Every Prince Deserves a Princess

Panicked breaths, the scrabbling of hooves upon rock, and the swirling water below all compounded into a cacophonous symphony, synced to the thrum of adrenaline and blood pounding within my skull as I made a desperate bid to leap upward. My injured leg did me no favors as I wildly thrashed it around, trying to find purchase on anything above. Just as I began to fall, the searing pain nearly doubled as I found my hoof caught upon something and immediately struggled to pull the rest of my body up after the leg. The muscles of my foreleg strained, and tiny trickles of blood curled around the limb as I grunted with effort to force myself upward, where I found notches in the rock for my hind legs to grip, at least momentarily. The effort was all for naught, as I soon felt the icy water nipping at my flanks below.

"Moss!" I yelled, only to watch as his short blue tail disappeared from my line of sight. "I cannot swim! Have you a rope!?"

The reply came from near the mouth of the cave, strained and raspy. "A rope? I don't... hold on, I can think of something!"

Curse after curse left my lips as my lower body was engulfed in water, restricting my ability to jump upward once again. I let out a most undignified whimper at the cold sensation, followed shortly by a gasp of horror as my eyes betrayed me and once again looked down to the cold, rising depths. Clumps of Bloodlet were swirling just beneath the surface, their paths wild and unpredictable as each patch was torn apart and scattered haphazardly by the rocky walls and force of the water. Several flecks of the stuff began making its way toward my legs in spiral patterns, and I made one last attempt to kick off the slope below and force myself along the slope.

Midway through the half-leap, a twisted, black vine, unlike any plant I had ever seen, snaked its way over the lip of the incline and straight down to my hoof.

"Grab on!"

Without hesitation, I gripped the long, sinewy structure and worked to wrap it around my hoof. With my hind legs planted firmly into the ground below the water, I began to walk and pull myself upward as quickly as I could, muscles screaming with effort as I fought to escape the cave. The light of my horn flickered softly as I found myself reaching the point of magical exhaustion, and the sudden darkness lead to a slip in footing. My chest slammed hard into the slanted rock, knocking the breath from my lungs as I hung helplessly against the wall, with water fast approaching. Without the ability to breathe, the scramble back to my hooves was difficult, and in the end, far too slow. There was nothing to be done but submit as the water crept up around my neck, and finally, over my head.

My eyes slammed shut on instinct as the hated substance washed over my face and mane. I had always despised the water when I was but a colt, to the point that taking a bath had become a several-hour adventure for my parents. Swimming pools were out of the question, and lakes or oceans?  I would have sooner lopped off my mane and gone bald. Unfortunately, in that moment, I had no choice. A total loss of control overwhelmed me, and I did the only thing I could think of- I opened my eyes once again, only to find myself moving upward, carried forth by the pressure of the rushing tide. The vine around my hoof was nowhere to be seen as I was pushed up and out toward the mouth of the cave, only to be flung like a filly's doll out into the grass, twisting and sputtering along with a torrent of water.

I careened end over end several times, rolling and dirtying my fur even more as I eventually slammed into a large spruce tree, the harsh bark digging into my back. Several hacking coughs forced their way up my throat as I spit water, unable to feel anything but panic as the adrenaline began to ebb. With but one glance upward, the high came right back, and I was on my hooves in seconds.

Moss stood a good twenty feet from me, a hoof tucked under himself as he stared up at the massive beast towering over him. A mismatched creature, one which I had only seen in books, stood menacingly over my companion as it slowly stepped its lion's paws through the water still gushing from the cave entrance. Ragged, discolored fur of short tan and wiry black covered its entire body, the basic structure split between that of a disproportionately large goat's rear and lion's front. The lion head pulled back its lips, snarling at Moss and showing two rows of teeth as the goat head atop its back bleated in what sounded almost like fear. A huge, leonine paw pulled back, ready to swat at Moss while the beast's tail, in the form of a massive serpent, flickered its forked tongue and turned to face me.

"...looks just like you, don't he?"

The chimera swung his paw with an angered roar in response to the taunt, barely missing Moss as the padded limb slammed into the dirt while the tiny pony rolled out of its path. Moss took off at a full sprint through the treeline as I drew my rapier and began to back away, only for the snake head to bare its long, cutlass-like fangs and hiss. The lion and goat did not give chase, and instead, turned to stare at me.

"...oh no. Oh, auntie, please no..." I muttered while walking backwards, taking care to avoid the tree that I had slammed into. I kept my sword-leg aloft, the blade leveled at one of the creature's faces as I realized in horror that the limb was covered in blood. The lion wrinkled its nose and narrowed its eyes, while its giant, catlike lips curved into a wicked smile.

"I'm not going to die like this!" I turned and began to flee, my ears flattened as the lion roared and the sound of heavy limbs thundering forth filled my ears. At a complete loss, I hurled my rapier over my shoulder, praying that the slender blade would embed itself in one of the beast's eyes, or jugular, before breaking into a full sprint through the grass. The motion was met with a scream, and for a moment, I thought I'd actually accomplished something, and turned to look. What I saw instead was the lion's mane caught fire, and the chimera reared upon its hind legs, thrashing wildly.

"One more, asshole!" Moss ran up alongside me and reached a hoof into his shredded cloak, withdrawing one of the flasks he'd packed. A bright orange, fizzing liquid bubbled within for the brief moment I was able to see the container before the pony sent it hurling through the air with an overhand pitch. Another direct hit to the lion's face caused all three heads to cry out at once, singing embers clinging to its masses of fur as Moss put his hoof upon my shoulder once again and spoke in a panicked tone.

"That'll stall it, but we gotta move!"

"You needn't tell me twice!" We took off in tandem through the trees, bobbing and weaving under branches as our opponent continued to roar and knock over trees with its thrashing.

"Hey, you alright? You're bleedin' a ton!"

"I will survive, provided we both do! Focus upon running!" Angry footfalls soon began to upset the otherwise peaceful forest scene, sending a myriad of birds to scatter from their shelter amongst the trees as the chimera sprinted after us through the snow. Moss and I turned to follow the curve on the hill before us, hoping to lose sight of the beast as it crested the mound, where it stopped to survey the area below it while looking in three different directions. No such luck was to be had as the goat spotted Moss' deep green fur against the featureless snow and let out a ringing bleat, drawing the attention of the lion and snake.

"Shit! Moss, how fast are you at full tilt?"

"I can lose him if I gotta, but what about you?"

"I... I have an idea. An idiotic, dangerous idea, but one that might save both of our lives! Give me your cloak. Don't protest!"

To his credit, Moss shed the garment and handed it over without hesitation, running a hoof through his messy mane as he cast a quick glance back at the furious chimera perched high above us before returning his eyes to mine. The beast was beginning to slink down the hill, slow and catlike in its motions as we hatched a suicidal plan.

"Now, you run for the barrier. Cross it, and guards will come to investigate the breach... I only hope that they're fast enough."

"And what about you? You're not actually gonna try to take that thing on, are you, doughboy? Hell, I was surprised you stood up to those conspirators, let alone some legendary hellbeast! What's gotten into you!?"

"I said I had a plan! We have no time to argue, now run along!" I thrust my hoof angrily toward the direction of the barrier, heart pounding as the lion's head, now only a running pounce away, began to bear down on us.

"Ffffffffffffff... fine, but if you get your dumb ass killed... well, it's been fun. See you, Blue." Completely without warning, the stallion leaned forward and wrapped a hoof around the back of my head, snaking his limb through my sopping mane as he pulled my lips directly into his. Too shocked to protest, or really, respond in any way, I simply froze, connected by the mouth to another stallion, who was clearly enjoying the sudden intrusion of my personal space. He broke the kiss after but a few seconds and smirked along with a mocking salute before he took off at full tilt, whistling loudly to draw the giant cat's attention. I stood rooted to the spot like an idiot, watching Moss go. What the hell was he thinking...?

What was I thinking may have been the better question, as the chimera, thoroughly unimpressed with Moss' attempt at distraction, once again turned to me. Without a second thought, I ran in the opposite direction, back toward the cave entrance as I lit my horn to drop a large evergreen between myself and the giant monstrosity. The chimera gave chase, and simply leaped over the fallen tree limb as though it was nothing. It was at that moment that I began to realize that I was likely going to die, and ran through my mind all of my regrets, all of my mistakes, as my legs ran through the new-fallen snow.

So many ponies I'd been nasty to... and deservedly so, but still. I was so hated, so loathed by even family. Were any going to miss me, as I was torn apart and scattered across the snow? Perhaps Moss, if that kiss was anything to go by, but what did the opinion of a beggar count for? Where was the love I deserved from Cadance? Would Shining Armor grieve at all? Would Moss put two and two together and warn him? So many questions, as my mind raced, before I saw my rapier embedded in the snow, not far ahead. I let out a ragged gasp and barreled forward, charging with my horn lowered as I headed straight for the blade. I had only one chance, and so I reached into the cloak tucked against my chest and withdrew a vial.

The stolen patch of Bloodlet moss, along with a bit of cave water, swirled inside the protective glass as I hastily uncapped the tube and inverted it. The deadly agent spilled out onto the cloak, its juices and poison seeping all throughout the fibers and clinging to the fabric due to the sheer cold of the winter's air. I reached the rapier mere seconds later and thrust out my left hoof to grip the guard, using the right to rub the cloth all along the length of the blade, thoroughly coating it with poison. As I stood upon my hind legs, taking a battle stance and holding the rapier outward, the chimera caught up and pounced, both claws aimed for me and its dripping mouth agape. I raised my blade at a high angle, tracing the point toward its throat, and hoping against hope that the moss was as effective as it appeared to be.

The lion's throat met my blade as the entire creature fell down atop me, its claws digging into my shoulders and leaving large gashes and tracts of blood. The rapier pierced into the cat's tender flesh, driving straight up into its throat as I struggled to hold the blade straight through my pain, hissing his with effort as I began to drive it downward, toward the belly of the beast. The rugged flesh and fur resisted at first, and the lion roared with breath that smelled like a decaying carcass directly into my face as I continued to push as hard as I could. After but a few seconds, the moss began to work its magic, and the process became less forcing the slender, flexible blade through the chimera's chest and more... unzipping.

Flesh was easily rent asunder as the blade slipped on through to the beast's bones, cracking and splintering the structures with ease as a trail of gore and organs spilled forth, pouring down onto my face and chest. Hot, steaming blood splashed all throughout my mane while the rapier snapped in half, the upper part of the blade embedded deep within the chimera's lungs as I pushed upward, desperately digging the shattered blade further downward. The hilt and uneven point continued to trail to the goat's abdomen, disemboweling the chimera as the furious roars became cries of pain, mixed with the sound of gargling blood. The goat was the first to die, its head slumping over uselessly as the snake-tail spasmed and twitched. The lion was the last to fall, its giant, expressionless face landing without life across my sword-leg, forcing me to release the rapier.

The heavy body of the beast rested, bleeding freely, atop my own. The great, crushing pressure made it difficult to breathe, as did the tainted blood coating my face and muzzle. I was barely conscious as I felt a hoof grasping one of my own, and looked up to see only a swirl of green and blue, pulling desperately to get me out from under the cadaver. I weakly scooted backward, doing my best to help Moss with freeing me from the sticky, stinking confines of the beast's rent chest cavity. With our efforts combined, I finally slipped out from beneath the body and lay gasping for breath in the snow.

"D-did you... cross the barrier..."

"Yeah. They should be coming any minute now, I hope. The fuck did you do..?"

"I don't know... what I had to..."

I tried to catch my breath, to little success, as I stared at the lion's glassy, lifeless eyes. The beast looked as though it had died in sheer agony, and after what I had witnessed, I wasn't surprised. No creature should suffer a fate so cruel, and I quite honestly found the sight disturbing.

"I did what I had to..."