by Eric Vall
“Release your hold,” I instructed Morrigan. “I want you to be able to focus on Macha for now.”
“I am capable of carrying out tasks simultaneously,” the elf said quietly.
“I’m well aware of that,” I said with an authoritative tone, “but please do as I ask.”
Morrigan pinched lips a bit in frustration but obediently lowered her hand. Her eyes remained wholly black as they always when she used her shared sight with Macha. She would now be able to see everything her raven saw.
I kept my hand in the air, ready to exert my power in the event of a mishap. While I had used this perilous situation as a teaching moment, I wouldn’t allow things to spin out of control and let harm come to my minions. This sea titan thought that it ruled the sea, and it was sadly mistaken.
Carmedy and I watched silently as Macha sailed through the cavern with the bundle in her grasp.
“Make sure Fea doesn’t drop it,” Carmedy said nervously as she clutched her slingshot in her hand.
“She will do no such thing,” Morrigan said with a slightly offended tone.
“How close is she?” I asked in an effort to keep the elf from breaking her concentration.
“Approximately half a league away,” Morrigan said evenly. “Macha is swift.” Just then, the sea titan bellowed once more and shook its great head. It looked as though the repulsive creature was about to move toward us again.
By now, Macha was so far away that we could no longer see her.
“She has reached the creature,” Morrigan said suddenly. “She is maneuvering to hover over its mouth. Seeing it within such close proximity makes me all the more grateful that we are attacking from a greater distance.”
The white-haired woman let out a sharp breath. Not much seemed to frighten Morrigan, but I couldn’t blame her for feeling a bit fearful. After all, she was the one seeing the sea titan up close. Then my lover sucked in her breath and regained her usual cool composure.
“Alright, Carmedy, get ready to fire the other bundle,” Annalíse instructed.
Carmedy nodded and placed her pouch of chemicals in the band that was tied to her slingshot’s prongs and squinted her eyes as she stretched it back. “Morrigan, tell me when Fea is about to drop the bundle, and Carmedy, you’ll fire immediately.”
Morrigan was silent for a few moments and then she finally spoke.
“Fea is about to release the bundle… now.” No sooner had the words left the she-elf’s mouth then Carmedy fired her slingshot, and her chemicals whizzed toward the sea titan’s mouth.
Since I could no longer see Macha or Carmedy’s projectile, I had no way knowing when exactly the sacks landed in the beast’s gigantic mouth. The four of us watched as the sea beast grunted and gnashed its teeth in the air. To my dismay, the titan began to swim toward us once again. Had Carmedy’s mixture not been enough to do any damage?
I turned to Carmedy quickly. “How long will take for the explosive to go off, or for the poison to kick in?”
The petite feline opened her mouth to reply, but then she looked past me for a moment, and a grin started to creep across her face. I looked back to the water and immediately saw what the cause of her elation was.
The massive tentacled monstrosity had lurched to a halt and appeared to be in great distress. It roared in anguish and thrashed its remaining tentacles in the air and against the water. Its large dark eyes started to dilate, its greyish green skin started to become flushed, and its enormous body began to convulse. The sea titan whirled its head around in every direction and let out a mighty groan.
“Carmedy, what did you put in your mixture for it to behave like that?” I asked slowly as I lowered my hand. “It is supposed to be behaving like that, correct?”
“Yep.” Carmedy nodded her head proudly. “What you’re seeing are the effects of atropa belladonna. Oh, I forgot to mention that belladonna kinda has a smidge of hallucinogenic properties.”
Satisfied, I turned back to look at the tormented sea titan to drink in the moment of its delectable agony. Its entire body shuddered uncontrollably as it wailed in pain. Every so often, the monster would move a bit in one direction, then it would pause and move in another.
Carmedy tapped her chin absently. “I wonder what sorts of crazy things it’s seeing right now.”
“Belladonna is just a smidge of a hallucinogen, huh?” I raised an eyebrow and returned her smile.
“Okay, more like a lot.” Carmedy giggled. “The entire flower is deadly, but the roots of the plant are the most dangerous. I’ll have to find some more somewhere, I used my whole supply on that thing.” The cat pouted slightly at that.
“Don’t worry.” I chuckled. “We’ll find you so more.”
“Was the creature not intended to explode?” Morrigan asked coolly as her eyes returned to normal. I wasn’t sure if her question stemmed from the fact that she was unimpressed or if she was concerned that the explosion hadn’t yet occurred. Just as she spoke, Macha finally returned and fluttered down to rest on her owner’s shoulders.
“It should be going off any second now,” Carmedy said cheerfully as she rocked back and forth on her heels. That was precisely when the sea titan’s eyes began to bulge.
“Ooh, it’s starting!” Carmedy clapped gleefully. “Gee, I wish I could see everything setting off in there!” There were few things that gave the furry-eared woman more excitement than seeing her experiments in action.
I watched in joy as wisps of dark smoke started to emerge from the sea titan’s mouth. The terrible sea giant’s eyes grew wide, and it groaned in pain. Its movement grew sluggish then the titan seemed to bob helplessly in the water. Then, without warning, the sea titan exploded into a massive cloud of grey-green mist mixed with red.
“Now that’s what I call fun,” Carmedy said with a giggle. “I have to say, that was definitely my best explosion yet.”
“You were excellent, Carmedy,” I smiled at the petite feline, and she beamed with pride. “As were you Morrigan. I didn’t doubt your abilities for one second.”
“I appreciate the compliment, Master,” the pale elf bowed her head slightly. Though she spoke with her usual nonchalance, her dark eyes gave away her delight.
“And Annalíse.” I nodded to the swordswoman. “That was a superb plan.” “You acknowledged the fact that you would need to rely on the rest of us instead of your skills, and your strategy effectively utilized everyone’s strengths. Very nicely done.”
“Oh, thank you very much,” Annalíse said, and her freckled cheeks began to turn a bit red. “I did my best.”
“Um guys, I think we have a little problem,” Carmedy said slowly.
“What’s the matter? Did you see something else in the water?” Annalíse hurriedly asked the petite black cat as her eyes darted across the water.
“No, no, it’s not that. It’s… well… weren’t we supposed to bring the head of the sea titan to the water deity?” the green-eyed woman said with a wince. “Because there kinda sorta isn’t any head left.”
As she spoke, the alchemist gestured to the water that had become stained from the sea beast’s blood and innards.
“You’re right, there’s nothing left of the head,” Annalíse murmured as she looked across the cavern, and then suddenly her eyes lit up. “How about a piece of a tentacle instead?”
The princess nodded to the far-left side of the vast body of water. There floated the tip of one of the sea titan’s tentacles. The limb was charred, and blood flowed from the severed end creating a crimson pool around it.
“I think that will do just fine,” I said with a dark smile. I jumped into the water and swam over to retrieve the piece of tentacle. It was nearly the length of my body and almost three times as wide which only served to emphasize how truly massive the sea titan had been. I wrapped my arm around the tentacle tip and swam back to the others with it in tow.
The colossal beast had been slain, and soon the water deity’s power would be mine.
Chapter 18
Having claimed proof that the sea titan had met its demise, we made our way back through the underwater tunnels, backlit by the green light. Upon exiting the dungeon, we were met by the bearded god and a crowd of water demons. They floated before us in the water several yards away from the dungeon. Most likely they had been curious whether we’d triumph but still wanted to maintain a safe distance in case we had failed, and the sea titan appeared to wreak havoc.
As we emerged from the wide passageway and swam out into open water, a collective gasp rippled out from the throng of water demons followed by enthusiastic murmuring. The old god raised an eyebrow in surprise but said nothing as we approached.
“I’m afraid there was nothing left of the beast’s head, will a piece of its tentacle suffice?” I asked as I presented the detached limb to the deity. He was silent for a moment but finally reached out to take the tentacle tip from me.
“It will indeed,” the water deity said softly as he gazed at the charred, bloody stump in awe. He clutched it in his hands and turned to his band of followers.
“We shall be tormented by the savage sea titan no more,” the god bellowed as he raised the tentacle above his head in triumph. “Not only that, today have we been granted the most precious gift this world has to offer, our freedom!”
The crowd of pale scaly men raised their fists to the air and roared in a cheer.
“What about the prisoners that you have kept here?” Annalíse broke into the shouts of victory.
“I am a god of my word. These were the terms that we agreed upon and so it shall be.” The water deity nodded. “Of course, you shall also have the treasures that we have acquired over the years as we discussed.
“And your power? Do you give it willingly?” I asked with firmness in my tone.
The old god chuckled. “Take it, it matters not to me. The predicament of my imprisonment was that the monster was my warden. Now he is dead, and I have been granted freedom. That is of far greater value to me.”
As he spoke, a small pale blue orb of light slowly emerged from his chest. The sphere contained the essence of his power, and after a moment, it separated from his body and began to float toward me. Once it reached me, the glowing blue ball pressed into my chest until it had disappeared inside of me. My fingertips tingled, and the hairs on the back of my neck stood on end as the water deity’s power fused with my own. I closed my eyes, my heart pounded, and my blood raced as newfound strength coursed through me. I released a blissful sigh as the sensation began to wear off.
Now I had the power of six gods within me.
“What’s happening?” I suddenly heard Carmedy say, and my eyes flew open. While the water deity’s power had been working its way through me, the bearded god and his people had begun to fade away right before us.
Annalíse pointed ahead. “Look, even the city is disappearing.” The entire golden city along with the great dome that protected had also started to fade away.
“Do not be alarmed,” the water god said calmly, “we are simply returning to where we belong. The sea.”
The bodies of him and his men gradually became translucent, and their pale frames quivered as they became one with the water that surrounded them. The deity released the piece of the sea titan’s tentacle that he grasped, and the limb floated down until reached the grainy floor.
“Thank you,” the water deity whispered. He raised a fist to his chest as he bowed his head slightly, and his crowd of followers mirrored the gesture of reverence. And just like that, they and their domed city were gone as though neither had ever existed.
“Wow,” Carmedy breathed. “Now if that’s not magic, I don’t know what is.”
“I won’t argue with you on that one,” Annalíse mused as we continued to tread water.
“Should we not make our way to where the city was located so that we may retrieve the treasure?” Morrigan spoke up.
“Yes, you’re right,” Annalíse agreed, and the four of us began to swim to where the golden city beneath the dome had once stood. “We also need to get the prisoners as soon as possible. They may not have devices that allow them to breathe underwater like we do.”
We swam as fast as our arms and legs could propel us through the water. Without the seahorses to give us a ride, it took longer to cross the distance between the dungeon and the city, but we still made fairly good time and before long we had reached our destination.
There was no trace that the golden city had ever existed atop the cliff save for the circular outline that the dome had left in the grainy sediment. In fact, there didn’t seem to be anything there at all.
“Does anyone see the treasure or the prisoners?” Carmedy furrowed her brow as she looked around the area. The rest of us joined in her search, but after a quick look around, it was clear that no treasure had been left here.
“It seems as though that decrepit god deceived us,” Morrigan said with bitterness in her voice, and she narrowed her dark eyes.
“But why would he do that?” Carmedy tilted her helmeted head to one side. “He said he didn’t really care about the treasure, and he promised to free the human prisoners.”
“Well, I guess he was lying.” Annalíse shook her head with a look of disgust. “And he said he was a god of his word, complete hog swallow.”
“I didn’t get the impression that he was being deceitful,” I said.
Annalíse gestured to the open water around us. “Then where is it? Where is the treasure and the poor people that they were feeding off of?”
“Don’t worry yourself with this,” I said calmly. The treasure wasn’t here, andneither were the human captives, but I had a hunch where they were. “Let’s get to the surface, don’t forget Rana is supposed to meet us. We want to be topside when she arrives.”
Without another word, I began to swim upward. Carmedy and Morrigan followed suit, and after a bit of indecipherable grumbling, Annalíse did as well.
As we climbed through the waters, a school of bright blue fish with yellow-tipped tails darted by and quickly disappeared behind a vibrant orange coral reef. At the same time, a cloudy white jellyfish bobbed by, its thin translucent tentacles pumping up and down propelling its body through the water. Part of me wished that we could stay in this place for a bit longer. The creatures were fascinating, and I had never before ventured into the briny depths.
While I longed to explore the hidden sea further, I pushed those thoughts from my mind as we continued to swim for the surface. As much as it would have pleased me to stay, we had more important matters to attend to. I had a king to overthrow after all.
Before long, we poked our heads out of the water and were met with brilliant sunshine once more.
“Look, there are the prisoners!” Carmedy pointed to the dry land.
There beside the oasis was a crowd of about fifty or so humans, all of whom looked worse for wear. Every man, woman, and child was dressed in ragged clothing. The garments seemed to have once been robes like the ones that we ourselves currently wore, but the prisoners’ clothes were worn and faded with age. Most of the people had abnormally pale skin, most likely due to lack of sunlight for such a long period. The humans looked around at their new surroundings with widened eyes and murmured to each other in confusion.
We swam for the water’s edge and pulled ourselves from the oasis. Once safe on the sands, we removed our bubble helmets, and as soon as we did so, they popped in our hands.
“Everyone, listen,” I said loudly as I held my hands to the air to get the crowd’s attention.
The concerned chattering amongst the group of humans gradually died down, and they each turned their attention toward me.
“My companions and I have successfully defeated the dungeon that laid beneath these waters, and as part of the agreement that we had with the deity who imprisoned you, you have all been granted freedom.”
Some of the people looked at me dubiously while others whispered to each other. “Where is the water god, and the
rest of the water demons?” one man said as he raised his voice above the noisy throng.
“He is gone,” I said, and my words were met with several gasps. “He and his people have returned to the ocean. You’re all safe now.”
The humans gave me looks of disbelief, but soon, reality began to set in. Their expressions shifted into looks of joy, and they began to cheer and shout our praises.
“What are we going to do with them?” Annalíse said to me in a hushed, raspy tone as the people continued to celebrate. “We can’t leave them in the desert without the proper supplies, but we also can’t take them with us.”
“I’ll contact Makar,” I said as I removed the small glass orb that the rebel leader had given me. “He said if we ever had need of him to get in touch with him. Perhaps he can provide them shelter until they can return to their homes. I’m sure that he’d be happy to help his countrymen.”
“Good idea,” Annalíse said.
I held the colorless glass ball up to my face and as I gazed into it, I spoke Makar’s name. No sooner had I uttered the name, the orb began to fill with swirls of vibrant colors. The multicolored ribbons slowly began to twist and swirl around each other. At first, it seemed as though there was no purpose to their movement, but soon the rainbow of streams began to form what looked like a face. Makar’s familiar features gradually started to come into view as did a backdrop of black tents, his camp I presumed.
“Hello, my friend,” the bearded man nodded to me and smiled. “I am pleased to see you, I did not expect to hear from you so soon. This is not a call of distress, I hope?”
“No, Makar, but we are in need of your assistance if possible,” I replied. I quickly summarized the events that had transpired once my minions and I had dived into the oasis, and I finished by explaining the current situation and the predicament that these people were now in.