A/N: Hey, everyone! :)

Who is ready for the next chapter? I know I am! :)

But before the chapter begins, I would like to thank Izi Wilson for reviewing the previous chapter, as well as being the first one to favorite and follow this story. I would also like to thank all of you for taking your time to read it. It really means a lot! :) :) You are all amazing! :D

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Remember: This story is rated T for Teen because of language.

Now, I believe I stated everything that I wanted to say. So, sit back, relax, and I hope you all enjoy the chapter! :) :D

Happy reading! :D

Sirena's POV

I ran the coral polish across Nixie's thumbnail, watching it sparkle in the light like glorious treasure. If you actually looked close enough, you could see the tiny specks of gold glitter that were mixed into the bright shade of pink. A bubbly grin was spread practically ear-to-ear across my face, showing off my teeth and dimples. I was pretty proud in myself, considering it took plenty of convincing to finally get Nixie to agree to sit down and let me do this. However, just because she reluctantly caved didn't mean that she was anywhere near as upbeat as I was during this activity.

It was about 6:15 in the morning. Nixie and I were already up and prepared for whatever was in store for us to handle on land today. As for Lyla, she was elsewhere during this time. I wish I could say her exact location, but I honestly had no clue where she was. By the time I woke up in our moon pool on Mako, I noticed that the seashell that she always used to brush her hair had been placed in a different spot and she was gone. So, as of now, it was just me and Nixie.

We were currently in Rita's grotto, sitting in two of the velvet beanbag chairs that were positioned around the coffee table.

Poseidon was also nearby, stretched across the staircase's wooden railing and watching us with that mysterious glimpse in his large eyes.

Nixie had her hands placed flat down in front of her, and she was watching me spread the shimmery polish across her nails with major boredom glowing in her eyes. Despite how much I could tell that she wasn't enjoying this, I still thought that this shade of pink looked really great with her new outfit. A couple of days ago, after we received some more money from Rita - which, if I remember correctly, she called an allowance - me and Nixie headed right back to the Ocean Café and purchased some new clothes. Lyla, on the other hand, was more of a lone shopper and preferred to go on her own time.

I'm not going to lie, my eyes enlarged and practically became all googly at the sight of these cute jewel-encrusted sandals. So, I didn't think twice before buying them. Aside from those, I also got a new pair of denim shorts and this mint green lace tank top that came with a solid white undershirt. As for Nixie, she spent her half of Rita's money on a black leather vest and a beautiful, knee-length, dark brown sundress that was decorated with tiny red, orange, and pink flowers. Plus, with her few leftover dollars, she ended up also getting a pair of sky-blue shoes - converse, I think they're called.

Needless to say, we both looked amazing and still blended in perfectly with all of the other land girls.

Ever since I first started painting her nails, Nixie had this bland expression plastered on her face. As I excepted, she - unlike me - was still completely drained from even the tiniest amount of excitement. I could feel her bright blue eyes impatiently watching my every move as she kept her lips tightly pressed together, making it look like she was a bitter sailor that was on the verge of cursing.

"Sirena," Nixie eventually spoke up with her accent dripping in confusion. She tilted her head a little to the right, continuing to watch as I stroked the coral polish across her next nail. "I'm sorry, but ... what exactly is the point of this activity?"

"I'm not really sure, but all of the land girls seem to do it." I replied with a small shrug. After that, I stopped in the middle of painting and tucked a few wavy strands of my bright blonde hair behind my ear. They had strayed away from the rest of my bangs, which were pinned back by a couple of small barrettes that were made out of some shiny oysters. "Maybe they do it to make their hands look more presentable for land boys." I then suggested.

At the mention of trying to impress land boys, a mixture of disgust and disapproval swept over Nixie's face. Her eyes were now wide and glassy, piercing me with disturbed disbelief. "Really? They go to this much trouble just to get noticed by some land boys?" She paused for a moment, as if she was thinking her own question through, and then rolled her eyes. "I swear, I'll never understand any of these shore girls. Everywhere - and I do mean everywhere - we go on land, there's at least one of them trying to grab the attention of some land boy. It's..." Nixie blinked, eyeing the ceiling as she tried to find a word to use. "It's preposterous."

"Aw, come on. I think it's sweet," I informed. My smile refused to fade from my face as I finished up the final few strokes on Nixie's last nail. Then, when it was finished, I slid the thin brush back into the tiny vile and secured the top back on. "All right, you're all done. Just be careful. They're still wet."

"Sweet?" Nixie scoffed, making it sound like a word that was only supposed to be used in mythology. She rose her hands up from the table, relaxing her elbows against its surface as she examined her new nails. "How could you possibly think it's sweet? Their behavior is so..." A sickened cringe past over Nixie's face, "...repulsive and dumb."

As soon as she said that, my grin wavered. The first thought that had came to my mind was David - this cute land boy that worked at the Ocean Café. He was so sweet, always having a smile on his face and determined to keep the feelings of others in front of his own. After seeing and talking to him nearly everyday - it all going back to the first day when Lyla, Nixie, and I came onto land - it was almost difficult for me to recall how different the boys from my kind were.

"You only think that because we've never been exposed to this type of behavior before." I pointed out, trying my hardest to hide the pale pink blush that I could feel tingling across my cheeks. Despite the calmness of my voice, I could feel the strong urge to defend the land people - especially David - swirling through me like a massive whirlpool. "It was never spread through the sea for mermaids like us." I added.

Nixie flicked her eyebrows up. "You're right, it wasn't. And you know why?" Her serious eyes drew away from her nails, meeting my paler blue ones. "Because all of the mermen were banished out of the sea. Their pods were dissolved, the trident was locked away, and they had no choice but to leave and spend what was left of their lives on land." With every word she spoke, her accent grew more intense. "They weren't even allowed to swim or sing in the ocean anymore, much less think about dating any of the mermaids."

What she was talking about related to one of Rita's lessons. The trident was known as the most dangerous and powerful weapon against mermaids and humans. Not only that, but Zac - another land boy with a much more salty attitude - was on a major hunt for it. Long ago, merman had built the trident and used it in a violent battle between them and the mermaids, trying to kill as many of them as possible in order to conquer all of the oceans. In the end, hundreds of mermaids and mermen perished, transforming most of the crystal blue water around the Mako coast into a god-awful mist of dark red. Til' this day, just thinking about all of that blood and torn scales flooding through the water made me feel sick to my stomach.

Nonetheless, it was the mermaids that officially won the war, and Nixie was right about what happened after that. The trident had somehow been locked away, considering no mermaid was able to touch it without getting electrocuted, and the many remaining mermen abandoned the sea. And ever since then, there hasn't been a single one of their kind lurking through the water - excluding Zac.

"Aren't you even the tiniest bit curious as to how things could've been if the final battle never happened?" I asked with a sparkle of hope shining in my eyes. "What if the mermen were never cast out from the ocean? What if they never had tried to destroy us in the first place? What if they were still around and we were all free to live our lives in the sea, exchanging the same types of affection as land people?"

"There's no point in asking any of those questions, Sirena." Nixie replied, shaking her head a little. She had softened her voice, but her face told me that she was still being serious. "I mean, even if I did answer them, it obviously wouldn't matter. The war has been over for hundreds of centuries and aside from Zac, not a single merman has been in the ocean ever since."

My smile dissolved again. "I know, but..."

"Look, Sirena, I'm sorry to burst your bubble," Nixie cut me off, "but there's no time for us to daydream about what could've happened between us and mermen if the final battle never happened. It did happen and we have much more important things to think about right now."

She was right, we did; but I just wanted to try taking my opportunity. Maybe if I brought up how many different opportunities we would have in the sea if the mermen never had turned against us, Nixie wouldn't try comparing them and their behavior to David. He and I did come from two entirely different worlds, but he was so thoughtful and charming - nothing like any of the mermen had been. Unfortunately, now I knew from everything that Nixie has said that she and Lyla would never understand if they found out that I had feelings for David. Back in the ocean, it broke many laws if a mermaid even thought about falling for a land person ... but I couldn't help it. I was falling head over fins for David. I never felt this way before and I absolutely loved it.

I guess the best thing to do is the idea that I've been hoping to avoid: I couldn't let Lyla or Nixie find out.

"I know, I know." I let out a little sigh, feeling the stupidity beginning to dawn on me. "You're right, it was ridiculous of me to even think about mermen like that."

As soon as I said that, the stubborn glimpse started to fade in Nixie's eyes. However, just as she opened her mouth to say something back to me, she was cut off when another voice blurted out, "What in the world is going on in here?" The tone was fierce, but also very curious. I knew that voice by heart; so did Nixie.

Poseidon let out a lazy meow, swooshing his fluffy tail from left to right over the edge of the railing.

With no hesitation, Nixie and I snapped our heads in the direction of the voice. There, standing in one of the solid stone entrances of the grotto, was Lyla. She was wearing an outfit I've never seen before: a denim skirt, a simple pair of delicate orange flip-flops, and a red T-shirt that had a medium-sized black heart - which was broken halfway down down to the center - designed on the front. There was also the word Heart printed across the bottom of the neckline and Breaker along the lower stomach. As for her golden blonde hair, it was styled into two separate, nicely braided pigtails that were accompanied by a few glossy shells.

And lastly, she was holding a dark blue book in her hands; but it wasn't just any book. It was Rita's lesson manual - the book that contained every known fact about mermaids, including their powers, pods, moon rings, and sea creatures that they - we - could communicate with. The only time Rita allowed it to be off the shelves was when she was in the grotto with us and in the middle of teaching a lesson. That's where all of the demonstrations to our abilities and instructions on how to preform magic came from. Though, there wasn't much information in it at all about mermen.

Lyla's pale green eyes glowed with confusion, skipping back and forth from me to Nixie.

Nixie straightened herself in the beanbag, still being careful of her nails. "And where exactly have you been all this time?" she then asked.

"I decided to take an early swim out along the reef," Lyla replied. This wasn't the first time she had decided to leave the moon pool for a swim without informing me or Nixie first. I watched as she then lowered her gaze back down to the book, trailing her fingertips ever so gently across the page before she pinched the edge and turned to the next one. After that, Lyla shot her head back up, revealing this new expression of utter disapproval that was now masking her face. "I was trying to come up with a new plan on how to keep Zac away from the trident. You know, Zac? The real reason we're here?"

Zac, as much as I hated bringing it up, was the reason why we were outcasts. Our pod - including my sister, Aquata - had fled to find a new home as soon as they heard about a land boy falling into the Mako moon pool on mine, Lyla, and Nixie's watch. As a result, the three of us had been cast out, left behind to defend Mako Island by ourselves. So, we made an agreement to use Aquata's moon ring - considering she gave it to me before she left - to develop legs and explore the land for Zac. By this point, after all of these months, we've kind of given up on our goal to remove his powers. For now, at least. The trident was a much bigger issue to focus on.

"Gees, Lyla, you don't have to treat us like we're a pair of guppies." Nixie informed with a roll of her eyes. She then drew in a deep breath, blowing it out against her wet, sparkly nails. "We know exactly why we're here. We're here to prevent Zac from getting the trident and to make Mako a safe place again so the pod can return. You don't have to act like an urchin."

"I am not acting like a damn urchin!" Lyla sneered, her eyes now sharply narrowed.

A slightly amused smile played around with the corners of Nixie's lips. "Wow, it looks like somebody woke up on the wrong side of the moon pool."

It was then Lyla's turn to roll her eyes, right before she said, "This isn't the time to be painting nails. If we really do want the pod to come back, then we have to make sure that the trident stays locked up."

"And the only way to do that is to stop Zac, we know." Nixie groaned, considering we both have heard this type of lecture plenty of times from Lyla before. "When we were paying him back for nearly exposing Rita, maybe we should've also told him to stay away from Mako."

I picked up a small crayfish that was placed in the crystal dish in the center of the table and easily broke through its abdomen. After that, I wordlessly tossed it into my mouth and chewed, listening as a little crunch filled the air with every bite I made.

"No, it wouldn't have worked." Lyla noted as she lowered her attention back down to Rita's book. "He might've listened to us about leaving Rita alone, but the moonlight draws him to the island every time there's a full moon."

Nixie raised one of her eyebrows. "Yeah, but maybe if we kept making him think that we were going to expose him in front of Evie, he would have at least agreed to fight the temptation like he used to."

Instead of saying back, Lyla shook her head and flipped to the next page in the lesson manual.

I swallowed what was left of the crayfish before speaking. "Lyla, you probably should go put that back. You shouldn't be reading it." My tone was a little nervous, but mostly full of authority. "You know what Rita told us; the only time that book is allowed to be off its shelf is when she's with us and teaching a class."

"Relax, Sirena. It's not like I took it out in public to read," Lyla pointed out. She glanced up, making eye-contact with me for a few seconds before she stared back down at the huge book again. "I'm just trying to see if I can find any new and interesting abilities for Rita to teach us about next. The more we learn, the better our chances are at reversing Zac's powers and keeping him away from the trident."

Poseidon let out another moew, right before he hopped down from the railing and scurried away, disappearing around a corner.

Lyla began her way down the stone staircase, keeping her eyes on whatever she was reading. "There's so many neat things in here." A wide, fascinated smile molded its way across her lips. "I can't believe there are so many powers that we aren't even aware of yet."

"Most mermaids don't discover their new powers until they receive their moon rings." I reminded her. "We still have a lot to learn before we try anything too advanced."

Suddenly, as she turned to the next page, Lyla froze in her tracks. "Hmm..." She tilted her head a little to the side. "This doesn't look too advanced. Check it out, guys."

Nixie and I watched as she lowered herself down onto her knees and placed the book down on the table for all of us to see. On the page it was opened to, there was a perfectly detailed outline of an eye, along with a list of instructions that was printed in black ink. It was a little smeared after being handed down in mermaid history for over a hundred years, but it was still readable. The title at the top of the page read Compulsion. I know for a fact that I've heard the name before, but I didn't have the slightest clue as to what it really was.

I squinted, taking in every detail of the page.

"Compulsion?" Nixie asked. Her accent was drenched in curiosity as she eyed the title.

Lyla picked up a crayfish by its tail and placed the whole thing in her mouth. "Yeah," she said, taking the time to chew between words. "I've never heard of it before, but the name sounds pretty promising and useful."

I opened my mouth to say something back, but before I could get a word out, the sound of someone walking started to softly echo through the grotto. It was followed by Poseidon meowing once again, and just as the footsteps came to a stop, the sound of another familiar voice said, "I'm getting ready to leave for school, girls. What are you up to?"

Lyla clutched her eyes shut, as though she was saying, 'Shoot! We're busted!'

Nixie and I immediately shifted our attention over to the grotto's main entrance. Lyla reluctantly did the same after a few seconds, swallowing and cracking her eyes back open. There, standing in same archway that Lyla had stood in when she first entered, was Rita. As the principal of Suncoast High, which just so happened to be Zac's school, she looked just as sophisticated as always. Her reddish/dark brown hair was pulled back into a perfect chignon style, revealing her whole face. Also, aside from her favorite seahorse necklace, she had on a classy black dress that flowed down to the bottom of her knees, a matching pair of high-heeled wedges, and an elegant ivory sweater that had some shiny pearls sewed into the fabric.

Rita used to be part of a pod, but after falling in love with this shore dweller named Henry, she was forced to leave and never return. Not only that, but with their wedding just around the corner, Henry ended up passing away in a tragic accident. Rita never liked talking about it, so neither Lyla, Nixie, or I ever found out exactly how he died. Nor did we even want to. Now, Rita lived her life on land, pretending to be our aunt and teaching us how to control our powers better.

She studied the three of us, but it didn't take long for her eyes to fall on the book. "What are you girls doing with my lesson manual?" Her lips straightened in disapproval. "You know the rules; unless I'm teaching a class, it's supposed to be blending in with the rest of the books on the shelves."

Poseidon appeared by her feet, releasing another meow before he trotted over to one of the nearby chests and hopped on top of it. He must have went through his special kitty door to lure Rita into the grotto - something he did on a regular basis.

"Why do you think it's out? Take a wild guess." Nixie spoke up, right before she turned her head and eyed Lyla with a dull look.

In return, Lyla shot her a resentful glare; but it faded from her face as soon as she glanced back at Rita. "I was only trying to read up on some new powers to see if you would be willing to teach us about them during our next few classes. We need to stick to our strategy on handling the trident and Zac, but our most recent lessons - no offense - haven't been much help lately."

Rita almost immediately started her way down the stone stairs. "Girls, almost all of the powers that are explained in that book are far too dominant and advanced for the three of you to handle right now." The click click click of her shoes sang through the grotto with every step she took. "They're not meant to be practiced until you have your moon rings."

"Our moon rings?" Lyla asked, clearly caught off guard. "That's too far away! Besides, without the pod or the trust of the mermaid council, who can say we're ever going to receive them? I think the more we learn now, the higher our chances will be while dealing with Zac the next full moon."

"Trust me, Lyla," Rita said, choking back on a small laugh, "it'll take much longer than just a couple of weeks to master any of those abilities."

The hope in Lyla's eyes started to dissolve faster, but she - being her and all - refused to give up. "Well, we'll never know unless we try, right? Can't we at least attempt one? Just one?"

Rita shook her head, stepping down the final stair. "I'm sorry, but it's too risky. The powers in that book are a lot more difficult to get a grip on and I don't want you girls to accidentally put yourselves, Zac, or possibly any shore dwellers in danger."

I grabbed another fresh crayfish, preparing it the same way as I did the last one before I placed it in my mouth. Aside from David's delicious watermelon smoothies, prawns and crayfish were definitely the tastiest breakfast dish.

"Well ... this one doesn't look so bad, Rita." Nixie suddenly commented. My eyes glowed with curiousness as I watched her motion to the Compulsion page, still being careful of her nails. "Do you think you could possibly give this one a shot with us?"

Pursing her lips again, Rita approached the table and glanced down between me and Lyla. The whole grotto fell silent, but it only took a few seconds for her to examine the wide-open page before her eyes expanded.

"Oh no," Rita said. She eagerly shook her head, her accent now soaked in utter seriousness. "Absolutely not. There is no way that I could possibly teach that right now. You three are definitely too young and not ready to learn about something like compulsion. Not until you're fully and properly trained as a mermaid."

Not being able to control it, my curiosity grew stronger right then and there. "Rita, what exactly is compulsion?" I had made sure to swallow what was left of the crayfish before I spoke.

Rita glanced at me with slight nervousness shining evidently in her deep brown/vaguely green eyes. "Compulsion..." she started, but then paused to think about what she was about to say. After all, it was also a violation of the rules to teach certain lessons to adolescent mermaids. Though, Rita continued, sliding her attention over to Lyla and Nixie as she did. "Compulsion is like mind control. You stare directly into the eyes of a human or an animal and concentrate deeply on what you want them to say or do. Then, while maintaining your focus and eye contact, you speak in a calming and assuring voice, giving them the instructions."

My mouth fell open in shock, just as a wide and interested smile slipped across Lyla's face. It was obvious that she - after gathering this new information - was already in the process of coming up with a new plan.

"What, and that actually works?" Nixie asked. Doubt decorated her face as she blinked, trying to grasp what we were just told. "They'll just open themselves up like a bunch of clams and obey?"

Rita hesitated before shrugging. "Well, yes ... but only if you keep on top of your concentration. Not only that, but you would need to make sure that the person or animal maintains eye contact with you for a certain amount of time. Otherwise, they won't be effected and the compulsion won't work."

"Rita, you've got to teach us this!" exclaimed Lyla, who was still beaming. "If we use compulsion on Zac, not only will we be able to get him to stay away from Mako and the trident, but he will also allow us to remove his powers!"

"No, Lyla." Rita denied as she shook her head again.

"What?" Lyla's grin immediately faded, only to be replaced by shock. "Why not? This would make our job so much easier."

"And so much more dangerous." Rita pointed out. She flicked her eyebrows up, turning her head back over to me and Nixie. "Using compulsion requires the wielding of a lot of physical energy, as well as perfect concentration and a moonstone that's full of plenty of energy from the moonlight."

I peeked down at my hand and gently ran one of my fingers across the stone of Aquata's - I mean, my - moon ring. It didn't hold much power, considering it could only absorb so much moonlight every full moon, but it could still act as actual moonlight up to a few minutes if I focused hard enough.

"Plus, if you're not careful," continued Rita, "you might accidentally zap the person you're trying to put under your control. As soon as they're struck, they'll end up fainting and when - or if - they wake up, there's a high possibility that they'll suffer from intense memory loss or even develop depression."

"Depression?" I asked in a tone that was half uneasy and half confused.

"It's extreme sadness." Rita explained, right before she pursed her lips in a thinking manner. "Long ago, even years before the final battle took place, compulsion was one of the most common lessons that were given to adolescent mermaids and mermen. However, it didn't take long for the mermaid council to notice something; the more these mermaids and mermen were taught about compulsion, the more irresponsible they became with handling our secret. Dozens of them ended up getting eaten by killer whales, strangled to death by giant squids..." Rita then paused for a moment, crossing her arms over her chest. "And they were caught in nets and seen by sailors."

Nixie and Lyla's eyes widened in less than a second, and I couldn't help but gasp.

"They were able to get away," Rita went on, "but not without trying to use compulsion first. Unfortunately, they ended up zapping the sailors, causing them to faint on board and crash their ship onto some pointy rocks. All of the sailors, except for one, died from drowning. The survivor was washed-up on another island's shore, secretly being supervised by some members of the mermaid council. Within a couple of weeks, he had developed depression and ended up killing himself."

"Oh my God..." I could've sworn I felt some tears welding up in the corners of my eyes, but I quickly blinked them away. "That's ... that's horrible..."

"Yes, it is," Rita agreed, and then let out a soft sigh. "Shortly after that happened, compulsion had practically been abandoned by our kind. The mermaid council made it a new law for young mermaids - and past mermen - to wait until they earned their moon rings before being allowed to practice any advanced powers." Her eyes skipped around, examining me, Lyla, and Nixie. "I'm sorry, I know you girls miss your pod and want to handle this whole situation with Zac so they can come back, but using compulsion is out of the question."

I couldn't help but frown a little at the mention of the pod. There were absolutely no words that could possibly describe how much I missed Aquata. Singing with her, swimming with her, collecting shells with her ... she was the best sister that any mermaid could ever ask for. And I wanted her to come back to Mako.

Lyla shook her head a few times, keeping her eyes on Rita. "That was centuries ago. Surely you can give it a try with us."

"No, Lyla." The sharpness in Rita's accent enhanced. "I can't. It's far too risky. And even if I was willing to, I'm afraid that it has a very low possibility of helping us deal with Zac. After all, it is very rare for a mermaid or a merman to be able to use compulsion on each other without exhausting themselves or accidentally zapping the other. I'm sorry, but I won't be teaching that lesson. End of discussion." Just then, before Lyla could attempt opening her mouth to say anything back, Rita took a glance down at her watch. Within seconds, she turned away and began walking back up the stone stairs. "All right, I really have to get to the school and finish some paperwork before classes start. Promise me, girls, that you will put that book back in its original spot."

"We promise." I spoke up almost automatically. "Keep an eye on Zac and Cam for us if you can, please."

"I always try to." Rita informed as she quickly walked over to a nearby desk and snatched up a few papers. "I'll also try to come up with some new lessons, but I can't make any promises as to when I'll be available to give them. Schoolwork is getting more and more hectic, so I need to make sure that I keep on top of my job as the principal."

"It's fine, we understand." Nixie assured, right before she blew another puff of air at her nails.

"Okay, I'll be back around three." Rita slipped on a sleek purple purse, adjusting the straps so they were resting on her shoulder. "Please don't get into any trouble while I'm gone. I'll see you girls later."

"Bye, Rita!" I said, waving at her. "Have a good day at school!"

Without another word, Rita flashed a quick smile and then exited the grotto. With every step she took, the tap tap tapping of her heels grew softer; and eventually, they were no longer able to be heard.

Though, the silence didn't last long. It was interrupted when Nixie said, "Lyla, what are you doing?"

With no hesitation, I turned my head in Lyla's direction. She was reading the Compulsion page of Rita's lesson manual, tracing her finger across the list of instructions and silently mouthing them to herself. Though, at the sound of Nixie's voice, she peeked up just long enough to send her a glance that made it look like she was saying, 'Are you kidding me right now?'

"What does it look like I'm doing? I'm reading." Lyla replied, right before she lowered her attention back down to the book. "It says here if you concentrate hard enough while staring deeply into the eyes of another person or thing, the moonstone you possess will fully glow and you'll feel the power surge through you. That's when you know that you have enough light stored up from the moon to successfully compel. The more power that's in the stone, the more power you will feel and have." Lyla raised her eyebrows as she continued. "However, if the moonstone flickers, it means that the power is running low and you won't be able to compel the person or animal for long. Speak in a calm and trustworthy voice, just like Rita said; otherwise, the one you're trying to compel will snap out of it and break eye contact." Another fascinated grin spread widely across Lyla's face. "God, this is so cool."

"Well, you better get over how 'cool' you think it is." Nixie remarked as she went back to examining the glittery polish. "It's way too dangerous for us to mess with ... and that's coming from me."

Lyla scoffed. "Oh, come on. Surely it isn't that dangerous."

In less than a second, Nixie tore her attention away from her nails and stared at Lyla in disbelief.

"What are you talking about, Lyla?" I asked, noticeably confused. "You heard Rita. Many mermaids and mermen have gotten themselves and sailors killed from using compulsion."

"Only because they didn't know what they were doing!" Lyla exclaimed, narrowing her pale green eyes defensively. "Just because they used it aimlessly doesn't mean we would do the same!"

Nixie threw her head back, groaning in exasperation. "I swear, Lyla, you are like a crab that's constantly fighting another crab for its shell. You never stop until you get what you want."

I turned my head from left to right, watching the two of them with confusion still glowing in my eyes.

"I'm just saying," Lyla sneered, piercing Nixie with an uptight glare. Though, it softened a little when she glanced at me. "We never know when it can come in handy. It could be very helpful."

"Helpful how?" I asked. By the sound of my voice, it was like I had converted back into a small fingerling. "We can't use it on Zac. Rita said that it's very rare for mermaids and mermen to be able to use compulsion successfully on each other."

"Who said anything about using it on Zac?" Lyla asked, as if she hadn't been thinking about it previously.

"Really, Lyla?" Nixie scoffed, rolling her eyes. "If this isn't about Zac, his powers, or the trident, then why do you want us to learn about how to use compulsion?"

Lyla sharply narrowed her eyes again. "Oh, I don't know. How about if we came face-to-face with a group of stinging jellyfish or we were getting chased by a shark?"

"We can swim much faster than sharks," I reminded, "and as long as we keep our distance, the jellyfish won't try to sting us."

"Well, we still never know when - and if - a new problem will pop up. It can come in handy when we least expect it."

Nixie groaned again, only growing more irritated. She shot up from her beanbag, nails now fully dry, and walked over to another table. Poseidon sat nearby, watching her curiously as he rested upright on an old-fashioned globe.

"As of now, the only problem that we have to deal with is Zac and his persistence to get his hands on the trident, all right?" Nixie, to keep herself from raising her voice anymore, scooped up a handful of underwater trinkets and began pretending to examine them. A participation medal, some chunky rings, a few strings of wooden beads, and a couple of sand dollars were gathered together in her hand.

"You're just being stubborn and don't want to admit that I have a good point." Lyla scorned. "I'll prove to the both of you that using compulsion is actually very easy to do."

"Hold on a minute," Nixie dropped the trinkets back onto the table and dramatically turned back around. "You think I'm the one being stubborn here?"

I sighed. "Guys, please..."

Though, instead of acknowledging what Nixie just said, Lyla turned her attention over to me and flashed another bright smile. Then, she extended her arm out and opened her hand in front of me as she said, "Sirena, let me borrow your moon ring."

"What?" My eyes shot gigantic, looking like they were on the verge of exploding out of my head. "For what?"

Lyla, after a short pause, casually shrugged one of her shoulders. "I'm going to try it out."

It took less than second for my jaw to drop and I nearly had to choke my words out. "You're going to what?"

"You've got to be kidding me, Lyla!" Nixie snapped. Her voice was now raised to the point where I could've sworn it rattled the chandelier. "What makes you think that you can handle something like compulsion? You can't even communicate with dolphins! Besides, you heard what Rita said; it was practically abandoned because it caused so many deaths."

At the mention of her communication disadvantage, Lyla angrily tightened her jaw. She was the only mermaid that I knew who couldn't talk to any sea creatures. Even when we were with the pod, she would isolate herself even more from everyone whenever we decided to take a swim with turtles, dolphins, or different schools of fish. However, even that didn't stop Nixie from bringing it up from time to time.

"Talking to dolphins and other sea creatures doesn't provide us with the same advantages as mind control." Lyla pointed out. With every word she spoke, the more impatient her accent grew. "It really can help us."

A sarcastic grin played around with the corners of Nixie's lips. "Oh, right. Why don't you go tell that to the the dozens of mermaids and mermen that got themselves eaten alive and strangled to death after attempting to use it?" Nixie then crossed her arms over her chest, enhancing her sarcasm some more as she added, "Or how about you go take a swim along the reef with the ones who are responsible for drowning those sailors? And not to mention causing the one who survived to become depressed and commit suicide?"

I couldn't help but cringe at the thought of the last sailor. Out of the millions of horrible ways to die, taking your own life had to of been the absolute worst.

"Obviously you haven't taken the time to consider the fact that I'm nothing like them. Unlike them, I'll be careful." Lyla assured, but her glare didn't help her seem all that convincing. "But according to the book, a moonstone is needed for compulsion to work. It needs to be a powerful one ... but since this is just for practice, maybe not as much moonlight will be required."

My mind began to fog up with a wide-open sea of memories. Over these past few months, my moon ring has always been the source of moonlight that was used to try out new abilities; and all of them ended badly. When Lyla and I used it to attempt pushing the rainfall back, we ended up making it snow inside, trapping the two of us inside Rita's house with a fatal case of snow rash. And this other time, Lyla tried to take my moon ring to use it on Mako; she wanted to open the secret passageway that led to the trident's chamber, but only ended up getting herself and Zac trapped inside. And now ... she wanted to use it to practice compulsion.

"I'm sorry, Lyla," I said as I shook my head, "but I will not allow you to use my moon ring for this."

"It'll only be for a minute," she promised, keeping her hand held out in front of me.

"No!" I shook my head again, but this time, I was much more eager. "I said that you can not use my moon ring!"

Lyla stared at me, clearly caught off guard by the sudden change in my tone. She reluctantly pulled her arm back, but continued to watch me as I placed my ring-wearing hand over my heart and folded my other hand on top of it. I had to make sure that I kept the remaining power from the moonstone stored up in case of emergencies; and this wasn't an emergency.

The entire grotto fell silent once again. I could feel Nixie's eyes jumping back and forth from me to Lyla, but no one said a word. About fifteen seconds went by before Lyla finally pursed her lips and helped herself back up onto her feet, using the table for support.

"All right, fine. I guess I'll have to resort to plan B then." With dissatisfaction shimmering in her eyes, Lyla walked over to a wide-open chest that was overflowing with glorious treasure. At the top, surrounded by clumps of fools gold and fancy chalices, was a shiny oyster shell. Lyla didn't think twice before picking it up and opening it, revealing two other moon rings that laid in a patch of sand.

Once again, my mouth fell open from shock.

"Oh my God, are you being serious right now?" bellowed Nixie. "You're really going to use Rita's moon ring? You're feeling that desperate to do this?"

"I'm not desperate. I'm determined." Lyla remarked, keeping her voice sharp. She picked up one of the moon rings and slid it onto her finger, right before she gently placed the oyster back in its original spot.

"If Rita finds out about this-" I began to speak, but immediately fell silent when Lyla glanced over at me.

"She's not going to find out about any of this because none of us are going to tell her. Besides, all I'm going to do is practice a little magic."

"And who do you suppose is going to be your guinea pig for this?" Nixie asked as she narrowed her eyes a little. "I highly doubt that Sirena will let you practice on her and I'm sure as hell not going to let you practice on me."

Lyla rolled her eyes. "Calm your scales, I'm not going to try it out on either of you." Flipping one of her braids over her shoulder, she turned her head in a different direction and raised her eyebrows at something. A small grin tugged at one of the edges of her mouth. "I'm going to try it out on him."

With no hesitation, Nixie and I followed her gaze and our eyes ended up landing on Poseidon. He was still sitting on the antique globe, licking his paw and minding his own business by this point.

"You're going to compel the cat?" Nixie asked with an eyebrow raised.

Lyla looked at her and sarcastically shrugged. "Do you have any better ideas? According to the book, compulsion can work on both humans and animals, land or sea."

A mask of worry covered my face as my mind began to flow with hundreds of compulsion-related outcomes. "But what if something goes wrong and you hurt him on accident?"

"Nothing is going to go wrong. I swear, you two really need to stop stressing out over the tiniest things." And on that note, Lyla slowly approached the table and ever so gently placed her ring-wearing hand flat against its surface. Poseidon almost immediately perked his head up, brushing his paw against the side of his face as he watched Lyla carefully bend down so the two of them were at eye-level.

I watched in a mixture of suspense and fear, while Nixie crossed her arms over her chest again and watched like she couldn't possibly care less.

Lyla tilted her head a little and stared deeply into Poseidon's bright yellow orbs. Then, after a few more seconds, Lyla began to talk in such a fragile and calming voice.

"Poseidon ... you will clear your mind and listen only to the sound of my voice. Obey my instructions as soon as you hear them. As of now, I want you to purr."

No matter how many times I tried looking away, I couldn't stop staring at Rita's moon ring. The stone wasn't glowing, meaning that it was either out of power or Lyla must've not been concentrating hard enough; but still, my mind was scaring me into believing that the moonstone was going to light up at any moment and zap Poseidon. Rita has never steered me, Lyla, or Nixie in the wrong direction before; so I really did think that compulsion was not only too risky to try out, but it was much harder to learn and get a hold on.

Poseidon blinked a few times and stuck his tongue out, licking his lips.

Confusion instantly began to pool up in Lyla's eyes. She took a quick glance down at the moon ring, and after confirming that the stone wasn't shining, snapped her attention back on Poseidon. If anything, she enhanced the delicateness in her voice as she - of course - tried again.

"Poseidon, you will listen to my orders like the well-behaved cat that I'm telling you to be. Now, purr."

Once again, out of complete reflex, I darted my attention down to Rita's ring. The moonstone - to my surprise - still wasn't glowing.

Poseidon's whiskers twitched, but other than that, he showed no signs of falling into the temptation to obey anyone.

Lyla peeked down at the moonstone again; though this time, it was obvious that she was starting to lose her patients. It was like the ring was taunting her - and trust me, as an adolescent mermaid in training, that can get pretty aggravating real fast.

"What the hell..." Lyla grumbled under her breath, flicking the moonstone a couple of quick times. Then, as she connected her eyes with the cat's again, she exclaimed in a more demanding tone, "Purr, Poseidon! Purr! Purr!"

Poseidon squinted, as if he was glaring, and remained silent.

"Ugh, damn it!" Lyla pursed her lips in an angry manner and stared darkly at the ring on her finger. "I don't get it, why isn't it working? I did exactly as the book said!"

"Well, maybe the ring just needs to be charged up." I said in the most encouraging tone that I could muster. After all, I didn't want to try bringing up the possibility that Lyla wasn't concentrating hard enough to activate any of the stored up magic. "You know Rita, she always leaves it in here. There's no access to moonlight, so it hasn't captured much of anything in quite some time."

"Or ... maybe..." Nixie spoke up, sarcastically raising her shoulders as she tilted her head from side to side. "Just perhaps, Lyla ... you aren't putting enough focus into this 'attempt' of yours and with every passing second, you're only pushing the magic further away from your control." At the sound of her putting extra emphasis on 'attempt,' Lyla slowly glanced over her shoulder and shot a scowl that was daring Nixie to repeat herself; but also warning her that if she did, it wouldn't end well.

"Oh, really? Well, I'd like to see you and that 'peppy' attitude of yours do better." Lyla sneered, purposely stretching out the word 'peppy' to make her accent sound more insulting. "Surely you must think that you can do it if you have the guts to mock me on my first try."

Nixie narrowed her eyes. "In case you haven't noticed, there's a huge difference between mocking someone and telling them the truth."

With a scoff, Lyla dropped her attention back down to Rita's ring and twisted it around a few times, pretending to make it more comfortable. "I knew it..." A taunting smirk started to peel across her face. "Unlike me, you are too afraid to practice compulsion. It's too much for you to handle."

"Lyla, come on," I piped in, my voice and face exposing my plead, "let's not be rash. Rita told us just how dangerous compulsion - Nixie!" Startled, my mouth fell open as my bright blue eyes locked on Nixie. Apparently, what Lyla just said was definitely the last straw for her. With her cheeks burning redder than two fresh lobsters, Nixie stormed over to the treasure box and snatched up the oyster. She practically ripped it open, refusing to let another minute go by before she picked up and slipped on Rita's second and last moon ring.

"Guys, can't we just forget about this?" I asked. "Please?"

"Lighten up, Sirena. We're just practicing a little bit of magic." Lyla said, continuing to smirk as she watched Nixie approach the antique globe, where Poseidon was still lounging. "You're more than welcome to join us if you'd like."

I couldn't help but let out a small scoff, despite how anxious I still was. "No, thank you." I then crossed my arms over my chest and curled my fingers up so I could hide my moon ring from view. "Absolutely not."

"All right, fine." Lyla shrugged after a short pause. "Suit yourself."

"Excuse me, but I'm trying to concentrate here." Nixie prodded, shooting a look over her shoulder at me and Lyla to silence us before she glanced back at the cat. Immediately, her nose crinkled, and I knew that it was because she didn't exactly have the world's greatest relationship with Poseidon. In return to her stare, Poseidon let out another meow and started to lick his other paw, as if he was ignoring her.

"All right, pussycat," Nixie said, her accent stubborn as she spoke through slightly clenched teeth, "the faster you look into my eyes, the faster this will be over for the both of us, okay?"

"Did it already slip your mind that you need to maintain a calm and trustworthy voice?" Lyla asked, making me wish that she hadn't spoken so sourly.

"Actually, no. I know exactly what to do. Now would it kill you to relax and keep your opinions to yourself? I'm working on it." Nixie gently placed her ring-wearing hand beside the globe, her fingertips barely grazing the table, and watched as Poseidon reluctantly stopped licking his paw to look up at her. As their eyes met, Nixie quietly drew in a deep breath, easing herself before she began to speak in a voice that was as smooth as silk. "Okay, Poseidon ... listen to me ... follow my voice..."

Poseidon tilted his head a little to the side, obviously curious and determined to understand what was happening. His intensely yellow eyes gleamed in the light, refusing to break away from the brightness of blue in Nixie's eyes. The two of them were practically staring right into each other's souls.

"I tell you, it's impossible to ignore... so, I want you to clear your mind ... and obey my ... my..." A confused note invaded Nixie's voice. She opened her mouth to continue with her compulsion attempt, but then seemed to wince before quickly clenching her eyes shut. Then, after she opened them back up, she blinked a couple of fast times and quickly made eye contact with Poseidon again. "Obey my instructions. Clear your mind from hairballs and ... and, um..." There went another small cringe, but Nixie shook it off and continued on. "And prawns ... clear your mind from all of those thoughts ... um..."

"What in the heck is happening?" I muttered under my breath. My eyes were huge and overflowing with a mixture of worry and suspense; but when I turned my head to repeat my question to Lyla, I stopped when I noticed that disbelief was plastered on every inch of her face. Her eyes were just as large as mine and her mouth was hanging open, causing me to immediately follow her gaze. And that's when I noticed something different about the moon ring on Nixie's finger. Its perfectly round, bright blue stone was glowing vibrantly.

My fear of Poseidon accidentally getting zapped made a sharp return, causing me to jump a little. A small gasp escaped from my mouth.

From the corner of her eye, Nixie sneaked a peek at the ring; and as soon as she did, the moonstone started to flicker. It was running low on magic, which was all Nixie needed to see before she quickly drew her attention back over to Poseidon.

"Stay focused on my eyes ... and my voice..." Her fingers twitched a little as she curled them upward, almost forming a fist. I could see the haziness beginning to form in her eyes ... and it finally occurred to me what was going on. "Poseidon..." Nixie whispered through another tiny cringe, "...you will listen to my orders. Right here, right now ... I am telling you to purr. So ... purr."

And just like that, Poseidon's nosy and mysterious gaze faded, only to be replaced by a stare that was full of admiration and the desire to obey. His dark pupils dreamily expanded, as if he had transformed back into a sensitive kitten, and without allowing another moment to slip by, the stubborn cat actually purred. Though, the compulsion didn't last long. Whether it was because the moonstone stopped shining or because Nixie ceased her focus, I couldn't give a direct answer. All I knew for sure was that Poseidon wasn't pleased.

He wrinkled his nose and tightly clenched his eyes shut, snapping out of the trance. Then, the dazzling white fur on his back spiked up as he rose to all four of his feet and stretched out his toes, showing off his claws. He hissed, arching his back like he was getting ready to attack; but instead of starting a fight, Poseidon only shot Nixie a warning glare and hopped down to the floor. He ran like a shark was chasing him, racing up the stairs and leaving behind behind nothing but the small echo of a few meows as he disappeared behind one of the rocks.

A glint of jealousy was vibrant in Lyla's eyes. At first, I thought that she was going to go all out on a bitter rampage, claiming that Nixie had just experienced beginner's luck or something like that. Nonetheless, it didn't take long for me to be proven wrong. All Lyla did was impatiently straighten her lips and ball her hands up into fists before jamming them into the pockets of her skirt. She must have been thinking that Nixie was going to start gloating at any moment ... but Nixie wouldn't even look at us. In fact, she was still knelt down in front of the globe with her forehead resting against the edge of its table, steadily breathing.

My eyes might as well have been seconds away from popping out of my head. "Nixie!" I quickly ran over to her side and placed my hand on her shoulder, giving it a comforting squeeze. "Nixie, what's wrong? Are you all right?"

"Um, yeah..." There was nothing different about her voice, aside from how tired she suddenly sounded. "I'm ... I'm fine..."

"You don't sound fine." Lyla remarked, now sounding both confused and concerned.

Nixie almost reluctantly lifted her head up from the table. "Well, I am. There's nothing to worry about. It's just a stupid headache, I'll live." She pinched the bridge of her nose, using her ring-wearing hand to press against the table and help herself up. However, as soon as she was back on her legs and about to take her first step, her knees wobbled underneath her and she was sent toppling to the side.

Letting out a startled gasp, I reacted fast by grabbing Nixie by her shoulders before she could hit the floor. It was like she was under the influence of kelp spores - something that almost all mermaids were allergic to, but nearly none showed the same side effects.

"Oh my God, Nixie!" I exclaimed as I looped one of her arms around my shoulders to help her regain her balance.

"What in the hell is going on?" asked Lyla.

Nixie's head bobbed a little as she placed her ring-wearing hand against her forehead. She continued to draw in one recharging breath after another, watching her feet move as I led her over to a nearby row of pillows and quilts on the rocks. Finally, I untangled her arm from around me and gently helped her take a seat.

"Would you mind not speaking so loudly?" Nixie asked, directing that question to Lyla as she slumped back and made herself more comfortable. "Like I said, it's just a headache. It'll go away soon."

"Don't you guys get it?" I asked. I had no choice but to raise my voice, exposing the authority that'd been building up inside of me for a while now. "Rita said that using compulsion requires the wielding of a lot of physical energy. Physical energy that we haven't managed to build up yet." I flicked my attention over to Nixie. "Nixie, you were straining yourself. You were pulling physical energy from every possible place in your body and forcing it to commit to the compulsion. We haven't learned how to build up or control our physical energy to those kinds of extent levels yet."

Nixie raised an eyebrow. "And in shorter terms, that would mean?"

"You exhausted yourself," I replied, "that's why you have a headache. Any longer and the compulsion could've drained you completely." I then turned my head over to Lyla. "See, this is why we should've listened to Rita and not bothered with this mind control stuff in the first place. It really is too difficult and dangerous for us to get involved with."

"Sirena, we are already in danger, remember?" Lyla asked. "If Zac gets the trident, it'll be the end of us, our powers, Mako, and every pod in all of the seven seas."

"So why should we make things even more dangerous by practicing compulsion? You heard what Rita said; it has killed plenty of mermaids, mermen, and sailors in the past and it can't help us with Zac because he's a merman."

Lyla opened her mouth to say something back, but before she could, I walked back over to the table and picked up Rita's lesson manual. Then, without a word, I closed it and held it close to me, glancing back and forth from Lyla to Nixie with that pleading glint returning to my eyes.

"I can't tell the two of you what to do," I remarked, shaking my head a little, "so if you guys really want to continue practicing compulsion, I can't stop you." A small pout tugged at the corners of my lips. "But I absolutely refuse to be part of it and I believe that it is absolutely pointless. It is far too dangerous for both our kind and land people."

"Sirena..." Lyla attempted to speak, but I had already turned away and began my way up the stairs.

"I'm going to go put this back where it belongs, just like we promised Rita we would." I said, referring to the large blue book that was still pinned against my chest. "Keep in mind that the next full moon is in a couple of weeks. We have much bigger things to focus on, such as keeping Zac away from the trident and Mako so Aquata and the pod can return."

Finally, I exited the grotto with only one thought on my mind: Zac. Surely he was the only threat that was out there for me, Lyla, and Nixie to deal with. Right?

A/N: Phew! Finally, I have finished the second chapter! :)

I hope you all enjoyed! :D :D Please share your thoughts! Reviews are greatly appreciated! :) :)

My birthday is in just a couple of weeks! :D May 25th! :D :D I can't wait!

Plus, I get out of school on June 2nd, which means I'll be free for summer before I know it! Awesome! :)

A special thanks goes out again to Izi Wilson for reviewing the previous chapter and adding this story to their favorites/follows. Thanks! :D

Anyway, stay tuned for the next chapter of "A Merman's Vengeance."

Thanks for reading, everyone! Happy reading and writing to you all! God bless! :D :D :) :)