Unwanted

by Mari LaRoche

A hoarse, hesitant voice spoke from behind her. "This is the Seer?" The words were close to coughs, hard to understand.

  Viv turned, breathing hard. It didn't matter if the air was a little dank. It was still keeping her alive, and she fully appreciated every molecule of oxygen passing into her lungs. She’d seen enough strangeness in the past few days that she didn’t stare.

  Two people stood there, one still covering his ears. The pale light caught on the edges of fine, opalescent scales covering their bodies. Both strangers shone with moisture, water puddling under their feet. They wore netting made from a material unfamiliar to Viv, wrapped thick enough to conceal them shoulders to thigh with a variety of items tucked into mesh, including brightly colored cell phone cases. Their faces were unusually proportioned; the noses broad but flattened and the eyes twice as large as Viv’s. An additional lid flicked across their eyes as she watched. One was bald. The other had waist-length hair and breasts though Vivian couldn’t figure out why anything would want either in the water. Especially since the scales indicated a reptile or possibly a fish, and neither of those species suckled their young or had hair.

  Except, perhaps a platypus; she couldn’t remember if they had scales or not to go with the egg-laying. The rational part of her mind kept functioning while the rest of her wanted to gibber and scream.

  Next to them, a backpack-sized set of cylinders sat in the middle of the tunnel. Wires and what Viv thought might be a battery sat next to it.

  "Thank you for helping us." Amir inclined his head politely. "The tower line has moved from the original location. It made for a long frightening swim for her."

  “When you first made the contract for transport, you did not mention that the Morgan and her daughter knew of the Seer’s existence.” The male crossed his arms.

  “Brigit has contacts. Apparently even here. She’s never tried to make deals with the seafolk before.” Amir frowned. “Have you been made an offer?”

  The male made a bubbling noise that Viv hoped was laughter. “With the towers you so kindly helped us acquire, news spreads fast, and it is easier for landfolk to contact mercenaries than before. Daoine sidhe find us useful as long as they don’t need to get wet. These airways have brought more merchants in the past year than we’ve seen in decades. Of course she made us an offer, but we stay bought, old friend. You brought us this technology when you gained nothing from the action. Brigit would use us and discard us in an instant.”

  The female nodded. "Yes. Some in our clan had taken her contract. We had to clean house. A huge reward is offered for this female’s body, preferably living but vegetative."

  "What kin are you?" Each word stabbed Vivian’s throat with fire. Of all the questions she could ask, this seemed the safest. Asking for details on the contract for her murder bothered her.

  Why? That’s the information you need! Exasperation suffused the words.

  The female smiled at her, baring thin and needle-like teeth, another point of difference from humans. "We are marmennill. Many kin of the landwalkers call us lesser marid. They're big on lumping kins together when they cannot be easily corrected but manage to keep the daoine sidhe and the áos sidhe distinct.” Her voice was a song that lured Viv to listen to the sound, not to hear the words.

  Vivian paused, parsing it out. "What should I do if I want to be polite?"

  "Seafolk is fine overall since most living in the waters do not care what landfolk say. No one expects land-dwellers to know the differences between our kins. We do not take offense at the drop of a hat like land-dwellers do. But we do like it when people know our kin.” The female shrugged.

  Heh. Liar. They’re even more touchy than daoine sidhe, and their fights are brutal. Be careful.

  Noted. Viv’s head ached. “Do you know why they want me in a vegetative state?”

  “Legend has it that the seer powers run in family lines.”

  Viv’s mind retreated from the implications, and she focused on the machinery instead. Towers. Cellphone towers? Viv didn’t know why the concept shocked her as much as a contract on her life. She’d at least had a chance to get used to the thought someone wanted her dead, but magical cellphone towers made her head hurt. Or maybe not magical; the tower was transmitting through air down here and not water.

  It explained them having phones, at least. And the call Amir had made right before he took her into the water. The anger surged again, then vanished.

  Best to let anger go; it avoids berserker fits. Those get messy.

  “Are any of them here?” Amir’s face had set in grim lines.

  “A triad of daoine sidhe men came a few weeks ago after an accident that left them in our waters. Turfa, the king’s wife, decided she wanted to see more of landfolk customs and toys, so they are living under her hospitality. Snooty bunch, keep complaining about the water drying their hair and skin out and wanting cooked food rather than fresh. But Turfa likes her pretties, and Zeyaad is willing to let her have them since they just made up after their last fight. Those three are the ones made the contract with our kinfolk.”

  “People to avoid, then. Is there any way to avoid being presented to King Zeyaad?” Amir drummed his fingers on his thigh.

  The female shook her head. “He wants to see you and her as soon as you come to Hlerheim, and it is not worth our guts if we disobey.”

  "How far is Hlerheim from here?" Amir asked.

  Viv shivered. The air was chilly, her clothing soaked, and the anger had calmed enough she noticed the cold.

  One thing she needed to say before they went any farther, though. “Ask me before you do anything like that again, Amir.

  His dark eyes caught hers. “I know. I hoped the water would help. Do you remember anything?”

  Don’t tell him. It’ll make things…difficult…for you and him if he knows I’m aware.

  I don’t like lying.

  Trust me. Also, this is what Zeyaad looks like under those robes.

  Impressive. And a non sequitur to distract me. Is there anyone important that you didn’t sleep with when you were alive? Did you die as a teenager? Exasperation bubbled in Vivian. She wanted to spend time with Amir, not have naked images of powerful men flash into her mind.

  Of course! I only had sex with men I liked. There’re many important men I wouldn’t have touched—ever. And far from a teen, Vivian. The words held edges. Again, that’s why I want to be gone before Fate decides to merge us.

  “No, I don’t remember anything.” The words worked their way through Viv’s suddenly clenched teeth.

  “Pity,” said the female. “The roar was impressive. You’ll need tricks to defend yourself from the daoine sidhe; the prettiness doesn’t stop them from being vicious fighters. They’ll try to take you, of course; it’ll be interesting to see what the king does. If Turfa can get away with it.”

  Amir’s face set in cold lines. “Then we should let him know she has other friends.”

  The male snorted. “Your friendship is known, Amir. Do you have anyone else with you?” He turned to Viv. “What is your name? I assume you don’t want to be called Seer.”

  “I’m Vivian Rivera.”

  Another short, sharp laugh from the female. “After a water spirit? To you, I’m Ilse since you can’t say my real name.”

  The male cleared his throat. “We need to start walking. Less talking, more changing.” He reached behind himself, his arm more flexible than Viv would have believed, and his hands reappeared with a small backpack of treated leather.

  Unzipped, it folded apart to reveal flowing clothing, identical in cut, though the garment he passed to Amir was larger. Both were white. Viv’s was decorated with shells and resembled a ballgown from a children’s cartoon. Amir’s was more a long, flowing robe.

  It had the sole benefit of not being soaking wet and cold.

  Amir had already stripped his shirt off and began shedding his pants. Viv shifted her gaze.

  Wait!

  Ignoring Ušum, she turned her back to expose th
e minimum amount of skin possible to strangers. As well as keep the temptation to peek to a minimum.

  “Do you mind?” she snapped as the male walked in front of her, expression assessing.

  "I can see why you risked your life for her."

  Viv strained to see over her shoulder where the lacings on the garment hung loose.

  “Do you want help?” Ilse stepped between the male and Viv.

  She gave in. “Yes, please.”

  Ilse helped her finger comb where her hair had knotted itself when it fell out of the braid. She noticed as it fell forward in a wet flop that it had thickened. She blinked and stared more closely at her hands, seeing a fine sheen of scales across their backs.

  "Did you expect this?" She stared at Amir as Ilse laced her efficiently into the clothes.

  Amir’s eyes were pure gold. His lips curled into a faint smile as he stopped next to her.

  "What needs to happen is happening. You tapped into your magic. Sometimes, the trauma is what it takes, and I thought that this particular trauma was most appropriate."

  As I said, bastard.

  Explosive rage powered the punch that Vivian placed squarely in his jaw. Her knuckles crackled. She froze, appalled at what she’d just done. An automatic apology hovered on her lips.

  Amir staggered a step back from the blow, frowned, and gazed down at her. "I'll give you that one. I deserved it." His voice was even, contrasting with the darkening skin on his jaw.

  Why had she hit him?

  The immersion in seawater makes you react more like me. We need to try to keep it to a minimum.

  Yes. She wanted to stay herself, not become whatever had started waking and shifting inside her.

  The male applauded, teeth gleaming in a wide smile. "Again, she could be one of us."

  The seaman’s threatening grin deepened at Amir’s narrow-eyed glare at him. "My name is Ben. I'm pleased to meet you."

  "I'm pleased to meet you." Vivian edged closer to Amir, trying to break the moment.

  A variety of creatures paused in the water outside to watch them as they began walking—like a reverse aquarium where they were the exhibit. After a short while, walking on the platform became more difficult work. Her legs burned, though the air was cool enough she wasn’t sweating.

  When they passed the third cellphone tower, Viv held up a hand. She caught her breath and stretched to ease the muscles in her legs. Amir, damn him, wasn’t even breathing hard.

  “To confirm, you made these tunnels so the cell towers could transmit? None of the people here need to breathe air? Are there other places like this with air in them?” Vivian watched and flinched as several orcas skimmed by. The bubble’s edges didn’t shift at all, but she could picture one charging through and grabbing them in its jaws.

  Ilse tapped her phone case. “Yes, wi-fi is wonderful. Amir brought the idea to Zeyaad. Though, some groups had managed to pirate cables to small communities. There have always been good waterproof cases for electronics if you have the money, but he showed us how we could get fast streaming if the towers had air to transmit through. As long as there’s air, we have access. Several kins and especially the marid worked to create these airways and connect them to a crossing point to humanity’s dominion. That is the central area, and the airways reach to our cities. It was a huge project, and they created a network of these ways, so all of the big settlements have access to signal. The biggest hurdle was making the airways permanent.” Her pride was evident.

  “The newest towers are small, which makes it even easier.” Ben brushed a proprietary hand against one of the small machines. “There have been attempts to break them; there are those who don’t want the undersea kins to have modern tech. Which is why there are guards.”

  “I don’t see any.”

  Ben’s bubbling laugh joined Ilse’s bark. “Most of the creatures just outside are guards, Vivian Rivera. Don’t assume anything is stupid; it will be safer for you here.”

  Amir joined Viv as they started walking again. A haze of light, too far away to make out any detail, spread in front of them.

  “This meeting is going to be dangerous for you. Be ready to defend yourself with everything you have.” His lips parted, and he struggled to say more but sighed instead.

  Viv wished she’d developed telepathy as well as claws. It would have made life easier.

  12

  After another mile, the haze turned into bright phosphorescence. A city spread out before them, inhabited areas defined by swirling water filled with phosphorescent sea creatures. Some blocked sight in the same way a regular wall would. In other areas the light was translucent; it defined a space, but creatures moved within the room, humanoid and not. The view was beautiful, full of light, color, and motion.

  It was also terrifying.

  "Now what?" Vivian glanced at Amir.

  Amir stared forward. "We're headed to the palace where Zeyaad, the king of this sea lives. He is a marid, a different kin than Ben and Ilse."

  Vivian glanced at the other two. "Could you tell me more? Since what I expect a marid to be from folklore probably isn’t what the reality is."

  Ilse laughed. "The marid are the most humanlike in temperament, and they're the strongest at manipulating water, too. They are the ones that humans and landwalkers think of when they think of seafolk. Their chief, Zeyaad, likes to think he rules the rest of us, and since he is able to pound the heads of most of us, we are willing to listen to him sometimes. When you talk with him, you should choose your words wisely."

  The airway rose to join with a huge glowing area, passing through the swirling light that defined its exterior. It was one of those spaces where the interior was fully obscured by the light, and the outside stretched beyond Viv’s ability to see clearly. It floated in the midst of the other areas, drifting on the current as if the collection of structures were a school of fish.

  Illusion in use here.

  The opaque areas shed enough light that she could see clearly. The airway took up only a small portion of the corridor within. A long, black shark passed next to the bubble, brushing against its edges, a gleam of intelligence in its eyes that made her nervous. Within the building, coral, somehow supported and nourished despite the lack of seafloor, housed small, brightly colored fish.

  This is the reality.

  Viv blinked. The area they’d entered was a platform on the sea bottom, not free floating. The walls and coral were real, though. Light came from a sun above them. She could see the ghost of the illusion superimposed on reality.

  Make it go away. The dual images made her head throb, and it wasn’t currently important.

  Other beings, some with fish tails or fins though many were humanoid, swirled around them as the pair led Amir and Viv down the air tunnel. The humanoids wore netting similar to Ben’s and Ilse’s, making Viv wonder why she and Amir had been given different clothing.

  The tunnel expanded into an air-filled room big enough to hold hundreds of people. Long tables were stacked with tablets, and one held the largest television Vivian had ever seen. Other tables held piles of cloth and a variety of electronics.

  Ilse’s voice barely rose above a whisper. “Look up. That’s Zeyaad.”

  High above, a neat growth of seaweed, strands moving in a slight current, framed a huge crystal, which emitted a light that warmed and illuminated the area almost like the sun. Drifting in the water near the enormous crystal, a man and woman dressed in the same fashion as Viv and Amir were surrounded by a crowd of seafolk. The individuals within the group moved constantly, making it difficult to focus on distinct members other than the giant seahorses that hung on the outskirts of the group.

  In the still center of the school, the male’s long black hair floated unconfined, a dark cloud in vivid contrast with his pale blue skin. He was short with a broad-shouldered build, the wide sleeves of his robes revealing heavily muscled arms and hands comprised of two thick fingers and a thumb with thick webbing between. Below the robe Viv saw he
had something like a whale’s fluke, though in the image Ušum had showed her he had legs.

  Oh, he has legs and feet when he wants.

  Contrasting with his dark hair, the female’s even longer ivory hair was poorly contained in a long net. Her eyes, glowing silver, were the most beautiful that Vivian had ever seen. She kicked downward in a powerful stroke.

  Turfa hated me, though they were not yet joined when Zeyaad and I dallied. Looks like she still does, though you’re the target now.

  Wonderful.

  Zeyaad, though he started later, arrived at the same moment as Turfa at the edge of the bubble in which Vivian, Amir, and their escort stood.

  The crowd followed about ten feet behind. Among them, a handsome man with fair skin and long braided golden-brown hair, stood out, gliding with a grace just short of the seafolk royalty. Unlike the others, he wore swim trunks, not robes.

  Beside Viv, Amir stiffened.

  Zeyaad and his companion reached the edge of the air bubble, level with the floor. Both bore graceful torcs with large red stones at the ends as well as a variety of necklaces and bracelets. He stepped into the air first, his fluke changing into legs without an intermediate phase. Nor were his garment or hair wet; it was as if water didn’t touch him if he didn’t want it to.

  The female’s transition was slower, and her legs and feet were thicker than was proportional to her body, her feet twice as broad as they should be. Her hair slicked down her back, shining with water, and the robe clung to her body, revealing more of her figure than Viv wanted to see.

  She grimaced, a sign of discomfort that Zeyaad did not show; so far as Viv could tell, it had been instant and painless.

  A gesture from Zeyaad dismissed Ben and Ilse, who stepped out into the water and swam away.

  The king regarded Vivian briefly and then turned to Amir. "Amir. Is the long waiting done?”

  "Zeyaad. Yes."

  Zeyaad gestured to the woman who accompanied him. “This is my queen, Turfa.”

  The female circled around, wide feet barely visible below her hem, her eyes more on Amir than Viv. While lovely despite her strange coloring, her beauty was the predatory beauty of a barracuda, graceful and deadly in its element. The silvery eyes were cold and merciless.