//------------------------------// // Chapter 4: Dearest Cantata, Part One // Story: Follow Her Lead // by Ice Star //------------------------------// The young siren swam about in front of her cottage. A giddy smile graced her face as she belted out a few notes, bubbles drifting through the blue sea which rippled in tranquil, steady waves. Visible shafts of sunlight pierced the water and wavered with its pulse. Nearby, a green seapony busied herself with plucking invading strands of kelp off the sculpted coral and stone surface of her home. One hoof pulled the plant away before transferring it to a basket held in the other. There were times when it was hard not to think of cityscapes of polished coral and pearl in her mind's eye, and the awesome territories of the far ocean she used to know, and what power there was to be found in its loneliness. Her gaze was alive and focused, streaks of silver highlighting her fins, even if the faint tune she hummed was somewhat melancholy, unlike the nursery rhymes she sang to her young daughter and the smiles she flashed when spooning the young filly mashed sea cucumber for her lunch. Cantata's ears pricked back to where Sonata had been playing. Why had she stopped singing? Worried, the seapony mare turned to see that Sonata was now trying to talk with someone she had never seen before, another seapony whose face was not clear. She dropped her basket and swam over to where Sonata was swimming circles around what Cantata could now see was a seapony stallion, who was clad in the slightest traces of armor and holding something in his forehooves. Sonata was babbling strings of sounds garbled from excitement with only a few words clear enough for her to make out. Many of the villagers thought that this was queer coming from a filly of her age, who at least struggled with foalish whistles to mimic song and chattered non-stop. Sonata still knew the extra clumsy language nearing the level of late infancy. This stallion at least did not give her child a passing glance. Upon closer look Cantata could see that the stallion was clad in the remains of Aquastrian armor, most of which was hastily exchanged for a traveler's cloak at some point on his trip. His journey must have been a long one, this soldier was weary and confused by Sonata's attempted conversation. His steely gray scales appeared somewhat dull. The enchanted 'fabric' swayed back and forth in the water with the seapony, making him appear even more worn. Cantata was about to usher her daughter off when she saw what was in the bundle that the stallion held. "Are you Miss Cantata Dusk?" he asked. She nodded and stared down at the purple siren filly sleeping in the Auqustriaian cloth. The poor creature was fairly small, barely past the stage where one might label her a fry, yet she still looked old enough to talk. She had never seen this filly before but she was familiar enough in appearance that she could make a guess. "What happened?" "Well, Miss Dusk I'm relieved that you were able to be reached but this little one here, Aria Blaze is the daughter of Pearlescence, and the unicorn stallion, Bright Blaze." Cantata knew from the moment she heard the filly's name. It followed the tradition of many sirens before her to name each after a song for their renowned singing, and then add on the second half of the unicorn father's own name as a reminder of the magic they inherited. "They're dead, aren't they?" "Yes, and you were identified as the only living relative after the deaths of your sister and brother-in-law, and by the orders of King Neptune, I was sent to bring her here, if you are able to care for her." Cantata frowned slightly at the mention of the king's name, but it went unnoticed to both the soldier and Sonata. When her sister and herself were old enough to go out into the ocean on their own, Cantata had decided to leave the main reaches of Aquastria in favor of scouting out territory near the edge of the southern continent, and see the start of the Barren Sea to the west. In those times, she decided to live there. Once she had Sonata, she moved closer to a village, which was closer to tamer reefs and land for Sonata's sake. Her sister, Pearl, had stayed in the city they were born, Tiberia, to become a soldier for the main realm of Aquastria, like this stallion here. Cantata recalled her writing about the visiting Bright Blaze, a unicorn who hailed from the southern realms long after the Great Silence of the Overworld, and how he worked to maintain basic kinds of magical teachings among the settlers who fled to the coast from the ruins of their great citadels, and the monsters and plagues he fought in an Overworld with few, if any, gods. She knew little else of her sister, who lived so far away. Without the aide of magic that those under the king had, even with her navigator's knowledge factored in, it would still take at least ten years just to reach the borders of Aquastria after passing through all the outer territories, and parts of the seas that have never known a permanent structure. "How old is she?" Cantata asked. She listened closely to the soldier's answer. Young Aria's age was equal to that of a three year old pony's, odd for someone so small. In the years of ponies, which were considered to be much more understandable than the years of sirens, Sonata was three years older, despite her youthful looks. When she reached the equivalent of a thirteen year old pony, both Sonata as well as Aria would be able to Surface. Sonata, quite literally pulled her mother from her thoughts by tugging lightly on her tail and pointing an eager forehoof at her younger cousin. Cantata smiled. "Yes, my Sonatina you may hold her if you ask nicely." Sonata smiled widely and held out her forehooves and watched excitedly as her little cousin was placed in them. Cantata waved a polite farewell to the stallion, wishing him luck on his journey back. She was going to need a lot more kelp for tonight's dinner. It would be great for Sonata to have a filly close enough in age to play with and perhaps when she was old enough Aria would be able to help care for Sonata as well. Once again Cantata found herself staring out of the driftwood shuttered window, staring in the direction of Aquastria, imagining the capital of Atlantis. She imagined lots of things, all while Sonata played with Aria in the background, squealing happily as her new playmate finally decided to voice herself. "Nata!" Aria called sharply. Cantata was once again jolted out of whatever reverie she had been in, and looked to see Sonata hugging Aria tightly, much to the younger siren's chagrin.