Lucian moved through the shadowed corridors of Atlantica like a ghost.
Scauldy had dropped him, Flounder, and Simba near a side entrance of the palace.
The massive Scauldron waited in the deeper currents, ready to strike if needed. Lucian's own trident pulsed with soft golden light in his grip as he swam silently, silver-blue tail cutting through the water with practiced grace.
The deeper he went, the worse the corruption became. Twisted polyps lined the halls, their hollow eyes following his every movement. The once-vibrant palace felt like a graveyard.
Then he heard voices, furious, booming voices, echoing from the grand throne room. Lucian pressed himself against a coral pillar and peered inside.
King Triton floated in the center of the hall, trident raised, his massive form radiating raw power. His face was twisted with rage.
"Release my daughters at once, you vile sea witch!" he thundered.
Ursula lounged on a throne made of dark coral and bones, her tentacles lazily drifting.
Ariel and her sisters were trapped in a glowing magical cage nearby, faces pale with fear and fury. Flotsam and Jetsam coiled protectively around their mistress.
Ursula's laugh was low and mocking. "Oh, Triton, always so dramatic. Your precious Ariel signed a contract. She violated one of the clauses. She told her boyfriend about our deal. Therefore, she belongs to me now. Body and soul."
She waved a hand, and a glowing scroll materialized in the water, the golden signature at the bottom unmistakable.
Ariel's eyes widened in horror. "No… I didn't mean—"
"Contracts are binding, little princess," Ursula purred. "Even for royalty."
Triton's grip tightened on his trident until his knuckles turned white. He unleashed a powerful blast of golden energy, but the magic of the contract absorbed it harmlessly.
"Oh, I would be careful if I were you! Strike me down and kill me, and your precious daughters will perish too!" Ursula cackled wildly.
"Enough games!" Triton roared. "Name your price. Whatever it takes to release my daughters!"
Ursula's golden eyes gleamed with triumph.
She had been waiting for this moment.
"Here's my generous offer, Your Majesty," she said sweetly. "You take Ariel's place in the contract. You become my prisoner, my property. In exchange, I will release Ariel and all her sisters immediately. Refuse… and they all stay with me forever."
The throne room fell deathly silent.
Triton stared at his youngest daughter. Ariel shook her head frantically, tears streaming down her face.
"Daddy… don't!"
But Triton's expression hardened with resolve. Without hesitation, he extended his hand.
"I accept."
The contract flared with dark magic. A new signature burned itself onto the scroll beside Ariel's. The moment it was complete, golden chains of energy shot out and wrapped around King Triton. The trident and crown flew from his grasp straight into Ursula's waiting tentacles.
"No!" Ariel screamed.
Triton's body convulsed as the magic took hold. His powerful form shrank rapidly, skin hardening and twisting until he became just another pathetic polyp, rooted to the floor, eyes wide with silent agony.
Ursula threw her head back and laughed, a triumphant, maniacal sound that echoed through every corner of Atlantica.
"Finally!" she crowed, placing the crown on her head and raising the trident high. "I, Ursula, am now the rightful owner of the trident and the crown! I am the Queen of the Seven Seas!"
Power surged through her. The water itself seemed to tremble at her command.
Ariel slammed against the bars of her cage, voice breaking with fury and grief. "You monster! You'll never get away with this!"
Ursula's smile turned vicious. She move near her and pointed Triton's trident directly at Ariel. "Watch me."
A lethal blast of golden-red energy began to gather at the trident's prongs.
Just as she fired a bright golden beam intercepted the shot from the side of the hall.
Lucian burst into the throne room, his own Tideborn trident blazing. "Sorry to crash the coronation, Your 'New' Majesty. But I believe you have something that doesn't belong to you."
[Ding! You have encountered a Special Character: Ursula.]
[You have received: Special Blind Box.]
[Ding! You have encountered a Special Character: Flotsam.]
[You have received: Uncommon Blind Box.]
[Ding! You have encountered a Special Character: Jetsam.]
[You have received: Uncommon Blind Box.]
Ursula's eyes narrowed. "You again? The little exiled prince playing hero?"
She swung the trident toward him. Ariel, seeing the danger, lunged forward inside her cage and grabbed Ursula's arm desperately, throwing off her aim. The blast went wild and slammed into the marble floor, cracking it violently.
Lucian smirked. "Nice shot. Almost hit yourself there."
Enraged, Ursula raised the trident again.
Lucian channeled the power within the trident. Unlike most magical items that rely on it's users own energy, this one drew mana directly from the surroundings, a massive advantage for him, seeing as he possessed no innate mana of his own. He unleashed a crackling, lightning-like blast from the weapon. It was his first true attempt at wielding its full power, and as a result, the attack was raw and uncontrolled. The bolt swerved wildly off course and struck Flotsam and Jetsam instead.
BOOM!
The two eels disintegrated in a flash of electricity and dark smoke.
For a moment, the entire hall went silent.
Then Ursula screamed, an ear-splitting, heartbroken wail of pure agony.
"MY BABIES!" she shrieked, eyes wide with devastation and murderous rage. "You… you killed them!"
The sea witch's body began to swell with dark magic. She grew larger and larger, tentacles thickening into massive pillars, her torso expanding until her head smashed through the roof of the palace and broke the surface of the ocean.
A monstrous giant now towered above the waves.
"YOU WILL ALL PAY!" she bellowed, voice shaking the sea itself.
Dark storm clouds rolled in instantly. Thunder cracked. Lightning flashed. Massive waves churned as a colossal whirlpool began to form, dragging up ancient shipwrecks from the ocean floor. The wrecks spun violently in the vortex like deadly toys.
Chaos consumed the waters.
Lucian remained surprisingly calm amid the apocalypse. He had watch and know the plots of the movies. He had planned for this exact kind of escalation.
He pulled the crimson conch from his satchel and blew into it with all his strength.
A deep, resonant call echoed through the ocean, ancient and commanding.
Ariel, still shaken, looked at him wide-eyed. "What… what is that?"
Lucian lowered the conch, eyes steady. "It's a Bluster call."
Far away, deep in a hidden trench on the seabed, something enormous stirred.
A pair of glowing red eyes snapped open.