Chin up, I told myself as I swam into the opening assembly. You still need to get through the day without embarrassing yourself.
The chamber was already packed with every single Mer who had succeeded in finishing the Trials. There were more of us than needed, I knew.
Because some of us would fail. Some would die. And perhaps, others would be reassigned.
There was always room in the Armada for those who did not swim enough to be Messengers. Or shine brightly enough to be the Spark, I reminded myself glumly. I might get demoted or even sent away. I was having trouble casting off my mood from earlier that morning.
Dane’s words had followed me wherever I went. Even to breakfast, which was normally my favorite part of the day. Well, other than lunch and dinner.
We might still be in training, but they fed us like we were already champions. Like Royalty, really. Or at least the trays that magically appeared in my room made it seem that way.
I ate alone most of the time, but sometimes, Annaruth joined me.
“Where have you been?” Starla squealed as she enveloped me in a hug.
“They’ve been keeping me busy.”
“Showing you off,” she said with a knowing smirk.
“Ugh,” I moaned. “I wasn’t expecting so much . . . um . . .”
“Ceremony?”
I nodded. I was happy to see my friend. But it did nothing to dispel my mood from my conversation with Dane.
Speak of the Royal Mer . . .
Dane swam in, took one look at me, and found a seat on the opposite side of the room. Well, you did ask him to keep his distance, Tri, I told myself. It didn’t matter, though. It still hurt.
Rip swam in, and I pushed off from my bench. He looked fine, as if his injuries had never occurred. I waved, and he swam to sit beside me, pulling me in for a quick hug. I felt a blaze of heat from the other side of the chamber. When I looked up, Dane was staring at us.
He looked . . . jealous.
Triton, I couldn’t seem to do anything right. And this was just the first day. I tried to ignore the stares of my classmates. Each day started with a full assembly. In between, we only took classes that pertained to our future roles.
Our hopeful roles, if nothing went sideways during our years at the Academy.
I relaxed slightly when a familiar face swam purposefully into the room. Dante, Messenger and friend to my father, took his place at the podium.
“Does this mean you get special treatment?” I teased Rip under my breath.
He winked at me, murmuring, “You know it.”
Everyone quieted and waited for Dante to speak.
“This is the opening day of the Academy. I am your headmaster and Head Messenger. This is a school that opens only once every hundred years, a place to train and to prepare the next wave of warriors to fight for our blue world. Your studies will be rigorous. Demanding. The physical training will be worse. There is no higher calling than to serve the Queen. Now, we will begin with the history of the Royal Family and how the Trials and Academy came to be.”
“What class do you have next?” Starla asked, practically bouncing alongside me.
“Foreign history and etiquette.”
“Me too!” She squealed, throwing her arms around me. “What’s after that?”
“Human history and etiquette.”
“Ohh . . . so that will be just you and Dane.”
I stared at her, stopping short in the middle of the busy hallway. I pulled her off to the side as students swam past us on their way to their next classes. I hadn’t thought of that. We were the only two Sparks. In fact, there had never been two chosen before, as far as I knew. Of course we would have the same classes.
“Maybe he already knows that stuff. From being, you know . . .”
“A Prince?” Starla asked, clearly a little dreamy-eyed. “He’s so wonderful.”
“Yeah, well, wonderful or not, he’s not going to be happy about private classes with me.”
“Whatever you say, Tri,” Starla said, smiling mischievously.
I sighed and we started swimming again. I was hungry already. Breakfast seemed a million leagues away. I was worried about doing well in my classes. And I felt guilty about being mean to Dane, damn it!
“How much longer until lunch?”