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Today
EVERLY
As rocks rush up to meet my body, I can't help but wrap my hands protectively around my belly. Will the fall hurt my baby? Suddenly, I jerk to a stop, the impact jarring my bones. Opening my eyes, I see nothing but white. Did I die? I push to my hands and knees; the ground is soft beneath me. Heaven is soft? Light suddenly pours over me; I look up to see a cloudless sky. Huh? Then a giant face comes into view. Poseidon. "What the fuck?" Panic laces my voice. Looking around me again I realise I must be in his hand. Freaky.
"Daughter, we make haste to Atlantis, your fate awaits. Now sleep, the journey is long." His booming voice hurts my ears but suddenly I'm incredibly tired. My knees give way and I drop into the palm of his hand, my eyes close surrounding me in darkness once more.
***
SOMETHING HARD IS BENEATH me, the bone in my hip screams in protest. I shift to my back, but I don't yet open my eyes, afraid of what I'll see. A familiar feeling spreads across my chest, the struggle to get a good breath makes my eyes pop open. Nausea rolls through me as I take in my surroundings. Fish swim all around me through dark waters. The little light reflects off their scales as they glide gracefully through the water. Panic makes my laboured breathing speed up. I'm in water? Jesus fucking Christ, I'm under the ocean!
I sit there, watching, dumbfounded, as a large shark swims up to the small clear dome and nudges the side with its maw. Shark bait. His body bounces away as the protective layer doesn’t move. The small space I'm in is completely empty, no furniture or lights inside. The floor is white. Standing up, I walk to where the shark bopped my prison. I tentatively touch the barrier. As my hand meets the cold structure, another bang behind me startles me. Jumping in the air, a little squeak escapes me. Fuck me! Turning around I see a face pressed against the opposite wall from me.
I immediately close my eyes because staring at me is a mass of Selkie. Their teeth scrape against the glass or plastic, whatever is keeping the ocean from crushing me right now. Turning back to face the way Mr Shark swam away, I rest my forehead against the wall looking out into the darkness. The coldness around me seeps into my bones and I start to shiver. Wrapping my arms around myself, I lower to the floor just as a bright blue light appears in the distance. Squinting, I see the shapes of buildings within it. I guess I'm about to find out exactly what Atlantis looks like.
As the underwater city comes into view, I can't help but marvel at its beauty. Surrounded by a glowing blue light, Atlantis is stunning. It’s not at all what I expected. Buildings loom in what I imagined were old Roman style buildings and crumbling structures like the place Victor and I zapped to when he had to choose his form. But the place before me isn't like that at all. Tall, sleek buildings in the centre surrounded by smaller ones, the windows reflecting a cacophony of coloured lights.
All modern in appearance and design, Atlanteans sure like glass and steel. As we approach what appears to be an opening close to the seabed, I push myself to stand up, ready for what comes next. Will he kill me right here? Why would he bring me all this way to kill me? I need to get back home. The image of Le crying enters my mind. Fuck that, I will not go down without a fight. I assume a fighting stance, my feet spread wide, my hands up in front of me. Whoever stands between me and escape is about to get a huge shock when these doors open.
The pod shakes then jerks to a stop at the side of a large black building. The glass in front of me wavers as a door opens on the other side, revealing another mass of Selkie. I let loose my powers and mentally picture their bodies exploding. Pieces of gore hit my face as several of them burst, blue blood coats the walls and floor. More replace them. I send my powers out, they fall to the floor screeching in agony as I tear at their insides.
"Stop!" A commanding voice comes from the corridor behind the still screaming Selkie.
"Yeah, fuck that!" I shout back and redouble my efforts, watching as the creatures before me go limp. A large shadow is cast over me as a man-shaped figure walks towards me. The bright white light at his back makes it hard to see his features. Never mind, this one will die too.
Pushing out the palms of my hands, I send wave after wave of power at him, but nothing happens. Grunting with the effort, I try again, picturing his bones breaking in my mind as William taught me to. But no screams of pain come. I'm so fucked right now. As he comes closer my body sags with exhaustion, the efforts of using my gifts wiping out my energy reserves.
"Come now, sister, let us not attempt to kill one another," he said.
My head flicks up, my eyes meet his. Gordon? Stepping closer to me, he enters the light. His pale skin is almost translucent in appearance, ocean blue eyes framed by thick, black lashes stare at me as I take him in. Long bright red hair flows down pastsed his shoulders, the same colour as mine. White robes, not unlike a toga, wraps around his tall, thick body. At least as wide as Victor, he dominates the space in front of me.
He stands there patiently as I gawk in complete shock. He looks so different than when I saw him in the woods near my home, more fish-like now. Four pink and white gills grace either side of his neck. Gordon's a fish? Am I a fish? Jesus, am I a Selkie? I look down at my skin, lightly tanned and smooth. No scales to be seen.
Thank fuck, because fish would not be a good look for me. "What’s happening? Why am I here, and not dead?" A million questions bubble in my mind as my long-lost brother watches on, like a perfect statue, he doesn't move an inch. "Well?" I demand. I try my best to not let my panic leak into my voice. I feel pretty smug when I don't even waver.
"Sister, you're here to take your crown of course." The corner of his lips twitch like he's barely holding in a smile.
"I don't want it. I have a life on Earth," I fire back, not letting my hands drop from in front of me.
"Come, let’s not talk of this yet. We have much to catch up on, sister." He holds his hand out for me to take.
I look down at it in shock and awe. Bony, long fingers stretch towards me. A tiny fin flutters in his palm. Fuck a duck. Without taking what he offers, I step out of my pod and onto solid ground. With my back ramrod straight, we walk side by side down long winding halls. I’m ready to pounce at the first sign of danger.
The faint whiff of salt lingers in the air as we stride deeper into the building.
"I understand why you don’t trust me, sister. But I won't hurt you, I swear." His deep voice seems loud in the small space and I barely stop myself from covering my ears. "You'll get used to everything."
Yeah, not likely. I'm either going to be killed, or I'll escape long before I get used to anything. I don't bother answering him, exhaustion pulls my shoulders down and makes my head pound. I don't know how long I was asleep, but I feel like I've not slept in days.
Gordon stops outside a white door, the first one I've seen since I arrived.
"This will be your room until the one in the castle is ready." He taps an overly long finger against his chin, "You're early, so it isn't ready yet." He runs his hand over a normal-looking section in the wall, and the door slides open. "It's not much. But it will be fine for resting. Go, rest. I will have food brought to you." He sweeps his blue-tinged arm out, indicating I should enter the dimly lit room.
As I step over the threshold, never taking my eyes off Gordon, I realise I’m starving. How long was I out? The pain twists my insides, telling me it's been hours, maybe days. When I'm fully in the room, Gordon bows like actually curtsies at me then shuts the door. What fresh hell is this? I turn, only to be greeted with the most opulent room I've ever seen.
Gold, everything is bloody gold! The couch, table, bed, chair. All the same golden tone. The floor is covered with gold marble, the pattern offering different shades of gold. The fuck? I feel like just standing here costs me my whole life savings.
Another wave of tiredness crashes over me. The bed is huge and calls to me in ways I can't resist. Dragging my feet across the floor, I climb onto the bed. I should be trying to plan my escape. I should be plotting to kill Poseidon, but once my head touches the soft pillow, I'm out.
Karl
Day 6
Watching Everly jump off the cliff almost a week ago, damn near broke the four of us. Leyland's wings burst from his back, knocking the Selkie behind him over. Taking advantage of the distraction, we called upon our powers and managed to get free but not without injury. Victor was thrown onto land by a beast even I shuddered to look at. At least seventeen feet tall, its black scaly skin looked oil-like in the sun. He landed with a crunch, changing back to human soon after. Most of his bones were broken, he suffered all levels of agony from his injuries. Together, we healed him. But we couldn't grow back his missing limbs. The process left us exhausted. We had to hold Leyland back from jumping into the sea after Ever. A Gorgon knocked out Garrot, cracking his skull open. Leyland's wings were damaged. Luckily, we’re all now back to perfect health. Even Victor's tentacles are slowly growing back, only, we don't even know where to begin with a plan.
"Le, calm down will you, you're giving me motion sickness walking back and forth like that," Garrot complains. Leyland can't keep still; he paces the room constantly. The desperate need to get to Everly palpable in the air.
"I can't, Gar! He could be torturing her! He could have... killed her." Leyland's voice breaks. Tears spring into his eyes, Garrot closes the distance between them in seconds, wrapping his arms around Le, who laces his arms around Garrot's waist. They stand like that, for what feels like a long time. But since Everly jumped off the cliff, into the cold depths of the ocean every second that passes feels like hours.
Garrot
Day 6
Leyland shakes in my arms as sobs tear through his body. Watching Everly's body disappear over the edge was the single worst thing I've ever seen in my life.
"It'll be ok, Le. We will get her back, and everything will be ok. I swear."
"You can't swear that, Gar. We can't even get to her!" He pulls back and swipes the tears on his cheeks.
"No, but we won't stop until we have her back, now that I can promise you." I tell him, my tone firm. There isn't a cat in hells chance we will stop trying to get her back. Even if it takes us months, years, shit, forever, we will get her back. "Listen, let's eat and then we will sit down and make a list of every other kind we know and go from there."
"No! We don't know anyone, Garrot. We are on our own!" He fires back while pushing away from me, "You don't know what it's like! It feels like she’s dead, Garrot. My Everly, my baby" sobs take over him and his knees buckle. I catch him just before he hits the ground.
"I know, Le, I feel the same way. My dad would know what to do. But he's gone, Le, they killed him." His storm grey eyes meet mine; he presses a soft kiss to my lips as we sink to the floor in our front room.
"I'm so sorry, Garrot. I'm so fucking sorry."
Everly
Day 1 in Atlantis
The room is bright when my eyes flutter open. It's so bright, my eyes snap shut, convinced my retinae are burnt to a crisp, I rub them with the heels of my hands to try put out the imaginary flames. Everything comes flooding back to me in a rush, tears spring to my eyes and the hollow ache in my chest threatens to tip me over the edge. Leyland. Karl. Garrot. Victor. God, I miss them so much it's like a physical pain in my chest. Curling my body around, my arms wrapped around my tummy, I let myself cry. Tears pour over my nose and drip onto the pillow. I had to; I always knew I'd have to leave them. But fuck, I didn't expect it to hurt this much so soon.
I allow my tears to dry by themselves, not bothering to wipe them away. I have to let it out, have to give my head and heart time to mourn the loss of their presence at my side, in order to get it out of my system. Once the sobs recede and I can breathe again, I push myself up. It's time to nut up, Everly. You've got a God to kill, and then, you must find a way back to land, back to your men. It's then I realise there’s a tray with food on a small table next to the bed. Fuck. I slept through someone coming in, Karl would kick my arse for that. It could have been anyone, they could have killed me while I slept. Swinging my legs over the side of the monstrous bed, I quickly rush around the room, running my hand against the walls in search of a door. There must be a bathroom here somewhere. My bladder is screaming at me, finally, I find the thin, black lines that indicate there is an opening.
There's no handle. Shit. Then I remember Gordon opening the door to this room, and sure enough, when I press my hand on the wall, the door swishes open, revealing a bathroom. Everything here is gold, too, floor to ceiling. It's enough to put me off the colour for life. I have a pee and splash cold water over my face. The taps are, of course, gold, and old fashioned. The hot one doesn't seem to work, but that's ok, it's the cold one I need. Finishing up, I pad back into the room. What now? Do I just wait until someone comes to drag me to my death? Nah. Fuck that shit. I press my hand against the wall where Gordon let me in, but it doesn't open. Letting out a small growl, I stride to the other side of the room. The whole wall is made of glass. Pressing my nose up against it, my mouth pops open in shock.
The city of Atlantis looks just like New York does in movies. All manner of buildings reach for the sky, or sea, whatever. People, all different shapes, sizes and colours mill around going about their day. Except, there are no cars that I can see. It seems like everyone here walks where they need to go. It isn't at all what I expected to see. The scent of food hits me then, I spin and eye the tray. My traitorous stomach picks that moment to gurgle loudly. I battle internally with myself.
On one hand, I need to eat, because the baby needs it. Plus; it smells good. On the other, it could be poisoned. My legs take me across the room without my permission. Surely Poseidon wouldn't want to miss my death? Would he really want me to die in this fucking golden room, alone and without him to watch? No. I don't think so. Surprisingly, there is toast, what smells and looks like a cup of tea, and a bowl of scrambled eggs on the tray. A tiny white pot of white powder, too. I dig in, the toast is perfectly brown, and the eggs are overcooked, just the way I like them. Just as I swig the last of my tea, the door opens and a tall, pink woman walks in. Her white toga has a piece of black rope around the middle, and the hem skims the floor. Her blonde hair is plaited down her back, fishtail style. Blue gills grace either side of her neck, she's very pretty.
"My Queen," her knees practically touch the floor, she dips so deeply. "My lord has sent me. Here," she holds out a bundle of material, she doesn't even meet my eyes, talking to my belly button. "These are for you." Her cheeks colour, turning red as I take the bundle from her.
"Thank you." I utter. When she doesn't move, I turn towards the bathroom, and open the swish door, it closes behind me. I take off my nightie and wash quickly. It's not cold in this golden cage, but it isn't warm either. I don the awful dress the pink lady gave me. It's got fucking frills on it. Frills. Around the neck and hem, and its shiny pink. I look like a dick. It comes to my knees in a flurry of material.
I step back into the golden room, looking like an extra from the movie Grease, to find the woman still standing there. Like a living statue. Damn, Atlanteans have a stillness about them that freaks me out. "What now?" I ask, her head snaps up and our eyes lock. Her's are large for her face, bright purple and hold a look of terror in them. "What's wrong?" I automatically take a step forward, my hand outreached to touch her elbow. The pink woman looks absolutely terrified as I make contact with her exposed skin. It's cool to the touch.
"Oh, oh, my Queen." She bends on one knee, her head dipped to her chest.
"No, please," I try to pull her back up, but she doesn't budge. "Get up. You don't need to do that."
"I must. I am not worthy. I am sorry, my Queen, I should not have looked into your eyes. Please, forgive me." Tears stream down her face and her voice trembles.
What the fuck is this? What sort of treatment has this poor woman been subjected to?
I drop to my knees, I put myself on her level in the hope to calm her. "What's your name?" The pink lady sniffles and wipes her nose on the hem of her toga.
"Darcy, my Queen." She replies, her voice barely audible.
"That's a pretty name, Darcy. I'm Everly, most people call me Ever, though. Please, call me Ever." I'm so done being called Queen. Her eyes rise to meet mine again. This time, they’re filled with awe.
"You mean, I can call you by your given name?" Her face scrunches up in confusion, her large eyes even wider.
"Yes, Darcy. I don't want to be called Queen. Now, have you eaten this morning?" I pause for a second, I add, "It is morning, right?"
"Yes, it is my Q- Everly." She lets out a small laugh as she corrects herself. She is adorable. She reminds me of Victor, a little bit. It took him the longest time to just see me as Everly, and not some fabled Queen. "And no, I have not. Usually, we get whatever is left after lunch. But that is all." She adds, quietly.
Bloody hell. This place is fucked up beyond belief. Pushing off the floor, I rise and bring Darcy with me. She's rail-thin, her skin has a yellow tinge under the pink and her teeth look half rotten. She is severely malnourished. Pulling her to the bed I motion for her to sit. When she climbs up and settles with her legs bent under her, I turn and grab the tray of leftover food. There isn't much left, but it will have to do for now.
As she stares at the leftovers, I contemplate how to get my arse out of here. I need to know if my men are ok. The last time I saw Victor he was lying limp in the arms of a giant creature. That thing looked like an Alien. Not the cute green kind, but the ones from the movies with a mouth full of teeth and acid drool running down their chins. Six arms, because apparently, two are not enough, and four eyes. It was at least twice the size of Vic's Kraken form. Then there was my poor Leyland. He looked absolutely broken watching me jump into Poseidon's hand. They all were beaten up, that much was clear. But to what end?
Poseidon wanted me to go to that cliff, but there had to be an easier way. Perhaps it was a message of some kind? To have captured my four men, without killing them, is no mean feat. I've seen all of them fight Selkie. They hold their own. "Eat, Darcy. After, you're going to tell me how to get out of here."