Forever

by Ashley L. Knight

  Gavran hung, frozen in a grimace of pain with his pale blue light shooting from his fingertips, not yet meeting its foe. Lars and Raif twisted in a death grip around each other, cursing and shouting. Ezen fought against one of Herra’s followers, his body bent at an awkward angle as he dodged a shot from a spear gun. Dominic sunk slowly to the bottom of the ocean floor. A giant gash in his gut spilled his intestines and they followed him like sinking balloons. I turned away from the gruesome image.

  Tammer held Mom by one arm as he flung her away from a glazing pink ribbon of power. It had barely missed her side. Two merpeople hung from Sharlie’s jaws in pieces as he shook his head violently side to side. From the walls of the trench, dark shadows ascended like a plague upon the merfolk – hundreds of Genif’s.

  “Did you really think I didn’t come prepared?” Herra’s nasty voice rang through the muffled sounds of the battle as the scene began to right itself. “One thing my father taught me was that Lucifer is a very willing participant if you accept his help.”

  I faced Herra, fury encompassing me. “You would sell your soul to be The Link?” I shouted, making her laugh.

  “I’d sell everyone’s soul to be The Link.”

  Everyone’s soul? The Genif’s flew through the water, swiping up merpeople left and right – no matter if they were Herra’s or mine. Screams flooded my ears and I watched in horror as one fixed its gaze on Mom.

  “No!” I shouted, throwing my shield to her, but it was too late. She froze, her eyes locked on mine as the black shadow flushed through her, melting her into oblivion.

  “Elan!” Tammer cried, pushed backward as my power reached him, thwarting another Genif from attacking him.

  I reeled on Herra, my eyes black with The Look and I shouted using The Voice. “Enough!”

  Her laughter rippled across the water and she began to twirl, faster and faster, creating a tornado effect. Her voice sung out from the undulating waves.

  “My grandfather taught me to protect myself from your strongest abilities, Morgan. You won’t win by any means in your power. I will kill you!”

  She was creating a vacuum. Its strong pull tugged at my hair and I leaned back to stop from being dragged in. Others swept past me as if attached to an invisible line, disappearing into the blur. One of the white pilot whale’s sped toward me. When Ren reached me, she nudged me forcefully, trying to get me to leave the battle. I held her away.

  “No Ren, I can’t leave!” I shouted above the noise.

  When Aika pulled past me, I caught her scaly hand but the force of holding onto her pulled me toward Herra as well. Aika’s blood-red eyes looked imploringly to mine.

  “Finish thisss,” she released her grip and was sucked away.

  I tried to crush Herra between my hands, but the tornado created a barrier, easily pushing my hands apart. A blue bolt of light sliced the water and stopped a short distance from her. Thayde materialized , searching the waters. The moment he saw me, he mouthed one word: Pearl. My heart sang for a brief moment.

  Troen’s words flew to me: Find your strength. There are too many lives counting on you.

  My strength. My strength was to embrace that which I feared and use it against itself to break its hold on me. It was me. I was going to have to sacrifice myself for my people.

  The moment I made my decision, Thayde knew it. “Morgan! No!” He shouted and phased, shooting toward me at lightning speed.

  Holding my arms out to my sides, I leaned my head back and closed my eyes. The rush of cool water flew around me and the echoing cries of my people quieted as I whispered,

  I am here – I am willing – I will take the fall.

  Let my people go and you can have it all.

  I will fear no evil, for Thou art with me.

  Agony traversed every vein in my body and I felt myself falling, descending into the blackness of the deep. Half unconscious, I waited for death, but an intense pain in my left wrist made me fight through the engulfing haze. My tattoo shone from my wrist like a beacon. Above me, the surface of the ocean churned as if boiling hot and a line of angels flooded the water. Their overpowering light instantly annihilated every Genif. The fighting paused as merfolk stared in awe at the angels flying underwater.

  Herra stopped twisting, a terrified look upon her face. Clutching her stomach, she screamed as black smoke enveloped her and she sizzled into ash. I smiled against the pain, content that all would be taken care of – all would be made right. Mouthing goodbye, I succumbed.

  CHAPTER TWELVE

  THE END

  Death is effortless. It takes the pain away and cocoons you if you’ll let it. Warm and safe, I floated toward a light – a light that gave way to a pink sunset. It was not what I’d always heard. There was no tunnel – just open air and the feeling of being content and loved. Then my fingertips touched the ground and I was rested upon powder soft sand.

  “If you don’t do it, you’ll lose her forever.”

  “I know,”

  “What are you waiting for?”

  “I don’t know if this is what she’d want.”

  “She wants to be with you, Thayde.”

  “Not like this,”

  “For God’s sake man, she loves you! She’d do anything to be with you! Do it now or you’re going to lose her!”

  “I’m sorry, my Pearl.”

  Strong arms lifted underneath my back and sharp, cruel spikes sunk into the small of my neck – my blood spouting warm and thick over my shoulder. I wanted to scream, but all I could manage was to open my eyes.

  Thayde pulled away from me, disgusted with what he had done. I fell back onto the sand with a thud, feeling blood spurt in time with my heart. The violent urge to thrash about fought the paralyzing effects of the cold vampire venom slithering through my veins.

  I stared in disbelief at the love of my life. He held his hand over his mouth, tears streaming down his face. My blood seeped through his fingers as he spat it back out. Slowly, the tips of my fingers, my toes, my face grew numb with cold. It was as if I were freezing over with frostbite. My breaths came in sharp gasps and my eyes uncontrollably rolled back in my head. When the cold reached my heart, it beat once more and then, silenced.

  The soothing sounds of the waves lapping on the beach faded, the feel of the sand under my back disappeared, and the smell of the salty ocean vanished. Alone with my memories, I slipped through space.

  Visions flashed quickly; riding my horse with my dad, the flight to Florida, meeting Tammer for the first time, watching Mom change into a mermaid, Akin’s attack, Troen’s Blessing, the New York apartment, hanging in limbo, being taught by Aletheia, defeating Limus, marrying Thayde. They blurred together, faster and faster until they faded away.

  As they disappeared, a new one emerged. I focused on my hand. It was reaching toward a woman standing with her back to me. Her blonde, straight hair reached the small of her back and the wind fanned it, revealing the pearly white nape of her neck. Faint outlines, almost like a white tattoo, traced her skin, continuing around her shoulders and over her chest. She wore an off-the-shoulder dress the color of the moon and her dark blue eyes shone in happiness.

  Her smile widened as she greeted me and opened her arms for an embrace. When we parted, I found myself reaching around her, clipping my blue topaz necklace about her neck. Her hand flew to it and I realized; this was my Leigh.

  The wind picked up, pushing me away and I struggled to take her hand. Laughing, she turned to a man in a tuxedo, ignoring my cries. They leaned together, giving each other a sweet kiss. The image shrunk as if disappearing down a tunnel.

  I didn’t want to leave. If heaven was being with my unborn daughter, I would take it. I raked at the pink air, desperate to stay with Leigh, but it was useless. Crushing ice hot pain, unlike anything I’d ever felt, coursed through me. And then I heard his voice.

  “Morgan? Please come back.”

  “I think you waited too long,”

  “Come on! Just open your eye
s!” His voice strained with desperation.

  My love for Thayde tugged at my heart. I looked back at the small sliver of light and focused on Leigh’s face – her lovely, pale face until she disappeared.

  “This has to work, please!”

  The sun tickled my skin. The scent of the coconut trees and high tide mixed, teasing a sneeze from somewhere within me. I’d never experienced smells this potent before. The pain eased and when it was bearable, I woke up.

  Thayde rocked me in his arms, splotches of blood covering him entirely. I drew in a deep breath of air and his blood stained face flooded with relief.

  “Baby, I’m so sorry!”

  He stroked my hair with his free hand. Love flowed around us, my aura circling about. Thayde knew me. He loved me. We were together again. Relief melted over me, spilling like the turquoise ocean waves, washing away the weight of the world.

  Thayde breathed in deep. “I’m so glad it worked. Can you please forgive me?”

  “What have you done?” My voice was rough and new. Thayde’s look was somber.

  “I’ve made you like me.” He said.

  “I’m a vampire?” I asked.

  “You’re a mer-vamp.”

  This was not what was supposed to happen. Perhaps this was heaven and Thayde and I were going to be together for eternity.

  “Am I dreaming?” I asked and he shook his head.

  “There wasn’t any other way to save you. When you took everyone’s pain, everyone’s wounds on yourself, it was killing you. I couldn’t let you die.”

  I looked from his face to my pale arms. They used to be bronzed, sun-kissed. It wasn’t as pretty anymore.

  “Morgan?” Thayde was terrified. “Did I kill the baby?”

  Out of habit, I instantly ran a scan and was shocked that not only did it work, but the rapidity and efficiency of it was far greater than it ever had been. The power was amplified. I touched my little belly.

  “She’s fine. I think I saw her on her wedding day.”

  Thayde’s head hung in relief, a line of blood trickling off the end of his nose.

  “How did you know about the baby?” I shook my head, trying to regain clarity.

  “I told him,” Flynn stepped forward.

  “You?” Images of his betrayal surfaced making me struggle from Thayde’s arms. I wanted to do nothing more than make Flynn pay. “You! You betrayed us!”

  “No,” Thayde interrupted, holding me down, “he didn’t. He had to play along in Italy – they could read his thoughts. If he even so much as pitied you, they would have known. He had to do it.”

  I resisted against Thayde. “Baby, I promise.”

  It was confusing. Memories haphazardly shifted, slipping back into place.

  “How did you remember me? What happened?”

  Thayde grimaced. “I didn’t remember anything at first. My memory was fuzzy like yours is now and I felt like I had been asleep for decades. I remember you were talking to me and then you did something and I dropped you. I don’t know how Flynn found me, but he helped me focus all the memories and told me what had happened. I was desperate to find you. Fortunately,” he motioned to Flynn, “Flynn’s pretty in tune with everything and he knew right where you were.”

  “You killed the Master,” Flynn said, changing the subject. “Thank you. I can’t tell you how satisfying it was to watch.”

  I tried to filter through the images. They were difficult to retrieve. “If he’s not the Master anymore, who takes over as their leader?”

  “Ah,” Flynn rocked on his heels, “this is where things get a little complicated.” His eyes darted between Thayde and I. “Thayde’s the strongest vampire we’ve ever had. You’re the strongest Link the merpeople have ever had. But you’re married to each other.”

  I looked to Thayde.

  “We’ll figure it out,” he said reassuringly.

  “I’d say with the both of you being able to live forever, you won’t have many problems from here on in.”

  “What do you mean?”

  He scratched his blond head. “Well, you sort of have the best of both worlds. You don’t have to kill merpeople to survive because you are one. And you won’t die because you’re vampire.”

  It took a moment to sink in. “What about our baby?” I cried.

  “If you’ve seen her on her wedding day, I suspect she’ll age until she reaches eighteen or twenty-one and then,” he shrugged, completing his sentence. “I don’t see a problem.”

  The last of my memories fought their way through – patchy images of the war – and I broke from Thayde’s arms.

  “The war? What happened? Herra?” My sacrifice couldn’t have been in vain.

  “It was miraculous,” Thayde smiled, his face handsome despite the blood. “She was in the middle of sucking the life from everyone when Naira and Paul broke through the surface of the water with a host of angels! The Genif’s disappeared in their wake and Herra, she was taken.”

  “Taken? By who?”

  “The Devil,” Flynn stated. “She didn’t stick to her side of the deal. She didn’t gather all the souls she promised. She’s gone for good.”

  “Naira wanted me to tell you that you did well. All you had to do was remember that you were never alone and that it didn’t begin or end with you. You remembered who to trust and rely on.” Thayde said proudly. “In the end, you sacrificed yourself for the good of everyone else. That in itself is admirable.”

  I didn’t feel admirable. I had just done what I knew needed to be done. To be honest, I hadn’t thought past the end. I hadn’t expected to live.

  “My parents. Mom. She died, didn’t she?”

  “She did. Naira took her home.”

  “The others that died?”

  “They lost their lives defending you.” Flynn said. “They would have done it a hundred times.”

  I gulped, knowing many had died. “Who?”

  “Nearly everyone: David, Dominic, Kenneth, Herra, Raif,”

  “Gavran, is he alright?”

  “Yes. He’s a bit worse for wear, but he’s alive.”

  “Tiesa, Ezen?”

  “They’re fine.”

  “What about Tammer and Aletheia? Lars?”

  Thayde pursed his lips. “Tammer died protecting Aletheia.”

  “No!” Grief gripped my heart and I began to sob. “I’ve lost my family.”

  All Thayde could do was hold me tight. Flynn dropped to a knee and rubbed his forehead.

  “You haven’t lost your family, Morgan. Aletheia and Lars are still alive as are your best friends and your husband. You’re expecting a child. You’ll reign over your people for as long as you wish now – instead of as long as you live. You’ve drastically altered your species history, but I think it will be for the better.”

  Live forever? I didn’t know if I wanted that. But to have Thayde and my baby by my side would make it bearable. What about Tiesa and Ezen? I’d have to watch them grow old and pass away.

  Flynn watched me try to process my future. He looked sad.

  “Morgan, I know it’s a lot to take in. My first hundred years were the worst of my life. But you gave me hope, and that,” he paused, “that was something I thought was impossible. I didn’t think I could live without Anna, but you were right: I was lucky to have experienced her love. I don’t know where I’m going to go from here, but I know I’m here for a reason.”

  A rustle in the trees a few feet away drew our attention and a slender, pale woman dressed from head to toe in tan suede walked from behind a palm tree. Flynn leapt to his feet.

  “What are you doing here, Regan?” He demanded.

  Her dark brown eyes quickly searched the area before she responded. “We don’t have a leader.”

  “I should think that would make all of you very happy.” Flynn snarled.

  She eyed him. “You speak as if you’re not one of us.”

  “I never wanted to be,”

  “Aye, but you are. He is gone and w
e are without a leader.”

  “What do you want?”

  “You know the strongest of us reigns,” Regan fiddled with an enormous red garnet ring on her finger. She nodded at Thayde. “He is the strongest.”

  “No,” Thayde shook his head. “Technically, Morgan is the strongest.”

  “But she rules the merpeople. One cannot do both.”

  Flynn glanced at Thayde and me, sitting in the sand. “Have you spoken to the others?”

  “Aye, they are in agreement.”

  “Do you want this burden, Thayde?” Flynn asked, his tone doubtful.

  “What if I don’t?”

  Regan ran a hand through her chestnut hair. “Then you’ll die.”

  A small smile crept onto Thayde’s face. “Kill or be killed? Is that it?”

  She agreed. “Something like that. It would be nice to have a leader who is partial to other races. All of us were tired of the way the Master ruled with an iron fist.” Regan smiled at Flynn. “We don’t believe in forcing people or allowing just anyone to become like us. Our society is very small and our code decrees only the extremely privileged be allowed to join.”

  Flynn’s upper lip curled. “There are a few that are less than worthy,” he interjected. “In fact, if he had stuck to the code, I wouldn’t be here, would I?”

  Regan finally dropped her defiant gaze. “Your tale is a very sad one, Flynn. I am sorry you were forced to endure such atrocities. He used you for his own gain, but thankfully, his plans were not fulfilled.”

  Thayde helped me to my feet, putting his arms around my shoulders.

  “I will rule, but there will be many changes,” he rubbed my arm. “And I won’t leave my family.”

  Regan nodded. “The Master chooses where he wishes to live and with whom.”

  “I don’t want to be referred to as the Master.”

  “As you wish,” she cocked her head. “There should be a meeting in Florence soon. You must announce your reign as soon as possible. All of us will gather to partake in the ceremony. Your right hand will step in at that time as well.”