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sixteen

ARIA

After a laid-back morning filled with slow, lazy sex, reading together in bed, the most delicious pancake breakfast, and a few hours entertaining children, we waded out into the ocean for another afternoon of training.

The castle was a mess of excitement as everyone prepared for a large party they were throwing the next day.

It was a yearly holiday that they called Tide Change, because supposedly the underwater tides changed slightly on that day every year.

I was pretty sure they just wanted something to celebrate, because the underwater tides actually changing on such a specific timetable seemed unlikely.

We would be helping set up for the holiday after a few hours of training, but we still didn’t know if the selkies were going to attack us.

So, we were still training almost full-time.

“Run your checks,” Triton instructed me, holding my hand as we waded slowly.

Neither of us was in a rush.

We were both looking forward to a day off for the holiday, as our lazy morning had proven.

I was getting pretty damn good with my magic, so there was no need to exhaust myself daily anymore.

Time was what would really help me improve, now.

“Something feels different,” I said, frowning as I looked around.

Releasing Triton’s hand, I stopped where I was and closed my eyes, focusing on the magic I was sending through the water.

Checking on the ocean around the castle was the hardest thing to use my magic for.

It took an insane level of focus, and Triton said it had taken him multiple decades to master it.

I definitely wasn’t there yet, but I kept working at it.

“Different how?” he asked.

He ran his checks morning, afternoon, and night, so if something was really wrong, I assumed he would’ve felt it.

“I don’t know.” I waded out further, scanning the horizon as if it could tell me more than the sea.

It couldn’t.

I was just looking for an answer.

When I didn’t see anything, I slipped beneath the water and closed my eyes, sitting down on the sand.

The waves stilled around me, responding to my desire for calm water.

“What do you feel?” Triton asked, and I could feel his attention on me.

“I’m not sure. You don’t feel anything?”

“No.”

“Hmm.” I focused on what was off.

“Where is the feeling coming from?” Triton asked.

“Which direction?”

“I’m not sure. Maybe the tides are changing.”

“That’s just an excuse for a holiday. They don’t actually change.”

I knew it.

“It’s probably nothing,” I said.

“Aria, we rule the sea. If it’s warning you, we need to listen, and figure out why.”

“Why would it warn me and not you?”

“Because you’re the queen. Or perhaps because I’m too consumed by my perfect mate.”

I snorted, rolling my eyes at him.

He flashed me a small grin.

Something nudged my consciousness, and I closed my eyes.

There was a tiny bolt of familiar, comfortable magic in my mind, and I followed it with my own power until it stopped.

Where it stopped, I scanned the water.

Something was there, and moving quickly.

Stealthily.

“The selkies are coming,” I whispered into Triton’s mind.

“They have something big with them. I’m not sure what it is. Monsters, or creatures, or ? —”

“Where?”

“They’re in the cliffs right now.”

A moment of silence passed before Triton swore viciously.

“They’re bringing squids. They still want the throne.”

There was only one kind of squids the merrae were afraid of—the poisonous ones that the selkies usually kept under control.

Merrae warriors could kill the squids themselves, but they considered it an unnecessary risk.

That breed of squids never came to the part of the ocean we lived in, anyway.

They preferred warmer water, like the selkies.

Triton’s gaze was dark when it met mine.

“I need you to lock down the castle. I’ll gather the warriors while you and Rayna secure it.”

I would’ve much rather helped Triton, but I wasn’t a warrior.

I had no idea how to kill a poisonous squid without getting myself killed.

The best way to help my king was to do exactly what he wanted.

Even if it scared the hell out of me.

“I’ll work with Rayna like we practiced. You focus on staying alive. Do not let them kill you,” I said to Triton.

“I have no intention of dying so soon after claiming you, Sweetheart. Be safe.” The worry in his voice terrified me, but telling him that wouldn’t do me any good.

I moved the water around me so I could run up the beach while I spoke mentally with Rayna.

I’d practiced my magic enough that it took barely any effort.

“The selkies are attacking. There are squids outside. Triton is gathering warriors to help fight them, but we need to lock down the castle,” I urged.

“Fuck,” Rayna hissed.

We’d practiced locking the building down a dozen times, so I wasn’t worried about that.

That wasn’t difficult.

But controlling the ocean outside the castle was the only true way to protect us.

And Triton and I were the only ones who could do it.

It wasn’t hard, but it required a lot of energy.

“I’ll take the southern and western entrances, starting from the bottom and moving up. Can you take the northern and eastern doors?” I asked.

“Of course. See you on the top floor.” Rayna’s confirmation was quiet, but solid.

She still wasn’t thrilled that I was functioning as the queen, but she’d stopped bringing it up, and we were civil to each other.

There were warriors sprinting out the doors when I reached the castle.

They hauled ass as they ran past me on my way in.

I wasn’t supposed to leave the doors open for them, so they would have to find another way out.

“Queen on the left!” one of the warriors yelled, and they made a path for me to enter the building.

I waited for the last in the group to run through, then pulled the lever on the wall, shoving magic into it to make it function.

The doors closed, and a fresh batch of warriors skidded around the corner.

“Use the west side,” I called, and they sprinted in that direction.

I was at their heels, with another wave of men at my back.

“Any sign of the selkies on the beach yet?” one of the warriors called as he ran past me.

“Not yet.”

“Try to keep it that way, Your Highness.”

“As long as you don’t let the squids kill my mate,” I tossed back.

“You’ve got a deal.”

Triton’s voice entered my mind, and I could feel him speaking to the rest of the warriors around us too.

“Do not kill the selkies unless it’s your only option,” he commanded.

“Tie them up. We want as many prisoners as possible when we end this.”

Their agreements flowed into my mind just like his words.

He’d included me in the conversation, like he’d included me in everything since the day he claimed me.

I was his queen, no matter how anyone else felt about it.

Because Triton wouldn’t accept anything less.

We reached the western doors, and the warriors poured through while I grabbed the lever.

The last of them sprinted out, and I pulled the doors shut behind them.

I was closing my second set of doors on the second floor when Rayna called into my mind, “I see the first selkie on the east-side beach. First and second floor doors are closed, but I see more emerging north of here as well.”

“I’ll head to the roof and keep them controlled. Can you handle the rest of the doors?”

“Of course.”

I ran up the stairs, my heart pounding violently.

“Kill anyone who gets close to the castle,” Triton said just to me.

His voice was dark and deadly.

“What happened to keeping prisoners?”

“Anyone who tries to come for you dies,” he growled.

“This is a targeted attack. The squids are focused on me, even with other warriors around. The selkies are here for the throne.”

“If they’re all going after you, you had better be really fucking careful.”

“I will. Keep the beach clear, Sweetheart. I lo ? —“

“If you tell me you love me for the first time right now, I swear to the goddess that I will end your life myself.”

He chuckled.

“Alright. Take care of yourself.”

“You too.”

I kicked him out of my head as I reached the top floor of the castle.

I needed every ounce of my focus if I was going to keep the beach clear.

He needed his to keep himself alive.

There was a flat platform on the tallest of the castle’s domes that had been built to help the king or queen see all the way around the structure in case of an attack.

It made it really damn easy to do my job.

There were only a few selkies on the beach at the moment, but I recognized their leader, Eila, among them.

They had to have been in front of the group with the squids that the sea had warned me about.

When Triton and I had practiced what I needed to do, he had explained that he and the rest of the warriors would attack from behind while I controlled the front line of defense.

Right now, they were busy with the squids, so I was on my own.

Damn, I hoped I had enough power to keep us safe.

When I reached for the sea, it welcomed the embrace of my magic.

There was no denying that the power I’d felt earlier was the ocean itself.

The small group of selkies were sprinting toward the castle, but I was focused on the ocean.

I’d practiced so intensely that picturing a large wave rising only took a heartbeat—and a heartbeat later, I had that wave rushing toward the beach powerfully enough to wash it clean.

The wave crashed into the castle.

I stopped the water at the closed doors—though a little had probably already slipped through the cracks—and shoved the wave back into the ocean hard and fast.

Triton had taught me how to do it without allowing anyone or anything to cling to the castle’s walls or the sand, so I did it exactly the way he’d shown me.

The drain on my energy was significant, but it was manageable.

The wave wiped the selkies off the beach—but when the water cleared, I saw one remaining.

Eila.

Their leader.

She held a massive spear that was buried deep in the sand, her chiseled muscles tense.

She ripped it free and started to sprint forward again.

Shit.

As fast as I’d removed them, the other selkies were surging up the sand again, too.

I gathered another wave, focusing on the queen.

She was nearly to the castle.

And while the doors were locked, I was pretty sure she could climb it with muscles like those.

If she climbed it, she could reach me.

Unlike her, I didn’t have a big-ass spear to keep myself safe.

My second wave crashed harder than the first.

When it rolled back, the queen’s spear was buried in the sand again, her shoulders hunched as she held on with everything she had.

The woman was an absolute badass.

It was really unfortunate that she wanted to kill me and Triton, because I respected the hell out of her strength.

I slammed a third wave into her before she had time to cover more ground.

Though I could’ve taken her down completely with enough focused energy, I was worried about the amount of magic I’d have to burn through to do it.

If I wiped myself out to remove her from the beach once, we would be overtaken quickly.

I sent a fourth wave, struggling to come up with an alternative.

Though I was getting much stronger, I had a long way to go before I had mastered the sea the way Triton had.

It would take everything I had just to keep the beach clear of everyone else, minus Eila.

I sent a fifth wave too, when the fourth didn’t take her down.

My chest rose and fell rapidly, my heart beating wildly in my chest as I panted, trying to recover from the strain of the magic.

The queen wasn’t budging.

We were?—

“Eila’s going to reach the castle.” Rayna’s voice was sharp, and in my ear instead of my head.

She’d finished closing the doors and met me on the roof, as we’d planned.

“Can you keep going?”

“I can keep the beach clear, but I can’t move her. She’s too strong,” I admitted.

“I don’t have the energy to both take her out and force everyone else back until Triton’s done with the squids.”

I was still training, after all.

I’d eventually be stronger than Triton, but I wasn’t there yet.

“I’ll deal with her. Don’t let the water carry me off.” Rayna’s hand brushed my shoulder.

“Be careful.”

“You too.”

She released me.

And with one smooth motion, she vaulted over the edge of the building.

I wanted to watch her roll or flip or whatever she was doing to get down to the sand safely.

But the selkies were already moving up the beach.

Which meant I had to focus.

I used another wave to clear the sand and stop Eila one more time before Rayna reached her.

A weapon had appeared in Rayna’s hand—a large spear that looked like it was made of water.

But the end wasn’t just a single sharp metal point.

It had three.

She was using a fucking trident.

I really had entered The Little Mermaid .

Rayna collided with Eila, and the women rolled across the sand as they grappled.

Their movements were strong and practiced, and fast enough that I didn’t have the time or energy to keep up with what exactly was happening.

A man I recognized waded out of the water with the now-larger group of selkies.

It was Owin, from the beach.

The kelpie who had tried to use his magic to seduce me.

Jackass.

Owin was headed straight toward me and moving faster than the others around him.

He didn’t so much as look behind him when my next wave grew larger than the one before it—but in one powerful crash, he and the others were torn off the beach and thrown back into the ocean.

Minus Rayna and the selkie leader, who were still fighting.

I’d never been someone who enjoyed revenge, but it was hard not to feel satisfaction as my wave kicked Owin’s ass.

He wasn’t in the next group that emerged from the water.

Or the one after that.

“How are you doing?” Triton asked.

I didn’t answer him until my next wave swept across the sand.

“Surviving. How are the squids?”

“Dead. We’re headed up to deal with the selkies now. A few of our warriors got lungfuls of ink, but others are hauling them back to the castle for the antidote. Can Rayna open the doors for them?”

“Not now. She’s fighting Eila on the beach. Eila’s a lot stronger than I expected, and I couldn’t knock her out and keep the rest of the beach clear.”

“I’ll send someone to handle the doors. How much longer can you keep your hold on the beach?”

There was a pause as I washed away another group of selkies.

There were way more of them now, which didn’t seem like a great sign.

“I don’t know. Haven’t exactly done this before,” I finally said.

“How is your energy?”

“Fading. But I’ll keep this up as long as I have to.”

Or until I passed out.

But saying that wasn’t going to help Triton keep himself alive, so I kept it quiet.

Thankfully, he could only hear my every thought when we were really close to each other.

“Can Rayna handle Eila while we take out the rest of them from behind?”

My gaze went back to the fight.

I…

had no idea who was winning.

Both of them were bleeding, but they were still moving so fast that I was pretty sure they were fine.

“I think so, but I can’t really tell. She looks okay for now. I only see a little blood.”

“If she’s moving normally, she’ll survive. I’ll be there in a few. Be safe, Sweetheart.”

“You too.”

Our minds parted, and I slammed another wave against the beach.

My magic was fading to the point that every use of it was starting to feel too intense, but I couldn’t let myself think about that.

I only had to keep it up for a few more minutes.

It sounded like an eternity, but I would handle it.

The stakes were too high not to.

My hair clung to my face with saltwater and sweat, so I threw it up in a fast bun, tying it in a big knot to keep it out of the way.

My hand brushed the hoops on my ear as I did, and my skin was so alight with magic that I felt a tingle in response.

My nose started to bleed as I sent wave after wave onto the sand, keeping the water off of Rayna and Eila, but I couldn’t stop.

I knew what was at stake.

Not just my life, but the lives of all of the turned humans in the castle.

My friends.

People I cared about.

Their kids.

No matter what it took, I couldn’t stop.

I wouldn’t stop.

From the corner of my eye, I saw Rayna go down hard.

There were less selkies in every group that came onto the beach, but there were still too many.

Triton wasn’t done.

Eila snarled something as she pinned Rayna down with her knees, angling her spear toward Rayna’s throat.

Fuck.

I moved without thinking, launching myself off the roof of the castle like Rayna had.

A column of water snaked off the sea to carry me down to the sand, and I sprinted across the beach as I threw another wave at the shrinking number of selkies.

Something wobbled on top of my head, and I vaguely remembered the tingle of magic.

My crown must’ve appeared.

My bun would have to hold it in place, because I didn’t have the energy to send it away.

There wasn’t much I could do in a fight, but I hoped I could at least buy Rayna enough time for Triton to reach us.

We had to be nearing the end of his five minutes.

My heartbeat was so loud, I could swear the ocean itself was pounding in my ears as I crossed the sand far too slowly.

Eila stabbed her spear toward Rayna’s throat, and with my cry, I pushed the sea to react.

Water sliced through the wooden hilt, removing the point of the spear before it could cut my sister-in-law.

A tentacle shot off the ocean and ripped Eila backward, forcing her to stumble away instead of following through with the stab.

I used another wave to clear the beach and sent Rayna with it, hoping like hell that she was well enough to fight for herself in the group of selkies I’d just thrown her into.

It was the best chance I could give her in the situation.

“You’re here for me,” I called out to Eila, stopping in front of her on the sand.

She’d recovered insanely fast from the throw.

She was covered in salt, sand, and blood, but her entire being was alight with whatever was driving her to be there, on the beach, attacking the merrae.

My breaths came out shallow and fast, my heartbeat still drowning out the other sounds on the beach.

I didn’t try to send Eila off with another wave.

My energy was fading fast, and I didn’t have any more magic to waste on trying to take her down that way.

She was still holding the spear in her hand, and now the point on the end of it was made of water.

That could work to my advantage.

Or it could not.

Only time would tell.

“I need the throne,” the woman finally yelled.

“You can’t take it without killing me,” I called back, holding my arms out at my sides to tell her to get it over with.

The sooner she attacked, the sooner I could try to block it or retaliate.

And considering how much energy I had left, it would be much better to get through it quickly.

I sent another wave over the sand without looking behind me to see how many selkies I had to take down.

I was nearing the end of my magic’s current limits.

More blood was dripping from my nose, and I was starting to get dizzy.

I could feel the edge of my power, like I had that day in the cliffs.

If I kept pushing it, it would snap.

But I could hold out a little longer.

Triton had to be almost done.

Eila finally gave a battle cry and launched her spear through the air.

It flew toward me, spinning perfectly.

The moment was so surreal, it felt like something out of a movie.

I used the water on the tip to send it flying past me, and heard an awful noise as it impaled itself on a selkie who was emerging from the water.

Eila lunged for me before the spear landed.

I ran too—but I ran into the water, instead of toward her.

It didn’t take much effort to throw the few selkies who were nearby much deeper into the water.

She reached me as the sea washed over my toes, and I threw the water over me, envisioning a shield.

She swore viciously as she crashed into my water and fell to the sand.

I turned back toward her.

Everything was spinning around me so much that I nearly lost my balance.

If my magic snapped, I’d pass out.

And Eila could kill me if I did.

So, I needed to figure out how to end the threat.

Fast.

And considering I didn’t know the first thing about fighting, that seemed impossible.

All the fantasy books I’d read about wars and battles had not prepared me for the reality of a furious, badass woman who wanted me dead.

She got to her feet and rammed my shield with her shoulder.

The amount of magic it took to keep it upright flared.

I saw three selkies run up the beach again.

Significantly less.

Triton was almost done.

There was no choice but to send another wave after them, though when I did, I had to brace myself against the shield I’d created to stay upright.

“We need half of this kingdom!” Eila shouted, fury and desperation mingling in her eyes as she prepared to ram my shield again.

She must’ve noticed how badly it affected me before.

“We can’t protect ourselves as well as you can. We need the fucking throne!”

She pulled back and barreled into my shield again.

It wavered, but I managed to keep it upright.

“What do you think will happen if you kill me?” I called back.

“The merrae will decimate you. Your people already sat in safety while ours were massacred. Triton already made me his queen. Killing me now will only start another war. If you’re in danger, you need to tell us so we can help you!”

The woman gave another bellow of fury before she flew into my shield again.

It cracked, and she slammed into me.

We crashed to the sand together, her chest heaving against mine.

Everything was still spinning, but I met her eyes head-on.

That damn crown was still against my bun, putting pressure on the strands as it slid toward the sand.

By some miracle, it had stayed in place.

I had enough power left to throw a spear of my own together, but I wasn’t going to use it until she actually tried to kill me.

“The merrae won’t fight for us,” she snarled, but the panic in her eyes was unmistakable.

She’d heard what I said, and she knew I was right.

Or at least partially right.

I wasn’t entirely confident what would happen if I died, but I was positive Triton could wipe out the selkies if he wanted to.

And if they killed me, he would most definitely want to.

“Almost half of us used to be human. We don’t have the same grudge as the rest of them. We would rather work with you instead of risking our families’ lives,” I said.

“Even the pureblooded merrae are tired of war, Eila. They’re just trying to recover.”

I saw it in her eyes, the moment she decided I was right.

Something flickered there—before a massive tentacle of water ripped her off of me, throwing her back.

Triton’s arms were on my waist a heartbeat later, hauling me to my feet.