Siren Descending

by Katherine Smits

  Thorne grinned. “You’re here. I kept asking for you, but Willow said I was too sick for visitors.”

  “That’s what she told me, too,” Athenia said, grimacing. “I called every day.” She moved to the chair beside the bed.

  “Willow doesn’t accept you yet. Give her time. She’ll come around.”

  Athenia bowed her head. “I understand. I’ll keep doing everything I can to change everyone’s opinion of me.”

  He reached over and patted her knee. “They’re protective of me, but in time they’ll realize you aren’t a threat.”

  She glanced away. “How are you feeling?”

  He yawned and stretched, which did interesting things to his pecs.

  She swallowed.

  “I’m tired.” He rubbed his eyes. “But I can’t stand this bed anymore. Let’s take a walk.”

  “Sure. I’ll let you get dressed.” She stood.

  “No need.” He threw off the sheet and revealed he wore a pair of sweatpants.

  Disappointed, she relaxed into the chair while he pulled on a T-shirt.

  He slid the glass door open. “Willow’s garden is amazing.”

  “I saw it on the way in. It’ll be a beautiful walk.”

  They headed down the path past the orange grove. Blossoms littered the walkway and released an overwhelming fragrance when crushed by their feet. Small oranges grew on some branches.

  Thorne said, “Varieties bloom and fruit at different times.” He stopped and pulled a branch to his nose. “Many of Florida’s orange groves died out due to citrus greening. Willow can protect some with her magic. Otherwise, I doubt these would still be alive. Unfortunately, she can only keep the ones here safe.”

  Athenia touched a glossy leaf. “They’re beautiful and so healthy.”

  They walked on to a banana tree. A green bunch grew from a stem.

  “Wow. That’s gorgeous,” she said. “I thought bananas couldn’t grow this far north.”

  “Normally, they don’t do too well. They need ten to fifteen months of frost-free weather to bear fruit. However, Willow keeps the temperature optimal in this garden.”

  “What an awesome skill. I want to learn that.”

  He arched a brow. “You want to know everything.”

  She smiled. “I can’t wait until I can do all the things you can.”

  Thorne’s expression became serious. “I can’t rush the process. You have to practice the elements in order. That’s the only safe way.”

  She averted her eyes. “I understand.” She hesitated. “In fact, I encountered some problems recently from attempting too much too soon.”

  He crossed his arms over his chest. “What happened?”

  “Well, first I tried to mix sand with heated air, but it got away from me, and I surrounded myself with an impenetrable glass prison.”

  He went pale. “How did you escape?”

  “I used my siren song.”

  He reached for her. “Athenia—”

  She held up a hand. Although her legs trembled with anxiety, she tried to present a calm facade. “I might as well tell you all of it.”

  He scrubbed his face. “There’s more?”

  She nodded. “A lot. Let’s sit down.”

  He led her to a wooden bench beside the waterfall, and they sank on to it. “All right. Tell me everything.”

  She swallowed the lump in her throat. He’s going to be so mad. “I should wait until you’re feeling better.”

  “Tell me.”

  She twisted her fingers together. “I’m responsible for the red tide, too.”

  “You can’t be. Algae blooms just happen.”

  “No, it’s my fault. I called on the goddess Ceto, mother of sea monsters. She came to me, and the transfer of energy caused a freak storm and a whirlpool. After the storm, the algae bloom killed millions of fish.”

  His stare drilled into her. “Why did you seek so much power?”

  She couldn’t meet his eyes. “To protect myself. I hadn’t learned anything useful, so I pursued other ways to get what I needed.”

  A muscle protruded from his jaw, indicating he clenched his teeth. “What were you afraid of?”

  She wrapped her arms around herself, chilled in spite of the steamy heat of the garden. “His name is Gelion. I didn’t know what he was at first. He wants me to sleep with him and give him all my power.”

  Thorne drew a deep, sharp breath. “Why didn’t you tell me? When did this start?”

  “A couple of weeks ago. I didn’t tell you, at first, because you were so busy and gone so much.”

  “So, this is my fault?”

  She sat straight with her shoulders back. “You didn’t teach me enough control to defend myself.”

  “You lied to me.”

  She shook her head. “I simply didn’t tell you.”

  “A lie of omission is the same as one of commission.” He stood and walked back toward the house.

  She followed him. “Thorne, wait. We need to talk about this.”

  “Not now. I’m too upset to discuss this right now. When I’ve had some time to cool off, I’ll listen to the rest of the story. Please, go away for now.”

  He opened the glass door to his room and went inside.

  ΨΨΨ

  She dropped her head in her hands. I shouldn’t have told him. Tears slid down her cheeks.

  Laughter and clapping sounded from behind her. Gelion came out of the bushes. “My dear, what a marvelous show.”

  Fear sent spikes of ice down her spine, but she folded her arms across her chest and positioned herself in the superhero pose. With legs shoulder-width apart and shoulders back, she tilted her chin up. “What are you doing here?”

  His visage became haughty. “I go wherever I like.” He reached over to a branch and pulled off a fruit. He offered it to her. “Would you like an apple?”

  He held a red delicious.

  “How did you do that? Apples don’t grow in Florida, and that’s an orange tree.” Dear goddess, what can’t he do? Chills ran down her spine.

  He gave her a smug smile. “A demonstration. Here, try it.”

  She kept her arms folded. Must act brave, not let on I’m terrified. She put sarcasm in her tone. “I’m not stupid enough to eat anything you offer me, especially an apple. For the goddess’ sake, I know the story.”

  He shrugged. “Worth a shot. I thought you might not be familiar with the Bible.”

  “I live around Christians. Their Adam and Eve narrative is in books, television, everywhere.”

  “Oh well.” He sunk his teeth in, crunching and chewing loudly. He smacked his lips. “So juicy. Are you sure you wouldn’t like some?”

  Disgusting. “Absolutely not.”

  He laughed, took another large bite, and threw the remains on the ground. He mumbled around a mouthful. “Your loss.”

  Ants streamed from all directions and covered the fruit. After a second, the writhing mass stopped moving. The insects all lay motionless, dead.

  Sickened, she pointed to the blackened core surrounded by tiny bodies. “What would’ve happened to me if I’d eaten any of that?”

  He wiped juice off his lips. “Probably nothing.”

  “They all died.” She shuddered.

  He made an impatient gesture. “Well, you aren’t an insect, are you? Get real. You’re a Nerei witch. On top of that, you’re a mage. You could cope with it.”

  She rubbed her arms. “Would you risk losing me by giving me a poisoned apple to make a point?”

  He snickered. “If it came to that, I’d save you.”

  “Sure. Now, I feel so much better.” She dug in the dirt with a toe and covered the ant bodies. Poor little things only wanted food and because of him, they’re gone. Death can come so fast to anyone. Sadness for their loss mingled with fury at his casual cruelty, chasing most of her near panic to a corner.

  She gave a taunting laugh. “All right, I can guess what comes next. Evil demon threatens me, blah, blah, bl
ah.”

  He drew himself up. “I’m the devil, not some minion. Get your facts straight.” He scowled down at her. “Now, decide. Will you come to me freely, or do I take your man to the underworld until you change your mind?”

  “You gave me a week. It’s only been six days.”

  He chuckled. “I lied.”

  Desperately, she tried to think of a way out. “Can’t you give me one more day like you said you would? I... I’ll give you what you want then.”

  He snuffled the air. “I smell lies again. Enough, I’m out of patience with you. Tell me when you’re ready to bring him back.”

  He disappeared.

  Frozen by overwhelming dread, Athenia gazed after him. When a yelp echoed from the house, she bolted to Thorne’s room.

  The door was open. Willow stood in Thorne’s room staring at the empty bed. When she turned to Athenia, her face was ashen. She pointed. “He was sitting on that side. His face was flushed, so I told him to rest. I offered to bring him a glass of water. Then, poof. He melted into thin air right before my eyes.”

  Athenia’s heart sank. He’s gone. Gelion took him. All the strength left her body, and she slumped into the chair.

  Wild-eyed, Willow grabbed her arms. “What happened? What did you do to him?”

  Athenia ran her palm over the soft floral comforter. He should be here. How did this happen? How can I explain it to the others?

  Willow shook her, but when Athenia didn’t respond, rushed out, screeching that Thorne had vanished.

  In the other room, Rowan murmured in a tone too low for Athenia to make out the words. A second later, Ash said something.

  Athenia rose from the chair on shaky legs. She held one hand to the wall for balance and made her way to the great room.

  She faced Willow’s accusing glare and Ash’s suspicious stare. Rowan’s expression was neutral.

  Laurel joined the group. “What’s going on?”

  They surrounded Athenia. Her stomach quivered. Even if they believe me, what will they do to me? How can I convince them to help me when this is my fault?

  Willow sobbed. “I knew I shouldn’t let her come over. Everything was fine until she arrived. Thorne was better, almost back to normal. He just needed a little more rest.”

  Rowan patted Willow’s shoulder. “Take it easy. Let’s hear from Athenia.”

  Athenia took a deep breath. “You won’t believe me.”

  Rowan pinned her with a sharp look. “Tell us.”

  She straightened. “The devil took him to Hell.”

  ΨΨΨ

  Wearing only a bikini, Athenia sat at the table paging through her grimoire. The late afternoon sun heated the room to an unbearable ninety degrees, and the humidity was almost thick enough for her gills to function. Clothes were torturous and unnecessary while she was alone, but if one of the mages showed up, things would be awkward. The place stunk, but she held a perfumed cloth to her nose and refused to think about it. As she perused the book, her eyes watered, and she sniffled continuously.

  In truth, I should find another place to stay, but I don’t deserve anything better. Another page. Not this one. No, this one won’t help, either. There must be a way to bring Thorne back.

  The others had frozen her out, though they hadn’t said much, except for Willow, who said, “You’re to blame for this. A power-hungry Nerei shouldn’t have become an apprentice.”

  After that outburst, Rowan took Willow to her room. When he came back out, he told Athenia it wasn’t a good time for her to be there.

  Right? Sparing a bitter recollection for the stony faces, she pictured the only one who seemed concerned about her at all, Laurel. When she heard the news, all color had drained from Laurel’s face, and her scar had stood out more in contrast. However, her dark eyes had held a softness which might have been sympathy. Maybe she doesn’t hate me quite as much as the others do.

  Although Athenia had sent her an appealing glance, the female mage had looked away. Guess I’ll face this one by myself.

  After Athenia paddled to the cabin, she stayed there for two days trying to figure out a way to bring Thorne home. When she got too hungry to concentrate, she went in the water and transformed, finding plenty of not quite yet dead mackerel to dine on. Though they tasted sour and mealy, she didn’t care because she only wanted to down something fast and return to her search for a way to bring Thorne back.

  The others won’t be any help. Naturally, they didn’t believe me, because they thought I kidnapped him and stashed him somewhere. By Poseidon’s bones, why would I want to do something like that? Okay, they think I’m crazy, but I can’t wait for them to do something.

  When she left Willow’s home, they’d been arguing like angry seals trying to assert dominance.

  By the time they decide to do anything, it will be too late.

  Here’s something for calling lost things back to you. Moving her hands in a scooping motion toward her body, she intoned the words.

  “Treasures hidden from my sight

  Move from darkness into light.

  Show yourself for me to see.

  As I will, so shall it be.”

  Brightness illuminated the area and she squinted her eyes. A sock missing since her last load of laundry appeared. Not what I’m after.

  Underneath her hammock, a brilliant flash revealed a ring misplaced when she moved. Fine, but I can live without that. This isn’t enough. There must be something else.

  Another sheet. Nothing in here I haven’t already tried. What can I do?

  After thinking for a minute, she went to the back of the tome. Here’s one for summoning. I’ve only ever invoked it to bring food to me when I was starving. Humans think the ocean is full of creatures, but the sea is enormous, and sometimes, other predators scare all the prey away. Given this isn’t strong, it succeeded in the past. By adding factors from some of the others, I can improve it.

  When she copied it on a sheet of stationery, she decided, if I add my blood, the force will amp up. Also, I can combine this with one for establishing passageways. When I summon Thorne from the underworld, he might need help to find his way.

  She wrote down how to call the portal. Until now, I concentrated on Greek goddesses because of my heritage. However, Gelion personifies the Christian devil, not Hades, though he used the word as a synonym for Hell. Perhaps I can combine the spells with a binding of a demon believed in by that faith to escort Thorne back to the upper world. My entrapment tunes, blood, and magic might do the trick, though I’ll have to find a time when my abilities are reliable. Please goddess, soon.

  Blowing a snippet of air around the room, she tried to cool the air a little. The heat and smell of dead fish gave her a headache. Though Athenia tolerated the airborne algae better than Thorne had, it still bothered her. The high temperature was worse. To survive, she rejuvenated several times a day. Can’t risk dehydration, I’d be disabled and couldn’t help him. If I don’t get in the water every couple of days, I’ll die.

  Air flowed at her command, bringing a welcome cooling. Hmm, I wonder if I can pull the humidity from the air the way Thorne does.

  Closing her eyes, she visualized the water molecules separating away and streaming down outside the back window where a couple of Thorne’s tomato plants wilted. This is working, I’m more comfortable. She opened her eyes and looked out. The tomatoes are perkier, too.

  As she fed a little more energy to the air, a moderate breeze picked up, so she reduced the wind to its previous gentle stirring. This afternoon, my skills are all right. Now’s the time to do this.

  After she stood, she let the breeze die. I’ll need my athame, minerals, herbs, and candles. She rummaged through her trunk and pulled out her silk-wrapped knife and the bag of gemstones. From the sack, she selected unpolished aventurine for earth and stability. Bloodstone for fire, perseverance, and vitality. Citrine for air and red coral for water, love, and the revealing of secrets. Must cleanse them before the ritual.

  Next
, she created a small altar using the table and fabric. With the blade anchoring the silk in the center of the table, she arranged the stones in a circle. She added four tapers, one at each compass point, and lit them and a stick of sage.

  As the aroma wafted, she sang a wordless aria of pure intention. When the polished rocks vibrated from her intonation, she allowed her voice to trail off.

  Bowing her head, she said a short prayer. “Goddess, please cleanse these gems and allow me to employ them for the purpose of bringing Thorne home.” Repeating the incantation three times, she ended with, “Thank you.” After she blew out the wicks in the reverse order, west, east, south, north, she set the stick in a brass burner. To protect the house. And hopefully rid it of some of the stink, too.

  From there, she went to Thorne’s herb cabinet. I hope what I need is here, because I don’t want to delay by going after ingredients. She scanned the contents. Excellent, here’s what I want. She pulled out packets of powdered Devil’s Shoestring, High John the Conqueror, Queen Elizabeth, and Calamus Roots and arranged them next to the cleansed gems and coral.

  Now to purify myself. As she washed, she sprinkled some of the Queen Elizabeth in the shower. When she had scrubbed off all the dirt and sweat, she got out and dried herself with an oversized beach towel. Then, she wrapped it around her body. I’ll keep this on until I’m ready. She toweled her hair and combed out all the tangles until it hung down her back in a gleaming mane.

  For the rest of the day, she fasted but drank her fill of clean water, and she meditated, concentrating on the ritual. Devil’s Shoestring is for protection, luck and influence over the opposite sex, which I’ll need to bring Thorne to me.

  High John the Conqueror root will clear obstacles from my path and give me dominion over others, so I can subject the creature to my will.

  After that, she focused on the Calamus root. To strengthen everything else and enable me to dominate Gelion

  She memorized the words to the invocation and practiced singing it as part of the allure of her song. Since this is the strongest combination I can think of, it’s sure to bring Thorne back.