Des'Tai: Book Two

195: Tyron

I don't know what I expected of Hilara, since all the books I'd read in the Difoda library had painted it out to be an aquatic paradise of sorts, all lush greenery and glistening blue water. But as I stood on the steps of Thebe palace, paradise wouldn't be my choice of wording.

Thebe was tucked away into the corner of the city, nestled on the outskirts and situated beside a towering cliff face. It wasn't in its own secluded area, there were no walls, gates or pathways in sight, instead the stairs led directing onto the grey-stoned street beyond. Tall trees with long necks and large, droopy leaves flanked along the pathway, their colours bright against the blanched grey brick that this city was made up from.

Thebe was also at the end of a lane, with no sign of a canal nearby.

Rune dropped down off the last step and stretched his arms behind his back. "Wow, it smells so fresh here."

Nero filled his lungs with a deep breath. "I can smell the ocean. For a place surrounded by forests, Amethyst Falls doesn't smell half as nice as this place!"

I had to admit, they were right. Every breath I took was filled with the fresh wind blowing in from the ocean, the scents of seaweed and salt lingering on the gentle breeze. Rune came up behind me and pushed me forward. "C'mon, let's go find us a Siren!"

Nero stopped in his tracks. "We're not going to go looking for one, are we?"

"What's up, Red? Not scared are you?" Rune asked, rolling his eyes. "They're basically women with tails. Or fish."

"They're deadly, Rune..." Nero sighed, his gaze catching mine. "I'd like to get home to Senna in one piece."

Ignoring Rune's sarcastic comment that followed, I slapped my hand onto Nero's shoulder, guiding him forward down the wide street. "Stick with me, bud, and you'll be fine. I won't let a fish woman eat you, because that would piss off Senna...and that would in turn piss Faye off, too. Angry Mates are highly unpleasant."

A hint of a smirk tugged at Nero's mouth, before he nodded his head and followed alongside me. Rune walked ahead, only slowing down when we reached the end of the lane and the entrance to the market place sprang up – right up along the city's winding canal.

I typically slowed, peering dubiously over the railings and into the swirling blue water below.

"I don't see anything, do you?" Rune leant his forearms onto the railings to examine the water for himself. "I thought Rowan said they were by the marketplace playing..."

I gripped at his jacket, pulling him up straight before he captured any unwanted attention. "Stop that. We're here to check the place out, not hunt for them."

Rune slapped by hand away. "Can't we do both?"

"No." Nero answered for me.

"You two are as fucking boring as a wet rag!"

When I finally got Rune away from the railings, we made our way through the marketplace and the two dozen stalls within it; each one was filled with ocean or sea life themed products, from clothes, to jewellery, clocks, mugs and children's toys. I knew one human who would love to take a slow walk to browse down here before we left.

By the time we reached the end of the street the sound of splashing water was drowning out the chatter of the market. Rune barely missed a beat as he pushed his way through the crowd and towards the noise.

I spared a quick glance at Nero, who looked at me nervously as he tucked his necklace beneath his shirt and out of sight. He wasn't about to take any risks, and I couldn't blame him. Ever since he'd discovered that Senna was his Mate, his whole attitude to missions had changed; Nero had something to lose now, and if there was an ounce of danger to something he tried his best to avoid it.

Whereas I ran into it head on. Maybe it was time I took a leaf out of my friend's book, since I was the Bonded one and all.

Rune had crossed a small stone bridge, only to stop half way and lean against the wall to watch the thrashing water below. Nero and I flanked his sides, just as a loud and shrill laugh burst out from the depths beneath us.

Leaning against the wall of the canal, her bright purple and blue tail swishing listlessly through the water, her scales catching at the sun's rays, was an actual, real as hell Siren, and she wasn't alone.

All the images I'd seen in books were surprisingly accurate.

Four of them in total were swishing and swirling around in the canal, the colour of their tails matching the hair on their heads perfectly. One was sun bright yellow, another was an emerald green, while the other was a deep sunset orange. The mixture of colours looked like a rainbow on a backdrop of blue.

The first one I'd noticed, the purple one, pushed herself up to sit on the wall, the base of her long tail remained in the water as she raised her face to the warm sun. She raked her fingers through her long, wet purple hair, and with each stroke of her hand I noticed her hair drying, draping her shoulders in soft, luscious waves. It was then I noticed the scales along her body, too. They weren't as dark as those on her tail, but they were stark in contrast to her caramel skin, lining the edges of her hairline, curling down the nape of her neck and over her collarbones, then sweeping around the outside of her breasts, leading down the sides of her body until it meddled in with the darker scales of her tail.

One thing that took me by surprise, however, was her ears. They were taller and pointier than an Elf, evidently pushing their way out from beneath her hair and reaching skyward. Her eyes were sharp and narrow, her nose straight and slender above her plump, full lips. It was easy to see how they were so deadly to the opposite sex.

Suddenly, she turned her head and looked at me, her amethyst eyes bright as they caught hold of mine. A slow smile crept to her lips, and it was borderline predatory.

Fuck.

I swallowed but I couldn't look away, her stare was holding me in place, trapping me to the spot. "You're new around here," She purred, her hands dropping from her hair. Her voice was unusual and heavily accented, like a mixture of native Hilarian and something else, something more exotic, almost sing-song. "I'd remember a face like yours."

When I never offered her a response, mostly because I'd suddenly forgotten how to speak, the Siren's smile grew wider. "The silent type, I see."

When she finally looked away from me, I heard her begin to hum. At first the sound hit my ears like a soft, lulling melody, but whatever magic it held quickly vanished as the Song Stone around my neck kicked in, and all I could hear then was a harmless whine of sorts.

Two hands gripped my arms, pulling me away from the edge of the wall and breaking me from my apparent trance. "Ty!"

I blinked and shook my head to find Nero in front of me, his face a mask on concern. "Bro, are you okay?"

"Yeah, of course..." I rubbed my hand across my face. "It took a while for my necklace to work though. Did either of you two hear the music?"

Rune's brow furrowed together in a frown. "No, all I heard was whining! You heard the music?! What was it like?"

"Only for a second," I corrected him. "At least we know the Stones work."

Rune visibly pouted. "She didn't even look in my direction. She's stunning though, so I can see what Artie meant about there being a lot of Siren/Elf sexy time. I wouldn't say no."

"Of course you wouldn't," Nero sighed with a shake of his head. "Can we go now? They're making me nervous."