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A darkness descended over the prince. “Then you would become like me. You would move to the metamorph stage—activating your powers and all the curses that come alongside it. All your darkest desires, all your deepest impulses, they would grow from simple yearning to an unquenchable thirst. You could also transform yourself. And as a metamorph, one night a month, you would be forced to transform, even if you didn’t want to.”
Teenage tutelage crept forth. “Sirens are tricksters? If I transformed, I would draw people to me with the ability to grant their darkest wishes?”
“And extract from them the heaviest of concessions,” said Calix knowingly, before adding a shrug. There was something different about him. Like he carried a little of the satyr’s ease. “Or so I believe.”
“Believe? You don’t know?”
Calix shrugged again. “Remember what I said? We don’t get a tutor.”
“But you are a therian.”
“So are you. And we don’t all meet up for drinks, Aurelius! Plus, I’ve never met a siren before.”
“And yet, you somehow knew that I was one?” said Aurelius, narrowing his eyes.
Calix gave him a guilty glance. “Look, I only found that out for certain when I... when we...”
“When you fed on me?”
Calix grimaced. “There was this force within you, like a glowing blue seed, waiting to sprout. It’s probably why you’re still standing here, rather than just being a husk. But... even before that, I knew there was something different about you. From the moment we first locked eyes, back in your Pentheon. I had never met anyone who so instantly shattered my barriers. That first time I saw you I...”
“Go on,” said Aurelius with a raise of his eyebrow.
Calix blushed a deep red. “Well... I got so hard I thought my dick would break in two. It took all my strength not to drag you into a dark corner and fuck your brains out.”
Aurelius chuckled. “At least you weren’t standing around your family at the time!”
“And after that, at the bathhouse, and then at the Wax Crack and finally when you came to my...” His voice drifted, the levity turning mournful. He suddenly looked like he might burst into tears. “Goddess, I’m so sorry for what I did to you, Aurelius. Are you alright? Did I hurt you?”
“I survived,” he said, soothingly. “But what about you? How did you feel? To finally feed after so long?”
A curious look contorted across Calix. At first, it seemed like he was trying to hold something back, before the excitement burst forth. “Ardora forgive me, it was amazing! I know I shouldn’t like it. I know I shouldn’t want to feel this way. But the last five years have been like having the sun touch your skin and not feeling any warmth. But in the last few days, I’ve felt it all again! I’ve finally felt alive again!”
Aurelius thought back to his days of recovery. It had been truly awful. And yet, he felt no resentment toward Calix’s joy. Because he had caused that joy. It was his passion that was now shimmering in the prince. It was him who had let Calix finally feel something again.
Eventually, that happy moment faded, as the inevitable question hung in the air.
“So, what do we do now?” said Aurelius.
83
TEIGRA
On the day that followed, it became clear that the occupants of the ship were living two different lives. Zosime and her colleagues were in the far cabin, keeping away from the rest of the crew—having food delivered to them, and only coming out to stretch their legs or occasionally head above deck for fresh air.
When their cabin door was shut, the sailors muttered and milled by the stairway, just a few feet from her hiding spot, unaware of Teigra’s presence.
“Can’t believe they’re making us take the long way around to Ondocis, just to drop off a couple of girls along the way.”
“Yeah. We could’ve done the whole trip in three days, in these winds. Now it’s gonna take almost a week to get there and back.”
Another voice came from halfway up the stairs. “Oi! You’ve been paid good coin to keep your lips sealed about our other passengers!”
“Yeah, yeah. Who’s going to overhear? We’re a hundred miles from another soul.”
“And I just can’t believe the Ardorans up and assisted the Mestibians like that. Hope they drove a hard deal.”
“What difference is it to you? War’ll be a boon for all of us. Soldiers need transport. Supplies need moving. And ’bout time we had some cargo that don’t shatter or spoil!”
