. To win the one he loved, he must give her something he loved in return: his successful future with a bow and arrow. For the gem, he agreed. Excited, he returned to the Princess with her stone. The King congratulated his bravery and success. There was one more part to the test though. The King wanted to display the honor and talent Archer was known for to his kingdom. The King required him to shoot an apple mounted on top of the Princess’ head. He had completely forgotten about his exchange with the enchantress. As he was presented with the finest bow and arrow in the kingdom, he proudly took position and released the arrow. The result was predictable. Everyone knew him to be an expert bowman. Gasps of shock and disbelief filled the crowd as soon as it came to everyone’s realization that the apple remained flawless and instead an arrow protruded from the Princess’ heart.  

Author's Note

This is in need of much potential editting and adding of details, but it's the basic idea.

Reviews

[bookworm]

ok couple of things, how can he search for the gems if he's looking up in the sky? and it also seems like the enchantress comes out of nowhere. also how does the prince of the south feel about this contest? why not have him try to get the bow and arrow back before the shooting contest? also don't be so dramatic about the whole i-lost-my-arrow-what-am-i-going-to-do attitude. but other than that you have a great plot line and a good story line and i love the imagery that you use, like you said this story has a lot of potential. nice work