” YOU BUNCH OF MORONS!
You think you have the power to stop me! ”
The mer-queen had finally opened her eyes. But it was nothing like her ordinary self. It was thousand folds terrifying.
The barrier around her was broken. She aught to have been vulnerable but she became more hostile.
Her elite guards were gone. She was all that was left of them.
” Back off! ”
She commanded killing a number of mer- witches at one jolt.
” They all die if you take a step closer! ”
She was now creating a hostage situation.
” I am doing all this for you. Can’t you understand! It’s the only way our population get to live and grow… ”
” NONSENSE!
You are just to engrossed into pleasing your darkness. The way to our future is not by killing our own kind. It’s the way Crystal showed us.
She was a true queen even after she gave up her throne to save a single life. His life! ”
Jade pointed towards Anjana. She looked furious.
” Crystal gave up her life but showed us how we could co-exist. Look at her daughter. Her son-in-law. Her step-children. All gathered here selflessly tring to save her grandson.
That is what family does for each other. That is that was our lesson. This is how we can keep our lineage without having to succumb to the occult.
Get out of there now. I am not having any more death in my presence! ”
Jade walked right into the Queens trap. The moment she entered the circle, the Queen smirked. With just a twitch of her neck Jade was inside the sacrificial circle.
” Noooo! ”
Ruby tried to jump in but Anjana held her back.
Lin, Xie and Roe were drowning. With Jade gone, their air pockets had snapped.
” What do I do! ”
Ruby panicked, trying to get the air bubble around them again. But as she had confessed earlier. She was weak.
” Don’t worry I am here! ”
” Mia! ”
Her smile could not be contained as Mia swam inside.
She quickly wrapped the three back. They were still coughing and spitting water inside the air pocket.
Anjana came smiling at her too and the little mer-boy wrapped his arms around her.
Mia looked at Lin smilling at all the warm greetings.
” Congratulations my Fox in a wolf’s hide. You are now a father! ”
Lin laughed like an idiot at her pun and swam towards her. Roe made a sulky face as Xie looked in another direction.
Lin planned his lips on Mia’s. It was a weird kiss. Like kissing through a membrane. Mia popped her head inside the bubble so Lin could actually taste her impatience.
” ENOUGH! ”
The Queen sent off a blast of heated current. It stung them like magma.
” This one dies if you all don’t immediately surrender! ”
She lifted Jade up above the crowd to make her presence obvious.
” Nobody is surrendering today my Queen. I had entrusted you with my child because I thought you had changed your ways. But your bloodlust seems to have gotten inside your head. You no longer are worthy of spending a dignified life! ”
Mia closed her eyes, concentrating on the energy around her. She slowly pulled it in unleashing the dual inheritance inside her.
She now was transformed into a mer-wolf.
It was a spectacle in itself.
” Lin, get our boy!
Roe, Xie pair up with the mer- men.
Ruby, get Jade out the moment I give the signal! ”
Mia went straight for the Queens neck. Lin went for their child. Roe and the mer-boy covered one side as Anjana ans Xie covered the front side of the mer-witches.
” No… No… You can’t. You can’t stop this chain now that it has started. You have no idea what will happen… ”
” As a matter of fact I do. I do know you will die if your ritual abruptly ends. ”
Mia pulled the Queen out from the centre and threw her below the pedestal.
” NOOOOOO…. WHAT HAVE YOU DONE! What have you done! ”
The Queen got busy wiping her nose that had started bleeding.
As the queen bled and scurried here and there, one by one the remaining mer-witches began coming back to normal.
However the scene that met them was too much for most to handle. Chaos ensued. Roe and Xie had a hard time restraining them and Anjana and the mer- boy pacifying them.
Lin held their little prince , tight and warm in the security of his arms.
The little baby was fast sleep. Oblivious to all the commotion.
” Jade! Jade are you alright? ” Ruby could not have enough of her sister.
” Mer-witches, mer-men and my fellow immortals. ”
Mia suddenly called out, drawing all their attention. The commotion stopped.
The Queen had by that time been transformed into a living fossil. Her life force sucked out through her eyes and her body turned into stone.
” This is the final destination of those chasing greed. This is where selfishness takes us! ”
Her statement was met with total mum and shush.
” Is this the mer- kingdom that all of you dream of? Built on our family’s corpse? ”
” No! Not true! ”
“The Queen tricked us! ”
” Are the ones always oppressed! ”
” We just want to live and not die out! ”
” Please spare us! ”
There were several levels of opinion coming.
” Silence. Your Queen is gone. And so has her close forces. You have been blessed with a king and a prince here. She pulled Anjana and the mer- boy forward. My mother gave up her throne not for some psychopath to take over. She wanted you to show that it is possible to live and grow without killing. Look at me. Look at me son. Are our lives not worthy enough? ”
There were a series of murmurs. Everybody telling the other something.
” I hope you will be wise enough to sort this grave issue of your kingdom between yourselves. We will need to head back up right now on the surface. I left with a war raging behind.”
Her family needed no more cue.
They knew what might be happening back there. They swam upwards leaving Jade and Ruby behind.
But suddenly Xie swam back without following the others upward.
He came straight for Ruby.
She looked a little puzzled.
“I hope we can talk after all these get sorted ! ”
He looked at Jade too, implying something before swimming back up.