The Submarine was by far the greatest invention Nataleigh and Maid Madelyn had seen since arriving in the dwarven workshop. Constructed of wooden planks and reinforced by riveted iron bands from top to bottom, it boasted of sturdy craftsmanship. And it was heavily equipped; complete with a winch and diving cage, clear glass front for underwater viewing, perriscope, and torpedo lauchers. It was even built with a huge drill on it’s front end for underwater digging if needed.
“So you like our submersible digging machine, do you?” Hiendel asked, practically bursting with pride as he realized what the princess was admiring.
“Uh huh.” Nataleigh nodded in agreement. “Can I see the inside of it?”
“Vhy of course you can. But first I think ve must have a look at your condition. Vun must not procrastinate vhen treating medical conditions. You never know vhen it could suddenly take a turn for ze vorse! You don’t vant to get as big as zat two ton horsee over dere now do you?” Not waiting for an answer, Hiendel looked at Frangen. “Did you have ze young lady finish zat paperverk I gave you?”
Frangen glanced down at his empty arms as he shrugged sheepishly. “Um...no, Hiendel. I left it upstairs by the front door vith their vindrunner. I’m sorry.”
Hiendel’s face grew sour. “Frangen, you know our policy! ‘No Service vithout Paperverk in order.’ Vhat if she has allergies or s..... Did you say ‘vindrunner’?”
Frangen nodded excitedly.
“Remarkable!” Hiendel turned back to the princess with renewed interest as Boz finally reached the top of the ladder and joined them.
“Young lady,” he inquired with excitement. “how did you come to befriend one of ze sacred ponies of Ivory Mountain?”
“My father gave Jewel to me when she was just a foal.” Nataleigh said matter-of-factly. “We’ve grown up together.”
“Your father?” asked Hiendel his eyes widening. “You mean...?”
Suddenly Maid Madelyn jumped in, beginning to lose her patience. “Yeah, yeah. Her father, alright? She lives on Ivory Mountain and she came down for a visit and now we’re here to borrow your underwater ship thing down there so we can save Darrowold from evil. Do you guys want to help us out or what? ‘Cause we’re losing precious time here and we’re going to need someone to drive that thing.”
The three dwarven inventors looked at each other in shock, not believing their own ears. Then they looked at Princess Nataleigh and back at each other again with new understanding as if seeing her for the first time.
Finally Hiendel spoke again. “If you are from Ivory Mountain, then you live in Amiera, Palace of the Heart...”
Frangen continued. “Then you are not a dwarf maiden, but....”
Boz finished. “Your majesty!”
All three dropped to their knees and prostrated themselves in front of the princess.
Nataleigh was embarrassed.
“What are you doing? Get up.” she said. “I’m just a girl. It’s ok. You don’t have to treat me special.”
Finally after more coaxing, they finally stood and Hiendel spoke with great reverance. “Your majesty, ve are your humble servants. How may ve three be of service to you?”
“You can stop calling me, ‘your majesty’. My name is Nataleigh.”
“Princess Nataleigh!” Maid Madelyn corrected. The princess sighed. “Ok, Princess Nataleigh if you must give me a title. I really don’t care, but we need to get on with our mission before it’s too late!”
“Vhat mission, your highness? Ve are at your service.” Hiendel repeated.
Maid Madelyn took over.
“The princess has come here from Ivory Mountain to request the use of your ship. We need it to find and recover a very powerful stone called the Serpent’s Eye which is somewhere under Skull-Rock Island in an underwater cave. King Kugelbone and Captain Claw are already on their way to find it with the help of Panganiban the wizard and the sea witch, Hagwig! If they get it before we do, it could mean the end of Darrowold, so if you’re going to help us, let’s get a move on, shall we?”
She clapped her hands twice for effect as if she were the princess and the three brothers were snapped into action!
Hiendel immediately began giving orders to the other two. “Frangen, gather our supplies and our gear for the trip! Don’t forget ze ice-maker in ze kitchen. Bozwin, refill ze pool and do a systems check on ze vessel!”
Frangen ran off immediately with a “Yes, your majesty!" and Boz just stood there, saluting the princess like she was a military general until Hiendel gave him a small shove and sent him on his way.
Within the hour, the submarine was loaded and ready for launch and the small group was ready to begin the journey. Nataleigh could hardly wait. Unfortunately, Jewell would have to be left behind, but the inventors provided her with plenty of fresh oats to eat and a swinging door that allowed her to get outside when she needed to. Nataleigh assured her that she would be fine and said her farewell to the loyal pony with a big hug. Jewel was obviously upset by the separation, but nothing could be done about it. The submarine just wasn’t big enough to fit an animal of her size and where they were going was not suitable to a creature of the air.
And so it was that the next leg of the quest had begun. Nataleigh stood in the front of the sub, looking out through the clear glass front as the massive mechanical doors cranked open in front of them mixing the waters of the dwarven ocean with the pumped in waters of the underground pool. Then she heard the docking clamps release and watched as Boz guided the vessel out into the open sea. Her heart raced as she realized that they were off! Nothing now lay between them and Skull-Rock Island. Soon they would find the hidden cave and Princess Nataleigh would be the hero who found the Serpent’s Eye and saved all of Darrowold!
“Surely father couldn’t punish me for that.” she assured herself. “And won’t Nathan be jealous when he finds out what he’s missed.”
The End of Part 1
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