Treasure

Chapter 3

They had been at sea a couple of days, still on their way to Arendelle. Emma spent her time talking with August and her other crew members, she even helped in the kitchen to keep busy. She was currently in her quarters below deck, preparing for the day. The princess studied herself in the mirror as she brushed her long blond hair, erasing the tangles. Her face, still slightly red from sleeping. She studied her dress, it was royal blue with small sleeves that barely passed her shoulders and a slight v-neck, it hugged her small waist and flowed out just above her knee. She felt it was perfect for just walking around the ship. She then finished off her outfit with the swan necklace her parents gave her a few days ago.

Emma was about ready to leave her quarters when all of a sudden... BANG. The boat rocked with great force, knocking over the pile of books on her bedside table as well as her lantern. Then another bang had sounded this time she lost her balance. The boat continued to rock with great force as Emma tried to regain balance. Unsure of what was happening she made her way to her door and found many of her knights running down the hall, none showing any manners as they rushed past her without a word. Normally rude manners like this at the castle would have been addressed, but Emma had no time to worry about their mannerism at the moment, she knew something was wrong.

As the princess made her way above deck she only saw true horror. Many of Misthaven's finest knights were on the ground, blood surrounding their lifeless bodies. Limbs not moving nor their bodies moving to breathe, they were dead. She had never seen such horrible things as her parents made sure she never had to. Her eyes watered, the pain of seeing her knights dead ached her heart, their job may have been to protect her but that was still her people, the people she was one day to protect.

    "Princess, you must go now and hide! They haven't seen you yet they're in the armory, we may be able to ride this out.." August said in a panic, not making any sense.

Emma was confused and still distracted from all the bodies in front of her, tears running down her face.

    "Hide from who, August? What has happened to my people?" Emma asked as August pulled her into the shadows of the ship.

    "You must remain out of sight, they don't know you're here. They've come for treasure." August said, ignoring her distraught state. He was only focused on protecting her like he always had.

Before Emma could get another word in, he left as sounds of grumbles and heavy footsteps came from the other side of the ship. She couldn't see much due to the tears in her eyes, but she heard swords clash and loud thumps as bodies hit the floor. She wiped her eyes, now was not the time to cry.

Emma stepped out of the shadow, ignoring August's earlier demand and she was glad. What she saw was pirates, overpowering her army. She had to admit these strangers were indeed strong as they took out many of her finest knights effortlessly. Her thoughts halted when she saw August's body hit the wooden planks of the ship. His sword had flung out of his hand and was too far for him to reach as a heavyset man hovered over him, sword held to his throat.

    Before Emma could think she ran out of the shadows and yelled "STOP!" her voice cracking only a little.

Surprisingly, her few remaining knights and the pirates stopped and looked at her. She ignored the pirates' hungry looks at her and focused on August.

     "Let him up." The princess said firmly, trying to compose herself.

    "Now why would we do that?" A voice with an accent said from behind her.

She turned and saw a slender man, all dressed in black. The only color to his outfit was a blood-red vest. His face was thin with stubble over his jawline that met his jet black hair. His eyes full of mystery and bluer than the ocean itself. He seemed so confident in himself, too confident.