Chapter 60: The Rescue

Ariel sat curled up against the wall of her cell, her remaining arm wrapped around her fins. Her food, if it could be called such, sat uneaten beside the door. The dripping of water was as ceaseless as it was unchanging, as if counting out the passage of time.

She barely heard the armor and boots coming down the hall. Or the rattle and clank of the key in her cell door. Only when the lock was snapped open did Ariel lift her head, dark rings under her eyes. She had not slept more than a few hours in the last two days. Two guards entered the cell as a third waited in the doorway.

"It's time," he said, his face stony and dim with shadow as his comrades undid Ariel's shackles. Without another word he turned and left, the two guards carrying Ariel between them.

Ariel either did not remember being carried through the castle, or she did not register it well enough to do so. Her fins dragged across the floor as they went. Up stairs. Down halls. Through doors. She only caught snippets of it. It was not till they reached the castle's enormous main door and she saw daylight that her wits fully returned to her. And so did the terror of what was about to happen.

These men were taking her to her death.

She heard the people long before she saw them. The guards dragged her out into the castle bailey, causing her to squint as the sun assaulted her vision. The once distant murmur of the crowd swelled into a roar. The bailey of Strihaven's ancient stone castle was packed to the brim like a can of sardines. Every square foot of earth was taken to the point that people were pressed up against the walls. Their chaotic jumble of voices turned into shouts of fury and jeering as the guards hauled her through. More guards joined them, hands on their swords as they escorted the prisoner. Every face Ariel saw was twisted with a rabid spite and fury she did not think possible. It was as if all Strihaven were taken by a fever of anger.

"Burn her!"

"Traitor!"

"Murderer!"

"To the Pit with you!"

"Death to the queen!"

"Roast that fish!"

Someone reached out and grabbed Ariel's hair, yanking painfully on it. She cried out, alerting the guards. One of them swatted the offending hand away and shoved its owner back. The guards quickly drew their swords, expanding their protective circle lest anyone tried something more sinister. Then they continued on their way. Ariel looked up and saw the bailey walls were ringed with not only human guards, but clockmen as well. Their luminous green eyes scanned about with mechanical smoothness and efficiency, searching the ground and sky. Their chain guns were at the ready, prepared to fire at the slightest sign of their enemy or a would-be rescuer. The guards carried guns as well–long sleek barrels supported by wooden stocks, thumbs and fingers resting on hammers and triggers. Four immense guns stood at each corner of the bailey. Their long twin barrels were pointed to the sky, rows of immense shells lined up around them. A clockmen sat between the barrels, its arms and legs completely integrated with the machine to ensure seamless and efficient function.

Scattered amongst the crowd and around the wall were Ursula's mutants. They towered over the humans with their nightmarish forms, brandishing guns, swords, spears, or their own biologic weaponry. Yet the humans barely paid them or the artillery any heed. All their attention was fixed on Ariel. The sea of their wrathful faces seemed endless, but then it parted to reveal an even more terrible sight than any clockman, mutant, machine, or murderous mob.

The execution pyre.

Ariel knew Strihaven still had a gallows, even though the practice of hanging was outlawed in the Alliance. Willard insisted on keeping it erected, as a warning to those who may dare break the law – especially after his rather embarrassing run-in with an infamously well-known thief. The noose and beam were gone. A thick wooden pole had been placed through the trapdoor, rising high into the sky. Dry wood was stacked around it, the gaps stuffed with dry thatch. A heavy odor of lantern oil and pitch wafted into Ariel's nose. A bare-chested man in a black hood stood at the top, a length of thick rope resting on a shoulder.

Panic took her instantly. She screamed, flailing against her captors. They held her tight, hauling her up the steps to the platform.

"No!" she pleaded as she ascended. "Please! Don't do this! Please!"

The guards ignored her begging. They reached the top and hauled her to the post. They held her against it as the executioner wound his rope around her, binding her against the post. It was so tight she could barely breathe. She felt and heard him cinch the knot tight, and then he came before her. She could not see his face. Only those dark eyes within his eye holes. She started to speak, but then he grabbed her mouth and forced it open before shoving a gag inside and then tying a rag tightly around her head. Her pleas and screams became muffled and incomprehensible. Then he turned and left with the guards, leaving Ariel alone and afraid.

A chorus of trumpets sounded from the royal box, pulling all eyes to it. Three chairs of royal quality were set out. Ariel looked up to see King Willard and Ursula come into view. Willard was dressed in his best, crown upon his head and dressed in ceremonial armor, a longsword belted to his side. Ursula was wearing a regal purple cloak, hiding whatever form she was using beneath its fabric. She gave Ariel a wicked smile and a gleeful wave as she and Willard sat. She was enjoying this. Every second of it. Urchin was not with them. Nor was Remora, or Morgana, or the Master.

So, who was the third chair for?


Willard met Ariel's eyes. He could see the fear and pleading in them. She was trying to say something, but the gag muted her voice. His hands tightened into fists behind his back, something that was not lost on Ursula.

"Having second thoughts, sire?" asked Ursula.

"None whatsoever," said Willard. "I've wanted this day just as much as you. I'm just a tad frustrated, though."

"Oh? And why is that?"

Willard turned his face to her. "Because I won't have the pleasure of lighting the fire myself."

Ursula gave a small laugh and a large smile. "You know, I think you're the first human I can actually tolerate!" She rose and went to the edge of the box. She raised a hand and the crowd fell silent. "People of Strihaven! Your king will address you now!"

Ursula returned to her seat, giving Willard a wink. "Break a leg, your majesty."

Willard stepped up to the railing and cleared his throat. "My subjects! I thank you for joining me on this momentous day! On this historic day! And let there be no doubt, it is historic! For too long our once great kingdom has suffered under the restrictive laws…no, shackles of the now former Alliance!"

A row of boos went up from the crowd at the mention of the now annihilated conglomerate of kingdoms.

"They promised us peace!" Willard started walking back and forth along the box, gesturing dramatically with his hands as he went. He knew showmanship was key in this situation. How he spoke was just as if not more important than what he spoke. "They promised us prosperity! They promised us camaraderie! They promised us a bright, shining future for all! And for a time, they did fulfill that promise!"

The boos rose in volume but were quickly silenced by a wave of Willard's hand. "Make no mistake, there was a time when we enjoyed the fruits of our partnership! When the wealth of one was felt by all! When they were all too willing to share their wealth with us, their neighbors! A time when we sincerely called them friends and welcomed them with open arms! As they did us!"

That same hand turned into a tight, angry fist. "But only for a time! Open arms became closed doors! The wealth they once shared so readily slowed to a trickle, yet they demanded no less of us! Our prosperity was choked by wasteful restriction, underhanded deals, and unfair treaties!"

"What good are fishing waters if you can't even fish in them!" shouted a voice from the crowd. A row of agreeing voices rose in response.

"Well said!" Willard called out. "And while we faltered, their prosperity only continued! As did their lies! Their so-called camaraderie was tainted with them! And that shining future they offered was veiled by a haze of deception, violence, and then death!"

He clutched his fist to his heart, his expression turning pained. "My son…my boy…your dear Prince William! He loved you and this kingdom as though you were his own flesh and blood! He believed in that shining future for us even with his last breath! That this kingdom could become greater still! That it should become greater! That it should be a beacon by which we would guide others into a future where all, not some, would know happiness and bounty! And never at the expense of others! A father could not ask for a better son! Nor entrust his realm and subjects to a fitter king!"

Shouts of, "Bless Prince William!" sounded out among the crowd along with a brief applause.

"I ask you, my subjects–why is he not here now?" asked Willard, pointing to the empty chair. "Why is he not here to witness this day beside us? Why will he never see his dream fulfilled? I will tell you why!"

Willard suddenly slammed his fist down on the box railing, loud enough for the sound to be heard throughout the bailey. "Because he was murdered!"

Ariel flinched as the crowd erupted with enraged voices like a thunderclap. They were hurting her ears with how loud they became.

"Murdered!" Willard shouted, beating the railing again and again. "Murdered! Murdered! Murdered! Cut down in cold blood by our own supposed ally! They say his blood is not on their hands! That the perpetrator is Maelstrom!"

Willard gestured to Ursula. "The same Maelstrom who protected our ships when the Alliance would not! The same Maelstrom who has delivered security to our kingdom! The same Maelstrom who has brought more wealth, strength, prosperity than we ever enjoyed under the banner of the Alliance! The same Maelstrom who has demonstrated only goodwill to us! That is who they would falsely accuse of such a heinous act! Do we believe it?"

"NO!" was the reply from the crowd.

"Then who do we cast judgment upon for his death?" asked Willard as he leaned on the railing. "Who do we hold responsible for the injustices we suffered? Who is the real villain here? Whose hands does William's blood truly stain?"

Thousands of fingers pointed directly at Ariel, marking her with a resounding cry of, "HER!"

"Yes!" shouted Willard. "Her! Ariel, daughter of that treacherous tyrant of a merman Triton and his kingdom of backwards fish-scaled savages! For it was they and their people who deprived us of the sea! They who denied us the fruits of our labors! They who saw fit to watch us struggle and starve, all while cutting our nets and sinking our ships without mercy!"

More angry shouts erupted from the crowd. Some started throwing rotten vegetables at Ariel, peppering her. She averted her face as a half-liquified tomato splattered against her cheek, the rancid juice dripping down like blood.

"And her daughter…!" Willard raised a clenched, shaking fist to the sky. "It was her spawn that deprived my son of his life! They told us it was an assassin! But the only killer I see before me is her! A black-hearted temptress from below the waves, bewitching we humans to their doom with her sorcery! Just like all of her kind have! They are our true enemy!"

"Monsters! All of them!" yelled a voice in the crowd.

Willard slashed a hand across. "No more! No longer shall we suffer this witch and her trickery! No longer will we be blinded by her people's deceptions! No longer will we be chained to an Alliance that seeks to impoverish and subdue us! And at long last, your beloved prince will have the justice he is due! For what do we do with murderers? Do we hang them?"

"NO!"

"Do we behead them!?"

"NO!"

"Do we allow them rot away behind bars!?"

"NO!"

"No, we do not! What do we, the people of Strihaven, do with murderers!?"

"BURN THEM!" was the unanimous roar of the crowd, followed by a fist-waving chant of "BURN HER! BURN HER! BURN HER! BURN HER!" Willard let them go on for a solid minute, allowing the crowd's hatred to fan itself like the fire it was. Then he raised his hand for silence one last time.

"Queen Ariel of Seahaven!" he shouted. Ariel looked up to him as he took a scroll from a guard, unfurling it before him. "You are found guilty of the crimes of treason, conspiracy against the kingdom and crown of Strihaven, conspiracy against the people of Strihaven, the use of witchcraft, and the pre-meditated murder of Prince William of Strihaven!"

He lowered the scroll, glaring down at her. There was nothing but hatred for her in his eyes. She tried to speak, but the gag blocked out her words.

"For these crimes, I sentence you to death!" declared Willard, earning an eruption of cheers from the crowd. "On this day, you will be burned publicly at the stake till dead! May the gods show your soul the same mercy you showed my son!"

With that Willard nodded to four guards at the base of the pyre. The guards stepped towards a pair of iron barrels and reached in, pulling out a quartet of lanterns. Blue flames danced inside, casting an eerie light even in day.

"Finally!" said Ursula, coming up to lean on the railing. "At long last, it's here!"

"That is a most unusual flame they are carrying," said Willard, watching the guards carefully take the lanterns to the cardinal points of the pyre.

"Spooklight wisps," said Ursula. "Courtesy of Remora. In case any annoying dragon whelps decide to show up."

Willard glanced at her. "Surely you jest! Anclagon and the princess must be dead by now! That, or ten leagues away! Even if she dared to come, this place is more than sufficiently guarded! And did not Remora say the witch has likely lost her magic?"

"When it comes to this little mermaid, one can never be too careful," said Ursula. Her grin widened as she saw the first flames catch on the pyre. "Enough talking. Let's enjoy the show!"


Ariel screamed through her gag as she felt the heat growing beneath her. Thick black smoke rose into her nostrils, causing her to choke and cough. She managed to work the gag off her mouth and spat out the rag, allowing her to breathe easier. She looked down and saw the flicker of blue flames through the gaps in the boards. They were climbing the pyre at an alarming pace. She looked up, averting her eyes to the sky. She saw clear blue broken by scant clouds, one of them passing in front of the sun. Ursula started laughing in that cackling way of hers as the crowd continued to shout and jeer like a pack of starved dogs thirsty for blood.

The heat was moving past uncomfortable towards painful. This was it. This was the end. This was how she left this world. Not gray and wrinkled with age, surrounded by family and friends. Not quietly in her sleep, casting off her mortal shell to venture into an eternal dream. Not in some dramatic blaze of glory like the heroes in stories. She was going to burn alive before her most feared enemy, surrounded by people who wanted nothing more than to see her die and hear her scream. Her end would be as agonizing as it was horrific, and she would endure it alone. She shut her eyes as tears began pouring out in earnest. She was coughing fiercely, unable to get a breath in between hacking fits. She hoped the smoke would choke her to death before the flames could end her.

"Melody! Eric!" she choked out between coughs. "If you're still alive, please know I love you! Stay alive! That's all I ask!"

'A worthy wish. One I would see fulfilled.'

Ariel's eyes snapped open. "B-Bel'al!?"

'Look to the sky, your highness. Help is coming.'

Ariel looked up. She saw the same sky and clouds as before, the smoke blocking them out more and more with each passing second. The sun was still behind the cloud, casting a shadow upon her.

Except the cloud was not moving. All the other clouds were slowly drifting with the currents of the stratospheric winds. But this one was staying still. Now that she actually looked at it, she saw it was darker and had a grainy quality to it. As though it were made up of thousands of tiny dots. And then it began to grow. It rapidly swelled in size. Wait, no. It was not growing. It was sinking! The cloud was descending towards them, and fast! And what was that noise? That sound like a distant approaching wind combined with the drone of countless wingbeats?

Ursula now noticed the unusual noise, too. She shaded her eyes as she looked up, squinting at the approaching haze. "What is that?"

Ariel now saw the cloud was in fact composed of countless small dark moving dots. Were those…birds?

Ursula's eyes widened. "Sound the alarm! We're under–!"

She was cut off when the "cloud" came pouring down like a waterfall. An enormous flock of birds and insects streamed into the bailey, turning the air thick with wings. Starlings, finches, wrens, robins, tits, larks, hawks, owls, eagles, falcons, kites, herons, cranes, gulls, pelicans, terns–every bird imaginable filled the air, forming a blackout of feathers and wings. Interspersed among them were a plaque of seemingly infinite insects. They were so thick no one could see through them. The crowd cowered in confusion and fear as feet, beaks, spines, mandibles, stingers, and pincers all pecked, scratched, struck, and stung them. The din of bird voices and insect wings was immense, drowning out all other sound.

"What devilry is this!?" shouted Willard as he swatted a pigeon away.

"It's that flying witch brat!" yelled Ursula, clawing at a swarm of hornets and grasshoppers assaulting her face. "She's coming!"

"How could she be–!?" Willard was cut off when a very large eagle struck him across the head with his wing, laying him out.

"I don't know, and I don't–ow!" A second eagle swooped down and raked the top of Ursula's head with its talons. She clapped a hand to her head, seeing black blood on her palm when she took it away. "Blasted feather balls!"

Ariel kept watching the sky. While the birds and insects swarmed through the bailey, they left the burning pyre untouched. In fact, they were deliberately circling around it. From Ariel's perspective, she was looking up the center of a living cyclone directly towards the sun. Ariel had to squint against the light.

Then the most wondrous winged silhouette revealed itself against the backdrop of the sun.


The gull flew down through the canopy, weaving its way effortlessly through the tangles of branches before diving straight towards Kodama. The bird spread its wings to slow, alighting on one of his antlers. Melody, Lara, Sarah, and Arista all saw a green glow come to the gull's eyes, and then the same glow leave down its body and travel into Kodama.

"My thanks," said Kodama. The gull gave a shrieking cry and then took off, its heavy wingbeats audible as it returned to the sky.

"Yonder sea witch spoke no deceptions to the queen," said Kodama. "Strihaven be in service to Maelstrom. The high perches of home and castle be nests for armaments. Monsters of nautical forms hunt amongst the streets. Their metal abominations be no less numerous. And their banners fly tall and proud."

Lara folded her arms nervously, the tip of her tail twitching back and forth. "You make it sound like there's an army waiting for me."

Kodama nodded. "Would not be hyperbole to speak of it as such. And I do not omit those who serve the crown from this surveyance. They carry the weapons of thy foe. And their eyes be as keen to the ground as the sky."

"Guns." Lara scowled, her hands tightening into fists. "Great…"

Melody wrung her own hands anxiously. None of this worked in their favor. "So how does Lara get in?"

"I could always knock," said Lara.

"Would be an act most foolish," said Kodama.

"That was a joke," said Lara. "Of course I'm not gonna knock!"

"What about coming in from the sea?" suggested Arista.

"It could work," said Melody. "Strihaven castle sits right on the shoreline, same as the palace does…or, did." She shook her head, shaking off the depressing memory of her home's demolition. She needed to focus. "If you go low and fast, maybe you could surprise them!"

Now it was Kodama who shook his head. "Thy enemy hath foreseen such a route and prepared in kind. Attempt such an approach, and ye and the waves shall be welcomed with metal and malice in full."

"So I can't go in from the sea, the ground, or the air then." Lara rubbed her chin pensively, eyes fixed on the ground as if she were surveying the kingdom itself from above. "Then I'll have to go in from the sky."

"Uh…how is that any different from flying in?" asked Arista.

"Altitude," said Lara. "They could shoot me down if I fly at their level. But I can't imagine they'll have an easy time when I'm six miles up."

"S-s-six miles!?" exclaimed Sarah. "Is there even that much sky up there!?"

"There be more between stars and earth than mortal imagination permits," said Kodama. "Lara shall not be lacking for distance within it. Thy foe, however, shall be lacking for sight and range."

"Then that's how I go in," said Lara. "I'll get high as I can above Strihaven, wait for them to bring Ariel out, then go straight down for her."

"Methinks thee already mindful of this, but I say it for thy sake nonetheless," said Kodama. "Might and metal will be no aid to thee. Only swiftness of wing and hand can see thy return. Linger not, or there shall be two upon Maelstrom's pyre."

"So…get in, get out, and make it fast?" said Lara. Kodama just nodded. "Which also means I'll have to divebomb in. And slow down as late as possible. The less speed I have, the easier it'll be for them to shoot me." An anxious expression darkened her face. "Actually, they'll probably have a clear shot at me to start with. Height will get me close without getting in range of their guns. But it doesn't leave me a lot of cover on the way down."

"What about a distraction?" asked Sarah. "Something to get their focus away from the castle and give Lara an opening?"

Lara looked to Kodama. "Anything you can offer?"

Kodama shook his head. "Not I."

Lara sighed. "Yeah, I figured. Not your fight, right?"

"Thy tongue strides faster than thy ears, young one," said Kodama. "I have naught to offer you in the way of aid."

Kodama drew a breath and then threw his head back. The sound that came out was neither howl, nor roar, nor song, yet it resonated with the essence of all three. It reverberated with the forest, making the hair on the women's necks stand on end. At once every creature stopped what it was doing, giving their undivided attention to the forest spirit.

At first, nothing happened. Then a single dark speckled starling flew down from above, alighting on Kodama's head. Then another flew down. Then five more. Then a hawk and an oriole joined them, followed by several butterflies and a large stonefly. Then the air became filled with the beating of wings and the calls of insects and birds as they came en masse. They covered the ground, the trees, and Kodama himself as they answered his call. Even the four women found themselves being used as perches.

"They, however, would offer their aid to thee of their own will," said Kodama. "And to thy queen."


Ariel screamed with relief as Lara came diving down the middle of the flock. Her wings were pulled in tight, turning her into a living torpedo. She waited till the last possible second and then flung her wings wide, rapidly slowing her descent. She landed right in front of Ariel, the planks of the platform cracking as they absorbed her momentum. She stood up, lifting her goggles.

"Hi!" said Lara, giving that lopsided grin of hers.

"Lara!" shouted Ariel, now shedding tears of joy rather than terror. "You're alive!"

Lara glanced at Ariel's missing arm and then raised her own. "Need a hand?"

BANG!

A gunshot rang out, followed by the sharp sound of a ricochet. Lara and Ariel flinched as more shots rang out, narrowly missing them. They looked out and saw guards and clockmen stand up around the walls, aiming guns at the pyre. They were having trouble, however, with all the birds plowing into them and the insects obscuring their eyes. Their shots were missing, but not by much.

"Not for long if we stay here!" said Lara as a bullet went whizzing past her ear. She reached behind her and pulled out a knife. With one slash she severed the ropes holding Ariel, allowing her to fall into her arms. "Ready to fly?"

"Yes!" Ariel hooked her arm around Lara's neck. "Just get us out of here! Please!"

Ursula pried a pair of pestering woodpeckers off her face and chucked them away. Through the blackout of feathers and bugs she saw Lara cut Ariel's bindings. She charged to the edge of the railing, leaning far over it. "No! Kill them! Kill them both now!"

Several clockmen immediately aimed their chain guns at the pyre. The whine of spinning barrels reached Lara and Ariel's ears. Lara quickly ripped a small pouch off her belt and upended it, scattering metallic dust into the air.

"Close your eyes!" Lara shouted. Ariel quickly obeyed as Lara did the same, swinging her tail through the dust. "Ardo!"

There was a small spark off the end of Lara's tail, and then the dust combusted. A light like hundreds of lightning strikes strung together went off, blinding with dozens of disorienting flashes. The guards and clockmen held their fire, losing track of their targets. The birds and insects took their momentary blindness to attack, pestering them in a frenzy. Ursula, however, was smart enough to follow Lara and Ariel's lead, shielding her eyes.

"No, you don't!" Ursula thrust her hands forward as sharp projectile spikes grew out of her palms, the muscles in her forearms swelling as she prepared to fire them like arrows. "You're not going–!"

SPLURCH!

Amidst the din of birds, bugs, and bright flashes, Ursula failed to hear the sword being unsheathed behind her. She lurched forward as it speared through her chest, sending the spikes flying wide of their target. She looked down, just as alarmed as Ariel and Lara to see the weapon emerging from her. Then a pair of gunshots went off behind her, body jerking as the bullets slammed into her back. She coughed, looking over her shoulder to her attackers.

It was Willard. The man's eyes were ablaze with anger and determination as he gripped the sword tightly, keeping it buried in Ursula's heart. His guards had their guns trained on her, two of the barrels leaking wisps of white smoke.

"This is for my son!" Willard twisted the sword sharply, causing Ursula to cry out. "And that is for my kingdom, you patronizing, bloated, murderous squid!"

"You…!" Ursula coughed loudly, spitting out black blood as she scowled furiously. "You traitor!"

"Remember what I said," Willard hissed. "I cannot betray someone if I was never on their side from the start! My words were not meant for Ariel alone!" He withdrew his sword and Ursula fell to the ground. He stood over her, raising his sword again. "I was hoping to kill you and your sister in one go! But seeing as she's gone, I'll settle for you!"

Willard was about to swing when a barb-tipped tentacle came flying out from under Ursula's robes. It speared him through the chest, piercing armor and flesh like paper. Shock plastered across Willard's face, his sword slipping from his hands to clatter on the ground. The tentacle whipped about, flinging spikes as fast as arrows into the guards. They dropped instantly, pierced through hearts and heads.

Ariel's eyes widened, the image of the king's impalement reflected in them. "Willard!"

"Im…possible!" Willard sputtered, blood leaking past his lips as he coughed. "I *cough* pierced your heart! And shot you!"

"That you did, your majesty," said Ursula. She slowly rose, discarding her robe to reveal her tentacled true form. "You did pierce my heart. However…" She paused as she coughed, spitting up her own black blood. She smirked as she wiped it away, the hole in her chest closing as her body pushed the bullets out, hitting the floor with a clunk-clunk. "You should have brushed up on your cephalopod anatomy before trying to kill me! Because you forgot about the other two!"

Willard grimaced in pain as Ursula pushed him off her tentacle. "You witch!" He coughed loudly, his strength fading by the second.

"Willard!" Ariel shouted again. She could only watch as Ursula wiped her tentacle on the railing, smearing his blood on it.

"Now where were we? Oh yes!" Ursula aimed her hand at the pair again, fresh spikes emerging from her palm. Lara took a step back, snarling at her. "Killing you bo–!"

BANG!

Ursula's wrist jerked violently upwards as a bullet struck it. She shrieked and grabbed her wounded arm, only for another bullet to strike her in the shoulder and then a third in the stomach. Ariel and Lara looked down and saw a pair of Strihaven guards aiming guns up at the royal box.

"For the prince!" shouted the guards.

The other guards began drawing swords and cocking guns as they and the crowd shouted, "For the prince!"

It was as if someone flipped a switch. Every single man and woman, guard and citizen, armed and unarmed, turned on the Maelstrom forces simultaneously. They were hopelessly outmatched in terms of strength and weaponry. But what they lacked in individual might they made up for with overwhelming numbers. The clockmen found themselves unable to shoot Lara or Ariel as people swarmed them like ants, knocking them down as they beat them with anything they could find. Several were chucked off the bailey wall within seconds. The gun nests followed shortly after, crumpling into useless twisted wrecks on impact. One of them exploded as it fell off the far side, shaking the castle. The mutants roared and shrieked as they were assaulted by everything from swords and bullets to arrows, pitchforks, rocks, and even bare fists.

Ursula was not allowed time for surprise. Willard's guards came at her with intent to kill, and they were trained to do so. Unfortunately for them, Ursula was not about to be taken by surprise again. The first guard tried to chop her neck with his sword, only for one of Ursula's tentacles to shoot out and grab his wrists. She flung him into another guard like a flail, breaking the railing and sending the man flying out before she chucked her captive into the burning pyre. His screams were momentary before the fires devoured him.

"Traitors!" shouted Ursula as she snapped the neck of a guard, thick chitinous armor growing over her right arm to protect her from a sword. A fresh bullet grazed her ear, biting a piece out of it. "You're all traitors!"

"Anclagon!" Willard pulled himself up onto what remained of the railing as his guards continued attacking Ursula. He was turning pale. "Fly out of here! Right now! My people will cover you!"

"Would you die already!?" yelled Ursula. She flung her hand at him, sending barbed spikes shooting into his back. Willard cried out as they pierced him. He started to slip but then clung on.

"What about you all!?" shouted Lara, ducking as a bullet grazed her left wing. "Maelstrom will –!"

"This was our choice! Strihaven would rather perish than be slaves to my son's murderers! Including me!" Willard grunted as he managed to get a leg under himself. "And Ariel!"

Ariel's eyes found Willard's amidst the chaos of the flying swarm and the battle. There was not the cold hatred in them from before. She saw fear, but also acceptance. Acceptance of an end he made peace with long ago, and a fate he could no longer escape. That, and remorse.

"When you see your daughter, tell her this!" shouted Willard. "No one was more deserving of my son that her!" He managed the weakest of smiles, and then a bloody coughing fit wiped it away. "Now go!"

Lara stared at him for a second. Then her face became stern, and she nodded. She maneuvered something to between her teeth. Ariel saw it was a tiny dark seed, no bigger than a grain of rice.

"What's that?" asked Ariel.

"Hopefully our way out!" Lara said through her teeth. She spat the seed far away from the pyre, and then turned her attention back to the royal box. "Hey, Ursula!"

The sea witch dispatched the guard trying to decapitate her and then spun around at her name, glaring at Lara through the swarm.

"I've got a message for the Master! And Remora!" With that Lara showed Ursula a particular bird of her own, and then spread her wings as she crouched in preparation for flight.


Lara breathed the early morning air deeply, watching with Melody and Kodama as the last of the birds and insects took off. They were an immense dark cloud of life, circling up into the sky. In less than a minute they were already growing smaller against the blue backdrop. The trees rustled with wind as a large updraft lifted them towards the heavens.

"Everybody's waiting on me now," said Lara. She checked her knives and the pouch on her belt, then adjusted her goggles.

Melody stepped forward, taking her hand. "Lara, I know I don't need to tell you this, but please be careful! Don't do anything reckless!"

"Mel, this entire plan is reckless!" said Lara.

"You know what I mean!" Melody pulled Lara in, hugging her tightly. "Just get my mom and then get out of there! Don't be any more of a hero than you need to be!"

"That's the plan." Lara gave Melody one last squeeze and then let go, giving her wings a few flaps as she stepped back. "Right then! Time to fly!"

"A moment," said Kodama right as Lara lifted her wings. "I would see thee off with one boon."

Lara halted her wings. "Which is?"

A small shoot grew off Kodama's left antler, sinuating its way towards Lara. A small round pinecone grew off the end. Lara held her hand out to it as the pinecone matured and then split, depositing a single seed into her palm. Then the shoot withered and decayed, dropping off Kodama to become part of the forest litter.

"To aid thee in thy return," said Kodama.

Lara held up the tiny speck, turning it around between her fingers. She did not look impressed. "This is a seed…"

Kodama nodded. "Indeed."

Lara looked at the seed again, and then back at Kodama. "And what am I supposed to do with this?"

"Plant it."

"Uh-huh…" Lara looked at the seed a third time, trying to find something unique or magical about it. She saw nothing. "Not to sound ungrateful, but how is one tiny seed supposed to help me get away from a kingdom crawling with clockmen, monsters, and guns?"

Kodama chuckled. "Ye possess the wings and might of a dragon, Lara Anclagon. But thine eyes still be born of mortal. Look about thee. All within my realm was born of such small things. Every tree. Every shrub. Every sprig of moss. Every fern, fungi, and flower. It is by such smallness that nature endures and overcomes. That is what thou holds in thy hand. Plant it, and thou shall know."


A/N: "Norwegian Pirate" by Two Steps From Hell

The seed Lara spat was pushed about by the rising air from the flames. It almost fell into them until a sharp-eyed bee catcher snatched it in mid-flight, carrying it away from the fire. It dropped it into the crowd, where it jostled its way down to the cobblestones where a boot stamped it into a crack. The seed nestled there, and then a single tiny root sprouted forth. It quickly crept down, feeling its way about till it found what it needed most.

Water.

The reaction was explosive. Millennia of growth occurred in a matter of seconds as an enormous mountain redwood grew from the middle of the bailey, as tall and massive as the ones in Kodama's grove. It shook the castle like an earthquake, knocking people off their feet and sending others flying as the giant trunk expanded. The birds and insects scattered, fleeing across Strihaven and into the sky as the tree's roots tore up stone and foundation with ease. Several of them pushed against the pyre, causing it to lean over. Lara grabbed onto the would-be execution stake with her tail, steadying herself.

"Oh…" Lara blinked, craning her head back as the tree kept growing. It was sprouting pinecones of its own now, dropping seeds that birds and insects were grabbing to disperse. "So that's what he meant!"

"Wha–where did that come from!?" exclaimed Ariel.

"Tell you later! Right now…!" Lara spread her wings and crouched again. "We've gotta fly!"

Ursula rose again, her eyes bloodshot as she glared at Lara. "No! You're not going anywhere, you–!"

One of the tree roots speared through the foundation of the royal box, causing it to break. Ursula waved her arms for balance as the box began to tip back, then screamed as it collapsed.

"And that's our cue!" Lara spread her wings and then leapt as the pyre buckled and then collapsed on itself. Ariel and Lara were launched into the air, rising with the retreating flock for cover.

Ariel looked down at the sound of another explosive germination. Three more enormous trees were growing inside the bailey, scattering Strihaven citizens and Maelstrom menaces alike. The trees began destroying the castle walls, their roots and branches forcing their way through the tiniest cracks before violently expanding. Halls, archways, and chambers were toppled by the rising trunks. The chaos was not restricted to the castle, either. All of Strihaven was a battlefield. The winding maze of canals, streets, and buildings was littered with the flashes of gunfire and the sounds of fighting. Maelstrom's forces were being hard pressed by the people of Strihaven. She saw several of the gun nests being torn down by mobs, the large twin barrels being shoved off roofs to twist and break on the ground. Meanwhile, more trees were erupting as the birds and insects dropped the enchanted seeds during their escape, causing disruptive pockets of forest to appear.

"Willard…" she thought out loud. "How did you–?"

The whizzing of a bullet passed Ariel's ear and then Lara veered hard to the left. Ariel heard more bullets go flying past. She looked down and realized an increasing number of muzzle flashes were pointed towards them.

"They've spotted us!" Lara shouted, beating her wings hard to evade the bullets screaming through the air around them. She started climbing higher, chasing after a flock of birds. "Hang on, Ariel!"

Ariel clung to Lara's neck as tight as she dared. A bullet went tearing by Lara's head, the shrill sound ringing in their ears. A moment later one grazed Lara's left thigh and then her side. She hissed at the pain but kept flying.

Shreeeeeeee–BOOM!

A shell raced past Lara. She quickly wrapped her wings around them right as it exploded, cocooning Ariel and herself from the shrapnel that came raining down. Ariel heard it pepper Lara's wings and tail as it threw them both back towards the earth. More shells began exploding around them. Lara unfurled her wings and began flying towards the forest as fast as she could, shells filling the air above her with deadly shrapnel. She was forced to veer away when a shell exploded in their path, filling the air with lethal metal.

"What is that!?" shouted Ariel.

"Trouble!" said Lara. She looked down. Across the city the remaining gun nests were being heavily defended. Mutants and clockmen beat back commoners and soldiers while others shoved large rounds into paired guns, each one aimed up at the sky. Namely, at them.

"Are you kidding me!?" Lara yelled.

A symphony of flashes went off as the guns fired, followed by the shrill voices of another salvo of shells. Lara quickly banked to the left, avoiding the path of a round with inches to spare. It detonated above them, raining shrapnel down. Ariel cringed as a piece nicked her shoulder. Lara failed to contain her voice as several pieces of metal sliced her legs and back. Another shell went off behind them, the blast wave knocking Lara forward. She rolled through the air, losing altitude before she caught herself. But then another shell went off, forcing her to fall even farther as he used her wings as a shield again. All while the birds and insects that once protected them flew further and further away.

Ariel held tight to Lara, her ears ringing from the explosions and heart racing in her chest. She cringed as she heard a swarm of bullets just miss them. This was suicide! She and Lara were sitting clams up in the air like this! They might as well have a big red target painted on them! Any longer and one of those bullets or shells would find them, and then they would come crashing down to earth or be blasted to shreds. They had no cover up–.

Ariel looked down. Strihaven lay sprawled out before them, the streets winding their way through a maze of buildings, canals, and roads. Very tall buildings around very narrow roads and canals, with very tight turns and corners. She saw muzzle flashes from the guns of the mutants and clockmen scattered throughout the city, the gunfire loud pops from up here.

"Lara, go down!" Ariel yelled.

"What!?" shouted Lara right before another shell exploded.

"Down!" Ariel shouted louder." Go back down!"

"Are you crazy!?" Lara yelled even louder. "The city's crawling with Maelstrom! And they're all looking to shoot us!"

"I know! But down there, only some of them can shoot at us! As opposed to–!" As though proving her point, a shell exploded a hundred feet to Lara's right. The blast forced Lara to cover them as she threw herself into a barrel roll, narrowly avoiding the shrapnel.

"As opposed to all of themshooting at us!" finished Ariel. "Trust me! If we stay up here, we'll never make it!"

Lara looked at Ariel and then down at the city. She grit her teeth, visibly weighing their options. Then she gave a frustrated shout and tucked her wings in, diving back towards the ground. They rapidly gained speed, plummeting towards the gunfire. She reached up and grabbed her goggles, yanking them down over her eyes. Ariel heard the bullets and shells whistle past them over the roar of the wind in her ears. Already the Maelstrom weapons were struggling to match their speed.

"This is either gonna save our lives…!" Lara pulled Ariel in close as she aimed for a crowded street flanked by high buildings. "Or getting us killed!"

Lara waited till the last possible moment to pull out of her dive, bringing her and Ariel within feet of the ground. They went shooting down the street, flying just above the heads of the combatants below. The citizens of Strihaven were attacking the Maelstrom forces with everything they had. A clockman saw them coming and knelt, opening the cannon in its knee. It was about to fire when a pair of burly men charged into it, knocking it over and sending its shot wide. It struck the side of a building, blasting it out into the street. Lara beat her wings, speeding her and Ariel past the cloud of debris that came spraying out.

A gun nest at the end of the street saw them approaching. They quickly loaded the twin barrels as the gun swiveled down and around, aiming at them. A pair of clockmen began firing their chain guns, spitting a flurry of bullets out. Lara corkscrewed her way down the street, the shots slipping bast them.

"Lara!" said Ariel as the mutants shoved a pair of shells into the chambers. That Lara was not slowing down despite the rapidly approaching T-junction at the end of the street as also increasingly concerning.

"I see them!" said Lara. Ariel thought Lara was about to crash into the building when she flung her wings wide, bringing her and Ariel to a near-total stop in midair. Then Lara beat her wings, flinging her and Ariel down the next street right as the guns fired. The shots missed them, hitting the cobblestone and exploding. Lara kept her wings tight, the street not allowing her to spread them fully. They started losing altitude, but then she banked hard into a narrow alley and emerged out onto another street. A group of clockmen were fighting off a crowd of people. They were mowing them down one after the other with their chain guns, but the crowd was relentless. The clockmen quickly noticed the flying pair and turned their guns. Lara banked right and flew down the street as they started firing, their bullets trailing behind. She ducked low as a shell came flying at them from behind, flying over the top of them. It went down the street and collided with a building, collapsing the structure in a cloud of dust and fire.

"Davoro!" Lara shouted as they flew past. The fire came spiraling to her as she inhaled, sucking it in. Her hair glowed for a moment, and Ariel felt a brief surge of heat from Lara's body. Then Lara beat her wings and they flew even faster.

A gun nest ahead of them began aiming, but then an enormous tree speared up through the building it was mounted on. Gun, clockmen, and mutants went flying as the building surrendered to the tree, collapsing into a pile of rubble. Down below, the soldiers of Maelstrom began turning their focus on the escaping queen and her rescuer. Bullets filled the air as Lara swooped, dove, veered, and rolled as fast as she dared. Ariel felt her organs bouncing around inside her from the force of Lara's evasion. They flew past another gun nest, the barrels swinging around to track them.

"Lara! Behind us!" shouted Ariel as she saw the barrels pointing right at them.

"I know!" Lara raced towards a gap between two buildings, turning herself vertical right as the guns fired. She and Ariel narrowly slipped through the space as the shells impacted the buildings. Lara and Ariel rocketed out the other side as the buildings exploded, a plume of dust chasing after them. They were not in a street now, but a narrow canal winding its way through the town. A canal with banks teeming with mutants, all armed to the teeth.

Before they had a chance to line up a shot, Lara banked hard to the left and snapped her wings in, diving for the canal. She flung her wings open again just above the water and started flying upstream. Ariel heard bullets whizzing around them and saw the hundreds of splashes in the water from the rounds. The canal was narrow and littered with boats, docks, bridges, and all manner of obstacles. Yet Lara flew her way through all of them with an agility that would put a swallow to shame.

"Are you hit!?" asked Lara as they blasted underneath a bridge.

"No!" said Ariel. She cringed as a bullet ricocheted off the canal wall. "Do you know where you're going!?"

"Upriver!" shouted Lara. She suddenly veered upwards, narrowly missing a raft stacked with crates. "It's gotta exit the city somewhere, right!?"

The canal started a wide arc to the right. Lara turned with it, trying to stay as low to the water as she could. The tip of her right wing skimmed the surface as they turned. The clockmen and mutants were still firing at them, but they could not keep up with Lara's blurring speed.

Suddenly the canal turned sharply the other way, forcing Lara to bank hard. They came around a stretch of buildings and saw a straight stretch of canal to the city walls, a tall and imposing structure of gray stone. The canal passed through a heavy wrought iron portcullis. A pair of Maelstrom gun nests sat above it, already turning towards them. Strihaven guards were trying to push through, but the mutants and clockmen defending them proved an impenetrable force.

"Wings, don't fail me now!" Lara said. She started beating her wings as fast and hard as she could, putting on a burst of speed. The guns were getting closer and closer now, lining up their shots. "Come on! Come on! Come on!"

The mutants shoved the rounds into the cannons as they kept rotating. There was less that five hundred feet between them and the gates.

Four hundred feet.

"Lara…!" said Ariel worriedly.

Three hundred feet.

"Lara!" Ariel repeated, even more worriedly.

Two hundred feet. The guns were now lined up for their shots.

"Lara!" Ariel shouted. She clenched her eyes shut and looked away.

Suddenly Lara banked up hard, causing Ariel's innards to shift violently. Right then the guns fired, their rounds passing underneath Lara as she and Ariel went shooting up and then between them and past the city walls. Miles of open farmland stretched out before them now. They were out!

"We made it!" Ariel shouted. She looked back, seeing the city walls rapidly shrinking away. The Maelstrom forces were now scrambling to get their weapons pointed the other way. More and more trees were appearing within the city, adding further to the chaos. "We made it!"

A bullet when whizzing over her head, causing her to flinch.

"Not yet we haven't!" said Lara as she started weaving about as fast as she could, trying to make herself as hard of a target to hit. "Not till we reach the forest!"

Ariel could hear the bullets filling the air around them. Then came the shrill whistle of shells, followed by explosions of earth as they detonated. Clods and pebbles sprayed them as they kept going. Lara beat her wings as she sped over the land. She flew towards a farmstead, banking to fly behind the large wooden barn. A moment later a shell reduced the barn to burning splinters.

Ariel looked ahead at the dense thicket of trees that marked the start of the Emerald Woods. "We're going to fly through that!?"

Suddenly a piercing howl cut through the air. It sounded like a wolf to Ariel, but also entirely different. It made her heart beat faster and her hair stand on end. Then, to her amazement, the trees began to move. Their roots lifted from the earth and they pulled themselves aside. Meanwhile their branches reached up and entwined with each other, creating a long archway of trees.

"No!" said Lara. "We're flying through that!"

With that, Lara began beating her wings hard and fast again. The rushing air became deafening as thunder to Ariel's ears. The bullets and shells were rapidly becoming less frequent, falling progressively shorter of the pair. Then, with a final flap of her wings, Lara and Ariel zoomed into the forest. The archway continued as a single unbroken stretch, leaving ample room for Lara to fly within.

"Yes!" Lara shouted, then gave a triumphant whoop. "We made it! We made it! Take that, Maelstrom! Eat my dust!"

Ariel looked back. The forest was closing behind them, erasing their path as they went. She could not see the wall or the guns or Strihaven itself. The last several minutes were a blur to her. Now it all came into focus. Minutes ago, she was tied to a post and set to be burned alive. She thought it was the end. That there was no hope left. Now she was flying through a forest with Lara, headed to who-knew-where, very much alive, and very much out of Maelstrom's grasp.

She was alive. She was free. And she was safe.

Ariel did not know what to call the feeling that blossomed in her chest. It was both beautiful and overwhelming. It made her heart pound like a drum and her body tremble. Her eyes watered as she buried her face into the crook of Lara's neck.

"Ariel?" Lara glanced at her. "Ariel, you okay? You're not hit anywhere, are you?"

Ariel shook her head. "I'm fine, Lara. I just…I thought I was going to die!" She tightened her hold on Lara. "I thought they were going to kill me! I thought I was going to burn and…and…!"

Lara gently turned with the trail, giving her wings a beat to keep them aloft. "Just take it easy. I've got you. You're safe now."

Ariel lifted her face, her cheeks wet and eyes glossy. "Melody? What about Melody? Lara, please tell me she's alive!"

"Of course she's alive!" said Lara. "I promised I'd keep her safe, didn't I?"

"Where!? Where is she!?"

Lara nodded ahead of them. "She's with a friend of mine, along with the other survivors. Well, he's a friend of my dad, really."

Ariel blinked. "A friend of your father? Here?" She looked up at the arch of branches passing above them. "Is that who's doing this?"

"Must be, because it sure isn't me." The archway followed the rolling slope of a hill, causing Lara to slowly descend with it. "Point is, Mel's safe with him. And you will be, too."

That feeling inside Ariel grew even stronger, causing new tears to spill out. Melody was alive. Her daughter was still alive! And so was she!

"Thank you," she said, resting her head against Lara. "Thank you! Thank you!"

Lara spared Ariel a glance, then smiled as she returned her eyes to the path ahead. "Anytime."


Ursula could count the number of times she felt this angry on one hand. She slid through the wreckage of the bailey on her tentacles, sliding over stones, tree roots, and bodies. The ground was littered with them, mutant and human alike, gray eyes staring up at the sky. More than a handful of clockmen lay broken and lifeless, while others were crippled beyond use. One was pulling itself along with its arms, its legs crushed beyond use. Meanwhile, clockmen and mutants continued rounding up the last of the rebels, subduing those who surrendered and dispatching those who would not. She heard a pained scream cut short. The pyre was a smoldering pile of charcoal and ash, the last blue flames dying out.

She slid around a tree, facing what remained of the royal box. It was a pile of broken wood now, as demolished as the castle itself. The trees showed no mercy to the ancient building. The towers, keep, and walls were all toppled by them. Half of a Strihaven banner stuck out from under a stone, its colors smeared with dirt. And there, slumped beside it, was Willard.

Ursula strode up to him. She thought he was already dead till his chest expanded, drawing a wet rattling breath. She knelt, lifting his face with a tentacle. His skin was gray with death, blood dribbling from his lips and the hole in his chest. His eyes were half lidded, but they opened with recognition at seeing her face. A small smirk played at his lips.

"So…" he croaked. "She got away…didn't she?" He made a noise Ursula guessed was a chuckle. "Too bad…for you."

Ursula scowled darkly, hands clenching into fists. "Was this your plan all along? To get close to my sister and I, then kill us?"

"Since the day…we met." Willard coughed, spitting out blood. "As I told Ariel…I want…my son's death avenged." He looked up at her. "And I want the ones responsible…to face justice. The whole kingdom…did."

A wooden creaking noise made Ursula look over her shoulder. A tree root grew slightly and then stilled. She turned back to Willard. "How did you coordinate this? We've been watching you since day one. Even more so after you sided with us. So how did you make this happen behind our backs?"

Willard tried to chuckle, but it came out as a wheezing exhale. "You're not the only ones…who know…how to plot in secret. We had…our ways."

"And they failed! You failed!" Ursula seized Willard's hair, twisting it hard. "You didn't kill me! And you didn't stop us! All you accomplished was throwing away your life and your kingdom! All for nothing!" She leaned close to his face, angry breath hissing through clenched teeth. "You understand me, Willard? For nothing!"

Willard closed his eyes, his breath escaping in a shuddering exhale. Ursula thought he died for a moment, but then he breathed in and his eyes opened. There was that smirk again. That irritating, gloating smirk. "Now I see. No wonder the Master…has no faith in you. You really are…as stupid…as you are…incompetent."

Ursula seized Willard by the neck, barely restraining herself from snapping it in half. "What was that!?"

"You said it…yourself. When it comes…to that little mermaid…you can't…be too careful. Time…and again…she's thwarted you. No matter…what you do…she always…defeats you." Willard swallowed loudly, drawing a choked breath after. "And now, she's free… to do so…again. I may not…have avenged…my son today. But I can die…with my soul at ease. Because as long…as Ariel is alive…I can be certain…of one thing."

Willard gazed directly into Ursula's eyes. "You…will…fail…"

Death's haze clouded Willard's eyes as his final breath left him. He went limp, his life spent and soul departed. Ursula stared at him for a moment. Then she seized him by the coat and hurled his body away with a furious yell. Her eyes were boiling with anger, chest heaving as she clenched and unclenched her hands, tentacles twitching with rage. She grabbed her hair and screamed again, venting her frustration to the sky.

She lost her! She lost Ariel again! How!? She was tied to a post! Surrounded by clockmen and guns and mutants, and then even more throughout the city! Guarded by a literal army, all put in place to make sure she burned to charcoal! Missing an arm, to boot! And still she got away! With the help of birds, bugs, trees, and that mangy flying pyromancer pet of hers! Lara was supposed to be dead, along with Melody! Richard was supposed to see to that! How was she still alive!? And how did she pull this off!? Since when could she grow a forest out of thin air!?

And above all else, why did nothing ever go her way!?

Ursula yelled again, grabbing a large stone and lifting it overhead. The muscles in her arms and back bulged to inhuman size as she hefted and then hurled it away. It flew and embedded in a tree, shaking it from base to top. She almost yelled again but stopped, closing her eyes as she forced herself to calm down. Yes, Ariel got away. Yes, Richard clearly failed to kill Lara and Melody. And yes, they clearly had help from someone or something. But they were sorely mistaken if they thought this rescue changed anything.

"You think you're safe!?" Ursula shouted. A manic smile crossed her face as she cackled. "You think you've saved her, Lara!? No! No, you haven't! I'll find Ariel! Just you wait! You can run, but you can't hide! I'll follow you! I'll hunt her to the edge of the world if I have to! And when I find her, I'll find you, too! You, her daughter, and every other pathetic sea slug that escaped us! You'll see! You'll all see!"

The sound of footsteps caused Ursula to spin around. In her fury she drew back an arm, intending to smash the head off who or whatever it was. Clockman, mutant, human – she did not care. She just wanted to take her rage out on something and destroy it utterly and completely.

Who she swung at, however, was Remora.

Ursula registered the witch's mask too late to stop her strike. Remora quickly ducked the blow and then thrust her palm hard into Ursula's gut, striking her with physical and electrical force. Ursula went tumbling away head over suckers before smacking into a tree. She lay dazed and twitching, electrical arcs dancing over her skin.

"Get up!" snapped Remora, her hand crackling with lightning as she approached. "That wasn't enough to kill you! Back on your feet, and watch where you're swinging! The next time I won't be so kind!"

Ursula groaned as she sat up, rubbing her aching head. "What are you doing here, Remora? I thought the Master had you under house arrest!"

Remora replied by firing a lightning bolt directly past Ursula's head. It struck the tree behind her and blasted out the other side, spraying splinters and burning wood as though the bark had been packed with gunpowder. Ursula clapped a hand over her now ringing ear. Clearly Remora was not in a mood for trading barbs.

"I was!" snarled Remora. "Until we saw what was going on here!" She walked up to the tree, placing a hand over the scorch mark her lightning left. "You've made a real mess of things! Again, as usual!"

"Oh, no! You're not pinning this on me!" Ursula swayed upright, giving her head a shake. "My job was killing Ariel! And it would've happened, too! But clearly, someone didn't do their job of finishing off Lara, because that winged pain in the neck just swooped in and made off with her! And with help! Because to my knowledge, animals and trees are not her specialty! And it was you who said she has no magic! You! So, if you're looking for someone to blame, go tan Richard's hide and then your own!"

Remora spun to Ursula, a loud buzz emanating from her. "You had an army, you whinging chum bucket! A literal army! This place was packed with our forces! You had guns on every other rooftop! And you were beaten by a bunch of pests and some foliage!"

"We were prepared for Lara!" snapped back Ursula. "That, or some pack of desperate hobbled-together survivors! Not a bunch of flying rats and a literal forest!"

Remora kicked away the limp arm of a dead Strihaven guard. "And let's not forget this debacle you let happen under your nose! Strihaven was your task! The Master placed you in charge of overseeing it! Or do you have someone else to blame for that, too!?"

Ursula opened her mouth to speak, but then shut it. Remora had her there. Strihaven was indeed her responsibility. She was the one tasked with keeping tabs on its movements. And keep tabs she did. There was nothing that happened in this kingdom she did not know about. If the grocer by the western canal raised the price of his potatoes, she knew how much. If the palace guard changed their shifts, she knew when. If Willard wanted steak for dinner, she knew how cooked he wanted it. How he was able to coordinate a kingdom-wide rebellion without her catching the smallest whiff of it was beyond her. It proved a failed rebellion, but a rebellion none the less.

Remora folded her arms. "Well?"

Ursula scowled at her. "No. But I will find out how. And I will find Ariel again! Right after I turn Richard into a rug!"

"You'll have to find him first," said Remora.

Ursula's anger gave way to surprise. "Find him? He's missing?"

"Along with his pack." Remora unfolded her arms and stomped her foot. A lightning-ringed portal opened in the ground, and she stepped in. Ursula followed, falling into the darkness. A split moment later she fell out the other side, landing on top of the eastern-most wall of Strihaven. From here, she could see the extent of the damage Ariel's escape caused. More than half the city was overtaken by forest, the immense trees dwarfing the houses. The fighting proved equally destructive, turning the streets into the demolished remnants of a warzone. Buildings were burning, and others had collapsed to ruin. Bullet holes were everywhere. Trash and debris clogged the streets along with the bodies of the dead. What remained of Strihaven's population was being rounded up and marched down to the water, Maelstrom's metal ships rising from a blackened sea to take them away to a life of enslavement.

"There's been no word from them in three days," said Remora as she walked along the wall. "No sign of them, either."

"Three days?" Ursula fell in step behind her, keeping a cautious distance. "But that's right after the Master sent him to kill those two!"

Remora said nothing back. She just kept walking. A clockman marched by, dragging a pair of wounded humans by their hair. The men breathed but were unconscious, large bleeding wounds on their heads.

"I'm guessing you haven't found any clues to what happened to them?" said Ursula. "Otherwise, you wouldn't bother telling me this."

"No, we haven't," said Remora. "At this point, we're assuming three things. One, Richard is dead. Two, so are all the werewolves he took with. And three…"

Remora stopped, turning to face the east. The farmlands were being set aflame, creating large plumes of black smoke. The glowing lines of destruction crept outwards, turning crops into ash and desolation. Beyond the haze the Emerald Woods stretched out for leagues across rolling hills before climbing into the Howling Forest and then yielding to the White Iron Mountains.

"Wherever they are now, it's going to be even harder to find them." Remora folded her arms again. Ursula could see how tightly her fists were clenched, the tendons in her hands standing up under her skin. "Much harder."

Ursula felt an ache in her wrist from where it was shot. She rubbed the area, soothing the discomfort away. "I wouldn't be so sure."

Remora turned to her. "And why is that?"

Ursula smirked, tapping at her temple with a tentacle. "Because I'm the smart sister, remember? Don't misunderstand, I'm still furious those red-headed tramps got away. But I think you'll find this works in our favor, as well."


Ariel felt they must have flown for hours. The forested archway grew before them as fast as it closed behind them, constant creating and erasing their path. Elm, oak, and maple yielded to pine, spruce, fir, and redwood. All parted to allow them safe passage, safe from pursuit and prying eyes. It became hypnotic. Were it not for Lara catching her up on all that happened since their separation at the pavilion, she might have dozed off.

"I still can't believe you did that, Lara," said Ariel. "Bargaining with the Hive Queen. You're the one who warned us how dangerous she is!"

"Yeah…" Lara angled left as their path curved again. "Not my smartest move in hindsight."

"But if you hadn't, many more people would have died. So I'll forgive you for it."

"That's nice and all, but there's still an angry nyctophile Eternal out there expecting a fight from me. And not just any old fight."

"Are you really going to do it?"

"I have to!" Lara sighed nervously. "Somehow…hey, look!"

Ariel looked up. The forest had changed again. The trees were even larger now. Larger than any Ariel saw before. They no longer moved aside for them, but they were so large Lara was not lacking for space to fly between them. Their moss-covered trunks reminded Ariel of some of the ancient ruins surrounding Atlantica, old stone columns coated with algae and seaweed. Her eyes widened when a trio of small faeries flew up to join them, their tinkling wings leaving glittering golden trails in their wake.

"Are those faeries?" breathed Ariel. "Real faeries?"

"You think that's impressive?" said Lara. "You haven't seen anything yet."

She banked around a tree, emerging into a wide clearing. A crystal-clear pond stretched off to the right, a single large oak growing on an island in its center. Animals of all sorts, common and mythical alike, foraged and mingled around it. Ariel's mouth fell open with awe as she beheld the beauty of it all.

But none of it was a tenth as beautiful as the raven-haired young woman who came running out of a hollow beneath a long-dead tree, arms waving excitedly as she jumped up and down. Ariel gasped. She would have clapped a hand over her mouth if she had one to spare.

"Mom!" Melody shouted up. "Mom!"

Lara glanced over her shoulder, grinning at Ariel. "Someone's excited to see you!" She started circling to descend. "I've got her, Mel!"

Melody shrieked when she saw Ariel's hair, clasping her hands to her mouth. Then she turned back to the hollow. "Sarah! It's Lara! She's back! And she has mom!"

"She did it!?" came Sarah's distant reply, making Ariel's heart skip another beat.

"Yeah! She did!" Melody started running circles underneath them, trying to be right with them when they touched down. "Mom! Mom!"

"Melody!" Ariel shouted back.

Lara did one more circle and then leveled off, angling her wings to slow down before banking up and then dropping. Lara barely stood up before Melody all but pulled Ariel out of her arms, dropping to the ground as mother and daughter embraced. It was almost painful how tight they were holding each other. Neither of them cared.

"You're alive!" Ariel cried, weeping tears of joy and relief. She kissed Melody all over her face. "You made it!"

"You, too!" Melody was crying as well, wetting Ariel's hand with her tears as she cupped her daughter's cheek. "I thought I lost you forever!"

"So did I!" Ariel hugged her again, the two rocking back and forth. She rested her head on Melody's shoulder, letting herself become lost in the embrace. The smell of Melody's hair. The warmth of her skin. The sound of her breathing. Just a few hours ago Ariel thought she would never experience these things again. Now she was here with her daughter once more. They were together again, and they were safe.

Sarah fumbled out of the hollow, shoving her shoes onto her feet. "Your majesty!"

Ariel looked up and gasped when she saw the young doctor running towards them. "Sarah!? Is that really you!?"

Sarah quickly knelt beside her. "It is! I'm so glad you're–!" Her eyes widened when she saw the cloth wrapped around what was once Ariel's arm. "Your arm! It's…!"

Melody now realized it to. A horrified shriek came out of her. "Mom! Where's your arm!?"

"Never mind my arm!" said Ariel. "Where's Arista!? Lara said she's–!"

"Ariel!"

Ariel looked up and started crying anew when Arista rose out of the pond, waving to her. Her sister began leaping through the water towards them.

"Lara, catch!" shouted Arista before she dove in again.

"Hold on! I–whoa!" Lara discovered Arista meant catch very literally when she came soaring out of the water directly towards her. She darted and only just caught her, stumbling several steps before finding her balance. "A little warning next time, maybe!?"

"Never mind that!" said Arista. "You! Me! To Ariel! Now!"

It took most of Ariel's will to not drag herself across the ground to Arista. Lara brought her sister over and set her down. Arista's scales barely touched moss before she jumped out of Lara's arms and wrapped Ariel up in the tightest hug she could. Ariel hugged her back no less earnestly. This all felt so surreal. A part of her was even worried she might wake up back in the Strihaven dungeon at any moment. But Arista did not fade away. Neither did Melody as she hugged the both of them together. Nor did Lara as she stood over them. She really was safe. And so were they.

Ariel looked up, seeing Lara standing back with that lopsided grin on her face. She beckoned to her and Lara knelt, allowing Ariel to hug her again. "Thank you, Lara! Thank you so much! We owe you our lives again! Thank you!"

"It's not just me you should thank," said Lara as she stood again. "This wouldn't have been possible without him."

"Without who?"

Lara just nodded and Ariel turned around. Her eyes widened as an enormous white wolf-like creature with blooming branches for antlers and the four seasons for tails emerged from behind a tree. The colored patterns on his fur were as graceful as the strokes of a paintbrush, and his eyes gleamed with an emerald light. She saw plants bloom and wilt with each silent step of his feet.

"It's extremely rare for anyone to meet even one Eternal in their lifetime," said Lara. "Now, you can say you've met two!"

Ariel swallowed as the creature approached. His eyes were fixed on her. That gaze alone left no doubt in her mind this really was an Eternal. The last time she felt this sensation, she was alone in a room with the Hive Queen. And before that, she was conversing with Bel'al himself. This being gave off the same air, the same immense presence that they did. But whereas the Hive Queen's air was dark and menacing, and the Solar King's was fierce and intimidating, Kodama's was ancient and humbling.

"Hail, Queen Ariel of Seahaven," said the creature. It stopped in front of her. "I bid thee welcome to my domain."

Ariel gulped. "W-Who are you?"

"I am Kodama, Voice of the Wilds, and Lord of the Four Seasons." He leaned down towards her, causing her to reflexively back away.

"It's okay, mom," said Melody, placing a reassuring hand on her shoulder. "He's a friend."

"Thou may lay down thy shield in my presence, mermaid," said Kodama. "There be no foul intent for thee here."

Ariel looked at Melody, her eyes asking for confirmation. Melody gave it with a nod, and so did Arista when Ariel looked to her, too. Taking a breath to steel herself, Ariel scooted towards Kodama. He leaned in again and took a deep sniff, closing his eyes. His nose alone was almost as big as her face.

Kodama opened his eyes, looking to Lara. "Thy devotion to this family was once a curiosity to me. Now I comprehend." He nodded to her. "Thy father would approve."

Lara stiffened visibly, but then relaxed. Kodama returned his attention to Ariel. He glanced at her missing arm, his eyes narrowing. He sniffed at it and growled slightly. "The stench of witchcraft is upon thee."

"No surprise there," said Lara. "It was Remora who did it."

Sarah moved to Ariel's left side. "May I?"

Ariel nodded. Sarah carefully peeled away the bandage. Ariel winced as it came off, parts of it clinging to her wound. She caught a glimpse of the edge of her stump and immediately started to feel dizzy. She quickly looked away as Sarah removed the last of the bandage. "How bad is it?"

Lara leaned over, grimacing at what she saw. "It's, uh…well, it's not pretty."

"Most of this is cauterized," said Sarah. "Like something burned you. It's clean, at least. It should heal over as long as it doesn't get infected."

"And if it does get infected?" asked Ariel nervously.

"Let's not cross that bridge unless we come to it," said Sarah. "And try to avoid it as best we can."

"Um, Kodama?" said Lara. "You think you could…you know?"

Kodama looked blankly at Lara. She nodded towards Ariel, but he just blinked at her again. "Oh, come on! She's missing an arm! An entire arm! Have a heart, won't you?"

Kodama kept staring at her. Then he sighed. "Very well."

Now it was Lara who sighed. "Thank you!"

Ariel looked between them. "What are you two talking about?"

"Just sit tight and watch," said Lara.

Kodama lifted his left paw. Before Ariel's eyes it transformed, white fur becoming black as toes became long sharp humanoid fingers. A single point of green light glowed at the tip of a finger, and then he touched it to Ariel's arm. She gasped as she felt magic go surging through her, as though she were placed in the middle of a raging river. A green aura enveloped her body, and then concentrated on what was left of her amputated arm, forming a revolving green ring.

Then the magic started. The ring began moving down, restoring Ariel's arm as it went. She watched with wide astonished eyes as her limb came back one inch at a time. Within seconds she had an elbow again. Moments later half a forearm, and then her wrist. The ring continued till the very tip of Ariel's fingernail was returned to her, and then it faded like wafting smoke. Ariel moved her hand, feeling its motions. She ran it over the mossy ground, feeling the damp coolness of it against her palm. It was her arm. Her real, genuine arm!

She looked up at Kodama. "Thank you!"

"Your thanks be not needed, but are appreciated." Kodama looked at her arm, and then he growled again as his eyes narrowed. "That, however, be of concern."

Ariel looked at her new arm. There was a thin scar encircling her bicep halfway up. Above it, however, was a set of two black bands made of strange marks. They looked like tattoos. Except tattoos did not move about like they were alive. Nor did they glow with purple light.

"What is that?!" said Arista, Melody, and Sarah at the same time.

Lara's eyes widened and then she scowled. "Kodama, is that what I think it is?"

"I sense thy suspicions be correct," said Kodama.

Ariel hesitantly touched the moving marks. She only felt skin. "Lara, what is that?"

"That's a tracking curse." Lara knelt beside Ariel, taking her arm and moving it around. "And a powerful one at that."

Ariel's eyes widened. "A what!?"

"Lara, please tell me you didn't just use 'tracking' and 'curse' in the same sentence!" begged Melody.

Ariel gulped. "I think I already know what you're going to say, Lara. But I have to ask. What does it do?"

"And how did it get on her?" asked Arista.

"If this is what I think it is, and I'm ninety-nine point nine-nine-nine-percent sure I am…" Lara watched the marks make a complete circuit around Ariel's arm. Her scol deepened. "This curse has two parts. One is the mark that goes on the target. And the other is the corresponding map."

"Map? What map?" asked Ariel.

Lara took a breath. "The map that tells the caster where you are."

Ariel gasped loudly. The mark had suddenly taken on a far more sinister presence. "Ursula!"

Lara nodded. "Or someone else in Maelstrom. They must've put it on you while you were out. They weren't gonna let you go easily. Or…" Her expression turned fearful. "Maybe that's exactly what they wanted!"

"You mean they can track her here!?" said Arista.

"Not for long!" Lara placed a hand directly over the mark.

"I thought you said your magic was gone," said Ariel.

"Not gone. Just very weak. But I've got enough for this." Lara rested her hand against the curse mark. "This might sting a little."

"I promise you, I've felt much worse!" said Ariel. Still, she steeled herself for what would come next. Even if it hurt, though, she would endure it. They had to get rid of this curse. If Lara was right, and they had to assume she was, as long as Ariel had this on her, Maelstrom would know exactly where she was.

Ariel's eyes went wide as she gasped. Maelstrom knew where she was!

The first white flames appeared on Lara's hand. "Nag–!"

"No! Wait!" shouted Ariel, yanking her arm away. At the same time, Kodama's eyes flashed. Vines sprang from the ground, wrapping Lara's wrist and pulling her away right as white flames enveloped on her hand.

"What was that for!?" shouted Lara as she sat up.

"Lara, stop!" shouted Ariel. "You can't take it off!"

"Can, and have to!" Lara reached for Ariel again, but the vines grabbed her. "Let go of me, Kodama!"

"Calm thyself," said the forest spirit. "Heed the queen's words."

"Mom, you can't keep that thing on you!" said Melody. "It's telling Ursula where you are!"

"That's why it can't come off!" said Ariel.

"You're not making any sense, Ariel!" said Arista.

"Just…!" Ariel closed her eyes and breathed. "Listen! All of you! This mark is telling Maelstrom exactly where I am right now, yes?"

"Right…" said Lara.

"So, they know I'm here."

"Yes!" said Lara. She looked to Kodama. "Unless you've got some sort of anti-tracking-curse barrier or ward up around this place."

"There be no such enchantments upon my realm," said Kodama.

"Well, you might want to add it to your to-do list!"

Arista grasped Ariel's arm. "Ariel, let her take that thing off before Maelstrom comes running!"

"If she takes it off, they will come running!" said Ariel, jerking her arm away. "Think! If they know where I am right now, and then the curse disappears, where do you think they'll go to try and pick up our trail?"

Ariel could have sworn she heard gears moving about as everyone considered her question. One by one she saw the grim realization strike them.

"They'll go to the last place it was still working," said Melody. "Which is here."

"Where all the survivors are," Lara added. She sighed and hung her head. "Fan-freakin'-tastic…"


"As you can see," Ursula said, holding the map out in front of her. "The curse is intact and performing perfectly."

Even through the enchanted parchment, Ursula could make out the Master. At least, she assumed it was him. A sphere of shadow surrounded him, swirling and sinuating like smoke. She could barely make out his form inside, like the smudged outline of a human drawn in charcoal as he sat upon his throne of bones. The only was she knew for certain it was him was the pair of glowing blue eyes staring out at her. That, and the terrible pressure coming off him, as though his magic were a flood and his body the cracked dam failing to contain it. The dim of his chamber was darker than usual, the white torches drowned by it. Remora stood by the Master's side as Riptide loomed above them, his giant yellow eyes staring down with ceaseless hunger.

"Where are they now?" asked the Master. His voice was still thin and labored, but already she could hear improvement. He was regaining his strength, and quickly.

Ursula looked at the map. Specifically, at the red circle rotating near its center. "A valley in the White Iron Mountains. I estimate thirty, perhaps forty leagues due northeast of Seahaven. There's a river that connects directly to it." She rolled up the map. "With any luck, we'll find not just Lara and Ariel, but the princess as well."

"I hate to admit it," said Remora. "But you actually did something useful for once…eugh! Did I just say that?"

"Seems you did," wheezed the Master. "Well done, Ursula."

"Unlike my sister, I've learned a thing or two about planning ahead." Ursula chuckled smugly. "I planted the curse on Ariel just after Remora dumped her off in Strihaven. The curse is subtle, simple, and undetectable to all but the keenest eyes. Even if they do remove it somehow, it will still show us the last place it was working."

"What's its range?" asked Remora.

Ursula smirked. "Far enough that Lara won't be able to fly her out of our reach anytime soon."

"So, we know where they are," hissed Riptide. "What now?"

"We go get them, obviously!" said Remora, punching an electrically charged fist into her palm. "And no screw ups this time!"

"Indeed," said the Master. "Ursula, prepare to march."

"What!?" shouted Remora.

Ursula fumbled with her map, almost crumpling the parchment. "Wait, me?"

"You. Take–." The Master paused as a coughing fit came over him. "Take one hundred clockmen, two hundred werewolves, and five hundred of your mutants. Outfit them with whatever arms and armor you require. March as the crow flies. Find them. Kill them. And bring their remains and the Wellsprings back."

"You're seriously sending her after them!?" snapped Remora. "After this latest screw up!?"

"Her failing is paltry compared to yours!" barked the Master. He had to pause as he fell into another coughing fit. "It is because of you that I am in this state, and that we now must restore the Seahaven invasion force! Otherwise, I would send them as well! You will remain at the factory, as ordered! Ursula will see to this!"

Remora swung her scythe angrily. "You send her after them and we lose them for good!"

The darkness around the master grew darker still. "Perhaps you require a different punishment? One more fitting to your failings?"

Remora glared angrily at the Master. Arcs and sparks danced at her fingertips as they stared each other down. But then Remora stepped back, bowing her head. "No, sir."

"Good." The Master looked to Ursula. "You have your orders. I give you one day to ready your forces. By the second, I expect you to march."

"Yes, Master." Ursula bowed, then rolled up the map and turned to leave.

"And Ursula," the Master said. She stopped, turning to him. Just one look in his eyes and she felt like she was standing right in front of him, his hands clenched around her throat. "Do not fail me again."

Ursula gulped. "I wouldn't dream of it, sir."


A/N: Even in the darkest hour, the light of hope still shines through. A daring rescue has pulled Ariel from the jaws of certain death, delivering her to family and safety. But the joy is fleeting, for Maelstrom's grasp is as far-reaching as it is tainted. Ariel now bears their mark, calling to the enemy as a siren calls to a ship. To remove the curse is to invite them into their haven. To leave it be, however, is to continue to keep the signal flame lit. How will they move forward now? What path will they take to escape this new danger? Find out in the next chapter!

DISCLAIMER: I do not own "The Little Mermaid," Disney, or any of its associated characters and intellectual property. I do not own any of the songs/music listed. Everything else, however, is mine =)