Page 20 of Call of the Fathoms (Deep Waters #4)

Twenty

Fortis

B ringing her anywhere that would prove the depths of Tau’s evil was a foolish choice. Fortis knew this. There might be little hope for her yet, but he had seen how hard she had struggled in the depths.

And, in some sense, he understood her hesitation to make a choice after all that he had put her through. He’d just assumed that she would want to fight against those who had wronged her as well. Now that she was clear of mind, it was the easiest choice to make.

He had seen many of his own people addicted to the sulfur fields deep within the sea. He had seen them make choices that were questionable at best, and downright wrong at worst. All so that they could return to those fields and disappear from reality for a little while longer. So he understood her need to be reassured that she wanted this, and not that she’d been forced by the circumstances.

But he was growing impatient.

He sped through the sea, bringing her somewhere he had sworn to himself that he would never reveal to another living person. This was the first place that had shown him what the humans really were. It was the reason he knew Tau existed. And now he was going to share that knowledge with her.

“When I was young, I traveled much of the sea,” he started. “I spent many years exploring every corner of this ocean that I could. I discovered a great many things in my travels, but the greatest of them all was the name of your city. Tau. I knew it existed, as did many of my people, but we had no way to find it. I have spent a very long time seeking your hidden city.”

“There are signs of us?” She twisted in his arms, trying to look up at his face even though his speed made it difficult for her to do so. “There shouldn’t have been any at all.”

“Perhaps they are not where you believe them to be.” He shook his head. “Too many years have been wasted trying to find your city. But I was the one to find the shrine that revealed all the truth of our world. The truth of Tau.”

“A shrine?”

His hands tightened on her body, holding her a little closer. He remembered finding this place and the fear it had caused. For the first time, he had seen what the achromos were truly capable of.

“Fortis?” Alexia asked, her voice shaking with emotion. “Where are you bringing me?”

If only he could tell her. If only he could get the words to come out of his lips, but he couldn’t. Speaking any more of that place felt like he was ushering a curse into the world.

So he forced himself to remain quiet and just show her. Because eventually, she would see for herself.

It didn’t take very long. Tau was very close to where he had found the original site, almost like the city itself had been taunting him all these years. He had found the first secret, the first sign that there was more than just the three cities under the sea, although at the time there had been four.

It was his greatest failure that he hadn’t found Tau on his own. Perhaps he never would have needed to find this woman. He never would have pulled her out of her home, tortured her with darkness and starvation.

But he never would have known how warm she was in his arms, or rediscovered how much he had missed being touched.

Fortis swallowed hard before he found himself back in that hazy place where he was too close to her, too enraptured by her scent. He hadn’t even thought about that moment. Instead, he’d stuffed the embarrassing memory deep down.

Unfortunately, he could smell it. Her. Whatever that scent had been. He still had no clue what it was, but he was certain that it had cast a spell over him. One inhalation of that scent and he’d lost his mind.

He needed more of it. More of... her.

Perhaps she wasn’t the only one losing her mind. Because while she thought he was just a dangerous beast to be around, he was certain she would be the one to kill him. And yet, here he was, still entertaining the idea that he only had a little while to live anyway, so why not indulge himself one last time?

Finally they made it and he could stop thinking these complicated thoughts.

“There,” he murmured in her ear, pointing so she could follow the line of his finger.

In the distance, a strange metallic island drifted. It was wholly unlike anything else he’d seen. The root of it stretched deep into the ocean, balancing land on top. It was mechanical, though. Bits and pieces of it continued to open up and close, constantly shifting and moving under the surface as it filtered out water that was likely necessary for above, along with disposing a long trail of muddy liquid beneath it. Refuse from whatever lived on the island.

“What the fuck is that?” she murmured, furrowing her brows.

“The legacy of Tau,” he replied. “Come. We go to the surface.”

“The surface?” She seemed to panic in his arms, struggling again even though she knew damn well he would not let her go. “What do you mean we’re going to the surface? We can’t do that! You said yourself, it’s covered in storms.”

He was already heading that way, so surely she could see that there wasn’t a storm above them. The light pierced through the waves, and long rays of sunlight speared around them. All she had to do was look.

But then again, he had taken away all of her stability. Fortis was learning that this new version of her was far more emotional than the warrior he had met before.

“Alexia,” he snapped, holding her even tighter and forcing her to stop moving. “Look.”

For good measure, he also grabbed onto her jaw and made her look up. Then, he had the distinct pleasure of feeling her go limp in his arms. She stared up at the surface with awe on her features and wide eyes.

“Is that...” She couldn’t even finish the sentence.

“The sun,” he replied. “Your sun that all of you achromos are so obsessed with.”

He had never understood the love of it. The sun was just there, blinding and overly warm. But when he brought her to the surface and allowed her head to come out of the water, maybe he understood it a little better. Alexia closed her eyes and tilted her head back. Her hair spread out in the sea behind her, but the look of pure bliss was... tempting.

Frowning, Fortis closed his eyes and did the same. Maybe it was the position. The sun still burned even though his eyes were closed, but perhaps it was a little better with the darkness behind his lids. And the warmth was satisfying after being in the sea for so long.

“I never thought I’d see it,” Alexia whispered. Her words were quiet, almost reverent. “I never thought...”

He opened his eyes and looked at her. It had been a very long time since he’d enjoyed something like she was enjoying this moment in the sun. He could admit to himself, he wasn’t sure he knew how to enjoy things like that anymore. She was so thoroughly invested in this moment. As though no other thoughts existed in her head.

When was the last time that had happened to him? She had seen the monstrosity of metal behind her, and still all her focus was on the sunlight and the feeling of it on her skin for the first time.

Had he ever been so gifted?

Alexia’s eyes finally opened again, locking with his. And all that power that existed inside of him surged to the surface so quickly that he didn’t have time to grab onto it. One moment, he was here, and the next, he was in her future.

She stepped forward into the sunlight. She wasn’t on land, but within the housing that Fortis had seen all the others build for their mates. Her building was closer to the surface than many of them, and that was fine because she wasn’t afraid of the storms. He didn’t know why he was so certain of that, but he was. Fortis could feel how at peace she was with this life and it was...

Good.

He was pleased to know that after his death, she would still be in a place where there was peace. “The path you walk leads to happiness,” he said, the words bubbling from him without control. “Though it may be a struggle to get there, this is the right choice for you.”

“Fortis, I don’t need you to tell me what to do.”

“It is your future.” With a rough gasp, he ripped his gaze from hers and shook his head. “I am sorry, virago. I should not have looked without your permission.”

“You...” He heard the click of her throat as she swallowed. “You looked? What do you mean you looked?”

“Depthstriders are unique in that we were birthed deep in the heart of the ocean. As such, we have abilities that are beyond that of our other brethren.” He’d never felt uncomfortable talking about this before. Why did he feel so now? “I can not only see your memories, but your future as well.”

There was a long pause of silence before she suddenly laughed.

He’d never heard the sound from her before. Perhaps a few chuckles of sardonic disappointment, but never a full belly laugh. He was so surprised his grip on her slipped, and she drifted out into the water away from him as she laughed so hard he swore tears were tracking down her cheeks.

“You can see the future?” she cackled.

“Yes, I can see the future.” His gills flared wide in anger. “Why are you laughing?”

“That’s hilarious that you think I’d believe that.” She dunked underneath the water she was laughing so hard, and came back up with a sputtering sound. “The undine thinks he can see the future. That’s rich.”

“I can see the future.”

“Sure.” Still laughing, she turned toward where he’d brought her. “We’ll go with that.”

“I can!” he insisted, but she obviously wasn’t listening to him now.

She swam toward the metal island while shaking her head in disbelief. Every now and then as she struggled to the landmass, he heard her mutter, “He can see the future,” and snort again.

The damned woman was going to be the death of him. She didn’t believe a word he had said, but it was all the truth. He had seen her future, and the future of many others. How did he prove that to her?

He wasn’t sure why it was even important to prove it. She had no reason to believe him, because she had never seen the power of what his kind could do. And besides, she didn’t care that he was capable of it.

Her laughter shouldn’t bother him so much, but it did.

The island before them was less metal on the surface. At first sight, it looked like any other island he had come across. There was a sand beach that led up to emerald green grass, and a small log house in the dead center. It looked like it was all set up there for someone to see it. As though no one had ever lived within those four walls.

But the strangest part of this place was that no storm ever touched it. He had ridden the massive waves for days on end, watching this house that should have been swallowed up by hurricanes or the wind tunnels that would whip everything off the surface of the sea. But not this place.

This place remained untouched by everything.

He would let go of his anger with her for not believing him, and instead, he followed her to the sandy beach. Just like the last time he’d been here, the metal nipped at his tail. He had to get up onto the sand. Which was odd enough of an experience, because Fortis did not enjoy beaching himself.

It was harder to flee, and there were plenty of things on this island that would hunt him. He watched Alexia drag herself out of the water and remove her mask, pausing only when he barked out a warning. “Be careful. You are not the only one on this island.”

Her brows furrowed. “Someone lives here?”

“That is not what I speak of.”

A horrible cry echoed around them, bursting through the warmth of the sunlight and sending chills down his spine. There it was. The creatures that haunted this place. He had never been able to get inside of that house for long before the horde of monsters attacked him.

Feathered and small, they appeared to be easy to kill. But no matter how many he pulled into dusty pieces with feathers floating all around him, more always appeared. With talons and sharp faces, they attacked him mercilessly every time he’d come here.

Alexia wore a strange expression of confusion as she watched the tiny beast charge him. She just stood there, as though dumbfounded, when he grabbed onto the beast and tossed it into the ocean.

“Are you—” she asked, then stopped herself before continuing. It almost appeared that she schooled her expression into something that wasn’t so obviously stunned. “Are you afraid of chickens?”

“Is that what you call these tiny beasts?” Oh god, more of them were rounding the house. They didn’t care why he was here, they just attacked blindly.

“Chickens, yeah,” she muttered, before stepping in front of the horde that were soon to attack him. “They’re not dangerous.”

“They pick at my scales,” he hissed, baring his teeth in a threat as he leaned around her. “I will kill any of them that come near me. “

“There must be a pen around here somewhere. Just... Go back in the water for a bit. I’ll let you know when they’re contained.”

He didn’t like it. Fortis wanted to remain with her to see her expression and to know the moment she realized he was right. The last time he’d gone into the house had proven all he needed to know about her kind and how incredibly destructive the achromos were.

But if she wanted to save him from these chickens , then he supposed he would allow it.