by Hannah Reed
“I brought you here because we have decided to change tactics.” Ethan felt the leash release him.
“Guards.”
CHAPTER 19
“Your Majesty?” Clyde stuck his head around the door into the King’s study. “May I enter?” The King put down the papers he was reading and looked wearily out at the darkening waters beyond his window.
“Of course. What can I do for you?” Nathaniel asked. Clyde swam through the door and clocked the exhaustion on Nathaniel’s face. The room was immaculate as usual but the photos of Freya were hidden from sight. He didn’t want to add to the King’s pain, but he couldn’t delay this conversation any longer.
“Your Majesty, I’ve been looking into April’s early displays of power. And I think I may have found something,” Clyde said.
Nathaniel looked up, his face was composed but the fear in his eyes was real.
“I don’t want to dredge up the past considering your recent loss, but...” Clyde continued with determination. He swished his tail in the water as he bobbed from side to side.
“I understand,” Nathaniel replied. He rubbed his forehead and gestured for Clyde to sit down in the chair opposite his desk. “What have you found?”
“Thank you. You stated yourself, sire, that nothing of this kind had ever happened before. But, none the less I felt that the Royal Archive was the place to look. What I didn’t expect was that I wouldn’t have to look too far. Do you remember the Tale of the Twins Your Majesty?”
King Nathaniel stiffened. “The old fish tale? Please tell me you’re not wasting my time with a merita’s story?” Nathaniel said, a touch of anger seeping into his voice.
“I promise I’m not Your Majesty. That story, however, holds the key. I tracked down Queen Freya’s maid and she showed me something.” Clyde’s tail started to twitch. “I think your wife was hiding the truth from you.”
“How dare you?” The water chilled in the room, as Nathaniel floated to his full height. “How dare you accuse the Queen?”
“Please Your Majesty, were you aware she kept a diary?”
“A diary?” Nathaniel hesitated.
“Yes. She started one after her post-natal depression with the twins, to help her gain some perspective.”
Nathaniel’s face darkened at the mention of the twins. It was an unwritten rule that no one mentioned them. But, Clyde pressed on. “She didn’t write in it often. It reads like short fact sheets as if...”
“You read it,” Nathaniel accused coldly his eyes unblinking.
“Only parts of it Your Majesty, and I think you should too. Please, I have the papers here. Just take a look through them.” Clyde swam to his full height and produced the seaweed press papers. He placed them onto the King’s desk.
“You need to read these. I will report back in the morning and see if you reached the same conclusion I did,” Clyde hesitated and opened his mouth to say more, but instead he swam to the door. “Goodnight Your Majesty. I hope you sleep well.”
Left alone Nathaniel swam up from his desk. Since the loss of Freya, he avoided anything that could remind him of her. All his efforts were invested in finding his daughter and uncovering who was behind the Peace Treaty bombing. He floated over to his windowsill and looked out. The palace was in lockdown but he insisted that he still had access to his window. From here he had the best view of Hanaria. At this late hour, the dark waters were spotted with light from the city below. A song reached his ears. Nathaniel looked into the distance. A pod of male humpback whales were swimming towards the city. He let their melody wash over him as they sang in a round. His Communico pearl hummed as it joined in with the melody.
And we dance together through the sea,
By your side I am free.
Blue skies above and darkness below,
By your side wherever you go.
Nathaniel floated in the windowsill with his eyes shut. The timelessness of the humpback whales reminded him of his insignificance. One day, all this would be gone. The humpbacks soon passed over and Nathaniel opened his eyes. He turned away from the window and swam back over to his desk. The papers stared up at him. He immediately recognised the elaborate swirl of his wife’s handwriting. His heart clenched as he took in her favourite butter yellow ink on the dark green paper. Even this evidence of her existence threatened to overwhelm him. But, he couldn’t fall apart. April, Kayla and the seven seas depended on him. He grasped the papers and left his study.
Swimming down the corridor in the top west wing turret, he swam towards the east wing. Not wanting to be disturbed he was thankful he didn’t bump into too many members of the palace staff. He stopped outside Freya’s library. It was her favourite place in all of the seven seas. Without hesitating he pushed open the door and swam in. He wasn’t sure what he expected to find, maybe some physical sign of his wife’s absence. But, nothing had changed.
The floor to ceiling bookshelves still stood in place. The elaborate paintings on the floor were still as bright. They swirled around the library showing montages of different mer myths and legends; quotes brought the images to life. He swam into the centre of the room and could almost feel his wife’s presence there with him. He remembered the numerous occasions they fell asleep in front of the warm water stove back before he ascended the throne, back when life was simple. This library had been their haven. Nathaniel moved slowly through the library making his way to the balcony doors. Outside their bench sat waiting for him. He lowered himself down and stared out to sea. Finally, he lifted the pages and began to read.
13th July 1995
Another question to you diary - what do you do when you are scared for your children? The birth of the twins was stressful enough. The pressure of producing the royal bloodline, and somehow, I managed to mess it up. Having twins in the family is so rare no one knew what would happen. I was determined, however, that they would both thrive. Anthony and Julia are inseparable. They function as two halves of one whole. I hoped they could share the position. They share the powers of the pearls each showing unique abilities even at their young age. I presumed that they would share the throne. But, now I’m not so sure.
April is scaring me. I am scared for the twins and I am scared for her and of her. From birth, she was clearly a powerful pearl wielder. She and Nate had an instant bond, unlike the slow process he went through with the twins. Surely, she can’t command them all. But, when April cries it starts to rain, if she is angry the water boils and if you get her giggling a rainbow appears. When she is happy random plants start flowering, and her favourite game is to manoeuvre the water in her air bath so none of the air touches her. All the animals love her and she never becomes ill. She is a protégé. She is a mini Nathaniel. Every day I watch them together and I resent her. I resent my own daughter, am I an awful mum for begrudging the connection they share?
Nate’s Mother warned me about the bond between firstborns. Was this what she was talking about? My fears are mounting for the twins. Is April a threat to them? But, the twins dote on April. They are the only mer she behaves for.
Today while visiting the Kara Land Palace, Anthony and Julia ran into the sea and shot off. April crawled in after them and was swimming under the watch of her nanny. According to Perdita, April suddenly popped to the surface and started crying. Perdita stood up and called to her trying to encourage her to come ashore and explain her problem. The screaming continued and the clouds were gathering. Perdita said she quickly dove into the water to calm April before she caused a storm. Perdita reached April and cradled her in her arms. She could feel a weird heat surrounding April. April continued to cry so Perdita swam deeper into the sea to calm April and surround her by the soothing water. As she swam deeper April’s screaming lessened to sobs. She wielded her Curo powers, but weak as they are, she couldn’t detect anything wrong with April. Apparently, if anything, April seemed stronger than her last check-up. April started to look happier and her sobs turned into hiccups. Perdita said that by then the sun was shini
ng back down through the sea and the clouds had parted. April suddenly wriggled out of her arms and darted into the rocks. Perdita followed her good-naturedly. April is, according to Perdita, the most temperamental merita she has ever looked after. As Perdita neared April, who was merrily prodding a sea cucumber, she noticed that the twins were lying on the seafloor. Perdita called out to them. They didn’t respond. There was something unnatural about their stillness. Perdita swam towards them and shuddered as the water turned colder. She reached them and saw they were unconscious with a slow stream of bubbles issuing from their mouths. Perdita gathered them into her arms and said she was shocked to feel that they were both ice cold. Perdita poured her Curo power into the twins trying to warm them up.
Holding Anthony and Julia, she swam towards April. As Perdita swam towards her, April swam up to her brother and sister and touched them to see what was wrong. Blue Curo energy flowed from April to the twins. Only one year old and her power was far superior to Perdita’s. Almost instantly, the twins started blinking their eyes open and colour and heat returned to them. As they opened their eyes completely, April uttered one word ‘play?’ When Perdita recounted this to me I was concerned about the twins’ health. But, after seeing them myself they seem completely fine. The twins don’t recall what happened. They just remember feeling really cold. They wanted to know if April was okay as well. I went to see April and I could tell, that in one short day apart she had grown stronger. I fear for the twins. What is happening?
Nathaniel buried his head in his hands unwilling to continue reading. What had Freya kept from him? He scoured his brain trying to remember any conversations they had concerning April. April and he had always had a closer relationship than she and Freya. Was this why? All those times April had cried to him claiming that her Mum didn’t like her. Perhaps there was some truth to it. Freya could never forgive the mer who she believed was a danger to her firstborns, even if it was her own daughter? The strictness and insistence on control with April, was it all to stop her from gaining more power?
His head swam with memories from when Anthony and Julia were discovered dead. He had always presumed, as horrible as it was, that it was because they were twins that their pearl powers consumed them. It was like the mertale. Twins weren’t able to fulfil the first-born destiny. April had been born with access to all the pearls from the beginning. Clyde was right. With the fresh pain of Anthony and Julia’s death in his heart, Nathaniel reached out to his own Curo pearl. One night won’t hurt he thought as a sky-blue glow spread out from his medallion and into his heart.
CHAPTER 20
The drive back to the house was long. April drifted in and out of consciousness. Each time she went under again rapid, vivid pearl flashbacks blasted through her mind. It was as if her powers were struggling to remember every pearl command she had ever performed. Connor kept a tight hold of April as Alex drove the car back to the house. Her twitching body pulsed with changing colours of light.
“What’s going on back there?”
“I don’t know,” Connor replied looking to Alex in fear, “I think these are the colours of the pearls. She’s burning up.”
Connor grasped April tighter.
“Please be okay,” he whispered as he leant down and kissed her on the forehead. “Please.” He studied her face and noticed a sheen of sweat gathering at her hairline.
She was a mermaid. He couldn’t believe it. All his life the mer people had fascinated him. The mer stories his Mum told him as a child were his favourites. Black Pearl, The Three Whales, The Tale of the Twins, Prince Triton, he could still remember them now. His favourite subject at school was marine biology and now he could actually meet someone from the ocean. April could answer all his questions. Together they could unravel the mer and human divide. Connor stopped himself mid-thought. April. She seemed so fragile in his arms, but he didn’t know how to help her.
“Alex, how did you calm April down?”
“Ummm, I spoke to her and I rubbed her back. That stopped the storm at least.” Alex gripped the steering wheel; he was trying to avoid the many potholes in the dirt track.
“I think I should try and keep her awake. The light intensifies when she goes unconscious,” Connor said.
“Good idea. We’re almost home. You’re going to be okay April,” Alex said confidently. But, his eyes kept on darting to the rear-view mirror to check on her.
“April, can you hear me?” Connor asked. April stirred slightly and gripped onto Connor’s arm. “April, it’s going to be okay. I’m going to look after you. We don’t care that you’re a mermaid. But, you need to help me. You need to tell me how I can help you. How to stop the flashing lights?” He gave a feeble laugh. “I’m not very good at this I know,” Connor said.
April opened her mouth but her words came out as a whisper.
“April?” Connor leaned down closer towards her.
“Tell me a story, please,” April murmured.
“Oh okay,” Connor looked down at April as she nestled her head into his chest. Another shock of light pulsed through her body and she grimaced in pain.
“I need something to concentrate on,” she said through gritted teeth. “Help me.”
“I love mermaids,” Connor started dropping his voice.
“Mer,” April interrupted.
Connor chuckled; even in intense pain, she was still sassy. “Right sorry, I love mera and mer for that matter. We have lots of myths and legends about your people. My Mum, she used to tell us the stories when we were younger. Alex loved the Prince Triton stories, I thought they were a bit too far-fetched, to be honest.”
“Heyyy,” Alex interrupted as April choked out a small laugh. Connor ignored Alex and continued trying to occupy April’s attention.
“I wonder if they’re the same stories as the ones you would have been told as a child. Do you want to hear my favourite?” Connor asked. April smiled with her eyes still shut. Connor took this as a sign to continue.
“Once upon a time there was a beautiful young maiden. She grew up on her Father’s farm high up in the mountains. Every day she would go out and take the sheep across the meadows and see them safely to their different pastures. But, one day a horrific storm hit the farm and her Father was killed as a tree struck by lightning fell. A fire raged destroying the farm and killing off all the sheep and goats. Shella was left alone. A week passed as she sobbed in one of the mountain caves. What was she to do next?”
Connor looked down at April as he gained confidence. He felt awkward holding her in his arms, but at the same time, he never wanted to let her go. Her eyes were now open so he continued.
“Shella plucked up the courage and decided to explore the remains of the farm. But, there was nothing left. Filled with despair Shella determined to leave and never return. Strengthened by her newfound freedom she started walking. She walked and walked down the mountains. Two weeks later she stumbled across a town. Knocking on the first door she came to she collapsed on the porch. Next thing she knew she woke up in a warm, cosy bed. Too exhausted and sad to care where she was, she just lay there. ‘Hello,’ a voice said. Shella was startled. A man had been there all along. Shella looked up and instantly fell in love. The man was the owner of a seaside pub and she was asleep in his bed. After a brief courtship, they married. In a year she gave birth to a set of twins, two beautiful baby girls. One day when she was down by the sea the twins disappeared. Shella shouted and looked everywhere. Then out of the sea walked her husband holding her two babies, but they had tails. She fainted in shock.”
April chuckled. “So dramatic,” she said faintly with her eyes half closed.
“May I continue?” Connor asked indignantly. He caught Alex rolling his eyes in the rear-view mirror. April nodded with a small smile.
“So yes, she fainted and when she came around her husband explained everything. He was a banished mer Prince. His Father had tried to force him to start a war against the neighbouring mer tribe. When he refused he was exiled. S
hella was confused but she loved him no less. She also loved her two baby mermaids, I mean meras. Watching them play with their waterpower’s was one of her favourite activities. The next year she fell pregnant again. This time she gave birth to a baby boy. Right from the beginning, his powers were extraordinary. They were unlike anything Shella had seen before. When he fell asleep by the sea the waves moved in and out in time to his breath. Father and son bonded instantly, they adored each other. The baby boy loved to follow his sisters around and tried to join in their games. But one day, down by the beach her son fell and hit his head. Shella panicked as she crouched by him, he wasn’t breathing. Her husband wasn’t near so Shella called to her girls to help. As the twins approached him they used their healing powers to help. But, suddenly the light drained out of them. Her daughters started crying in pain, and in horror Shella pulled her girls away from her son. But it was too late. As their eyes closed and they turned cold, her baby boy awoke and started crying. Her husband was the heir to the throne, and thus he could only have one true heir. The twins were too weak with the powers of the pearls divided and so the baby boy’s powers, with a life of their own, fed off the twin’s kindness to ensure his own rule. Shella was grief-stricken. She was never able to look at her son in quite the same way again. But, she knew, that one day he would be an almighty ruler of the seven seas.”
“What do you think? Pretty dark and mysterious eh.”
“Come on, it’s only a children’s story,” Alex said, but he looked over at April and noticed that she was even paler than before.
“I know that story. We tell it differently. The Tale of the Twins,” April said her voice weak with exhaustion. It was as if she had been drained of all energy and all care. All she wanted was to sleep and feel nothing.
“Oh,” Connor said deflated, worried that his story-telling had not been up to par.
“Oh no, it wasn’t your fault. It’s just the way I was told the story. The reason for the draining was never explained as a matter of legitimacy, just powers gone rogue, the baby mer prince is evil in our version.”