Chapter 2: The Princess

The day was a bright sunny afternoon with the sun shining, birds chirping on treetops, and the occasional slug popping out to bask in the beautiful day. Everyone seemed to be out enjoying the good weather, well everyone except the occupants of a large cream stoned castle right in the center of slugterra. In one of the highest rooms in the castle a teenage girl gazed upon the people of slugterra getting ready for the slug festival coming up in two weeks. She sat on a window seat in her massive finely decorated room with an aura of gloom weighing down on her fair complexion. The misery that was evident in her emerald-green eyes caused a group of slugs to climb up on the window seat she sat on to comfort the young girl felt a nudging on her hand she snapped out her daydreaming of joining the villagers with their festivities to look down at her best friends.

"Are you guys worried about me?" the brunette haired girl questioned with a giggle as she smiled at her six slugs that her mother had given her when she was small to keep her company. She had a Tazerling slug named Shock, a Boon Doc slug named Remedy or Remy for short, a Frostcrawler named Icy, an Arachnet slug named Webs, a Flaringo slug named Torch, and finally her best friend out of all her slugs was a very rare slug called Diamondhead, which she named Crystal.

Crystal, who was a white slug with a few pink stripes a long her body that had skin that was as shiny and tough as an actual diamond, came up to her from the flock of slugs with a concerned look on her face. The girl picked up the slug and held her delicately in her hands as she smiled down at the creature to reassure her slugs that she was perfectly fine. But they didn't buy it by the skeptical look she saw on her best friend's face. "Fine you win as always Crystal. I want out of this castle, I want to be able to experience what being an actual kid is like...but most of all I want to be able to sling slugs to save Slugterra like them." The girl explained as she directed her gaze to a poster of the Shane Gang in cool poses with the slugs around them. Crystal's face lit up when her owner brought up the team of crime fighters, because like every slug she was born to be slung in slinging battles not being boxed into a castle.

"I hope that's only wishful thinking Princess Rona, and what have I told you about talking to your slugs?" a voice said that got both Rona and her slugs to turn around with grimaces as they looked towards Rona's royal adviser, Jonos. Out of everyone in the palace he was the biggest stick in the mud to the point Rona would've fired him a long time ago if it weren't for the fact that the twenty year old man's family has served the royal family for generations.

"Of course Jonos because it would be wrong to think about going outside like everyone else gets to do," Rona grumbled sarcastically as she redirected her attention back to the window fully discouraged with her adviser. Seeing this caused the young man wearing completely white royal robes to sigh knowing quite well how stubborn the princess could get when she didn't get her way.

"You know how dangerous it is out there for you and it doesn't help that you are the only heir in the way of your step-father getting supreme rule over the kingdom."

"I know but I still…"

"I know princess, how about you go walking around the royal court yard if you're so hungry for fresh air," Jonos bargained only to get a grumbled reply that sounded like 'No one lets me do anything fun' before the fifteen year old girl went storming out of the room with her slugs following her. As her slugs followed her they stuck out their tongues at Jonos who merely frowned at them in disdain. Him and his lady's slugs have never got along since he attempted to rid the castle of them by chucking them out the window.

Although the courtyard was a far cry from the freedom Rona wanted, she still felt herself lighten up a little as she breathed in the sweet fresh air that was a mixture of all the different flowers around her and felt the warm sunlight kiss her skin. I guess this isn't so bad, if this is the closest I can get to the outside world, she thought as she directed her attention towards her playful slugs. A soft smile grace her face as she saw them scurrying around either trying to catch butterflies or play some sort of game of tag. Being a prisoner of your home couldn't be so bad if her slugs did not feel the same emptiness that she felt, she concluded in her mind as the soft squeals of amused slugs and the hum of bugs around her lulled her to sleep.

During her sleep she had a dream that she had many times before, for a reason Rona could only guess was because it brought her back to the greatest day of her life. The day her and her mother came home with six of her closest friends.

"Why are you crying my dear, Rona?" a sweet voice danced across the air so softly it was almost drowned out by the violent sobs that were coming from a little six year old girl with long brown hair tied up into a ponytail and deep emerald eyes that were filled with tears that rushed down the child's rosy plumb cheeks.

"Jonos said that I can't play with the kids outside the castle," the child wailed as she ran towards her mother to cling desperately to her mother's baby blue gown for warmth and comfort.

The woman that she had latched on to had the same chestnut colored hair that was usually tied up into a fancy braided bun but she had deep blue eyes that were filled to the brim with a depth of knowledge most of the people of slugterra could only dream of. Her mother merely giggled warmly at her daughter's predicament, which made the adorable little toddler frown at her. "I am sorry my child, but Jonos is right, out there is not a suitable place for someone as special as you Rona. I do not know what I would do if I ever lost you," The woman explained as she wrapped her daughter in a hug to soothe her.

"It's not fair if I'm so special why can't I have friends like the other kids do?! Why am I the only one alone?" the girl sobbed louder with such conviction and hurt it saddened her mother. It was evident on her face that she knew how hard this type of life was going to be for her baby princess. All the rules and restrictions she was expected to obey especially the one rule about the outside world. She could neither step foot on it or make friends with those of the outside. Their subjects outside could not be trusted her first husband figured that out the hard way.

"You are never alone Rona, you have me and Jonos-"

"Mom none of you have time to play with me. It's no fun playing slug slinger all by yourself."

"As always you are right my dear on such matters, but it would also be hard to play such a game without slugs either," the queen pointed out with an amused ring in her tone as her daughter's head snapped up from being buried in her dress to look into her mother's eyes with such wonder at the very thought of slugs that her mother sighed at her cuteness.

"You're right I need slugs too…but where am I going to get slugs? You won't even let me past the royal sacred grounds," Rona said as her eyes fell back into dejection with the notion that she may never be able fulfill her dream of slug slinging like the other kids do outside her bedroom window.

"Well you are very fortunate today, because today not only am I showing a very special guest into the royal sacred grounds. Those grounds will be covered with slugs as well."

The little girls eyes widen in amazement and joy as she searched her mother's face to make sure she was telling the truth. "Really can I keep some of them?" Rona shimmed with excitement as she scurried towards the door of her room while dragging her mother out with her. No matter how dignified her mother was she couldn't help but utter a warm laughter that showed how pleased she was with her daughter's reaction to the news. It didn't take the two women long before they met a man with combed back black hair, tan skin, light blue eyes, wearing slinging gear standing at the entrance of the royal sacred ground.

"Greetings Will Shane, it is an honor to meet such a legendary slinger like yourself," the queen greeted while holding out her hand for the man to kiss softly as a form of respect.

"Please Serafina, the honor is completely mine…and this must be the princess," Will said with a warm smile as he caught a glimpse of the tiny girl peaking from behind her mother to look at the man that her mother introduced as a slinger with wonder in her eyes.

"Come on Rona, greet our guest. I have to apologize Will she's not use to seeing visitors from the outside," the queen humbly apologized before nudging Rona towards the man where the girl gave him a sheepish curtsy.

"She's adorable, my queen, so no apologies needed," the man said as he held out his hand towards the girl so he could guide her in while her mother opened the diamond gates of the sacred ground.

"Is it true that you're a slug slinger?" Rona finally questioned after staring at the man next to her as they walk into the forest behind the gates.

"Yeah, I'm the best there is. I roam around slugterra using slug slinging to save your people," Will Shane said proudly especially as he noticed the little girl was now looking at him like how most children looked at superheroes or idols.

Rona was about to express how cool she thought he was but before she could she was left utterly speechless by the amount of slugs in front her there had to be millions no billions of slugs roaming in the center of the clearing in a crowd. The very sight left her with an expression Will could only describe by comparing it to his own son who was about her age, on Christmas day. She ran towards the crowd of colorful slugs excitedly looking back and forward trying to figure out which slugs she wanted to take home with her.

"Calm down child, take your time the slugs aren't going anywhere at least not until nightfall."

"Are you sure I'm allowed to take some, Jonos said that I wasn't allowed any pets in the castle," Rona asked as she recounted the time she tried to bring a frog she found in the courtyard back into the castle, let just say they had frog legs for dinner that day. So knowing that there was no way she wanted Jonos to hand the slugs over to the master chief.

"Don't worry Princess Rona, slugs don't count as pets because they're more than that they're our friends," Will explained with a warm smile that only grew as he saw the girl's face fall into confusion as she looked towards him and then to the slugs several times.

"I don't understand, slugs aren't humans so how can they be our friends?"

"It's a hard concept to grasp, and few can, but slugs are just like us, they need care, nurture, and love from us just like you get from your mother…isn't that right Burpy?" The man took out a small orange slug who happily perched itself on Will's shoulder. For several moments Rona stared at the slug until she moved closer to the little animal to take a better look at it as if she could prove whether Will was pulling her leg or not by doing so.

"Are you really Mr. Shane's friend? And do you think that there will be slugs here that will want to be my friend as well?" the little girl asked not really expecting the slug to answer her, but her eyes widened with shock as the little orange slug made a few slug noises before bobbing his head up and down indicating to her that the slug did consider itself to be a friend of the famous slug slinger and that there would be other slugs that would want to be her friend as well.

"Thank you Mr. Brupy!" Rona shimmed before dashing off into the field with a joyous air around her as she went around to every slug asking them if they would want to be her friend while promising that she would love them and feed them if they came back with her.

Not every slug was interested in her offer but a few bounded into her hands as soon as she asked them to be her friend. Those five slugs ended up being the few slugs she had in her life today, but the addition of the last slug made her day complete. She had ran over to her mother while tripping several times to show her mother all her new friends that she placed either in her hands or on her shoulders.

"So what have you named your new friends?" Will asked, which caused the young hyper girl to rattle of the names she had come up with too fast for either adult to catch which slug was named what.

"I'm glad that you have found many friends, but I am going to present you with one more, her name is Crystal," Serafina announced as she brought out a slug that shone in the sun the same way a diamond would. The sight left the young girl wordless as she stare at the most beautiful thing she had ever seen. With an amused smile her mother placed the slug on her daughter's head and whispered into her daughter's ear that she should protect Crystal with her life and that she is the key to the slugs in slugterra…

"Excuse me are you the princess?" a voice asked that woke the young teenager with a start as she quickly looked around to discover the source of the voice that had awoken her from her sweet dreams. She was shocked when she saw the person who had awoken her was a man wearing rags and had cuts and bruises that littered his body. Rona's first instinct was to guide this man into the castle for medical assistance but before she could it occurred to her why seeing this man here was so surprising to her. It wasn't the fact that he was dressed like one of the poorest commoners she had ever seen or the fact that he was bleeding on her perfectly manicured lawn, no it was the fact that his very presence wasn't suppose to be there. Not just anyone could step on royal grounds because of the security around here, which made her more suspicious of this character despite his obvious need for a doctor.

"What is your business with the princess?" Rona demanded as her slugs circled around her in attempt to defend her if this casual meeting turned into a violent one.

When the man with dark gray hair and brown eyes heard the slight fear in her tone he dropped to his knees in full submission, which only pushed the princess further into confusion at how this man came to be in the royal court house. "Please forgive me, but I must see the princess immediately!" The man shouted in desperation that caused something in Rona's heart to break. This man was one of her subjects and as the princess of Slugterra didn't she have a moral duty to take care of each person living in her kingdom?

"What's your name fellow? And what exactly is so important? If you tell me I will take you to the princess," Rona bargained with concern heavy in her voice that made the peasant raise his head towards her with a warm friendly smile that made Rona feel like she was making the right decision even though she knew Jonos or her mother would've never approved of this.

"My name is Paul Kander, the reason I have come here is because I recently escaped from a battle between the evil Dr. Blakk and the Shane gang, and as you can see the side of good isn't doing so well in-"

"Wait did you say Shane?! As in Will Shane the greatest slug slinger in the whole of Slugterra is losing to the forces of evil?!" Rona questioned with surprise and shock heavy in her voice. The last she heard of the name Shane was when she was a little girl. He was the man that taught her the true meaning of slug slinging and that the bond between a master and their slugs can be more than that of just mere weapons or pets.

At the mention of Will's name the man visibly flinched in sadness that made the princess' excitement at the prospect of hearing about the slug slinger after many years dwindle. "Sorry your majesty Will Shane is no longer with us, no the Shane I'm talking about is his sixteen year old son, Eli Shane."

The news caused the princess to lower her head in sadness, after all, she had always dreamed of meeting the man that taught her so much about slinging and slugs again. Silence remained between them until Rona broke out of her mournful state as many questions burned in her head that she wanted the commoner to answer. "How did Will die? What brought you here? And how did you manage to get passed security?" Rona blurted all at once as she searched the man's face for any evidence of him lying to her.

"Will Shane died bravely in a slug match against an evil man named Dr. Blakk and now that same evil man is out to do the same to Will's son. I came here to ask you to save him from befalling the same fate as his father," Paul declared earnestly with a great amount of hope that she will help them fight the forces of evil.

"You want me to help out the Shane Gang?!...but that is not the job of a princess, so please you should inform my advisors or my father that controls the royal army," Rona explained sadly as she remembered that leaving the castle and helping her subjects out with slug slinging problems had always been the job of the Shane or the person who held control of the army, and right now she lacked both qualifications.

This caused the man to kneel beside her and grab a hold of her hands with desperation. "Please princess I understand your duty, but Slugterra needs you. People once spoke of your mother settling wars between the forces of good and evil with a wave of her hand!" Paul exclaimed, but it still wasn't enough to convince the princess to go against everything she had ever been taught, so the man pressed on. "Plus, I know you are fighting against your step father for the throne, but if everyone sees that you saved them and the Shane Gang they will over throw your father and make you queen."

"Jonos my adviser told me that it would be better to stay here and fight rather than from outside the castle. If I leave the castle there won't be anyone standing in the way of my father doing whatever he wants."

"Princess, haven't you every dreamt of sling slugs with the greatest slug slinger in Slugterra?"

"Of course who wouldn't?" the girl answered with a shrug as she tried to contain her excitement as she looked back at all her dreams where she had taken down her opponents with of her six most precious friends.

"Well I'm giving you an opportunity to do just that, Eli is just as good as his father was, so please take my offer if not for yourself or for Eli, but for your slugs it must be boring for them to never get to battle anyone."

When the man said this Rona looked to her slugs that gathered around her with hopeful faces at the prospect of getting to do what they were born to do, fighting and being slung. At that moment Rona stood up while grabbing her slugs with determination burning in her emerald eyes. "I will help Eli and his friends," Rona declared after all she could no longer deny her friend the duty they were born to do.

"Thank you ever so much Princess Rona," the man thanked graciously before turning away from her and scurrying out of sight from the princess. Before Rona could question Paul's motives she saw Jonos coming up to her with the stern look he always wore.

"Princess, you've spent hours out here, I believe it is time to come back in and see to your studies," Jonos stated with a serious face that dared the princess to complain, but she kept her mouth shut and obediently followed her adviser back into the castle while staring off into the direction the commoner had ran off to with curiosity of whether she made the right decision.