Chapter A Siren’s Song
A Siren’s Song
Kai
Her body becomes limp in my arms, and something inside of me breaks. The agony is excruciating. I feel it, her soul ebbing away as the pain that has been plaguing my body eases. No… no!
“Sira, no…” I whisper– no, I’m fucking begging. Kneeling in the ruins, simply holding her body as her heartbeat fades, and I can’t do anything.
What is life without her? Why should I live without her?
“Kai… live on, for me. Be the king you were destined to be.”
For her… a life with no happiness, one where the sky has shattered and darkness shall forever remain? I want to be selfish. Fuck, I don’t want to live without her. There’s no purpose.
“She’s dead. Does it mean I’m cursed now?” one of her miserable sisters whines, but for the first time, I’m unable to muster any rage. Something inside me has completely shattered. I’m simply broken as I gaze at the woman I love.
I failed her...
There’s no home without her.
I pull her into my chest as everyone remains silent, simply watching, but I don’t care. I just want her back.
She sacrificed herself because of the curse – for me.
Never in my life have I felt such agony. Not when I was tortured, not when my mother died, never. But in this moment, it’s as if I have lost a part of me, and when I feel her heart stop racing, it feels as if my own will stop too.
I have never cried, not in the last century, but tears now threaten to fall.
Emotions I never thought I was capable of feeling any longer return.
Sadness, hopelessness, loss…
They tear through me like a storm that refuses to ease.
I close my eyes and bury my face against her shoulder. Her skin is cold, her weight too still. What I would give to feel her move again, to hear her laugh, to have her look at me. What I would do, what I would destroy, if it meant she could live.
My hand finds hers, limp around the dagger still lodged in her chest. My throat burns as I curl my fingers around the hilt and pull it free with a trembling hand. The blade slides out slick with her blood, blood that never should have been spilt.
My eyes blur as I hold her tighter. Someone says something, but I can’t hear them properly.
She can’t be gone.
Sira…
“You need to return her to the ocean,” a voice murmurs, but it sounds distant.
“NO!” The word rips out of me as I lash out at whoever tries to touch me. They try to take her from me, but I refuse to let her go. “No!” I snarl again, clutching her against me like the world itself is trying to steal her away.
I fight them until they stop. But there’s nothing I can do for her but hold her and whisper her name. I am useless, helpless.
A single tear slips from my face and falls onto her chest. It lands where the dagger had been buried. I stare at it through blurred eyes. She took her life for me…
For a heartbeat, the world stands still, and then she jerks in my arms, gasping.
Her eyes fly open, bright and alive, and her chest rises in a sudden, shuddering breath.
The crowd murmurs, but I can’t move. I can only stare, my heart pounding so hard it hurts, wondering if I’ve finally been driven to madness.
I pull her into my lap, cradling her as though she’s made of glass.
Whether you’re here or not… I’ll live in this illusion. I kiss her forehead, her cheeks, her hair, anywhere my lips can reach.
Her hand trembles as it lifts, and when she clutches weakly at my arm, that small, desperate grip undoes me, reality hitting me hard.
She’s alive. Somehow, she’s alive!
Relief floods me, and a broken, breathless sound escapes me as I pull her into my chest, burying my face against her once more.
She’s here. She’s breathing.
“You can’t leave me, Little Liar. What do you think you were doing?” I ask hoarsely.
She touches my face and forces me to look at her, her gorgeous, pink eyes widening as she sees the tears on my face, staring at them as if stunned I was capable of them.
I didn’t know I was either, until it came to her. Her trembling fingers tenderly brush the tears from my face. Then she lifts one to her lips, tasting it, and smiles at me through her own tears.
“I’m sorry,” she whispers. “I just wanted you to live.”
The words hang between us. And then Gideon’s voice, calm but sure, cuts through the silence.
“By doing so,” he says, “you managed to break the curse. A sea siren’s nature is selfish; it takes and clings to what it wants, thriving on desire.
But you gave yourself. You chose someone else’s life over your own.
That selflessness, born from true love… it is the one thing the curse could never withstand. ”
He pauses, letting it sink in. “We always misunderstood it. The curse was never meant to destroy; it was meant to test. And in that moment, you proved it can be undone. Not by power, not by strength, but by the courage to give, fully and without any thought for yourself.”
We simply stare at one another, and I look down at her wound that has begun to close, barely a scratch now, the only reminder that it was there is the blood.
“You will never leave me again, do you understand?” I say quietly.
She nods, her eyes fluttering shut before her body becomes limp and her breathing soft. And as much as I want to grab her and make sure she’s ok, that I won’t somehow lose her, I let her rest as I stand tall, carrying her. The odd pain in my body is gone completely.
She really has broken the curse.
“Regarding the future of this kingdom, we will talk terms tomorrow. For now, I need the cracks in the veil barred for good, until further instruction,” I order.
“Yes, My King!” they say in unison.
Zeran steps forward. “Allow me to show you to your quarters. Rest for as long as you need.”
I nod curtly and follow him, carrying Siralaine in my arms.
“We-we’re her sisters, we will remain princesses, correct?” Kalina asks, blocking my path, Maerina beside her.
I’m about to answer when Siralaine turns to them. “I forgive you,” she whispers before closing her eyes once more.
I step past them. She may forgive them, but I never will.
The murmurs are soon left behind as I follow Zeran. He looks over at me, clearly wanting to say something.
“Spit it out,” I say, my voice filled with exhaustion from the last few days finally catching up.
“You will truly defy Varkhazan and become King?” he asks.
“Yes. That was the deal I made with Siralaine,” I say quietly.
He nods. “It won’t be easy. He will keep trying to infiltrate Varindor.”
“Yes, but I will be here on the front line protecting my people. I may not be gentle or good with my words, but I will defend and protect this kingdom. I’ll be there to be a just and fair ruler.”
He nods. “That is all I needed to hear. I will stand in your favour tomorrow. Now rest, it has indeed been a long night.”
“Thanks,” I say curtly, entering the large room.
I swiftly scan it, listening for any small sound.
Only when I’m satisfied that it is just us, I place her gently on the bed.
She shifts into human form, curling into a foetal position.
I head back to the door, locking it, before returning to the bed, kneeling beside it as I brush her hair off her face.
“It’s crazy how I can’t remain angry at you despite your constant secrets,” I remark, earning a small smile from her.
“Well, I am your Little Liar.”
“Indeed,” I reply, stroking her hair.
“Kai…”
“Mmm?”
She looks weak and fragile, her breathing laboured.
“I need the ocean…” she murmurs weakly.
“I didn’t even think of that. Let’s go.” I stand quickly. She’ll regain her energy better in water.
She smiles weakly as I lift her up bridal style, going to the window.
I unlock it and open it wide as my wings expand.
They spread behind me as I step onto the window ledge and push off it, my wings beating as we become airborne.
She closes her eyes as I carry her away from the castle, the wind whipping in our faces, making me feel even more alive.
I spot a secluded area with rocks in the middle of the water and land.
I place her gently in the water, she fumbles with her dress, and I help her remove it, admiring her beauty for a moment before I place the dress aside, and she pulls away gently, sinking into the water as she shifts back into her sea siren form.
I watch as she slowly splashes around, noticing how each stroke becomes stronger as she dips below the surface. Smirking, I remove my own boots and roll my pants up as I walk into the water, sitting on the edge.
My entire fucking body is aching from the fight, but I feel a lot better.
“We did it, didn’t we?” she says as she surfaces, brushing her hair back.
I nod. “I guess we did.”
She swims towards me, placing a hand on my arm, the other cupping my face as she kisses me. “I promise never to lie to you again.”
“Good, because I might actually have to punish you if you do.”
“Don’t threaten me with a good time,” she says teasingly.
“Oh?” I purr, trying to tickle her, but she slips away, giggling.
I get into the water, but she’s faster as she swims around me in circles before she hugs me from behind. “I love you, Kai.”
I tilt my head, letting the current carry me. “And I love you, darling,” I murmur softly.
“How much?” she asks, with a playful pout.
I cock a brow. “Well… I’m not so sure…”
“Kai!”
I smirk as I turn and kiss her softly, gazing into her eyes.
“From where the sky begins and where the ocean sleeps, across every wind and wave, stronger than the wind, deeper than tides, more than life itself. You are the horizon I chase, the storm I would sail towards, and the calm I’ve always sought within the chaos of the world.
I love you more than all that has been, and all that will ever be. ”
Her fingers tighten around me, her eyes glittering with tears, and I feel the world fade until it’s just us, the water, the sky, and the unspoken eternity between us.
“Together we are one,” she finishes.
Her arms squeeze tighter, and I know she means it. I mean it. The storm inside me isn’t one of chaos, but of something that belongs.
I feel her brush against me as she adjusts her position, tilting her head against my shoulder to look at me properly. “Kai… sing for me,” she murmurs, her voice soft but insistent.
I smirk, shaking my head, letting a strand of wet hair fall across my eyes. “Sing? Me? For you? You’re lucky I just professed my love so damn poetically. Don’t push it, darling.”
Her fingers press against my chest, pouting up at me coquettishly. “But you said you’d do anything for me, so sing for me?”
Our eyes lock, and I let out a low chuckle. “Fine. But only because you asked so nicely,” I reply with a smirk.
I tilt my head, gazing at the dark sky, the twinkling stars winking back, and I let the first note roll out. The sound is low yet strong and carries in the wind. The water shivers as the current steadies, as if it too is listening.
I continue, the words are like tides weaving through the deep.
A tune of sorrow, hope, and longing.
Her song meets mine, flowing with it, different, yet somehow similar. It’s perfectly balanced. Sky and sea, twisting and colliding, powerful and beautiful together.
She spins around me, laughing softly as our voices entwine, and I can’t resist taking it up a notch. She matches me without missing a beat.
I look up as the colourful rays of light that are forming above us in the sky weave into vibrant waves that paint the night sky, and with every note, they glow brighter.
When the last note fades, I smirk down at her, brushing a wet strand of hair from her face. “Only for you.”
“You sing beautifully.”
“Not a word I want to associate with,” I reply arrogantly, making her laugh. “But that was a melody my mother taught me.”
“It’s beautiful,” she says softly.
The currents settle, but the lights above us remain, dimming ever so slightly, and the glow of the water softens.
Her fingers trace along my chest delicately. I can feel the soft thrum of her heartbeat against mine. “Kai?” she whispers. “We did it. We freed Varindor.”
I smile faintly. “I guess there’s a lot that the sky and sea can do together.”
She nods. “Yeah.”
For a long moment, we just float there, my wings half-spread, her tail curled around me.
The battle is over, but those memories linger. A strong reminder of what almost happened and what we achieved.
“So now we decide what’s next,” she declares.
“I guess we do.”
“Water fight!” She laughs, splashing water at me with her tail. I blink as I’m drenched.
“You might control the water, darling, but I can too.”
I use the wind to create a wave, bringing it down on her as she swims away and surfaces a few metres from me. I smirk as I flick my hand, and a wave from behind drenches her.
“That’s cheating!” she giggles.
“I play fair,” I say, swimming over to her. “I just play better,” I add cockily.
She giggles, curling herself against me as the waves lift and carry us gently. “I guess so.”
I glance around at the open ocean, endless and wild, and then back at her. “Now, how about you mark me?”
She stills, looking up at me, her eyes wide, before her hand finds mine, lacing our fingers together. She presses her forehead to mine before she kisses me softly. The taste of salt and something sweet lingers.
“Willingly,” she whispers.
I tilt my head, allowing her access to my neck. She leans in, and her teeth come out sharp and deadly before she sinks them into my neck. Pleasure washes through me as I feel our bond strengthen as it finally becomes complete.
I hold her tight as she kisses my neck before our lips meet again. We remain like that, exchanging soft kisses, simply enjoying one another’s presence. Letting the waves carry us... letting the wind play with our hair.
I was right. There’s nothing, no storm, no curse, no enemy that could ever break us.