My calling...

Waking up wasn't something Eris wanted to do anytime soon however there was someone knocking over and over again, calling out for her. Opening her eyes she was met with a gentle orange light and had a warm blanket over her. The thought of getting out of bed made her freeze.

"Come in…" She tried to say it as loud as possible but she didn't have the energy for it. The person however did hear her and opened the door. She noticed the tall silhouette, recognizing who it was.

"I'm sorry for waking you up… I was just worried about you. You have basically slept for a whole day." Eris slowly sat up, her whole body felt incredibly sore and slow. Despite sleeping for so long, she still felt incredibly tired.

"Really? Oh…" Brem smiled and sat down beside her, placing a hand on her back. Eris never actually noticed just how big his hand is until he placed it on her back. It was almost just as big as her back. But he did it so caringly that it didn't frighten her. Brem is one of the kindest people she has met so far, who despite the long journey on the ice, he still kept playing the flute to spread joy.

"Edeltria is feeling much better as well. The bath in the spring almost healed all of her wounds. She then ate and slept soundly. She smiled a bit as well but… When she sees patterned fabric, it reminds her of Zeena." Eris felt how her stomach began to growl when Brem mentioned food. But her appetite soon disappeared when Zeena was mentioned. Images of her corpse flashed thought. She wanted to go back to sleep even more now.

"I'll let the priestess know you're awake, you really should get something to eat as well." He gave a pat before standing up and moved towards the door. Before leaving however he stopped and glanced back at her.

"Thank you… For standing up for us. Without you… We never would have seen change." His lips had a warm smile on them then he left and closed the door after him. Eris couldn't help but smile. At least Brem doesn't see her as a problem, that what she did was good and necessary. Despite their life being in danger. But it still feels like she had more to do. Sure, she saved satyrs from the streets of Frosa then somehow found an entire city underground. But there are so much more like them who need help… Finding everyone would be impossible… But she wants to try, she has to. This must be her calling…

She forced herself out of bed, her body still feeling sore but at least she wasn't freezing. She took a deep breath and left the room, being met by dwarfs and flying eldernaras. Eris tried to keep calm, not knowing where to even go to be able to grab some food. But she didn't need to stand alone and think for long, since the high priestess was visible from the crowd. She wasn't hard to miss anyway, being much taller than everyone around her.

"Ah, you're already up and out of bed. It makes me happy to see you feel much better dear child. Please, follow me." Eris felt how she swallowed harshly when she heard the high priestess voice. There was this air of mystery around the priestess and how everyone held a high respect for her. Having her talk to her so casually and seeing her so often felt… Wrong. But she followed her, not being able to say no.

They arrived at some sort of temple, with more dragon statues. Entering there was a table filled with warm food already and the scent made Eris' appetite return.

"Please have a seat and eat as much as you like" Eris sat down and began to eat anything that looked good and smelled good. Everything tasted good but she couldn't say what her favorites were, she just wanted to fill the void in her stomach. The priestess was silent and was drinking tea but when Eris was finished with her meal she spoke up. Carefully like Eris was a small fragile flower.

"I'm sorry for yesterday, I must have overwhelmed you. I didn't know what you have been going through. So please, dear child, if you have any questions just ask. So you can take your time." Eris slowly nodded before taking a deep breath.

"Seanes… What really are they?"

"Seafolk to put it simply. They live underwater, mostly in lakes but they also live in the ocean close to the surface. They have ears like yours, a tail and gills. Unlike merfolk who are their cousins, they actually have legs as well, being more similar to lizards or frogs than fish."

"So the girl in the ice… She's merfolk?"

"Yes, a mermaid. King Roland… He froze the ocean because he thought they would taint his kingdom. The entire royal blood has always been fearful of something other than human. Which is why we are hiding underground now. But we're waiting for the time until we can reclaim the goddess' Edel mountain." Eris nodded, feeling how the information was sinking easier than it did yesterday.

"Can we save the mermaid?"

"I wish we could… But I'm afraid if the block of ice gets melted, I think our entire city would be swallowed by the sea. The eldernaras wouldn't be able to handle that much water." Eris felt how her heart weighed when she heard that. The mermaid might be trapped in there forever… But if they reclaim their mountain then it wouldn't be an issue?

"But why… Did the king do that?"

"I'm not sure about that child. I don't think anyone knows except himself..." Eris sighed, feeling anger towards the king. Letting the satyrs live on the streets then freeze the entire ocean.

After the meal, Eris returned to her room and noticed the books that the priestess brought yesterday.

"Evodine, I have to talk to you" Her mark then suddenly glowed and Evodine appeared, sitting on the bed.

"Yes darling?~"

"I want to help these people return to their mountain. What do you know about king Roland? And the seanes?"

"Well, I would assume it would be written in these books… But! I do know they have a ball coming up~ It's really a perfect timing, we are pretty close by… If we went there by carriage" Eris then decided. She would go to that ball and make sure the king regrets everything he has done.