Kai watched her approach, her silhouette framed by the dappled glow of the sun filtering through the waves. Seaweed clung to her like loose silk, her movements slow but deliberate. He should have been angry — angry at her for not obeying his orders to stay hidden, angry at her for putting herself in danger. But he couldn't. Not when she looked at him with those stormy gray eyes, eyes that held something unfamiliar, something deeper than fear. It unsettled him.

His gaze traced her slender form as she drifted closer, but that sense of unease grew into something worse. A jolt of panic shot through him, sharp as a harpoon. His instincts screamed a warning, but his body was too slow to follow his mind.

Too slow.

The flash of silver. The sound of flesh being pierced.

Her eyes widened in shock, her breath hitching in her throat.

His heart stopped.

The blood was a delicate thread at first, a single strand of red unraveling in the water. Then it bloomed. A deep crimson cloud, swirling slowly like spilled ink in the tide. His heart clenched with horror.

"Kai..." she whispered, her voice faint as her body slumped forward. Her head rested on his chest, her breath light and uneven. His name on her lips was barely a breath of sound before her eyes fluttered shut.

"Ren! No, no, no — Ren!" Kai's voice was raw, trembling with panic. His arms wrapped around her as he lowered them both to the seabed. Her head lolled against his chest as he cradled her, the warmth of her blood seeping into his arms.

"Please, stay with me," he begged, his voice cracking with desperation. His hands tangled in her hair, fingers weaving through the damp strands as though the physical touch alone could anchor her soul. "Don't leave me, Ren. Don't leave me..."

His eyes darted to the spear. It was embedded deep in her abdomen, the slick shaft jutting out of her back. His hands hovered over it, fingers twitching with uncertainty. He knew the truth. If he pulled it out, she would bleed faster, faster than even his magic could hope to heal.

Fate, cruel as it was, had other plans.

Her tail shimmered. The glow was subtle at first, a shift in hue that could be mistaken for light distortion. But it wasn't. Her emerald-green tail began to dissolve, the scales flaking away like bits of glitter. Her skin, once smooth and iridescent, shifted to the pale, peachy tone of a human. Her fins receded. Her tail split, bone and muscle stretching and reshaping. Her body contorted, her jaw clenching as her transformation completed.

Two legs.

Two fragile, human legs.

Kai gasped in shock, his heart pounding in his ears like a war drum.

A cold, firm hand clutched his wrist. He snapped his head up to see Morgan's sharp eyes locking onto his. "We have no time, Kai," Morgan said, his tone firm but strained. "She won't last long in this state. We must get her to the cave."

For a moment, Kai didn't move. His gaze lingered on Ren's face, so still, so pale. It took Atlantis swimming up behind him to jolt him into motion.

"I'll carry her," Atlantis said, scooping her up with care, his face a mask of quiet fury. His jaw was clenched so tight it looked as if it might shatter. "Move, brother. Go ahead of me."

Kai nodded, his teeth bared with unspoken rage. His gaze flickered to Onerious. The man watched them with a slow, curling grin that made Kai's blood burn hotter than any fire. His heart pounded with violent need — not to protect, not to defend, but to destroy.

His eyes, wild with rage, found Onerious.

Kai's hand found the hilt of his sword, and his grip was iron-strong, the leather-bound handle creaking under the force. Slowly, like a predator, he began to circle Onerious, his eyes blazing with a deadly glow. Each flick of his tail sent a small burst of power through the water.

Onerious watched him, his grin unwavering. "You wouldn't kill an unarmed man, would you, boy?"

Destan moved faster than a current, gripping his father's throat in one powerful hand. His growl was low, guttural, animalistic. His fingers pressed in with the force of a vice, his eyes narrowed into dangerous slits.

"Talk all you want," Destan snarled, his voice a deadly promise. "But you won't leave this place."

Both brothers loomed over Onerious now — two princes of royal blood, two predators with vengeance in their veins. Onerious, once so smug, now twitched with the realization of his mistake.

"Wait! We can come to an agreement," Onerious gasped, hands raised in surrender. His grin was gone now, replaced with the terror of a man who knew his time had run out.

Both brothers roared as one, a shared battle cry that echoed through the ocean. Their spears thrust forward, each prince driving their weapon deep into his chest. Onerious's eyes widened with shock, his lips parting in a silent scream. Blood poured from his chest, curling through the water like ribbons of red silk.

"You shall be fed to the sharks, father," Destan hissed, his face mere inches from his father's paling face. "That is your sentence for attempted murder of a king and his future queen."

With one mighty heave, Destan hurled him toward the surface. The body arced, lifeless, weightless, toward the light of the sun. Blood seeped from the wound, staining the sea.

The distant glint of movement caught Kai's eye. Sharks. Drawn by the blood.

They came in a frenzy.

The sea churned with white foam and crimson clouds as the predators fed.

***************

Atlantis swam as fast as his body would allow. Ren lay against his chest, her breath faint against his skin. Her blood still seeped from the wound, swirling behind them in a trail that screamed for predators to follow.

"Faster," Morgan urged, his eyes darting behind them. "Her blood is drawing them in."

Atlantis glanced back — and saw it. The unmistakable shape of a shark, its body cutting through the water like a blade. Its rows of jagged teeth gleamed in the refracted sunlight, bits of flesh still wedged between them.

"Hurry!" Atlantis growled, pumping his tail with all his strength. The water fought him, pushing against him like a wall, but he didn't slow. He wouldn't slow. Not for anything.

The rocky entrance of Morgan's cave finally came into view. He swam upward, breaching the surface, gasping with relief. They scrambled into the cavern, the sun glaring down from above with an unyielding heat.

Once on land, they laid Ren on a flat stone. She coughed weakly, her breath shallow and uneven.

Morgan darted to his collection of potions, his hands shaking as he pulled out herbs, salves, and bottles.

"Morgan, can you treat her?" Atlantis's voice was hushed, his eyes flicking between Ren and Morgan. "Can you save her?"

Morgan didn't answer right away. His fingers hovered over the potions as his gaze clouded with doubt. He shook his head slowly.

"No... I've never treated a wound this deep." His voice was thick with guilt. "She's human now, not merfolk. Our magic... it may not be enough."

Kai emerged from the water, his body soaked, his chest heaving. His eyes locked onto Ren. He strode forward, dropping to his knees beside her. His hands hovered over her face, his expression raw with pain. Her cheeks had turned a sickly shade of white, her breathing uneven. His eyes darted to Morgan.

"What does this mean, Morgan?" His voice was hoarse. "What do we do?"

Morgan's lower lip trembled. "It means... she needs human medicine. A human doctor." His voice cracked with helplessness. "They've surpassed us in medicine. Our magic isn't enough."

Kai's throat tightened. His gaze returned to Ren, his heart breaking at the sight of her lifeless form.

He leaned down, his forehead pressed to hers. "Ren..." His voice was a shattered whisper. His hands cupped her face. His eyes squeezed shut. "Stay alive. Please stay with me."

His hands trembled as he kissed her lips — cold lips that once felt so warm.

"I need you, Ren," he whispered, his tears falling freely. "I need you because... I love you."

His voice cracked, but he didn't care.

"I love you."

Her lips, so still, so cold, remained unmoving.

Please. Stay.

The ocean's silence was deafening.

To be continued in Book 2:

Diamond