They found themselves standing at the edge of a balcony that overlooked a ballroom of sorts; it was a vast, empty room with a tiled floor and a circular pool in the middle of it, all of which was lit by glowing blue stones embedded in the walls. A large conch shell rested on the ledge in front of them, and the guard picked it up and raised it to her lips, letting out a low wail of a note that seemed to shake the solid stone around them. The water in the pool quivered, then burst into spraying foam as forms lept from it. Strange looking people poured into the room, each and every one more monstrous and strangely beautiful than the last. The mer had glinting eyes that lacked pupils, gracefully webbed hands and feet, the sinister smiles plastering their faces copies of one another. They all gathered around the balcony, whispering behind webbed hands and letting out hissing giggles.
The guard prodded Mari in the shoulder, and she reluctantly raised both arms to the air. In another balcony across the room, a group of grim-faced musicians raised their foreign instruments obediently. They were unlucky, to be up in the alcoves instead of on the dance floor. Haunting music began to fill the room, starting out with what sounded like an out-of-tune fiddle, every measure adding another instrument and growing in beauty and complexity with each passing second. The mer let out thrilled, inhuman cries, grabbing one another by the hands and dragging themselves into swirling circles of wild dancing. They began to sing along, their harmonizing voices echoing off the walls and resonating through the castle with a haunting force.
And now, for the worst part. Mari gulped, then extended one hand behind her without looking back. The sacrifice, entirely entranced by the mystic display, took it with neither hesitation nor suspicion. Mari descended the stairs with him in tow, moving to join the dancers. The mer grinned their pointy grins, although the sharpness of their teeth and the knowing glint in their eyes went unnoticed by the unfortunate soul who’d been brought here. Mari was greeted enthusiastically, beloved by her people for allowing them to partake in this monthly, bloody ritual. Their voices rose and fell together, loud and forceful enough to sound more like melodic screaming than any sort of music mankind was used to. The sound pulsed like a heartbeat, sending shivers down the offering’s spine, but his only reaction was to smile stupidly.
Mari’s first move would seal the man’s fate. She inhaled with a shudder, then pointed her toe and struck a pose, the dancers crying out with elation. She twirled into the ritual dance, light as a fairy on her feet, although the weight of what she was about to do felt like a cinderblock chained to her ankles. The mer accepted her, linking their scaly arms together as they looped around her and the man, who still stood in awe of everything around him. Mari offered a grin, one that would’ve seemed every bit as threatening as the mer’s if not for its wavering. Reaching out, she grabbed the human’s arm to tug him into the dance, and the mer excitedly dragged him deeper. He laughed in intoxicated bewilderment, not noticing how quickly he was being led towards the edge of the pool. Mari stopped dancing, letting the creatures and music swirl into a blur all around her as her doleful eyes watched.
Before the offering could come to his senses, he felt the mild pain of being shoved, the action winding him and bringing realization along with it. His eyes were wide, aware, and full of fear as he plunged into the deep waters. Mari pressed both hands over her ears to protect them from the screeching shouts of triumph let out by the bloodthirsty mer, then stumbled back as they all began to plunge into the pool after the poor, doomed man. Now, it wasn’t a matter of whether he’d survive, but rather one of which lucky mer would be able to catch him and fend off the others, and thusly, be rewarded with a feast.
The thought made Mari feel ill, and she turned away before she could catch sight of the water clouding with red.