OVERFALLS (The Merworld Water Wars, Book 2) (4 page)

I stared at my poor mom and felt the weight of one thousand worlds of guilt pile on. She’s right—none of this was my fault. I never asked to be born with a talent the government declared illegal; I never asked to be institutionalized and poked to near-death by doctors trying to cleanse me of my so-called malfunction; and although I did secretly ask to be banished, I certainly didn’t ask for the location to be some town full of Merpeople on the brink of war, half of whom kidnap and use people like me for their own warped purpose; and I never, under any circumstance, asked to be the Siren Savior. So, I shouldn’t feel guilty, should I? I mean, I never asked for any of this…but neither did my mom. I can’t help thinking that Mom would have been happier if I had never been born. Aside from everything she has found out today, her husband—my father—wouldn’t have been murdered because he tried to free me and people like me. Without me taking up space in this world, my dad would still be alive, and they would be together, happy and free.

“Marina. You’re dead wrong,” said Doctor Tenly.

Sigh. I forgot about the doctor’s mental eavesdropping abilities. I really should carry a checklist of people’s powers and quirks around with me. Answering through my mind, I simply said,
Am I, really? Because I don’t think I am. Mom and Dad minus me would have equaled a long, happy life. With me, Dad dies and Mom suffers. So, please, tell me how I’m wrong, exactly?

“Things happen for a reason. You happened for a reason.”

Wishing I could accept that at face value, yet knowing I couldn’t, I simply rested my head on Troy’s shoulder, hoping it would stop my brain from churning out more woes for Doctor Tenly to overhear.

“Doc was brain-diving again, wasn’t he?” asked Troy. I nodded. “I may not brain-dive, but I do read between the lines pretty well. You were meant to be, Rubylocks. And if you don’t believe that, then believe this—you were meant to be for me.” He placed my hand upon his heart. “I couldn’t and wouldn’t be here without you.”

I whispered my thanks and kissed him on the cheek. Whether he was right or wrong was immaterial; his words were exactly what I needed to hear. Knowing he truly believes my presence mattered to his very existence was more than I could ever imagine.

“I’m falling behind, here, aren’t I?” Mom, arched eyebrow in full effect, stared at me, Troy, and Doctor Tenly.

“David is telepathic,” said Treeva. “But he only listens in on someone’s thoughts when they want to be heard.”

“Well, of course he’s telepathic!” said my mom, laughing and throwing her arms in the air. “Merpeople, horny angels, and mer-zombies...naturally there’d have to be a telepath in there somewhere! Oh, and let’s not forget about my daughter, the card reader and Savior of fish, a creature that makes her gag and, on occasion, puke.”

“I’m glad to see you’re coming to terms with everything, Mrs. Valentine,” said Doctor Tenly as Mom shot one heck of a scary glare his way. “Uh, you know, I think we should show your mom just how capable you are, Marina! Manakel tells me you’ve awakened. How about we put you against Manakel and Troy? They can give you their best maneuvers and really test your raw skills.”

“Not gonna happen,” said Troy. “She already tried to race me on the beach.” Troy then mouthed the word ‘bad’ to Treeva and Doctor Tenly.

“Yeah, it ended with him waiting and me gasping like I was on my deathbed,” I said.

“Ah, we have to turn you on, then,” said Doctor Tenly.

“I volunteer to help with that,” said Manakel, raising his hand.

“You would,” I sneered.

“Actually,” started Doctor Tenly, clearing his throat and grabbing a sky blue leather book out of his purple case, “there are provisions for an awakened, but not yet ‘alert’ Savior.” Holding up the smallish book, he said, “This is the only known copy of
Salvaging the Savior
. According to the Divine Oceanic Powers, the one who finds this book shall, henceforth, be known as the Pathfinder, guide and guardian to the Siren Savior. Hey, hey! That’s me! So exciting!”

“And in non-fin speak all that garble would translate to what, exactly?” I asked.

Doctor Tenly rocked back and forth on his heels. “Ah, well, you need regular training sessions, and I’m your trainer.”

Troy, Trey, and Manakel started laughing up a tsunami at my expression: gaping mouth with a snarling lip, saucer-sized, pissed off eyes, and a healthy brow crinkle that will inevitably leave a permanent wrinkle one of these days.

“Y’all think that’s funny?” asked Treeva.

“Hilarious,” said Trey.

Treeva gave a sarcastic faux laugh. “So glad you think so, because every Normal student will attend regular training sessions of their own…with me.”

“You can’t be serious,” said Trey as Meikle groaned and let an expletive slip.

“We need to make sure you all are in touch with every layer of your powers. War is coming. We need to be ready,” said Treeva.

Troy and Manakel kept hooting at me, Trey, and the various irked reactions of the Normals; the fact that Ophelia once again fainted—her head flopping sadly backwards on the couch like a puppet without its human counterpart—didn’t do much to calm their hysterics.

“I wouldn’t be hatching a hernia if I were you, baby brother,” said Treeva with a devilish grin.

“Yeah, why’s that?” he said.

“Because you’re going into training with me—” said Doctor Tenly.

“Ha, ha, wee 'lil fish prince needs to muscle up for the big fight, eh?” said Manakel, chuckling.

“—and Manakel,” finished Doctor Tenly.

“Oh, bloody feathers! Are you yanking my short hairs, Doc?”

Doctor Tenly shook his head. “Nope. You are going to help train up Troy, here.”

“Why the hell do I need training?” Troy griped.

“King Zale should never have been able to control you so easily, Troy,” said Doctor Tenly. “Your demon side is far more powerful than what you exhibited with Zale, particularly when combined with your merman and royal abilities. You just need to learn to use and control it.”

“Told ya,” I sang in his ear.

“Whoa. Back up.” This time, Mom was up off the loveseat, swaying slightly where she stood. “You’re dating a merman
demon
prince?”

“He’s actually a prince merman…who just so happens to have a demon attached,” I clarified.

Grabbing her head, Mom said, “My head is going to explode tomorrow, isn’t it?”

“Several times, I would imagine,” I said.

“Oh, baby girl, I don’t want you dating a demon.” She looked thoughtfully at the ceiling for a moment before I spied the start of a cat-like smirk and felt that familiar ‘Oh, Dear God, what is Mom about to do’ feeling. “Maybe, instead, you could just, you know, have a date with an angel.”

The room erupted with eardrum-blowing laughter. Hell, even Meikle was giving way to small, intermittent giggles—a rarity, to be sure. I looked to Troy, expecting him to be out of his mind with anger, only to find him chuckling with everyone else.

“Seriously?” I said to him.

Troy shrugged. “Well, your mom winked at me before saying it. Have I mentioned she’s the coolest parental on the planet? Look at her!”

Only one emotion registered while watching my gorgeous, drunk-on-root beer mother: respect. All that I learned over the course of nearly a year had just been unloaded on my mom in a single night—and here she was, making a room full of mythological beings and banished, abandoned Normals grab their sides and wipe away laughter tears. Beneath the joking, I knew she was trying to force her mind around everything. She was scared; I could see it. But she wasn’t scared for herself; she was terrified this would be the one time she couldn’t save me.

At that moment, another emotion overtook me, and I stood up, walked to my mama, and hugged her as tightly as I could.

“Oh, little peanut. Shh. I’m okay. Promise,” she said, stroking my hair like only a mother can.

“And so am I. Promise,” I said, looking her in the eye.

Mom, eyes glistening, nodded. “Well, now, Troy, a.k.a. Prince Merman Demon…I trust you, but if you ever slip up, I’ll be there to create the mess, not clean it. Got it?”

Troy looked at my mom with great admiration. Smiling, he replied, “Absolutely.”

“Hey, why didn’t my spare-a-life spell repel Troy? If he’s a demon, and my spell was supposed to repel all demons and blood relations, why didn’t it get him? Or Polly, for that matter?” Meikle asked, swinging her bag.

“That’s a good question,” I said. “I saw two people pull Polly into the sea that night. If one was you, Troy, who was the other one?”

“Marina, there wasn’t anyone else with me. I work alone,” said Troy. “As for your spell, Meikle, maybe it just didn’t work.”

“Aw, thanks, demon fish, for putting the ass in assessment. Couldn’t have concluded the spell’s failure on my own. I
never
fail,” said Meikle, digging her nails into the chair.

Doctor Tenly waved his hands in the air. “Wait, wait, wait!” Treeva, knowing the doctor as well as she does, had already grabbed his purple case and held it open for him to dig in. “Ah-ha! Here we go!” Flipping through an ancient golden book, its pages barely attached to the spine, Doctor Tenly grinned and kicked his leg out. “Meikle, you are one powerful witch! Your spell didn’t fail! It’s a floater!”

“A…floater?” she said.

“Indeed. Troy’s power as the deliverer more or less trumps any other mystical counter. See, the demon within Troy isn’t something born…it’s something crafted, something planted. As such, it carries its own brand of magic—that of its original creator—”

“Zale,” said Troy, clenching his jaw.

“Yes, in part. But, magic isn’t stationary. It’s fluid. Thus, a fashioned demon will naturally pledge its allegiance to its creator, but also to its current owner…Troy. Zale has magic, the demon has magic, and so do you, Troy. What you’re left with is a war of will. Whose magic prevails? You see, now, why you need training?” Troy nodded. “Good. So, Meikle, because Troy was acting within the parameters of the demon’s mystical purpose when you cast your spell, it effectively thwarted the spell’s intentions, which is why it didn’t affect Polly.”

“Okay, I get it,” said Meikle, “but then what do you mean by ‘floater?’”

“Ah, well, your spell is still
live
, floating in the air out there, waiting for you to direct it. Highly advanced magic! Most spells will dissipate when thwarted.”

“Kick ass,” said Meikle, smiling.

“Who was the second person I saw with Troy and Polly, then? I know I’m not insane. I saw two figures,” I said.

Doctor Tenly tilted his head. “Well, sanity is relative, isn’t it? Your supposed sanity to one person could be another’s insanity.” Spying the start of a glower on my face, he quickly carried on. “As for the second figure, I’m fairly certain it was Meikle’s spell.”

“Say huh? How could I have seen a spell? It looked human.”

“Meikle’s spell was shadowing its targets—Troy and Polly—taking their form, thus appearing quite human to the eye.” Doctor Tenly closed the ragged book and handed it to Meikle. “I want you to have this.”

Taking it from his hands, Meikle ogled at the cover. “
Stealing, Sealing, & Devouring Through Magic
. Freaking awesome. Thanks.”

“You’re very welcome,” said Doctor Tenly. “Any other questions or topics we need to address?”

“Yeah, right here. Is anyone going to tell me where our other resident partial-demon is exactly? Where’s Polly?” asked Mom.

Oh, crap. All of us glanced at one another, not knowing who should cough up this factual phlegm wad on my mom.

Mom put her hands on her hips. “Come on, y’all. Think about everything you’ve crapped on my head tonight, and I’m still here…somewhat lucid…but definitely hanging strong. Now, get over yourselves and talk.”

“Polly is being held prisoner in a Kraken bone cage by King Zale,” said Trey.

“And that would be somewhere underwater, I assume,” said my mom.

“Yep, and we’re going to rescue her…and steal a scroll from Katrina’s underwater dresser,” I said.

Mom was doing the empty head nod—where the person clearly heard what you said, was probably having difficulty processing the information, and just nodded profusely to have some semblance of a reaction. “Uh-huh. Okay. No.”

“What?” I asked.

“No. Not you. You will not steal or engage in some underwater rescue. So, there. I have spoken.”

“Mom, I’ve kinda already done the underwater rescue…and the stealing…with some breaking and entering. Mom?” Mom just stood there, staring at me. “She’s not blinking. Can she hear me?”

“I can hear…can’t sit, move, blink, or think…but I can hear,” she said in a shocked, slightly shrilly voice. “Explain.”

“Uh, well, my first trip underwater was, um, for spring break.”

“So, the fancy fishing hut was actually a very big, non-glass-enclosed aquarium.”

“Kinda, yeah. The reason I returned so upset was because Katrina Zale stabbed me in the stomach with a soul snatching stone. She tried to either kill my soul or control it.”

“Stabbed?! You were stabbed?! My daughter was stabbed by—”

“The merwhore,” supplied Meikle.

“And she tried to take my daughter’s soul?”

“But she didn’t. I’m a lot stronger than she thought…than I thought. After Doctor Tenly healed me, he told me I had to get one of those stones. So, Airi and I broke into the Zale mansion here in Saxet Shores.”

“Marina is quite adept at stealing, Mrs. Valentine. You should be very proud,” said Doctor Tenly in all sincerity.

“Right. Wonder if I can get a bumper sticker that says: ‘Proud parent of stone-stealing mermaid Savior with a gagging problem.’”

Doctor Tenly studied the windows for a moment. “Possibly. I’ll look into it for you.”

“Mom, are you okay?” Her face was stone-like (no pun intended). I couldn’t tell if she had finally reached her limit on the scary, oh-holy-crap stuff, or if she was about to break down in tears.

Narrowing her eyes at the floor, she shook her head. “You know, no, I’m not. Forget the bumper sticker, Doctor. I want you to bring me that little merbitch so I can show her what a real mama does to protect her baby.”