The bed felt soft enough, but my body refused to sleep.
Maybe it was the glowing walls.
Maybe it was the faint humming from the jelly-lamps.
Or maybe it was my stomach staging a protest loud enough to summon sea monsters.
I rolled over for what had to be the fifteenth time and glared at the ceiling.
"You awake?" I whispered.
Kaelen didn't answer at first. His tail was curled like a lazy ribbon against the wall, eyes half-shut in that smug "I'm pretending to sleep so you stop talking" way.
I nudged him with my foot.
"Do sea people… eat? Or do you just absorb nutrients from the water like glorified sea-sponges?"
One of his eyes cracked open.
"We eat. There's a mess hall downstairs."
"Thank God. Or Goddess. Or… whoever sent me here, because I'm starving."
He yawned. "Don't be dramatic. But yes, the food's free for guests."
"Great. I don't have your shiny sea money or your… shell-wallet-thing."
"You look like you'll chew coral if we wait longer," he muttered, floating upward. "Come on, land-walker. Let's feed you before you die again."
I scowled. "Not funny."
"Didn't say it was."
✧𓂃⋆༶⋆𓂃✧
The mess hall was tucked just under the inn, lit with the same warm jelly-lamps that flickered like shy stars. A few tables sat on shell-packed flooring, surrounded by mushroom-shaped stools.
And serving everyone was a giant octopus, multitasking like a professional waiter with eight PhDs.
Bringing water. Filling plates. Wiping tables. Threatening a drunk merfolk by tapping a tentacle too close to his face.
I stared. "Is that… normal?"
Kaelen patted my arm. "Don't stare at the staff. It's rude."
One of the octopus's eyes rotated toward me.
Okay. I stared less.
We went over to the glowing slate menu. My brain stalled immediately.
Grilled Moonfin Strips — wrapped in saffron kelp
Starcrust Pie — sunberries and whipped foam
Emberfruit Rolls — imported from the Fire Realm
Elven Citrus-Pearl Salad — Forest Realm traders
Flamevine Noodles — charred root, heatbubbles
Reef-Beef Dumplings — stuffed in tidewrap
Braised Shellcakes — seaglass glaze
"What is reef-beef?" I whispered.
"Exactly what it sounds like," Kaelen replied.
"That doesn't help."
"Doesn't need to."
Before I could decode any further, the octopus waiter approached, holding a leaf-shaped ledger-creature (another pagefin) and a tiny squid pen.
"What'll it be?" it asked, sounding mildly bored with existence.
Kaelen pointed. "Flamevine noodles. Double portion. Jelly-fruit fizz."
The pagefin twitched in approval.
I raised a hand. "Um… same, please."
The octopus scribbled like it had a personal vendetta and slinked away.
✧𓂃⋆༶⋆𓂃✧
When the food arrived, the smell alone almost ended me.
Warm. Smoky. Spicy. Something like grilled peppers mixed with salt and heat.
A glowing red stone sat under my plate.
I poked it. "What's this? A hot rock?"
"Flare gem," Kaelen said. "Keeps the food warm."
"Am I supposed to lick it?"
"Please don't."
I took a bite.
Then another.
Then another, less politely.
"Oh my gosh," I mumbled through noodles. "This is actually good."
Kaelen smirked. "We don't serve trash here."
The jelly-fruit fizz came in a floating bubble, wiggling whenever I touched it. Sweet, light, citrusy—like lemonade from a dimension with better advertising.
I leaned back, sighing. "Okay. Fine. The sea is winning."
"We usually do," he said smugly.
After a few moments, he added, "You're calmer today."
"Still stranded in magical fishland with no ID, no Tidepass, and no clue what half these glowing things do, but sure. Calmer."
"You want a crash course?" he asked.
"Only if dessert is included."
He ignored that. "There are three realms—Sea, Fire, Forest. All under the High God's design. Each realm has their own rulers, their own culture. They trade with each other—food, crystals, relics."
"So that's why there's Fire-people food… in a sea cafeteria?"
"Exactly."
"And merfolk can… walk on land? Easily?"
"Only with Aqualith crystals," he said. "Hydrating stones. They keep our bodies from drying."
"Wow. Magic hydration bracelets."
"Better than whatever humans use."
"Excuse you, we use moisturiser."
"That explains why half of you look like cracked pottery."
I shoved his shoulder. "Rude."
His tail flicked, but he didn't hide the small grin.
A moment later, his expression darkened.
"Sea scouts have gone missing," he said quietly. "Creatures from sealed caverns are reappearing. Some say Veland'ir shadows are moving again."
"That sounds comforting."
"It isn't."
I didn't press. His voice had shifted in that way people do when talking about old fear.
We finished eating in a silence that somehow felt friendly.
As we left, I felt it—
that strange pressure on the back of my neck.
Like someone was watching.
I turned.
Nothing.
But Kaelen stiffened.
"You felt it too?" he whispered.
I nodded.
His tail flicked harder. "Let's get back."
We swam through the corridor quietly, the shadows twitching in ways I didn't like.
"Tomorrow," he said, "we go to the Tide Service Wing."
"For my Tidepass?"
"For your identity," he corrected. "You need to be listed before someone decides you're an unregistered omen."
"That sounds illegal."
"It's not illegal," he said. "Just… alarming."
"Fantastic."
✧𓂃⋆༶⋆𓂃✧
Inside the mess hall, after we left…
Three merfolk leaned close at their table.
"Did you see her?" one whispered.
"She didn't move like a sea-born."
"Nor like a Fire mortal," another murmured. "Something else."
"I swear her mark flared when she touched the flare gem," the third whispered.
"It was only for a heartbeat."
"Hidden or not, I felt it."
A heavy pause.
"The elders will need to hear—"
"No," the first said quickly. "Not yet. But if the rumors are true—"
"The girl with more than one mark…"
"The girl from the old hymn…"
None of them spoke after that.
Not with their voices, anyway.
The water carried their unease long after they fell silent.
✧𓂃⋆༶⋆𓂃✧✧𓂃⋆༶⋆𓂃✧✧𓂃⋆༶⋆𓂃✧