Rogue Wave

  “Actually, I do. You’re Traho’s boat boy. His gogg lackey.”

  “I’m afraid you have that the wrong way around,” Mfeme said.

  He removed his sunglasses.

  Ling gasped. His eyes had no irises, no white. They were entirely black.

  Mfeme swept his hand through the air and her letter tiles slid across the deck. As Ling watched, they spelled out his name.

  RAFE IAORO MFEME

  Then slowly the tiles rearranged themselves.

  “No,” Ling said in horror, as she saw what they spelled. “It can’t be. You’re dead. You’ve been dead for four thousand years!”

  I AM ORFEO FEAR ME

  THIS PAGE IS where you thank the people who helped you make a book, and once again, I’d like to thank my wonderful family, and the awesome team at Disney, for their support and enthusiasm for Rogue Wave and the whole Waterfire Saga. But there’s one person in particular I’d like to thank here—the person who first introduced me to my mermaid friends: my longtime agent, Steve Malk.

  An agent’s role in a writer’s life is huge—he’s a business partner, confidante, cheerleader, adviser, and if you’re as lucky as I’ve been, a friend. I can’t adequately thank Steve for all he’s done for me in these few lines, but I’m going to try anyway. Here goes.

  Thank you, Steve, for your insight, wise counsel, and constant good humor—all of which I prize so highly. Thanks for loving music and chocolate as much as I do. I’d split my last ginger-sesame-wasabi truffle with you, and I know you’d do the same for me. Thanks for talking me off the ledge more times than I can count. Thanks for caring enough to always tell me what’s wrong with a manuscript as well as what’s right. Thanks for your genuine and enduring love of children’s books. Most of all, thanks for helping me make my living doing what I love. My whole life, I’ve wanted to be a writer. Because of the hard work you do on my behalf, I get to be.

  ABBADON an immense monster, created by Orfeo, then defeated and caged in the Antarctic waters

  ABELARD Coco’s sand shark

  ACQUA GUERRIERI Miromaran soldiers

  AGORA public square

  AHADI, EMPRESS the previous female ruler of Matali; Mahdi’s mother

  ALÍTHEIA a twelve-foot, venomous sea spider made out of bronze combined with drops of Merrow’s blood. Bellogrim, the blacksmith god, forged her, and the sea goddess Neria breathed life into her to protect the throne of Miromara from any pretenders.

  ALMA the woman Orfeo loved; when she died, he went mad with grief

  AMAH nursemaid

  AMARREFE MEI FOO a pirate who attacked the Demeter, looking to steal the infanta’s blue diamond

  APĂ PIATRĂ an old Romanian protection songspell that raises water and hardens it into a shield

  ARAN, EMPEROR the current male ruler of Matali; Neela’s father

  ARMANDO CONTORINI duca di Venezia, leader of the Praedatori (a.k.a. Karkharias, the Shark)

  ASKARI members of Kora’s personal guard in Kandina (ASKARA, sing.)

  ASTRID teenage daughter of Kolfinn, ruler of Ondalina

  ATLANTICA the mer domain in the Atlantic Ocean

  ATLANTIS an ancient island paradise in the Mediterranean peopled with the ancestors of the mer. Six mages ruled the island wisely and well: Orfeo, Merrow, Sycorax, Navi, Pyrra, and Nyx. When the island was destroyed, Merrow saved the Atlanteans by calling on Neria to give them fins and tails.

  AVA teenage mermaid from the Amazon River; she is blind but able to sense things

  BABA VRĂJA the elder leader—or obârşie—of the Iele, river witches

  BABY Ava’s guide piranha

  BALTAZAAR first minister of finance from the start of Merrow’s reign

  BARRENS OF THIRA the waters around Atlantis, where the Opafago live

  BASTIAAN, PRINCIPE CONSORTE Regina Isabella’s husband and Serafina’s father; a son of the noble House of Kaden from the Sea of Marmara

  BECCA a teenage mermaid from Atlantica

  BEDRIEËR one of three trawlers that Rafe Mfeme owns

  BELLA Italian for beautiful

  BENGALESE BLUEFIN DRAGON gentle, calm, good for pulling wagons and carriages

  BILAAL, EMPEROR the previous male ruler of Matali; Mahdi’s father

  BING-BANG a Matalin candy

  BIOLUMINESCENT a sea creature that emits its own glow

  BLACK FINS members of a Cerulean resistance group headquartered in the Ostrokon

  BLOODBIND a spell in which blood from different mages is combined to form an unbreakable bond and allow them to share abilities

  BLOODSONG blood drawn from one’s heart that contains memories and allows them to become visible to others

  BLU, GRIGRIO, AND VERDE three Praedatori who help Neela and Serafina escape Traho

  BRACK a frothy ale brewed from sour sea apples

  BUONO Italian for good

  CABALLABONG a game involving hippokamps, similar to the human game polo

  CANTA MAGUS one of the Miromaran magi, the keeper of magic (MAGI, pl.)

  CANTA MALUS darksong, a poisonous gift to the mer from Morsa, in mockery of Neria’s gifts

  CANTA MIRUS special song

  CANTA PRAX a plainsong spell

  CARA Italian for dear one

  CARCERON the prison on Atlantis. The lock could only be opened by all six talismans. It is now located somewhere in the Southern Sea.

  CERULEA the royal city in Miromara, where Serafina lives

  CETO leader of the Clan Rorqual, humpback whales

  CHILLAWONDA a Matalin candy

  CLIO Serafina’s hippokamp

  COMMOVEO a songspell that can be used to push objects

  CONCH a shell in which recorded information is stored

  CONFUTO a canta prax spell that makes humans sound insane when they talk about seeing merpeople

  CONVOCA a songspell that can be used for summoning and communicating with people

  CORRENTE LARGO the Lagoon’s main thoroughfare

  COSIMA a young girl from Serafina’s court; nickname: Coco

  COUNCIL OF THE SIX WATERS a meeting of representatives from all of the water realms

  CURRENSEA mer money; gold trocii (TROCUS, sing.), silver drupe, copper cowries; gold doubloons are black market currensea

  DAÍMONAS TIS MORSA demon of Morsa

  DANKLING a person’s deepest fears; Rorrim Drol feeds on them

  DARKSONG a powerful canta malus spell that causes harm; legal to use against enemies during wartime

  DEATH RIDERS Traho’s soldiers, who ride on black hippokamps

  DEMETER the ship that Maria Theresa, an infanta of Spain, was sailing on when it was lost in 1582 en route to France

  DESIDERIO Serafina’s older brother

  DOKIMÍ Greek for trial; a ceremony in which the heir to the Miromaran throne has to prove that she is a true descendant of Merrow by spilling blood for Alítheia, the sea spider. She must then songcast, make her betrothal vows, and swear to one day give the realm a daughter.

  DRACA the language spoken by dragons

  DUCHI DI VENEZIA created by Merrow to protect the seas and its creatures from terragoggs

  EELISH the language spoken by eels

  EKELSHMUTZ one of the four goblin tribes

  ELYSIA capital of Atlantis

  EVEKSION the god of healing

  FABRA marketplace

  FEUERKUMPEL goblin miners, one of the Kobold tribes, who channel magma from deep seams under the North Sea in order to obtain lava for lighting and heating

  FILOMENA Duca Armando’s cook

  FOSSEGRIM one of the Miromaran magi, the liber magus, the keeper of knowledge

  FRAGOR LUX a songspell to cast a light bomb (FRAG, abbr.)

  FRESHWATERS the mer domain that encompasses rivers, lakes, and ponds

  GHOST SHIP a shipwreck entwined with the life force of a human who died onboard; it does not rot or rust

  GREAT ABYSS a deep chasm in Qin where Sycorax’s talisman is believed to be located,
and where Ling’s father disappeared while exploring

  HAGARLA queen of the Razormouth dragons

  HALL OF SIGHS a long corridor in Vadus, the mirror realm, whose walls are covered in mirrors; every mirror has a corresponding one in the terragogg world

  HARAKA a form of martial arts practiced by the Askari

  HIPPOKAMPS creatures that are half horse, half serpent, with snake-like eyes

  HÖLLEBLÄSER goblin glassblowers, one of the Kobold tribes

  HOROK the Keeper of Souls in Atlantis, who took the dead to the underworld, holding each soul in a white pearl

  IELE river witches

  ILLUMINATA a songspell to create light

  ILLUSIO a spell to create a disguise

  INCANTARIUM the room where the incanta—river witches—keep Abbadon at bay through chanting and waterfire

  IRON repels magic

  ISABELLA, LA SERENISSIMA REGINA Miromara’s ruler; Serafina’s mother

  JANIÇARI Regina Isabella’s personal guard

  JANTEESHAPTA a Matalin candy

  JUA MAJI a village in Kandina

  KANDINA a region in the western part of Matali, near the Madagascar Basin, ruled by Kora

  KANDINIAN from Kandina; the language spoken in Kandina

  KANJAYWOOHOO a Matalin candy

  KARKHARIAS “the Shark,” or leader of the Praedatori

  KENGEE sun ray in Kandinian; the symbol of Jua Maji

  KHELEFU the grand vizier of Matali

  KIONGOZI Kora’s general

  KIRAAT Matali’s medica magus

  KOBOLD North Sea goblin tribes

  KOLFINN Admiral of the artic region, Ondalina

  KOLISSEO a huge open-water stone theater in Miromara that dates back to Merrow’s time

  KOOTAGULLA a Matalin pastry with many layers

  KORA the mermaid ruler of the Matalin region of Kandina, as a vassal of the emperor; leader of the Askari

  KUWEKA MWANGA, DADA YANGU Kandinian for Keep the light, my sister

  KYR Neria’s youngest son, whom Merrow saved from a shark attack

  LA SIRENA LÁCRIMA The Mermaid Tear, the blue diamond given to Maria Theresa, an infanta of Spain, on her sixteenth birthday

  LAGOON the waters off the human city of Venice, forbidden to merfolk

  LAGOONA a resident of the Lagoon

  LAKSHADWA BLACKCLAW DRAGON one of the many types of dragons that breed in Matali and are the main source of the realm’s wealth; huge and powerful and used by the military

  LAVA GLOBE a light source, lit by magma mined and refined into white lava by the Feuerkumpel

  LIBER MAGUS one of the Miromaran magi, the keeper of knowledge

  LING a teenage mermaid from the realm of Qin; she is an omnivoxa

  LUCIA VOLNERO one of Serafina’s ladies-in-waiting; a member of the Volnero, a noble family as old—and nearly as powerful—as the Merrovingia

  MADAGASCAR BASIN where the Razormouth dragons breed; in western Matali, near Kandina

  MAGGIORE Italian for bigger

  MAHDI crown prince of Matali; Serafina’s betrothed; cousin of Yazeed and Neela

  MARIA THERESA an infanta of Spain who was sailing to France on the Demeter in 1582 when it was attacked by a pirate, Amarreffe Mei Foo

  MARKUS TRAHO, CAPTAIN leader of the death riders

  MATA-JI a Matalin term for mother

  MATALI the mer realm in the Indian Ocean. It started as a small outpost off the Seychelle Islands and grew into an empire that stretches west to the African waters, north to the Arabian Sea and the Bay of Bengal, and east to the shores of Malaysia and Australia.

  MATALIN from Matali

  MEDICA MAGUS mer equivalent of doctor

  MEERTEUFEL one of four goblin tribes

  MEHTERBAŞI leader of the Janiçari

  MĒĒRĒ DILA, MĒRĪ ĀTMĀ Matalin for My heart, my soul

  MERL Mermish equivalent of girl

  MERMAID TEAR another name for Neria’s Stone, the blue diamond that Neria gave to Merrow

  MERMISH the common language of the sea people

  MERROVINGIA descendants of Merrow

  MERROVINGIA REGERE HIC The Merrovingia rule here

  MERROW a great mage, one of the six rulers of Atlantis, and Serafina’s ancestor. First ruler of the merpeople; songspell originated with her, and she decreed the Dokimí.

  MERROW’S PROGRESS Ten years after the destruction of Atlantis, Merrow made a journey to all of the waters of the world, scouting out safe places for the merfolk to colonize.

  MGENI ANAKUJA Kandinian for A stranger is approaching

  MINA Brazilian slang for a female friend

  MIROMARA the realm where Serafina comes from; an empire that spans the Mediterranean Sea, the Adriatic, Aegean, Baltic, Black, Ionian, Ligurian, and Tyrrhenean seas, the seas of Azov and Marmara, the Straits of Gibraltar, the Dardanelles, and the Bosphorus

  MOLLUSKA the language spoken by octopi

  MOONSTONE Navi’s talisman; silvery blue and the size of an albatross’s egg, with an inner glow

  MORSA an ancient scavenger goddess, whose job it was to take away the bodies of the dead. She angered Neria by practicing necromancy. Neria punished her by giving her the face of death and the body of a serpent and banishing her.

  MOSES POTION a liquid from the Moses sole in the Red Sea that puts people to sleep

  NÄKKI murderous shapeshifters in the northern Atlantic

  NAVI one of the six mages who ruled Atlantis; Neela’s ancestor

  NEELA a Matalin princess; Serafina’s best friend; Yazeed’s sister; Mahdi’s cousin. She is a bioluminescent.

  NERIA the sea goddess

  NERIA’S STONE a blue, tear-shaped diamond that Neria gave to Merrow for saving Kyr, her youngest son, from a shark attack

  NEX a darksong spell used to kill

  NGOME YA JESHI the compound of the Askari, Kora’s personal guard

  NOCÉRUS a darksong spell used to cause harm

  NYX one of the six mages who ruled Atlantis; Ava’s ancestor

  NZURI BONDE the village in Kandina where Kora lives

  OMNIVOXA (OMNI) mer who have the natural ability to speak every dialect of Mermish and communicate with sea creatures

  ONDALINA the mer realm in the Arctic waters

  OODA Neela’s pet blowfish

  OPAFAGO cannibalistic sea creatures that lived in Miromara and hunted mer until Merrow forced them into the Barrens of Thira, which surround the ruins of Atlantis

  ORFEO one of the six mages who ruled Atlantis; Astrid’s ancestor

  OSTROKI the mer version of librarians

  OSTROKON the mer version of a library

  PALAZZO Italian for palace

  PANI YOD’DHA’OM Matali’s water warriors

  PERMUTAVI a pact between Miromara and Ondalina, enacted after the War of Reykjanes Ridge, that decreed the exchange of the rulers’ children

  PESCA the language spoken by fish

  PETRA TOU NERIA Neria’s Stone, a blue, teardrop-shaped diamond that Neria gave Merrow for saving Kyr, Neria’s youngest son, from a shark attack

  PITA-JI a Matalin term for father

  POMPASOOMA a Matalin pastry

  PORTIA VOLNERO mother of Lucia, one of Serafina’s ladies-in waiting; wanted to marry Vallerio, Serafina’s uncle

  POSIDONIA a sweet wine made from fermented seaweed

  PRAEDATORI soldiers who defend the sea and its creatures against terragoggs; known as Wave Warriors on land

  PRAESIDIO Duca Contorini’s home in Venice

  PRAX practical magic that helps the mer survive, such as camouflage spells, echolocation spells, spells to improve speed or darken an ink cloud. Even those with little magical ability can cast them.

  PRINCIPESSA Italian for princess

  PRIYA a Matalin term of affection

  PYRRHA one of the six rulers of Atlantis; Becca’s ancestor

  QIN the mer realm in the Pacific Ocean; Ling’s home

  RAFAEL the justice of the seas who offi
ciates at Mahdi’s and Sera’s exchange of vows

  RAFE IAORO MFEME worst of the terragoggs; he runs a fleet of dredgers and super trawlers that threaten to pull every last fish out of the sea

  RAZORMOUTH DRAGON one of the many types of dragons that breed in Matali and are the main source of the realm’s wealth; they are feral and murderous and prevent invaders from getting past the Madagascar Basin

  REGGIA Merrow’s ancient palace

  REGINA Italian for queen

  RIVER OLT the Freshwater region where the Iele’s cave is located

  ROBUS a songspell used to push

  RORQUAL humpback whale

  RORRIM DROLL lord of Vadus, the mirror realm

  ROYAL ARABIAN DRAGON one of the many types of dragons that breed in Matali and are the main source of the realm’s wealth; they are so dazzling and so costly that only the wealthiest mer can afford them

  RURSUS the language of Vadus, the mirror realm

  RUSALKA a ghost of a human girl who drowned herself because of a broken heart

  SAGI-SHI one of three trawlers that Rafe Mfeme owns

  SAINTES-MARIES the wreck of the Demeter lies twenty-five leagues due south of this point in France

  SALAMU KUBWA, MALKIA Kandinian for Greetings, Great Queen

  SANADA, EMPRESS the current female ruler of Matali; Neela’s mother

  SEA WHIP the most deadly jellyfish in the world

  SEJANUS ADARO Portia Volerno’s husband, who died a year after Lucia’s birth

  SERAFINA principessa di Miromara

  SHIPWRECK GHOSTS hungry for life, their touch—if prolonged—can be lethal

  SÍ Italian for yes

  SIREN a mermaid who sings for currensea

  SOLDATI Italian for soldiers

  SUMA Neela’s amah, or nurse

  SVIKARI one of three trawlers that Rafe Mfeme owns

  SWASH Mermish slang; a shortened version of swashbuckler, suggesting a flamboyant adventurer

  SYCORAX one of the six rulers of Atlantis; Ling’s ancestor

  SYLVESTRE Serafina’s pet octopus

  TALISMAN object with magical properties

  TAVIA Serafina’s nursemaid

  TERRAGOGGS (GOGGS) humans. Before now they haven’t been able to get past the merpeople’s spells.

  THALIA, LADY a vitrina who knows what the six talismans are