Upon reaching Ursula City, the bus was heading straight to the airport. Like all airports, there were terminals for different purposes. Meridian Academy had its own. After all it was practically an entire country.
It was prohibited to transform or use magic of any kind inside the terminals. The magic suppression field was strong, making Ryker's head feel oddly light, like a part of him he hadn't realized was there was suddenly absent. All of them felt a little dizzy, except for Fenia, who seemed completely unaffected as she eagerly sniffed everything.
Security went fast until they had reached Fenia. The airport security, a bored-looking minotaur with impressive horns, blinked in surprise as the scanner let out a frantic series of beeps.
"Ma'am, do you have any illegal magical items on you?" he grunted, his brow furrowed.
Her ears twitched, her tail swishing behind her like a pendulum of irritation.
She took off her spiky choker, handing it to him with a smirk. The security looked at the necklace. He had absolutely no idea what it was.
"Is that blood?" he said, spotting a red dot on one of the spikes.
Fenia yanked it back before the officer could take it.
"I forgot," she said simply and licked it. The officer was now very confused and just let her through. He wasn't paid enough to deal with this.
They all had to wait at the boarding gate. An announcement went off, saying how every flight was grounded until Meridian flight 741, the one they were taking, departed.
A massive plane with four engine turbines was parked on the tarmac. It was clear to see through the large windows. Its metallic body gleamed with an intricate mural of a rose entwined by a dragon and a serpent stretching along its tail.
They were the only Meridian students flying at this hour. After being greeted by the pilot and crew, they boarded. The plane looked like a hotel suite with small rooms for each student. There was a map of the plane in the corridor. His room was near the middle of the plane and he didn't have the best room.
That room was reserved for Alya; it had a swimming pool inside. He managed to pry the mermaid off his shoulder. He wanted some peace and quiet. To read a book. Perhaps watch a show. It was a 14-hour flight even with magic enhancements to the plane's engine.
After he enter his room, he plopped down on the bed, the scent of clean linen and sterilized air filling his lungs. This was it. He was on the path to S-rank. Not to mention whatever his mother wanted from him. He didn't know.
"This is boring," Fenia said.
She was lying next to him on the bed, making herself comfortable, tossing and turning, still in her maid outfit.
A dejected sigh escaped Ryker. This woman didn't know the meaning of boundaries, which was expected given who had sent her.
"You have your own room," he said, trying to keep his patience intact.
Fenia stretched her arms over her head. Her shirt rode up, revealing her pale abdomen, and the hint of a dark tattoo that snaked around her hip, a mirror of the one on her neck.
"I want drama, not peace. Can't you go talk to those girls? Get them to fight or something?" the wolf's eyes were glinting.
Maddie had warned him not to engage. He tried to follow her advice but it seemed like Fenia thrived on the chaos he was trying to avoid.
"I'm going to the toilet," he said, hoping she would take a hint and leave.
Her ears stood upright, and then she looked at him with a mischievous smirk, her brown eyes were sparkling.
"Master, shall I hold it for you?" she asked, her tail swaying excitedly.
A shudder went through him.
"Of course not," Ryker rushed into the ensuite bathroom, locking the door behind him. He was leaning against the door, trying to calm the racing thoughts of how this academy was going to be more of a hellhole than the dungeon he had escaped.
His phone made a beep and the small screen flickered to life, a message icon blinking. A video call request from Alya.
He groaned and considered declining but his curiosity, or perhaps a sense of morbid obligation, made him accept.
The face that filled the screen was impossibly beautiful, framed by sapphire hair that fanned out against the plush, seafoam-green cushions of her luxurious room.
"Hi," she said, her smile making him forget that he wanted nothing more than to throw her out a window.
Before he could reply, she was panning her phone around. He saw the interior of her room. There was giant pool with tropical fish swimming in it.
"Do you want to take a swim?" she offered, a genuine hopeful look on her face.
He scratched his cheek. The last time he was in the water, she had tried to drown him. But a swim did sound relaxing.
"Are you going to drown me again?" he decided to ask.
"You're silly. This is fake water. With guppies! See?"
She submerged her phone into the water, where small, colorful fish darted through her perfectly manicured fingers.
"It would be a shame for me to be the only one here. All alone," she said, her voice taking on a dramatic, wounded quality.
"But you're not alone. You have guppies with you," he teased.
Her eyes widened as if she had been physically struck by his words.
"Ryker," she whined, her bottom lip trembling.
"The guppies don't count!"
Staring at himself in the mirror, he decided it was best to be proactive than to have her bust down the door later.
"Can I come too?" an eavesdropping wolf asked from the other side of the bathroom door.
Ryker sighed.
"Sure Alya, I'll be there soon."
Hanging up the phone, he exited the bathroom and sat on his bed. He saw Fenia sitting on the armchair, smirking.
"Honestly, how did you get a Kraken wrapped around your finger? We have legends about their tempers," she stretched her arms.
"What? She's not a Kraken."
That name was famous, so Ryker obviously heard of it, but there was absolutely no way this girl was related to that family. It just didn't make any sense. They usually lived deep in the trenches where no land-critter could live.
Fenia's smile vanished, replaced with a look of genuine astonishment.
"You know her baba is strong, right? That's what you said when you picked her up from the beach," she reminded him.
He nodded, "There are plenty of strong mermaid families."
The wolf let out a snort.
"So you don't know who she sent that picture to?" she asked, her ears twitching with amusement.
"Her grandmother," he answered.
His maid was clutching her stomach, laughing, her shoulders shaking.
"Ryker, she didn't just send the photo to a random old sea hag," she said, her smile so wide.
"Baba doesn't just mean grandmother in the mermaid culture. It's the title of the ruler of all mermaid kind. Lorelei Kraken is not a descendant of Dracula like you or your mother. She is the Kraken."