Chapter 9
743 Words
The royal ship entered the harbor shortly after midday.
Its silver sails gleamed beneath the sunlight.
The vessel dwarfed every other ship in the bay.
People gathered along the docks to watch its arrival.
Merchants abandoned their stalls.
Fishermen left their nets.
Even the city guards seemed eager for a glimpse.
Daisy observed everything from her hiding place among the rocks.
"Who are they?" she asked.
Lyra followed her gaze.
"The royal family, most likely."
Daisy's stomach tightened.
Royalty.
The word immediately reminded her of the vision.
The Immortal Prince.
The prophecy.
The future waiting somewhere beyond the horizon.
She shook the thought away.
The world was far too large for destiny to work so conveniently.
Surely the prince from the prophecy could be anywhere.
Not here.
Not now.
Not on that ship.
Yet the strange feeling remained.
A pull.
A connection she couldn't explain.
The ship finally reached the docks.
Ropes were thrown.
Crew members secured the vessel.
Then a gangplank lowered.
The crowd grew silent.
A tall man descended first.
His armor gleamed silver and blue.
A captain, perhaps.
Several guards followed.
Then another figure appeared.
The reaction from the crowd was immediate.
Cheers erupted throughout the harbor.
People waved.
Children shouted excitedly.
Daisy leaned forward.
Curious.
The young man walking down the gangplank moved with effortless confidence.
Dark hair.
Broad shoulders.
A royal cloak.
Even from a distance she could tell there was something unusual about him.
Something powerful.
Something ancient.
As though he carried centuries behind his eyes.
For a brief moment he paused.
Then he turned toward the sea.
Toward her.
Daisy's breath caught.
Their eyes met.
Golden.
His eyes were golden.
Exactly like the man from the vision.
Her heart stopped.
The Immortal Prince.
The realization struck her with such force that she almost forgot to breathe.
Impossible.
It couldn't be.
Yet every instinct inside her insisted otherwise.
Across the harbor, Cassian froze.
A strange sensation swept through him.
The world seemed to narrow.
The sounds of the crowd faded.
For an instant he saw only one thing.
A girl among the rocks.
Silver hair.
Ocean-blue eyes.
A face he had never seen.
And yet somehow recognized.
The feeling lasted only a heartbeat.
Then a fisherman stepped into his line of sight.
The moment was broken.
When Cassian looked again, the rocks appeared empty.
The girl was gone.
His pulse quickened.
Had she truly been there?
Or had he imagined her?
"Your Highness?"
Rowan's voice pulled him back to reality.
Cassian glanced away from the sea.
The strange feeling lingered.
Like a half-remembered dream.
"Is something wrong?" Rowan asked.
Cassian hesitated.
Then shook his head.
"No."
But even as he spoke, he knew he was lying.
Something had happened.
Something important.
And for reasons he couldn't explain, he suddenly wanted to return to the shoreline.
To search the rocks.
To find the silver-haired stranger.
---
Daisy dove beneath the surface.
Her heart hammered wildly against her ribs.
The prince.
The prophecy had been right.
Not only did he exist—
She had found him.
Or perhaps he had found her.
Either possibility was terrifying.
She surfaced again farther from shore.
Lyra quickly joined her.
"You saw him, didn't you?"
Daisy nodded.
The sea spirit sighed.
"I was hoping I was wrong."
"What do I do now?"
For once, Lyra had no answer.
The question hung between them.
The prophecy had pointed them toward each other.
But prophecies rarely explained what came next.
Daisy looked back toward the city.
Toward the harbor.
Toward the prince.
A dangerous curiosity stirred inside her.
She wanted to know more.
Who was he?
Why had the vision shown him?
And why had looking into his eyes felt so familiar?
A distant rumble interrupted her thoughts.
The ocean trembled.
Only slightly.
But enough.
Both Daisy and Lyra felt it.
Fear returned instantly.
The creature.
It was still out there.
Still searching.
Still hunting.
"We need to move," Lyra said quietly.
Daisy nodded.
This time she didn't argue.
The city might be protected.
The prince might be important.
But lingering here would only attract danger.
As they turned away from the harbor, neither noticed the figure watching from the cliffs above.
A cloaked stranger stood motionless among the rocks.
His eyes glowed faintly red beneath his hood.
A servant of Morvana.
One of the Shadowbound.
And he had finally found the Last Mermaid.
A cold smile spread across his face.
The hunt had begun.
- Writer
