Page 24 of Storm and Sea

If nothing else, he wanted action. He wanted adrenaline, claws, and teeth. He wanted those land rats to recognize what they took from him. To feel it. The way he’d felt it every fucking second since.

The ghost of a hand rested on his shoulder.

“Patience, my love. The right opportunity will come.”

Ludomir’s voice rang in his head. Even in the confines of his memory, that voice calmed Nephi. It put his angry heart at ease, reminding him to take calming breaths and control his rage. To push it deep. Hide it away. Stay in control.

“You are the master of your mind. Not the wrath that haunts you. Breathe, my love.”

The ghostly presence slid from his shoulder down his arm, reaching for his hand.

His breaths came easier now. Nephi unclenched his talons, but as he reached for the phantom hand, he only found empty water.

The momentary calm was sullied as agony took its place.

His chest spasmed, unable to decide if the pain was rooted in longing, loss, or regret.

Or all three.

If only I’d been faster, if only I’d seen the signs. I wouldn’t be burned, and Ludo would still be at my side.”

Nephi clenched his jaw until it hurt.

It didn’t matter.

None of it did.

Ludo was gone, Nephi was brutally scarred, and his Pod was waiting for him. Once healed, he’d return and offer himself for the most dangerous mission he could.

At least then, his death would mean something.

Nephi turned tail to follow Nyel’s scent and ignored the distressed vessel when a powerful wave crashed above him. The screech of tearing metal pierced the water, only to be swallowed by the ocean’s roar. The boat’s engine gave a final high-pitched whine before it sputtered and died. When the next wave hit, the vessel capsized. Metal and debris fell into the water, littering the sea floor with more human waste. Among the life vests and fishing nets thrown into the sea was a shape Nephi was all too familiar with.

A human fell from the boat and landed with a dull ‘whoosh’ as it sank below the waves. Even from a distance, Nephi could tell this was a man, a young one at that. Yet his body remained motionless as it sank lower and lower. Likely knocked unconscious when the boat flipped. He would drown.

Serves him right.

Nephi was a second from abandoning the dying figure when he caught a flash of blond hair. He whipped around, heart in his throat.

Blond hair twisted in tight ringlets—high cheekbones. Sun-kissed skin and a full lower lip, now turned blue with cyanosis as he sank.

He was dying.

Drowning.

My Ludo.

Instinct propelled Nephi into action, shooting through the water like a missile. He grabbed the young man under his arms, dragging him to the surface. A bell rang its death tolls as the boat took on water. Nephi avoided the floating debris, careful not to let his fins get tangled in the human’s nets. Even now, with his head above water, the young man remained motionless in Nephi’s arms.

“Breathe, damn it!” Nephi yelled.

Swimming with half his body above the waves was hard enough, and the raging storm made it almost impossible. He only had minutes before the boy in his arms would be lost forever. Precious seconds while his blood retained some oxygen to send to his brain.

“Fragile fucking creatures.” Nephi cursed as he swam the young man to the capsized boat. It was completely upside down now; its hull pointed to the sky. It would take another quarter of an hour to sink. It was enough.

Using his talons to dig into the wood, Nephi dragged them onto the hull, laying the young man on his back. The rain pelted his head as he crouched over….

Ludo. My Ludo.