The ocean was never truly silent.
Even in its stillness, the sea whispered.
To others, it was noise.
To him—it was voices.
Draelos stood at the edge of the Abyssal Cavern, staring into the endless blackness below. A slow ripple curled around his wrist. He didn't flinch.
"You always come here when your heart is troubled," a voice coiled around his thoughts—calm, ancient, amused.
Nyros emerged from the shadows of the deep, his long serpent body gleaming like silver ink in the moon-filtered water. His eyes—two glowing slits—focused on Draelos, seeing deeper than any seer could.
"I made a promise to a human," Draelos admitted, his voice low and almost ashamed.
There was silence. Then a dry hiss.
"You what?"
"She… intrigued me."
Nyros swam in slow circles around him. "That word has doomed many before you. Intrigue becomes attachment. Attachment becomes weakness."
"I'm not weak," Draelos snapped.
"No, you are curious." The serpent's eyes narrowed. "And curiosity is a blade that cuts the hand holding it."
Draelos looked away, jaw clenched.
"She's kind of different."
"All humans are different until they become the same," Nyros replied. "Do not forget the prophecy, boy."
"The sea will bleed and the crown will fall," Draelos muttered. "Yes, I remember."
"And it starts," Nyros hissed, "with the heart you give away."
---
✦ Later, at the Coral Hall...
Draelos floated idly above the silver pillars of the throne room, watching the light bend in curves above him. He sensed her before she spoke.
"You told her something," Hazel's voice broke through like a blade dipped in honey.
Draelos turned, slow and calm.
Hazel's long turquoise hair drifted behind her like a veil. Her sea-glass eyes held a storm beneath them. Beautiful, yes—but like a siren who never learned mercy.
"I saw her," Hazel said, forcing a smile. "The human. You gave her something. A pendant?"
"It helps her breathe," Draelos replied simply.
"You never gave me anything," Hazel whispered.
He raised a brow, a soft smirk tugging at his lips. "You never needed anything, Hazel. You always took what you wanted."
Her smile faltered. "I thought I was yours."
"You thought wrong."
Hazel's face twitched. For a moment, her true emotion bled through. She reached out to touch his arm. He didn't move—but he didn't meet her eyes either.
"We grew up together, Draelos," she said. "I was there when you first bled. When your father—"
"Stop." His voice was cold.
Hazel's hand dropped. "You don't love her."
"I don't have to," he said softly, "to protect her."
Hazel looked at him, long and hard.
Then she smiled again—but this time, it reached her eyes in all the wrong ways.
---
✦ Ariel's POV
Ariel sat cross-legged on the soft coral bed, flipping through the book she'd borrowed from the underwater library: Myths of the Sirens.
She still didn't understand much. The words twisted and shimmered like water. But the drawings… the drawings were haunting.
One image caught her attention—of a sea prince with silver eyes, standing beside a crowned siren queen with fire in her hands.
She touched the image with her fingers.
A promise.
He'd made her a promise.
Ariel smiled. Even if she didn't know what it truly meant… it was something. And to her, that was everything.
A gentle knock echoed on her door.
Before she could respond, it opened.
Hazel entered, all smiles, trailing light. "You must be Ariel. I'm Hazel. A… friend of Draelos."
Ariel stood up awkwardly, clutching the book. "Oh—hi."
Hazel's eyes were kind, but her aura wasn't.
"You're so pretty," Hazel said. "He must really like you."
Ariel blushed. "I—he's just helping me."
Hazel tilted her head. "Of course. Helping."
She reached into her hair and pulled out a shimmering seashell clip. "Here," she said, pinning it gently into Ariel's hair. "For luck."
Ariel smiled, touched. "Thank you."
Hazel kissed her on the cheek, gently.
"Be careful, little human," she whispered.
"Some treasures are better left buried."
She swam away, still smiling.
--
"She visited her," Draelos said.
Nyros blinked. "Hazel?"
"She left her a gift."
"A trap," Nyros growled.
Draelos's eyes narrowed. He turned, swimming into the darkness.
"Then I'll break it."
---
Back in Ariel's room, the seashell clip began to glow faintly red—and pulse like a heartbeat.