Page 26 of Sea of Evil and Desire (The Deep Saga #1)

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Morgana

S tone eyes peered at me from a bust half-submerged in the sand. Strands of carved hair, now eroded, disappeared beneath the soft grains.

“What is this place?” I stopped, running my finger across the woman’s forehead above one of her vacant eyes.

The vegetation had thinned, giving way to soft sand and scattered rocks. Stone arches rose along our path, draped in swaying strands of seaweed, while the remnants of carved monoliths stretched endlessly into the murky expanse.

“This is Archōn Agorá. It was once a magical place,” Edward said from beside me.

“Once?” I raised my eyebrows at him. “Let me guess—in the Days of Gods.”

He nodded, surveying the statue. “This was Agápē, the Siren God of Love.”

“What happened to the other clans—the Sirens and sea monsters?” I wondered aloud, still thinking about the beautiful Mer.

“Fearing the gods’ wrath, the other clans chose to remain neutral in the feud.”

Edward’s mood had darkened after our run-in with the Mer, but he perked up as he began to recount another tale. “But after the gods retreated from the earth, they had a new foe, one you will be familiar with—pollution. They started to die out. I have been here over one hundred years and have never seen a sea monster; the Sirens are few. Selkies, like yourself, were said to be extinct. The Mer call it ‘the Shadow’ or ‘Skia.’”

“B-but they’re still magical. Can’t they just fight it?” I ran my finger through the little dots of algae that swirled around us.

“Selkies and Sirens wield mind magic, unlike the Mer, who once dominated the clans with sheer might. Had the Mer’s powers not been stripped, they might have fought the Shadow, saved the other clans, and perhaps ruled sea and land over humans.” Edward blew out a breath, and bubbles were emitted from his mouth.

Barnacles and coral had claimed Agápē’s skin, creeping along the curves of her cheeks and across her forehead like a crown of decay. The sand buried her shoulders and torso, leaving only hints of her outstretched arms, which now seemed frozen in a mournful reach toward the surface.

“That’s so . . . sad,” I said, my throat burning as I thought of all the oil spills I had seen on the news as we moved away from Agápē’s vacant stare.

“Of course, they blame us for this new sickness, so the cycle continues,” Edward grumbled, ducking around a long-tendrilled jellyfish as it meandered past.

The ruins stretched before us, the crumbled rocks deliberately placed to form circles. I stopped beside one of the pillars, half-submerged in sand. There was writing on it, but it had faded from years in the deep.

“It’s the Runes of the Ocean,” Edward breathed.

I ran my fingers along the soft grooves in the stone—a spiral rune.

“Once, statues of all the gods were displayed here, but most have now been lost to the sea,” Edward said, looking at the pillars surrounding us with wonder.

We passed another crumbled stone circle, and I could sense it—the ancient magic that still emanated from this place. A massive cavern loomed between the scattered boulders. Behind it and to our left, sand stretched into distant dunes, and on our right, the tumbled rocky terrain of Archōn Agorá stretched into blue as far as the eye could see.

“It’s the worst part but the quickest route to the Taberna.” Edward gestured at the cavern. Darkness was festering inside it. “It will take us half the time compared to my boots on that soft sand.”

“I’m game if you are.”

There were faint markings over the rough entrance: more runes. Once inside, a rocky mass leered up on either side of us, but we followed the gash of jade above. Even with my improved aquatic vision, I couldn’t see far ahead.

Occasionally, we passed under a shelf, and it felt like soft fingers were caressing my head, like the persuasive touch of a deadly lover. It’s just seaweed, I reassured myself.

“Why do you shun the Mer like the rest of the Drowned, yet spend time with me when the others won’t?” I asked Edward. The seaweed had brought the prince and his crown to mind.

“The Mer are rude—you saw them. I’ve seen nothing from them except arrogance and contempt. You’re not like them,” Edward muttered into the darkness at my side.

“But what gave you the courage to find that out? I’m not like you either. I’m living like them.” I glanced at him to see if I had hurt his feelings, but the darkness consumed his features.

“The Captain suggested that I would find a friend in you, and he’s the kind of man you listen to.” Edward grabbed my hand to guide me underneath more sluggish seaweed that hung from a jutting rock shelf above us.

“That’s right, the Protector . It’s good to know you didn’t do it of your own accord.” I scoffed. “Do you think he can see the future?” I kept my grip on Edward’s hand in the darkness.

“No one knows much about the Protectors. It is rumored they have ancient powers, but they are dormant unless activated by the need to defend. Some say they alone can still communicate with the gods of old, but who knows if that’s true. The Captain has been here longer than any of us. I suspect he may have had several bodies.”

“What do you mean?” I ran my fingers along the slimy cavern wall, thinking about how the Captain had made the graffiti disappear.

“I think he looks Drowned, but he is a spirit, perhaps,” Edward explained.

“If you got to know the Mer as you have me, do you think you could befriend them?”

“No, and I wouldn’t want to. Would you drop it already?” His tone was icy, and he let go of my hand.

“Why do you hate them so much? You’ve read enough books to see that it’s pointless to hate based on nothing more than an ancient grudge!”

“I saw them when I was drowning.” Edward stopped as if trying to obtain a memory the years had obscured. “I had a large gash in my stomach, and I was struggling to stay conscious.” He gestured to the tear in his uniform. We were nearing the edge of the ravine, its walls tapering off into sand as blue light enveloped us.

“As I rose and fell beneath the waves, they watched me with unfeeling eyes. I cried out to them for help, but they just looked on. At first, I thought I was hallucinating from blood loss and exhaustion. However, once I awoke and came to terms with this new existence, I knew they had been there. It would have taken them one moment to save me, but they did nothing.” There was resentment mingled with grief on his face.

I understood why the Mer hadn’t saved Edward. They were wild creatures of the sea, and he’d been succumbing to his fate, but I decided to keep this to myself. I also got the impression that Edward wanted to be accepted by the Mer more than anything, manifesting in his obsession with the history of the ocean. Perhaps that was the real reason he’d befriended me.