The door hissed open, and Ysa stepped inside. "Yve..."
She stopped in her tracks when she saw Jenkins lying there, crumpled on the floor while Yve gently patted him on the back. She raised an eyebrow. "What's going on here?"
Yve glanced at her before turning her attention back to Jenkins. "I'll ask them to bring you some food," she said softly. "Stay here. One of the triggers of your predatory instinct is hunger, so don't overdo anything, alright? Relax and let yourself have some rest..."
Jenkins didn't answer.
Yve waited a moment before slowly standing. She looked toward Ysa. "What do you want?"
Without another word, the two of them stepped out of the room and the door hissed shut behind them.
Ysa glanced back toward the closed door. "What's wrong with him?"
"His predatory instinct is awake... and he doesn't know how to control it."
Ysa shrugged and scoffed. "Oh. Yeah, that sucks. Took me a year to control my own."
"His is much more difficult." Yve sighed. "He was once human. Well... at least he used to have human DNA. But now, I don't know, sis. I—" She hesitated. "He might end up hurting our people."
Ysa's expression became more serious. "That's a real concern. We've got children down there."
Yve fell silent for a moment, thinking. "What if... what if I enroll him in our training camp?"
Ysa immediately looked at her. "You serious? He needs identification for that. And he doesn't have one."
"I know." Yve lowered her gaze. "It's just... it's not like we can lock him away for a year, or however long it takes for him to learn how to control his instinct."
"Well, you can't fake his identity either." Ysa gave her a pointed look. "How many more laws are you planning to break, huh? Stop being reckless."
"I know, I know." Yve sighed. "I'm sorry..."
Ysa shook her head. "I'm sure we'll find a way to deal with him."
She paused.
"Or we could just kill him."
Yve stared at her. "You're joking, right?"
Ysa simply shrugged. "Of course I'm joking. I'm not going to hurt a child."
"Well, technically, he's no longer a child..."
"Eh, he is." Ysa waved her off. "He's forty years old. That's four years old in our age."
Yve blinked.
Ysa continued, her expression turning more thoughtful. "With Siren DNA, I can't imagine how difficult that must be. Having the mind of a forty-year-old while having the biological development of a four-year-old..."
Yve looked away. "Yeah... I didn't really think much about the consequences."
Ysa gave her a sideways glance. "You never do."
They continued down the corridor until they reached the bridge.
"Hey..." Yve hesitated. "I-uhh... I need to tell you something."
Ysa glanced at her. "Yeah. Me too."
"Oh." Yve gestured toward her. "Go on, then. You first."
"Why me first?"
Yve shrugged. "I don't know. Younger ones first?"
Ysa rolled her eyes and crossed her arms. "Oh, please. Your shell just broke a minute earlier than mine. Stop bragging."
Yve smiled. "Well, now that you say that, it makes me want to leave you hanging with what I was about to tell you."
"You're kidding, right?" Ysa groaned. "You know I hate it when people—especially you—leave me in the dark."
"Just say yours first. You're the one who came to my room, after all." Yve gave her a pointed look. "I thought we agreed never to go into each other's rooms."
Ysa sighed. "Fair point."
A brief silence followed.
Then Ysa spoke. "I'm thinking of looking for Emily on my own."
Yve straightened as her expression immediately became more serious. "Oh... really?" She paused. "That's... odd. Especially for you."
Ysa frowned. "What the hell is that supposed to mean?"
Yve turned toward her and slipped into an exaggerated imitation of Ysa's voice. "Oh, Yve, do you know how bad humans are? Oh, Yve, do you know what they'll do to you? They'll cut you up into pieces and toss you into the sea. Sell you off. Oh, Yve, stop being obsessed with humans. They don't live long anyway. Remember that? Remember?"
Ysa's face went blank.
She opened her mouth, but nothing came out.
Yve raised an eyebrow.
Then Ysa's expression eventually crumpled. "Hey..." she muttered. "I am nothing but very adaptable. I can change, you know."
"Not really, no."
Ysa frowned.
Yve's expression softened. "What is your relationship with Emily, anyway?" she asked. "Are you perhaps into girls now?"
"Eww, no." Ysa scoffed. "She just... I don't know. I guess she reminds me of you."
"Me?" Yve looked genuinely confused. "Why me?"
"Just... she does." Ysa shrugged. "Not to mention, I have an obligation to her as her master."
Yve chuckled. "Master? Seriously? Master of what? Being moody all the time with the occasional eye rolls and snarky remarks?"
Ysa rolled her eyes again.
Yve immediately mimicked her.
Ysa shot her a look. "Before she got taken, I was teaching her how to fight and defend herself," Ysa said. "It's a bond between teacher and student. Like you and your weird bond with Dylan."
"Hey." Yve's expression turned defensive. "I don't have a weird bond with Dylan."
Ysa raised an eyebrow.
Yve paused. "He's my very... tenacious... stamina-fueled... stoic... lover."
A faint blush crept across Yve's face.
Ysa visibly recoiled. "Urgh. That's just disgusting." She shook her head before looking at Yve again. "Don't you care about Emily at all?"
Yve's smile faded. "Honestly? Care would be a strong word." She looked ahead. "I haven't really bonded with her much. A lot has happened, and I don't really know her very well."
She paused.
"What I do know is that she's brave. Fearless, despite her age and lack of experience. With the right master, she'll get very far."
"Yeah." Ysa nodded. "I noticed that too."
They both sat down on the two-step stairs of the bridge.
"Never in my life did I imagine I'd be teaching a human."
Yve smiled faintly. "Never in my life did I imagine I'd be with a human."
Ysa smiled.
Then, after a moment, she glanced sideways at her sister. "Dylan really makes you happy?"
Yve looked at her.
"Or is this just some short-lived spark of lust and infatuation?"
Yve sighed. "Too early to tell." She leaned against Ysa. "What I do know is... my life would probably feel like there's something missing if I'd never met him."
Ysa listened quietly.
"Eighty years of being a trader..." Yve continued. "It got pretty boring after a while. Hunting for relics, danger, selling, trading... It was fun at first." She hugged her knee. "But once the Pearls started rolling in, the spark just... started to die, I guess."
Ysa remained silent.
Then her voice softened. "You know... those two people who died yesterday..."
Yve glanced at her.
"It... it made me think." Ysa's eyes drifted. "Maybe having a short life is a gift."
Yve said nothing.
"It makes you appreciate life more. Value it more." Her voice became quieter. "The short... very, very short time you spend with the people you love..." She swallowed. "It makes you treasure every second of every day."
Yve slowly nodded. "It does, doesn't it?"
She sighed heavily.
"Humans have such a short lifespan when you really think about it. And with all the dangers they face, with those fragile bodies of theirs..." She paused. "It makes you wonder if that's a good thing or a bad thing."
A faint smile touched her lips.
"But maybe it can be both." She looked down. "You just have to be prepared for the day they perish."
"I know, right?" Ysa gave a quiet, humorless chuckle. "Forming a bond with these humans..." Her voice faltered. "It's hard."
Yve looked at her.
"The thought that they'll only be a part of your life for such a short period..." Ysa stared ahead. "Is it even worth it?"
She paused.
"Worth the heartbreak you'll get?"
Yve thought about it. "Honestly?" She turned toward Ysa. "For me?" A small smile appeared. "I'm willing to risk it."
Ysa listened.
"Because then you'll have something to look back on." Yve's eyes softened. "Imagine a hundred years from now, when they're all gone. We'll still have these memories."
She gave a quiet laugh. "Ahh... I remember those days."
Ysa formed a faint smile. "Careful with your heart, sis."
Yve looked at her.
"Don't fall too hard for Dylan."
Ysa's smile faded. "One day, it'll wreck you." She looked away. "And it'll break my heart to see you fall."
Yve didn't answer.
Neither of them did.
They simply sat there in silence, side by side.
Just then, Raine entered the bridge. She spotted Ysa and Yve sitting side by side on the steps.
Both sisters looked toward her.
Yve smiled faintly. "You're back."
Raine stepped aside.
Several other Sirens stood behind her on the stairs outside.
"Yes..." Raine said quietly. "Yes, I am."
Both sisters stood.
Yve looked at Raine. "Heard you failed to bring them back."
Raine glanced toward Ysa. "Oh. You didn't tell her?"
Ysa blinked. "Oh, yeah. Right..." She looked between them. "Why don't we just all go down and discuss things?"
Raine nodded. "Alright. You guys go ahead. We'll just get our stuff."
"Sure."
Yve turned toward the corridor. "Nine. Open the doors and lights to the storage area and let the Sirens get their stuff out."
Nine responded almost immediately. "Storage unit access granted."
Yve stared at the corridor for a moment. "Just... down there."
Raine gave a small nod before turning to the other Sirens toward the storage area.
~~~
The community hall had been rearranged for the meeting.
The spacious common area had been cleared of most of its usual furniture, with chairs and tables arranged neatly, with the assortment of humans and Sirens now occupying the seats.
Then the doors opened with Lucas, Yve, Ysa, and Raine filing inside.
The room immediately fell quiet.
Lucas looked around at everyone. "Alright, settle down, everyone. We've got some issues we need to discuss." He gestured toward Raine. "First, the rescue mission. "Raine... wanna take the lead?"
Raine stepped forward. "Well... we did find the facility."
She paused.
"It was filled with hundreds—maybe thousands—of prisoners." Her expression hardened. "Those humans are monsters. They've lost all sense of morality."
A murmur moved through the room.
"We managed to rescue a woman. She helped us figure out where Emily and the others were being held, but unfortunately..." Raine glanced toward Ava. "Their status was labeled deceased."
The room erupted in shocked murmurs. A few people scoffed in disbelief.
Raine's jaw tightened as she looked around the room. "And can I just say something?" she asked, her voice becoming sharper. "You humans really are what they say you are. Vicious, vile, selfish beings."
She paused, her fingers curling against her palm.
"I'm not saying my kind is better than yours. I mean we have our own problems. But at least we don't hurt children. We don't hurt the innocent. And we certainly don't prey on the weak." Her gaze swept across the room. "What we saw in that facility..." Her voice faltered for a moment before hardening again. "It is truly a shame to share a planet with you humans."
"Okay..." Yve stepped forward, raising one hand slightly. "Calm down, Raine."
"No." Raine shook her head. "I don't want to."
She turned toward the others, her expression still hardened.
"They all need to hear it. They need to hear what their kind is capable of." She gestured toward the room. "If they used that same passion and drive for something other than hurting their own, maybe they wouldn't be in this mess."
Yve held her gaze for a moment before lowering her hand. "I know," she said quietly. "I just want you to calm down. Focus on the agenda, Raine."
Raine's shoulders rose with a slow breath before she finally let it out. She looked away for a moment, collecting herself, then nodded. "Fine." She stepped back, folding her arms across her chest. "Let's continue."
Ava's hand clenched into a fist as she bit down on her lower lip, fighting desperately to hold back her tears.
Elena immediately wrapped an arm around her while Sheila gently rubbed her back.
Raine continued. "But we're not sure that means they're actually dead. We didn't find any bodies when we went to their last active location." She looked toward Eve.
"And as Eve explained..." Raine gestured for her to step forward. "This is Eve. She's the woman we rescued."
Eve slowly stood. Her hands were clenched tightly together as she looked around the room.
Dozens of unfamiliar faces stared back at her. Her breathing became shallow.
Raine noticed. "Eve... do you want to explain what you told us?"
Eve swallowed. "I-I just..." Her eyes darted around the room. "I'm not entirely sure. It's... it's just a..." She squeezed her hands together. "The devices they planted on our necks... they're not entirely accurate. They monitor our heartbeat, so if you take the device out, it registers you as deceased." She hesitated. "So there are... there are multiple possibilities."
Her voice trembled.
"It could've been broken. The signal could've been lost. Maybe they really did remove it..." She looked down. "Or... maybe they really are dead."
Silence.
"I-I don't know. I'm sorry."
Yve leaned forward slightly. "So there's a chance they're still out there."
Eve nodded. "Y-yes."
Yve's expression changed. "And if they're still alive... their aura..." She suddenly gasped and her eyes snapped toward Ava. "Ava."
Ava looked at her.
"Do you have any personal belongings from Emily? Anything she's touched? Anything that belongs to her?"
"I—no... I don't think so." Ava's voice cracked. "With our house burned down, then... I don't really..."
A tear rolled down her cheek.
Yve stepped closer. "Think, Ava."
Ava looked at her.
"Think. Anything. Anything at all."
Ava squeezed her eyes shut as she searched her memory.
Nothing.
Then Ysa spoke. "What about my sword?"
Yve turned toward her. "What about it?"
"Yeah." Ysa leaned back. "She touched it. I lent it to her before we traveled here."
She paused.
"It came back to me with blood on it."
Taylor raised her hand.
"Yes, Tay?" Yve said.
"Don't y'all have some kind of ability that could help?" Taylor asked. "I mean, as far as I know, if Ysa can magically heal people, maybe you've got some kind of way to track Emily."
"Without her Aura or DNA, no." Yve shook her head. "And Callista is incapacitated right now." She turned toward Raine. "I mean, what did you guys do? I've never seen her bleed that badly before."
Saige spoke up. "She almost drained all her energy. Then she fell from a towering height, headfirst."
Yve stared at him for a moment before slowly nodding. She exhaled and turned back toward the others. "Anyway... even if we were to use Callista's Senzara gift, we couldn't. We need a sample of Emily's Aura, or something belonging to David. She needs a reference for what their energy signature looks like."
Taylor tilted her head. "There's different types of…energy?"
"Not different types," Yve replied. "Different patterns. Think of it like a fingerprint." She gestured toward herself. "Sirens have different scale patterns, Aura signatures, DNA compositions, and energy patterns. Aura and energy aren't all that different, but to put it in simpler terms, almost every race I've encountered has differences like that. At least... except for Slytharians."
Elena raised an eyebrow. "Slytharians?"
Yve paused. "Okay, we're getting sidetracked." She turned toward Ysa. "Ysa... pull your sword out now."
Ysa blinked and looked around.
Lucas, now used to the tricks the Sirens use, silently held out a water bottle.
Ysa took it, uncapped it and poured the water into her hands.
Instead of falling through her fingers, the water twisted. It spiraled between her palms, gathering into a dense, shimmering mass. Then it hardened until a blade formed.
Within seconds, Ysa was holding a sword made entirely of water.
Eve stared at it. "Oh..." She blinked. "So... it wasn't a dream."
Ysa glanced at her as she held the sword out. "Here."
Yve took the sword from Ysa and examined it for a moment. "You guys continue without me." She turned toward the door. "I have to get this to someone."
She paused.
Then looked toward Duncan and Darnell. "You two, come with me."
Duncan raised an eyebrow. "Us?"
"Yes. I need both of you for something."
Duncan glanced at Darnell before shrugging. "Uh... alright."
Lucas stared after Yve. "What's she gonna do?"
Eve looked equally confused while Raine simply watched Yve leave.
Ysa shrugged. "Just... trust her on this."
Lucas looked at her. "If I ask, is it gonna make things worse?"
Ysa thought about it. "If I tell you, it might break your brain."
Lucas slowly raised a hand to his face and rubbed his forehead. "Of course. Alright. Moving on."
Yve, Duncan, and Darnell disappeared through the doorway as the discussion resumed.
Raine remained near Eve, introducing her to the residents one by one. Eve responded with quiet, hesitant greetings. She kept her shoulders tense, and her hands close to herself, rarely meeting anyone's eyes for more than a second. Every unfamiliar voice made her glance up. Every sudden movement made her stiffen.
After spending so long surrounded by humans who had no morals, she'd learned not to trust easily.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Author's note;
CHAPTER 100, EVERYONE!!! ACCKKK!!! 100!! 100!! 100!!! Anyone here? Am I alone in this?? LOL...
Well, this is a milestone, not just for me, but for COTR as well. 🥹
I know... I know. There's a lot going on. I mean, even I can't believe COTR has gotten this big. The earlier chapters were quiet and really just about the daily survival of the characters. It was mostly Dylan and Yve, along with the VIRA Complex group.
Some of you might've started this thinking that it wouldn't scale into something this big. Probably some of y'all must've thought, "Oh, zombie apocalypse... cool."
But the title really does say Chronicles of the Realms, so... I hope y'all keep following Yve's journey. Earth and the Shriekers... they're just one tiny piece of the puzzle I'm building.
And I apologize if I haven't been able to update much. I've gotten quite busy these past few weeks. Trust me when I say I just want to write COTR every single day, but I can't. I can't. LOL.
Blame that on something we call LIFE.
Yeah, as much as I love living in my COTR universe, apparently LIFE doesn't give a shit about it and will always come knocking. 😭
Thank you to everyone who has kept reading. I know there are silent readers out there. I both hate and love y'all, LOL. I hate y'all because my engagement is really, really low. 😭 But I still love you guys for being crazy enough to follow me all the way here. Like... why do y'all even tolerate this crazy, crazy world? Geez.
And as much as I want to keep talking, maybe in the future, or soon, I don't know. I want to build a website or an active account for COTR where y'all can discuss things and all that. That's a pretty nice dream to have for now. Or maybe I'll make a Meta Threads account and dump my random 2 AM thoughts there. 😂
But there's something else I want to ask you guys.
I'm torn between writing COTR's prequel and Book 2 once I finish Book 1.
The prequel is titled Life Before, and I've already written three chapters of it back in December 2025. I didn't finish it because I wanted to focus on Book 1.
But now that Book 1 is nearing its end, I genuinely want to know what you guys think.
Should I writeLife Beforefirst, or should I go straight into Book 2?
Because I can only write one story at a time.
If I try writing both Life Before and Book 2 at the same time, my brain will melt, my brain cells will disintegrate, and I will perish. My very, very short lifespan will cease to exist. So let me know what y'all think.
Life Before or Book 2?
And to all the silent readers out there... It won't hurt to leave at least one comment. 👀 Seriously. I wanna know you're alive. Why do I even bother to write this, y'all don't leave a comment anyway. 🙄