Page 5 of Ocean's Whisper

"Just let me—" Nereus began.

"I can't swim well! The current's too strong!" The scientist's voice cracked with panic.

Nereus resisted the urge to roll his eyes. "That's why I'm here. Hold onto my shoulder and keep calm."

He positioned the man across his back, feeling the human's fingers dig into his shoulder. The added weight meant nothing to him—he could have carried ten humans if needed. With powerful strokes, he swam through the water back to shore, depositing the shivering man on the beach.

"Stay there," he ordered, not waiting for acknowledgement before plunging back into the water.

The next victim was a young woman with a gash across her forehead, blood mixing with seawater. She clung weakly to a plastic equipment case.

"You're bleeding," Nereus observed, treading water beside her.

"Brilliant observation," she managed through chattering teeth. "Are you my rescue or just making conversation out here?"

Despite himself, Nereus's mouth twitched with amusement. "Both, apparently." He slipped an arm around her waist, noticing immediately how her breath hitched at his touch. Humans were so predictable. "Hold tight."

He swam her to shore with practiced efficiency, placing her beside the first survivor. "Apply pressure to that cut."

The third and fourth victims were clinging to the same piece of debris—a lab door that had somehow remained intact. The young man looked on the verge of hypothermia while the older woman seemed more collected.

"Thank god," the woman called as Nereus approached. "I was sure we would die."

"I've got you now," Nereus assured them, moving with efficient authority. "Ma'am, hold onto my right shoulder. You, on my left. Don't fight the water, let me do the work."

"Who are you?" the young man asked through chattering teeth as they made their way toward shore.

"The guy saving your asses right now," Nereus replied bluntly. "Questions later."

After depositing them on shore, he turned back to the water, scanning for the fifth victim. His enhanced senses detected a faint splashing nearly fifty yards farther out than the others had been. Someone was being pulled out by the retreating currents.

With a muttered curse, Nereus sprinted back into the surf, his powerful legs propelling him through the breaking waves. The pull tugged him in the same direction—an interesting coincidence he filed away until he saved this last person.

He finally spotted the last survivor—a man in his sixties struggling to keep his head above water, having lost whatever makeshift flotation device he'd been clinging to. The man's strength was clearly flagging.

Nereus doubled his speed, his muscles burning pleasantly with the exertion. "Stop fighting!" he commanded as he approached. "Float on your back!"

The older scientist complied instantly, responding to the natural authority in Nereus's voice. Nereus reached him in moments, turning him into a rescue position.

"I thought... I was gone," the man gasped as Nereus began towing him toward shore.

"Not on my watch," Nereus replied firmly. "My territory, my responsibility."

The scientist gave him an odd look. "Your territory?"

"Figure of speech," Nereus corrected smoothly. "Hold still, we're almost there."

Nereus hauled the older scientist onto the shore, his muscles barely registering the weight. The man collapsed onto the sand beside the other survivors, coughing up seawater and trembling. Nereus stepped back, scanning the huddled group with critical eyes. Five scientists, all looking shell-shocked but very much alive. The emergency in front of him was handled, but the urgent pull within him remained unsatisfied.

He clenched his jaw. The pulsation hadn't intensified in their presence. His Luna wasn't among them.

"Is there anyone else?" he demanded, his tone holding the natural command of centuries of leadership. "Anyone missing from your facility?"

A sudden dread flooded through him. Where was she?

THREE

NEREUS

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