Of Sea and Song

by Chanda Hahn

  “Witnessed,” four voices spoke up quickly in unison, and one seal barked.

  I looked at the strange faces of the royal guards, and they looked grim. I didn’t want to be the queen, but at the same time, I didn’t want to die. I just wanted to live with Brennon at my side.

  “Then you shall protect her as you would me. She is now the song of the sea and will gain all my powers and blessings upon my passing.” Darya’s hands trembled as she reached for the ornate silver ring on her hand. With a twist, she opened a compartment and pressed the contents to her lips, tipping her head back as she swallowed and released a contented sigh.

  “What are you doing?” I gasped out, realizing too late the ramifications of her previous statement.

  She gave me a stunning smile. Her eyes filled with tears. “I’m being selfish. I’m doing what I must do to save your life and to save my kingdom.” She wobbled, and one guard wearing a helmet and visor reached out to steady her. She gave him a lovely smile. “I should have done more to look for you. I shouldn’t have given up. But I was too afraid to leave the sea, never having thought you would be on land.”

  She grasped her chest, and the guard helped lower her to the ground. His arms wrapped securely around her shoulders, his head bowed as if he knew what was coming and accepted it.

  I couldn’t so easily accept her sacrifice.

  “But to poison yourself?”

  “It’s belladonna, darling. I’m fading. My time here was almost to an end. I have grown weary, and once I die, the sea’s power will no longer be contained. Do you understand? Her wrath is great. There will be typhoons, white squalls; hurricanes will be unleashed, and nothing on sea or land will be safe. Like it happened thousands of years ago.”

  “I don’t understand.”

  “Then let me tell you a story, one that has been told to the daughters of the sea, and you will tell your daughter.” She took a shaky breath and began. “The sea was lonely, and she wanted love, so she struck out against every man who ever tried to sail her waters and find her secrets. She capsized and crushed every ship that sailed her waters. Until one man, who sailed with the power of the sun and wind at his back. No matter how hard she tried to destroy him, he sailed through her storms. Storm after storm, squall after squall, the sea tried to sink his ship.

  “Until her wrath was so great she destroyed his ship. It crumbled and splintered under her might and killed his crew. The man fell overboard, and she took pity on him, sweeping him to a nearby island for safety.

  “The sea felt a closeness to the man, for no other sailor had braved her temper for as long as he did. She, with her soft, gentle waves and abundance of fish, would send him gifts on the island. She took care of him, fed him. But no matter how hard she tried, she couldn’t communicate with him. So, she learned to sing. Every night under the moonlight, she would sing for him.

  “And the man listened. Her song entranced him, and he slowly fell in love with the sea. But they could never be together, for she was the sea and he was a man. She used all her magic and created a human vessel of it. She created a siren.

  “The siren walked out of the ocean, and the man knew it was his beloved sea by her voice. And since then, love calmed the sea’s chaos. And now every thousand years, a new siren is born of the sea.

  “When I die, my magic will pass on to you. And you will control the seas. Use my power to take back your love. Save your prince, kill the sea witch, and break that curse.”

  “But why?”

  “Because, Meri, you are a siren. Born of the sea, your true mother. I was charged with raising you to take my place.” Darya became weak, her head tilted back, and the guard cradled her gently.

  “But what if I fail?”

  “Oh, darling, but what if you succeed? When I pass, it will be your duty to protect the seas, as it will be your future son’s duty to protect the future song born of the sea.”

  Her hands reached for mine, and I clasped them softly as she struggled to breathe. “I only wish… that Vasili knew… how much I loved him.” Her eyes were glassy, and she choked.

  The guard holding her threw off his helmet. His glorious dark-green hair came cascading down his shoulders, and Vasili pressed his forehead to Darya’s. “He knows, Mother. He knows.”

  Darya looked up at Vasili, and her smile brightened as she pointed to me. “You have a second chance. Protect her, son. Protect the song of the sea.”

  “I will not fail you a second time, Mother.” He rocked her in his arms.

  “I’m sorry for—” Darya’s eyes fluttered, and in one last exhale, she died.

  Vasili pulled his mother into his arms. His shoulders shook as he silently cried. His grief was immeasurable.

  The crown upon my brow felt heavy upon her death, and my limbs tingled as a song pierced the air.

  Darya’s body glowed like the sun, and the sweetest of songs echoed through the chamber. Like a curtain being raised, the glow lifted from Darya and floated like a cloud to ascend around me. The music grew louder in my ears as the magic settled into my body. I could hear them—the chorus.

  They sang as one. All the sirens of the past, all singing their song at once, and I immediately knew them as my sisters, all of us born of the same mother, the sea. There was Allegra, the sea’s first daughter, Cadence, and Harmony. Hundreds of sirens, all singing together at the passing of their sister, all of them welcoming me.

  The music settled into my soul, and then the song ended. And there was an absence, a nothingness. Where moments before I was happy at meeting my sisters, now an empty feeling settled over me. I felt irritable, alone and abandoned.

  I glanced at Darya’s body, and all I felt was discontent. She was right. The power of the sea flowed through my veins, yet not only the power but her fury, and right now, I wanted to destroy the sea witch, Sirena, for cursing me, for trying to steal my birthright and my love.

  Three guards kneeled before me, all of them verbally pledging themselves to me as their rightful queen. Vasili still cradled his mother, and I looked at them both as I saw them for what they were.

  Weak.

  Everywhere I looked, I was surrounded by weak, pitiful creatures. All of them would be nothing without me… the sea.

  I looked down at my dress I was wearing and decided it wasn’t appropriate for a wedding. I sang out my desire, my voice and throat no longer hoarse, and the sea answered with magic. Darkness moved across my skin as my dress lengthened into a black cloud before reforming as a long-sleeved dress with strips that flowed like tentacles from my waist down. My hair turned white as the ocean’s power rushed into my body, which was nothing more than a vessel.

  Above the protected ceiling, dangerous creatures came to do my bidding—sea snakes, sharks, sea lions—and from beyond, I could hear a creature deep beneath the ocean. It stirred awake at my power, and I could feel his hunger.

  Come to me, I mentally called. And we will feast on death tonight.

  Vasili brushed his fingertips across his mother’s eyes, closing them in death. He glanced up, and he was shaken.

  “Merisol, what is happening to you? Your eyes, your hair. They’re not the same.”

  “I am not Merisol.” My voice sounded hollow. My mouth was moving, but the words were not my own.

  “Who are you?” Vasili stood up and took a tentative step toward me.

  “I am the sea,” I said. I ran my fingers down my dress and smiled at the beauty of it. The ominous black dress and dark coral that decorated my shoulders, like deadly bracers, my black crown upon my head completed the look.

  It was time to go. Not to a wedding, but to a funeral.

  Chapter Twenty-Eight

  I didn’t need the fountain to return to the upper world. All I had to do was close my eyes and imagine another body of water, and instantly I was there. I was stepping out of the enchanted waterfalls and stared down at the pitiful scene before me.

  Time had passed quickly while I was in the Undersea, and the wedding was alrea
dy in progress. The burning in my breast as soon as I arrived back on land told me the curse was quickly taking hold. I would not let it happen.

  The Bella Donna was anchored out at sea to have the palace and the setting sun as the perfect ceremony backdrop. A trail of white flowers led from the beach to the anchored ship. Soft music flowed and echoed across the waters, its melody a painful ache in my ears.

  “Fools,” I snarled. Leaving the whirlpools, I marched down to the beach. Following me out of the enchanted pools was my army from the Undersea. I recognized Vasili as the head guard, and Lad was on my left, waddling to keep up.

  When I came to the ocean, I sang a note, and it answered as I stepped out onto the first wave. It swept me up, the foamy swell carrying me seamlessly toward the ship. The salty air was relaxing, and my ears were in tuned with all the voices of the creatures of the sea. The seagulls flying about the ship were even cawing out a cry of celebration.

  I frowned as I feared I was too late.

  In seconds, I was at the ship. The wave crested and lifted me up to the railing, and I stepped onto the Bella Donna’s deck to a chorus of surprised gasps.

  The wedding party was small, comprising the ship’s crew and a few of the courtiers and royal guards. A longboat was lowered and ready to take the rest of the party back to shore after the nuptials.

  I spied King Roald standing on Brennon’s right, and the sea witch was on Velora’s left, the conch clutched in her hands. Sirena spied me, and her face went pale. She clutched the shell to her chest and glanced at her daughter fearfully.

  I followed her gaze to look upon the couple. My heart hurt, as my love stood before me, a glorious godlike statue in gold, his clear sea-blue eyes unfocused as I passed the priest and stood in front of him. Even now, in all my power, he couldn’t see me. I turned my hatred toward the mermaid and her sisters, five who stood next to Sirena, and one I sensed waiting in the sea beyond the ship.

  Opening my mouth, I sang out a simple note, and the power of the ocean answered. The waves churned and rolled, their foamy mouths picking up the Bella Donna and tossing her about like a leaf in a river. The sky turned black and winds blew sideways, scattering the petals that covered the deck and the colorful ribbons that hung with the sails.

  People screamed, some dashing for cover. The crew raced for weapons. I didn’t pay them any attention. It was the sea witch who I turned to. She grasped the conch shell in her hands, and her mouth mumbled as she held the conch higher in the air.

  A pain ripped through my shoulder as the curse burned through my breast.

  No! I would not give in like this. My singing grew louder, the ocean answering my calls.

  Brennon drew his sword. He raised it to attack me, and I almost wished it would strike true. To end my pain. I closed my eyes. A dark blur brushed past me, knocking me aside, and collided with Brennon, knocking him down. Vasili attacked Brennon, and the two were in a familiar duel.

  Roars and clashing of swords filled the air, and I turned to see the crew and King Roald’s guards fighting my Undersea guards.

  “What are you doing?” Velora cried out. Her hands trembled; the white bouquet fell to the deck.

  “I’m taking back my birthright,” I answered. “You knew. You both knew who, or should I say what, I am?”

  Velora’s eyes dropped guiltily. Her hands fumbled within her white silk skirts. She nodded. “We knew.”

  “And yet you still tried to kill me?” I hissed.

  “Mother said it was the only way. That the sirens aren’t the only daughters of the sea. That mermaids are as well,” Velora fumbled out quickly. “And that it serves you right. It was justice for what Lorelei Eville did to us.”

  Roald was not at all phased by my show of power. In fact, he was grinning from ear to ear. “A siren? A true daughter of the sea. Who’d have thought you were still alive? Especially after all these years.” He turned to Velora. “And you were nothing more than a poor substitute.” He leaned back to watch Vasili and Brennon fighting each other, fully engaged in the outcome. He made a face when Brennon took a jab to the gut.

  The king did not try to stop the fighting or pull back his men. He thrived on adventure and stubbornness.

  I heard a sickening thud, and Vasili pulled away. Brennon was lying on the deck, motionless. A red blood pool formed beneath his body. The injury was to his shoulder and not life threatening. Vasili was just as strong as Brennon if not more and had maybe held back in his previous fights, but when it came to protecting me, he would fight to the death.

  Vasili sheathed his sword. “You will not injure my queen.”

  Brennon reached for Velora, and she clung to him, her arms wrapping around his neck possessively, and she glared at me. I knew she would not give him up without a fight.

  The wind picked up as my anger needed a place to vent. I spun on my heel and stalked Sirena. “Release him from the spell, now!” I screamed, pointing at Brennon.

  Dressed in red and gold silk, her white hair was braided into a crown. She didn’t look exotic or wild but cool and refined. Like a powerful woman. Her eyes closed to slits, and she held the shell in her hand. “No. You’re too late.”

  My heart slowed, my mouth went dry, and I turned to look at the matching wedding cuff that both Brennon and Velora wore. The set I picked out. I looked at the spelled look in Brennon’s eyes and how Velora clung to him, like she was drowning and he was the very air she needed to survive.

  I felt sick.

  Sirena grinned. “I see the change within you, Meri. Which means Queen Darya is dead. A noble sacrifice on her part to save you, but you forget that traveling to the Undersea takes time, and you lost. You may have gained more power from your attempt to seek help, but it will soon be gone as I drain the rest.”

  She held out the shell, and the last of her mermaid daughters climbed up the rope ladder and stepped onto the deck. Her hair was a saffron-yellow, her dress a simple white wrap. Her hands reached for the shell greedily, and Sirena handed it over.

  With a single note, I sang, and with a powerful gust of wind ripped the shell from the mermaid’s hands and blew it into the ship’s mast. Unbelievably, the shell didn’t shatter.

  “It can’t be broken or destroyed.” Sirena cackled. “Your time as the sea queen will soon be over, and it is my daughters who will inherit.”

  I understood how the sea in Queen Darya’s story felt and her warning about her anger. I was the sea, and my wrath was uncontrollable. How she wanted to destroy every ship that dared to sail her waters. She was in pain. I was in pain and wanted them to feel my own.

  I sang, and the ocean answered. The water bubbled, and a humongous tentacle reached out of the sea and knocked against the sail.

  A woman screamed. A second tentacle appeared and wrapped over the railing, searching along the deck until it found an unsuspecting soul. It wrapped around him and flung him into the thrashing waves.

  “Finally!” King Roald roared. “Something worthy of me to fight!” He drew his sword and attacked my kraken, a much larger and dangerous cousin of Diesel.

  The mermaids cowered, ducking their heads, as the kraken was actively looking for the sisters. My pet found the one with sky-blue hair and flung her into the water. A mental cry of anguish knocked me to my knees. It was the kraken; he had received a wound from King Roald’s sword.

  Each stab felt like it was directed at me, and as I felt his pain, he fed on my anger.

  “Now,” I said. The kraken grabbed the king and flung him across the deck. He hit the center mast with a thud and fell to the ground.

  I stared numbly at the unmoving body of King Roald. I had a moment of déjà vu. It was Armon’s death all over again. I truly was a murderer. All around me, people were hurt or in pain, and their cries were like annoying gnats. I wanted to clear them away, wash them into the ocean.

  I sang with the intent to not just wash them clean, but to bring the ship down. Then, and only then, would the numbing pain go away and I could feel
again. Death seemed like a silent relief.

  The waves stilled as the water pulled back in preparation, like a mighty hammer preparing for the final blow.

  From the decks below, a young woman was struggling to come above and keep her balance with the help of a familiar cook.

  “Meri!” she cried through the wind.

  It was Aura. Her face a pale mask, her blonde hair whipping about her in a frenzy as she fought against the wind and sand. One arm covering her eyes, the other arm reached for me.

  “What are you doing here?” I yelled. “Go away. I don’t want you here. I don’t want you to see me like this.” I blasted her with wind, and she slid across the deck and almost went overboard. Howland grabbed her at the last second and pulled her back to safety.

  She carefully got to her feet and approached me. “Never, ever disappear from me again!” she yelled over my violent wind. “Do you understand me? If you run, I will always find you.”

  My heart ached at seeing my beautiful and fragile sister.

  “Oh, stop it. I’m not fragile.” Aura made a face. “And stop blaming yourself for Armon’s death. It was an accident, and you saved me. And I’m here to save you.”

  “You can’t save me. No one can.” I gasped, and my hand went to my chest. The white burning curse raced through me. “All I can do is make my death worth it. Make sure that my enemies pay for what they did and take them with me.”

  “Stop it, Meri. This isn’t you. This isn’t who you are.”

  “It is,” I admitted. “I am not a normal girl. I’m the—”

  “The sea,” Aura interrupted. “Yeah, I know. Don’t forget I can read your emotions. I’ve been reading your dreams for years. I suspected but it wasn’t time to tell you.”

  “Secrets are poison,” I spouted, feeling betrayed by her confession. “They slowly hurt the one person you want to protect.” I looked over at Brennon, and my eyes burned with tears.

  “I see,” Aura answered. She slowly moved toward Brennon. Velora stepped in front of her, but Aura just laid a hand on her heart and whispered a word. “Percipio.”