The Lost Secret of the Silver Sea

Chapter 9: Captain and Prince

            Kaelonne wasn’t able to argue, the guard tugged harder, and then they were weaving between battered homes and in dark shadows. The young royal digs his claws into his hands, trying to calm the unhealthy beat it’d adopted. Faintly, he notes another guard blocking what could have been a fatal blow from his back before taking vigil on his other side, no words passing between them as they continued to guide him to the cave on the outskirts of the kingdom.

            “Sire, we’re almost there, just a little longer.” Kaelonne startles as the calm, firm voice reaches his ears. As the words register, he releases a small hum of show he understood, watching the guard, and letting his mind finally recall who fought beside him. It was Cassian, the captain of the castle guards, the Mermatian that was never seen far from the King’s side, and one of the kindest, bravest being Kaelonne knows.

            “Cassian, if you are by my side, what of my father?” He whispers, uncertain if he’d be able to hear the answer.

            “Alive and fighting like the King he is, you need not worry, young prince.” The old Mermatian smiled tiredly at him, the scar running from his brow to jaw crinkled at the strain, “I would not usually approve of leaving his side, but I would make the exception for you any day.”

            “He is alive, that is good.” Kaelonne could feel his frown ease a little, keeping as still as they could as they took shelter behind the wall leading to the outside of the kingdom. The young prince couldn’t help but remember how just hours ago, he was far too eager to leave its walls, now he could hardly even accept having to keep his back turned to the war going on right behind him. Blithely, he couldn’t help but wonder how Hartley was faring, if he was in his home now, packing to head back to his apartment, if he was giving the Mermatian a second thought.

            “Come on, before they see us.” The aches and pains that he’d accumulated over the last hour protests as Kaelonne flicks his tail hard, the draining adrenaline in his system slowing him down. Cassian wraps an arm under his own as if in understanding, nodding at the other guard to hold his spear up higher.

            They use the shadows scattered on the sea floor, ducking, and weaving past the sirens that bared their teeth and screamed warnings into the night. “Why are they after us?” Cassian glances at him in surprise, as if not expecting him to talk.

            “We are not sure, my prince. At least not entirely.” Cassian mutters lowly, nodding his head to the entrance to the caves that both seemed both close and just out of reach. “They came into our halls, their leader and her lady. They talked civilly at first, and then they seemed to grow agitated, as though they were not hearing what they wanted. It was hardly a sun’s shift before the conversation turned into a nasty yelling match. They claimed that we stole something important from them.”

            “That’s what all this is about, some relic?” Kaelonne hissed, trying to catch the captain’s eyes for confirmation. Fury flooded into his veins, the pains of his broken fins and scales fading in his rushing thoughts.

            “We are not entirely sure, my prince. That was as much as I could decipher from their language. The King allowed them to speak freely in whichever language they preferred. Unfortunately, I am not as fluent in the old tongue as I had hoped.”

            Kaelonne does not have the heart to continue the conversation, ducking into the shadows of the caves and letting the quiet guard lead the way. Cassian pushes on, however, his words similar to the way he’d give his report to the King, it seem to settle the restless twitching of his fingers around his spear so Kaelonne listened without interruption. “Hardly a shift before the evening meal, we entertained them because they looked rather frazzled from their journey. The attack started not long after, we were already surrounded before the guards could get into position. Queen-in-waiting, Idris, let the first wave move out the moment it was clear guards and civilians alike were being harmed.”

            “And Falkon?”

            “The Prince was ordered to leave the moment King realized he could not reason with the Sirinian Queen. I led the prince and as many of civilians as I could before searching for you.”

            “And I wasn’t there.” Kaelonne let out a soft whistle, wincing as the sound echoed off the walls of the cave system. The guard turns around sharply at the noise, glare softening as he realized where the sound came from.

            “…No, my prince. We… had assumed the worst had come to pass.” Cassian would not meet his eyes, staring blankly at the tunnels ahead of them. “The young guard-in-training, Eirian, would not listen to reason, he opted to say behind in case you showed… I must apologize, he was right.”

            Kaelonne lips thin further as he remember his best friend, laying on the floor of his room, uncertain if he would even survive. His heart clenches in his throat, the painful thought about the possibility of having to tell a mother who lost her husband, that she lost her son as well, ran through his mind again. The young royal rubs his thumb on the small item Idris shoved in his hand, taking the comfort that came with the thought that his sister was still out there, fighting for her kingdom and her people.

            He brings the small gift up to his face, finally unclenching his hand and wincing as the seized muscles protest. A soft, blue glow greets him, causing him to squint his eyes and cup the item with both hands to stop it from reflecting off the tunnel walls. It was a small glass jar, hardly the size of one of his claws, a black thread wrapped around its neck and given enough leeway to be settled around the owner’s own neck. The contents inside caused him to stifle a mournful whistle as he recognized it, it was Adras crystals crushed to a fine dust, a rare healing crystal that’d always fascinated Kaelonne. He’d mentioned it a while back at the evening meal, not even aware that his sister had picked up on his endless rambling.

            “We’re being followed.” The guard at front hissed, startling them out of the uneasy calm that had settled around them. Cassian cursed and grabbed the young royal’s arm, rushing them through the caves as the other guard remained behind. Kaelonne glimpses two Sirinian soldiers, jaws opened in snarls and claws held out before his view was blocked from a tunnel wall.

            Kaelonne struggled to keep up with the captain, more often than not letting himself be pulled along. Cassian was stressed, the fin on his back flattened along his spin and his lips pressed into a thin line. A loud shriek echoed through the tunnels, amplified as it reflected back and forth. Cassian dragged Kaelonne to a stop, placing his other hand on his arm as well.

            “This is as far as I go.” Cassian catches the young royal’s worried eyes with a stiff smile.

            “What do you mean, we still have a chance!”

            “They have gotten through Durin, they will not stop until they get to you.”

            “Cassian, please.”

            “I’m sorry, my prince.” The captain pulls a small dagger from his belt, pressing it into Kaelonne’s unwilling hand. “I’ll buy you as much time as I can.”

            “Cassian, you can’t go out there.” Kaelonne bargained with shaking hands wrapped around a blade he couldn’t accept, not without accepting what it meant the moment he let the brave captain out of his sight, “I order you to stay with me!”

“Sorry Mitian, that won’t work with me.” Cassian rests a hand on his head, bumping his nose against the young royal whose side he swam next to since birth. “Just keep to the walls of the tunnels, it doesn’t matter where you go anymore, just keep moving.”

            Cassian pulls away and with one more nod, he turns his back and follows the path they just came from, both head and weapon held high. Kaelonne lets out a despairing whistle, clutching the dagger to his chest with a promise to return it to its rightful owner.

            Letting his anger take control for the first time that night, he turns back to the foreboding tunnels and sets off, pushing his tail as hard as he could. His anger was the best motivation he could think of, fury at himself for not being home when his people needed him, anger at his lack of information of what could cause the Sirinians to attack, the anger at the possibility of losing so many so close to him in just one night.

            He flinches as more shrieks fill the caves now, more sirens must’ve been alerted of his presence, wanting to test their luck at the captain to get their hands on the young royal. He wasn’t about to let them get the satisfaction.