Ariel could no longer bear to witness this unbelievable spectacle before her. From the very beginning she had never regretted her decision to live on land and away from her family, and nor did she try to allow herself to ever look back. However, despite her grit, the one thing that continued to haunt her was her decision to cooperate with Ursula. She felt that if she never complied with that demonic sea witch’s demand in the first place her family would never have had to deal with her and her clan’s wrath. She particularly had yet to forgive herself for what happened to Melody the year before, so upon seeing the fate that was befalling her son her heart was torn to pieces. Full of guilt for being the source of all this suffering and for passing her sins down upon her children, Ariel broke down and wept.
“Oh,” Morgana mockingly crooned slowly, “is the princess upset?”
Grieved at the sight of his wife’s tears, Eric once more broke out into rage. As much as he desired to take action against Morgana’s tyranny, he knew the consequences of such a venture were too high to risk. Clutching his wounded gut after taking notice of the stinging sensation centered on that area, he opted instead to observe his enemy’s movements, just waiting for that one predictable moment when she would once again lower her guard.
The only person present that noticed this renewed predator behavior in Eric was Melody. By this time she was propping herself against the wall she was hurled into and was taking careful note of what was taking place. Recognizing her father’s demeanor from before and knowing what was to follow shortly, she took it upon herself to search for the moment to retaliate faster than he could. She knew that she could not do much to protect anyone at that moment, but she felt that if she could at least act as an adequate distraction then her father would have a better chance at victory over the sea witch. And this time around, she felt fully confident at accomplishing her goal.
The vial now empty, Morgana exclaimed, “And now, it’s finished!” Morgana, wallowing in pride over her success, exploded in her trademark cackling with more vigor than ever before. She then lifted the baby high into the air to expose the crimson glow that was seeping into its forehead.
Fuming about the turn of events but not wanting to reveal it to the sea witch just yet, Eric steadied his voice as much as he could to inquire, “Morgana, what have you done to my son?”
