A voice stirred Nymia from her sleep.
“Wake child for the hour of action is upon you.”
Nymia opened her eyes to see a tall transparent wall white wisp of a man decorated in regal armor. He had a long beard, a crown on his head, and wizened wrinkles on his face. The second thing Nymia noticed was that the Red Queen was nowhere to be seen. Suspicion overcame her.
“Are you some new form of torture?” Nymia sneered.
“No child,” the tall white wisp answered in a deep baritone voice. “Not all the dead in Ys serve the Red Queen. There were ghosts in this city long before her wickedness came to rule. I’ve come to free you.”
The shackles and collar around Nymia’s arms, tail, and neck snapped, floating slowly away. Blood started rushing back to the freed limbs. They were sore and aching from going long unused. Displaying impressive strength and stamina, she kept her balance and stayed afloat in the water.
“You are strong, Nymia, Daughter of the Sea,” the spirit remarked, taking notice of the mermaids efforts to stay upright. “Strong enough to kill the Red Queen.”
“How can I kill what is already dead?” Nymia challenged, rubbing her wrists and testing her tail.
“She is not dead yet,” the spirit said simply. “She but sleeps. Her living body is in this temple, while her soul corrupts the bridge that exists between the land of the living and the world of the dead.”
“If she sleeps then who is the witch that I saw?”
“That is her projection,” he shook his head. “That cannot be killed. Before Ys fell to the violence of the Kraken, the people of the city revolted against her. She was gravely injured, but just before dying she cast a powerful spell preserving her living body in eternal sleep, while her spirit wander free. But her spirit cannot wander far from her body, and this is why she and the dead souls she controls are trapped in these ruins. Her real body sleeps in a chamber at the top of this pyramid. It is that you must kill if you and your friends wish to leave this place.”
“Friends?”
“Yes,” he came closer, “they have come looking for you. Because they fight her minions in the streets of Ys, the Red Queen has taken her eye off you. The time to act is now. Here,” the spirit handed Nymia a trident, “it belonged to my daughter. I’ve made just a minor adjustment.”
Nymia looked at the weapon approvingly. It was magnificently crafted from very light black steel, feeling strong and durable. Ivory laden grooves for grip ran along its bar. On one side was a fork with broad razor sharp teeth and on the other end was a long shimmering sword blade. “Excalibur,” she breathed in recognition.
“Yes,” the Spirit nodded. “It rested on the ground where it broke in your hand. The Red Queen tried to claim it, but it was forged for those of royal blood.”
“Who are you spirit and why are you helping this?” Nymia clutched the weapon tight, full of suspicion, still not sure if the Red Queen was playing some elaborate trick.
“In life I had many names,” he started calmly. “To my people I was most commonly known as Oannes or Aun. To yours, I was called, Ouann. The same name given to your son,” he smiled.
Nymia’s mouth gaped, and her grip loosed on the trident. “You’re the Ouann? You’re the chosen love of Syrenka?”
“Your history is filled with propaganda and half-truths, Daughter of the Sea,” the spirit chuckled. “Yes, I loved her, but what father doesn’t love his daughter.”
YOU ARE READING
Growing up mermaid
FantasyWhen Nymia, the mermaid princess, finds a human baby, she decides to raise him as her own. But by doing this, she unknowingly puts the baby’s life in danger. To make matters worse someone has poisoned her mother, and thrown the whole Empire of the S...
