Silas couldn't decide whether to be happy about the news that the sirenians would help him or disappointed that he would have to continue his journey alone. When he left the mountains, he had been determined to venture into the human realm on his own, but now the prospect did not generate as much excitement as before. It was true that they had already discussed it with Olivia, but, now that the decision was about to materialize, he had the impression that a hole was opening up in his chest. He had felt it once before, a while back, and it had taken him a long time to close it.

Or maybe it had always been open, and he just decided to ignored it. Now, against all odds, that half-human, half-elven girl had appeared to remind him of it.

Thalassa's words brought him out of his reverie.

“It's time for us to prepare,” the sirenian and her partner got up and headed for the door. “Wait here, and don't even think of going out, unless, of course, you want to talk to your father.”

Olivia let out a snort in response.

Before walking out, Mantok turned his head toward a window, where he could see the moonlit surface of the lake.

“Numi, since you're already sneaking around, why don't you keep an eye on them while we go talk to the rest of the chiefs?”

That said, to the astonishment of both Olivia and Silas, the young sirenian girl leapt through the window, as if she had been perched on it for a while.

“Hello!” she exclaimed, waving a hand, as if she were nothing more than a neighbor passing by for a visit.

The old chief left laughing, but not before winking at them.

Numi sat across from the two of them with her legs crossed, although Silas could tell she was having a hard time sitting still as she shifted uncomfortably.

“I knew there was something fishy about you the moment I saw you! That means my magic sense is getting better! Soon I'll be able to sense things like granny!" she patted her chest proud of herself. She had spoken as if the situation was the most normal thing in the world.

Sirenians and humans were weird.

“I don't want to talk to you!” Olivia exclaimed angrily.

“But we were doing so well a while ago!” Numi protested, pouting.

“At the time I didn't know who you truly were!”

“And I didn't know who you were either, but I don't care!”

“I do care!” Olivia narrowed her eyes as if she had just realized something. “What... when did you...?”

Silas had noticed it from the first moment Numi set foot inside the hut. The sirenian's long, fluffy hair had shortened to just above her ears, forming a dense crown of tight curls around her head, almost as short as Olivia's hair.

“Ah! You like it?” Numi ran her fingers through the now short locks.”

“But what have you done to yourself?” Olivia sounded horrified.

For some reason, hair was a very important issue to girls.

“I cut it off, silly!”

“Why did you do that?”

“To make us look alike. We're sisters!”

“We're not... that!” Olivia seemed to be having trouble pronouncing the word. “You didn't have to!”

“Papa used to tell me you had long hair, and that's why I let it grow. Now I find out you had short hair!” that last statement sounded like a complaint. “You look like Papa, I look like Mama. Now this makes us look a little more alike.”

Actually, they didn't look anything alike. Olivia had white, rosy skin, while Numi had dark skin with golden tints. The half-human's eyes were blue as the sky, the sirenia's were green as seaweed. Olivia's hair was silky and Numi's frizzy. The former was thin and of medium height, the latter taller and stocky.

Although he did have to admit that the two of them shared the same fervent energy that Silas found so exhausting. The only reason he hadn't noticed it before was because Olivia had been holding back since they had come into contact with the sirenian family, plus she was furious at the moment.

The day both girls were in a good mood, Silas wouldn't want to be with the two of them together. They would end up consuming him with their endless rambling.

Other than that, he had no reason to dislike the sirenian. The only one to blame for all that confusion was the Count, though Silas could understand Olivia's anger and his loyalty was with her.

What did he mean by loyalty? He was starting to have strange thoughts again.

“Can you stop calling him “Papa” for a moment?” Olivia complained, “This is all too much!” she rubbed her hands through her hair.

Numi mimicked Olivia's gesture.

“It's too much for me as well.”

“I really coudn't tell!”

“Why do you think I've been waiting hanging out the window? I couldn't wait to talk to you!”

“We have nothing to talk about!”

Numi pursed her lips.

“Until now you were an only child. Didn't you ever want to have siblings, like me? Although I have a lot of cousins, but that's not the same.”

“Well, no, I was perfectly fine being an only child!”

Numi's eyes bugged out.

From everything Olivia had told him, Silas knew she would have wanted siblings too, but, of course, she wasn't going to admit it to the sirenian even if they put a sword to her neck.

“It's a pity, since we like the same things.”

“I don't think so.”

In a second, Numi's attitude changed again, and she appeared determined.

“I like books!”

Silas looked at Olivia with a hint of amusement in his eyes, expecting the girl to say that she didn't really like them, but it seemed that such a lie would be too much for her, so she kept quiet.

“I even have the same ones as you!” Numi continued.

“What do you mean, the same ones?” Olivia asked in frustration.

“Papa...” replied Numi embarrassed, and then coughed. “He always brought me copies of your favorites. That's how I knew we both loved romance stories between court ladies and mysterious knights! My favorite is the one about the maid who ended up being a lost princess from another kingdom, and ends up falling in love with an unjustly banished nobleman! What's yours?”

Olivia's face caught fire, and Silas let out a gasp most resembling a canine laugh.

Numi didn't wait for the answer. She reached into her clothes, pulled out a bundle of crumpled parchments, and began to show them to Olivia.

“Look what I have!”

Silas looked up, and saw that these were ink drawings made by a child. They appeared to be a bunch of deformed mermaids swimming in a sea full of seaweed and round fish.

“I drew that!” Olivia protested.

“Yes, Papa brought them to me...” she looked a little embarrassed. “He said that you had already forgotten about them, and that it was no problem if I kept them... Meanwhile, I drew these to give them to you in person one day.”

She showed them several other drawings depicting a girl with long black hair riding a horse through the forest with her father, and another one in the castle among books.

“And in this one I drew the four of us. And it came true! Well, partly...”

In the last drawing there were four people in front of the lake. From their features, there was no doubt that it was the Count holding Yaritza's hand and next to them two smiling girls, also holding hands.

“What else can I tell you?” Numi thought for a moment, “Ah! I have a seal, and you have a chimera.”

“I'm not a pet, sirenian,” growled Silas.

“I never said pet, it's also my friend,” replied Numi offended. “Someday I'll introduce you to her, and you'll be friends. Her name is Coral.”

“No, thank you.”

“My name is Numi.”

“I know that...”

“What's yours?”

“Silas...”

“Like the chimera of the giant king!” she looked in Olivia's direction. “That was in one of your books!”

Olivia rubbed her eyes. Silas was amused that she felt as stunned as he did.

“I mean...” the girl let out a long sigh. “You've known all that since you were a child.”

“I always knew it. My mother has never kept anything from me. Between parents and children there should be no secrets.”

Silas stirred uneasily, and guessed that Olivia was also affected by the comment.

“Good for you,” she replied. “But I've never heard from you.”

“I...”

“Everyone here knew...”

“I'm sorry...”

“You can travel the entire sea, and you even enjoyed seeing your parents together.”

“Ah, well, not that,” corrected the sirenia in a way that sounded even agreeable because it was another thing she had in common with her sister. “Dad could only visit me a couple of times a year. Besides, they are not a couple, at least not yet...”

This book was originally published on Royal Road. Check it out there for the real experience.

“But you...”

“Just because I exist doesn't mean anything. Until Mama accepts Papa, they can't be a couple.”

Olivia's voice became curious.

“And why won't she accept him after all this time?”

“It's complicated, adult stuff... she has told me things, but kept others to herself... Part of it has to do with you.”

“With me?”

Of course, Silas thought, her father's mistress wouldn't like another woman's daughter.

“She didn't want to promise herself to him until you knew the truth of everything.”

“Ah...” even the chimera realized that Olivia had bitten her tongue, perhaps silencing a scathing remark she had been about to utter.

“So... now that you know everything... maybe they'll get promised this year... finally. We'll be a family like I always wanted!”

“Wait...” Olivia was already starting to get impatient again, but Numi grabbed her hands.

“I know you are angry now, but I want you to know that you have me now. You are not alone,” Numi patted her chest again. ”You have your big sister to support you!”

“Big sister?”

That must have hurt, Silas thought. Not only had Olivia learned that she had a sister, but Numi was the firstborn. She had become the younger sister in an instant.

“Ah, but don't worry,” Numi tried to reassure her, although it may not have helped. “The laws of humans are clear. A daughter like me could not be the heiress. You will be the Guardian of the Circle, although for Papa's sake we hope it will be many, many, many, many years before that happens.”

Olivia protested again, and the conversation continued in that unbearable back-and-forth for a while longer. Both girls were stubborn, and neither seemed to want to give in. Silas felt deeply grateful to Mantok when he interrupted them by appearing in the doorway.

“Ah, you seem to have enjoyed a nice conversation,” he commented after seeing Numi's smiling face which contrasted with Olivia's tiredness and Silas' posture as he lay down on the floor with his paws over his ears. “It is time now. The chiefs have been assembled.”

As Silas descended the stairs of the hut, he spotted the somber Count with Yaritza and two other members of the family. The sky remained dark. It must be at least two hours before dawn.

With Mantok in the lead, the group continued along the shore of the lake, moving away from the vicinity of the village, until they reached a rocky area. They continued along a winding path until they reached an open space illuminated by the moon. At the center awaited a group of about twenty elderly sirenians, among them Thalassa. All were dressed in loose robes, and were sitting silently on the rocks, while watching them attentively, some with their backs stiffened in solemn attitude, others more relaxed as if it were nothing more than a social gathering.

Seeing the group arrive, Thalassa stood up.

“Brother chimera, in front of you stand all the sirenian chiefs of the tribe.”

All the sirenians bowed their heads, and Silas responded with the same gesture.

“You will be pleased to know that when they heard of your predicament, they all agreed to come and listen to your request,” continued Thalassa. “But in order to help you we need you to answer honestly first.”

“What is all this, wasn't it supposed to...?” that voice was that of the Count, who no sooner had he started to object than he was silenced by Mantok.

The sirenians had their eyes fixed on him, and all the confidence Silas once had about the outcome of that hearing faded away. He suspected what they were about to ask him, and he was unsure if he could answer without being untruthful.

“For a start,” said one of them, “we would like to know why you left the safety of the mountains.”

That, in fact, was not a question he could not answer, but it didn't mean that it was easy for him to share with strangers the real reason that had led him to make such a drastic decision.

But he couldn't act proud if there was any chance of crossing the sea.

“I was abandoned by my pack,” he finally answered.

The sirenians exchanged glances.

“Why?”

“I was not worthy,” he thought that would be enough, but some sirenians raised their eyebrows, as if waiting for him to continue. “Despite thousands of attempts, I could not master my power. Only now, at an age that is already considered late among chimeras, I am improving. But one day, due to the effort, it became impossible for me to follow my brothers' footsteps in the snow, and they left me behind. Since then I wandered alone. I thought I would freeze to death, but I managed to leave the mountains, and found refuge in the castle of Shadowrock. There I met Lady Olivia, who after a long journey has brought me to you.”

“So you haven't got your name yet,” pointed out a sirenian.

“I had thought otherwise,” added Thalassa.

Silas was about to reply that no, he had not really obtained his name. The one he had at the moment was nothing more than a sham, a silly consolation he had allowed himself even though he knew he didn't deserve it.

“Of course he has a name!” exclaimed Olivia. “His name is Silas!”

“And who gave it to him?” asked a sirenian confused by the interruption of such a daring young lady.

“Olivia, shut up, don't talk nonsense!” protested Silas, humiliated, feeling an agonizing desire to drown himself in the lake.

“I don't know what the problem is, nor do I care to know, but I believe that by the mere fact of existing, any living being deserves its name!”

“That's my sister,” Numi whispered in agitation.

Mantok let out a laugh, and Silas turned his head to see how he patted the Count on the back, who was looking at his daughter in confusion.

“In that case, brother chimera,” Thalassa said as her lips parted in a smile, “allow me to disagree with you. You may have lost your former pack, but it seems to me that you have managed to find another one.”

To Silas this seemed foolish, but he thought it unwise to contradict the sirenian. He refrained, therefore, from answering.

"And what is your purpose here?" asked one of the sirenian, “What do you hope to accomplish so far from home?"

"The chimeras were not part of the Covenant. Have you really come in peace?" asked another.

Peace? Silas would have laughed, but restrained himself. That peace they talked so much about had never existed. They could tell stories and play at being friends, but the old grievances were still there. He had spotted them behind the arrogance of the wizards, in the stormy violet color of Daephennya's eyes, in the fear of the sirenians themselves who spoke so much of fraternity, and in the connivance of the same nobles who had no qualms about using an innocent girl as a pawn.

The sirenians were right to distrust him, but he could not back down. He needed to answer something that would convince them.

“I want to master my power. I have been told that the Archmage of the island will be able to help me.”

The sirenians looked at each other again.

“And once you have mastered it?”

“Will you stay on the island?”

“Will you risk being discovered by humans?”

“Will you be able to forgive the same race that almost destroyed yours?”

The very thought choked him. Forgiveness? Did they really think forgiveness could be an option? Humans had hunted them without mercy, they had used their parts for experiments and potions, the skins of his ancestors had been hung to decorate the great halls of the castles, while the survivors had become slaves, like his grandfather, who, after being freed once the Covenant was settled, had lived long enough so that Silas could hear from his own mouth all those atrocities that caused him horrible nightmares when he was just a cub.

And Olivia, was she not only a human, but also an elf? If he carried out his revenge, would she understand, or would they end up facing each other?

But they were not friends. They were temporary allies, and once he left the lake he would terminate their pact.

“I have not decided,” Silas observed how the sirenians narrowed their eyes. “I don't even know if I will be received by the Archmage either. In fact, I could well end up dead before I reach the island, and I will no longer be a problem for everyone here.”

“Silas...” Olivia muttered.

“I want to know your world, and decide for myself. I have no choice but to keep moving forward.”

At least, that was true. He knew nothing about the Archmage. It was a desperate gamble.

“What about your traveling companion, what does she think?” asked a sirenian.

“Since we've known each other, I haven't seen any hint of evil in him,” replied Olivia with such conviction that it made Silas uncomfortable. “During our journey, he could have abandoned me a thousand times, but he did not.”

The sirenians looked at her with indulgence.

“You are still very young, but we will take into account the trust you have placed in him” agreed one of them.

“We'll have to look into this carefully,” said another.

Mantok stepped forward.

“If my sirenian brothers and my dear partner will allow me, I don't think it will be necessary to spend all night deciding.”

“This is a very delicate matter, brother, which could disturb the balance we have worked so hard to achieve,” replied a sirenian.

“He is a child, what harm do you expect him to do? Can't you see that he barely has enough power to keep himself in that form?”

Silas was hurt that the old man called him that, but since he was defending him, he didn't object.

“For a hundred years our people have been waiting for a sign from the Mountain Clan, and here it is,” Mantok continued. “Do we not fervently wish to end the painful rift that still exists in our kingdom? Or will we continue to pretend that we do not see it? This may be a very small act, but it is the first step.”

“This boy will grow up someday,” a sirenian pointed out.

“And what do you want him to remember as an adult? Do you want him to remember how you denied him your help in a time of need, or do you want him to remember how we opened our arms as the brothers we essentially are? And this girl,” he pointed to Olivia, “the one you have called innocent, is an example to us all, abandoning all that was known to her to rescue a stranger just because it was the right thing to do.”

Mantok's words echoed in the air. Thalassa gave her partner a warm smile.

“You sound too serious to be yourself, Mantok,” commented a sirenian in a sly voice. “You just want to get back to the party. Admit it.”

“Brothers, sisters, you got me,” replied Mantok, raising both arms, ”Let's get it over with, I'm getting hungry again!”

This, to Silas' surprise, aroused laughter in the solemn chiefs.

Still, they withdrew for a moment to deliberate among themselves. When they returned, Silas knew from the look on Thalassa's face that they had agreed. His heart began to pound. For a moment he thought he would lose his dog form.

“We will help you to transform,” she told him. “But that will be all. We can't get any more involved than we already have. We believe, moreover, that your journey alone will be a test of your determination.”

As soon as Silas agreed, the rest of the sirenian chiefs advanced among the rocks, and jumped into the water. Their scales soon began to glow.

“You must say goodbye now,” there was a hint of sadness in Thalassa's voice.

Silas stood stunned, unable to move. His own pack had left him behind, he had never had to say goodbye to anyone.

His back was turned when Olivia hugged him from behind. Discounting that time in the tree, which had been nothing more than an accident, it was the first time she'd ever done it consciously.She rested her head behind his, as she whispered in his ear:

"Safe travels, Silas. You may not like it, but I'll be praying to the Nymph, the Dragon, and even the Eternals for you to arrive safe and sound. I'm sure you'll become the most powerful chimera of all and bring peace to your people and the other races. Oh, and if it's not too much trouble, I'd appreciate it if you could at least send me a pigeon to let me know you've arrived safely, and tell me all about the island so I can be insanely jealous. Of course, you'll first have to learn to write even if you don't like it, because I know you won't want to ask anyone for help."

Silly girl, thought Silas, you have no idea. And since he couldn't return the hug in that form, he rubbed his snout against her hands. He could have told her many things too: that he hoped she would resolve everything with her family, that she wouldn't have to cross paths with that evil elf anymore, that she wouldn't marry the prince, and that she would find some way to escape to the island. Maybe Numi could help her get there, once everything had calmed down, but he felt foolish just thinking about it.

After a few brief seconds, she finally let go of him, and her warmth abandoned him. The chimera wished he could turn around to see her face one last time and etch it into his mind, but he feared that it would cause a pain he wasn't ready to feel.

He moved behind Thalassa, and jumped after her. The cold water stunned him at first, but at least it was a distraction. Two sirenians approached to help him swim, and they moved away from the rocks until they reached what seemed to be the midpoint between both ends of the lake. In the distance, he saw the lights of the village, and the faint shouts of its inhabitants still immersed in their celebrations.

He turned his head towards the shore where Olivia had stayed, but he couldn’t see her.

The sirenians formed a circle around him, each placing a hand on his body, from which golden lines began to emerge, ascending and intertwining to form a spiral of patterns.

From his position, Silas couldn't see well what they were doing with his Code, but Thalassa explained how the sirenians used the memory contained in their own Code, a product of their countless sea travels, to transfer a portion that would allow him to generate new patterns on his own and speed up the transformation. However, since these were not his memories, they would eventually dissipate over time.

“We have chosen a form that will grant you great speed, and prevent you from being attacked by predators,” Thalassa explained. “Still, do not feel too confident or push yourself too hard. We found a knot in your Code that I believe explains why you’ve had so much trouble controlling your power.”

“A knot? You mean the Dragon's seal?”

“This is different and, fortunately, it can be reversed. In the case of chimeras, the Dragon created a seal that limits the degree of transformation they can achieve. It has no other function. However, this knot of yours prevents your energy from flowing freely. Until you untie it, I’m afraid you will continue to have difficulties.”

“Can’t you fix it as you’re doing now?”

“The knot is tied to one of your memories. I can’t know what it is, but I sense great pain. Only you can untie it.”

“I think you could actually do it, but you want me to do it myself... it’s just another test," Silas complained.

Thalassa smiled.

“You still have a long way to go, brother Silas, and, like your friend, I foresee greatness.”

The light emanating from the spiral intensified, and Silas noticed the first changes in his body. The texture of his skin began to change, the temperature of the water no longer seemed to bother him, his legs stretched in odd directions, and he experienced a strange sensation as if he were inflating from within.

However, something distracted him from this most unusual transformation.

From the village, loud noises like drums began to be heard, although they sounded different from the ones he had heard during the celebration. Focusing on his ears, which were beginning to shrink until they disappeared, he heard desperate screams mixed with those erratic drums.

As the transformation process came to an end, he observed the faces of the sirenians, who looked confusedly toward the shore.

Then, he realized.

Those sounds were not drums.

They were explosions.