The sound of unsheathed steel fills the hall. Guards hidden in alcoves and behind Eric materialized as if out of thin air.  Their skin and connected armor shifted from see through to different tones of blue. 

Rough hands grabbed Colin from behind. He heard Max yell next to him as he was grabbed by the guards too. A look of betrayal crossed the boys face as the guards dragged him off. 

"Don't hurt him" Colin pleaded, looking at Eric. His older brother stood tall, his shoulders squared back. The crown, simple iron, sat perfectly above his cobalt blue eyes. He looked every bit their father. 

"I won't" Eric smirked. "It'd do no good to do that" he held his arms out to his side, as if expecting an embrace, but dropped them quickly as if he just noticed the guards "let him go. He won't do any harm" he looked at the guards with a patient smile. 

The moment the guards loosened their grip, Colin sprung forward, fist aimed right at Eric's face. It never connected. 

~~~~

Max sat in the damp cell with his knees pulled up to his chest. The guards said this was the driest they had, yet there was at least a few inches of water flooding the ground. 

How had this happened? Why did he even go to the cave with his friends? He knew it was a bad idea! He could have talked them out of it. 

Thoughts like that raced through his head as he stared off into space. He imagined what was happening to them in that- dungeon of a castle they fell into. And who were those two people who took them? Powers like that were only true in fairy tales. And mind control hadn't been practiced in years because it was illegal, for obvious reasons. 

There was something moving through the water again. Max backed into the corner as best he could. The slab that was supposed to serve as a bed was just at the top of the water. With the thing swimming around, the water ripples and almost spills onto the granite slab. 

Max shivered as the cold water splashed up over his feet. The thing continued to explore his cell before moving on, swimming through the bars. He assumed it was a fish the squid had trained. Maybe it was a piranha. His imagination was getting the better of him. 

There was suddenly the sound of rushing water. Several other prisoners screamed, but were cut short as the sound of water got closer. Max stood up and pressed his back against the wall. The water in his room started to recede and flow out the bars. A crashing wave followed, and continued down the hall. 

Max threw his arms over his head and waited for the inevitable. He waited, and waited. Slowly, he lowered his hands and looked around confused. The water rushed past his cell, taking guards and other prisoners with it. Torches went out, and the only light came from the single torch in the top of his cell and from the glowing bodies of some of the squids. 

Surprisingly, Max heard footsteps. He didn't know where they were coming from, but they sounded like they were getting closer. 

He jumped off the slab onto the ground and was surprised to find it completely dry. The footsteps stopped as he was looking at the ground. A man cleared his throat. 

"You're a long way from home" he said. Max looked up and his jaw dropped. 

Notch stood in front of him, surrounded by a bubble of air. He had a friendly smile on his face and the door to the cell was open. 

"Please, let's get going. I can't stand the smell of fish for long" Notch joked. Max gave a small nod and walked forward. He stopped at the edge of the cell.

"A- am I dead?" Max asked. His voice shook. Yours would too if you thought you died. 

Notch chuckled in reply. "No, you're not dead. If you were, I wouldn't be the one to come get you" He reached out and took Max's hand. In an instant, the ocean faded away.

Max looked around at the beautiful white hall he now stood in. 

"There's a lot to go over" Notch said as he started walking. "Please, follow me.  You probably have a few questions" 

Max nodded and walked after.