An unfamiliar voice speaks out into the silence. ‘I don’t believe we’ve met,’ it says. Marina can’t contain her amazement as she breaks into a wide delighted grin.
‘This is much better than I could have imagined.’ She ponders for a few moments, taking in the stranger’s words. ‘No, we never met officially. I was gone before I could have the pleasure. Although I heard so much about you. My brother couldn’t stop talking about you. It was quite annoying actually.’
My brows furrow against my wishes. My eyes look Marina up and down, surveying her appearance.
‘Marina, I presume. He would often mention you.’
‘Yes,’ Marina gushes. She loosens her grip slightly, just enough for a small amount of oxygen to flood back into my veins. ‘I have so much to ask you.’
Suddenly, both Marina’s and my eyes dart towards the door.
‘It appears we won’t have enough time for that.’
‘Speak of the devil,’ Marina says, though her words are slow with disbelief. Hatred washes over her delicate features. Her tail drops me as she charges out the door, rage storming in her demon eyes.
Left floating in the now dark room, unconsciousness closes in.
William
The Goddess glides over to me, weaving her way easily through the dense forest of kelp. Atargatis’ lovely silvery hair drifts in the gentle current around her. Her scales trail along her tail and over her chest, refracting the light in this small clearing.
‘You are the ice demon. You did not send the boy this time?’ she says softly, tilting her head as if to get a better look at me. Her large black eyes reflect my own image. ‘Do you care for her? The human girl?’
My grip tightens on the ice spear at my side, my body tensing at the offensive accusation.
‘Orders from above.’ I say it casually, uncaring, but nonetheless she tilts her head the other way. Her eyes fall to the ground, showing the subtlest hint of dissatisfaction.
‘I was mistaken then,’ she says earnestly, turning her frail back to me. Small flesh-coloured lines track their way from the base of her neck down to her lower back.
‘You do not have the girl,’ I observe. A confirmation more than anything. Atargatis looks back solemnly, a telling answer in itself.
‘No. Something went wrong. She exited elsewhere.’ So Heret-Kau is right. I hate when she’s right. ‘The girl was taken.’ She sighs meekly. ‘I beckoned her but she did not trust me. You have sown distrust in her.’
I groan internally. That sounds like Siara, trusting the wrong people. Myself included of course.
Atargatis smiles briefly, a flicker of a moment that is lost when she looks away. ‘If we are to rescue your mortal friend, we mustn’t wait. Please, follow me.’
Reaching the end of the kelp forest, open water stretches ahead. The crumbling castle stands ominously in the distance. Lower-level demons float about the structure, their forms barely human.
‘She’s locked in there, isn’t she?’
Atargatis looks over to me, mildly surprised. ‘Yes, how did you know?’
An irritated sigh escapes. ‘I just looked for the most inconvenient place, and bet on that.’
This is turning out to be a bigger hassle than I had predicted. If one of those lower-level demons took her, I might be able to get through this reasonably quickly, without attracting too much unwanted attention.
‘You took a risk sending her here. Did you intend for her to die?’ the water Goddess says, her dreamy voice more curious than accusatory. Looking down, I see her unnerving large eyes peering at me. Always watching.
‘If I had, I wouldn’t have tried to send her to you.’ Although, evidently that is turning out to have been a mistake.
‘I see.’ Atargatis thinks for a moment. ‘You have an attachment to this world. That is why you sent the human here.’
My eyes can’t help but blink stunned for a few seconds. I try not to let my surprise show. This is what I hate about celestial beings. They always seem to know your intentions better than you do yourself.
‘I’m sorry,’ she continues. ‘Was I mistaken, again?’
I brood silently. Though lacking tact, Atargatis is more impartial than Heret-Kau. I can’t really tell if she cares about the things she’s asking or is just curious. She’s also not as annoying as Heret-Kau so credit where credit’s due, I guess.
‘Yes,’ I lie. ‘You were mistaken.’
Silence stretches for a few moments more as we swim closer to the castle. Finally, she glances over, tucking her long strands of hair over her pointed ears.
‘I’m glad,’ she says, her voice low and unconvinced. In the same way that she has read my intentions, she has also read my lies. I warn myself not to take her bait but the silence is long and dread eats at me eagerly. Conceding, I open my mouth.
‘Why is that?’
Looking away, she smirks a triumphant smile. Maybe she’s not so different from Heret-Kau after all.
‘Because time is cruel, even here.’ She comes to a halt in front of a wooden door blanketed in seaweed and algae. ‘Very rarely do demons exit this place the same as when they entered. It changes people. That is the point of it after all.’
The lock that I hadn’t even noticed she was picking clicks open. She takes her webbed fingers away from the metal, a slight glow fading from the keyhole. The Goddess turns, giving a small thin-lipped smile as she holds the door open for me.
The hall is dark and the water murky. There’s no way of knowing what sort of creatures dwell inside. I follow her anyway. I keep my voice low. ‘May I ask you a question?’
Atargatis looks over, intrigued by my initiative. Gracefully, she nods, her long eyelashes giving a slow blink.
