Chapter V. Epilogue
Months, days, even years passed without notice. Time did not seem to enter that place. It was not always easy. There were still obstacles to overcome but they did it together. They wove a pattern of living that complimented each others’ strengths and compensated each others weaknesses. There were many rooms in the Princess’ castle that had remained closed and unexplored for many years. They found areas that needed repair and the Prince would go out and search for materials or just the right ornament that changed what the Princess considered ugly or flawed into some of the most beautiful and original places and spaces on earth. The door to the castle remained open after that night and was never shut again. The Princess grew more accustomed to the outside world and would on occasion travel some distances with the Prince. He would provide for and protect her on their journeys. She felt safe and open to the wonders of the larger world. But she would always return after their travels, her castle expanded from the experience. She began to bring the outside in and it merged and morphed into an exquisite original beauty. Her nature and unique genius flowed out of her wisdom and familiarity with inside spaces. There she practiced her art and became so skilled that many would travel to witness and be held spellbound by her creations. On occasion she would take a student who seemed promising. Typically she came to realize that they were all older girls or younger women who had never been told or had forgotten that they were of royal blood. The Princess would help them discover their talents and begin to paint the world in their own fashion. Through it all she introduced them to the power of the Dragonfly’s light.
The Wanderer, the Prince had a different journey. While he became more accustomed to the closed spaces, the beauty and the life of the inside, he required Her presence with him to abide there long. His skills with the outside world moved him toward protecting the Princess, exploring new lands, and providing a safe and prosperous existence. His thoughts and motivations all orbited around her save one. And even it had to do with and could effect her. There was one thing which continued to haunt him. He had never fully answered for himself what had happened to his father the king and his family. The terror never again consumed him like it once did but he was always on guard lest something similar happen to he and the Princess. And then one day after a long search he and the Princess discovered his father’s old and abandoned castle. The structure was weakened from many years of neglect. As they entered the broken doorway the Princess took the lead and led them directly into the heart of the place. They began over time to repair the structure and once again to bring light and clean air into the dark shadows. They explored the many closed and neglected spaces and found amazingly wonderful surprises and rare treasures hidden within. Then one day they found a breech deep within the foundations of the castle. After much exploration and study they began to piece together what had happened. Long ago Dark forces had entered through this fissure. There was eventually a great battle for the Kingdom and many kings had been brought low. The King’s forces had managed to beat them back but had suffered great loss in the effort. The Princess discovered that she was indeed of royal blood. And that after great sacrifice her father the High King had been slain, giving his life to protect his people. She had been hidden and secreted away to a far country to protect her. And there she had been fostered by those she knew as her parents.
The enemy, they discovered, existed in that shadowy place between life and death. They produced nothing and had no art or philosophy save domination. They were masters of illusion, intrigue, the lie, and innuendo. They rarely fought open campaigns and generally preferred stealth and manipulation. Some would call them beautiful and were easily enticed by the trappings of life they offered to the poor souls. But the tricks and the trappings always led to walking death and the stale air of the tomb. The beauty they did wear like a garment was itself stolen and was a mere facsimile of the exquisite. It only served to cover the rotten and grotesque forms into which their souls were manifest. They existed to feel, to control, and dominate by any means. They could appear as creatures of light, seductive, generous, or any other shape which served their purpose. But their great perversity denied them the grace of neither death nor life.
They were finally driven back by the focused light of the Dragonfly. The Dark ones could not abide the light for its truth burned them and uncovered their nothingness. In the hands of the kings the Light brought forth strength and wisdom, courage and love. The Dark ones fled before the burning light and the terrible righteous wrath of the Kings.
The couple learned that there had been two Bloodlines at war from the beginning of all things. One which sought to feed on Life, to dominate the dependent, to enchant with security or lust, but finally to subdue and control that which they could not partake of. The other sought the creation of Life, the overcoming of challenges and moving toward the perfection of maturity. It sought not to control or subdue but rather the release of captives from their bonds no matter what form they may take. It was in the Light that they could live and move and have their Being.
But the Prince and the Princess had no real worry. If they ever thought about the Dark ones their worry was for those who were still trapped, still asleep yet dreaming they were awake. But the two together were invincible. The Nothing of the Dark ones had power over them. She guarded the deep places and fissures hidden deep within and he protected them from the wild outside. They fought against the Darkness whenever they found it, enlarging the boundaries of the Light. They expanded their happiness and the happiness of others. They completed rebuilding his family’s castle and remodeled hers making it more open and filled with the lights of hundreds of dragonflies both inside and out. Upon completion they inaugurated and expanded their kingdom to include all the lands and peoples between the two. And they were exceedingly happy all the days of their long lives.
The End . . . of the Beginning