Chapter 37 Malec
Malec
The deeper we swim into the castle, the darker it gets. They don’t spare even a single dragonfish light in this area; only our tails illuminate the way forward, glowing like a muted rainbow in the gloom.
Onyx hasn’t said a word since we left the court. She’s not swimming beside me anymore—she’s clinging to my aunt like her life depends on it.
“Don’t make me do this again with that old stench. You have no idea what’s inside his—”
Alessio starts to taunt next to me, but I shoot him a sharp glare. Not the time.
The eldest son swims ahead, guiding the way. He shouldn’t know about Alessio’s little stunt with the king, and he definitely shouldn’t hear this.
“Did you say something?” The son turns abruptly, his expression so dark it looks like he’s imagining strangling us with his bare hands.
I side-eye Alessio, tilting my chin toward the son in a silent warning.
“No. Just family issues,” Alessio retorts, and I have to hold myself back from swiping my tail into his and smashing him into the stone wall.
But then I catch Onyx’s dark eyes gleaming my way. She flicks her gaze between us, frowning, then turns to whisper something to Bay.
Three. Two. One.
And there it is—Myko’s irritated growl.
Predictable.
I roll my eyes.
“Onyx just asked Bay if Alessio is a soul jumper.” Myko’s words echo in my mind. I don’t know if I should slap my cousin or praise Onyx’s sharp instincts.
“Do you think she saw it?” I ask quickly, keeping my face neutral.
“I coiled around him and pulled his body out before they noticed he was unconscious. I don’t think they saw, but it was clear the king wasn’t himself.”
I glance at the son ahead.
“It’s fine. He won’t remember a thing. If they suspect anything, I’ll take the blame. They already know the king won’t defy me in the end… so let’s hope it goes as planned.”
Suddenly, the son stops abruptly, his gaze locked on a side turn. We all join him, following his line of sight.
At the end of the long, dark corridor is a faint white light—too dim to be another dragonfish, too steady to be a gem glow like in Mal-El.
Is that… a rune?
I can’t see clearly yet, but the son clears his throat. “This is where I’ll wait for you. We can’t enter the chamber, and personally, despite my father’s orders, I’d recommend you think twice—” He tilts his head and glares at his sister. “—and not repeat my ignorant sister’s mistake.”
“Oh, Kole… do you really want me to start listing all the mistakes I had to cover for you so father wouldn’t turn you into stone?” Onyx’s eyes gleam with red again, her voice sharp and cold.
Turn into stone? So the king is a Night Sculptor… that’s why they’re so scared. One touch, and you'd become another black stone statue lining his halls.
She doesn’t sound like the scared Onyx who followed my tail until now. She sounds... furious.
I can’t blame her.
I don’t interfere—it’s her fight. I swim forward, ignoring Kole’s warning. As I approach the door at the end of the corridor, a sharp burn at the tip of my tail makes me hiss and clench my teeth.
I look down and gasp.
A pod mark—a triangle with a dot at its center—glows white on my body. The mark of Nortyn city.
Nothing makes sense here.
I get closer to the door, which is a massive stone slab that looks heavier than anything I’ve ever seen. I squint into the white glow radiating from it.
It’s the same mark that burns on my tail.
I thought it would be a rune...
Why are they using Nortyn’s mark to seal a chamber?
I don’t like this game, and I think Grandma should hear about this, too. She knows more about the ancient runes and symbols than any of us.
“Why is Nortyn’s mark engraved here?” I try my luck with Myko, but he’s always been skeptical about merfolk handling magic.
“It’s not the time, Malec. Morvakar’s presence is already strong here; you need to give him his anchor.”
Is he hiding something from me? Or is he really this unsettled?
“Move aside. I’m going in,” Onyx’s voice startles me from behind. It’s cold. Unwavering. Her eyes burn red again, but this time it isn’t Morvakar’s voice.
“Bay—” I start, but she mouths “Not now” before I can finish.
Kole—the coward—is probably still waiting at the corridor’s entrance, but Onyx doesn’t seem to be in charge of her own will anymore.
“Bay told her about our bond and what it means. I think she gave in,” Myko interrupts my thoughts, sounding... sad. Not angry. Not hissing Morvakar's name anymore.
“No questions now,” he orders before I can even form one. I listen instead, watching Onyx carefully.
She swims ahead of me, stopping before the door. She presses her palm to the glowing mark.
“E’er mar’nok.”
What in the merhell is that?
The mark on my tail flares so bright it blinds me for a second, burning hotter than any flame. I bite my lip, fighting to stay silent as the rest of my marks ignite too. The pain is excruciating.
“Myk—” I don’t finish before he’s already out of Bay’s chest, coiling around me. Myko’s scales wrap my body, soaking the pain away, leaving me numb and shaken.
His presence steadies me against the cold depths, my scales rising for a moment before my body adjusts.
Only then do I realize I’m alone in the corridor with Myko. The stone door is open now, and Alessio, Onyx, and Bay are inside.
A blood-red glow—the same as Onyx’s eyes—pulses through the door, leaking into every crack in the stone.
I didn’t think I’d be visiting merhell this soon...
But here we go.