SWNOVELS Chapter 14
“I’m not so sure about this,” Brina said nervously as the servants dressed them in clothing supposedly of the underwater fashion. Instead of the loose but revealing attire of Oceria, it was fabric unlike anything they had ever felt before. It was skintight, melded completely to every movement of their body. Aurelia herself remained indifferent to the immodest look her mind miles away at the thought of today’s meeting.
“I don’t know, I kind of like it,” Calandra said with a grin as she glanced at her reflection in the mirror, unabashedly admiring her curves.
“Come now, we can’t be late,” Aurelia responded anxiously as she hastily braided her long hair out of her face.
Her stomach writhed with a mixture of emotions – excitement for the adventure into the unknown, yet fear in what would become of today. The reality of war was never lost on her – most especially because of the stakes at hand. Her mind returned to what Calathis meant to Damaris – rule over all. They could never let him have it.
They arrived at the main hall to find each kingdom’s royalty and their parties sitting at the empty tables. Only a goblet filled with an unknown liquid sat in front of them. They were all dressed in the same, odd fabric, but the colors were divided by kingdom.
Sereia and Zaffre stood at the head of the room, both dressed in their regular billowing attire – presumably because once underwater, they were able to transition into the majestic water magic mermaids that had long been hidden from the other kingdoms.
Elowyn gave Aurelia a glare – most likely for being a bit late – and Aurelia hurriedly ushered them along to an empty spot.
Sereia smiled as she took attendance. “Perfect. We’re all here.”
She gestured to the goblets on the tables. “In front of you is a carefully crafted potion we have been perfecting for months. Momentarily we will collectively dive into the water and make our way to Oceria’s most elusive place – the underwater world. This potion will grant you the temporary ability to breathe underwater and remain comfortable for the meeting’s entirety.” She smiled. “If you will now drink the contents, we will make our way into the ocean.”
The people surrounding Aurelia swiftly downed the contents of the goblets, Aurelia following suit. She winced as the thick substance made its way down her throat, trying not to gag at the odd taste.
They stood and made their way through the archway at the back of the room that led to the ocean, the stormy day dulling its vibrance. They marched evenly into the waves, standing waist deep, waiting for instruction from the king and queen. Aurelia watched as Sereia and Zaffre suddenly dove beneath the waves, disappearing for a moment until coming back up completely changed, only their crowns the same.
Sereia, instead of wearing a gown, was now wearing a bodice made completely out of clamshells. As Aurelia’s eyes trailed down her body, her eyes widened at where her legs once were – for now, there was a magnificent sapphire blue tail.
Glancing at Zaffre, she found another – his a deep blue, almost black. She could hardly believe her eyes, turning to silently communicate her shock to Calandra before turning forward as the potion began to overtake her.
As her arms and legs began to tingle, Sereia motioned for the crowd to dive underwater, following her lead.
Taking a leap of faith, Aurelia followed suit, diving into the thick waves, swimming eagerly downwards as they followed the sharp slope of the coastline. Where once Aurelia’s lungs would have been screaming, she could now breathe easily as if she were above the water. She tried to not think about what would happen when the potion wore off, instead focusing on the crowds of colorful fish as they began reaching depths untouched by humanity on the coastline.
The reefs were full of colors of the rainbow and were home to what must have been hundreds of fish and marine life. As they continued to dive deeper, Aurelia spotted a sea turtle and a school of stingrays.
As they reached what must have been at least one hundred feet underwater, they arrived at a group of mermaids and mermen waiting for them, large glowing tridents in hand. They were just as beautiful as Sereia and Zaffre looked, their tail colors varying in color but with the same vibrance. They were effortless in their movement, their tails whipping back and forth as they awaited their guests.
“These guards will be assisting each of you to the palace,” Sereia said to the group as bubbles formed from her words. Despite being underwater, Aurelia could hear her perfectly fine and attributed this to the potion they had made.
“It is too far for you to swim yourselves...unless you have a tail.” She grinned and the guards quickly dispersed throughout the group, grabbing ahold of two people each. A mermaid with dark hair quickly snatched Aurelia’s and Calandra’s hands, another grabbing ahold of Dinevra and Brina.
Brina gave a look of desperation to Aurelia, hesitant of her companion, but didn’t have another second to prepare before they spun through the deep underwater ocean.
Before Aurelia could even tell what was happening, the mermaid had begun swimming, her tail flipping back and forth rapidly as they sped through the water behind the others. Where once they were going at a leisurely pace, it now felt like they were sprinting through the water, blurring their vision and making Aurelia’s head spin. She squeezed the mermaid’s hand tightly as if letting go meant being propelled into the dark abyss below them.
They finally arrived at the castle about twenty minutes later, but to Aurelia, it felt like hours. Her stomach was rolling with nausea from such fast motion, and she had to take a moment to gather her bearings when they finally stopped before she was able to take in her surroundings.
When she did, all her other thoughts flew out of the window, for if Oceria’s land castle was beautiful, then their underwater palace was everything but even more.
It was made of the same marble stone as the castle above the water, but the sun shining upon the ocean made the castle glow beneath the turquoise sea. It had to have been bigger – its towering presence dominated the ocean ecosystem surrounding it as it slowly sloped upwards along a boulder on the ocean floor.
The castle towered at least two hundred feet above them. Pillars stuck up from the ground in the classic Greek fashion around the entrance and statues of mermaids and mermen stood tall in the empty spaces, much like above water.
On the top of the pillars sat golden statues of various sea creatures – from seahorses and sea turtles to the magical Ocerian animals that were unknown to Aurelia, it was evident that the underwater castle was a place for both merpeople and sea creatures alike. Reefs engulfed the castle and the surrounding village, the vibrant colors and schools of fish swimming peacefully around the underwater world in sharp contrast to the marble stone.
Mermaids of all colors swam in and around the castle and village. Some carried glowing tridents, others with a collection of shells in their arms. In the distance, Aurelia could have sworn she spotted a merman swimming with a school of dolphins. As she looked around at the others, she could tell they were just as awed as she was at the magic before them.
“Welcome to Oceria,” Sereia announced as she swam to the front of the group, her long hair trailing behind her. “It is our most valued part of our kingdom, having been protected from wars and genocides for the entirety of the history of the Continent. It is my honor to host you in such a famed place.”
Elowyn swam forward. “It is such a gift to be given the honor of being here.” She gave a warm smile to her friend.
Sereia squeezed Elowyn’s hands in gratefulness before nodding to the guards to disperse.
“If you will follow me, we will be swimming directly into the castle and into one of the great halls where we will partake in the Council meeting.” She turned and swam underneath the archway signifying the entrance of the underwater kingdom.
The group quickly pushed forward and followed, swimming their way upwards through the village and up to the massive castle. Unlike castles on land, there were no doors, only archways to swim through, endless passageways to more grand rooms of the castle.
They followed Sereia through the grand entrance and through some of the longer passageways before they arrived at the room they had chosen for such an important meeting
Just like on land, there were couches and chairs to sit on, how gravity did not have its effect, Aurelia had no idea. Glancing out the large windows was disorienting – for where on land there was the horizon, there was now endless blue, with the occasional fish or merperson swimming by.
Sereia swam to the center and cleared her throat once everyone was seated in a circle. “As Damaris has chosen to not participate, I vote to remove their kingdom from the Council and therefore allow for votes to go through if all parties present agree. If in agreement, say I.”
Each kingdom’s rulers immediately responded in agreement.
Sereia nodded and continued. “Very well. Let us begin this meeting as equals, with the same goal – eternal peace on the Continent. We are here today because there is once more a threat on our peace. We have been here before, when Dorian brutally attacked a small village in Weylin.”
She gave a nod towards Melantha and Calder, the ruler of the Fae. “We gave Damaris an opportunity to atone for their brutality, yet they did not, though they did stand down from violence for a year. Until now. Elowyn?”
Elowyn nodded and swam towards the center as Sereia went to take a seat, her tail shimmering beautifully in the sunlight from above.
“Damaris is no longer keeping the peace,” Elowyn began. “He has been sending his dastardly terrible creatures to Calathis and attacking innocent citizens. The attacks have become more frequent as of recently, even breaching through the holy grounds of the capital.”
There was a collective gasp around the crowd.
Thorin was the first to speak. “Creatures? What sort of creatures?”
“They’re massive, horrid creatures that look as if they come from your worst nightmares. They are practically impossible to kill – their skin as hard as stone, with their only weakness their brain. We’ve found distracting the creature so that we have the chance to shoot our signature golden arrows into its brain is the only way to kill them. No other arrows can pierce through the thick skin.” Elowyn explained grimly.
“How could they breach such sacred magic?” Amadrya asked, her voice in shock as her snow white hair floated around her.
Elowyn shook her head. “I wish I could tell you, but I have no idea. I’ve had my best enchantresses at work on it day and night, and we have increased our enchantments, but it has done nothing. My people are dying.”
Amadrya shook her head. “There must be someone inside your castle’s gates that allowed this to happen. The protection after your mother died would never have faltered to let such nightmares in. It would be the only logical explanation.”
Elowyn frowned. “All of the women in the capital of Calathis have been personally vetted by me. It would be impossible. I know each and every person residing in the village.”
Sereia tilted their head. “How many casualties?”
“Ten since we’ve left. I’ve no idea if there’s been another attack since. I haven’t received a word.” Elowyn turned to look in the eyes of each individual of the Council.
“I have called this meeting because my people are dying at the hands of another kingdom and getting away with it. I demand action. We cannot let this go on – especially now that Renaud is dead. His evil son has now taken over, and I expect that these attacks are only the beginning of his plans for the Continent.”
Calder, the king of the Fae, frowned at her words. “But why only attack Calathis? It seems odd to me that if he wanted to take over the Continent, he would only attack your kingdom. How do you know he has sent them?”
“I know lunar magic and its capabilities, Calder.” Elowyn said coldly.
“But to declare war? To send my people off to die? It seems a bit...drastic to me.” Calder responded coolly.
Thorin shook his head. “Calder, why the hell else do you think he’s attacking Calathis? It’s because of the damn prophecy. He’s going to stop at nothing until Calathis falls.” He looked grimly towards Elowyn and nodded. “I’m with her. Things are only going to get worse. We need to hit him before he’s too powerful.”
Amadrya frowned. “The prophecy? But the prophecy was told centuries ago. How would he even know of such things?”
Elowyn sighed. “It remains the most elusive prophecy that magic has foretold. I would be surprised if someone didn’t tell him, considering he is of royal blood of lunar magic. He already has half of what he needs.”
Amadrya looked at her husband Xanth for a moment before nodding. “Then we agree. The Elves of Ardwen support your motion. The balance of power now is equal and fair. If Dorian takes Calanthis, who knows what untold horrors he will create. We must keep the peace. It is our duty as the Council.”
Sereia and Zaffre nodded in agreement.
“No.” Someone said shortly. “No,” They repeated, this time louder.
Melantha, the queen of the Fae, her silver crown still adorned to the top of her head, swam forward, grabbing the attention of the Council. “We are not getting involved in this. My people have already died enough. To declare war based on such little attacks on your people? You are killing more by doing this.” She said coldly. “And to achieve what? The defeat of Damaris, so that you can rule over both, as the prophecy predicts? That is too much power to give to one. Absolutely not.”
Of all the people to deny Elowyn’s desperate plea, Aurelia never considered the Fae. If anyone wanted to go to war against Damaris, she had assumed the Fae would because of what Dorian had done to their people not too long ago.
Elowyn scoffed. “I have never once expected to be granted the power when Damaris is defeated. This has to do with my people, my villages. They are dying. When you were in the same position, I backed whatever you chose. Because that is what we do at the Council. We defeat the evils of the world to protect our people.”
Melantha shook her head. “But did we ask to go to war? No.” She stood. “We’re done here.”
She glanced around the room to each head of the kingdom. “We deny Calathis’ proposal. By the Council’s rules, without an agreement from each kingdom, you are not permitted to take such drastic and deadly measures. You do not have permission to go to war.” She turned to face Sereia. “Take us back. We have our kingdom to go home to. This meeting is dismissed.”
It seemed as if everyone else in the room was in a state of shock. Aurelia could practically feel the rage vibrating from her grandmother, though she was excellent at hiding it. Of all outcomes of this meeting, this was not an expected one. In a way, Aurelia thought this was even worse. Who knew what was to come with Damaris remaining unstopped?
What horrors were in store for Calathis without the Council’s backing and protection?
Sereia nodded stiffly. “Very well.” She gestured to the guards outside the door and motioned for everyone to follow her back out of the castle where there were more merpeople waiting to bring them back. Even the magic of the underwater world and merpeople did not distract the guests as they made their way back through the ocean. There was nothing anyone could do – not without the go-ahead from all of the kingdoms of the Continent.
Aurelia hardly noticed the swim back, her thoughts so occupied with what had happened at the Council meeting.
What was going to happen now? To Calathis, to her grandmother?
Her stomach twisted and she grew nauseous once more, the feeling only growing worse as they arrived at the beach. Everyone’s faces were solemn as they made the trek back into the above land castle, a heavy weight settling as reality kicked in.
Sereia, after she transformed back into her land form, ran to Elowyn and embraced her tightly. “I’m so sorry,” She whispered. “Let me know if there is anything I can do.”
Elowyn looked as if she had a storm brewing within her soul as she gave Sereia a dark glance. “We’ve got to get back. Immediately. There’s no more time to waste, now. They’ll attack again. We’ve got to get there before then.”
Sereia nodded, sadness seeming to envelop her for her friend. “I will have the servants ready your horses. You will be able to leave within the hour.”
Elowyn nodded and quickly left the room. Aurelia, unsure of what to say, or do, or even think, looked at Brina and Calandra, grim looks on both of their faces.
Nothing good could come of this. Nothing good at all.