Kenneth hastily set his cup down. "I think I'll pa.s.s on having any more." He eyed the archaeologist. "Why are you drinking that stuff if it's spoiled?"

Jake sipped. "Our hosts have offered it, and it is our duty to accept it."

Letting his head fall back, Kenneth pushed out a long sigh. "More of that *when in Rome' s.h.i.t, I suppose."

Jake's eyes narrowed. "It's called playing the game. We are literally at the mercy of the Mer."

Shoulders slumping with exhaustion, Tessa pressed her head into her hands. "Just stop bickering, you two. Please. I'm no happier than you are that we're in this mess." She blew out a long sigh of regret. "I shouldn't have insisted on opening that thing."

"Wormhole," Jake informed her. "It's some sort of pa.s.sage between Ishaldi and our world."

Tessa thought a moment. "Chiara called it a sea-gate."

"So they're perfectly aware of what it is?" Kenneth asked.

Tessa nodded. "Seems that way."

Jake finished the last of his wine. "Did she happen to mention why it had been sealed? By the looks of it, that happened from our side, not theirs. It must have been something they had no control over. I mean, what society would willingly seal itself off?"

Tessa shrugged. "Nope, and I don't know. And if I had known what it was, I would have thought twice about opening it. The Mer don't seem very friendly toward humans at all."

Kenneth laid gentle hands across her shoulders. "You couldn't know, babe. No one could." Strong fingers expertly worked the pressure points around her neck and shoulders.

Tessa forced herself to relax. Being tense and on edge wouldn't help matters one bit.

She lifted her head, smoothing her tangled hair away from her burning face. "Though I don't like this situation at all, we've just got to play along. Once I meet with their queen, I will express the desire to return to the sea-gate. She has no reason to hold us here, right?"

Stubbornly, Jake shook his head. "Wrong."

The single word hit like a slap in the face.

Tessa looked at him with blank dismay. "Why wrong?"

Jake curled a lip. "Sometimes I think you fell off the turnip truck yesterday."

Kenneth gave Jake a glare. "I think we can both do without the insults. We're not exactly unintelligent."

"No, but you aren't putting much brainpower into thinking this out," their resident expert countered. "Remember, we've just walked into a world that's been cut off from human civilization for centuries. Yes, we see the Mer have gone on and survived quite nicely. But now that the sea-gate is open, what do you think they're going to want next?"

"Chiara mentioned they were anxious to return to the seas," Tessa confessed.

Jake's eyes narrowed thoughtfully. "Of course they would be eager to regain what they lost when the sea-gate closed. I imagine they once had a ruling command over much of the Mediterranean waters. But they wouldn't just rush out into a world that is essentially unknown to them. Times have changed. They can tell that just by looking at our clothing and listening to us speak."

"Tessa seems to be getting along with the language barrier all right," Kenneth said.

"I'm still a little iffy on some of the terms she's using," Tessa admitted. "The conversations I had with Mom were pretty simple."

"Still, you are managing to communicate and that is what counts," Jake said.

"And you think they're going to want me as some sort of guide?" she asked.

Jake shrugged. "I'm just guessing at what I would do if our positions were reversed." He sauntered away, heading toward an open balcony. "It's beautiful here. Ishaldi is absolutely pristine, untouched by any of the degradations of an industrial age."

Giving the archaeologist the stink eye behind his back, Kenneth slipped his boots back on. "I think I prefer our good old nasty world."

Tessa barely managed to suppress a shiver. "It's creepy the way they keep humans as slaves and treat them like animals."

"Slavery was an accepted way of life in ancient times," Jake tossed over his shoulder.

Kenneth perked up. "Come to think of it, don't you think it's odd we haven't seen any animals? I mean, have you seen a dog or a cat, or even a rabbit? Since this world evolved similarly to our own, wouldn't they have the some kind of wildlife?"

Jake turned around, propping a hip against the elaborate stone railing of the balcony. "Now that you mention it, I don't recall even seeing birds in the trees."

Tessa pushed herself off the couch. She walked over to take a look for herself. Outside, the light emanating from the crystal sky had begun to fade. Shadows from the coming darkness began to creep across the land.

She looked out over the wide, thick growth of the forest. "During our ride Chiara told me the crystals mimic sunrise and sunset. At night the crystals rest, recharging themselves. They don't have seasons either; and no wind, rain, or violent storms. The whole of their world is sustained by underground reservoirs. If there is one thing Ishaldi has, it's plenty of water."

"Something mermaids would need, I suppose," Jake mused.

"It's all too freaky for me," Kenneth said from behind. "All I see in my head when I think of this place is some prehistoric insect trapped in amber."

His last remark brought something to mind that had nagged Tessa throughout their journey. She couldn't easily shake off the feelings of misgiving nagging her. "Don't you think it's eerie the way everything is so perfect?"

Jake eyed her impatiently. "What do you mean?"

Sighing, Tessa made a helpless gesture. "I can't exactly explain it, but it feels as if this place isn't an actual living city, but a model of what the Mer think one should be. Nothing out of place, but still it seems "-she searched for the words she wanted-"artificial."

"It just feels that way because we're out of our element," Jake scolded. "Imagine how they would feel seeing our world after all this time."

Tessa pursed her lips. Her hand lifted to her soul-stone. "It's more than that," she insisted. "Even though I've tried to make a psychic connection with Chiara and the others, I can't. It's like some sort of dampening field is all around me. The energy's there, but I can't key in."

"I'm sure their security is set on high alert," Jake commented. "I doubt they'll let down their guard until they know what our intentions really are."

His answer rankled. Jake didn't understand the innate unspoken impression an empath could pick up. The cues of thought and emotion might be subtle, but they were usually detectable in both human and Mer. But these Mer . . . It was like walking among the living dead. Both emotion and energy were rigidly controlled.

Tessa wanted to argue the point, but she had no time to follow through. The doors to their chamber opened and an unfamiliar woman swept in, followed by a retinue of Mer and their human servants.

Well armed and alert, the Mer stationed themselves at various points around the chamber. Spears in hand, sharp daggers were sheathed at their hips. A few of the women wore the deadly Ri'kah.

Seeing the laserlike weapon, Tessa felt her mouth go bone dry. No doubt about it. These women were probably experts with the technology.

The human servants bore silver platters. They carried them to a large wooden table, arranging the selections in a manner pleasing to the eye.

Her smile quick and cheery, the woman introduced herself. "I am Arta Raisa, and I will be seeing to your comfort."

Tessa stood up, taking the dominant position in front of her men. She understood the woman's prefix to roughly imply the position of chief administrator. "Thank you for your service."

Raisa indicated a couple of wooden benches sitting nearby. "We have brought food for your humans," she said, directly addressing Tessa. "Please tell them they may eat."

Catching sight of the food, Tessa's stomach rumbled. The time lapse between this morning and the present couldn't have been more than three or four hours, yet it seemed as if days had pa.s.sed. Her last meal had consisted of some saltines and cheese. Since she'd be diving into deep waters, she hadn't wanted to load herself down with a heavy meal.

She relayed the message to the men. "She says you can eat."

Jake lifted his hands in a gesture of thanks. "Thank heavens. I was about to faint from hunger." He hurried over to the table, picking through the food.

Rising silently, Kenneth ambled over a little slower. "I have to admit I could eat."

Tessa joined them, gaze skimming the elaborate presentation. A variety of fruits, some familiar, some strange, greeted her eyes. Fish and other seafood were also laid out, and she recognized a few of the more common varieties: oysters, shrimp, crab, eel, and some kind of fish that looked vaguely like haddock.

"The sea life seems to be thriving," she commented.

"They obviously maintain some sort of fishery," Jake guessed. "I would think this would be a diet more suited to a sea-based creature."

Tessa scrunched up her face. Seafood had never been her favorite. "This Mer likes her steak, thank you very much."

Kenneth eyed the fish, a dubious look crossing his face. "Is all this raw?"

She looked closer. "I think so."

He shook his head. "I'm not eating it."

Jake kept his selection to the fruits. "Maybe it's how the Mer eat their food."

Tessa's stomach lurched. "There is no way I am putting that in my mouth." Despite her words, her stomach clenched. Hunger was beginning to gnaw a hole through her middle. She reached for something that looked like an apple. "I'll do the vegan thing, too."

Shooting her a look of disapproval, Raisa slapped her hand. "This food is fit only for slaves. They are still dependent on the physical."

Tessa looked at the Mer through narrow eyes. Had the woman lost her mind? "I'm still dependent on the physical, too. Just like them, I need food to eat."

Eyes taking on a gla.s.sy stare, Raisa's mouth turned down into a frown of intense disapproval. "You still eat with the mouth?"

Picking up the vibe that she'd done something very wrong, Tessa slowly nodded. "Of course. Don't you?"

Suppressing a fine shiver, Raisa immediately shook her head. "As food began to grow scarcer we learned how to use the energy of crystals to nourish and energize our bodies." Again she pressed her hands together in the particular manner resembling the act of prayer. "It is our sole nourishment."

Tessa inwardly flinched. Just when she thought she was beginning to understand things, they took a turn from curious into downright bizarre. Like Alice going down the rabbit hole, she'd entered an upside-down world. Very little was familiar, and similarities were few and far between. Even the Mer, her own kind, were strangely unfamiliar.

Tessa licked papery dry lips. "Of course . . ." If she didn't get something to eat soon, she'd faint dead away.

But it wasn't Raisa who answered. Another newcomer broke in, interrupting.

"I have received word of a visitor from the outside," an imperious voice spat. "Let me see with my own eyes this otherworld traveler."

Tessa whirled on her heel. A tall woman, proudly erect, stood behind her. With hair the color of spun white silk and eyes so pale blue as to almost be colorless, her face was so finely molded as to be chiseled. Adding to the impression of her stone-cold beauty was the fact that her skin was pale, almost lifeless in appearance.

Slender and fine-boned, she wasn't clad in the traditional leather Tessa had become accustomed to seeing the Mers in, but a filmy sort of gown spun of a material as light and flowing as a spider's webbing. The strange fabric shimmered like frost.

She looked almost too ethereal to be real.

Arta Raisa immediately dropped to one knee. "Behold Queen Magaera."

The queen flicked an impatient hand toward Arta Raisa. "Leave us," she commanded. "I wish to speak to our visitors alone."

Raisa immediately bowed. "Shall I take the guard?"

Queen Magaera shook her head. "Take your huslas and be gone."

Raisa bowed. "Yes, Majesty."

Tessa watched Raisa hustle the servants out of the chamber. The door closed behind them. Only the guards-still very much armed and at the ready-remained.

Tessa clasped her hands together as she'd seen Arta Raisa do, and offered a brief bow. Hesitantly, she dared to speak. "Thank you for your welcome. I am most honored, Majesty."

Queen Magaera immediately frowned and shot her the evil eye. "Cease your groveling," she snapped. "Your sniveling words mean nothing to me."

Struck dumb by the blatant rudeness of the insult, Tessa shut up. The woman clearly wasn't happy.

Magaera drifted closer, gliding effortlessly. The soft folds of her gown whispered around her as she moved. The vague odor of something cold and loamy clung to her skin.

Tessa immediately wrinkled her nose. The smell reminded her of wet stones after a hard snow had begun to melt. It occurred to her most of the Mer carried the scent, though none so strong as Queen Magaera. It was, she realized, the smell of pure crystal energy-the sole sustenance of the Mer.

Queen Magaera studied Tessa intently. "I never thought I would lay eyes on the seventh dynasty again."

Tessa stood, openmouthed and confused. "Seventh dynasty?"

A look of disdain tightened Magaera's face. "I speak of your symbiote's markings. They show you to belong to the Tesch Dynasty."

A nagging suspicion came to Tessa's mind. "Would it have anything to do with Queen Nyala?"

Queen Magaera deigned to nod. "She was the last Tesch queen to rule before the obliteration."

Obliteration. That didn't sound promising at all.

Tessa stood motionless, her feet rooted to the floor. "I'm sorry, I don't understand." She felt so stupid. So utterly stupid.

"The Tesch Dynasty was erased from Ishaldi's historical record because of Nyala's betrayal of her people." A small smile tweaked up one corner of the queen's cruel mouth. " ' Twas my own grand dame who ordered the Tesch Dynasty into oblivion. She could not bear to let her people remember a Mer queen betrayed them."

Her words delivered a hard jolt. Gulping back shock, Tessa's stomach turned cold. "I don't know anything about it," she admitted slowly.

Gazing at her in silence, Queen Magaera gave a fleeting smile that might have pa.s.sed for amus.e.m.e.nt. The fine lines around her eyes tightened. "Because of her love for a land-walker, Nyala chose his people over her own."

Tessa felt the dull thud of her heart against her rib cage. Hearing the queen's words left her dumbfounded with shock. "I-I don't understand," she stammered. "Land-walker?"

Magaera's lips momentarily thinned with disgust. "Humans."

"Nyala loved a human?"

"Yes. But it is forbidden in our society. They are the lessers, good for nothing except breeding and servitude. Nyala saw them as equals, those who should walk beside the Mer instead of behind them. During the war she wished to make peace with them, but her council advised her to hold steady."