[WP] As it turned out, the dragons were the only thing keeping all the knights and princesses in check.

Overpopulation. The dragons all warned us. They said that, without predators to keep them in check, they would grow exponentially until there were so many of them that it was meaningless. But we didn't listen. We were too worried about the dragons melting the icecaps or somethings like that.

The world's changed. Now, due to an overpopulation of knights and princesses, every knight and his lady believe that they can marry and get the local kingdom. Of course, it never really works out that way. When you remove an apex predator, then something down the food chain is going to decrease.

Oh, if only the dragons were still here. I'd gladly let one eat half-a-dozen of the local knights and princesses. There's hardly enough kingdom to go around at this rate- we could use something to cull the lot of us.

I pause in the middle of writing my ramblings to think. My name is Duke Bert. I have seventeen daughters. All of them have a knight that wants to marry them and have the duchy as a wedding present. Do you have any idea how hard it is to divide a duchy into seventeen parts?

I blink as there's a knock on my door, followed by some hushed voices. Rats. Must be one of my daughters. There is a massive crack as Sir Bollock breaks down the door with his gauntleted fist. "Father," my daughter, Guinevere, is standing next to him. "My beloved and I are here to claim our dowry."

I frown and glance at the hulking knight. "Young lady, I hate to break it to you, but you're my thirteenth. Besides, what would your mother think of you breaking down a door to seize your dowry?"

"She says that's what you did."

"Touche," I mutter. I turn back to my book, scribble a few hasty notes, and then walk over to my future son-in-law and my lunatic daughter. "I'll come with you- but I'm not giving away the duchy just yet." Guinevere sighs but nods.

&nbsp

We sit on the field of battle. All of my daughters arrived here today, along with their champions. They're either going to kill each other or make pe- Who am I kidding? They're going to bloody kill each other.

I cast my eyes to the sky. I'm not the most religious man, but if a dragon could come hurtling down from there, that would be great. I tap my foot, hoping that Sir Ernie completed his task.

"Sisters," Guinevere shouts, "my beloved and I lay claim to this duchy. We have the backing of my father-"

"No you don't," I mutter.

She glares at me. "We have the backing of my father, I have the most flamboyant dress, and Sir Bullock is the beafiest knight out here." Growls sound out from her siblings. "So, do any of you wish to surrender?"

My daughters and their knights all shake there heads. The knights charge one another, with my daughters yelling words of encouragement. I sigh. But then there's a rumbling. A massive rumbling.

A dragon, gigantic and terrifying, swoops down from the sky and devours six of the knights in one gulp. Never have I ever been so grateful for manslaughter. The other knights begin to flee in terror as the dragon comes down for a second swing. This time, it grabs Guinevere, flies high into the sky, and vanishes.

I turn to the remaining knights. "You want the duchy? Go save Guinevere." The knights all ride off in a panic. My friend, Sir Ernie, rides up to me, a massive grin on his face. "Where'd you get that?" I ask.

"Nature preserve." I nod in understanding.

/r/WritingPrompts Thread