Antonia had never felt more at ease in a dangerous situation. Each step toward the railing made her heart flutter, contradicting the peace that seemed to flood her veins.

The invisible thread was back, slipping through her fingers. Except this time, it was almost like it was tugging her. Another bang came. Antonia looked down to see a figure pounding the wood below, hissing with frustration. At her approach, it froze. Golden eyes met hers before promptly backing away from the boat, its head barely peeking above the water. She could still see most of its face. Its skin was a metallic copper, and hair a stringy white. It looked like a floating body, but there was no denying the movement despite the pieces of rotting flesh melting off it.

"Hi," Antonia greeted quietly. The mermaid bared its teeth at her. Antonia touched the pendant around her neck, remembering her father's words as he read Stories of Second Sons to her. Mermaids were reanimated corpses filled with necromagic. Antonia swallowed. What a horrible thing to happen to your body.

Was this the fate she would be condemned to?

Antonia couldn't get rid of her magic. Would her powers shift from black to gold before being thrown into these waters? The thought made her move closer.

"ANTONIA!" Nema's voice called. "I- let me go!" she hissed at someone. Antonia ran a finger over the railing, black smoke curling around the wood. A few other mermaids were beginning to pop up, all studying Antonia with burning eyes.

Whispers began somewhere behind her. They seemed muted, somehow, like someone had clasped their hands over her ears.

When Antonia looked back down, the railing was gone, and a rowboat was tied to the ship, waiting for her to step in. Black smoke continued to rise, leaving Antonia to wonder if the boat was real or a mirage made by her magic. Despite the uncertainty in the back of her mind, she moved forward, boarding the rowboat. Immediately, it lowered itself into the water.

And then the world went silent. No whispers. No yells. Not even the sound of water as the rowboat met the waves beneath her.

Mermaids surrounded her. Up close, she could clearly see their deteriorating bodies, with missing jaws and hands filled with holes.

"Hi," she said again. She wished she could think of something else to say, but even in this strange weightlessness, she couldn't figure out how to be charming.

The mermaids drifted closer. Above her, she could see a few brave souls trying to get close enough to see what was happening. One mermaid spun around, a golden string of seaweed shooting out and wrapping around one man's wrist, yanking him overboard. Antonia felt nothing as he toppled over. The mermaids dove on top of him, ripping the trashing body apart. Red began mixing with the gold.

She only felt... calm.

Antonia reached forward, holding out a hand. The mermaids all backed away, mouths now stained red from the blood, but when Antonia didn't move again, they approached her. "Don't worry," she whispered. "I won't hurt you."

And she wouldn't. There was something about these creatures that felt... like... well, Antonia couldn't quite put her finger on it. There was still that strange familiarity. Like she had known these beings long ago. Perhaps they were Romanovian. Maybe they were once servants of the royal household.

Or, a traitorous voice whispered, it could be your mother and Trajan.

That wasn't true. Antonia looked at the dismembered faces and shook her head. It wasn't that kind of familiarity. She leaned forward, and one of the mermaids lifted a hand, slimy fingers pressed against hers.

The smoke around Antonia whisked forward. For a brief moment, the mermaid flickered. One moment, a pile of gold and broken bones, and the next, a young girl. The image didn't last. The smoke hardened. Antonia felt her breath catch as the gold faded into black, settling into dust.

Not dust. Ash, she realized. It blew in the wind. Antonia looked back down to see the other mermaids surrounded by wisps of smoke, each crumbling into ash before flying up into the sky. Antonia smiled a little.

Spirits protecting the winds of the sea seemed much better than corpses haunting the waters.