37. 37 #2
His voice drops to barely a whisper. "So when I felt you slipping away .
. ." A sharp, violent tremor rippled through his locked jaw.
"It felt like I was breaking apart from the inside.
Every second your life faded, something inside me fractured with it.
I had only just accepted what you were to me, and then . . . I thought I was going to lose you.
“Just before the Mordyth released you, Defymin landed a final strike and twisted his spear, piercing the beast’s heart.
Its death was instant. And the moment it relinquished you, I was already moving—Lady Naeryss beside me.
Our efforts to reach you were close, especially with the speed at which the Mordyth was falling; it would have crushed you entirely.
And when we did reach you, her hand went to your chest, casting the spell that stabilized you until we could get you here. I haven't left since.”
His words hit me harder than any strike from the Mordyth ever could.
“I haven't slept. Damn it, Sarah, I haven't even eaten. I've refused everything until I knew you were okay.”
The pain in his voice is raw, trembling with something far deeper than anger.
His eyes are dangerously glassy, a heavy moisture hovering on the brink.
Tears continue to gather, catching the spring light, and I realize this isn’t the Orion I’ve come to know.
The flirtatious, untouchable king I’ve seen so far feels worlds away from the male drifting before me now.
Maybe this side of him isn’t new at all. Maybe I’ve just never let him show it.
“I've been scared,” he admits, voice low.
“The moment you truly accepted your magic as your own, and not my father’s, was the moment I felt the bond start to awaken.
I was skeptical at first, testing it little by little, relying on what little I already knew.
But I needed to know if you felt anything, too.
When I saw no change in your behavior toward me, I began using my hydro-senses to feel your emotions.
Then, one day, I didn't have to. They would just .
. . appear. In my heart, in my mind—even when you weren't near me.
“Then your emotions evolved into something deeper, into thoughts. I began to hear them. I know things you think I do not. The way you have admired my physique, my facial features . . . the way your body reacts in ways you have yet to understand.”
My eyes widened. “You’ve been able to hear those this entire time?”
“Well, yes, until I taught you how to close off your thoughts from the rest of your mind. It makes it harder for anyone to intrude—even your sea mate. But I hate that you have hid your true thoughts and feelings from me, Snapdragon.”
I don’t even know how to approach his confession. “Why are you telling me all of this now? Why does it matter? I will eventually return home and all of this will have been just one very elaborate dream,” I blurt, the words tumbling out before I can stop them.
“It matters for one reason,” he says boldly.
“In two days’ time, when the full moon rises and the tides are at their highest, you must enter Current Three, Stillness Before the Storm, in the Echo Cavern.
It's the final test of not just your heart, but your mind.
The most difficult of the three. A never-ending battle against yourself.
It's meant to break you down until you can find your worth and rebuild yourself again. And I could not, in good conscience, send you into that without being honest about where I stand.”
His gaze softens, as his shoulders droop in defeat.
“Whether you decide to stay and help us fight this unknown evil—or if, after this current, you choose to return to your home on the surface—I will at least know I was truthful about how I feel. And what you mean to me. What you are to me. Not human. Not friend. But sea mate.”
My body stiffens, and my mind freezes. I want to speak, to pour out a response, but my lips won’t move. The intensity of his words press down on me, leaving me speechless.
A ripple breaks through the water, releasing the tension. Both Orion and I whirl toward the disturbance.
Nyxalene and Nyra glide into the spring, their eyes sharp as they settle on me.
“Well, well, land-dweller, you're alive,” she says with a small grin. “How are you holding up?”
Her voice is level, but there’s a playful lilt beneath it.
“With the Currents of Mastery coming to an end, most of the finlings have graduated and been assigned as Pearlguards, guarding their first posts.
My hands have been full, but I wanted to see how you were doing.
And, since I haven't seen Orion in a while, I figured this would be exactly where I'd find him.”
The nickname is growing on me. I can’t help but let a small smile tug at my lips. Maybe next time I’ll tease her back about her siren titles, I think, letting the warmth of familiarity wash over me despite the lingering tension in the water.
Her sudden presence leaves both of us caught off guard, but I welcome it. I doubt there’s much more I would have to say to Orion anyway.
I suppress a laugh, the tension in my chest easing just a fraction. “I’m not collapsing . . . yet, so I’ll take that as a win,” I quip, letting a spark of humor slip through.
I unlock my mental barrier, the simplicity of it now not requiring extra thought as Nyra's energy bursts through.
Ah, the human lives. Barely.
Good to see you too, Nyra.
Nyra couldn't have joined me for the Current Two challenge, even if she wanted to. Bringing her along would've been considered cheating, giving my team an unfair advantage over the others who would have to complete their challenge with someone like her.
With the state I've been in, I haven't had the mental clarity to think of her. The pain, the injuries, the constant slipping in and out of consciousness have consumed every thought I've managed to hold onto. There hasn't been room for anything beyond the next breath and the next time I woke.
But now, with her here, something inside me eases. Her presence reminds me of all the friends I've made since coming to Virellan, of the connections I've formed despite being human and from the surface.
Nyxalene twitches her lips in amusement, and even Orion allows the corner of his mouth to lift, though it's so miniscule, I almost feel like my eyes are playing tricks on me. The three of us hover in a delicate balance, the spring’s glow reflecting the quiet intimacy of this shared moment, each of us caught between unspoken thoughts and the bonds—or duties—that tie us together.
As if sensing the tension dripping down the cavern walls, she turns her gaze to Orion. “Give me a private moment with her,” she requests softly, respectfully. “There are a few things I want to discuss with her.”
The respect he holds for Nyxalene is clear.
Their relationship is easily understood, but it goes deeper than the surface shows.
A bond that surpasses the normal duties and responsibilities of a general to her king.
They're family. At this moment, the look she gives him isn’t that of a general.
No, it’s the look of a sister. Without question, he leaves.
Nyra follows him as well, not testing Nyxalene's request.
I'll see you later, Nyra, I say down our bond.
She flicks her head back and gives me a clear smile below her snout. Of course, human.
I close up the mental barrier again, turning my attention to the question Nyxalene is asking me.
“Was he pushing it on you again?” she asks, a soft smile curving her lips.
“No. Yes . . . Maybe,” I reply. “I think he was mostly being honest . . . In a way that made him feel better.”
“Well, good. Don't let him think he has the edge.”
“Oh, never,” I say, smiling. I decide it's best not to mention the kiss Orion planted on me with Nyxalene.
Even though our relationship has become closer, that information needs to come directly from Orion.
Besides, I genuinely don't want to discuss it out loud.
Doing so would mean acknowledging it for real, and I'm not ready for that.
“Are you ready for Current Three?” she asks.
“Well, considering he just informed me exactly what it entails, I'm unsure,” I admit. “But I do know I’m ready to leave this spring, even if its beauty is unlike anything I’ve ever seen.”
“Oh, this old space? It’s nothing compared to many other great locations throughout Virellan,” she adds. “Stay with us after Current Three, and we'll show you whatever you want to see.”
“All the effort it has taken to gain your trust, and all I had to do was basically die?” I joke.
“What you did was courageous,” she admits, “but I won't lie, I mostly didn't feel like dealing with a brother who lost his sea mate. He's insufferable enough as is.”
I laugh harder than I probably should, and gradually, thoughts of what my life might be like if I stayed in Virellan surface. Nyxalene and I may have started off on the wrong foot, but now I know I could trust her with my life, even if she will never let me forget it.