The echo of the gold goblet hitting the wall faded, leaving only the heavy silence of the deep and the rhythmic beat of Roxy’s own heart.
She stood there, chest heaving, her hands clenched into fists at her sides. The rage that had exploded out of her felt foreign, too hot, too sharp.
It was like a physical entity trying to claw its way out of her throat.
It was like her rebellious days, when she could easily make a big mistake like killing another human being.
"Deep breaths," Roxy whispered to herself, pressing a palm to her forehead. "Inhale the damp air. Exhale like crazy."
She closed her eyes. The anger began to recede, leaving behind a familiar exhaustion. It was the hormones. It was the terrifying reality that she was a mammal trapped in a fish tank.
She looked at the blue System window still hovering in the air.
[Quest: The Voice of the Deep.]
She stared at the objective: Gain the Absolute Trust of Caspian.
Roxy let out a long, ragged sigh. She slumped back onto the edge of the clamshell bed.
"You’re right," she muttered, addressing the floating text. "I know you’re right."
She had already decided to manipulate Caspian before the quest popped up. That was her plan. The System hadn’t forced it on her; it had just codified it.
It had turned a desperate, vague idea into a checklist with rewards. It was trying to give her structure in a situation that was pure chaos.
"I’m sorry," Roxy said aloud, her voice sounding small in the vast cavern. "I know you’re trying to help. I’m just... I’m really tired. And my boobs hurt. And I miss my husbands."
[Apology Accepted.]
[Note: Hormonal imbalances detected. Recomndation: Conserve energy. Focus on the objective. You can do anything, even underwater.]
Roxy cracked a weak smile. "Thanks, you glitchy bastard."
She stood up. The emotional outburst had drained her, but it had also cleared the fog. She needed to focus. Step one was surviving. Step two was charming the fish-man.
But first, nature called.
Roxy looked toward the back of the cave. It was a scary place to be in, but Roxy had no choice but to turn the place into her own toilet, after all, it was only bones and wastes that were there.
"Be right back," she muttered to the empty room.
She walked past the main living area, navigating the sandy floor carefully. Her broken rib gave a twinge of protest, but the seaweed bandages held firm.
She finished her business quickly, eager to get back to the warmth of the fire pit. As she adjusted her seaweed wrappings, movent caught her eye.
To her left, the cave wall thinned out into another section of the magical water-barrier. This part of the bubble looked out into a dense forest of giant kelp.
Sothing was moving in the weeds.
Roxy froze. Caspian?
A face pressed against the invisible mbrane. Roxy gasped, stumbling back until her heel hit a rock.
It wasn’t Caspian.
It was the most beautiful, terrifying creature Roxy had ever seen. A rmaid.
Fuck. Have I sohow attracted a horde of them?
Her skin was pale just like Caspian but had a shiny sheen to it. Her hair was a cascading river of ink-black silk that floated around her head in the water, undulating as if alive. Her eyes were almond-shaped and glowing with a predatory, electric violet light, frad by thick lashes.
She was stunning. Breathtakingly so. But it was a cold, razor-sharp beauty that promised violence.
She stared at Roxy with an expression that wasn’t curiosity; it was assessnt. She looked at Roxy the way a jeweler looks at a flawed diamond.
HISS.
The sound vibrated through the water and the bubble, a high-pitched shriek of dominance. The rmaid placed a hand, tipped with long, obsidian claws, against the barrier.
She tapped a claw against the magical mbrane, her violet eyes narrowing as she locked onto Roxy.
"Who are you?" Roxy whispered, her heart hamring against her ribs.
What do you fucking an by, who are you? Fucking run goddamnit!
The rmaid’s lips, painted a natural dark blue, pulled back in a sneer, revealing teeth that were just as white and sharp as Caspian’s. She pushed her face closer to the bubble, her expression radiating pure disdain.
She was beautiful, yes. But so was a poisonous flower.
Panic seized Roxy. Beauty or not, that thing looked at her like she was an insect that needed squashing.
Roxy turned and bolted.
She ran back to the main chamber, her breath coming in short, panicked gasps. She scrambled into the giant clam shell bed, diving into the pile of kelp blankets and sponges.
She pressed herself against the back of the shell, pulling a blanket over her head, trembling.
Where is he? Roxy thought frantically. Where the fuck is that goddamn fish when he is fucking needed?!
For minutes, that felt like hours, she lay there, listening.
She could hear the faint swish-swish of water outside the main entrance. The rmaid was circling. She was prowling the periter, inspecting Caspian’s new acquisition.
Roxy clutched her knees. She felt helpless again.
"Please co back," she whispered into the sponge. "Caspian, please."
Then, a sound.
The main water wall rippled. The distinctive sound of water sluicing off scales echoed in the cave.
Soone had entered.
Roxy peeked out from under the blanket.
A tall, silver-haired figure stood in the entrance, shaking water from his hair. His pearlescent scales shimred in the blue light.
Caspian.
Relief crashed over Roxy so hard she almost cried. She threw the blanket off and scrambled out of the shell.
"Caspian!" she shouted, her voice shrill with fear.
Caspian looked up, surprised. He was holding a large, flat stone that looked like a slate; perhaps he had reconsidered her request for a map.
"Little Landwalker?" he asked, tilting his head, his silver hair falling over his shoulders. "Why do you look so scared?"
"A rmaid is out there!" Roxy cried, running to him. She grabbed his arm. "Another rmaid! She’s dark, and she hissed at ! She was tapping on the glass!"
She gripped his cold, wet skin, peering around his bicep toward the entrance, failing to notice soone was behind him.
"She looked at like I was dirt! You have to make her leave!"
Caspian froze. He felt her trembling, and he looked down at her small hand clutching his powerful arm.
A slow smile spread across his lips. Then, he chuckled. It was a low, musical sound that vibrated deep in his chest.
"You are trembling," Caspian noted, sounding delighted. "Like a small reef-fish sensing a barracuda. It is... endearing."
"It’s not endearing, you overgrown sardine!" Roxy snapped, shaking his arm. "It’s terrifying! Do sothing!"
"Calm yourself, Sea Witch," Caspian soothed, covering her hand with his large, webbed fingers. "Nothing enters the Pearl Garden without my permission."
"But she was right there!" Roxy insisted. "She—"
Movent cut her off. Roxy gasped, backing away from Caspian. "There! It’s her!"
How the fuck didn’t I notice she was right behind Caspian!?????
It was the rmaid. Her ink-black hair settled around her shoulders like a cloak. Standing upright on her powerful tail, she was nearly as tall as Caspian, and every inch of her radiated cold, imperial power.
Roxy squeezed her eyes shut, running back to the clam bed.
Caspian looked at Roxy, who was staring at the newcor in stunned silence.
"Little Landwalker," Caspian said, gesturing grandly to the breathtaking, terrifying creature. "Do not fear. She does not bite. Usually."
He smirked.
"et my sister, Nimue."
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