Eclipsis: Water

Chapter 15

Ondine tried not to look as though she was horrified. It made sense to her, why her father had seeked revenge on the King of Lune as well as its people. She had never killed anyone in her life, revenge or otherwise, but she thought it was entirely possible if it was her older sister that was murdered. Calder had been tortured by them, alongside losing his people and his wife. That was sure to push anyone to their limit. This wasn't what horrified her.

It was instead how he had told the story, the look on his face when he recounted the murder of the former King of Lune, alongside that laugh and smile that told Ondine that he enjoyed it. He had enjoyed killing King Rilian. It wasn't a simple fact of ending a life that was responsible for the pain inflicted upon him; he destroyed that life. The way that he described how he murdered him made Ondine sick to her stomach. Calder had painted the picture so vividly that there was no confusion to how it went down.

How could she not be horrified? This was her father, her father who she had loved and grieved, her father with the kind eyes and warm smile. She was horrified at how much he had changed - what rage and grief and pain had turned him into. She wondered if he had gone back to Sol after killing King Rilian, back to her, would he have turned into the man that she saw before her now? She didn't know him now. She didn't know if any of the father she once knew was still in there, buried under all this terribleness.

She chose her words carefully, ensuring to speak calmly and keep her voice steady. If he knew she was scared of him, how would he react?

"No, I don't think you're a monster. I can understand your reasons for what you did."

Calder looked as though he was clinging onto her every word, nodding along fervently.

"Yes, yes. Not a monster..." He trailed off, looking off into the distance, then moved his seaweed-green hair out of the way, picking up the water on his desk. "Not a monster," His voice had gone extremely quiet, but Ondine could hear him muttering "not a monster, not a monster" over and over to himself between sips of the water.

Ondine watched him nervously, not wanting to be the first person to say anything. It appeared Junto was the same, for he remained silent, too. A few seconds later, Calder had straightened up, placing the glass back down beside him.

"Is there anything else you'd like to ask, little wave?" His demeanour was completely calm, and if Ondine had closed her eyes in that moment she was sure to hear him as he was before.

"Why did you kidnap me?" She replied hesitantly.

"I apologise for this, too. There was no other way to get you here. I imagine me showing up in Sol would've scared the life out of you," Ondine forced a smile. "I had wanted to get you here for a while. I thought it was best to wait, at least until you were older. I had four of my Moons try and locate you from the tree line. I know there's a lake right at the edge of the forest so I had them wait until you used it,"

Ondine's skin crawled with the thought of being watched, at her father ordering this. How long had they been watching for? What would they have done if she had never gone near that lake to hunt? Would they have ambushed the water kingdom? Would her father have commanded them to?

"I apologise if they harmed you in any way. If they had told you that you were being brought to your father, you would not have believed them. One of them was attacked by a Sun fairy, I believe. Who was she? Do you know her, my child?"

Ondine had hoped the topic of Alara could be avoided completely. She feared for her sister's safety.

"She's just someone I know from the kingdom," Ondine answered. "She must've wanted to go hunting at the same space I was, and ran into me by luck."

Calder's jaw twitched. "You just lied to me, Ondine."

"I - what?"

"Your Highness -" Junto interjected.

"Silence, fool, " Calder snapped. His teeth clenched together, then released slowly. "You just lied to me. I do not tolerate liars."

"Why do you think I'm lying?" Ondine tried to put on her bravest voice, but she was gripping the glass in her lap so tightly that her sage-green knuckles had brightened a few shades.

"I know who Alara is. Daughter of King Lir and Queen Océane? She was 13 when I was hurt in that explosion," Calder responded. "I had my Moons describe what she looked like. There are not that many water fairies to distinguish between."

Ondine tried to hide the large gulp she took. "What lie did I say? I said she's someone I know from the kingdom. That is true. I do know her."

"Yes, but she is not someone you merely know. You are friends with her. Close. You live in her house with her parents, little wave,"

It's my house and my parents, too. Ondine thought to herself.

"They adopted you, did they not? The King and Queen? After the explosion?"

"They did." Ondine replied.

"So," Calder's gloved hand clenched. Ondine could see he was trying to contain his anger. "Why did you feel the need to lie to me? Did you think she was going to be put in harm's way? Because she shot down one of my Moons with a spear?"

"I don't know I... I didn't think it was important." Ondine focused on not letting herself stutter. She wasn't going to allow her fear of him reduce her to a mess like his subordinates had been reduced to. Like Tai.

King Calder nodded slowly, his cold, blue eyes boring into her. She made herself sit perfectly still and not break eye-contact. It was like being in the territory of a dangerous animal. One wrong move and it would attack.

"How was it? Living with Alara and the King and Queen?" He asked quietly.

"They've always treated me well, if that's what you're asking."

"Oh, that's wonderful to hear!" He laughed to himself, in a way that made him look genuinely happy. "I was worried what would happen to you after I left. Who would step up to look after my little wave. King Lir and Queen Océane have always been kind and generous, however. I'm glad that they were the ones to take you in."

Ondine nodded gently, bringing the glass to her mouth to try and soothe herself. Her father's moods were completely unpredictable. One minute she was fearing for her safety, the next it was as though it was a loving and happy reunion.

"You have really grown up. You even dyed your hair," He ran his fingers through his own. "I think it suits you."

Ondine reached up instinctively to touch her white-and-blue-tipped pixie cut. She was hesitant to thank him. "I wanted a change."

"Of course, of course," Calder murmured. "Change is good, I think. Which is why I am so happy that you are here," He pressed a teal finger against his desk. "Would it be okay... If I hugged you? It has been so long since I've seen you, little wave. I've missed you so much."

Hugging her deranged father was one of the last things Ondine wanted to do, but she nodded slowly. He responded with a smile, and she forced her legs to stand up straight to walk over to him. Junto rushed forwards almost immediately to take the glass of water from her hand, bowing slightly.

It was as though she had to forcibly command her legs to move over to him while the rest of her body disagreed. Calder was not a great deal taller than her, at 5'7. Nymphs were typically quite short. He closed the remainder of the gap between them, enveloping her in a loose embrace. She made her arms reach around him, her hands not quite skimming his shoulder blades, and he held her for a second, patting her back awkwardly.

Her father was the one to break the hug, stepping back to put a significant amount of space between them, which Ondine was overwhelmingly grateful for. He attempted to smile at her, one that didn't really reach his eyes, and she returned one back, her hand reaching up automatically to touch the necklace that wasn't there.

"Now you are here, you will be able to help me rule Lune," Calder said, his cold, blue eyes suddenly lit up. "As my second in command."