by Dee J. Stone
I race after him and catch him before he goes head first into some other rock. A heartbreaking, horrid gasp leaves my mouth when I look at his face. Or what’s left of it. It’s so mangled I hardly recognize him.
“This ends right now,” I tell Damarian, touching his face and body, watching him heal. “I’m going to murder that monster.”
“Cassie, wait!”
My tail pumps harder and faster, and I’m floating in front of her in less than two seconds. She seems to have recovered from her injury. She opens her mouth, showing off those fangs. Then she launches a ball of venom at me. I wave my hand and the venom slams into the nearby rock. She shoots another ball and I deflect that, too. Before she can fire another one at me, I spread out my arms and my body rises higher, my chest pushed forward, my head thrown back. I feel the electricity build inside me, growing and growing until it surrounds me. I slap my hands together over my head and a bolt of electricity shoots out of the surface, illuminating the dark sky. With my hands still glued together, I lower them and aim them at Cassila, like I’m about to fire a gun. Cassila swoops to the side as another bolt shoots at her. I separate my hands and shoot from each one, chasing after her as she dodges my attacks.
“Cassie!” Damarian swims into my web of electricity and grabs my arm. “Cassie, you must not—”
“Give me your hand.” I take it. “Let’s do it. Together.”
“No, my love.” He twists my arm behind my back.
I wince. “Ow! What the heck, Dam—”
“I apologize, my Cassie, but you cannot kill her.”
I blink at him. “What?”
He nods toward her retreating form. “If you kill the sea serpent inside you, you will perish as well.”
“What? But if I kill her, she’ll finally be gone from my head and I’ll be able to regain control and stop those damned sea serpents from—”
“No. You are connected. Neither of you are able to survive without the other.”
I just stare at him as his words spin around in my head. The electricity around me dies down. She and I can’t survive without each other? I assumed all I needed to do was find a way to push her out of my mind and body so that she’ll be gone for good. I never imagined I need her to live. I swallow the large lump in my throat. “Then I’ll die.”
“Cassie!”
“If I kill her, the sea serpents might die. Or at the very least, they’ll be much weaker.”
“But my love, I have already stated that I require your help to rid the sea serpents from the sea. I cannot have access to my full power without my mate.” He gently takes hold of my chin and lifts my face so I’m forced to look into his eyes. “And I would sooner kill myself than let any harm befall you.”
If I wasn’t in the water, intense tears would spill down my cheeks. “It’s for the greater good, Damarian. Even if you don’t have access to your full power, you are still strong. You don’t need me. You can do it yourself.”
“I will not allow you to die!” He hauls me to his chest and squeezes me so tight I think my spine will crack.
I struggle to free myself, but his grip is too tight. “Damarian—”
“No! I will not allow it.”
“We don’t have enough time. We can’t let her get any stronger.”
“Cassie.”
“You need to let me go.”
“I cannot.”
“You need to.”
“I shall perish with you.”
“No. Don’t you dare go Romeo on me. You need to survive. You need to fight off the sea serpents and the rebels. You can do it, Damarian. I know you can.”
“I refuse to—”
A thunderous roar echoes throughout the area. My heart rate picks up. She’s as pissed as hell. I touch Damarian’s heart and look into his eyes. “We need to do this.”
“My love…” His voice cracks.
“We don’t have much time. Please, Damarian. Think of your people. Think of your friends and family. Think of Syd and Syndin, and little Zarya. Do you want them to grow up in a free world filled with light and happiness? Or do you want them to grow up in a world of chaos and bloodshed?”
He looks away from me, his lower lip trembling.
I take his hand and give it a loving squeeze. When our eyes meet, I nod. With his lower lip still trembling, he returns it. Our hands interlocked, we face Cassila, who is charging at us like a pissed-off bull.
“I love you,” I tell Damarian. “Forever.”
“I love you,” he whispers, his voice choked with tears. “For eternity.”
Electricity crackles between us. Our eyes light up. We lift our free hands.
Just as we’re about to shoot at her, Damarian shoves me so hard I knock into the wall on my left. The rock cracks and it feels like my ribs break. “No!”
Damarian thrusts his hands at Cassila who makes a short stop and is just suspended in the water. It looks like he’s drawing from everything he has. Even from me—I feel like my life force is being yanked out of me, leaving me weak, my breathing labored. Damarian thrusts his hands out again, causing Cassila’s arms to slam to her sides, her tail to wrap around her body, and her head to fall forward. Still holding up his hands, Damarian waves them to the side, causing Cassila to be tossed, too. He flings her into a large cave on the bottom of the ocean. With electricity sparking in his eyes, he throws his hands up, then drops them. Metal bars appear on the opening to the cave.
“Damarian,” I rasp.
He’s at my side a second later. “My love. I apologize. I did not tend to injure you.” He touches my ribs. Then my head and other parts of my body where I’m hurt. The pain vanishes.
“You captured her,” I say.
He presses his lips to me, giving me a long, lingering, passionate kiss. “You are free at last.”
My head falls back and all I see is darkness.
Chapter Nine
My eyes slowly open. I blink a few times, waiting for my surroundings to get into focus, and when they do, I realize I’m falling toward the bottom of the ocean. Before my eyes, I see my sea serpent body shift, my dark skin fading to peach, my claws turning to hands, and my tail transforming to legs. I’m changing into a human and I’m three thousand feet in the ocean.
Just as I’m about to freak out, I feel the familiar burning pain in the lower half of my body. I flail around and cry out as the pain intensifies. This is the worse I’ve ever felt before. Maybe because my body has been through so much, shifting from a human to a sea serpent, back to a human and then a mermaid. I’m surprised my organs are not bursting from the exertion.
When the pain is finally gone, my head starts to clear up and a whole lot of memories fly into my head. Waking up in the pool my father tossed me into, marching to the ocean with the other sea serpents. Transforming into sea serpents. Entering the ocean and meeting up with the rebel merpeople. Invading the colony.
I gasp in horror at the realization of what I’ve done. Of who I’ve hurt and what I’ve destroyed. The poor, innocent fish. The beautiful coral and ocean plants. I see the way I blew up the rocks that marked the entrance to the merpeople colony, leaving them exposed and vulnerable. The memories continue to play in my head, each one more horrible than the last. The four sharks I killed at once, the way I enlarged a rock and launched it at a female Diamond, crushing her chest and snapping her neck. The way I healed the sea serpents, including little Ruthie. My chest tightens. Ruthie and Bobby, sea serpents. What’s going to happen to them? Then I see the way I bit into a tiger shark, digging my fangs into its flesh and shaking it around until it died, then flinging it into a wall of rock. And the way I spit venom at its owner. Boils formed on her face and body, melting away her skin and exposing the bone underneath. That melted away, too.
I fall down on my tail and just stare at the space in front of me, my heart crying, my chest heavy, my entire body shaking. With guilt, with hatred toward myself and the sea serpents. But mostly myself for allowing this to happen. I can’t f
eel my tears, but I know they’re sliding down my cheeks in buckets. The memories continue to run around in my head, and I can’t block them no matter how much I try. And I shouldn’t be able to, because I can’t forget what I’ve done. I’ll feel responsible for this for the rest of my life.
I don’t know how I’m going to live with myself.
I’m knocked out of my shocked, guilt-ridden state when I catch the sea serpents staring at me. I back away until I hit a large rock. Oh, no. They’ve noticed I’m no longer a sea serpent. I have no idea who is who—they all look exactly the same to me. And they all look like they want to kill me.
A second later, they’re swarming toward me. I push my tail against the rock and dash out of the way. One of the sea serpents crashes into the rock, causing little pieces to fly everywhere. One almost gets me in the head. Another sea serpent slashes its claw at me, barely missing my tail. I kick off the floor and swim away as far as I can. I was able to hear them in my mind when I was a sea serpent, but I can’t hear anything right now. I guess I don’t need to know what they’re saying—they want to kill the mermaid. But do they know who I am? Do they know I used to be Cassila—no, that I am Cassila? I’m Cassie the human/mermaid and Cassila the sea serpent. One cannot survive without the other, as Damarian claimed. Maybe they think they can change me back. But that’s not going to happen. I need to swim deeper into the colony. I need to get to Damarian.
A sea serpent leaps in front of me, blocking my path. Something gets stuck in my throat as I take in its ten foot frame and terrifying body. Seeing Cassila in my head—fighting her—was one thing. For starters, she was me and I had Damarian by my side. But this isn’t going on in my head—this is real. And it’s as scary as hell.
I have no idea what it’s saying, but I can see it in its eyes. It wants to kill me. Just as it raises its claws and tries to hit me, I feel something warm enter my heart and body. A moment later, I find myself in a different area of the ocean. I must have teleported, just like I did in my mind.
Cassie, Damarian’s voice says softly in my head. Do not fear. I am here with you.
Damarian. His energy flows into me. With him by my side, I know I can do this.
Another sea serpent blocks my path. Pressing my lips together with determination, I dive toward it, my body passing through. My tail pumps harder and faster, taking me farther away. Get to Damarian, I tell myself over and over in my head. Don’t think, just swim.
Two sea serpents appear in front of me. They look a little larger than the others. I don’t know if I can escape them.
“Hello, Cassie,” one says in a familiar male voice.
My father. I swallow.
“It seems like there must have been a little bit of a mistake. You see, you’re not supposed to be here.”
I ball my hands into fists at my sides. “Oh? Are you looking for Cassila? Well, she’s gone and she’s never coming back!”
“We’ll have to see about that,” Sheila’s deep voice says. They pounce at me.
Damarian’s energy flows through me again. A second later, I’m no longer floating before my father and stepmother. I’m once again in a different part of the ocean.
I hide behind a large rock. I count to ten before peeking out. A few sea serpents are swimming around. If I try to dash away, they’ll see me. I knock the back of my head against the rock. Think, think, think. Then I see it about twenty feet away—a sunken ship.
Peeking my head out again, I notice the sea serpents have left the area. After taking a few deep breaths, I bolt toward the ship and dive behind the rail on the deck. When I’m sure they haven’t returned, I move further into the ship. Based on how it looks, I’d say this ship must have sunk hundreds of years ago. I’m not sure if the sea serpents can sense me—I don’t think I was able to sense the merpeople when I was a sea serpent, but I can’t take that chance. I need to get out of here.
When I turn around, I knock into someone. I’m about to yell, when I see a tail. A small sapphire tail. I grab the merperson’s arm and yank him or her out of the darkness. The terrified face of Zarya appears before me, her blue eyes huge.
“Zarya!” I nearly yell, relief and dread flooding through me. I pull her tight against my chest. “What are you doing here?” I whisper.
“Oh, Cassie! I am so frightened.” She flings her arms around my middle and hugs me so tight she’s hurting me. Something digs into my ribs. I gently pry her off me and take the object from her hand. It’s a fork. She probably found it here.
I put my hands on her shoulders and look into her face. “Zarya, what are you doing here?”
She’s about to answer when I see movement above us. I cover her mouth and push her in front of me, bending my body over hers and flattening us on the deck of the ship. I feel her trembling beneath me. I gently stroke her head, letting her know she’s okay and that I won’t let anything happen to her. My heart is beating so strongly I’m scared the sea serpents can hear. If they find us here, I’ll kill every single one of them. I won’t let them lay a hand on Damarian’s little sister.
I don’t know how many minutes pass, but it feels like a really long time. I put my finger on my lips, telling Zarya not to move from here. She nods, her eyes even wider than before. I swim closer to the rail and stretch my neck, trying to get a glimpse of the area above us. I don’t see anyone around. When I return to Zarya, I take her by the shoulders and gently lift her off the floor. She flings her arms around me again. “Cassie, I am so very frightened.” Her whole body shudders.
I pat her back and kiss the top of her head. “What are you doing here?” I ask for the third time.
She gets out of the hug and looks up with me with the same terrified eyes. “You have not returned home. Dammy has, and when I inquired of your whereabouts, Mother, Father, and Dammy claimed you were on land. But I was certain they were not honest. Then Syd…”
“What?” I ask.
“Syd claimed you joined in battle. On the other side. I did not believe that as true. I slipped out of the colony to search for you. I worried you were in need of help.”
My eyes shut tight for a few seconds and a frustrated breath leaves my mouth.
“I lost my location,” she continues. “I was so frightened, Cassie! But then the area appeared familiar. I understood this was the location Father and I journey to in search for the sunken ship. I was able to hide here. I have located a treasure.” She holds up the fork.
I put my hands on either side of her face. “What you did was so dangerous, Zarya! Leaving the colony when you knew there was a battle going on. Do you know what could have happened to you?”
She looks away from me and frowns. “Yes, but it was imperative that I locate you.”
“Why, Zarya? Why was it so important that you find me?”
“Because you are my sister and I love you.”
Despite at how upset I am with her for putting her life at risk, a warm feeling touches every cell in my body. I pull her toward me and hug her, kissing the side of her face. “You have no idea how much that means to me. But it was so dangerous. You could have gotten killed. Or worse.” I don’t want to think what the sea serpents would have done if they caught her. Maybe tortured her until we surrendered.
I pull back and look into her eyes. “Promise me you’ll never do anything like this ever again.”
“But, Cassie—”
“Promise me.”
She pouts. “But I have located you! My search was not in vain.”
I fall back against a wall or something on the boat and slide her onto my lap. “You don’t understand what’s going on, and honestly, I’d rather keep you in the dark. But there’s something really bad happening right now. There are some really bad people—er, beings—around here.”
“I have seen them,” she whispers.
“I’m going to take you back to the colony.” I run my hand through the strands of her golden hair. “And I need you to promise me that you won’t leave ever again. Even if Damarian o
r I don’t return for a long time, even if you’re curious about what’s going on out there. You need to stay inside.”
She nods. “I promise I shall remain inside the colony. We are situated in Eteria.”
That makes the most sense, since the palace is the most heavily guarded area in the colony.
“Will you inform me what this is?” she asks, sticking the fork in my face.
“We use it for eating.”
She stares at it. “How is this item used for eating?”
“We’ll talk about it later, okay? We need to get back to the colony.”
I put my finger on my lips again and swim out of our hiding place, motioning for her to follow me. I take her hand and strain my eyes and ears, looking and listening for any sign of movement. When I don’t see or hear anything, I tighten my hold on Zarya and swim out of the ship. She clutches her treasure in her hand.
It takes me a little while to study my surroundings and figure out where we are. We’re in the merpeople colony, but I have no idea which way leads to Eteria. I whisper to Zarya, “Do you know where the palace is?”
She nods vehemently and points to the right. Gripping her hand even tighter, we head toward that direction. I keep turning my head left and right to make sure we’re not being followed. Every whoosh of our tails sounds so loud, like we have mics attached to them. Then I see a familiar cave in the distance, and I know it leads to Eteria. It’s the one Morteran, Queen Flora’s personal Guard, and I traveled through when we came to the palace the first time I visited the ocean. We’re going to make it!
Suddenly, something knocks into us, forcing my hand to break from Zarya’s. I somersault in the water and knock into some coral. When I raise my head, I see a sea serpent looming over Zarya, who is on the ocean floor, her eyes so wide they look like they’ll pop. She backs away on her elbows, shrieking my name, her voice laced with terror. The sea serpent raises its claw.
