As big as Wrell was, I was bigger. Not a ton, but enough that the prospect of squeezing into the small opening gave me a dubious feeling. With a sigh and a glance toward the empty ocean at our back in case Lelas was on her way, I took off, following the mermen.
The closerwe got, the more schools of brilliantly colored fish we encountered, and the more sea turtles. Lelas would have had as much fun with us as she was with her little family of turtles, and been a lot safer. It had been nearly an hour since she’d gone on her own, and I was guessing we were a little more than twenty minutes away from arriving where the Scarus tribe would be. Even from where we were, I could see the massive coral reef that surrounded so much of the islands. The island mountains towered over us already, and we swam over or between enough smaller mountains that I’d lost count. Even if Lelas was already on her way, if she was swimming closer to the seafloor I wouldn’t be able to see her due to the terrain. Grandma’s voice echoed in my mind, telling me to leave her in God’s hands. Typically, I’d thrust such a suggestion away, but it was such a pleasant sensation to have a sense of Grandma with me at the bottom of the sea, that I let her words repeat to the point it became a mantra. Before long, I felt my worry subside and allowed myself to get caught up in the increasing beauty of the tropical world around us.
I was distracted by the very different but equal beauty of Wrell’s flexing back muscles as he swam a few feet in front of me, when he came to an abrupt stop. The quills along his spine and sides flared, increasing his already massive form and his dangerous allure. As beautiful and ethereal as he became, I halted instantly. I’d never asked what would happen if I ran into Wrell’s spines, but I knew it wouldn’t be pleasant.
It took me a second to notice that Wrell had his spear raised. Only the tip of it poked out above his quills from my perspective. Glancing over, I saw Therin had his blade gripped tight, and even his fins were flared, though the effect was more glittering gold and less pointed barbs. When neither of them moved, I swam around Wrell and looked in the direction that held their attention. At first I didn’t see anything, just more of the multiplying flora and towers of rock and coral that looked almost man-made around us. When a motion finally caught my eye, I nearly laughed. This was what had two seasoned fighters like my father and Wrell tense and ready to rumble?
About fifty feet ahead, nearly surrounded by the base of the stone columns, the top of a head peered out from a hole in the sand, long dark hair flowing up. It looked like a troll doll I’d had as a kid. Maybe a cloud moved all those miles away in the sky and let sun in, or maybe I’d just been unobservant, but a flash of silver drew my eye to a long, narrow spear that shot up nearly ten feet among the kelp. A second later, another glimmer revealed a second spear and a dark hand holding its base. It looked like we’d found the Scarus tribe sooner than expected.
After the notion of laughing had subsided, I positioned myself in a more threatening manner. I tried to emulate Dad and Wrell, who were both still expanded like puffer fish, at least as much as I could, considering all I had to puff up were chest muscles—not nearly as impressive as deadly quills.
After a moment, I let my muscles deflate. Clearly, this Scarus mer was afraid of us. We’d obviously been seen, and the mer was staying safely in his hole in the ground. Another metallic flash and I could see both of the spears were wavering slightly. Without Therin and Wrell’s reaction, I would have assumed the mer was trembling in fear, but both Dad and Wrell impossibly flared even more. The webbing between Wrell’s spines looked ready to rip. I acquiesced to my commitment of basing my reactions on what the other mers chose to do, even though I wanted to swim up to the poor guy—at least I assumed it was a guy from the furrowed brows—and tell him we were here in peace. Probably followed by asking him to take us to his leader.
The three mers remained in their individual states of suspension, waving spears and stretching quills and fins to the limit. I have to admit, as majestic as both Wrell and Dad looked, all three of them seemed a little silly. If this was the conflict that Syleen had said would ensue when mer tribes encountered each other, I was going to have to give her a hard time when I saw her next. Maybe.
Still enlarged to the max, Wrell drifted forward a few feet, though I couldn’t see how he managed to move with his tail in such a state. Instantly, a long body shot out of the hole in the ground, zooming up fifteen feet into the water above us, both spears poised to skewer Therin and Wrell into the sand. Wrell paused again, spear still raised, but not looking any closer to releasing it than before.
While not as warrior-looking as Wrell, the merman that emerged from the columns no longer looked humorous, nor did he in any way resemble a troll doll. His long black hair streamed down his body and nearly all the way down his tail, which had to be close to seven feet long, before even reaching the crescent-shaped fin. His tail was a brilliant aquamarine green with an electric-blue block-like pattern down the front of him, and didn’t have any of the fins over the surface that both Wrell and the members of the Chromis tribe had. His skin was mocha brown, and his face had a handsomely boyish quality that would have had me guessing he was a teenager, except for the fact I’d thought the same thing about my sixty-four-year-old Lelas. Fury flamed across his face, and his arms trembled as they tightened their grip on the spears, whether in fear or aggression, I couldn’t tell. While he looked ready to kill, something about him made me think of a kid sent out to fight his father’s battles. Probably just another aspect of his deceiving baby face.
Sure enough, his voice trembled as it entered my mind, even though each accented syllable was heated with hostility.“I have already given warning. If you choose to not seek retreat, you will have chosen to die at my hand.”
An image of a beautiful mermaid coursed behind my eyes. Her skin was the same hue as the young warrior in front of her, her tail the same shape but the color a deep reddish-brown. Her long black hair was nearly hidden from view by the ropes of pearls and thin chains of gold that drifted down from the narrow golden band across her head.
The merman’s expression shifted from anger to confusion and back again. His dark eyes darted back and forth between Wrell and Therin, then finally came to rest on me, deciding I was the source of the vision. Apparently, he’d never encountered a mer from the Volitan tribe and experienced their unusual communication. He flinched back as his gaze drifted down, taking in my penis and legs where a tail should have been. Both spears were instantly trained on me.
Before I could react, Wrell waved his spear above his head and then let it fall to the ground. Only hesitating a few moments longer, Therin followed suit, his blade landing in a small billow of sand. Neither made any other motion, but an image of all six of our hands stretched palms up was shared between the four of us.
“We mean no harm. We only seek help and information.”Therin’s words were in his ever-smooth, calm cadence, despite the fear that managed to escape his eyes.
The mer jabbed one of his spears, and I cringed, expecting to see it soaring toward me.“No harm? You bring a human! There is nothing but harm!”
I relaxed gradually as I realized he still held on to both of his weapons, and chastised myself. The next time I thought I was going to get impaled, I should do more than cringe. At least throw myself to the side or something. I called the fire up from my core but managed to keep it at a level that kept me from boiling the water or letting off any vapors for the mer to see.
“He is my son.”
The mer tore his gaze from me to look at Therin, the scorn in his tone thick.“Your son is a human? I may be young, but I am no fool.”
Therin’s words were quiet, moving as smooth as honey, taking an attitude that was meant to be soothing, not condescending.“If he were only human, how would he still be living?”
I swear the merman started to roll his eyes, then glanced up toward the surface too many fathoms above us, then back to me. Uncertainty crossed his face.“How did he make me see a Scarus female in our queen’s adornment?”
Therin motioned toward Wrell. “That was from this merman. He is called Wrell. He is from the Volitan tribe, and that is the manner of their communication.”
The merman narrowed his gaze at Wrell.“Why show me a female in such a manner?”
Again the image came to mind, this time showing Wrell bowing before her.
“He is showing you that he has met your queen—letting you know that we mean no harm to you or the Scarus tribe.’
“Queen Akamaii?”
Therin and the Scarus merman looked toward Wrell, who nodded. His quills lowered somewhat in relief.
The merman’s face twisted in scorn.“My youth makes me not a fool.”
Therin looked at Wrell in concern. Wrell gave a nearly imperceptible shrug of confusion.
“For the final time, you should leave or your life will be forfeited.”He looked back at me, as if just remembering the strange creature that had wandered into his ocean. For a moment his anger seemed to fade and curiosity took over. No sooner had it shown itself than it was gone, determination to make us follow his directions back in place.
