Tideline

Chapter Five

The seaquake was a small one compared to some of the others we had had recently. Still it was unsettling. The frequency and locations of the recent seaquakes had our scientists worried. Along with the unusually strong, out of season storms. Tonight was a Lênbíd, Clan meeting, where my mother met with all the Clan leaders, and there were scientists attending that were going to present some important findings. It was supposed to be an important affair and I had to attend, even though I wanted nothing more than to go back to my observatory and to see the alien again.

I spent the rest of the day alternating between worry for the alien and anger at the way my mother kept treating me. I had tried to leave my room only to find out that palace guards had been ordered to follow me. Dāl burning, I had returned to my room and waited until nightfall. The tide rose along with the twin moons, Akêl and K(oe) ̅ff. I watched the larger moon, K(oe) ̅ff rise above the sea, only half full tonight but her brilliant crimson and gold surface shone across the waters. The smaller moon, Akêl, followed. She was full tonight and her soft light shone through my window and lit the waters within in silver and lavender hues. It was beautiful, and I wished I was back at my observatory so I could study their surfaces more closely, but I had an important assembly to attend.

Clan meetings were one of our oldest traditions, back when we were a purely nomadic people roaming the waves, we had also been a warlike people who had fought with one another for centuries until the Clans had finally been united under one queen. I'lênbíd had been a way for various Clan leaders to meet with one another and speak about different problems and grievances before they turned into war. It had worked, sometimes.

Clan meetings were also a time when one could challenge for leadership. Strength was valued among my people, for it took strength to survive the waves, but it was not the strength of body that won someone a leadership position but that of Ak(ae) ̌ffa. It was an old tradition, but one could still place a challenge in these days if they wanted and sing for the right to lead. One could even challenge my mother for the right to be queen, or king. But my mother had earned her position through the strength of her formidable Ak(ae) ̌ffa and the people knew it. I doubted there would be any challenges tonight.

I wondered if that obsession with strength was partly why my people suffered so from our experiences with the Burning Ones. Our first experience with alien life involved being beaten by a race stronger than us. And so we hid, we withdrew from space and exploration and hid on our world. Defeated, licking our wounds and wounded pride, knowing that we were not the strongest in the galaxy. It hurt me to see my people like this, hiding away when we could have the stars.

I placed my royal chest-piece on, a smaller and less elaborate version of the one my mother wore and tied a soft belt with long tassels and beads across my waist. Using green and blue paint I painted coiling i'korená across my arms and swirling cloud designs across my face. Staring into the mirror I wanted to believe that I presented a royal image, the perfect picture of a princess. Instead I only saw someone who was strange and small. Medá was what they called me. Someone who's hair didn't match her scales, a rare thing that was strange to see. Medá also meant 'strange' or 'odd.' That was me...the strange princess.

In appearance I shared many features with my late father. I had the same long, golden sunlight hair and golden skin. I had the same eyes of pale turquoise shading to brilliant blue and darkening to twilight purple. But my scales and tail were green shading to blue and finally indigo. And I was small, smaller than my mother even, and weak. I had been born weak and sickly and had nearly not made it past my first liielsyhlūn. My mother had often told me it was a miracle I had survived.

I finished preparing for tonight's affair, tying my hair back with braided ropes made of kǔlii metal and studded with pâ gems. The golden starburst centers of the pâ gems matched my hair and glittered brightly amid intricate golden braids, but I was fully aware that no matter how many jewels I wore I would still be medá. Sighing heavily, I swam to the door and headed back to the throne room, followed by my guards/captors. Tide was high now, over half of the city lay under water, but the rooms were only half full thanks to the various n'anèlfel in place.