“I only need to have dinner with her as we’ve been doing since Mother sequestered us,” Lyre answers, gliding from the bed to turn and begin cleaning up the papers detailing her plan. “After that, I will pretend to go to bed and sneak out and meet you at the back of the arsenal. Where a legion raft and extra armor will be waiting.”
I try to crack a smile, even as anxiousness makes my fingers nervously tap against my scales. “I still don’t know how you managed to arrange that.”
“There may be more sirens joining the legion, but it doesn’t mean that things are running smoothly. Sade alone is doing the work of ten females as she tries to ensure that the newest legionaries are trained properly. This is pulling tenured females from their normal posts. They’re being replaced with those less knowledgeable, and mistakes are bound to happen.” With a shrug, she gathers up the remaining plans and tucks them into her satchel. “Sade will be busy enough with the newest recruits in the evening that we don’t need to worry about her. This will work, Aria.”
I follow her to the door of my bedroom, my heart already in my throat in anticipation. But though I’m nervous, hope still winds within me. We will get Nia and the others their weapons, and then I will have one less thing hanging over my head. “I’ll see you tomorrow,” I tell her.
Conch shell armor is so much heavier than it looks.
The helmet is tight, my braids stuffed into it to help conceal my identity. While my markings could be considered unique,with the armor covering my hair and the top half of my body, I’m hopeful I won’t stand out. Lyre swims next to me, the armor covering everywhere except the swell of her belly down. Sirens not of nobility are expected to continue their normal duties until they give birth, so she won’t draw any attention simply because she is pregnant. Covered as we are, we should look like any other legionaries requesting access to the arsenal. Well, all except for the hollow out Queen’s Clam raft that floats behind us, attached to our waists with straps.
Though we are silent, my heart dances wildly in my chest as we approach the front of the round building that stores all the weapons of the Siren Queendom, one of the legionary spears in my hand while the other I force to remain down at my side. Tall spires top the structure, the outside made of crushed seashells, sea glass, and rock. Like the other buildings in Lumen, it sparkles a brilliant white, glowing despite the late hour. Identical structures flank it on both sides, one a garrison housing all of the Queen’s Legion who choose to stay there and the other a command station for the queen and her generals—though my mother prefers her throne room in the palace for those meetings.
I had met Lyre here exactly as planned, after her dinner with Allegra and my own quick journey to the cave. There had been no new letter from Nia, but the one I had left her the week prior was gone, so I know she visited.
Slowing our pace until we stop in front of the two legionaries on guard, I will myself to calm down. All I have to do is stay quiet while Lyre does the talking. I had faced down an angry fae female and come out on toptwice. Biting my tongue should be easy enough.
“State your business, legionary,” one of the guards commands, her yellow eyes glowing beneath the coverage of her helmet.
“We were sent by General Sade to collect weapons for the new recruits.” Lyre’s voice is perfectly steady, her answer given without a second thought.
“I was not aware of such a request.” The yellow-eyed siren moves forward, eyeing the raft we are tugging behind us. Her fellow legionary—a female with braids a brighter orange than Sade’s—grips her spear more tightly, her eyes bouncing between us and her companion.
“The order was just given,” Lyre says, shrugging her shoulders as she throws a thumb over one of them, pointing in the direction of the garrison. “It’s chaos over there.”
The yellow-eyed siren smirks, nodding her head in agreement. “That it is.” She looks us over again, her attention making awareness prickle on the back of my neck. When she returns to her post, my stomach drops only for it to lurch in relief when she and her companion begin pulling on the chains that heave the arsenal gate up, the entrance only a little wider than the raft Lyre and I pull behind us. “Make it quick.”
Lyre and I both nod and swim inside the moment the gate is fully up, neither saying a word until we hear the gate close again. I take in our surroundings, the multi-colored light of crystals mounted on the walls showing the many hallways connected to the main one we are in. The walls gleam in the same white as the outside, nothing distinguishing one hall from another. That is purposeful, a way to trick those who come here that don’t belong. If not for Lyre’s ability to get information, it would likely take us the entire night to find what we are looking for.
“That was too easy,” I whisper, pulling up the memory of the map as I try to orient myself. I had memorized the path to where the weapons are stored, and soon, we’ll have to take a right, going down a long corridor that will eventually split in two.
“It was,” Lyre adds, making my anxiety spike. Could the guards have deceived us? Only let us pass because they knowwe’ll be caught here, where there is no denying our involvement? “Relax, Aria.” Lyre’s fingers grip my arm, giving me a gentle shake. “Let’s stay focused and move quickly.”
I pull my shoulders down away from my ears, fingers flexing around the spear I’m holding.Who are you willing to become?Whoever I need to be, and right now, I need to be someone confident in this plan.
“It’s quiet,” Lyre observes, eyes darting from side to side. We had expected at least a handful of roaming legionaries, but then again, this space was meant for storing things. It’s not like the items could get up and walk away on their own.
Studying the map proves useful, and it only takes us a few minutes to find the collection of weapons we’re looking for, their rudimentary look distinguishing them from those issued by the legion. “What if the guards ask to check the raft as we’re leaving?” I ask.
“We’ll figure that out when the time comes.” Unbuckling herself and pulling a tarp from the raft, Lyre swims over to the stacks of spears, the light of a single white crystal shining down from where it’s centered in the room. “Let’s hurry before our luck is tested.” We rush to gather as many of the weapons as the raft will carry before we cover it with the tarp, securing the fabric to the shell. Once we’re both buckled back in, we return the way we came—bracing for an interruption, for a legionary to question us, but finding nothing but still empty hallways.
When we reach the gate, we both pause, glancing at each other, likely with the same thought:Please, don’t let there be an ambush waiting on the other side. Lyre rolls her shoulders back as she lifts her chin, knocking on the gate to signal that we are done. A few seconds pass, and then I hear the legionaries on the other side pulling the chains, revealing the outside inch by agonizing inch. I wait until the gate is fully lifted and a clear viewof the outside is visible before I allow myself to begin to hope that we’ve been successful.
“We’ve got everything Sade requested,” Lyre says, urging us forward. “We’ll be on our way.”
It takes concentrated effort to keep my movements graceful, each part of me strung tight as I’m sure my heartbeat is loud enough for the legionaries to hear.
“Legionaries,” the yellow-eyed siren shouts. Lyre and I pause, our eyes connecting in fear before looking over our shoulders. “Keep those guarded closely.”
“Of course.” Lyre and I waste no time moving forward again, the stares of the legionaries at our backs like flames licking at our skin. We swim just above the ocean floor, the bioluminescent plants a glowing array of pink, green, and yellow along the path to the garrison. “A little farther,” Lyre whispers, nodding to where the path has fallen into shadow. Though my gills draw in oxygen from the water, suffocating fear is thick in my throat.
“I never should have let you do this,” I whisper as the cover of darkness blankets us, and Lyre guides us to the left, away from the building and towards the direction of the cave. “It was stupid to risk—”
“You do not control me, Aria; just as I don’t control you. Nowhush.” Her tone doesn’t leave room for argument, so I keep myself vigilant as we make our way to the outskirts of Lumen. The journey feels twice as long, and my stomach has knotted itself ten times over by the time the cave comes into view.
“I have to take this off,” I tell Lyre, tugging on the helmet until my braids float freely.
Lyre chuckles and gestures towards the silky sea kelp that floats in front of the hidden entrance as we near. “We can set the raft here and quickly unload it. Then we’ll be back to the palace in no time.”
