Awaiting Destiny Page 5

  “Does it have a seatbelt?” she groaned, finally allowing him to pull her up, though she wasn’t trying very hard to help.

  “Seatbelts only come in the deluxe stingray model,” he said, with a wink. “Don’t worry, Princess! He is very gentle and quite speedy.”

  “He also has an incredibly big mouth,” she replied, looking at the vast opening. “He isn’t hungry, is he?”

  Kincade shook his head, looking exasperated. “He is supposed to have a big mouth,” he said. “It comes in handy as he filters out little fish and crabs. Little being the thing to remember. Although, if you don’t come up here quicker, I could ask him if he could make an exception.”

  Kincade dragged her upward until they came to rest atop of the waiting manta ray.

  Destiny couldn’t believe how enormous it was! It could surely take up the entire deck of the Seadancer. It made her feel like she was perched on top of a magic flying carpet, with its wing fins gracefully rolling in the current.

  Kincade took the strap that he had been tying and tossed the middle section in front of the manta. Taking both looped ends, he handed one to Destiny. “Put it around you like this,” he said, as he put his head and arms through until the strap rested under his armpits. Following suit, Destiny did the same.

  “Ready?” he asked, smiling over at her.

  “NO!” she yelled back.

  He ignored her and blew into his whistle. A quick sharp pulse pierced the water.

  The manta ray instantly lunged forward, grasping the strap in its mouth like a racehorse bit. The force of the takeoff pulled Destiny’s legs out from under her until she was almost lying flat on the manta’s back as they started to glide away. Her aqua eyes grew wide with excitement and terror as she clutched the strap in a vise-like grip. She looked over at Kincade, who passed her a comforting smile, completely at ease with being towed along by this huge creature.

  As they picked up speed, it seemed as if they were flying through the water. Destiny, getting used to it, peeked below and watched in amazement as the colorful sea bottom streaked by. They passed over great cracks in the ocean bottom, through schools of tiny fish and mammoth rock formations, rushing to her unknown destiny and bringing her closer to the truth. It was a trip she would never forget.

  Chapter 4

  Mertopia

  “Look Princess. We are almost there,” Kincade said, pointing ahead to what looked like a rocky mountainous wall rising steadily from the deep.

  Destiny was straining to see what he was pointing to as they started a steady incline up the rock wall face on their rolling manta carpet. Her hands were tired from holding on to the strap, though she had to admit being towed along was probably the most fun she had ever had. Despite her earlier concerns she was now reluctant to leave this gentle giant. She felt her stomach knot up again, knowing they were close. Close to the answers, close to family she never knew and finally close to the truth.

  They had been traveling in very deep waters for some time and there was not as much to see except the occasional passing fish. Now, as they started to ascend the side of an underwater mountain, the scenery started blooming. Colorful plants and creatures again covered the rocks. The higher they got, the denser the life was becoming until you could no longer see the rocks at all. It was one sprawling underwater garden.

  Just before they crested the top of the mountain, Kincade blew his whistle. “I am letting the guards know we are home,” he explained. “They can be quite nasty to uninvited guests.”

  Just as he said that, Destiny saw a brigade of glistening toothed barracudas materialize out of nowhere, looking like they would bite first and not even worry about the questions.

  “Are those the guards?” she whispered nervously, readying her palm for action in case they decided to attack.

  “Yeah, that’s a few of the mer-patrol,” he said, looking unconcerned. “That brigade is not very friendly, but they are professionals. They won’t bother us.”

  Relieved, she watched as the barracudas swam past in perfect unison, barely glancing at them. Destiny continued to look back at them suspiciously as they reached the crest. She would have to remember to ask for one of those whistles in case she ever got to return.

  “Princess,” Kincade whispered, “Welcome to Mertopia.”

  Destiny thought she was prepared for just about everything, considering all she had been through in the last few hours. She was wrong. What she saw defied her most creative imagination, and the barracudas were completely forgotten.

  The underwater mountain they had been steadily ascending opened into the crater of an immense sleeping volcano. From the crest, it plummeted down hundreds of feet to a center courtyard covered with vibrantly colored underwater plants and a lovely stone fountain shaped like a family of whales. Bubbles cascaded up from their blowholes like a backward waterfall. Sturdy-looking wooden doors, like those in old, English castles, were scattered around the crater walls.

  “Where do all those doors go?” Destiny asked excitedly, looking around in awe as the manta gently spiraled down to what looked like a big bull’s eye painted on a large flat rock.

  “They are mostly apartments and businesses. My school is over there,” he said, pointing to a huge set of double doors with a set of smaller doors set inside them just across the courtyard. A sign with huge stone letters-Mertopia University- arched over the top of the doors.

  “I ask if I can take you to see Professor Seamore later. I think he would like to see you,” Kincade said.

  Destiny nodded absently, so astonished by her surroundings she couldn’t find the voice to reply.

  The manta came to a perfect stop and spit out the strap it held in its enormous mouth. It hovered over the bull’s eye, flapping his great wings to keep perfectly still, so its passengers could dismount.

  “This is our stop,” Kincade said, as he let go of the strap.

  Destiny tried to let go, too, but found that her fingers had grown so stiff from holding on for such a long time that they felt almost frozen. Kincade swam over and pried her fingers loose and rubbed them gently with his warm hands to loosen them up. “Did you use your stone on your own hands?” he chuckled.

  “OWWW! I will use it on you if you do that again!” She half laughed, half cried. Secretly enjoying the attention and the feel of his warm hands.

  Kincade rolled up the strap and put it back in his pack, and patted Manta with a few strokes from his tail.

  The manta ray knew he was off-duty, and floated up and away. Destiny waved goodbye as his departing shadow covered them for a moment.

  “Shall I show you around?” Kincade asked, holding out his hand in invitation.

  “Absolutely!” she said, taking it. They swam off the landing pad and were just passing a small red and green-striped door when it swung open. A school of little merchildren, holding hands and giggling merrily, swam in front of them, and were followed by a gentle-looking merwoman with long pink hair swirling behind her.

  She appeared to be trying to keep the busy children in line. “Okay, class,” she was saying. “Slow down and mind your manners.” The woman smiled at Destiny, her eyes curiously lingering on her legs as they passed in a line that looked more like a figure-eight.

  Destiny could barely believe her eyes. The children all had colorful tails and their hair was so different from her own. It followed behind them in shades of green, blue, pink-and some with a lovely mixture. She had always thought her hair was wild, now she could only imagine how the kids at school would have teased her if she had ended up with rainbow hair. Things could have definitely been worse!

  “Those kids are in mer-care while their parents are at work,” Kincade explained.

  “They are so cute! Where do you think they are going?” Destiny asked curiously.

  “I bet they are on a field trip to the Mer-Zoo,” the boy replied “They recently acquired a dangerous house feline. People have been talking about it for weeks.”

  “Do you mean a cat? How c
an you have a cat under the water?” she asked, thinking he must be teasing.

  “Oh, they have a special aired room made to mimic a feline’s natural environment. It doesn’t seem to do much other than sleep on the windowsill and eat tuna fish. It’s really pretty boring, if you ask me.”

  Destiny laughed, thinking about Simon, the cat that lived on their dock and slept on all the boats. “Yeah, they do like to sleep and eat a lot,” she agreed. Eat…Food. Her stomach started to growl so loudly that tiny ripples appeared in the water.

  Kincade seemed to notice. “You must be starving, Princess! I apologize for not being a better host,” he said, looking sheepish-which was rather remarkable expression considering he was half fish.

  “I am okay, really. I just need to see my grandfather,” she said, determination winning the battle against her stomach.

  “Of course! And you will!” he reassured her. “However, it is a quite a bit further to the palace and it won’t take long to eat. I know a great place, close by.”

  The ripples around her stomach threatened to turn into waves. It obviously was siding with Kincade…traitor that it was!

  “Okay,” she agreed, with a hesitant nod. Her heart flitted a bit, happy that he was being so considerate. Boys back at home wouldn’t care less if she were hungry. She knew they thought she was weird. They just ignored it because she could hit a ball.

  They passed several fish and merpeople going about their daily business. She wasn’t exactly sure what that “business” was, but they all looked very busy. There were doors with cheerful baskets filled with beautiful sea flowers and exotic shells like one would find in flowerpots topside. Every door had a stone mailbox with an engraved number etched in the front. Weird! It seemed like a nice neighborhood.

  After they swam awhile, Destiny became embarrassed that Kincade had to drag her along. She didn’t want anybody to think she was lazy! She eyed Kincade’s tail enviously as it propelled them along with incredible ease. She wished she had a tail. It wasn’t that she didn’t like her legs, but she was tired of being dragged around like a sea cucumber pack.

  She took her mind off it by reading the signs above the doors as they passed. Mermarket, Shell Emporium…that definitely could use another look. She absoutely loved shells. She had quite an impressive collection from all over the world.

  As they passed a large, open cave, Destiny strained to see as far in as she could. The arched sign above the opening read: Transportation Tube. Strange glowing algae covered the round walls, illuminating it with a soft green glow. Just inside the entrance was a ticket booth, like you would expect to find at a movie theater. Inside the booth was a bored-looking, young merman wearing a crisp blue shell hat with a strap around his chin.

  “Where does that go?” Destiny asked curiously.

  “I will show you right after we eat,” Kincade said. “Since you liked the ride on Manta, I think you really like this.” She stretched her neck as they passed and tried to see where it led as he towed her along anxiously.

  They continued for a few more minutes, passing several more interesting doors and a variety of sea life, before Kincade finally stopped in front of a bright yellow door. It had a stone porch with the name Steam Kitchen etched in. He opened the door. “After you, Princess.”

  Finally! She was going to see inside one of these peculiar doors! In her hurry, she practically knocked him out of the way. “Oops…sorry, Kincade,” she said, too quickly to really mean it. His brow furrowed, but he didn’t say anything.

  The doorway opened into a round tunnel. It was covered like a thick shag carpet with the same glowing algae she saw in the Transportation Tube entry. Destiny and Kincade followed it a short way, making a few turns, until suddenly it opened into a cavern. Several small seating caves with round tables and benches carved from stone jutted out from the walls. The cave’s center had a large cooking area where a few unlucky lobsters and clams awaited their fate in fishing nets. They dangled over what looked like a stove made from stone. The walls were covered in algae that grew in patterned dark green and sea foam green sections like a carpeted checkerboard and were decorated with sea plants that grew in old, topside cooking pots and pans. Destiny found the overall effect to be quite charming and cozy.

  A lovely, older merwoman with a round face and welcoming smile rushed over to meet them in the doorway.

  “Why, hello, Kincade, darling! What lucky girl have you brought to dine with today?” she said warmly, without even looking at Destiny. Before Kincade could answer, the merwoman reached up and grabbed his cheeks in both hands and pinched them mercilessly, rubbing them back and forth. When she finally let him go, his contorted face snapped back like rubber, though his cheeks now had a chipmunk-like quality.

  “You’re just so adorable!” she cooed, pulling him close and squeezing him so hard his face turned bright tomato red.

  Destiny was enjoying this. She bit her lip to keep from laughing. Served him right, bringing a bunch of girls here! Then she wondered why that would even bug her. She didn’t get the opportunity to think on it very long before the merwoman turned her exuberant attention to her… then stopped short and stared hard at Destiny for what seemed like forever.

  Kincade had obviously been squeezed speechless. His mouth opened but no words seemed to come out. A mixture of emotions seemed to play out on the woman’s face in an instant. Shock, sadness… and finally, her features settled into utter joy. Destiny was completely confused.

  “It can’t be! How can this be? Tell me it’s true!” she practically shouted. Then, she framed Destiny’s face in her hands, as if she was imagining someone else, and shook her head in awe.

  Kincade seemed to finally find his voice, croaked out, “Mrs. Waverly, please meet Princess Destiny Mariner.”

  She gave a sideways glance to Kincade. “I know who she is, dear. Come. Sit,” she ordered. “Good heavens, I almost forgot! Would you like wet or dry seating?”

  Wet or dry? Destiny had no idea what she meant so she answered with her best smile, “Whichever would be easiest for you, Mrs. Waverly. Thank you.”

  “And so polite. And so beautiful! You look just like your mother. She would be so proud,” Mrs. Waverly spoke with a beaming smile that held a hint of sadness.

  “You knew my mother?” Destiny asked hopefully, blushing softly at the compliment.

  “Of course, dear, everyone knew your mother. The lovely Princess Shelleen,” the older woman said, with a gentle sigh. “She was quite unforgettable and always up to something.”

  She led them over to the little cave closest to the cooking area. Destiny could only assume that this was the “wet seating,” as they were still underwater.

  “You dears make yourselves comfortable, and I will steam up something extra special. Then we will have a nice chat.” Mrs. Waverly left them and busied herself behind the cooking area.

  Destiny and Kincade sat down on the stone bench. She noticed that the cave, table and bench were actually intricately carved out of one piece of stone. She figured that must have taken forever, but it made perfect sense; it wouldn’t do to have your furniture floating about. A decorative sea basket was placed in the middle of the table holding a large, pink conch shell.

  “You don’t look like a squished chili pepper with black hair anymore.” Destiny commented, laughing musically. “She seems to be a nice lady. Can you believe she recognized me?”

  “She is nice and amazingly strong, like a giant hermit crab,” Kincade said, rubbing his cheeks and wincing.

  Destiny watched Mrs. Waverly working in her kitchen. The older woman hummed cheerily as she placed several pounds of clams and oysters into a square metal net and closed the lid. She placed the net on a hook, over a heavy-looking flat metal lid on the stove. With a turn of a knob, the lid tilted. Steaming hot bubbles burst forth instantly, engulfing the clams and oysters.

  “Where does all that steam come from?” she asked Kincade curiously, knowing they couldn’t have regular electricity here.


  “Oh, there are tubes that run very deep, close to the core of the volcano,” Kincade said, like it was no big deal. The stove has a valve that opens up and lets the steam escape from the boiling water. It is pretty simple really. Though it is getting rather expensive. The Steamonoply Company seems to always be raising their rates.”

  Destiny nodded, suitably impressed. “My dad always complains of that sort of thing, too.” She shuddered at the thought of her dad trying to cook breakfast on the steam stove.

  Mrs. Waverly swam back to the table with three small nets full of perfectly steamed clams, oysters, as well as a multi-colored plankton salad.

  “Here you go, darlings. Eat up!” she said, placing each net on one of the hooks on the table.

  Lunch looked so delicious Destiny was thankful to be in the wet seating as her mouth started to water uncontrollably.

  “Thank you, Mrs. Waverly,” Destiny and Kincade said in unison, smiling hungrily. Destiny watched as Mrs. Waverly’s round tail transformed into to two plump, short legs. She scooted her considerable bulk in next to Destiny, making the elbowroom of the small seating cave shrink to that of an open sardine can.

  Their arms rubbed together as they tasted the first bite of plankton salad. It was delicious! It reminded her of fresh radishes and crispy salted lettuce. Destiny wanted to rudely stuff the entire salad in her mouth at once, and she was quite sure it would fit if she tried hard enough. Though she was tempted, she decided to eat politely, pacing each bite with five chews. She didn’t want Mrs. Waverly or Kincade to think she was a manner-less topsider. After all, she was representing her country!

  After finishing her salad, she opened the net and pulled out a delectable looking steamed clam. She could practically taste it before she placed it on her tongue. Suddenly, a tentacle sprang from the conch shell centerpiece like a cracking whip and stole it right out of her hand. Without even thinking, Destiny whipped up her palm and froze the tiny, hidden octopus and just as quickly she snatched back her clam and stuffed it in her mouth. The nerve! She was practically starving. She unfroze the creature and it immediately slunk back into its shell.