Page 7

CHAPTER SEVEN

Lightning cracked, revealing the churning world below. Celeste towed Bastian along the surface with one hand, pulling her spear free with the other. When he was far enough away from the others, she released him. Then she dove straight for the general and the prince. Her spear spun around in a graceful arc, dull end connecting with Xandra’s back. The general jerked, her grip on the prince releasing. Thunder cracked. And it was as if time slowed and held its breath. Her head turned, meeting the princess’s eyes. Xandra froze, a spear tip at her throat. For the first time, Celeste saw surprise on the general’s face.

“Princess, what are you doing?”

“Staria is peaceful,” Celeste’s voice cracked. “This is... slaughter.”

“Get back in formation.”

Behind the general, the prince kicked his legs, propelling him toward the surface. Toward Bastian.

“But... what have these humans done wrong?” Celeste kept her gaze on her general, afraid to alert her. “There must be another way to?—”

“I am not arguing with a fry in the middle of the Song.” Xandra’s jaw tightened. “You knew what you signed up for.”

It was true. She had known what she signed up for. She grew up knowing the Chorus drowned sailors. But these humans didn’t match the descriptions she had heard in the stories. Humans were bloodthirsty, murderous, depraved, emotional creatures. These people looked as though they were merely in the wrong place at the wrong time. Maybe her mother was right. She wasn’t cut out for this.

A body fell into the water. Then another. And another.

“I don’t care who your mother is. Get back in line.”

“No.”

Humans rained down. Five, then ten, then fifteen. Until the water was churning with them. A mass of writhing limbs. They fell upon each other, kicking and clawing to reach the calling sirens. Celeste lowered her spear, moving to help them somehow.

She heard the weapon before she saw it. A faint whistling just behind her head. Celeste twisted and knocked Xandra’s spear away. The general’s nostrils flared, black eyes glinting. There was nothing of her leader in that gaze. Only rage. Celeste was now another threat to be eliminated. Regaining control of her spear, Xandra thrust toward Celeste’s stomach. This time the princess was not quick enough. It struck against the leather of her armor, stealing the air from her lungs. Celeste doubled over, gasping.

She would not win a fight against Xandra. The general was nearly twice her size and had three times her training. She had to think of something. Quickly. But the blows kept coming. Celeste swept her spear over her head. Although she blocked the impact, pain shot down her arms.

“Look at them, Celeste,” Xandra said, yellow eyes flashing as she pointed at the lovesick men above. “You would betray your people for these animals?”

That only reminded Celeste of?—

Without warning, Celeste launched toward the surface, disappearing into the chaos and tangle of humans. As she emerged, one reached for her, grabbing as if to use her to propel himself forward. She dodged him easily. Her eyes remained on the ship, searching for a pair of floppy ears.

She found none.

Heart plummeting, Celeste scanned the water. There was no sign of the animal. Instead, she found the prince. His head rested against Bastian’s chest, face tense until at last his shoulders sagged in relief. Alive . Celeste’s shoulders fell as well, drawing closer. The prince looked up, catching her eyes with his. But there was no fear. Only a question. Why?

Celeste wished she knew the answer.

Around them the humans blindly thrashed until they reached the siren calling them, only to disappear beneath the waves. I can’t save them all . The thought was a stone in her stomach. I can’t stop this. They won’t listen to me.

And so she did the only thing she could think to do.

She fled. Taking the human prince and his friend with her.

* * *

The human prince kicked and struggled, shouting words she had not learned in training but could surmise were rather rude. She should have expected it. She was a siren. Her folk were attacking his ship. But had they not shared a moment before? Surely he understood she did not intend to drown them. Apparently, that wasn’t enough for him to trust her.

Despite the prince’s protests, her grip did not loosen as she pulled them by their shirts. Bastian, luckily, did not fight, but only because he was still very much unconscious. She swam with abandon. Fleeing the very sirens she’d sworn to obey. Somewhere along the way, it started to rain. Fat drops fell upon the sea, so numerous they drowned out the distant sound of the Song.

Eventually, the prince ceased his fighting, choosing to stare at her darkly instead. She supposed he was waiting to see what she would do next.

That made two of them.

This was so much worse than breeching the surface. Then she’d only risked losing her place in the Chorus. In saving the prince after he’d seen them, she’d committed treason. Broken the treaty between siren kingdoms. The penalty was death.

She continued to swim.

She swam until she could no longer see the ship in the storm. And then she stopped. They were not followed. Good . Her hands, stiff from gripping the humans, released. Now what? There were others. So many others. Could she go back and save more? She looked at the prince and his friend, floating in the sea before her. Would they drown if left to their own devices? Bastian was floating, despite being unconscious. But that fact wasn’t terribly reassuring.

She bit her lip, keeping her focus on the problem before her instead of allowing the shock of what she had done sink in. Their safety remained uncertain regardless of what she did. Xandra or Echo could come for them at any moment. But no ideas came rushing to her. Nothing but endless water surrounding them. From the dark waves beneath to the pouring rain above. She pushed her wet hair from her face, trying to think. These humans were helpless. It would likely take all night to reach the closest human island from here; she wouldn’t have time to get them there if she wanted to save the others. And there were no small islands nearby to leave them on.

The prince looped his arm under Bastian’s shoulders, helping to hold his head above water as they bobbed. But his gaze remained on her, appraising beneath long, dark lashes. He was so close she could see his eyes were as dark as his hair. They turned downward at the corners and were framed by full, arched brows that were nearly hidden beneath his wondrously tousled wet hair. His full lips, which were topped with a rounded cupid’s bow, pulled into a smirk. Were they as soft as they looked?

“Eyes up here, love.”

He pointed to his eyes with his free hand. Celeste tore her gaze away, wishing the Goddess would smite her. And yet there was something thrilling about hearing that low voice, which had run through her mind all day, speaking to her. Still, she didn’t respond. Although she understood the common human language well enough, she hardly spoke it. Her accent was thick. It struggled against the human’s hard consonants, and the sentences always formed wrong. Instead, she gestured with her hands spread wide, palms facing down toward the water.

Stay here.

“Where else would we go?”

She rolled her eyes. If he was well enough to make jokes, he was well enough to keep them both afloat until she returned. She dove into the water and swam in the direction of the ship. She couldn’t see it in the storm, but she knew where it was. The journey without the humans took less time. And before she had time to question what in the Goddess’s name she was doing, she’d arrived.

The storm raged. It was no longer the idle threat she remembered but a violent, terrible thing, wreaking vengeance upon the ship. The vessel looked small beside the rising waves that crashed against its sides. The woman at its bow no longer looked as if she were taking off in flight. Instead, she appeared as though she were tied to the ship, forced to meet its fate. Fear grew within Celeste, and she tore her gaze away to search for the other humans. But the water was too rough. It took her time to find them.

Her hands flew to her mouth. Her stomach roiled as she looked upon the hand of death for the first time. The humans floated together along the starboard side, nearly twenty in total, bobbing and tossing face down in the angry waves. The sirens were nowhere in sight. They must be underwater with the others . The thought made her stomach twist tighter. She had arrived too late.

A howl pierced through the storm, the sound its own painful music, desperate and raw. Celeste searched for the source until she found it. The floppy-eared animal paced back and forth on the ship, whining. The Song was only sung for the humans. This creature could not speak. Could not reveal the existence of sirens. It was unaffected. And now the poor thing was left all alone.

A wave crashed against the ship’s side, sending the deck tilting. The creature’s thin legs tangled beneath it as it attempted to find purchase, but it slipped on the slick floor and slid with a yelp out of sight.

Celeste let out a cry and swam toward the ship, careful to keep herself away from the bodies. She dove deep into the water, reaching a spot far enough beneath before turning and racing upward. She built up speed, moving faster and faster, until she launched from the water and into the air. Her arms reached above her head, stretching for the railing. But although her jump was high, the deck was higher. Fingernails scraped wood as she began to fall, sliding down until she fell into the water below.

Reemerging, she searched the side of the ship. There had to be a way that the humans could climb up. But Celeste didn’t find anything low enough for her to reach. If the humans used something to come and go, it wasn’t there. Maybe they never left the ship. That would make sense, given their disastrous excuse for swimming.

The ship gave a great surge and began to tip sideways, away from her. She heard the animal howling a sorrowful note.

A thought struck her.

The sirens hadn’t sung to the animal. But that didn’t mean she couldn’t. Still, Celeste hesitated. Her command over her Song was uncertain at best. What if she lost control? What if she hurt the animal? What if she hurt someone else?

But there was no other way. She had to try.

With a deep breath, Celeste began to sing. “ Take my hand and let me guide you as you listen to my song .” Her words danced along the roaring waves, slipping up and through the storm circling around them. In her voice, the words sounded soft and sweet. Almost playful. She focused on the picture of the animal. Ears flopping. Tail wagging. “ Come closer. Hear me calling. In my arms you belong .” The howls stopped. Celeste swept her eyes back and forth along the deck of the ship. “ Come rest your weary bones, love. Come join me in the sea .” Her voice crescendoed as she sent a little prayer to the Goddess that her Song wouldn’t alert the Chorus. That it would not slip from her grasp. “ Let the gentle waves consume you, for your heart belongs to me .” She lifted her arms, reaching for the ship and beckoning gently. Ears flopping. Tail wagging. Legs jumping.

A little black nose appeared beneath the railing. Her heart lurched in relief. The animal stared down at her with cloudy white eyes. A rush of victory thrummed through her, and Celeste had to stop herself from spinning around in glee. Still, this little victory cost her. Her focus wavered. The animal’s eyes blinked, clouds fading. No ... Another wave crashed upon the deck, sending the dog sliding once more out of sight. Celeste squeezed her eyes shut, fear like yellow bile choking her. But she suppressed it; she had to focus.

“ I’ll fulfill your every longing. I am everything you crave ...” Celeste beckoned. “ Let me kiss away your sorrows as I ” — from the corner of Celeste’s eye, she saw something move, but she had to stay focused—“ lay you in your ? — ”

A blinding bolt of lightning struck. Celeste watched in horror as the pretty white sails were set ablaze. The ship was on fire. But she didn’t have time to gawk. The animal appeared, running. She swam down just for a moment so she could gather enough speed. Then she launched herself into the air, arms flung wide. The animal leaped, skinny legs stretching and ears flapped back as it sailed through the rain. The body collided with her chest, throwing her off-balance. But her arms circled the creature, clutching it to her as they fell backward into the raging sea.

For a moment, she did not know up from down. Not until she saw the flames roaring, guiding her back. She surfaced, checking the animal for injury. But she found none. Nothing but docile white eyes where her magic still lingered. Holding the warm, furry body close, she swam away from the ship, careful to keep the creature’s head above water. She didn’t know much about land animals, but she guessed they were similar to humans in this way.

She didn’t look back. She already knew how it all ended. It had been there all along. She had known those sunken ships had once belonged to humans. But she hadn’t thought much about what had happened to them. Each happy memory of searching sunken ships soured. Mustering all her strength, Celeste pushed herself to swim faster, beating her tail behind her. Seeing the destruction firsthand was too much to bear.

A wall of heat and sound crashed into her back. Celeste cried out. She curled around the dog protectively as the impact sent them flying. Shards of wood mixed with the pouring rain. She turned. What was that? Black smoke spread like squid ink above the sinking remains of the once glorious vessel. Celeste could feel herself holding back tears. Had that been their home? If it had, it would not be mourned. Its inhabitants were dead. All but three.

The prince was waiting. But instead of leaving, she straightened. For just at the back of her neck, she felt an unmistakable feeling. She was being watched.

She held the enchanted creature close as she searched for the source. It did not take her long to find them. The Chorus. They had surfaced just on the other side of the ship. Her hands grew cold. It wasn’t over. They wouldn’t let the prince escape that easily.

And then she saw Maeve looking right at her.

Maeve would tell them. Celeste did not blame her. Initiates were trained to obey, not question. Celeste was the one who was too curious. Too wild. Too foolish. And look where that had gotten her.

Without hesitation, the princess bolted, racing back to where Bastian and his prince waited. As they swam, the poor animal drifted from its stupor, shaking in fear and cold. It whined softly.

“I’m sorry,” Celeste said in her language, knowing it wouldn’t understand.

She began to feel the humans nearby in the water. They flailed around like prey. Any siren with half a sense could pick them out easily, even in the storm. Her tail pushed faster. She had to reach them first, swim them somewhere safe. If she could somehow get the humans on land, it’d be impossible for the others to reach them.

Just as she spotted the two dark shapes of the humans on the horizon, Celeste felt the Chorus in the water behind her. That meant they felt Celeste too. The Chorus would follow wherever they went. Track them and leave no survivors. She knew their tactics well. But she had never pictured this. She had always believed the Chorus acted in defense. That’s why the Goddess gave them their Song. To protect.

When had that changed? Or had she just been naive?

The prince scanned her face as she approached. Beside him, Bastian floated, still unconscious.

“What happened?” he asked.

The creature wriggled in her arms, yelping and scratching.

“Admiral!” the prince gasped. The animal broke free and paddled happily to him, tail smacking the water. The prince pulled it into his arms and buried his head in its fur. He lifted his eyes and looked at her. “You—you saved my dog?”

Celeste nodded, flushed.

“The others.” He paused. “They’re gone.”

It wasn’t a question.

She nodded again in response.

The water beneath moved, shifted as the Chorus closed in. They were out of time. Everything inside her wanted to grab him and swim, but it was no use. They had no chance of escape. She was out of options. So she pulled her beloved spear from her back and turned to face the consequences.