The Golden Circlet Read online

  Lizzy took her chance. Turning, she darted away with the circlet in her hand. She heard Taran scream at her to come back, but she did not pause. She had to reach the rainbow pool and find Kes and Morvyr, so that the black pearl could be restored and the circlet made whole again!

  Suddenly Taran’s cries changed from fury to triumph. Lizzy flung a glance over her shoulder, and saw that the Queen had torn herself free from the cloak and was giving chase. Horrified, Lizzy thrashed her tail with all the energy she could summon. She had a head start and she was swimming as fast as she could – but Taran was faster. Slowly but surely she began to catch up, until Lizzy knew with an awful certainty that she was going to be overtaken. Had Jack seen what had happened? Was he following? Could he do anything? And Kes and Morvyr, and the dolphins – where were they all?

  ‘Arhans! Mother!’ She could hardly spare breath for shouting, but she was desperate. ‘Help me, oh, please help!’

  Taran was no more than ten metres behind her now, and closing. Fear gave Lizzy extra power and she put on a burst of speed. But it wasn’t going to be enough.

  Suddenly from somewhere ahead a voice called, ‘Lizzy!’ and Kes and Morvyr emerged from the gloomy dimness. They were riding on the backs of two dolphins, and the others were there too, with Arhans leading them.

  ‘Lizzy, the circlet!’ cried Morvyr. ‘Give it to me quickly!’ She slid off her dolphin’s back and raced towards Lizzy. Fumbling in her haste Lizzy dropped the circlet, but Morvyr dived after it as it began to sink. Her hand closed round it, and with her other hand she touched the black pearl to its rim.

  The eight pearls set in the circlet began to glow. Taran saw it and swirled to a halt.

  ‘No,’ she snarled, glaring at Morvyr. ‘Oh, no. You won’t dare!’

  ‘Won’t I?’ Morvyr smiled icily. Then her voice called clearly over the surge and rumble of the tide:

  ‘Seven you were; eight you are;

  Nine you now shall be.

  Let the circle be completed

  By the power of moon and sea!’

  A quivering rainbow of light sprang outwards from Morvyr’s hands, and Taran’s eyes widened with alarm. She raised her arms, summoning her power, but before she could muster her spell Morvyr called again:

  ‘Three times three I bind you

  Within the crown of light.

  The circle now is whole again,

  And evil put to flight!’

  As Morvyr uttered the final word, the rainbow light flared outwards. It flowed over Lizzy and Kes, bathing them in fantastic haloes of colour. Then it seemed to gather itself into a single dazzling beam, and a charge of glittering energy seared through the sea and struck Taran full on.

  The evil Queen screamed and went tumbling backwards, twisting over and over. The beam of energy vanished as Taran struggled to regain her balance, and for a second or two she stared at Morvyr and the twins. Her face was blank with shock, her mouth gaped open as if she could not believe what had happened. Then she gave a wail of despair, turned with a violent thrash of her tail and fled.

  Morvyr looked at Arhans and said, ‘Stop her!’

  Arhans whistled a high-pitched command, and the five dolphins peeled off to the right and left and streaked after Taran. As they vanished in the darkness, Morvyr turned to Lizzy and Kes. She still held the circlet, and Lizzy saw that it was no longer mere dull gold, but glowed and shimmered and sparkled as though it had an inner light of its own.

  ‘It’s done,’ Morvyr said softly. ‘At last, Taran’s power is broken.’ Reaching out, she hugged Lizzy to her. ‘You saved the crown, Lizzy – you saved us all!’ Then she drew back and smiled as she gazed at Lizzy’s tail. ‘And found yourself at the same time.’

  Chapter Eleven

  Lizzy’s lower lip started to tremble. ‘It was for Rose,’ she whispered. ‘Taran was going to drown her. So I just… just …’ The words broke off in a stifled sob.

  ‘You were brilliant, Lizzy,’ said Kes. He, too, put an arm round her, then gave a teasing tug at her hair. ‘You’re really a mermaid now!’

  The water above them churned, and they all heard the sound of an engine.

  ‘It’s Father!’ Eagerly Kes let go of Lizzy and swam towards the surface. Taking Lizzy’s hand, Morvyr followed, and when their heads came up above the water they saw Kes, with Jack in the launch beside him.

  ‘Rose!’ Letting go of Morvyr’s hand Lizzy swam to the boat. ‘Is she all right?’

  ‘She’ll be fine,’ Jack reassured her. ‘She swallowed a bit of sea water, but I got that out of her and she’s starting to recover now.’

  Hooking her arms over the gunwale, Lizzy heaved herself up and looked over the side. Rose was lying in the launch, with Jack’s coat and sweater round her shoulders. Her eyes were open, though she looked a little dazed, and when she saw Lizzy staring anxiously at her she managed a shaky grin.

  ‘I’m OK,’ she said. ‘Though I very nearly wasn’t. Thanks, sis.’

  Lizzy felt her face turning scarlet, and to cover it she said, ‘We’ve got to get you back to shore, before you get pneumonia.’

  ‘Oh, don’t be a muppet. I’m fine!’ Rose struggled to sit up and Jack helped her. She coughed, wiped her mouth, then added in something more like her usual, Rose-ish way, ‘And if you think I’m going to just go home and miss out now, you’ve got another think coming!’ Morvyr had reached the boat by this time, and Rose looked expectantly at them all in turn. ‘So come on, tell me, what’s happened?’

  Morvyr smiled at her, and held up the golden circlet.

  ‘Wow …’ Rose breathed. Jack, too, stared at the circlet, then let out a long, soft sigh.

  ‘You did it.’ There was admiration in his voice.

  ‘Lizzy did it,’ said Morvyr. ‘She unlocked the power of her own nature to help Rose when she was in danger. And that gave her the strength to outwit Taran.’

  Kes grinned broadly. ‘She makes a great mermaid, Father, don’t you think?’ he said. ‘And you should have seen how fast she swam when Taran was chasing her! Before we know it, she’ll be a better swimmer than me!’

  ‘She’s a terrific mermaid,’ Jack agreed, leaning over to ruffle Lizzy’s wet hair. ‘And I’m very, very proud of her.’

  Lizzy felt tears welling, and fiercely told herself to stop being silly. Everything had come out right – Rose was safe, Taran was defeated and the crown had been restored to its full glory and power. Whatever was there to cry about?

  Jack understood, though. He would have said something, but before he could a shrill whistling sounded from somewhere in the distance.

  ‘It’s the dolphins,’ said Morvyr. She looked out across the moonlit sea. ‘They’re coming back.’ She peered harder. ‘And there’s someone else with them.’

  The dolphins were heading towards them in close formation. First came Arhans, then behind her two of the others, who seemed to be towing something, while the fourth and fifth dolphins swam alongside like guards. They drew nearer, until the mysterious shape was recognizable.

  It was Taran. Her arms and tail were tightly bound, and she was being pulled helplessly along by long seaweed ropes, which the second and third dolphins held in their mouths. Excited chittering noises rang across the water as the dolphins announced their arrival, and Arhans rushed up to the boat, slapping her tail jubilantly on the water and splashing everyone as she stopped. More whistling and chattering followed, and Morvyr translated for Lizzy.

  ‘Arhans says it was a hard chase, but they were too fast for Taran,’ she told her. Then her mouth curved in a smile. ‘She tried to use magic against them. But it didn’t work. Her power really is gone.’

  Lizzy and Kes laughed delightedly, and Taran snarled at them in a way that reminded Lizzy of Tullor.

  ‘Thieves!’ she spat. ‘Traitors and thieves!’

  ‘You are the traitor and thief, Taran, not us,’ Morvyr replied coldly. ‘But your reign is over, and you’ll never hold power in the undersea world again.’

&nbs
p; ‘What shall we do with her?’ Jack asked.

  ‘There’s only one person who can decide,’ said Morvyr. ‘The true Queen will choose her fate.’

  ‘Ha!’ Taran retorted. ‘There is no true Queen – she died years ago!’ Her face grew ugly and she added with a sneer, ‘I saw to that!’

  Morvyr gave her a look of utter contempt. ‘Yes, you murdered Queen Kara. But Karwynna, her daughter and heir, is alive. I know, because I heard you talking to Tullor in the cave of the rainbow pool.’

  Taran was clearly shocked, but she quickly hid it and sneered again. ‘Oh, you are very clever! All right, so Karwynna is still alive. But do you know where she is?’ Morvyr’s face showed dismay before she could hide it, and Taran laughed harshly. ‘I thought not!’

  ‘We’ll find her,’ said Morvyr angrily.

  ‘Will you? How loyal you are! And where will you start? She could be anywhere in the world. How long will it take you to search the whole world, Morvyr?’ She laughed again. ‘You’ll all die of old age before you discover her hiding place!’

  Up till now Jack had said nothing, but suddenly he couldn’t keep silent any longer. ‘Tell us where she is!’ he demanded furiously. ‘Tell us, Taran, or I’ll—’

  ‘No.’ Morvyr stopped him. ‘Don’t threaten her, Jack. That’s her way of treating people, and we’re not like her.’ She looked at Taran again and her eyes were the colour of a storm cloud. ‘Will you tell us where Karwynna is?’

  Taran tossed her head so that her black hair flew around her shoulders. ‘What sort of fool do you take me for? Find her yourself – if you can!’

  ‘You’ve lost the crown and your power. You can’t gain anything by refusing to tell us.’

  ‘Oh, but I can. I’ll have the pleasure of knowing you’ll never see Karwynna alive again.’

  Morvyr sighed and turned back to her companions. ‘It’s no use. Even now, she’s so full of spite and hatred that she won’t admit she’s beaten. There’s no point trying any more, and we have more important things to do than argue with her. Arhans – Taran is your prisoner now. Take her to a safe place, and set guards over her to make sure she can’t escape.’

  Arhans whistled agreement, and no one spoke while Taran’s bindings were checked and tightened. As Lizzy watched, a thought began to nag at the back of her mind. Something Taran had said: She could be anywhere in the world. It was important in some way. But how? She couldn’t work it out.

  Taran didn’t make any protest. In fact when the dolphins took hold of the seaweed ropes and bore her away, she was smiling.

  ‘Well,’ Morvyr said despondently when the defeated Queen and her escort had vanished into the darkness, ‘we must begin the search for Karwynna. But Taran was right: even with the help of all our friends, how long will it take us to search the whole world?’

  And the thing that had been bothering Lizzy suddenly slotted into place.

  She said in a voice that wasn’t quite steady, ‘Eleven years …’

  ‘What?’ Kes, Morvyr and Jack all stared at her. Kes and Morvyr looked baffled – but Jack understood.

  ‘Yes,’ he said softly. ‘Oh, yes… it’s the same game that she played before! Lizzy, you’re a genius!’

  ‘Is she?’ Kes demanded. ‘Why? What do you two know that we don’t?’

  ‘When Lizzy was kidnapped all those years ago,’ Jack said, ‘we were led to believe that she’d been taken far away. So I went on a wild-goose chase to look for her. But all the time she was hidden right under our noses!’

  Kes’s jaw dropped. ‘Oh! You mean Taran’s trying that trick again? Then we haven’t got to search the world to find Karwynna. She’s somewhere here!’

  For a second or two there was silence but for the hiss of the sea on the rocks. Then Morvyr looked at the golden circlet in her hands and said quietly, ‘Yes. And I think I know where.’ There was a new light in her eyes as she turned to the twins. ‘I’m going back to the rainbow cave. Do you want to come with me?’

  Their eager faces gave her the answer before they chorused, ‘Yes!’

  ‘You’re not too tired?’

  ‘No!’

  Jack laughed. ‘They’d go even if they were dropping from exhaustion,’ he said. ‘As for me, though, I’d better take Rose back to the cottage, and make sure she gets safely inside.’

  ‘But I’m missing all the excitement!’ Rose said plaintively.

  Jack was sympathetic. ‘I know it doesn’t seem fair, Rose. But there won’t be anything exciting to see here for a while. And you and I can’t go under the sea with Morvyr and the twins,’ he added wistfully.

  Rose sighed. ‘I suppose not.’ Then she glared fiercely at Lizzy. ‘But the moment you get back, I want to know all about it, OK?’

  Lizzy returned the glare with a broad grin. ‘You bet!’

  Morvyr blew a kiss to Jack. And moments later there was only the slowly moving sea where she, Lizzy and Kes had been.

  Chapter Twelve

  The moon was setting, and the undersea world dim and mysterious, but Morvyr headed unerringly towards the black pearl’s gateway. Lizzy and Kes swam beside her. Lizzy was keyed up and nervous, and very tired now, though she didn’t want to admit it. Yet all those things were eclipsed by a sense of wonder at the thought of all they had done. Taran was defeated and would never trouble the sea people again. And she herself had found her long-lost family and learned at last to become a mermaid. It was almost too much to believe. But as she glided through the water, feeling the strength of her tail powering her along, Lizzy knew that her incredible dream had come true.

  It was so dark that the great rock with its narrow cave was almost invisible until they were nearly on top of it. Again Lizzy felt a stab of fear as Morvyr led the way through the cave entrance and into the pitch-black tunnel beyond. They reached the pool, and Morvyr held the golden circlet over it. The black pearl started to glow; light answered from within the pool, and with a rush and roar and swirl they were pulled into the gateway.

  They surfaced together in the rainbow pool, surrounded by the mirrors in the cave wall. The first thing that struck Lizzy was the silence after the roar of the sea outside. It was crazy, because this place was always quiet. But somehow it seemed more so now. Instinctively she looked towards the rock that Taran had used as her throne, half expecting to see the evil Queen staring haughtily down with her cold green eyes. But Taran was gone for good, and there was a sense of peace in the cave that she had never felt before.

  Kes, too, was gazing around, and when he spoke his voice was hushed as if he didn’t want to spoil the quiet atmosphere.

  ‘Is… is Karwynna here, Mother?’

  ‘I think she is.’ Morvyr swam to the centre of the pool, then raised the golden circlet above her head. Slowly and carefully she turned it, until each pearl pointed to its matching mirror. When they were all lined up, the pearls began to glow – and the mirrors answered. Their surfaces swirled. Slowly but steadily they brightened until the cave was filled with light, shimmering in every colour of the rainbow.

  Lizzy and Kes gasped with delight, and Morvyr said, ‘This is how the cave used to look when Kara was Queen and her crown was whole.’

  ‘It’s beautiful!’ Lizzy breathed.

  ‘Yes. And it’s a symbol of the Queen’s power.’

  ‘But where is the real Queen?’ Kes asked.

  ‘There’s no sign of her.’

  ‘Then we must call to her,’ said Morvyr. ‘Children, do you remember the rhyme that Jack recited to you? The one that was written after Taran seized power?’

  ‘Yes,’ said Lizzy. ‘He said it was to remind the sea people that Taran’s rule couldn’t last forever. I learned it, and I told it to Kes.’

  Morvyr smiled. ‘Good. Then place your hands on the crown, and say the rhyme with me now.’

  She lowered the circlet so that the twins could reach it. Lizzy and Kes looked at each other and drew deep, nervous breaths. Then, very carefully, they laid their hands on the circlet. It felt st
rangely warm, and the glow from the nine pearls spilled between their fingers and stained them with colour.

  Together, all three of them began to repeat the rhyme:

  ‘Red is the sunrise, Orange the sky,

  Golden the shimmering sand.

  Green are the pools where the small fishes lie,

  Blue water rolls to the land.

  Indigo shadows hide secrets in caves,

  Violet the glow of the night.

  But Silver and Black will call them all back

  When a terrible wrong is put right.’

  The last words faded away and for the space of two heartbeats the cave was silent again. Then, shockingly and unexpectedly, there was a deafening CRACK. The mirrors shook, the rainbow lights danced wildly – and Taran’s throne shattered apart. Chunks of broken rock tumbled from the ledge and splashed into the pool, some narrowly missing Morvyr and the twins, and the water churned and heaved so that they were almost swamped.

  The rocks sank and the pool calmed down. Spluttering, shaking water from her face, Lizzy looked back at the ledge – and her eyes widened.

  The throne was nothing but rubble. The rock had split and broken open, revealing the fact that it was hollow. Inside lay a mermaid.

  She was younger than Taran, and much more beautiful. Her hair was like a sapphire-blue waterfall, cascading to her waist and framing a delicate face with a faint silvery tinge to the skin. Her tail was bright turquoise, with silver scales that glittered like sequins. Her eyes were closed, and she seemed to be fast asleep.

  ‘Mother!’ Kes could only stare and stare at the mermaid. ‘Is it—’ He swallowed, too afraid to ask the question in case he was wrong.

  But there was joy on Morvyr’s face. ‘Yes,’ she said. ‘It’s Karwynna!’