The Nymph King

'Atlantis.' Shaye swallowed a mouthful of salty liquid. 'The nymphs.'

'The who?' Kathleen's face scrunched in confusion. So did everyone else's—except Brenna's. She possessed an aura of determination, just like Shaye.

'I hate to swim,' one of the women said. 'I'm going home.'

'Me, too.'

'This is stupid.'

'I don't even know how I got here. Wasn't I at a wedding?' On and on they muttered as they swam back to the beach.

They were forgetting, just as the dragons had promised, and Shaye was suddenly afraid of the same happening to herself. Already Valerian's face was blurred in her mind. 'I won't forget,' she said between labored breaths.

'We have to get back,' Brenna wheezed.

They swam under and up for an hour longer. By then Shaye was shaking with fatigue. Tears streamed down her cheeks, tears of frustration and fury. If she didn't go back to shore, she would drown here. Brenna, too. The need to get back to... what was his name?

I will not forget. Valerian. Yes! That was it. His name was Valerian, and she loved him. 'One more dive,' she told Brenna.

Brenna was gasping for breath, but she nodded. 'Need. Joachim.'

If they failed to find the portal this time, they would swim back to shore and try again tomorrow. Try every day until they succeeded. When Shaye went under, the salt stung her eyes. But she pushed herself farther than ever before, Brenna at her side.

The ocean's bottom remained out of sight.

Shaye's arms and legs shook violently. Fish brushed against her. Damn this, she mentally cried. Brenna stopped moving, her hands and feet stilling, and Shaye grabbed on to her. She switched directions, angling upward. But it was too late. She'd pushed herself too far and didn't have the strength to swim the rest of the way up.

At first she panicked, flailing, opening her mouth, desperate to fill her burning lungs with oxygen. She swallowed more water instead. Still she retained a grip on her friend, trying to get them both to the top.

A strange blackness, thicker than any other darkness she'd ever encountered, began to weave through her mind. Then a flash of light sparked in her line of vision. A bubble floated in front of her, growing, growing, until it completely surrounded her and Brenna.

She spit out a mouthful of water and gasped for breath. Miraculously, she sucked in actual air. Wet hair clung to her face, but she didn't brush it aside. Couldn't. Was she dreaming? Dead? She dropped to her knees in front of Brenna, who lay unconscious. She'd never performed CPR, but she'd seen it done and mimicked the motions.

'Come on,' she panted. 'Come on.'

After a long while of pumping and breathing for her friend, Brenna coughed. Her eyes remained closed, but she, too, sucked in a breath of air. Depleted, Shaye sagged beside her.

'Foolish human,' a deep, thunderous voice growled. 'Why are you doing this? You nearly died, both of you. And for what?'

Her exhausted gaze circled the bubble. Water churned around it, but she couldn't see a person—inside or out. 'Where are you? Who are you?'

'I am Poseidon, God of the Sea.'

A god. A freaking god. 'Take me to Valerian,' she demanded.

He laughed. 'A command from a human. Your sense of humor pleases me. Unfortunately, your lover is already dead.'

'No.' Fierce despair tried to sink sharp claws inside of her. 'No. He can't be.'

Colorful sparks appeared just in front of her, solidifying into a male form. He was beautiful, more so than even Valerian. White hair framed an utterly masculine face. His eyes were as blue as the ocean, a liquid crystal, utterly hypnotic. They were almost neon, glowing, pulsing with energy and power.

'Valerian disobeyed the laws of Atlantis. He brought humans into the city.'

'He doesn't deserve to die for that,' she snarled at him, trying to gather the strength to rise. She could only lie there.

Poseidon smiled at her, an amused twitching of his sensual lips. 'I had forgotten how fierce you humans can be when someone you love is threatened. It is quite entertaining.'

'Take me to Valerian. Right now!'

He quickly lost his smile. 'Do you wish to die? With your every word, you are begging me to slay you.'

'Please.' She nearly curled into a sobbing heap. 'I just want Valerian.'

Poseidon studied her face for a long while, then studied Brenna's. His expression never softened. 'I told you, he is already dead.'

'No. I won't believe you until you show him to me. I would know if he was dead. I would feel it.'

Silence. Even the water refused to make noise.

Then, 'What would you give me if I allowed you to see him? To go to him?'

'Anything. Everything.' A huge black-and-white whale swam past her side, its majestic body consuming the area. She watched in amazement as it lowered its head to Poseidon.

'Your own life?' the god asked.

'Yes.'

He blinked in surprise.

'Have you never been in love?' she asked. 'Have you never craved another person so much you would rather die without them?'

'No,' he admitted. 'The concept is laughable at best.' Slowly he circled her, his hair like a curtain, ribboning in the air. His body was fluid, rippling like waves.

She maintained eye contact.

'I am not an evil god, but to send you back into Atlantis and allow the nymphs to live will make me appear soft. My people will continue to break the law.'

Joy thrummed through her because, with his words, he'd confirmed the nymphs were not yet dead, that there was still time. 'Or,' she said, 'they'll think you merciful and sing your praises and be happy to obey your every whim.'

His eyes narrowed, but not before she saw sparks of pleasure flickering in their depths. 'You think you are clever, don't you?'

'I just want to be with my man.'

There was a long pause. 'Watching one such as you battle with the nymph king could be amusing,' he said absently.

He wanted to be amused, did he? 'I'll give him nothing but trouble,' she promised. 'I'll turn his life upside down. I'll create absolute havoc.'

As she spoke, the god's expression became more and more excited. Visions of the coming trouble were rolling through his mind; she could see it in his eyes. 'Very well,' he said, and there was relish in his tone. 'I will allow you to reenter Atlantis.'

Her joy tripled, an avalanche of incomparable force. 'Thank you, thank you so much. Brenna, too, right?'

'I suppose.' He sighed.

'You will not regret this, I promise you.'

'However,' he continued as if she hadn't spoken, 'I will not stop the course I have set. I will allow the Fates to decide what befalls the nymphs. The dragons even now have them at their mercy—a mercy they do not possess.'

The bubble burst in the next instant, and water suddenly barraged her. She reached for Brenna but couldn't find her. Water shot inside her nostrils, her mouth, her lungs. A dark void closed around her, spinning her in every direction. Stars winked in and out. Then the water was sucked away, leaving only a tunnel.

She coughed and sputtered as she fell, tumbling headlong into an abyss. She wasn't frightened, though. She knew Valerian awaited her on the other end. Valerian. Her love, her life.

Suddenly her feet hit a solid foundation, jarring her all the way to her bones. She swayed, righted herself.