Page 23 of Rise of the Siren Queen
“We’re in this together,” Sienna replied, her voice steady and reassuring, yet I could sense an undercurrent of anxiety beneath her calm exterior. Today, even her strength felt like a tenuous lifeline.
“Together,” Elora echoed, though her face remained grim. The notion was both comforting and suffocating. The three of us had faced challenges before, but this… this was different.
“Okay, let’s get going. We have memories to change,” I said with dread, my words sinking in. Each syllable felt like a stone dropped into the depths of the ocean, rippling with the implications of what we were about to undertake.
As we swam away, the unease coiling in my gut sharpened into something colder, a prickle at the nape of my neck that refused to fade. It crawled down my spine, each pulse sending a shiver through me.
The palace corridors blurred past, their luminescent delesseria casting ghostly flickers of light as I surged forward, cutting through the currents with frantic speed. My lungs burned, my heart slammed against my ribs, but I couldn’t slow down.
Panic wasn’t just a whisper in my mind, it was in my blood, surging, clawing, demanding to be heard.
The cavernous hall ahead loomed, its entrance dark and foreboding, swallowing the faint glow of laminaria that adorned the walls.
A chill crept down my spine as I stepped closer, my heart pounding with a sense of impending dread. Ronan, who was supposed to be on guard, was nowhere to be found. His absence felt like a fracturein our carefully constructed reality, unsettling and strange.
“Something isn’t right.” The words left me in a hush, laced with a tension and confusion I couldn’t shake. A weight settled deep in my chest, pressing tighter with each breath.
“Where’s Ronan?” I turned to Elora, my pulse hammering as I caught the flicker of confusion in her eyes, an eerie echo of my own rising dread.
“He would never leave without an order,” Elora replied, her brow furrowing in concern. “It’s not like him at all.”
A knot of anxiety tightened in my stomach. Ronan was cocky, but he was also loyal. He wouldn’t disobey orders, and his absence meant that something was wrong.
“Elora, go find Ronan,” I commanded, my voice resolute. “Sienna, we are going in. I don’t like this.”
“Yes, Your Highness,” they both replied in unison, their voices tinged with the seriousness that the situation demanded. Elora bowed slightly, her features set in determination, while Sienna’s brow furrowed with concern.
Every moment felt like an eternity as we swam through the maze towards the moon pond. The silence of the cavern only amplified the chaos in my mind.
As we approached the clearing that led to the pond, an icy dread settled in the pit of my stomach. The water felt colder and its glow was now overshadowed by the horror of the scene unfolding before us. My heart sank as I took in the sight.
Ithra, her tail coiled around Adrian’s legs like a venomous sea serpent, pulling him deeper into the depths. His arms flailed helplessly, his face contorted in a mask of panic and despair as he fought for air.
The image of Adrian struggling against the icy grip of despair sent a wave of nausea to my stomach.
A surge of fury ignited within me, burning hot and consuming. How dare she? My thoughts raced, swirling like a tempest in my mind. How could she do this? How could she betray our world and everything we stood for?
Sienna’s sharp intake of breath beside me snapped me back to the moment, and I could see the anguish mirrored in her eyes.
“Iryen, we have to do something!” she exclaimed, her voice a blend of urgency and fear.
“Ithra, let him go, now!” I commanded, my voice echoing with a strength I didn’t fully feel inside.
She laughed, a cruel sound that cut through the water like a jagged shard of glass.
“Why should I? Besides, I don’t listen to childish demands.” Her eyes glinted with malice, but I could see the flicker of uncertainty in her bravado.
My anger flared, an icy chill spreading deep within me, fueled by the sight of Adrian’s body slowing, his struggles waning as desperation seeped into his gaze.
Determined to act, I closed my eyes, centering myself as I summoned my powers. I felt the familiar rush of energy coursing through my veins, my connection to the water sharpening my focus.
Mustering all my will, I controlled the water, creating restraints that bound her wrists, pinning them to her sides. With every stroke, I swam closer, my determination growing stronger.
“You will release him, or I will make you,” I said, my voice low and threatening, the words tasting like steel on my tongue.
For a moment, her expression shifted, fear flashed across her features, and I could sense her unease. She knew better than to mess with me. I inherited my mother’s rare gift, the ability to take hold of the mind, and in that moment, I wielded it.
The pressure in the water felt electric, crackling with tension as Iprepared to unleash my full power if she dared to defy me.
