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LUKAS

“A gain,” the Merfolk Queen hissed. My body doubled over, my palms slamming into the sandy floor of the dolphin training paddock.

“Enough. We’ve been at this for hours,” I rasped. “It’s not working. I can’t do it.” Exhaustion pulsed through my veins, and every part of me hurt. But the Merfolk Queen just slinked closer, her long ebony tail trailing behind her.

“You can and you will.” She smirked. “That’s if you still want to save her , of course.”

I punched the sand with a growl.

About a week had passed since Adriana dragged me down to the merfolk palace. To no one’s surprise, Queen Vearla could hardly contain her excitement once I’d asked if she could teach me about my magic. Though her mood soon soured after I told her why. My other cousins didn’t take the news well, either. All ten of them shouted over each other as if their outrage alone could fix this.

Still, despite my reservations about coming here, it was oddly comforting to know that other people cared about my missing wife as much as I did. That’s if you could call the merfolk people.

Since then, every day had been the same: an early morning knock on my bedchamber door, followed by hours of gruelling training with a few meals in between, before finally crawling back into my sea-sponge bed – only to do it all again the next day.

But after a week of still not being able to summon whatever beast laid dormant in my chest, I was really starting to wonder if perhaps I’d imagined every crackle of power I’d ever felt on my fingertips.

“I just want to see her again.” I scowled.

“And you will, the moment you’re able to summon your Gift and wield your dragon.” The Queen folded her arms. “Now try again,” she repeated. “Breathe slowly and focus on the power in your heart.” She tapped a hand against her chest. “Your magic is in there. It just needs to know that it’s fine to come out and play.”

Scoffing, I pushed up to my feet and sucked in a deep breath. Instead of closing my eyes, I tipped my head back to watch the rolling waves above. Sunlight filtered through the water, casting golden rays of light upon the sand. With every roll of the surface, light danced around the empty paddock. Teasing me.

I couldn’t feel anything ‘in my heart’ other than the urge to kick off from the floor and swim back up to the nearest island. I shouldn’t be here , that little voice in my mind kept muttering, I’m not like them .

“You’re not letting your Gift out.” My aunt’s stern tone cut through the noise.

“I’m trying.”

“No you’re not,” she grumbled. “What if that faery was here right now and he had Naria with him?” My gaze dropped to my aunt’s furious expression. “Would you let him take her away again? Just like last time?”

“There was nothing I could’ve done,” I growled. “My sword wasn’t even—”

“You. Don’t. Need. A. Sword.” She jabbed her finger into my chest, hard enough to sting. “You have the Divine Gift. And I apologise that your mother was always too proud to teach you about your magic when you were a child, but that’s no excuse to let yourself be walked all over by a mere faery now that you’re a man.”

“My mother has nothing to do with this.” I spoke through gritted teeth. But for some reason, the water surrounding us felt so much colder now.

My aunt shook her head. “Forgive me, dear.” Her tone softened. “It’s just that… you have her stubbornness, you see? And it was that stubbornness that had her running off with that foul man we all warned her to stay away from.”

A knot lodged in my throat. “My father?”

“Yes. Your father.” Her gaze fell away, searching somewhere beyond the reeds around the paddock. “And it’s that same stubbornness that keeps her from us now, even with him dead.”

Something squeezed in my chest, but before I could reply, she cleared her throat. “Enough talk of my beastly sister. We have far more important matters to discuss now anyway.” Huffing, she gestured to the large empty paddock. “We’ll start with why this isn’t working for you.”

“I said I’m trying,” I grumbled.

“But you’re also holding yourself back.” Her yellow eyes narrowed as she tilted her head. “Like you’re scared of it.”

“I am not scared.” My voice boomed across the paddock.

“Ashamed then?”

When I found myself unable to reply, she blinked. “You’re ashamed of us… I see.”

I wasn’t expecting the guilt that flared up inside of me. Before I could say anything to try and soften the disappointment in her face, a cheery voice had me glancing over my shoulder.

“Cousin! Mother!” An orange-haired mermaid swam over the coral fence towards us, closely followed by one of her younger sisters.

“Olesha.” A broad grin washed the sadness from my aunt’s face. “And little Leena.” She pulled the smaller girl into a hug, almost knocking the pearl tiara from her head. “Have you come to watch your cousin train?”

After fixing her crown, the young mermaid nodded while her rose-pink tail swished beneath her. “Hello, Cousin.” She smiled sweetly at me. “The other girls and I made something for you to help your dragon come out.”

My brows shot up. “You made something? For me?”

Smile widening, she nodded again, just as Olesha handed me something wrapped in green seaweed.

I took the parcel, only to find that it wasn’t a parcel at all. It was some kind of homemade creature with stones for eyes, a pointed snout, and a long seaweed tail.

“It’s a water dragon!” Leena beamed. “We wove it out of seaweed ourselves.”

“Do you like it?” Olesha spoke through her cloud of orange hair. “I made the tail.”

I glanced up at their eager faces as an odd warmth flared up in my chest. “Thank you,” I breathed, not really sure what else to say.

“Such a talented little family we are.” The Merfolk Queen clasped her hands together.

I ran my fingers over the stuffed beast’s scales. I wasn’t sure how a toy dragon was supposed to help me access my power. But the gesture was sweet. I couldn’t deny that.

“Lukas and I were just discussing the origins of his Gift.” My aunt lied, not helping at all with the guilt growing in my chest.

“Oh can I tell the story, Mother?” Leena piped up. “Please?”

“Of course, dear.” She gave her daughter a warm smile before the young girl leapt into the tale, reciting it as if she’d heard it countless times before.

“Many, many years ago, before kingdoms, humans, and even wicked faery princes, the sun fell in love with the ocean’s vast, shimmering waters.”

“The sun fell in love with the ocean?” I raised an unconvinced eyebrow.

Olesha scoffed. “Why else would he dip into her waves each night?”

“Filling the sky with a thousand dreamy colours,” Leena sighed wistfully.

“Right… Sorry.”

With a soft smile, Leena continued, “One night, when the sun dipped below the ocean’s gentle waves, they bore a daughter. She had the upper body of a human, so she may feel her father’s sun rays against her skin, but the lower body of a fish, so she may swim through her mother’s waters with ease.”

“A mermaid.” Olesha winked at me.

“But their daughter grew cold during winter, with too little sun to warm the seas. And while the ocean was vast, with many wondrous places for her to explore, she grew afraid of them, for too many dangers lurked in the deepsea forests. So her mother blessed her with a gift.”

“A divine gift, if you will.” My aunt tossed me a smirk.

“She now had the power to control the skies, to summon storms, and warm the cold seas during winter. Along with the power to heal herself and others, and a fierce dragon who answered only to her, to protect her from the dangerous beasts in the seas and on the land.” Leena blew out a longing sigh. “I wish I had the Gift.”

“It truly is a blessing.” My aunt wrapped an arm around Leena’s shoulders, rubbing her arms comfortingly. “And it’s also a rare blessing considering the ocean decided to give it to your dear cousin. I haven’t heard of a boy receiving the Gift in centuries.”

“The ocean must’ve seen something special in you!” Leena grinned at me.

I shifted nervously while her mother’s gaze met mine. The corners of her eyes crinkled into a smile that felt too comforting.

“I cannot wait to hear how glorious your dragon looks when you finally let her tear through that faery prince’s palace,” she said, her voice strong. “Together, you’ll be unstoppable.”

A warm feeling stirred in my chest. For once, I didn’t swallow it down.

“We also came to tell you we’ve been keeping an eye on Naria for you.” Olesha grinned.

My brows shot up. “You have?”

“We’ve been taking shifts in front of the pearl!” Leena beamed. “We make sure someone is watching her at all times.”

My jaw tensed. My aunt had shown me this ‘pearl’ a few nights ago, and while I really didn’t like the idea of the merfolk being able to use that shrub-sized orb to watch anyone, anywhere, at any time, I’ll admit it’d been a relief to see Naria’s face again. A relief enough for me to shave the excess hair from my jaw and change into a fresh set of merfolk clothing each morning – even if the men’s shirts here were uncomfortably translucent.

“No one has harmed her.” Olesha patted my shoulder as I let out a relieved breath. “And we’ll keep watching her for as long as you need us to.”

“We’ll make sure to let you know if that awful prince tries anything,” Leena huffed.

“Thank you,” I told them. And I meant it. “I just wish that I could speak with her somehow.” I scrubbed a hand over my face, recalling the concerning way she’d looked when I’d seen her last through the pearl. “There’s something not right about her. She doesn’t seem like herself.”

“That faery has her under a spell, I bet,” Leena sneered. “No one could stand to be around someone so evil.” Scowling, she folded her arms.

My aunt’s yellow eyes twinkled as she glanced at me. “The sooner you can control your Gift, the sooner you can claim her back from him.”

“But what if he’s planning something?” I snarled. “We should just leave now. Or maybe there’s a way to contact her through the pearl? I just want to talk to her—”

“You may talk to her when we storm the faery palace and rescue her from that wicked prince.”

My lips parted. “You’ll come with me to save her?”

The Queen chuckled. “Well, not me, of course,” she sniffed. “But I’ll be sure to send you with a hundred or so soldiers and whatever mounts and weapons they may need. I won’t let the faeries get away with messing with my family – and that includes you and my new niece-in-law.” She let out a determined huff.

Warm feelings stirred up inside me. And with the little stone-eyed dragon staring up at me, it was almost too much to bear.

“Still, I won’t let you leave here until you have control over your Gift,” my aunt said, her hands on her hips. “So, once more, if you will. Close your eyes and breathe, Lukas.”

After handing my little dragon off to Olesha and Leena, I, for the first time that week, did exactly as I was told.