Captive of the Deep

by Michelle M. Pillow

  * * * * *

  Rigel felt his brothers towering behind him. For a long moment, only the steady, insistent drip of water on stone marked the passing of time. He knew they waited for him to step into the room first, but he wasn’t sure he could. If he saw Nemus it would signify the end of their search. While their brother was lost in the sea, there was still hope.

  “Perhaps they are wrong,” Brutus said. Rigel glanced back. The black of his eyes gleamed with silver as the light hit them. He had pulled his long black hair back from his face, letting it lay long against his back. His brooding expression matched Demon’s.

  “They are not.” Demon sounded resigned. “The scientists would not make such a mistake. They would only come to us if they were sure.” When his brothers didn’t move, he pushed past them into the laboratory cell. His action prompted Rigel to move. As all three brothers came into the cell, they turned their attention to the floor. It had been a long time, centuries, since they had seen Nemus, but the memory they carried of him was still strong.

  Rigel could no longer hear the sound of Nemus’s voice in his head, or remember the exact look of his features beyond the representations they had of him on file. The transparent figure, curled in a ball at their feel, did not remind him of family. Yet, here was Nemus, their brother.

  Rigel studied the scylla’s face, seeing a familiar shape to his nose and angle of his chin. Translucent skin was as slippery as the ocean, damp from a near eternity in the water. The room smelled of the ocean, of deep abyss salt and the muddy sand of the drifts. The blue of veins had already begun to show inside the watery shell. Soon, other organs would appear. Now they were just strange shifts of perception, like a jellyfish trapped in water beneath the clear flesh. When he stared into his brother’s chest, he saw a fluttering movement where his heart would be.

  “Nemus?” Brutus asked.

  “Is he awake?” Demon frowned, leaning over to touch the scylla. His hand slid over Nemus’s leg.

  “I do not think so,” Rigel answered. He too kneeled to feel the icy smooth skin. “He does not move.”

  “I do not like seeing the scylla like this. It reminds me of living ice,” Brutus said.

  “And soon he will melt,” Demon added.

  Rigel might not like the prognosis, but knew it to be the most likely of outcomes. “Nemus? Can you hear us? Do you remember Atlantes? Do you remember your family? I am Rigel, your brother. We are all your brothers. We have come to welcome you home.”

  Nemus jerked, coming to sudden life. He thrashed on the floor like a seafin out of water, bucking and sliding on the stone. A horrific yell escaped his mouth, the sound hoarse. Rigel and Demon jerked back.

  Three scientists ran into the room. Gregor pulled at Demon’s arm. “Let us tend to him. You can visit again later.” He ushered the brothers out so they could try to help Nemus.

  “I do not need to come back,” Brutus stated. “That is not our brother. Not anymore. I have said my goodbyes to him centuries ago. Nothing of Nemus remains in that creature.”

  “Perhaps,” Demon added, not openly agreeing or disagreeing with his twin.

  “No matter what he’s become, he is and will always be our brother,” Rigel said. He thought of Lyra and her family, of what his brother had done to them. A pain gripped his heart and choked his throat, making it hard to breathe. Nemus was his brother and he loved him. But, he also loved Lyra. She might not want to hear it, but he loved her.

  “Perhaps,” Demon said after a long pause. “Perhaps.”

  * * * * *

  “I swear it’s true,” Lyra said, repeating the same sentence she’d been forced to utter after Aidan’s show of amazement. “There is such a thing as an underwater assault rifle. It uses steel darts instead of bullets and the barrels are constructed differently. It is more powerful that the underwater pistol, but the pistol is easier to maneuver.”

  Aidan grinned as she scribbled notes in his little parchment book. “What else? What else?”

  “My knowledge of weapons is pretty limited,” Lyra said, glancing down at the long list of items Aidan had laid out for her. “I suppose science is next. When oil spills, they have an oil-eating bacterium that they can use. The scientist, Chakrabarty, patented the micro-organism. I believe, and don’t quote me on this, that this was the first patent granted for a live man-made organism.”

  “Live man-made organism,” Aidan repeated softly as he wrote.

  “Ok, I’m done for the day. My brain is about to explode,” Lyra lied. In fact, she was tired of thinking of the surface world. Her brother Will had been the one to tell her about Chakrabarty. He’d worked to clean up an oil spill. Kristopher had worked on an oil tanker and teased his ‘hippy brother’, though in truth he had loved animals more than any one of them. Kris was the one who taught her how to dive and how to shoot an underwater assault rifle. She still wasn’t sure how legal that outing had been.

  “Lady Lyra?”

  Lyra blinked at the quizzical voice. She hadn’t been listening. Aidan motioned toward the door.

  “I have come for you,” Rigel said.

  Her heart skipped a little when she looked at him, but she quickly hid the reaction. Saying a quick farewell to Aidan, she moved to follow Rigel. The early morning adventure started to catch up to her and she yawned.

  “Did you have a pleasant day with Aidan?” he asked.

  “It was very informative. He had a lot to say about your people,” she said.

  “Oh?” Rigel stopped walking.

  Lyra chuckled, teasing, “You should be scared.”

  “I have reason to fear what Aidan said?” He looked as if he would turn back to confront the man.

  “No,” Lyra grabbed his arm, laughing harder. He reluctantly let her pull him behind her. “I was making a joke. Never mind. I guess you have to be a surface person to get the humor.”

  “My fear amuses you?” He pulled away from her. “I do not need to be from the surface world to understand this.”

  “I—?” she began, confused.

  “Go to our home. I must seek audience with the king.” Rigel turned abruptly away and left her to stare after him.

  “It was just a saying,” she whispered, stunned. Too tired to chase him down and a little worried Aidan would find her alone in the hall and start quizzing her again on the surface world, she hurried back to Rigel’s apartment. Between what she had seen and what she had learned, Lyra had lot to think about it.

  * * * * *

  “After Nemus is no more, I would like permission to take Lady Lyra to the north.” Rigel stood before the king in his chambers, not pausing for the normal niceties of conversation.

  “She still has not adjusted?” The king frowned, dropping the silken cloth he studied. He motioned to the seamstress to leave them alone.

  “She,” Rigel paused, thinking of how best to word his complaint. “She does not understand the Merr ways. It is my wish to train her before I unleash her on the populace.”

  “A very diplomatic answer, Rigel,” the king said. He chuckled. “I might have to be careful, lest you come after my crown. I always thought you had the makings of a leader in you.”

  “I am honored, but I have no wish to be king.”

  “Are you sure? For some days I grow weary of the crown. When I took its weight, I never imagined I would be forced to carry it for all eternity. Or, if I did, I was foolish and young and did not understand the breadth of the decision.” Lucius gestured to the side in dismissal, as if such dreams were merely a waste of time and not worth considering for they could never be.

  “Birth decided your fate, not mortal decision.” Rigel tapped his hand impatiently, thinking of Nemus, thinking of Lyra, thinking of his honor.

  “So it did. And now fate has decided to give you a stubborn ward and a long lost brother.” Nodding, the king added, “You have my permission. Take her north to the mountains. I do not like the reports I hear of her behavior in the palace. When she is not forcing her silence on us,
she is screaming at you. I would not have her besmirching the honor of one of my greatest hunters. That is, I would assume, the real reason you wish to take her, so her words cannot be heard again resounding throughout the dining hall?”

  Rigel stiffly nodded, remembering her comments as to his killing her brother. Whether this is what she truly felt in her heart or not, it is what she said aloud. The fact that the king was aware of this as well stung his honor.

  “You are an honorable man, Rigel. Her words will not change my opinion of you, but yes I think you should take her away.”

  Rigel nodded again and moved to go.

  “Oh, and Rigel, I am truly sorry to hear of your brother. The ocean is a cruel mistress.” The king didn’t bother with false hope, or wishes to see Nemus well again, as he turned his attention once more to the project before him.

  Chapter Seven

  “Hello there, Mr. Sensitive, feeling better?” Lyra glanced up when Rigel entered, expecting him to be alone. He wasn’t. Behind Rigel stood two very tall, very brooding men. By the look of them they were twins, by the size of them they were formidable, by the expressions on their face they were not amused by her words.

  “Lyra,” Rigel stated, his tone dark, “do you remember my brothers? They were there when we pulled you from the ocean.” He pointed his thumb over one shoulder without looking. “This is Demon.” He pointed at the other. “And Brutus.”

  Lyra forced herself to stand from the low couch. “Forgive me, but no, I don’t. Those first moments were a big of a blur.” Even as she said it, she got a flash of silver eyes in the water and a large black tail shining in a hint of light coming from inside the crystal caves where they entered Altaran.

  Brutus arched a brow and she realized she’d been staring at his face. Without preamble he said, “There is no need to cast your eyes at me, my lady. I am not interested in a wife.”

  “I—” she gasped. Rigel stiffened. “But, I wasn’t… I, ah…”

  Suddenly Demon and Brutus began to laugh. Their expressions changed to instant boyish amusement. They both slapped Rigel on the back as they walked into his home. Without waiting to be asked, they went toward the kitchen to help themselves to food. There wasn’t much, but that didn’t stop their searching.

  “Funny,” Lyra mumbled sarcastically.

  The twins laughed between themselves, talking in a half-language only they seemed to understand. Rigel sat beside Lyra on the couch.

  “My words earlier were not meant to be insulting,” Lyra said quietly. She felt her body pull towards him. All doubts and fears and anger seemed to melt out of her when he was near, erasing her unease and filling her with something else, something much deeper than she wanted to look into.

  She couldn’t look at him as she stared forward. She felt the presence of his brothers behind them. A hand brushed her thigh, a light gesture but one that held her complete attention. Nerves bundled in her stomach and she had the distinct impression of being fifteen again about to be asked by an older boy to the prom. The nerves, the excitement, the girlish tingle, they all welled insider her and her breath caught in her throat, even as he heart hammered in her chest.

  Lyra tried to think of all the things she should, the logical things that would stop this strangeness inside her body. Why did it hit her now? All of a sudden on such an ordinary day on Altaran—as ordinary as a day under the ocean in a cursed city could be. In a room filled with the laughter Rigel’s jesting brothers?

  Rigel’s finger slid over hers, breaking through the residual numbness left over from her dive down. She hadn’t noticed it before, yet here she was, feeling his finger on her hand as if it was the first time. It caused her to ache all over—her breasts, her stomach, her thighs and sex. Only the laughter behind them stopped her from grabbing Rigel’s face and kissing him like she wanted to.

  Her mouth tingled. It was agony. His finger stopped and she drew her eyes to his. He looked the same. Was it possible all the feelings assaulting her senses were hers alone?

  She pulled her hand away under the pretense of looking behind them to the kitchen. It didn’t matter. She could still feel his touch.

  Seeing her eyes on them, the twins stopped talking and looked at her. It was hard to tell them apart but for their clothes. Brutus nodded in her direction and gave a meaningful glance to Demon, who in turn nodded once.

  “You should bring her tonight,” Demon said to Rigel.

  “Bring me?” Lyra asked, looking at the man next to her. The fluttering again assaulted her heart. “Where?”

  “To see—” Brutus began.

  “I do not think that is a good idea,” Rigel interrupted, standing.

  “No?” Demon asked, arching a brow.

  “It is a family matter,” Rigel insisted.

  “And is she not family?” Brutus challenged. “She is your ward, given the protection of our family name, and if I am not mistaken you will soon announce her as your wife.”

  “Wife?” It was Lyra’s turn to stand.

  “You were seen,” Demon gave short laugh, before saying, “out by the castle wall.”

  “Brennus and Vitus were none too quiet about your half naked trip through the hall,” Brutus added. “The king asks us often when you will make the announcement.”

  “We’re to make an announcement tonight?” Lyra shivered. Why was the idea of being Rigel’s wife not as repulsive as it should be?

  “No,” Rigel stated flatly. “There is to be no announcement. Lyra and I have an agreed upon arrangement between us.”

  This time the twins’ expressions were not so cheerful. Brutus asked, “Then there is to be no wedding?”

  “No,” Rigel answered.

  “And you agree to this?” Demon asked, shocked.

  Lyra suspected if she were to claim she was not, both brothers would be forced to defend her honor against Rigel. Not wanting to see a brotherly brawl, she nodded her head. “Yes, I have agreed to it.”

  “Had I known that was an option I would have put my bid in,” Demon muttered. “Aidan would have us think all surface dames want marriage.”

  “Dames?” Lyra repeated. “Yeah, that sounds like Aidan.”

  “Perhaps Cassandra will also be in search of a lover,” Brutus said. “If Iason brings her back from the countryside we can ask her.”

  “Do not bother. There is no way she would pick you. I am the handsomer twin. Everyone knows that,” Demon said.

  “Is that what your pleasure nymph tells you?” Brutus teased.

  Lyra closed her eyes and for a moment she could imagine it was her brothers talking, teasing each other. The ache came back. She took a deep breath, and opened her eyes. Softly, she said to Rigel, “I’m going to lie down and rest.”

  He studied her face and nodded. “We will go so we don’t wake you.”

  After saying the customary things expected of her to his brothers, Lyra slowly walked into the bedroom and shut the door.

  * * * * *

  Rigel wondered what was wrong with Lyra. One moment she stared at him as if he had two heads, the next like she wanted to kiss him, a second later like he was the only man in the world, then as if she couldn’t run from him fast enough. With all his centuries and he didn’t seem to understand the first thing about women—or was it just Lyra?

  “You should follow her,” Brutus said.

  Rigel glanced at his brother, unsure.

  Demon nodded in agreement. “You should.”

  “Don’t you have any food in here?” Brutus asked, turning back to the kitchen area. “No wonder your ward is so skinny. You don’t feed her.”

  “All the wards are skinny this dive,” Demon said. “Whatever happened to women you could hold on to?”

  “I can hold on to Lyra just fine,” Rigel defended.

  Both twins began to laugh, hard. Demon doubled over onto the counter, slapping it with the palm of his hand. “Too easy, too easy…”

  “You are so easy to read, brother. Go to her. Make her our sister
so that we may be released by the king to go back into the ocean.” Brutus grabbed Demon by the arm and jerked him toward the front door. “You know we do not do well if we are landlocked for too long.”

  “To hunting,” Demon said, lifting his fist in the air.

  “To hunting,” Brutus repeated, louder and with more force.

  “Hunting,” Rigel agreed, lifting his hand, though not quite as enthusiastically.

  When the door shut behind them, Rigel sighed and looked at the bedroom door. He contemplated whether or not to go in. Then, thinking if Lyra on his bed, her body softly sprawled and inviting, he couldn’t stop himself from going to her.

  She rested on her stomach. Her head turned toward the opposite wall. He could detect her even breathing as soon as he walked into the room. Not wanting to wake her if she slept, he quietly striped out of his clothes to get comfortable and slid onto the bed next to her. He ignored the fact his body wanted her. Instead, he was content to hold her gently against his chest in the hopes that she would never make him let go.

  Just as his eyes were about to close, she turned to face him. Steady eyes looked into his. Without saying a word, she lifted her mouth to kiss him. The caress was sweet, gentle, and it stirred a powerful yearning inside his chest. There was so much he wanted to say, to do. The secret he kept from her, of his brother Nemus and what had happened the night he rescued her in the water, felt like a lie. He was purposefully keeping it from her, so it might as well have been a falsehood.

  Then there was what was in his heart. Oh, how he wanted her! He wanted to love her, worship her, to be loved by her. He wanted these things so badly it made his chest ache and his bones weak. If only she would say it. If only she would be his wife. If only she gave him some hint as to how to win her.

  Her tongue rolled against his, light and easy, as unhurried as her hands leisurely moving up and down his naked thigh. She made tiny movements, inching her hips closer. The tip of his arousal brushed her stomach, sending a shock of desire down the already hard shaft. Needing more, he cupped her ass and pulled her forward. The full press of her against his cock caused him to moan into her mouth. The intense pleasure filled him.