CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE - Lysi
The Liberation of Utopia
The Nereid Peaks cascaded into the distance, each underwater mountain higher than the last. I stopped to get a feel of the landscape. The prison could have been anywhere in these peaks and valleys. It would take days to scour the whole range.
Maybe the mountains broke the surface to form islands. It would be a good place to keep a lot of merpeople. Was I looking for a good place, though? Or was I looking for something miserable? The vista of coral felt too close to paradise for it to be a prison.
No matter what happens, keep going.
Spio’s words looped in my mind with every stroke. I’d done what he said, expecting him to catch up. But I kept going, and going, and the sun changed positions, and still I swam alone. I forced myself to keep a quick pace, fighting the urge to turn around and search for him.
Panicking would do me no good. I had to keep going. If I didn’t find Queen Evagore, how were we supposed to make a peace treaty with the humans? We needed a reformed kingdom, and for that, we needed our queen.
I’d shouted to Spio as he turned in the opposite direction of where we were supposed to be headed. “Where are you going?”
“To get proof!” he’d shouted back.
Proof. That would imply Meela had succeeded in killing Adaro. I needed to trust that she had. I needed to be convincing when I told the guards Adaro was dead.
I couldn’t help thinking that if Adaro was alive, it meant one thing for Meela—in which case I would have nothing left to lose. So I would believe with all my heart that Adaro was dead. If that was a lie, I would deal with the consequence when it came.
This place was a medley of wildlife. Given that this mountain range was in the middle of nowhere, it must have been untouched by both humans and merpeople; the plants and fish grew to enormous proportions.
Keeping a fast pace, I dove and skimmed the ocean floor, trying not to think of the others. Then everything became cold and dark. I jerked to a stop, looking around, an unsettled feeling washing over me. The landscape was strangely naked. The coral was gone. Entire chunks of rock were missing, as though they had been blasted away.
Meela said the humans had dropped something over the prison. Was this the result of an explosive?
The desolate hush sent a chill down my spine. I had to be close.
I’d spent the journey both wishing I had an army behind me and feeling grateful I was alone; I would be less of a threat to whomever guarded this place. Now, I wished for at least a friend.
I would have to play the role of a messenger from Utopia, here to deliver news of Adaro’s death. Revealing I was there for Queen Evagore might put her life in danger. The guards could bar my entry and kill her. I would have to tell them their order was to free all Nereid prisoners.
I chewed my lip. Was this a dumb plan? After spending so long avoiding Adaro’s armies, even fleeing them, it was hard to convince myself to simply swim up to his prison guards. Plus, what if they recognised me as a traitor to the crown, as Thetis and Nestor had? Even if they didn’t, what were the chances they would believe me?
Maybe I should try to sneak in.
The idea was comforting. But this prison was supposed to be high security. I doubted I’d be able to get in, set free their most valuable prisoner, and make it out alive.
I was so immersed in coming up with a plan that I nearly missed it when something odd hit my senses from below. I could feel a vast opening in the earth, yet there was only rock and sand.
I plunged into the darker depths.
There was a presence on the current, but I couldn’t tell where it came from. It seemed to be beneath the rock. Was it inside the peak? I felt the auras of what must have been a hundred merpeople.
This had to be it. I hovered, casting for signs of a break in the floor. How was I supposed to get to them?
I wondered if I should wait for Spio and whatever proof he was getting. Whether I tried to sneak in or pretended to be a messenger, I wanted his help.
Under a nearby boulder was a gap just big enough to fit. I would wait there until Spio arrived.
I’d barely pulled myself inside when something tightened over my hair and yanked me out.
“Ouch!”
I found myself face-to-face with the point of a stone blade. Behind it was a merman, teeth bared.
“Trespasser,” he said. “Who are you?”
“I’m from Utopia! I was sent to deliver news,” I blurted, then grimaced. Guess we’re going with the first plan.
He leaned back, studying me. “You were?”
“Yes. The government—”
“Why were you trying to hide?”
I opened my mouth, struggling for an explanation.
Behind the merman, a female voice said, “Who is it?”
“Someone from Utopia.”
“Utopia?”
“Says she’s here to deliver news.”
“What news?”
“That’s what I’m trying to find out!”
I winced at his firm grip on my hair.
“Where’s Guenevere?” said the mermaid.
She whirled around and disappeared.
“Come on,” said the merman, following her. He gave me little choice, pulling me along by the hair.
I stayed quiet, deciding compliance would be my best course of action.
“Get me Guenevere,” shouted the mermaid.
We crested the top of a hill and I let out a soft, “Oh.”
I found myself facing an army of at least a hundred mermaids and mermen. They held their weapons up, ready to defend—what, exactly? Behind them was more rock and patches of dead coral.
A murmur passed through the crowd. A brunette with a stone mace came forwards. My gaze landed on the rubies in her braid—she was their commander.
“What is it?” she said.
“Found this one hiding,” said the merman. “Says she was sent to us from Utopia.”
They all looked at me expectantly.
Spio or not, I had to persist.
“The government’s fallen, Commander. King Adaro is dead. You are to abandon your post and release your prisoners.”
Tension swept through the crowd. A whisper seemed to pass over them, though none moved their lips.
“This is treason,” said Guenevere. “This is exactly the lie His Majesty warned us about.”
I cast my senses through the guards, finding contempt. “What lie?”
“That His Majesty is dead. What proof do you have? None have come close to defeating him or the serpent.”
Hurry up, Spio.
“The serpent is no longer under his control,” I said. “It’s in the hands of the revolutionaries.”
Guenevere snarled. “You’re lying.”
I knew this would happen. Adaro would have warned his armies against news of an assassination. He had been bitten by this lie when Spio, Nilus, and I had taken part in the attempt on his life. He would have taken precautions since then. More than proof, we needed Meela here with the serpent. My fear over her fate was betraying me. I shouldn’t have listened to her. I should have insisted we stay together.
“Surely you’ve heard of the coup in Utopia,” I said.
The guards exchanged glances.
“We heard rumours,” said Guenevere.
Interesting. Was this why they were so keen to listen to someone who said she had news from Utopia? They could easily have turned me away. Instead, I was here in front of them.
“The rumours are true,” I said, summoning confidence. “I’m here to tell you that the Pacific Kingdom is no longer under Adaro.”
Everyone was silent—listening to me. The grip on my hair loosened, but the merman didn’t let go.
“It was a revolution. There’s going to be an election. We decide who’s in government.”
The guards shifted, unease rippling through them.
I understood their dilemma. If I was lying about Adaro’s death, and if they abandoned their post to join me, they would become traitors to the crown. As someone who once served under Adaro out of the same fear, I empathised.
I was about to speak honestly about this when a clamour drifted down the current.
Everyone turned towards the roar of voices coming this way, the noise echoing in the mountain range, slow and distorted. I strained my ears to figure out what was happening.
This couldn’t be Spio, could it?
“Who are you with?” Guenevere said to me, a fierce look on her face.
Everyone raised their weapons. The grip on my hair tightened painfully.
“No one!” I said. “I came alone.”
Guenevere scowled, but said nothing. We waited. I wished I had something, anything, to defend myself.
Then a horde of merpeople came into view, and my jaw fell open. It was a wall of Utopians, led by Dione, Ephyra, and the others I remembered from Kori Maru. They dragged with them a line of four mermaids and three mermen, gagged and connected by rope. I recognised the hostages from demonstrations and ceremonies during training. These were the faces of Adaro’s government—most of it. Nemertes was missing.
My heart raced. This was the result of the coup. They’d rallied all these civilians. They’d found out where Evagore was, and they were here to get her.
The roar became clearer. They were chanting.
“Not my king! Not my war! Not my king! Not my war!”
Invisible ropes around my chest seemed to loosen. We had more allies than I’d dreamed.
Dione’s voice rose above the masses as they advanced. “Adaro’s government is no more! We are here from both the South Pacific and Utopia, and we ask you to release your prisoners, and join our new kingdom.”
Guenevere raised her mace. Around me, the guards tensed, ready for a fight.
I cursed inwardly. If I’d had another moment, I was sure I could have convinced them to drop arms.
“If you surrender, we will welcome you as allies,” said Dione, unfazed. “We will join together and fight the tyrant Adaro.”
“What are you on about?” said Guenevere. “First you say Adaro’s dead, and now you’re here to fight him?”
The crowd drew to a stop in front of us.
“Dead?” said Dione. “We never said he is dead.”
Ephyra spotted me and said, “Oh!”
Dione’s gaze snapped to me. Her expression changed to one of bewilderment.
“What are you—?”
“He is,” I said. “I’ve just come from him.”
Gathered in a valley between two peaks, the mounts on all sides acted as a sound funnel. My voice carried with unusual clarity.
A hush fell. Then, excitement and fear flew through the crowd at these words.
“Dead. He’s dead. The king is dead!”
“How?” whispered Dione.
“King tide,” I said. “We followed him. Meela killed him. We need to meet her—”
“She did? Where is she?” said Dione, peering through the guards.
“And where is the serpent?” said the white-blonde mermaid from Kori Maru.
“Traitors, turn away from this place or we will be forced to fight,” shouted Guenevere.
The guards raised their weapons higher. The merman gripping my hair let go so he could face his opponents.
“Look at the numbers before you,” said Dione. “We are peacefully asking you to surrender and join us, along with the prisoners you keep.”
At the mention of the prisoners, Guenevere’s eyes reddened.
We hung suspended, two armies facing each other—Dione’s several times larger, Guenevere’s better armed.
Those behind Dione examined the mountainside the guards protected, possibly seeking out an entrance.
Though they were my allies, I wished I could have done this alone. I worried what plans Dione had for Queen Evagore.
“Dione,” I said, hesitating. She needed to know how vital it was to get the queen to Eriana Kwai—but I was still reluctant to mention Evagore outright in case the guards did something drastic.
A guard behind Guenevere spoke. “Are all of you a part of this movement?”
I followed his eyes across the Utopian army. The leaders floating on either side of Dione had been chosen wisely. I’d been worried Utopians wouldn’t follow Dione if she went storming into Utopia with a group of South Pacifics. But she’d selected a balance of north and south, mermaids and mermen, young and old, to join her. The message was clear: this was a revolution for everyone.
“We are,” said Dione.
Guenevere hissed. “Don’t believe them. He’s not dead.”
“Even if he’s not—” said the merman.
“You swore to protect this kingdom! After everything His Majesty has done for you—”
“Done for me?” He shook his head. “So he didn’t take away my wife, my children. What about everyone else? My neighbour’s family disappeared. All of them.”
Guenevere leaned back, regarding him like he was a tumour.
“I’ve known it for ages,” he said. “That is not the kind of kingdom I want to live in.”
Motivated by his own words, he dropped his longblade. We all watched it sink. It hit the rocks soundlessly.
“If you join them, you fight against all of us,” said Guenevere.
“If the king’s still alive, I’ll face the consequences. But this—” The merman pointed to the Utopian army. “—is proof enough for me that I’ve been fighting on the wrong side.”
He swam to them. My heart lifted.
There was a heavy silence. I turned my gaze subtly to the dropped longblade. Something beside it caught my attention. A gap in the rocks. It was wide enough for a merman to squeeze through. The way the water rushed in and out told me it stretched a long ways. It was a tunnel.
Dione spoke in clear, ringing tones. “If anyone else wishes to help us bring a new kingdom to the Pacific—”
“Remember your oath,” shouted Guenevere. “Traitors, turn around if you do not wish to fight.”
I glanced again at the longblade, dreading what might come. How quickly could I grab it if a fight broke out?
There was a period in which no one moved. Then somebody in the crowd of prison guards let loose a roar, and everything happened at once. My body changed instinctively; I felt my teeth descend as the guards spilled over the rocky landscape, weapons up. The two sides met in a clash that filled the water with sand.
Whether anyone else had intended to switch sides, we never found out.