I opened my mouth to speak but when he lifted his triton, I immediately pursed my lips together. When he lifted that, someone could get hurt. And I most certainly didn’t want it to be me.
Father was a good ruler of the Coral Realms, but he did use his powerful triton to enforce the rules, especially the one about magic. Hedespisedanyone who used magic except himself, because magic was difficult to control. He said the triton controlled magic, and those who tried to use it without a tool risked unimaginable woes on the merfolk.
That triton though… I stared at its golden tips, the way it seemed to glow. Father had used the triton on people who disobeyed him. He turned them to coral, seaweed, and, sometimes, even jellyfish–helpless to the currents and tides.
He’d transform them back, of course, but he’d never used that triton on me. I was his daughter, and the youngest, after all…
Sometimes he used the triton’s powerful beams to destroy things. I even saw him command a group of fish to swarm a merfolk’s home. The triton did, indeed, possess magic that I did not understand, nor did I care to understand. I felt magic, the tingling sensation in the water, and I was glad it was one less thing to worry about.
Gives me more time to explore and take care of the royal gardens…
Father’s words cut my thoughts short. “I have arranged a betrothal between you and King Malinoakea of the Brine.”
I gaped. “Father–”
Mother’s eyes hardened and before he could speak, she did. “Aulani, you have disrespected and disobeyed your father for far too long. You will be grateful he even secured you a marriage. Your rebellious reputation has spread far and wide, and you have no idea the lengths we went to get an agreement for marriage.”
My heart sank. “I’m sorry,” I said, and I really meant it. I knew my parents loved me, and I wanted to be grateful. I had a good life… but there was just a part of me that couldn’t stay here. I was dying to know what was out there: how the humans studied the stars, the things they created, the technology, the walking on land…
My stomach tightened.But I’m a mermaid.I looked at my parents. “Were there no other prospects? King Malinoakea lives in the deepest part of the sea–he eats whale bones for dinner and never surfaces for light.” I thought I’d stop breathing. “Not to mention he’s thousands of years old. I’d be his what? His sixtieth wife? I’m only twenty-two years old–”
“Aulani!” My mother cut in. “You should be grateful to be marrying someone who takes care of this ocean. Unlike the humans you idolize, Malinoakea ensures our oceans remain clean. There’s so much that goes on in the brine.”
I knew this. The ocean floor fish and merpeople were unlike any others, with eyes that could see in the dark and lights in their tails that didn’t need rays from the sun to shine.
“But it’s so…” My voice cracked. “It’s so dark down there.”
Before either of my parents could respond, a rush of words came out like a tsunami. “What about Prince Eryn from the Pearl Realms? He might be vain, yes, but he’s not in the depths of the sea. Or what about the noblemerman from the icy parts in the north? It would be cold, yes, but I could handle it–”
“Your sisters have been offered a hand in marriage by these choices,” said father. “But you, Aulani… There is no hope. The merfolk know what you are: a human lover. Human seeker.” He looked disgusted, and a lump formed in my throat.
“I just think there’s so much they can–”
“Silence!” Father rose from his seat. “You have dishonored me too many times. Youwillmarry Malinoakea. Furthermore, between now and your marriage–which will be in one month’s time–you areforbiddenfrom ever going to the surface, hereorin any realm.”
“And if you try again,” father added. “Your punishmentwillbe severe.”
I frowned. What did they have planned?
“The triton can create a barrier,” mother said and my whole body froze. “It’s what keeps the veil of darkness over our beloved realm, so the outside world cannot see us until they pass through it.”
Understanding seeped in, like squid ink blackening the water. They were going to create a barrierjustfor me, one that would keep me below the ocean’s surface.
Father’s gaze hardened, and I knew he would do this if he had to.
He’d done it for one other mermaid in the kingdom, and she could not break the surface.
I nodded, but my heart was racing. I had to get away. There were no words.
I bowed, and swam out, darting past Humu, who sighed and asked, “What now Aulani?”
But he wouldn’t understand.
Nobody would.
Nobody… except her.
I swam through the coral forests, past illuminated jellyfish, and into the darkest corner of the realm.
