The War God’s Favorite novel Chapter 66

 The Mermaid’s Chant
As she walked up to the center, every pair of eyes was on her. Most people were curious to know more about the War God’s Concubine, the young lady the Emperor himself was so fond of.
Cassandra’s frail figure, despite being alone, looked very proud and solemn at that moment. With her beautiful dress, her jewelry, and those gorgeous eyes, no one could deny her beauty. If it wasn’t for her scars she didn’t bother to hide, no one could have guessed she used to be a slave…
The young concubine walked up to the lake but, instead of stopping near it, she kept going, taking off her shoes and stepping barefoot into the water. The fresh sensation on her little feet was delicious.
Cassandra stood there for a few seconds, making people wonder if she was going to dance, but contrary to their expectations, she sat down, on her knees. All of her lower body was now immersed in the water. She put her palms on the surface of the water, making it stay there, her hands on top of the surface as if she was sensing it.
Shareen glanced at Missandra, who was smiling. It was obvious the younger sister already knew what Cassandra was about to do. Shareen thought about asking, but then, she did not. She would rather have the surprise of it.
After a few seconds of silence, Cassandra opened her lips and, softly, began to sing.
Everyone was surprised. Not only this language was completely unknown and very strange to them, but her voice was much deeper and clearer they had thought. It felt like an echo, her silvery voice spreading around like a cold wind. There was something eerie and unreal about it, that kept the whole crowd speechless. 2
As Cassandra kept singing, people exchanged looks, barely believing their ears. Was that haunting voice even human? It was giving them shivers and goosebumps, hearts beating faster. Some people felt strangely appealed to it, while others found it… scary. As if the woman that was sitting there was singing some forbidden chant, something that did not belong to this world.
The song wasn’t over, but something else happened. One of the Concubines saw it first, and gasped, pointing it out with her finger without a word.
Something was happening with the Lake. It was calm just a few moments ago, but slowly, little circles were now appearing at random locations on the surface. At first, it was very subtle, making people think it was just a coincidence until they realized it wasn’t. One by one, little ripples started appearing, and the precision of how it matched Cassandra’s voice didn’t leave any doubt. The young concubine was doing this.
Her eyes closed, Cassandra kept singing, and it was as if the Lake was echoing her song. The circles started growing bigger and bigger, crossing each other, matching every note she sang. No one dared to say a word, or even breathe too loud. They were absolutely mesmerized by this show.
When they thought they couldn’t be more surprised, another guest pointed something in the water. Sure enough, under the clear surface, something else was happening.
Little movements were seen and kept intriguing everyone until people realized it was the fish. As if they were dancing, hundreds of little or middle-sized fish were swimming around, staying close to the surface but without crossing it. Moving in little crowds, the underwater creatures were going in circles and curves, so synchronized it was incredible to witness. As unbelievable as it was, they were definitely reacting to Cassandra’s song. Most of them were gathering close to her, in such numbers that all of the water around her was filled with fish all sizes.
Bigger fish started to appear as Cassandra’s voice got deeper, taking people by surprise. Among them, a large white carp was dancing around, in the middle of the lake, following the currents created by the other fish. With the song taking a new turn, the ripples increased, smaller and more agitated.
Something was getting a bit scary about her song. The clear surface broke, and little waves appeared randomly, chasing the smaller fish back into the lower levels of the lake, while the bigger ones stayed.
At that very moment, Cassandra opened her eyes, staring right at Phetra.
The Princess was very uncomfortable with that. There was something threatening about that song, the more she heard the more she wanted to get away from Cassandra. She was shivering, feeling scared and uneasy. The Lake, too, was getting dangerously agitated. The little waves were getting bigger, like an angered sea that was about to swallow its surroundings. The young Concubine didn’t feel like a frail young woman anymore. More like a water creature, waiting to trap her victim…
When the song came to a sudden end, it took a few seconds for everything and everyone to settle down.
.
The lake returned to its quiet state, and only a few fish kept hanging and circling around Cassandra. Some little ones were poking against her legs and feet with curiosity. The crowd stayed speechless for one more minute. No one dared to break the silence as if the magic would be washed away.
The first clap came from the Imperial Concubine Kareen. The brutal sounds had several people jump as if they had been woken up from a dream. She was followed by her children and the Emperor. Since the most powerful man in the Empire was clapping, no one else could hold back.
While everyone was cheering loudly and acclaiming her, Cassandra stood, sending one last glance at Phetra before turning around to leave the water.
“Beautiful! Absolutely heavenly!” Claimed the Emperor.
Cassandra bowed, before walking back to her Prince. Kairen stood to go and meet her halfway.
In her chair, Shareen let out a long sigh.
“What the heck was that? This is divine power!”
“It’s called the Mermaid’s Chant,” explained Missandra. “In our native tribe, every child begins to learn it when they turn seven. Our people have this ability to modify our voice to have it match the water’s natural rhythm.”
“You’re telling me this was all a.. some water trick?”
“This is not a trick! It takes years of training to master it! My sister was naturally gifted with a great voice, she learned it in a few months. Some people try their whole life without success. Your people could never master it.”
“Missandra, please,” said Cassandra as she was arriving at their side.
“What? It’s true! The Rain Tribe is one of the very few tribes who descend from a Mermaid and inherited her voice. People in the Dragon Empire can’t have that.”
“That’s only what the legend says,” chuckled her sister.
While Cassandra and Missandra kept bickering, Kareen was still truly amazed. While the Imperial Family had inherited the gift of Dragon Taming, she had never suspected other people could have rival characteristics… Underneath her appearance, Cassandra had kept that precious gift hidden for so long, today’s demonstration was a real shock.
“Well, well!” Said the Emperor. “Phetra, after that, I don’t think you can say you’re unimpressed anymore! My White Lily, what a gift you have! You need to come and sing for that old man sometimes, I would love to hear that beautiful song again!”
Everyone around didn’t dare say a thing, but they were utterly shocked. Why did the Emperor make it look so normal? That woman had just sung something strange and shaken up the whole lake! No one could look at Cassandra with the same eyes as before. That song was heavenly, and whether people had felt fear or bliss while listening, they all shared the same strange feeling of wanting to hear that again.
The Emperor ordered for more entertainers to come, but after Cassandra’s song, anything else felt quite blend.
However, there was an unexpected effect on that. While Shareen when on to chat with the ministers present, and Kareen discussed with another Imperial Concubine, a bunch of young concubines appeared to greet Cassandra.
“Lady Cassandra! Your song was marvelous!”
“I didn’t think you had such talent!”
“Your dress is so beautiful, it suits your skin tone perfectly!”
“Is that the Emperor’s gift? How lucky!”
While she was taken by surprise by this sudden wave of praises, Cassandra answered politely, but nothing more. She hadn’t forgotten the cold treatment she had received previously from all those women. Cassandra couldn’t trust any of them, regardless of their words and smiles. She was actually grateful to Kairen, as the War God’s presence next to her kept those women from standing too close to her. They didn’t dare get within a five feet circle around him, otherwise, Cassandra was sure they would have been all overwhelming her.
They didn’t even mind her answers much, most of their talk was between them, chatting about how beautiful, how smart or how surprising Cassandra was as if she had to hear them again and again to believe it.
“What a bunch of annoying leeches,” sighed Missandra behind her.
“What did that servant say!” Yelled one of the concubines who had heard her.
“Nothing that wasn’t true,” replied Cassandra, standing up. “If you are done, I’d like to eat in peace, ladies.”
In other circumstances, the Concubines wouldn’t have let that go. They would have complained to their Princes, maybe got the servant killed and Cassandra punished. However, it had been made very clear that the War God’s favorite was not someone they could even consider punishing in any way. Hence, they had no choice but to bite their tongues and swallow their pride.
“Where are you going,” asked Kairen.
“Just going to take a stroll. I’ll get sleepy if I just laze around, stay seated and eat.”
“I’ll come with you.”
Cassandra frowned, glancing at the bunch of men in uniforms that had been waiting to the side to approach.
“Aren’t you going to talk to the ministers at all? It’s okay, I’ll keep Mie and Dahlia with me.”
The War God frowned. It was that expression he always made when Cassandra was taking a reasonable decision he wasn’t very fond of. He sighed, glaring the poor ministers’ way.
“Fine. But be careful, and where I can see you.”
“I’m not leaving the area, I promise,” she said while giving him a quick peck on the lips.