Page 126 of Midnightsong
A wicked smile appeared on Saeryn’s lips. “Goddess bless, nephew. I will see you in the afterlife.” His words took on a hard edge as he was taken up to the sentinel who had slain Celia, and he didn’t deign to acknowledge Kaden again as he too, met Celia’s fate, falling limp. Sentinels gathered him into their arms before he drifted away with the sea’s ebb and flow. Kaden stayed far from his uncle, his chest clenching. He never imagined he would be in a position to order death upon his own family, and yet only the smallest twinge of regret struck him, overtaken by deep relief. For all the pain Saeryn had caused his queendom, caused him, he was no more.
“We move to Queen Cassia.” Allie finished writing, putting her slate and pen by her side. “We will stand by and accept your punishment for her, Governor Vester and the Admiral. Please come to the front.”
Kaden’s heart skipped a beat, and he exchanged another glance with Angie, who was still holding onto Celia. Their gazes followed the middle-aged man and woman as two sentinels traveled with him to Kaden’s side, and he faced Cassia.
The last of Cassia’s fight appeared to have left her. She didn’t make a move as she studied Vester’s movements.
“Queen Cassia, you’ve injured over a hundred of my citizens. Confirmed to have killed tens more. And destroyed buildings, schools in that tsunami’s wake,” Governor Vester’s voice held a sharp edge, a broken piece of coral slicing at Kaden’s skin. Cassia held her head high as he flung the accusations at her. His gaze was unflinching for a brief moment and softened a moment later. “If you wish this, we will accept your surrender. You do not attack the surface again for as long as your reign lasts. You will allow MDRT soldiers, with mer magic, to patrol your queendom when they deem it necessary, until they deem you are no longer a threat to us. And you will pay reparations for the damage you’ve done.”
“And if I do not accept?” Cassia growled.
“Then we will have you and the princess imprisoned for life in prison of the MDRT and Governor Vester’s choosing,” Admiral Zhang added, her eyebrows knitting together. “And you can think about the harm you’ve caused for the rest of your days.”
Her pride, or her freedom. Headstrong like her sister, neither choice would come easy for Cassia.
“Aunt Cassia,” Kaden said, timbre even and low. “Please surrender. It is the right thing to do.”
Cassia’s tail flicked back and forth, back and forth. “Where is King Varin? If you bring him to me, I will surrender.”
In the rapid blink of an eye, it felt as if the weight of the ocean rested on Kaden’s shoulders. “He is with the Goddess. He died defending us from the human attacks.” He choked on the emotion that rose like a seawater funnel from his stomach to his throat. “I tried to contact you to tell you. But I couldn’t reach you. A-and now I know why.” He motioned with his head to Admiral Zhang and Governor Vester. “They were transporting you here.”
The queen’s shoulders jerked to meet her earlobes. Her mouth formed a word Kaden couldn’t decipher, but the clenching of her fists and trembling of her jaw was unmistakable.
“You landwalkers have slain my sister. And now you take my lifemate too?” Her jaw clenched, and she jerked at them.
“Aunt Cassia—” Kaden turned to her, his tone wavering between warning and fear.
“What more can you take from me? From us?” Cassia’s earsplitting cry rang through the currents, and Kaden winced. She looked like a volcano on the brink of erupting, and he braced himself, with what measly energy he had left to counter her if she launched an attack.
“Try anything and we will kill you where you are,” Admiral Zhang snapped. “We have forces at the ready to siege your queendom again at my command.”
The tides shifted, swaying all in her fierce clutches.
Cassia’s expression shifted to one of desolation. “If I surrender, what reparations do you require of me?”
“We request you have human monuments built in your queendom to pay tribute to those who have lost their lives because of you. And you will have your people give us breath whenever they wish to come pay tribute to their loved ones, so they may heal their wounds.” Governor Vester’s request rang authoritative and firm. “You will acknowledge the wrongs you committed against our people, as well as a public declaration of your surrender. And you will provide us financial compensation in the form of rare seaglass and medicinal remedies your healers use for your own.”
Cassia’s arms and tail tensed with each condition.
“Might I remind you of what will happen if you do not comply?” Admiral Zhang’s featured hardened.
After a torturous moment of silence, Cassia relented, her posture wilting. “I surrender, and I accept your terms.”
“Acknowledged,” Admiral Zhang said, and turned to Governor Vester, who nodded his agreement.
“And how do we wish to resolve the conflict between our people?” Darya asked.
Angie and Governor Taylor leaned in to murmur amongst each other and turned to Kaden. “We wish for a truce. Only with an alliance between our races can we benefit from both the land and sea,” Governor Taylor said, clear and confident.
“Concur,” Governor Vester and Admiral Zhang added.
When Kaden spoke again, his voice cracked and quivered. “Then you will return all the mer you’re keeping captive to us. In whatever state they are in. You will no longer take us for study or research. If you wish for knowledge, you may ask the mer yourselves.”
“And I want my lifemate back, so I can bury him in our cemeteries,” Cassia spoke up.
“Absolutely,” Kaden replied.
“Done,” Governor Vester said. “And we’ll spread the word to our other leaders down the coast.”
