Theo wasn’t sure. It felt real. Time was running out for Nia.
“This must be the wrong place, Diva,” Pavel said. “You told us Lamia would make things more difficult for us to find her souls. Nothing’s bothering us here, not even the Rusalki.”
Diva cast her glance around the horizon. “Be patient. They’ll come out of hiding when they’re ready.”
“Well, I’m tired of sitting.” Pavel sulked and shuffled to the shore to kick shells, keeping his shoes on this time.
Theo grabbed Diva’s hand when she opened her mouth to reply. “I don’t agree with Pavel, but it is rather boring sitting here doing nothing while we wait.”
“What is there to do?” Diva asked. “My sister told me humans always think they have to be doing something. They can’t experience the pleasure of being at peace with nature.”
“You’re probably right, but I feel uneasy thinking the Rusalki are watching us.” Theo dug in his backpack and pulled out the kaval. “Diva, Old Lady Witch told me to take this to the Samodivi. Do you know who it might have belonged to?”
“A wooden stick with holes?” Diva said.
“It’s a kaval, a flute. It makes music.”
Diva’s eyes brightened. “Play it now, please. My sister told me how she loved to dance to its beautiful music. Sometimes, she would capture a shepherd and force him to play all night.”
All night? Like the shepherd who’d been murdered. Theo hesitated. Diva had said Samodivi didn’t harm humans. Maybe her sisters didn’t, but other nymphs must have. Certainly she wouldn’t make him play that long. He could trust her.
He nodded. “I’m not very good, but you asked for it.”
Theo placed his fingers on the wooden instrument’s holes, brought the mouthpiece to his lips, and blew. His fingers seemed to move of their own accord. The flute’s melody scattered around them like a light rain of happiness and love.
He stopped. “I can’t believe that was me.”
“I thought you said you played awful.” Diva touched the kaval.
Theo stared at the instrument. “I did before. It must be magical.”
“Play it again, please. I want to dance.”
Theo moved his fingers with ease up and down the holes. The enchanting tune flowed free once more.
Diva kicked off her boots.
“Don’t!” Theo stopped playing. “The beach will burn your feet.”
“I’ll be fine.” Diva leapt up and twirled gracefully, keeping rhythm with the melody. “The dance of life, the dance of power. Rusalki, come join me in this magic dance,” she sang.
She spun along the shore with her hands open and raised to the sky. Her wild curls shone like sparkles of magic dust bursting into flames. Where her feet touched the sand, small white flowers blossomed.
Pavel’s jaw dropped as he stared at Diva with a yearning look. He took a hesitant step forward, but stopped when the surface of the bay bubbled like boiling water. Theo gawked at the commotion, and Boo let out a croak before squirming into Theo’s backpack.
The wind picked up as the bubbling liquid spun in a larger and larger circle. Waves crested around its perimeter, splashing their faces. An island covered with moss and algae forced its way to the surface.
Two half-fish, half-human women with green hair sat on the shore. A flowing, silver mantle of finely woven nets covered a white tunic on the upper half of their bodies. Fish scales on their tails glistened as their fins swished in the water.
They looked toward the shore and screeched, aiming spears at Theo. Their razor-sharp wails sent ripples racing across the water. The noise pierced Theo’s eardrums. He grasped the sides of his head, but the sound filtered through.
Diva beckoned him and Pavel to be silent. She spoke to the women. Their screeching stopped, but Diva’s unfamiliar words grated on Theo’s ears. When she finished speaking, Diva bowed. The fish-women returned the gesture.
Theo uncovered his ears. “What did they say?”
“You summoned them with your song.” Diva sighed. “Now you have to play until they tell you to stop.”
“What?” Theo gripped the kaval, turning his knuckles white. “If they’re like Samodivi, I could play ... until I drop dead from exhaustion.”
“That’s possible.” Diva twisted her hair.
Theo wanted to flee. Diva didn’t deny that that happened.
“We don’t have a choice. I’ll do what I can to protect you.” Diva spoke exotic-sounding words as she walked around him.
His hands trembling, Theo raised the kaval to his lips. “Here goes nothing. Take care of Boo if I fail to please the Rusalki.”
Hauntingly sweet music poured from the wooden instrument. Captivated, the Rusalki sang along, the sound of their voices no longer shrill. With eyes glazed like in a trance, Pavel took a step closer, but Diva held him back. She whispered into his ear, and he sprawled onto the ground.
Theo blocked out the strange words the Rusalki sang. Using the trick Diva had told him about shooting arrows, he focused all thoughts on the kaval. As before, the instrument seemed to create its own music. He played until the horizon turned a dusty shade of rose, then a deeper purple. Theo played on. His fingers ached and grew heavy, but he kept going. Nia’s life—and his—depended on him pleasing the Rusalki.
“Theo.” A soft voice spoke in his mind.
“Mom?” he thought back. “I thought you were gone forever.”
“We’re connected now. I’ll always be here for you.” A gentle hand caressed his hair.
“I don’t think I can do this much longer. I’m going to fail Nia.”
“You’re doing fine. You can make it. The ordeal is almost over. I love you, my child.”
Tears welled on his eyelids. “I love you, too.”
The tide made its way back to shore. Night had fallen, and the light of dazzling stars reflected off the water. One of the fish-women swam closer and sat on a boulder. She called to Diva in the ancient language they shared.
“Theo.” Diva wrapped her hands around his. “You can stop now. You’ve won their respect.”
“Come to me, boy,” the Rusalka said in words he could understand. “I’ll do you no harm.”
Diva whispered, “Go, but don’t trust any of them.”
The Rusalka screeched and waved her hands for Theo to hurry.
“Be careful,” Diva said.
Theo lowered the kaval and took a deep breath. He rose and with shaky legs walked toward the woman.
Saying nothing, the woman braided her hair while waves lapped at the shore, creating eddies around her. The salty scent of the sea wafted from her. Theo looked back at Diva and Pavel, but mist that hadn’t been there before swirled along the beach, hiding them from his sight. He took a few quick breaths and bit at his lip, waiting for the woman to speak or do something.
When she did, her velvety, yet gentle, voice intoxicated him. “Your music was more magical than any I’ve ever heard. Who taught you?”
In a dreamlike state, Theo swayed toward her, then pulled himself back. “This was the first time I’ve ever played like that.”
“Let me see the kaval.” She held her hand out.
Theo hesitated, then handed it to her.
Her eyes grew wide as she scanned the runes carved into the wood. “How did you come to have such a marvelous instrument in your possession?”
“A Samodivi blood-sister gave it to me.”
The woman peered at him, and her emerald eyes softened. She returned the kaval. “My name is Ruslana. Who are you, my child?”
“I’m Theo. The others are Diva and Pavel.”
She bared her yellow, piranha-like teeth in a smile. “Diva, yes, a Samodiva. I wonder how she escaped Lamia. The dragon would reward someone well to bring the girl to her.”
Theo stepped back, but didn’t take his eyes off Ruslana. “Diva’s a friend.”
“No need to worry. I’ll not harm her.” Ruslana waved him back toward her and sniffed the air. “You come fro
m the human world. Why are you in Dragon Village? What is it you want from us?”
Her voice hypnotized him. Was it safe to tell her why he was here? Diva thought the Rusalki might be in league with Lamia. But if he didn’t tell Ruslana, how else could he find the next soul? He closed his mouth, but she hummed a tune. His words flowed from his mouth, “Lamia kidnapped my sister. I’ve destroyed one of the dragon’s souls, and—”
“What?” Ruslana slipped into the water and swam back to the island. She pointed in Theo’s direction and spoke in sharp tones to the other woman. The second woman dove into the water and disappeared under the waves.
Ruslana glided back through the waves. “Put this on.” She handed him a belt made of fishing net, with ferns woven around it.
“Why?” What was she going to do to him?
She hummed again, freezing him to the spot while she tied the belt around his waist. With a grip of steel, she grasped his hand. “If what you say is true, our queen will want to see you.”
Theo pulled to get away, but she held fast. They were going to kill him! Ruslana dove into the cold, emerald water, pulling him with her.
“I’ll drown! I can’t swim!” He clenched his jaw, pressing his lips tight. His head disappeared beneath the waves.
Chapter 14
Into Inky Depths
Theo struggled beneath the waves, digging into Ruslana’s fingers with his free hand. She didn’t even glance at him as she glided through the water. His lungs ached to the point of bursting. He gave up attacking her and covered his mouth and nose. Bubbles rose to the surface. He was about to die.
“Theo,” Ruslana spoke in his mind the way the statue in Selo had. “Inhale. Trust me. You won’t drown.”
He held his breath as long as he could, fearing it would be his last. When the pressure became too great, he gulped in the liquid. His lungs accepted it the same as air. Could he speak to her with his mind, too? He concentrated and thought back, “How’s that possible?”
“The belt lets you breathe in water.”
Theo tugged at his hand again, but Ruslana held on. “Why bother if you’re going to kill me anyway?”
She stopped and loosened her grasp. “Kill you?”
“Isn’t that why you’re bringing me to your queen?” He snatched his hand away, but then he floated downward. “Help!” He splashed in the water.
Ruslana took hold of his hand, pulling him back toward her. “Our queen is not going to kill you.”
He curled into a ball. “Wh-what about Lamia and the soul I destroyed?”
“She has no love for the dragon.”
Even if she didn’t, Theo didn’t care to meet their queen. He shivered. Rusalki scared him, and he wanted to get out of the water.
“Have you never learned to enjoy the beauty of the deep?” she asked as she rubbed his arm.
“I live by the Black Sea, but my father drowned on the night my sister and I were born.” Theo was glad his tears mixed with the water, so Ruslana wouldn’t see his anguish. “My mother, the one who raised me, never let me or my sister near the water. She said she couldn’t lose anyone else to the Sea’s whims.”
“You must learn. The Sea is not to be feared. She takes, but She also gives back to those who respect Her.” Ruslana hummed a soft, mellow tune that reverberated through the water. “Will you let me show you something?”
Theo furrowed his brow, but thought back, “Yes.”
“Hold on tight, and don’t be afraid. Relax. Enjoy a new experience.”
Ruslana flipped her tail and glided through the crystal-clear liquid with grace. Her wild ride scattered a school of fish and took them past bobbing seahorses toward a colorful mass of coral. Strange creatures flitted in and out of the compact colonies that formed a magnificent building resembling a castle. A tiny garden of stones surrounded it like blooming flowers.
She stopped. “This is where I like to come to be alone. You can enjoy no finer pleasure than enclosing yourself within the Sea and discovering Her treasures.”
“This ... is awesome.”
He admired the amazing beauty of his surroundings. A yellow, glowing fish swam past, its fins gliding across Theo’s cheek. Startled, he kicked his feet and propelled his body through the water.
“Am I swimming?”
Ruslana laughed. “In a way. Move your hands, too.” She released her hold on him.
Theo waved his hands and kicked his feet, and he moved forward. He curled his body, and he performed slow-motion flips. Laughter erupted from his lips, along with colorful bubbles. When a school of fish swam near, Theo splashed his way closer, swimming among them until they scattered.
Ruslana propelled herself toward him. “I had to let you experience the beauty of my home, but we must hurry. My sister told the queen we were coming. We mustn’t keep Her Majesty waiting.”
With powerful strokes of her tail, Ruslana swam back the way they had come until she reached a wall of human skulls rising from the sea floor. At its base, a fish-woman brandishing a three-pronged spear swam in front of a huge rock shaped like a person’s head, the mouth an “O” as if screaming. Ruslana thought-talked with the guard, who stepped aside, and the rock doorway slid back. Theo and Ruslana passed through the mouth and traveled upward along a tunnel. It emptied into a spacious hall aglow with sparkling emeralds. A trench encircled the room.
Theo walked up steps onto a marble floor, and water dripped from his clothes. He took a deep breath of air.
Before he could question Ruslana, she said, “The queen made sure a part of our underwater world was dry, where she wouldn’t have to thought-talk.”
“Why?” Didn’t all sea creatures enjoy being in water?
Ruslana leaned closer and whispered, “For power. Her voice terrifies visitors.”
“Th-thanks for the warning ... I think.” He was already terrified. How much more could a queen’s voice frighten him?
Theo paced the room, waiting. Tiny eel-like creatures with tentacles sucked on a glass wall across the room. Their fangs clicked in a steady rhythm as they peered at him from the sea outside. He moved away from them, down the length of the glass, but they followed, as if wanting to devour his flesh. Their constant screeches seeped through the glass, making his head ache. He backed away and surveyed the rest of the room.
The other woman from the island had appeared. She sneered at him as she lounged in a marble pool surrounded by seven columns. A golden horse on top of each pillar spouted water from its mouth into the pool. Above the horses arched a canopy of golden rods, each ending with a precious gem: rubies, opals, diamonds, and emeralds. They twirled like a carousel, creating a kaleidoscopic effect. Fragrance from pink and yellow water lilies floating in the pool tickled Theo’s nose, and he sneezed.
Ruslana cleared her throat. “Let me introduce my sister, Dimana.”
The woman tittered, a glare plastered on her beautiful face.
Theo inched his way back to Ruslana.
She whispered to him, “Be careful what you say or do. Dimana hates humans. She is one of the unfortunate, once a human who died before her wedding day.”
Theo had heard about women who were cursed because they drowned themselves after being jilted by the man they loved. The only way they could achieve peace was if someone avenged their death.
“What about you?” he asked Ruslana.
“No, I was born a Rusalka,” she replied. “Those like me visit your world to help humans. You have no need to fear me.”
“About the kaval,” a hissing voice said from behind Theo.
He held his breath, picturing slithering snakes winding around his body.
The Rusalki bowed their heads and said, “Your Majesty.”
Theo turned toward the queen and shuddered. Her bottomless black eyes stared at him while ebony, curly hair writhed on her lily-white shoulders. More than her voice terrified him.
“My royal court informsss me you play well. I love musssic.” She smiled, displaying a predator’s yello
w, pointed teeth.
Theo clenched the instrument. He opened his mouth to speak, but no words came out.
“Don’t be shy—or foolish. I’m Vodna, Queen of the Water Kingdom. I won’t be denied.”
She bounded closer on eight ghastly tentacles, their tips embedded with emeralds. Before Theo could draw away, she grazed sharp black claws down his nose and cheeks. Her tentacles vibrated, and the gems on the tips rattled.
“Play for me!” she shouted.
His hands shook when he placed the kaval to his lips. Hypnotic, enchanting music filled the room, silencing the shrieking eels outside. The creatures slithered in an odd dance, as if intoxicated by the melody.
Vodna closed her eyes and swayed with each note. When Theo finished, she traced the length of the kaval with her claws. “Yesss, it isss what I imagined. The time hasss come.”
She barked an order to Dimana in their language. The Rusalka bowed in acknowledgment.
Vodna slid around Theo, then faced him once more. “You’re not what I imagined, but who are we to choossse? Isss it true you have dessstroyed one of Lamia’sss sssoulsss?”
“Yes.” Theo stood still, not daring to move.
“And you come here now ssseeking a ssseccond one?”
“Yes.”
“What makesss you think you’ll find it here?”
Theo cleared his throat. “A clue. It said, ‘Within inky depths lies my mate. An enchantress’ song brings men a watery death; an enchanter’s tune holds sway.’ It sounded like it was talking about the Rusalki.”
“Yesss, yesss. Clever. And you are the enchanter who playsss the tune.” Vodna leaned back. “And what gift did you reccceive when you ssslew the sssoul?”
“A golden key.”
“Hmm. I know not what itsss mate would be, but Magura may.” Vodna straightened. “Dimana, take our guessst to sssee the librarian. Russslana, come attend to me.”
Dimana waited until Vodna and Ruslana withdrew. With a flip of her hand, Dimana pointed to a tunnel. “Magura’s down there, human. I don’t have time to show the likes of you the way to her home.”
The Unborn Hero of Dragon Village Page 14
