Maren's POV - Present Day
"How long do we have?" I demanded.
Vaelen's eyes glowed brighter as he listened to the water above us. "Minutes. Maybe less. They're lowering some kind of ritual anchor—I can feel the dark magic from here."
"What does it do?"
"If it reaches the ocean floor, it will create a binding circle around us. Then they'll use your blood to activate it." His jaw clenched. "The bond makes you the perfect key. Your death will lock me in these chains forever and kill every soul trapped here—including your sister."
"No." I grabbed his arm. "No, I didn't come all this way to fail now!"
"You should have stayed on the surface, Captain." Vaelen pulled away from me, moving toward the palace entrance. "But since you're here, you might as well see what's coming for you."
He waved his hand, and the water above us cleared like looking through glass. I could see the surface—and my heart sank.
Five ships. Huge warships with the Maritime Guild's flags. They surrounded the area directly above us in a perfect circle. And hanging between them on massive chains was a giant metal anchor covered in glowing runes.
"They're serious," I whispered.
"Your father doesn't take chances." Vaelen's voice was bitter. "He sacrificed one daughter. What's one more?"
The anchor descended slowly, spinning as it dropped. With each rotation, the runes burned brighter. I could feel something pushing down on me—a heavy, suffocating pressure that made it hard to think.
"We have to stop it," I said.
"We? There is no 'we.'" Vaelen turned to face me, his expression cold. "You walked into this trap on your own, little captain. I'm bound here. I can't reach the surface. And you're not strong enough to fight an entire fleet."
"Then teach me!" I grabbed the front of his shirt, desperate. "You said the bond gives me your power! Show me how to use it!"
"In minutes? Impossible."
"Then we'll die trying!" I shook him. "I didn't survive three months of hell, didn't build a boat with my bare hands, didn't sail into the abyss just to give up now! My sister is RIGHT THERE!" I pointed at Lira's sphere. "I promised her I'd come back! I promised!"
Something flickered in Vaelen's eyes. "Promises mean nothing."
"They mean everything." I released him, my voice dropping. "You loved someone once. Coral told me. A priestess who betrayed you."
Vaelen's face went completely blank. "Don't—"
"She was forced to do it, wasn't she? The Guild made her chain you. And you've spent two thousand years hating all humans because of what they made her do."
"You know nothing about—"
"I know betrayal!" I shouted. "I know what it's like to trust someone and have them destroy you! Marcus used me for five years! Five years of lies and fake smiles and I LOVE YOUs that meant nothing! And my father—" My voice cracked. "My father knew they were going to take Lira. He let it happen. He chose power over his own daughters."
Vaelen stared at me, and for the first time, I saw past the cold exterior to the pain underneath.
"So yeah," I continued, wiping angry tears from my eyes. "I understand why you don't trust humans. Why you think I'll just betray you like everyone else. But I'm not them. I keep my promises. And I promise you—if you help me save my sister, I will break these chains or die trying."
The anchor was halfway down now. The pressure increased, making my head pound.
"You'll die anyway," Vaelen said quietly.
"Then I'll die fighting. But I won't die a coward." I held out my hand. "Please. We're both prisoners here. Both betrayed by the same people. Let's at least go down together."
Vaelen looked at my outstretched hand for a long moment. Then, slowly, he took it.
The moment our hands touched, power exploded through me.
It felt like being struck by lightning—pure energy racing through my veins, filling every cell, burning away weakness and exhaustion. I gasped as my vision sharpened. Suddenly I could see everything—every current in the water, every heartbeat in the fish swimming past, every vibration from the ships above.
"The bond amplifies when we touch," Vaelen explained. "You can access my power directly. But be careful—too much will destroy you from the inside out."
"How much is too much?"
"You'll know when your skin starts glowing."
Great. Super helpful.
Above us, the anchor descended faster. Thirty seconds, maybe.
"Focus on the water around the anchor," Vaelen instructed. "Feel it. Command it. Water obeys emotion—anger, fear, love. Whatever you feel strongest, channel it."
I closed my eyes and reached out with this new sense. The ocean responded instantly, eager, waiting for direction.
I thought about Lira. About watching her dragged under the water. About three months of being called crazy while Marcus and Selene lived my life. About my father's guilty face on that dock.
Rage. Pure, burning rage.
The water answered.
I opened my eyes and threw my free hand toward the surface. Above us, the ocean exploded into a massive waterspout—a spinning column that shot upward and slammed into the descending anchor.
The anchor stopped, held suspended by the force of the water.
"Impossible," Vaelen breathed. "You just did in seconds what takes most water mages years to learn."
"I'm a fast learner when I'm motivated." I gritted my teeth, holding the waterspout steady. But already my arm shook. The anchor was too heavy. "I can't hold it long!"
"You don't have to." Vaelen raised his free hand. His chains blazed with light as he added his power to mine.
Together, we pushed.
The anchor shot back upward, faster and faster, until it crashed into the nearest warship. Wood splintered. The ship tilted violently. Men screamed.
"Did we—did we just do that?" I stared at my hand, which was indeed starting to glow slightly.
"We did." Vaelen smiled—a real smile this time. "Maybe you're not completely useless after all, Captain."
But our celebration was cut short.
More anchors dropped from the other four ships. Not one—FIVE. All descending at once, from different angles.
"Oh, come on!" I shouted.
"They came prepared." Vaelen's expression darkened. "We can't stop all of them. Not without—"
He stopped, his eyes going wide.
"Without what?" I demanded.
"There's only one way to generate enough power." He looked at me, and I saw fear in his face. Real fear. "I'd have to break through the chains' restriction and rise to the surface myself."
"So do it!"
"You don't understand. These chains are designed to torture me if I leave the abyss. Last time I tried, the pain nearly drove me mad. And that was a thousand years ago. They're stronger now."
"How bad are we talking?"
"Imagine every bone in your body breaking simultaneously while being burned alive." His voice was flat. "For every second I'm above the water."
I looked at the descending anchors. Then at Lira's sphere. Then back at Vaelen.
"Do it," I said.
"Are you insane? I'll—"
"I felt your loneliness through this bond." I squeezed his hand. "Two thousand years alone in darkness. If we die here, you go back to that. Forever. At least if you try, you have a chance at freedom."
"Or I have a chance at pain worse than death."
"Then I'll share it." I didn't know if that was even possible, but I meant it. "The bond connects us, right? Whatever you feel, I feel. So we'll hurt together. And we'll fight together. And maybe—just maybe—we'll win together."
Vaelen stared at me like I was the most foolish person he'd ever met. Then he laughed—a real, genuine laugh that made him look centuries younger.
"You're absolutely insane," he said. "I think I'm starting to like you, Captain Maren Stormbourne."
"Save the compliments for after we survive." I braced myself. "Ready?"
"No." He pulled me close with both arms. "Hold on tight. This is going to hurt."
His chains blazed white-hot. He screamed—a sound of pure agony that made my heart break.
And then we shot upward through the water, faster than should be possible, heading straight for the surface.
The pain hit me like a wall of fire.
Every nerve ignited. My vision went white. I couldn't breathe, couldn't think, couldn't do anything but scream along with Vaelen as we burst through the surface and into the air above.
But I didn't let go. I held on to him as we rose higher and higher, until we hovered fifty feet above the ocean, facing five warships filled with soldiers who thought we'd be easy to kill.
Through the pain, I saw him.
My father stood on the central ship's deck, his face pale with shock.
And beside him, smiling confidently, was Marcus.
"Hello, Father!" I shouted, my voice carrying across the water. "Surprised to see me?"
My father's mouth moved, but no words came out.
"That's Maren?" someone shouted. "But she's glowing! What is she?"
"What am I?" I looked at Vaelen, at our intertwined hands, at the mark blazing on my chest. "I'm the Queen of the Abyss. And you just made a terrible mistake."
Vaelen's eyes met mine. Despite the pain etched on his face, he grinned. "Ready to show them what happens when you betray a sea god and his very angry captain?"
"Oh, I was born ready."
Together, we raised our hands toward the five ships.
The ocean answered our call.