Page 23 of Surfaces
It was easy to spot the tournament space, though it was also a bit startling to see. It appeared as if all the spectators were floating in midair. Today, there were no banners, no stands, no walls to define the tournament. Only the bodies of those who’d come to watch.
I gazed up at them as my entourage swam forward with me. The onlookers were still in the warm zone, not too far beneath the sparkling surface since reef dwellers preferred warmer waters. But the sight of everyone swimming together, shifters and mer and sirens with all of their different bodies backlit by the sun as they formed a black ring with a white sunburst shining through the midst of them … that was quite the spectacle.
And there were far more of them than I’d ever expected to see.
At least a thousand Reef City residents floated in a wavering circle roughly thirty feet below the surface. Their chatter rose and fell like a current, growing loud then soft in rhythmic patterns.
I smiled as I drew closer, and watched as word of my arrival spread through the crowd. I could see the news visibly pass from person to person as they bowed, causing the next person in line to do so and the next until the bows made the circle undulate like a wave.
I waited a moment, pausing to acknowledge them with a soft nod, just as Queen Gela would have done. Then I continued over to the near edge of the circle, where I spied Mayor Deacon and his advisors floating.
The crowd seemed friendly enough when they rose and looked at me, which was an improvement from yesterday. Unlike yesterday, however, I didn’t see any children amongst the attendees. I didn’t see women either, though they were far rarer in our world with the birth ratio of men five times that of women; I suspected quite a few husbands and fathers might not have wanted to risk them coming. I did see men of all stripes and sizes: shark shifters, squi-shifters, jelly-shifters, mermen, and sirens. And nearly all of them were armed. Spears, bows and arrows, sea stars dipped in metal, their edges sharpened to a point. I also spotted potion bottles glowing purples and yellows, hung around quite a few necks with string. Those who’d come today had come prepared for battle.
All of them seemed to take Gita’s perspective regarding the rebels:“Sard them.”
It gave me hope.
My eyes drifted to Mayor Deacon as I reached him. I’d float with the mayor and all the competitors not participating today on one side of the circle, opposite the tournament judges.
The mayor gave me a wide smile, his face a light blue in the open waters, his features much clearer than any other time I’d seen him. I realized with a start that he had a rather large mole just above his lip that I’d never noticed. The painted frogfish shifter’s skin naturally changed to match his surroundings. While he was in Reef City, he was multi-hued and his expressions were hard to read; I relied heavily on his friendly tone of voice. I envied him, as those were excellent traits for a statesman, and he clearly made the best of them.
Today, however, I could tell his smile was genuine when he spotted me and waved me over to join him. And I didn’t sense worry drifting off of either him or my competitors. But then again, hiding emotion was a valuable skill and I couldn’t always trust what I saw.
“Good morning,” I said demurely, allowing Deacon to kiss my hand as he bowed. When he rose and I turned to face the arena, he swam closer, clearly wanting to speak.
I tilted my head toward him so that we wouldn’t be overheard. “Weapons?” I asked, using a single word to try to avoid any emotion in my intonation, but also to make it harder for the eavesdroppers to follow our conversation.
“Per my request. I made a little announcement about yesterday’s attack.”
“Oh?” I turned with raised brows to look at the older gentleman whom I’d come to consider a friend. I hadn’t been informed of any announcement.
“That attack wasn’t just on you. They didn’t target you directly when they could have. You had your own raised dais. If they’d been aiming for you, that would have been a hard target to miss.”
“True.”
“Those idiots want to undermine our sense of security. Make us hide in our bits of reef while they go around and terrorize our families. Well, I won’t stand for it.”
Despite the horridly heavy ruff I wore, Deacon’s words lifted an immense weight from my shoulders. I relaxed them back, then immediately regretted the gesture, as it pinched a nerve.
Curse that seamstress.
I fought the urge to flinch and tried to subtly find a more comfortable position as more spectators joined the crowd. Once I’d shifted enough to ease the sting running down my arm, I turned to the mayor. “You know, your logic has you fast becoming a favorite of mine. Is there anything I can do to help Reef City?”
Deacon tilted his head from side to side a moment as he thought over my question, clearly sifting through the options, trying to select the best one.
I waited patiently, eyes scanning the crowd, noting that no protest signs appeared today. Hopefully, the rebels would keep a low profile after yesterday, though I wasn’t counting on it. I saw Lizza and Posey’s rotted faces bobbing in the crowd; both the undead women rode large sea turtles in order to stay afloat. Spotting them and some of my guards spaced out along the ring calmed my jangling nerves.
Everyone’s armed, Avia. Guards are on alert. Today will go smoothly. Don’t be a fusspot.Bloss always used to call me that.
Deacon clicked his tongue when he finally decided what need was most pressing and I turned back to face him as he said, “You know, the edges of the city nearest the coast suffer from sedimentation each year.”
“Sedimentation?”
“Apparently, those farmers up in Sedara dredge the land to plant their crops. And they dig out their harbors to keep them deep enough for their ships. All that dirt has to go somewhere.”
“And it’s been making its way to you.” I could only imagine the dust, wondering if it filled the water like a thin fog or if it churned like a muddy flood toward the reef.
Deacon pursed his lips as he nodded. “It’s gotten worse the past few years. Pieces of the reef have died. I’ve had to try to relocate entire neighborhoods …”
