Once upon a time... in a far off land, there lived a beautiful princess. She was the fairest in all the land, beauty beyond compare. She had long flowing brown hair, which shined like gold in the sunlight. Her eyes twinkled with life and happiness. Her smile could melt any mans heart leaving him weak in the knees. And her voice was like heaven; it could calm the ocean. Her name was Heatherine.

Being so beautiful, every man in the kingdom sought Princess Heatherine’s hand in marriage. But there was only one man she had eyes for. A charming young prince named Sir Chrisalot, admired near and far for his righteousness, courage, and honor. Sir Chrisalot loved being a knight, but his heart belonged to Princess Heatherine.

Princess Heatherine lived in a giant castle overlooking the ocean. Sir Chrisalot lived in the surrounding village, and would often come to visit her. Together they would ride off along the ocean, stopping to play among the flowerbeds and to walk along the rolling hills. Then they would sit underneath the magnolia trees to read, and to talk of how their life would one day be.

Their life was wonderful except for one thing. The problem was the fact that Sir Chrisalot was a knight. He would often get called to far off lands to aid in battles and to fight off dangerous creatures. Chrisalot and Heatherine couldn’t bear to be separated for they were irresistible to each other. It was torture for the both of them when Chrisalot left.

Sir Chrisalot once again was summoned off to help battle against evil. He had been called to the land of Fremont (almost 300 miles away) leaving Heatherine alone praying for him and his safe return.

When Heatherine was alone she would often take walks along the beach to clear her mind and to escape from the stress and pressures of life in the castle. Although this time she took an exceptionally long walk, longer than she’d ever gone before.

She was watching the clouds, picking out pictures of brave knights and dragons, when something caught her eye. Off in the distance she could see a strange flickering. She walked up to see a shell made of crystal that was emitting an iridescent light. It appeared to be enchanted. There was a sound coming from inside the shell. Curious, Heatherine picked up the shell placing it to her ear. It was the ocean, but not like she had ever heard it before. There was a marvelous melody of sound, growing louder and louder, like it was surrounding her. She wanted to stop listening but she was entranced by it. Then she heard, in the midst of the sound, a faint voice calling to her. Unconsciously, she followed it.

Heatherine awoke lying on the ground of, what appeared to be some kind of a dungeon. Sitting up, she realized that her ankle had been chained to the floor. Looking around, frantically trying to figure out where she was, she saw that she wasn’t alone. Watching her from across the room, with a dreadful smile, was what appeared to be a witch.

Word reached Sir Chrisalot that Princess Heatherine was missing. He immediately raced home to find her. When he reached the castle it was raining out side and thunder could be heard off in the distance. He was told that the Princess had been captured by The Evil Witch, and was being held captive at the enchanted castle. So immediately, Sir Chrisalot set off to save her.

As Sir Chrisalot was approaching the old castle it looked frighteningly evil, especially because of the thunder and lightning. Guarding the castle entrance was an enormous, fire-breathing dragon. It was dark red with scales running down its back that looked like armor. Sir Chrisalot had never seen a dragon before, let alone fought one. But without hesitance he pulled out his bow, and from the shelter of a rock he launched an arrow directly into the dragon’s right eye. The dragon became enraged, lashing his tale furiously and breathing fire. Sir Chrisalot charged in with his mighty sword, barely dodging the dragon’s tale. Thrusting his sword with all his might towards the dragons’ neck, he slayed the dragon.

Sir Chrisalot entered the castle cautiously, not sure what to expect. He quietly descended into the castle’s dungeon. Peering into the dimly lit cells he finally found the one containing Princess Heatherine. She looked up with great joy. Signaling her to stand back, Chrisalot smashed through the door. With one quick swing of his sword he separated the chain from her ankle. He grabbed the Princess and held her in his arms, picking her up with a feeling as if he never wanted to let go.

A sudden bolt of lightning hit the castle, reminding them where they were. They weren’t sure what to do. Grabbing a torch from the wall Chrisalot began to set the dungeon on fire. Then he grabbed Heatherine and they began to make their way out of the castle. Reaching the entrance to the dungeon they stopped. They had been locked in! On the other side of the steel gate was The Evil Witch, looking very angry, but finding great joy in her triumph over the brave knight. Chrisalot, looking into her devious yellow eyes realized why she was so happy.

(About 5 years ago, Chrisalot was walking through the woods when he heard a scream. Following it he saw a young girl tied up in front of a witches caldron. Running forward to save the girl he knocked over the boiling water right onto a crouching witch, that he had not seen. The witch turned and looked at him, as she melted into a pile of goo.)

Chrisalot had killed The Evil Witch’s sister! That’s why she had captured Princess Heatherine. To lure Chrisalot into a trap! The Witch had finally gotten her revenge.

Heatherine grabbed Chrisalot and ran back into the thick black smoke, down the flaming hallway to a staircase at the other end of the dungeon. They ran up it, winding around and around to a high tower in the castle. Heatherine grabbed a long rope from a box in the tower. It was a grappling hook. She swung it around and with one amazing toss it landed securely on a tree branch just outside the castle. She tied the other end of the rope to a metal brace on the wall. Using metal hooks they slid down, landing with a thud as they flew from the end of the rope. From outside they could now see that the entire castle was engulfed in flames.

Having no choice The Evil Witch exited the castle holding an umbrella. She was enraged at the site of Chrisalot and Heatherine alive. Angrily she began to mutter something, and the tree behind them came to life. Its withered branches acted like hands grabbing Chrisalot and Heatherine. Having nowhere to go they thought this was the end.

As they were awaiting their demise, a violent bolt of lightning crashed down upon The Evil Witch, scorching her umbrella and shocking her. Chrisalot and Heatherine gasped in horror at the sight of The Evil Witch as the pouring rain slowly melted her into a disgusting puddle of purple goo.

Chrisalot and Heatherine decided that they could never be apart again. Knowing that they had found true love and happiness, they returned to the castle where Chrisalot and Heatherine lived happily ever after!!!

Story written by:
Chris Pelczar