by Holly Kelly
He didn’t have much time. The child continued calling out for help—but his voice was fading. He needed help now, but Triton couldn’t do what he needed to do with the mother in the way.
Triton pulled the woman away from the rubble as she struggled. “No!” she shrieked. “He’s still alive. I have to get him out!” He held her against his chest as she fought him, desperate to get to her son.
Triton turned back to the crowd. “Who is her husband?”
An older Dagonian frowned in disgust and said, “She has no husband. If she did, I’m sure he’d have prevented this whole mess. I tried—” His voice cut off as his hands slapped against his throat.
The Dagonian had said enough.
The woman in Triton’s arms stopped fighting him and sobbed. Triton didn’t want to leave her with any of these men who obviously disliked her, but he must get to the child.
He felt a hand pressed against his arm and turned to see Nicole’s stricken face. “I’ll take her,” she said.
Triton shook his head. “If she fights you—”
“I can handle it, Ty.”
Frowning, not wanting to put her in danger, but feeling more and more desperate to free the child, he nodded. He passed the distraught woman to Nicole, who took her in her arms.
“It’s okay, sweetheart. He’ll save him.”
Triton warmed at her words. The woman couldn’t understand a word of what Nicole was saying, but her tone was comforting and filled with understanding. He drew some of his power from the seawater and touched Nicole’s mind, giving her the ability to speak Atlantian.
He turned his attention back to the situation at hand. Closing his eyes, he carefully directed the water currents through the rocks, pushing them apart, cradling them in the seawater as he gently moved them away. He sought out the child and found that the boy wasn’t far. He could feel what the child felt. A heavy stone pressed against his chest, making it difficult for the boy to breathe. And then there was another heavier stone, crushing his broken fin flat against the seafloor. Triton swam inside the cave. As he lifted several more stones away, he finally found the boy, who looked to be about eight years old. “It’s okay, Marcos. I’m going to get you out of here.”
When Triton removed the stone from the boy’s chest, he took in a whooping breath and blinked at Triton. “I knew you’d come.”
“How did you know?”
The boy looked surprised at his question. “Don’t you know? You’re my great-grandfather.”
Triton was shocked. He knew that he probably had some descendants—his merchildren sometimes fraternized with Dagonians. But for any Dagonian to actually admit they were tied to the Mer was unusual. They usually wanted nothing to do with him.
“Of course I knew,” Triton lied.
The boy’s pained face gained a glimmer of light, and then the light dimmed as the child groaned in pain. “My tail really hurts. Am I going to die?”
He focused and found that indeed, this boy did have his blood flowing in his veins. “No, you’re not going to die, but I need you to hold still.” Triton was not a healer, but with those of his own, he possessed the power to mend injuries, which was exactly what he did. He knit the boy’s broken bones and crushed organs back together, along with his mangled fin. His body straightened as the bones reset and flesh healed. Triton smiled as he finished and looked at his great-grandchild. “There. Do you feel better?”
The boy nodded, beaming at him. “Thank you. I knew you’d help me. My mom told me not to believe all the terrible things everyone said about you.”
“I’m glad you didn’t.” Triton’s heart swelled. It looked like Sara and Xanthus weren’t his only family. He looked up as Nicole let the mother go. She swam to them. The boy wriggled from Triton’s arms and embraced his mother. “It’s okay, Mom. King Triton fixed me. I don’t even hurt anymore.” His mother cried for a long while as the crowd dispersed.
When they were alone, Triton spoke. “So, granddaughter…”
She gasped and paled at his words. “He told you?”
The boy turned to her and said, “Mom, he already knew.”
With the boy’s attention on his mother, Triton locked eyes with Iris and shook his head. He reached out, ruffled the child’s hair, and said, “Of course I knew.”
He looked back to the mother and asked, “Well, Iris and Marcos, how are the Dagonians treating my family?” He tried to keep the tension out of his voice, but he needed to know.
At that question, a scowl settled over the boy’s face. “They’re okay when they leave us alone.”
“What’s that supposed to mean?” Triton asked.
“Well, I mean, they let me swim wherever I want, as long as it’s outside the city, and they let us fish in the kelp fields at night, and once a month, I get a whole day to do what I want. Last month, I got to see the dolphins!”
“What work do they require of a lone woman and her young child?” Triton asked, not quite masking his anger. His eyes pierced the woman.
“I… you want me to speak?” she asked, her voice so low he could barely hear her.
He sighed. “Yes.”
“Well… I…” She looked down. “Sew. I make window coverings, bedding, and clothing. Abalone shells make for the most beautiful tail coverings. There’s a coral field not far from here. The shells have the most vivid colors.” Her voice grew in volume, and Triton could tell she took pride in her work.
“Ew, I hate abalone!” the boy said.
“You used to like it,” she said.
“I don’t want to eat it every day!”
“We don’t have much time to hunt. I need the shells for the coverings.”
She looked up, meeting Triton’s eyes for a split second before looking back down at the sandy floor. Her face flushed red, and her voice lowered to a whispered. “That’s what I do.”
“And what does your son do?”
“He and the other boys are on clean-up duty.”
“So all Dagonian children have to work?” Triton asked.
Her eyes widened as she shook her head. “No, of course not. Just the ones that have no one to provide for them.”
“But you work,” Nicole said, swimming forward.
“Well, I… I’m just a woman. My work isn’t important.”
“That’s not true,” Nicole said. “It sounds like you create some beautiful things. Your work should be valued just as much as any man’s.”
Iris’s jaw dropped. She looked from Triton to Nicole, obviously wondering if he could possibly agree with something so ludicrous. Well, he did.
“I agree,” he said.
“My work provides us protection and rights to use the hunting grounds, but nothing else.”
“You get no money for all of your hard work?” Nicole asked.
“Money? You mean gold? Oh no! I’m a woman. I’m not allowed to have any gold.”
Triton could feel Nicole’s anger rise, and he knew she was on the verge of a rant. He spoke before she could. “What kind of protection do they give you?”
“They protect us from sharks, sea monsters, and other predators.”
“You do realize that sharks are no threat to you?”
“They aren’t?”
“No. You have my blood running in your veins. Sharks would smell it on you. They are my most loyal soldiers. They would always protect you.”
“Majesty, may I speak to you alone?” she asked.
“Of course, my child.”
Nicole led the boy away. “Can you show me around? Do you know I’ve never met a Dagonian before…?”
As soon as they were far enough away not to hear, Iris spoke. “I have to tell you something, but first, can you promise if you’re angry that you please not take it out on my son? I will take full blame.”
“Iris, I’ve never in my long life harmed a child.”
She nodded, obviously relieved.
“And I would never lay a hand on any descendant of mine.”
“Well, that’s
the thing. I don’t know that I’m really your granddaughter.”
Triton cracked a smile. “You are my granddaughter.”
“How do you know?”
“I can feel it. You and your son both have my blood in your veins. One thing I don’t know is who your parents are?”
“My mother is Alexandria; she died in childbirth. My father died just after I was conceived. I didn’t even know who my father was until recently. I’m told that his name was Nikias and that he was a merman.”
“My fifth-born son, I should have known,” he said, his smiling expression holding a shadow of sadness. “You have your father’s eyes.”
Iris’s face lit up. “Really?”
“Yes.” He smiled. “And as my granddaughter, you don’t need to rely on the protection of Dagonians. If you and your son will accept my mark, no Dagonian or sea creature would dare harm you. But then, I doubt they will let you remain with them. You are welcome to live with me. My palace is large with hundreds of rooms. You and your son can live there, and my servants will provide you with everything you could possibly want. As for work, you only work when you want to.”
Iris looked up to him, her eyes rimmed red. “Why would you do this?”
“Because you’re family.”
She closed her eyes and began to sob. He could taste her tears as they leaked into the seawater. Triton pulled her to his chest, and she tucked her head down. “You’ve shed too many tears today, child. Do you accept my offer?” She didn’t speak, only nodded her head.
“Good, now let’s go get your things.”
She looked up, surprised. Then she looked to the cave of rubble. “I don’t know if any of our stuff survived.”
Triton frowned. “You lived in that cave?”
She nodded and chuckled weakly. “It looked better before it collapsed.”
Shaking his head, he closed his eyes. He searched the rubble. His stomach sickened when he realized how lucky they were. There were not many things left in one piece. It was a miracle that the boy wasn’t killed.
The few items he could find were lifted by the seawater and carried to his hands. All he got was a comb, a bent knife, and a poorly made seashell necklace.
“Oh, thank the gods,” she said, reaching for the necklace. “Marcos made this for me last year. He’d been saving the best shells he could find, and he strung them with braided hair.” She reached up and brushed her fingers over her short hair.
“Is it common for Dagonian women to keep their hair short?”
Her face flushed red. “No. But I can’t afford thread.”
He frowned and brushed his hand over her head. Her hair lengthened and grew, a blond halo around her head.
“Thank you,” she said as she smiled.
“Now,” he said. “Let’s get you settled.”
"Wake up. Wake up, Nicole!”
Nicole stirred. It seemed she’d only just fallen asleep. Getting Iris and Marcos settled in their rooms took a good portion of the day. And then they stayed up visiting late into the night.
Quiet! Just give me a few more minutes.
“No! We’re out of time!”
What are you talking about?
“He wants me to kill you! I can hold him off for a few minutes, but not much longer than that.”
Nicole’s eyes flew open. She’d heard this voice in her head for as long as she could remember. The voice was annoying, she stuck her nose in where it didn’t belong, but she always spoke the truth and had protected her more times than she could count. “What do mean—he wants you to kill me? Who are you talking about?”
Zeus! the voice said. I’m talking about Zeus. He is commanding me to kill you. Go get Triton. He needs to know. He can stop me.
“If I tell him about you, he’ll think I’m crazy.”
If you don’t, you’ll die!
“Okay, okay,” she said as she swam out of her sleeping chamber, wondering what the king of the gods had to do with her.
Triton’s door was a large, stone slab. It looked like marble, as did much of his palace. Should I knock? Raising her fist, she struck it several times. She didn’t hear much. It probably wasn’t loud enough for—
Triton opened the door, smiling. “You know, coming to my bedroom in the middle of the night might give me the wrong impression.” He pulled her into his arms, shut the door, and kissed her. At his touch, she melted.
Nicole! Tell him! The voice was so loud that if her mind had ears, they would be ringing.
She pushed Triton away, slapping her hands against her head. “Okay. Just don’t yell anymore.”
“I wasn’t yelling.” Triton’s brows pressed together as he frowned. “Nicole Taylor, I need you to tell me what’s going on. This isn’t the first time you’ve spoken strangely. Who are you talking to?”
“Actually, that’s what I came here to tell you. Now, I know you’re going to think I’m nuts, but hear me out. Ever since I can remember, there’s been a voice in my head.”
“A what?”
“It’s… like there’s someone else living in my head. She speaks to me. She’s sometimes really annoying, but she’s always looked out for me.”
His response was completely different from what she expected. She thought she’d see disbelief, pity, or revulsion. What she didn’t expect was anger. His eyes narrowed as he looked at her. He took her head in his hands.
“Nicole, I need you to relax.”
“What are you going to do?”
“I just need to look inside your mind.”
“What? No. Forget it!”
“It’s alright. I won’t look at anything personal. I just need to see if you have an outside entity inside of you.”
“You think I’m possessed?”
“Well, I never had the impression you were mentally ill, so yes. I think there’s something going on.”
“You don’t need to look to find out.” Nicole spoke, but her voice was different—lower and with more resonance. “I’ll tell you anything you need to know, sea-god,” said the strange voice, speaking through her lips.
“Stop it!” Nicole said. “I hate it when she does that.”
Triton jumped back. “Who are you? What are you doing inside Nicole?”
“My name is Sypher. I was placed in here.”
“By whom?” Triton growled, his eyes glowing again. And with him looking her in the eye, Nicole was more than unnerved.
“By your king,” Sypher answered.
“Poseidon?”
“No, the king of all the gods.”
Triton paled as his voice dropped to a whisper. “Zeus. Why would Zeus put you into the mind of a human?”
“Nicole is not human,” Sypher answered.
“What?” Triton and Nicole said at the same time.
“Is she a demigod?” Triton asked.
“No,” Sypher answered. “She’s a full goddess.”
“Hold on,” Nicole said. “What are you talking about? I’m not a goddess. I’m just a regular woman. If I were a goddess, I’d have powers. I’d know I was different.”
“You do know you’re different,” Sypher said.
“No, I—”
“You are irresistible to everyone you meet,” Sypher interrupted. “You are a scientific anomaly that baffles doctors. You look like you’re twenty-one instead of forty years old.”
“I won’t be turning forty for another two months.”
“Actually, you’re not. You’re much, much older.”
“What? No, I’m not.”
“Yes, you are.”
“I… How?”
“You’re immortal.”
“Then what about my dad? Does he know I’m a goddess?”
“Actually, all of your memories about your childhood are false.”
Nicole went limp. If she’d been on land, she probably would have collapsed. Triton’s arm came around her.
“You’re lying,” she said in a whisper.
“When have I ever lied to yo
u?”
Nicole shook her head, not willing to accept what Sypher said.
“But my daughter, Sara, she’s real.”
“Yes, and—”
“When does she turn twenty-one?” The sharpness of Triton’s voice cut through Nicole’s confusion.
“This month,” Nicole answered.
“She’s a full goddess,” Triton said, his eyes widening in shock. “Does she have an entity draining her also?”
“No,” Sypher said.
“So?” Nicole said. “What’s wrong?”
“Her god powers will begin to gather strength,” Triton answered. “At her twenty-first birthday, her powers will reach full strength.”
“What does that mean?” Nicole asked.
“Depending on her powers,” Triton said, “she could cause serious damage or destruction to everyone and everything around her.”
“You need to go to her,” Nicole said. “You need to help our baby!”
“You need to help Nicole first,” Sypher said. “Zeus has ordered me to kill her. You have to stop me. But I have to warn you. In order to stop me, you’ll have to kill me.”
“What?” Nicole’s face drained of color. “No.”
“He has to,” Sypher said.
“No,” she said as she pressed her hands against her head, turning to Triton. “You can’t kill her, Ty.”
“It’s the only way,” the voice said. “It’s either Nicole or me. If you don’t kill me, I’ll be forced to kill her, and then I’ll die anyway.”
“No, there has to be another way,” she said.
Ty took her head in his hands and closed his eyes.
“Please, don’t do it.” She closed her eyes and sobbed. “Sypher has been with me for as long as I can remember. When I was alone, she was there for me. When I was upset, she sang to me. When I was sad, she cracked jokes to cheer me up. She was my courage, my conscience, and the closest thing to a sister I had. Please don’t take her away from me.”
“Nicole, sweetheart. I have to.”
Nicole could feel another presence invade her mind. Like a whisper she couldn’t quite catch, it moved through her. She knew exactly when it found Sypher. Pain shot through her. It felt as if someone reached in and wrenched her soul from inside, tearing her up as it left. She screamed, her voice ringing with agony and regret. As soon as the pain left, Nicole felt empty. Sypher was gone. She opened her eyes to a beautiful sight. Wisps of mist danced in the sea. In the midst of the mist was a face—the face of beautiful woman.