Fire Stones - By Kailin Gow Page 0,8

But it was too late. My fingers relaxed their grip; the waves had me, now, captured me in their grasp, and were pulling me out into the cove.

My eyes squinted in the water, salt stinging my face. But I could make out the shapes coming towards me. Their teeth were jagged; their skin rough. These were sharks.

Chapter 3

I twisted my way through the waves, my heart pounding louder than the ocean roar. There was no way I could outstrip these sharks. They were agile, hungry, born to kill. Their teeth snapped at me as I furiously scrambled to the surface, gasping for breath as I looked around me in desperation. It was too far from the rocks; even if I made it to them I'd never be able to climb them, but would rather be thrust back down, falling from the slippery moss into the water. The sharks circled closer, their yellowing eyes hungry for a meal. For me.

The stone. I felt in my pocket for the smooth, round stone. It gave off heat, and I clutched it tightly. It was supposed to bring the possessor courage and protection, was it not? Well, I didn't feel particularly courageous at that moment, but I figured it was my best bet.

The stone seemed to give off a strange, purple light – a glow that seeped through the water like ink. For a moment, the shark backed off, closing its mouth. I breathed a sigh of relief. But out of the corner of my eye, I saw two more sharks approaching, each larger than the last. I shuddered. There was no way I was going to be able to repel all three. I started flailing about in the water, trying to remember my swim team training, but paralyzed by fear...

And then I saw it next to me – the flash of a trident, blinding me with its brightness. Blood filled the water – my own? In a panic I looked about.

But it was the shark who bled, not me. And atop the shark, his muscular thighs digging into his side, was a figure I knew well, riding the back of the shark, commanding it in a tongue I could not understand.

Varun.

His hair was soaked and matted; he wore no shirt and his chest glistened in the moonlight. “You will return to where you came from!” Varun was shouting to the shark, his trident stained with blood. “You will let her be.” The shark reared up with a roar, plunging Varun into the water.

“By my power as the Water God, let her be!”

The shark, however, did not feel particularly inclined to listen. Yet I looked up in shock to see at least ten more glistening tridents in the water. An army of mermen had encircled the sharks, their gazes menacing. They were looking at Varun, awaiting his command.

The shark stopped thrashing, and Varun dismounted, his trident still in hand, his expression dark. The shark seemed to bow low, turning on its fins and swimming away, followed by his companions. Varun turned to the merman, giving them a careful salute. One by one, the men responded in kind to his gesture, and then vanished into the darkness of the water.

I stared at Varun in shock. His eyes were brilliantly blazing; his hair was like spun gold. My mind was hazy; I'd swallowed a lot of water, and there was no room in my lungs for air. I began to grow dizzy, losing consciousness as I thrashed about in the water, gasping for air. This is an Immortal, too, I thought vaguely, as my eyes began to close. This wasn't the Varun I knew from high school, jocular and easy-going. This was the Water King, Poseidon, coming in all his power, commanding the waves. This was the true self of Varun.

Mac. The voice seemed to be coming from within my own mind. Breathe into me. We need to get you air. His arms were tight around me as I lost consciousness. It's the only way to stay alive.

My lips parted; his lips were against mine. He pressed my chest, expelling the water, and then began to breath fresh, sweet air into my mouth. My lungs expanded; consciousness returned to me. The waves and surf came over us intermittently with the lapping of the tide; we were both soaked and exhausted. I clung to Varun hazily, his mouth like a lifeline – the source of air of life.

“I have you, Mac,” Varun was holding onto me tightly.