Chapter 5

The next morning.

Novius woke up to the sound of yelling outside the tent. He was worried it was and enemy, so he grabbed his bow and arrows before stepping out of the tent. He was immediately greeted with... Aine and Darius arguing again.. He sighed in relief as he put his weapon down. "Are you guys seriously arguing?.." Novius asked with frustration in his tone. "Yes!!" Darius and Aine yelled in sync. "What is it this t-" before Novius could even finish his sentence, Darius and Aine ran up to him. "Fish is better smoked!! Right??" Aine asked Novius. "Of course not! its better marinated and cooked properly!! Right Novius??" Darius said. Novius just looked at them with a mixed expression of frustration and confusion. "Really?... This is what I woke up to?..." "What do you mean???" Apparently, Aine was clueless of the fact that Novius had just woken up.

Novius took a look around and saw no sign of Veda. "Where's Veda?" He asked. "She went out to gather some rations, she said it was a long way to Aexetan and she didn't want to risk running out of food" Darius answered, still glaring at Aine. 'How does she know that?..' Novius asked himself in his head. "Why did you let her go? wasn't she injured?" Novius asked them. "By the time we woke up, she was already preparing to head out. Plus, we had just met her and we don't have control over actions" Darius replied. Novius took a moment to process the realization before leaving it be.

Novius started to pack up his things, preparing to leave in a few minutes. By the time he had finished, Veda returned with a bag of fruits, vegetables, and meat. She was smiling as she came back.

"Good morning Novius, I apologize for disappearing all of a sudden.. I did not want to risk running out of rations mid journey" Veda said with an apologetic tone. She looked perfectly fine... There were no visible injuries on her.. Darius looked at Veda with a suspicious expression. "It's no issue, I'm just glad you're alright" Novius reassured. Deep down, Novius was suspicious of Veda too... "Are you alright?? I hope you didn't get hurt" Aine was concerned for her new friend Veda. "I'm quite alright, thank you for worrying about me Aine" Veda replied.

And so, they set out on their journey to Aexetan, the realm of sirens.

On the road, Darius was reading out the map for Novius while Aine and Veda shared a horse. "Make a right here and we should reach their borders" Darius said. Novius followed his instructions and turned right. Behind the big trees, was an ocean. They all stopped abruptly. "Right.. its the realm of sirens, of course they would be in water!" Darius said in frustration. "I was too caught up with the information we had. I didn't even think" Novius said. "It will take me a few hours, at most, to make one batch of Aquatic Respiration potions.. but they only last a few minutes.." Darius thought. "If it helps, I have some Akros flowers" Veda pointed out. Both Darius and Novius turned to Veda in shock. A single petal of the Akros flower allowed a person to breathe and speak underwater for two hours, therefore they are rare.

"How many do you have?" Darius asked. "I only have four" Veda replied. "With eight petals each flower, everyone should be able to breathe underwater for sixteen hours" Novius asked. "But what if it isn't enough?.." Aine was worried for everyone's safety.. "Let's all stay together while we get help. Remember, we absolutely cannot get into trouble. Understood?" Darius replied. Everyone nodded as they ate a petal. 

As soon as they swallowed the petals, they jumped into the water. Their hands grew webs and gills formed on their necks..

"This is so cool!!" Aine exclaimed. Both Aine and Novius were playing around with their new features while Darius and Veda watched them, as if they were toddlers.

Darius cleared his throat, snapping the two out of their fun-time. "Right- sorry" Novius said before swimming to Darius' side. "Let's go!" Aine excitedly said before swimming ahead. The other three had to rush to catch up with her. 'She's having way too much fun in such a serious situation' Darius thought with a sigh.

They made their way to the Aexetan kingdom. It was gorgeous.. Mer-people swimming around coral houses.. It was such a wonderful sight to see.. They went to the gates and got in without an issue. "Alright, I'll go to the market with Darius and we'll ask around on how to get our horses to the other side." Novius said. "And I'll go with Veda to the town square and ask guards about your parents Novius" Aine said. "Great then, let's meet back in.. two hours?" Darius asked. "Two hours sound great" Veda replied. "Alright, see you guys then" Novius said before swimming off with Darius.

With Darius and Novius

The two of them swam to the market, glancing around from time to time. 

Once they both reached the market, Novius walked up to a person. "Excuse me, do you know if there's a way to transport animals on the surface from one side to the other?" Novius asked. "I'm sorry, I'm not sure.. but maybe you can ask the chief of security. His office is not far from here" The person replied. "Oh that would be great, I hope it's not too much of a bother for you" Darius said. "Oh don't worry, it's no issue. I'll lead the way" The person replied. "Thank you so much" Novius smiled.

The person then took Novius and Darius to the security station.

With Aine and Veda

The both of them swam to the town square.

Once they got to town square, Veda walked up to a guard. "Excuse me, have you seen two.. wait.." Veda then turned to Aine. "What are Novius' parents?.." Veda asked. "I.. I have no idea.. I think they're humans?..." Aine answered, unsure. Veda turned back to the guard. "Have you seen two humans pass by? a male and female" Veda asked. "I'm sorry, I haven't.. In fact, I haven't seen any hybrid in centuries" The guard chuckled. "Wait.. What?.. What do you mean you haven't seen a human in centuries?.." Aine asked, terrified. Normally, Aexetan would have a few hybrids this time of year..

"I meant what I said. I haven't seen a hybrid in centuries! The new king doesn't let us have freedom.."