Page 90 of Tide of Waves and Secrets

The crowd’s chatter increased, but so did my voice since this last part was the most important.

“Worse, she stole the Tidal Pearl.”

I was forced to stop at that, not needing Rowan’s abilities to feel the outrage from those all around me. Raising my arm did not get their attention again, but a flick of my fingers and a new sea serpent did. It rose from the sea behind me, but I added a fun bit of magic I’d tested once but never executed. As the crowd watched, the serpent’s tongue lashed out, a forked band of water stretching way up to the railings above. Just before it touched the onlookers, I snapped my fingers and the serpent disappeared, the water it was made from splashing to the sand below.

Clapping followed, but I’d not done it for the crowd’s pleasure alone.

“As you know,” I continued, now having everyone’s attention once again. “The Tidal Pearl will validate my reign, and use of it will help protect the people of Thalassaria. Thankfully, those loyal to me discovered it had gone missing and took immediate action to recover it. Captain Marek, Navarch of the Tidebreaker fleet, led a daring mission to intercept Queen Lirael’s trusted emissary, who was smuggling it aboard a ship bound for Gyoria. His command of theTidechaserensured the Tidal Pearl was retrieved before it left Thalassarian waters. Those who knew of her plan will no longer serve at my court. This is not only a day of celebration but one of reckoning. Thalassaria deserves leaders who place its people above personal ambition, and I swear to you that is the ruler I will be.”

The crowd erupted in applause, their cheers echoing across the beach. Rowan caught my gaze, his expression steady but proud, and a flicker of warmth settled in my chest. This wasn’t just a victory; it was a promise of what was to come.

“To those close to me,” I said, “I already know which among you were aware of the queen’s plot to steal the Tidal Pearl.” Thanks to Rowan and his ability to sense, when the guard first announced the Pearl missing, who was surprised and, more importantly, who was not. “Do not report back to the palace except to recover your belongings this eve. If you do, I will see you arrested.”

I looked each and every one of the guilty parties directly in the eyes, landing finally on Veylin. Satisfied at least most would not test the truth of my words, I held my right hand out, palm facing upward, and waited.

Marek reached into a pouch hanging at his side and pulled out the recovered artifact. Though it was no bigger than the size of a regular large pearl, its iridescent color was unmistakable, as would be its power. He handed it to me, winked, and took the Echo Stone as he stepped aside.

Turning toward the sea, I looked out at the horizon, once again silently thanking the ancient pelagor, thanking Thalassa for watching over me, and then dipping my gaze to the ocean’s depths where my parents laid for their final rest, thanked them for giving me the strength I needed on this day.

Then, raising my hand to the sky, the Tidal Pearl clutched tight in my grip, I brought it down in one swift motion.

The ocean responded. A thunderous roar erupted as waves surged upward, forming towering walls of water that seemed to defy gravity. The sea shimmered with an ethereal glow as the power of the Tidal Pearl coursed through me. It was an ancient and unstoppable force, binding me to the very heart of Thalassaria.

The crowd gasped as the water began to form the shape of an immense, glowing figure, a sentinel of the sea. I turned to face my people, taking the Echo Stone back from Marek.

“This is Thalassaria’s strength. Together, we rise, and together, we endure.”

The sentinel bowed its head in acknowledgment before dissolving back into the ocean, the waves cascading gently to the shore. In that moment, the sea was still, but I knew it now carried my promise, to protect and lead my people with all the strength and wisdom of those who came before me.

39

ROWAN

The festivities lasted well into the night.

We danced and drank, the spectacle of the Festival of Tides closing ceremony, with a new queen at its helm, one to behold. By the time we returned to the inn, secured in advance by Nerys’s new queen’s guard led by Caelum, it was easy to see she was exhausted.

I’d congratulated her, our public embrace short but cherished as I’d wanted to touch her all night. All day, in fact, watching her battle Lirael was one of the most difficult things I’d ever done in my life. She disappeared into the same room she’d shared with Aneri, a testament to the kind of queen she would be. Nerys refused any special treatment, and since Aneri would not be coming to the palace, instead opting to remain in her home.

We’d returned to the palace; Mev and Kael to remain Nerys’s guests until returning north, and I’d not seen her since. Locked away all day, she began the process of choosing a new inner circle, putting forth new names for a council. Thankfully, none of those who’d been corrupted by the old queen returned.

Now, as I stepped into my chamber, towel around my waist, I sat on the bed looking out into the darkening sky and sea below. Knowing its power and seeing that power harnessed were two very different things, and though I respected the magic of Elydor’s other clans, it was Thalassaria, and Nerys, that held me most in awe.

The vision came much more easily than the first. I no longer struggled to understand it, or attempted to fight for more than it was willing to reveal. Instead, I simply observed and did not judge.

I stood before the Gate, its intricate runes carved into its surface, their glow pulsing with life as the magic awakened. Most of the etchings shimmered in brilliant blue: the hue of Aetherian power.

Except… not all.

Scattered among the glowing runes were others, faint and dormant, their color untouched by the magic. Instead, they remained the pale, unassuming shade of white marble, almost invisible. I could only make out one of the three, but it appeared to be an old key, its shaft twisted. But the vision faded before I could bring the others into focus.

I had no idea what it meant but understood now why my grandfather kept a leather-bound journal of his visions. I would do the same, in time. For now, they were easy enough to remember, if not to interpret.

My duty to Estmere, and the humans, was clear.

But so was my love for Nerys.

The evening meal was not for some time, but I stood, prepared to dress, when the soft knock stopped me in my tracks. I didn’t think she would have been able to get away today, but I knew without using any special abilities that it was Nerys on the other side of the door.

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