Goddess Choice

by A Lonergan

  I reluctantly followed him down the stairs to the back door. “Go make sure the Elders are doing their job correctly.”

  “Tell Jessa that she is always welcome here. Tell her I said goodbye.” He looked like he wanted to say more but then he was gone. I let my body slide down the length of the wall, unsure of what to do next. I didn’t want to tell Jessa that Keenan was gone. They had a relationship and I wasn’t entirely sure if it was all because of Apollo or not. But I was tired of getting in the middle of it all. I was tired of the damn love triangle that was happening.

  Jessa’s voice interrupted my thoughts. “He’s gone, isn’t he?”

  I nodded.

  “He didn’t even say goodbye.” She looked longingly at the door and I knew that there had been more there than what Apollo had orchestrated. She smiled sadly before sliding down next to me. “It was the easiest way, I guess.”

  “It’s not a forever goodbye.” My words were void of all emotion. Military training kicking back in. Like a switch I turned it off. It had always been so easy to do before Jessa.

  “But it could be and I can’t see either of you coming to the underworld to my rescue.”

  As much of my feelings had been fake, some of them hadn’t been and as much as I wanted to remain stoic, I couldn’t.

  I bumped my shoulder into hers and whispered, “You never know.”

  Chapter 15

  Jessa

  Cocky, confident, aggressive Crawley was back and better than ever though I could tell Apollo’s ploy had changed him and I doubted he would ever be 100% old Crawley. I was okay with that though. Crawley had always needed a softer side and Apollo had given him an unexpected gift with it all.

  I stirred the soup on the stove and wondered if it would be our last warm meal for a while. I knew we needed to find Cristoff and Cora but I wasn’t sure if I was ready to face the music. I knew revenge was surging through my veins but I didn’t know if I would be able to do what I needed to when it came down to it.

  I continued to stew on those worries until a picture of Gemma with a gaping hole in her chest flashed across my mind and my confidence was back. In a very sick way it was back, I had no regrets.

  I listened to Crawley moving around upstairs, packing the essentials. I had been quick and thorough while Crawley had dragged Keenan back to reality. I eyed my backpack nervously sitting next to the back door. I had considered a bigger bag but knew it would be hard to travel with and I didn’t want to lose too many of my belongings if I didn’t have to. I knew Keenan would keep them safe and I knew we would be able to come back if we needed to. The cabin had wiggled its way into my blood and I had no doubts that it would be easier to access in the long run.

  Crawley clambered down the stairs and tossed his backpack next to mine. However, his bag looked empty compared to mine. He threw himself into the barstool across from me and watched me intently with his large, vivid eyes. He gave the soup a curious glance before turning his nose up to it.

  “What could be the problem now?” I rolled my eyes at him.

  “Beast isn’t feeling that.” He pointed to the soup.

  “It’s all I’ve got, beast.” Crawley smirked at my retort.

  “So, where are we headed now?” Crawley leaned against his fist, bored.

  I filled him in on Cristoff and the prison. He listened intently and watched as I ate my food. I didn’t know I managed to continue eating while telling the stories I hadn’t been able to before. Occasionally I would pause and point to a scar.

  By the time I was done, I was numb and Crawley’s jaw was clenched tight. If my numbness stopped me from completing our mission then Crawley’s anger would fuel us the rest of the way. I washed my bowl in the sink and followed him to the back door.

  Crawley

  Anger was an understatement. What happened to Jessa was all I could think about it. It had started to consume me the moment the words had left her lips. We were 5 days out on our popping in and popping out journey and I meant exactly how it sounded.

  We would travel through the portal to wherever Jessa thought the monsters were then we would pop right back that night to rest. When it had come down to it, we realized it was the only way. They probably traveled thousands of miles by now and there was no for sure, definite way to find them. Not only had it been hard for us to figure that out but the popping in and out thing was starting to get even harder. The magic in the cabin wasn’t working like before and I had a feeling if we kept using it like we were, we would get stuck.

  We were on day six and I knew it wasn’t going to get any easier. I loaded water bottles into my backpack and a few protein bars, knowing we would have to walk farther than we had been. I had a thought we would probably be camping out, instead of popping back into the cabin. Only so much magic could be used in a day.

  When Jessa came down the stairs, I was surprised to see that she wasn’t frowning like the days before and her expression was hopeful.

  “What’s up?” I asked around a mouthful of granola bar.

  She shook her head. “Nothing, I just feel like today will be a better day, like we will get closer to finding some answers or finding the group.”

  Jessa held out her hand to me, which was different. We had just both jumped through with confidence that we would end up on the other side together. Though, I trusted her and I knew she wasn’t telling me something. I grasped her hand in mine and we jumped together.

  Chapter 16

  Jessa

  I thought for sure I would have landed on my face like all the other times we had stepped through the portal, but nope, I found myself floating.

  I was so shocked by it that I gasped and that was a huge mistake. Because well, I was underwater. I tried hard to not cough but it was impossible once the water had entered my lungs. Frantically I searched around for Crawley while my vision started to get foggy. Everything burned, my eyes, my throat and my chest. I knew I wasn’t going to make it much longer and started praying to anything that would hear me.

  I knew I wasn’t ready to die and I would be damned if a little water was going to kill me. I had survived considerable abuse thus far. Water couldn’t be the thing to take me down.

  My body was convulsing now and I was surprised I hadn’t gone out yet until a monstrous man appeared in front of me. He had a black beard and black hair floating around his head like a halo. His white eyes seemed endless and when he smiled, his teeth were razor sharp.

  “Sleep,” His voice was all the existed and it consumed me.

  I really couldn’t tell you how long I had been out for. It seemed like decades by the way my body was feeling. My body jerked as I coughed and sputtered. My legs felt like noodles and my senses hadn’t returned to me just yet.

  I rubbed my eyes but my movements were sluggish at best. I felt like I was underwater.

  It all rushed back to me and my lungs burned in memory. My eyes flew open and sure enough, I was still underwater.

  “You certainly know how to make an entrance.” A vaguely familiar voice spoke from the doorway, or rather archway to wherever I was. Her voice was different and surprisingly normal but she was still the same. Cora floated in the door way with her slender arms crossed over her naked chest. I went to speak but she held up a hand. “I doubt your voice box has adjusted to whatever Poseidon has done to you. Save your words.”

  I looked at her in surprised and horror. Poseidon? It couldn’t be! There was no way! But I guessed it did make sense. I had already been in the presence of two gods, what was a third?

  “He brought you here and saved your life, along with your brawny friend.” She rolled her eyes.

  I searched the room for him, guilty I forgotten that he should have been with me. “Crawley?” This time my voice worked perfectly and came out clear.

  “I don’t know his name or anything about him really, he was sleeping when he arrived, just like you.”

  I sat up on the slab I had been laid across and didn’t know how to proceed. Did I wa
lk? Did I swim? I let my legs dangle off the side as I thought through my options.

  “Where is he?” I asked, worriedly.

  “The barracks, where else? He looks like a soldier, my father thought it would be the perfect fit.” Cora laughed as if she had made a joke but I didn’t find it at all funny. She rolled her eyes at my seriousness. “My father is down there with him for when he wakes up, though not for long, my mother is in labor.”

  She said it so nonchalantly that I almost missed the last part.

  “Congratulations!” I spit out as I tried to follow her out of the room. I tried to swim but failed miserably. I ended up on the coral floor. I had to practically climb to get myself out of the room. Cora poked her head in and gave me a guilty smile.

  “Sorry about that, I forget that our castle has spells, sometimes. You won’t be able to swim on your own, your body probably feels like lead.” She grabbed my hand and yanked me through the doorway then down the hall. I could hardly believe my eyes.

  My brain hadn’t registered exactly where I was when I had awoken. I was in an underwater castle, an underwater city. To say I was stunned would be an understatement.

  Everything functioned like any city on land, though this was a more medieval scale. Every time we passed an opening in the castle walls, I couldn’t help myself from obsessing over the view. Venders pushed carts in front of them while they swam about and there were little shops lined up along each other but also stacked high. Everything was built out of colorful coral and seashells. I had never experienced anything like it and felt a longing to stay, to forget my troubles and find a way to grow a tail.

  “It’s the magic around the city, you should see Atlantis, you would be a goner for sure.” As she spoke I became aware of the fact that she wasn’t slurring her words like she had on land.

  “What happened to your voice?” My question came out slowly, afraid I would offend the fearsome mermaid grasping my hand.

  “Nothing, the water and air carry my voice differently.” She shrugged. “It’s a mermaid thing, I suppose. But I am still young. With time and practice, I probably won’t sound like that anymore. My parents sound just like humans on land.”

  Cora picked up the speed of her swimming and my head spun. No matter how hard I tried, I couldn’t get my head to stop spinning.

  “Sorry about that, I forget that human’s bodies are different than ours.” Cora said as she stopped in a bright green doorway. “Everything around our city is color coded. We have no problem with writing but we don’t stop to read much.” She let go of my hand and let me drift to the floor, once more. I slowly made my way to the doorway and followed her in.

  I didn’t know why I was so anxious to see Crawley but I was certain it probably had to do with the fact that we hadn’t been apart since I had found him. Even though he had found himself and we had broken most of the god’s foolery, all it took was him to be away from me too long and the spelling to come back. I didn’t trust the gods and I didn’t trust us being apart.

  There were a group of mermen crowding a slab of coral in the back of the room. There were food carts being swam in from the back and when we got closer I realized why. They were feeding Crawley, giving him his every desire. There were even a few mermaids fawning around him. I felt my jaw go slack. I couldn’t believe what I was seeing… Again.

  “What is going on here?” The authority in Cora’s voice had the mermen scattering away from Crawley. He finally looked up and gave me a sheepish smile.

  A merman with a golden chest plate came forward and bowed before Cora. “Your Highness, we had been given orders by your father to give our guests whatever they desire.” His eyes briefly flicked to me before he continued. “He said he was hungry. We brought him plenty of food, we can scent desire in the air so we brought him…” He looked to my feet standing and then to the ceiling.

  Cora helped him out a bit by responding before I could. “Human men sometimes have a certain desire while they are awaking. Nothing to be worried with or taken care of.” She shooed the very pouty mermaids away.

  I didn’t know why I was so jealous. We had already established that Apollo had been behind our relationships and we needed to get back to ourselves. Though, for some reason I couldn’t. I just kept going back to him and he kept staying in my thoughts, no matter how hard I tried to get him out of them.

  “Your father told us to entice him to stay.” The soldier bowed low before returning to Crawley’s side.

  “Absolutely not!” I said, just as Crawley looked up at me. The smile that had stretched across his face immediately fell. He had been holding a blonde mermaids hand and dropped that too. She wrinkled her nose at me with disgust and I rolled my eyes. Even though I couldn’t swim in these waters, I wasn’t afraid of a mermaid, or really anything after going head to head with Apollo. Facing a god would do that to you.

  “What is it with you and blondes?” I asked in disgust.

  “They’re the opposite of you.” He grabbed the mermaid’s hand and yanked her down to his side. He stroked the side of her face, all while looking at me. “Fair, porcelain skin and blue, blue eyes.”

  That was when I realized she was the only mermaid in the room that resembled a human. I turned to Cora with a dumbfounded expression.

  I watched as she gulped. “Meet Cristoff’s new toy.”

  Crawley smirked at me while stroking her chin and then her neck. Red hot, fiery rage coated my blood and I knew it wouldn’t be good if he kept on. His smile just got bigger and bigger. I didn’t know why it bothered me so. Our relationship had been fake. All of it fake but this jealousy was very real.

  “Captain Kert over there happened to mention that I could stay, that Cristoff could do the same to me.” He motioned to the blonde perched beside him.

  “Yes, this is true. That’s how she is here, through his magic.” Cora gave me a worried glance. Something wasn’t right.

  Crawley popped a sushi roll into his mouth and smiled as he chomped away. I marched straight to him and knocked the plate from his lap then pushed the vender out next. I had a growing suspicion that the food was clouding his judgment. Cora frowned but her expression said that she agreed.

  I then gave Ms. Blondie the meanest look I could muster and pointed to the doorway. She reluctantly complied. Crawley was giving me a curious look but seemed bored. It had been awhile since I had seen that expression and I loathed it.

  Whatever compassionate side Crawley had gained was now gone and the snarky bastard was back in full throttle. It was as if the water had cleansed what Apollo had done to him. But he was acting worse than usual so I chalked it up to being something else. Probably more of Apollo’s tricks. Or even better: Poseidon’s. We already had two gods on our tails, what was one more?

  Who was next? Zeus?

  “Crawley, I need you to snap out of it and get it together. We are here for a reason.”

  Cora leaned against another slab of coral in exasperation. “Finally! I’ve been waiting to hear this!”

  “You never went back to Apollo’s Prison.” I didn’t ask a question, I knew with everything in me that Kristoff wouldn’t have let her go back.

  “We didn’t, though I can’t say anything about the others. Well, other.”

  “What do you mean ‘other’?” There had to be more left!

  “It’s just Cent now.” Cora took a deep breath as the pain washed through her again.

  “Kristoff didn’t make it?” I didn’t know whether I was relieved with my question or saddened by it. He hadn’t ever cared for me anyhow.

  “No, he’s still alive but he’s different. We all changed in there but he changed more. He got me here and then retreated to his housing on the outskirts of the city. He’s been mostly alone except for when my father calls upon him, which isn’t often anymore.” Her words sliced through me because she was right, we were all different and this wasn’t over yet.

  “I’m going back.”

  “There’s no way! You wouldn’t
be able to find it without powerful magic!” Her words came out shrill.

  “Good thing I have some good stuff running through my veins. I’ve been searching for each of you, hoping you would help me.”

  Cora looked sad and didn’t reply back to me.

  “Please, Cora, I need all the help I can get. I have to do something.” A sob tore its way from my throat. “I can’t let anymore suffer in there.”

  “And what if he builds another one?” She shook her head in disbelief.

  “If I know about it, I’ll find it and I’ll tear it down too.” I could feel my eyes burn but knew I wouldn’t shed the tears that were forming. Then for a brief moment I wondered if mermaids could cry or if it didn’t matter.

  Water is water, I guess.

  My words must have ignited Crawley’s fire once again because he stood tall next to me. “I don’t know what’s in that food but it turned me sour. I think I’m back but I agree that we can’t go alone.”

  “I wish there was something I could do.” Cora’s head hung in defeat.

  “Why can’t you help us?” Crawley’s voice came out angry but I didn’t understand why. I couldn’t understand the crazy personality issues he was having at the moment and I couldn’t waste time trying either.

  “Because my mother is in labor or she was early this morning. I can’t leave my kingdom. There is no telling how long that can take, I must stay with my people.” She held her head high even though her eyes held defeat and sadness. “There is something I can do for you, I can take you to Cristoff. If anyone can help you, it’s him.”

  Chapter 17

  Crawley

  My eyes were still burning, even though we had been underwater for a good couple of hours. I still wasn’t sure. Jessa chose to take Cora’s hand and have her help her through the labyrinth of a castle. I had eyed the blonde, Myr, and considered her help but I knew it wouldn’t help me get back into Jessa’s good graces. I didn’t know why I liked to tease her so much but maybe it was the fact that she was adorable when she was pissed?