Underwater Cities
Chapter Seven
SADIE
The closer we get to the light, the brighter the area surrounding it becomes.
Shapes begin to emerge from the darkness. Hundreds, if not thousands, of tall, white pillars spiral upward from the ocean floor, with winding paths of glowing algae floating between them. The algae pulses softly with bioluminescent light, shimmering in the otherwise-black ocean.
My heart stutters. Dad always said that the ocean held secrets, but I never considered that he was right. Sadness overwhelms me as I realize he'll never see this. I assume he’s dead. If Kyros didn’t kill him, the storm surely did.
The pain is enough to derail me, but I force any thoughts of my father and Tipper down. I need to focus on the present—on whatever this is. I can mourn and scream and rage later, but this moment is about survival.
I need to survive.
The algae glows brighter as we near, and the structures become clearer. The pillars aren’t natural rock formations. They’re created. Balconies spiral around them, and open archways lead into hollow chambers. Buildings? Homes?
This isn’t possible. It can’t be real.
The pillars and algae spread out as far as I can see. It’s a city.
The grip on my arm tightens, and I turn my head. Crimson-speckled eyes are looking at me, narrowed and full of poorly-concealed hatred.
Kyros.
He readjusts his grip, emotion flashing across his face for half a second before vanishing.
This isn’t real. It can’t be. I’m in shock. Maybe I have a concussion. Or perhaps I’m still sleeping—having a horror-filled dream about our newest crew member. That’s the only explanation.
Something beneath Kyros catches the algae light.
I look down.
Not legs.
I blink, trying and failing to make sense of what I’m seeing. Kyros’s legs are gone, and in their place…a tail. A massive, shimmering crimson tail. The fins aren’t the blunt, hard shape of a fish but rather layered and fluid, like the petals of some underwater flower.
When he snaps his tail, the entire thing moves with a slow, mesmerizing ripple.
It’s beautiful.
Terrifying.
On the sides of his head, beside his ears, are crimson fins. They’re subtle, hidden partially behind his hair.
My brain finally catches up. Kyros isn’t human. He’s—God. I’m such a fucking idiot. Dad was right.
My body jerks violently as I try to pull away.
“Get off me!” I shout. My words dissolve into useless bubbles.
Kyros frowns at me, then makes a sharp, chirping sound. The noise echoes strangely through the water, traveling straight through me. He says something else, another odd series of clicks and chirps.
I stare at him.
“I don’t understand you, idiot!”
Kyros’s brows pull together. He makes another series of chirps, slower this time. Is he repeating himself? I shake my head wildly. I still don’t understand.
“Where’s my dad? Tipper?” I force out. "What did you do to them?"
He exhales sharply through his nose, bubbles flying, before turning away. With another powerful flick of his tail, we’re gliding through the water again.
I twist in his grip, trying to break free as he brings us toward the glowing city, but my attempts are useless. Kyros was strong on the boat, but his strength in the water is unmatched. He doesn’t spare me another glance as he pulls me deeper into the city.
The spiraling towers grow larger around us, and shapes begin moving along the winding paths. Mer. My stomach drops as I meet several pairs of glowing eyes. They’re watching us.
Dad was right.
Merpeople are real, and I’m being taken to their home. City. Whatever they call it.
Something massive moves in the darkness beyond the glowing city perimeter. A gigantic black shadow glides along the outer rim, its body long and serpentine. Rows of jagged fins ripple along its back as it circles the glowing structures.
Another shape appears. Then another. The massive animals patrol the outer edges of the city, keeping to the darker water, where the bioluminescent light fades. Their eyes occasionally glint as they pass through the faint glow.
Kyros swims straight through an opening as if the monsters were nothing more than decorative statues. Whatever they are, he clearly isn’t concerned with them. Do they guard the city? Seems so.
I twist my body again, trying to pull free, but Kyros tightens his grip hard enough to hurt. The message is clear. I’m not going anywhere.
I need to survive.
The moment we officially enter the city, the water changes. The current around us shifts, becoming smoother. Warmer, too. My limbs are no longer stiff, now moving freely.
Long, flowing streams of water move between the white, spiraling towers like invisible roads, and the algae hanging from the balconies sways with them. Some of the currents are warm, brushing against my skin like bathwater. Others are cold.
Merpeople are everywhere. They move with the water rather than fight against it—their massive, vibrant tails flicking lazily as they slip between flowing streams. Every head is turned in my direction, and my stomach roils as the first person slows beside us.
He’s male. At least, his upper body is. His tail is blue, the scales so light they look almost white in certain lighting. His upper body is broad and muscular, and his skin is pale beneath the bioluminescent light.
His eyes widen as he looks down my body, lingering on my exposed legs. Then he chirps something sharply at Kyros.
Two more merpeople appear seconds later. Then five.
Before I knew it, we’ve drawn a crowd. Men and women circle us cautiously, their tails flicking in what seems like aggression. Their voices rise in rapid bursts of chirps and clicking sounds, but I can’t make sense of any of them.
They don't sound friendly.
There are even children. A small girl with bright-green scales peeks out from behind a woman’s tail, her wide eyes locked on me as if I were the strangest creature she’d ever seen. I suppose I am.
More chirping erupts around us, the sounds cutting through the water in sharp pulses.
Questions? Arguments, maybe.
Kyros answers none of them. He pulls me through the glowing streets, ignoring the gathering crowd. We continue until one structure rises above the rest: a massive, spiraling fortress of white stone.
The crowd parts as we approach, merpeople scattering out of our path.
The entrance to the…estate?…is nothing more than an archway carved directly into white stone. Glowing algae lines the walls, creeping up them like vines and illuminating the area with soft, blue-green light.
Kyros drags me inside without slowing. The building opens into a vast chamber. Is it only me who can’t see the darkest corners? Probably. I’m willing to bet the merpeople have adapted to this dim light.
Maybe that’s what the red specks in Kyros’s eyes are.
Corridors branch off in every direction. There are a few merpeople inside, their chirping conversations halting the moment they see me. Their heads snap in my direction, shock written all over their eerily human-like faces.
A male nearby drops the bundle of glowing algae he’s carrying.
Kyros chirps something, and two men spin around and take off, venturing deeper into the estate. I’m pulled in the opposite direction, dragged through corridor after corridor until I’ve long lost track of the way out.
The water gradually grows colder. Darker, too. The algae lining the walls becomes sparse, taking the light with it. Something about this feels wrong. Dangerous.
Where is he taking me?
My head is feeling like it just might pop when the corridor opens up into a massive, circular pit. I thrash in Kyros’s arms, but it’s no use. There’s a pocket of air in the upper half of the room, and carved into the wall above the waterline is a long, smooth slab of stone.
Kyros finally releases my arm. It’s only for a split second before he grabs the front of my soaked pajama shirt and hauls me through the air pocket. My back slams against the stone slab, the cold biting into my exposed skin.
I scramble back.
Staring at me, his eyes peeking above the surface of the water, is a fucking merman.