Mirra sank into the cold water, fighting to rise to the air above. The brine stung her eyes and nose as she struggled, her heart hammering. She could swim, but not well enough to survive a sea like this. She prayed that someone had heard her scream, and would throw a rope. Her head broke the surface, and she gasped sweet air, then choked as a wave leapt into her open mouth, making her cough and wheeze as the salt closed her airway. Something cold gripped her ankle and dragged her under, thrashing. She called out in the language of the sea, joining her voice to the great Song of the Sea.
The Song wafted around her, drifting on currents, calm beneath the raging surface. If not for her burning lungs, it would have been pleasant, but cold. Her chest convulsed, trying to suck air, but she kept her mouth closed. Her stomach knotted, and no matter how hard she swam, she continued to sink. No current flowed down so strongly.
A sleek grey shape barrelled out of the blue gloom and slowed beside her. Mirra gripped the curved fin, and the dolphin lashed its flukes, powering for the surface. They broke through in a spray of brine, and she gasped blessed air, clinging to the smooth form beside her. The dolphin supported her, and its calm, beautiful Song soothed her. More grey shapes surfaced nearby, sending up gusts of spray with soft puffing sounds. She joined the Song again, singing her love for these gentle, generous animals that had come to save her.
A cold hand gripped her ankle and dragged her down, breaking her grip on the dolphin. She screamed, her air rushing out in a stream of bubbles as terror swept through her in an icy tide. The dolphins responded, concerned but frightened, and a streamlined shape stopped beside her. As she reached for its fin, a burst of dark power came from below. The dolphin convulsed, shuddering, and its air bubbled from its blowhole. A demon. She looked down, but little was visible in the gloom. The dolphin lay still beside her, its gentle eye blank in death. Mirra released its body as the Song of its companions turned to sorrow. The one they had just lost was a father, brother, son and mate to them, and their grieving Song washed over her.
Mirra added her sorrow to theirs, and they accepted her grief, another sleek form slipping up beside her. She pushed it away, crying out a warning, and in a moment the dolphins vanished, leaving only their Song behind. The dead dolphin floated upwards, and Mirra joined the Song again as she sank into the black depths, the demon’s grip on her ankle pulling her down.
Demon Lord Page 34