The Deepest Blue(100)

She didn’t want to like anything Lanei said. The two others that survived—how many more would have lived if Lanei hadn’t been working against them? Did she even know Lanei had told the truth when she said she hadn’t killed anyone?

Still . . . it was hard not to like what she was saying. No more tests. I could go home. With Kelo. And maybe even Elorna.

But Queen Asana had seemed so worried about the Deepest Blue.

How could it be a lie?

It didn’t make sense. If it was a lie, then Queen Asana should have had the power to rescue Roe. She shouldn’t have been under the thumb of the Families. Roe should never have been without her mother or sent to the island. . . .

“Stand with me,” Lanei said. “And watch as I destroy Akena Island. Then you’ll understand. I only want to make the world a better place. Come and see.” She held out her hand, and Mayara walked to the window.

It was open, with no glass in between them and the world. She could still hear the bells, mixed with the wind. It smelled like the sea, even so far above the water. Below them was the coronation grove. Around them, the city. Beyond . . . This high up, she could see a distant smudge of purple on the horizon to the north—the mainland. And if she turned and looked across the island to the south . . . Akena Island.

Two others survived, she thought. She wondered which two. At least there was no one left on Akena, living in fear. . . .

Out on the waves, she saw spirits spiral up out of the water. Water spouts began to form. “Are you doing that?” she asked Lanei.

The new queen grinned. “Oh yes. Keep watching.” She then laughed out loud as the spirits began to swirl faster, the spout rising higher. Ice spirits flew around them, and the seawater froze, breaking into a million shards of ice as the water below continued to churn. “Finally, I have power. Queen Asana was a fool not to use it. To allow others to use her. No one will ever hurt me, or anyone like me, ever again. And, my dear Mayara, so long as I have this power, no one will ever hurt you or your family ever again either. How does that sound?”

It sounded . . . like everything she wanted.





Chapter Twenty-Five

Mayara watched as Lanei, laughing, forced the spirits of Belene to destroy Akena Island. They swarmed over it like ants over a ripened fruit. Waterspouts tore into its shore. Fire tore across its forests. She saw the flames grow, coalescing into the shape of humans with long fiery limbs that tore at the distant green. She was so far away, she heard nothing, but even from this distance, the level of destruction was so clear, it blackened the sky.

“Tear it!” Lanei urged. “Rip it, rend it, drive it into the sea. . . .” Every spirit in Belene was there in a froth of rage and destruction.

Backing away from the window, Mayara tried to keep her mind closed to it, but the fierce rage seeped in. It felt like boiling water being forced down her throat. “Lanei, you need to stop.”

“Not until it’s done!” Hands on either side of the arch, Lanei screamed, “Destroy it!”

Mayara fell to her knees. The rage—it was too much, filling her veins, making her feel as if she were going to fly apart. She felt it rushing through the sea.

The tower door slammed open. “Your Majesty!”

Though her head was pounding, Mayara lifted it and tried to force her eyes to focus. She recognized the person in the doorway—no, not person. Three people: Heir Sorka with Roe and Lady Garnah.

“Your Majesty!” Heir Sorka called again. “Stop!”

“You can’t stop me,” Lanei said. “This is what it means to be queen! Take power. Use power. Make the world better. You don’t understand that a true hero cannot be bound by the rules and limitations of an ordinary person. The few must die so the many—”

Garnah cut her off. “No one cares. Murder whoever you want. Just do your duty—”

“I care,” Roe said. “She killed my mother!”

“Priorities, Roe,” Garnah said. “Focus.”

“You’ve woken the Deepest Blue,” Sorka said. “Can’t you feel them coming?”

“You can’t frighten me with your myths!” Lanei cried. Her arms were spread wide, and they were shaking. Her face looked euphoric.

“Idiot,” Garnah snapped. “A rock would make a better queen. But you’re what we’ve got right now, so quit playing and do your job! Put them back!” She pointed south across the island, toward the ocean beyond.

And Mayara realized that was the rage she’d felt. It was rolling in with the surging tide. She pushed herself to her feet and stumbled to one of the windows. Out where the horizon should be were three smudged shapes, rushing through the water. One of them reared, and she saw the silhouette of many, many heads. “How far?”

“Not far enough,” Sorka said grimly. To the queen, she ordered, “You must focus on the leviathans. You’re the only one with the power to do it. We’ll hold the Belenian spirits.” To Roe and Mayara, she said, “Keep them away from the inhabited islands. With them riled up this much, that’s the best we’ll be able to do. Especially with them on the way.”

“This is impossible,” Queen Lanei said. “The monsters of the Deepest Blue . . . they’re a myth created by the Families to control the queens. They’re fairy tales! They don’t exist!”