Chapter Fourteen Aria
Thunder rolls overhead as I break the surface of the water, Dyanna’s pink braids stark against the gray clouds from where she floats in the water in front of me.
Ahead of us, Queen Amari and Sade stare at the shore and the line of golden guards standing behind the Spell, the top of a small castle poking up in the distance behind them.
“Is the king expecting you to attack him?” Dyanna asks.
“He’s simply showing off as males do,” our mother answers, her head tilting to the side.
“Stay close to me and do not hesitate to sing should he decide to try something.” She sinks beneath the surface, and my sisters and I follow.
The tear in my fin from the rogue siren attack is still tender, made more so after days of travel, and the ever-present nervousness within me intensifies as we near shallow waters.
Throughout our journey, my thoughts drifted briefly to the fae—Myla.
What will she think when I’m absent for our first meeting?
Would there be ramifications because I didn’t show up when I said I would?
Queen Amari lifts her trident, bringing us to a stop.
She transforms, legs and feet replacing her tail while her scales recede into her skin, only a faint shimmer remaining.
My leg muscles shake as I push myself up through the thick layer of the Spell to stand, my head lifting above the water while my lungs draw in a breath of the salty air.
The tightly woven ruby-red braids around my head loosen into ringlet curls, their length cascading over my shoulders and down my breasts, the tips brushing against my hips.
I adjust the strap of my satchel so it crosses over my chest, the bag covering the juncture of my thighs.
Dyanna does the same, though her shorter pink curls don’t cover much of anything on top.
Our mother’s black hair cascades all the way down her torso to the tops of her thighs, and she lifts her chin proudly as she approaches the shore with a confidence that can only come from knowing you are the most powerful creature attending this meeting.
A crown of shining silver embellished with rare teal seashells, oval-cut diamonds, and delicate strands of blue eelgrass woven within it sits perfectly centered on her head, this piece of jewelry one I have never seen before.
Dyanna and Sade stand together at her right, leaving me alone on the queen’s left while we approach the shore. As I look at the guards lined up across from us—their visibly wide eyes easy to see even through the Spell—I wonder if they realize just how much danger they’re in.
“King Dolian, surely you don’t intend for us to conduct our business separated by the very thing that has left my kind secluded for so long?” my mother says, her voice magically carrying over the roaring of the waves behind us.
Despite the swollen dark storm clouds above, the unmistakable gleam of a gold crown catches my eye, its wearer centered amongst the thirty or so guards.
He’s finely dressed, his clothing dark except for golden thread forming intricate patterns on the vest he wears.
His trousers are tucked into shiny tall leather boots.
A woman stands at his side, her lavender dress fluttering at her ankles in the wind.
She has no crown upon her head, but the king reaches a hand out to her as he moves to take a step forward.
When she hesitates, he leans over and says something to her that makes her stiffen before she concedes and lays her fingers into his waiting palm.
One of the guards nearest to the king moves with them, taking his helmet off to reveal dark shoulder-length hair, discontent painted all over his expression. Together, the three of them walk through the Spell, stopping only a few steps past it.
“I am nothing if not always agreeable to your terms, Queen Amari. You should know that by now,” the king says, his voice holding a higher-pitched tenor than I would have presumed.
The woman at his side draws her brows together at his response, but her attention stays pointed in my mother’s direction.
I study her features—the healthy glow of her skin and the honey color of her hair—and recognition of where I’ve seen her before causes my lips to part on a quick inhale.
The reaction turns her gaze to me, her lovely green eyes meeting mine with open curiosity.
“And we will ensure it stays that way,” my mother responds.
The guards remaining behind the Spell shift their stances, some even partially drawing their swords as if sensing the threat of my mother and sisters from just her words alone.
The lone guard at the king’s side raises his hand, steadying their movements.
The siren queen turns her dark eyes to the woman we captured from the Mage Kingdom.
“I was half afraid you would not bring her. You were rather passionate about getting her back in one piece.”
“I thought about keeping her hidden, to be sure, but the allure of learning more about her magic was simply too strong to resist,” he says, looking over to the woman as he brings their joined hands to his lips.
“Such a lovely little thing you are,” my mother purrs. Lightning flashes in the distance, followed by a crack of thunder that makes the woman jump. The king’s fingers grow tighter around her hand, and she grimaces at the contact.
“Whatever it is you would like her to show you, now might be the time, as I’d prefer not to get rained on,” the king chides, his dark hazel eyes narrowing.
My mother hums as she takes a step forward. “What is your name?”
“Rhea,” the woman offers quickly. “My name is Rhea, Your Majesty.”
Queen Amari snaps her hand out and grabs Rhea’s wrist, bringing it up higher as she inspects her fingers—and the ring that sits atop it. “Such a pretty ring,” she says, angling Rhea’s hand towards the king. “How have you enjoyed its benefits, King Dolian?”
“It works exactly as you said it would, and I find it is quite useful in helping Lady Rhea adjust to her new life.” My blood runs cold at the insinuation—at how Rhea’s attention drops to the tops of her feet.
I take a glance at the ring and find it’s matching one on my mother’s finger.
The king wearing the third piece of jewelry I brought back from the Northern Island.
“I’m not in the business of lying. Something your kind cannot claim.”
To my utter surprise, the king heaves a long sigh before leveling his gaze at my mother.
“I have earned your favor twice, Your Majesty, yet you still group me in with ancestors I have never met. I cannot control what the men of my lineage did centuries ago. I can only give you my word now. Show me what Rhea’s magic can do and how I can wield it, and I will give you what I promised. ”
Queen Amari laughs, and my throat narrows at the sound—at the warning laced within.
The guard next to Rhea slides his hand to the outside of his thigh where a dagger is strapped, only for Sade to snarl at him, her black talons growing from her fingers.
“I need more than just a promise, Young King. I need proof that what happened in this spot two hundred years ago won’t be repeated. ”
The king’s brows lift towards his hairline as he gives my mother an incredulous look. “And how in the world do you want me to do that?”
“Your guards,” she says, gesturing with her trident to the men waiting behind the Spell. “Your ancestors used their guards to act against my kind. Prove your loyalty by commanding Rhea to kill them.”
My heart leaps up to my throat, while Rhea, the king, and even the guard all wear varying shades of shock on their faces. “Surely, you don’t expect Rhea’s magic to do such a thing?”
“If you want to know the true power the girl holds, if you want to ensure that our tentative alliance remains intact without the threat of interruption, you will do it.” I watch as my mother’s lips quirk into a smile she reserves for only the most heinous acts, my mind immediately tumbling into my past and making my entire body begin to tremble.
When neither the king nor Rhea move, her eyes narrow and her voice deepens. “Do it.”
King Dolian looks to Rhea, something desperate flashing in his eyes as he meets hers.
She shakes her head in anticipation of his command, but he doesn’t hesitate.
“Kill them with your magic.” Each word is a struggle for the king to grit out, his hand shaking as it points to the men on the other side of the Spell.
Rhea’s eyes widen, the horror in them making the emotion spike in me before she turns to face the Spell, her movements stiff as her chest heaves with labored breaths.
A whimper leaves her as her arms lock straight out in front of her.
Electricity sits heavily in the air, so much so that I draw my gaze from her to the clouds momentarily, waiting for the lightning that I can feel building to strike. But it never comes.
“Pl—please,” she gasps, the tendons in her hands pulled taut from how widely her fingers are spread.
Her begging is cut short by a harrowing scream.
The sound alone would get me to stumble away from her, but then there is what comes out of Rhea’s hands.
Glittering black shadows gather at her palms, growing in size until they wrap around her hands completely.
Like arrows fired from their bows, the dark magic then shoots forward and pierces through the Spell with startling ease before unfurling over the stunned guards like an inky, fathomless fog.
Darkness completely eclipses them, smothering their golden armor as a suffocating silence blankets the beach.
The first scream that breaks it draws my shoulders up towards my ears.
Then another joins. And another. No one moves as magic continues to pour from Rhea, the opaqueness of her shadows clashing with the sparkling veil of the Spell.
The point of contact between them flickers, and my mother takes a step forward as if she aims to touch it before Dyanna plants a hand on her arm.
Thunder cracks from the darkened sky above, blending with the cries of anguish of those trapped within Rhea’s magic.
She joins them as she screams, her spine uncomfortably straight while veins begin to bulge in her arms.
“Incredible,” my mother whispers, and when I look her way, it isn’t smug satisfaction on her face but pure awe.
As abruptly as it began, it ends. Rhea’s magic retreating back to her. The other side of the Spell is eerily silent, and when the last wisp of black disappears, Rhea collapses onto her knees.
“I killed them,” she cries into her hands, repeating the heartbroken admission over and over again. My eyes sting as I take in what remains on the other side. Heaps of golden armor lay not on top of sand but on mounds of black ash.
“Oh my gods,” I whisper, my fingers going to my lips as I wrap my other arm around my torso.
“Did she just incinerate them?” Dyanna asks on a breath.
King Dolian pulls Rhea up by her arm until she is standing next to him.
“King Dolian, you can see that I’ve helped you attain more than just a future bride,” my mother declares.
“I can,” he grits out, turning Rhea to face the queen. Rain begins to fall, the thick drops mixing with the tears that line Rhea’s cheeks. “I might ask that, in the future, you refrain from making your point at the expense of my men.”
My mother simply laughs, pointing her trident in his direction.
“You will continue to meet me when I call you through the Mirror. Our exploration of Rhea’s magic has only just begun.
” The king stares at my mother as his shoulders stiffen, but he only nods in agreement before he drags Rhea back through the Spell, the guard following behind.
Her movements are sluggish, causing her to stumble, and my heart clenches as I watch her, guilt weaving through me like a poison.
“A wedding is a lovely time to announce the unity of our two realms, King Dolian,” the siren queen shouts after them, chuckling when he doesn’t bother turning around.
“What the hell was that?” Sade asks, her wet tangerine curls sticking to her torso.
“Mage magic. It has been a while since I’ve seen it with my own eyes, and it is much more powerful than I remember. But it is how we will get what we are owed.”
I force a deep inhale through my nose, my mind trying to reconcile what I just witnessed with what I know my mother wants.
Movement nearer to me refocuses my gaze on the Spell where the black ash begins to pool in the sand as it mixes with the rain.
Squinting my eyes, I notice the beach on the other side is easier to see, like the Spell has become more transparent in the spot where Rhea’s magic pierced it.
Blinking quickly, I look away, only to find my mother staring at it as well—her head tilted in contemplation before a smile breaks over her face, wide enough to show her canines.