Melody was trying to keep a straight face, but she was ashen and shaking from head to fin at the thought of being brutally dismembered by her Sirens. All of the other Sirens, except for Hydra, appeared to grow wan at the thought. Echo scoffed loudly, then emitted a loud sigh.
“Melody didn’t cause any bodily harm to Hydra, and she was doing it because she’d already claimed that human as her own victim. I think dismemberment wouldn’t really fit the crime in question.”
“Yes, I agree, to say the least,” piped up Marina. She took a hand and slid it back through her wavy, lavender hair, the newly short length of which was allowing it to dry quickly in the crisp air of the cavern. “If the Goddess decrees that we find a punishment for Melody, that is fine, we can do that, but I think even Hydra is not willing to tear her apart.”
Hydra’s bright eyes shot a look at Marina. “Speak for yourself- that might be too enjoyable to pass up,” she hissed. Marina looked back at Hydra with a steely glare, and Hydra began to laugh in her signature dark way, as if all of the joy was being drained from those in her vicinity. “I’m only joking,” she said, shrugging nonchalantly, “although I do want to see her pay for what she did to me. A little slap on the wrist won’t quite suffice.” The words sounded sharp on her tongue.
Melody cleared her throat. “Can we talk about how we weren’t even supposed to be attacking any humans yesterday? We weren’t given clearance by Chieftess Laguna yet, and thus every one of us is guilty of disregarding orders. How can you sit here looking at my actions when you pushed me to defy her orders?” Her voice sounded hoarse.
“You’re the leader!” Hydra screeched. “How can we push you to do anything? You should be the one taking command of the six of us, but instead you bend like seagrass and then blame us for your inability to take charge. You feel frustrated by your lack of authority, and you take out your frustration by attacking one of your own. You’re pathetic!”
“You really do lack authority. It’s gotten worse lately. Are you really, like, wanting to lead the Chorus anymore?” Rain asked as she twirled a blonde lock around her finger, staring at Melody intently. Melody looked back at her, running her eyes over Rain’s perfectly formed cheekbones and flawless skin. Her pearly pink tail was moving back-and-forth languidly in the water below. Melody felt the sudden urge to lunge at her, clawing her beautiful face to shreds. She looked down at her own hands, heart pounding. The most deafening silence she had ever experienced was closing in on her. The flickering torchlight was causing the wet stone walls of the cavern, uneven, sharp and rugged as they were, to appear almost alive. She felt her words catch in her throat, suffocating her, when her mother began to speak.
“It appears that we have strayed from the topic at hand. The Goddess decides who will lead you, not any of us, so that is not up for discussion. What is up for discussion is the manner in which we will bring Melody to realize the seriousness of the offense that she has committed. We need to stay focused, as you can air out all of your grievances with one another at a separate time and place, outside of this sacred site.” She finished and, looking around at the other sirens, opened the air for discourse.
“Melody, it is your sworn duty to protect us. Why did you attack Hydra?” Luna asked simply. Melody met Luna’s beautiful eyes that resembled melted gold. Luna’s face was serious, unreadable. Her back straight, tall, and hands clasped in front. Her hair, a blue so dark that it was almost black, was braided into tight strands with gold threads spun throughout. Melody thought that she looked truly regal sitting there. You should be our leader. She thought. Shame, guilt, all of the feelings that she had been harboring over the past few years, were building by the minute as she sat there. She started to feel the pressure of trying to hold back tears. The comfort of the buoyant salt ocean was not present to hold her up and hide her imminent tearfall. In the open air of the cavern she felt naked, alone. Truly alone.
She looked at her mother. Appearing more majestic and royal than even Luna. Resplendent in her stone crevice that might as well have been a throne. Pearl-white hair cascading down her shoulders and meeting her opalescent tail. Her golden headdress, adorned with pearls and opals throughout, was glittering in the light. Her mother was this immutable prominence, bathing everyone else in the shadow of her grace and power. Limitless, as far back as Melody could remember. She bowed her head as the tears came, shaking at the pressure building inside of her. I’m not good enough to hold this mantle… Why can’t I just disappear? It would be better for everyone.
“Melody…” Wave’s meek voice wavered as she beheld her friend’s torment. “Melody, are you okay?”
Melody was shaking, head in hands. She couldn’t bring herself to look up at everyone. All of those whom she had let down with her own selfish wants and desires. Feeling empathy towards the humans had caused a rift in her own Chorus. She was made to kill humans, but she couldn’t help her own feelings.
“I…” Melody trailed off. She contemplated, how she could express the swirling thoughts in her mind? How could she make them understand? They had been born and raised in a culture that sees humans as fodder for the Goddess. Why was she so different from them? Who was she?
“I… I care for him!” She cried. Tears were streaming down her face now, and she felt helpless to her own emotions. There was silence again. This time, it was a heavier silence. There was the sound of tails shifting on the cold stone. Eyes on her.
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Wave was looking down, not meeting Melody’s eyes. No longer acknowledging her. Like Melody was a pariah, and she was trying to distance herself.
Hydra, though, she began to laugh. It filled the entire cavern. Her laugh rang into every corner. Rain began to laugh, too- nervous at first, but then growing louder and louder. Marina and Luna, stoic as they were, stared at them in incredulity. Echo and Wave were looking down at the water. Silent, contemplative. Laguna- her eyes were on fire. She was emanating a ferocity that had not been felt before by any of the Chorus members.
“Th-this is g-glorious!” Hydra cried, doubled over. Her water serpents glanced at her, and then back to Melody. They looked nervous, as if wondering whether their master had really cracked finally. “I c-can’t believe this! It’s better than I could have imagined. A m-mermaid, no a siren, falling for a h-h-human!” Hydra could barely get her words out. Rain, who was sitting next to her, was nearly falling out of her seat. One arm was draped over Hydra as if they were sharing in an especially juicy joke at Melody’s expense.
“Melody, is this true? Are you sure?” Echo’s voice was, for once, quiet- barely heard over the raucous laughter happening in the other corner of the circle. “You were distracted by romantic feelings for a victim?”
Melody blushed, covering her face with her hands to hide her embarrassment. She neither confirmed nor denied these allegations. When she heard her feelings put in such a way, she felt such a deep shame that she prayed to the Goddess that she could be transported to anywhere but here.
“She can’t help her own feelings!” Wave suddenly spoke out. Everyone turned towards their eyes on her. “She’s our leader, but she’s also a merfolk, part of the ebb and flow of the ocean. Our waters are brimming with emotion, and it’s a true testament to her mermanity that she feels so strongly, even if we don’t understand what she’s feeling. She has always been there for us. Remember when the Tiamata’poa tribe attacked us? We were caught off guard, and if it wasn’t for her risking her own life, we would all be dead. She was our hero at that time, and we made it known! Now we abandon her when she is feeling the most vulnerable? Is it really right to punish her after her very first offense?” Wave finished and, looking around at all of the others, she appeared fierce for once in her short life. “She does one wrong thing, and suddenly you forget all of the actions that she has done to protect us? She has been a great leader for all of these years. How dare you sit here and pretend that you don’t remember.”
“We appreciate what she did for us at that time, Wave, but it doesn’t negate the fact that she puts our tribe at risk now. You speak of Melody being vulnerable in her emotions, but our tribe is extremely vulnerable at this time. We are trying to build our village after moving many, many leagues from our home waters. We are in a strange land, and the last thing that we need is poor leadership.” Luna stated, matter-of-factly.
Hydra’s laughter had lessened now, and there was a darkness that had descended over her face. She jumped off of her seat and swam through the warm waters, reaching Melody and putting her hands on either side of her. “You’re even more pathetic than I ever imagined.” She grabbed Melody’s arm roughly. “Come into the water with me. Let’s duel. If I am able to kill you, maybe the Goddess will choose to let me take your place. Maybe I can bring honor back to our tribe by killing you.” She had a crazy look in her eyes. Melody held eye contact, unwavering.
Chieftess Laguna sighed. “Hydra, you’re correct about one thing- this brings a terrible shame upon us all. After Melody’s confession, we have no choice- we must take drastic action to test Melody to ensure that she can prove that she is truly worthy to be the leader of the Chorus. Although the Goddess is the only one that can choose the leader, she has still put in place certain instances in which we can run our own trial, of sorts. However, a one-on-one duel is not part of the protocol. That would just cause the Goddess to punish us for letting our sirens tear one another apart. Please, sit back down. I’ll explain.”
Hydra growled at Melody and turned around, swimming back to her seat. She was gritting her teeth as she sat, looking slightly disheveled. She really was ready to tear me apart, wasn’t she? Melody thought.
“This trial-” Laguna continued- “If Melody fails, she will die and the Goddess will be forced to choose a new leader. If she survives, she will prove that she is worthy to be your leader, and all thoughts of human sympathizing will be washed from her mind. If she survives, she will be reunited with the true concept of bloodlust, and this should erase any discourse that has occurred within herself. She may come out from this a changed mermaid, but it will be for the best.” She nodded solemnly. Melody looked up at her mother, eyes wide. “We are speaking, of course, of the Tiamata’vanya. The bloodletting ceremony.” Chieftess Laguna finished, looking around at the circle. There was hushed talk now, as one another turned to each other to discuss.
Marina, her petite face vexed with curiosity, spoke up next.
“Chieftess, can you please explain? I do not remember ever learning of this ceremony.” Her bright blue eyes were glowing faintly.
“Ah, yes,” Laguna nodded, “You would likely not have heard of this trial, since it has never been performed in your lifetime. It’s certainly less grotesque than dismemberment, but it is extremely dangerous to the siren that is under trial. It is reserved for a siren that has committed treason, but there is disagreement amongst her sirens as to her punishment. It takes the decision making out of the hands of the sirens and puts it into the hands of fate. The six of you will all be responsible for draining Melody of her life-force. Her powers will dwindle until she can no longer utilize them. She will be extremely close to death, and thus will feel the most intense bloodlust that she has ever experienced as her body yearns to be refueled. In this powerless state, she will be required to find several human victims and kill them in order to increase her strength until she is back to normal. It is a very difficult trial, since none of you have ever killed a human without your siren powers to rely on. If she survives the trial, we will forget her prior transgressions and move on. If she dies, as I said, another leader will take her place.”
“When will this take place?” Luna asked. Chieftess Laguna thought for a moment.
“On the next full moon.” She stated.
“That’s only in a few days!” Melody shouted, “Don’t I have time to prepare myself?”
The chieftess looked at her oldest daughter. A glimmer of sorrow passed over her face, but was gone quickly. She is so good at hiding her own emotions. Why can’t I be like that? Melody thought bitterly.
“It must be so. We must get this issue resolved as quickly as possible. I was hoping to resolve it today, but I quickly saw that there would be no agreement amongst the seven of you, so there is no need to continue this discussion. The trial will take place on the next full moon. The end.” Laguna sounded tired as she finished her sentence. She pushed herself off of her seat, and into the water below. “The exit to this cavern is at the bottom of this pool.” She said succinctly, and disappeared below the surface.
The abrupt conclusion to the meeting was causing all of the sirens to silently reel in their own thoughts. They sat there for a few moments, in silence, looking at one another. Then, one by one, they jumped into the comforting warmth of the pool below, following their chieftess down to the exit. Melody was the last one to leave. Wave and Echo motioned for her to follow them. “I’ll be there soon.” She said, smiling at them, and they understood. As their colorful hair disappeared below the pool’s surface, Melody watched them. Then, she cried and cried for a long time.