After a moment, Cyrus offered a stiff nod.
Relief spread through Prue’s chest, and she looked at Mona. “Will you help me?”
“Of course,” Mona said.
Together, they drew closer to the siren. Wet, rasping sounds poured from its beak, and Prue’s heart shattered. “Goddess, what have we done?” she whispered.
Mona’s fingers slid through hers and gave a tight squeeze. They both knelt by the siren’s side. It was too wounded toeven glance at them. Its dark eyes blinked, staring into the distance. Prue wondered if it was so close to death that it couldn’t register their closeness.
Mona gently pressed her hands into the siren’s feathers, then murmured, “Sano.”
Nothing happened.
Mona’s brows drew together in frustration. Her voice was firmer as she said, “Sano.”
Prue placed her hand on top of Mona’s, drawing from her own well of power. Their voices rang out as they said together, “Sano!”
Wind billowed around them. Heat burned underneath their joined hands. The siren’s body jerked violently from the force of their magic. Its head whipped up, and it squawked loudly at them, almost indignantly.
Prue gasped, her head rearing back in surprise. Her whole body tingled with energy, her blood simmering and her heart racing.
The siren snapped its beak, and Prue and Mona scrambled away before getting pecked at.
“We’re sorry,” Prue said, extending her palms. “Please forgive us. We only want to help.”
The siren cocked its head at them, assessing. Then, its beak opened, and a soothing melody poured out.
Prue stiffened, waiting for the siren song to overwhelm her body, to draw her in and lure her to her death.
But it didn’t.
The siren continued to sing, the melody soothing and beautiful. It sounded both lovely and sad, like a tale of loverstorn apart. Beside her, Mona sniffed, her eyes welling with tears.
“It’s—It’s the song of their kind,” Mona whispered. “A song of death and destruction. But also freedom and flight.”
Prue swallowed hard, sorrow tightening in her chest.
When the song was finished, Prue found her own cheeks wet with tears. She wiped her nose and gazed at the siren in wonder. She had never imagined that such dangerous creatures could also be… beautiful.
The siren’s beak opened once more, and this time, Evander’s voice spoke to them. “Thank you. Your healing has freed us.”
Mona’s breath hitched. Prue couldn’t imagine how awkward it must feel to hear this siren speak with the voice of the man she loved.
“We were enslaved,” the siren continued in Evander’s gentle voice. “But the pain of our bondage was swallowed up in the magic you gifted us. We are indebted to you.”
Prue blinked, her lips parting in wonder.Indebted.
On impulse, she blurted out, “Will you fight with us?”
The siren cocked its head again. “Fight?”
“We are trying to take down the Titans. Destroy them before they take over the realms. Will you help us?”
The siren said nothing for a long moment. Prue waited, holding her breath, daring to hope…
“Yes,” the siren said at last. “We seek to take down the masters who have caged us. But not all of our pack will follow.”
Prue frowned. “What do you mean?”
