The Seelie Curse

Chapter 23

Astrila brushes against Kyma's arm, her pelt soft. Kyma lets her hand run down against Astrila's pelt, knowing what her cousin is thinking. So close to a clue to her heritage, but it's another dead end. She sighs. Anabla's eyes snap to hers, her gaze sharp.

"What's wrong?"

Beneath the water, Astrila looks up at Kyma. She nods slowly and Kyma takes a breath. "It's just, we were hoping that the air spirits you were talking about could be my cousin's ancestors, or that they would know who they were."

Anabla smiles. "I'm sure our rulers could assist you. Now come, I'm sure you want to learn how to send that message. We'll go to an air pocket that's a better fit for all of us."

She slips back into the water. Kyma follows her, the transition into the water from the land smoother than anything. One moment she's half-immersed in water, her upper half in the air, and the next she's completely in the water. It's like there is a solid wall in the water that separates the air and water. The water is calm, barely a current as they swim up the tower.

Kyma would have thought that it would be stronger, considering the large channel leading up into the tower. They follow it up into the tower, spiraling up the passage. The blue waters are shadowed, grayed by the walls around them. But even so, the color is vibrant, rich. Every so often throughout the passage, there is a rounded hole, leading to one of the other floors.

The tunnel and the opening scattered through it looks so natural that Kyma almost can't believe it isn't. She can see the roof of the tower high above, flat and smooth. She frowns. Wasn't the roof of the tower pointed before? Are her eyes tricking her? Anabla keeps leading them up, Cailean following on Kyma's tail. They get closer and closer to the roof, but Anabla doesn't slow.

Kyma can see a pattern in a roof now that they're getting closer, it looks like ripples. Her eyes light up with understanding. It doesn't just look like ripples, that's what they are! It isn't a roof, it's where the water stops. There must be a larger air pocket up there. But how big is it? Is it just at the top of the tunnel, or the entire top floor? She doesn't know. Anabla breaks through the surface and shifts to the side, her dark tail a flicker of shadow.

Kyma emerges into the pocket, automatically closing her eyes. It's so bright in here, but it wasn't before. The air pocket had looked like the roof of the tower, it was shadowed like the rest of it. But the massive chamber the air pocket is in is full of light. She smiles. It feels like home. The light, it's as if she's back in the Western Merrow Kingdom, warm on her skin.

Kyma twists to look at Anabla and her eyes almost fall out of her face. Anabla's tail is no longer dark, it's a rich, vibrant red. How did she not see it before? Red fades as you get deeper, so Anabla's red tail can't be seen in deep water. But here, where it's exposed to air, her tail is so bright that you almost can't look away from it.

Kyma forces her eyes away to look around the room. It's larger than she thought it would be. Past the edges of the tunnel, it's a large flat expanse. There's a break in it, where the walls seem to jump forward, creating another room behind it. Based on the cylindrical shape of the tower and the way the wall is shaped, the room beyond it is shaped like a crescent.

Just in front of the wall are two chairs. Kyma's eyes widen at the sight. The room looked familiar before, she knows why now. She saw this room when she was viewing the memories back home. This is the throne room of this kingdom. Anabla whistles, sharply. It's a set of notes that seem odd, like she should know them but doesn't. Kyma twists back around to look at her, alarmed. Anabla just smiles reassuringly.

"Don't worry. I'm just calling for . . ."

"She called for us."

Kyma turns to see a woman walking toward them, a man just behind her. With just a single glance at their faces she knows who they are. They are Cailean and Anabla's parents. With a second glance, she can see the circlets on their brows. They are the leaders of this kingdom as well. Kyma looks back at Anabla.

"You're . . ."

Anabla smiles. "I'm the princess of the Eastern Merrow Kingdom and my brother is the prince."

"Which of you is the heir?"

The Queen's voice is sharp. "No one knows that but our family and those we believe should know. Who are you and why have my children brought you here?"

Kyma sighs and reaches into her bag. Maybe she should just keep wearing her circlet while she's here, it might be easier than taking it out each time she needs to show it to someone. She extends the circlet to the Queen, who had moved closer to her, a hand at her side. She has a dagger hidden there, Kyma can see the faint indent it makes in her clothing. The Queen takes it in her hands, turning it over in her hands. She looks at Kyma, scrutinizing her face.

"You're Lahira's daughter?"

"Yes."

"We were told that you were lost to her, in the human world."

"She thought my father didn't want us to meet, but that wasn't the case. I was in an orphanage, he died when I was very young. I knew nothing of her until a year ago."

The Queen tilts her head. "And why have you come to us? It's lovely to meet you, but I must admit, I am curious."

Kyma's mouth twitches into a nervous smile. "I need to learn how to send a water message."

The Queen's eyebrow raises.
________________________________________________________________________________
What do you think of the Eastern Merrow Queen so far? What do you think of Anabla and Cailean? What's going to happen next? Tell me your thoughts!

Happy reading and I'll see you next chapter!

~Goddess of Fate, signing out.