Red Tide -The WaterFire Saga

[0.6]

The first time the merls stopped, it was Aelia who had collapsed.

Not so much collapsed, as suddenly spasmed. Her body was working overtime to compensate for what she had been asking it to do. Wordlessly, Neela handed Aelia a small piece of edible kelp and let Aelia chew on it. Once she was done, the three continued.

The second time they stopped, it was Serafina.

"I can't go any farther. I have to rest. Just for a few minutes," she said.

At this time, they had been swimming for over an hour through the dark waters. They were almost three leagues west of Cerulea, heading for the fortress at Tsarno. A sputtering lava torch picked up from the city's edges was the only source of light they had. Aelia floated in front of where Sera was, which she could tell because of the shimmering bits of her body.

"We've got to keep moving," Neela said, glancing around. "You're shimmering, Sera. The pearls are wearing off. Come on."

"I will. I need a minute." Sera replied.

She sat down on a rock, leaned over, and vomited. Aelia winced in concern for her, as what looked like painful spasms racked her body. Neela grabbed a kelp leaf.

"Here," Neela handed the kelp leaf to Sera.

She took it and wiped her mouth. A tiny octopus spooked by their movements shot out from the seaweed and swam off. Aelia watched the octopus, thinking of Slyvestre, and in turn of Luca. She had no idea where either pet was, having left Luca in the care of one of the maids while Aelia dressed for the Dokimí. And, she had no idea the fate of Tavia, those of the court, or her other family members. Aelia wouldn't let herself believe her mother had survived. Though she was never told what kind of poison the arrow had been dipped in, the combination of where the arrow struck and the poison wouldn't have allowed for an easy survival in normal circumstances.

Aelia sat down next to Neela and Sera, and let Neela put her arm around her shoulders. Aelia returned the gesture, curling her arm around Neela's back.

"We'd be prisoners right now if it wasn't for you," Sera said. "Thank you."

"Don't thank me until we're in Tsarno," Neela said. "Who are they? Who did this?"

"Ondalina. That's what my uncle said. He was worried this would happen. He wanted my mother to declare war on Admiral Kolfinn. I wasn't supposed to know, but I overheard them talking." Sera answered.

"We don't know for sure that it was Ondalina. Why would they invade Miromara?" Aelia shook her head. "If Kolfinn's motivation was to betroth Astrid to Mahdi as Mom thinks, an invasion isn't the way to do that."

Neela furrowed her eyebrows. "I just don't understand why Kolfinn would do that."

"I don't either," Serafina said. "All I know is that he broke the permutavi without any explanation. And now hundreds are dead. My father. Maybe my mother. We don't know where Ahadi and Bilaal are. Or Mahdi and Yaz."

Neela uttered a stifled cry.

"What is it?" Aelia asked.

"Oh. One of the last things I said to my brother was that he was a tube worm," Neela said, tears in her eyes. "It might be the last thing I ever say to him."

"It might be the last thing you ever say to anyone," a deep voice rum led, making the mermaids jump up. "You'll be bait if you stay here. Soldiers rode through earlier. Mermen in black uniforms." 

"W-who are you?" Neela stammered.

"Where are you?" Sera asked.

Aelia strained her eyes to look for the source of the voice, but nothing was found.