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Seru nodded, stepping forward. “Let’s try again. Who are you? Why have you come to Prisma Isle?”
The guiler smiled. “We are the rogue. We needed the one with the answers.”
“Who is ‘the one?’” Thalasia asked. She had her suspicions but didn’t want to assume she knew the answer. It was good to confirm though, in case she happened to be wrong.
“He is the oldest among us.”
“Felix,” Seru confirmed. “What answers do you seek?”
The guiler started to struggle against his bindings. “His knowledge is great.”
Thalasia frowned. He shouldn’t be moving like that. Was her charm wearing off? She placed a hand on the guiler’s leg and gasped. His skin was hot to the touch. “He’s burning up.”
“If he’s our fire starter, that could be a problem.” Seru called up a tiny storm cloud over the guiler and a gentle rain showererd down on the guiler.
The guiler hissed and snarled at the water cooling him.
Raising an eyebrow, Thalasia canted her head. “I’m going with yes.”
“We will come. You cannot stop us,” the guiler said.
“He’s adapting to and overcoming your charm at a startling rate. If this continues, he’s going to break free and cause a scene, drawing the villagers and their guardian to us.” Seru hopped on the table, pinning the guiler and securing his wrists. Even if the creature couldn’t be calmed, at least he could ensure he stayed put. Fire—no matter how hot—wouldn’t burn him.
“Can you calm him?” Seru asked. “I know you’ve used a lot of your power already. Don’t overdo it.”
Thalasia nodded. She’d need to do a good replenish soon, but she could do this. She walked over and positioned herself at the head of the guiler. Inhaling a deep breath, she pressed her hands against his shoulders. She exhaled a gentle but strong aria, her whole body lighting an iridescent silver.
The guiler slowly settled, but it didn’t stop him from trying to fight their combined force off.
Catching the resonance of her silvery aura helped settle Seru. He looked to Thalasia, “I think, we’re going to need a boat.”
“We’ll be better off flying. We’ll need to stay out of sight. They have arrows.” She winced a little as she removed her hands from the guiler’s shoulders. She remembered the ache of the hole in her wing, which also reminded her of the charm she’d buried in there.
“I remember your wounds from the time we met,” Seru recalled. “It seems to have healed well. A few darker feathers as a memento. Do you still feel it?”
She sighed. Maybe now was the right time, just not in front of the guiler. If she could, they’d sneak off somewhere to really discuss this. She suspected he would have questions. “We should talk about that.”
Seru slid off the table once the guiler settled. He raised a brow at her remark and followed her out into the open. The salty breeze churned up the ash, wisps swirling around their ankles. It played with his windblown mane. He did his best to tame the unruly hair, tickling his face and obscuring his view.
They walked off a way, stopping beneath a small grove of fruit trees, a quiet little alcove removed from the village of guilers and Mac.
Thalasia opened her mouth and snapped it shut. She tried again but couldn’t get the words to come out. Maybe she needed to try this a different way. She extended her left wing and took his hand in her own. When she ran his hand over her feathers and along the skin beneath them, she shivered at the touch.
Seru knitted his brows together. His fingers gently explored the bizarre texture of the skin beneath her feathers. “What ... is that?” The skin was soft with a touch of a scar tissue along the edge. An object shifted beneath the surface, undefinable on its own.
She fidgeted, wringing her fingers. “It’s a charm my mother gave me before she died. In the shape of a lyre. I used to wear it around my neck.” Thalasia swallowed as she touched the base of her throat. This was the last thing she wanted to think about, but she couldn’t stop now that she’d started. “The last thing she told me was to protect it at all costs. Nothing else was ever mentioned about it. I didn’t know it was anything more than a bobble, a memory, until I saw two of its strings had snapped.”
His gaze shifted as he withdrew his hand. “A lyre ... like the engraving on the blue slats of the bridge!” His eyes lit up. “The colors are similar to a rainbow ... red, orange, yellow, green, blue, violet, and purple.” His expression thoughtful, he bounced on the balls of his feet. “If the engravings match your charm, they’re definitely connected. A lyre is a siren’s instrument. The other symbols ... what if they belong to other species on Prisma Isle?”
“There was also a draconic visage encircled by a sun,” he continued, monologuing as Thalasia looked on. “Aurelia derives her power from her connection with the sun and stars. Historically, the Matriarch—” He forcefully dug his fangs into his lips, halting before he completed his sentence. His eyebrows squeezed together.
“Yes, like the one on the bridge. I recognized it when I saw the symbol that day. I know it’s a representation of sirens. It’s possible the others are connected to the other species here.” But she had no clue what it all meant. She considered what little he’d stated about Aurelia’s powers. She understood his hesitation.
There was little she knew about her own people’s history. Or at least a lot of conflicting information. “We all get our power from somewhere. I get mine from the moon.” She swallowed. None of this had been her reason for showing him what she’d hidden.
Thalasia scanned their surroundings, grateful night had fallen. She trusted Seru. No one else needed to know what they were discussing. “The charm has been passed through my family for centuries. Aurelia ... Enoch ... they may be right. Even if it was unintentional, I may be the one responsible for the barrier. My people’s history ... I’ve never been able to make sense of it.”
“You’re all special,” he said, bringing his fingers to his lips. “My access to siren history is limited. I’d wager if we did gain access to your people’s history, we’d find a similar connection. Unfortunately, our people haven’t always seen eye to eye,” he lamented. “So, even if we were to gain permission via a diplomatic envoy to visit Pteryrina, there’s no guarantee we could persuade the sirens to grant us access to their records—their true records.” He turned to Thalasia, clearly conflicted. “There are things ... knowledge I possess. Knowledge I shouldn’t possess, that I can’t share with you ... from before the War ...” Seru trailed, searching for a better way to express what he knew, but couldn’t say. He dug his talons into his arms in frustration. “These dark guilers from Candescent Isle, I think they’re seeking information from our histories. Our shared histories. From a time before the barrier was erected. That’s why they kidnapped the village elder, Felix,” Seru murmured. “Could he be old enough to have lived during those times?”
Thalasia closed her eyes. And they had come full circle. Whatever was in their histories ... the barrier ... that’s why they’d been led here. From the beginning. Whatever had been broken ... it was time to fix it. She lifted her gaze to Seru. “Mac would know. I suspect he knows more than what we’ve been told. It would explain my visions of him.” She paused and bit her bottom lip. “He isn’t the only one I’m supposed to find. The other female, a manticore I think.”
“As much as I hate to admit it,” Seru said, his expression souring, “I think you’re right. It’s time we collect Aurelia and reconvene with that unfriendly siren and the guilers of this village. Perhaps we can somehow convince the two troublemakers to investigate other species while we find your manticore—a less than friendly bunch—and pay a visit to the sirens? I’m not sure how much more of their combined arrogance I can tolerate. One is bad enough, but two ...”
Thalasia chuckled. He had a valid point. If she preferred anyone’s company, it would be his over those two. She’d been perturbed enough to last a lifetime. “I’d be more than happy to shove Mac onto Aurelia. They seem made for each other.”
Seru laughed, shaking his head. “I don’t know. She might roast and eat him. But I think that’s a chance I might be willing to take.”
She crossed her arms and tapped her chin. “I just don’t know how I can ...” she stopped. Maybe she didn’t have to sneak into Pteryrina or slip Seru in either. That half-breed might have proven more useful than she thought. “The barkeep told me a siren has been rumored to be seen around the edges of the forest. Maybe we just need to find her.”
He sobered a bit as they made their way back toward the bonfire. “Was there anything in your ... visions, something that could help point us toward the right manticore? I presume she’s not going to be as obvious as Mac in coloration.”
She shook her head at Seru’s humor. She didn’t care for Mac’s attitude, but he was the last male siren. Hmm, then again, she didn’t know that for sure. “They’re only small glimpses, but I think she was traveling. I’ll recognize her though.”
Seru reached out for her hand as they walked. “One obstacle at a time, I suppose.”
She didn’t even think about it as she laced her fingers with his. It had become so natural between them. “Quite true.”
As they entered the circle, few remained awake save Mac, who sat on a log, alone, staring into the fire. Seru faced her. “I think I’ll turn this one over to you. He doesn’t seem terribly fond of me.”
Thalasia narrowed her eyes. Yeah, she might get further by herself. “Okay. I don’t think I’ll be long. I’m gonna find some food after. Then maybe we can locate Aurelia?”
He nodded. “If she hasn’t returned on her own by then, yes.”
“I’ll keep my fingers crossed.” She squeezed his hand. “Wish me luck.”
Leaning in, Seru kissed her cheek. “I wish you all the luck in the world,” he whispered, casting one last look at Mac before shaking his head and going his own way.
Beaming, she watched him walk off for a moment, and then she turned toward the fire.
“You and lover boy finally finish?” Mac asked upon her approach.
Don’t kill him. Without asking, she sat on a nearby log. Demeter had a sense of humor. She’d never stop believing that. “We got what we could out of the guiler, if that’s what you’re referring to. They came here specifically for Felix. The question is why?”
“He’s the oldest guiler, over three-hundred-years. He knows everything there is to know about guilers. I need to get him back,” he replied nonchalantly.
Yeah, that sounded like a good plan. Except the guy didn’t say where they’d taken Felix. She and Seru had their suspicions, but it hadn’t been confirmed. “We think they took him to Candescent Isle.”
“I think so too. I just need to figure out a plan to get him back. And soon.”
“We might be able to help you with that. Just ... don’t go anywhere.” Thalasia got to her feet and went in search of Seru, gathering some fruit along the way. She found him just inside the woods.
Seru ventured to the forest’s edge, following the trace of radiant energy Aurelia left in her wake. He might not be a real dragon, but he still scented and tasted that golden energy, warm and sweet like honey.
He turned at the sound of someone’s approach. “Back so soon?” he asked, glad to have Thalasia back. Though they’d only been apart a few moments, he realized he yearned for her presence and experienced an empty sensation, a feeling of being incomplete, whenever she left.
Eyeing her arms overflowing with fruit, he tilted his head in mock suspicion. “Are those an offering of apology for accidentally slaughtering our green-feathered companion, or did all that healing and charming cause you to work up an appetite?”
Cracking a wide grin, she snickered. Thalasia held out a piece of fruit. “Definitely the latter, but I did have to remind myself he might be the last male siren. I found out something interesting though. And it absolutely answers why they kidnapped Felix. He’s been around as long as the barrier has.”
Seru graciously accepted the fruit. He couldn’t eat it, but it didn’t feel right to refuse a gift. No matter how small. She’d thought of him and that was enough. “Thank you. That confirms what we already suspected. They’re after his knowledge.”
“You’re welcome.” She took one of the pieces of fruit and bit into it.
He worried how far the dark guilers would go to obtain that information. The old man likely had some measure of resilience and strength. Otherwise he wouldn’t have survived the War and lived this long. Still, leaving him to be maimed and tortured by those darker elementals didn’t seem right. They needed to locate Aurelia and get to rescuing him as soon as possible.
“Aurelia definitely went in search of the fairies,” he informed Thalasia, gesturing at the trail before foolishly realizing she likely couldn’t sense the energy.
“Maybe with our combined eyes we can get a better sense of which way she traveled. It’s going to take all of us to try and get him back. We all seem to be on the same page about where they took him.” She shifted her eyes to him. “Although, Aurelia can heal any wounds inflicted on him. Maybe we could go one way and they go another?”
Seru led the way, following the glitter trail. “I can track her movements. It shouldn’t be too challenging to locate her.” He stepped through the tall grass, holding a branch for Thalasia. “She is capable of healing, but we have to persuade her to help another. That will be the hard part. Guilers are earthbound. Dragons see them as unworthy. Lower than servants and even prisoners. Convincing her that helping the guilers and Mac, who’s itching to pick a fight with us, is going to be challenging.”
She continued eating as they weaved their way through the thickening trees, stepped over ferns, and dodged bushes. “Maybe we just have to be honest with her about what we’ve discovered. That he could be the key to defeating them ... permanently.”
He kept an out for branches as they walked. “Also, you may wish to find a better hiding place for your charm. If it’s metal, it can’t be good for you to keep it embedded in your flesh for so long.”
“It’s gold. And it may not be, but I can’t take a risk in it being found, especially if it is some sort of key. I still have to find the pieces to repair it.”
“Aurelia might be able to help you there. Gold is one of many items worthy of a dragon hoard,” Seru said. “If one of the nobles possesses strings to repair your lyre, she’ll know and may even be the only one to have the authority to request they part with such a treasure.”
“As long she doesn’t try to take it.” She kept her wings tight against her back and glanced at Seru.
He crossed into a clearing with Thalasia right behind him. The radiant energy coalesced around a lone figure at its far side. Aurelia appeared to be speaking. Talking to herself? Or was there someone else there?
“Dragons store parts of themselves in whatever objects they hoard. The items become extensions of them, so stealing from them is extremely unwise, as a result. They can sense their parts and will hunt them down in the unlikely event a thief is able to successfully steal the object in the first place. A few in centuries past made a game of baiting other species into stealing from their hoard just to satisfy their murderous desires.”
Thalasia sized up the young woman across the way. “I wouldn’t want to steal anything that didn’t belong to me. I’ve done it in the past, but only out of necessity. Nature provides a lot, just not clothes.”
Seru’s lips quirked into a half smile. “You are from a much more modest society than us.” He paused to call out to Aurelia, but she’d already noticed them and headed their way.
“Not by choice,” Thalasia mumbled under her breath, dropping her gaze to the last two pieces of fruit. She looked up in time to see Aurelia walk over to them.
Seru offered the piece of fruit he still carried. “I appreciate your gift, but I believe it’ll do you more good than it’ll do me.” He gave her a smile before bowing to greet Aurelia.
Thalasia blushed as she took it back. “Thank you.”
“I hope you’ve discovered more than the buffet.” Aurelia growled, her hands on her hips. She glanced back to the trees, distracted by whatever lie beyond.
“We’ve discovered a great deal,” he gritted his teeth as he rose. “The buffet was on the way, a reward for a thorough job well done. Mostly thanks to Thalasia, her mastery of healing, and her charms.”
Reaching over, Thalasia set her hand on Seru’s shoulder and squeezed it. She shifted her gaze to Aurelia and took a bite of the fruit Seru just handed her. “Do you always just assume the worst? Or that we’re useless pets who can’t accomplish anything on our own?”
“Yes,” Aurelia said.
Seru fought not to roll his eyes. “Matriarch, I have a request.”
Aurelia turned back to him. “Yeah, what is it?”
“We’re in need of a few golden strings,” Seru replied. “You wouldn’t happen to know a noble in possession of such a treasure, would you?”
“Golden strings?” Aurelia regarded him. “What for?”
“I’m afraid I can’t share the specifics—”
“No.”
He frowned at her interruption. He opened his mouth to protest but was cut off again.
“I don’t know of a noble with such a ridiculous trinket,” she feigned thoughtfulness. “However, I have heard rumors of golden marvels belonging to a certain Sun God.” She finished with a sly smile.
Seru cringed at the mention.
Thalasia cracked a smile for the briefest of moments before it faltered. She sighed heavily before moving to another topic. “We’ve figured out Felix was kidnapped and taken back to Candescent Isle. He seems to be the key to defeating the guilers, especially since we know they can get around the bridge.”
Aurelia cocked her head to one side. “Let me get this straight, you want to use my army to invade a foreign land we know nothing about to save one measly earthbound?”
She sounded about as delighted as he expected at the news. “Perhaps something more ... covert—”
“Out of the question.”
“That earthbound happens to be over three-hundred-years-old. He’s got to have the answers we need to get the barrier back up. And the thought was that between the four of us, we split up and cover more ground.” Thalasia had put the thought out there. All they could do was wait and see.
“He’s not the only one,” Aurelia informed her. “Surely, there are others”—She regarded Seru as she spoke— “who are less trouble to retrieve—”
“Yes,” Seru interjected, embarrassed or insecure about something. “But not another guiler. Each species has its own secrets. Surely you know this.”
Aurelia narrowed her eyes at him. “Intimately.”
That one word clearly made Seru uncomfortable. It struck him an invisible blow, not unlike the reaction elicited by the collar. Aurelia’s accusation was clearly directed at him.
Thalasia grasped Seru’s hand and gave it a squeeze. “We need to help Mac rescue Felix. The guiler we spoke with ... he made it clear that they won’t stop coming here. There’s more going on than we know with the other species. They’re all linked to the bridge and the barrier. Whether you like it or not, we need to work with the earthbound, unless the safety of your people matters that little to you. And just think of all the new places you’ll get to see.”
“Great. Then let them take on some of the responsibility and risk. So far, you, Seru, and I have been doing all the work, putting ourselves and my people at risk. If this is truly a battle involving all species like you claim, where are the supplies, troops, and aid should we require it? I don’t see that green chicken strutting over here cooperating or offering to do much of anything other than delay our progress so you might heal his people. So far, they’ve only used your abilities and Seru’s to their benefit. You interrogate their prisoner and obtain the information needed, and you’ve both likely overshared in the time we’ve been apart—we’re not a charity.”
Seru bowed his head. “I’ve shared nothing that would violate my oath to you or the Cloud Court. Thalasia isn’t of our lands, so she’s working under whatever means necessary to resolve these issues as they arise through collaborating with not just her species, but all we’ve encountered thus far. We’d still be sitting on the beach if not for her willingness to set aside her own feelings and pride.”
“The barrier might still be intact if not for her, in case you’ve forgotten!” Aurelia argued. “Don’t think just because you’ve grown fond of her that she’s not still keeping things from you—from us—as she has from the start. She’s a grifter, not a saint. So, you keep kissing her feet and singing her praises until her deceptions get you ousted or killed.”
Thalasia’s grip on Seru’s hand tightened. She glowered at Aurelia. “Stop calling us fucking chickens. I’m not going around calling you a damn lizard,” she spat out. “I’m sick and tired of every word that comes out of your mouth beginning and ending with an insult. You don’t know any more than I do that I’m to blame for the barrier. And everyone on the isle is impacted. Not just you and your people.
“As for Seru, I would never do anything intentionally to put his life in harm’s way. Yes, I may drift, but that’s because I’ve had to in order to protect myself and survive. I don’t have people at my beck and call to wait on me hand and fucking foot. I have me, which is all I’ve had for years. That doesn’t mean it’s how I want it to be. But the gods and goddesses didn’t give me that luxury. They put me in a cage of their making and expected me to be dutiful no matter the risk. And—”
“Good stones, you three are long-winded,” Mac interjected from a tree branch just behind them. He hopped down and landed on the ground with ease.
He walked over to where Thalasia stood and grabbed the last piece of fruit from her hands without touching her. “Let me clear a few things up. Dark guilers need their element close by for their magic to work. The ones here, not all of them do. They can create their element out of nothing. Felix knows how to get them there. He also knows how to take the barrier down permanently.”
Mac bit into the fruit. “It’s been prophesied to come down for centuries. Almost as long as her arrival has been foretold.” He gestured to Thalasia, and then glanced between the two women. “I only need one of you to go with me to Candescent Isle and retrieve Felix. I don’t care ... no, that’s not true.” His gaze flicked to Aurelia with a smug grin. “I prefer you. I really don’t want to be around her when her pheromones start.”
“Come again?” Aurelia asked, crossing her arms. “Prophecy? Pheromones? What are you rambling about?”
Seru gave Thalasia a one-armed hug by draping their entwined limbs over her head to rest around her shoulders as she leaned into him ever so slightly. He sympathized with her lack of patience with the two and the endless demands. But he was equally eager to hear more of Mac’s tale. They just had to hang in there a little longer, and hopefully they’d come to an agreeable resolution.
“Like no other, one so pure; With a touch of gold; That holds the cure; Will one day return to the fold.” Mac recited the prophecy as if he’d been forced to endure hours of memorization techniques. “Sirens were the ones who erected the barrier. Only a siren could’ve opened it. There are two parts—the book and the key. The book was buried somewhere here on the isle, while the key was taken off. Felix knows how to find the book. It contains all the prophecies and instructions on destroying the barrier.” He bit into the fruit again and looked between the three of their expectant faces. “Oh? Right. Pheromones. She’s of mating age. Female sirens go through their first reproductive cycle within the first five years of adulthood. No male can help but respond once it starts.”
Thalasia’s cheeks flushed at the information.
“And there you have it. Barrier coming down, all her fault!” Aurelia gestured to Thalasia, triggering Seru to tighten his grip on her.
A low growl reverberated from deep within his belly. He forcibly settled his raised hackles but didn’t succeed in concealing his fangs. “That doesn’t make this all her fault, Aurelia. Nor is it only her problem. It’s our problem. All of us. Sirens, dragons, fairies, manticores—all of us.
“Key. Catalyst. Whatever you want to call it. Hand it over.” Aurelia stuck out her hand to Thalasia expectantly.
Seru positioned himself between them. “Thalasia will keep the key.”
“You know where it is.” Aurelia glared at him. It wasn’t a question but an accusation.
“In turn,” Seru said mostly to Mac, “when the book is found, it belongs to me. That way no one of us is holding all the pieces. Once Felix is found, we agree he returns with you.”
“He just stated that the sirens are the problem, so why would we trust them with any of the pieces?”
Mac pinched the bridge of his nose and groaned. “You three do realize we’re in the fairy forest and they watch everything that happens here. Good stones, I can’t believe I’m dealing with this.” He focused on Aurelia. “The pieces were separated for a reason. To avoid having one species with all the power. No one species is better than the other. So, make a decision. You or her. I don’t care which, but we’re wasting time arguing over who gets what. And right now, as much as it pains me to say this, I agree with the boyfriend.” He gestured to Seru.
Thalasia frowned and glanced to Mac from her position behind Seru. “You’re wasting your breath on Aurelia. As far as she’s concerned, everyone is beneath her. She’s perfect and everyone else is the problem. I’m beginning to understand why we have so many wars.”
“You should travel with Mac,” Seru interceded before Aurelia responded by setting the forest on fire. “You’re more in control of your powers than I am of mine, and you’ll likely need them to infiltrate Candescent Isle. Thalasia and I can handle things here. We still have a village worth of guilers to heal and will work on gathering allies from the remaining species.”
Stepping from behind Seru, Thalasia nodded her agreement. “There’s a lot of work to be done on both ends.”
Mac crossed his arms. “Sounds like a plan to me. Come on, blondie. Let’s go.”
Aurelia stayed put a moment before reaching into the folds of her dress. She retrieved the crystal remnants of the fallen star, which she’d confiscated from Enoch. She placed it into Seru’s palm. “There should be enough magic in that crystal to hold you steady and amplify your precious bluebird’s healing so she doesn’t deplete her energy. You’d better know what you’re doing,” Aurelia whispered harshly before begrudgingly falling in with the green siren.
Seru accepted the sparkling stone, and it glowed softly in his palm. “Thank you.”
Thalasia opened her mouth to speak, but Mac waved her off dismissively. “I got it. Stay above the clouds. Watch for flying objects. Later, Thal.” He winked at her and turned to Aurelia. “Shall we?”
Mac shot off to the sky, flying upwards as he blended into the forest greenery. He dodged branches and leaves until he reached the heavens.
Glaring as he took off, Thalasia smirked. “I really don’t like that guy.”
Aurelia raced after the green siren, sparing a last worried glance at Seru before going on her way.
Seru waited until they were out of sight before turning to Thalasia. He tucked the crystal safely into his shirt with a grin. “I think our plan to ditch Pain One and Pain Two was a success.”
Thalasia leapt into his arms, embracing him tightly as she hugged her wings around him. “Yes, it was.”
He laughed in response to her excitement, wrapping his arms around her. He was glad they’d managed to stay together and hoped Aurelia and Mac burned off their excess energy while completing their mission.
They meant well, but their execution left a lot be desired.