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Either way, I waded through the death and the rot of the forest toward the castle. Dawn was approaching, and it felt like a ticking time bomb. Nerves climbed up my spine as I made it toward the bayou surrounding the castle.
The lone wolf’s howl slithered under my skin the further my feet sank into the mud.
It took all of my strength to get past it. I grabbed a handful of grass and pulled myself out with what little strength I had left.
Gasping for breath, I looked up at the trellis twining up the side of the castle. It was a long way, but I knew venturing into the castle wouldn’t work. She'd catch me easily if I walked through the front door. I needed an element of surprise.
I braced my palms against my knees and breathed in deeply.
Sunlight began to peek over the mountains. A silent threat that I wouldn't make it if I didn't hurry.
I grabbed the trellis and began to climb the castle. Defeat hung over me like an umbrella. This had to work. I had to do this. If I was the man in the fairy tale or not, I had to kill her.
The loud roar of a dragon vibrated my bones. Her shadow hovered on the top of the castle as I made it over the brick. Sunlight blinded me for several seconds as I wielded my sword and braced myself for impact.
Her dragon moved slowly on the roof of the castle, her large tail swinging as she shot fire out of her mouth and over the bayou.
She hadn't noticed me because of my size. She was overpowering, clumsy because of her size, and unaware of anything other than her dragon's needs.
Deidamia bent her legs in preparation for flight when I crawled underneath her, watching her serpent-like movements slither above me.
She had completely shadowed me.
Her size was enormous.
Taking my one chance, I stepped on the edge of the roof and shoved my sword into her chest.
She roared loudly, swinging her tail and stumbling on the roof. Her inability to control her dragon was evident. It was the only time to kill her. The only time she wasn't self-aware.
It took one second for me to lose my footing as blood began to pour from her chest. I saw the defeat in her dark eyes as her dragon slumped, and she fell onto the side of the roof, as if she was watching the final show.
Bricks fell to the ground as I toppled over toward the ground. Seeing the light drain from her eyes as she stared down at me made the moment surreal.
I was taking a life while losing my own.
I’d defeated Deidamia in seconds. I just needed the courage to face the dragon that she hid inside.
The stories of the castle drifted by me in slow motion. Falling to your death isn’t as fast as I pictured. Curling my arms around my head, I closed my eyes and prayed for Josephine.
I was losing my second soulmate because of an unfair game of life.
She’d move on. I was sure she would. Josephine was bright, strong, and youthful.
Things I wasn’t sure existed in me anymore, but she brought them out. The breath in my lungs sucked out of my body, and I gasped for breath. The ground neared and I braced to die.
With Deidamia dead, I was sure the curse would end, right?
I’d die from this fall, and the world would continue.
Only my body halted before I hit the ground. The pain I knew that would radiate through me like lightning didn’t happen.
I stopped inches from hitting the hard rocks. I hovered like something out of a superhero movie.
I lifted my head, expecting to see Ernest, but it wasn’t.
Josephine stood in the middle of the bayou, covered in slime and mud with both hands out and shock written all over her face.
The powers she didn’t want to have emitted out from her hands. The shock hit her hard, and she dropped me the rest of the way.
