This Drowning Kingdom

Chapter 1

The water ran thick with blood.

And as Ariel wrenched the coral dagger from the rebel's heart, she wished it was her own blood that was swirling around her, making its way up her nose. It was an effort to keep the stoic mask in check as her aunt watched on, unimpressed, as she killed the last of the rebels that had been spreading rumors of an uprising in the underwater kingdom of Atlantica. His corpse floated slowly to the sea floor, blood streaming from his chest and mixing with the salty ocean water.

Somewhere in the crowd, a child was crying. Ariel wondered if the rebel was a brother, a father, an uncle—or if it was simply the execution itself that had set the child off.

Ariel's own sister was as stoic as she was from where she watched, her aunt keeping a tight grip on her shoulder. Ursula's cruel, unforgiving gaze roved over the crowd, and Ariel turned toward her. She couldn't help but glance at the Trident in her aunt's hand—her father's Trident, that should have gone to her when he'd died. Its three prongs, golden and deadly, seemed to glow when Ursula gripped it, but the glow was dim, not as bright as when her father had held the Trident.

But she'd been staring for too long; Ariel forced herself to tear her gaze up to her aunt.

Ursula hardly noticed her as she swam forward to address the crowd.

"Twenty-three rebels in this area were spreading harmful rumors that jeopardized the safety of my citizens."

Ursula paused, awaiting the crowd's reaction. There was none.

"Thankfully for us, our Huntress was able to put a stop to these movements and secure the safety of Atlantica once and for all."

Ariel tuned her aunt out, studying the crowd instead. Most of their eyes were wide; the Sea Queen hardly ventured out to put a stop to rebel forces, but this town was close enough to the capital that she'd been sure to make a public appearance. To appease the people's worries, was what she'd said to her advisors. She'd failed to mention that she herself was at the root of those worries.

In fact, most of the merfolk in the crowd were looking up, down, anywhere but at Ursula for fear of getting arrested—or killed. But some of the braver merfolk didn't bother masking their disgust as they stared at the Queen, and it was an effort to keep her face blank when Ariel realized that some were glaring at her.

Yes, there had been friends of the rebels in this crowd—and she had just killed them all, right in front of them. She deserved their anger, their hate, and she knew, deep down, that if these rebels ever succeeded, she would not fight back if they made her their first target.

When her aunt's declaration of deceit and empty promises was through, Bullus, the Captain of the Guard, approached Ursula. He bowed respectfully, then murmured quietly enough so that only the Queen could hear. Ursula's gaze shot to Ariel, whose heart dropped as her aunt mouthed one snarled word: Stay.

Ariel bowed her head, glancing at her sister before remaining in place while the others left for the palace in the heart of Atlantica. Her sister followed closely after her aunt, her face carefully blank.

Once everybody had cleared out, Bullus approached her, a ghost of a smirk on his face.

"You have one more assignment from the queen," he said. Bullus jerked his head toward the crowd. "It appears that my men were reckless in rounding up the rebels, and in their haste, we missed one. Those responsible have been dealt with, but the rebel has not. Find him. We think he has a scar on his cheek. Learn what he knows and report back to me at high tide."

"And what of the male?" she asked. "Should I deliver him to you as well?"

"We have no use for rebel scum after we've learned what they know. Do what you believe should be done with him."