by Piper Rayne
Her lips thin, tapping the end of her chin. Then a slow smile spreads across her face and my heart relaxes for the first time today. I hate disappointing her, and I’m trying. I just don’t fit anywhere, not even here.
“Talia, dear, I need you to accompany the guard. Close out your affairs and tell your assistant to block your schedule for three weeks.”
“Three weeks?”
“Yes. You’re going up top.”
“Up top?” I float in a circle in glee.
A trip, that’s much better than shooting at poor little trout. Images of bookstores and trinkets and people watching at restaurants flood my mind. Oh, and walking around on my legs. I grab her shoulders kissing her cheeks then swim towards the exit.
“I’ll need you to represent the kingdom before the Dakes Elders.”
“Mother?” I zip back to her side, certain I’m hearing her wrong. The Dakes Elders and Talia Hudson never should the two intertwine, as far as I’m concerned.
She continues with no regard for my utter shock. “The Walker is two weeks early. It’s great for travel across country but awful for the kingdom. We have too much going on with the Blue Moon Celebration next week, construction on the castle, and Bianca’s wedding.”
Mother carries on, but I blacked out at the Dakes Elders. They’re a council of immortals governing the gifted on earth. The mere mention of them invokes fear and awe because their leadership holds together the delicate balance of the multiverse.
“Mother, please anything but talking in front of the council. I…. I…” I swallow. “I can’t.”
“Are you quitting Talia?” I hate her challenging tone.
“No, ma’am,” I whisper. “I don’t want to keep disappointing you.”
“There’s nothing you could ever do to disappoint me.”
I stare into her emerald green eyes. They glow without the assistance of light. Her power radiates and the contrast against her golden-brown skin is striking. No doubt she could zap a trout with her pinky finger.
“Mother, I need to add that class to my roster.”
Her affectionate smile tampers the ache in my chest. “What class is that dear?”
“How to lie with a straight face?”
Laughter bursts from her and I can’t help but join her. I’ll try anything. I guess not being a quitter is a talent, and people gazing. I can watch humans for hours.
“You’ve always been a headstrong, resilient child. Now you’re a courageous woman. That’s all it takes to be an effective queen,” Mother adds.
“But I can’t make my mouth catch up with my brain. The council will think I’m an idiot.”
“No, they’ll know you’re a princess. Stop thinking so much. Your courage is best expressed from here,” she places a hand over my heart, then she gathers my head in her hands, kissing my forehead, “not from here.”
I sigh. “I’ll go. But for the record, I told you so.”
“Noted.”
“Why am I meeting with the council?”
Mother and I swim with our arms linked back to the castle as she fills me in on the trip.
The Dakexon Empire is the source of our powers on this plain of the multiverse. The Dakes Elders, our council, are comprised from the original twelve tribes. Their jurisdiction expands from the top of the sky to the depths of the deepest ocean. They are the judge and jury for offenses against the kingdom, and she explains that we have to transport an offending merman to the Dakes Reformatory.
“You’ll be accompanied by four guards. Colt is overseeing the trip. Did you know that he’s single? His folks own the construction company, updating the west wing of the castle. They’re honest, hardworking people with a large family much like ours.”
I stop. “Mother, is this official kingdom business or more of your matchmaking?”
“Both, dear. All you have to do is ask questions, get to know him. You have three weeks to blow. You’ll get to see the country. It’s plenty of time to feel comfortable.”
I roll my eyes. My mother is tough but fair. The merpeople adore her and gladly defend her kingdom with their lives.
“Now get ready. The guards are prepping.”
“Yes, ma’am.” I swim off to pack.
The thought of traveling on land sounds better than playing target. I’ll make small talk with Colt and return to tell Mother I tried. Plus, traveling is a luxury most of us don’t have because it comes with significant risks, hence the three guards. Then I hear the other shoe drop along with my heart. “Wait, mother. Three weeks means…”
I spin around, terrified. The flutter of bubbles clouds my vision and when they clear mother’s waiting for me to get a clue. Suddenly I’m before my queen, not my mother.
She got me.
Everything is a lesson, always a lesson, and I almost missed it like that trout.
I have to get out of this trip. Staying on land for three weeks requires more power than I can generate. The royal blood in our veins gives me more leeway to dwell in fresh water and the sea. I can also live for extended periods of time on land, but not without a steep cost.
“Talia, one day you will be queen. One day you’ll need your powers, and they will fail you because you haven’t learned to harness them.”
I shake my head. “The longest I’ve restrained my tail is a week, and that was with help.”
“You’re stronger now.”
“But I’m not mother. That’s the point of this whole thing.” I swing my hands around to the space. Bianca left us alone. The range is nothing more than an old cave used for testing our powers without the risk of harming another merperson.
“It’s the perfect time, dear. You won’t have to concern yourself with shooting or casting spells. Your only job is to behave like a princess and…”
“Suppress everything that makes me a mermaid.” I drop, wanting to sink into a dark corner of the cavern. Scales, pearls, tail.
Our powers are a mixture of magic and function. Existing on the surface requires both. The coming blue moon helps. But that only covers one of the twenty-one days.
Can I do it without my mother and my sisters?
“Yes, dear, you can. I’m counting on you.” She reads my thoughts, pulling me to her chest, and with a tight squeeze she adds, “Talia, you’re going to surprise yourself.”
“What about when I’m interacting with humans? It’s one thing to suppress but to hold conversations too.” I shake my head. This isn’t happening. It can’t happen. “Are you prepared to receive word of a mermaid exposed in a downtown cafe?”
“Talia, you’re too dramatic. You’ll have Asaad and he spends his life living amongst humans. Watch him, take in your surroundings, then smile and walk as if you belong.” She looks down into my eyes. “You’re still responsible for looking after yourself. But use this time to strengthen your core. Every now and then try something small—a chant, a spell, read a mind or two. Your powers will grow exponentially on land.”
I nod. “I guess it’s now or never.”
“Smile, dear. Your gift is what makes you powerful. Trust it.”
Her aura calms my racing heart. I’m not the youngest, but I feel like the weakest. Unable to shoot, dance, attract a mate. But I’d give up all those for eyes like hers—glowing with my powers. Once a royal mermaid reaches that state, we don’t have to work so hard to generate energy or suppress our identity on land.
Mother kisses the top of my head, brushing my wild springy curls back. “You’ll be there and back before you know it. Now hurry, you don’t want to keep the guards waiting. It’s best to pass through the channel before the moon is high.”
“Yes, ma’am.”
I leave not as confident as mother but willing. The thought of aiming and actually hitting something would be kind of cool. I spin and thrust my hands, arms tight, aiming at the rock off in the distance.
“Freeze.” The rock obeys my command. I scan the area and laugh at my antics. A wave of my body, and a powerful kick of my tail s
ends me speeding through the kingdom. I travel from one end to the other, entering the castle.
Packing is nothing more than a camera and a couple of books—my notebook of spells and a novel. The trip to the Dakes Reformatory takes about forty hours without breaks or sightseeing. It’s a hidden location in West Virginia and requires a chaperone from a member of the Dakes guard.
A couple of my sisters took the trip before and begged me to take pictures of the countryside. This is nothing more than time to listen to human music, sightsee, and read.
I hug my family goodbye, promising to return with land snacks and plenty of pictures. My parents trust me in the hands of the guards. We swim across the land with the offender, Jude, secured with tungsten metal handcuffs, reinforced with ancient magic. His charges before the elders include fraternizing with humans, unauthorized use of his powers, and divulging our most trusted secrets—our location and our existence.
The Malawi Community exists four hundred feet beneath the Malawi Falls in a cenote discovered by my grandmother. Humans and the gifted alike don’t know that we’ve lived here for hundreds of years.
Our kingdom has a few natural safeguards from human detection. The depths of our location and the temperature of the pool.
Last, humans believe we’re merely myths. A fairy tale.
They visit the waterfall masking the entrance to the Malawi Kingdom. People sit on the cliffs of this mountain telling of magical mermen and enticing mermaids hidden in the depths of the turquoise water.
Humans can’t know the tales are true. That we live beneath their world. That our kind protects their livelihood. That this is our post.
Our role is to live life to the fullest, but when the time comes—if it ever comes—we’re responsible for protecting the bodies of waters on earth. Jude compromised the lives of millions of merpeople and even more keepers on earth. The Dakes handle traitors swiftly and with an iron hand, which probably accounts for the Walker’s early arrival. I don’t agree with the loss of life, but should we esteem one over millions? I’m glad the decision isn’t mine to make.
What’s sad is he’ll probably die for it. I stall for a second looking over at Jude expecting to see fear or regret, instead he winks at me. I stop gripping the handles of my backpack.
“Princess, we must keep moving. The time is upon us.” Colt reminds me, urging me forward.
We leave the lights and noise of the kingdom behind, swimming through the darkness. I fall back a little as we approach the narrow channel. Colt enters first, followed by a guard with Jude, then another guard and I. A final guard covers our backs. No one speaks. I wrestle with my hair, I should have re-plaited it. I’ll do it once we reach the shore.
Then we exit of the kingdom, entering the pool beneath the waterfall. The sound of rushing water absorbs the silence.
It’s nighttime. The mountainside blocks the view of the sky. The guards mumble between themselves, preparing for our exit from the lake. The Walker and his soldiers are to meet us on the shore.
I smile, fascinated by the white foam collecting on the surface of the lake. I’ve spent my entire life in water, but the sight of bubbles playing across the surface brings me joy. The water slips through my fingers. The guards take their positions and I float just over the left shoulder of Colt. We cover a few meters. The clear night makes the moon appear brighter, larger, as if it is guiding us.
“Stay here,” Colt says, swimming ahead of us. He scans the area. Humans love to cliff dive off the mountain. The last thing we need is to have an audience when we emerge from the water.
Colt nods, and the guards float like a barricade blocking me. I follow, unable to see the shore.
“Princess, are you ready?” Colt calls out.
“Yes.” I close my eyes, searching for the sapphire blue light inside me. This doesn’t require a spell or chant. Mother says is my birthright, my gift from the Creator. But it can be temperamental. I relax, focusing on the beat of my heart, and it appears.
It’s time.
2
I swim to the shallow edge of the lake and focus on the heat moving from my chest through my arms, anticipating my transition. I signal to Colt, and the guards move forward to the open area leading to the forest on the mountainside.
The sight of the large moon in a clear sky is picture worthy. I quietly grab my camera and capture it. I’m swiping through the shots to ensure the shutter setting is right when an odd sensation overtakes me.
“Colt, do you feel that?” I whisper, quickly zipping my bag closed. I search the area for the source. The trees ahead are dense and essentially a black hole.
“What is it, princess?”
The cliff behind us is vacant, and so is the shore. The heads of the guards survey our surroundings.
Where are you?
I adjust my glasses, determined to find the source. The uptick of my pulse makes it hard to suppress my natural form. This is the mental exercise Mother wanted, and to think I have three weeks of this to look forward to.
I shake my head, not enthused. “It must be me. I’ll transition. It could be the Walker I’m sensing.”
“Yes, ma’am.”
Colt gives the guards their directives. They emerge from the water, falling to the rocky shore. Each shifting. Then a guard followed by Jude, then another. They create a wall blocking my exit.
I’m the last to emerge.
I close my eyes and hum a melody, and the pearls etched in my skin are replaced by ancient hieroglyphic tattoos designating my original tribe, my clan, and my royalty. But it’s the twelve stars running from my armpit to my waist that attests to my status as a keeper in the Dakexon Kingdom. The shift is instantaneous. Now for my tail.
I’ve practiced this since I turned thirteen. Stripping a mermaid of her tail is painful. I claw at the pebbled ground. Air fills my lungs, and I exhale a groan, begging the light to make the transition easier. But it’s not so.
Focus, Talia.
This is the hard part, but it won’t last forever.
Blue flames surge through my veins. I call on every lesson, on the ancestry in my blood, on my birthright to suppress my iridescent scales now shimmering in the moonlight. A scream escapes, echoing through the night.
My tail flaps in protest.
“We’ll be together again,” I whisper as a light breeze brushes across my sweaty skin. I open my eyes and legs extend from my torso, and because I can, I wiggle my toes.
I did it and in less than five minutes. A quick chant covers my new body in a dress that would make Mother proud. I spin to watch the fabric flow around my legs.
“Never thought I see some shit like that.”
I turn to the voice and see unfamiliar men on the mountainside.
The sense of danger vibrates through the air while I search the darkness for the one bold enough to address me like that. A guard, Dillan, sees the culprit first. He sprints forward with a gut-wrenching roar.
Pop.
Pop.
Dillan crumbles to the rocks. Dead.
I gasp, buckling under the weight of seeing his body sprawled on the shore, and he transforms back to his birth form.
The sounds from the stranger and the guards muffle. I want to carry Dillan back to the water, where he belongs. My vision clouds as I reach for him, and the sound of Bianca yells in my head.
Focus and shoot, Talia.
I thrust my hands in front of me, spreading my legs to balance my weight, ready to zap anything moving, and I’m staring down the barrel of a shiny black gun.
Dillan’s killer.
I’ll never forget this man, and to ensure it, I mentally capture his face.
Green eyes. Pale white skin. A thick beard. His everyday attire tells me he’s human until he talks over his shoulder, and I see his pointy ears.
A faeus?
Must be from the Naphiche tribe. What are fairies doing in our forest? Why did he kill Dillan? And why is he at our front door?
“Look, lady, you don’t
want to do that.” His smile doesn’t reach his eyes. Six men step from the shadows of the trees up the slight incline.
“Cowards.” I step back, uncertain of what to do next, but I don’t drop my hands. I search for any exposed skin for tribal marks, anything to help this make sense.
We’re outnumbered with Jude handcuffed. A knot expands in my throat, thinking about Dillan’s family. Anger fills me, and I level my gaze on the man in front of me.
That’s it—electricity cracks between my fingers, radiating bright blue.
“Princess…” Colt whispers.
“You’re a tough one.” The murderer chuckles, and another pop sounds, sending Wren, another guard to the right, in a puddle at my feet. “I can put a bullet in your head, and you can join your men.”
“Not if you want to live and collect your share.” The dark edge in the voice sends a shiver up my spine, and my eyes search the shadows for the speaker.
I pull my gaze toward the hill. A man stands at the top without a trace of emotion on his face. He said the words as if he’d asked for the morning report or another cup of coffee.
Standing in the authority given by my birth and my mother, I don’t have a choice but to negotiate for the lives of Colt, Adan, Jude, and myself. I look up, clearing my throat.
“I’m Princess Talia Hudson of the Malawi Tribe.” I take a deep breath before continuing, “I’ll go without a fight if you’ll please allow the others to return to the lake.”
The dark stranger walks closer.
“I won’t let you kill another one of my men and live.” I etch the words out, not wanting to take a life, but I won’t stand by and watch another merman die. I force the energy down my arms until heat burns my palms, and the orb floating between my hands expands.
The dark stranger doesn’t stop until he crosses into the light. Who are these miscreants? What do they want? I run every drill I’ve ever practiced through my head, waiting for someone to make a move.
I feel my energy levels dropping, suppressing my natural form, and calling on my power has me near exhaustion.
