Monster Girl Islands 2

by Logan Jacobs

  A deafening cheer went out, and my emotions tried to get the best of me. I was so overwhelmed by all of the love, warmth, and pure joy my huge family had for not just me, but also this beautiful boy in my arms.

  I had an amazing life.

  As the crowd continued to cheer, the dragons moved close to the stage, and I leaned over to let them see Arrick. His eyes were wide with awareness as first Nixie and then George sniffed him all over. Both of the dragons were soon humming so hard and loud, not only could the sound be heard across the courtyard, but all of the tables were vibrating in unison, too. George ended the blessing by gently coughing up a tear-shaped piece of sea-glass that he laid gently onto the prince’s chest, and then he sat back and gave me that silly dragon smile with his tongue hanging out.

  “Thank you, dear friend,” I whispered. Then I took the sea-glass and placed it in my pocket to keep it safe. I would show it to Nerissa later, and we could decide together what to do with it.

  “Let the feast begin!” Mira announced, and another cheer went up.

  Platters of food started arriving, and I realized how damn hungry I was. I hadn’t eaten since before the battle, and my stomach was now painfully reminding me.

  I laid Arrick across my shoulder with one hand and helped myself to the food with the other. I filled my plate with roasted pheasant, carrots, potatoes, and mushrooms, and they were all cooked together in a brown sauce that reminded me of Thanksgiving turkey and gravy. There was also a seafood stew full of shrimp, clams, and fish in a tomato broth reminiscent of a cioppino I once had at a fancy New York restaurant. Hali’s tasted so much better to me, though, maybe because the seafood was the freshest it could possibly be. I ate all of this along with more bread than I cared to admit before my stomach was happy.

  When I sat back, finally full, I noticed several women had gathered off to the side of the dais. I gave Talise a curious look, and she seemed to read my mind.

  “They are here to bring gifts to the prince and pay their respects,” she explained.

  “Oh,” I muttered, “I guess that makes sense, but I don’t really think--”

  “They won’t touch him.” The healer smiled. “They know he is fragile and is only to be held by his natural family for the first several days.”

  “Thank the goddess,” I sighed, “I didn’t want to hurt anyone’s feelings.”

  “You won’t,” Talise placed a gentle hand on my arm, “I promise. Just tell them to come forth when you are ready.”

  I looked down at Arrick and saw he was awake and sucking on his fist. It probably wouldn’t be too long before he was ready to get back to Nerissa, so I decided to go ahead and let the village women come forth, see him, and bring their gifts while he was still in a good mood.

  “Come meet your prince,” I said to the villagers with a smile, “I am afraid he will need to return to his mother soon.”

  The women approached one by one, and Arrick watched them as they bowed before him and presented him with all kinds of gifts. There were little wooden toy men and boats, blankets and clothing made from several different soft materials, and a mobile of colorful fish carved from wood and painted with amazing detail.

  The last women to approach were the twins, and they were dressed in matching pale pink wraps that made their golden scales shine against their mocha skin. They were also holding something behind their backs, and they both wore mischievous smiles on their faces.

  “Whatcha got there?” I asked with a raised eyebrow.

  “Gifts for Arrick, of course.” Zarya grinned before she showed me.

  They’d made a tiny little bow and quiver for Arrick that he wouldn’t be able to use for quite some time, but the details the sisters put into it astounded me. They’d also shined and polished the bow and had even painted George on the curve of the wood.

  “This is beautiful,” I gasped, “I don’t know what to say.”

  “We knew any child of yours would likely be able to shoot one sooner rather than later.” Zarya smirked. “We also made one for Marella.”

  “Thank you, both of you,” I replied as I looked between the twins.

  Just then, Arrick started to squirm and fuss a little bit, and it seemed like the prince had reached his partying limit.

  “Now, if all of you will excuse me,” I announced in a louder voice as I stood to my feet, “I am going to take this little man back to his mother. I think they are both likely missing one another.”

  “Of course, Draco Rex,” Darya intoned with a bow.

  I said my farewells to everyone else, and I stopped to give Marella a gentle kiss on the head as she slept on George’s front paws. She’d been climbing all over him again, so it was no surprise she was tuckered out.

  “I will walk with you,” Talise said as she appeared at my side. “Marella is absolutely safe, and I need to check in on a patient. Will you ask George if he minds?”

  I looked back at the dragon and saw him curl himself tighter around Marella.

  “Is she okay there for a little bit?” I asked my dragon through our mental link.

  Absolutely, he assured me. No need to disturb her slumber.

  “He is perfectly happy to keep her there while you check on your patient,” I told Talise with a smile.

  “He really is the perfect nanny,” the healer laughed.

  I looked back to see George holding my daughter again, and he was giving me his fang-filled smile. To most, the expression would be terrifying, but I knew the dragon was in hog heaven. He loved that little girl.

  I hugged and kissed Talise when we parted ways before I headed into Nerissa’s bed chamber as quietly as I could. I quickly found this was pointless, though, since she was sitting up and looked like she’d just finished eating her meal from the feast. I knew it was a hard decision to stay in bed, but after the rough delivery, it really was for the best. She still looked like an angel, though, with her white gown and silver hair piled on top of her head, and she also appeared to be more rested and relaxed.

  “You are a beautiful sight,” I told Nerissa as I placed Arrick in her arms.

  “And you are a shameless flatterer,” she replied with a grin, and she shifted the baby in her grasp so he could begin to nurse.

  “Doesn’t mean I’m not speaking the truth.” I winked.

  “How did the ceremony go?” the queen chuckled and changed the subject.

  I proceeded to tell her about Arrick and Marella meeting, the introduction, the dragon blessings and the sea-glass, the decorations, the food, and all the gifts, especially the bow the twins had made.

  “That sounds like the perfect way to welcome our son into the world.” Nerissa smiled when I finished, and the prince was slowing down on his nursing and seemed to be drifting off to sleep with little fight

  “It really was,” I agreed before I reached out and traced my finger down Arrick’s cheek. “He has such intelligent eyes. I swear he knows exactly what is going on around him.”

  “His uncle and namesake was very much the same way,” Nerissa chuckled. “He was an amazing hunter and warrior, but he loved nothing more than learning new things. Quite the scholar.”

  Before I could answer, there was a knock on the door, and Careen slowly entered the room.

  “I am so sorry to interrupt,” she whispered with her head bowed low, “I wouldn’t have if it wasn’t important.”

  “What’s wrong?” I asked the pixie healer. She had a forlorn look on her face, and that immediately set me on edge.

  “Talise needs you in the healing rooms,” she replied and bit her lip. “Immediately.”

  “Why?” I asked as my heart skipped a beat. “What’s going on?”

  “It’s one of the warriors, Tiana,” Careen sighed. “Things don’t look good.”

  I looked back at Nerissa and the baby, and I was reluctant to leave.

  “Go,” the queen urged when she caught my eye. “If Talise is calling for you now, it must be urgent. I will be okay.”

  “I wi
ll stay with her,” Careen reassured me.

  “Thank you,” I told the healer. Then I took a sleeping Arrick from the queen’s arms, placed him in his bassinet, and kissed Nerissa and Careen before I ran toward the healing rooms on the other side of the palace.

  My heart picked up its pace until it was bouncing around in my chest, and it had nothing to do with me running. I was terrified of what I was about to discover.

  I finally reached the healing chambers and entered to find Talise, Sela, and Mira standing next to a cot with a woman on it I really didn’t know. She was definitely one of my warriors, I’d seen her fighting hard in the battle, I just had never gotten to know her.

  I approached the bed and gently touched Talise on the back. She turned to me with tears in her eyes and ushered me to the other end of the room.

  “What’s the matter?” I demanded in a low voice.

  “This is Tiana,” Talise sniffled and gestured toward the cot. “She told me she was never formally introduced to you, but she wanted to talk to you before she passed into the shadows.”

  “Wait, what do you mean?” I gasped, and my eyes darted back to the prone woman on the cot. “She’s dying?”

  “Yes,” Talise sighed with her eyes full of tears, “she has internal injuries that just can’t be healed. I tried, but it is beyond my power.”

  “Maybe George can--” I blurted out.

  “No,” said a soft but firm voice from the bed, “my injuries are too far advanced for the dragon, or for anyone.”

  I made my way over to the cot and sat down next to the dying warrior. Then I took her hand in mine and got a really good look at her. She was older than most of the women, and the signs of aging showed in the few wrinkles that dotted her ivory face. She had wheat colored hair cut short in a pixie style, her eyes were the color of melted chocolate, and her scales were a coral hue that shone against her pale complexion. Her entire chest was covered in bloody bandages, though, and her shoulders were covered in deep, dark bruises. Her olive complexion bore a yellowish tint, and there was a huge cut along one of her cheeks. She had a little button nose, a wide mouth, and kind eyes that were quickly losing their life.

  “I can ask George to try,” I urged.

  “Nonsense,” she coughed and shook her head, “he doesn’t need to waste any energy on me. His job is to protect the prince now. It is just my time, and I am at peace with that.”

  “What can I do for you?” I whispered as I laid one hand on her cheek.

  “I am the oldest on the island,” Tiana choked out as she took my hand, “and I have seen too much death. I have lost all of my natural family to sickness or raiders. I have fought for our survival, without any real hope, until you arrived. You have brought security, livelihood, protection, knowledge, and absolute joy to my people. I can never thank you enough for that.

  Tiana broke off in a fit of coughs, and she weakly covered her mouth with the hand that wasn’t holding mine. When the fit subsided, she pulled her hand away, and her palm was covered in spots of blood.

  I wanted to ask if she needed some water, but when I opened my mouth, she continued.

  “What can you do for me?” Tiana whispered so softly it was barely audible, and she looked up into my face with her tired brown eyes. “Keep doing what you’re doing. Take care of our people so I can enter the next world in peace knowing I have not forsaken them. Take care of our prince, especially.”

  “It would be my honor, Tiana,” I said in a tight voice, and my throat constricted around the words.

  Tiana smiled weakly and looked to the female warriors beside me. Mira and Sela leaned in closer to the dying woman, and both of them shook from grief and tears.

  “You two try to get along, at least for Ben’s sake, and know I loved you like you were mine,” Tiana rasped before she closed her eyes one last time.

  We all stood quietly by for the next few minutes until her chest stopped rising and her heart stopped beating. Then she passed into the next world with a smile on her face.

  “I am so sorry,” I murmured into the silent room after several minutes had passed, “I wish I could have done more.”

  “Tiana died as she lived,” Talise sniffed and wiped tears from her eyes, “with honor and dignity. She wouldn’t want us to mourn too much, this I know.”

  “It would downright piss her off,” Mira chuckled through her own tears. “She taught Sela and I both how to fight, and she wasn’t much for sentiments and emotions.”

  “I will certainly miss the old hag,” Sela snorted before she shook her head and straightened up. “We should honor her with a warrior’s funeral at sunrise.”

  “I will make the announcement and prepare her body,” Talise nodded, “but if the two of you can stay to help, I would appreciate that.”

  “I can stay and help,” I offered.

  “Not on your life,” the healer huffed and leveled me with a stern look. “When was the last time you slept?”

  “Um, it’s been a little while,” I muttered and rubbed the back of my neck.

  “I will walk with you back to the queen’s chambers and explain what will happen in the morning,” Talise decided, “but then you need to get some sleep.”

  “As you wish,” I said, since I knew not to argue with that tone.

  I looked over my shoulder one last time at the warrior who had given her life to protect all of us. Her sacrifice still reverberated deep inside me, and it likely would forever. There was no way to ever forget when someone gave their life for yours.

  The torches cast flickering shadows in the halls, and all was quiet since most of the village was still outside celebrating the birth of their prince. There was no need to disrupt their joy with this sadness, not yet anyway.

  “It is customary for a warrior’s body to be burned to ashes in privacy with only those who were closest to the warrior present,” Talise explained as we walked across the quiet palace. “So, we will take care of that tonight. Tomorrow, we will gather at the eastern shore at sunrise and return her ashes to the sea from which we sprang. Very few words will be said, a song will be sung, and we will bid our final farewell to our sister. Then we will come together and celebrate her life with food, song, and dance. It is our way.”

  “If you need me at all before the service,” I told her when we stopped at the queen’s door, “please come and get me.”

  “As you wish.” Talise smiled before she kissed me and turned away to take care of everything.

  As I watched her walk back down the hall, I wondered to myself when the last time she had slept was.

  I slipped into the queen’s room to find her sleeping soundly, with Arrick in his bassinet next to the bed and Marella on a small cot nearby. Careen was nodding off in a chair with her elbow resting on the table beside her, and her head was propped up by one hand. The healer peeked her eyes open at the sound of me closing the door, and she immediately gave me a sad but inquiring look.

  “Tiana has passed into the shadows,” I whispered.

  Careen just nodded her head as tears sprang to her eyes, so I pulled her into a hug and held her there for a few moments.

  “I assume Talise is preparing for the service?” she asked in a quiet voice as she reluctantly pulled away.

  “Yes,” I murmured, “Mira and Sela are helping her.”

  “I should go lend a hand,” she sighed before she looked at the sleeping babies. “Is Marella okay there? She wanted to see ‘Ack’ again.”

  “She is perfectly fine,” I smiled, “just let her be.” I didn’t feel the need to tell the pink-haired healer I wanted nothing more than to have my children close to me tonight.

  “Thank you, Ben,” Careen whispered, “for everything you do.”

  Then she kissed me gently before she left the bedchamber.

  When she was gone, I changed into a pair of sleep shorts that Nerissa had made for me. Then I blew out the few remaining candles and crawled into bed next to my queen.

  Nerissa opened her eyes at m
y presence and leaned in hard against me, so I wrapped my arms tightly around her.

  “Has she gone?” the queen barely whispered.

  “Yes, my love,” I murmured and pressed a kiss into her silver hair, “Tiana is gone.”

  I felt her shudder with a sob, and then almost immediately compose herself.

  “Are the final farewells at sunrise?”

  “They are,” I said.

  “Then let’s get our rest,” she whispered before she kissed me and snuggled down to sleep.

  That was the last thing I remembered before drifting off myself.

  The next morning, I helped Nerissa to bathe and dress before we got the babies ready for the funeral service. I was used to seeing dark colors at funerals and was surprised when Nerissa chose to wear the palest of pink wraps. She even had a similar colored gown for Marella and wrapped Arrick in a blanket of pale blue.

  “What?” Nerissa asked when she noticed my weird expression.

  “Where I come from, people wear dark colors to funerals to symbolize death and mourning.” I shrugged. “I guess I’m not used to such light colors for this kind of thing.”

  “Your people wear black to celebrate death?” she asked me with a very puzzled look on her face.

  “Well,” I said, “I guess they kind of do.”

  “Odd,” the queen mused in return, “we think celebrating life is much more important.”

  “Ya know what?” I grinned. “I agree.”

  So, I pulled on the creamy soft pants and shirt that were stacked with my other clothes inside of an armoire made from bamboo and seashells. I had clothes in Nerissa’s room, along with Talise’s and Mira’s rooms, which equaled to more clothes than I’d ever owned in my entire life.

  Apparently, I had to land on a primitive, undiscovered, fantastical island to get a decent wardrobe. How weird was that?

  “Is this okay?” I asked as I gestured to my clothes.

  “Perfect,” Nerissa said with a smile. Then she handed me Marella, who was chewing on a wooden toy boat and drooling everywhere.

  “Hello, cutie,” I cooed at my daughter.

  “Da!” was what I got in response.

  I laughed, and then the four of us made our way to the main chamber of the palace, where Talise and Mira were waiting for us with beautiful white flowers in their hands.