Descendant of the Deep (Siren Song: Book One)

Chapter Six: Ash and Sophia

     I was awakened the next morning by the clanking of a breakfast tray against hollow wood. I peeked my head out of the nest of pillows that were piled on top of my face to see who was making the noise. My eyes found a servant girl with auburn hair making tea.
     I pulled my blankets over my chest in embarrassment. I wasn't dressed.
      Since the girl's back was turned, I quickly snatched my black shirt from off of the ground and slipped it on.
    The girl must have heard the sheets rustle, as she turned around to find me sitting up in bed. She waved politely and went back to making tea.
"Hi", I yawned, rubbing the sleep out of my eyes.
     The servant looked at me, shocked that I had spoken to her. "Oh. Er... Hi."
     Her surprise caused a frown to creep onto my face. "Are you alright?"
     The girl nodded yes. "In traditional fashion, servants are supposed to be invisible and out of the way." She sighed. "But I guess I already failed at that when I woke you up."
     I groaned. "Traditional fashion sucks."
     A small laugh escaped the girl's mouth. "I'm Ash, by the way. I'm supposed to be your dressing servant."
     Dressing servant? I suddenly became self conscious about being dressed by somebody I didn't even know that well. "Britta"
Ash's eyes darted from side to side, and she lowered her voice. "I heard rumors that you were from the human world. Is that true?"
Apparently, word spread quickly around the castle.
"Yes."
Ash's face lit up. "Really?! What's it like up there? Most of the people I know have never even been up to the surface! What are the humans like? My roommate Bertha says that they're lazy, but I don't believe that. Is it true that humans don't believe in mermaids anymore?"
I laughed. The second I had spoken to Ash, it seemed as though the dam inside of her that was keeping her talkative side at bay had exploded into smithereens.
"Well, instead of having a queen, we have a president that leads the country. The land is divided into little chunks called states that each have a governor. And, no. Most people don't believe in Merpeople anymore. The only people who believe are old fishermen, and everyone in my area just think they've lost it."
Ash smiled. "Fascinating." She handed me the tray, which was a full platter filled with foods I didn't recognize. In the corner, there seemed to be some salmon, so I began to nibble on that. Salmon was an interesting item for breakfast, but I couldn't judge.
After breakfast, Ash went through the drawers, asking me for my size. She then pulled out three tops for me to choose from. One was a bold red shirt with an uncomfortably low neckline and another was a white shirt that was too tight around my chest and had too much decoration on it for my tastes. I settled on a simple gray shirt that had a neckline that cross-crossed across my collarbone.
A faint knock echoed across the room from the door. I began to swim towards it, but Ash held out her hand and answered it herself. A girl with a long golden tail and golden hair to match floated into the room. She boasted a crystal tiara and her makeup was painted on in an extravagant way that made her look like an angel of the sea.
     Princess Sophia, undoubtedly.
     Completely ignoring Ash, Sophia swam gracefully towards me. "You must be Britta. My mother told me that you were a shapeshifter from the human world that would be staying her for a time."
     Not quite knowing how to respond to that, I merely told her that her information was accurate.
     Sophia grinned. "Well, if you'll follow me, I'll show you around."
     She exited the door without waiting for me to catch up. I shot a confused glance at Ash, who shrugged.
     I swam after Sophia, finally meeting up with her at the end of the hallway. Her pale pink blouse swirled around her like pink wisps, making her look as Royal and godlike as possible.
     A pang of jealousy shot through me like a bullet.
     When Sophia noticed that I was at her side again, she began speaking, "All right. We can begin with the entrance hall. You have probably already been there, but it's essential if you want to know how the palace operates."
     She began to descend down from my third-floor hallway, myself trailing behind her.
     After weaving our way through the busy morning corridors, we finally reached the Entrance Hall. I immediately swam up to the mural, taking in its beauty once more. Something about it made me feel calmer.
      Sophia soon joined me. "I see you've found the Cocelia mural."
     "Yes. It's very beautiful." I stared at the mermaid in the center once more. "Princess, how is it possible that the center mermaid resembles the Queen so closely, yet the mural looks centuries old?"
     Sophia raised and eyebrow. "They didn't tell you much, did they?" She laughed. "That mermaid is my mother. She's immortal."
     Sophia burst out laughing when she saw my face.
      "How is that even possible?" I asked, completely dumbfounded.
     "Well, I suppose I can't blame you for being so surprised. Humans have a tendency to believe in only what science can prove. So they destroy any hope of learning about magic."
     I nodded, still numb from all these words I'd always believed to be fake. What would the old me say? Magic only exists in Disney movies! Immortality is impossible to achieve, history shows that! I chuckled softly at the thought.
     I turned to Sophia, confused. "If your mother is immortal, then why..."
     "Did she have me? My mother does not age, but she can still be killed. She still needed an heir if that were to happen."
       "Who are the other mermaids?"
     Sophia's face darkened. "My mother's sisters, Selisia and Iara. Selesia died before I was born and Iara is...worse."
     "I'm very sorry."
     Sophia's face took on that false happiness that both her and the mother could preform so well. "Don't be. It was a long time ago, more than a decade. It doesn't concern us."
     Despite her cheery attitude, her words sounded robotic and rehearsed.
Suddenly, two guards came rushing into the hall. I spun around, confused.
A merman with a bright red tail grabbed me by the arm, while a yellow-finned mermaid took Sophia.
"Hey!" I yelped, kicking and fighting for him to let me go.
"I demand to know what's going on this instant, soldier!" Sophia yelled, her bright blue eyes livid with anger.
"I'm sorry, Princess. We just received word of a siren attack last night, and the crime scene is not far from Cocelia. We have orders to return you to your rooms."
A siren attack? Queen Melusine had not been lying when she said her kingdom had a siren outbreak on their hands. But based on Sophia's shocked face, they were never so close to the capital. Guilt started to well up inside of me. Was I the reason the sirens were coming so close? Did my arrival provoke them somehow?
But whatever the reason, the creatures I used to think of as myths were becoming very real.