Evelyn rose up in bed, with her hair as messy as can be, and stretched her arms while yawning. After centering her vision from her tired eyes, she glances out the window from her bed to see the water and the dome still outside. She had no idea if it was morning or night. Nothing made sense down here. She didn't even know what 'down here' was. She doesn't even know where 'down here' is.
Is it really the bottom of this ocean? Where is it at the bottom of the ocean? The tarragon sea? The sage sea? Why is it at the bottom of the ocean?
It's such a big place and to her knowledge the only one down here was Freya. Unless all she does down here would be to clean because despite how big it is, the cleanliness would make the maids back on Gabuslma hang their heads in shame.
She didn't even know Freya but for some reason it felt nice to talk to her as if she did know her. According to Freya, though, she had met Evelyn as a baby. As a newborn. And knew her mother and father, that's it.
She did think the temple was beautiful though. There are many torches outside the temple that illuminated the grounds around it which is just more stone of the outside temple walls, and it illuminated the water outside the dome to create a pleasing view to look at the sea life all around it. The fish, whales, schools, coral reefs, all around were awake and full of life.
And then they scattered and again Evelyn could see the huge sea monster again. "It's really a haunting sight to see. It doesn't look harmless like Freya said it was," Evelyn thought. "But I've never really been to Sea myself, so I imagine compared to other sea monsters, maybe this one is just small."
Evelyn just suggested Freya knew what she was talking about, and she's trusted her thus far. She slugged out of bed and made her way to the bathroom. She glanced at the mirror and noticed an image she knew all too well. A monster she named 'Atrocious Bedhead Evelyn'. "Well, I could look worse," She laughed to herself.
She then heard a knock at her bedroom door Freya from the other side said, "Good morning. I hope you slept well!"
Evelyn dived back into the bed and through the covers over her head as Freya just walked right in. "Your timeliness of knowing I'm awake is unnerving."
"I sensed it," Freya said as she picked up Evelyn's clothes on the floor for her. "I brought you some clothes like I left for you yesterday. I hope you're hungry. The dining room has been set for breakfast." Evelyn peeked out from the top of the covers. Freya then laughed and said, "But I think I'll get you a brush real quick first." And Freya turned and made her way out.
"Well my hair is that bad, I guess…?" Evelyn thought as she quickly got dressed in the clothes Freya laid out. It was as simple as the clothes from the day before.
Freya came back in with a brush and said, "Oh, you got dressed before I could get back. Shame. Well, when you're ready, please come to the dining room."
"She's like really attracted to me with that comment, isn't she?" Evelyn thought to herself.
Will the rest of the residents of this temple be joining us," Evelyn asks as Freya was making her way out of the room.
Freya looks back with a smile and says, "Of course."
Evelyn finished brushing her hair and then made her way out and into the dining hall. To the whole temple staff. "Oh son of a pissant! You really are the only one down here!" Evelyn said with a content expression on her face.
Freya responds, "Yeah, to clear your confusion, yes. Yes I am the only occupant of my temple."
Evelyn sat in the same chair she did the previous night and looks at Freya and says, "You see my face. This expression on my face. Yeah, it's the same expression I give a man I know when he tries to say a dumb pun or a dad joke when I'm around. I'm not impressed."
Freya was hollering in laughter now as Evelyn thought to herself, "Oh yeah. You just keep laughing. Just like that. Anymore jokes like that and I'm going to wish you would have let me drown."
Seizing the fact that she's alone in this temple with only Freya, Evelyn finally analyzes the food in front of her. All her senses took over her. There is chorizo, bacon, toast, pancakes with syrup, chocolate hazelnut butter, bananas, blueberries, raspberries, strawberries, eggs, biscuits, gravy, hashbrowns, breakfast sausage, tortillas, orange juice, apple juice, among other traditional breakfast foods.
She looks up at Freya and asks, "Okay so what's the deal? You're the only one here and somewhere in this temple you have a kitchen, garden, orchard, animal pen, and slaughter farm? Not to mention a mill for some of the food to be processed like wheat into flour for bread. And you service them all down here? Not to mention the upkeep of this place is really not a one-person job. When are you going to tell me that I'm not actually at the bottom of the ocean and actually just in limbo between heaven and hell and you're just Anubis in disguise and you're waiting on order of my judgement to know which direction to take me in necropolis of where I'm going? Or you just fattening me up?"
Freya starts laughing and responds, "Oh my goodness. That is quite the imagination!"
"And still no answer," Evelyn thought to herself.
"I must admit your suspicions aren't farfetched. I guess I should get things moving along."
"Ah, finally! Judgement!" Evelyn calls out. "So, I promise you I've been and am a good girl so if you take requests, I would love to go to heaven. Valhalla if it's full," Evelyn bursts out. "If for any reason you don't agree and will be sending me to hell I will plea and beg to just be reincarnated into another world instead of hell."
Freya, still laughing, says, "Oh no, dear. You're not dead," Now looking at Evelyn with endearing eyes says, "Evelyn, have you ever heard of sirens?"
Evelyn's interest had spiked and replies, "I've heard a bit of them, I suppose. A pirate captain named Captain Goob told me about a Fishman war that included them. They're mermaids, right?"
"Nope," Freya says. "I get the misinterpretation. I suppose people have heard the term but never really knew about true sirens. That war didn't include the true sirens. They were merfolk. The merfolk origin is actually a breed crossed between a nymph and a fishman. They're called sirens because of the number of pirates and noble sailors they've brought to their death based on their singing. Noted their singing to be beautiful, I personally think they're a little flat in some of their notes. Most of their notes. Their population is among the hundred thousand range. Quite honestly, the merfolk has their own city underwater. Pirates and sailors alike only know a bit of that story. Deaths between fishman and merfolk were devastating. But no. Merfolk are not the true sirens."
Evelyn was listening intensely now as she made herself a few Chorizo tacos from the ingredients there. She felt like she was getting an extended director's cut of a story she heard from Captain Goob. "I never exactly found out who won," Evelyn said quietly as she bit into her first taco. "Captain Goob said it's a great mystery because it never resurfaced."
"Resurface?" Freya replied with a smile.
"Yeah it didn't," Evelyn stopped and slowly said. "Resurface… Resurface…" With an angry expression she said, "Oh that bastard."
Freya was laughing and said, "I guess if that's what he really did say I must commend him for his puns."
"Can we just not, please?" Evelyn groaned as she bit into one of her tacos. "I mind feels verbally violated that I only caught it now. I'm 19-year-old and he told me that story when I was 10."
"Okay. Okay. Well, it was neither. The Fishman King, King Guppy Quill, and the Queen of the Merfolk, Queen Carol Coral, ended up signing a treaty of peace," Freya informed her.
"Damn," Evelyn said. "I'm sort of the 'significant death to end the battle' type of gal." She sat back in her seat and took a depressing bite out of her last taco. "I'm very disappointed."
"So, dear Evelyn," Freya got serious suddenly.
Evelyn side-eyed Freya from her seat and thought, "That's a tone I haven't heard her use since I've been here..."
Freya began, "I need you to listen closely to what I'm going to tell you." She pauses, takes a deep breath, and continues, "A siren is a divine being. It is divinity itself. When King Neptune breathed the life of all of Neptune onto this planet, he started with the Siren's first. Molded from the divine gift of his wife Saturn, Siren's can only be women. Being the first beings, they are Goddesses. So, Evelyn, My name true full name is Siren Goddess Freya of Volgma."
Evelyn's mouth was ajar from everything Freya had just said. After a moment of processing what she said, Evelyn finally spoke, "What's Volgma?"
"Really? That's the part you caught?" Freya asked.
"No, I get it," Evelyn continued putting her empty plate back on the table and leaning forward again to the table. "I mean it makes a bit of sense. I've never really been taught about the religious stuff of our planet except our God Neptune. A siren goddess I've never heard of. Hell it was actually not even mentioned. But I assume you're not trying to pull my leg and it would make everything going on here make a little more sense. I just don't understand the word Volgma."
"Ah," Freya says. "That makes sense. Volgma is the divine essence I am filled with. Each siren has an divine essence of power they possess. Though these terms are in the language of the God's. Volgma, to translate to your language would be Fire."
"Fire?"
"Fire."
"Fire?"
"Fire."
"Like blaze? Flames? Volcanos and molten lava and all things that make food taste good fire?"
"Exactly."
Evelyn was now quiet until she finally said, "That sounds kind of cool. You're pretty special to have that type of power." And continues to make another taco and grab a few other things to fill up her plate like bacon, sausage, eggs, and to balance it out, in Evelyn's opinion, a green apple. "You're aware our planet is mostly water, right?"
"Hm," Freya smirks with a slight smile. She sighs and continues again, "So the reason I'm telling you this, it is time for me to pass it on."
"Wait a second, what?" Evelyn says with a few pieces of bacon sticking out of her mouth. "I know you said you're like an ancient God, but you don't look a day over 25! And you're dying? I still don't know much about God's, but I thought God's don't die! Are you just going to leave me down here? Are you telling me all this because you need someone to bury you? I won't do it."
"But my body will start to smell and rot! Do you want that?"
"What? No!" Evelyn abruptly stopped her worry and then said, "Oh, Neptune's sack. Stop that!"
Freya was smiling.
"You're horrible," Evelyn says with a content look on her face.
"To explain," Freya continued, "This was a decision my father, Lord Neptune, made between all of us Siren Goddesses." Freya said. "Well, we were supposed to pass on. Lord Neptune had another task for me. The one to take my power was to be my decision."
"You still sound like you're abandoning me," Evelyn said.
Freya laughed, "Oh please, dear. My fire powers are not a reflection of the fire in my heart. So, my sisters and I agreed to pass on and our powers would flow into another Neptunian Human girl. A siren marking would appear on their body at birth and at the age of 18 their siren powers would awaken."
Freya was now staring at Evelyn and Evelyn was staring back. A few moments passed and she yelped, "WAIT A MINUTE! ME?!"
Freya smiled as she leaned back in her chair, "Precisely. When your parents and I met about 21 years ago, we were together for a few years, and it was all I needed to decide that the child your mother had become pregnant with would be the one to inherit my powers. They agreed. And that child was you."
"What makes you think I'm worthy of something like this? I just escaped an island that has treated me like a stubborn but obedient dog to follow my true calling of a pirate. Now you too are trying to tell me what to do too?" Evelyn began you tear up.
"Oh, you can still be a pirate," Freya said as she placed her hands on Evelyn's to comfort her. "As a matter of fact, I encourage it. Based on the exploits I experienced with your parents, it is your true calling."
Wiping her tears from hearing this Evelyn said, "What?"
Calmly, Freya said, "Did I tell you at all what being a Siren's duty is? Their responsibility?"
Thinking about it for a moment she answered, "Well I imagine you were going to tell me."
Freya reached for the orange juice and prosecco on the table and as she began to mix herself a mimosa she answers, "Your responsibility would be to exist with our powers. There are a few things that would come up, but you live your life the way you want and with our powers at your disposal, use them the way you want."
"Well, what are those 'things'?" Evelyn asks.
Standing up, downing her Mimosa like a savage, Freya says, "They are things you will learn about in time. For now, you have to learn how to become Volgma and conjure fire," Freya says.
Pushing her plate slightly away from her and looking back up at Freya, Evelyn asks, "Where do we start?"