The Scale Empire

by Cate Farren

“Except for now maybe. I can feel you. You love this.”

  “Stop being so arrogant. How can you know that this is the best thing that’s happened to me in a century?”

  “I never actually said that.”

  “Fine. Fine. Maybe I’m protesting too much. It’s just…I don’t want to die happy. I’m not sure I could take that.”

  “Then before you have to kill Dorian I’ll kick you in the face or something. That’ll make you miserable again.”

  “If I’m happy I might hesitate, and my family…”

  “Don’t think right now, Kezia. Just feel.”

  We swooped down over the boat. I waved to the people onboard, laughing as Rebecca ducked to avoid being hit by Bram’s tail. I’d never seen her look so nervous before.

  “She almost pissed herself!”

  “That’s cruel!”

  I couldn’t help but laugh.

  “She’s too serious for her own good.”

  “You’re not still pissed at her because she used to be such a thorn in your side?”

  “Maybe a little. You know as well as I do how much trouble Kezia Campbells get into.”

  “She’s nothing like me. Well, maybe a little. I feel sorry for her. She gave into her misery and bitterness a long time ago.”

  “I think you’re giving her hope. She’s not nearly as serious as when she was trying to assassinate me.”

  “She wants her curse to be over, just like…just like I do.”

  “I know you want this curse over, but I don’t think you’re ready to die just yet.”

  I ignored him as we continued our flight. All I wanted to do at this moment in time was to forget everything else existed.

  “Tell me about Leopold.”

  “What do you want to know?”

  “He was a prince in Britannia, right?”

  “He was a prince, yes. He was born with all the privilege that kind of life entailed. But he was kind.”

  “When did you know you were in love with him?”

  “I suppose I always knew I loved him. But it wasn’t until I thought I was going to lose him that I admitted it.”

  ***

  The queen looked up at me from her seat in the parlour. She’d been reading from a list I’d made, security spells that would further protect her in the palace and when she was out and about. She didn’t look too pleased.

  She never looked pleased.

  “I have lived with the threat of assassins all my life,” said Victoria sadly. “It comes with being the head of the British Empire. But even to me this seems a little excessive.”

  “I’m only looking out for your safety,” I said.

  “Hmm.”

  Victoria smirked, folded up the paper, and slipped it into a fold in her dress. She regarded me for a long while, making me feel uncomfortable. She seemed to want to talk about something. The queen and I never usually talked about anything other than work.

  “A little bird has informed me that you and Leopold have been reading in the main library together,” said Victoria.

  I tried not to flinch. “I don’t get in his way.”

  “Leopold is sensitive, and not just because he is a vampire. He’s felt underused his whole life. I understand that. When people are nice to him he tends to become infatuated with them.”

  “I’m not sure I understand. We don’t talk. We barely interact.”

  The queen arched her eyebrows, giving me her most disdainful look. She knew I was lying to her and she wasn’t pleased.

  She’s going to have me killed.

  “That is all,” she said.

  I curtsied and made my way out of there as quickly as I could. In her own subtle way, she was asking me not to do anything stupid with Leopold. Or she was asking me to watch out for him in case someone else tried anything. I wasn’t entirely sure.

  I headed to the library, finding Leopold waiting for me in his usual chair. He was pouring himself a glass of Scotch. When his eyes came to rest on me his face lit up.

  “You’re late,” he teased me.

  I sat down in my chair, wondering what to tell him.

  “Queen Victoria brought me aside for an odd conversation about you,” I told him. His eyes widened in alarm. “I’m not entirely sure what she said, but she either knows something is going on between us or wants me to stop something from happening.”

  He drank his Scotch in one long gulp. I could see his fangs extending. He only ever did that when he was angry or hungry.

  “She knows,” he hissed.

  I sighed. “I guess she does. Nothing much gets past her.” I grabbed his Scotch and swigged from the bottle. “But she’s got nothing to worry about. We haven’t done anything yet.”

  “My mother can smell potential scandal from a mile away.”

  Queen Victoria was either going to dismiss me or have me killed. Either way, I’d never see Leopold ever again. I loved this job. I had a purpose and a place to use the magic I’d learned from my parents. Where else could I use my gift in London? I didn’t want to be some black magic witch. I was a protector.

  I loved my job and I loved Leopold.

  I loved him.

  I smiled and looked at him. “So what are we reading today?”

  “Something romantic I think,” he suggested. “We might not have much longer left if my mother gets her way.” He leaned forward, staring into me. “The public doesn’t really know me. They don’t know what I look like. If we were to go out in the city together, maybe to a hotel…”

  “Are you asking me out to dinner?”

  “I like reading with you. But it’s not enough. I want more.”

  I blushed, not sure where to look. What he suggested was dangerous. What if someone did recognise him and it got back to the queen? Victoria was dangerous. I knew she employed other witches apart from me. She knew far too much about magic. I’d be putting my life on the line if I went ahead with Leopold’s plan.

  I said, “I want more too.”

  I knew I should be wary. He was married. He was a vampire. He was the youngest son of the Queen of England. But at that moment I didn’t care. I’d give everything to be with him. Everything.

  “I love you,” I whispered.

  He whispered, “I love you too.”

  ***

  “So you were the mistress.”

  “You make it sound so sordid.”

  “He was forced into marrying a woman he didn’t love, and then you came along. I get it.”

  “How did you know he was forced into marrying a woman he didn’t love?”

  “I know about Rebecca’s story. I assumed it was similar to yours.”

  “He never said what he felt for Helena. He respected her. I think he loved her in his own way. But he was never in love with her.”

  “He was saving himself for you.”

  “Who knew a dragon could have such a romantic heart?”

  “You’d never met a dragon before you met me. Dragons are a romantic people. We love absolutely and we love for life. When we fall for someone there is nobody else, ever.”

  “So you can never love again?”

  He didn’t answer me. I wasn’t sure whether I was glad or not.

  “Shit. They’re back.”

  “Who’s back?”

  The dragon dipped lower. I saw immediately what he meant and I felt my stomach clench with fear. The mermaids were back. This time there weren’t dozens of them, but thousands. There were so many of them the sea was blackened.

  We had no chance against such an army.

  Chapter 17

  Bram soared down toward the boat. I clung on for dear life, the wind whipping at my face. Several times I almost slipped free.

  “I’m hanging on!” I cried.

  My grip loosened and I fell back, spinning into the air. Bram continued toward the boat without me, oblivious. I screamed my throat raw, trying to coming up with a spell. I couldn’t breathe. I could hardly think.

  Think of something!

/>   Anything!

  I was almost too late. I created a spell to cushion my fall as I hit the surface of the sea. I bounced up and down on the Jell-O type surface a few times before sinking between the waves.

  I pushed up, gasping for air, my legs kicking furiously to keep me from sinking. Turning the patch of sea beneath me into Jell-O had been a risky move, but it worked. Well, technically I hadn’t changed it to Jell-O, just a jelly-like substance. It had been enough to brake my fall.

  I looked around, trying to locate the boat. It seemed to be farther away than I’d imagined. I could see the army of mermaids, heading closer. Magic was being fired from the deck and Bram was breathing huge plumes of fire into the water. I had to help them.

  I did something I’d never done before – I created a portal underwater. I swam into it, emerging on the deck of the boat by a shocked Nile. Several gallons of seawater came with me, drenching him.

  “What happened to you?” he asked.

  I shook my soaking hair and scowled. “I thought I’d take the time to go for a nice refreshing swim.”

  I ran to the railing, my heart sinking as the dark stain moved closer. There must be every mermaid in the world under the waves, coming for us[NJA9]. We couldn’t counter such a threat in a million years. My brother must really want us dead.

  He’d never been this vicious before, sending a whole army after me. What did that mean? He was more powerful, joined with the demon from this world, but it also meant something more significant. Was there a possibility he was scared?

  I shook away that possibility as I prepared to fight. Nothing scared Dorian, not even the sight of his vengeful sister trying to fry him alive with a ball of fire.

  It had to be Circe.

  “Watch out!” someone shouted.

  I braced myself as the mermaids let out a war cry. It sounded like a thousand foxes yipping at the same time. I covered my ears, the sound hurting my brain. The others were screaming in pain, their ears bleeding. Even Circe was struggling.

  Then came the physical attack. A thousand mermaids crashed into the side of the boat. My whole world spun around me as the ground beneath my feet vanished.

  Shit!

  I was flung through the air. The mermaids continued to yip and I heard the others shouting. I caught a glimpse of the fishing boat exploding into a billion pieces, showering the mermaids with splinters of wood and metal. Bram caught me in his talons before I had a chance to fall back into the water.

  “We have to help them!” I shouted.

  I looked down, seeing nothing of the rest of the crew. The mermaids were frenzied, using their hands and mouths to rip apart the wreckage of the ship. I screamed as I saw one of Bram’s warriors have his head torn off. The rest of his body was devoured in seconds.

  “They’re like piranhas when they’re hungry.”

  “There has to be something we can do!”

  “What can we do against an army?”

  “I can’t give up on them!”

  I bit into Bram’s leg. He roared in pain and let me go. As I fell I created a small updraft of wind, keeping me floating, if a little erratically, in the air. I’d never tried any form of levitation or flying spell before. I’d always felt it was a little cliché. All I needed now was a broomstick.

  “What the hell are you doing?”

  “I have a plan!”

  A spout of water erupted from the wreckage. Circe rode the top of the spout, her arms held out, keeping the difficult spell active. Mermaids exploded into flesh and blood around her. She wiped at her face, exhaustion taking its toll.

  I floated over to her, giving her the help she needed, adding my power to her own. She laughed as hordes of mermaids flew at us. We destroyed each one, sending what remained of their bodies to the roiling waters beneath us.

  I knew Dorian was controlling them. I knew they were innocent. But at the moment it was us against them.

  But did it have to be? I got through to one of them before. If I had Circe to help me I could get through to a lot more. She was one fifth of a goddess, right?

  “We can save them,” I shouted.

  The mermaids continued to attack us. The two of us were drenched in seawater and gore. I could taste blood on my lips.

  “We don’t have time for that,” spat Circe.

  “Make fucking time!” I screamed.

  I grabbed her wrist, squeezing hard. Her eyes blazed at me, anger personified. She wanted to kill me, but she knew that the other Circe would kill her if she did.

  She nodded.

  We sent our combined minds into the attacking army. As before, all I heard were commands to kill. Dorian’s voice echoed around my skull, mocking me. I ignored him, trying to block his influence.

  “You can’t beat us, sister. We’re too powerful.”

  His arrogance charged me. I put everything I had into the spell, melding it with Circe’s power. I felt something stir behind me. It was Rebecca. I’m not sure how she had survived, but at the moment I didn’t care. She was adding her power to our assault too.

  I grinned as I felt the spell working. Hundreds of mermaids were beginning to be freed from Dorian’s control. I could feel their elation and confusion turning to anger and vengeance. The freed ones began getting in the way of the ones still attacking us, and both groups began to battle each other. It wasn’t what I wanted but it gave us time.

  “What now?” Rebecca cried.

  I ignored her, continuing my mental attack. Both Dorians were pushing against us, trying to regain control. It was proving too hard. They were just too powerful. We may have been able to free some of the mermaids but not all of them. I needed to free them all.

  “Where’s my Circe?” I demanded.

  I could feel blood trickling down my nose. My limbs were trembling. I couldn’t keep this up.

  “She was never physically here,” said Circe. “She just astral projected herself to this dimension to talk to you.”

  “Can you call on her power?”

  “I could, but…but it would weaken me. You need my help to get into the palace.”

  “I need your help now!”

  Controlled mermaids were still getting past their freed comrades. Bram was swooping about, incinerating them with breaths of fire, but it wasn’t enough. I had to assume both Nile and Sini were dead.

  A mermaid flew through the air toward me. It reached out its clawed hands and I prepared to kill it with a spell when my Circe appeared, floating in the air. The mermaid screeched and fell into the sea, shocked.

  “You made it!” I cried.

  “Anything to see you one last time,” she said, smiling gently.

  “And it will be the last time,” the other Circe said.

  I nodded. I was ready.

  Bram screeched overhead as the four of us combined our powers once again. I grinned, feeling the strength course through me. I’d never felt anything like it. It was like I had the power to do anything.

  “That kind of power will kill you.”

  I ignored Dorian. Right now he meant nothing to me.

  “You can’t stop me.”

  Both Dorians tried to resist us but, together, we obliterated his connection to the mermaids almost instantly. I gave one last look at my Circe, my adopted mother, before she vanished.

  “Prepare!” Circe shouted.

  The water spout we were standing on collapsed. The three of us fell tumbling back into the water. I saw an unconscious Circe slip under the waves. I swam as fast as I could, grabbed her, and pulled her to the surface. Rebecca and I managed to get her to a piece of floating wood.

  “Why isn’t she responding?” Rebecca demanded, frantic. “What’s wrong with her?”

  “She said it might knock her out,” I said. I felt for her pulse. It was slow, barely there. “But I didn’t think it’d hurt her this much.”

  I looked around, not knowing what to do. Here we were, in the middle of the ocean, hanging on to a plank of the wood surrounded by a smashed up bo
at. How were we supposed to get to land? And what was to stop Dorian from sending something else to kill us now he knew where we were?

  A mermaid pounced from the water, grabbing my arm.

  “What happened to us?” it hissed.

  Chapter 18

  The freed mermaids were surrounding the three of us. They stared at us like curious dogs. I didn’t know what to say.

  “What happened to us?” the mermaid asked again.

  I couldn’t tell whether it was male or female. It could be either.

  “You were controlled,” I told it. “Someone was forcing you to attack us.”

  The mermaid nodded. “I understand. Why would they do this?”

  I looked toward Rebecca, who even while treading water managed to shrug her shoulders. I was feeling tired and cold and I was sick of the sea. All I wanted to do was sit down and feel dry land on my bare feet.

  “He wanted you to kill us,” I explained. “I’m sorry.”

  “We have much to discuss,” said the mermaid.

  With those words he, or she, swam under the water. The rest of the mermaids followed moments later. I popped my head under the surface, watching them as they swum deeper and deeper until they were out of sight altogether.

  ***

  We searched the wreckage, but none of what we found was good. The crew was dead. We found Sini and Nile together, trapped under a part of the boat. They didn’t seem to have a scratch on them. Bram turned back into his human form to help the search, but it didn’t take long.

  “All my warriors are gone,” Bram lamented.

  We’d managed to find a large piece of the boat that still floated. We were all sitting on it, wondering what to do, awaiting our fate. The fact that Dorian hadn’t sent something else to kill us by now was on our minds.

  “You still have us,” said Nile proudly.

  Bram shook his head. “Our most powerful asset, Circe, is out of commission, and we’re all wet and cold and tired and can’t do anything but wait for them to come and kill us again. We’re sitting ducks and there’s not a thing we can do about it.”

  I punched him. I was tired, so it was ineffectual at best, but it certainly gave him a shock.

  “Don’t give me that outraged look!” I said furiously. “And don’t you dare get lost in despair and self-pity. This fight is not over. It’s not over until I say it is.”