by Unknown
‘Seven you were; eight you are;
Nine you soon shall be,
As the royal crown is strengthened
By the power of moon and sea!’
The seven pearls in the circlet began to glow brightly, and Morvyr gave an anguished moan.
‘Silence!’ Taran snapped. Morvyr covered her face with her hands but said no more, and Taran’s chant continued.
‘I bind you once, I bind you twice,
And three times with this sign.
When the circle is completed,
All power shall be mine!’
Light flashed from each of the seven pearls in turn, and the corresponding coloured mirrors flashed too. Red – orange – yellow – green – blue – indigo – violet – it was like being in the heart of a rainbow, and Lizzy and Kes gasped. Then as the wild glory of the colours dimmed, an eighth and far brighter flash dazzled through the cave. Its brilliance blinded them momentarily – and when their vision returned to normal, they saw that one of the two darkened mirrors had lit up and was shimmering like molten silver.
‘No…’ Morvyr whispered. ‘Oh, no…’
Taran held up the circlet. The silver pearl was back in its place, nestling in the setting as though it had never been removed. All eight of the pearls were glowing softly, their colours reflecting in the eight shining mirrors. And only one mirror was dark and empty.
‘It’s done,’ Taran said. She looked down at the three in the pool, and her face was cruel. ‘You may go back to your homes and your lives. But never ever forget that I am your Queen. And when I have found the black pearl – as I surely will – no one will ever be able to challenge my rule!’
She touched the silver pearl and stroked it. Then she raised one hand and pointed to the centre of the pool.
The water began to swirl as a current sprang up from the depths. It caught hold of Lizzy, Kes and Morvyr, and they were dragged under the water, spinning and turning with the eddy. It pulled them down, faster, deeper – Lizzy thought she heard Taran’s far-off laughter – then they plunged into the dark tunnel of the gateway. Lizzy’s senses were thrown into mayhem. She had lost her hold on Morvyr and Kes; she didn’t know which way was up or down or right or left – all she knew was that she was tumbling over and over in a mad, whirling rush that she thought would never end. Then, so suddenly that she let out a yell of shock, she was flung out of the gateway and into the open sea.
For several seconds she kicked and flailed in confusion. But then a voice called her name, and Morvyr was there beside her, hugging her tightly and steadying her.
‘Oh, Mother!’ Lizzy clung to her, struggling to be calm. ‘Kes – where’s Kes?’
‘I’m here.’ Kes sounded shaky and his face looked dead-white in the underwater gloom. But he wasn’t hurt. None of them were, which seemed like a miracle to Lizzy.
A shrill sound echoed through the water, and two dolphins came streaking towards them. Arhans and her companion whistled with relief as they arrived, nosing joyfully at Morvyr and the children. But then Morvyr’s eyes widened as Arhans communicated a message.
‘Jack?’ she said. ‘He’s here?’
‘Mother, there was no chance to tell you before!’ said Kes. ‘Father came with us, in a fishing boat – he’s waiting for us on the surface!’
‘Oh!’ Morvyr’s face lit like a star. ‘We must go to him! I must see him! Show us, Arhans – show us where he is!’
Arhans whistled again and turned; Morvyr swam after her, and Kes and Lizzy followed. But Morvyr and the dolphins were setting such a pace that Lizzy couldn’t keep up. Kes, looking over his shoulder, saw her struggling but failing to swim faster, and hung back to wait for her.
‘It’s all right,’ he said. ‘We’ll catch up with them soon enough. Come on.’
Lizzy felt desperately disappointed. She so wanted to be there at the moment when Morvyr and Jack were reunited. If only she could unlock her lost self, and change into a real mermaid! But, though she tried with all her willpower, she still couldn’t make it happen.
The light above them grew brighter as they headed for the surface, then suddenly they burst out into sunlight and wind. Kes touched Lizzy’s shoulder and pointed.
‘Look,’ he said softly.
The Regard was about thirty metres away. The small inflatable boat where Rose had sunbathed had been lowered over the side, and Jack was climbing down the hull ladder into it. Morvyr was swimming to meet him, and over the sound of the Regard’s gently pulsing engine the twins heard her calling his name.
Lizzy felt her throat constrict with emotion. She remembered how wonderful her own first meeting with Jack had been. But how much more wonderful it must be for Morvyr, after so many years of loneliness.
She looked at Kes, and knew that he understood and felt the same as she did. Then she felt his fingers link with hers and squeeze them.
‘Come on,’ he said, ‘let’s go a bit further away. I think they ought to have this moment to themselves, don’t you?’
She smiled and nodded. Jack was in the inflatable boat now; he started the outboard engine and turned the little craft towards Morvyr. Lizzy and Kes let the current carry them away until they were a good distance from both the boats. As Jack reached Morvyr and held out his arms to her, Lizzy blinked rapidly and looked away from them to the Regard. There was no one on deck, and she couldn’t see whether Mr Treleaven was still in the wheelhouse.
‘I’ve got a feeling Mother will forget to be angry with us now,’ Kes said quietly. He was grinning, though it was a weak grin, and Lizzy gave a little laugh.
‘Let’s give them a few more minutes on their own,’ Kes added. ‘And then we’ll go and join them…’
Chapter Ten
In the cave of the rainbow pool, Taran gloated. She knew that Tullor was eager to come back, so that he too could see the silver pearl returned to its rightful place in her crown. But he could wait. She wanted to savour this moment of triumph alone.
She had taken the circlet off again and was turning it round and round in her hands. How wonderfully the pearls shone. How lovely their colours were, and the silver one added its own special radiance. So beautiful – and so powerful too. She could feel new power radiating from the circlet, and she revelled in the feeling. She was almost invincible now.
Almost… but not quite.
Suddenly a frown made Taran’s face ugly. One pearl still eluded her. She was sure that Morvyr didn’t have it; her cave had been searched thoroughly and it had never been found. But did she know where it was? By letting her and her silly children go free, Taran hoped to trick Morvyr into thinking that she was no longer of any interest. In which case, Morvyr might be foolish enough to lead Taran to the greatest prize of all – the black pearl.
The mermaid Queen stopped turning the circlet and stared at the silver pearl as something came to her mind. The silver and black pearls had special qualities. They could sing – Tullor had heard the silver pearl when Morvyr had shown it to the twins – but when either one sang, if the other were close by, it would answer!
Her green eyes widened and she held the circlet up to her own face as her fingers started to stroke the silver pearl.
‘Sing!’ she whispered eagerly to it. ‘Sing!’
∗
‘Oh, Jack, I can hardly believe it!’ Morvyr was crying and laughing at once. ‘First our daughter, and now you have come back! Our family is complete again!’ Then her lovely eyes clouded. ‘But Taran has the silver pearl. And if she finds the black one –’
‘She won’t,’ Jack reassured her. ‘She doesn’t know that I’m here and, even if she did, she doesn’t realize that I’ve got the black pearl.’
‘Is it truly safe?’ Morvyr asked.
‘Yes.’ Jack touched one hand to the locket round his own neck, the one he had made for Kes. ‘It’s here, where it’s been since I went away.’
Morvyr reached out and touched the locket too. She was sitting close to Jack, balanced on the curved side of the
inflatable boat with her arm round his shoulders. ‘Could I… see it?’ she asked. ‘Just to be sure?’
He laughed gently. ‘Of course, my love. I understand – seeing is believing, isn’t it?’
He opened the locket, then stroked the inner surface. The secret compartment sprang open, and there inside, glowing darkly, was the black pearl.
Morvyr’s face lit with wonder and relief. ‘Oh, I’m so glad!’ she said softly. Then she looked at Jack again and her voice became urgent. ‘You see, there’s another reason why Taran must never find it! When I was imprisoned –’
She stopped abruptly and they both stared in shock at the locket.
The black pearl had begun to sing. Its haunting note sounded clearly above the surge of the sea, and Morvyr’s delight turned to horror.
‘It’s Taran!’ she cried. ‘Close the locket, Jack, quickly!’
Jack was already snapping the locket shut. The singing note stopped instantly, and he and Morvyr looked at each other in alarm.
‘She must have told the silver pearl to sing!’ Morvyr whispered. ‘And the black pearl answered! If she’s heard it – Oh, why didn’t I think?’
‘The locket was only open for a few moments,’ said Jack. He was trying to reassure her, but his expression gave him away. ‘Maybe there wasn’t enough time for her to hear.’
‘But, if she did, she’ll know that the black pearl isn’t far away, and she’ll come looking for it! She’ll stop at nothing to get hold of it! Jack – what are we going to do?’
In the undersea cave, Taran’s green eyes seemed to catch fire as a second clear, piercing note rang out and echoed from the walls.
‘It isn’t far away!’ Her voice was a grating hiss as she realized that the black pearl was answering the call of the silver. Suddenly the second note cut off – but it was enough.
‘Tullor!’ she screamed. ‘Tullor!’
The giant eel had been lurking just beneath the pool’s surface, and as she called for him he rose from the water. ‘Majesty! Majesty, what is wrong?’
‘I told the silver pearl to sing, and the black pearl answered!’ she screeched. ‘It’s here; it’s nearby!’ Panting, eyes wild, she got a grip on herself. ‘We must find it, Tullor. We must find it, now!’
Grasping the circlet, she stroked the silver pearl, then pointed to the pool. Again the water started to swirl as the gateway opened. With a powerful flick of her tail Taran launched herself from the rock. ‘Follow me!’ she snarled. ‘Quickly!’
She and Tullor both dived, and moments later there was nothing to show where they had been.
‘Jack, the children!’ Morvyr cried. ‘If Taran should come – Kes and I can escape, but Lizzy –’
‘I’ll look after her! Go now, Morvyr – go close to shore; Taran won’t dare follow you there! I’ll bring Lizzy back, and Kes can meet us at the harbour! Hurry!’
Pausing only to plant a hasty kiss on his cheek, Morvyr plunged into the sea and headed to where the twins waited. ‘Kesson!’ she called. ‘To me!’
Two bewildered faces looked back at her across the grey-green swell. ‘But, Mother –’ Kes started to call back.
‘There’s no time to explain! Your father will look after Lizzy – come, now!’
Jack was already starting the dinghy’s outboard engine. It coughed, spluttered, failed; he pulled the cord again, then a third time, and at last the engine came to life with a staccato roar. Kes was swimming to meet Morvyr. As he reached her, Arhans and the other dolphins appeared, surrounding them like guards, and they all streaked away, leaving Lizzy treading water alone in the sea.
‘Lizzy!’ Jack yelled. She couldn’t hear him above the noise of the engine, but it was obvious that something was very wrong. The dinghy swung round and powered towards her, and she struck out for it. She was tired; swimming seemed to take a huge effort, but the boat was coming closer –
Suddenly the water behind Jack churned and foamed white. Lizzy saw it and cried a warning, pointing. And, as Jack turned his head to look, Tullor erupted from under the sea. His head rose three metres from the surface, his body writhing like a snake’s. His cruel gaze scanned the water around him – and fastened on the dinghy.
A savage hiss ripped from Tullor’s throat as he recognized Jack. He lunged towards the boat, and frantically Jack twisted the throttle lever fully open. The dinghy’s nose went up and it bounced madly across the heaving water.
‘Lizzy! Lizzy, get in!’ Jack closed on Lizzy but had to slow down as he reached her. He swung the boat in a wide half-circle, one hand stretching out. Lizzy made a desperate grab; their hands locked and he heaved her bodily out of the water and over the dinghy’s rubber side.
‘Crouch down and hang on tightly!’ Jack shouted, twisting the throttle again. Lizzy flung herself forward and clamped her fingers round the mooring line as the boat raced over the sea’s surface. They were heading for the Regard, but Tullor was behind them and closing. Daring to glance up, Lizzy saw his shape rearing like a dark shadow and she stifled a scream of terror. Then suddenly a larger shadow fell across the dinghy – she heard the deep throbbing of the Regard’s engine and was almost thrown out of the dinghy as it bucked in the trawler’s wake. They sped round Regard’s stern to the starboard side, and Jack powered the dinghy towards a rope ladder that dangled down from the rail.
‘Go, Lizzy!’ The dinghy bumped against the Regard as he throttled back to match the trawler’s speed. Lizzy didn’t need telling twice. She grabbed the short ladder, and with a shove from Jack to get her started she went up like an acrobat and fell sprawling on the trawler’s deck. As she raised her head, winded, she came face to face with Paul.
Paul had finished his task, then gone to the galley to make another brew of tea. He was coming up to the deck with brimming mugs in his hands when Tullor appeared. Paul’s jaw dropped at the sight of the monstrous eel – and what was Lizzy doing flat out on the deck, soaked through and in her wetsuit?
Paul and Lizzy stared at each other. Paul’s mouth was working but he couldn’t speak, and Lizzy didn’t know what to do or say. Then Jack came to the rescue.
‘Paul!’ he bawled. ‘Grab the painter and lash the dinghy on! Quick!’
Paul was enough of a seaman to react automatically, and as the dinghy’s mooring line came snaking through the air towards him he slammed the mugs down and grabbed it. Jack cut the outboard engine and came up the ladder after Lizzy. Paul was still gaping, but before he could splutter out any questions, Mr Treleaven shouted from the wheelhouse, ‘Get the trawl out! We’ll show that snarlywig what’s what!’
Jack headed for the trawl gear, while Paul hastily secured the dinghy’s rope and hurried to help him. Lizzy started to scrabble to her feet – then her eyes widened as they focused on the sea.
‘Jack, look!’
Tullor still reared above the water, though he was keeping well clear of the trawler. And someone else had come to the surface beside him.
‘It’s Taran!’ Lizzy yelled. Jack, though, had already seen the mermaid Queen – and Taran had seen him.
‘You!’ Her furious cry carried across the water, and she turned on Tullor. ‘He’s got the black pearl! Attack him – attack him!’
Tullor hissed with fear. Fishing boats were one of the few things he was afraid of, and he didn’t want to obey. Taran’s face contorted with rage and her voice rose to a shriek. ‘Do as I order you! ATTACK HIM!’
Tullor hesitated, but he was more frightened of his Queen than he was of the Regard, and he launched himself after the trawler in a whirl of spray. The slow beat of the trawler’s engine suddenly speeded up, the boat surged forward and as the giant eel ploughed towards it Jack shouted, ‘Now, Paul!’
There was a rattling din from behind Lizzy, and she jerked her head round in time to see the trawl net go snaking over the stern. The churning wake swept the net away from the Regard as Tullor caught up – and Lizzy heard his frenzied snarl as he plunged straight into the mesh. It closed around him; he thrashed
wildly but his struggles only entangled him more thoroughly.
‘We’ve got him!’ Jack’s shout of triumph carried to the wheelhouse. Paul was still goggle-eyed as he stared at the writhing eel, but he kept his wits enough to help pay out more of the net.
‘Good work!’ Mr Treleaven called, grinning. ‘Now stop the trawl, and let’s see what else we can catch!’
With Tullor writhing helplessly in tow, the Regard began to turn, and Taran saw that it was heading straight for her. Her mouth opened, but suddenly she realized that the trawler would be on her before she could use magic against it. If she weren’t to be caught like Tullor, there was only one choice she could make. She flung a glare of pure hatred towards the oncoming boat, and vanished under the sea.
The Regard sailed relentlessly on over the spot where Taran had been, but the mermaid Queen was gone. Behind the boat Tullor still struggled in the net, and Lizzy slowly climbed to her feet. She was shaking all over and still could hardly breathe. Everything had happened so fast; she could hardly take it in, could hardly –
The thought collapsed as she turned round and came face to face with Rose.
Rose was at the top of the steps that led down to the cabin. Her face was white – but not from sea-sickness. She stood frozen, mouth agape and eyes wide, and she was staring at Lizzy as though she were a total stranger.
‘Rose…’ But there was nothing Lizzy could say. She didn’t know how much her sister had seen. But the shock on Rose’s face gave the answer away.
She had seen everything.
Chapter Eleven
For a few moments that seemed to last forever, Lizzy and Rose stared at each other in numb silence. Lizzy thought: I can’t face it. I can’t even try to explain, not now!
