There was a boy with an extra eye in the center of his forehead. He was slight-looking, non-threatening. But while he was swimming forward, his third eye turned and stared at us. We decided an extra eye could definitely come in handy.
Mutations were not all that uncommon with Mers, especially in the past hundred years. With the oceans becoming more and more polluted, they had become commonplace. But I’d never seen such useful ones!
Finally, we started to approach the wide door that led in and out of the arena.
“Want to get a snack? I’m starving.”
Starla nodded eagerly and I gave her a hard look.
“But don’t tell anyone my secret spots, or I’ll gut you.”
Starla giggled, clearly not impressed. I was going to have to work on my menacing tone. I rolled my eyes and swam around the side of the arena, heading closer to shore.
“Come on, let’s see how fast you really are!”
I took off, not showing my true maximum speed. I never did. The only time I swam at top-speed was with Beazil when we were completely alone in the deep blue. I didn’t want to give away my abilities before the Trials.
And I especially hadn’t wanted my stepmother to put me to use as her errand-Mer.
But right now, I was swimming even slower to accommodate my new friend. Starla swam by my side, a happy smile on her face. She was only a few years younger than me, but she seemed much younger. She was small, for one thing, and she’d told me she’d been raised by her kindly GrandMer.
She’d been sheltered and loved. Even though they hadn’t been rich, she’d never scavenged for food before. We might both be orphans, technically speaking, but that’s where the similarities ended.
Well, other than the fact that neither of us was a brainless jellyfish!
“Last one there is a rotten jellyfish!”
I pulled ahead, her girlish shriek of excitement making me smile. She was pretty fast, definitely above-average for a young Mer. I considered telling her to try and win. But if she slipped up or anything went wrong, she would be smack-dab in the center with the big Mers.
The big, vicious, spike-wearing Mers.
And anyway, the rest of the Trials would just get harder. More dangerous. She didn’t really care about serving the Royals. She wasn’t fast enough for a Messenger, and there was no way she would survive long enough to win and become a Spark.
That was a one in a million chance. We might all think we had a chance, but only the smartest and most resourceful were in the running. Usually, only one Mer per King or Queendom became Spark, though they had selected up to three in the past.
Even the huge, brutal-looking Mers did not have hope of becoming Sea Spark. Soldiers, yes. Perhaps even Generals. But not a Messenger and not a Spark.
That was for the quick of fin and clever of mind.
I smiled. Despite all of my shortcomings, I knew I had what it took. I might be plain, clumsy, overly nostalgic, and covered in spots. But I was fast and I was smart.
I glanced behind me, making sure Starla was okay. She was swimming frantically, her eyes wide in terror. I saw why an instant later.
An enormous shark was following us.
“It’s okay!”
I swam back toward her, taking her hand and drawing her to a stop. She was frantic, tugging on my hand and shaking her head wildly.
“Shark!”
“I know, Starla. He’s with me.”
“He . . . what?”
Beazil circled us, then nudged my side with his blunt nose.
“He’s my familiar.”
Starla’s mouth dropped open. I smiled, trying to set her at ease.
“Who is your familiar?”
She opened a pocket in her dress and pulled out a starfish. It shook itself, then ‘looked’ around. It curled into a ball when it noticed Beazil.
“Aw, so cute! What’s his name?”
“Chuchu. He’s pretty smart for a starfish. He’s good at sneaking around.”
I laughed.
“I’m sure he is.”
“I still can’t believe your familiar is a great white. You are going to win for sure!”
I laughed at the amazed look on her face.
“I’m not sure about that. He’s the friendliest great white ever. And yes, he’s mine.” He bumped me again. “Or rather, vice versa.”
Starla was still trembling.
“He’s harmless. Watch.”
I signaled to Beazil to roll over. He gave me a sour look and I laughed. Then with a dramatic look on his face, Beazil drifted slowly so he was belly up.
“You want to touch him? His skin is rough but his belly is soft.”
Starla swam closer, sticking close to my side. She reached out and lay her hand on his belly. I heard Beazil sigh. He did love a good belly rub.
“See? He likes you.”
She giggled a little and I nudged her.
“All right, you two, I’m starving. We’re almost there.” I patted my net bag. “Try to keep up. I want to stuff this!”
I swam ahead, careful not to leave them behind. Starla looked tiny with Beazil by her side. He was there every time I looked back. I was pleased that he had taken to her so fast. I knew he’d look out for her forever. He did that with Lila as well.
We were at my secret scavenging spot in no time.
I dove down and looked around. It was a shallow field, thick with seaweed. We were not far from the shore, but not close enough to encounter humans. I had never seen another Mer here. Unless you looked, you would never know that beneath the seaweed, it was full of oysters. I’d even found mussels there, and lots of crabs.
I wasn’t crazy about the bigger crabs. They tended to bite and were fast with their claws. But the bite-sized ones were delicious.
Without hesitation, I swam headfirst into the seaweed, digging around with my bare hand. There was always a chance a crab could latch on and injure you, but there was no way around it.
That was the price to pay for delicious fresh oysters, and I was more than happy to pay it.
It was only seconds before my hand closed over a big oyster shell. I grinned, stuffing it into the net bag slung over my shoulder. I grabbed a few more and then decided to find a new spot. There were fewer oysters here this year, and I knew it was because of pollution. I was careful not to take too much from any one location.
I tried to right myself and found myself close to toppling over. I’d never foraged with a spear on my back, let alone all my worldly possessions. I exhaled and grabbed the harness I wore and glided to the left.
There, a perfect new spot. I harvested some more oysters and nodded to myself. My bag was nearly stuffed. Plenty for the three of us tonight and tomorrow. We didn’t want to attract attention with so many mouths to feed around.
The area would be decimated, and then where would we be? Never mind the oysters.
Normally, Mers were cautious about natural resources. We respected the sea and her bounty. But with all the pomp and circumstance, not to mention hungry young Mers . . . well, it would be easy to get carried away.
Besides, if they weren’t all well-fed, there was a chance it would give me an edge in the competition. Not that I wanted anybody to starve, but there was no way I was revealing the secret spots that had kept me alive all these years. Plus, they probably all had coins to buy food from the vendors set up around the arena, and many had brought trunks full of supplies. Many even had their own tents, often set up with their families outside the camp.
But we were the ones who would be eating the very freshest food. At least we would have that going for us.
I swam up and high-finned Starla with my tail. She was amazed by all the oysters.
“I wasn’t sure if they would feed us. My GrandMer sent me with extra seaweed just in case.”
She opened her bag, revealing neat bundles of preserved seaweed.
“Hold onto that. It’s good supplement in your diet, but it’s not enough to get in real fighting form. Of course, we are hoping you won’t ever have to fight.”
She nodded solemnly and I felt a fissure of fear. She was about fifteen in human years, at the bottom age of anyone in the trials. Plus, she was so slight, so delicate-looking that I hoped no one would bother to attack her.