Caged

The Vision

"Hello princess," came a slow whisper from behind the marble column. Immediately, Nico sprung back, startled. Her arms flung up, ready to launch an attack at the mysterious intruder, but they quickly fell back to her sides as soon as the man popped his head out. "Zach, you startled me!" scolded Nico.
"Oh, come on princess, I'm sure you'll forgive me eventually," Zach teased.
Nico only scowled. "You know I don't like you calling me princess."
He laughed playfully in response, "Alright, alright, I'll stop. So, can we get out of here?"
She sighed, "Zach, you of all people should know I can't go anywhere today. I have too many royal duties to attend to."
"It'll only take a second," pleaded Zach, "Just to the barrier reef and back."
She pondered this for a second as his facial expression continued to beg. "Oh, alright," replied Nico, "But, I have to be back in less than ten minutes."
"We're the fastest swimmers around! You know we can make it there and back in less than five," claimed Zach. "I'll race you," he taunted as he turned around and bolted out.
"It's on!" exclaimed Nico, quickly speeding out of the castle right after Zach. He had gotten a head start, but it wouldn't be for long. She propelled herself forward by not only moving her tail, but also controlling the water around her. The ability to control water was a talent that all royals possessed, but Zach was no prince, so she held the advantage. She quickly caught up and passed him.
"It took you longer to catch up to me than usual! I think you're a little slow today," he teased.
"Either way, I'm still faster than you!" Nico laughed as she continued her pace. Then suddenly, she stopped cold. She felt dizzy as a headache came on, but she knew this was more than a common sickness. Although she couldn't quite put her finger on what exactly was wrong, she still knew something was off. Zach stopped and looked at her curiously, with a concern beginning to furrow in his brows. Something was wrong, but what? Then,  without warning, images began to race through her mind. She saw a large shadow, looming over the castle. Everything looked like complete chaos as people frantically swam away from the shadow. Parts of the castle, as well as many areas surrounding the castle, had been reduced to rubble. The kingdom was being attacked.  She watched in despair as merfolk appeared to be dragged off by something resembling nets. Wait, nets? Only the humans used nets, and the humans had no way to find them. It would be impossible for the humans to be the culprits of this assault. All of these thoughts went flashing through her head in an instant. Then, as soon as they appeared, they left, and her world was sent spiraling into darkness.