by Starla Night
Tibe yanked back and paced before Faier again. A mild frown touched his brow, but his cold smile remained fixed on his mouth. “Your endurance is astounding. Rebel warriors must live hard, pained lives.”
“I would endure any hardship to honor my king.” Faier closed a hand over his bleeding, throbbing injury. One-handed, he leveled his two blade tips on Tibe. “Even converse with you.”
“Then I will stop talking and start killing.” Tibe slashed.
Faier backed out of his reach.
Tibe darted after him.
Faier’s back hit the coral. Tibe thrust for his weak abdomen. Faier whirled away. Tibe’s trident jammed into the coral and chipped it.
Tibe reared back, surprised to have missed Faier twice, and focused. “You are still conscious.”
“You are still dishonorable.”
“I have honor.” He backed Faier across the pen. “I am the most lawful warrior in this city. Ha!”
Faier used minimal evasions so each attack looked like it would hit him and then he escaped at the last moment.
He did not have endless stamina. He needed to draw the first lieutenant into a trap.
And that would not be easy.
Tibe broke away. Chest heaving as the water flushed through his lungs, he recaptured his casual smile.
“I see our hospitality has been too kind to you.” He straightened his shoulders and gestured to his obedient warriors. “Tire him.”
Chiba and Kusi swam forward.
Kusi thrust for Faier’s vulnerable abdomen.
Faier kicked to the left.
Chiba slashed for his weak leg.
Faier whirled around his trident and slammed both ends to block.
His side throbbed.
Kusi and Chiba pushed and broke off, circling like sand sharks, and then dove in for the next attack. He kept atop of them by sheer will. But Tibe had been smart. Faier could not fight them all. He would break.
A mistake right now meant death.
Rescue Harmony.
He could not bear a mistake. Faier fought on.
A commotion erupted at the front of the prison. Faier focused on the two warriors, especially single-minded Kusi, because they did not break off.
King Kayo led in a new group of warriors. Xarin and Healer Hobin ranged behind him. “Stop this interrogation. Stop it right now!”
“King Kayo.” Tibe straightened but did not call off his warriors. “Why are you here?”
“I did not give permission.”
“Oh? But I have never needed your permission to interrogate criminals before.”
“I do not wish this warrior killed.”
Kusi barreled into Faier.
Faier kicked hard to escape his tackle. The warrior’s trident slashed a new line across his abdomen. The bandage unraveled, and the hot ache increased.
Kusi scraped the wall, veered, and followed Faier.
King Kayo snarled. “Stop Kusi!”
Xarin moved to intercept. Kusi kept his head down. Xarin braced.
“Not you, Xarin.”
Xarin hesitated and then obeyed.
“Tibe! You call him off.”
“My king, you know how difficult it is to stop Warrior Kusi once he—”
“Now!”
“Really, my king, there is no need to interrupt. He secures our city. This rebel is toxic to—”
“Fine. I will do it myself.” King Kayo turned away from Tibe with exasperation and flew at the dueling warriors. “Kusi. You listen to me. I am your king!”
Faier dodged Kusi’s wild attack.
His weak leg wobbled but did not collapse.
Kusi’s trident flew past Faier’s waist.
King Kayo floated within arm’s reach. His attention was off Faier and focused on Kusi. And the other warriors were too far away.
Opportunity coalesced into action.
Now.
Faier kicked to his strong side and trapped Kusi’s trident between his bicep and chest. Kusi yanked—a trainee mistake—and Faier used his own momentum to fly over both his and the king’s heads. He exposed his back to the disorganized warriors. They did not attack when they should have. Faier whirled to his prey.
He locked his forearm around the king’s neck.
The other warriors shouted.
Xarin shoved Kusi out of his way and flew at Faier with deadly fury.
King Kayo wheeled in Faier’s choke hold, dragging Faier out of danger. “What is the meaning of this? You dare attack me?”
Faier brought the sharp middle blade of his trident to the king’s soft underjaw. “Hold.”
King Kayo froze.
Xarin also held. Murder burned in his gaze.
The other warriors pulled up sharply.
The king gripped Faier’s forearm. He breathed through the gills in his lower back so Faier’s hold did not endanger him. Only the sharp blades were the real risk. But Faier’s grip immobilized him, and crushing a human’s voice box caused harsh pain.
Faier spoke quietly. “Bring me Harmony.”
The king growled. “What?”
One warrior whirled and flew out the exit.
Did he think to raise the Aiycaya army? Let them come. Faier would fight them all for Harmony.
He tightened his grip. “Your so-called sacred bride. Is she safe? Have you hurt her? Where is she?”
“You will never see my sacred bride again.”
“Then neither will you.” He ground the tip of the trident into King Kayo’s jaw. Blood burst into the water. The king grunted.
An elder shrieked, “Do not touch our king, exile!”
“I will threaten much more if someone does not bring her, safe and unhurt, right now!”
Xarin jerked his chin at several warriors without ever taking his eyes off Faier. Those warriors exited.
King Kayo struggled against his grip. “You will not leave this prison alive.”
“Worry about your own life if you have harmed her.”
“Harmed her?” King Kayo continued to struggle. “What monsters do you think we are? To harm any female, much less a sacred bride. You are the monster, rebel scum. We are traditional in Aiycaya. Why would you ever think otherwise?”
Faier locked gazes with the first lieutenant.
A small smile touched his harsh mango-glazed features.
Deep within Faier’s heart, a kernel of wisdom told him she was still alive.
He would not rest easy until he had seen her—unharmed—with his own eyes.
“Modern females must not want husbands,” the king growled, still struggling. “Rebels are desperate. You belong to two cities and still steal my bride.”
Faier couldn’t help the small smile.
The king jerked on his iron forearm. “You laugh at me.”
“There are more females on the land than stars in the sky.”
“And yet none of them have become your bride.”
It was true.
But that did not matter. “Soon, all our warriors will surface and claim willing brides.”
“All at once? How stupid. Raiders will overrun your cities.”
“Warriors who already found their queens will safeguard our cities.”
“Queens!” King Kayo barked a laugh. “The rebel cities have queens? Queens of legend, I assume, who fight off mighty armies with ease and command the very water of the ocean, like those in my father’s sleepy stories of before the Great Catastrophe?”
Elder Bawa burrowed through the assembled guards and tore into the standoff. “My king! My king, I have just arrived. You must not listen to the rebel. He lies!”
“Lies about what, Elder Bawa?”
“Everything, my king. You must not believe him!”
“Just now he tells me all their warriors will seek brides and leave city defense in the hands of ‘queens’!”
“Yes, well, but…powerful queens are no reason to break the ancient covenant,” the elder refuted, accidentally confirming they did, in fact
, exist and they did, in fact, wield shocking powers. “No, my king. Any female who is not a sacred bride must not be exposed to the mer. The rebel ‘queens’ are anathema, modern females who overstay the limits of the ancient covenant and do not return to the safety of land where they belong.”
“They stay?” he repeated, focusing on a point many warriors cared deeply about. No warrior wanted to return his soul mate to the surface and be separated from her forever, traditional or rebel. “For how long?”
“All air-breathers pine for the surface, my king. Holding them beneath the waves damages females. These so-called queens are tragic figures parted from—”
“Forever,” Faier interjected. “They visit the surface frequently and return.”
“They return! How many times do they return?”
“No, King Kayo, do not listen. No honorable warrior should take pride in trapping a female or in leaving the defense of the city to her. She should surface after fulfilling her duties to provide a young fry. That is the rule of a traditional city. These rebels forget their honor simply because our race has dwindled to dangerous levels.”
Everyone looked at the red-faced elder. He had spoken far, far much too much without realizing.
King Kayo addressed Faier soberly. “How many of these queens exist?”
“My king, you must not listen to—”
“Hush, Elder Bawa. Rebel, explain.”
He answered despite still holding the king in a deadlock. “In Atlantis, three. In Dragao Azul, five.”
“And every modern female who enters a rebel city becomes a queen?”
“As soon as she learns to channel the Life Tree, forms her fins, and embraces her powers.”
“Form fins! Now I know you are lying. And yet you would claim such females still birth healthy young fries? And there is no fighting? Among queens? Or warriors?”
“Only to be the next male chosen to surface and find his bride.”
“You said all warriors may surface at any time.”
“Soon.”
“Why are they waiting?”
“My king!” Elder Bawa glowed so red, a vessel in his forehead throbbed. “It is dangerous to speak with the rebel. Their tongues are made of shiny metal forked with poison.”
“Elder Bawa.” The king glared. “Do you think I believe every word I am told?”
“Eh…”
“Am I so weak-willed?”
“No…”
“Good. Silence. Rebel, why are the warriors waiting?”
“King Kadir rebuilds the platform connecting the surface to Atlantis.”
King Kayo blinked. “Your king rebuilds ancient Atlantis? Madness. He risks the wrath of mainland humans. His warriors could find anathema brides on any beach.”
“He wishes for his Queen Elyssa and their young fry Prince Kael to play easily on the surface with her human family.”
“Another ‘queen,’” King Kayo mused. “Very well, pretend I believe all this. Dragao Azul is also waiting for the Atlantis platform to rise? They are far away.”
“No. They fight a human terrorist organization, the Sons of Hercules, that strikes any warriors who arise.”
The occupants of the prison tensed.
“Those are the first words of your story I believe.” King Kayo boldly broke the tension. “Our ancestors formed the ancient covenant for our protection. Dragao Azul’s King wisely restricts surfacing.”
“Queen,” he corrected.
“What? A queen rules Dragao Azul?”
“All warriors also rule.”
“That is not rule. That is chaos.”
“Decisions are made slowly. But they are made. The last sacred bride of Dragao Azul insisted on this ‘democracy’ as her condition to remain as queen.”
“You are confused. Is Dragao Azul ruled by a sacred bride or by a queen?”
“The last sacred bride embraced her queen powers, drove out the All-Council army, and liberated the city. Now she remains as queen.”
Faier’s quiet pronouncement silenced all in the prison. Elder Bawa burned red, melting the orange of his tattoos. Xarin and the other warriors listened with confusion. Tibe fingered his trident as though studying an all-new threat.
“Liberated? You mean she turned it to a rebel city,” the king argued. “And that is why you are its citizen. Because you led the rebel army from Atlantis to Dragao Azul.”
“I led only the queen.”
“Lies.” He clenched Faier’s forearm. “Elder Bawa, now I know why you did not wish to tell me about the rebel cities. The All-Council suffered embarrassing defeats. Instead of owning their failures, they pretend the queens of legend have returned.”
Uneasy chuckles emerged from the taut warriors.
Elder Bawa grimaced, attempting to share in the joke. He knew Faier spoke the truth. And he had fed the other warriors—including the king, the other elders, everyone—a dismissive stream of lies.
Breaking the ancient covenant and leaving the All-Council was deadly.
But the alternative was worse.
“And this is your intention in Aiycaya,” the king continued, growling low in his chest. “You ‘liberate’ it by murdering me.”
“I have never attacked a king.”
“Until now.”
He kept his grip locked tight. “There is an easier way to destroy Aiycaya. You are a young male, King Kayo.”
“I am old enough,” he snarled.
“And yet I have seen no young fry. No trainees. These males wear intricate tattoos. More intricate—and experienced—than yours.”
“At least my tattoos are not defaced!”
“In another generation, you will lose your elders. And in another, your warriors. And finally, all that will remain of ‘traditional’ Aiycaya will be you. I do not have to murder you. All I must do to destroy ‘traditional’ Aiycaya is leave you alone.”
“Lies,” the king returned. “We are faithful, honor the ancient covenant, and find our sacred brides. Starting with yours.”
A bright light glowed overhead through the mesh lattice of the coral prison. Little glimmers lifted his heart. What was that faint glow floating down?
Harmony!
His heart thudded hard.
“You will never escape justice, rebel,” the king snarled. He had seen Harmony too.
Faier did not respond.
Her light moved closer. The warriors at the entrance parted. They’d wrapped her in a harness used for transporting warriors too injured to swim alone. It was a common way to move sacred brides and obey the rule that only their husbands touch them.
The warrior pulled her into the center of the prison. He released her and returned to float by Xarin. He shyly avoided eye contact.
Harmony’s soul glowed. “Faier. You’re alive!”
His heart swelled. The crackles in his chest burned. Truly, she was his bride.
And she’d married King Kayo.
Harmony tugged the harness knots. Three wooden boxes of aged meat were tangled in the lines. They wrapped around her legs and knotted.
She already had three boxes of food for the journey? Good.
“Stay in the harness.” Faier addressed the shy warrior. “Gather four more warriors and convey her to the surface.”
Harmony stopped.
“I will end you,” the king vowed, renewing his struggle. “I will chase after you as soon as you leave here. You will not escape me.”
“I will stay,” Faier told him. “You convey her safely.”
The king choked.
Her soul glow dimmed with unhappiness. “Faier.”
He could not let her feelings distract him. “Take her to Haiti.”
The shy warrior looked at Xarin.
Xarin gripped his trident and awaited the orders of King Kayo.
The king exploded. “You dare expose my warriors? To modern humans?”
“I do not care about you.”
“No, Faier.” Harmony glowed brilliantly. “I won’t leav
e you here.”
“You must. It is not safe for you here.”
The king snarled and writhed, slicing his own jaw on Faier’s blade. “How dare you! I protect my sacred bride with my life!”
She shook her head, insisting she would remain with him, but he had to convince her. “The king will not protect you.”
“Rebel scum! Release me at once. I will fight you! She is mine.”
She wavered uncertainly. “You were the one who said he wouldn’t hurt me.”
“I lied.”
She jerked her chin. “You never lie.”
“I have lived outside traditional cities for too long. You are only a trident or a net to him. He does not see you as a person.”
“Of course I see she is a human,” King Kayo snapped. “A helpless, defenseless human.”
“Not as a human. A person. A living female with desires and dreams,” Faier clarified. “He does not even know your name.”
She blinked.
The king’s mouth opened and then closed. A remnant of surface-dwelling. He gritted his jaw. “Yes. I know this. She is my sacred bride. Of course I know her name.”
The silence stretched.
Harmony frowned at the king.
The shy warrior spoke. “The king knows her name. It is Harmony.”
Everyone turned to him.
“Ar-mo-nee?” King Kayo repeated. “What name is Ar-mo-nee?”
“Harmony.” She let out a puff of water and rubbed her cheeks. “Oh, goodness. Wow. We even got ‘married’…” she made finger gestures, “…and you didn’t ask my name. That’s rude on the surface.”
“It is rude anywhere,” Faier confirmed.
“I just…you…there was never a… The rebel interrupted our introductions!”
“Real mature to blame someone else.”
“But—”
Xarin’s voice intruded, low with disapproval. “Warrior Zaka, why do you know the sacred bride’s name? No warrior must touch or address the king’s sacred bride.”
The king shouted at the shy warrior, “Yes, Warrior Zaka! How dare you speak to my sacred—er, my Harmony?”
Warrior Zaka held up his hands. “I did not mean to—”
“How dare you ask her such an intimate question?”
“I told him,” Harmony said.
But her statement disappeared in the disapproving rumble from warriors and elders.