Page 29

Neith

“T his is the first wave. We have two more transfers scheduled for later today that will be going to the other realms. Most were willing to go to the earth realm,” Calia says.

“Good,” Wynonna says, “let’s get them across.”

We all watch as she turns to face the portal, which is this massive and by that, I mean that all of us could walk side by side through the stone archway, and there would still be space on either side of us. It’s that big. It’s intricately carved with runes, patterns, and words that I don’t understand, and seemingly in the middle of a vast wooded area, there’s a cobblestone road that leads to it that is currently packed full of people, but that’s it. There are no other buildings around.

Wynonna starts to chant, the magic glowing before she throws it at the portal, and it sparks to life becoming a swirling vortex of magic. As soon as it's activated Sully, Draith, and the others all start to move through the crowd and begin to organize people, helping to get them through the gate.

“How long do you think it will take to get everyone to safety?” Eamon, Evander’s dad, asks Wynonna.

She looks at him, and even from where I am standing, I can see the weight of what she knows pulling her down.

“We have until tomorrow, at precisely eleven P.M. It needs to be sealed then. We cannot wait any longer than that,” she explains.

Eamon’s eyes widen at the short timeline, “There is no way that we will get everyone across in time.”

She shakes her head, “No, but we can try. If we wait any longer, then we risk him finding out and trying to follow. We cannot allow that to happen.”

Eamon frowns, “I understand, and I know that you know more than we do and obviously I trust you. I just wish that we had more time.”

She nods, her eyes fill with shadows, “Me too.”

Once again, the magic builds, and we’re pulled somewhere else.

This time when we come out it's different, I don’t immediately know where we are or what is happening, and the light is a lot dimmer. We definitely aren’t in the castle anymore and we’re definitely not at the portal.

The crashing of waves brings me back to my senses and the sharp cold wet makes my eyes widen.

“Fuck the cave is flooding!” Doc exclaims.

“The tide must have come in,” Raiden adds as he glances at the mouth of the cave. “What the fuck? The sun has almost gone down!”

“How were we in that vision for so long?” River asks.

“Guys, I really think we should be focusing on the flooding of the cave!” I exclaim.

I’ve barely finished speaking when a monster wave crashes into it, soaking us all in freezing water and making me splutter.

“Shit,” Reed curses.

I rush further back into the cave; we didn’t come all this way not to get the flash drive. We need that to make sure that we can bring Dimitri in for questioning. Especially since we know that a silencing spell has been put on everyone who knows who caused the war, which honestly explains why the supes are so quiet on the matter. They don’t have a choice.

“Neith, what the hell are you doing? Get back here. We need to get out,” Ransom yells.

“I need to get the flash drive!” I call back as another wave hits me.

“I’ve got you,” Evander calls, and I glance back to see scales ripple up his arms as his hands glow with magic, and he starts directing the water so that it doesn’t hit me.

I have no idea how long he can keep that up for, so I scramble over the rocks to the back of the cave and then start to climb. My eyes on the small hole that’s up and out of the way of the rising water. The rocks are slick with seawater, and I end up slicing my palms when I slip and have to catch myself. I’m not about to give up though, we need this freaking flash drive. Finally, I’m up high enough and reach into the gap, my hand wrapping around the plastic-wrapped package. Pulling it out, I immediately put it in the pocket on the inside of my jacket and then quickly scale back down the wall.

“Let’s go, it’s getting higher!” Reed yells.

Griff grabs River again, this time grabbing a hold of Doc as well. Reed wades his way through the water and grabs me, and Raiden reaches for Evander.

Evander shakes his head, “I’m good, take Ransom and get out of here, I can hold the water back long enough for one of you to come back for me, but I won’t be able to split it to save someone if they get dropped in the sea and stop the rest from drowning as well.”

“Are you sure?” Raiden asks, already taking hold of Ransom.

Van nods, “Go!”

Evander’s power grows as he pushes the waves back, clearing a path for us to get through.

No one argues with him, although I want to. I don’t want him to stay behind, I want him to get out of the dangerous situation with us, but I know that I will be wasting precious time by arguing with him, time that we don’t have.

I couldn’t anyway. Reed launches us out of the cave, and I look back in time to see Evander shift completely, shimmering teal, blue, green, and gold scales covering him entirely as gills appear on his neck. He’s holding back the water with an ease that I know that he shouldn’t have. Most sirens can control things like lakes, but the ocean is an entirely different thing, it’s too strong and contains too much of its own magic to control, and yet Van seems to be doing it easily enough.

The weather is still bad, the wind howling and stirring the waves into a frenzy as the rain beats down on us. There is definitely a storm coming. The flight back up takes longer as the guys fight with the weather. Finally, we make it to the top, and I look over the edge; the sea is so stormy that I can’t even see the cave anymore, and I look at the guys in panic.

“Don’t worry, we’ll get him,” Reed assures me as he and Griff dive back off and straight down for the cliff.

I start to panic more as I see them circle near the waves instead of heading for the cave entrance.

“What’s happening? Why aren’t they going in?” I ask frantically.

River pulls me against his chest, holding on to me tightly, as Raiden and Ransom move either side of us, and Doc steps forward to get a closer look.

“I don’t think they can get back in the cave,” he says, his own panic distorting his voice.

“What!” I exclaim, as I try to move closer to the edge, River’s arms holding me tighter is the only thing that stops me and gives me a moment of clarity, there isn’t anything I can do.

“It’s okay, he’s a siren. It’s been a while since he’s been in these conditions, but he can’t drown,” Ransom says, although there’s panic in his voice as well.

“He’s not been in conditions quite like this,” Doc says, his eyes narrowed on the waves below.

I’m trying to control my initial panic, Ransom reminding me that Van is a siren, water is where they thrive. The worry in this situation is the rocks, he could easily get seriously hurt on the rocks, and then get pulled out to sea, or attacked by any number of supes that live in the waters here. Some of them take great pleasure in keeping or even eating people that are stupid enough to be in their waters.

Reed and Griff start to fly back up toward us, and as I’m about to lose control of my panic, I feel Evander’s magic. Strong, really fucking strong, and getting stronger.

“He’s okay. I can feel his magic,” I tell the others, saying it loudly enough that Reed and Griff can hear me as well, and there’s a collective sigh of relief.

“Where the hell is he then?” River demands.

“I don’t know,” I frown.

Evander

T he sea consumes me, just like I knew it would when I sent them out of here. Sirens don’t have a great track record when it comes to the sea, and I know that Neith knows that because I saw the look of panic come over her features as Reed got her to safety. As soon as I knew that they were out, I let the water flood in, using my magic to help me avoid the currents and, more importantly, the sharp rocks that could not only break something but also make me bleed.

Bleeding in these waters is not a smart idea. There are creatures living in the oceans that are deadly to supernaturals. The humans think that they came over with us when we escaped Trieneliea, but they’re wrong. They have always been here and come from a time before, a time long forgotten and one that the humans aren’t even aware existed. Their memories don’t go that far back. We’re taught about them because of their liking for supernaturals in particular.

Never bleed in the ocean. You’ll call to them.

There have only been a few instances where supes have been consumed by them, but they were horrifying enough that no one wants to experience it.

I don’t want to bleed in these waters.

My magic is stronger than it should be. I never would have been able to control the waves before, and I have no idea why I suddenly can. The water wraps around me, trying to pull me in all directions and I try to steady myself. I get dragged across the cave floor as a particularly big wave crashes inside the cave, and it pulls me out, dumping me into the sea. If I thought it was bad in the cave it is nothing compared to what’s happening out here. Even though I can breathe underwater, the constant battering from all angles is knocking the breath out of me and making this situation become even more threatening.

I’m barely managing to control it when another huge swell turns me through the water again, making me lose track of which way is up. My back slams against a rock with force making me curse and knocking what little breath I had from my lungs. It’s not until I’ve managed to orientate myself and start swimming upward, using my magic to propel me faster, that I notice the stinging sensation in my back.

Shit, I’m bleeding.

My eyes scan my surroundings as I push upward as fast as possible. I start to let out a relieved breath when I spot the dark shape, moving fast and getting bigger by the second, it’s fucking huge and aiming straight for me.

Oh hell no, I am not being eaten by that thing, and I will not leave Neith just as I have finally fucking found her.

I concentrate harder, digging deeper and surprising myself when my magic comes easily, sensing the threat and coming to my aid. It builds around me with so much strength that it makes me slightly nervous. I don’t have time to focus on that though as the giant shape gets even bigger, and I start to see teeth, thousands of teeth as big as I am.

Fucking hell.

My magic forces me upward with such speed that it launches me straight out of the ocean, a stream of water lifting me all the way up to the top of the cliff. It’s a damn good job it has, and that Reed and Griff are nowhere to be seen because the terrifying creature that wants to take a bite out of me follows me out of the water snapping its giant jaws as it leaps into the air.

“What the fuck is that!” Reed exclaims as my feet touch the ground next to them.

Neith immediately throws herself at me, her arms wrapping around me and holding me tightly. Pain stings my back, but I don’t let go. I wouldn’t trade this for the world.

Raiden’s shocked voice answers Reed’s question, “It’s a Gruiaerty. They’ve lived in this realm for longer than the humans have and only retreated to the ocean when the humans appeared. They have a taste for supernaturals, but they only attack if they smell supernatural blood.”

Neith immediately pulls away and I reluctantly put her down.

Neith

“Y ou’re bleeding?” I ask him, checking him over, although I can’t see any obvious wounds.

He nods, “Yeah, it’s just my back, it’s not too bad, but it was enough to draw the attention of that fucking thing. It will be healed by the time that we get back to the van.”

“I had no idea that you could do that,” Griff says, sounding impressed.

Evander chuckles, “Me neither. I’m fucking hungry now, though and you guys must be getting cold. Let’s head back to the van.”

“Good fucking idea, I don’t even know how to process the recent events,” Doc says.

“Let’s get back to the house, and then we can worry about it,” River says.

We don’t need any more encouragement as we all walk as fast as we can back to the van. The storm is definitely on us now and we’re all still soaking wet from our narrow escape in the cave, and the rain out here, that coupled with the wind, and I’m already shivering like fucking crazy.

It takes longer than I would like for the van to come into view, and we all start to run toward it when we see it. I immediately start the heat up when we get in, but it blasts cold air for far too long before it finally starts to warm.

“I don’t think I can get us home, I’m shivering too much,” I admit.

“I can transport us. There’s no one around us here, and your house is in the middle of nowhere. I’ve been there enough that I can get us all there easily enough,” Doc says.

“Thank fuck,” I mutter.

His magic builds, and one minute, we’re on the side of the road, and the next minute, my house is in front of us.

“Everyone needs to get warmed up immediately. I don’t want any of us getting hypothermia,” Doc orders. “Straight into hot showers.”

“Yes sir,” River says, he jumps out the van and then surprises me as he opens my door and grabs me, pulling me out and then rushing us up the stairs to the house. The doors open before we get there, heat smacking us in the face and a welcome relief from the rain. River runs all the way up the stairs with ease and then deposits me outside of the door to my room.

He leans down and kisses me once, just a peck on the lips, and then moves backward, grinning at my shocked expression.

“Hurry up and get warm,” he says as he moves down the hall to his room.

I chuckle, and then turn into my room, I strip off quickly. Getting rid of my wet clothes and leaving them in a pile on the floor. I’ll deal with them when I’m warmed up. Right now, showering is my priority. I quickly pull out some warm, comfy clothes and bring them with me into the bathroom. I pause as I open the door and find the room already filling with steam and the shower on.

Smiling, I say, “Thank you, House.”

I probably spend far too long in the shower but by the time that I get out I’m not shaking anymore, and I finally feel like I’ve warmed up.

Once I’m dressed, I head back downstairs, my expression crinkling in confusion, when I smell something delicious coming from the kitchen. The guys have already told me that they can’t cook, and I know that they can’t have ordered takeout here, because we’re so far out that nothing delivers.

“You guys cooked?” I ask, as I walk into the kitchen to see bowls of steaming stew set on the table and plates of still steaming fresh bread set out in the middle.

They all shake their heads.

Van grins, “Nope, it wasn’t us.”

“It must have been House again,” Raiden adds.

I nod and smile, “Thank you, House.”

My thanks prompt all of the guys to do the same, and all the cupboards in the kitchen open and close quickly in response.

“My shower was on when I went in my room,” I tell them as I take my seat.

“So were ours,” Doc smiles.

“All the fires are lit too,” Griff adds.

“So, should we talk about the vision and everything we learned?” Raiden asks.

Evander nods, “Yeah, but we need to eat first then we can go over it. Neith, have you got the flash drive?”

I nod, “Yeah, it’s in my jacket upstairs.”

“Awesome,” Van replies. “We can head back home tomorrow and get it to Ty. Now, let’s eat. Everything else can wait until after that.”

We all pick up our spoons to tuck in and I reach for some bread, when Evander’s phone starts to ring.

He sighs and glances down at the screen, “It’s Ty.” Pressing answer and being careful how he words things just in case someone is listening, he says, “Hey man, we’ll get it back to you tomorrow.”

“We’ve got bigger problems,” Ty replies immediately, his voice serious.

Everyone tenses and stops eating.

“What’s happened?” Van asks, his voice slipping into his more professional one.

“Draconian have triggered the Choosing,” Ty says.

“Fuck,” Raiden curses, as everyone either curses or growls.

"This really bad," Doc says, with a worried frown.

“Why are you smiling?” River asks me.

Smiling viciously, I reply, “Because now I can figure out what the fuck they’ve done to Coen. They’re not going to know what fucking hit them.”