Page 33 of Of Song and Darkness

“Kai!”

The hiss of more sirens as they climbed over the edge of the ship nearly drowned Rhea’s voice. I cut another one down that was closest to me and threw a dagger at another one that teetered on the railing. The blade sank deep into her chest, and her wail almost shattered my eardrums before her lifeless body fell back into the sea.

Rhea’s stare caught my attention, and I lifted my eyes to meet hers. She glanced sidelong at the men who were slowly but surely breaking the ropes that bound them, then to the sirens that continued to climb up the side of the ship.

I saw it in her eyes before she started shedding her clothes and discarding them on the ship’s deck.

“Rhea, no!” It was more of a plea than a command, and the anguish in my tone caught me off guard.

She glanced at me one last time with sorrow in her eyes before she plummeted over the edge of the ship. The sirens climbing up the boat abandoned their tasks and dove after Rhea into the abyss.

Rhea

My lungs felt like they folded in on themselves as I hit the water. I kicked and fought my way back to the surface, gasping for air when my head popped above the water.

“Rhea!” My salt-stung eyes blinked a few times, trying to clear my vision as Kai’s voice rang out over the water. I glanced toward the ship but saw no sirens and heard none singing. The men returned to their senses and shed the ropes tethering them to the mast. Kai hit the railing hard, and it looked like he intended to jump in after me. Fear clenched my chest but instantly released its hold when Cael tackled Kai to the deck, the two of them disappearing from sight.

I spun in the water, disturbed by the eerie silence. Where were the sirens?

Claws ripped through the skin of my ankle. As I opened my mouth to scream, a sudden force yanked me beneath the surface, forcing me to gulp down a mouthful of the briny sea. I kicked and fought against the bone-crushing grip, but two more sirens swam up, seized my arms, and forcefully pulled me deeper into the abyss, overpowering me. My lungs screamed for relief as air bubbled from my nose the deeper they dragged me.

I smiled when the familiar excruciating pain shot down my legs. My transformations were unpredictable, seemingly triggered only when I immersed myself fully in seawater. However, when I leaped off the boat, there remained the possibility that I would retain my human form—a gamble I willingly embraced.

I breathed deeply, the water finally flowing through my gills. The thick muscles in my tail ached, but my anger outweighed the pain. With a mighty swoop of my fins, I knocked the two sirens still clinging to my arms away. The water instantly turned crimson with their blood.

Two more came at me, teeth bared and claws extended, seeking my blood. Kai’s words rang in my ears, and I studied their every movement. When one attacked, I saw it coming. I flipped in the water, using my tail as a weapon. As I struck her in the head, the pop of bones snapping echoed throughout the water. Her body went limp and floated lifelessly to the bottom of the lagoon.

A sinister smile brushed my lips as the other sirens paused in the water, their pupils dilated with hate as they watched me. "Not so simple when you're pitted against one of your own kind," I spat, bracing for another attack.

“Traitor,” one hissed. “You will die for this.”

She struck out at me, but I easily evaded her assault, sending her spiraling through the current.

A cry ripped from my lungs as another siren snuck up behind me, slashing her nails through the delicate skin along my spine. The open wounds felt like they were on fire as the salt in the water licked them. I slammed my fins into her perfect face, blood gushing from her nose and mouth. My breath hitched when more of them ascended from the depths, surrounding me on all sides.

“Enough!” The golden-haired siren that was serenading from the rock slowly eased from the shadowy depths, stopping a few feet in front of me.

I held my head higher despite the searing pain in my back as her gaze ventured up and down my body. With a flick of her tail fin, she pushed herself closer. “Who are you?”

I returned her leer, my eyes traveling over her form. “Rhea, Princess of Aquarius.”

The surrounding area echoed with gasps.

“Liar,” one with dark hair retorted.

“Why would I lie?” I countered.

She swam closer to me, her eyes boring a hole in my face. “To save your skin,” she mused.

“Quiet!” the blond siren thundered.

I held perfectly still, refusing to shrink back as she ran her slender fingers through my hair, her sharp nails lightly brushing across my cheek.

She released my hair, and the crimson strand floated back toward me. “She speaks the truth. I have never seen the Princess, but everyone knows only she has such attributes.” She pointed to my scarlet locks floating in the water around my face and then motioned to the iridescent pink scales lining my tail.

For once, I rejoiced in my unusual coloring. I often cursed the ruby-red hair inherited from my father and my mother’s lustrous coral-pink tail, but not today.

The siren paused as if still considering me. “I am Genevien, Queen of the northern sirens, and these,” she swept her hand through the water, “are my people.”

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