~ Chapter 8 : From Here to There ~

"Group hug!"

Dash flopped himself onto Melody and Jeremy - both of whom only managed an "oomph" before succumbing to the walrus' rather large bulk - as the three friends united properly. Behind them, the audience of Croo that had swarmed the city in order to see not one, not two, but THREE mercreatures all in one go, cheered.

Melody managed to pull away, giggling happily. "It's so great to see you guys again! I mean, not that we haven't been apart for very long, but still... How long was I out?"

"We're not sure," said Jeremy. "I passed out a while after falling into the cold water, Dash was the one that woke me up."

"It was really scary," said Dash, eyes widening. "I couldn't see a thing, and by the time I got my wits back it was too cold for even me to swim back up. I think I hit something and then I passed out, too. When I woke up I was at the bottom of the chasm." He twiddled his fins a little nervously. "It was really scary, being all alone..."

Melody gave Dash another comforting hug. "But we're all together now."

"Yes," said Dash, nodding. "After I woke up, I searched around for Jeremy, and found him not too far away."

"Then we started looking for you," said Jeremy. "We thought it was the Tar that had taken you."

"But they took us by surprise," said Dash, smiling sheepishly.

"I think the Tar won't be causing any trouble for a while," said Melody, grinning at Lir and the Croo Leader King.

Most of the Croo were still in shock when a few minutes earlier Melody had brought Undertow aka the Big Fish to them and forced him to apologise. Undertow didn't look particularly apologetic about anything except that he had lost his teeth yet again, but did bite out a sorry before speeding off, promising not to get up to any wicked shark activities. Melody didn't believe him, so she made a mental note to somehow return to the chasm much later on to take care of Undertow properly. And without the Tar to be smug about the Big Fish being on their side, the Croo could breathe a little easier.

"You have helped us so much, Princess," said the Leader King. "But I feel you wish to return to Atlantica as soon as you can, yes?"

Melody nodded eagerly. "You said there was a way...?"

"Tunnels," said the Leader King. "Through the walls of the chasm. They lead straight up."

Melody blinked slowly. Tunnels? Could it be that it was that simple? She narrowed her eyes. "Is there anything dangerous about these tunnels?"

"No, none at all!" the Leader King said cheerfully. "Mercreatures that have fallen into our valley in the past have all used the tunnels to return up beyond the cold water barrier."

"And the tunnel did work?"

"Of course it did lead them back home, none of them came back down!" Another cheerful smile.

Melody, Jeremy and Dash looked at each other. None of them came back down. They drew quickly together for a quick conference.

"Doesn't sound too good to me," said Dash.

"We don't have any other choice," said Melody. "There's no other way to swim through the cold water barrier."

"Those tunnels could lead anywhere," said Jeremy. "Those mercreatures could've been swimming through them until they died or..."

"Met up with other dangerous seacreatures," said Dash.

Melody lifted her head and looked at the Leader King. "Would you mind showing us the tunnels?"

Of course he wouldn't mind. The Leader King, along with a still giddily happy Lir, showed the Atlantican visitors the entrance to the tunnel, which was a little futher down the Chasm away from the Croo main city, and partially hidden by large mounds of red and brown kelp-like plants. Dash had taken one look at it before bestowing upon his features a very reluctant expression. Jeremy had nodded in agreement. Melody just peered at it carefully.

Not that there was anything to actually peer at. At first glance it looked like just like any other cave, leading into pitch black within the walls of the rocky chasm. In fact, if they hadn't known it was a tunnel, they would have swam past it without a second thought. It was, however, large enough to let Dash through quite easily, although the prospect of entering that pure darkness without a warning of what could possibly be lurking inside didn't appeal much to the walrus.

Melody, however, had a different view. As Lir chatted on happily to his father, and various other Croo gaped and goggled at the Atlantican trio, Melody stared into the darkness.

It's safe...

"It's safe," Melody said.

Jeremy appeared at her side. "What did you say?"

"The tunnel is fine. It leads back up."

Jeremy frowned. "Are you sure?"

Melody took a deep breath. "Positive. I can't explain it, but I can feel that it leads home."

All three of them looked into the tunnel, Dash still uncertain. "I may not like the looks of it, but I... I trust your instincts, Melody."

Melody took a breath and craned her neck upward, where the water seemed to go on forever into an endless dark blue. Somewhere up there was her grandfather, worried sick about her. And even further up was her mother, who needed her help. All in all considering, entering an unknown tunnel didn't seem too bad.

Except that it didn't feel unknown.

"Would you mind if we leave as soon as possible?" Melody asked the Leader King.

"Oh," the Leader King said, looking crestfallen for a moment. "We were hoping for a celebration party, and maybe even a little parade or something in your honour..."

Lir poked his father.

"Yes, yes, you have done so much for us, of course you can leave," the Leader King said, nodding. "All we ask is for you to wait as we prepare supplies for you, it's the least we can do. It's very dark in the tunnels, and you'll need food supplies, that sort of thing."

Melody nodded, smiling. "Thank you, so much."

Lir perched himself on her shoulder. "It was an honour to meet you, Princess Melody. I sure hope we can meet again sometime and whoop some other Big Fish butt."

Melody giggled. "That would be great, Lir. I'd love to come back here someday. Preferably by my own choice."

*****

Meanwhile....

In a pub, somewhere in Eric and Ariel's kingdom, a small stir had begun.

"It is true that the Princess Melody has been taken to Atlantica?"

"She's gone to find an antidote for Queen Ariel!"

"If it weren't for that - that sea creature, our Queen wouldn't have been poisoned in the first place!"

"Hear hear! It looked like a demon, they say."

"Worse than a demon."

"Are there other creatures like that in the sea, you reckon?"

"Loads. I bet there are loads. Can never tell what's going on down there, you know."

"And our Princess is down there? Alone?"

"Her grandfather's taking care of her, you idiot. He's got that big trident and all."

"Give me a pistol any day. Not some stupid flashy fork."

"You know, the baker told me that his neighbour's friend's brother - who's a servant at the palace - saw his Highness King Eric looking rather upset about something today. He was at the beachside, looking out to sea as though he was really worried about something."

"Well, who wouldn't be, when your wife's dying and your daughter could very well be—"

"Shut your mouth!"

"It's true! Who knows what's happening down there? It's not like they're giving us updates on the condition."

"Are they really looking for the antidote you think?"

Silence.

"Don't say that. They're Queen Ariel's family."

"Yeah, don't be daft, of course they're looking for the antidote."

Some of them were quick to defend the Atlanticans, and there was a general sound of agreement. Of course they're looking for the antidote. Of course they were. But no matter how many assurances were passed out, it was too late because the damage had been done, and the seed of doubt had been planted in their minds.

Duke de Klin, who had been sitting incognito within the shadows of a corner, smiled to himself.

*****

"I'm pooped. We should call it a day," Dash said, resting on the tunnel floor.

"Too bad we don't know what day it is the first place," said Jeremy. "It could be night for all we know."

Melody looked around the tunnel, which was illuminated by a small 'torch' which was actually a piece of wood with one end glowing with a deep green fungae.

"Yeah, I think we should call it a day, too. How long do you think we've been swimming in here?" Melody asked, looking around.

"Feels like hours," said Dash, sighing as he stretched his flippers. "Those Croo were mighty generous to give us such a big supply of food, doncha think?"

Melody smacked his flipper that had wandered to the food bag. "We've got to save as much as we can. We don't know how far these tunnels go."

"Or where they go," Jeremy added.

"Jeremy, trust me," Melody sighed. "I can't explain it, but there's nothing in these tunnels that's dangerous to us. Really. And it leads back up the real sea floor. Jeremy!"

"Yes?"

"Relax!" Melody laughed, hitting him in the shoulder playfully. She paused to think for a moment, then lifted her locket off her neck. "Here. Open it."

Jeremy took the locket carefully, then gently flipped it open. The image of Atlantica glowed in the dim light of the cave. All three of them watched the vision with a quiet understanding, just enjoying the sight of the home that they were working their way back to. Even Dash, who wasn't really an Atlantican, felt affectionate for his second home.

"Looks like it really is near bedtime," Dash said finally. He yawned. "I'm really really pooped."

Jeremy shut the locket and passed it back to Melody, who carefully put it back on. "We should all get some rest. We've got a lot more swimming to do tomorrow."

Melody nodded. "Agreed."

They lay down on the rock of the tunnel as comfortably as they could – which wasn't much, really, but they weren't exactly in any position to complain – before trying to sleep. Talking seemed to be out of the question since they were all exhausted beyond belief, and so silence fell in the small green coccoon.

Eventually, Melody fell asleep.

This time, she dreamed.

At first it was all shadows and blurs, which suddenly erupted into a frenzy of sharp bright colours that then softened into a little dance of dream paint. There was blue and green, and yellow and orange, all whirling around and around. The place felt hot, as though the sun was as its highest right in the smack of summer. Strange objects faded in and out, some of them familiar, some not, but none nameable.

Then a woman spoke. "They'll find out."

"We knew we wouldn't be able to hide this forever." This voice belonged to a man.

"They'll never stand for it."

"They'll have to."

The voices wavered momentarily. Melody struggled to listen, but the bright colours were making her dizzy. She tried to speak but no voice came out. She tried to flail but her arms felt all numb.

Suddenly the woman screamed. "They're coming! Get the trident!"

Something passed just outside her line of vision. A woman with... red hair?!

"Mom!" Melody screamed.

*****

"Melody!" Ariel gasped as she snapped back into the world of the waking. She half-rose off the mattress in shock before flopping back down heavily, sweat lining her face and causing much of her usually bouncy hair to cling to her skin. She coughed frantically, raising her hands in an automatic attempt to be polite.

Eric immediately appeared at her side. He was sweating, too. "You had a dream?" he asked cautiously.

Ariel nodded as she fought back the coughing. Eventually she did manage to get it under control, although the scritching sensation at the back of her throat still refused to go away.

Eric drew his lips together. "So did I."

Ariel's eyes widened. "What...?"

"In my dream there was a man and a woman speaking, something about hiding something," said Eric. "Then I heard Melody's voice, calling for you."

Ariel's weak hands clutched at Eric's arms helplessly. "I had the same dream."

"What does this mean?" Eric asked.

*****

"I don't know *what* it means!" Melody exclaimed, very tempted to start pulling her hair. "I told you what I dreamt, all right?"

"And then you saw your mom..." Dash said.

"I saw someone with red hair. It could've been my mom, I don't know," said Melody, sighing. "But then I shouted 'Mom' and I swear I heard her shout back my name. Then I woke up."

Jeremy frowned. "A dream like that can't be taken lightly," he said. "If we get back to Atlantica we can ask Lady Aquata or your grandfather about it."

"Once we get back," said Melody, her voice full of conviction. She pressed her hands to her head to try to calm the massive whirling action going on within it.

"Melody...?" Jeremy asked carefully.

"The two voices," Melody said. "I've never heard them before, they didn't sound familiar or anything, but somehow I felt... connected to them. And the lady definitely said to get the trident. Trident."

"There's only one trident, and that belongs to the king," said Dash.

"And the dream felt incomplete. Like..." Her eyes widened. "An old memory."

A careful silence filled the tunnel.

This way... Melody's entire body jerked.

Jeremy touched her shoulder. "Melody, what is it?"

Melody slowly raised her head, but her eyes weren't looking at either of her friends. "There's that voice again."

"What voice?" Dash asked.

This way, princess... There's something you have to see...

"It sounds like the lady in my dream," Melody breathed, afraid that if she spoke too loudly, the voice would disappear. "Can't you hear it?"

"No." "Nope."

This way...

"It's asking me to follow it," said Melody, turning her head to look into the darkness. "There's something in here. Something... Dash, don't look so terrified, it's nothing dangerous. Really! I can't explain it, but it's okay. The voice is like... It has that comforting feeling. Like... Like my mother's voice." She raised herself off the floor.

"Wait, we're coming with you!" Jeremy said quickly. "Come on Dash."

Melody took the torch and lifted it up to light up as much as she could within the tunnel. She swam a few feet, her friends hovering cautiously behind her. Just a little futher, princess... Right here!

Melody stopped and turned, waving the torch a bit. "There's a small opening in the tunnel wall here," she announced. She peered into it. "I'm going in."

"Melody!" Jeremy and Dash protested.

"Hold this," Melody said, passing Jeremy the torch. "I'll be five minutes."

"Melody!"

Melody ignored him and squirmed into the small entrance, which just happened to be the right size to let her in, but not for her friends.

It was a cave. The water was cold and stagnant, as though no one had been in there for ages. But strangely enough the walls glowed a soft blue for no reason whatsoever, illuminating just enough of the cave for Melody to move around easily. Wait, it wasn't a cave. It was a room.

Old Atlantican-ish furniture scattered the place. If it were on land, there would be dust and cobwebs everywhere, but here just a thin film of sand covered most of the items. And in the middle of the room was a table, which seemed to glow a little bit brighter than the rest of the room. Melody approached it carefully.

Hello, princess.

Melody gasped as a beautiful young woman appeared in the room, sitting comfortably on the table.

"Who are you?" Melody asked carefully.

What's more important now is... who are *you*? The woman's lips weren't moving, and her voice just seemed to appear in Melody's head. The vision was glowing slightly, like a ghost, and when she moved a bit she looked translucent against the furniture around her. Under different circumstances Melody would have been terrified, but there was something warm and maternal about the way the woman was watching her.

"I'm Melody."

Princess Melody. You have come at last.

"At last?"

I haven't much time. I've come to give you this. The woman gestured at a small box on the table. Take it. It will help you later on. I've also come to warn you about the Sorceress.

"Sorceress?" Melody echoed.

The woman nodded. She who has poisoned your mother. You cannot let her provoke you. She will say things, princess. Things that will be difficult for you to hear, but you must be strong. You *are* strong, I know, as you are willing to do so much for your mother. Remember that love you have for your mother, as well as your father. And your family and friends. You must never forget.

"How could I possibly forget?"

The woman frowned slightly. All too easily, Melody. A difficult time is coming, and you will be forced to make decisions. The Sorceress will offer you things she herself has no right to offer. Do not forget who you are. Do not forget your loved ones.

Melody nodded. "I promise."

The woman's eyes sparkled, just as the overall vision started to waver. Take care, princess. And she disappeared.

Melody hugged herself as she found herself alone in the room once again. Then she swam toward the table to open the box. Within it was a thin silver chain that felt as light as seaspin in her fingers. It was just large enough to be a bracelet, and she carefully fastened it on her left wrist before turning to leave the room.

At the entrance, she took one last glance at the room, then squeezed out.

Dash and Jeremy were lying on the tunnel floor, fast asleep.

Melody smiled at them before sitting down. Strangely enough she didn't feel sleepy at all, despite having been woken up in the middle of the night by the dream. She stretched a bit, flexing her shoulder muscles, feeling eager to continue the journey through the tunnels.

Dash blinked awake, smacking his lips lazily. His eyes widened when he saw Melody. "Melody! You're all right!"

"Of course, what did you think?" Melody asked.

"You were in there for hours!" Dash exclaimed.

Melody's eyes widened. "Hours? How can that be, I was only in there for a few minutes!"

The ruckus woke up Jeremy, who jumped from sleep-mode to alert-mode within the blink of an eye (literally) and grabbed Melody's shoulders quickly. "Melody! Are you okay? What happened? Why did you take so long?"

Melody explained to them what had happened, about the strange vision of the woman and what she had "said" and also the bracelet. Dash eyed the silver trinket a little dubiously.

"It's safe," Melody said, touching the bracelet gently.

Jeremy scratched his chin. "You said she was a woman?"

"Yes," said Melody, nodding. "I've never seen her before and..." Her eyes widened. "She had red-brown hair! It wasn't the same red like my mother's, but still a reddish colour. Oh, she must be the one in my dream! She lead us to this tunnel just to give me this bracelet, that has to be it! Although what the 'it' is for, I have no idea..."

"A woman?" Jeremy asked again.

"Yes, what are you getting at, Jeremy?"

"Not a mermaid?"

Melody's mouth opened and closed. "No. She wasn't a mermaid. Human." She swallowed. "I don't know why I didn't notice it."

"Who was she, you think?" Dash asked.

"King Triton could know," Jeremy said.

"Yes." Melody took a deep breath. "We need to get back. I already know who's behind my mother's poisoning, all we have to do is tell grandfather and he'll zap that Sorceress to kingdom come."

"After you get your rest," Jeremy said.

"No need," said Melody. "I'm wide awake, and ready for major tail action. If you guys are fully rested, that is."

They were. And so off they went, filled with new energy for travelling.

*****

Another trio were also hard at work, although these were a stranger sight to behold to anyone watching. This trio consisted of Miasma the mad medicine mermaid, Tip the bold bodacious bird and Princess Attina.

"Where is she?" Tip asked.

Attina shut her eyes and concentrated. "West. Melody's heading west." After opening her eyes she took out a chug of a small bottle she kept on her belt. "This is really taking the energy out of me, being used as a tracking device."

"It's the only way we can find her," said Tip.

Attina nodded as she rested against a rock. "Just give me a moment, okay."

Tip sat down on the rock next to Attina, giving his wings a rest. "It's been nearly four days since Melody first fell into the Chasm," he said quietly. "And we're still nowhere near finding her."

"Hey, it's a good plan," Attina told him. "Aquata was right about Miasma knowing a way out of the Chasm, and knowing Melody's luck, she would have found the tunnel, too. And now that you've asked me to track down her whereabouts, you know for certain that she's in the tunnel. Now all you have to do is wait for her on the other side, no problem."

"Unfortunately, some trouble," Miasma told her.

"What?" Attina and Tip asked simultaneously.

"The other end of the tunnel is in Sharkania," Miasma said, cracking her knuckles.

Tip gave a little shriek. "Shar-sharkania?"

"Yup. What, you got a problem with sharks, little blubber bird?" Miasma asked.

"N-no, of course not!" Tip said quickly.

"And you just forgot to mention that little detail?" Attina asked. "I'm not Ariel, you know, I'm not built for adventure!" She sighed.

"You've been more than enough help, Lady Attina," said Miasma, patting her on the shoulder. "Now that you have confirmed that Melody is in the tunnels, I shall go and collect her on the other side."

Attina drew her lips together. "I..."

"It's okay, Lady Attina," said Miasma. "I can handle it. Sharks are no match for me."

Attina and Tip looked the thin elderly mermaid up and down. Or rather, down and further down.

"Right," said Tip slowly.

"Don't judge an oyster by it's shell," Miasma snapped, but she was wiggling her eyebrows in an excited manner. "And Princess Melody can handle herself pretty well, I'd wager."
 
 

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