No death would I ever succumb to where I left her alone in this world.
Twisting hard, I weaved the last bit of shadow I could, snapping the caoránach mouth shut one final time. Its muffled screams carried on the harsh winds and white eyes turned towards me—full of loathing and outrage before Riella's bás fang spear pierced its thick skull. Splitting it into two, the entire sky rippled with a bright explosion of light, blasting outwards for miles as we fell through the sky, ending the demon mother of worms for good.
Diving steeply with rain pelting my face, I raced after my daughter, catching her and careful of the spear, I wrapped her in my arms. "Shhh, I got you, my little chickadee. I'm here." Inhaling, I cradled her dark entity into my chest, feeling her transform back to her faeling self, right before we plunged, returning to the ocean depths.
Together we kicked upwards, breaking the surface quickly as the sea tossed us in its violent storm. I smiled into the most beautiful solid emerald eyes of my daughter, her deadly spear still clutched in her hand as we both kicked hard, struggling to stay above water in the roaring crash of waves.
"You did it, Riella!" I cried out to her, kissing the ice cold bronze skin of her forehead, careful not to dunk her back into the ocean depths.
Spitting out the salty ocean, Emon broke the surface with a vicious growl, having followed us just moments after. "I fucking hate goddess damn water!" he growled, swiping at it. Retaliating, another dark wave crested and crashed, bombarding us back into its cold clutches.
Coughing and sputtering, all three of us broke the surface together this time.
"Maedere!" Riella pointed, smiling. "Look, it's Zaki!"
Bobbing in the water, I narrowed my gaze on the red eyes of the pookah upon the great bow of a very large metal ship. Fiery burning stacks lined its surface and billowed large puffs of smoke into torrential rain, suffocating the thunder clouds above.
A sudden force of water, similar to the powers of the water fae, swirled around us and tightened before it wrenched us straight out of the ocean's hold towards whatever fate had prepared for us next.
Splattering aboard on an unforgiving steel deck, I rolled into a crouch, water sluicing off of me as I rose, the shadows looming over the great metal ship in tall pillars around me. A bright light flashed and then a fierce growl hovered just above.
Glancing up, I took in the magnificent sight of Riella, sitting proudly astride her father’s beast. Hair plastered to her face, her crown tilted and flashing from the bright lightning, a dragon scale waving in the hungry winds, and her spear rising fiercely above her head, she looked…like a Faerie queen.
Ignoring the fear I had for what this would mean for my daughter one day, I faced forward, and peered at a giant dark silhouette outlined by a roaring fire. A shovel, held by this massive figure, scraped against the deck of the ship, feeding coal into a hissing fire splattered by the rain.
"Who are you?" I demanded, drawing the shadows with a flourishing wave, swirling them to circle around us, framing the outline of a shield.
Lightning struck the deck of the ship in response, hot flashes of charged light shooting out across the metal surface racing towards us only to be replaced by bright silver eyes. Eyes that blinked against the harsh rain on a handsome blue face that was full of a matted beard, sparkling with tiny iridescent seashells braided within its white strands. Thick black scales lined his exposed neck and rose around the outline of his chiseled face. His thick frame growing larger and larger as he stepped closer to us, undisturbed by the violent rocking of the ship.
"Céad míle fáilte, a hundred thousand welcomes. Ye dinnae know how honored and humbled I am t’ take ye t' The Well o’ Souls, Goddess," he grinned with a mouth full of needled teeth that looked just like a water fae. "I am called Lir."
Chapter 39
"Lir,"Irepeated,mybody tensing to keep in motion with the lurching of the ship. "The lost king of the water fae?"
His smile faltered. "Lost? Nay lass, I visit the seas for the sweet melody o' mi children's songs, I follow them in any direction I please. Mi cursed bonnie ex wife be the one ye ought tae thank for this raging storm. Dinnae know why she be such nippet wumman after all this time."
Fierce winds slammed into the giant fae, but he only grunted, smiling.
"Haud yer wheesht ye bloody hen. Ye cursed mi faelings and ye deserve ye fate, mi leannan!”
Emon chuckled in my mind."Did he just tell the storm to shut up and that it deserved to be cursed while also tenderly referencing it as his love?"
I blinked at the crazed giant sea king. "Yes."I shook my head, water running down my face in rivulets, my exposed body gone numb minutes ago."He'd be crazy to still love her. She literally turned his four children into the north, south, east, and west winds to taunt him with their voices but to never hold them again, all from jealousy."
"If I remember correctly, Faerie was furious, and cursed his wife to the same fate, except her voice would never be heard."
I eyed the sea king who was still grinning into the face of the brutal gusts."I think she is making herself heard just fine."Stepping forward, I anchored my feet with shadows to prevent myself from going overboard, the waves sloshing across the deck and over my already soaked boots. "Lir, you said you would take us to The Well of Souls? Does that mean we are in Wrath territory."
His needled smile turned back towards me, shaking out his matted beard. "Aye, dinnae ken where else ye see storms like this except for Wrath territory? Mi sweet wee Fi told mi you'd be here. Her wee song will guide us, take us t’ The Well. She has taken to ye and I will do anything for mi faeling—" A fierce slap of wind and rain, shook the tied shells from his beard and his silver eyes glowed brightly. "Bite mi bawsack, ye radge wee shite!" he howled back and the seas suddenly lurched the ship harder.
I wavered with clenching teeth. Whatever this crazed sea king had just said, it seemed his ex wife did not appreciate it that much.
"Best ye be heading t’ the cabin hull, lass!" Lir turned his back to us, stomping over to his shovel once more. "The seas of Wrath are raging t’nigh' and mi ex wife seems to be in fits."
The ship lurched again and I crouched, smirking when Emon's nails raked across the deck surface before he leapt towards the cabin hull with our daughter clutching at his hide.
The sea king chuckled, "Wee cat dinnae like water, aye? Unlike that beast there."
