The veil of darkness covered the town. The street lights were not illuminating it, as they always turned off at midnight and stayed off until five AM. If you looked into the sky, you would see the stars. Millions of them scattered over the sky canopy, like tiny pearls.

In the night when Ms. Cyan was to take her final journey to the ocean, sleep eluded me. I came out into Ardea's garden just to stare at the perfection above. I wasn't the only one who had trouble sleeping. As it turned out, Mr. August and Mathias shared my fate.

"What if something goes wrong?" I heard Mathias asking.

The sound of footsteps let me know that his uncle couldn't stay put. He must have had the same doubts.

I took a few steps closer after which Mathias sniffed the air and said, "Guilty conscience won't let you sleep? Have you regretted interfering into Professor Cyan's life?" His eyes flashed in the delicate starlight. 

"I haven't regretted it," I replied. "But that doesn't mean I don't fear the events to come."

°  °  °  °  °  °  ° 

The stars were still visible on the background of the dark sky when my father parked a rented van by the back door of the clinic. A water tank, smaller than the one in the recovery room, but large enough to host one Aquantien, was secured in the back of the van.

Under the cover of darkness, Doctor Kasian escorted his patient out of the clinic. They walked hastily towards the vehicle because she was not breathing. She was no longer able to inhale oxygen from the air, so she held her breath. The distance she was supposed to cross that way wasn't large and there was no fear that such a short walk might be fatal to her.

At least that was what we assumed.

When I thought about it later, I realized that we made a crucial mistake. Both Ardea and her father wore their contact lenses. Such a small oversight might have had devastating consequences.

After spending weeks in the water, Ms. Cyan was once again an Aquantien in every sense of the word. And one of us had difficulties being around Aquantiens.

When the clinic door opened, we were all focused on our Professor, neglecting to pay attention to the werewolf. A throaty growl was heard a second before Mathias pushed Opal and Nia aside, attempting to lunge forward.

His uncle tried to stop him, but he was no match to the strength of a werewolf. While Ms. Cyan's eyes were widening in disbelief, Ardea leapt in front of Mathias gracefully as a cat. In one quick motion, almost too fast for our eyes, she removed her contacts and commanded, "Mathias, stop!"

As if he were struck by a lightening, he halted, lost his balance and fell down on his knees. "I'm sorry," he whispered. "I'm so sorry..." He was breathing heavily, his nostrils flared, his eyes chained to the eyes of the elf.

"Take her to the water!" The words Nia shouted brought us out of the state of temporary shock.

While Doctor Kasian was helping Ms. Cyan get into the tank, Ardea squatted in front of Mathias. "You will not do something like this again," she said. "You will leave here present Aquantiens alone. Can you promise me that?"

We all impatiently awaited his answer, and when it finally came, it did not ease the tension among us. "No," he replied. "Keep me away from her. I'm not in control of myself."

"The potion!" Opal remembered. "Take some of that potion you drink!"

He reached into the pocket of his jacket and pulled out a small vial. It was empty. "I'm all out," he said.

"Didn't you have a bottle full of that stuff?" she asked.

"Haven't I been here with Aquantiens for weeks?" he responded with a counter question. During all that time his stare never left Ardea's eyes. "Leave without me." He had to swallow to get rid of the lump in his throat before he continued. "That would be for the best. I'm sure Professor Cyan would prefer if I stayed here."

"Don't speak in my name." Our Professor lifted her head above the water level to respond him, then quickly dove back in. The water was very successful in disguising her Aquantien smell.

"You should have told me," Doctor Kasian said after he approached Mathias. "Among my staff I have those who would be able to prepare you a fresh dose. But it's too late now." He turned and walked back to the van.

That was it, I thought. After being with Ms. Cyan through everything she went through, he will miss the most important part. If I could have hugged him, I would do it, but there was nothing to mask my Aquantien smell, so I stayed put.

Doctor Kasian returned, carrying something in the palm of his hand. "When there's a will, there's a way," he said and smiled. "If we don't have the potion to numb your senses, maybe overloading them might work."

"Smelling salts!" Nia exclaimed. "How clever."

Ardea closed her eyes and stood up, allowing Mathias to get up as well. He looked at Doctor Kasian when he handed him the smelling salts. Mathias' shaky hand took it, crushed the small package between his fingers and brought it up to his nose. He inhaled deeply and frowned. Even those of us standing far from him were able to smell it.

''Well, what are you waiting for?" Opal asked me. "Go to him, so we can test Doctor Kasian's theory."

I felt as if something cut my legs off at the knees. After Mathias' assail, I was supposed to test an unconfirmed theory? The dread must have been painted all over my face. I was glad it hadn't dawned yet.

"She doesn't need to come closer," Mathias said with optimism. "It's working."

Just five minutes later we were on our way towards the town on the shore of the sea. My father drove the rented van, my mother and Harper by his side. Doctor Kasian, Opal and I were in the back, sitting on a bench next to the tank. Mr. August took Mathias, Ardea and Nia with him in his car.

The house with the yellow door welcomed us, but there was no time to waste. On the horizon, the Sun begun its rising.

A boat larger than Margarita Maris was waiting for us at the dock. In the cabin under the deck another tank had been placed. My father, Mr. August and Mathias spent a whole week getting it ready, making it fit for a princess.

When the van pulled over and the doors opened, I noticed that the boat was restless on an undulating sea, as if it couldn't wait to set sail. My heart was just as restless.

I watched as Ms. Cyan breathed rapidly in order to store as much oxygen in her body, then stepped out of the tank and put on a dark robe.

The town on the seashore was still asleep. There was no one to witness our endeavor. Even if there was someone, the darkness wouldn't allow him to see the gills on the neck or the webbing between the fingers of our teacher.

Once she got inside the tank, we all boarded and the boat set out to the open sea. My father was at the helm, Doctor Kasian in the cabin, Mathias and Ardea on the stern and the rest of us on the bow of the boat.

As we were moving away from the shore, the rays of the rising sun touching the surface of the sea made it seem gilded. My heart was pounding stronger with every beat, threatening to jump out of my chest. To calm it down, I decided to look at the waves forming on each side of the hull.

Somewhere under those waves, a kingdom was awaiting the return of its Princess.

Thank you for reading Call of the Water. There is only one chapter left, so stick around.

Leave a comment, let me know what you tink of the story.

Vote if you liked the chapter. 

💙