Choosing ceremonies have always taken place in The Dry. Proof of one werewolf out on other than a full moon was not enough caution to postpone or change the custom. Especially this time. This Choosing is special. It is The Choosing of the Temporal Caste—the final class. Perhaps the very last Choosing of the Undine species.
Serena follows Ervin to The Choosing grounds. She doesn't swim on his left this time, allowing his awkward gait to slow him. She needs time get her nerves under control and to stop her hands from jittering.
Months ago, after a year of shadowing each of the twelve jobs Society offers, Serena and her caste mates submitted their top three choices of work. Serena's first choice was Records Keeper Assistant. She would have written it down three times if she could. Her other two choices were Orphanage Attendant and Scientist Assistant. But she was sure she would be granted her first choice, especially since Mariam has petitioned for a permanent shadow. It is a job no one else pines after.
Serena and Ervin merge with the current, letting it pull them downstream. Ever since the Maiden's Massacre, the Choosing grounds change each year for safety reasons. This year Society gathers in the traditional spot, which happens to be the same location as the Maiden's Massacre, Cliff Beach.
Ervin turns for the beach on the west side of the island, struggling for a moment to leave the current. When he does, he glances behind him as if to see if Serena caught his falter. She looks away.
When Ervin turns back around, Serena sighs, then catches up to swim on his left. Serena spots fins ahead, bobbing near the surface. There are just as many Undine here as there were at Assembly, though the population looks twice the size spread out. No one wants to miss this ceremony.
Ervin swims forward, along the edge of the crowd toward the front. When the smooth water breaks into frothy, white waves, he transforms. Scales cover his body in light-brown armor as he walks from the water with his trident to join the King's Guard.
They form a semi-circle on the beach around the Temporal Caste, facing the giant sandstone cliffs that separate one world from the next. Above them, the forest grows right to the edge of the cliff, a few trees leaning over as if they are about to be pushed off by their brethren clamoring for a spot in the sun.
Only one narrow passageway through the cliffs allows entry to the beach, and it is guarded by Murphy and Kai themselves. Kai turns slightly, catching Serena's eye. He makes a pointed glance at the moon, then gestures to his shadow stretched across the sand.
You're late, he tells her with one eyebrow raised, silently chiding her.
Serena gives an innocent shrug, then nods at Ervin. His fault.
Kai laughs loud enough to cause Murphy to break rank and fix his Second in Command with a hard stare. Kai salutes Murphy then turns back to the cliffs with a quick wink at Serena.
When she turns to face the ocean, she realizes the rest of her caste is standing in a line parallel to the water, scowling at her. Serena's eyes snap to the Caste Master standing in front of them. Zayla motions with her arm, an impatient gesture for Serena to join them.
Serena takes her place at the end of the line, breathing a sigh of relief that one of her three punishments did not come before the ceremony. They could very well deny her a title, robbing her of a chance to live out the rest of her days in the archives.
Waves come and go, seeming like a lifetime before members of the crowd peel their eyes away from Serena. It's not the same as enduring the accusations of absconding at Assembly. At least there she had her back turned to the audience.
Focusing on the whale-sized boulder that juts up out of the water in the midst of the Undine congregation, everyone awaits their king. Serena herself has had enough of him. She glances at Cordelia standing beside her, who wears her revealing burgundy garb even here, at the most important ceremony of her life. Serena scans Cordelia's scales, glittering in the moonlight. She has bracelets up to each elbow, and a small tiara sits on top of a mass of blond braids. Serena brushes her hair behind one ear, wishing she'd taken the time to a least pull the strands back.
Splashing at the whale-rock draws attention and the Undine behind it move aside, making room for a large wave that is gathering momentum. The crest builds then breaks against the rock. The closest Undine resurface as the thunderous swell subsides and all eyes fall upon King Merrick. He towers above Society, one throne replaced by another.
Under the light of the waning moon, the many colors of the king's tail stand out more prominently than in the dim shadows of the caves. As the only living male Undine that has color to his scales, it is said he carries the blood of the very first Undine, and that all the colors of Undine maidens are represented in his own scales.
The king settles and Nerin pushes herself up on one of the bottom ridges of the rock. "All hail our King," she calls out.
Society answers, their voices echoing across the water. "Long live the King."
The king thrusts his trident into the sky. Moonlight glints off the sharpened tips, and dances across the surface of the water creating a shimmering ring of light around the whale rock. When he brings the trident down, the ring of light races in toward the king, culminating in a shower of sparks as the trident's stem hammers against the rock. The ceremony begins.