The Seelie Curse

Chapter 26

Shock and panic send Astrila's heart racing, but she keeps her face calm. "What? Why?"

"When an innocent child twisted his curse, she made a mistake. She tied the life of her sister to it. The curse breaks, so does she."

Kyma stumbles backward. She almost steps right into the pool, Astrila has to pull her back. Kyma shakes her head, her eyes wild. "No, no, no."

Ciorsdan smiles. "Oh yes. I'm half-Seelie, half-merrow. I'm that human child's great-aunt. And if you break that curse, I will die. I won't let that happen."

"The prophecy says we will stop it, and we shall."

Astrila's expression narrows as she watches Ciorsdan. Kyma's words don't seem to have angered her. She's smiling slightly, it's so faint that it can barely be seen. Astrila shifts, blocking Kyma from Ciorsdan's view. Her words are guarded, careful. Wary, even. Ciorsdan is up to something.

"What are you planning?"

Ciorsdan's smile grows. "Who's to say I'm planning anything? All I need to do is stop you from breaking the curse. I don't think that requires much planning at all."

"Why?"

Ciorsdan's smile grows again. Its edges are cruel, turned up in malicious joy. Her children seem to see it too, they come moving toward her through the pool of water. She flicks her hand and they freeze in place. But it isn't their bodies themselves that are frozen, there is ice spreading across the surface of the pool, trapping them in place.

They keep pushing, trying to break through. The ice cracks around them and refreezes but they're gaining headway. Ciorsdan must be freezing the water, but Astrila doesn't think she's trying to hurt her children, just stop them. So the ice is thin. Astrila tugs Kyma back, towards the pool. It might only be a step away, but they need any bit of extra time they can get.

Astrila repeats her question, but she doesn't phrase it as such this time. Her voice is flat, tense. "Why won't you need planning."

"Because merrows may not hold any powers over names, but Seelies do. And I'm not just a merrow."

Astrila's eyes widen and a word slips out her mouth in a single breath. "No."

Ciorsdan smiles. "Oh, yes. Astrila, Kyma, forget this encounter."

Astrila was diving for the water the moment the first syllable escaped Ciorsdan's lips. She drags Kyma with her, the other girl a little more hesitant. The power of the name is already impacting her. Astrila doesn't know why it hasn't done the same to her yet, but she doesn't care. It's not important right now. They need to get out of here. They need to get to Ro and tell her everything.

The ice slices at Astrila's skin as she breaks through it and the salt water beneath stings fiercely. She knows she'll be in much more pain later, but they have to get out of here first. Kyma is dead weight behind her, her mind must still be muddled by her name's use. Astrila pulls her along anyway. Just before she shifts, she can hear Ciorsdan scream in range, her cry ending with a rapid rush of words.

"Anabla, Cailean, and Ellair, forget this encounter."

Astrila is horrified by what she hears from Ciorsdan. How is this woman so far gone that she can do that to her own family? Astrila swims deeper, trying to find an exit. Kyma makes a muffled sound and Astrila glances back to see the girl is still in her human form. She curses and pulls air down to them from above, shifting for a brief moment.

"Shift, Kyma!"

Kyma looks to be horrible confused, but Astrila doesn't have time to explain. Kyma seems to realize that too, she shifts without complaint. Astrila takes a deep breath and returns to her seal form before she releases the bubble of air and pushes her body back into a swim as quickly as she can. Kyma follows much easier this time, her tail pumping madly to push her down to the bottom of the tower.

Astrila takes a half-second to debate moving to one of the other floors and finding a way out that way, but they don't have time for that. They'll waste more time trying to find another way out that if they take the route they came in. They stop for a quick breath at the first breathing spot and then the two of them swim out the tower. They swim up to the surface so fast that Astrila can feel the pressure releasing in her ears.

She breaks through the surface with a splash, so intent on getting out of there as quickly as possible. The sky has darkened but not as much as she had feared. It's evening, but early evening. The shoreline is perhaps a kilometer or two away, only a few minutes. Astrila moves for the shoreline. Her teeth ache. She takes a breath, inhaling the salty air through her nose. They're at the shoreline now, the water is only a few meters deep. She shifts and swims the few meters remaining until she can stand. She wades out of the water and breaks into a run. But she's slower, something's holding her back. Slowly, she looks down. She's gripping Kyma's arm in her own, squeezing so tightly that Kyma's flesh is paler than it normally is. She releases Kyma's arm, her eyes wide.

"I'm sorry."

Kyma smiles weakly. "Would you mind telling me what's going on?"

"We need to get back to Ro. I'll explain things then."

"But-"

Astrila shakes her head. "This has to wait. Trust me."
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So now we know who made the curse able to be broken. Also, I guess I was wrong about the cover not fitting the theme. Hey Guinealove2005 did you know it before I did? How? I didn't even know this was going to happen, but now there's a character that fits the cover!

What do you guys think will happen now that Ciorsdan has used their names against them? Tell me your thoughts!

Happy reading and I'll see you next chapter!

~Goddess of Fate, signing out.