The sea turned from gold to cobalt blue.

Antonia leaned as far as she could over the railing, letting the diamond droplets of water spray high against her face. Cambria was growing close enough to make out the land's outline. Dozens of other ships had joined them, all splitting the water in front of them as they raced to port. Antonia bit back a smile and raised a hand. The feeling of string slipped through her fingers. When she pulled back, the boats stuttered.

"You shouldn't do that when you don't know what will happen," Nema said, head tilted to the sun. Her eyes weren't open, but somehow she knew what Antonia was doing.

Antonia lowered her hand. "I feel it sometimes. I... I know I can do something, but..." She squeezed the air in front of her.

Nema cracked open an eye. "It's a dangerous game."

Antonia sighed and glanced again at the other ships floating by.

Nema was right that it was dangerous. Not long ago, she couldn't even call upon her power. It was hard to say what changed, but it was even harder to say how much control she had over it.

Maybe it was seeing what she did with the mermaids. Maybe it was the knowledge that her secret was out in the open. Either way, Antonia felt a confidence she hadn't known before. Maybe even freedom. It was odd to step out of a cage you hadn't known you were in. For years, she thought the world was simply bars instead of skies.

"Have you been to Cambria before?" Antonia asked, hopping from the front of the boat until she was directly in front of her.

Nema tilted her head. "Why would I have visited Cambria?"

"I don't know," Antonia said, mimicking her posture with a slow smile. "Until recently, I wouldn't have guessed you were born in Htraeh or traveled the Forgotten Sea. Clearly, your life before becoming a druid was eventful."

Nema scoffed. She reached out, lightly tugging one of Antonia's curls.

"I have not been to Cambria," she said. "It looks like Elbon has, though," she added, jerking her head to the Htraehean dressing head-to-toe in thick cloth. At Antonia's confusion, Nema laughed. "Htraeheans can't touch magic, remember? At all."

Antonia's head whipped around. "At all?"

"At all," Nema repeated. "If I were of the Htraehean religion," she said, running a finger over Antonia's arm and leaning in with a scandalous voice. "I would have already been forsaken." Something about that sent Antonia's heart fluttering. "But maybe the rules are different if you're a Reformer," she added as if her only sin might have been touching Antonia. Nema had used magic plenty of times. Still, the idea that she was Nema's temptation felt stirring in a way that left her jumpy.

"That sounds like a very stressful religion," she said.

Nema chuckled. "My father would pray every single night. But my mother...." Her gaze flicked to the ocean. "My mother was complicated."

Antonia said nothing. It was the first Nema had ever mentioned her parents. Antonia had broached the subject a few times before, but Nema always pursed her lips and changed the subject. Now, Antonia found the words lulling her in, holding her breath as if it might disrupt the story.

"You know the king and queen made a deal with Cambria, right?" Nema asked. Antonia looked back at her blankly. "It's what they were talking about before...about Octavia."

Ah. Antonia's previous excitement faltered. She didn't know anything about Octavia and the Chosen Family. It sounded like a lie as far as she was concerned. Nema raised a hand, shielding her face from the sun as it peaked between the clouds.

"I don't know much about it," Nema said, studying Antonia's face. "It was before I was born. I guess Octavia was sick, and your father asked the Chosen Family to heal her."

"I've never even seen Octavia sick," Antonia objected. Even when they would stuff their faces with endless desserts and too much sugar, Octavia always felt fine while Antonia groaned and grumbled. She hadn't had a cold or even a cut that stuck around for long.

"Maybe that's why," Nema shrugged. "But Cambria doesn't give their help freely. If you want to use the Chosen Family's magic, you have to join the empire."

"We're not part of Cambria's empire."

"I know," Nema said, lips pursing. "Rumor has it, another deal was struck." A shadow of birds passed over them as Nema hesitated. "Toni-"

And then the string was back. Except this time, it wasn't threaded through Antonia's hands but wrapped around her neck. Before she could process what that could mean, Nema's words blew into the wind, leaving Antonia's head to spin as the sway of the boat stopped.

Silence followed. No crashing over the waves. No screech of gulls. No laughter from other passengers. An eerie stillness made Antonia wonder if maybe she had died without even realizing it. When she turned back, Nema was gone. The water stopped moving. She was alone.

Until she wasn't.

"Convert them?" a voice said. Antonia felt her breath hitch in recognition. Spinning around, she tried to locate who had spoken, but the boat remained empty. Only the distorted voices accompanied her. "My country is already running low on magic-"

"Your country is unfortunately not much of my concern," a man said. The voices sounded like they might have been flying over her, dipping and rippling with no real focal point. "Htraeheans are leaving their homeland to avoid the prophecy. I want to make sure they can't return."

"By turning them all into druids?" her father's voice answered. Antonia ran to the ship's edge, leaning over the railing as if he might be in the water below. "You expect me to find every Htraehean hiding in my country and give them magic?"

"No," the other voice said, and a baby's cry rang out. Someone shushed it. "Just offer it. I hear it is a difficult time in your country. Giving them some magic might help-"

"You mean offering magic to the starving Htraeheans in my lands would prevent them from fighting alongside Htraeh against your lands," her father answered coldly. "What of those who were born in Romanov? Should I not put my starving people first?"

Everything around her was tinged in black smoke. Antonia's magic. The thread pulled itself, impatiently waiting for her to pay attention to the conversation at hand.

"Perhaps you should put Romanov first," the other person responded. "I'm most certainly putting my empire first by giving you this ultimatum. But if you agree to my terms, I will save your daughter. Don't, and I will close the door."

Silence. Antonia wished she could see them. If she could just see her father's face... She turned again, but nothing was there but shadows. Masses of darkness unfolded and expanded around her.

"Very well," her father said, and the shadows disappeared.

"-my mother accepted magic," Nema continued as if the conversation hadn't stopped. Antonia jolted forward, feeling like the wind had just gotten knocked out of her. Nema didn't seem to notice as she twisted her hands together, voice a careful balance of soft and regretful. "Your father offered it to many Htraeheans living in his lands after the Chosen Family healed Octavia. A political ploy to prevent Htraeheans from returning home to fight for their country. My father said no, but..." Nema bit her lip. "I don't remember much about my father. After my mother accepted magic, I know he did many things to please the gods." She offered a wry smile. "The things we do to justify our own existence is a terrifying thing."

Antonia felt like she had been thrown off the boat and then dragged back on. She couldn't process what happened. How had she done that?

Despite the dizzying confusion, Antonia tried to process what Nema had just told her. She looked upset. That was more important. Antonia pushed aside all of her questions, focusing on her. "What happened?" she asked, keeping her voice soft.

Nema shook her head. "My father left eventually. I have no idea where he went. My mother and I used the water magic we were given and became fishermen. It made us rich very quickly. Some of our neighbors got frustrated with Htraeheans being given magic while they were left to scrape by without any." Nema crossed her arms over her chest. "It led to an argument. It escalated. My mother was killed, and I was sent to be trained as a druid for many years." A dim sort of light glowed a bit under her smile. "And then I met you."

Sometimes, Antonia thought she knew things. She would spend hours reading...thinking about the world... but now that she ventured out of the castle walls, Antonia was beginning to realize she only read one book over and over again.

"I..." she began, unable to find the right words to express much of anything.

How was it that she had marveled at Nema for so long and never once questioned how she came into Antonia's life? Not once had she pushed when Nema wouldn't answer questions. It made her squirm, thinking she hadn't been trusted with this information. It made her squirm even more that she hadn't insisted more about knowing. Antonia should want to know every piece of Nema. Who wouldn't?

"I'm sorry," Antonia said because at least that much was scripted for her. "I wish I could..."

She stepped forward, closing the distance between them. Nema was taller than her - though not by much. As Antonia struggled to find the right words to properly apologize for all Nema had been through, the boat jostled, separating them.

Apparently, land was closer than it appeared.

A few crew members began to shout, all scattered about as they threw about ropes and anchored the ship while bringing wooden boards to connect to the dock. A few threw Antonia wary looks. The entire boat seemed to be relieved that the trip was over. A few had warmed to Antonia's appearance, while others remained uncomfortable with either Antonia's powers or the blood in her veins.

"Princess!" the captain called, walking over to them. His limp was gone. Antonia liked to think she healed him, but a rational part of her knew it would have healed on its own anyway. She probably shouldn't give herself too much credit. "Allow me to escort you off my boat."

"How considerate of you," Nema muttered. The captain ignored her and instead bowed lowly, offering his hand. Antonia accepted, letting his lips brush her knuckles. "Whatever it is you want-"

"Either I am escorting a refugee princess, Life's Envoy, or the Htraehean's Reformer," the captain cut in. "I think I should be polite."

A crew member muttered something under his breath as he passed. Antonia's eyes followed, but she didn't comment on the hostility. When she looked back down, the captain jerked his head. Antonia stepped forward.

A few bowed as she passed. Others stood.

"Keep Romanov free!" someone shouted. A few others echoed the chant. Antonia's jaw clenched.

The captain made no move to stop the shouts or comment as he helped her over the bridge between the boat and the dock. "Welcome to Cambria, princess," he said, gesturing to the gray sky and white beaches around them.

Antonia had just taken her final step down the dock when another shout followed her.

"KEEP ROMANOV FREE!" someone repeated, though this time it wasn't a chant but a battle cry. There was a swishing sound and a few gasps as something clattered behind her. Antonia spun around.

A dot sat directly in her line a vision. The tip of a knife, she realized. It floated inches from her face, unmoving.

Antonia thought it might have been her magic that froze the weapon. From the boat, a crew member stood with his hand still out in front of him, breathing harshly. Nema had her own knife out, pressed against his neck. Antonia looked back down. It wasn't black smoke that surrounded the blade, but instead, a white light.

"My," a voice said. Antonia turned. A boy stood in navy robes, hands covered in a chalky white. A few people gasped, bowing their heads and kneeling. Antonia almost felt indignant at the reverence they showed this stranger. She turned, meeting his gaze, to see him smile. Long black braids were going down to his elbows, and silver was woven into the hair. "That's not how we greet friends in Cambria."

Antonia looked at the knife still floating by her head. "I think he was telling me goodbye," she said calmly, though her throat felt tight with alarm. It occurred to her that aside from Nema, this was truly her first time without guards. She was vulnerable... and the world didn't seem particularly fond of her family at this moment.

The boy looked oddly at her before placing his hands behind his back. Instantly, the knife vanished. Antonia felt a wave of interest rise in her. The stranger walked up. Antonia kept her feet firmly planted, despite wanting to take a few steps back at his approach.

"Let me be the first to say hello, then." He held out his hand. "My name is Viséan. First Chosen of Cambria." Antonia paused before extending her hand to grasp his. "I believe you are looking for an audience with my family, princess."