Melody of Blood and Night

Thirteen

Aedlyn stared at the ethereal beauty, slack-jawed, at the tumble of golden curls that framed her angular face.

They were summer, cascading over her milky shoulders; sunshine, resting against her temples.

Her hair were the aureate mane that gave her the distinct elegance of calla lilies. Aedlyn couldn't bring herself to tear her gaze away from the deep-set almond eyes, the colour of sunlight beaming through a bottle of aged whiskey, clear and warm.

They were layered with what seemed like liquid gold poured over the brown of her hazel-flecked her eyes. But they lacked something vital. Something human. They lacked emotion.

Her thin, sensuous lips were curled into a knowing smile, inciting intrigue within Aedlyn's mind as she admired the iridescent scales, that speckled the woman's body. They ran along the length of her arms, covering the back of her webbed hands and running up her shoulders and neck, adorning the sides of her face up to her forehead.

They travelled over her collarbones, disappearing into the folds of her bandeau before appearing in swirling patterns over her torso and continued down her legs, peeking out from beneath the single piece of satin that hung between her long, slender legs, suspended from the thin bronze girdle hanging on her hips.

The beauty tilted her head, raising her chin and smiled. It wasn't the kind of smile that could light up a dark room. It was a smile that revealed two rows of razor-sharp teeth. It was a smile that could have set a room on fire.

Aedlyn snapped out of her traced state as soon as the woman released her from whatever magick had kept her from cracking her skull on the floor.

"Who-who are you?" Aedlyn stuttered, looking up at the raving beauty from the floor, her senses slowly returning to their normal state.

She couldn't help but feel utterly baffled by the effect this mesmerizing woman had on her. "I see that you've managed to survive the Ferae," she spoke in a voice that made Aedlyn's mind go blank, placing a webbed hand on her waist.

"I must say, I am impressed. But then again, nothing less is to be expected of the Kaelahni." Aedlyn stared at her dumbfounded for a moment before her brain registered her words.

"Ferae...Is that what those...creatures are called?" Aedlyn shook her head, forehead wrinkled with lines of frustration and squeezed her eyes shut in exasperation at the chaotic state of her mind, "Wait. Who are you? And why do you keep calling me that?"

"I'm Sereia, Goddess of Lake Cyribis and the protector of the Key."

"Lake Cyribis? This is Lake Galb-"

"What you call my home in the world above is none of my concern. I have little compassion for your realm." She answered plainly, before Aedlyn could finish.

"Now, enough about me. I am rather curious about you, Kaelahni. Tell me, Daughter of Tanwyn, does he still mourn the young witch that sacrificed her soul to bind the Orb?"

Aedlyn's eyes grew wide at the mention of her Father's name. The goddess seemed to know things that no one else could tell her. Things that she had to know.

The assassin realized with dread, that she was completely at Sereia's mercy, and it was one place, she did not want to be. But curiosity had poisoned her mind, the peculiarly dangerous desire for answers burning through her soul.

"I am here for The Key. Hand it over, and I'll be on my way." Aedlyn demanded with as much confidence as she could muster, suppressing her desire from taking shape on her tongue.