Tavus looked around but he knew there would be no one around, his heart sped up as he moved closer to the outer walls of old Azra. He shouldn’t be here but at that moment his curiosity got the better of him and he swam through the large archway in the outer wall. The buildings that would have been houses were crumbled and decayed, not a single one had a ceiling and most the walls had caved in. Tavus looked in on a few, seeing books still on shelves, children’s toys and other personal belongings. He swallowed hard a chill travelling up his spine, they had left everything behind it seemed. The closer to the palace he swam the larger the buildings became, most of the palace had been demolished where towers once stood were piles of rubble.

As Tavus passed through what would have been the large front door there was a rumbling sound and he had to move quickly to avoid falling rocks. The small currents created by his tail fin had been enough to cause them to fall, he had to be more careful with his exploration. Tavus waited for the silt that was tossed up from the impact of the falling stones to settle before he moved on. The only room that was left completely intact was the throne room, it was surprisingly untouched. With walls of pale green and blue, Tavus was in awe of everything he saw.

Swimming up to a carved throne, running his fingertips over the smooth stone slowly. Inlaid in the throne were ten large blue pearls, larger then he had ever seen. Taking the end of his spear, Tavus went to work, carefully prying the pearls free. Holding the first in his palm and studying it, the pearl filled the palm of his hand. His eyes lit up as he turned it over in his hands before placing it in his satchel. He made little work of prying the others free, the last of which was more stubborn.

When it finally came free Tavus was thrown forward into the throne. Losing his balance for a moment, when he grabbed the throne to steady himself the entire thing shifted to the side. Tavus tilted his head curiously as the slight movement revealed a small cache hidden beneath. Moving around to the side of the throne, Tavus leaned against it and gave a hard shove. The throne toppled over easily, crashing to the stone floor, revealing a small wooden chest in a hole not much larger. The image of a merwoman and merman facing each other was stamped on the top of the small chest.

Tavus pulled it out by one of its rope handles, the moment it was lifted from the hole there was a rumble that came from beneath the thrones dais. His gills fluttered nervously just as he looked up, small bits of sand and stone falling from the ceiling. The untouched walls began to shake and the small rumbling from below became a sound almost deafening. Tavus swallowed hard as his eyes grew wide and his heart leapt in his chest. Spinning away and flipping his tail fin as hard as he could, willing his body to speed through the water as the room started coming down around him. Narrowing escaping the room but the collapse didn’t stop there, the halls caving in all directions. Swerving this way and that to avoid falling stones, once Tavus cleared the palace all together he swam straight up, stopping only when he was higher than any structures.

When he turned and watched the last of the standing walls of the palace crumble, letting out a small nervous laugh. His relief was short-lived, not only did the building fall but the ocean floor gave way, swallowing not only the palace but the entire ruins, every last stone disappearing into a dark pit. Clouds of silt blooming from the depths of the sinkhole.

“Uh oh,” he muttered with his gills fluttering nervously. Tavus turn away and swam back towards home a bit, finding a secluded place to put down the chest. It wasn’t very heavy but he wanted now more than anything to see what was inside. There was a metal lock on the front that was rusted and crusted with barnacles, no matter how he tried to pry it open with his spear the lock wouldn’t budge. Giving up on opening it here, he would just have to sneak it into his tower and find another way to get it open. Getting back into the palace grounds was a little harder and he had to rely on his ears more than his eyes.

Creeping up to look over the outer wall and into the garden, Baldwin would be around there somewhere, and if not him there were guards who roamed around the palace as well as the outer city. Seeing no one in sight it took his chance, quickly diving over the wall and down into the garden. He swam through the gardens to the base of his tower expertly swerving through the paths and around corners. Tavus looked around before propelling himself up the side and entering through the window. In case he had been seen he was quick to put his spear and pearl filled satchel away in his trunk and stashing the small chest under his desk. With a sigh Tavus let his body sink down onto the table coral that made up his bed. Much to his father’s disagreement, Tavus let all kinds of pants and corals grow and take over parts of his tower room, making it look more like the wild kelp forests than a royal’s chambers.

Most of the species he let grow wild around the room he had collected out of the city on his many unsanctioned adventures. Everyone knew about how he would treasure hunting, he often gave away the things he found to his sisters and niece. Like all merfolk, shining objects attracted his eye and begged to be collected. He had the cities largest collection of plants, corals and even shells he had found long abandoned by the creatures who had called them home. Closing his eyes with a small smile, his father hadn’t come up here yelling like he would if someone told him they had seen Tavus coming back so he must have made it unseen.

His body jolted and his smile disappeared when there was a sudden knock on the door.

“Come in,” he called, sitting on his bed and leaning back on his hands. When the door opened to reveal a young girl about his age his smile came back, spreading into a grin, “Sofee!” he welcomed his long-time friend. Sofee had lost her parents when she was very young, her mother had worked in the palace as Tavus’ governess and so King Roman had let Sofee stay and when she was old enough she had started working in the kitchen.

“Why do you look like a willoce that just caught it’s self a nice dinner?” she squinted her eyes at him before coming to sit next to him.

“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” he looked at her with the most innocent expression he could manage.

“You left the grounds again! Tavus! Your father is going to be furious! Haven’t you heard? There is a pod of mer eating willoce!” she smacked his arm as she scolded him.

“I heard, and they’re hunter out in the deeper waters,” he muttered, swimming over to his trunk and pulling out his satchel. “But look what I found,” Sofee would never tell on him.

“What under the sea are those?” she gasped, her eyes growing wide. Tavus sat back down on the table coral and turned the satchel out, dumping the ten palm-sized blue pearls out.

“Aren’t they magnificent?” he grinned, holding one up and studying it. When the glow coming down from the luminescent coral decorating the ceiling touched the pearl it shimmered between green, purple and blue.

“I’ve never seen pearls like these before,” Sofee murmured, holding one in her cupped hands, “Where did you get these?”

“I took them from Old Azra,” Sofee’s jaw dropped as she stared at him, smacking him hard in the shoulder,

“Are you crazy! What if you had gotten hurt!? You know that place is off limits!” she railed at him angrily and he thought it best not to tell her about the sinkhole swallowing the kingdom whole.