“Indeed he had it. ” The wolf king finally answered Nana, ” When the mer-witch tied me with her chain and thrust me inside a celler like space in that structure where brother Jin was, she gave me only twenty breaths worth of time.”
Nana slowly came walking inside listening to the story deeply.
” I immediately, selfishly asked him straight away about the Spirit Conjurer the moment he came infront of me. I neither asked him how he was doing nor did I enquire him about how pale he looked. He himself must have been too shocked to see me there, but he only smiled at my question. ” The wolf king continued, ” He smiled and said ‘ Oh! So that is why you came here? ‘ But instead of answering I yet again pushed him with my demand, letting him know how little time i had. My brother wasted no more time in letting me know where he had it hidden in the caves beyond the fountains. Our time was wrapped up no sooner after this. As the mer-witch pulled me witht je chain, Jin hurriedly pressed that pendant on my chest. He had said, ‘ Keep this safe in our family. It will help me remember who I am when I completely loose myself to this curse. Keep it safe. ‘. I hadn’t paid much attention to it back then. Even after returning home. I had infact completely forgotten about it. Until… ”
” Until what? ” Nana asked, her eyes moist, and her voice quivered.
” Until I met Crystal, Mia’s mother. I clearly remember seeing the same dazzling white light when my brother had placed it inside my chest, on the day Crystal and myself were in the stream. We had been underwater quite a long time when she was trying to save me from being carried away by the current. I had taken in quite a large amount of water inside. She had worked hard to take it out of me. I clearly remember it now, I had seen the light then. Now that i think about it all, it was strange because Crystal was under water longer than myself, yet she was completely fine. ”
“Just like Mia, ” Roe commented.
” Hhhmmm, just like Mia. I had given her up for dead after she had jumped in the river that day. How wrong I was. The water was her lifeline. How could I have missed that. It healed her like none other. “The king lamented.
” Like the mer-witches? I heard they self heal when under water. ” Xie put in.
” Mer-witches self heal under water. ” Lin repeated the statement in his head as he remembered when Mia had tripped and fallen as they walked. Her leg was badly cut. She wasn’t able to walk properly. But after they had spent some time, dangling their legs in the water by the shore, she was able to run again just fine. ” Then is Mia… was her mother… ” Lin’s head was made up but he couldn’t articulate the words.
” Then Crystal seems like a mer-witch and that makes half a mermaid. ” Nana finally said the unsaid.
” But she died living a completely human life. We all know mer-witches cannot survive for long on land. Why do you think she would do something like that. Was she a fugitive? Mer-witches are never known to turn on their own kind. ” The queen too finally broke her silence and gave her opinion on the matter. ” She even hid her identity from you even when you claim to have been in love. What might have been her reasons for that? ”
” That is not important at the moment, ” Nana retorted sending her jealousy. ” What is important is how can you be sure the pendant is with Mia? And you just said you saw the light. Do you think it got transferred to her? ” Nana asked urgently.
The wolf king looked around and then said, ” I would like to have a few words with you, privately if you don’t mind. ”
Nana nodded as the others left the room on the King’s instruction.
“Tell me what ahd happened? When exactly did you see the light? ” Nana asked.
” It was when, it was when Crystal and I were making love. ” The king answers quite embarrassed.
” I see why you couldn’t have said that in front of the others. Anyways, does it mean that Mia had the pendant all along? Ever since her birth? ” Nana sat down beside him to discuss.
” Possibly. The pendant has power to project images. Real and fake. Mia told me about seeing me when she was young. She told me she even remembered spending time with me when I had not even known about her existence. I think it was the power of the pendant that had triggered those thoughts. “the king concluded.
” Mer-witches too can communicate through visual telepathy. It could have been Mia’s mother who implanted those images. But since Crystal is dead and I can sense the pendant ‘s presence on Royal from your clan, it has to be Mia who has it. ” Nana reasoned.
” You can sense the pendant? How? ” The wolf king asked a little baffled.
” It has my child’s blood on it. How could I not? “Nana answered him with such simplicity filled intensity that he looked down with awe.
” I am sorry to have asked you about that. ” The king apologized. Just then, Xie came barging in, grasping heavily for breath.
“What behavior is this, Xie? ” The king stood up in anger.
” Father Mia. They have Mia. They sent us a letter with a mortal just now. ” Xie was still huffing.
” Mia! Who has her? ” The king came out hurriedly.
” The mer-witches. They have her. “Xie informed.
” Where is Lin? ” Nanako jumped out of her seat at the mention.
“We couldn’t make him wait. He crossed the gates as soon as the message was delivered. ” Nanako and the wolf king, both looked at each other as Xie gave them the news.