"Good Marra child!" Marina shot from her bed, her tail lashing. Her silky black hair fanned around her head and her large ruby eyes dilated.
"Mother!" Marina gasped. Regina Adessa was staring at her daughter, her silver-white fan tail swishing as Adessa hovered lightly in the water. Adessa's stern blue eyes were settled on her daughter.
"Marina, you should have been up earlier," Adessa spotted the pile of conches at the foot of Marina's pearl and amber bed. "You were up listening to conches! Marina!" Adessa's glare almost made Marina flinch.
"Midterms mom…" Marina trailed from her thought as she picked up a conch. Adessa swiped the conch and held it to her ear.
"The Great war of Marra and Agore by Sly Sliverstern. That one is made up Marina. Even you should be able to tell if that is fake or not." Adessa said, her tail swishing angrily. Marina pushed off her bed and swam towards her midterm conch. Adessa studied her daughter.
Marina had gained the colors of her father. She had the eyes and skin of a Marrian but not the tail or hair. Marrian's were purely descended from the Great Goddess Marra, creator of the Merpeople. Marina had a black fin tail with black hair. Marina's dorsal fin, which started from her lower back to the haunches of her tail (one forth the way down her tail) was a dim copper outlined with black.
Adessa hated when her court pointed out the differences the two had. While Marina's tail had two fins like a fish, Adessa herself had a fan tail that closed and fanned open like the mundane, or human, fan. Adessa had copper hair with light icy eyes and a silver-white tail with a slightly grey dorsal fin. Marina's court was worse.
"My gods I'll get the Regina!" Tatiana cried. The servant had flung open the doors, interrupting the Regina and Principessa.
"Tatiana, what is it?" Adessa asked.
Tatiana's green tail flapped in surprise. Her mint colored skin was flushed a bright green, her blondish hair flying from its up do.
"A raid Regina Adessa! Commander Vallio arrived with reports from his soldiers of a village that was empty. Animals were there but there was no Mer in sight. They were gone, vanished," Tatiana said.
Adessa fled the room, her fanned tail flapping hard against the water. Marina tilted her head lightly. Her mother had turned back every now and then, looking at her before turning the corner and swimming towards her state room.
"Don't worry Principessa, Regina Adessa will keep us all safe," Tatiana soothed the merl. Marina shook her head. Tatiana held a medium sized glass jar. Black sand rested inside.
"I got you your favorite grotto sand. Black sand from the shores of Hawaii." Tatiana said gently. Tatiana also had her ivory robe and a gentle blue hued sea-silk gown for Marina.
Marina accepted her things and thanked Tatiana before she swam into the grotto. She opened the jar of sand and scrubbed her skin and her tail. Her hair she cleaned with soap from a sea urchin.
Marina swam out of the grotto with her ivory robe on. A small line of silver abalone shell colored squid ink lined her eyes. Tatiana smiled before leading her charge out of her bed chambers and to her antechamber.
One thing everyone knew about Marina, was that she was the most beautiful princess in the history of Mirromora. Her eyes were a shade of ruby and her hair was luscious black. Her tail was elegant with the black and copper mix. Her magic was strong and powerful.
Regina Adessa had learned that her daughter had one downfall. Submission. Once Adessa asked something, Marina would set her things down and do it. Marina Meredith was her full name. Marina meant sea maiden and Meredith meant protector of the sea. Marina Meredith was the Sea Maiden, Protector of the Sea.
Adessa worried Marina would be too submissive. In a war, if Marina lost some soldiers, she might submit to defeat. A Regina was tuff, and always tuff. Marina wasn't. She was sweet kind and gentle… Like Marra before war. Like always.
"Regina Adessa," Consort Keel bowed. Adessa nodded towards the consort before swimming up and resting on her throne. The silver shimmered against her light scales. Her fanned fin spread a little more, revealing the semi circle edges of each webbing between the tail bones she had.
"Vallio," Adessa settled into the throne more, her mantle of red sea anemones flowing with the current that flowed through. Vallio stood. In place of a tail, he had the bottom of a blue crab.
"Regina," Vallio bowed… only for Narwana to burst in. The blasted lady-in-waiting for Marina.
"Regina!" Narwana shrieked. "That stupid octopus your daughter owns blasted my hair!" Narwana motioned to her now black hair, dripping the black ink of Lily.
"Leave at once Narwana! This is a private hearing." Adessa glared. Her tail thrashed angrily. Narwana huffed and swam off, complaining about poor Lily.
Marina sighed as she sat before her wardrobe master. Ally tried her best to make Marina's outfits work for the demands of the courts and Marina's title as Principessa and for Marina's style. However, Marina's coloring, her style, the Principessa title, and the court's expectations all clashed fiercely.
One of Ally's light pink tentacles brushed along a creamy colored dress. Ally glared at the sea-silk gown.
"Once again," Marina thought aloud. "I am stuck wearing white." Often, poor Marina was stuck wearing white. It complimented her eye and hair color as well as her tail. The dorsal area was shaped for Marina's. Ally spotted freckles of copper growing on Marin's tail fin.
"Is your fin becoming copper like your dorsal fin bibic?" Ally asked as she rummaged through a trunk for a new dress. Ally sensed Marina looking down to study her tail fins.
"Yes, they are. Outlined in black with copper inside." Marina said. Ally smiled when she came upon a beautiful dark sea-silk dress. She made her way over to Marina.
"This one?" Ally asked. Marina took the sea-silk into her hands. Her eyes were glittering as she studied the dress.
"Perfect," Marina smiled. Marina's tail slapped the water as she swam into her private dressing area and removed her ivory robe, replacing it with the shimmering black dress.
"You look stunning Principessa," Ally grinned. She fixed small areas before fully allowing Marina to look into the mirror. A vitrina, or mundane spirit that died because of an attempt for beauty, smiled at Marina. She had rosy cheeks with white skin and a huge white wig with dozens of dresses. The sprits lived in the mirror.
"Beautiful, your majesty." The spirit spoke softly. Marina smiled at the vitrina and complimented it, as the spirits always wanted attention, before swimming off for breakfast.
Tatiana was setting the small table when Marina arrived. Water apples and eel berries topped pickled sponge. Boiled sea urchins rested beside the water apples. Marina sat on her love seat then went about picking out her foods.
"Two sponge, one apple, handful of coral nuts, four urchins." Marina counted in her head. Sargassa Tea was set before her. Marina nodded to Tatiana before she began to eat. Tatiana flowed around the room, opening drapes and wiping off some coral.
"Thank you Tatiana, you should go prepare," Marina clenched her hands at the thought of the visitors. "Emperor Ablon should be arriving soon."
Tatiana nodded sadly then swam to get her clothing. Marina turned towards the south door and swam out of the room. She slowly made her way to the front of the palace. She began to swim through the city of Galatic. The royal city. Many of the Mer civilians were adding security measures to their homes.
Emperor Ablon, the ruler of Ondali. His guards would often go through Galatic and try to rob homes and raid stores. However, the Jacari, the personal guard of the Regina and Principessa, would stop them.
A small mermaid bumped into Marina.
"Principessa!" She squeaked. Marina scooped up the child.
"What is it child?" Marina asked.
"Raiders!" The mermaid fretted. A merman dressed in black swam towards her with a crossbow.
"I am Principessa Marina," Marina growled, pulling her sword from its sheath. "I command you to halt!" Marina put the mermaid behind her.
"Go to the palace!" Marina called to the little merl as the merman struck at her with a sword.
"Get the Jacari and Regina Adessa!" Marina yelled as she swung her blade. The merl swam off, other civilians following. Marina blocked another attack.
By the time the Jacari got there with Adessa, Marina's dress was shredded and she had cuts. The merman was bleeding as well.
"Principessa Marina?" A voice asked in shock. It was Emperor Ablon. Marina ignored him and spun, lashed out with her sword. The blade caught on the merman's shoulder and suddenly, the merman's arm was missing.
The Jacari pulled Marina away and grabbed the merman. Adessa was staring at the man. His wound was pumping blood, but he didn't seem affected. His light blue tail had markings. Adessa studied them. Her mind pulled at her to recognize the markings.
She was ripped from her thoughts by Emperor Ablon.
"Regina Adessa," He spoke smoothly. "I would like it dearly if Marina came to Ondali. She could train properly on any weapon of her choice and her magic," Ablon grinned.
Adessa was shocked at the proposition. "How DARE you say such things," Adessa growled. "Mirromora's academies are just fine and the private lessons by her teachers will sustain Marina." Adessa turned and swam towards the palace, where Marina was being led.
Ablon's daughter, Yazee, was sitting before her throne. Her tail was green and blue, like Ablon. Blond hair flowed down her back. Yazee, like all Ondalian's, got her first marking at twelve. Simple blue symbols that spelt out Agore's Citizen were written on her lower back. Agore is the main lord for Ondali.
"Regina Adessa," Yazee bowed.
"Do not bow, Yazee," Adessa smiled. "As Marina's best friend, you shouldn't bow. Marina is in her antechamber." Adessa shooed the maiden off. Adessa looked at Yazee's back again. She had no dorsal fin. Rare for the mer in Mirromora, but not Ondali.
"Marina!" Yazee called when she saw her.
"Yazee!" Marina cried. Her arm and tail were bandaged up from the wounds. Yazee swam up and hugged her friend.
"Marina," Yazee looked the merl in the eyes. "My father, he… he wants to combine our kingdoms,"
"How can he? My mother won't accept his hand in married and forbid him from marring me,"
"Marina, he wants to adopt you as his daughter in a blood bind," Yazee said.
Marina stopped. Her breathing slowed and she stopped moving. She had been holding a dress up to herself in the mirror, now the dress was on the floor. Marina slowly turned around.
"WHAT!"