Page 63 of Song of the Abyss

Daios

He let her leave his grip, and it was one of the hardest things he’d ever done in his life. Him, a terrifying warrior who had spent his entire life defending the People of Water from whatever beast hunted them. Daios had fought sharks with his bare hands. Tore achromos apart with his claws and watched them bleed to death in the waters as giant squid fed upon them. He had fought and battled his entire life.

But his fingers wanted to lock around her tiny form. He hated seeing her rise to the surface without him. He hated even more taking that tentacle out of her neck where they were connected.

He pulled it slowly, making sure there was no pain for her as he did so. And with that connection severed, he knew he should leave.

Now was the time for him to go back to his life before Anya. Most of the others here had set up a temporary home for themselves. Some in the old homes of the achromos, others making nests in the sand with stones that they hauled from all over the seas. But he had done none of that yet.

The only way he felt like he could control himself was when he was moving. So he would let her go into the arms of her own kind, and then he would turn his attention to the next job where he had to risk his life. The next mission where he might die. But that was all right. If he died saving his people, then that was a worthy death.

The watery surface above him reflected the image of Mira walking over to the edge of the moon pool. That achromo would take care of his. Mira was a feisty little thing with more bite than most, but she would fiercely protect those that were hers.

She’d wanted Anya, after all. All of them had. They truly believed that the daughter of the General was the key piece in their puzzle. Perhaps they would ransom her to her father. Or perhaps they would pretend to kill her, so the General made a mistake in his anger. There were many options, and he was certain Arges had already thought about all of them.

“Psst.” The clicking noise interrupted his thoughts.

Frowning, he glanced down to see Maketes was poking his head underneath the moon pool as well. His brother stared up at Anya’s legs kicking in the water above their heads.

“Is she up there?” His yellow finned brother’s eyes gleamed. “Sure is pretty.”

“She can hear you.”

“I thought you said she couldn’t hear?” Maketes’s gills flared wide, faking a flutter, although it was almost convincing. “Pretty enough for someone like you or me to find tempting enough. How long do you think it’ll take for her to settle in?”

Thoughts pushed through his mind. Maketes might be smaller than him, but that was what all women liked. Smooth scales, fewer fins that were poking out in all directions. Handsome to both achromos and to the People of Water, Maketes was a good mate. No one knew why he hadn’t chosen one of their own people for his own, although Daios had a feeling it was that Maketes didn’t think he could survive a mating.

Still, it made him uncomfortable. Maketes wanted to give Anya attention, and that made him nervous.

This was someone she could make a life with. Someone who would treat her kindly. Maketes would make her laugh. It wouldn’t be so hard for her to feel like she knew him, even though Daios had done everything that he could to share bits of himself. He had told her about himself, but he wasn’t a man of words. He didn’t know how to tell her that he...

Baring his teeth in an angry snarl, he shot up into the air above the moon pool. Too fast, really. Water sprayed from around him and he knew he wore a nasty glare which would make everyone in the dome nervous. Even Anya’s eyes widened for a moment before her brows drew down in a frown.

“Daios?” she asked, her voice a little uncertain.

Now that he was up here, he didn’t know what to do. All he knew was that he was so angry at the thought of Maketes gaining some of her attention. He didn’t want anyone to know the little smiles she gave him, or the way her eyes wrinkled at the corners when she was happiest. He didn’t want them to know her favorite food or what she sounded like when she hummed so off key.

He wanted her all to himself, and that was selfish. Daios knew that. But he wasn’t willing to share any of her joy with others.

“I—” Struggling to find the words, he grunted instead. He placed his hand on her back underneath the water, hoping that the warmth of his palm would ease her fears.

Mira had changed a few things since the last time he’d stuck his head into her domain. There were more plants than ever, hanging from the ceiling and creating tendrils of vines that dripped above their head. The bed was hidden now in its own little room, a sheet hanging off of the ceiling that looked as though the sea had worn it down. Someone must have found that in the water for her, or stolen it from one of the city’s trash heaps.

Metal bits and bobs were everywhere. Thrown about in every direction that he could see, along with the tools she used to mend them. He could see at least four welders from where he was, and he was sure there were more if he looked a little harder.

Mira stood just beyond reach. With her arms crossed over her chest and her bright red hair billowing around her head, she was an intimidating creature to look at. That scowl reached deep into his soul, letting him know she thought he was nothing more than a nuisance.

She had a few more freckles dusted across her nose, a sight he found intensely uncomfortable. Humans shouldn’t be able to change their colors that easily. His kind couldn’t.

“Daios,” Mira said, her voice rusty even to his ears. “I see you actually brought her back. Do you have any idea how pissed I was when Arges told me your plan?”

“No more than you always are.”

“Okay, asshole. Listen to me. Next time you want to fuck up the plan that we have, maybe consider that you’re fucking up a lot more than just my personal life. Since you seem to enjoy doing that more than anyone else?—”

At least Mira’s rant stopped when a rusty squeak filled the room. Without thinking, he leaned over to nudge Anya’s chin so she looked over at the sound she couldn’t hear.

Byte rolled into the room. He’d gotten new wheels a while ago, some bigger ones that Arges had found on the bottom of the sea floor. But they were squeakier than the last ones, and that was saying something.

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