by L. EE
“Ah, w-w-warmth,” he said through chattering teeth, rubbing his hands together.
“G-g-good,” stuttered Alden, heading toward the wall.
Seconds later the merwoman reappeared in the water next to Glaucin. “I’d like you to meet my wife, Salina. Salina, this is Andy, and this is Alden,” he said motioning toward each of them in turn.
“I’m so glad to have you in our home tonight,” Salina affirmed.
Similar to her husband, her top half looked human, and from the flip of her tail as she entered the room, they could see shiny scales covering her lower body. Her hair also resembled seaweed, but she drew it up with a pink bow that coordinated with the tasteful magenta top she wore. Like the space, she exuded a warmth that set the boys at ease.
“I’m sorry we don’t have any dry clothes for you to change into. Neptune knows you’re probably about frozen, but if you huddle by the back wall you’ll be warmed up in no time. We’ll be eating dinner shortly. I hope you’re hungry!” With that, Salina smiled and dove out of the room.
Glaucin remained and engaged the boys in conversation as they warmed themselves.
“Finding you two way out here this afternoon surprised me. Lucky my patrol happened to spot the milky water.”
“Thank you for rescuing us,” Andy replied through teeth that were chattering less. “I didn’t know you were part of a military patrol. When you came and helped us last year you weren’t dressed in your uniform.”
Glaucin laughed. “Ah yes, I remember that day. I was off duty, searching for sand dollars. Sometimes I get lucky and find a few buried. I have a whole antique sand dollar collection. I’ll have to show you sometime.” He paused before steering the conversation back. “By the way, why are you boys here? Nearly got yourselves killed.”
Andy glanced at Alden who nodded.
“King Hercalon and Mermin are extremely sick.”
“Sick? What’s wrong with my cousin and your king?”
“We’re on a mission to get the Stone of Athanasia back from Abaddon as well as—” Andy stopped, unsure whether anyone but he, Alden, the King, and Mermin should know they were retrieving another ingredient in hopes of breaking the curse.
“As well as?”
Andy shook his head and then explained the situation, omitting details about breaking the curse. Glaucin listened intently.
“You’ll have the full support and cooperation of my patrol. Do you know where Abaddon is? Word has it he’s claimed the island for his own.”
“We believe he’s on Sometimes Island, but where specifically we don’t know.” Andy paused, considering whether he should continue. Finally he said, “Glaucin?”
“Yes, Andy.”
“Mermin mentioned an old library hidden on Sometimes Island. I’m not sure how it fits in, but somehow I feel like we’re supposed to go there before we find Abaddon. Do you know anything about it?”
Glaucin smiled. “The merpeople are the guardians of the Library of Oomaldee.”
“What? You are?”
“King Ferrin III, an ancient king of Oomaldee, and King Odenys, the mer-king, struck an arrangement thousands of years ago. It’s provided a nice income for our village over the years.”
“Excuse me, but did you say King Ferrin?”
“Yes. Why?”
“Uh… Oh, no reason. Just making sure I heard you right,” Andy covered.
Andy’s mind raced. Wait a minute! My mom’s maiden name is Ferrin, and that message last year said my relatives were from Oomaldee. What are the odds? And I’ve got that trunk in my attic with all those ancient scrolls. And supposedly I’m the chosen one to break the curse? And…and… Whoa!
Andy’s attention returned as Glaucin said, “King Ferrin felt the safest place to store the oldest records of Oomaldee’s history would be somewhere outside the bounds of the realm. That way if the kingdom were ever attacked, the manuscripts would remain safe. Together King Odenys and King Ferrin designed a secret library on Sometimes Island that is accessible only from below the island, through a labyrinth of underwater tunnels. Only the merfolk who guard it know where the entrance is.”
“Wow! Then it’s good we bumped into you.”
Glaucin laughed. “Yes it is, Alden.”
“Do you know where the entrance is?”
“Of course, Andy, that’s what my patrol and the others you’ve seen are guarding.”
“Really? I figured you were protecting your village.”
Glaucin laughed again.
“Wow, then there are a lot of merpeople involved in guarding the library.”
“The history of a land must be protected, for there are those who would come and attempt to rewrite it to suit their own purposes,” Glaucin replied with a serious tone.
“What’s in the library that’s so important?” Alden asked.
“I’ve never seen the inside. From what I understand, it’s all written in Oomish, the language of the kings of Oomaldee. Mermin and your King Hercalon used to study there when they were children.”
“Huh? How do you know that?” Andy queried.
“They used to stay with us overnight on occasion. You’re not the first to get into trouble with the creatures of the Sea of Mystery.”
“Wait, are you saying you knew the King and Mermin when they were kids? Five hundred years ago?”
Glaucin chuckled.
Wow. Mermin said there are monsters in the sea, but he never said he’d experienced them personally!
“Yes, in fact, they’d stay in this very room. We’d bring them here all shivering and cold, just like you. They’d get warmed up, we’d feed ‘em, and the next day escort them to the library where they’d study for a time.”
“Whoa,” Alden replied.
“That’s awesome!” Andy exclaimed, a smile exploding across his face.
Glaucin added, “I remember Kaysan, your king’s name back then. A driven one, that child. Couldn’t learn the mysteries of Oomaldee or the secrets of the library fast enough to suit him. I remember one summer, my patrol had been tasked with escorting him, Mermin, and the other kids back to the boat that waited for them. He refused to leave. Engrossed in a manuscript he was. If I remember correctly, the manuscript told a prophecy about one of his relatives murdering a sibling to gain the throne. Had him spellbound.”
Andy’s eyes grew wide.
“Can’t take much stock in prophecies, no sir. Situations are always changing.” Glaucin chuckled again. “And goodness knows, so many different interpretations are possible, you can practically make them say whatever you want.”
Andy glanced over at Alden whose expression mirrored his.
“You boys okay?”
Before they replied, Salina resurfaced, carrying a tray and followed by their three children, who were also carrying trays.
“I’d like you to meet my children. This is my daughter, Maneli.” He swam behind them and placed a hand on each child’s shoulder as he said their name. “This is my oldest son, Sireno, and my youngest, Trit.”
He interpreted his comments in mermish for his kids and they bowed or nodded. They looked as though they would be teenagers, but considering Mermin had told him that merpeople live to be 1,500 years old on average, they were probably quite a bit older than either he or Alden.
“My children understand bits and pieces of English but aren’t yet fluent. But they’re learning.” He smiled proudly as he said it.
“My husband is fluent in Mermish, English, Dwarf, Gnome, Oomish, and a bit of Dragon,” Salina said proudly.
“I’m impressed!” said Andy. “I only know English, and sometimes my teacher questions that!” He laughed, which sent a chuckle rippling through everyone else.
By this time the boys had warmed up and their bodies began to relax. Alden’s stomach gave a loud grumble.
“Well, I guess someone’s hungry,” Salina commented.
“Excuse me.” Alden’s cheeks flushed and he covered his mouth.
Four covered tra
ys were lifted up and shaken gently to remove the water. They were placed onto the ledge and the lids removed. An abundance of colorful food had been prepared, most of which neither Andy nor Alden had seen before. Glaucin and his family crowded around the side of the ledge in the water while Andy and Alden sat cross-legged on the shore. Maneli passed out plates and silverware and Salina narrated the selections.
“This is seaweed salad and squid salad, butterfly fish sashimi, googee, and crab.” She pointed as she identified each dish. “And for dessert we have pureed jellyfish on milkweed toast. For your beverage we have our favorite squid ink juice.”
“Mmm. Looks delicious!” Alden bellowed.
Andy laughed politely, unsure of some of the dishes, but he heard Dad’s voice in his head: “You need to at least try everything.”
He’d made it through most of the dishes when he reached the googee. The beads were the size of marbles, soft and glowing pink. He put one in his mouth and bit down. It felt rubbery between his teeth. Suddenly the bead burst. A sweet, strawberry-tasting liquid filled his mouth.
“Mmm. These are good! Can I have some more?”
Salina beamed.
Glaucin carried the conversation, and throughout the meal he recounted stories about when the King and Mermin had stayed with them as well as the story of when he had first met Andy and Alden. “Oh yes, he demanded I help them cross the river,” and “He didn’t appreciate the lesson in patience,” Glaucin said at points, causing Andy to turn red. Glaucin’s kids laughed appreciatively at the childishness of it. It seemed they were identifying with the lesson.
Near the end of the meal the sound of mewing interrupted the chatter.
“Trit, I thought you were going to close the cat in your bedroom so it didn’t disturb our dinner,” Salina asserted.
In broken English he replied, “I sorry, Mother. I did. Swim she out,” and shrugged his shoulders.
At that instant the head of a heavily whiskered catfish poked through the surface.
“Meow.”
Andy and Alden cracked up.
“She’s a pet?” Alden asked.
“Why, yes.”
“Well then, have you had enough to eat?” Salina inquired.
“Oh yes! It was excellent!” praised Alden.
“Yeah, it was great. Thank you so much,” Andy added.
Salina beamed.
Glaucin whistled and sang to his family, after which the dishes, trays and catfish were removed and Salina and the kids said goodnight.
Alone once more with Glaucin, Andy asked, “Your wife said you’re fluent in Oomish?”
“I am.”
“Can you read Oomish?”
“Some, why?”
“Do you have something I could write on?”
“Sure, I’ll be right back.”
Alden looked at Andy curiously as Glaucin exited.
“What?”
“That trunk of yours that got you sent back home?”
“Believe me, I’d love to, but I can’t say.”
Glaucin returned in no time with a leaf and writing instrument. Andy put the leaf on the ground and began drawing the symbols he had memorized from the scroll in his attic. When he finished, he turned it toward Glaucin. The merman’s eyes grew wide.
“Where did you see this?”
“I’d rather not say. Can you read it?”
“I can’t, but it’s definitely Oomish. I’d recognize those characters anywhere. Perhaps you can translate this when you reach the library tomorrow.”
“Tomorrow? You’ll take us there tomorrow?” Andy clarified.
“Of course, at first light. Now, you two best get some rest. You should stay warm enough. Dimmer for the light is over there.”
“Glaucin?”
“Yes.”
“I meant to ask, what generates the light in this room and the lights I saw in the town?”
“Ah, that. Yes, well did you also wonder how this room managed to have air?”
“Yeah, I’d wondered about that,” interrupted Alden.
“Both the air and the lights come from the same source. There are naturally occurring vents that spout air out from the rock under Sometimes Island. You might have seen streams of bubbles rising as we swam today.”
Andy and Alden shook their heads.
“Yeah, I suppose not since it was dark and you probably couldn’t see that far in the bubbleweed pods. Maybe you’ll see them tomorrow in the light of day. Years ago, a smart merman figured out that you could harness the power of the air streams to turn a wheel and generate power to light caves. There’s a power plant back in town. If we had more time I’d take you there. We carved out this room to take advantage of the air stream that comes out of the wall over there.” He pointed to a hole in the rock wall.
“Awesome!” said Andy. “We have something similar. We call it electricity and we use it for lighting houses, powering appliances, and a bunch of other stuff!”
“You do? Since when?”
“Um, he doesn’t mean in Oomaldee,” Alden clarified.
“Then where?” Glaucin asked, a puzzled expression crossing his face.
“Oh, uh…um,”Andy stammered. Okay, can anyone say awkward? Changing the subject, he asked, “What causes the rock in the back wall to be warm?”
“You’re just full of questions aren’t you?”
“Sorry.”
Glaucin laughed. “Similar to the air, the center of the island radiates heat from its core. We’ve used it to warm certain places, like the library.”
“Really?”
“You’ll probably find that tomorrow when you visit. Now, it’s getting late and you boys need to get some sleep.” With that, he turned and dove out of the room.
The boys rolled out some seaweed they found against the back wall and made themselves comfortable.
Andy pondered all that had happened today as he listened to Alden’s heavy breathing. He thought about Glaucin’s revelation that the King had read a prophecy predicting someone would murder their sibling to claim the throne. Had that planted the idea? And King Ferrin. Was that just a coincidence?
Knowing the King and Mermin had spent nights in this very room made them feel closer and brought comfort as his thoughts returned to Spark. A tear slid down his cheek and he sniffled. She had been the first creature he’d seen die, and it had been so violent and senseless. For her to have surrendered her life for his sake… The thoughts continued to flow through his mind as he dropped off to sleep.
CHAPTER EIGHTEEN
The Library of Oomaldee
By mid-morning, the boys again on Glaucin and Patri, with the rest of the patrol swimming in formation around them, headed through the labyrinth of tunnels to the secret library entrance. Even Andy had enjoyed a fitful night’s rest despite the dreams that had disrupted his slumber. As they were leaving, Salina had stuffed their backpacks with food and other provisions. They took care to seal their packs in bubbleweed pods in hopes of keeping the new contents dry.
Glaucin motioned to Patri to turn right. They followed a path downward into the depths for quite a while before slowly rising again. In Andy’s mind, the path to the hidden library seemed similar to a beaver dam with access from below. They surfaced and saw iridescent lights dimly illuminating a hewn out cave with an impressive entrance. A generous open area preceded five carved steps leading to a towering set of double stone doors. Each door bore the jeweled purple crest of Oomaldee. On either side of the doors stood statues of giant spiders.
“Spiders? Couldn’t they have picked some other animal to use as a mascot?” Andy questioned.
Glaucin chuckled. “The spider is a symbol of wisdom.”
His clothes soaked again, Andy gladly dismounted as a chill ran through his body.
“Looks like this is where we part for now. We’ll be back to check on you tomorrow. If you’re ready to go, leave this here on the shore and we’ll wait for you.” He handed Andy a fist-sized seashell.
“Sou
nds good,” Andy replied, his clothes dripping and forming a puddle where he stood on the shore.
“Thanks for all your help,” Alden followed.
With that Glaucin and the patrol dove out of site.
Andy put the shell in his backpack then pulled out Methuselah. The blade lit up the space. Alden put his hand on his sword hilt out of habit in the unfamiliar surroundings.
The boys had been facing Glaucin in the water as they said goodbye, so neither noticed the stone spider statues moving toward them. Suddenly they felt the stares of twelve eyes piercing their backs and whirled around in time to see one spider raise its venom-filled fangs and charge.
“It’s the key!” Andy yelled. “It brought them to life like the other statues!”
Alden drew his sword and both boys assumed a soggy ready position, side by side, backs to the water. With Andy waving the only light source, strange and scary shadows swept around the room. The spider on the left scurried past its fanged twin and rushed Alden, who brought his sword down on the nearest of its eight legs to no effect. The blade bounced off the stone and Alden gasped in pain as the vibrations hit his hand. He leapt out of the way with no time to spare. The creature whirled around and advanced again.
Meanwhile, the other spider came barreling at Andy, fangs poised and ready to inject him with venom. Methuselah easily bested it. As the spider’s front legs reached Andy’s foot, he brought the blade down, severing them from its torso and scattering chunks of broken stone about. Before the creature had an opportunity to recover, Andy slashed again, amputating several more appendages. He leaped to the side as the spider crumpled at the edge of the water.
Once Alden discovered his weapon had no effect, he had taken to running around the perimeter of the clearing with the beast in hot pursuit. Andy turned and ran after them. The shadows created by Methuselah’s moving light disoriented the beast. It was so intent on catching Alden, it did not see or hear Andy coming from behind. Methuselah’s slash at its hind legs sent more stone scattering across the ground. The creature changed direction, wheeling around on its remaining six limbs and advancing, fangs extended. Andy brought the blade down and sheared off its front legs as well as its fangs. With only three legs left to maneuver, the beast’s belly fell to the ground where it spun in a circle.