The Sea Witch (The Era of Villains Book 1)

by Valfroy, S. J.

  He wrapped the hand that wasn’t holding hers around her waist. “What do you say we leave this dreadfully awkward party and find somewhere to talk and get to know each other?”

  “That sounds wonderful.”

  A pang of jealousy jabbed at Hazel’s stomach. She hung her head with the beginnings of a scowl on her face and turned to swim away. She was no longer wanted or needed here.

  “But I can’t leave my sister all alone,” said Serena, making Hazel freeze and look over her shoulder.

  Triton looked away from Serena and towards Hazel with great effort. He still kept his hand on the small of Serena’s back.

  “Oh, of course not,” he said, looking a tad disappointed. “We can escort the lovely Hazel home together first.”

  “Perfect,” said Serena, summoning up her courage and placing a shaking hand on Triton’s smooth back. He was pleasantly warm, and she leaned into his side.

  “Oh, really, that’s not necessary,” said Hazel, the smile back on her face. She felt guilty for assuming Serena would abandon her and wanted to make up for it. “Casius said he’d be hanging around nearby, remember? I’ll find him, and we can go back home together. I won’t be alone. Don’t worry about me.”

  “You sure, Hazel?” said Serena, secretly praying Hazel meant it.

  “Yes, Serena. I mean it.” She gave them a playful smile and a wink. “You two have fun. I think I’m going to stick around a little bit first and watch the circus after you two leave together.”

  Triton laughed, and Serena gazed up at him with adoration. She felt buoyant and unsteady. It all felt like a wonderful, vibrant dream—his touch, his laugh, the way he was looking at her. Her joy was so consuming she could hardly think straight.

  “Should be great entertainment for you, Hazel,” said Triton, “as long as you don’t get trampled. Maybe I can make it even more amusing for you, as a thanks for lending me your sister. I think they’ll really go nuts if I do this.”

  With his free hand, he cupped Serena’s face and gently wrapped his fingers in her hair. He lifted her face up to his using the arm around her waist and kissed her. Serena gasped softly against his mouth. Blood pounded in her ears, and her whole body tingled. She felt her magic sizzle in her veins, worked up by her feelings of ecstasy and surprise. She tried to contain it, but she couldn’t think straight. It surged into her hands and even her lips, but it did not shock either of them. Instead, it buzzed against their skin, warm and exciting. Triton pulled her closer, deepening the kiss for a few moments before pulling back, breathing hard. His eyes were bright; his skin was flushed. Serena imagined she looked about the same. He smiled at her, and she laughed. Never had a laugh felt so good.

  “Uh,” said Hazel, a laugh threatening to cut off her words, “I think you two might want to swim out of here fast.”

  Serena looked over Triton’s shoulder at the other mermaids filling the room. Many had their mouths wide open. All of them looked capable of murder. Poseidon, floating above them, looked stoic. The mermaids’ glares didn’t bother Serena. The hard scrutiny of Poseidon’s eyes did. She also felt a twinge of sadness as she touched the locket at her throat and felt the magic still thrumming inside it. The spell had not broken at their kiss. But it was just a small disappointment. True love would take time.

  — — —

  “You were right, Father,” said Triton. “It’s time for me to settle down and start focusing on my royal obligations. I need a smart, kind, and ambitious mermaid to rule at my side and to continue on the family bloodline, and I’ve found that mermaid. I don’t want to have any more dinner parties or wait until the end of the month to choose. There’s no need.”

  Triton held Serena’s hand. They were in the throne room, floating in front of Poseidon— sitting in his octopus throne—like merfolk requesting an audience. The only difference was that they were up on the throne pedestal instead of staying humbly down near the open floor below. Light poured in through the many windows carved into the stone, feeding the anemones and various sorts of coral (some yellow-orange and tube-like, others pink and fan-like) growing in pots hung on the walls. Serena leaned into Triton’s side, at ease, unspeakably happy and in love after the dream-like night before. They had talked into the early hours of the morning, learning each other’s likes and dislikes, dreams and fears. Triton had more to learn than Serena; she had been observing him from afar for years, while he had never even noticed her until the day she had “accidentally” bumped into him in the atrium. But observing from afar could only tell her so much. Last night, she had learned that he loved clams, but hated sea grass. His favorite battle technique was using a trident (though he wouldn’t be allowed to hunt with the magical Trident until he was king) and a net. He loved to swim with dolphins at play. He did it every weekend in the early morning. She had been correct about his sense of duty and his caring heart. His tone changed when he talked about his people. Normally, he spoke loudly and happily, with lots of enthusiasm and hand gestures. When he talked about taking care of his people, his tone grew serious and gentle, his hand gestures more subdued. They had discussed magic—Serena’s and the Trident’s—and Serena’s heart had warmed when his eyes grew bright and he nodded his agreement with vigor as she talked about using both forms of magic to help the merpeople, not lord it over them and force them to pay extravagant sums for it. And talking hadn’t been all they’d done. His touch set her on fire. His kiss made her feel lightheaded and powerful all at once, her magic singing in her veins each time his lips met hers.

  Poseidon looked at their clasped hands with disdain, and the happy bubble in Serena’s chest popped. The look was all too familiar; she had seen it on another beautiful face set below a crown.

  “You’ve found a maid, you mean,” said Poseidon. “This is your idea of doing justice to the bloodline? You choose the most common of common folk? And not just any maid either; the maid who spited your mother so. The maid your mother would never have let touch you, much less marry you. This is how you honor her memory?”

  Serena felt tears burning in her eyes, but this time they were not tears of shame, but tears of anger. Once again, she was being judged for her job title and a lack of expensive ornaments in her hair.

  “Father,” said Triton, his jaw tight and his voice severe, “that’s enough. How dare you suggest I am tainting Mother’s memory simply by falling in love—just like you wanted me to. And Serena isn’t just a maid; she’s a sea witch. She has inherent magical power. She is someone to be admired.”

  Serena was relieved that Triton was standing up for her this time. She won the battle against her forming tears.

  “Oh yes, a sea witch,” said Poseidon with a sneer. “Sea witches are treacherous sea snakes who lure you in with coy looks and promises of the thing you most desire, even if they can’t actually deliver. Your mother knew the truth. A sea witch, this one’s mother, almost tore our marriage apart. That is what they do, Son. Don’t you see?”

  Serena felt electricity in her fingertips, and she let go of Triton’s hand so as not to shock him. There it was again. Judgement for her and her family’s powers. He’s just jealous, thought Serena.

  “Your Highness,” said Serena, mockery dripping from every syllable, a smirk much like Moira’s on her face, “you will remember that you invited every eligible mermaid to your parties, not just the wealthy ones, the so-called ‘well bred’ ones. There is no law that says a prince cannot marry a maid or a sea witch.”

  “She’s right, Father,” said Triton.

  “I invited every eligible mermaid so as not to start a riot!” said Poseidon, throwing his hands up in exasperation. “I thought you had enough sense to marry well, but clearly, I was wrong. How do you know she hasn’t got you under some sort of love spell?”

  Serena jumped. Fear surged up from her fins to her throat, rendering her speechless, but Triton swam
at his father so fast and with such a look of fury on his face that Poseidon shrank back against his throne.

  “How dare you, Father!” he said. “You think I’m a fool? You think I don’t know my own heart?”

  “Triton, please,” said Poseidon, regaining his composure, “I’m just trying to be the voice of reason here. We can settle this right now. Just let me use the Trident to see if there is a spell on you.”

  “No, Father,” said Triton, his voice dangerous and low, “I won’t let you point that thing at her. You’ll have to go through me first.”

  “It’s alright, Triton,” said Serena, her anger back in her voice. After the brief moment of fear, Moira’s face had appeared before her eyes, looking disappointed and angry that Serena was not confident in her magic. The spell could not be broken by the Trident. Only true love’s kiss would work. “Let him try. There’s no spell to break, so no harm done.”

  Triton looked like he was going to protest, but she looked him in the eyes and nodded once. He nodded back and came to wrap his arm around her waist.

  “Go ahead,” said Triton, staring down his father.

  Poseidon rose from his throne and pulled the Trident free from the stone octopus’s grip. He leveled it so that the central tip was pointed directly between Serena’s breasts.

  “I command the spell to be broken,” he said in a clear, booming voice.

  The Trident glowed for a moment and there was a crack like thunder. Poseidon looked at Triton, a question in his eyes.

  “Still love her, Father,” said Triton through gritted teeth.

  “Perhaps I have to point it at you, since you are the object of the spell.”

  “Go ahead and try.”

  The words were spoken; the glow and the crack were the same.

  “I will marry her, Father,” said Triton, and Serena smiled with one eyebrow cocked at Poseidon.

  Poseidon puffed up his chest and his brow creased in anger. “You will not,” he said. “There may be no law about marrying below your rank, but the law does state that the king and queen must crown the new princess, and I refuse! If your mother were here, she would say the same. That witch will never be part of this family as long as I reign!”

  — — —

  Serena’s shriek of rage filled the whole cave. Moira came shooting out of the corridor, Hazel and Casius not far behind.

  “Serena?” said Moira.

  “What happened?” said Casius.

  “The same thing that always happens when it comes to the royal family,” said Serena, her voice a predatory hiss. “Poseidon refuses to crown me princess of Adamar even though Triton wishes to marry me, all because I’m a maid and a sea witch. That vain, pompous oaf just can’t stand the idea of a royal with her own inherent magical power sitting on the throne. You know why?”

  “Because such a royal would be legendary,” said Moira, an almost religious fervor in her voice. “His name would be forgotten in your shadow.”

  “Exactly! You were always right about them, Mother. You too, Casius. I should have listened earlier.”

  “That’s alright, darling,” said Moira. “You know the truth now, and you can make it right. You’ve found a rare royal in Triton. He’s not like his parents.” Moira was careful with each sentence, her voice calm and clear. She had to make sure she pressed all the right buttons. The palace was within reach. “You saved him from his mother. I had hoped that would be enough. I thought Poseidon was harmless, but it seems I was wrong. I think you know what you have to do.”

  Serena had been pacing, swimming back and forth across the living room from the left corridor to the right, but now she stopped and raised her head slowly to look at her mother. The tiniest of smiles twitched her lips.

  “Are you sure that’s the only way?” said Casius. “It seems rather risky. Two poisonings in just a little over a fortnight? The citizens, the doctors, they’ll be suspicious.”

  “They won’t be able to prove anything,” said Moira, her eyes narrowing at Casius. “Besides, Triton is completely smitten, and he’ll be the new king. Serena will never be suspected, at least not by the one person who matters.”

  “It’s the only way,” said Serena, her face hard.

  “I’ll get started right away,” said Moira with a smile.

  “I’ll help.”

  Chapter 6

  All Hail Queen Serena

  Adamar was in a panic. Both the king and queen had died of the same strange, incurable illness in less than a month. The doctors were sure Poseidon had caught the disease at his wife’s bedside, and everyone feared for Triton. If Triton died, there would be war between the noble, wealthy families over the throne. Usurpers from other parts of the ocean might even show up and take advantage of the turmoil.

  The whole kingdom mourned the loss of the king and queen whether they thought fondly of them or not. Triton set up a solemn parade in their honor and declared the day an annual event to celebrate his parent’s lives. The royal guard swam in full ceremonial battle gear—breast plates made of turtle shells, nets draped around their chests like sashes, tridents, spears, or swords at their sides. The queen’s handmaidens came next, singing sad, sweet songs with tears on their cheeks. The king’s favorite servants blew conch shell trumpets. Triton and Serena came next in a dolphin-pulled carriage made of clam shells. She had told him the citizens might not think it proper for her to ride with him, but he insisted.

  “I need you there if I’m going make it all the way through,” he had said, holding both of her hands in his, and she had been powerless to refuse.

  He let her see his grief and talked with her about his pain. When his tears fell, she felt sick with guilt, but she comforted him all the same, telling herself over and over that she had done the right thing for both of them, for their future together. He refused his advisors’ insistence that he have his coronation immediately, so that he would officially be king of Adamar and not just a prince, but he refused. Serena assumed it was another way he was trying to honor his father’s memory.

  A month after the mourning parade, he came and picked her up from her home in the early morning and took her to play with a pod of dolphins. The dolphins took to her quickly, saying things like, “Seems you’ve finally grown a brain, your Highness. Good thing, too, or this one would be terribly bored with you,” and “Marry her quick before she realizes she’s too good for you.” Triton had laughed good naturedly to all of these jibes, and Serena felt a rush of pride. His parents hadn’t gotten as tight a grip on him as she’d thought. If any sea creature had dared say such things to Amphitrite or Poseidon, they would be punished.

  By the time they had swum around the outskirts of the whole city, flipping, spinning, tossing a clam shell or a boulder back and forth as they did flips and spins, Serena was breathless from exertion and laughter. She waved goodbye to the dolphin pod and turned to Triton with a smile on her face.

  “What?” she said, self-consciously tucking her hair behind her ear when she caught Triton staring at her intently.

  He snatched her up in his arms, pulling her against his chest, and tilted her chin up to look at him as he said, “Serena, will you be my queen?”

  Serena gazed at him with a wide-eyed, slightly open-mouthed, dazed smile. Her happiness stole her voice. Despite her smile, her silence made Triton nervous. His eyes moved quickly over her face, and he sounded a little anxious when he said, “I think you’ll find you have to, because I refuse to be crowned unless you’re by my side with a crown on your head too.”

  She laughed and said, “Well, when you put it that way, it’s my duty to say yes, now isn’t it?”

  Triton laughed. “So that’s a genuine yes, right?”

  “Yes, of course,” she said, throwing her arms around his neck and kissing him.

  For the first time ever, Serena had pearls woven into her hair. Her thick, dar
k mass of hair was all pulled up and styled in elegant twists and braids clasped together by a large hair pin decorated with white seashells. Two large, pure white clam shells served as her top. Three interlocked bracelets made of iridescent cave crystal sparkled around her wrist. There was a matching necklace, but Serena could not wear it. The golden heart-shaped locket had to stay around her neck. She tried not to think about it or what it implied about the marriage that would start in just a few minutes. It was easy to cast the thought aside. It was her wedding day, and she was giddy with delight. She couldn’t stop smiling, and her cheeks were beginning to hurt.

  “You look magnificent, darling,” said Moira, that overly-sweet cadence in her voice. Serena was beginning to grow used to it and found herself trying extra hard to make Moira happy just to hear it.

  “Thank you, Mother.”

  “You’ll look even more magnificent once you get that crown.”

  Moira’s eyes blazed for a moment, and she adjusted the makeshift coral crown on her head. Serena thought perhaps she could get Moira a real one once she became queen. Moira would like that. Hazel should have one too.

  Moira swam up behind Serena, put her hands on her shoulders, and kissed her hair. Hazel, who had just been about to tell Serena how very beautiful she looked, frowned and said nothing. Hazel was maiden of honor. In fact, she was the only bridesmaid. She, too, had pearls in her hair, though it was draped in a braid across her shoulder. She wore a brand new blue shell top. Serena had had it specially made for her, as her favorite black one just wouldn’t do for a wedding, and the white one she had worn for the royal dinner party would not work because only the bride could wear white. Hazel had gasped in delight when Serena had presented it to her, rubbing the pink pearls woven into it with admiration. She looked quite lovely, despite the poor health of her hair and even the frown now on her face, but Moira had said not a word to her about it.