Chapter 50 Aria
Chapter Fifty: Aria
Of all the things I thought I might have to fear on this journey, I naively assumed working around the hunts would be the worst of it.
But Sade’s unlikely advice prior to us leaving for the Mortal Kingdom had worked.
The hunt of the mortal ship had been successful—though it had taken the smaller group longer for their magic to ensnare those on the ship.
When they finally leapt to their deaths from the deck of the supply vessel, the legionaries descended upon them with a fury.
It wasn’t a large crew, which meant there weren’t enough to go around.
The females fought with each other, vicious snarls and even a few clashings of claws had erupted.
And I had been able to slink away, hiding nearby until the chaos calmed and I could return and act as if I had done what was expected of me.
No one batted an eye. No one berated me for proof. I was all but invisible as consumed as they were with their own urges.
I had felt lighter as I transformed into my mortal form and walked onto the beach. But I had been wrong. So very wrong.
Rhea’s magic was unlike anything I’ve seen before.
Unlike anything I’ve ever heard of. I had watched her kill with it, and I had watched her heal.
And she had clearly suffered for it both times.
As I sink beneath the surface of the water, passing through the thick layer of the Spell, a sense of wrongness coats my skin.
I watch the legionaries look over themselves as my mother instructs everyone to return to Lumen, Dyanna swimming at her side.
They wear their legion-issued shell armor and clutch their identical spears, but I see the unsure way their hands roam over their scales and tails, looking for anomalies as a result of Rhea’s magic.
My chest tightens as my tail undulates in the water. There are now sirens—ones trained to fight and obey only the siren queen—that are able to pass through the Spell. There is no telling just how she might use them or who might be destroyed for standing in her way.
It’s late in the evening the next day by the time we enter Lumen, and though my body is begging me to collapse into my bed, I need to go to the treasure cave and see if Nia has left any new communication for me.
Slowing my pace, I drop far enough back that I can no longer see the queen and Dyanna through the legionaries ahead of me.
Once we reach the palace grounds, I break from the group—my heart beating in my throat—as I pivot in the direction of the cave.
But I only make it a few lengths before a powerful voice calls my name.
“Aria? Where do you think you are going?” Jaw and shoulders relaxed, lips flat, spine straight, and attitude vicious.
I repeat my mantra as I turn to face her.
Legionaries float on either side of her, both with similar shades of ruby-red scales as my own.
But where my scales slowly shift in an ombre pattern to yellow and then green, theirs stay red down to the delicate fins that tip their tails.
Trident in hand, my mother comes towards me, her dark eyes relaying no emotion. “I asked you a question, Daughter.”
“I thought I might see Lore,” I blurt out.
It’s the only thing I can think to say that might not immediately be picked up as a lie.
Lore lives near the legion garrisons that are stationed away from the palace.
Queen Amari tilts her head, black braids snaking around her shoulders and the crown she still wears on her head, and for a moment, I worry that I’ve been caught.
But my mother’s expression turns unnervingly soft, the small smile forming there unnatural. “A small bit of advice, Aria, before you go off to meet your lover.”
Nausea curls in my stomach at that word. Lore would never be such again.
“Remember that rarely is a choice of the heart ever the right one. Loyalty. Honor. Duty. Those are the things that should guide you in life. Those are the traits that will ensure your safety.”
“Yes, Mother.”
My chest is tight as I watch her and her legionaries swim back towards the palace, and once she is out of sight, I let my shoulders round and drag a hand over my face.
Shaking my arms out to dispel the rest of my nervous energy, I swim the rest of the way to the cave without interruption.
Passing through the long strands of floating kelp that hide the cave’s entrance, I let my eyes adjust to the lack of light in the space as I root around for a crystal I keep in my satchel.
Its light is a faint yellow, but it’s enough for me to see.
My heart dips beneath my ribs when I notice nearly an entire shelf of memorabilia is now gone.
Lifting a small rock nestled between a ring with a blue gemstone and a gold necklace, I find the note she’s left.
My hand shakes as I unroll it, settling on the cave floor so I can use one hand to lay it out flat and the other to hold the crystal.
Aria,
Sade has begun sending out legionaries to systematically comb through the outposts, including the ones that lead to Eersten.
Three of our own were caught, and I can assume they’ve either been killed or brought back to the prison.
It’s only a matter of time before the rest of us—offspring included—find ourselves in the same position.
Without those weapons, we will not stand a chance.
I have given you time to prove your claim that you want to help, that you care, and you have managed to fall even shorter than I dared to give you credit for. No more waiting. No more excuses.
I suppose you’ll find out soon enough whether or not your queen truly cares so little for blood.
-Nia
“Shit,” I whisper, eyes closing as I tilt my head back.
I have no idea how old this letter is. Nia could have planted it the day I left for the Mortal Kingdom, or she could have left it today.
Then again, even if she planned on somehow telling my mother about this cave—about how I’ve helped the seamount sirens—the queen was also gone.
That left notifying Allegra or Sade, the latter of which could use that information to figure out that I’m not actually looking for the seamount sirens like she believes me to be.
Tipping my head forward again, I open my eyes and crumple the letter in my hand. “Think, Aria.”
Part of me just wants to run. To cut ties with everything and everyone and disappear until I’m nothing more than a forgotten word washed away in the current.
But then I think about Lyre and my promise to her.
Her hope for the future with her babe. I think of what my mother is capable of—of what she is already doing to ensure she gets what she wants.
Her legion is lethal, but at least right now, they are preoccupied.
With her attention on healing her legionaries, there is still time for me to take advantage of the temporary distraction.
The most dangerous person is the one willing to do whatever it takes.
I’m not willing to run from this—not now.
Still, to get their weapons, I will need to not only find them in the legion’s arsenal, but I’ll also need to sneak them out.
Considering they are guarded day and night, this is a mission that I need to admit I can’t do on my own.
Especially not with Nia attempting to make good on her threats.
I let out a resigned sigh and tuck the crystal back into my bag. It is time to ask for help.
Ten minutes later, my heart thrashes against my ribs as I swim back to the palace. I can’t tell if the feeling of being watched is there because it’s real or I’m just nervous for what I’m about to do. The front of the palace comes into view and again, I repeat Myla’s words.
The most dangerous person…
I have never been considered dangerous to anyone, but that certainly doesn’t mean that I never could be.
That perhaps even I—in all my perceived weaknesses—have the potential to be someone formidable.
The thought bolsters me, and I decide now that if Nia has already gone to Sade or Allegra in my mother’s absence, I will fight them to maintain my freedom.
I don’t want to be someone that needs to rely on others.
I want to be someone that I can rely on.
With that thought in mind, I abandon the old mantra, the one that hid me behind a shield as fragile as glass.
Jaw and shoulders relaxed, lips flat, spine straight, and attitude vicious.
I thought that mantra was one that could hide what I believed myself to be, the antithesis of what I truly was.
I am not the most vicious. I am not the strongest or smartest or most capable at fighting.
But to protect Lyre? To repay the debts of my mother’s unfounded bitterness to those who deserve the chance to live a life free from her wicked revenge?
I can forge a new shield for that. One constructed of the confidence that has just started to blossom.
One that is layered with those words Myla had spoken to me.
Strengthened with the fact that I love my sister more than I hate myself.
Just because I have failed so far doesn’t mean that I am a failure.
I swim above the manicured sea floor near the palace, glowing anemones and plants lit with bioluminescence dotting it.
When I reach the pathway that leads to the palace entrance, I spy Karina and Hova guarding it.
They cross their spears in front of the door, and I adopt the bored look I always give them.
But this time, I’m not pretending to be tougher than I am.
They may have more training than I do, but I’m no longer afraid to draw blood if needed.
“Well, if it isn’t Princess Aria,” Sarina drawls, narrowing her topaz eyes at me. “What are you doing here?”
I cock my head to the side, brushing my braids back over my shoulders. “I live here.”
Hova snorts, but doesn’t remove her weapon from my path.