by Janelle Peel
My skin crawled at the thought. Were Gideon and I going to share her fate?
A crack sounded before I could dwell on it.
The door slid open to reveal the Mer himself. Relief filtered through me. “Gideon! What’s happened? How did you escape?”
Skye
The Mer moved through the castle like they were extras in a horror film. Skye’s desperate attempts to shake them from their dreamlike states were fruitless. They simply acted as if he wasn’t there.
It reminded him of Sora’s compulsion. He couldn’t imagine being a prisoner inside his own mind.
The heavy bands around their waists had to be the cause.
Skye clenched the pommel of Gazardiel’s sword in his fist, an idea forming.
When wielded by an Angel the blade lit with magic. In fact, when he took it from camp, he had expected to be struck down. Fortunately, his half-Angel status was enough to qualify. He couldn’t leave it behind. Without the sheath it was a death sentence if anyone inadvertently touched it.
Forged in Heaven by the Almighty Himself, surely it could break through the Mer’s bindings.
Hopeful, Skye quickly located a turquoise-haired female to test his theory.
Creepily, she stared through him with a vacant expression.
Nudging her closer to a wall, he snapped his fingers in front of her face.
No response.
Taking her reaction as a good sign, Skye reached for his power. Near instantly, silver and blue flames flickered to life along the blade’s edge. Maneuvering the five-foot length to the side, he gently lifted her arm out of the way. The last thing he wanted to do was hurt her. Slowly, he tapped the tip against the ring encircling her waist. Bright light flashed and colored spots in his vision.
A gasp rang out followed by a startled feminine cry. “Who are you!”
Her emerald eyes slowly came into focus. The thick fan of lashes surrounding them widened.
“Skye?”
Stunned by her knowledge of his name, his mouth formed an O of surprise. She threw herself against him with a sob. He barely had time to move the blade aside before she impaled herself.
“Gods! Thank the Gods!”
Awkwardly, he patted her back. Though she didn’t seem concerned with their nudity, having a female so close to him was disconcerting.
Taking a deep breath, she paused. “If you’re here, where’s Riva?”
All thoughts of discomfort fled. Gripping her shoulders, he held her at arm’s length. Before he could answer, Riva’s fear pulsed through his well like a hurricane. A rage that wasn’t his own followed on its heels.
The ground bucked violently beneath his feet. Stone began dropping from the high ceiling in large chunks. Water rushed through the gaping holes with a roar.
The castle was breaking apart.
Unconsciously, his magic responded.
Riva
This was not Gideon.
Arching my back, I slammed the back of my skull into his nose. The satisfying crunch of cartilage sounded as blood spattered across my chest in a wet spray. I threw my body forward, and deep grooves tore through my thighs as his tentacles ripped from my flesh.
His enraged roar echoed through the chamber.
I crawled across the floor, and sand ground into my wounds with hot pricks of pain. Faster than I could track, he grabbed my ankle. The sharp hooks of his suckers penetrated my bone as he dragged me closer. Another purple appendage slithered around my throat and lifted me from the ground.
Glee lit his eyes in tandem with his sadistic smirk. The stench of his breath nearly gagged me as he drew me in like a fish. His tongue slipped past his lips. Longer than my arm, the tip lapped at the scarlet drops speckled across my breasts.
Revolted, I cringed back but had nowhere to go.
“I will have the heart, dearest Riva. The sea will answer to me once more. Your people will suffer like they have never suffered before.”
Images of my family facing his wrath flashed through my mind. The waves lining my well crashed against the shore in agitated slaps as my anger began to build.
He would drown the world if I didn’t fight back.
Pulling his slimy appendage back inside his mouth, he moaned, “Your fear is delicious.”
My power reached a fever pitch. Thunder rumbled in my ears, and the walls began to shake. Large cracks began spreading through the thick stone. The temperature plummeted as the sea trickled in.
Pulling me closer, he hissed, “You. Are. Mine!”
Raising my chin in defiance, I screamed, “Fuck you!”
Aqua light spilled from my chest in a bright flash as my magic slipped its leash. My lids closed of their own accord. A horrible keening sounded just before the grip around my throat fell away.
Gasping, I dropped to the ground with a splash. Stunned, I stared up at Poseidon as my tail unfurled.
The stump of one of his tentacles flipped out. Ice glistened along the tip as another snake rose and tucked it tightly against his chest. Six more undulated behind him with their sharp hooks bared to rip me limb from limb. “You will regret that, little Seahorse.”
My heart clenched at his use of my father’s nickname. Hoarsely, I whispered past the ache threatening to overcome me. “What did you say?”
His gaze darkened in satisfaction. “Seahorse? Ah, yes. Your father, right? His vessel wasn’t strong enough to withstand my needs. He killed himself before I could whittle all the secrets from his mind.” Tipping his chin, he grinned. “I did manage to ferret out a few thoughts. You and your sister were prominent worries. What was her name… Luna, right?”
Red encroached upon my vision. He was responsible for my father’s death. The Mer who’d raised me as his own despite my mother’s folly.
A sonic tone rolled from my throat in a wave of utter desolation. My scream shattered the surrounding walls as it surpassed the frequency needed to break them.
Desperate to stop it, Poseidon lunged toward me.
I swished backward, and the grief tore from my well in a tsunami of despair.
My father.
My world.
And he had destroyed them both.
Spilling over, magic flared from my chest in searing light. My ears rang with the concussive explosion.
Hovering above my sprawled form, Poseidon stood like a statue in the water.
My thoughts spiraled. Could I do to him what he’d done to so many others?
Reaching out, I palmed his jaw. It was freezing! I nearly let go when pictures began to form inside my mind.
Heavy chains lined the wrists of countless Mer. Poseidon’s pets lined them up on every new Moon. Each face of my people held resignation as they were herded forward.
The scene changed.
Poseidon reined from a broad dais, but the Mer’s expressions remained the same. They neither feared nor shied away from his tentacles as he sucked the blood from their bodies. When their gills stilled, he burrowed into their chests and devoured their hearts. One by one each Mer met their fate.
A single female stepped forward. Her aqua gaze shone with sadness. Shifting her arm behind her back, she knelt. “My King, what do you wish to see?”
His chuckle boomed from everywhere and nowhere at once. “Show me the future, Seer.”
Tipping her chin, she stood before him. Her eyes deepened to the darkest shade of the sea before offering her throat. A small smile played at the edges of her lips as he latched on. Keeping her head down, she moved onto his lap.
His eyes closed in delight at whatever he was seeing.
Her gaze seemed to look directly at me.
Lifting her fist, she nodded to the band lining her wrist.
It had been cut.
Though she made no sound, her words penetrated my soul.
“Riva, you must end this. We need a Queen. I’m so very sorry for what you must face, but you are not alone.”
Her other hand lashed out in a move too quick to follow. The sheen of glass win
ked just before she buried the obsidian blade inside Poseidon’s chest. Before he could react, she reached inside and removed his heart. Blood lit the smooth sphere as it flickered in every shade of the rainbow.
Then, she ran.
I came back to myself with Poseidon’s face frozen in horror above me.
He would never stop.
Gathering my power once more, I sent it into his body in a blinding turquoise flash. His body shattered on impact. As the frigid fragments spun through the water, the band lining my waist fell away.
My thoughts rolled. He was dead.
The ground bucked violently beneath my rear. My power had taken on a life of its own. Desperate to stop the destruction, I tried to shut it down.
Nothing.
Sweat beaded on my brow. Please!
Regardless of my efforts, ice began spreading across the floor.
Gods! Kena and the others!
A thought struck. If I couldn’t put it back, I was damned sure going to control it.
Closing my eyes, I directed the sea.
Chapter 18
Bex
Flying, we quickly outpaced Luna and her army. As we neared our destination Kai motioned to the huge bubbles churning up from the ocean.
Something shot from the sea faster than a speeding bullet. Tipped in liquid gold, his wings snapped out to slow his ascent.
Lila pulled on my ruff and dug her heels into my sides. “It’s Skye!”
I squinted my eyes, and my heart dropped. Riva wasn’t with him. A mournful howl tore from my throat.
Lila tightened her grip. “Stop it! She lives! Look!”
Confirming her words, frost began spreading across the water. Desperate to escape, the multitude of Mersharks below beat their tails against the freezing prison.
I landed on the glassy panel with the clattering of my sharp nails. Whatever was happening down there couldn’t be good if Riva was using so much power.
Lila slid off my back and dropped to her knees for a closer look. “They’re completely encased, Bex.”
Unwilling to touch the frozen tundra the sea had become, Kai hovered a few inches above the surface. “We need to inform the Mer, Bex.”
I knew he was right, but I couldn’t bring myself to leave. Closing my eyes, I sought my power. My well normally glowed a placid blue. Similar to a lake, the edges would lap playfully against the walls of a massive cavern. This was not the case. I’d used so much to bring the Gate to the cove, the small pool was nearly empty. Depleting it further would render me unconscious or worse.
The revelation rushed my shift to human.
Lila intuited my dilemma. Pursing her lips, she shook her head. “I don’t have enough either, Bex. I’m so sorry.”
Skye followed our conversation with ease. It was almost impossible to keep anything from him. The wind always reported to its master.
Beating his massive wings, he lifted higher.
Lila gasped. “What’s he doing?”
Kai recognized his intent before I did. Plucking Lila from the frozen ground, he roared, “Shift, Bex! He’s going to break through!”
As Skye rose above the troposphere, the Angelic blade ignited. Skye tucked his wings tightly against his back. Flipping once, he held the sword point in front of him and fell from the sky. A gale picked up and rushed his descent. Twin jet streams appeared behind his feet with the increase in speed.
Lila screamed, “BEX!”
I threw everything I had into my shift. Paws quickly formed and I kicked off the frozen surface in the nick of time.
BOOM!
Deaf and disoriented, I spun through the air. Glimpses of the explosion came sporadically as sand pelted my eyes and nose. A manic chuff slipped out.
Was that a flying Mershark?
Flaring my wings, I slowly righted myself.
My mind struggled to interpret the massive mushroom cloud dominating the horizon and resulting crater splitting the seafloor.
As far as I could see the Atlantic had been vaporized.
Skye
He hit the surface like a flaming comet. Heat blistered his arms as the blade lit in holy light. The concussion tore through the ice with a crack of thunder. It was all he could do to hold on.
Reaching for his magic, he barely had enough power to save him from breaking his neck. Pain registered in flashes as he bounced through the rocky debris.
It seemed an eternity before he came to a bloody stop. Getting to his knees, he tried to drop the sword but couldn’t. Somehow it had melded to his skin. Shoving aside the newest problem, he used the blade as a crutch and stood.
Absolute mayhem greeted his gaze. The sea had vanished. A deep ravine was all that remained where the large castle had been.
Fear flashed through him.
“Riva!”
Silence.
He tried again. “Riva!”
A soft glow drew his attention to a bank of sand. His battered wings dragged behind him as he stumbled toward it. Leaning on the sword, he began to dig.
Perfectly encased inside a water-filled sphere of magic, a turquoise-haired Mermaid blinked back at him.
Hope filtered through him as he recognized her. “Where’s Riva?”
Confusion flitted across her features before she disappeared from the small window he’d created.
Desperate, Skye renewed his efforts, but the dome was enormous. The task would take forever with one hand. Never before had he felt so weak without his magic.
Reappearing, she lifted a brow and gestured behind her.
Skye paused and strained to penetrate the dark depths.
Held aloft by multiple Mer, Riva’s hot-pink hair floated in a gentle current. Gone were the abalone hues he’d come to adore. Vines of kelp sprouted from beneath her vibrant tail and pulled her closer. The Mer surrounding her stepped back and bowed their heads reverently. Her eyes remained closed, but a stream of bubbles fluttered from her gills’ slits.
Tears of relief fell from Skye’s cheeks as the walls he’d built around his heart crumbled.
His Mate was alive!
Riva
The sensation of being held woke me with a start.
Attempting to calm my racing heart I took a deep breath.
Wait. Breath?
My lids slowly opened.
Silver-veined wallpaper shimmered in the dim light spilling from the bathroom doorway. Clutching my fists, I was surprised by the soft sheet tucked in carefully around me.
A mumbled groan sounded behind me.
The nape of my neck tightened as I tipped my chin to identify the source.
Skye’s cerulean hair feathered across a pillow beneath his head. Small cuts marked his cheekbones in tandem with a large bruise blackening one eye. My gaze drifted past his Adam’s apple to his well-defined chest. More abrasions marked his toned abdomen. His pajama bottoms dipped dangerously low and revealed the narrow V of his hips. He was sleeping soundly atop the covers, his arm haphazardly draped around my waist.
What the hell happened?
The last thing I remembered was attempting to gather Kena and the other Mer.
Gods, it was so cold.
Then, nothing.
Skye’s whisper interrupted my reverie. “Shh. You’re safe.”
As he palmed my cheek, I realized my teeth had been chattering. “W-what h-happened?”
He pulled me closer, and his warmth thawed the chill running through my veins.
“You froze a good portion of the North Atlantic.”
My heart clenched. “What of my people?”
He chuckled. “You saved them.”
Confused, I frowned. “How?”
Pride colored his voice. “I found you all cocooned inside a protective bubble. Lila had to break it to get you out.”
My thoughts spun. “How long?”
“You’ve been sleeping for two days. Bex believes you depleted your magic.” Quietly, he added, “I carried you home and haven’t left your side.”
Though the sentiment touched me, I couldn’t relax. “Is everyone else safe?”
His hand stilled. “Yes. We found no trace of Poseidon. It’s assumed that either your or my outburst eliminated him.”
I sighed. “It was mine. What do you mean by your outburst?”
“I may have gone a little overboard. Using Gazardiel’s sword, I broke through the ice. The resulting concussion vaporized the ocean for miles. Nothing survived.” He paused, his tone lowering to an agonized whisper. “If you hadn’t erected the sphere I surely would have killed you.”
Propping myself up on one elbow, I hesitantly touched his chest. Despite the damage to his face, I fell into his mismatched gaze. Heat pooled between my thighs. Before I could lose my nerve, I placed a chaste kiss on his cheek. “I’m fine, and I appreciate all you’ve done.”
A sardonic smile lifted his lips. “Finally learned your lesson?”
I giggled. “Maybe.”
The playful expression disappeared as pain tightened the corners of his eyes. “I almost lost you, Riva. The thought nearly drove me insane.”
A knock on the door interrupted my reply.
Bex’s voice rang out. “Hey! We can hear you two in there! Is everyone decent?”
Skye’s expression shuttered. Shifting to the side of the bed, he got up and padded into the bathroom.
Grumbling at the unfairness, I rose. “Yeah. Come in.”
After a quick, albeit cold, shower, Luna and Bex dragged me to the courtyard. Settling on the grass I did my best to pay attention as they filled me in.
They had practically become best friends during my recovery. Both talked over one another almost nonstop. It was difficult to tell where one ended and the other began.
Evidently, Luna had been speaking with Sora to put together a peace treaty. Any mention of Titus upset her, but she seemed excited to have our people explore the wonders of Tabula Rasa.
Jin and Kena went back to the Arctic. I had an open invitation to visit whenever I wished.
Much to everyone’s surprise, Collin stayed behind. He helped Lila plan Gaz’s funeral and appeared to be quite smitten with her. Though she seemed annoyed, Bex had caught her staring at his ass on more than one occasion.
