[ WP ] The hero is tasked with saving the damsel in distress from the beast . Just when he 's about to slay it , the creature responds with its dying breath : `` Kill me if you wish , but please never let her come to harm . ''

The deed was done, and the battle won. Instead of celebrating in my victory, I had begun to realize just what a terrible and unforgivable mistake I had made. 
 
 Like all the Knights in the Kingdom, I sought to prove my worth with a noble quest. Over the years, dozens of Knights had attempted to save the Queen of the Northlands from the mighty Dragon that had kept her imprisoned in an old, black castle far from all the civilized lands. If any Knight could rescue her, surely she would agree to marry my lord and King and unite our two lands once and for all....I asked my King, before starting this quest, why he would wish to marry a noblewoman he had never seen before. He smiled... that sad smile that seemed to always be on his furrowed brow these days, and simply said that it was one of the many duties that came with the crown. And with his blessing, I was off to kill the Dragon. 
 
 The journey itself was deadly... across lands and swamps hostile to any living thing, but especially to a Knight of the Kingdom. The further I got from my lords castle, the less weight his banner carried....these lands were populated by savage serfs, that taunted and jeered as I rode by. They would offer no aid and no shelter as I made my journey. The closer I got to the dragons castle, I actually noticed disturbing images in the villages I rode through. Statues of dragons, and inns and farms that proudly bore his vile, demonic image. Obviously living under the tyranny of the beast for so long had driven these poor fools to madness. As I got closer to the castle, I also noticed what appeared to be... soldiers, of a sort, dressed in a reddish leather armor carrying weapons I had never seen before. As the drawbridge came into sight, they attacked! 
 
 It was a battle of no consequence. Although I was outnumbered, their hide armor offered little protection, and I was easily able to finish them one by one with my sword. Only one of them got in a lucky strike with one of their strange weapons, and to my great surprise, its bladed tip tore through my armor with the greatest of ease. After dispatching the one who wielded it, I inspected it further and realized that it was actually no more than a simple staff, topped with a single dragons tooth. I slipped the tooth into my bag, and began to figure out a way into the great beasts lair. 
 
 In no time, I was in. The castle was dark, and appeared to be deserted. I could hear what sounded like snoring, and smell the stench of sulfur coming from the lowest levels....carefully, I made my way down. There, sleeping on the floor, surrounded by treasures more plentiful than any man could imagine, was the legendary dragon. It looked....older, than I had imagined. Its scales were sickly and grey and many of his teeth were no more than broken stumps. As I drew closer, his great eye opened and fixed upon me....I was frozen in momentary fright. `` So....another knight come to kill me. Well... get on with it then.'' Still... I could not believe what came from the beasts mouth. How had he not incinerated me on the spot? Why did I still breathe? `` WELL.....GET ON WITH IT FOOL'', roared the dragon, slowly crawling to his feet. I began to move....swinging mightily with my sword, to no effect. The beast was now fully awake, and his roars were deafening. No matter what I hit him with, nothing made so much as a scratch on his great skin... and then I remember the tooth. Pulling it from my pouch, I waited until the beast was at eye level and then jammed it into the spot right between his eyes. He screamed....a scream that only a beast from hell itself could scream. As he fell, he looked at me one last time with what almost seemed to be sadness in his eyes, and said `` Kill me if you wish, but please... never let her come to harm''... and with that, he shuddered and gave one last sigh and was gone. 
 
 `` Well it's about damn time'' came a sharp, shrill voice from behind. Turning to the stairs, I saw the Queen herself. She was older than I had imagined... with sharp, hard features lined with age and the beady eyes of a market salesman. `` Do you have any idea how much I can get for a dead dragon? ``, she asked, with barely concealed glee. She congratulated me on my victory, and asked which King I served. She rolled her eyes when I mentioned my lord, and scornfully rebuked the idea of marriage to him. She gave me a message to take back to my lord... the lands of the Dragon were now hers to control, and if he had any quarrel with that she would be more than happy to settle matters on the battlefield. She then asked if I would be willing to harvest the dragons corpse in return for a small fee. When I refused, she called me a stupid fool, and began searching the dungeon for tools sharp enough to do the job herself. I noticed she seemed healthy... for a prisoner, she was well kept. I dont know how long she had been here, but the dragon had obviously cared for her as well as he could. The beasts last words echoed through my thoughts, and I had to wonder if in killing one beast, I had unleashed a worse monster on all our lands. Still... I felt something almost like pity for the Queen... I had killed quite possibly the only creature that ever could or would love her. I turned and began the long journey back to my King, leaving behind the sounds of the Queen gleefully chopping away at her one true love....
