Dark Oceans (Ocean Series Book 1)

by Rhonda Nelson

"No more...no more..." he trembled, hiding his face from her.

  "Leo," it was her voice again, in that sweet sing song voice... "Callie?" he asked, not wanting to see if she was actually there. He didn't want to be disappointed, just like all those other times.

  "No Leo, I'm Kelsie," but it still sounded like her voice...both their voices were the same.

  "Bring her back," he told her, ignoring what she had just said. Somehow, he felt closer to sanity.

  "Bring her back...raise her from the dead. Otherwise, you might as well kill me."

  "But I- I can't. It's not possible to bring the dead back to life." Leo shook his head; she must be lying.

  "The Anima Pendant, it can bring back the dead. It can't bring back elves...only other creatures and beings."

  "So, Callie isn't an elf?" why was she speaking so quietly? He didn't understand anything right now.

  "No," he answered, copying her tone of voice. "She was a mermaid. Once you find the pendant, call upon her spirit and it will come." There was a heavy silence.

  "Where shall I find the pendant?"

  Leo shrugged. "It was lost many years ago...many say that it is a legend, but it does exist. A long time ago it belonged to a powerful human king, he was able to bring back his dead citizens...but there was a great war between him and the Kingdom of Mylvehil. The pendant was lost, never to be seen again."

  "Then I have no hope in finding it," Kelsie sounded so miserable, so pitiful.

  "But one chance out of a thousand, find it. That's all I ask. If you haven't found it in a month, let me reunite with Callie once more."

  The King stared up at his daughter's tutor in annoyance. From time to time he had been pestering about many things, but the King refused to give in to such a lowly man. The things the tutor said were beyond preposterous and he remained stubborn. The past was the past, he always told himself. And he wasn't going to forget that.

  "You've got that look in your eyes again, my lord." Frederic glared at the tutor in hatred. What right did he have to state these things to him?

  "And what look might I have? Care to extend your sentences?" he told him icily, for he was not in the mood for mindless chatter.

  "You're thinking about her, aren't you?"

  "I told you not to mention her ever again," the king growled in fury. "She made her mistakes and I will not have people like that alive in my kingdom."

  "You know that you don't mean that. You still love her, don't you?" In any other situation, the king might have admired him for being so bold yet so foolish. But in this conversation, it worked the other way.

  "Sir Gary Wright, you do understand the punishment for disobeying the king? This must be the hundredth time you've spoken to me about her, and I have been very merciful when it comes to second chances."

  The tutor paled rapidly. "Yes, my lord."

  "So, listen to me now, for I am giving you one chance only to redeem yourself. Never speak about her again, not to me, not to anyone. Unless of course; you wish to join my little army of statues, in this very room."

  "Please forgive me, my lord," the tutor bowed down quickly. "Now go, this council meeting is over. I have more important matters to attend to." The nobles got up from around the table and hurriedly made their way out of the brightly lit grand hall, until nobody was left but him. A lone man suddenly entered the room, passing the guards at the double doors respectfully.

  "Michael, just on time," the King said, leaning back in his seat at the head of the table. The physician sat next to the king, setting down his many books and loose parchment. "Have you discovered the deaths of the two guards yet? It has been a mystery to us for too long," the king said, furrowing his eyebrows together in thought. Michael looked up from his notes, his face was unnaturally yellow. Probably from the vile looking liquid that was in a cup next to him.

  "I have concluded that it is partially the work of a mermaid, though my experiments show that the attacker was not a mermaid themselves. I do not know how this can be possible, but the results definitely show that a mermaid has tampered with this."

  "Do you have any idea who the attacker was?" Michael shook his head.

  "I have no evidence to accuse anybody; the only option is to put hidden security guards in the courtyard, to spot the attacker."

  The king nodded, though he still felt worried that this case was not fully resolved. "And how are the victims? They are fully dead, not just in a coma?"

  "Yes, they are completely dead. I cannot bring them back even if I tried." This investigation felt like it was going nowhere, which infuriated the king immensely. There was only one other thing he needed to ask.

  "And what of Prince Tristan and the other contestant? How are they faring?"

  "Prince Tristan is almost fully recovered, but Benjamin...I don't understand what's happened to him. When he got hit by Tristan's sword, his heart rate immediately started slowing down. He is still in my care now."

  "He almost died?" asked the king in confusion. "Elves do not die from battle wounds."

  "That's what I thought...unless he is something else..."

  "Look into it, Michael. I want to know if he is truly what he seems," the king ordered. "And if he turns out to be anything else..."

  "You will kill him?"

  "Exactly."

  Chapter Thirty-Seven

  "Kelsie!" Alyssa called, running up towards her in the dressmaker’s shop.

  "Oh, hi Alyssa," she replied, smiling slightly at her.

  "You're back from Alltalos, then?" Alyssa asked, trying to start a friendly conversation. Though from Kelsie's mood, it didn't seem friendly at all.

  "Yeah," Kelsie looked up at her; there was a certain emotion in her eyes that Alyssa couldn't identify. "Well...how did the Millay go?" though she didn't sound very interested.

  "Prince Tristan won, I think. But both he and Benjamin knocked each other unconscious – though Ben fell first."

  "Looks like somebody's in love," Kelsie remarked, her old self coming back again.

  "What?" Alyssa gaped.

  "Prince Tristan?"

  "No, I mean Benjamin," Kelsie raised an eyebrow at her reaction. Alyssa was silent; she didn't want to lie to her best friend.

  "You are, aren't you?" Kelsie demanded. Her eyes were suddenly cold and icy.

  "So, what if I am," Alyssa shrugged, remembering the kiss. It meant nothing; her feelings didn't matter. She was getting married to Tristan whether she liked it or not.

  "He's dangerous," Kelsie started slowly, as if wondering how best to tell her. "The first time I saw him in the Millay...there was something about him...something different."

  "What do you mean?" Alyssa didn't understand her, as far as she was concerned, Ben was perfectly normal.

  "There's just this sense of...of something evil around him – don't trust him Alyssa, I mean it, he's dangerous," Kelsie told her urgently, but firmly.

  "Ben is not dangerous, I trust him with my life. You can't tell me what to do," she retorted back, annoyed that Kelsie was accusing her friend of being something different.

  "Listen, I would never lie to you. Use that brain of yours; you're too distracted by his looks than who he really is."

  "He's normal! There's nothing wrong about him!" Alyssa burst out; her grey eyes flashed in anger. "Why are you being so paranoid?"

  "I'm not! I'm stating a fact," Kelsie's voice started rising. The dressmaker looked over to where they were standing, her eyebrows frowning with irritation.

  "Ugh, I don't have time for this," Alyssa hissed. "I need a dress for the masquerade and banquet tonight, I've had enough of your anger issues for one night."

  Kelsie clenched her fists, holding back the slap that she dearly wanted to give her best friend. "Fine, but don't come running to me when you find out I was right." She turned on her heel and stomped out of the shop, her nose high in the air.

  Sandrine walked casually into the busy streets of an unfamiliar city; everyone looked friendly compared to the people of Alltalos.
They were smiling, laughing and playfully bantering with each other, all the way down the street. She quickly morphed her features to appear just like an elf, the tips of her ears formed a sharp point that disappeared into her brown hair.

  An outing dress replaced her light flowing one and she tried not to look to conspicuous. Stretching her sense out, she tried to find a hint of a green aura. Hope welled up in her heart, would her son be pleased to see her? Or would he be angry that she hadn't been around for him all his life? A flicker of a green aura glowed from the heart of a building in the castle, it was weak but alive. Worry clouded her mind, what was happening to him? Was her little boy ok? Sandrine hurriedly quickened her step and found herself in a large courtyard that led to a stunning stone-built palace in front of her.

  Though she had to admit, it wasn't as impressive as Alltalos. Two burly men walked down the marble steps and strode straight past her. They were talking about a... banquet? "-how's that wine, I hear it's the finest in the land, my lord. It is a great honor for you to..." one of them was saying.

  "...ahh, yes...the wine. Believe me, it will be the most beautiful thing you will ever taste... " Sandrine stopped, her heart suddenly flared up in agony. She knew that voice all too well.

  Caiden, King of Alltalos. A single tear dripped down her face as she remembered his last words to her... She pulled herself out of the ocean, feeling regenerated and refreshed from living on land for so long. Sandrine blinked back the droplets of water in her eyelashes and waited for her tail to transform back to legs. Suddenly a shadow loomed over her, making her freeze in fright. She looked up at the person, her heart beating frantically. Her blue eyes met green eyes.

  "Caiden..." she breathed in horror.

  Caiden shook with fury, his face completely twisted and almost unrecognizable. "You? You're a mermaid?" his voice shook with hatred. "You deceived me; this has all been a lie!"

  "No! It's not like that!" Sandrine stammered helplessly, sobbing in front of him. "You're a monster," Caiden shouted, his arms trembled by his sides.

  "I thought I could trust you – I thought that you loved me -"

  "No! Please – I – I'm sorry –"

  "Sorry doesn't cut it!" Caiden roared, unsheathing his sword and pointing it at her neck. Sandrine's tears dripped onto the blade as she remained perfectly still, waiting for him to strike. But he didn't move his arm like she expected him to. Instead he just stared at her, his eyes cold and broken. Never before had Sandrine felt such guilt and remorse, she would do anything to reverse time right now.

  "My lord!" Caiden's knights ran up towards them, confusion etched upon their faces.

  "Stay out of this," he growled menacingly.

  "/What's ha-"

  "I said, stay out of this!" Caiden bellowed, he turned back to Sandrine, his face full of ferocity. "And as for your hybrid spawn...I'm not having him in my kingdom a moment longer."

  "But he's innocent!" Sandrine cried desperately. "He's just a baby, he's harmless! Please...just don't hurt him."

  "He's a monster – just like you – and monsters need to be eradicated," Caiden spat. Panic flooded through her; she'd rather be killed than let Caiden kill her only child.

  "No..." she tried to say through her crying. The tip of the sword pressed deeper into her neck, forcing her to lift her head up. There was a dead silence as Caiden visibly battled his emotions. His sword shook in his hand and a look of sadness washed over his features.

  "I've always loved you, Sandrine," he whispered quietly, in a voice that made her heart break. He removed the blade from her neck, for a wild moment she thought that he was going to forgive her. But then suddenly he held out his arm and a turquoise mist surrounded her and that was when she knew nothing since.

  Chapter Thirty-Eight

  Sandrine gulped back the tears; Caiden must've gotten over her by now, so she must get over him. All that mattered now was her son. She focused again on the green glow and shut her eyes, transporting herself there. A warm room that smelt like lemons surrounded her; it was littered with books and potion bottles, sort of resembling Rachel's house.

  "Hey! Who are you? What are you doing here?" Sandrine spun around to face a young physician with a cup of bright yellow liquid inside.

  "I'm not here," she told him, snapping her fingers. "I never was, and you do not remember me, ok?" The elf's eyes went glassy and he started mumbling about frogspawn. He then turned and went back to his potion making in the corner of the room, as if she weren't even here. The green aura was so close now, it was emanating from the next room, her heart thumped unevenly in apprehension. She opened the wooden door slowly and shut it behind her gently.

  Her eyes rested on the sleeping boy on the bed, horror suddenly filled her. A bandage was wrapped tightly around his chest with dark red blood soaked into it. She rushed to his side, wondering what to do. What if he's dead? A little voice asked her inside. No, he can't be! H-he must be alive! Desperately, she found his pulse that was beating unnaturally slowly. He must've been stabbed by an elfish sword, why didn't Rachel tell him that swords were fatal to his race?

  Hurriedly, Sandrine drew upon her energy, feeling the familiar warmth spread through her body. She put her hand to his chest, casting a healing enchantment. His green aura suddenly flared up and swirled around him, like luminous dust. Her son's eyes shot open and the blood from the bandages seeped back into the wound, leaving them pristine and white.

  "What just happened?" he choked, the color returning to his face. He froze when he noticed Sandrine sitting next to his bed, his eyes widened...reminding her of Caiden. His eyes were so similar to his, the deep dark mysterious green, but she could see her own features laced in with his own. "Who are you?" he asked slowly, sitting up suddenly.

  "I'm..." she stopped nervously.

  "Yes?"

  "I'm your mother," she said finally, staring at him. She couldn't believe how different he looked, the last time she saw him was when he was a baby.

  "My m-mother?" his voice was soft and disbelieving. "You lie, my mother is dead." Anger flashed across his features, making Sandrine flinch slightly with sadness.

  "No, I didn't die. I was imprisoned all this time in Alltalos, I luckily got rescued by two elves...they took me back down to the sea and explained what happened." Sandrine looked at him with complete sincerity, hoping with all her heart that he believed her. He was silent for a while, his expression unreadable. He turned to gaze back at her, a smile lit up on his face.

  "You're real? You're really here?" he said, his voice cracking. Sandrine hugged him tightly, her own tears of happiness escaping.

  "I can't believe it..." he murmured, his voice shaking uncontrollably. "It's actually you? You're not lying? After all this time..."

  Sandrine hugged him tighter, feeling a burden being lifted off her shoulders. "You've grown so much since I last saw you," she said through her tears.

  "I can't believe you're actually here," he breathed, breaking the hug slowly, but he stayed next to her. "You're actually alive..."

  "I'm so sorry I haven't been here for you," Sandrine said wiping her eyes. "I-"

  "It's fine, it wasn't your fault," he smiled at her, his eyes shining brightly. Sandrine smiled back at him; a missing piece of her heart fell back in place once again. Though as hard as she tried, the cracks were still visible and permanent.

  "Devlin! Where are those ferick leaves! You have failed my orders completely; they have not arrived, and the banquet is this evening!" the King of Alltalos exploded in anger and frustration. Devlin bowed his head deeply; feeling slightly scared of the fuming King in front of him.

  "I don't know why they haven't arrived, my lord," he spoke, preparing himself for a full-on tantrum.

  "This whole plan is ruined because of you – yes, you! And you better have an alternative idea to take over Mylvehil, because I need one quick," Caiden yelled at him.

  "Uh...um..." Devlin stammered nervously. "What about your sword? If we made duplicates of them, no elf woul
d stand a chance."

  The King stopped pacing and frowned. "They would take too long to make..."

  "But we could though! It might just work – we've got the element of surprise on our hands," Devlin encouraged, hoping that the angry King wouldn't kill him.

  Caiden tapped his foot thoughtfully, his eyebrows furrowing together. "I'm not keen on the idea, since it involves...her," he scowled viciously. "But if it's the only way to take Mylvehil, then I suppose we can try." Devlin breathed a sigh of relief. "But I still haven't forgiven you about this," Caiden glared at him. "If you mess up again...Well, there are worse things than death." Devlin paled and quickly bowed, leaving the room quickly.

  The sun had almost set back behind to mountains, leaving a red glow that filled the evening sky. The banquet hall was full of chatter and excitement as the highest nobles in the elfish kingdoms dined around the long wooden tables. Alyssa sighed, wishing she could get some fresh air, instead of sitting in this loud stuffy hall. All around her were laughing men and women, waiting for the food to be served. Her father clinked the side of his glass and slowly everybody went silent and turned around to face him.

  "Lords and Ladies! I would like to welcome you to ending of the Millay championship. It is my...honor," he said through gritted teeth. "...to congratulate Prince Tristan of Alltalos as winner of the Millay." Prince Tristan stood up and bowed formally, he wore a smug smile on his face. Alyssa flinched when he met her gaze. "...the masquerade will take place up to midnight, so I hope you can all join us. I would also like to thank my lord Caiden of Alltalos, who has offered us the best wine in all of the country – so let the feasting begin!"

  Chapter Thirty-Nine

  The servants started filing in with plates and dishes full to the brim with a wide assortment of food and delicacies. The nobles started chatting to each other again, until Alyssa could hardly hear her own voice. "- are you enjoying the banquet?" Tristan was asking her, his hot breath tickling her ear.

  She tensed up noticeably at his presence. Alyssa nodded, not wanting to speak or look at him. Her corset around her waist was excruciatingly painful today, taking away her appetite. Kelsie sat awkwardly next to her, there was a heavy tension between them both, but Alyssa didn't know how to break it. She twiddled the necklace, she had found in the arena, around her fingers.