Oceanborne (12 page)
But where to take her that she would be safe while he returned to lead his troops against Melqart's horde? Not to the Shamans Caverns, where Alexandros had taken refuge when Morgan was dying. They had used up their store of good will with the serpent people. And there was no question of taking Elena to Atlantis. Not in direct defiance of the king. Poseidon was capable of casting her out to drown or of having her vanish without a trace. Orion didn't fear his father and he wasn't afraid of his anger, but he wouldn't risk Elena's life by putting her at the king's mercy.
There were many outlying Atlantean colonies and there were kingdoms of other species who made the seas their home. The oceans were vast, and it was possible that he might claim sanctuary for a human female in one of them. But he could not remain with her, and without him, she would be unable to survive underwater. Elena was a creature of sun and solid land, and the tides and whirlpools that he loved were alien places to her. He supposed that he could maroon her on some deserted island in the Indian Ocean or the Pacific, but even if he provided all she needed to live, it would cause her great emotional distress.
That left only one option. He must take her to the fabled land of the fairy folk in the earth's hollow core. There would be kindly companions, the oxygen she needed to breathe, and food that she would find familiar. Melqart's minions could not follow her there, and she would be well cared for until he returned to fetch her.
Leaving his shirt and shoes on a rock, Orion waded into the sea. The salt water welcomed him, flowing around his feet and legs, filling him with a sense of peace and contentment.
Elena stripped off her tee and capris. Under it, she was still wearing the flowered bikini that she'd worn beneath her dive suit. Aphrodite, he thought, not rising from the sea but walking into it. He inhaled deeply and waited, hand outstretched. “Will you come with me?” he asked. “Of your own free will?” It was the question he must ask. No Atlantean or mer could take a human into the sea against their will. Not only was it forbidden, it was impossible.
Her eyes narrowed and she rested one graceful hand on a hip. He swallowed, trying to hide the desire that threatened to overwhelm him.
“You're not going to go weird on me now, are you, Xenos?” she asked.
He forced what he hoped was a charming grin and made a playful reply. “What's wrong? Water too cold for you? Afraid to get your feet wet?”
“The stela had better be there,” she warned. “And it had better not be a fake.”
“Changed your mind?” He picked up her clothing, but didn't let her see him do it.
“No, I'm coming.” She stepped into the waves and foam broke around her knees. “Of my own free will.”
“Good enough,” he said, catching her hand and diving under. She struggled for only a few seconds before he could pass on to her the ability to breathe as he did under water and put her to sleep. It was tricky. She couldn't see him as he was; he had to maintain the illusion of the human he'd pretended to be when he'd approached her on the street in Rethymo.
“It's all right,” he soothed as he gathered her in his arms. “You're safe with me. I will stand between you and harm.” He swam swiftly into deeper water, away from the shore and any humans that might have watched them go into the sea and willed her into a deeper sleep.
To put distance between them and the current hunting ground of the shades, Orion would utilize the seraphim. Long ago, these enormous wormlike creatures had moved about the seas of a turbulent and ever-changing earth. But their time had passed, and while the seraphim remained technically alive, they had evolved into sedentary beings, much more like their own ancestors that had been introduced to this planet by star travelers in the dawning of the world.
The great predator birds and their descendents, the dinosaurs had ceased to exist, but the seraphim adapted. They grew so large that they lost the ability to move from place to place. Now they no longer reproduced, but they endured. Tens of thousands of years ago, Atlanteans had discovered that they could cross vast distances of the seas by entering the worms' digestive tracts and being moved along at great speed. The trick was to survive the winding corridors, chutes, and impassable grates without being sucked into the worms' feeding chambers and to find the right exit.
Each worm was different, and Orion and his brothers had spent many years memorizing the passages, traps, and possible destination points before Poseidon had allowed them to venture into the seraphim. Miss a chute or slide down the wrong passage, and you could end up as worm dinner, instantly paralyzed by acidic secretions, slowly and agonizingly consumed. Depart at the wrong stop, and you could end up off Borneo instead of the Pillars of Hercules. Many bold men and women had died over the centuries, but lacking the ability to fly as humans did, this was the fastest way to move from one destination to another. Most of the warrior class and some of the priesthood used this risky form of transportation, but the average Atlantean preferred not to.
The nearest wormhole wasn't far, but farther than Orion wanted to swim with Elena in his arms. If they were attacked by predators, shark, or shades, he wasn't certain he could adequately defend her. Orion had known that would be the case, and he was prepared. He gave a sharp whistle, and in less time than it would take to swim back to shore, two of his finest fighting dolphins, Eryx and his brother Pontus appeared pulling a chariot.
Orion preferred to simply ride astride, but he hadn't known how much of a struggle Elena would put up, or how strong her mental resistance would be. A dolphindrawn chariot was the next best option, not a chariot with wheels as the ancients had used, although he had seen them displayed on state occasions.
This one was hewn from a giant conch shell and reinforced with scales of the same star metal from which his black sword blade was fashioned. The harnesses were simple affairs of braided sea grass, a loop of which was held between the teeth of each dolphin. Signals were given by voice only. Fighting dolphins were skilled warriors in their own right, not beasts of burden.
Orion stepped into the chariot, still holding a sleeping Elena, and they were off with a speed that constantly amazed him. Usually mammals of good humor and playful dispositions, Eryx and Pontus took their mission seriously. If there was danger that they couldn't outswim, they were quite capable of loosing themselves from the chariot and coming to his defense with ramming force and razorsharp teeth.
“I needn't remind you that no one must know about the woman, not even my brothers,” he reminded the dolphins when they reached the opening to the nearest seraphim, and he quickly redressed her in capris and T-shirt.
A series of clicks and whistles assured him that they would keep his secret. “Return to the palace,” he said. “I'll make my own way there. Feed and rest. Tomorrow, we may go into battle.”
When they had departed, Orion chose a trident from a cluster of those sunk into the sand. The primitive weapon was useful in opening and closing chute doors and in propelling one's self along without smashing into the slippery walls of the seraphim's digestive track.
Orion looked down at Elena cradled in the crook of his arm and was almost overcome by his desire for her. She was lovely, but it was more than her beauty that captivated him. He lowered his head and kissed her parted lips. She tasted as sweet as he'd remembered, and her mouth fit his as if they were two halves of a whole. “Elena,” he whispered hoarsely.
She stirred, opened her eyes, and let out a piercing scream.
CHAPTER 12
E
lena stared at the huge red undulating tentacle looming over Orion's head. She hadn't intended to screamâit wasn't in her natureâbut this monstrous thing was at least twenty feet long and thicker than an elephant's trunk. Barbed suction cups lined the weaving tentacle, and as she watched, it reared back and slammed into Orion, knocking her from his arms and sending him flying. She skidded across the rocky sea floor and landed flat on her belly, scraping her hands and knees.
lena stared at the huge red undulating tentacle looming over Orion's head. She hadn't intended to screamâit wasn't in her natureâbut this monstrous thing was at least twenty feet long and thicker than an elephant's trunk. Barbed suction cups lined the weaving tentacle, and as she watched, it reared back and slammed into Orion, knocking her from his arms and sending him flying. She skidded across the rocky sea floor and landed flat on her belly, scraping her hands and knees.
She twisted and pushed herself up on her elbows to see a second tentacle, equally as big, snake from the darkness of what appeared to be the mouth of a cave. She clenched her teeth in shock, certain that she was caught in the worst nightmare of her life.
Orion was already on his feet, and from somewhere, he'd produced a sword of shining black metal. Bloody circles and torn flesh gaped on his arm and shoulder where the thing had struck him. “Elena! To me!” he yelled.
The tentacles lashed back and forth through the air. One appendage swung in a mighty arc at Orion's head and surely would have killed him if it had connected, but he ducked and twisted away out of the thing's reach. Swifter than her eye could follow his movement, Orion brought the great sword up and charged, slicing through the tentacle, and sending a five-foot section drifting away on the tide.
The creature shrieked, and a terrible red-orange head and gaping beaked maw filled the cave entrance. Eight sucker-lined legs thrashed. Blood and black ooze poured from the maimed tentacle. Still frozen in panic, another scream caught in Elena's throat as the giant squid's black bulging eye rolled and focused on her with malevolent purpose.
Wake up
, she told herself.
It's time to wake up from this dream, this nightmare, whatever the hell it is!
, she told herself.
It's time to wake up from this dream, this nightmare, whatever the hell it is!
Sheer terror locked her joints and chilled her flesh. It could only
be
a dream, and yet nothing had ever seemed so real. Still, she found herself unable to move a muscle ⦠until the thing turned and propelled itself through the water toward her.
be
a dream, and yet nothing had ever seemed so real. Still, she found herself unable to move a muscle ⦠until the thing turned and propelled itself through the water toward her.
Half on hands and knees, half swimming, she fled toward the only refuge she could imagineâthe man with the sword. The beast shot out of the hole, larger and more terrifying than any demon, and bore down on her, legs reaching, uninjured tentacle poised to wrap around her ⦠to lift her high and plunge her into that pitiless, tooth-filled mouth.
“Orion! Help me!” she cried. But when she raised her head, he was gone. He'd abandoned her to be devoured alive. The tip of the tentacle slapped against her bare leg, and she screamed again as white-hot fire seared her skin. She kicked and twisted, squirming away, landing on her back. The snakelike tentacle reared back and time stopped.
Elena closed her eyes, wanting to wake in her bed with the sheets damp around her and moonlight spilling through the window onto the worn floorboards, wanting but knowing that it would not be. Impossibly, this nightmare was real, more real than anything she'd ever experienced. She screamed again as death in its most terrible form plunged toward her.
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“Where is she? You must know,” Princess Rhiannon insisted. “Lady Athena saw the two of you leaving the temple together by a servants' entrance. And neither of you were at the renewal ceremony.”
Alexandros glared at her. “Speak up, Leda. Where is Morwena?”
Leda burst into tears. “I don't ⦠know,” she managed between sobs. “We came back together, and I ⦠I left her at the great library. She was supposed to ⦠supposed to meet me later, but she never came.”
“You were missing for what? A day? A night?” Alexandros said. “And you never thought to report it? Has it failed to sink in that we are on the brink of war, and that Morwena is a princess royal?”
Leda's eyes, already red and swollen from weeping, stared back at the two of them in anguish. “We were back ⦠safely. I couldn't think that ⦠that anything bad could happen to her. Not in the city.”
“Back from where?” Rhiannon asked.
Leda shook her head. “I can't tell,” she wailed. “I promised Morwena I wouldn't.”
“By Athena's short hairs, you'll tell me orâ”
Rhiannon stepped in front of Alexandros. “Do you think to terrify the girl with your threats? Be still, brother, and let me find out what we need to know.”
Alexandros's eyes grew cold. “If harm has come to our sister through her foolishness, I will do worse than frighten her.”
Rhiannon took hold of Leda's arm and drew her into a small chamber off the temple hallway that led to the storerooms. The compartment was shadowy and cool, the only light coming from the luminous tiles on the floor that formed a scene from the founding of Atlantis. Robes, gilded sandals, and headdresses hung from hooks on two walls, and a small fountain gurgled from a helmeted centaur's head to spill into a shell basin in one corner. Otherwise, the chamber was empty.
Alexandros would have followed them in, but Rhiannon waved him back. “Let me handle this,” she said, taking Leda's chin between two fingers and raising it so that their gazes met. “I respect your promise to the princess, your friend, Lady Leda,” she said. “But she is missing. Surely you can see that that changes everything. You must tell us whatever you know so that we can find her.”
“She had her bow,” Leda said. “You know what a crack shot she is. What could happen to her in Atlantis? Everyone loves her here.”
“I don't know,” Rhiannon said, “but it's obvious that something has detained her. She seems sincere in her wish to become a full priestess with all that entails. She's never neglected her duties to the temple before.”
Leda nodded, obviously in great distress.
“So,” Rhiannon continued, “you can tell us what you know about her whereabouts and why the two of you were missing yesterday or ⦔
Leda swallowed and began to weep again.
Rhiannon tried to be patient. “Perhaps you would rather explain this to Poseidon.”
“It was Prince Orion,” Leda whimpered before spilling the whole story of the ship and Orion's wish to protect a human female from Melqart's wrath. “He said it was a matter of life and death. I thought it was most romantic.”
Alexandros swore a foul oath. “That woman again.” He looked at Rhiannon meaningfully.
“We can't go to the king, can we?” Rhiannon said. She was well aware of her father-in-law's threats. There were many attributes of the king that she found admirable, but his inflexibility regarding humans was not one of them. “He'll arrest Orion if he finds out, won't he?”
“Maybe, and maybe he'll just throw him into prison for a few years until his temper cools. My father can be a tyrant when he's crossed,” Alexandros said. “We may have to go to him, but not yet. So far, we've no indication that Morwena's come to harm.”
“What do you suggest?” Rhiannon asked.
“I suggest that she”âhe indicated Ledaâ“return to her studies and say nothing unless we call for her again. And you should return to your apartment.” He glanced at her midsection. “With the baby coming, you don't need to exert yourself.”
“Nonsense. I'm pregnant, not an invalid.” Never again, she thought, remembering back to another time and other circumstances. Rhiannon sighed. “Morwena is my dear friend as well as my husband's sister. I've no intentions of going quietly to my room and weaving seaweed baby blankets for the next seven months.”
“Ten,” he corrected. “Our children remain longer in the womb than humans. It takes twelve moon cycles for an Atlantean babe to be born.”
“Whatever.” She turned back to Leda. “Do as Prince Alexandros says. Go back to your classes and say nothing. We'll find her.”
“But how?” Rhiannon asked after Leda had scurried away. “Where do we start looking?”
“We go to Aunt Eudora and Lord Mikhail. His scouts may have seen Morwena leave the city again, or there might be strangers here we are unaware of.”
“But if Orion's off the island of Crete? Would she have gone back to him?”
“I'll search that area next, but he may no longer be there. And the troops will be called up in a matter of hours. He has to be here or be stripped of his command.” Alexandros's expression was grim. “And if he fails to show up, my brother will be charged with high treason.”
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“Let me go!” Morwena said. “My brothers will hunt you down and destroy you.” She knew him, Tora, Caddoc's man, and sometime lover, if palace gossip could be believed.
The big Samoan's scarred face split in a grin showing front teeth sharpened to points. He never took his gaze off her, and the flat ruin of a nose, divided down the center by an old wound, and black beady eyes that reminded her of a shark's gave her chills. If he was trying to frighten her, he'd succeeded, but Morwena would die before she'd allow him to know it.
She twisted at the bonds that held her wrists bound together at her back. She was badly bruised and bleeding, but she didn't think any of her injuries were serious. In any case, they would mend soon enough.
One shoulder of her
peplos
had been torn in her struggle so that one breast was fully exposed. A sandal, her diadem, and veil had been lost, as well. Tora had stripped her of her bracelets, and earrings, tearing an earlobe in the process. He'd deliberately attempted to shame her, but his ploy hadn't worked. Rather than cowing her by his crude bullying, he'd made her even more determined to escape and see him punished to the fullest degree.
peplos
had been torn in her struggle so that one breast was fully exposed. A sandal, her diadem, and veil had been lost, as well. Tora had stripped her of her bracelets, and earrings, tearing an earlobe in the process. He'd deliberately attempted to shame her, but his ploy hadn't worked. Rather than cowing her by his crude bullying, he'd made her even more determined to escape and see him punished to the fullest degree.
“Whatever reason you have for taking me, it's not good enough,” she said. How long had he held her here? They were somewhere beneath the city, she was certain of that. She could well be in her father's palace. There were so many levels and so many rooms that no one was familiar with them all.
She was sure that they hadn't traveled far enough from the spot where he'd kidnapped her to be away from Atlantis proper. But wherever they were, he'd held her here all night and at least part of the following day in this subterranean room.
What did he want with her? If he'd intended rape or murder, he would have done it already. And despite his leers and posturing, he'd made no sexual advances toward her. She had no idea how long Tora had held her prisoner here. Without a timepiece or waterdial, it was hard to tell. On the surface of the sea, one could see the rising and setting of the sun, but beneath the waves, even though time was still counted by day and night and the turning of the moon, the light remained much the same.
Tora had come upon her unawares on the staircase as she'd left the library the evening before. When she and Leda had returned from their adventure with her brother Orion, she wanted to make up the work that she'd missed. Study for the priesthood took many decades; to reach the level of Lady Athena or some of the other most gifted priestesses, she would have to serve and study for centuries. As part of her training, she was writing a thesis on the three visits of the starships that had occurred more than a hundred generations ago. She'd found an old scroll that she'd never seen before and had asked permission to borrow it.
Excited with her find and wanting a quiet place to read it, she'd shown little of the caution her mother had tried to instill in her. As a princess royal, she should have been accompanied by a token palace guard, but she rarely bothered. And rather than using the main staircase, always crowded with scholars, students, and teachers, she'd left the building as was her habit by a little used passage and doorway that opened into the courtyard of the Three Mermaids.
She'd hurried down a narrow seashell path, lined by tall and swaying columns of blue sea grass, past the lovely statues of the mermaids, and out through a small gate that led to a service alley. As she'd exited the gate, Tora had been waiting for her. He'd stepped from the shadows, locked massive arms around her, and clamped a hand over her mouth. Her bow, which she'd had no chance to draw and nock an arrow in, and the precious scroll had been lost as she'd tried to fight him off.
She'd kicked and tried to bite him, but her blows were as useless as if she had thrown herself against the marble columns. She'd gotten off one muffled scream as he'd thrown her roughly into a dolphin conveyance driven by a servant she didn't recognize. Heavy drapes had covered the windows, so that once she was inside, no one could see them.
Tora had leaped into the vehicle after her, surprisingly agile for a man of his bulk and height, and silenced her cries for help by raising his coral war club over her head. Tora could not speak. Someone or something had cut out his tongue long ago, but he did not need words to convey his meaning. She'd lain there on the floor panting, trying not to cry, trying to figure out what had happened and why.
She still had not figured it out. If Tora had snatched her for some purpose other than his own, Caddoc must be behind it. But why? She was Poseidon's daughter, a princess royal. Her claim to the throne was greater than Caddoc's, but three older brothers, Morgan, Orion, and Alexandros stood before her. Eliminating her would be futile if Caddoc was making another try to overturn Poseidon's reign.
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