Page 1 of Seas and Scepters

Chapter One

Selene

The sacred pearls felt cold against my throat as I fastened the ancient necklace, each luminescent sphere whispering with the power of a thousand siren queens before me.My fingers trembled—not from fear, but from anticipation.Tonight, I would claim my thirteenth victim and prove myself worthy of the crown that had been denied to me since my brother Caelum's death.

I floated before the mirror of polished abalone shell in my chambers, studying my reflection with critical eyes.The ceremonial jewelry of my bloodline adorned my pale skin like captured starlight: the pearl choker that had graced Queen Nerissa's throat during the Great Storm Wars, the silver arm cuffs engraved with ancient runes that had belonged to my great-grandmother Amphitrite, and the delicate chain of sea glass that would catch the moonlight as I sang my prey to their doom.

My silver-white hair cascaded over my shoulders in waves that mimicked the ocean's surface, and I wove strands of kelp through the lengths—a tradition as old as our kingdom.The dark green ribbons would help me blend with the sea's shadows until the moment I chose to reveal myself.My tail, iridescent silver, and teal like captured moonbeams, caught the bioluminescent light of my chamber's coral formations.Every scale had been polished to perfection by my attendants, each one sharp enough to cut through water like liquid silk.

"Princess Selene."My mother's voice carried across the water, formal and distant as always.Queen Thalassa glided into my chambers with the fluid grace that marked our royal bloodline, her midnight-blue tail propelling her forward in elegant undulations.Her crown of black pearls and silver sat heavy on her brow, matching the weight I saw in her sapphire eyes.

"Mother."I inclined my head respectfully, though my heart yearned for some sign of maternal warmth.Since Caelum's death, she had grown even more remote, as if loving too deeply invited only pain.

"You look...magnificent."Her voice held a note I couldn't quite decipher.Pride?Sorrow?Fear?"The blood of queens flows through your veins tonight, daughter.Remember that."

I nodded, touching the pearl necklace at my throat."I will not fail."

Something flickered across her features—too quick for me to catch."See that you don't.Your father awaits you in the throne room.It is time."

The great coral throne room stretched before me like a cathedral beneath the waves, its vaulted ceiling disappearing into the dark water above.Bioluminescent creatures provided ethereal lighting, their gentle glow illuminating the assembled court.Nobles floated in careful formation, their whispers creating a susurrus of sound that reminded me of waves against shore.

King Nereon sat upon his throne of twisted black coral and pearl, the Trident of Power cradled in his right hand.The ancient weapon pulsed with a deep blue light that seemed to emanate from the very heart of the ocean itself.My father's silver-blue tail coiled beneath him, his muscular form radiating the kind of power that had kept our kingdom safe for three centuries.His cold green eyes fixed on me as I approached, and I felt their weight like the pressure of the deepest trenches.

"Selene of the Silver Depths," he intoned, his voice carrying to every corner of the vast chamber."Tonight you undertake the Thirteenth Trial, the final test that will prove your worthiness to inherit the crown of the seas."

I swam forward and bowed low, my hair floating around me like a silver cloud."I am ready, Your Majesty."

"Twelve souls have already fallen to your song," he continued, his words echoing off the coral walls."Twelve human hearts have ceased their beating at your command.Tonight, you claim the thirteenth and final life that will seal your destiny as my heir."

The assembled court murmured their approval, but I caught the edge in my father's voice—the warning that lived beneath his formal words.We both knew what failure meant.No princess in the history of our people had ever failed the Thirteenth Trial.Those who could not complete it were deemed unworthy of rule, too weak to protect our kingdom from the surface dwellers who had hunted us for millennia.

"Understand this, daughter," his voice dropped to a whisper that somehow carried to every ear present."Should you fail—should your voice prove insufficient, should your resolve waver—you will be cast out from these depths forever.No child of mine who cannot command death itself deserves to wear the crown."

The threat hung in the water between us like a living thing.Exile meant more than losing my title—it meant losing everything I was, everything I had ever been.A siren cut off from the sea was no siren at all, merely a creature caught between two worlds, belonging to neither.

"I understand, Father."My voice remained steady despite the cold dread that had settled in my chest."I will not fail."

He studied me for a long moment, those ancient eyes seeming to peer into my very soul.Finally, he nodded."Then go.The moon is high, and human ships sail the surface waters.Find your prey and complete your destiny."

I turned and swam from the throne room, feeling the weight of a thousand gazes upon my back.The court would wait for my return, counting the hours until I could present proof of my success.In the old days, sirens brought back treasures from their victims—rings, medallions, hearts torn still-beating from chests.But our ways had evolved, become more subtle.Now, we simply returned with the knowledge of our success, trusting in the honor of the royal blood.

The palace corridors blurred past me as I swam upward, following the ancient pathways that led to the surface.Schools of luminescent fish parted before me, their silver bodies creating living constellations in my wake.Kelp forests swayed in the current, and I could feel the pull of the surface world growing stronger with each stroke of my tail.

As I rose through the thermal layers, my thoughts turned to my brother.Caelum had never needed to complete the Thirteenth Trial—as the male heir, his path to the throne had been secured through combat prowess and political acumen.He had died defending our borders from the sea demons that occasionally rose from the deepest trenches, and with his death, the burden of succession had fallen to me.

Show them you are worthy,his voice seemed to whisper in the current.Show them that our bloodline breeds more than just warriors.

The surface broke around me like shattered glass, and I gasped as the alien sensation of air touched my face.Above, the moon hung full and silver in a star-scattered sky, its light creating a pathway across the dark waters.The sea was calm tonight, perfect for hunting.Humans trusted in still waters, believing the ocean's silence meant safety.

They could not have been more wrong.

I floated just beneath the surface, my enhanced senses scanning the horizon.There—cutting through the moonlight like a blade through silk—the dark silhouette of a ship.My heart quickened as I recognized the royal banners snapping in the night breeze.A prince sailed these waters, surrounded by his guards and sailors.Perfect prey for a siren's final trial.

I swam closer, staying hidden beneath the waves until I could hear the voices of the men above.Their laughter carried across the water, full of the careless confidence that came from never imagining the dangers that lurked beneath their vessels.How many ships had I approached like this?How many sailors had I lured to watery graves with nothing but my voice and the promise of beauty?

Twelve times I had sung, and twelve times men had thrown themselves into the sea to reach me.Twelve times I had watched the light fade from their eyes as the ocean claimed them.It should have bothered me more than it did, but I had been raised to see humans as the enemy—surface dwellers who had hunted my people for sport, who had driven us into the deepest places of the ocean with their iron weapons and religious fervor.

Tonight would be no different.Tonight, I would claim my thirteenth victim and return home a queen.

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