The Wishing Glass

Photo by Marek Okon on Unsplash

The lair was ahead, jutting out from the ocean floor in broken boards. The human ship had sunk hundreds of years ago and the dragon had claimed it. Algae covered nearly every inch, waving green tendrils in the ocean current. Some distance away the outline of an anchor was covered in coral and anemones. The cargo inside was the important part. Amatheia swam cautiously towards the lair, trying to stay hidden. Stealing even a minor token from a dragon’s hoard was tricky and she was after more than a mere trinket. Legends and rumors said the Wishing Glass had been aboard the pirate ship when it sunk. If that was true, then the king himself would reward her richly. If not, then she had just swam across an ocean and risked her life for nothing.

She flicked her tail and propelled herself forward with determination. The Wishing Glass was the only thing that could prove the queen’s innocence. By looking into into it the king would see who’d really tried to poison him. It had to be on this ship; its magic had to work, otherwise the evidence was too overwhelming and the queen would be sentenced to death. For the past several days Amatheia had watched the dragon; learning its routine. When it swam out for hunting, she knew it was her chance.

Amatheia flew over whale bones and through a ragged hole in the hull of ship. The inside was smaller than she’d expected, and crowded. Anything human had long ago been corroded past recognition. Amatheia wondered how much of it she would have recognized anyways. Some years earlier she had actually talked with a human named Jessica, and realized how little she knew about humans. The gold coins that were scattered everywhere, however, were pristine. The spaces that weren’t covered in watery vegetation, were covered in coins, necklaces, the odd goblet; treasures beyond imagining. Amatheia reached out in awe then swiftly drew her hand back. She couldn’t touch anything except the Wishing Glass. The dragon would notice. Once it did, it would hunt her and she had to delay it for as long as possible.

Heart pounding, she began her search. She scanned each room carefully, flinching at every sound as if the dragon was returning already. Fear shivered down her fins at each new artifact: rusty swords with bright hilts,  golden figurines of strange animals, even sea folk treasures were mixed in with the human trove. A tail ring set with emeralds glinted temptingly at her. There was too much gold to be from a single shipwreck. Clearly the dragon had been collecting its hoard for centuries. And that meant it would hunt her even longer than a younger dragon would - maybe even for years.

Amatheia tried to banish this thought from her mind. Once she returned to Atlantis she would be safe. Right now she had a job to do. The queen’s life depended on it. A hole in the ceiling above her beckoned her upwards. She passed through more treasure chambers, sometimes scrapping her scales against the ancient wood and once against the treasure itself.  She shuddered, images of dragon fangs sinking into her tail flashing through her mind. She willed herself to keep going. Her search turned up nothing. Despite being inches away from golden wealth that hadn’t been seen for centuries, the Wishing Glass wasn’t to be found. She groaned as she drifted out of the ship, coming up by the mast. The last place to look was the captain’s cabin. Suddenly, she heard the hunting call of the returning dragon.

There was the only one place to hide. She dove through the open doorway of the cabin and trembled. How long would it take for the dragon to notice there was an intruder? Ears ringing as the dragon came closer, she looked around the cabin. And there it was, hanging from a rusty nail: the Wishing Glass. It had a gleaming golden handle, but the glass was clouded and brown. Amatheia rubbed at the glass, hoping it was only a film that would wipe off. Nothing happened. How was this going to find the poisoner? As soon as she thought it, the glass changed and she was staring at a merman with silver-green scales and a tail ring with a large obsidian. Amatheia gasped; it really worked. The queen was saved! The dragon’s roar sounded again and her elation vanished. Neither she nor the queen were safe yet.

She clutched the mirror close. Her best chance of escape would be when the dragon first entered the lair. She could flee while it couldn’t see her. She looked into the Wishing Glass again and willed it to show her the dragon. It did and the dragon’s fangs were just as terrifying as she’d imagined. She watched as the dragon left a half eaten whale outside and entered. She exploded from the cabin, swimming upward as fast as could. The dragon was a creature of the deep ocean. It wouldn’t follow her to the surface.

A furious shriek below her gave her an extra burst of speed. She was racing for her life. Soon she heard the dragon below her, but she didn’t dare look back. Nothing mattered, except speed. Speed, and the upward climb. Fish scattered before her, though she knew it was the dragon they were fleeing from. Closing her eyes, she tried not to think. Her muscles burned. She thought her tail might fall off. Not once did she think of pausing. That would only lead to death. So she swam.

She didn’t notice the dragon’s cries getting fainter. When she crashed above the surface of the ocean, she gasped in surprise. For a moment waves buffeted her as she tried to think. The dragon hadn’t caught her. She had the mirror. Despite smiling, she was too tired to feel relieved. Floating on her back, she planned. Until she was within the range of the Atlantis guards, she would have to keep to the surface. Though the dragon wouldn’t come to the surface it could still track her. She would have to be on the look out for humans; but they were a lesser danger than the dragon. For now though, she would rest. She had a long swim ahead of her.

For Amatheia's earlier adventure see Escaping the Cave.