Court of Nightmares and Ruin

Chapter 46

Icelyn

My body ached from head to toe, well...head to tail, as the sirens continued pulling me through the water. My mind could not comprehend everything I had gone through in such a short amount of time. I had gone from a fae royal to a human and was now a siren.

A tremble ran down the length of my spine the deeper we went. Panic clawed its way up my throat just thinking about how far underwater we were.

The sirens slowed as we came upon a thick forest of glowing seaweed. The two sirens glanced back and forth at one another, seemingly at odds.

Do you think she will survive going through the poisonous algae?

Poisonous? I swallowed the lump forming in my throat.

I guess we will find out. I don't know if she is entirely a siren, but if she is not, she will not make it to the other side alive.

I struggled against them, but they pulled me into the masses of seaweed without another word. My body froze as the seaweed caressed my skin like a lover, delicately gliding over my body.

I was starting to feel lightheaded, but I wasn't sure if it was from the deadly neon plants or my hysteria, just imagining that I was being poisoned. After an eternity, we reached the other side and broke through to the open ocean.

They released me and looked me up and down. I ran my hands all over my body, checking for any signs of damage caused by the seaweed.

Guess she is a siren. One of them said with an evil sneer.

I opened my mouth, not that it would do any good to give them a tongue lashing, but I completely stopped when I saw what lay before us. About a quarter of a mile ahead of us was a city underwater. The ivory towers were so tall it looked like they would scrape the ocean surface, and the glow from the sun above looked like a spotlight specifically made to draw attention to this kingdom below. It was utterly breathtaking, with vegetation and bright coral surrounding the entrance.

Where are you going? Aren't you going to help me? One of the sirens asked the other as she swam several feet ahead of us.

We are not her keepers. We got her here. She can swim the rest of the way on her own.

With that, they jetted off ahead of me and into the city, leaving me bobbing up and down in the water. I started flapping my arms, trying to propel myself forward with very little success. I looked back at my massive tail fins as they swayed gently in the ocean's current. I kicked my tail out but held it more steady this time and managed to move forward.

I can do this.

It's all about balance. Gage's words rang in my ears as I recalled our first training day in the Night Realm. I flipped my fins again, this time a little harder, and used my arms as balance. This time I went a little further with much more speed.

The process took much longer than it should have, but eventually, I made it to the gates that securely enclosed the city.

The gate was open, so I continued inside. With a few flips of my tail, I maneuvered myself inside the city's fortress, only to be rushed upon by several sirens who hissed and gnashed their gnarly sharp teeth at me.

Intruder. How dare you enter our kingdom? I will use your bones to pick my teeth when I am through with you. A siren was a beautiful creature until it showed its true colors. When angered, their lovely eyes turned lifeless and black, and their razor teeth reminded me of a shark.

I held up my hands to show my innocence and tried to mouth my words, but the more I moved, the closer they came.

Enough.