Fire of the Sea

Chapter 25

"My name is Rowan and I am the Commander of the Giínos forces. If you can please follow me." He gestured for Genevieve to follow him.

Eventually, they came to a tall, wide sand-brick building.

Many young men and women were mingling about. They all had different clothing and the clothing were in various states of wear, however, they were all pretty shabby but easy to move in.

Some had weapons and some did not.

Some had shoes and some did not.

Some had injuries and some did not.

However, they were all cheerful and talking. A few were waving their fingers around, plants appearing where they pointed.

"Attention," yelled Commander Rowan. "Meet... Genna."

Murmurs filled the air until Rowan held up his hand. "Welcome her warmly and get her acquainted." Before he left, Rowan whispered to Genevieve, "Don't tell anyone that you're a princess. You don't know who could betray you. Got it?" Genevieve nodded.

Immediately, three girls approached her. One looked about thirteen, one fifteen, and one seventeen.

"Hi." The oldest one had dark, chocolate brown hair tied up in a ponytail and extremely bright green eyes. "I'm Ashlynn. These are my two best friends."

"Hello," said the fifteen year old. "I'm Lily." Lily had brownish gray eyes and chestnut brown hair flowing freely down her back.

"I'm Hailey," said the youngest. "Are you from Thálassa? You look like you're from Thálassa. I've never been to Thálassa before, cuz it's underwater. But you know that already, don't you? When me and my sister were little, we would pretend we were mermaids. I know mermaids don't exist, but it was fun to pretend. We also pretend to be princesses. And we made herbal tea! It's so good, you have to try. You'll love-"

"I think that's enough talking, Hail," said Ashlynn. "We don't want to bore her." Then, she turned to Genevieve. "We all call her Hail because she bounces around a lot and has a lot of energy, destructive and innocent. I can grow things and Lily can create rain, occasionally lightning storms too. She's from Ouranós but her mom was from Thálassa. You can ask us anything about this place and we can answer it. I know nearly every plant in this realm."

"Okay?" Genevieve was a bit overwhelmed at all the talking, but she got the gist of it. Upon seeing Hail, Genevieve was reminded of Lana, back at the palace. She smiled at the thought of Lana meeting Hailey. They wouldn't stop talking for hours! "Can I see what's inside the building?"

"Oh," said Ashlynn. "That's just the barracks. It's actually the only sleeping quarters we have. We don't have the money for much else. Well, we don't really have the money for anything but we grow, make, and create things as a volunteer project and stuff. Some people here can grow trees for wood. A few of the rock people made the barracks. I helped grow the garden and Lils waters them. "

"Yeah," said Genevieve, uncertainly. "Something like that. Do you know a guy named Collin?"

"Yeah, we do! Wait, how do you know him?"

"Uh, we're friends."

"Oh, wow. He doesn't really have any friends around here around here. He only had one friend. I hear she was kidnapped, though." Ashlynn said.

"How do you know?" It was Genevieve's turn to ask that question.

"Duh, we're rebels and spies. We know almost anything that happens in all the realms. Plus, she was one of our own rebels." Ashlynn took a breath. "So, tell us about yourself. You know more about us, then we know about you."

"Okay. My name is Genna and I'm from Thálassa. My power is that I can control water, even really big bodies of water. I really like to read and paint."

As Genevieve was talking, Collin entered the base. He looked worried as he feverishly glanced around the area. As soon as he spotted Genevieve, his shoulders sagged in relief. "Gene-"

"Collin!" Genevieve exclaimed loudly, interrupting him. "Hi!"

"Hi?"

"Can I talk to you privately, Collin?" Genevieve said, biting her lip.

"Sure?"

The three girls grinned. "We'll give you some space." As they left, they raised their eyebrows and giggled.

Genevieve led Collin awayCollin led away from the crowd. "Commander Rowan told me that I shouldn't tell anyone my real name."

"That's a good idea. Rowan's a smart guy."

As they sat in silence, Genevieve was soon startled by a weird sort of honk. Collin looked unaffected. "After listening to that honking flower for a week or two, you get used to it."

"Honking flower?" asked Genevieve confused and weirded out.

"It's what they use to get our attention, we're supposed to get to the barracks now."

"But I have to get to the palace," said Genevieve, frantically.

"Don't worry," assured Collin. "It's just for the full-time rebels. We're not." When Genevieve looked confused, Collin elaborated. "It's for the people who lost their homes, or don't have anywhere to stay."

"Oh."

"It's fine," Collin said. "But you should head home now."

***

Genevieve and Collin walked back to the beach. "My mother and father are on a trip. Would you like to come to the palace tomorrow? We can bring Jasmine too." 

Collin looked flustered. "Oh um... tomorrow?"

"Why not? It's pretty late right now, so I'll see you tomorrow?."

"Oh.. um.. okay, I guess."

Genevieve beamed. She couldn't wait to show Collin around the palace.