Ariana's Trials

Part 9

Kaldur's POV

We stepped out of the portal onto a beach. A kid who looked like Ariana was waiting, along with a guy who had white hair and held onto a wooden staff. Didn't know either of them. Ariana crashed through, immediately hugging and kissing the guy with white hair. She let go of the other guy and moved to her lookalike. 

"Hey Percy, this is Kaldur. He is hopefully going to swear an Oath and... I don't want to explain the rest." Ariana merely fell back into the other guy's arms, and he kissed her forehead. Boyfriend maybe? I saw him as a potential threat.

"Ariana, how many times have you made a portal in the last twenty-four hours?" he smiled

"Six?" She guessed. He laughed

"I could tell. you're burning up." He swept a little bit of hair off her forehead, and the temperature of the air around him dropped by ten degrees. "Better," he said. Ariana kissed him before wading out into the water with Percy. I followed, and we took off toward Poseidon's palace.

Ariana stopped in front of a familiar garden—Noha's house. I was empty. And abandoned. Percy threw his arm around her when she started to sob. I shed a single tear too. Noha was Star's only family. What happened to her? Ariana moved on toward the palace and dipped into a bow when she came across her father, waiting. They both laughed, then I bowed too.

"Lord Poseidon," I said

"Kaldur'ahm" We moved inward, where I saw two thrones. A mosaic lined the wall, looking eerily like Ariana. It was Ariana, sitting atop the throne in front of us with a man whose features were blurred in the other. Percy noticed too and realized that the face shifted from something like his to something like Triton's and back again. The throne's bloodline was torn between the two sons. That was going to be a problem. Amphitrite took the throne on the right. Poseidon took the empty throne and summoned his trident. Some merfolk came in.

"Kaldur'ahm, do you swear to protect my daughter Ariana until your final breath?" He said, his voice thundering through the room

"I swear" My voice echoed

"Do you swear to protect my daughter to the greatest of your abilities and never engage in a relationship where you may be compromised and unable to protect her?"

"I swear"

"Do you swear to relinquish any claims to an underwater throne?"

"I swear"

"Do you swear loyalty to my daughter?"

"I swear"

"Then I declare you Guardian of Princess Ariana, Daughter of the Sea" A shockwave thundered through the air when Poseidon struck the pedestal he sat on with his trident. Ariana gasped as a small circle of coral threaded with blues and greens now rested on her brow, declaring her bloodline and authority.

"Wow, this is cool"  

"I can hear you"

"Kal? This must be part of the Guardian thing."

"I know"

A little girl, about four, swam up to Ariana. She had a flower. A deep-sea rose, to be exact. 

"I have a gift for you, Princess," The little girl said. Ariana knelt in front of her, and the little girl handed her the flower

"It's so pretty! Thank you" Ariana tucked the rose behind her ear. The little girl smiled. Another girl swam across the room, her blue hair the same shade as her tail...Star. Her two pigtails had been tamed into one in the last three years, and she looked more...mature, less like the little girl we left behind and more like the daughter of a palace officiant. I liked her more as the Star we left behind. She seems out of place in her current form. Ariana hasn't seen her yet.

"Ariana, I saw Star"

"Star?" Ariana finished with the little girl and swam for the door, after Star, catching a glimpse of her cobalt tail. "Star!" She called as I cleared the door. Star turned around and her eyes shot open wide as she saw us.

"Ariana! Kaldur!" she shot into Ariana's open arms. A lot of mumbled words were exchanged

"I missed you, Little Star," Ariana said

"Where did you go?" Star asked, "Why did you leave me behind?"

"Little Star, I got hurt and needed to heal. I was still here, just...asleep" Ariana kissed the top of her head "And I never forgot you" I came up to her

"Hey Star," I said. Star let go of Ariana and hugged me

"Kally!" She cried. A mermaid swam in, looking for Star, who had let go of me and was back to hugging Ariana

"Star!" The woman cried. "My Princess" she bowed to Ariana "Star, where did you go?"

"I am hugging Ariana," Star said and clutched Ariana tighter. The woman sighed in exasperation

"I am sorry for Star's actions," she said to Ariana

"No worries. Star is like my little sister. We've been friends for years" Ariana smiled. The woman had nothing to say. I chuckled in my head. "Little Star, I want you to take this" Ariana pulled one of the seashells she had braided in her hair "And whenever you need me, just touch the shell and say my name" Star clung to it like it was her life, and nodded furiously. Ariana stood up. 

"What if I lose the shell?" Star asked

"I know you won't." Ariana smiled, then nodded to me. Time to leave before this woman gossiped about Star and Ariana. Star was herded away by the woman, and we collected Percy before returning to the beach. It was sundown. 

Walking by the pavilion, an Aphrodite camper called out "Jackana!" when the saw Jack kiss Ariana before flying up and away into the night sky. A lot of people laughed. 

"Ariana and Percy" A voice hissed from the shadows 

"Dammit! everyone get out!" Ariana screamed as Nico came barreling out of the shadows astride a nightmare. I drew my blades and charged forward, into his path. Nico started his mount to run toward me. Ariana and Percy simultaneously shot it with blasts of water, and it dissolved, dumping Nico, who sprang up again and ran for Ariana. I cut him off as Ariana sliced his sword hand enough to make him drop his weapon, but he ducked away, grabbed his sword, and sprang up again, the sneaky bugger. Percy came at him sweepingly, and Nico parried, dipping back into the shadow as another person came out. Noha came out. I froze