Eroica: The Lyonessian's Conquest

Chapter 6 "A New Problem"

" What are you talking about?! My sister is not a thief!" Cristie stood up and looked at Tora indignantly.

"I... I can't believe it." Tora mumbled to herself, staring hard at the sand between her toes.

" Come on! Snap out of it! What are you talking about? Answer me!" Sim knelt in front of Tora and shook her violently.

Tora looked at Sim then to the others blankly then fainted. The youth looked at one another in utter bewilderment. After the tension cooled down, Cristie spoke up." I'm sorry for the way that I had acted a moment ago. Tim, can you please carry Tora into the hut. She might as well sleep with us." The young man nodded and within a couple of minutes all was settled. Then the Tigs sisters prepared for bed and slept.

By midnight, Cathy had a strange dream: she was standing in place that has no corner, no edge, nor walls... just a black void. Then out of no where, a huge and terrifying monster appeared and started chasing her! She ran but even though she used all her strength to run and even though the monster was slow ,it was gaining on her! Fast! Just then, a blonde girl, but without a face, stepped between Cathy and the monster and instantly, the monster fled! Then the blonde turned to Cathy and, despite lacking a mouth and lips, said," Wake up. Go to the beach. We have to talk. There's more to come and you know less." Then the blonde vanished into thin air.

Cathy woke up and automatically got up and walked to the beach. She walked for about 10 meters while scanning the beach then got tired. She saw a smooth rock jutting out from the sand and sat on it. After a minute passed, a voice suddenly spoke up from behind a clump of boulders in the water a few feet from the shoreline. It was a feminine voice and was similar to that of the blonde in her dream.

"Did you get my message?" the voice said.

"Who's there?" Cathy bolted upright.

A young lady, about the same age as Cristie, with hair yellowas corn and highlights as blue as a cloudless sky. "My name is Tiana Pearl or you can call me Tiana. I was the one that came in your dream."

" So you must be Tim's friend. I'm Cathy. It's a pleasure to meet you, your Highness." Cathy smiled.

The mermaid princess cocked her head to the side and stared at Cathy wonderingly. " How did you know I'm a royalty? And Tim? Is he here?"

"He's here alright. Now, what did you mean by those words you said in my dream? And what about 'the message'?" Cathy inquired.

" The message was in your dream. I sent it to you."

" In my dream? But what do you really want to tell me? Is there some kind of problem?" Cathy wanted to know.

"Well." the princess was hesitant." About what Theodora told earlier this evening.. It's true. But you're not the thief. It wasn't you who stole it. It was your great-grandfather. Well, actually, he didn't really steal it... he... actually, he... well, he was just..ohhh." Tiana stammered,

"Wait, I'm not rushing you. Inhale. Exhale. Please stay calm and tell what the problem is." Cathy encouraged the mermaid princess.

Tiana sucked in a large gulp of air and let it out slowly. " Okay. I'm calm now. So, let's see... Your great-grandfather was a long-period diver and that was how he discovered us mermaids," Tiana began.

"Wait, wait, wait! So you mean to tell me that my great-grandpa saw you? Your whole kingdom and all the merfolk?" Cathy gasped.

"Yes. And that was how they, my father and Serano, became friends. Then so, one night, Serano and Dad talked on the beach. Serano said that he wanted to write a book about mermaids."

( Flashback 30 years ago)

" My friend. I was wondering if you would let me write a book about your people." Serano said eagerly.

" What!? What do you mean? I thought we had agreed that no one must know about your discovery about us especially about us!" the King of Mermaids was shocked at his human friend's proposal.

" I know. But I am not going to publish and distribute it. It will be a family secret: something for my children or grandchildren to inherit. It will be like a family tradition to tell the secret to a child!" Serano explained.

King Tritanius scratched his head in perplexity. " What a silly thing to do..." he mumbled. " But alright. Since you are my friend and you hold the greatest secret... I give you my consent."

When the book was finished, Serano asked if he could take a picture of the princess so that he could use it as the book's cover.

' This is going way too far, Serano.' Tritanius thought furiously. "Oh, alright." he said out loud with a little smile. After all, it was his daughter who'll get the front cover.

But when he learned from a seagull( mermaids can talk to all creatures) that Serano planned to give the book to his grand daughter, he couldn't control his emotion anymore and stole the book from his friend and hid it in his hiding place. But Serano was clever that when he became aware of the deed that Tritanius did he dove into the water and took the book from the hiding place and replaced it with fiction.

One day when the princess went into the hiding place to read the book, she was shocked to discover that the book wasn't the original one but a fake! And when the king had learned the truth also, he became so mad that he cursed and hated all the humans. Anyone found near the kingdom, even though the human didn't know, would be turned into stone statues and would be doomed to sink into the sea and corals would grow on it. But being a merciful king, Tritanius would transform a merman or mermaid into a complete imitation of the cursed human to live with the person's family so as not to worry the family.

( End of Flashback )

"Wow. And I thought that was impossible!" Cathy exhaled.

Tiana chuckled. "Nothing is impossible to an angry merman especially a king!" The two talked for a long time that before they even realized it was already dawn and the sun was just rising. The two bid each other farewell and left the shoreline. When Cathy reached the hut, expecting everyone still sleeping, saw to her amazement everyone looking frantic. When they saw Cathy approaching, they all rushed to her and squashed her in a tight bear-hug.

" Where have you been?! We've been looking everywhere for you!" Cristie scolded her as they let go of Cathy.

Cathy smiled but suddenly swayed and fell on the sand, unconscious!

"Cathy! Cathy, wake up! Come on! Oh, hurry! Let's take her inside." Cristie once again became frantic. Once inside the hut, the two boys immediately laid Cathy on a mattress they had brought along and anxiously fanned her with broad leaves upon Cristie's orders. Cristie then ran toward the forest in search of Tora, hoping the fairy queen could help them.

She found Tora sitting on tree stump looking rather glum. She looked so haggard and worn that Cristie instantly felt bad for Tora and forgot all about Cathy.

" What's the matter? What so glum?" Cristie asked as she made her way to Tora.

" Oh! I'm sorry. I didn't see you there. Somebody cut this tree and I'm worried that whoever it was could come back and cut more. But no worries, this tree will just grow again. I just hope that cutter won't come back and kill my plants." came the answer.

The second that Tora mentioned the word "kill", Cristie was reminded of her sister's fatal and abrupt condition. "Come on! I... Cathy needs you!"

" Why? What happened?" Tora shot upright as soon as she noticed the girl's agitated mood.

"She fainted and was still unconscious when I left. I was hoping you could help."

Tora was surprised to hear the news but nodded and instructed Cristie to come with her to collect medicinal herbs to use on Cathy. When they approached the hut Sim and Tim came hurrying towards them. When the two girls were in hearing range, Tim gasped.

"We've got a major problem!"