Theron's POV
I hated this.
Every single part of what I was about to do made my stomach turn, but I'd learned years ago that hate didn't matter. Orders were orders. And my uncle—Admiral Kade Ashcroft—had given me very clear orders.
"Breach the palace. Take prisoners. Find the royal family."
My boots hit the palace floor as my men poured through the hole we'd blown in the throne room wall. Water swirled around us—we had breathing apparatus that let humans survive underwater for hours—but it still felt wrong being here. Invading someone's home. Someone's kingdom.
"Captain!" My first mate Declan appeared at my side, his face grim behind his breathing mask. "East wing is clear. No sign of the King yet."
"Keep searching. He's dying, so he won't be far." I looked around at the chaos—mer-guards fighting my men, civilians screaming and fleeing, children crying for their parents. "And Declan? Minimal casualties. We're here to capture, not slaughter."
"The Admiral said—"
"I know what my uncle said." My voice came out harder than I meant it. "But these are my men and this is my mission. We do it my way."
Declan nodded and moved off to relay the orders. Good. At least some of my crew still had consciences.
I'd been hunting merfolk for ten years. Ten years of tracking, capturing, and delivering them to research facilities where they were studied like animals. Ten years of being called a hero by my people while feeling like a monster.
And tonight was supposed to be my greatest achievement—capturing the mer-royal family and ending the war.
So why did it feel like I was damning my soul?
"Sir!" A young soldier ran up, breathing hard. "We found the King's chambers. He's there but—there's someone with him. A female. She matches the description of—"
He didn't get to finish.
An explosion rocked the corridor. I grabbed the wall to steady myself as rocks rained down. Someone screamed.
"What was that?" I demanded.
"Mer-guards are fighting back! They're using some kind of magic to—"
Another explosion. Closer.
"Fall back to defensive positions!" I shouted. "Don't let them separate us!"
My men scrambled to obey, forming a protective circle. But I kept moving forward, toward the King's chambers. If the female in there was who I thought it was—if she was a princess—then capturing her could end this war before more people died.
I told myself that's why I was going. To save lives. To end the killing.
I didn't let myself think about the nightmares I'd been having lately. Dreams where the merfolk I'd captured stared at me with accusing eyes and asked why. Dreams where I was the monster, not them.
I reached the King's door. Two mer-guards stood outside, weapons drawn. When they saw me, their faces twisted with hate.
"The Siren Slayer," one spat. "You're not taking them."
"I don't want to hurt you," I said, and meant it. "Stand aside."
"Never."
They attacked.
I was faster. My blade caught the first guard's weapon and twisted it away. The second guard lunged but I sidestepped, using his momentum against him. Within seconds, both guards were disarmed and unconscious.
I felt sick.
These were just soldiers doing their job. Protecting their King. And I'd cut through them like they were nothing.
I pushed open the door.
Inside, an old mer-man lay in bed, clearly dying. He looked at me with eyes full of fear and anger and resignation.
"You," he whispered. "The human captain."
"King Deepcrest." I kept my weapon ready but didn't raise it. "I'm here to take you into custody. You'll be treated fairly, given medical care—"
"Liar." A female voice, sharp as a knife.
I turned.
And froze.
She stood in the corner, half-hidden in shadow, but I could see enough. Long dark hair floating around her face. Eyes that glowed silver in the dim light. A face so beautiful it made my chest ache.
But it was the look in her eyes that stopped me cold. Pure, burning hatred.
"You're the Siren Slayer," she said, her voice dripping with venom. "The monster who hunts my people for sport."
"I don't hunt for sport. I follow orders."
"Oh, well that makes it so much better." She moved into the light and I saw her fully. She was stunning. And she looked at me like I was something she'd scraped off her tail. "You're just following orders while you destroy families and ruin lives. How noble."
Something about her voice made my heart pound. Something about the way she stood—proud and fierce even though she was clearly terrified—made me want to...
What? Protect her? That was insane. She was my enemy. My mission.
"Who are you?" I asked.
The King answered instead. "Leave her alone, human. She's nobody. Just a servant who was bringing me medicine."
He was lying. I could see it in his eyes. This woman was important. Maybe even—
"You're a princess," I realized. "Which one? The prophecy mentioned—"
"There is no prophecy," the woman snapped. "And I'm not going anywhere with you."
"I'm afraid you don't have a choice."
"There's always a choice." Her hands started to glow with silver light. Magic. She was gathering magic. "I can kill you right now. One blast and you're dead."
"Then do it." I spread my arms, leaving myself open. "If you think I'm a monster who deserves death, then kill me."
She hesitated. The magic flickered.
"That's what I thought," I said quietly. "You're not a killer. Neither am I, despite what you think. I'm just a soldier trying to end a war."
"By kidnapping dying kings and innocent women?"
"By following the only path I have." I took a step toward her. "Listen to me. The war is coming whether we like it or not. Thousands will die on both sides. But if you come with me—if you talk to my uncle, help us negotiate peace—maybe we can stop it."
"Your uncle." She laughed bitterly. "Admiral Kade Ashcroft. The man who's been trying to wipe out my people for decades. You expect me to trust him?"
"No. I expect you to trust me."
"Trust you? I don't even know you!"
"Then learn." I locked eyes with her. "Give me one chance to prove I'm not the monster you think I am. Come with me voluntarily. If at any point you want to leave, I'll let you go. You have my word."
"The word of a mer-hunter means nothing."
"Then what do you have to lose by testing it?"
She stared at me, magic still crackling around her hands. I could see her thinking, calculating, trying to figure out what to do.
The King spoke up. "Morana, don't. He's lying. He'll take you to their research facilities and—"
"Morana." I said her name softly, testing it. It fit her. Beautiful and dangerous. "Is that your name?"
"Don't say my name like you know me."
"I don't know you. But I'd like to." The words surprised me as much as they surprised her. "I'd like to understand why this war started. Why my people and yours can't find peace. And maybe... maybe you're the one who can help me figure it out."
For just a second, I saw something flicker in her eyes. Not trust. But curiosity. Like she was wondering if maybe, possibly, I wasn't completely evil.
Then the moment shattered.
Declan burst through the door. "Captain! The mer-forces are regrouping! We have maybe two minutes before they—"
The wall exploded.
Mer-guards poured through, weapons flashing. Declan shoved me aside just as a spear whistled past my head.
"Get the King!" I shouted. "Protect the—"
Morana moved like lightning. Her magic shot out, not at me but at the attacking guards, creating a wall of water between us and them.
"Go!" she screamed at me. "Get your men out! Now!"
"Not without you!"
"I'm not one of your prizes to collect!" Her eyes blazed. "I'll die before I let you take me!"
A mer-guard broke through her water wall. His blade came down toward my head. I barely raised my weapon in time to block.
And then Morana was there, between us, her magic slamming into the guard and sending him flying.
She'd... saved me?
We stared at each other for one impossible moment.
"Why?" I asked.
"I don't know," she whispered, looking as shocked as I felt.
Then the King shouted, "Morana, run! Use the secret exit! Go!"
She looked torn between staying and fleeing.
"Go," I told her. "But this isn't over. I'll find you again."
"Not if I find you first, Siren Slayer."
She dove toward a hidden panel in the wall. It slid open, revealing a dark tunnel.
She looked back at me one last time. "Stay out of my way, human. Next time we meet, I won't save you."
Then she was gone.
And I was left standing in a war zone, my mission failed, my men fighting for their lives.
But all I could think about was her.
Morana.
The woman who hated me but saved me anyway.
The enemy I was supposed to capture but somehow, impossibly, didn't want to hurt.
What was wrong with me?
"Sir!" Declan grabbed my arm. "We have to retreat! Now!"
He was right. We'd failed. The King was too weak to move and Morana had escaped. All we could do was fall back and regroup.
As my men and I fought our way out of the palace, I made myself a promise.
I would find her again. And next time, I'd make her understand.
I wasn't the monster she thought I was.
And maybe—just maybe—she wasn't the enemy I'd been taught to believe in.
But first, I had to survive the retreat. And figure out how to explain to my uncle that I'd let the most important prisoner escape.
Because she smiled at me before she left.
And somehow, that smile felt more dangerous than any weapon.