There was indeed no enchanting rooster call in the morning. No, instead there were the bloodcurdling screams of a fluffy-haired mermaid.
Ursula woke up with a jolt a second before Desma's eyes shot open. The cecaelias both steadied themselves and got ready at once, sheathing their weapons and Ursula hiding her shark eye shell. They went outside to the entrance, greeting the two tired guards with a nod. They were ready to sag down onto the sand until they remembered who was supposed to arrive.
"My stomach aches. Do you suppose we could snag a bite before the Empress arrives?"
Desma asked, stomach indeed rumbling.
"I suppose we could." Ursula reached for the rations behind Macedon's seaweed pack, and divided two pouches between the four companions.
The pouches were made of kelp and were created to be easily transportable, each containing 16 bristle worms.
"I'll set up the Empress's meal." Enyo snatched the last kelp pouch and cut the seam, then inserted a hard rock bowl in the pouch, widening it and exposing nine plump shrimps. He set it on top of a flat rock, and leaned back to inspect his work.
"Impressive." Rumbled a cheerful voice.
They all turned to see Orluiowa exiting the entrance along side the siren.
"Glad to see you all know your place." The four watched as the empress popped a trembling shrimp into her mouth.
"Just missing a little jazz. Where's the sauce?"
"My humblest apologies, your majesty. I'll get it right now." As Enyo continued to search Macedon's pack, Orluiowa continued to eat the shrimp until none were left.
"Well look at that!" She exclaimed, gesturing her hands at the empty bowl.
"You keep looking for the sauce. It is exquisite on its own."
Enyo nodded.
"Till we meet again, Orluiowa. The variables are in this bag." The siren held out a small green bag made of dull scales, and nodded once when the empress took it.
Ursula looked back to see the siren's emotionless, unseeing gaze following her. She felt a shiver go up her tentacles, which she found odd because she was used to the cold. Ursula could feel the siren smiling behind her, and she clutched the shell hidden in her pouch.
The group continued for a few more minutes, the cavern no more than a dot in the distance. A scream cut through the stillness, and the water seemed to vibrate along with the voice's ragged edges.
What could she be doing to that creature?
As they swam, the screams faded away into the distance. The water above them was peaceful, and Ursula could tell the sky was bright and blue above them, with not a single cloud in sight.
The water is warmer. We're nearing the surface.
The sand was getting higher and higher, and clams and little shells could be seen glistening through the grainy substance. A cow nose ray was resting on the sand, and little snails burrowed in the sand and slithered up algae-covered rocks.
The group felt a swift current travel above them, and they stiffened but then relaxed at seeing it was a group of dolphins weaving through the waves.
"Your majesty, I'm afraid there is no sauce here. The servants must have forgotten to pack it." Enyo said nervously.
"The servants forgot nothing. The sauce was never there, I simply thought a joke would be a good start to the day." Orluiowa answered, laughing.
Enyo laughed it off.
"Good one, your majesty."
The empress smiled smugly, satisfied.
Ursula cleared her throat and asked,
"How much longer until we reach our destination?"
"We are nearly there. I do have a question for you as well, my darling."
"What is it?"
"This." Orluiowa pulled Ursula beside her and whipped out her golden seashell.
"Not every siren gives out her soul to a young creature such as yourself. I assume you know of her identity after eavesdropping on our conversation?"
"Well... maybe I did. So what?" Ursula crossed her arms and stiffened under her mother's touch.
"So? This is a powerful artifact. It is good that the future empress is already making such a powerful alliance." Orluiowa said, observing her daughter's face.
"Thankyou, mother. I will guard it well and use it only when necessary." Ursula said confidently
"Use it only when necessary?" Orluiowa squeezed Ursula, digging her nails into her arm.
"My darling Ursula! Haven't my lessons been enough? Have your fun in this world! Grow, suffer, kill, and do what you want. That is what my momma always said, so that is what I will say. Why don't you learn to use it and make your ma' proud?"
"Oh, I will. But when the time comes due I will do it. Nothing around these waters is worth capturing." Ursula took the shell from her mother and put it in her bag.
"Well said, my dear." And with that Orluiowa unhooked her nails and let Ursula drift behind her.
She rubbed her arm, then wrapped it tightly with seaweed.
*****
Sand soon grazed the group's tentacles, and the five sped up to the surface. It was warm, and Ursula could already tell just by lifting her hair to the blue sky. She popped her head up through the water, and she could feel the wetness clinging to her skin and pulling her hair down. Ursula shielded her eyes as she caught a glimpse of the sun. Hot rays of sunshine covered her face, and she longed to feel the interesting warmth, although all the brightness was annoying.
They advanced onto the shore, and warmth poured down her body like her blood after a lesson. Only this warmth wasn't painful. It was dry and welcoming.
A strange combination indeed...
Ursula inched onto a rock, using her elbows to prop herself up and climbing with her hands. The others did the same, and Orluiowa sat on the sand and began extracting ingredients from her bag.
"That's right, sit down. You'll need something to balance on. You will quickly get used to it." Orluiowa extracted two large vials, and smashed them into the bowl she used for shrimp. She stood and let the smokey substance envelope her, then passed it on to Macedon who handed it to Enyo, then to Desma and finally to Ursula. The smoke filled her nose and eyes, and she realized it was slightly thicker than it looked. She felt her tentacles changing, and she looked down to see them gone. A black dress the same shade of her tentacles covered her legs. She lift her foot, watching as five little toes wiggled.
Mini tentacles...
Ursula lifted her other foot to check if it was the same, but she fell, and she felt two slightly bony balls knock against her chin. Ursula placed a hand on the rock, glad to see that hadn't changed. Then she blinked in surprise.
Her hands. They were brown. They were no longer the lilac she was used to, but a brown darker than Imka's skin. Ursula leaned against the rock and lifted her dress just enough to see long sticks with the same bony thing connected to her legs.
She stood up, and her legs wobbled uncontrollably.
Orluiowa walked over to her daughter, and she grabbed Ursula's arm and lifted her.
"You'll get used to it, dear. Just move your feet one at a time." Orluiowa pointed to Ursula's feet.
She stood and took heavy steps, stomping down rather viciously. Ursula then took lighter steps, looking at her feet moving and twisting underneath her. She threw her hair behind her head, then stood straight. Ursula took a strand of her hair. It was black. All black, just with that slight purple hue in the sun. She looked around her and for the first time realized Macedon and Enyo looked different.
Macedon's skin was slightly darker, and Enyo's about the same color as Ursula's. A skirt covered their legs which looked sturdier. Their feet were at least two times bigger. Desma looked like Ursula and her mother, just slightly shorter. Macedon sported black hair and Enyo the same curly hair, but all black. Desma's hair was a straight dark brown.
The clumsy, human-turned cecaelias slowly wobbled to their feet and followed Orluiowa, who moved at a fast pace. She entered a sandy path which had trees everywhere. Macedon slipped on a leaf and fell, Enyo attempting to help him but falling as well. Desma scolded them and the empress cackled. Ursula wondered how Eli might have reacted if he had come along. She had to admit she missed him and wished he had come along.
No... he would have seen Imka coming and killed her before anything could be done. It could have been him who was swapped to be flogged. Or... whatever it was the loony siren was doing to the fish.
Pushing all thought of her boyfriend away, Ursula observed her surroundings. Green papery things she believed were called 'leaves' were scattered all over the ground. There were large brown chunks of wood connected to several other sticks which sprouted many leaves. Ursula felt herself relax as they passed through a shaded area, and she settled down as she watched her mother turn around.
"Stay here. I must bring some attire for Macedon and Enyo. I can't have my two guards walking around and looking like fools in skirts. Don't move from this position and should anybody come, kill them. It would be embarrassing to have you two be seen like this." The empress turned around, and she then turned around again towards Ursula.
"You will come with me."
Ursula got up on her feet once again, though not as awkwardly as the first time, and followed her. They both walked silently, and Ursula observed that her mother and she looked similar. A long, black and simple sleeveless gown billowed in the wind through the top of her mother's feet. Her hands were that same brown as hers, and her hair was also black with a purple hue.
While distracted analyzing her mother's appearance, Ursula didn't realize a tree branch root was in the way of her path, and she tripped over the root and landed face first into the hard dirt.
"My tentacle!" She sulked, clutching her smallest toe.
"Tentacle? That's called a 'toe', my seashell." Orluiowa chuckled, shaking her head at her daughter's foolishness.
Ursula stood up, she tried to ignore the pain. It quickly faded away, but not so fast that her mother had the time to to say,
"Don't be so gauche, Ursula. We're here, and for my reputation straighten up." Her mother opened a wooden door which was the entrance to a small room. The room was all wooden with wooden racks and clothes strung on them. The empress picked out two sets of clothing with two long things attached. She picked two vests; one vest was black and the other was a dark brown with a white undershirt. She also picked out two pairs of black, flat chunks of who-know-what with holes in them.
"Pick something you like. And for Desma as well." Orluiowa instructed.
Ursula nodded and rummaged through a rack. She found several vests smaller than the ones her mother chose, and there was a corset strung underneath it. Ursula found a camisole dress with a black corset and a dark navy skirt. She took that one for herself and one with a brown corset and dark red skirt for Desma.
The chunk things.
Ursula walked over to where her mother previously saw and picked two pairs of plain black flats.
Her mother suddenly appeared beside her.
"Why don't you get rid of the girl over there? We have no money with which to pay." Her mother whispered, motioning to a girl putting more clothes in the racks. She handed her a little soft creature with four wings; two big and two small with little black sticks poking out from in between.
"Say this:
eiciendis infundit, denote Titan Metis."
Ursula nodded and walked over to the girl. She turned around and smiled brightly. Two short bangs parted ways in her forehead. Her hair was a dark, dark wavy brown. She had clear, pale skin and dark, arched brows. Beneath her long lashes were bright violet eyes. She had pink lips and a heart-shaped face which looked concerned at Ursula's observing.
She had a name tag pinned just below her collarbone.
Vanessa.
"Is there anything I could help you with?" Her voice was slender, kind, and slightly deep. She looked down to see the dress Ursula was holding.
"That would match great with your eyes. Will you be purchasing this today? Or do you need an adjustment?"
"No, this would be it. What do you think of this little creature?" Ursula raised it to show Vanessa.
"It's adorable. Though quite frankly I believe the yellow shouldn't go with the purple." She shook her head then smiled, embarrassed.
"I'm sorry, I'm too up in my business. But it's beautiful."
Ursula nodded thoughtfully while observing the creature perched on her finger.
"No, I have to agree. The yellow doesn't quite match with your eyes, but it'll do."
Vanessa's face looked confused, then suspicious.
"Who are y-"
Ursula shoved the butterfly in her mouth, forcing her to swallow it.
"eiciendis infundit, denote Titán Metis."
Before she could react, Vanessa's face froze in horror. She exploded into miniature yellow and purple feathers.
The butterfly returned to Ursula and continued perching on her finger.