"No," he said. "I can't help you."
Everyone groaned. It was fruitless to persuade him. He had his mind and heart set on virtues and justice.
I knew I had to say something. I walked towards Samudra and put a hand on his broad shoulder.
"May I have a word with you?" I said. He looked at me in surprise but then he nodded. I gave the others a reassuring glance before we walked together towards the still lake.
We strolled along the bank where yellow flowers blooming. At last, we stopped and stared at the picturesque sight.
"I'm sorry, Nikita," Samudra said. "I want more than anything to see us win, but I can't betray my own conscience. My holy father once said, 'If one has not conquered oneself, how will one conquer the enemy?'"
I sighed and looked at the rippling water.
"I understand," I told him. "I wish I could be as strong as your sense of right and wrong. Who am I to resent you?"
Samudra gave me a long look, but when he couldn't seem to understand my vague words, he turned away.
"The others are angry at me now," he sighed.
"I know you would help us if you are able to. Surely, you're not to be blamed, but none of the avatars is by nature a professed sailor of the significant sea. If there is another way you could aid us without breaking your oath, I hope you can tell me."
Samudra heaved another sigh and frowned as if in a deep thought. Then he stared at the water, and his overwrought face began to lessen as if the flowing element had soothed his mind.
"Let your mind be formless and shapeless like the flow of water. Let it flow through whatever that blocks your path," he chanted a mantra to himself. "The answers always lie within the ocean depth of your soul."
Samudra lifted his eyes to me like he had just realized something. I could sense a brilliant plan settling itself inside his head.
"I know how I can help you without actually helping you," he said with a smile.
I didn't understand it, but I didn't question him.
~*~
We found ourselves walking through the encampment towards the Baray a while later. The sound of familiar giggles and splashes of water reached our ears from a distance. There, swimming slowly and delicately, was a school of mermaids. Once they saw us, the mermaids waved their hands in delight.
"Little lord of the sea is coming hither! O with our fairest lady!" one of the Machas cried out. They giggled and gathered together as Samudra nodded to me to go to them. I looked back to the half-fish and half-maidens then took a deep breath.
Samudra had told me they knew everything about the aquatic world, and I must seek the secret from them. When I reached the stone edge of the pool, they swam over to me. Their sharp eyes shone with flirty mischief.
"Good maidens of the sea, I come here to ask for your help," I said and shifted awkwardly. "I and the avatars are trying to accomplish a quest that involves the Rainbow Fish. We do not know a thing about the creature. I wonder if you happen to know where we can find it."
"Ah, that ugly stinky tail. Indeed, we have heard," said one of the mermaids. "It has scales of ice and fire, has it not?"
The same mermaid swam on her back. Her hair was coal black, but the scales of her tail were jade green like seaweed.
"Yes! That very one!" I said, smiling hopefully.
The mermaids giggled. Their scales reflected the sunlight as they swam about. Some of them had tails of silver, blue or reddish hue. They floated back and forth lazily.
"But the knowledge is not held by us," said the silver-tailed mermaid as she swam by. "Trust me, you shall look but you shall not find. Even if you found the fish, you would be dead trying to catch it."
My face fell at that.
"Please tell me if you know how we can capture it," I said.
"The creature is holy but full of woe," another mermaid with blue tail chimed in with a giggle. She brushed her long swirling dark lock over her exposed breast. "You shall have troubles if you dare go near. One touch of its scale will reduce you to dust or freeze you to ice."
"I understand the risk, fair maidens," I told them. "But I am desperate to find the creature still. My friends and I have other important responsibilities on our shoulders. Please help me if you are merciful as you are lovely."
"Oh, such a honeyed mouth!" the mermaid giggled and turned to her merfriends. They whispered and giggled some more before looking back at me.
"We do not know the secret ourselves, but we can tell you who else to ask," said the silvery-tailed one. She wriggled her finger at me and I leaned closer. "There is nobody in the deep dark sea who knows where the holy fish lies but one mermaid."
"Who?"
"Sovannmacha, the queen of fishes and our merfolk."
"Sovannmacha?" I could hear my heart pounding in my ears with eagerness. "Where can I find her?"
"At the northern crook where the sea meets the land," she said. "There is a place so concealed only our kind can reach. She likes to frequent that undisturbed beach. If you're lucky, you shall find her there."
"But if you do find her, I must warn you," said another mermaid who swam in. "The queen will never fulfill a mortal's wish, and your hope might be in vain."
"Are there any way I can persuade her?" I asked them.
Suddenly, one of the youngest mermaids emerged out of nowhere and spurted water at my face. There was a roguish gleam in her reddish eyes.
The little Macha laughed and said, "Take my advice and not theirs, Sovannmacha has a magical pearl that can spare you from all the troubles. She hides it in the pouch of her sparkly tail. Waste no time to converse and seize her right then and there!"
"What in the Seventh Sea are you talking about?" the older mermaid growled at her. "Silence your foolish mouth and end this silly joke of our sisterhood or we will marry you to Charavan, the crocodile."
The young mermaid hissed back and then swam away with one thrust of her fishtail. The others turned to me again.
"Disregard this silly one, young lass. Sovannmacha will grant you her enchanted gift if she deems you worthy, but she won't yield unless you prove yourself so."
"What does the pearl do if I get it?"
"It's a talisman that will lead you to the Rainbow Fish and protect you from the scales," she said. "Good luck with your quest, brave one, and may the gods be with you."
CHAPTER 42
I thanked the mermaids whole-heartedly before I returned to Samudra again. After I reported everything to the Sea God's son, I looked at him for opinions.
"You think she will help us?" I asked.
"Sovannmacha?" he said. "I honestly don't know. She is a queen and must be hard to bend to our will."
"I must see her," I said. "I have promised you that I won't let anyone help me. You fear that the fairness of the game will be lost if you help the avatars, but I'm not divine like the others, so I'm going undertake this task."
"Are you sure, Nikita? This is not how I want it to be," Samudra said in a guilty voice. "It can be too dangerous."
I waved him off with a smile.
"Don't worry about me," I said. "I will talk to the mermaid queen and ask her for the pearl, or at least, the information of the wanted fish."
"What if she does not agree?"
I tried not to remind myself of a certain mermaid's advice.
"Well, I will think about it later," I said with a shrug. "Now, I need to prepare for a flight. The Machas told me to go to the northern sea."
"Oh, wait," he said. "If you go by water, I know a faster ride you should take."
"What is even faster than flying my Ashva?"
"Charavan, my crocodile," he said with a grin.
At nightfall, we discussed our plan with the other avatars. Then Samudra walked me to his crocodile's cave. The avatar summoned his beast out of its dwelling. I still tried not to gasp at the size of that large thorny body.
"Are you sure he won't chew my head off?" I asked. Samudra laughed.
"There's no need to be scared, Ni
kita," he said. "Each of us had done it. Charavan is a holy crocodile. If he were born a human, he would be a monk."
"I still don't think it's right to let Nikita do it alone," Tusita said, glaring at Samudra. "You know if anything happens to her, we're all doomed."
Samudra dropped his head.
"Aw, don't chide him anymore, everyone," I said. "I chose to do this myself. After all, it is my quest too."
Tepi came to me.
"If you have already decided, Nikita, then take this knife with you," she said and handed me a hunting knife. I looked at the shiny golden blade and its leathered grip. "It's extremely sharp, you can cut yourself without knowing, so be careful."
I thanked her and sheathed the knife then tugged it into my belt.
"Charavan shall look after you during the journey," Samudra said. "If something goes awry, you can summon him."
I nodded and turned to leave. The mystical crocodile swam over the bank to us. Samudra helped me onto the crocodile's rough back. I found a place I could hold onto comfortably.
"Ready?" he asked and I nodded. "You will get swept away if you hold so lightly."
I shifted myself and tightened my grip. My legs stretched across the giant reptile’s back. Thankfully, Samudra had fastened a horse saddle on Charavan, so I wouldn't have to torture my backside.
The avatar slapped Charavan's hind leg.
"Go, lad!"
The crocodile swiftly got into the water with me. He recoiled and then burst into a speedy swim. I clung to his massive neck and dug my heels into his sides. My fingers locked from clutching to the armor-skinned body. Charavan glided on the icy water towards the river. I learned that the route would lead to the sea, but there were hundreds of miles away. My legs skidded over the surface, splashing water on both sides, but I dared not relax them.
I didn’t know if I could keep myself like that without falling off.
"Nikita, don't forget to hold your breath!" Samudra cried from where he stood.
"What!?"
As soon as he said that, the crocodile began to submerge into the water. I let out a cry of panic before gasping a lungful of air.
Then we were underwater. I tried to hold my breath for as long as I could. Air escaped from my nose in bursting bubbles from time to time.
I thought I was going to drown and die, but Charavan swam back to the surface again. I took in a big gasp of life-saving air.
My eyes were blurred from the rushing water. I shook my head and brushed my hand roughly over my face. All around us was no longer the river. The sounds of waves crashing onto the shore filled my ears, and the taste of the water was salty.
"We are at the sea?" I gasped.
Charavan went swiftly towards the beach. He climbed like a gecko over the black jagged rocks that surrounded the white sand. I clung to his back until he stopped, and I got off.
The waves were lit with luminous plankton. The coast was long and white with sparkling powdery sand. It was truly an outlandish place.
The sea breeze blew past me and I shivered. I walked in my damp clothes and water-filled boots. Charavan followed me from behind. There were several big smooth rocks along the shore.
"This must be where the mermaid queen appears," I whispered to Charavan. We waited together under the shadow of a flowering tree.
The wind grew colder, and I wished I had the fire to warm my freezing hands. After a long while later, my eyes became heavy and began to draw closed. I tried not to nod off and opened them again. But then I saw someone occupied one of the rocks.
It was a maiden by the look of it. Her long black hair cascaded over her incredibly smooth back. Her skin shone like a pale moon. But what struck me the most was the sight of her glowing fishtail. It was so beautiful, it made my heart falter. The scales were golden in color and sparkled like a thousand coins.
"Sovannmacha!" I gasped then turned to Charavan. "You must hide somewhere and wait for me, good lad."
Charavan quickly moved away from the tree and went back into the water. I decided I was going to talk to her in a civilized manner and slowly came out from my hiding place.
As I composed myself and strode soundlessly over the sand, a voice seemed to whisper to me.
Seize her.
I stopped in my track and tried to look around myself, but the voice seemed to come from inside my head. My hands trembled at my sides.
The rock she was sitting on was adorned with water flowers that spread from the beach. To my amazement, the golden-tailed mermaid began to sing. The song was nothing I had ever heard. It was from another world, ancient and soul-gripping.
Her melodious voice stole the breath from my lungs. My heart skipped its rhythm. I didn't know how to move again. Then the mermaid involuntarily turned and saw me standing there, staring at her. Her eyes widened in shock. The shock was replaced by a look of annoyance and anger. She turned away and was about to jump back into the water when I raised my hands up to stop her.
"Sovannmacha, wait!" I said. "I did not come here to harm you."
"Who are you?" she asked, looking back at me. "How did you get here?"
"Samudra, son of Varuna, the Sea God, is my good friend," I said as calmly as I could manage. "My name is Nikita."
"You are the one my fishes always babbling about?"
I did not expect that, but I couldn't help feel flattered that she had heard of me.
"That is probably me, my lady." I smiled and bowed to her. "And I am here to ask you for a favor."
"Go away!" the macha maiden said. "I will not do any favor."
Then she jumped off the rock and into the water. My heart dropped.
She was so close that I could smell her fresh seaweed scent in salty wind. I should have listened to the young mermaid's advice. The merqueen would never hear my reason. But my feet seemed to have a life of their own. They sprinted so quick after her, I felt as though I could run over the water.
Sovannmancha's strong tail was cutting through the slate-colored waves. Her long hair flowed against the ripples as she moved. With a burst of desperation, I leaped at her and gripped onto her body, holding her tightly in my arms. The mermaid queen was overcome by surprise and lost her leverage, allowing me to tow her back to the shore.
"Please, please, don't go!" I begged her over and over. "I do really need your help, my lady!"
She screamed as I held onto her smooth body. Her golden tail thrust violently into the water. She was so strong, I almost regretted my decision to grab her back. Yet I managed to get us to the beach again and drop ourselves on the wet sand.
The waves still licked our bodies as we laid squeezing and rolling over each other. Sovannmacha tried to wrench herself free from me. She didn't stop her resistance, so I wrapped my legs around her wagging slippery tail and held her with all my strength. My arms, legs, and stomach were badly scratched from her scales. I started to feel exhausted, but I couldn't let the mermaid queen slip away and lose my only chance.
"Please, Merqueen of the Sea, have some mercy. I swear I wish no harm upon you. Please listen to me for a tiny moment and I will release you!"
I tried to beg the still-writhing maiden and rolled her onto her back. Her full breasts jiggled and squashed softly against my chest. I felt my own face blush as I gasped laboriously, trying to hold the queen down.
"Let me go, you greedy odious human!" she screamed in my face. "I know what you have in mind, and I will not listen to any word that comes from your lips!"
"Just one question...and I will set you free!" I cried. "Where can I find the Rainbow Fish in the deep vast sea?"
"Curse you!" Sovannmacha yelled back. “I shall tell you nothing!”
"No, my lady, I have to find the fish. It is important for the quest that I must succeed!"
"Go to Yama's Land!"
With a strong push of her hands, she slipped from my arms and hurled herself back towards the sea.
"No!" I cried and rolled after her. She couldn't move fast over the land, and I seized
her back by the tail and pulled her from the waves again.
This time, I straddled Sovanmacha and clasped her hands in mine. Her eyes were a pair of brilliant jewels. They also glowed in the dark.
"If you don't tell me, then please let me borrow your enchanted pearl," I said.
"None of what you seek I will grant!" she screamed and pushed me off, but I embraced her back from behind. We were wheezing until we were both out of breath and completely drained. The salt water burned the wounds she had given me, but I couldn't really cry out of pain, let alone loosen my grip.
The mermaid was panting against my chest. She arched her body in another attempt to peel herself away, I grabbed her hips and pinned her lower tail down with my legs. We laid lock into each other for a long moment. I could hear my heart beating in my ears. Sovannmacha heard it too.
Suddenly, my hand brushed over her scaly tail and found a small bump hidden underneath the larger scales. I felt Sovannmacha shiver in my arms.
She keeps her enchanted pearl in the pouch of her sparkly tail.
That must be where she hid it. It was right there. A little slip of my fingers inside, I could retrieve the pearl. I might not have the information I came for, but I could work out with my friends later. Yet if I did not take the chance now, I would never win the quest.
The mermaid queen was too disagreeable with my plea from the start. I had no other options left. The salt water was burning my eyes, making my vision hazy. My hands began to ache from holding onto Sovannamacha too long, I felt like they were locked at the joints.
"Please...please," I whispered against her cold skin.
Her breathing became short and shallow. She would thrust her tail now and then, but she wasn't as violent as before. The golden-tailed mermaid must have thought it was only a matter of time. I would grow weak and couldn't hold onto her forever. She was waiting to regain her strength before she fought again.
Do it!
The same voice whispered inside my head, or maybe it was just my own thought. I kept her captive in my arms, spooning her.
"I'm sorry, my lady...forgive me...please, forgive me," I chanted the words over and over, squeezing my eyes shut like I was soothing a wounded deer as I was about to give it a final blow. My hand inched its way to her hidden pouch. Sovannmacha didn't notice my action, but when she realized what I was trying to do, her body started to buck wildly again.
Daughter of the Naga Page 34
