Apparently monster training required waking up before everyone else, being yelled at by annoying sirens, and building up patience so as to not murder those annoying sirens. If Nala was being honest where her skills were right now if she really did try to end Asherah she would end up dead and Cari might just bring her back from the abyss to kill her all over again. For the past week Asherah had started each morning by throwing Nala off her bed with a big grin on her face and announcing that it was training time. Nala had tons of bruises from the rude awakening alone not to mention the actual training.
The first thing the girls started on was showing Nala how to properly use her tail. Cari was one of the fastest swimmers in the city and so she would show Nala how to slice across the water like a storm.
"You're thinking about it wrong tadpole." Cari had her arms crossed as she watched Nala who was supposed to shoot forward and then make a sharp right turn. So far Nala had only succeeded in slamming into a boulder and rolling in the sand after failing to make a turn. She was also providing great entertainment to Asherah who howled in amusement any time Nala's face hit the floor.
"What exactly am I thinking about wrong?" Nala snarled at Cari after picking herself up from the floor. Cari answered by grabbing one of the light orange fins attached to Nala's tail and pulling so that Nala found her back pressed up against the sand with her tail practically in her face. It was an uncomfortable position and her body was curled up in a way that would surely break her spine.
"This," Cari shook the fin, "this is not a pet that you command. It is a part of you, it is you just like you arms or like when you had legs you need to...to..." Cari fell silent as she tried to make Nala understand.
"You need to accept it. Accept that this tail is you now. Just like when you were child and used to run until your legs were barely touching the floor use your tail and fly." Both girls turned to look at Asherah who had looked away. For whatever reason Nala had not thought that this girl, this animal in human skin, had once been human, like her. Cari let go of her tail and Nala rose to try the turn again.
Just as Cari was one of the fastest swimmers Asherah was one of the strongest fighters in the city. It was both good and bad for Nala, good because she was being trained by the best and bad because Asherah was going to try her hardest to break Nala down. Cari observed as Asherah walked Nala through the basics. She had yet to try to shift so at the beginning it was mostly watching the other girl as she demonstrated how to use their claws to rip through someones flesh, where to dig the claws in to fish out an organ, how to use the stinger on their tails to paralyze their prey, how to move their tail and use the strength behind it to break apart entire ships. Nala would never admit it but she was awed.
"Does everyone in the siren city do this? Hunt down humans?" Nala asked while taking a five minute break after Asherah had shifted back.
"The what?" Cari stared at Nala and she stared back. What did I say?
"Siren city? Didd you really not know this place was called Atla?" Nala was struck dumb for a moment. Asherah burst out laughing in that wild howling way she did and even Cari chuckled a bit, the first time she had actually ever laughed in Nala's presence. Nala swore she felt her rise up in her cheeks and then bitterness at being laughed at.
"How was I supposed to know? Getting information out of any of you is almost impossible" she hissed.
"Come on girl, since we got you nice and angry now try to shift." Asherah giggled.
Nala did not shift.
It was not only swimming and training that the sirens forced on Nala but also learning their history, the different gods they worshipped that represented different things. Cari forced her to go to the temples that Nala never even knew existed and pay tribute to the gods. It reminded her of long ago going with her family to church before she gave up believing in anything. Cari's words were, the gods were bastards but it doesn't hurt to have them on our side if any of them still exist. Not only that but Nala also had to study the sounds and language of the sirens, if hunting which sound meant danger or food or attack. It was tedious. The temples and studying weren't the worst of it, according to Asherah Nala had to actually interact with the other sirens which meant dining with them. The couple had their own group they sat with and not one minute into the dinner Nala already felt the need for violence. It was obvious none of the girls trusted her and they threw barbs any chance they got.
"I heard your training wasn't going well, what did you spend your time doing on land? Picking floors or waiting in bed for some male to paw you?" This came from one girl so pale she stood out against the dark waters. The other snickered.
"No, usually spent my day insulting people and picking fights." From the look on the others face's they didn't believe her.
"You should be a better fighter then."
Nala looked at the girl, "What did you do on land?"
She sneered and hissed, "I was born under the sea tadpole" Nala didn't waste a second before asking, "Then what is your excuse for being such a shit fighter?" The other sirens laughed and shrieked, Asherah howling laughter beating them all. Nala had no idea if this girl was a fighter or not but she must not have been too good based off everyone's reaction.
"Enough. Both of you are shit fighters, I was trying to enjoy my dinner but if we need to have a match to see which one of you scraps by we can." Cari interrupted taking a bite out of her fish. The other siren lowered her head just a fraction as a sign of respect. Nala had forgotten that Cari was the next ruler, she was a leader but Nala had rebellion swimming in her blood so she resisted the urge to follow the lead of the other girl. Cari caught Nala's eye and held it until Nala looked away.
The training continued for a month. She got better. Nala knew what to do with her tail now, visited the temple every day, trained with different sirens and even managed to beat one by impaling her fin to the ground with a spear. Asherah had smiled at her. The only thing she had failed to do so far was shift. Cari tried to tell her it would take time and training her body how to use the extra power the shift provided was more important. Nala usually tried tuning her out. Somehow over the course of the month the twosome that was Cari and Asherah had expanded and reshaped itself to fit Nala. You rarely saw them apart except when Nala claimed the intimate moments between the other two sirens were making her sick.
Today the girls had a race planned. They would started at the outskirts of Atla and then race over one of the many trenches until the reached an edge dive down into one of the canyons and emerge on the other side to touch the stone wall that jutted out beside a cliff. Nala was swishing her tail from side to side in preparation.
"Don't feel too bad about yourself when I leave you behind. I would hate to dig your body out of the trench when you lose the race and your will to live all in one day." Asherah gave Nala her hungry grin which she pointedly ignored.
"Did you forget who has been training me? You two shouldn't have made me so good if you weren't ready to lose." Nala shot back.
Cari shook her head at them both, "Alright tadpole let us see if you can back up that bold statement. You know the track. One the count of three."
3
2
1
They were gone.
Asherah was right. This was like flying. Nala cut through the water so fast everything around her was a blur of blue. She could feel the energy and push of the water coming from the other two sirens as they raced alongside her and she pushed herself faster. The water brushed past her slick powerful body like a gently breeze even as she hurtled past everything. One sharp turn and they were over the trench flying above it even as the gravity and force of the trench tried to pull them down. Nala gritted her teeth and centered her body but she could feel herself pulling a little behind. Another flick of her tail sent a burst of power spearing through her and she caught up to Asherah's purple tail. Cari was first, of course, but not for long. The girls had to line up one behind the other to fit into the canyon but after that they shot out to either side of Cari as they tried to catch up. All three of them exploded out of the canyon and it was a straight shot to the stone wall. First one to touch it won. For just a moment they were all beside each other and Nala felt...This must be what it like to swim in a pack. She had seen other sirens do it but had never experienced it herself.
She was pulling ahead. Just one inch. Movement on her right. Nala took one second to glance to the side and see the current Empress there. She had her guards flanking her and even from this distance and speed Aphrodite radiated power. Cari's mother had come to watch the race, for whatever reason it seemed so...normal to Nala and unexpected. They were almost at all the wall. Nala was pulling ahead, Cari had used too much of her energy at the beginning of the race and was not struggling. It only took Nala half a second to decide. Between one moment and the next the race was over, a slim hand touching the stone wall and all three girls panting and slumped on the floor.
"Daughter"
They all turned to see the Empress there and they bowed at the waist.
"Mother what are you doing out here?"
She raised a brow, "A mother can't come see her daughter?" She glanced at Nala and Nala forced herself to meet the gaze of the other woman. She turned back to Cari.
"Congratulations on winning the race." That was all she said before swimming away. The girl took another couple of minutes to rest before heading back to Atla, Cari throwing Nala strange looks as they swam back. Nala wondered if Cari knew that she threw the race and also wondered why she did it in the first place.