I bow, and she blushes.
Her father’s scowl disappears, quickly replaced with a twinkle in his eyes.
“Seeing as we are already allies, I have to ask, what is it you are seeking with a marital alliance?”
“We heard about how Bloodhound fell due to a lack of trained militia,” he starts.
Internally, I cringe.
“I admire your peaceful approach to lead and govern and think your values align deeply with ours. Together, we might be able to bring peace from the sea and extend it to the land,” she finishes.
Not where I thought she was going with that, but I’m here for it. I guess a ruined reputation is in the eye of the beholder.
Tyler is taking notes on all the eligible maidens. “Mermaid...” he writes next to her name. “Got it.”
This is usually the part Tyler would have asked about special powers, but mermaids are pretty standard across their kind. Telepathy, shifting from fish to human and healing powers through touch. This isn’t for me. It’s for my pack. My decision will be made objectively. So I don’t have any more questions besides the generic, “Anything else I should know?”
They exchange glances. King Leviathan speaks hesitantly, “Yes... Azura’s mother is a siren. Which would make her...”
“A hybrid.” I blink rapidly.
“Yes.”
They study me carefully, but if they’re looking for any signs of rejection, they won’t find any.
Not unless they can read my mind.
Sirens generally have three power families:
The first is persuasion, using hypnosis or song to lure people in. With their beauty alone, they don’t need the song—unless they want to steer an entire ship off course. There will always be guys like Tyler who fall for the trap without it. The other power under the persuasive umbrella is hypnosis.
Pretty self-explanatory.
The second type of siren power is water manipulation, via hydrokinesis or weather control.
Just imagine the damage a sudden and hyper-targeted hurricane or typhoon could do.
I shiver.
The last is mind control and illusions. Psychic illusions alter a victim’s reality. Memory manipulation twists how they perceive their experiences. Love compulsion is the ultimate power of seduction, but the one I find most intriguing is psychic pain.That is the ability to look at someone and cause them to feel excruciating anguish.
But which one does she have?
“And, so her powers are . . . ?”
“Psychic illusions.”
Nice. So that explains Tide of Azura’s long-running safety streak. You think you’re about to destroy a reef or hunt whales when—BAM—it’s gone, and you’re in an active volcano.
“Forgive me, but you don’t look like a siren.”
Azura’s nails flash dark teal as scales ripple under her cheeks. Her eyes blacken, and her teeth elongate into sharp points.
“Still want fish for dinner?”I ask Tyler.
“Would you judge me if I said I was into it?”
Chapter FOURTEEN
