Mervidia (22 page)

H
er eyes stayed open though, refusing to shut or turn away from the carnage. Her brain took in every tiny detail, as the sharks’ teeth sank into the tender flesh of the merwin children, red clouds blossoming from the torn skin like newly-formed fire coral. The last surviving faera guard dove forward valiantly, spear striking over and over, but his efforts were in vain. One frilled shark clamped its maw around the guard’s tail, while another took hold of his torso. The faera’s head disappeared into its fanged mouth. With two quick shrugs of muscle beneath thick grey skin, the merwin warrior was torn in half, his body sucked greedily into the gullets of the predators that had killed him.

More of the
sharks wriggled into the room from the nursery. The water around Breete filled with the blood of slaughtered faera and the body parts that had not yet been gobbled up by the hungry beasts that had been set upon House Stonegem. She coughed, choking on the floating remains of her kin in the water.

Breete felt something brush against her bare torso.
She reacted by bringing her dagger around into a defensive position. She need not have worried though. It was only the tiny hand of a young faera, instinctively reaching out for comfort. She looked sadly at the little fingers, following them to the diminutive hand, down the slender little arm to….

Nothing.

The arm ended there. The tiny limb drifted beside her, ripped from the body to which it had once belonged. As it continued to float by the domo, the ragged end still leaked a trail of crimson.

Breete felt another, more insistent, pressure on her lavender tail, and she could not bring he
rself to look. She could not witness the horror of another dead faera, no matter its age. She tried to pull away from the touch but found that she could not. When she finally glanced down, she saw that her tail was held, not by the hand of a child, but by the spined bloodstained teeth of an unsated frilled shark. The creature had taken a hold of her tail flukes and was working its way up its length in sporadic bites, swallowing a little more of her tail with each jerk of its wide-mouthed, triangular head. Breete knew she should feel pain, but she did not. The domo felt only the vibration of the bones of her tail being crushed by the shark’s powerful jaw. It was a distant sensation, somehow separate from herself.

As the teeth s
ank into her bare torso and her tail was fully engulfed, the shock wore off. All the pain returned, and Breete began frantically trying to escape, even though she knew it was too late. The sensation of pain was not the only thing to return though. Her sense of hearing abruptly came back as well. All the howls of agony and cries of suffering tried to cram themselves into Breete’s ears all at once; an uklod trying to force its way into the tunnel of an eel.

It was too much.
With the fangs digging into her body, the screams of pain assaulting her ears, and the blood of her house snaking its way into her gills to gag her, it drove her over the edge. Her dagger had apparently fallen from her hand at some point in her fugue. She beat her fists hysterically against the shark which was slowly devouring her, but her blows were useless. Desperately, she dug her tiny claws into one of the beast’s eyes, piercing its milky white orb, the pink fluid inside blossoming around her hands.

She had a moment of satisfaction, having wounded her killer in some small way, but it was short-lived.
Driven into an even deeper frenzy by the loss of its eye, the young frilled shark opened its mouth wide, drawing the rest of the faera domo into its spiny fangs and clamping them down with such force that it crushed Breete’s ribcage like a brittle shell. The domo tried to scream, but found that her lungs would not fill with water to power her voice.

Instead only a weak trailing gurgle escaped her small mouth.

Chapter Twenty-Three

Lachlan moved his muscular tail back and forth in powerful, water churning strokes to keep up with Zane. The Red Trident’s captain swam as though he were being pursued by a shiver of sharks, all intent on tearing his flesh from his bones. However, Zane wasn’t swimming from a slaughter; he was swimming towards one. The only thing following him were the Red Tridents, all strong powerful swimmers themselves, yet struggling to keep up with their commander.

Word had arrived at the Red Trident headquarters shortly after Zane himself had returned
. One of their scouts had reported that Regent Iago had apparently ordered the destruction of House Stonegem in reprisal for their part in Queen Beryl’s death. Even if not for the report, word had spread quickly throughout the city, which was shutting itself away to wait out the massacre behind barred doors. Not the Red Tridents though. Most of them had responded to Zane’s summons, and the majority of the mercenary company had already congregated around their headquarters in the Ghet. As a result, when Zane had darted out the door, in his rush to House Stonegem, a large force of armed merwin had trailed close behind.

As clos
ely as the Captain will let us,
Lachlan thought, still pumping his black-scaled tail to keep up with Zane’s rich red-hued one. A glance over his shoulder told Lachlan that some of the others were not faring as well. Though he could not see many of the other merwin in the darkness, the long erratic line of orihalcyon lanterns following in the dark water behind him told the tale accurately enough. They were not swimming in formation or even in an orderly line of soldiers. Theirs was a ragged train of mercenaries trying desperately to maintain some semblance of organization, while pursuing their captain as he swam frantically out ahead of them. Lachlan had only gotten the briefest of glances at Zane’s expression before he darted out the door, but that one fleeting look had spoken volumes. The neondra’s face had been a chaotic mix of horror, anger, fear, confusion, and despair, with each emotion clawing frantically to the surface before being swiftly supplanted by another. Luckily, Lachlan had been present when the report had been delivered and was able to take the lead when his captain, overwhelmed by the situation, had not.

Zane had wisely posted a Red Trident scout near House Stonegem after the
seifeira had told his captain of his and Jade’s findings. The lookout reported that the faera house had been surrounded by a good number of Yellowtails and that a large contingent of the Palace Guard had forced their way in the front door. Lachlan had been able to keep his head enough to signal for the gathered Red Tridents to follow. The seifeira, still somewhat numb from the news of Jade’s death, had been distant enough from his own emotions to give the order that his captain, in his haste, had forgotten.

Lachlan had
thankfully grabbed an orihalcyon lantern before leaving. Without it, Zane would be blindly swimming through the darkness of the ocean’s depths on his desperate route to House Stonegem. Normally, for the sake of courtesy and safety, Zane and the Red Tridents would be swimming between the houses and compounds of the various merwin families on the way from the Ghet to House Stonegem. However, Zane had apparently abandoned such concerns in his desperation. Immediately after leaving his home, the neondra captain had ascended at a sharp angle and had begun swimming over the intervening buildings. The Red Tridents had followed suit. Part of Lachlan wondered what the small army of merwin would look like to the other residents of Mervidia, who happened to be outside or looking out the windows of their homes as the Red Tridents passed overhead. Reports of the mercenary band recklessly roving the city like a school of thugs were sure to make their way back to the palace. He need not have feared though; every house was locked up tight with their shutters closed. The seifeira doubted anyone saw them after all.

Lachlan didn’t much care
if they were seen anyway, and he guessed that Zane didn’t either. In the past the Red Tridents had had run-ins with the Palace Guard, and the Yellowtails for that matter, but never before at the same time.
It looks like we’re going to pass that particular threshold today though,
Lachlan thought, seeing the ring of wavering orange lights in the distance. The majority of the Yellowtail army was waiting for them, and beyond them the soldiers of the Palace Guard.

If I live past today, I’ll definitely have a good tale to tell my children
,
Lachlan chuckled to himself. The dark humor of his thoughts quickly gave way to sadness.
If I have children, that is,
he thought morosely. Jade’s death was an open wound in his heart, and he still had not yet been able to go see her body to say his farewells.
Jade, you, of all merwin, would understand.
“Duty before pleasure,” the green-scaled neondra had often said. Sadly, however, he knew viewing her remains would bring him no such pleasure. Part of him welcomed the distraction of Iago moving against House Stonegem, but he wished desperately that it had not been so tragic an event that had pulled him away from his growing melancholy.

Don’t swim ahead of yourself,
Lachlan chided his racing thoughts.
You don’t know that things have gone badly. Maybe House Stonegem was able to escape into the tunnels beneath their compound. Domo Breete is a crafty little faera. They could be holed up in their warren of narrow passageways, waiting for the Coral Assembly to step in or Iago to calm down. Surely, they’ll put a stop to this, once word gets to them.
The seifeira had seen several faera houses before.
And recently,
he mused, thinking back on his visit to see Domo Kiva.

A small part of Lachlan felt a measure of responsibility for what was happening to House Stonegem, but he quickly silenced that line of thinking.
Assassinating a member of the Divine Family, and especially the queen, has repercussions.
House Stonegem knew this when they took the job.

Still,
Lachlan thought,
killing an entire house is a gross overreaction. Surely, Iago knows this, or will realize it once his rage has died down. What we need to do now is make sure so much blood isn’t spilt in the meantime that we don’t sink too far down into an abyss that we cannot swim out.

“Hold there, Captain Zane,” one of the guards called out as the
neondra commander entered the ring of light cast by the Yellowtails’ lanterns. The challenge reminded Lachlan that he needed to put aside his philosophical ruminations and concentrate on the present.

Each of the waiting soldiers carried a glowing chunk of orihalcyon, ensconced in a coral cage
and mounted on the end of a short pole. They had spears in their hands and blades hanging at their waist. Additionally, each Yellowtail wore bone armor, all edged in spell-shaped yellow coral, around their forearms, across one shoulder, and down the length of their tail.

House Yellowtail had come prepared for a fight.

Zane stopped dangerously close to the ring of Penn’s merwin, who surrounded House Stonegem, though he was still outside the reach of their spears. Despite his haste, the Red Trident captain had not lost all prudence.

“Where is he?!” Zane demanded, looking
past the Yellowtail warrior who had stopped him. Anger had clearly won the war of emotions going on behind Zane’s eyes, and the neondra now wore his fury plainly on his face.

“Where is who, Captain Zane?” the Yellowtail asked.
Lachlan noticed that the soldier was using Zane’s proper title.

Which means you’re expecting us,
Lachlan thought.
So Domo Penn….

“Don’t give me that shark crap,” Zane retorted.
“You knew I was coming, so Penn knew it as well. Otherwise you wouldn’t be calling me ‘Captain.’” He had arrived at the same conclusion as the seifeira. Even as agitated as he was, the Red Trident commander’s mind was as quick and nimble as a shark, and no less dangerous.

“
Domo
Penn,” the armor-clad solider said, stressing the head of House Yellowtail’s proper title, “gave orders not to….”

Before anyone could react, Zane darted forward, wrapped his fingers around the Yellowtail’s pauldron and pulled the startled soldier’s face up to his.
“Shove your orders! Get me
Domo
Penn and get him now, or I swear by King’s Reef that we are going through you to find him!”

A score of Yellowtail spears lowered to point their coral tips directly at Zane.
The soldier in Zane’s grasp tried to bring his weapon down, but the red-finned captain was too fast for him. Zane grabbed the spear, twisted it from the merwin’s grasp and tossed it behind him without looking. Lachlan reached out and snagged the weapon from the water, placing the haft in the same hand as his own spear.

“That won’t be necessary, old friend.”
Penn’s voice carried through the dark waters and had an immediate, if radically different effect, on all present.

The Yellowtail soldiers raised their spears and came to attention, their bodies rigid in the water.
Only the minute motions of their tail flukes keeping them rigid in the water betrayed them as still capable of movement. Even the Yellowtail in Zane’s grip assumed the composure of his fellow soldiers, as best he could.

Lachlan, in contrast, lowered his spear, pointing its tip towards the sound of the Yellowtail’s voice until the
domo swam out of the darkness. As Penn emerged into the light, Lachlan’s eyes focused on the sight of the approaching merwin.

The Yellowtail’s
leader was dressed differently than those under his command. His forearms were encased in vambraces like those of his fellow merwin. His were coral and solid yellow, in contrast to his soldiers’ whose were only edged in the color. Other than that, he wore no armor at all. His broad muscular chest was bare, save for a single frilled shark tooth hanging from a braided cord around his neck. At his waist hung a short blade with the hilt wrapped in sharkskin.

Whereas Penn’s appearance caused his soldiers to come to rigid attention and Lachlan to adopt a wary posture, it had a wholly different effect on the commander of the Red Tridents.
Zane released the merwin he had been accosting, pushing him aside as though suddenly noticing more desirable prey, and swam in a direct line to the Domo of House Yellowtail.

A pair of
neondra, who trailed behind Penn - the domo’s personal guard Lachlan guessed - rushed forward to defend their commander. The Yellowtail leader waived them off with a curt gesture though. “That’s far enough Zane,” he said forcefully. It wasn’t a command, but he had said it with enough authority that the Red Trident captain swung his tail forward, halting his momentum and pulling himself up short. A spear’s length separated the two, but Lachlan knew that either merwin could close the distance in the blink of an eye. The Yellowtails knew it as well. Despite the absence of an order from their commander, every single one of them had their weapons pointed at Zane, clearly ready to impale him should the need arise.

Lachlan saw movement out of the corner of his vision.
He did not spare a glance to confirm it; he knew what the motion was. The Red Tridents were arriving. Sporadically, but their numbers grew rapidly, swelling with each anxious heartbeat. While it made the seifeira more comfortable to have his fellow Tridents with him, their presence only added to the tension.

“What are you doing here?” Zane demanded, pointing an accusing finger at Penn.

“I could ask you the same thing,” the domo countered. “I am here on behalf of the Coral Assembly to ensure that things do not get too out of control. Who asked your Red Tridents to show up?”

“Mervidia demanded it as soon as you and your army of brutes attacked House Stonegem and began slaughtering those inside.”
Zane’s tail flicked angrily from side to side as though preparing to dart forward at any moment and attack the Yellowtail domo.

Penn appeared singularly unconcerned.
Surrounded by his army, Lachlan guessed that the Yellowtail commander felt confident that he could hold off Zane long enough for his merwin to dispatch the leader of the Red Tridents. Lachlan was certain that Penn was underestimating Zane. Despite the domo’s martial prowess, of which his unmarked skin spoke volumes, Zane was one of the best fighters that Lachlan had ever seen. Should the two come to blows, the battle would be truly impressive.

T
hough, such a contest was not going to take place today. Penn drifted forward, moving closer to his childhood friend. Both the Yellowtails and the Red Tridents gripped their weapons more tightly, ready to dart into action as soon as either commander struck a blow.

“Put your weapons up,” Penn said, his voice quiet, but firm with the full authority of his command.
“No harm is to come to Captain Zane or his merwin.” The Yellowtails hesitated, but a cross look from their commander caused the merwin to comply.

Not taking his eyes from Penn, Zane gestured with his hand, a silent command to do the same.
The Red Tridents, most having arrived at this point, obeyed, albeit much more reluctantly than their Yellowtail counterparts.

Lachlan moved his tail subtly back and forth, propelling him surreptitiously forward.
The Yellowtail from which Zane had taken the spear eyed the seifeira suspiciously, but made no move to stop him. Penn had given his order, and it was being obeyed, for now. Lachlan slowly and deliberately took the captured weapon from his hand and returned it back to its owner. As the Yellowtail retrieved the spear, he relaxed slightly.