Chapter Thirty-Nine
ELARA
The kingdom became even more awe-inspiring as Elara and the others ventured down the golden path.
It shimmered and glinted in the sunlight creeping above the clouds.
The sky was a wash of soothing colours, varying through duck-egg blue, butter yellow and marshmallow pink.
As they walked, joining others who had also taken the same path, she noticed the beautiful tinkling of chimes in the air following them all.
She saw Enzo’s shoulders relax slightly, Leo’s gait slow, Merissa’s brow soften.
She took a deep breath in, noticing that the air smelled of lavender.
Small rock pools and streams rushed off either side of the path and into further, deeper pools.
She could make out little altars and offerings to Cancia there—shells and incense, dried herbs and candles.
The queue began to bottleneck as an arch loomed, with a mermaid statue at either side, each pouring water from a shell.
‘Welcome to the quarter of magickal maladies,’ said an Altalunian man with a large map in his hand. ‘Which kingdom are you from?’
‘Asteria,’ Elara said quietly, fidgeting with her hair. Merissa squeezed her hand reassuringly, as though as a reminder that, yes, her glamour was in place.
‘Ah.’ The man nodded. ‘Shadow madness?’
She nodded too, looking to the floor.
‘Take the first left past the arch. Third shop there, and ask for the healer Clari.’
They offered their thanks and passed through.
The group was unusually quiet, soaking in their surroundings.
Through the arch there was a gigantic lake, lilac in hue, set in the centre of a town which was laid out in a circle around it.
The buildings were split into eight colours—matching the eight paths.
As Elara followed the man’s directions, she realized the shops in the small row ahead were all specifically for Asterian magick.
Remedies and tinctures of all kinds were displayed in the shop windows—some to make shadows more potent, sleep tonics to dreamwalk more easily, even looking glasses to practise illusions within.
When they located the third shop in the row, the sign—pristine and glittering in the light—read ‘The Darker Therapies’.
She turned to Enzo, who was glowering at the sign, as though warning it to heal Elara. When he saw her looking, he tried to force a bright smile on to his face, though Elara saw through it.
‘Finally, El. We will have the answers we need. Don’t be scared.’
She shook her head. ‘I’m not.’
And the four entered.
Inside, the neat space and furniture were made up of soothing creams and blues. A small fountain trickled in the centre of the room, and the scent of lemon balm was strong in the air.
‘Take a deep breath in,’ came a voice, and they all turned to see a lovely woman with long, straight sheets of silver-blue hair approach. Her large eyes were clear as a lake, and she had a smattering of freckles upon her golden skin.
Elara did as she was told, and the others followed suit. The scent settled into her, comforting and warm.
‘We’re looking for Clari,’ Enzo said.
The healer raised her hands. ‘You’ve found her. How can I help?’
Enzo looked to Elara encouragingly.
‘I believe I have the shadow madness. Or…possibly something else. I can no longer control my magick. And I’m looking for a cure.’
Clari smiled warmly. ‘Well, you’ve come to the right place.’ She gestured with her hand to an open door. ‘Why don’t you come through here with me?’ Elara moved, Enzo too, and Clari raised her hand. ‘Sorry. Just the patient.’
Enzo crossed his arms.
‘I’ll be fine,’ Elara reassured him.
‘I’ll be right out here,’ Enzo said. ‘Don’t let her do anything you aren’t comfortable with. If you need me, shout.’
Elara nodded, conjuring a small smile before following Clari through.
The room she was led into turned out to be a small grotto.
Water filled the cave, in the middle of which sat a giant raw crystal that looked like quartz with strands of tourmaline strung through it.
The space was warmer, the air clear, and it was dim, lit by candlelight that cast soft blue patterns upon the wall.
‘Why don’t you sit with me by the water?’ Clari asked, settling by the edge of the pool.
Elara followed suit, noticing that the pool, just like the lake outside, was purple in hue.
‘Now,’ the healer said, ‘why don’t you start by telling me your name.’
‘Nova,’ Elara lied.
Clari blinked, hiding a laugh. ‘It’s safe to be truthful here, Your Majesty.’
Elara stiffened, looking to the door.
‘Don’t worry,’ Clari reassured her. ‘There are many of us within this kingdom who hide our true identity.’
The healer slid smoothly into the water, and as a faint lilac light momentarily glowed, Elara gawped. Where legs and slim ankles had been, there now flicked a tail.
Elara continued to stare as Clari smiled shyly, swimming towards her and resting her arms on the ledge. ‘I wish you no harm. The mythas remember you, Your Majesty. I’m here to help.’
‘Y-you’re a mermaid,’ Elara said faintly.
Clari nodded, beaming. ‘One of many who work here as healers.’
‘And you all just…live here? Why?’
‘Because we want to help. You’ve heard about mermaid tears, have you not?’
‘In the stories…yes,’ Elara supplied.
‘The tales are true. Though many of the Stars have tried to eradicate us, there are one or two more benevolent than others.’
‘Are you talking about Cancia?’ She thought of the silver-haired goddess who had taken her pain away in the Asterian Opera House. Clari only inclined her head.
‘But how did you recognize me?’ Was Merissa’s glamour not holding up?
‘Why, because of your light, of course.’ Clari smiled, swishing her tail in the water.
‘My light?’
‘We mythas can see it, even if others can’t. Yours is a beacon in the night, bright and silver. It shines around you.’
Elara sighed, looking down at one of her hands and stretching it out before her. ‘I’m surprised you see it at all. All I see are shadows, growing darker.’
‘Then I suppose it’s time to see what can be done. Though I must warn you, great healing often comes at a cost.’
Elara nodded hurriedly. ‘I have money.’
Clari winced sympathetically. ‘Unfortunately, the price is determined by the patient and the magick required.’
‘And just what is your price?’ Enzo asked, pushing the door wide open and startling the two women.
‘Your Highness, you shouldn’t be in here—’
‘Enzo!’ Elara exclaimed.
He looked in bewilderment to the mermaid in the pool, who was frozen, then to Elara, whose eyes were wide in warning.
‘You’re—’
‘Yes, a mermaid. Something we had just established before you barged in here after eavesdropping,’ Elara said. ‘I’m sorry,’ she added, turning to Clari.
‘No,’ said the mermaid, bowing her head. ‘It’s truly my honour to serve both my king and queen.’
Enzo hadn’t moved from the doorway, still looking in shock at her tail.
Clari cleared her throat delicately when Enzo made no move to do anything but gawp. ‘As I was saying, about the cost of healing…My service requires an object of great emotional importance. Do you remember the tale of “The Mermaid’s Treasure” from The Mythas of Celestia?’
‘The mermaid had a hoard of lost objects from sailors and travellers alike,’ Elara replied.
‘Exactly,’ Clari said. ‘And when she touched each one, she could feel the emotions of the objects, see the stories of why they had been flung or lost to the ocean. And when she began to cry—’
‘She was able to use her tears to heal others,’ Elara finished.
Elara finished. She hesitated, looking at Enzo, before reaching for her dagger. Then froze.
‘Adrian still bloody has it,’ she muttered to herself.
Selfishly, she was relieved. It was the only tie she had left to Sofia.
She patted her person for anything else.
But she wore no jewellery. It was sad, she realized, just how untethered she was now from her home.
Nearly everyone she loved had died and, save for the dagger, she had no tie back to them.
She stopped then, thinking of the pressed forget-me-not that now hung around her neck, right over her heart—the one that Enzo had grown for her, and that she had kept ever since.
She delved beneath the collar of her dress and plucked out the locket Adrian had gifted her, opening it with shaking hands.
‘No,’ Enzo said, eyes pleading as he saw what it was she held.
‘Look, I’ll pay.’ He removed the golden hoop from his ear.
‘My mother gave it to me when I was just a boy, after piercing my ear. Helions are gifted gold when young to remind them of their worth, that they are born of the Light. This will be payment enough.’
‘Enzo, I could never ask you to—’
‘It’s all right,’ he murmured. ‘My tie to my mother transcends all objects, all distance, all realms. She will always be within my heart.’
Elara bit her cheek to stop herself from crying as it was passed to Clari.
Enzo’s eyes were soft and kind, and she once again found herself utterly undeserving of his love, barely able to look at him.
The healer’s eyes fluttered shut as she clasped the object, her skin glowing faintly as she sighed.
Then her lip began to wobble, her face crumpling.
Enzo watched, brow furrowed, Elara fiddling with her hands, wanting to reach out and comfort the healer.
Finally, a single, glittering tear rolled down her face.
Clari swept it up hurriedly with the pad of a fingertip and held it between them.
‘Take it,’ she whispered.
Elara looked back to Enzo once more, and he nodded reassuringly. She turned back, took a deep breath, and darted her tongue out, licking Clari’s tear from her fingertip.
It tasted like salt and magick, and as it slid down her throat, she felt a small stirring within her.
Clari gave a shaky smile before turning back to Enzo. ‘I really must implore you, Your Highness, to leave Elara with me for this next part.’