Eclipse

Chapter 32

Grant's POV

I returned to the surface, taking only a few moments to adjust to land again before running all the way to the village. People recognized me and smiled, someone offering me a new outfit since mine was now soaked but I just politely declined and rushed to the palace. Of course it was not completely repaired, nowhere near.

Nightfall did quite the damage to it, but we did ask him too. Eclipse and her dads lived there though since the part of the castle that took all the damage was the east wings. The rest was miraculously untouched. Or at least repaired and was safe.

As I walked in, I was surprised attacked by Eclipse. Her grinning as she held onto me and I was on the floor.

"GRanTTTTTT! Why haven't you been by to visit this week!" She said loudly. I laughed, rolling us so she was underneath me.

"Sorry, been busy helping my dad." I said, Eclipse whining.

"Hey get off you're heavy." She said with a huff. I smiled, climbing off of her and helping her to her feet.

"Now we're even. Anyway. is Akihiko here?" I asked, Eclipse shaking her head.

"No. I haven't seen him since, well, that whole fight. Maybe he went back to where his family lived."

"Huh?"

"Well, remember that his parents basically sold him to the king and queen?"

"Yeah?"

"Doesn't mean he doesn't care about his parents. I think he said something about wanting to make sure his parents were okay."

"I see. Where do his parents live? Not here do they?"

"I have no idea." Eclipse said with a shrug. I furrowed my brows, a bit upset. Where on earth could he have gone? And why would he go without telling Eclipse or me. How was I supposed to find him. Eclipse tilted her head and put her hand on my shoulder.

"Wanna borrow a horse to get around to find him?" She offered. I glanced at her before sighing.

"Yeah um. I'll take you up on that offer. But, can I go talk to someone first?"

"Well of course, I'm not stopping you from talking to people."

"Well yes, but he lives in your dungeon."

"The overseer guy?"

"Mhm."

"If you want to." She said, leading me towards the dungeons. The prisoners here lucked out, in a way. They were far underground. Some of the cells had debris in them from shaky ceilings, but it was sturdy enough. It just must have scared the living daylights out of them, like a massive earthquake.

After Eclipse told the guards to move and unlocked the entrance, she left me be as I walked down the corridor. A few servants cleaning up. At the very back of the dungeons was who I was looking for. I stood in front of the cell bars, looking around until the guy almost seemed to pop up out of nowhere, startling me.

"Ah, the young merman prince. Or should I say, used-to-be prince, ever since the trident has rejected you for another."

"I-"

"You've come here to figure out where your young lover has gone, yes?"

"Yes."

"Mmm. I could tell you. Or I could not."

"...Is it something you want in return?"

"What I want is useless from you unless your other half is here."

"So. You'll tell me nothing about where he is?"

"What if I give you some hints."

"Fine."

"So desperate to see you again, he went to the place to wait for you. But someone else found him first." He said. I asked him what he meant, but he just smiled at me. I guess that was all I was getting out of him.. I thanked him and left, mumbling the words to myself repeatedly. 

"So. He tell you anything?" Eclipse said once I found her.

"He said that.. 'he went to the place to wait for me. But someone else found him first'..?"

"Huh? What's that supposed to mean?"

"I'm not sure.."

"Went to a place to wait for you.... wait for you... do you think he had gone to the shore where you guys last saw each other???"

"He could have. But who the hell would have found him first..?"

"I don't know. Come on, let's go look." She said, running off to tell her dads. Both of them told us to be safe as we rushed off. Once we returned to the shore, I looked around carefully for any signs of, anything. We trailed further down the shore both ways, but still found nothing. I felt frustrated.

"Ugh.. what happened to him...!" I semi-shouted, in both frustration and worry. Eclipse grabbed my hand with a small smile.

"Hey we'll find him. But we have to be calm. It'll be no good for either of us if we're in a panic." I nodded, knowing she was right. I took in a deep breath to calm myself before continuing to look. Eclipse was tired, so we took a mini break. She must be exhausted. She's been busy night and day helping her fathers rebuild the kingdom. While she was sitting on a nearby rock, I looked out at the water. Squinting to see someone was curiously watching us in the water.

I walked into the water, Eclipse asking what I was doing. I just muttered I'd be back before going in deeper, holding my breath until I had my tail. I swam towards the figure who was still watching. As I got closer, I very slightly recognized who, well, more like what, it was.

"What are you doing in these waters." I asked the siren. She just flipped her tail at me before tilting her head. 

"You aren't so scary anymore without having the power of the trident on your side."

"Pardon?"

"Aw come on prince. It's clear that you're no longer the trident's chosen one."

"Chosen one or not, what are you doing here."

"Why, I was looking for you. But now that I found you, and found out that you aren't the next rightful ruler... you're pretty useless to me." 

"What did you want."

"Doesn't matter what I wanted. What matters is what YOU want. Maybe you can help me out, and I'll give you what you want."

"...What are you-"

"Oh, unless that boy who sat on the beach the other day wasn't waiting for you?" The siren asked with a provoking tone. So. She's the one who found him first. I scowled at her when Eclipse decided to join me.

"Hey Grant what ha- ...You." She said to the siren. The siren smiled and waved, Eclipse sighing.

"You two know each other?"

"Meh, kinda. That's Satori's and Wakatoshi's daughter." Eclipse said. I looked back at the siren. Ahh, now I saw it. Her fire red hair matched her dad's, and her strong demeanor matched her father's. She just grinned at me as I clenched my fists.

"Fine. But show me where Akihiko is first."