Chapter 117: Nereida’s Journey
The market was abuzz with chatter. Nereida felt her niece’s worry as the young woman pressed herself closer. Camina had stolen Nereida’s anklet from Basiano’s study where the Dragon had kept it. The magic burned her skin, and it felt like she had a sunburn over every inch of her body, but it allowed her to pass among the crowds of the market without notice. Camina was dressed well below her station, in a simple dress and apron borrowed from the servants’ laundry. The girl’s red hair was covered under a headscarf. Nereida bought her niece a few pieces of dried fruit from one of the stalls, and the two of them moved to a less busy area. It was cool, and everyone was wearing heavy cloaks to deal with the chill off the ocean.
“Thank you,” Camina whispered, shifting on the bench. “I… I have never seen so many people.”
“Its not even a busy market day. The summer ones are wild. Full of people in a celebratory mood. The only reason this one is so busy is that the King’s final farewell is soon, and they know there are more nobles about than usual.” Nereida kept her tone light, though her heart ached at the thought of saying goodbye for real, of losing her grieving clothing and swearing fealty to her new king. Her brother.
They sat together for a while, until the young woman’s posture relaxed as she realized no one recognized them, no one saw them as anything more interesting than a pair of servants from the castle. She guided the young woman down to the docks, to where there were three Sylph ships docked. Merchant ships, from their size. She did not recognize any of their names, and so she approached the first ship, the Summer Gale. One of the Sylphs saw her, and stopped unloading their cargo to come over to them.
“Just arrived, fair ones, but the palace shipment will be up shortly.”
“I’m not here on official business,” she replied with a smile. He looked her over, glanced at Camina who hung on to her arm like she was the only thing she could trust.
“We aren’t leaving port for a week,” he warned. “If you are looking for work or…” he grimaced, clearly torn.
“I’m here to trade stories,” Nereida said softly. “I have a very, very good tale, but am looking for a specific tale in return.” He brightened at her words.
“I’ll take my break, and if I don’t know the one you want, I’ll grab Mel. She knows more than I.”
“I seek the tale of Fire’s End.”
There was a moment when it seemed as if all the sound in the busy marketplace had ceased. The sylph stared at her with wide eyes, and he did not seem to breathe for the longest moment.
“And how, pray tell, did a lovely Salamander come across that name?” The new voice was high and light, a soprano tone. Nereida looked up at the winged sylph who approached them. Her hair was short-cropped, and she had pins of rank on her shoulder. If Nereida was correct, she was the first mate of a ship. Camina had frozen in place, her fingers digging into Nereida’s arm as if she was trying to get the elder princess to run.
Nereida was not inclined to run. Not when the Dragon of Stars was planning something horrible for Camina.
“I am not a salamander.” She smiled serenely, shaking her niece off her arm. She hummed a short little tune, calling her magic. This close to the sea, after being caged for so long, the magic came hard, and the little bit of water she had called to her hands also called the waves. The shore suddenly became a much more violent place as the waves tried to reach her. She stopped singing, and the waves calmed instantly. The man whimpered, stepping back from her, but the woman laughed.
“Not a salamander,” the woman repeated, shaking her head with a grin. “Come aboard, milady, and we’ll talk.”
“Aboard?” the man managed. “You’re inviting a siren onto the ship?”
“I’m inviting a guest,” she replied, her tone turning hard. “The captain and I will speak to her. You will get back to your work, and if you are very lucky, I will tell her tale tonight.” He nodded, looking like a chastised child, before he scurried back to his position.
The two princesses followed the woman onto the ship and into the captain’s cabin. The woman was the “Mel” the first sylph had mentioned. She was near giddy by the time they entered the cabin, but Nereida felt a stab of longing being in the cabin. It was so similar to the cabin aboard the Tooth, though the scent of it was wrong, and there were no children’s toys scattered about. The Captain was a tall, wiry man with a bald head and beautiful wings.
“Princess Nereida,” the Captain greeted. Nereida blinked at him, surprised. He laughed, an easy and friendly sound. “Your story reached my ears the last time I made landfall. The governor was salty that your eldest was already taken.” He crocked his head to the side. “I expected you to be blue.”
“Magic,” she replied with a shrug.
“I had gathered that. Now, what can I do for you, Your Highness?”
“I need information on the sword called the Fire’s End.”
“Oh?” He blinked at her, giving her a small, tight-lipped smile. “That’s a legend.”
“That seems unlikely,” she replied. “Given that I first learned of it from the Dragon of the Wind.”
Her statement was met with silence. The ship creaked as it rocked in the waves. Camina shuffled her feet nervously. The captain crossed the room, coming much too close to her. She could see the faint blue and grey patterns in his eyes. He loomed over her, at least two heads taller, and peered down as if he expected her to retract her words. But she stared up at him.
“So the time of Reawakening is at hand?”
“Yes.” She ignored her niece’s nervous gasp, ignored the way the younger woman’s fingers tightened on her arm. She was going to have a bruise, and Aella was going to be cross. “I have seen it begin.”
“Is that your story to trade?” his voice was soft.
“It is,” she replied. “Though there will be things that must be left out, for the safety of my family.”
“Tell us your tale, Princess, and we will ensure that you are not forgotten. In exchange, we will tell you of the blade.”
She nodded, accepting the deal. She pulled Camina to a bench, made her sit, and requested tea as it would be a long tale. And once she and her niece had warm chamomile tea to drink, she told the tale. She began with their wedding, at the hands of the sirens, told them they were possessed by the Moon and the Ocean. She made no mention of the egg, but she could feel Camina’s eyes on her, as if the young woman was trying to see through her words. She told them of Aella’s prophecy, and what dragons had awoken. She told them that the dragons could take human form, and needed human hosts until they could rebuild their celestial bodies.
“Our quest to save the remaining ones from slumber has been… put on hold,” Nereida finished softly. She took a long drink. “But we are hoping to be on the move soon.”
“What happens when the dragons get their celestial forms back?” Mel asked.
“Honestly I don’t know. They’ve all left, to whatever kingdom they truly hold, or perhaps to manipulate mortals from behind false faces. We’ve been at sea, and not able to follow any of them.”
“Who did the Stars Dragon take? Is he here, in the city?” the Captain asked, worry on his face. She resolutely did not look at her niece.
“I couldn’t say,” she replied, shrugging as if she did not know. Camina went still at her words. Couldn’t say and didn’t know were two very different things.
“You fear him,” Mel observed. “Or you would not be asking about the sword that could kill him.”
Nereida considered the first mate’s words.
“Yes,” she admitted. She swallowed, her tongue feeling heavy, her mouth dry, after the long tale. She had skipped much of it. They did not know she and Aella still carried their dragons. One impossible worry at a time! “The gods… I can’t leave them, not now that I have started on this path. But this one… I fear he has plans to reopen the war with the Dragon of Shadows. That people, my people, will suffer because of it.” She took Camina’s hand as she said “my people.” The girl squeezed her hand back.
They were given more to drink, wine this time, and the man from earlier arrived with biscuits from a local bakery. Nereida felt a flash of fear, as they were similar to the ones Caleb had poisoned her with in colour, but the captain ate his, and so she allowed herself a nibble. They ate and drank with their hosts as Mel began to speak.
“Long ago, my people were gifted with the sword called the Fire’s End. At first, it was given to the greatest heroes of the realm, and passed like a torch from one to another, until one such hero lay mortally wounded after a fight. He realized that the sword had greater purpose than defending a kingdom from banditry and assassins. He raised a small flock of priests, loyal and devout, so that when he passed, a true hearted individual would be able to take the sword. The priests, all winged ones, were said to have great faith in their god, the Dragon of Wind, and that they would protect the sword he had given to them at all costs.
“The costs, sadly, came due. The small island they inhabited was volcanic in nature, and none knew… until the eruption began. The high priest had the option to sound the alarm or rush the sword out.
“He chose the sword. And so nearly one hundred perished in the heat and the lava, unable to escape. Many tried to reach help by flying over the sea, but our wings, while marvelous, can be easily damaged, and the hot, burning ash tore through their wings. Only a small handful escaped with the sword. They realized that the fiery Stars dragon, should he awaken, could use any volcano to destroy them, to destroy the sword. And so they headed to the one place they knew they would never be looked for, a place he would never wish to gaze on. Though the location is secret, it is believed that they found such a place, that they sheared their own wings off to avoid being found, and that generations later, they wait, guarding the sword and training to use it.”
Nereida made the mistake of glancing at her niece. The young woman was wide eyed, worry on her face.
“You don’t think?” she asked softly, making eye contact with her aunt for the first time.
“I do. But… not here.” The young woman nodded at that. “Captain, thank you for your hospitality.” She bowed her head. “Mel, thank you for the story.” She bowed her head to the first mate.
“If you have any further needs,” the captain said, looking at Camina as he spoke. “I leave port in three weeks.”
“I may return. Perhaps to tell a tale some evening.” Nereida smiled, though she felt her stomach clench with worry. “We should see each other again.”
“Bring your wife next time. I heard she’s a thunderstorm in a bottle.” Nereida snickered at that, a soft, wistful smile making its way onto her face.
“She is,” she agreed. She’d need to talk to her wife. Being on a ship made her homesick. There was no reason for them to fight.
They left, and Nereida brought her niece to the beach near the palace. It was deserted, given the chilly air.
“Why are we here?” Camina asked softly.
“For me to sing,” Nereida replied. She took off her shoes and stockings, and waded into the icy cold water. It felt colder to her human leg than it did to her lizard one. She bent over awkwardly, trying to keep her dress out of the salty water, but gave up. She plunged her whole face into the freezing water, took a breath, and sang. She had been kept from the beach up until now, always watched and waited on. Now, she was free. She sang with her magic, sending a message across the waves. “Find the ship the Dragon’s Tooth, tell the Jules we are still safe, that we miss our daughter, and that the King is dead. Basiano will be King.” Then she stood, wringing the water out of her clothing with magic.
“This is where mother found me,” Nereida said, staring out at the water. The sound of it was soothing. She tried to imagine her song reaching the Tooth, tried to remember that they had friends, family out on the water. Her voice shook as she continued to speak to the niece she barely knew. “I… I used to come here to think, when I was a girl. I used to wonder, think, and wish on the sand.”
“What… what did you wish for?” Camina sounded shy. Nereida turned to smile at the girl. They were not at court, and the young woman’s walls had crashed down.
“Sometimes, to find love,” she replied with a sad smile. “Sometimes, I wished that father still loved me.” The tears stung her eyes at that admission, but she ignored them. Camina moved up and took her hand. “Sometimes I just wished to know who I was.”
“I wish on the stars,” Camina admitted softly, looking up at the bright blue sky. “Mostly, I wished my father would return. He… he DID come back, didn’t he?” Her voice trembled, and Nereida felt the tears leaking out.
“He came back,” she promised. “That’s as much as I am allowed to say.” Camina nodded, her face shuttering as she armoured herself against her own feelings.
“I never wanted to marry,” the young woman said. “I… I am not like Papa, I don’t want the endless company, the expectations. I know I need an heir, but I had always hoped to adopt.”
“The first born doesn’t usually….” Nereida trailed off. The first born did not usually get to choose not to bear a child. There was still some expectations of a blood heir, unless they couldn’t get pregnant.
“I know,” she sighed. “But I can’t…. I don’t want that. I was hoping to pick my spouse, find a person that understands, and that we can just be friends, allies. But no expectations beyond that. That will take time, but with Grandfather gone, I don’t have it anymore.”
“I’ll try to buy you time,” Nereida whispered. “But after I talk to Caleb.”
“I thought you and he were…. That you hated him.”
“I… I don’t want him to die hating me,” she said after a moment, swallowing the heavy feeling that tried to creep over her. “My wife was right, and I did make peace with him… but Caleb… his village, his family, they live near the Sacred Mountain. If… if the sylphs came here, that would be where they would hide. Because… I don’t think the dragon would want to go near his old, petrified body.”