Page 17 of From the Mouths of Sirens

SAOIRSE

They traveled through the Maeral Sea for a day, touring the neighboring villages along the winding eastern road that led to Aurandel. Their entourage was composed of palace servants, members of the Torqen, and ambassadors of Elorshin. They paraded from one town to the next, a flurry of color and finery.

At the center of the caravan, the honored tributes were displayed in an open carriage for all to see. Six horse-like kelpies pulled their carriage, connected by glittering gold chains that caught the shifting light of the sun. Strands of seashells and pearls chimed together on their harnesses as the aquatic creatures dove over the crowds in a brilliant show of grace. The kelpies’ iridescent manes streamed behind them in a shock of deep green, mimicking the sway of seagrass in the current. The onlookers erupted into applause as the kelpie-drawn carriages left cascades of bubbles trailing behind them like banners.

Dressed in their freshly-polished Torqen armor and crowned with laurel wreaths, Saoirse, Aurelia, and Sune waved as they passed through crowds of Merfolk. Grinning children tossed golden beads and flower petals over them as they passed, staring up in wonder at the great warriors who would redeem their nation. The purple-robed Elders swam behind the tributes, led by Adda Carew.

Though Saoirse waved and smiled, every moment was surreal. She could hardly comprehend that she was a tribute in the Revelore Tournament, traveling to the famed Mt. Thalia. It was all beyond her wildest dreams. It seemed only yesterday that she had watched the tribute procession as a child, awe-struck by the tributes sent to represent Elorshin. Although it had always been her dream to compete in the Tournament, she hadn’t really believed it was a possibility. And yet, in the flurry of flowers and ceremony, a seed of guilt had taken root in her heart. Every time she lifted a hand and called to the ocean, she was reminded of what she had done. There was no power in her touch now. Not even the slightest ripple of seawater answered her call. She felt hollow without her powers. She felt even emptier knowing that she had made a deal with a criminal witch and deceived her father. Even as she waved to hopeful Merfolk and accepted countless gifts that were shoved into her hands, shame seeped into her mind like an incessant poison. She was glad she had forced her father to stay behind. With how guilty she felt, she might not have been able to go through with it had he traveled with them.

It is for the best, she told herself.

But her father’s hesitation to let her go had haunted her. There is more to the Tournament than you know. What had he meant by that? What was he not telling her?

Saoirse forced a grin, sending a beaming smile out into the crowd and effectively closing the door of her own thoughts. They sped across the crowd in a crisscross, the kelpies whinnying as the spectators roared their approval.

“He’s loving every moment of this,” Aurelia mumbled in her ear. Sune’s arms were outstretched, waving to the crowd as if he were the sole tribute sent to Aurandel.

“And I’m loving every minute that he gets under your skin,” Saoirse replied. She could remember when the three of them had trained together as young soldiers, competitive even then. Three years ahead of her, Sune and Aurelia had always been at each other’s throats, battling for the right to lead the Torqen. But although they were rivals, Saoirse was secretly grateful that Sune had been chosen. Though Aurelia would never admit it, every soldier knew that she and Sune were like two sides of the same coin. Together, the three of them actually stood a fighting chance in the arena.

“How far are we from the Coast of Delore?” Saoirse asked, squinting into the great expanse of crystal blue waves ahead of them. Twinkling lights of more Mer villages shone in the distance, strung together like a necklace of pearls.

“Only a few more hours,” Aurelia replied, looking skyward at the waters above them. The eastern road stretched out through the Maeral Sea like a great serpent, cutting through underwater ravines and valleys as any road on land might. “I’d imagine we’d reach the harbor by the late afternoon.”

“And we are to be ferried by the Aura from the harbor to the mountain?” Saoirse asked, trying to remember the detailed itinerary that had been given to them by Vangelis Mitrou, Tournament Ambassador of Elorshin.

“Yes,” Aurelia answered. “And I suspect our Auran hosts will want to boast their technology while they’re at it.”

She wondered how they would be transported across the vast woodlands of Aurandel in such a short time. They were expected to arrive in time for the tribute banquet that evening, and it would take at least a week to travel by foot. As much as she despised the winged people, Saoirse had to admit she was curious to see how they lived. Centuries ago, the four nations of Revelore would travel across the continent often, conducting trade and exchanging goods with each other regularly. But now, finding a Revelorian who had ever ventured beyond their own nation was rare. Aurandel’s strict trade sanctions and embargoes made it impossible for merchants to sell their wares beyond their borders, except only under strict Auran supervision. Saoirse herself had only stepped foot on land a handful of times, journeying to the neutral islands that hovered over the Maeral Sea to train with the Torqen.

“I’ve heard they have flying carriages,” Sune offered, looking over his shoulder at them.

“Eavesdropping again, are we Captain Kresten?” Aurelia asked, tossing Saoirse a look of annoyance.

“We are a team now, are we not? Any words you have to share with Saoirse are to be shared with me too.”

Aurelia smirked. “Feeling left out? There will be plenty of time to talk in the arena, you know.”

Sune frowned, clearly unamused by Aurelia’s banter. “How could I forget that my life is in the hands of my greatest rival?” he mumbled to himself. “Don’t kill me before we get there.”

* * *

Several hours later, Saoirse stared up at the massive dock columns that jutted out from the sea floor. Countless docks stretched out from the embankment, with huge ships chained along the length of planks. From her vantage point, the rows of wooden columns stood like a great underwater forest, spilling out through the shallow waters for as far as the eye could see. Shafts of golden sunlight cut through the turquoise waves, casting patterns of shadow over their entourage. The sand floor was marbled in orange and shadows, shifting as the waves churned above.

At the very far end of the harbor, an ancient set of stairs emerged from the sand. The cracked stone staircase was covered in algae and moss. Two stone statues guarded the stairs, standing on either side. Vines curled along their marble bodies, growing there after years of neglect. On the left side, a Mer woman stood with outstretched arms, her hair flowing around her head as if she was a real being standing in the water. On the right, an Auran male stretched out his stone wings, a soft smile on his stoic face. Saoirse shuddered as they swam to the staircase. Crafted centuries ago, the staircase represented a union between the people of the sea and the people of the air, a gateway for all people to cross. Now, the bridge that once unified the kingdoms was crumbling and worn, the faces of its stone guardians chipped with jagged edges.

Stepping from the kelpie-pulled carriage, Saoirse and her fellow tributes swam to the staircase. She gulped in fresh seawater, anxiety knotting in her stomach. It was the last time she would breathe in the familiar waves until she returned home from the Tournament.

Until we return to Kellam Keep with the Crown in our hands, she told herself.

Their entourage of Mer began climbing the grand staircase, most of the younger servants and attendants staring in wonder at the marvelous feat of architecture. Saoirse felt the pull of the sea as she rose step by step, as if it was begging her to stay in its safe, watery embrace. She continued to climb, the feel of the algae-soft steps strange on her webbed toes. She suddenly realized that on land she would have to wear shoes. In the cool waves of the ocean, she had no need for boots or covered feet. It was such a minuscule thought compared to what she was about to face in the Tournament, but the mere notion of something as simple as clothing represented so much more.

Everything was about to change.

The water warmed as they neared the surface, the afternoon sun filtering through the clear water in beams of gold. Saoirse looked up, her eyes widening at the sight of the sky just beyond the wall of waves. With one more gulp of seawater, she broke the surface of the ocean, a rush of hot air quickly enveloping her. She choked in the dry wind and gasped for air. She fumbled for the vial of titansblood elixir in her purse, given to her by the Elders right before they departed from Kellam. Uncorking it quickly, Saoirse choked down the foul potion in a swift gulp. Since training on the Isles of Mythos every summer with the Torqen, she had long-since learned to splash it down her throat as quickly as possible. She could feel her lung capacity adjusting, the willowherb and mangrove concoction slowly enabling her to breathe on the surface. Her insides twisted painfully and her throat went as dry as the Shujaa Desert. But then she could breathe, her lungs taking in the air as though she had always breathed on land. She opened her eyes, taking in the sight of white sand. The other Mer in their party were choking down titansblood, gasping for air like fishes out of water. Without the elixir, none of them would have been able to last long on the surface.

Saoirse looked to Aurelia, who stared at the sky as if she had never seen it before. Of course they had ventured onto the Isles many times, but for some reason, this felt daunting and different. The vibrant blue sky swept across the horizon, dotted with tufts of white clouds. And beyond the beach, a swath of deep green unfurled across rolling hills. The great woodlands of Aurandel swept across the land in a blanket of trees for as fas as the eye could see. And beyond the woodlands, Mt. Thalia stretched into the clouds, a gigantic wall of stone that seemed to grow out of the earth and into the sky like a living creature. Rising above the endless sweep of trees, the great beast of a mountain stood like a faithful protector of Aurandel, a titan guarding its people and lifting them into the clouds.

“Hel’s teeth. It’s quite something, isn’t it?” Aurelia breathed beside her, nodding to the impressive mountain that loomed in the distance.

---