MistNovel - Read Web Novel Stories & Fiction Online

The chaos Coralina had unleashed was absolute. The vortex churned through the throne room with devastating force, sending courtiers scrambling in every direction. Elegant furniture carved from rare deep-sea wood tumbled through the water like driftwood. The bioluminescent jellyfish lanterns, torn from their carefully arranged positions, spun wildly, casting disorienting, strobing shadows across the walls.
In the center of it all, Coralina stood frozen for one last moment, witnessing the destruction she had caused. The Grand Throne Room, which had been perfect and beautiful just minutes ago, now looked like the aftermath of a tempest. Her father’s throne had been knocked sideways, its intricate carvings chipped and broken. Ancient tapestries depicting the history of Caelumaris hung in shreds, their woven stories ruined. And the Altar of the Deep, the sacred heart of her kingdom’s traditions, lay in pieces, a desecrated ruin.
King Theron’s voice cut through the pandemonium, raw with fury. "Guards! Seize her! Do not let the princess leave this room!"
The royal guards, trained for combat but not for dealing with a member of the royal family unleashing such power, hesitated for a crucial moment. That hesitation was all Coralina needed.
She pushed her power outward again, maintaining the vortex even as her muscles began to ache from the immense strain. Water was her element, but creating this much chaos took an enormous amount of energy. She knew she could not maintain it for long.
But she did not need long. She just needed enough time to reach the corridors beyond.
The guards finally moved, swimming toward her with their weapons drawn but held low. They would not harm her, could not harm her without facing execution themselves, but they would try to restrain her. Some called out to her, their voices desperate and confused, pleading with her to stop, to explain, to return to her father’s side.
Coralina ignored them all. She gathered the currents around her like a cloak and shot toward the throne room’s grand archway. Her ceremonial gown slowed her down, the heavy layers of shimmering silk catching in the turbulent water, but she did not stop to shed it. Not yet. Not until she was clear of the immediate pursuit.
Behind her, she heard her father roar again, his voice filled with disbelief. "Caspian! Use your abilities! Create a barrier! Block the entrance!"
Prince Caspian’s response was surprisingly calm despite the chaos. "Your Majesty, I will not trap her. She is clearly in distress."
"She is clearly a traitor!" Theron’s voice cracked with fury. "Block the entrance now! That is a command!"
But Caspian did not move. Coralina felt a strange flicker of gratitude toward him even as she fled. He could have stopped her easily. His hydrokinetic abilities were strong enough, his training extensive. He could have erected a wall of solid water in seconds. But he chose not to, and that choice gave her the precious seconds she needed to escape.
She passed through the archway and into the main corridor beyond. The palace guards stationed here had heard the commotion but had not yet received specific orders. They stood at attention, their faces a mixture of confusion and alarm, as their princess flew past them surrounded by a swirling corona of water.
"Stop her!" The cry came from behind her, echoing through the long corridor. "The princess must not leave the palace!"
Now the exterior guards moved to intercept her, but Coralina was already past them, racing deeper into the palace’s labyrinthine passages. She took a sharp turn, then another, navigating from memory through corridors she had known since childhood.
Her heart pounded against her ribs. Her lungs burned despite the water providing oxygen. The adrenaline coursing through her veins made everything seem simultaneously too fast and too slow.
She had done it. She had actually done it. She had refused her vows, destroyed the altar, and fled from her own wedding. The magnitude of her actions threatened to overwhelm her, but she pushed the thoughts away. There would be time for regrets later, if she survived this.
Behind her, the sounds of pursuit grew more organized. She heard officers shouting orders, coordinating the search with military precision. The palace guard was one of the most efficient forces in any mer-kingdom. They would lock down the main entrances, position patrols along the most likely escape routes, and send scouts to the surface access points.
But Coralina had one advantage they did not. She knew the palace better than most of the guards. She had spent her childhood exploring every hidden passage, every forgotten tunnel, every secret route that connected the formal rooms to the servants’ quarters. Her father had scolded her repeatedly for such unbecoming behavior, for acting more like a commoner than a princess, but now that knowledge would save her.
She turned down a narrow side corridor that most guards did not even know existed. The walls here were rough stone rather than polished coral, and the passage was lit by only a few dim bioluminescent fixtures. This was part of the old palace, built centuries ago, before renovations had created the grand halls everyone knew.
Coralina swam quickly through the twisting passage. Her ceremonial gown caught on rough edges, and she heard the sound of fabric tearing. Good. The heavy silk was a burden anyway. She reached up, grabbed the ceremonial pearls around her neck, and yanked them free, letting the broken strand scatter behind her like discarded promises. Each piece of her wedding attire she shed felt like casting off another chain.
The narrow passage led to a junction she remembered. Three routes lay ahead. The first led to the servants’ quarters, the second to the palace gardens, and the third to the old royal archives. She chose the archives without hesitation. They connected to a forgotten maintenance tunnel that led to the very edge of Caelumaris, far from the main gates where guards would certainly be posted.
As she swam, she heard the pursuit growing closer. Her father must have ordered every available guard to join the search. She heard voices echoing through passages parallel to hers, heard the organized sweep pattern they were executing.
They would find her eventually if she stayed in the palace. But she was not planning to stay.
The archives appeared ahead, a vast chamber filled with shelves of preserved coral tablets and sealed containers holding ancient documents. Coralina had spent hours here as a child, reading the histories of her ancestors, learning about the kingdoms that had risen and fallen before Caelumaris became dominant.
She swam straight through the chamber, ignoring the priceless artifacts, focusing only on the far wall. There, hidden behind a shelf of tablets detailing ancient treaties, was a small opening. The maintenance tunnel. It had been officially sealed decades ago, deemed too dangerous for use, but the seal had been poorly done. Coralina had discovered it years ago and had kept the knowledge a secret.
She pushed at the seal, and it gave way easily with a low groan. The tunnel beyond was pitch black and oppressively narrow. She would have to swim sideways in places. But it would take her outside the palace walls.
Coralina took one last look back toward the throne room she had left in ruins. Somewhere in that direction, her father was organizing the hunt. Somewhere back there, Caspian was probably being questioned about why he had not stopped her. Somewhere back there, her old life was ending.
She turned away and entered the tunnel, pulling the seal shut behind her as best she could. In the sudden darkness, she allowed herself one moment of weakness. Her hands shook. Her breath came in gasps. The enormity of what she had done threatened to crush her.
But then she thought of William. She thought of his promise. She thought of the surface world waiting for her above.
And Coralina swam forward into the dark.