Oh Isthmus you writhing fool, when will you give up? You won’t find it. When he got to the princess’s room he found that she had been up and was waiting for him. She tapped him. “Your Highness! Good morning, sorry for the jump.” the startled SeaWing guard said. “You know one thing that has always bothered me…” she asked. “And that is your Highness?” Trench asked politely. “You apologize for EVERYTHING!” “Sorry about that.” he tried to suppress the laughter, but to his surprise the princess started laughing too. “You really are the funniest dragon in the sea.” they laughed for a bit until Trench remembered what he had to say.

“Your Highness, I am sorry to be so urgent but I have something important to say. I will need you to follow me.” Trench said. “But won’t the queen notice i’m gone?” she asked. “Nope.” Trench replied. He waved to a SeaWing who brought in two statues, one of Trench and one of the princess. “Your Highness, I would like you to meet my sister, Polyp.” Trench nodded subtly at Polyp, who nodded back. “I have something to show you.” Trench led the princess to his small den. The dragonets raced up but paused when the princess entered. They then bowed low and started talking over each other. “Your Highness please have mercy!” they all screamed. “Oh look at them, they are so precious!” the princess bent down to see them better. “Aren’t you the sweetest little things?” she said, pinching their cheeks. They all stood there shocked. “So you’re not going to chop off our heads?” the youngest asked. “Why of course not, who ever told you that?” she looked at Trench. The dragonets began to laugh. “Alright off you go now.” -

Polyp said. They swished off. “Are those yours?” the princess asked. “Nope, cousins. Their parents died in the war…” there was a brief silence as they swam deeper and deeper into the cave until they came to a lightless room. “Your Highness, I saw someone suspicious heading towards the Summer Palace early this morning. They know.” Trench did not want to say who he suspected to be the traitor for he was afraid that if he told the princess, word would get to the queen.

“What if he finds it?” she asked, worried. “He won't.” Trench said with a twinkle in his eye. He winked at Polyp. She returned the wink and proceeded to wave her claw over a small statue of the Summer Palace. It immediately began to make grinding noises and descended. “Your Highness” Trench smiled “It was never in the Summer Palace.” Everyone was silent. “Our family has kept it safe since it was made. An old NightWing friend of one of our ancestors had foretold the Royal Massacre, so he made a small item of some sort and hid it in the Island Palace. He originally intended it for good, but he died the night before the Massacre, after pouring all of his animus power into this object. It would have prevented the Massacre if he hadn’t done this.” Polyp said gravely. There was silence for a moment.

“This thing is so powerful that whoever wields it could rule over all the tribes.” Trench said. Still silence. “So after this, his animus daughter took his journal in which the directions to where it is hidden, and hid it, never to be seen again. ” Polyp said. “She hid it in this cave, deep in the hole, only to be revealed by powerful animus magic. She started spreading rumors that it was hidden in the Summer Palace, and many searched for many years, but none found a clue. Eventually it passed into urban legend, and was forgotten.” Trench added. “But how will we get the directions? We don’t have an animus.” the puzzled princess asked. “ Oh but we do.” Trench said proudly. The princess looked at Trench, who nodded at Polyp, who was suspending a very old waterproof scroll in her claw. The princess smiled. When she looked again at the animus SeaWing’s claw she found that the scroll was gone and that the small statue was back in place. “We’d better get back to the palace before the queen has my head your-

Highness.” Trench pointed out. They all squeezed out of the dark cellar and out into the main living quarters. The princess said goodbye to Trench’s cousins and sister and then swam out of the cave with Trench by her side. They got to the castle only to find the queen walking past the statues. The princess gasped as the statue of Trench raised its claw to salute the queen. Coral nodded and walked by. “Did your sister enchant that too?” the princess asked. “Yep.” the guard replied. Once the queen had passed by they snuck quietly into their ‘places’. shortly after they got into the room the queen returned with Prince Isthmus and her general. “Cerith! Come here my shiny little shell!” the queen ran over to her daughter. “Guard, keep a lookout.” she commanded Trench. “Yes your Majesty.” he replied and gripped his spear.

Isthmus smiled pridefully at Trench, who followed the group to the Deep Palace’s meeting hall. “I’m assuming you all know why I have brought you here?” the queen said. Silence. “Someone was seen early this morning sneaking around the Summer Palace and tapping at certain spots on the ground. Someone knows about it. You all may think that it is an urban legend, but it may be real, and it’s hidden in the Summer Palace. If they should find it, it would be the end of all things as we know them. I will post 15 of my best guards around the palace. I need you to keep an eye out for this dragon.” Coral said. Everyone got up and left. Trench kept his eyes fixed on the thieving prince Isthmus, who smiled menacingly and ran off.

e-

:3 ty!