My ears ringing, I tried to keep an eye on Stinger as she got caught under the ice torpedo. My heart in my throat, I had to wait for the world around me to steady before I could dart after her. She was my only priority. Neron could deal with the scat show of what we swam into to find her.
Watching her spiral and spin, that stupid ice semi-frozen into her skin, made my stomach turn. As if I were watching from inside her mind, I could tell when she surrendered herself to her death. She cuddled that stupid chunk of ice as if it were a lover. Even flaring out her tail didn’t do too much to slow her descent.
We were out in the middle of nowhere. Leagues from Aiseiri. The depths out here weren’t unfathomable, but to her it probably felt like it.
Demanding more speed from my body, I swam as fast and as hard as I possibly could. The pressure of rapid descent squeezed my body as if it were nothing more than some sea debris that had been forgotten by the humans. My pulse pounded as the high-pitched whine in my ears shrilled into a screech that stole my breath. My gills struggled to work fast enough to keep me oxygenated.
We would meet the bottom of the ocean. But the condition we would both be in by the end of it was undetermined. I didn’t care what happened to me. But…Seren. She had to be okay. Even if we needed a whale’s weight in magic, she had to be okay.
I saw the plume of sand rise up around where she impacted the ocean’s floor. As I dove for it, I prayed the spelled ice had insulated her from the worst of the damage. The ice would never melt. Not at these temperatures, and certainly not with the magic inside them. We needed to retrieve it and make sure we removed the magic from it before we headed back to our kingdom.
Pushing all the official stuff from my mind, I dropped to the seabed. Waving my tail about in lazy circles to help clear the immediate area, I winced as I finally saw her. She was buried so deeply only the fins of her tail remained visible.
Reaching out with my mind, I tried to connect with her. She was the only being around. Seren?
Nothing came back. Not even the normal static that accompanied unaccustomed mental contact.
I reached out again. Same result.
Where are you? Neron called out along our shared pathway.
I gave him the general area.
On my way. Is she dead yet?
I stilled at the question. What the masu does that mean?
There are other things at play here, Con. She dies. Today. Now; if she isn’t already dead.
Gritting my teeth, I started trying to uncover her from the seabed. The magic that was infused in the ice provided a weak light, it was the only thing that allowed me to see her at these depths.
Her tail and skin were a bloody mess—literally. The sand had scraped off at least a couple layers. Crimson streaks, some down to the white bone, decorated her body.
Gently sifting the sand from around her, I was able to uncover most of her. I got her upright, at least. She was still fused to the ice chunk. Her flesh had turned black where it had melded with the missile. It was the only part of her that wasn’t bloody or stripped away.
Her head lolled to the side. The shape of her pretty face had been smashed in across her cheekbones. Teeth protruded from her cheeks like coral pushing up through the seafloor.
My stomach rolled. As pressure cramped around my chest, I felt movement in the water. Gently grasping her in my arms, I turned to meet the threat. A swarm of predatory fish had scented the blood I’d wafted into the surrounding waters. They were waiting. Patient for their snack.
Beyond the reach of the light from the torpedo, I felt a mind rub against mine. And it wasn’t Neron.
Does she still live? a mechanical voice asked.
I bared my fangs. She’s mine.
Answer the question.
I didn’t. I didn’t have an answer, and I wouldn’t have told the unseen stranger, anyways. Bigger issues were presenting themselves as more and more oceanic life found their way to our position.
Right now, I would welcome Neron and his death threats. At least he would be able to clear the area. We might be at the top of the marine food chain, but that didn’t mean we couldn’t get hurt out here. And I was severely outnumbered. Especially with a wounded Seren in my arms.
She is special. We can save her.
My arms tightened around the limp female. Back off or I will kill you.
A staticky laugh rang through my brain. You can certainly try. But you will fail. Give her to us. We can protect her from what is coming.
What was coming? Did they know the aliens? Were they with the ones who had abducted her? Had they stood by and let her be taken? Millions of questions rattled through my brain, one more blood-boiling than the next.
You are out of time. Give my regards to your superior.
A stream of light shot through the schools of predatory fish. Any marine life that was in the line of fire evaporated on contact. Simply gone as if they had never existed.
In the dying rays of light, I turned. I had to protect Seren. The light from their weapon hit the magic-infused ice.
The dark world of the deep ocean lit up like full noon on Topside. Heat and light crashed through me. My eyes watered as my body filled up like one of the human’s balloons. Bloated and grossly stiff, Seren was ripped from my grasp.
I never saw the being who took her. All I saw was Seren disappearing right before my eyes. She’d been evaporated like the gathered fish, she was gone.
Struggling to hold on to my senses, I started gulping in water and shoving it through my gills. I felt like a newbie in the Topsiders once again as I purposely engaged the rapid ascent technique. I needed to get out of the deep as soon as possible.
Focusing on getting as much oxygen into my body as possible, I fought off the change to biped. Dying in water was not a noble death for a mer. And with Neron hot on my trail, I really couldn’t afford to end up dead from such a rookie mistake.
By the time I hit the depth where light permeated the surface, I was lightheaded. I needed to find a pod and stabilize before pressure sickness ripped my body in two.
Scanning the area, I oriented myself to where exactly in the vast ocean I was. Not too far from where Seren had ripped the alien’s into pieces. And I still had so many questions about that, that I could feel them itching against my brain.
Running through my mind of possible emergency pods, I shifted and headed in the right direction. North by northwest about five clicks. I would make it. Barely.
Where the masu are you, Con? Neron blasted through my mind. And where the hades is she?
I didn’t answer. A direct breach of protocol. Not to mention a slap in the face of a three hundred year friendship.
Remaining silent, I swam towards the closest pod. Felt hope explode in my chest when I saw it bobbing gently in the water. It was clear—open for whoever needed its rescuing embrace.
Captain Conlan! Answer me, you gourami masu. That’s an order.
I breached the pod. Flopping inside as the atmo sensors activated and sucked all the water out of it. The shift to biped was excruciating, but I’d made it. And made it before Neron could find me.
Chest heaving, I waited until I felt like I could talk like a normal person. I wasn’t going to address my superior officer heaving and panting and wishing I were dead. When my heart finally felt like it wasn’t on the verge of exploding, I blew out a long breath. You were going to kill her. I made it a statement.
Yes. His reply was terse, sounding even more robotic than usual. It has to be done. One sacrifice to save the many. You just met her today. What do you care?
I pounded my fists against the pod. Knew he was right about the short acquaintance time. But for some reason, it didn’t matter. Either way, I wasn’t going to help him murder some innocent. That wasn’t the Navy I’d signed up for. Not even the roughest Topsider missions involved killing innocents. Especially not one who could help us with our gifts.
I won’t help you kill her. She can help us. What the masu is wrong with you? I wisely didn’t mention the fact that some invisible being had stolen her right from my grip.
I wouldn’t ask you to help me. But I demand you tell me where she is. We can save all of Aiseiri.
I shook my head, bared my fangs at the empty pod around me. Tell me why she has to die. Tell me and I’ll tell you where she is.
He was quiet for a long time. I knew that silence, even if I couldn’t physically hear it. He was debating with himself. Running the percentages on pros and cons. Playing out every possible outcome from both sides of the divide.
Waiting him out, I thought about the invisible stranger again. How had he found me? How did he know about Seren? Where had he taken her? Was it actually a him? Could it have been a her? How could s/he heal Seren? Was Seren actually dead?
Meet me at the nearest pod. Neron’s voice exploded through my head with barely concealed rage. Seems he’d landed on my side of the divide.
Mola mola.