To Kill a God by C.S. Wilde

Chapter 3

Mera inhaled deeply.The salty tang of the sea filtered into her core, urging her to sink under the waves and never return to shore. By now, she’d learned to tame those urges, but they always remained.

The ocean mimicked the sky’s bright turquoise, and seagulls cawed in the distance. The beautiful day could only be a good omen to what she and Bast were about to do—even if she didn’t believe in silly things like omens.

Faeries of all levels rushed around the port of Tir Na Nog, a vast marina that occupied half of the borough’s shore. The port welcomed ships of many sizes and purposes—whether for export or import, tourism, leisure, fishing—the port of Tir Na Nog harbored them all.

Most ships moored there, however, were nightbringers. Their thick iron hulls were filled with mighty cannons, and sharp harpoons peppered the metallic decks. The floating fortresses were a must when crossing waters near Atlantea, even if there hadn’t been an attack since the war ended.

Mera stood on a small sub-section of the port, waiting for Bast. He’d winnowed them there that morning—along with two small suitcases—before leaving to work on some “last minute details” with his brother, the Night King.

Mera shouldn’t be surprised that Corvus was involved. Of course he could help them get to the Isles of Fog without official permits. Illegal and forbidden were words he knew well, even if he was king now.

A tall, wooden tower stood in the middle of the port’s vast plaza. A golden clock topped the structure, and its bells reverberated loudly when the hands struck 8:00 a.m.

Mera sighed despondently. By now, her new captain would have realized she’d left Clifftown, as well as her duties as one of Hollowcliff’s finest. Soon, so would Councilor Adams.

She hated disappointing her superiors, but she had to follow her gut, as Ruth had always taught her. Which meant that this time tomorrow, she and Bast would be declared criminals for abandoning their posts and attempting to engage with sirens.

No coming back from it.

That unavoidable fact left a bitter taste on her tongue, especially after she’d served the force for so many years.

Dragging Bast along didn’t seem fair. She didn’t want to be the reason why he lost his badge, but he refused to stay.

“My duty is to you,”he’d said. “If you attempt to do this alone, I will find you. So save us the headache, kitten.”

Bastard knew her well.

Now, Mera was abandoning her post and her career for a wild goose chase that might prove pointless. After all, she was a banished princess. She’d killed the queen, and instead of staying to survive a trial—a nice way to mask her death sentence—she’d decided to perish on her own terms by dashing into the forbidden zone, knowing it would kill her. The thing was, her suicide mission hadn’t turned as suicidal as Mera had hoped.

Would her friends hate her for never coming back? Would they even listen to her now?

The words Professor Currenter had told her when he’d “possessed” Madam Zukova, back when Mera and Bast investigated the Summer King’s murder, awoke in her memory.

“Promise me you’ll never attempt to come back. Grow strong, little fry.”

Mera hadn’t planned on returning, but something had seemed off back then. Considering what happened since… Yeah, she had to get to Atlantea. Fast.

When the air next to her cracked, she stepped aside, watching two portals that showed the night sky next to her—each the size of a stubborn nightling. Bast and Corvus soon jumped out from the gateways, and the portals disappeared.

The Night King fixed his spiky white hair, then his black suit. “Detective. A pleasure, as always.” His mouth stretched into a wolfish grin. “I see you’re up to no good, once again.”

She crossed her arms. “Who are you to judge, baku? You’re always up to no good.”

“Precisely.” He pressed his palm on his chest. “I meant it in the most respectful of ways. In fact, your goody-two-shoes nature had to give in at some point. Bast’s influence, I suppose.” He tapped his brother’s back with a certain pride.

Mera rolled her eyes, but couldn’t hide the smile that took over her lips. “Aren’t kings supposed to follow rules?”

Glancing around as if searching for said kings, Corvus shrugged. “Not this one, surely. The Night Court doesn’t follow rules set by anyone other than the Night King. We simply pretend we do.” He leaned closer and winked at her. “Don’t tell that to the council.”

Mera chuckled. “Your secret is safe with me.”

“Broer, will you get to the point?” Bast grumbled.

“Ah, yes.” Corvus clapped his hands. “I’ve booked you a pirate, but not just any pirate. He’s a warlock, and he might come in handy on your way to the isles. Captain Flint is his name.” He pointed to a dark wooden ship with navy-blue sails approaching the port.

Winnowing to the isles was a no-go. The journey alone was five times the distance from Clifftown to Tir Na Nog. Not even Corvus, arguably the best winnower in the entire country, could get them there. Also, even if Bast flew them to the isles, he would need pitstops for a few nights—impossible without any land in sight.

So, a pirate ship it was.

“I did my due diligence, of course,” Corvus continued. “Captain Flint knows his way around the isles, and he says he’s even contacted some of your people, Detective. But truth be told, I think he might be boasting.”

“Did he give you any names?”

“Yes, actually. One as equally amusing as Wavestorm. Someone named Tiderider?”

She nearly gasped. “Tiderider? As in, Belinda Tiderider?”

Corvus waved a hand in the air. “I suppose? Can’t remember.”

Bast’s brows furrowed, worry taking over his face. “Do you know her?”

“Belinda used to be my best friend. I haven’t seen her since…” Since Mera abandoned her and everyone else she cared about to cross the forbidden zone.

Belinda’s mother had been a part of the resistance against the queen. She’d been captured and executed in front of Mera and Belinda herself, which prompted Mera to stand against the tyrant. The queen’s death, Mera’s arrival in Tagrad, and everything that happened after, could be pinpointed to that particular moment.

“I can’t believe…” Mera turned to Corvus, her throat feeling as if it had been coated by sandpaper. “What did Belinda tell Captain Flint?”

“Difficult to say. There was a great deal of alcohol involved when I spoke to him. Pirates take their payment in coin and ale, you see.” He clicked his tongue, then pointed to the approaching vessel. “You’ll be able to ask him yourself soon enough.”

Anticipation piled up inside Mera, but there was something else. An uneasy sensation that thrummed under her skin. Her own voice whispered in her ears, but Mera couldn’t understand what it said.

“Hash, hash…”

“Something’s wrong,” she mumbled, narrowing her eyes at the horizon.

The ocean shifted, pulling and pushing Mera’s essence in a thousand different directions, rumbling a warning into her bones.

Bast stepped closer. “What is it?”

It couldn’t be. It simply couldn’t be, and yet, every sensation in her body assured her she wasn’t mistaken.

“I thought he would attack Atlantea,” she muttered. “We ruined his plans for the mainland. How could he create… ”

“Kitten?” Bast’s tone was harsher this time. “What’s going on?”

How? When she realized the answer, her heart skipped a beat. “The magic enhancer.”

“What about it?”

“You lost it when you pulled me out of the water, back when we first faced Azinor.”

“Yes, but you returned to the spot and searched for it. You said it must have been either buried deep in the sand or lost to the sea.”

“I was wrong.” Her body thrummed with the ripples that cut through the water. “He found it.”

Her hart gulped, his nostrils flaring before he acquired a battle stance. “Let him come. He’ll have no chance against the three of us.”

Spheres of night bloomed from his hands, while an aura of darkness enveloped Corvus, both brothers preparing for battle.

“Corvus, you mentioned Lunor Insul has a magic barrier for emergencies,” she noted. “A fail-safe in case waterbreakers broke through the protection zone.”

He frowned, clearly not understanding where she was going with that. “Yes. Why?”

A thousand variables ran in Mera’s mind. She pointed to Lunor Insul, which from the port, was as big as her thumb. “Winnow to Flint’s ship, take him and his crew to the island, then activate the shield.” She stepped forward, facing the ocean. “When the wave passes, return to this spot.”

He chortled, showing her the port and the calm waters ahead. “What wave? Lost your mind, Detective?”

As if on cue, the ocean began receding toward the horizon, leaving a crowd of writhing fish in its wake and taking small boats along. Most nightbringers sunk slightly on the sloshy bottom, the people aboard them clueless to what was happening.

Bast’s guard fell as he watched the water recede, and recede... and recede. “Sakala mi…”

With horror and panic trying to steal her common sense, Mera turned to her hart, perhaps for the last time. Yet, she wouldn’t give in, wouldn’t run. “Bast, you have to evacuate the borough.”

Before he could oppose, she pulled her phone from her pocket and dialed Councilor Adam’s number.

“Mera, what on all the realms were you thinking?!” His enraged voice reverberated into her ear the instant he picked up the line. “Return to your station at once, and we’ll pretend this never happened. That’s an order!”

Her gut tightened. “I can’t go back. Tir Na Nog is under attack.”