Page 89 of Fate Promised

A ripple of warmth bloomed in her chest again.

More words whispered in her ears, and this time wisps of memory drifted in. Once, arms had held her tight. Made her feel cherished. Loved.

She broke the surface again and turned back to the island. She studied it. A rush of images raced past. Danger. Vulk. An orb deep below the surface. The man with the rumbling voice needed her. He needed her to go below the island.

She gulped in a deep breath, then submerged, rocketing at top speed toward the bottom. When she opened her mouth, the water tasted richer. Here would be good fishing. She eyed a large red fish with speckled fins, then shook her head. No, now wasn’t the time. She needed to find … something.

Deeper and deeper she swam until a dim light appeared in the distance. A current swirled around her, drawing her closer. As she approached, the current intensified. Ahead of her, a vortex swirled, and in its center lay a glowing orb. It spun slowly, a funnel of water tumbling around it. Another red fish, this one almost as large as she was, flipped desperately, creating a flurry of bubbles as it tried to free itself from the swirl of water.

A dark shape emerged from below her.

Easily ten times longer than she was, it flicked its tail and effortlessly swam up the column of water and swallowed the red fish. Large spines lay along its back, floating lazily back and forth in the current.

Vedogon!

It opened its mouth, and rows of teeth winked in the orb’s light. She froze. It was larger and more terrifying than a shark.

So far, it hadn’t seen her, but it circled the orb as if drawn to its light. Or the easy meals it provided.

Was she going to be one of those meals?

She studied the orb. That was what she needed to get. But once she entered the funnel, could she even swim? If she was stuck in there, she’d be an easy meal for the vedogon.

She turned toward the open ocean again. Who cared about this orb or this funnel of water under the sea? It wasn’t for selkies. She flipped her tail to get away. Once. Twice.

He needed her help.

Golden eyes set in a vulk’s face appeared in front of her. Golden eyes that softened into a look only she ever got to see. She knew those eyes.

She studied the orb again. Her kind remained hidden in the depths. They didn’t take orbs or tangle with vedogons. But something nudged the back of her mind. She was more.

She charged ahead, straight at the light.

The current was much stronger than she’d expected, and it rushed into her, pushing her sideways into its wake. She twisted, stretching forward. Light brightened around her. Not from the orb, a few feet away, but from her. She glowed.

From the murk beyond the rushing water, a dark shape with spines flashed past.

She flapped her tail and shot upward in the vortex.

Teeth snapped, and she twisted out of the way so they only caught empty water, narrowly missing the tip of her tail. Another snap and she flapped, propelling herself away. She flipped upward, straining forward. The orb twirled faster, the vortex churning and swirling and sweeping her up in its current, spinning her away from the orb.

No! She needed to extinguish that orb.

Pouring all her strength into her tail, she flapped hard. Inch by inch, she surged forward. The dark shape hovered outside the vortex, waiting for her. She flapped harder.

A cool rush slid over her pelt. It was like the water around her, but not. It was something old. Ancient. And it was coming from inside her. A white glow threading around her. It was part of her, suffusing her fur and shining into the water’s darkness. The orb paused in its orbit, and the current stilled.

With a flick of her tail, she grasped the orb in her mouth.

A chill flooded over her, and she froze. Her blood seemed to turn to ice. It felt like the ocean was sucking every bit of warmth out of her. She sank like a stone. The vedogon snapped at her again but missed, and it didn’t pursue. The light from her skin, from the orb, was fading.

Down, down she plummeted to the bitter cold. She shivered as the orb winked out. Then the light surrounding her faded, too.

She flattened, stopping her descent. There was nothing around her. Only deep shades of blue and the underlying hum of the ocean as it moved in its quiet way toward shore. She spat out the orb. Now it looked like a bubble, and it didn’t light back up again. It bobbed a moment, then sank toward the bottom of the sea.

She’d snuffed out the power of the orb. Exactly what she’d needed to do.

Her lungs ached—she needed air soon, but the cold kept creeping over her. She shivered again. Her lids fluttered. Maybe she should rest here for a bit. Just for a bit.

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