Antonio swooshed around some pillars of rocks, then hid in the nearby crevice, hoping to lose the temperamental merman that was hunting him down. He really should've known that Basch would be on his case, once it was discovered that Erika had been transformed into a human.

He held as still as possible, pressing himself into the rocks, as the merman slowly passed by. Basch's teal-green eyes did look towards the crevice, but not intently enough to see that anyone might be hidden there. He then kept swimming further around the rocks.

Antonio relaxed for a moment and pulled his hand out from behind his back, revealing the glowing seashell that was just moments before getting squished against the rocks. It was a relief to see it had not been damaged in that moment, as well as being hidden well enough for Basch to not notice it.

What Antonio had told the humans about the seashell this afternoon was only partially true, the exchange was not yet complete. The fates had proven true about Erika's voice being of value for a barter exchange, as Francis summoned him this morning to help find the voice of a siren. The fae had negotiated a fair price for it, and Antonio was just fetching the shell from his home when Basch terrorized the ocean with his shriek.

Hearing movement in the water nearby, Antonio tucked the shell behind him once again, and held still in the dark crevice. A mermaid swam past the crevice towards Basch, who was now circling a nearby area in bewilderment. Antonio had spotted her a few times this afternoon, with her darker skin and icy blue tail, she seemed to be helping Basch with the chase.

"Basch, it's getting late," she whined, "We've been at this for hours, can we just go rest now?"

"He's around here, I know it," Basch insisted, "That slippery tentacled bastard can't hide forever."

"And you can't stay out here forever either," she pleaded, "This part of the sea is dangerous, you know there are other creatures that will find you after dark. And you know he wouldn't venture out in these parts after dark either. Come home, rest for the night, and find the sea-witch in the morning."

"Ugh, fine."

Antonio waited a little longer as Basch and the mermaid swam away, back towards the mer-city, before finally emerging from the crevice once again and swimming quickly to the northeast. The mermaid was right, there were creatures that came out into this area during the night that neither merfolk or cecaelia dared to cross paths with, so fleeing to the greater oceans was not a possibility.

Not that he really needed to flee Basch tomorrow. Today's hunt only really needed to happen because the shell with Erika's voice was still in his protection. Once the exchange was complete, there would be nothing Basch could force Antonio to do.

After several minutes of swimming, Antonio noted the bottom of the seafloor quickly rising below him, and gradually rose to the surface to emerge and observe his surroundings. He was already very close to the shore, Niba and its castle in the distance to the left, and an old wrecked dock protruding from the shore a short ways to the right.

A person was sitting on that derelict dock, wearing bright red and blue clothing, and Antonio already knew exactly who it was.

He dove under the water again and swam towards the dock, slowing as he got closer until he merely coasted under the rotting planks to the other side. As he emerged, his friend crossed the deck to look at him. He wore blue clothes with a red cape, which swayed in the light breeze with his shoulder-length wavy blond hair.

"There you are," Francis greeted, "It's already almost sunset."

"Sorry about that," Antonio apologized, "Had to lose my tail first."

"Your tail?" Francis wisecracked, "Figuratively, I hope, you don't have tails."

"Of course I didn't lose a tentacle," Antonio snarked, "I was being chased around the ocean by the siren's big brother."

"Which siren?" Francis checked.

"The one I took this voice from," Antonio answered, holding out the seashell to display.

"Ah, you have it then," Francis verified as he pulled a gem out of his pocket and rubbed it with his thumb, "The fae are waiting to join us."

"I'm sure they won't mind the delay," Antonio guessed, "They'd even prefer less sun than this."

As Antonio finished his comment, three Unseelie fae suddenly appeared on the dock, a few feet away from Francis. Two of them were dressed in the ornamented navy blue uniforms of the royal guard, while the one in the middle wore a fine suit of red and gold befitting his royal status. All three fae had pale yellow wings that matched their individual shades of blond hair.

"Your Highness," Antonio hailed, "A pleasure to see you, Ludwig."

"Antonio," Ludwig addressed, "You have the siren's voice?"

"Right here in this shell," Antonio confirmed, "Where are my pearls?"

Ludwig motioned to his guards, who each pulled out a bag from behind their backs. They walked forward and placed the bags on the edge of the dock within his reach. As the guards backed away, Antonio swam up and grabbed the first bag, peering inside to see there were indeed approximately hundred blue pearls inside. He then grabbed the second and looked inside, finding the additional hundred white pearls.

"Payment is accepted," Antonio declared as he placed the seashell on the deck, "The exchange is complete."

"Excellent," Ludwig acknowledged as he stepped forward and took the shell, "We have our first artifact then."

"It's coming soon, then, isn't it?" Antonio pried, "The time for the ritual?"

"Only a week away now," Ludwig relayed, "We do not yet know what effect there will be on the seas, so be ready for that."

"No doubt I will," Antonio promised.

"That completes our business here," Ludwig determined, "Stay on standby, Francis, we may need your assistance with the other three items."

"Of course, your Highness," Francis complied.

"Before you all leave," Antonio interrupted, "I have information you may all want to know about."

"What about?" Ludwig inquired.

"Natalya," Antonio hinted.

"Natalya?" Francis repeated, "What do you know?"

"I saw her today at the shores of Niba," Antonio revealed, "I almost didn't recognize her right away, it's been many years since I last saw her. She claims to have escaped the tower, and now she is in the company of those twin Princes, along with the mermaid I took this voice from."

"Gilbert will want to hear about this," Ludwig noted, "Tell me, Antonio, did you happen to see a white ribbon anywhere on her?"

"I didn't get to look that closely at her clothing," Antonio recalled, "She had a ribbon in her hair, but that was a dark purple. There was something white tied to her wrist though, it could've been that."

"I'd be shocked if she didn't keep it on her at all times," Francis vouched, "She knows that the ribbon is magical, she wouldn't just leave it anywhere. She's already used her long hair once to escape the tower, she would surely know to use it again if necessary."

"It will be easier for all of us if it's on her," Ludwig agreed, "When we get her to Tivalon, it will come with her."

"And how exactly will you get her into Tivalon?" Antonio grilled, only to see a devious smirk on Ludwig's face.

"Don't be so naive, Antonio," Ludwig teased, waving the seashell in his hand, "After all, there's more than one way to use a siren's song."