Ash (The Underground Series Book 2)

by Melody Robinette

  From Sea to Shining Sea

  CHAPTER NINE

  The Quinns had been paired with two pairs of Tetras: Eden, Jack, Willow, and Lucian. The remaining Tetras would be heading west with the Triplexes. Luckily Candi wasn’t coming with them or Autumn just might have “accidentally” fallen off of Sundance.

  “This is the best part of being a Warrior,” Forrest said as he strapped his pack onto his pegasus. “Skipping school. Ha!”

  “So, you’re happy that Vyra and her pretty boy brother are killing all of those innocent Underground creatures because you don’t have to go to school?” Candi said as she strapped her own pack to her pegasus. Black hair pulled taut and cold eyes narrowed at Forrest, she was the type of elf that could intimidate anyone no matter what it was she said. She could be delivering a compliment—not that she ever would—and make the person tremble in fear.

  Forrest shook his head violently back and forth, his shaggy dark curls flying around his face. “No! That’s not what I meant! I just, I—”

  “Ignore her,” Eden said as she pulled on her dragon hide vest. Candi smirked and turned back to help the other Tetras and Triplexes.

  Eden had been Autumn’s dueling partner during one of their trainings that preceded the Warrior Trial. Her Power of Silence had been particularly difficult for Autumn to overcome. During the brief time she’d known her, Autumn admired Eden. She was beautiful. Not in an obvious way like Kyndel, but a subtle, natural way. Certitude and confidence oozed out of her pores. She was only five years older than Autumn, but she was wise in a way that seemed as though she’d already lived several lifetimes.

  “I think we should send the Oaken twins in first because of their royal status,” Eden said, brushing her hair out of her mint green eyes and smiled reassuringly at Autumn and Luke. “If the other creatures are going to listen to any of us, it’ll be them.”

  The others nodded in agreement. Autumn and Luke exchanged uneasy looks, but didn’t object. If they were going to prove themselves as future rulers then they couldn’t be afraid of speaking with other magical creatures. Autumn wasn’t all that worried about the merpeople, though her only experience with mermaids had been in Disney movies she’d watched in the Outside. But the vampires, warlocks, and centaurs did make her a tad bit uneasy.

  Patting Sundance fondly on the back, Autumn strapped her packs securely to her sides. This would be her little winged horse’s first long journey. Autumn hoped she could handle it. Sundance looked at Autumn with determination in her intelligent eyes as if she knew what she was thinking. Sometimes Autumn thought maybe she did.

  Autumn looked over to see Edric helping Crystal with her packs and Luke clearly pretending not to notice. After Luke saved her life during yesterday’s battle, they had gone back to being civil to one another, but there was still a sense of tension in the air between them whenever Edric was around.

  The Triplexes and Duos were the first to leave, and the others watched as they flew off, heading west. Avery held out a strong hand, helping Autumn onto Sundance. She let him, though she was perfectly capable of climbing on herself. He kissed her palm tenderly, his soft lips lingering there for a moment. He fixed her with an intense look, silently warning her to be careful, before climbing nimbly upon Knight.

  Edric helped Crystal onto Pisces as well, but in her case she actually needed the help. She clutched onto the pegasus with trembling fingers. Edric took one of her hands in his own, squeezing tightly, and murmured something only she could hear. Her face broke into a smile as she visibly relaxed.

  Luke watched this exchange from atop Thunder with a moody expression. He glanced over to see Autumn watching him with a sympathetic look and he quickly masked his face over into an air of indifference.

  The Shining Sea was the closest location to Arbor Falls so their group would be visiting the merpeople first. “Everyone ready?” Lucian called from the front of the V-formation, his black hair falling into his dark eyes. Autumn had to admit that, aside from Candi, he was one of the most intimidating Tetras. The effects of his Power—Hypnosis—were very similar to Autumn’s own and she had a small suspicion that he used it in small doses at times to influence others.

  Lucian’s pegasus leaped into the air and the rest followed suit. They flew in silence, all wearing looks of determination. No one spoke, but Autumn noticed Forrest’s lips moving. She assumed he was speaking to his pegasus because her mouth appeared to be moving as well. At times Autumn envied his Power. It had always been a childhood dream of hers to be able to speak to animals.

  It was a little over a day’s journey to the Shining Sea so they stopped every so often for their pegasi to rest and eat. After the sun had set they flew in the dark for a while, jetting through the sky like shooting stars before locating a place to sleep for the night. The Tetras were more experienced with long journeys so they began to set up camp while the Quinns awkwardly looked on, unsure of how to help.

  Autumn watched the Tetras clear a space on the ground before they began laying out cots. “Wait, we aren’t sleeping in tents?” she asked.

  “Tents?” Willow said.

  “You know,” Autumn steepled her fingers before her in the shape of a tent.

  Jack chuckled as he pulled out several rolled up cots. “You think we have room in our packs for tents?”

  Autumn shrugged, now realizing that had probably been a stupid question.

  Ember and Avery built the campfire. He ripped branches off nearby trees as easily as pulling up blades of grass while Ember used her Fire to set them ablaze. Crystal, Charlotte, and Autumn helped Eden with laying out all fourteen cots in a circle. Kyndel helped by leaning against a nearby tree, examining her nails, obviously feeling that manual labor was beneath her. She could fight Shadows and Atrums all day long, but ask her to help set up camp and she turned into a petalsie whose flower had just been trampled on.

  “You and Edric look like you’re pretty into each other,” Charlotte said to Crystal as they unrolled the cots. Crystal blushed, glancing surreptitiously over at Edric who was helping Jack unload food from one of the packs.

  “I guess so,” Crystal said, shrugging, her face still flushed. Autumn and Charlotte exchanged an amused glance.

  “So, you don’t have a crush on Luke anymore then?” Charlotte asked. Crystal stumbled over one of the cots she’d just laid out and turned to Charlotte with a surprised expression.

  “N—no. That was just, er, temporary. We’re friends. That’s all. I’m gonna go get some more cots,” she said, stumbling again as she left.

  “She is so still into Luke,” Charlotte muttered to Autumn with a giggle.

  Once all of the cots had been laid out and covered in blankets, the Quinns and Tetras circled around the crackling fire, roasting root vegetables and pieces of meat they’d brought along. After all of the food supplies had been put up and the night guards assigned, the Warriors made their way to their cots. Somehow Crystal’s cot had been sandwiched between Luke and Edric’s. She lay flat on her back with her arms folded tightly across her chest, looking exceptionally uncomfortable.

  Exhausted from the day’s journey, Autumn fell asleep almost instantly with Avery’s hand clasped in her own. Willow and Lucian awakened Avery and Autumn a little before sunrise for the last guard duty of the night. They leaned against the bark of a nearby tree, yawning every so often as they gazed into the dense foliage around them. Autumn glanced over at a sleeping Crystal, now laying on her side, facing Luke, who was sprawled out on his stomach with his face turned towards her.

  Dawn appeared over the horizon, but the thick forest blocked most of the light. A sunbeam managed to break through the trees, coming to rest on Luke. Autumn watched as his eyes slowly opened and focused on Crystal’s face. He didn’t know Autumn was watching him or else he probably wouldn’t have watched her sleep for as long as he did.

  Crystal’s ice blue eyes fluttered open and took in Luke’s hazel ones. She didn’t move, but gazed back at him, a small smile forming on
her lips. Luke mirrored her expression until the others around them began to stir.

  The rest of the group rose with the sun. After a small breakfast made up of dried fruit and roasted nuts they packed up their supplies and readied the flying horses for another day’s journey. Autumn caught Crystal and Luke sharing more glances than usual and it seemed Edric noticed as well. As everyone loaded up, he led Crystal a little ways away from the campsite, though still in plain view, and pulled her face hungrily to his own, kissing her with sudden vigor. They broke free, chests heaving, Edric maintaining eye contact with Crystal, who looked wide-eyed up at him. Forrest let out a loud whistle and they quickly pulled away from each other, Crystal blushing profusely. Luke shoved his cot forcefully into one of his packs with a furrowed brow.

  Lucian soon called for everyone to mount their pegasi. Autumn climbed easily onto Sundance, who pawed at the ground, anxious to get back into the air. They took off in their V-formation, heading towards the Shining Sea. Autumn could tell it wasn’t far off because, as the forest became steadily sparser, the potent smell of salt water filled the air. The pegasi flew over a mountain of trees and the ocean rose before them.

  Flying over the salty water and listening to the sound of crashing waves reminded Autumn of the last time she had visited an Underground sea. The Shining Sea merged with the Opacious Sea where Alder Island rested. The merpeople lived as far away as possible from the Atrums and their evil island.

  Before the Warrior Trial Autumn had associated the ocean with good things. Happy things like making sand angels and droopy sandcastles with Luke when they were kids and doing front flips into the foamy waves. But now the salty air filled her mind with sorrow. There was a pang in her chest as she thought of Cera’s bubbly personality, her lilting laugh, her sarcastic remarks, her pixie-like hair and stature, the way she took joy in tormenting Kyndel. Autumn still couldn’t believe she was gone—because of Victor.

  That was what it all boiled down to. Victor Vaun.

  The worst part was that Autumn had known about his hidden darkness. She had witnessed it, and had bruises on her neck for two weeks to prove it. But she told no one because she had been trying to protect him. And for what? So he could rejoin his evil sister in her attempt to conquer the Underground. Autumn couldn’t help but think that this was, indirectly, all her fault.

  Glancing around at the other Quinns, she noticed that most of their expressions looked almost as glum as her own as they stared down at the depths of the sea beneath them. Then her gaze landed on Kyndel. Was it a trick of the light or did she have tears in her eyes? Now that she thought about it, Kyndel probably blamed herself for Cera’s death too. She had been killed while everyone was distracted by Autumn and Kyndel’s bickering, after all.

  Kyndel glanced back at Autumn then, a small tear trailing down her flushed cheek. Autumn shook her head slowly, silently telling Kyndel that it wasn’t her fault. She looked at Autumn for a long time before nodding slowly and turning back around. Ever since Autumn had beat up that creepy Outsider guy for her on Halloween, they’d had a sort of unspoken understanding. They had a lot more in common than either of them liked to admit, but that didn’t mean they had to like each other because of it. No matter what happened between them, Kyndel would continue to direct snide remarks at her, and Autumn would continue to glare and throw one right back.

  The farther away they traveled from the Opacious Sea, the warmer and more humid the air became. The seawater was transparent now, enough for Autumn to catch a glimpse of schools of fish and underwater forests of seaweed.

  The pegasi began to descend as Lucian guided his own to the shore, the soft white sand muffling their landing.

  Luke climbed off of Thunder and looked out at the expanse of water. “So, how exactly are we supposed to speak with mermaids when we can’t even breathe underwater?”

  “With this,” Lucian said, holding out two vials of a thick green substance.

  Autumn made a wary face. “What is that?”

  “Aquaspiro,” Eden said. “It’s a sea-plant that allows you to breathe underwater.”

  Lucian handed Autumn and Luke each a vial, which they took gingerly.

  “Why are we the only ones going underwater?” Luke asked. “Olympus said that it could take days to persuade them to join us.”

  Eden smiled. “Merpeople can breathe above water and they can also come to the shore. We need you two to persuade them to do so.”

  “Here,” Lucian said, handing Luke a single white rose.

  “Uh, thanks. I mean, you’re cool and all, Lucian, but I don’t think we should be bound to each other.”

  Lucian let out an exasperated sigh. “It’s a Rose of Peace, to offer to the leader of the merpeople as a sign of respect.”

  “And if they don’t accept it?” Autumn asked.

  “That will be up to your better judgment,” Lucian answered.

  Autumn and Luke exchanged an uneasy glance.

  “Don’t worry,” Willow said, approaching them with a wide smile, hands hiked on her hips. “I’m coming with you.”

  “In what form?” Autumn asked.

  “A sea dog. What else?”

  Luke looked confused at this, but Autumn laughed. She’d had the pleasure of meeting a few sea dogs near Alder Island during the Warrior Trial. They looked like a mix between a baby dragon and an overgrown seahorse.

  Autumn and Luke downed the aquaspiro in one gulp, both gagging and making disgusted faces.

  “Did I just swallow liquid salt?” Luke said, coughing.

  Autumn choked. “I think so.”

  “Good luck,” Forrest called as the twins waded into the clear water. Willow splashed along next to them before morphing into a sea dog. She swam in circles around them as they moved deeper into the water, splashing them every so often.

  Autumn laughed. “Cute, Willow.” Sea dog Willow gave them an innocent look as she swam yet another lap around them.

  “Don’t encourage her,” Luke grumbled as Willow playfully splashed him in the face for the fifth time.

  They were to the point where it had become difficult to stay on their tiptoes in the salty waves.

  “Should we dive?” Luke asked.

  “Not much else we can do.”

  “A simple ‘yes’ would have been fine.”

  Autumn rolled her eyes. “Okay, then yes.”

  “You know, sometimes you can be such a pain in the—”

  His words were cut off as Autumn did a front roll into an oncoming wave. She held her breath until she couldn’t any longer and took a deep gulp of seawater, sure she was about to drown herself. Amazingly, though, she didn’t drown, but could now see clearly. The salt water didn’t even burn her eyes. Luke joined her underwater, marveling at his newfound abilities.

  Colorful fish swam quickly past them and seaweed tickled Autumn’s legs as they swam farther into the Shining Sea.

  “Where are they?” Luke said. Autumn had expected their voices to gurgle at least, but they sounded the same as they did above the water, echoing slightly.

  “I’m not sure. Maybe they’re hiding.”

  “Try using your Power,” Luke suggested.

  “I tried that at the Warrior Trial and no one showed up but a few sea dogs.”

  “Well, try it again. Maybe it’ll work now since we are underwater.”

  “Actually, I did Sing underwa—”

  “Just do it already!”

  Autumn opened her mouth to Sing, and her ethereal melody traveled through the depths of the sea. She let her Song ring out for a few minutes and stopped to wait.

  “I don’t think it worked,” Luke noted.

  “They’re probably just scared.”

  “I don’t know why they would be scared of us, I mean it’s not like we—ergh!”

  “Luke?” Autumn said turning to see him enclosed in a thickly woven net. “Luke!” Autumn swam as fast as she could towards him, but was pulled forcefully back by two pairs of scaly hands.

&
nbsp; “Should’ve stayed in your little tree houses,” a scratchy voice said in her ear. She heard a high-pitched squeal as a net ensnared sea dog Willow beside her.

  “Aecorex won’t be pleased to hear that baby dryadales were infiltrating his waters.”

  And with a swish of their green, scaly tail fins, the two mermen pulled Luke, Willow, and Autumn into the depths of the Shining Sea.

  Merpeople

  CHAPTER TEN

  Luke, Willow and Autumn were pulled at lightning speed through the Shining Sea by the two mermen who seemed far too pleased with themselves. They didn’t appear to care all that much for the elves’ well being as they continuously banged them into coral and dragged them through tall tufts of seaweed. Autumn had tried to hypnotize them with her Song, but they quickly silenced her by stuffing a wad of seaweed in her mouth and tying it shut.

  Luke attempted to conjure up a hurricane or whirlpool, but they were both ceased immediately followed by cackles and snorts from the two mermen.

  “Aecorex controls the Shining Sea, dryadale. Your Power is useless down here.”

  “Listen here, fish boy,” Luke exclaimed. “My sister and I are the Prince and Princess of Arbor Falls and we demand that you unhand us now!”

  “Sure you are, and I’m Poseidon,” one of the mermen guffawed.

  The other merman joined in and said, “Yeah, and call us fish boys one more time and you’ll be sea-monster bait—if you aren’t already, that is.”

  The mermen pulled them deeper and deeper into the sea. The water became steadily darker and all Autumn could see now were ominous shadows towering around her like underwater skyscrapers. A large, round dome emitting an eerie green light appeared through the vast darkness. As they moved closer, she could see that it was some sort of floating underwater cave, and the light was coming from hundreds of thousands of glowing green fish swimming in and out of the opening. The mermen towed them through the mouth of the cave into a round passageway.