Page 62 of Poseidon's Island Flower

But he was opening up to me. He was taking me on a date, a date of the freaking century. I mean who rents a boat, taking you to a “surprise” under the sea? Not many.

As Cy pulled me deeper into the depths, my body adapted to the pressure. I thought going this deep beneath the ocean should make me gasp for breath and want to return to the surface. But it didn’t.

It felt normal. Like breathing air on land.

I looked up, the fear weigh on me once again. The sunlight had difficulty penetrating the deep layers, making it harder to reach the bottom.

Dolphins up above rushed from the surface. They dove deeper until they circled Cy and me, and we stopped to admire their dance. Flips, yells, and clicks distracted me from the intrusive thoughts of never finding my way back to the surface, and Cy squeezed my hand.

“If you feel we need to return to the surface quickly, we can,” Cy said. “Just grab onto their fins. They will take you where you want to go.”

His reassurance filled my confidence, and a dolphin swam up to my side. “Grab on, we are going to go a little faster.”

How he knew these dolphins would listen to him, I didn’t know. Right now, I didn’t want to question it because I was excited about the twinkling lights below. We were heading straight for it, and I secretly hoped it was some underwater laboratory where he worked.

I needed to know how he could control these animals, how he understood them.

The dolphins took us lower at a blinding speed. I didn’t have time to scream or worry anymore because before I knew it, we were hovering over a large volcano crater.

Above the crater sat an orb the size of a baseball. As Cy moved closer to it, it grew brighter, waiting for him. He let go of my hand. But the dolphins stayed by my side for my comfort.

“There is a lot you don’t know about me, and I’m sure you have questions.”

That is an understatement.

I swallowed, nodding. The sensation of my hand gliding across the dolphin's side as it swam beside me was quite calming.

“And I will answer them all.”

My eyes lit up with excitement. I wanted to know everything. I wanted to know what secrets he had. Instead of telling me, he was going to show me. And I couldn’t be more excited.

Sure, we’ve known each other a week, but it felt longer. I was more comfortable with him than any other person I’d ever known.

Cy’s hand rotated above the ball with his finger, creating a whirlpool of water until its cone enlarged. The dolphins pulled me away so I wouldn’t get pulled into the current, and it descended further into the crater of the old volcano.

A blinding white light erupted inside the crater, it held its brightness for seconds before surging once more, then it dissipated.

Bubbles ascended, taking the balls of light with them. As they popped, the light faded, and I rubbed my eyes to rid the black spots from my vision—just like when you stare into the sun too long.

Cy placed his hand on my lower back. He waved for the dolphins to depart and pulled me downward. My eyes adjusted as we descended further, and I was surprised I didn’t feel the coldness of the depths.

Instead, warmth radiated from the sea floor.

Was it the volcano erupting?

I gasped, my eyes widening at the sight before me.

A city. It was a city of bioluminescent flora and fauna, and it all glowed. Beautiful fins and scales lit up this underwater paradise.

This is some Twilight Zone shit.

Instead of screaming in fear, I looked on in awe.

All around the perimeter was large sea kelp, blue and purple with silver flecks on its stems. It was a vast forest that appeared after the ball of light exploded. The forest surrounded the crater, it stretched not just around the crater but up the ridges of rock and down into the once barren sea floor.

Fish, eels, and large seahorses weaved in and out of the kelp. I thought I saw faces but as soon as they appeared, they vanished. I gripped Cy’s hand tightly, wanting to stop, but we continued to descend into the abandoned city.

This abandoned city wasn’t overrun with plant growth or taken over by the animals as a new habitat. It was ready for inhabitants.

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