Chapter 40 – New Companion I

Princess Selena stumbled out of the portal and landed in a dense, unfamiliar forest. The moment her feet hit the ground, the portal behind her vanished into the air, leaving her completely alone in the pitch-black night. The trees towered above her, their thick canopy blocking any moonlight from reaching the ground. The darkness seemed alive, swallowing every sound in an eerie stillness, except for the occasional rustle of leaves and distant cries of unseen creatures.

Disoriented, Princess Selena tried to get her bearings, but nothing looked familiar. Panic began to creep up her spine. She had always been at ease under the endless expanse of the ocean, but here, on land, surrounded by the oppressive weight of the forest, she felt a deep sense of vulnerability. “Shawn?… Makara?” she called out, her voice trembling slightly. The sound echoed off the trees, but there was no reply—just the quiet rustling of leaves in the wind.

This was her first time away from the ocean for an extended period, and she felt completely out of her element. The ground beneath her feet was uneven, the air chilly and biting against her skin. She heard strange nocturnal animals stirring in the underbrush, making her nerves tingle. A tightness gripped her chest, the realisation dawning that, here in this wilderness, she was utterly alone.

“Stupid me,” Princess Selena muttered to herself, her frustration boiling over. “What was I thinking, following those two idiots through the portal?” She grumbled as she steadied herself by grabbing the rough bark of a nearby tree. The forest felt like a cage around her, suffocating and foreign. She had always envisioned herself as a graceful, powerful princess of the seas, not someone stumbling through a forest in the dead of night, unprepared and unsure. “Those idiots—telling me, the Princess of Atlantis, to go back home. I’ll show them how stubborn I can be.”

Her thoughts were a storm of frustration, fear, and determination. She wasn’t one to back down, especially not when her pride was at stake. But as she pushed deeper into the forest, she couldn’t help but feel a growing sense of dread. Everything around her felt hostile, unfamiliar, and dangerous. The shadows in the trees seemed to move as if watching her, and each step forward felt like walking into the jaws of some unseen predator.

Just as she began to doubt her decision to follow Shawn and Makara, a flicker of light caught her eye. A small, faint glow, like the flicker of a flame in the distance. Her heart leapt with hope. “That must be them,” she thought, quickening her pace. “Shawn and Makara, probably sitting around a campfire, laughing and eating without a care in the world while telling me to go home.” She muttered under her breath, pushing her way through the underbrush. “They think they can leave me behind? I’ll teach them a lesson.”

As she approached the light, her anticipation grew, the faint glow of the fire guiding her steps. But something wasn’t right. The closer she got, the more she realised the scene before her wasn’t what she had hoped. Instead of finding Shawn and Makara, she stumbled upon four armoured figures sitting around the fire, tearing into roasted meat and laughing in low, gruff voices.

Her heart skipped a beat. These weren’t her companions. They were King Azure’s soldiers.

The firelight illuminated their faces—hardened, cruel men, their eyes gleaming with malice. The soldiers wore the insignia of King Azure’s army, and the sight made Princess Selena’s stomach churn. She had walked right into the enemy’s camp.

For a brief, fleeting moment, there was mutual confusion. The soldiers stopped mid-bite, their eyes locking onto the lone figure of Princess Selena standing at the edge of their camp. It was as if time froze—the crackling of the fire and the rustling of the leaves were the only sounds in the deafening silence. Then, their confusion turned to suspicion. One of the soldiers, a hulking figure with rippling muscles barely contained by his armour, slowly stood up. His scarred face twisted into a sneer as he drew his sword with a slow, deliberate motion. The metallic hiss of the blade sent a shiver down Princess Selena’s spine. The other soldiers stood as well, their eyes narrowing as they assessed the situation to determine who the stranger was.

The burly soldier started walking towards Princess Selena, his sword gleaming in the firelight. His steps were slow, predatory, like a beast savouring its prey before the kill. “Well, well,” he said, his voice a low, mocking rumble. “What do we have here? A little girl lost wandering in the woods, uh?” His comrades chuckled darkly, their eyes gleaming with violent intent.

Princess Selena’s breath caught in her throat, her mind racing. She had been trained as a warrior, but never had she been in a situation like this—a real life-and-death encounter. Her muscles tensed, but fear rooted her to the spot. Her hand instinctively reached for the weapon on her back, but the overwhelming menace in the soldier’s aura froze her in place.

The soldier approached, his sword raised. “What’s the matter, little girl?” he sneered, mistaking her silence for weakness. “Lose your way?”

Princess Selena’s heart pounded in her chest, her mind screaming for her to move, to fight, to do something, but she stood paralysed, the darkness of the forest closing in around her. The weight of her title, her royal upbringing, meant nothing here in this moment. She was just a target to these men—prey to be hunted and killed. The burly soldier drew closer, raising his sword higher, preparing to strike. The firelight flickered ominously, casting long, twisted shadows around them.

Just as the soldier’s sword arm tensed, ready to bring down the final blow, something ignited within Princess Selena. Her long years of rigorous training surged through her veins, overpowering the fear that had gripped her moments before. In that instant, her heart and instincts acted faster than her mind. A rush of adrenaline surged through her, sharpening her focus. With a swift motion, she grabbed the Atlantean weapon given to her by General Kelathor and the Ocean Master, an ancient Atlantean artifact. Her hands twisted the small rod in opposite directions as it extended into a long, gleaming staff. The soldier’s sword descended, but Princess Selena was ready. She raised her weapon above her head in a defensive block, bracing herself for the impact.

The two weapons collided with a deafening crash, sending vibrations through both of Princess Selena’s arms. Her body trembled under the immense force, but her Atlantean staff held firm. The soldier, caught off guard by her sudden defence, staggered as his sword was pushed away, knocked out of alignment by the strength of the impact. A shock-wave rippled outward from the collision, extinguishing the campfire and sending embers spiralling into the dark sky.

The burly soldier stumbled back a few paces, his eyes wide with shock and anger. He hadn’t expected such resistance from a little girl, but even as he staggered, Princess Selena wasn’t left unscathed by the clash. The force of the blow sent her sprawling backwards, her body hitting the ground hard. Grass and dirt scattered beneath her as she skidded several feet back, the wind knocked from her lungs.

Gasping for breath, Princess Selena fought to steady herself, pushing up with trembling arms, her palms digging into the cold earth. Her body screamed in protest, every muscle aching from the fall. But it was too late to recover—she saw the burly soldier already moving toward her again, his expression twisted with rage and intent to kill. He raised his sword high, ready to strike her down with a single, brutal blow.

Princess Selena’s eyes darted frantically toward her weapon, her heartbeat thundering in her ears. The staff, her only means of defence, lay just out of reach, knocked from her grip during the intense clash before. She stretched her hand toward it, desperation fuelling her every movement, but before she could grasp it, the soldier’s heavy boot slammed down onto the staff. The force of his foot pinned the weapon to the ground, cutting off her access. Princess Selena’s hand froze just inches away, her pulse quickening as she looked up at the hulking soldier.

His face twisted with sadistic pleasure, the sword raised high above his head, ready to bring it down in a killing blow. Princess Selena’s heart raced, her breath shallow as panic clawed at her insides. The ground beneath her seemed to dissolve, the world narrowing to the steel blade hovering above her. Time slowed as she felt herself teetering on the edge of death.

Instinctively, Princess Selena closed her eyes, bracing for the inevitable strike. The roar of the soldier echoed in her ears as he swung his sword down with brutal force, the sound of the wind cutting through the air around the blade. For a split second, everything seemed to freeze, a moment suspended in time where Princess Selena could feel the weight of her fate bearing down on her.

But then, something happened.

The roar of the soldier was abruptly cut off, and the expected impact never came. Princess Selena opened her eyes slowly, confusion and disbelief flooding her senses. Standing before her, between her and the burly soldier, was Shawn.

His presence was surreal, as if he had appeared out of thin air. His left hand had caught the wrist of the soldier’s hand descending the sword, gripping it firmly, while his right hand was pressed against the soldier’s chest. The force of the soldier’s strike had been completely halted, Shawn holding the soldier’s hand as though it weighed nothing. The massive, brutish man looked down at Shawn, his face a mask of utter shock.

The other soldiers, standing around the campfire, stared in stunned disbelief. They had watched their comrade prepare to finish off the girl, only to witness the sudden and impossible arrival of this young boy. Confusion rippled through their ranks as they exchanged bewildered glances, none of them able to process what had just happened. The burly soldier, his mind struggling to comprehend the situation, tried to free his hand from Shawn’s grasp, but it wouldn’t budge. His eyes widened in a mixture of fear and rage as he realised that this boy had not only stopped his attack but rendered him completely powerless in that moment.

Princess Selena, still lying on the ground, felt her heart leap as she took in the sight of Shawn standing between her and the soldier. Tears welled up in her eyes, a wave of relief crashing over her as she tried to comprehend what had happened in mere moments. Shawn’s expression remained calm, almost serene, as if the chaos around him didn’t faze him at all. Princess Selena blinked, still processing everything.