Page 29 of Alien Triton's Prize

Soon, there was an announcement that the first participants were rounding the last corner. Algrim was still clutching the cables, his body tense as he scanned up and down the water column. Cetia and I joined him, and I mentally prayed that Cetius was okay.

Cetius was the second to round the corner after a green and yellow triton, swimming just a little above the center of the water column. Iravan was next, just a short distance behind. Higher up the water column, the red and orange Thalassonian came into view. At first, there was no sign of the selach, but then a huge form suddenly slammed into the cables at the corner as the giant beast slowed to bank the turn. It was up by the top nets, and its eyes were still firmly on the red and orange guy.

Just then there was a loud gasp, and all heads turned to look lower. What I saw had my blood running cold.

There was an arrow, so big it might as well be a spear, sticking out of Cetius’s chest. What the fuck?

Iravan had passed him for a second but immediately went back to help him, pulling him by the shoulder. The scent of bloodin the water caught the selach’s attention and it immediately turned and torpedoed toward my husband.

The sea serpent was strong, but with the additional drag of Cetius’s weight they were both going to become the selach’s dinner.

“Do something!” I yelled, looking around wildly.

Cetia grabbed my hand and swam toward the organizers lined up at the finish line. They were all just floating there with stunned looks on their faces.

By the time we got to them, the red and orange triton had dived down to help with the rescue effort; the green and yellow one had doubled back as well. There was no honor in winning due to foul play. The red and orange one grabbed Cetius as the green and yellow one distracted the selach. Together, they swam for the finish line.

My heart was pounding in my chest as they hauled him through the cables to safety. My legs were already moving, flutter kicking me down to meet him even as Cetia pulled me along.

Cetius was unconscious, the arrow still sticking out of him.

I latched onto his body desperately.

Everything that happened next was a blur. There were bright lights and people asking questions, and soon I was being pulled away as healers rushed to his side.

I struggled to get back to him, but a strong arm pulled me away. When I finally turned around, I saw that it was Algrim’s claws digging into my arm.

And he was smiling.

Chapter 15

Cetius

Would that incessant beeping just fuckingstopalready? Ugh.

My head was pounding as badly as it had that time I’d drunk too much juice from a landbound fruit and it had messed up my salt balance. My right shoulder was burning. And I could have done without this strange medicinal scent in the water. I blinked twice and found myself staring up at an unfamiliar ceiling. A very plain, very unfamiliar ceiling.

Beeep.

I whipped my head around to glare at the offending piece of machinery, only to have the room start to spin around me.

“Easy, Cetius.” My grandsire’s voice brought me fully back to…wherever here was.

I glanced around the room, this time without turning my head so violently. The sterile, soft green walls of a healing facility met my gaze. They’d put me in a private room, and aside from my healing pod, there was only a small table and two chairs. The only natural light came from a tiny circular opening in the wall.

Cetia sat in one of the chairs. The strands of flowers in her head quills looked ragged, as if she’d been clawing at them.

Iravan grinned at me with his arms crossed, leaning against the wall. “Welcome back to the ocean, my friend.”

The image of him, a lot less calm and frantically pulling at me and screaming at me to swim suddenly came rushing back to me. The Selach Swim!

I remembered feeling something hit me and shove me back, then staring in disbelief at the arrow in my shoulder, followed by an overwhelming tiredness. Then Iravan was there, dragging me toward the finish line, the selach close behind.

I looked down at the pulsing pain in my shoulder and found it tightly wrapped. “Iravan, thank you. I remember now.”

Something didn’t add up, though. An arrow in the shoulder wouldn’t account for me being completely immobilized, especially with a selach after me. But Cetia was ready with the answer.

“I can’t believe that stinking pile of selach shit had you shot with a poisoned arrow.” Her nervous energy had turned to anger now. “Nerial is going to rot in lockup for this.”

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