A sound like something pulling up from the water came after what felt like hours for the boxed princess. She tried her best to press an ear to where she thought the sound came from.

  “Haliegh, do you see anything?”

  “Some girl just showed up.”

  “A girl girl, or a woman girl?”

  “What is that even supposed to mean?”

  Some other sounds followed after the first, making it seem like more followed this mysterious girl. Fiona figured they must be by a pool. Perhaps the only entrance to the prison was through some underwater passage that a land dweller couldn’t get through in a single breath.

  A sound like a bat hitting a ball filled the space, then a new voice spoke up. It was soft and gentle, with a wavering tone like the speaker, probably just a bit younger than the blue princess, wasn’t sure how to convey authority.

  “I, Goldie, I speak for Maervixs.”

  Fiona shouted from her box, “What’s a Maervixs?”

  “Fiona!” Haliegh snapped. Switching to a more apologetic tone, “I’m sorry, she’s a little grumpy from being locked in such a small space. She doesn’t mean to offend you, Miss Goldie, or the men with big spears.”

  “It okay. Me Maervix, he Maervix too. My people, Maervix.”

  The blue princess was sure they had encountered the legendary Xenototes. She was slightly disappointed to hear that it was some other group she had never heard of.

  “I see,” the green-haired girl said from outside the box. “It is an honor to meet the Maervix people. I hail from the Netzian tribe, located on the far side of the continent, and my friend here,” some taps came from the top of the box, “hails from the Aqueenian people. My name is Haliegh, and her’s is Fiona. We mean you no harm.”

  “Wow, you’re pretty good at this diplomacy stuff!”

  “Shut up, Fiona.”

  “You mean no harm? Yet you come on devil ship?”

  “It’s no devil ship!” The princess cried, “It’s a submarine!”

  “What, my boxed friend is trying to explain, is that we didn’t realize our vessel was insulting to your culture. I must convey my deepest apologies.”

  “You tell no lie. Me surprised.”

  “Of… of course I wouldn’t lie to you!”

  “Tell me truth, your friend have powers?”

  “Um, yes, yes, she does, but she won’t use them to harm anyone or run away if you let her out! Right, Fiona?”

  A chance to escape the box presented itself, and Fiona wasn’t going to pass it up. She could figure out what they were going to do once she was free.

  “Dast! I think Sun is sleeping anyway!” Despite still being attached to her arm, the Neediamus was being oddly quiet.

  Goldie made an odd sound that Fiona assumed meant she was thinking.

  “Very well. Open box.”

  Heavy steps closed in, and latches were undone. Soon, Fiona burst from the newly opened top with her arms in the air. Two tall and wide scaled men pointed spears at her. She stretched and loosened her shoulders as best she could.

  A case of literary theft: this tale is not rightfully on Amazon; if you see it, report the violation.

  One of the men was red and the other blue. Both somewhat resembled Zenototes, though scales had gone to the wayside in favor of smoother skin and sharp, webbed fingers. They still looked like what she expected from a Xenotote, being a deviation of their lizardy friends, but Fiona figured it was best to keep that to herself as she eyed the spears.

  The speaker did look to be about the same age. She was slender and made all the more frail-looking by how she held her arms close to her chest. Her face was flat, and a solid white, and smooth, golden skin hung from her head in a manner that looked like a fish tail, and like a ponytail. From head to toe, it looked as if the golden portions of her body covered her arms and legs, and the white ran down from her face like a stripe. What looked like a simple swimsuit covered her body just enough to hide her stomach.

  “Goldie is right! She’s shiny,” Fiona blurted out before she could think.

  The red spearman cocked his head to the side, but instead of saying anything to the princess, he turned to Goldie instead and said something in another language. She replied in the same sounds before looking back at Fiona and Haliegh.

  “He say don’t make sudden move.”

  Fiona saluted.

  The soldiers jumped and thrust their spears close to her face.

  Goldie chuckled. She said something in a light voice in the other language, and the soldiers lowered their spears. They marched to the side of the room and vanished into a pool of water. Despite being out of sight, Fiona could still clearly see the red profile of the one lurking just below the water.

  “You fairly shiny too,” the golden girl said. Her crossed arms loosened up, and she stepped closer. “You should avoid moving. They not know that sign.”

  Fiona carefully stepped outside her box. She tried to kick it away, but found a pain shoot up her foot instead. While the princess nursed her toes, Haliegh spoke up.

  “How is it that you know our signs and language?”

  “I study. Maervixs think it good for visitors.”

  “Well, I thank you for being able to speak. Fiona appreciates it too.”

  The blue princess pressed her foot to the stony floor and did her best to nod through the aching toes. Haliegh continued, “Now that you know we mean no harm, we can go, right?”

  Goldie frowned, and her arms grew tighter together.

  “You not bad, but Goldie not make decision. Leader must, and leader think you are bad.”

  “Well,” Fiona chimed in with a wink, “just tell your leader how nice we are! We can even do some, uh, uh.” She looked at the Netzian girl with the best ‘help me’ expression she could manage.

  “Cultural exchange!” Haliegh jumped in, “I’m sure you would love to hear about the goings on in Resh the last…. Well, who can say how long it’s been?”

  “Yeah, and it’s not like we would run away or anything!” Fiona lied.

  Goldie’s eyes grew wide, and she shook her head. Taking several steps back.

  “Leader say land is all war. Outsiders bring war. You come on devil ship. Now you lie. You only want to run. You run to bring other warbringers?”

  “No. No.” Haliegh jumped in. “We don’t want to start a war or anything.”

  “Lies. More lies.”

  Goldie began to back up to the pool. Fiona could see a frazzled look on Haliegh’s face. She could tell the green-haired girl was buckling under the pressure of things going south. If Goldie was their only means to communicate with their captors, they shouldn’t be off to such a bad start. She had to do something. Something useful at that. Not just blurt out what was on her mind.

  Think. Think. She echoed in her head. What would a good royal person do? Yet, nothing came to mind. She wasn’t a good princess; she was a fool born into an easy life. If it were Donn, he would have already become best friends with the captors and gotten an audience with the king.

  Then the thought stuck her, like a brick to the head. She imagined there was a clunk to accompany her stroke of idiocy.

  “Hold on now. Look, this is my Needaimus,” she held her bonded arm up, “Do you know what that is?”

  Goldie nodded.

  “Good, now I’ll take him off,” she tapped her Needaimus, and it broke free from her arm. “And set him in this box. You can see I have to lean way forward to reach him. Then I’ll come sit here.” She took several steps away from the box and sat on the stony floor. “Now, if I wanted to try something funny, I’d have to try to run all the way over there, and you could easily escape into the pool.”

  Godlie nodded. Her arms seemed to loosen up some.

  “So, why don’t we forget all the devil vehakul, and warmongering, and just start fresh as friends.” Fiona patted the floor in front of her, inviting Goldie to sit. “I’m Fiona, Second Princess and Third child to the Whitlock Family of the Aqueenian peoples.”

  Goldie sat on the floor, and Fiona extended a hand. “It is nice to meet you.”

  “Nice meet you.” Godlie accepted.

  Fiona grinned at Haleigh and patted the floor again to invite the Netzian girl to join. She looked stupefied, but obliged and sat next to the princess.

  Fiona felt stupefied as well. Who knew trying what Donn might do would work out so well.

  “Now, let’s talk!”