Scarlet Tempest, #1

by Juniper King

  I assumed the lake in the center would lead out to the ocean, probably allowing finfolk and other sea creatures the luxury of coming and going as they pleased. But I would certainly be seen if I jumped in the water. I didn’t exactly blend in.

  I made my feet move slowly to avoid looking suspicious just standing there gaping. Other humans were walking around in this area, why couldn’t I?

  I minced alongside the pool as I contemplated my escape, keeping my pace steady and my eyes ahead of me. There was no way I could fight any of the Supers in their element, but if I could somehow get by undetected, I might be able to use my magic to push myself to the surface. If that was even possible. What if I only got halfway before my strength gave out on me? I was at a complete loss.

  “Find any means of escape, yet?”

  A sudden wave of vertigo pitched me forward. I whirled around at the familiar voice and saw him leaning against a stone pillar, his stare radiating bored amusement.

  Though he looked completely different, I knew he was the finman from the beach.

  His previously human-looking skin now had the same translucent bluish tint as all the other finfolk in this cave. The only clothing he wore was a pair of brown drawstring shorts, leaving his chest bare, showing off whorls and designs of colour ranging from deep blues to sea-foam greens.

  My foot jerked backwards only to find the edge of the pool. I had nowhere to run.

  “You’ve done a full circle around the room. Thinking about swimming all the way to the surface?” He pushed away from the pillar and took a few prowling steps closer. “I’d love to see you try. I might even save you before you drown.”

  Fear gripped my lungs. I was petrified, a mouse staring down a snake, caught with nowhere to go.

  He approached me, eyes drawn towards my throat and a hostile grin pulling up the edge of his lips.

  He reached up and trailed a webbed finger down the column of my neck. “How did you get out of the chains,” he asked with a genuine curiosity.

  Humans and finfolk alike passed by us as if this were a normal occurrence. The humans seemed a little more uncomfortable, their eyes falling to their feet and their pace quickening as they walked by.

  The finman bared his razor-sharp teeth in a smirk as if he was excited to see the dread on my face.

  My gaze flicked around frantically, looking for some way—any way—to get away from him.

  “Sacred? Where’s that fiery spirit from the beach?” His voice was soft, laced with ridicule and false intimacy.

  My foot shifted again, bumping into something hard and jagged. I looked down and spotted a broken off chunk of coral at the edge of the pool.

  With no time to think I called it to my hand and crashed it against the side of his face, bolting at the sound of his shout. I followed the curve of the water, not taking the chance to see if my attack had incapacitated him. I didn’t know where I could even go, my only thought had been getting away from him. Away from that malicious smile that promised nothing but pain.

  A churning sound bubbled to my left. I barely had time to turn my head before a tentacle-like column of water washed my feet out from under me. Crashing to the floor, my teeth cut through my lower lip as the breath was knocked from my lungs. I rolled over onto my back, coughing relentlessly, and saw the finman standing over me. Lines of red etched the side of his face, one deep cut across his brow oozing blood down his temple.

  “Oh, I like you.”

  I spit out a mouthful of blood onto his feet. He stared at the red splatter for a moment before stomping a webbed foot down on my outstretched hand. My knuckles cracked, flattened against the rock floor. I shrieked and rolled to my side, my free hand trying to pry him off.

  He squatted down, the pressure from his foot only growing stronger.

  “I’m going to enjoy breaking you.” Twisting his heel, he ground my hand further into the floor. Tears streamed down my face.

  Rage boiled my blood. I was tired of being taken advantage of. I was tired of Supers seeing me as weak and manipulable. I would never let it happen again.

  “I’ll die before I break.” I said through grit teeth.

  A laugh burst from his throat. “Interesting challenge.” He yanked me up by my broken hand and I thought I might be sick from the pain. “In that case, I think I know just the place for you.”

  He dragged me along behind him, out of the cavern and through the long, winding hallways. Every time I staggered or resisted, he would yank me forward, inciting another shriek.

  I noted some beings we passed, human faces marred with pity or fear, while the faces of other finfolk seemed apathetic, some even looked anticipative.

  We stopped in a small alcove off of the larger hallway. He wrenched me forward and caught my shoulders so my back was tight against his chest.

  There were no glowing stones here to offer light, making the hole in the ground that much harder to see. A dreadful feeling slithered up my spine.

  “Consider this solitary confinement,” he whispered into my ear.

  A shove sent me hurtling forward and the floor disappeared beneath me, my shoulder scraping the wall as I fell. The drop was not far, but still far enough for me to land on my foot the wrong way, sending a shooting pain through my entire leg. Whatever I was expecting to be in this pit, a hard, muddy floor was not it.

  “I’ll come get you tomorrow. If I remember,” he added as an afterthought.

  A scraping sound followed as the light slowly receded, the last hint of it disappearing like the glow of an eclipse.

  “Let’s see how strong that magic of yours really is.” His voice was muffled through the stone, but I could still hear the condescension. The last thing I heard was the faint echo of his receding steps.

  Struggling to my feet, I used the walls to steady myself. The area was tall enough for me to comfortably stand up, but that was about it. Reaching my arms out, I could touch the walls on either side of me. I extended up as high as my fingers would reach, but wasn’t able to even brush the stone. I tried jumping only to shriek when I landed on my ankle.

  Hysteria was beginning to settle in, this tight space bringing to mind the image of being buried alive. Solid rock surrounded me; the only way out was up. With my vision gone, I felt at the walls around me, going by the sense of touch alone. I prodded and groped but couldn’t find anything to give a proper foot or hand hold to climb up.

  The realization that I was completely trapped in here pulled me under as if I were drowning all over again.

  My palms grew slick with sweat as a haggard scream bubbled up my throat.

  I screamed and shouted until my throat was raw, but there was no one to come to my rescue this time.

  16

  My back hit the jagged stone wall with a painful thump, rattling my body and knocking the wind out of my lungs. I slid down to the cold, damp ground and wrapped my arms around my knees, defeated.

  I had nothing left in me to shout. The adrenaline was already wearing off and my body was beginning to sag with weakness as I shook and shuddered from the cold.

  My ankle twinged with pain from the fall, my lip throbbed and stung, and my hand was in absolute agony. I hadn’t even seen the extent of the damage before being thrown in here, but I knew the skin had torn and bones had been broken. Pounding on the stone wall in my terrified, adrenaline fueled frenzy had no doubt made the injury even worse.

  The situation looked bleak. I tucked my head down into my folded arms, tears already pooling in the corner of my eyes.

  No.

  I uncoiled myself from my fetal position and wiped a sleeve across my face, there was no more leniency for tears. No one knew I was here, and no one was coming for me, I was on my own. I got out of that collar and I would get out of this, too. But in order to do that I had to stay strong and keep my thoughts rational and constructive.

  The first step was to fix my broken bones as best I could.

  I tenderly probed the injured area and sucked in a sharp breath. Pa
in stabbed through my hand with each pinch. From what I could feel, no bones had broken through the skin, but my hand felt slick with blood and two of my finger joints, one in the middle and one in the index finger, were bent in the wrong direction. Bile crept up my throat. I was relieved I couldn’t see the damage.

  I didn’t know much about first aid or how to set a dislocated bone, but knew that if I didn’t set the joints back into place the fingers wouldn’t heal properly.

  I pinched the broken joint between my fingers but hesitated. Clenching my eyes shut so tightly it hurt, I sucked in a breath and pulled sharply outward. The pop of bone resonated through my body, pain shattering through my every nerve. Before I had a chance to chicken out, I gripped the second finger and pulled.

  With both of the joints set, I whimpered out the pain, pulling my legs in close and rocking back and forth.

  After a few minutes, I fumbled around in the dark, feeling at the ground for something that could be used as a splint, but to no avail. Wrapping the fingers together would have to do. I ripped a strip of material from the bottom of my shirt using my teeth and, after several painful seconds of binding the digits, pulled the makeshift bandage tight with my teeth. I let go of the fabric with a sharp gasp and my hand dropped into my lap, throbbing angrily.

  My breaths came out in haggard gasps. I leaned back against the wall to collect myself, a jagged bit of rock digging into my spine every time I inhaled.

  Surrounded by complete darkness, it was difficult to fully comprehend how large the space around me was. I could almost imagine it was wide and spacious, until I reached my toes out and touched the opposite wall.

  The more I thought about the small size of this pit, the more it felt like the space was shrinking in on itself.

  Deep breaths, that’s just the darkness playing tricks. Darkness is good at that.

  Instead, I focused on the bite of cold seeping in through my bare feet and bleeding through the seat of my pants. My clothes were thin, meant for a warm spring day, not a freezing cold cave. I cursed my past self for removing my boots and socks. Unlike the outside caverns, there were no stones or gems to provide any heat or light. There was virtually nothing to keep out the chill of the surrounding ocean depths.

  Would they leave me in here until I died then remove my body before the next victim could be buried alive?

  I shook my head violently, banishing the thought. That kind of thinking would only drive me towards insanity and panic. This place was designed to break those entombed in it. But I won’t break.

  I wrapped my arms as tight as I could around my legs, trying to retain the warmth that was so quickly draining from my body. The sound of my teeth chattering was thunderous in the silence of this dark pit. My forehead fell on my knees as I tried to ignore the shaking that so persistently rattled my body.

  My hands and feet were completely numb.

  Not long ago I’d tried wiggling my fingers and toes to keep the circulation flowing but they’d gone stiff and unwieldy, even the long sleeves of my shirt pulled over my hands did little to keep them warm.

  The constant shaking and shivering had prevented me from getting even a moment’s rest, my muscles seizing up uncomfortably every time I’d tried.

  Every few minutes, aching hunger pangs would rattle through me, doubling me over in pain and reminding me that I hadn’t eaten anything in at least a day, maybe even longer.

  I let my mind wander to escape the darkness. To forget about the chill in my bones and hunger in my belly.

  For some reason, it was thoughts of my childhood that came to the forefront of my mind.

  When I was little more than seven years old, one of my pseudo-siblings had shoved me into a basement closet and locked the door. I’d been in there for over an hour before Leanne found me and let me out, my face covered in tears and snot. The girl claimed afterward that it had just been a joke; I was never in any real danger.

  I found myself wondering what had happened to that girl. She’d been adopted not long after the incident, and a few years later I think her family moved to a larger town. I couldn’t even remember her name. Rebecca? Rachel? Did she have her own family now? Her own children?

  I wondered if she ever regretted bullying me.

  Questions scrolled through my head, one by one.

  Everyone in Woodburne probably assumed I died in the fire. Did anyone regret treating me the way they did?

  Thinking I was dead, did Denise regret the things she’d said in the grocery store just a day before my death, or did she not have one shred of compassion?

  But had I felt anything when I’d thought she was dead?

  Shame stabbed at me when I realized her death had never even entered my mind. It had been completely overshadowed by thoughts of people more important to me, like the children, and Leanne, and Jess.

  The trauma of thinking they’d died had been too much, part of me had died right along with them. Knowing they were still alive… even trapped in such a dire situation at the bottom of the sea I felt crushing relief.

  Since I was eighteen years old, Jess had been there for me. More than a best friend, more than a sister.

  Before Jess I’d had Leanne who loved all of her children equally, and did her best to protect me from bullying.

  I don’t know how I would have ended up if she hadn’t taken over the orphanage.

  When I was finally ready to leave Rosewood, it was because of the confidence she had instilled in me. Though no one had ever been interested in adopting me, she wouldn’t let that be the end of my story. As soon as I turned sixteen, she’d encouraged me to find a job, meet new people, and grow into something more. She encouraged me to become my own person. She even came with me to ask for a job at The Sluggish Nymph.

  Because of her, I’d had the chance at a future. I’d been so excited to leave the orphanage and start fresh. Working with Branek—

  Branek…

  My heart clenched, overshadowing the pain in my stomach and ache of my wounds. The town might not have burned down, but the fire at the inn was real. I had just left him. Left him to burn alive in his bed. My thoughts that night had been to run—run as fast as I could away from the flereous. Branek hadn’t even entered my mind that night.

  An uncomfortable pressure built in my chest at the thought.

  After I had moved on from the orphanage, Branek had taken up the roll of my protector, guardian, and older brother all in one.

  He had been skeptical at first of the little half-human orphan girl who wanted nothing more than to turn down beds and wash dishes at the dingy inn, but he hired me, and I couldn’t have been more thrilled. It wasn’t glamorous and the pay wasn’t much, but it was mine. My own job and my own life.

  At first, I had been a little frightened of the burly, seemingly bad-tempered innkeeper, and he had no idea how to handle a young girl who cried the first time she broke a glass, but we grew on each other.

  When he’d found me the morning after I’d gone to bed with that merc, that’s when I knew he cared about me.

  Branek should have been the one to escape that night and I should have been the one to burn. It was my fault Ilane and the flereous had even come.

  Everything was my fault.

  No…

  Not everything.

  They had chased me away from my home, used me, lied to me, betrayed me. My ragged fingernails bit into the skin of my palms.

  They were the reason I was in this hellhole.

  I’d been wary of them both at first, what the hell changed? I was no better than my sixteen-year-old self, allowing them to worm their way into my life, and into my heart.

  All it took was a kind smile, a caring word, a gentle touch, for me to believe they were being sincere. How easy it was to lie, to manipulate, to deceive.

  To devastate.

  After spending weeks together, I’d come to believe Ayre was so much more than just a manipulative flirt. We’d joked and laughed together. I had let him in so easily—I had wante
d his friendship. He was kind and charming, and he’d consoled me when I’d needed it most. All lies to win me over.

  And Aksel. My jaw tightened to the point of pain. From the beginning he was a hunter stalking his prey. He’d toyed with my feelings. He’d made himself seem so vulnerable, so sweet, just so I would let my guard down. He manipulated my feelings, making me fall for him so hard it hurt.

  He broke into my mind with images of my life burning down around me. He said he did it to protect me, but what kind of protection involves manipulation and heartbreak?

  Now I was here, a pit at the bottom of the sea, because I’d followed two Supers I knew nothing about. Because I’d craved their companionship when I had nothing.

  I didn’t need them or their protection. I would get out of this by my damn self. I would find my father myself and put an end to this.

  I shot up, rage fueling my exhausted muscles and masking the pain. This was all because of my stupid heritage, my stupid father. My stupid magic! And yet, here I was, stuck in this situation just like any other normal, magic-less human would be!

  Magic pulsed and built in my body, coursing through my veins and aching to explode in a torrent of power.

  I pushed up, the most intense blast I could muster, using every scrap of mental strength I had left. Power ricocheted off the walls around me, a soundless explosion of energy reverberating off of me.

  My knees gave out under the pressure and I collapsed to the ground, but I kept up the force. I knew it was futile, I knew it put an unnecessary strain on my mind and body, but I pushed with all my might.

  Blood poured from my nose, trailing down my lips and dripping off my chin. My head pounded and shrieked with pain, but I pushed and pushed.

  The rock above didn’t even budge.

  With a fizzling sensation, my magic withered and died, leaving me gasping and whimpering, dizzy and sick with pain.

  I screamed and pounded on the floor, my fear and panic renewed in my failure. I was going to die here.