Page 50 of Harbinger

Cassius retracted his powers. The stark radiance surrounding him faded.

The Nereid commander bowed stiffly at the waist, her face ashen. Armor clattered as her troop followed suit.

“Forgive my transgression, Goddess, Awakener,” she begged. “I was not forewarned of your visit. I am Nais, captain of the Royal Guard. We came here because we detected the presence of two powerful entities in our realm.”

“You are forgiven,Nais,” Tisiphone said graciously. “Our mission must be kept secret, hence why we did not send a messenger in advance.”

Puzzlement flashed in Nais’s eyes as she raised her head.

“I understand,” she said with a firm nod. “I shall take you to our queen.”

“Please do.”

Cassius smiled. “Thank you.”

Nais blinked. Several of the sea Nymphs blushed.

Tisiphone smirked and jabbed an elbow in Cassius’s side. “Way to go on the charm offensive.”

Cassius masked a wince and rubbed the rib she’d almost broken.

Nais cleared her throat and turned her mount around. Her soldiers made way for her as she approached the vertical wall of mist. She raised her trident.

“Reveal!”

Cassius’s skin prickled as the divine power of the Goddesses who had established the Astrea Sea brightened the tips of the weapon. The air shimmered, molecules vibrating under the unearthly force drenching them.

The pale wall parted with a low rumble. It revealed an enormous waterfall crashing into the sea at the base of the cliffs and a glittering city high above.

Cassius stared. The few times he’d sneaked into the Astrea Sea after the Fall, he’d used one of the short-lived portals that occasionally cropped up between Earth and the realm of the sea Nymphs. His covert missions had never brought him as far as its capital. Now that Hypnos’s spell was almost completely broken, his recollections of the trips he’d made to the kingdom when he’d still been the second prince of Rain Vale were slowing returning.

The sea Nymphs framed Cassius and Tisiphone as they ascended past the roaring waters of the cascade, Nais in the lead. They shot out over the bluff a moment later and finally came in sight of the capital of the Astrea Sea.

A white palace sparkled to their left, its towers and spires rising gracefully toward the cerulean sky. It towered above the metropolis hugging the shores of the lake that narrowed to a channel and a promontory that gave rise to the chute kissing the ocean beneath them.

The river that birthed the body of water split the city in half, its meandering course crisscrossed by an array of glittering bridges that ended at a giant watergate set in a defensive wall protecting the capital where it faced an undulating landscape of hills and forests. An enormous mountain range was visible in the far distance, its peaks lost in pale clouds.

Nais dove toward the palace. “Follow me, honored guests.”

Cassius and Tisiphone went after her, their escort keeping a respectful distance.

They passed the parapets and guard towers of the palace walls and crossed a bevy of courtyards and exquisitely maintained gardens. An immense quadrangle of pale flagstones appeared up ahead. It fronted the main palace building and was enclosed by what appeared to be administrative premises.

The throng of people navigating the piazza parted with a roar of startled murmurs when they landed in the middle of it. Guarded curiosity filled their eyes when they saw Cassius’s white wings and Tisiphone’s dark ones. From their refined garments, he guessed they were palace officials.

An elderly Potamos wearing regal robes and a scowl marched down a flight of steps to their right, his staff striking the ground with sharp clacks. A retinue of attendants with armloads of paperwork rushed after him, documents fluttering to the ground as they tried to keep up.

“What is the meaning of this, Captain?!” The male Nymph’s irate gaze raked Cassius and Tisiphone dismissively before focusing on Nais. “How dare you bring these strangers to Her Majesty’s palace without obtaining the Council’s permission first?!”

“Maybe you should do your thing again,” Tisiphone whispered to Cassius out of the corner of her mouth.

“I really don’t think a show of force is appropriate under the circumstances,” he replied in a low voice after gauging the tense mood of the crowd. “We should let Nais deal with this.”

Nais shot a contrite glance their way. Her expression hardened as she faced the elderly Potamos.

“I apologize for not being able to give the court forewarning, Minister Polyx,” the Nereid told the Potamos with a respectful bob of her head. “Our visitors’ identities precluded it.”

“Oh, really?” Polyx scoffed. “I doubt their station warranted you violating the palace’s security rules.” He turned to one of Nais’s soldiers. “Arrest the captain and take these strangers prisoner! I shall decide what to do with them at a later date.”

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