The White Tower

A Short Story by

Jaanlala

Published by

Copyright 2011 Jaanlala

Publisher’s Note

This short story is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places and incidents either are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, events, or locales is entirely

coincidental.

License Notes

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THE WHITE TOWER

A Short Story

by

Jaanlala

Contents

The White Tower

About the Author

The White Tower

One morning, I wake up by the musical sound of birds singing and the sound of wind sweeping through window in a beautiful harmony. I open my eyes slowly, adjusting them to the bright light that was shining in the room and feel the warmth of the rising sun through a single window.

Where am I?

This is the first question that popped up in my head. But who else can answer that question when I myself do not even know it. It’s as if I have been sleeping with an endless dream and finally wake up, to find myself all alone in a small room without a door. There’s only a window, a mirror, and a white bed I’m now laying on.

Who am I?

That’s a bigger question. I don’t even know who I am. Why am I here? What am I doing? My head is full of questions.

There is no one here. Only sunlight, blowing wind, and songs from the birds.

I hold myself up, walk carefully to the mirror and look at the reflection.

Is that me?

The mirror shows a woman with wavy blonde hair long down to her waist wearing a flowing long white dress. Her face is white glowing pink. Her light pink lips are full. Her blue eyes are round and big. I examine the reflection for a while before heading to the window and look outside. There’s only the sky, sunlight, and a green field carpeted with shrubs out there. I look down and find that the room is frighteningly high from the ground. At that moment, one word pops up in my head.

Tower.

I can’t remember anything before I wake up. So I can't understand why this particular word appears in my head. How long have I been here? Why do I have to

be here? However, in my subconscious, something is telling me that today is the day I will finally get out of this place.

Boom! Boom! Boom!

The rhythm sound that suddenly thunders in startle the singing birds and send them flying into every direction. I look around searching for the source and see a man moving below. In his hand is a long sword reflecting the light, swinging it as he approaches where I stand.

“I’ll rescue you, princess!”

The man looks up at my direction. Is he talking to me? Am I a princess? Will I get out of here today? I am glad, so glad. I will finally leave this place, the place with nothing, to the land of mystery. That man brings hope into my heart.

Prince.

That man must be a prince. The prince who comes to rescue me and get me out of here. The prince who certainly has answers for my every question. The prince who will help me escape this one window tower. This prince is going to set me free.

Crack. Crack! Boom!!!

All of a sudden, there is a chattering noise. I feel the ground is shaking. The green field I looked before is turning into a gigantic monster covered with green glistening scales. It straightens up and stretches its wings, roaring its dreadful voice. The creature is spitting sparks of fire from its mouth. The flame is bright red. I can feel the heat blew pass me.

Dragon.

The word pops up in my head again, as if I have been in this situation before. Whenever something happens in front of me, its definition keep appearing in my head, but there is no memory related to any event at all. I shake that thought out and watch the confrontation between the prince and the dragon in front of me. I clutch at the window frame, concentrating on the situation. The prince swings his sword and quickly charges the dragon. He shows no fear even if the dragon is ten times larger than himself at least.

What makes him so brave?

What drives him to engage himself into a battle with this terrifying and vicious dragon?

What makes him come to rescue me?

Love?

A lot of questions sounded in my head again. I am so glad and excited to get out of here with him. He is risking his own life trying to save me. Does it mean that he loves me?

Slashed!!!

The sudden sound shocked me out of my reverie of questions. The scene before me is the prince’s right arm now soaking in blood. The thick red liquid is pouring on the ground forming a small pool. My heart beats faster and harder.

No. No. I cry louder and louder inside. I wish I could get out of here. Which way should I head to?

No. There is no way to go. The hope in front of me is going to be destroyed.

What should I do?

What should I do?

What should I do?

What I am yearning for now is freedom. Freedom that I have no idea what it is like. I stretch my hands forward knowing it will not be reached. I don’t want this hope to crumble. I want to get out of here. I want to get out of here. I want to get out of here. My wish is getting louder and louder. Then, the dragon is about to strike the prince.

“No!!!”

I scream and launch myself out of the window, freefalling to the ground with little chance to survive.

I am not going to wait for the prince to come up.

I will not wait for any hope.

I am going to be the one who makes the leaving. Heading to the unknown freedom.

Thud!

Fall on a soft ground, I slowly get up to my feet. The soft ground I am standing on appears to be the hard scales. However when I touch it, it is unbelievably soft. As soon as I compose myself, the shiny scales tell me that this is the body of “the dragon”. I stand there, confused. How did the dragon get here? But when I look up, I see the prince soaked in blood running directly to me. He uses his other hand to grab mine and take me to the white horse tied to a tree. We mount the horse and ride off quickly. As the stallion run, I look back to the tower, I see the dragon lying on the ground defeated. Its blood painted the ground red. There is still some small sparks of fire out of its nostril, meaning the dragon is still alive, but just only.

“Don’t go, princess, please. Please stay with me. Stay with me here.”

The man-like whisper grows more and more faint as I move further away from the tower. I am in more doubt but try to shake it off and turn to face the prince. He who rescued and set me free, the man before me has a handsome face and twinkling eyes. He is tall and his hair is shiny. His beautiful pale face looks at me with kind eyes. So this was what they called glorious and valiant.

“How is your right arm?”

I ask the condition of the prince’s right arm which the blood started to congeal now.

“No need to worry, my lady. This blood you see does not belong to me.”

The prince’s deep voice answers me promptly. I sign almost with relieve, but in my heart, I still wonder about the last soft voice I heard back at the tower.

The princess. The prince. The perfect match. Nothing could be more compatible. Everything is in the way it meant to be. The prince rescued the princess. The princess waited for the prince. Then, when everything was in place, the royal wedding would begin. The princess. The prince. Living happily ever after.

The story might have ended happily here, but this story has yet come to an end. Something happens after that. As time goes by, it is like magic without reason, or maybe it is a hideous curse that changes the prince. The glorious and valiant prince turns into a horrible and disgusting being. The prince starts to change. No one knows why. There is no reason. No cause. The princess watches as the prince

turns into something ugly and cruel. The expanding body. Vicious eyes. Old images come back to the princess’ mind once more.

“Dragon!!!”

Once the princess sees that, she runs, runs, runs, and keeps running without rest. Where her destination is, no one knew. Nonetheless, the princess keeps running and running.

“Do not leave me. I love you. I will protect you.”

The prince’s voice from the green winged creature grows louder and louder as he breaths out flame.

“I am afraid, so afraid. I’m afraid of that ugliness.”

The voice inside speaks, driving the princess to run further and further away.

Nothing can stop her running.

But…

Boom!!!

Suddenly, there’s thunder strike. Bright light flashing everywhere. Everything becomes blur for the light consumes it all, as if it something is about to end, or to begin.

At the tower, the tower with no exit, lay a body of a young lady on a white bed, sleeping in an endless night. Slow or fast, long or short, eternal or temporary, however it was, everything was just a dream.

“I am willing to close my eyes and rest here, until the time comes. I believe one day, I will meet the prince - my real prince.”

No matter how beautiful it seemed, if the love is not true, it would change.

If one does not know love, things happening to them would become a cycle, over and over.

No princess. No prince.

No beautiful words. No fairy tale. No story of two people bonding.

It would just be a tower, a dragon, and an oblivious young woman.

About the Author

This being from the Fail Planet had upgraded herself from an online writer-wannabe to a published writer with Yayee-Yajai publishing house in Thailand a very long time ago. A few of her work, varied directly on the idleness (entertainment excluded), had been published. She writes short stories from time to time depending on what came up in her mind. After being a lingerie designer for a while, she who was forced to do every single position the company can think of plus the long commute, decided to resign. Now, Jaanlala works as a freelance art designer aligning with writing fictions.

You can also meet Jaanlala at:

Facebook: www.facebook.com/failplanet

Twitter: @jaanlala

Blog: failplanet.deviantart.com, jaan.exteen.com

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