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When I looked down at my hand, I found the heavy burden of steel and security. He took the oar up in his own hands.
“I trust you, and I do believe in you, Arya. You can do this,” he said affectionately. I swallowed, unsure if my decision was sending us both to a watery grave, but I ignored my doubt and gripped the sword firmly in my slippery hands. It was heavy, but not overly cumbersome for my much smaller frame. He seemed to notice the rush of adrenaline the weapon gave me, then added, “Just don’t hurt yourself.”
The serpent heaved again in the water, barely skimming the bottom of the boat with its scaled body. There was another great spray as it lurched its giant head from the ocean, blinding me temporarily with salty rain. As the last drops settled, it lunged its giant head, flashing teeth of refracted moonlight and snapping them audibly just above our heads as we ducked from the strike. It reared back as a low growl escaped its glossy throat at its failure, and snapped again with a supernatural speed.
The second attack was aimed directly for Azriel, and he thrust the paddle out longways in front of him as the serpent wrapped its jaws around the oar, splintering it with ease as it snapped its powerful chops. The monster screeched a wretched noise as the fractured wood pierced the soft membranes of its mouth, and a dark liquid dripped across rows of enameled teeth.
Exploiting its diverted attention, my body leaped into action, sending the blade whirling in the air and into the orb of its eye. More blood gushed through the gaping puncture, along with a type of bodily fluid I tried not to think about.
The beast howled. I’d blinded it on one side, but the blow was hardly fatal. If anything, I’d only pissed it off even more and made it more dangerous. From behind us, on the port side of the vessel, I heard another spray of water and turned to see the tail of the beast flap wildly in the night air. Its webbed fin reared back, then motioned forward in our direction.
“Jump!” I screamed, diving into the water to escape the consequences of the blow of its tail. I swam deeper into the beast’s territory, avoiding the falling fin and the splintered boat now floating in pieces above me. The sea was darker than the night itself, and every sense I had was invaluable underwater. My sight, my hearing, the feeling of anything besides open ocean was all drowned away as I tread through a suffocating pool of darkness.
My hand gripped the sword like a lifeline, unable to fathom the trouble I’d be in if I let it fall into the depth of the sea. I kicked and swam to the surface, where two moons were glaring dimly above me, their reflection rippling through the surface. I used their beacon to guide me through the murkiness, finding fresh air moments later as my head broke the surface. As I tread in place, I noticed the scattered remains of our boat floating across the black water. Azriel clutched a fragmented piece. The muscles under his wet shirt heaved as he dragged himself onto the raft, and I watched as his head frantically scanned the wreckage in search of something.
My gasps for air called his attention, and the look on his face was one of both exhaustion and heartbreaking relief. Satisfied he was safe for the time being, I gripped the sword tighter, then swam in the opposite direction.
The beast leapt violently in the water, forming great waves I was forced to dodge like hurdles made of swells. Saltwater filled my mouth and coated my throat, and I choked on what little air I sucked in, gasping through numb lips. The serpent slithered next to me in the water, the ripples smooth against the surface, forming a thin layer between the air and the beast. I paused my treading to become as still as possible in the ocean, feeling incredibly vulnerable since the dark waters concealed anything below my chest. I waited for the beast to show itself again, feeling the water around my body like the air when I ran. Even through the coldness numbing my skin, I sensed the current of its figure moving stealthily through the deep. The sea shifted slightly to my left and I dove awkwardly toward the movement, maintaining my death grip on the blade as I wrapped my arms around the bloodspawn’s writhing neck.
My fingers dug between hard scales as I secured myself around its body and squeezed it between my legs. Feeling me burrow into its flesh, the monster lifted its ugly head, sending me out of the water and high into the night as I rode its back. My thighs burned in protest as it jerked, but I tightened my grip resiliently, strangling the thrashing creature with my legs as I hung on for dear life.
I gripped the sword in both hands as it kicked its head back, the precursor to its dive. Each fist wrapped tightly around the emblem of a wing, the arches fitting perfectly against my palms in a way that felt right, as if destined for my hands.
I lifted the handle above my head, aiming for the soft spot at the base of its skull where the scales changed directions and left a vulnerable opening. The beast heaved beneath me, preparing to descend back into the water, but before it did, I delivered the final blow.
The steel sliced deep into its flesh with a grating sound, meeting little resistance as it tore into the serpent and ripped through layers of flesh. Another gut-wrenching cry exploded from the horned serpent as it wailed its last breath, and the monster reared its head one final time to the night sky, as if saluting its commanders above. I gripped the sword, anchoring myself to the creature and squeezed my thighs around its shuddering throat to brace for the fall and the force it would bring.
A cry tore from my own throat as we dropped into the sea together, unable to contain the thrill of the fight and the weightless sensation of falling. I took a deep breath, not knowing when my next one would be, as the weight of the beast crashed violently into the dark waters. The corpse dragged me under the surface, suffocating light and sound. There was only one thing left to do before I let this serpent slink into the depths of its ocean grave—I needed to retrieve the stones embedded in its face.
Using its scales as my foot and hand holds, I climbed its body through passing water as it sunk. The further we descended into the abysmal depths, the more the murk thickened, forcing me to blindly feel for the leystones. I fought the push of the sea like I fought the burning fire in my lungs—stubbornly and unrelenting. But the moment I fought around the lethal horns, carefully minding the sharp tips, I found the smooth spot. The stones popped free easier than expected. All three fit snuggly in the palm of my hand, each no larger than an egg. I shoved them safely in the enclosed space of my leather pocket, pleasantly surprised how something so small could harness a power so great.
I then released the beast, pushing off its carcass with my feet toward the surface. The same shimmer of the moons guided me back to the world above.
There wasn’t enough air in the world when I finally broke through. My lungs were starved for the sustenance, and all I focused on was breathing as I let my tired body float blissfully atop the remnants of the waves. The stars twinkled above me as I hovered on the water’s edge, silently winking their favor at my exhausted figure. I reveled in the quiet, soaked in its peace, and basked in the dull glow of the double moons.
It was over. I did it. The bloodspawn was dead, and we could rest easy for another night knowing the Dark Army was still a day’s march behind. My thoughts dulled into nothing, thinking of little as I floated, too tired to create thoughts or wants in this moment.
My name faintly floated on the light breeze, seizing my attention and snapping me away from the easy bliss. I forced myself to roll over despite the cry of my muscles and the ache in my chest and swam spastically toward the sound. The ocean seemed twice as cold as it did before, stealing my breath once again as I fought for every painstaking gulp of air. The rattle of my teeth cracked above the splashing of my frozen hands as I pushed on toward the isle and the man standing on its shores.
My hands hit the sand as Azriel met me knee-deep in the stilled waters. My body shook uncontrollably, not an ounce of warmth left in my bones as he pulled me from the sea. Thoughts blurred, words were forgotten entirely, and I was so…tired. I needed to close my eyelids for a second, let them linger there and settle the burn behind them. Shadows closed in the corners of my vision.
“It’s okay, darling. Rest. I’ll take it from here.” His voice was all it took to convince me.
13
I awoke alonein a secluded room in the back of the collapsing temple. It was quiet. Nothing stirred beyond the crack of a flame and the slow churn of the sea outside the deteriorating walls. Pain pulsed in the tips of my fingers and my toes as the blood returned to the frozen flesh, melting the ice in my marrow and kindling the warmth beneath my skin.
I looked down and realized I had been stripped out of my wet clothes and they'd been left to dry next to a smokeless fire. My skin was brushed raw, marred with fresh wounds that would heal as scars and add more detail to the tapestry of my body, another chapter written into flesh and bone.
I wondered how much Azriel had read when he undressed me.
I cringed internally at the thought of him witnessing my story without proper narration, wishing I had been awake to explain. And although I appreciated the privacy he granted while I was barely covered, I desperately needed some distraction from the damp chill nipping down my spine. I sat up slowly from my bed on the stone floor and stood in search of better conversation than the chatter from my own teeth.
The flicker of another fire made shadows dance down the hall. I peeked around the entryway leading to what I deducted was Azriel’s room, wondering if he was resting, and found him lounging with his back against the limestone wall. The firelight sputtering in the center of the room enhanced the warm tone of his skin , his features softened from sleep. His breathing was rhythmic and heavy, and I took the quiet moment to study his features in scrutinizing detail.
I could’ve stared at him for hours. His face was the most beautiful work of art I’ve ever studied and the only one I cared to learn. The way his nose made a fierce point, matching the angular contour of his cheekbones and the almond shape of his eyes. His skin was free of stubble, like it was impossible to grow any facial hair, but it didn’t matter when he flashed that exasperating smile of his. My favorite of his smirks were always the gradual ones, where one side would pull up before the other with mischievous suggestions.
He also had undressed, wearing nothing but a thin undergarment tucked loosely around his trim waist and upper thighs. If his face was a work of art, then his body was a sculpture. When I brought the dead gods back to our realm, I’d send an offering of thanks to whomever chiseled him to life. He really was lovely, arrogance and all. I liked every part of him, and I hoped even once our journey together was over, after we saved the realm, we’d still find a reason to see each other.
