Page 64 of Pregnant With Their Babes

“Sir?”

“I said go!” Oz yelled. “And you don’t stop until its back in his hands. Do you hear me?”

“Aye, sir.”

He watched as the man departed before facing the cave entrance that hid the tunnels running under the castle. “Now… we go save our people.”

The cave was dark and damp once they clambered inside. Memories of he and Dagr escaping to play in the tidal pools along the stretch of beach came to mind. He never anticipated having to race through them to battle inside the castle walls. Oz lit a torch a few metres in and came to the split. One set took one down low into the caverns where they could get lost for days and days. Another set one on a collision course with a pit no one had ever escaped.

The final set came to a dead end. Unless someone knew of the secret switch.

The last time he’d used it, he’d been a lean boy of thirteen. Now, he was nearly thirty-five, muscled, and found the narrow passage too tight. He and his men had to wedge themselves through. Once past, he and Dagr led the men to avoid the boobytraps that had been left behind by their ancestors. Fortunately his memory served him well. They bypassed all but one.

Which luckily misfired.

They finally reached the passage into the castle that brought them into his father’s antechamber. Oz could hear the clash of metal upon metal and screams not too far away. He raced toward the throne room and froze at the sight.

The Draugar had slayed most of his father’s guard and hung in a semi-circle around the space. A gigantic naked man with a long gray beard and a crown pointed a gigantic trident at the middle of his father’s chest.

“First you steal her andnowmy son! Return him! Or I’ll leave your realm in ruin!”

“Idon’thave your son!” Oz’s father cried.

Oz rushed in, sword and pistol drawn. He put himself in front of his father.

“Oswald! No!” his father screamed.

“I have your son!” Oz screamed at the Sea King, ignoring his father’s command. “Llyr is ours now.”

The Sea King swung his trident at Oz. “Prince to you,human—he’s royalty under the sea. Where he belongs.”

Oz turned to see Dagr at his side. He cocked a look to the huge man before him. “He belongs here. We claimed him for ourselves.”

The huge man swelled in size, his legs transformed into a massive tail that flopped over the marble floor in shades of green and blue. The trident grew in size, too—and it was still aimed in the middle of his chest.

“Father! No!” Llyr screamed, thrusting himself between the trident and Oz.

* * *

The moment Oz and Dagr were rowing away, Llyr heard the sounds of the Draugar approaching. The crew left onboard stiffened, holding their swords aloft. He could almost scent their fear. The second he saw the first sign of the Draugar approaching, he realized he had to protect the crew from another attack. He climbed onto the railing and dove into the crystal blue waters below.

The water was cold enough to take his breath away. His new human-like body was warmer and unaccustomed to the temperature. Between that and his clothing, swimming was more difficult for him—but he soon kicked his new legs and swam toward the dead things stalking him.

He had to get to his father and stop him from harming Oz or the human king. Even if it meant having those creatures putting their disgusting hands on him. The first slithering of dead flesh brushed against him. It yanked him under the waves for a moment, sucking the air from his lungs. Without his gills, his lungs burned for air.

The second they allowed him back to the surface, he sputtered and gasped, heaving air in. The monsters sped through the water with unnatural speed, dragging him along with them. Fortunately, they aimed for the beach and the battle. Exactly where he wanted to be.

The three Draugar hauled him through the throng of fighters and on through the city, fighting human soldiers as they went. Eventually they entered the gates to a stone castle. More battles filled the passages as they passed. When they reached a large hall, Llyr saw his father.

Pointing his wicked trident at Oz’s chest.

He wrangled free from the Draugar’s hands and ran forward, pitting himself against his father. Llyr glared up at King Augustine, refusing to back down. His body trembled, knowing his father’s trident held strong magic—almost as strong as the Enchantress’. One bolt of lightning, and they’d all be dead.

His father chuckled. “You lay your life down for thesehumans?”

“I do!” Llyr glanced at Oz and Dagr. He saw their terror and knew he’d do everything in his power to save them. He loved them.

They were his, as much as he was theirs.

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