by KT Webb
“Excuse me?” Dee asked, sounding slightly offended.
“We could use giant bubbles to help us swim to the bottom with you,” Sutton explained.
“Nope, try again. The pressure at the bottom would make them cave in. We’d be dead within seconds,” Lucy objected.
“If only there were a spell to turn ourselves into mermaids.” Harper muttered.
Grace held out the book and opened it. She waited for the pages to turn like they had in Idir. Nothing happened. She huffed out a sigh, closed it and opened it once more. Nothing happened. Harper held her hands over the book and closed her eyes.
“I want to be a mermaid,” she intoned.
Instantly the book began to vibrate and glow; the gentle breeze surrounded them and the pages turned. A blank page stared back at them and Harper felt her stomach fall. Perhaps they were supposed to make it up themselves. Before she could share her frustration, a thin scrawling text began to take shape at the top of the page:
To Become a Mermaid
This was it! Harper looked at the other girls with a broad smile and waited for the rest to appear. When nothing else showed up she looked at her sister witches. Just as she was about to throw a temper tantrum, Harper felt a tickle at the back of her mind. It was as though something was calling to her. She reached out inside her mind and asked for guidance.
Eel Grass.
“Dee, do you know what Eel Grass is?”
“Of course, it’s like seaweed. Why? Do you need some?”
Harper nodded and focused again. Bladderwort.
“What about Bladderwort?” Harper made a face at the strange name.
Dee nodded. “It grows right by the shore, and eats insects.”
“Okay. Let me just say, ew.” Grace shuddered.
Sand from the Loch.
Harper grabbed the book and wrote down the ingredients and instructions as they came to her.
To Become a Mermaid
Eel Grass
Bladderwort
Sand from the loch or sea
Grind the Bladderwort with the sand to make a paste. Wrap the Eel Grass around your legs, using the paste.
Close your eyes and speak the incantation:
When I enter this water,
A mermaid I’ll be.
I’ll descend to the depths
Without losing my breath.
When I break the surface,
I’ll be human once more.
When nothing else came to her she shared the final ingredient and let her fellow witches read the incantation. It was time to get started. Dee dove down to gather the Eel Grass. They needed enough to wrap their legs. The other girls began gathering the sand and Bladderwort. Once they had enough to create a paste they used a mortar and pestle to grind it all together. The odor that resulted from squishing the bug filled plants and mixing it all with the loch soaked sand was repugnant.
Dee returned to the shore with enough Eel Grass to cover the legs of each girl. They set to work wrapping their legs together, then carefully coated their new “tails” with the putrid paste.
“Are you going with us?” Harper whispered to the fairy still clinging to her hair.
Ooghna shook her head firmly and flitted to a nearby bush. She made herself comfortable and indicated that she would be right there when the others were done playing in the water.
When they were all ready, they spoke the incantation aloud and plunged into the water.
For a moment, Harper was completely disoriented. The water was dark and murky; she couldn’t see her hand when she held it in front of her. She could feel her new mermaid tail flipping in the water as she tried to stay in one place. Her neck sprouted gills that allowed her to breathe. Extra skin grew between each finger and it felt strange when she pushed and pulled her hands through the water. Her eyes began to burn and itch so she closed them and massaged each eyeball with her fingers. When she opened them again the water was clear and bright. She caught sight of the other girls and noticed them undergoing the same transformation. When she locked eyes with Grace, she discovered something that gave her the creeps. Their eyes were covered in a film that turned the green hue into a silvery white; as though they had developed cataracts.
“How cool is this?” Sutton’s voice rang in her mind.
“Did you just speak to me telepathically?” Lucy questioned.
“Yes, we all heard it. This is normal for me ladies. Let’s get moving. We have a long way to go to reach the cave of Sarafina,” Deirdre reminded them.
Harper was impressed to discover the changes in the sprite’s wings. They swirled around her freely as though they had become the flowing fins of an exotic fish. She didn’t have gills, but as a water sprite, she probably didn’t need to breathe underwater the way humans did.
They began swimming downward. They swam past fish big and small; a few species that seemed impossible, a few species that looked too ordinary. The deeper they went, the darker it became. Strange shadows moved along the edge of her vision and unseen creatures brushed against her skin. Still, they swam.
“We have to be getting close,” Grace said hopefully.
“We’re not even halfway.” Dee burst her bubble before it had a chance to grow.
The increasing pressure seemed to add to the eerie silence that surrounded them. Something big swam past them, throwing Harper off-kilter. She whipped her head around for a closer look and wished she hadn’t. An enormous fish with long, sharp teeth was staring at her blankly. Harper backed away slowly, unwilling to turn her back on the monster she’d encountered. Dee swam to her rescue.
The sprite held up a hand and sent a glowing pink light out around them. As the light intensified, the monster closed its eyes and retreated quickly. At this depth, it wasn’t used to any sort of light, Harper would have to remember that if they encountered any of its friends.
They swam deeper still, pushing past oversized rocks and diving into a narrow canyon. Maybe it was the silent water that kept them from making conversation or cracking out a smart mouth comment, but Harper felt more uneasy every second they approached the water dragon’s lair. There were fewer and fewer living creatures the farther they went.
“We’re almost there.” Dee’s voice was reassuring in her mind.
After what seemed like an eternity of darkness, they arrived at the mouth of a cave. A soft glow emanated from within, casting ghostly shadows on the rocks within its reach. It was difficult to see anything that fell outside of the light that seemed to pulse like a heartbeat. Harper couldn’t be sure if it was her mind playing tricks on her, but she could have sworn she saw a looming creature circling their location.
“Here we go! Let me do the talking, please,” Deirdre insisted.
Following her lead, they swam into the yawning mouth that beckoned them with the only source of light they had found in the depths of the loch. The girls stayed close to one another along the winding tunnel until they came to the massive cavern that housed Sarafina.
Harper stopped short and stared at the magnificent creature. All those conspiracy theorists were searching for a scaly sea monster; if only they knew what they were truly looking for.
Sutton
Chapter Twenty-One
War on the Horizon
Sutton could hardly believe her eyes. There, sleeping peacefully in front of her was a sleek turquoise dragon. She was nothing like the dragons depicted in fantasy films. No, Sarafina was much, much more. Sutton observed the variations in the colors of her scales and the oversized cerulean gem that pulsated on her chest like a living amulet.
Her head transitioned smoothly into a long neck that reminded Sutton of a brontosaurus. The size and proportion of her body was also vaguely dinosaur-like, with four thick fins where legs may have been on a land creature.
Despite the imposing designation of ‘dragon,’ Sarafina appeared relatively harmless. In fact, Sutton decided she was almost cute. Blue, purple and green scales accented the bold turquoise hue that radiated from her. Tiny purpl
e ridges lined her spine, traveling to the tip of her tail.
The dragon was sleeping peacefully. Sutton seemed to recall a proverb or saying that instructed her to “never wake a sleeping dragon.” She looked at the other girls and wasn’t surprised to find the same apprehension written on their faces. Even Dee looked nervous. She may be cute now, but what would she look like if they disturbed her sleep?
“Ancient one, I have come to request an audience,” Dee said in a hushed and reverent tone.
Sarafina moved slightly as though she was reluctant to wake. Sutton understood that feeling all too well. Dee tried again, this time her tone was slightly louder and more commanding. The dragon lifted her head and opened one eye. The sapphire-like iris perfectly matched the gem on her chest. When the dragon noticed the intruders, she opened the other eye and prepared for an attack.
Sutton decided she was even cuter when she was angry.
“Sarafina, last of the water dragons, I am Deirdre, Queen of the Water Sprites. I request an audience with you.”
After glaring at the sprite for a mere second, she gently dipped her head. “I remember you, young sprite. I also recall telling you not to bother me again.”
That didn’t sound good. Sutton looked at Dee, wondering why she hadn’t told them that she and the dragon weren’t on the best terms. Dee glanced at the witches with an apologetic expression. Sarafina’s voice shook with age. Sutton immediately pictured her with half-moon spectacles and a night cap. The mental picture made her grin, but she managed to pull it back before the dragon took notice.
“Yes, ancient one. I remember it well.”
“Then why have you not heeded my request?”
“When I came to you in my youth, I came with little understanding of my position and your power. I was immature and thought I was entitled to anything within the water realm.” Dee bowed her head.
“And your behavior got you and your people sentenced to the Shade. Why should I believe you have changed?”
“Well, I—“ Dee was flustered.
“As I thought. Do you remember what I told you the last time you entered my home uninvited?”
Again, the water sprite dipped her head. “That I would suffer a painful and permanent end.”
“And so it shall be.”
Things had taken a very bad turn. There was no way they were going to stand idly by while their friend suffered a violent death. Sutton launched herself forward and put herself between Dee and Sarafina.
“You’ll do no such thing. Regardless of what happened the last time you saw Dee, she doesn’t deserve to die.”
Grace cleared her throat. “She means that with the utmost respect.”
“Does she? Then tell me why every cell in her body is screaming in defiance.”
Sutton glared at Grace as the other girl attempted to smooth over the wrinkles that had appeared in the situation.
“Um, probably because Sutton is a defiant person.”
Yeah, that helped. Sutton rolled her eyes and placed her hands on her hips. The other girls stared helplessly between the massive dragon and their friends. Just as Sutton was gearing up to say something in her own defense, Grace found the right moment to eloquently describe their side of the story.
“Look, Sarafina, we know you have no idea who we are, but it’s obvious that your intuition has given you an insight into our personalities. I’m certain you can see that I feel a deep connection with creatures like yourself. I can understand you in a way my friends cannot. I know you’re upset with Deirdre, but she is not here to cause you harm.” Seeing that she had the dragon’s full attention, Grace continued. “We’ve come for a very specific reason, and once we’ve accomplished that, we’ll leave you to live your life in peace. Please, overlook the injuries of the past and focus on the fact that Dee is only here to help us with our mission, here and now.”
Sarafina stared at Grace for what seemed like an eternity before turning her attention back to Dee. Sutton stepped aside cautiously, unwilling to put too much distance between her friend and the dragon that had just sentenced her to death.
“Very well. I will temporarily overlook her past offenses. Introduce me to the guests you’ve brought with you, little sprite.”
“Allow me to introduce you to the members of the last coven. They have been sent on a mission by the Druids to obtain the ingredients for an Awakening.”
Sparkling eyes roamed over each girl before settling back on the sprite.
“Why do you come to me?” said the dragon.
A strange expression crossed Dee’s face before she answered the question. “We’ve come to petition you for your most precious resource. We need to bottle your fire.”
“My fire? Without my fire, I will waste away to nothing. Did they tell you that?”
Sutton froze. The Druids told them it would be difficult to obtain, but she had only thought they meant the journey, working with Dee, and overcoming obstacles to dive to the bottom of the loch. She had thought it would be as easy as having the dragon breathe fire into a jar. Sutton looked to the other girls; they looked equal parts shocked and horrified. Harper was shaking her head. This ritual was for her; Sutton could only imagine what she must have been thinking. They were asking an ancient creature to sacrifice her life so Harper could have magical powers.
Dee sighed. “No, we did not tell the witches what it would cost.”
“Then that explains why the soft-spoken one assured me you meant no harm.”
“I wouldn’t have—“ Grace began, but was silenced by a glare from Dee.
The sprite turned her attention back to the dragon and cleared her throat. “Are you willing to hear our plea and consider the request?”
Sarafina narrowed her eyes before graciously bowing her head in consent. “I will hear your plea.”
Dee nodded to the witches with her. “These four are the final descendants of Samhain, Beltane, Lughnasadh, and Imbolc. Their ancestors fought against Carman and her sons. Carman was locked away in the Shade and her sons were banished from our land. Now, her sons are planning to extract her from the Otherworld and complete the work they began.”
“Preposterous.”
“They have chased these young witches from their homes and forced them to flee to the safety of Idir. The Vate, Genovefa, has foreseen an imminent attack by the sons of Carman and the sorceress Odessa. They will attempt to free their mother on Lughnasadh, but Harper will not experience her Awakening naturally until the Fall Equinox.”
The dragon examined the girls in her cave. She looked tired.
“What else must you collect?”
Sutton listened as Dee explained the steps in their quest. She made it clear that she was there as an ambassador for all creatures of water. It was taking everything inside her to keep her mouth closed. If only she could talk to the other girls to find out how they felt about asking such a thing from this magnificent creature.
“I have lived for centuries. You are not the first to ask for my fire, and if I deny your plea, I am certain you will not be the last. Which of you is Harper?”
The red-head drifted forward in the water. She was hesitant and respectful; her expression almost mournful.
“Do you understand what you require of me?”
Harper looked like she was on the verge of tears. “I had no idea that obtaining your fire would end your life. I thought you could breathe into a jar and we’d be on our way.”
A husky sound that must have been a laugh erupted from the dragon. “No, child. I do not breathe fire.”
Sutton was confused. If Sarafina didn’t breathe fire, how were they supposed to get fire from her? She glanced at Lucy and Grace; they looked just as confused as she felt. Dee had perched on a rock against the cave wall. Sutton tried not to be irritated that she had neglected to share important information with them, again. When they were done talking to Sarafina, Sutton would have to talk to the sprite about the importance of trust in friendship.
“The fire you ar
e requesting is my life force. It is the power that courses within me and gives me my magic.”
“Sarafina, please know that I would never ask you to end your life to enhance my own. I am glad to have met you, but sorry to have bothered you. We will fight without my magic.”
Relief washed over Sutton as Harper voiced the thoughts she herself had been struggling with. There was no way they were going to ask anyone or anything to surrender their life for their cause. The dragon stared at Harper as though weighing her options.
“Nonsense, child. My fire isn’t as strong as it once was. I don’t know how much longer it will burn. I have lived an extremely long life; I would be honored for my last action to save the lives of so many others.”
“But, you’ll die. I can’t ask that of you,” Harper insisted.