The morning that followed was nothing near what it was like the previous night. It was solemn and quiet. They all knew that once they left the safety of the beach, death could easily take each one of them. Everything they had faced up until now was minor compared to what was ahead. The evil only grew stronger the closer they got to her. Each of them could already feel it...the wicked magic rushing through their veins like some poison that killed you slowly. Luckily, the original eight had their amulets, which had proven throughout their journey that they granted some sort of resistance against the corruption that easily took the souls of so many.
Morana's corruption was a complicated matter. So far, it was never a permanent thing. The poor, hopeless souls that were taken by her dark magic had no control over what they did. It completely takes over one's mind and forces them to commit sickening actions that most dare not to speak of. But right after you do such things, the evil leaves you to revel in the pain and guilt you feel after. That's what drives people insane, not her magic.
It's what it does to you.
What it makes you feel.
What it makes you regret.
And you can't undo it.
You can only hope it never happens again.
Everyone routinely packed up camp to prepare for the long, treacherous journey overseas. Nizhoni and Andrea retrieved the remaining supplies that the horses carried so that they could release them back to Therondia. Aurelia and Kai took the supplies from the two girls and secured it safely in the bags.
Bai looked up from the blankets that he was folding and asked, "Did we forget to ask for a boat?"
The rest turned their attention away from what they were doing to ponder Bai's question, looking around the camp to indeed find no trace of a boat.
Corrine rubbed her eyes in frustration. "Looks like it, yeah."
"Well, what the hell are we supposed to do now?" Axel asked as he threw his hands in the air.
"We don't have time to go back," Andrea added.
While the others continued to argue, Kai sat quietly with his thoughts until an idea popped in his head. "Wait!" He exclaimed, grabbing everyone's attention. "I know where we can get a boat."
Bai cocked a brow at him. "Where?"
"You guys know my parents' story right?" Kai asked as he started down the beach."
"Sure," Nizhoni answered. "Mermaid fell in love with a human and wanted to be with him."
"I don't see how this is important."
Kai shushed Bai and continued. "Well, after their marriage, my grandfather, King Triton, wanted to make it up to Ariel for how wrong he was about the two of them." Kai started to rustle through some bushes that rested on the sand. "So, he ordered his royal guardsmen to place a rowboat every five miles across the shores so that merfolk and humans could interact easily."
"So, we are going to walk around for five miles until we find one?" Andrea asked in an unamused tone.
"Nope," Kai said proudly. "Because while I was cooped up in my stupid castle because I wasn't allowed to go beyond the walls, I memorized maps. My father had dozens and he was the one who mapped out the boats' locations. I memorized where each boat was based on its landmarks." He reached further into the bushes and grabbed the rowboat that was hidden in the vines. He dragged it out far enough to reveal it to the others. He stood up and placed his hands on his hips with a proud smile. He pointed palm tree that stood taller than any other tree. "See. It may be the cheesiest crap ever, but it just saved our asses."
"Look at you go, fish-boy," Eros smirked.
"For the last time," Kai said as calmly as possible. "I'm not a fish-boy."
Bai grabbed the boat with Kai and helped him carry it back to the camp. Once they made it back, the group started to fill the boat with as much supplies it could carry. With the boat only being big enough to transport maybe four people, improvisation was needed in order for everyone to fit, which meant leaving some bags behind.
"Bee, get your foot out of my back."
"Well, get you back off of my foot."
"Nizhoni, you're stepping on my hair!" Corrine groaned.
"Andrea," Axel huffed. "I would rather not have your arrows pointed at my face."
"Aura, am I sitting on an apple?" Andrea asked as she shifted uncomfortably.
"Probably."
"Okay, there is no way this is working," Eros finalized, only fitting a foot in the last open space. "Darron and I aren't going to fit."
"Your fault for being so buff," Bai scoffed.
"I'm going to take that as a compliment," Eros smiled sarcastically.
Aurelia noticed that Darron's eyes hadn't lifted from where they were staring at the sand. His complexion was suddenly pale and his eyes were dark.
"Darron?" She asked gently as she stepped out of the boat to approach him.
"Leave me here," he almost whispered.
"What?" Aurelia's brows came together. "Darron, n-"
"Aurelia, leave me!" He screamed almost out of desperation.
Aurelia stumbled back as if his words physically pushed her away. Seeing what he had done, tears immediately began to fall. His hand cupped over his mouth and he distanced himself from her even more.
"Oh my god-" he muttered quietly. His entire body began to tremble while shuddered breaths escaped his lips. He tried to say something but it was as if something were preventing him from doing so. Every muscle in his body tensed. He grabbed his head with both hands, taking fistfuls of his hair as he turned away. Darron let out this inhumane scream before falling to his knees. Aurelia hurried to his side and kneeled next to him. She watched in horror as he rocked back and forth and muttered 'no' to himself at least a hundred times. Aurelia cautiously wrapped her arms around him but as soon as she made the slightest contact, he jerked back and scrambled away from her.
Tears were now streaming down his face uncontrollably. "I-I-I c-can't hurt you, A-Aurelia. I c-can't. I-I won't let myself! P-Please, just leave me."
Aurelia locked eyes with him. It was like he had no soul left, like he was numb on the inside. His eyes weren't their bright green hue anymore...they were dark, lifeless. She attempted to approach him but this time he didn't simply move away. Instead, he swung his bow off his back, drew an arrow, and aimed it right at Aurelia. Aurelia's heart stopped. She slowly rose her hands in the air to try to calm him.
"Darron," she whispered.
"Just kill me," he sobbed. "Kill me!" His eyes shifted to Corrine. "You said if I ever did anything, you'd kill me! Kill me, Corrine!"
Corrine's breath was stuck in her throat. She couldn't even imagine killing someone she had grown to care for but part of her was screaming in her head telling her otherwise, and that part of her made her reach for her sword. She had to protect her people. That was her job. Aurelia held up a hand for her to stop.
"Please, Corrine, don't," Aurelia pleaded through sobs.
Corrine let go of the handle. Seeing that, Darron began to shake even more.
"No!" He shrieked. "Do it, Corrine! I'm going to kill her for god's sake!" The arrow rattled in its holding. "Please."
At that moment, Darron's fingers let go. Aurelia's hand flew up to shield herself, causing a piece of buried driftwood to shoot up from the sand and take the blow for her. Aurelia's eyes opened to see that the arrow was only centimeters from her face. She let out a sigh of relief and peered around the wood, finding Darron secured tightly in Eros's arms.
Corrine hurried over and stripped him from his bow and quiver full of arrows. Bai raced over and took Aurelia in his arms as she fell limp in his embrace.
"Aura, are you okay?" Bai asked.
She could only manage a nod. Her mind couldn't even process what had happened. It was the first time someone she loved turned on her. Maybe she was better off inside the walls?
"Let me see him," she said shakily.
"Aura, no-"
"Let me see him," she said a little more sternly.
Bai's arms released from her shoulders and let her stand. Aurelia was weak in the knees but she steadied herself enough to walk. All she could see in his figure was anger, regret...everything that he had been holding inside of him ever since he lost his brothers. But before she could get any closer. Darron swung himself around to throw a heavy punch at Eros, which effectively collided with his nose. Eros fell back and groaned with pain while Corrine drew her sword without a second thought and pressed it up against his throat.
"Corrine, no!" Aurelia took off from where she stood and scrambled to kneel before him.
"Aurelia!"
Corrine's blade shook as it hovered over his throat, tears threatening to fall. "Do not make me do this, Darron."
'Darron, stop. Please.'
But even Corrine's enchantments couldn't break Morana's spell.
Nizhoni was already next to Eros to make sure Darron hadn't done any serious damage. Luckily, he only suffered a bloody nose.
Aurelia's trembling hands reached up to cup his face. "This is not you. She is doing this to you."
Darron only shook his head.
"This is not your fault, Darron. You didn't do anything!"
His face softened like he was slowly coming back to himself again. "I tried to kill you," he spoke through gritted teeth.
Aurelia bit her bottom lip and shook her head. "No, she tried to kill me."
Aurelia leaned forward and pressed her forehead against his. "Don't give in to her. Just listen to me, listen to my voice."
Darron's breath steadied after he took several deep inhales. His hands stopped shaking and reached up to grab hers.
"I'm here," she whispered. "You're okay."
"I'm so sorry," he breathed. "You- You should just kill me any-."
"That's not happening," she interrupted. "You're coming with us."
"Nizhoni, we need to restrain him," Corrine began, gradually pulling her sword away from Darron's throat to sheath it. "Do you have any rope with you?"
Nizhoni nodded and went to the boat to retrieve it.
Aurelia's eyes snapped to Corrine. "He's not a prisoner!"
"You're right," Corrine agreed. "But he can't be trusted."
Aurelia was about to retaliate but Darron quickly cut her off, saying, "No, Aura, she's right. You have at least some resistance against her, but I don't. I need to protect you from myself."
Aurelia hesitated but reluctantly agreed. She knew that's what had to be done but it still hurt to see him as an 'enemy'. Nizhoni returned with the rope and had already tied a few knots to create makeshift handcuffs. Darron stood from his knees, Aurelia still hanging on his arm, and held out his hands so that Nizhoni could secure them.
He took Aurelia's hands. "It's okay," he reassured. He nodded to Eros, who had blood dripping down from his nose. Nizhoni handed him a towel to stop the bleeding. "Are you okay?"
Eros wiped away the blood. "Don't sweat it," he sniffed. "I'm okay."
"We need to keep moving," Darron said, attempting to normalize the situation.
"He's right," Eros agreed. "We need to keep daylight."
"Well, we still aren't going to fit everyone in this boat," Bai pointed out.
Andrea crossed her arms. "Bai, you can turn into a damn whale if you wanted to."
"Ha, oh yeah," Bai laughed goofily.
"And I can hold my breath for hours being half a mermaid!" Kai added excitedly.
Bai took off towards the water. "A dolphin or shark?"
"A dolphin, duh," Kai scoffed. "I ain't gettin' near those teeth."
"Fair enough."
"I think to rest of us can squeeze in," said Nizhoni.
"Great," Eros stated, hoisting himself into the boat. "Let's go."
____
"Are we there yet?" Axel groaned.
15 long miles had dragged on and they were still nowhere near their destination and, of course, there wasn't a single cloud in sight that could potentially relieve them from the hot sun that beamed down on their backs. Every one of them was hanging half off the boat to at least feel the mist that floated off the waves to cool their faces that dripped with sweat. Bai, who transformed into a dolphin, glided behind them, happy he was able to avoid the horrible heat. Kai hung on to Bai's dorsal fin while his other was blew gusts of wind at the base of the boat to propel it forward.
"I think I'm baking alive," Andrea muttered to herself.
"Hey uh- Kai," Corrine sighed. "Do you think you could give us a little breeze."
"I can do better than that," he winked. His hand momentarily moved away from the boat and to the sky.
With a wave of his hand, clouds gradually formed out of thin air and a cool ocean breeze arrived from the west. The half-baked teens sighed with relief as their hot skin was quickly cooled. Nizhoni let her hand fall into the water, letting her fingers glide through the bright blue waters. Up ahead she noticed a collection of dark storm clouds. That had to mean they were close to the center of it all. She continued to watch her hand and, sure enough, the water instantly turned black as if there were a fine line between good and evil.
Nizhoni grabbed the sides of the boat to push herself up. "We're here, keep your eyes peeled."
The wind picked up, blowing so harshly that the royals had to squint and shield theirs faces. Thunder rumbled through the sky just before lightning struck down on the water, sending a giant boom through the air. Everyone clutched onto the boat for the sake of not being tossed out into the waves that now seemed angered as they towered higher and higher with every lap. Corrine kept her eyes trained on the water but her eyes found nothing, only staring deeper into the ink like waters. All of a sudden, the boat jerked to the side, throwing everyone from where they sat. Corrine steadied herself and that's when her eyes found a shadow that was even darker than its surrounding waters. The shadow zipped forward and disappeared. The boat stopped shaking.
"What the hell was that?" Darron asked nervously.
As if to answer his question, a giant sea serpent burst out from the waves, letting out this horrific shriek, curling up into the air before returning to its wicked depths. Weapons were drawn without a moment's notice and strategizing had already begun.
"Kai! Bai!" Eros called out to the boys in the water. "Circle it and form some kind of distraction. Kai, create waves as big as you can to wear it out!"
Kai nodded and Bai took off, understanding exactly what they needed to do.
"We have to blind it first!" Corrine shouted. "Nizhoni, you're the only one that can do this!"
Axel quickly handed Nizhoni all of his daggers so she could defeat the beast from a distance.
Aurelia sat up a little straighter and spread her arms open. Her hands curled upward into fists, forcing seaweed to break the surface and rest where her hands stopped. "I'll hold it down."
Aurelia brought her hands back and, with all the power she could muster, threw them forward to shoot seaweed at the beast, seeing that it was paying attention to the giant waves, that were created by Kai, crashing on its body. The first two strands were easily deflected by the monster's tail. She tried again and this time, one strand made it past to wrap around the serpent's jaws. Seeing that one was successful, she quickly sent another, which was also successful.
"Nizhoni, now!"
Nizhoni had already readied herself and sent a dagger flying as soon as Aurelia gave her the command. The dagger soared past its tail and collided with one of the monster's radiant yellow eyes. A screech pierced the air as it ripped away from Aurelia's bindings. Aurelia quickly gathered up more vines of seaweed and regained herself to send more flying out of the water to quickly trap the beast again.
"Again!"
Nizhoni took another dagger in hand and repeated what she had done the previous time. But this attempt ended unsuccessfully. The dagger went a little too much to the right and shanked off the end of its nose.
"I can't hold him much longer!" Aurelia pulled back and straightened her arms again, shooting more seaweed to thicken the layers.
Nizhoni grabbed her last dagger and hurled it forward, watching it split through the air and pierce the monster's second eye. Several more cries erupted from its mouth full of razor sharp teeth as it thrashed around aggressively in a panic, due to its inability to see anything. The beast's tail flew through the air, forcing everyone to duck but it came back around a second time and came crashing down onto the helpless boat.
"Aura, get down!" Darron yelled as he grabbed Aurelia before diving off the boat.
The rest evacuated just in time to feel the shock waves through the water from the impact of the tail crushing the boat. Their heads broke the surface and they all instantly gasped for air. Corrine trod the water as best as she could, enough that she was able to pull her sword from her scabbard.
"Nizhoni!" She called out as she tossed the blade towards the girl.
Nizhoni caught it in the air and pointed the end of the blade towards the serpent. She took in one final breath before she flicked her wrist forward to send their final chance of defeating this monster barreling at its throat. The blade did not hesitate and the serpent was caught off guard, allowing for the blade to easily slash its throat as is whizzed past. At that moment, they all felt like they had finally won while they watched the beast desperately try to gather its breath, but utterly failed. But that pride didn't last long when they all watched in horror as the limp body fell upon the figures of Kai and Bai, claiming them to the wicked depths of the Black Sea.
•••
a/n: man, whatta chapter. sorry to leave y'all hanging like that but i was not about to write 4000 words lmao and cliffhangers are my thing. ANYWAY...this was a very eventful chapter and that's pretty much how they will be from now on and lots of cliffhangers and a rather startling plot twist or twists? i can't remember tbh so i would just start preparing yourself 🙃
thank you guys so much for staying with me through this entire story🥺🥺 look at how far we've come 😣
love y'all!