The Siren Queen

Chapter One

It was a cool, calm October morning, deep down in Pacifica, the most peaceful merfolk kingdom in all of the seven seas. Crown Princess Nerissa yawned in a rather unladylike manner as she ran her slender, pale fingers through her tangled titian tresses. It was a well-known fact that most merfolk struggle to sleep on the night before their sixteenth birthday, and she was certainly no exception.

Turning sixteen, also known as the Age of Ascension, was a significant milestone in Pacifican society. That meant that a young mermaid or merman was now considered responsible and mature enough to breach the surface of the ocean.

Then there was a slow, rhythmic tap on the door of Nerissa's bedchamber. "Your Highness, are you awake?" a soft, feminine voice called.

"I'm awake, MerLisa" the Princess of Pacifica answered, though she sounded quite drowsy. "And, please, call me Rissie, or at least Nerissa". She did not care much for the formality of royal titles, and most of her family and close friends called her by the nickname "Rissie".

"Very well...Rissie" uttered MerLisa as she glided into the Princess's spacious, pastel-colored bedroom, her wild red-gold curls floating around her head like a halo. Even though MerLisa had been Nerissa's tailmaiden, or what humans called a "handmaiden", for years, she was still sometimes reluctant to forego traditional Pacifican etiquette.

Nerissa floated to her pearl-framed vanity mirror, and MerLisa grabbed a seashell comb and began running it through the Crown Princess of Pacifica's long, disheveled hair. "Happy Ascension, Your High...I mean, Rissie. You are to be escorted on your Ascension by Lord Zale Delmar of Catalina Hall...?"

A faint blush graced Nerissa's pretty features. "Yes...". Handsome and witty Lord Zale had been her best friend for just about as long as she could remember.

"I see". MerLisa smiled knowingly for a second as she placed a beautiful tiara made of pure white pearls grown on Lord Zale's family's estate on Nerissa's head. His family's manor included the finest pearl ranch in Pacifica, which produced some of the most lustrous pearls in all of the four oceans, as well as the stately mansion known as Catalina Hall.

"What shall you wear today, Your...Rissie?", inquired MerLisa.

"My favorite sea-satin top" Nerissa responded. Her favorite top was a form-fitting yet comfortable bra top made of shiny powder blue sea-satin. Sea-satin was a material derived from a secretion in the shells of a certain species of clam that had a texture similar to spandex. It was very fashionable these days in Pacifica, although many mermaids still preferred the conventional seashell bras their kind has worn for countless centuries.

"That top compliments the colors of your tail quite well" MerLisa said with an approving nod. The Crown Princess of Pacifica's mermaid tail was in lovely pastel shades of violet, blue, and pink.

Once she was dressed, Princess Nerissa swam down to the Pacifican royal palace's large dining room for breakfast. "Happy Ascension, my precious little pearl!" her father, King Poseidon, who was seated at the head of the table, greeted her, a warm smile on his regal face.

"Happy 16th Birthday, sweetheart!" uttered Queen Melinda.

Octavia, the octopus serving maid, used her many long arms to serve all three members of the royal family of Pacifica at once. "Mmm, SeaPro scramble, my favorite!" exclaimed Nerissa.

SeaPro, which was short for "Seaweed Protein", was the staple food of Pacifica. It was a tofu-like substance made out of red seaweed, which could be prepared many different ways. It was a major cultural taboo in Pacifica and most other merfolk kingdoms to eat a sentient being, such as a fish or marine mammal. However, some shellfish, such as clams, oysters, and other bivalves were sometimes eaten by merfolk, as they do not possess brains, and therefore are not considered fully sentient. The shells and pearls of such mollusks were also commonly harvested for clothing and accessories.

"Eat up, Rissie" King Poseidon said. "It's a very good idea to make sure you get plenty of protein today to fuel you up for your big swim tonight. I don't want you to be exhausted before you even reach the surface".

Nerissa let out a brief sigh. Of course, she knew that her father meant well, but she didn't particularly like being constantly reminded of the undeniable fact that she was an exceptionally weak swimmer by mermaid standards. Because her mother, Queen Melinda, was actually born human, but magically transformed into a mermaid after falling in love with King Poseidon, Princess Nerissa was much less skilled at both swimming and singing than the vast majority of mermaids.

"It was on your own Ascension that we first met, wasn't it, Poseidon?" Queen Melinda asked, a nostalgic gleam in her green eyes.

"That's right. In retrospect, it was a good thing that I chose to Ascend alone". Merfolk were generally discouraged from interacting with humans.

"Going for a swim in the ocean at night in the middle of a storm was probably not the wisest choice, but...if I hadn't met you, I would more than likely still be scrubbing floors and emptying chamber pots right now". As a human, Melinda had been a poor orphan who worked as a servant in a nobleman's household.

King Poseidon beamed at his beloved wife. "As you know, my father's last words to me before he foamed were 'my dear son, more than anything, I want you to be happy. And if marrying a landlubber will make you happy, so be it'". When merfolk died, they turned into seafoam and vanished, so "foamed" was a frequently used synonym for death. Following his father's untimely demise due to a rare aquatic virus, Poseidon used the power of the Enchanted Royal Aquamarine of Pacifica, which he inherited as the kingdom's new monarch, to transform Melinda into a stunning mermaid with a pretty pink tail.