I realize some of this chapter goes quickly, but I hope that you'll forgive me since this is exactly why I have a hard time writing longer stories. I'm sure you'll see what I mean. Any advice would certainly be appreciated and used in the future. Thanks for still being with me! Enjoy!
Prince Sherlock sailed into the ocean, following Molly and Meena with two ships. There wasn't much they could do from above the water, but Sherlock commanded the canons to be pointed into the water and prepared for battle. Surely the crew thought he'd gone mad. Those not manning the cannons pointed rifles in the same direction.
After they stopped in the calm waters, Molly locked eyes with Sherlock. "I'm going to find Prince James," she called up to him. "My knights will be loyal to me. Hopefully your navy will not be needed. Thank you, Sherlock."
He nodded. "I love you" on the edge of his lips, surprising himself as she dove into the deep.
Molly and Meena swam quickly through the currents. As they approached Atlantica, they slowed and planned how they would get into the castle and to Molly's knights or family. Upon hitting the border of the city, a solemnness was in the air. They soon realized they wouldn't need to sneak into the castle at all. The king of Mori wasn't even there.
Seagulls squawked overhead. The only disturbance on a beautiful sunny day. All of Sherlock's senses were on high alert. He heard the water gently lapping against his war ship, the creaks and groans of the hull, and the sails rustling in the breeze. He saw his men, vigilant and on guard. Their eyes concentrated toward an invisible target beneath the sea. Their bodies looked as tense as the prince felt. All the same, he could feel their confusion at his commands but also the trust they instilled in him.
Suddenly the air tasted salty and the sound of water moving like a fountain reached Sherlock's ears. He ran to the stern where the noise was coming from and his men all pointed in one direction.
"Hold!" he shouted.
Before he had reached the edge, he saw the source of the sound. A burst of water spewed from the seas and in it a small whirlpool rising above the deck. Prince Sherlock could just make out the silhouette of a man in the stream. The soldiers' rifles followed it onto the deck of the ship.
The water finally succumbed to gravity once again, falling back into the ocean and splashing onto the wooden planks and soldier's feet. Everything was back as it was. Except a thin, pale man stood at the center of the stern.
"Prince James of Mori, I assume," Sherlock addressed with a bow of the head as the short man adjusted the cuff of his expensive looking gray suit.
"King, actually," he commented in a voice that matched his unnerving appearance and set Sherlock's teeth on edge. "My, how do you humans work with these things?"
The prince almost scoffed at the other royal's difficulty. "A learned custom, I suppose," he answered instead.
The King of Mori figured out his clothing malfunction and turned his cold eyes on Sherlock. In a drawling voice he spoke. "Well… You're the one that has caught our dear Molly's heart. And her yours, I see. She never had very good taste in men though. Myself included."
"You see, Prince Sherrrlock, the Princess has a type. Bored by everyday life. An intelligence beyond normal capacity. Sound familiar yet? A disregard for authority… Sociopathic tendencies?"
Prince James had gotten quieter but now he shouted. "It's like your brain is firing on all cylinders, isn't it?! It's never quiet! Always observing and 'deducing' the world around you. Everything is an experiment, a way to dull the senses. An obsession… with chasing... the next... high. I know you Sherlock. I've watched you. We're the same, you and I. And I think we can agree, Molly deserves better, doesn't she?"
"What's your point, your highness?" Sherlock responded in clipped tones, feeling vulnerable to this new adversary. "Why are you here?"
"Oh, I thought it was obvious," King James said in disappointment, then sang, "I want to play a game."
Sherlock looked at him incredulously.
"I told you I've been watching you. I want to engage in a… battle of wits. Let's see who is actually smarter." The merman was unnerving. He seemed careless and in control, yet he smiled like a child playing his favorite board game.
What would this prove, Sherlock wondered. "I assume there are stakes? You came here alone in front of all my men. Addicted to the thrill? You did say you were like me."
"Oh, yes," the King of Mori giggled. "How about the Princess?"
Atlantica felt empty. Molly's people seemed frightened to leave their homes, and there was an awkwardness about the people that were out and about. Avoiding her gaze, looking about as if a guard may strike them down at any moment, giving her a wide birth if they saw her. The amount of caution they used soaked into her heart and she kept to the shadows.
Princess Molly entered the castle grounds without opposition. It surprised her and Meena that so few guards were on duty. The new King of Mori must think highly of his abilities, Molly thought.
As the two mermaids passed the training grounds, a young knight was leaving the armory. He caught sight of the Princess and instead of scurrying off in fear, he shouted, "Princess Molly! Princess Molly! You are alive! Thank Poseidon!" He rushed to her and bowed.
Molly looked around but saw no one that could overhear the young man's exclamations. "Sir Knight, do keep quiet. I don't want the knights of Mori to hear you. We are on a mission."
"To save Atlantica?" he quieted but excitement was in his voice. "Oh the other knights will be so happy to be back under its rightful rule. Since the king passed, we have continued our duty, but there is a constant eerie feeling that we are being watched. Some have been tossed in the dungeons for reasons unknown!"
"It's quite alright. I am here now. It is time to avenge his death. We will release those poor men and send word to the 5 other kingdoms that I am back. We can stage a c-"
"Princess," the knight interrupted, a sad and dark look crossing his face.
"Yes?" she asked impatiently.
"The Prince, your brother Prince Jason met with Prince James earlier this same day. With your other siblings, to gain back the kingdom." Molly worried what he might say next. "They- No one survived, your highness. They say Prince James wrote up peace treaties, but that Prince Jason attacked and started an unnecessary battle, resulting in all seven seas controlled by the Prince of Mori. We all know it isn't true, your highness. I'm so sorry…"
Molly didn't trust her own voice. What could she say anyway?
"Come on," Meena whispered taking her friend around the shoulders and leading her into the empty armory. The knight followed and stood outside the door to keep watch.
"Meena!" Molly cried. "What am I supposed to do? How many knights are dead because of me? My own family!" For another few more moments she shook and sobbed on Meena's shoulder.
"You didn't know any of this was going to happen, Molly," she said when her friend had quieted. "You were following your heart. Your prince is waiting for your signal to come to your aid. You are not alone. You have knights that are loyal to you. They will fight for you too."
The Princess took a deep breath. "You are right, Meena. We need to tackle one thing at a time. I am a leader. I must lead."
The Princess moved out of the armory door.
"Your Highness," the knight tilted his head.
"Take me to the dungeons; we need to free those that are loyal to me."
"Molly?" Sherlock was surprised. He knew this man was incapable of love. How could this have turned into the equivalent of a fist fight between 2 teenage boys.
"Yes," James said like it was obvious. "If I win, I get Molly. To put in jail or to force to be my queen, I haven't decided yet. Oh, and I get to kill you of course."
Sherlock chuckled. This wouldn't be the first time he had been threatened. However, he didn't like the evil king talking about Molly as if she was an object to be traded or used. "And if I win… you relinquish your rule to Molly and leave her kingdom forever."
"Not as fun as my life being on the line, but I suppose it'll work." King James stepped forward onto the main deck. "Let's begin!"
"Rules?" Sherlock was on guard as were his men. Every part of him told him not to trust this strange merman turned human.
"None. I just want you to figure something out for me." James twirled his wrist and an apple appeared. "Ooh."
"Why you're doing this. Why you want to be king," Sherlock deduced.
"Yes!" The Prince of Mori sounded like he was praising a 5-year-old. "You're off to a good start." He took a bite and looked presently surprised like he had never tasted one before.
"You're not interested in money and power. You have plenty and you don't need it."
James nodded, chewing his food with a mischievous look in his eye.
"You don't care about Atlantica or the Seven Seas. It's just a plaything for you. For your intellect."
James swallowed and grinned. "And why's that?"
Sherlock spoke quickly. "Why you're intelligent? A mix of genetics and parenting, I assume. Probably your own doing as well between your study of magic and a large library in the castle you grew up in." James gave him an amused look. "Oh, you mean why you don't care about your kingdom," Sherlock teased. "Simple really."
King James waited as Sherlock turned his back to him looking out across the ocean.
"You want me to tell you?" Sherlock asked as if surprised by the King of Mori's silence.
James rolled his eyes and took a step towards the side of the boat. "Obviously."
Sherlock turned sharply in the merman's direction. "Well that does surprise me!"
The king chuckled. "And why's that?"
"Because we're playing a game!" Now Sherlock sounded childish. "You can't just let me win on the first try."
"Beginners luck." James smiled like he had Sherlock wrapped around his finger.
"No such thing. You know that of course, your highness."
"Tell me your thoughts."
Sherlock grinned. "You want me to tell you what you already know?"
"I want you to prove that you know it."
In the silence, each man turned back to the sea and sized the other out of the corner of their eye.
"Come now, Sherlock. Put down the charade. How hard is it for you to say you don't know?" King James smiled with that dead look in his eye.
"I don't know." The corner of the prince's mouth twitched into a smirk.
James laughed. "Oh, you're clever! Clever, clever Prince Sherlock!"
The prince of Glauwery rolled his eyes. He could only buy so much time for Molly. If his deductions were correct, she should be swimming toward the surface now. He had to be correct because he was about to show his hand.
"You do understand though surely?" James asked turning his body to the prince. "All seven kingdoms are mine. I've killed all of the remaining monarchs. Except your Princess Molly. She made all this possible and now," he shook his head, "you're in my way."
"Thank you."
"I didn't mean it as a compliment." Sherlock shrugged. The king of Mori narrowed his eyes. "Land is next of course. That's why this little thing couldn't be avoided. I thought I'd just kill two birds with one stone. Quite literally," he giggled.
Sherlock's hand hesitated over a scabbard on his hip. The sword was mostly used for decoration but that didn't mean it didn't have a sharp blade.
King James pouted. "Aw, your highness, I thought we were having fun."
The prince glared. Maybe it had been… entertaining in a way. A thrilling 9. But not when the lives of so many were at stake. He understood that much at least.
"Fine, fine," the evil merman consented, sounding bored. "Tell me, Sherlock, why am I king?"
Now was the time. Sherlock's voice didn't waver, but he spoke slowly. "You're advertising. You're the king. You can get away with anything. You thrive off chaos. If criminals can survive in your society, then you're the one they come to for help. You get to watch all the little people with their little lives and you get to pull the threads. You watch them squirm, watch them beg for justice. Justice that never comes."
"Oh, you're good!" James chimed. "I almost thought you wouldn't get it. Almost." He reached into his breast pocket and pulled out an expensive looking gold pen.
Unbeknownst to the two princes, Molly and Meena had just broke the surface and were listening to the whole conversation.
King James twisted the pen and it suddenly grew into the trident. "I told little Princess Molly I would burn the heart out of her. I thought it would just be her kingdom at first, but now…" he laughed. "I think it's you."
James held the trident up as if to kill Prince Sherlock. It started to glow a golden yellow before a deafening scream rang across the ocean.
"NO!" Princess Molly had burst from the water. The trident responded immediately and ripped itself from the Prince of Mori's hands.
Molly was surprised but instinctively caught the trident. A whispered memory floated through her mind. The trident will always belong to a true and righteous heir… A surge of energy flew through the instrument. Below her, the water had bubbled and lifted her above the deck of the ship.
The wind blew her hair away from her face and she could see Prince James. He didn't look concerned. He snapped his fingers as if to call the object back to him. The trident didn't move. He narrowed his eyes, and, in that moment, Molly could see the surprise, anger and even fear behind the cold mask. She knew what needed to be done.
Princess Molly brought herself to her full height and aimed the trident at the traitor. "I, Princess Molly of Atlantica declare and accept my role as ruler and Queen of the Seven Seas. As the true heir, the trident answers to me and with this power, I condemn you, King James of Mori for crimes of high treason against the crown and all the Seven Seas, to the Endless Abyss."
She would always remember his dead eyes meeting hers as she sent him quickly to that awful pit. The Endless Abyss was for monsters just like King James. It was a dark bottomless cavern far from any civilization. It was a place for people who deserved worse than jail or death. The worst creatures and criminals were trapped there. Awake or asleep for eternity no one really knew. However, Molly knowing James the way she did thought an eternal sleeping curse wouldn't hurt.
The wind died down, but the water still held her suspended in the air beside the ship. An applause arose from the sea. Queen Molly looked out across her dominion. Thousands of merpeople were appearing from beneath the water, cheering for her. The knights her and Meena had freed and who had followed them to the surface started to chant. Soon they were all unanimous in their shouts.
"All hail Queen Molly! All hail the Queen of the Seven Seas!"
Molly blushed with some pride. Amplifying her voice with the trident she spoke to her people. "Merpeople of Atlantica… and of all the seven kingdoms… We have lost much, but I thank you for your fighting spirits. Without them, we couldn't have succeeded today. You are safe now. Return to your homes and families. Celebrate your freedom."
There were more cheers before one by one they disappeared into the deep.
Sherlock watched in awe of this beautiful mermaid beside him. "Well done, Queen Molly," he commented, stepping closer to the edge of the boat near her. Her faint blush deepened as she turned to see him bow his head.
"Thank your men as well," she said quietly and seriously.
"I shall," he said in the same tone, "when you stop floating in the air."
She looked down and almost giggled in embarrassment. "I need to check on my people." She started to lower herself back into the sea. Her face looked sad as if she believed she'd never see him again.
Sherlock caught her hand. "Meet me at the beach? Where we first met?"
Her smile brightened both of their faces.
"Sunset tomorrow?"
He repeated her words and nodded. After she had receded into the water, he spoke to his men and returned to shore. He needed to rest, but tomorrow's sunset couldn't come soon enough.
This was supposed to be the last chapter guys! There was going to be more, but I got to this point and it just felt like I should stop. There will be another chapter! I'm sorry you'll have to wait for it, but I think the rest will be much easier for me to write. The climax of this story was a difficult one to really find inspiration on. But I did it! And I hope you liked it!