Chapter Four

Morgana was finally free.

Time had lost its meaning during her imprisonment. Morgana had been unable to move with the small exception of opening and closing her eyes. But where she landed had been so dark it didn't matter if they were open or not. Occasionally an angler fish or a bioluminescent eel would scuttle past her, giving off a small glow.

It was a small distraction from the one thought that circled her mind.

Revenge.

Morgana plotted in detail exactly what she would do once free of her prison. She dreamed of snatching the trident again. Then she'd turn all her enemies into polyps that would cower as she swam over them. Except for the crab; she'd eat him. Morgana would rule the seas. She'd sink every human vessel that dared to enter her realm and the entire world would fear her very name.

The sea witch just could never figure out how she'd get free in the first place.

During one of her revenge dreams, Morgana felt something bump into her prison. Upon opening her eyes, Morgana saw a mermaid staring back at her intensely. This mermaid didn't appear afraid. If anything, she looked excited.

The stranger flicked her tail and moved backward a few feet. This allowed Morgana to take in the visitor's full appearance. The stranger had an orange tail, but unlike the other merfolk, she had yellow stripes and brown tipped spines along the sides. Between that and the crown displayed in her voluminous hair, there was only one merperson the stranger could be.

The Elemental Saleen.

The sorceress had the power to free Morgana without the trident, but what would she demand as payment? And would her freedom be worth the price? As Morgana debated amongst herself, Saleen flicked her wrist and the ice shattered into a thousand pieces.

The first thing Morgana did was take in a deep breath of saltwater. Then she stretched out her arms and tentacles. Being trapped in ice was a sure way to get a cramp. The sea witch turned her neck to the left, and then to the right, then to the left again to see Saleen grinning at her.

Morgana cleared her throat and put on her sweetest smile. "Why, thank you ever so much. Saleen, isn't it?"

"The one and only," the elemental preened. "Now, who are you and what nasty things have you done to get trapped in ice? Or was it nothing but a stupid mistake? I hope not. That would be sooo boring."

"Oh, yes, that, well, erm…" Morgana knew very little about the sorceress in front of her. Saleen was mentioned in the scrolls Morgana had studied to obtain her power. And her name was mentioned plenty of times in merfolklore. Some might just assume Saleen was just a legend. But Morgana had seen too much to not believe in the possibility of the impossible.

Still, that left Morgana with a choice. Lie and risk Saleen being just as an annoying do-gooder like Triton, or a kismet spirit?

"I just tried to take over Atlantica," Morgana waved her hand as if it was nothing. Saleen's true motives were still unknown, but it looked like the sorceress was bored and needed a good story.

Unfortunately, Saleen was now pouting. "Is that all? You couldn't do it, I suppose."

"And you could?" The words slipped out her mouth before Morgana could stop them.

"Of course. But it would be too easy."

"Um, yes, well, I was very close. I had Triton's trident in my hands and all the merfolk were bowing to me."

"Then what happened?"

Morgana was relieved to see Saleen take an interest again. "I was attacked by a creature the trident couldn't control."

Saleen laughed. "You were bested by a human? How pathetic!"

Morgana smiled as an idea began to form. "Not a human exactly."

That got Saleen's attention. "Well, then, what? It couldn't have been a mermaid. Was it one of those, what do humans call them, the things with four legs and fur?"

"No. A little minnow of both worlds by the name of Melody. Her mother is princess Ariel, the youngest daughter of King Triton. Her father is king Eric of the land."

"A mermaid and a human? Having a minnow together? How was this done?"

"That's the delicious part. Her mother, you see, traded her fin for legs."

Immediately the water around them began to churn and Saleen's eyes started to glow red with rage.

"Did I hear you correctly? A mermaid…traded…her tail…for LEGS?!" Saleen shouted.

"Can you believe she did such a dreadful thing?" Morgana sniffed. "I blame the parents."

"Well, I have something to say about that." The ocean was calm again as suddenly as it had started. In two pulses of her tail, Saleen surged ahead. As if on a second thought, she turned around. "Are you coming?"

Morgana smiled as her stiff tentacles moved her forward.

Revenge might be easier than she had ever hoped.