Yunho couldn't seem to stay still as he waited outside the king's bed chambers. He was constantly letting up and down the hallway or bobbing in place right outside the thick, seaweed barrier.

But he needed to be patient. Mingi had asked to speak with his father alone...

It hurt, slightly, that Mingi didn't want him there for something like this. Saving Wooyoung was the only thing occupying Yunho's mind. He felt like they had already wasted so much time debating and discussing.

The hardest thing was fighting against the 'What ifs'.

What if Wooyoung was hurt?

What if something had happened to him since sending the letter?

What if he couldn't find his way home?

What if these 'friends' betrayed him?

What if he...

A small whimper escaped Yunho's lips and he wrapped his arms around his stomach before sinking to the sea floor. His glistening blue tail folded beneath him, supporting his body and keeping him upright.

What if he never saw Wooyoung again?

Yunho didn't know if he'd be able to handle that... He would go look by himself if he needed to.

The guard pursed his lips and nodded. Yeah, if Mingi needed to stay then he would go on his own. Wooyoung had managed just fine, so he could do it. Plus he knew more magic than Wooyoung, so he had an advantage there too.

To fight the growing itch to just swim away, Yunho moved in front of a nearby opening so he could look out over his pod. It didn't seem nearly as cheerful as he knew it could be, although a lot of the pod was still in mourning.

A few children swam by while flicking a small rock back and forth with their tails it was a popular game to play because it also built up strength in those muscles.

Their black tails flowed beautifully behind them, but Yunho thought he saw a few green scales starting to look through on one girl's tail.

He smiled and watched them for several minutes, letting his mind drift back to the days when he used to do the same thing with Wooyoung and Mingi. They would spend hours chasing each other around and fantasizing about what color their tails would be when they presented.

Yunho's was the plainest of their trio, but he was proud of the vibrant blue he'd received.

A soft swish from behind him drew his attention, causing him to spin around with a flurry of bubbles.

Seeing Mingi's heartbroken expression made Yunho rush to his side and pull him into the tightest hug he could manage. They both sank into the sand and clung to each other in complete silence.

"I don't think I'll see him again..." Mingi whispered.

Yunho tends and started to pull away, but his prince just followed the movement to keep his face buried in Yunho's neck.

"It's gotten so much worse... He could barely keep his eyes open. But..." The prince took a deep breath, then lifted his head. "He wants us to go."

"He does?!" Yunho said, failing to hide the small burst of excitement that pulsed through him.

"Yeah." Mingi finally pulled away and ran a hand through his swaying red hair. "And he gave me something we can use." He held up three oval pendants that had multiple shades of blue swirling over the surface. They were attached to a simple cord that had been dyed black with squid ink, which turned into a T-clasp at the opposite end.

"What are they?"

"Amulets made by Mother Ata, supposedly, if the rumors are true. They are filled with enough magic that we should be able to stay in human form without issue. He said that normally there is a time limit, which would probably only apply to you and Youngie. No one can know we have these."

The sudden change in Mingi's tone made Yunho swallow while nodding his head. They couldn't back down now, and with these, they could surely bring Wooyoung home.

He lifted a hand and placed it on Mingi's chest. "Are you ok?"

"No." The younger said honestly. "But I need to be. We need to bring Wooyoung home and see how dangerous things are for us now."

It destroyed Yunho to hear his mate say that when there was nothing he could do to help him. He hoped bringing Wooyoung back would be enough to lift his prince's spirits.

With one last look over his shoulder, Mingi took Yunho's hand and they made their way to the main hall to meet with Yunho's most trusted guards.

Leedo and Changbin were silent and respectful as they listened to Mingi go over what his ideal plan would look like.

If possible, he didn't want anyone else to know he was gone. The hope was that no one would even notice because the official story would be that Mingi was spending every available second with his father. And since Yunho was his chosen mate it was only natural that he'd be there too.

The main concern was that they had no idea where to find Wooyoung or how to even begin... Although Mingi seemed to believe that Mother Ata's pendants would be able to help with that too.

"Are you sure about this?" Leedo asked once Mingi was done talking.

"You know we all love Woo," Changbin rubbed his arm and looked down, "But what if something happens while you are gone? What are we supposed to do?"

Leedo nodded and said, "And what if they start asking for you? Or someone visits? Forgive me, My Prince, but I don't think you should go."

Yunho bit his lip and looked down. They made a really good point. It would be hard to cover up Mingi's disappearance if a messenger or even a leader from another pod came by. They had already had one visitor, it was possible there could be more. News of the king's illness was bound to travel quickly.

"Min..." He said, turning his head slowly. "Maybe they-"

"I'm going." Mingi stuck his chin out, using his authority to silence all three of his guards. "I'm going, and you can't stop me. I will trust you two to use your best judgement and decide how to handle things. I know you are fully capable. We can straighten things out when I get back if we need to."

Changbin's forehead scrunched in concern as he glanced at Leedo, but then both of them crossed their arms over their chest, making an 'X', and bowed at the hip before swimming away.

Once they were gone, the couple turned to face each other and Mingi reached behind Yunho's neck to clasp the necklace. "Don't take this off. Ever."

"I won't." Yunho grabbed Mingi's hands when he was done and held them against his own chest. "Are you sure?"

"No."

"Mi-"

"Don't." The prince shook his head and put on both his necklace and the one meant for Wooyoung. "If I think about it any longer, I know I'll change my mind."

Yunho looked down as his tail swayed slowly beneath him. With a single nod, he put his trust in his mate, knowing that Mingi would do what he thought was right and there would be no changing his mind.

Without another word, they laced their fingers together and snuck out the worker's halls, avoiding everyone that tried to cross their path.

Once they were outside of the city walls, they both took a deep breath and started to swim in the one direction they had sworn to never go.

Toward the surface.

"DAMMIT!" San yelled after ramming his shoulder against the door. Again. "THOSE BASTARDS!" He rammed the door again and again, shaking the car each time.

"Sannie, calm down. Please!" Yeosang leaned through the middle from his seat in the front and clutched at the younger's shirt. "You're going to hurt yourself. I can't have both of you hurt."

"Let go of me!" San smacked his hand away and threw himself against the opposite door.

If it weren't for the damn spell Wooyoung had cast, he would have rolled the car over by now...

"S-San-nie..." Yeosang reached for him again, his voice straining from fear and stress.

"No! I can't stop! I won't stop!" Tears started to sting San's eyes as he looked around the car.

Then his eyes fell to where Jongho was cradling his left hand against his chest. It was already turning different shades of blue, purple, yellow, and black...

Jongho had been the first one to try and get them out.

The second the doors to the truck Wooyoung had been tossed into closed, he slammed his fist against the front windshield so hard they heard a crack.

Unfortunately it wasn't the glass...

Yet Jongho didn't stop until he had punched it five more times. He probably would have kept going if Yeosang hadn't climbed into his seat to hug him and prevent him from moving his arm anymore.

San knew his friend was right... Wooyoung had sealed them away to protect them.

His body started to tremble and he slapped a hand to his mouth in an attempt to cover his sobs that now shook his body.

Wooyoung had sacrificed himself to protect them...

It made San so angry to think about! How could he do that when he was the one those men had been after? How could he be so stupid!

Why would he ever think this was ok?!

San doubled over and clawed at his chest right above his heart. It felt like it was shattering into a million pieces, but that it was doing it piece by tiny piece.

Did love always hurt this much?

All he wanted to do was go and save Wooyoung. He needed to hold him close and protect him. Forever.

"San." Yeosang whispered. He pulled himself into the backseat and threw his arms around the younger. "Take a deep breath." His hand gently rubbed the back of San's head in an attempt to comfort him.

It worked. A little.

San could feel the tears rolling down his face and soaking into Yeosang's shirt. He wasn't sure when they had actually started falling, but now it felt like they would never stop.

There was a hole in his heart now that would never be healed unless they could get out of here.

And even then...

Hopelessness crashed into San, forcing the air from his lungs and pushing him into the seat. It punctured his skin with thousands of tiny needles, each one determined to inflict as much pain as possible.

How was he supposed to rescue the love of his life?

He had absolutely no idea where he could even begin to look, no idea who those men were, and no clue as to what their intentions were. But he doubted they would take him back to the aquarium.

A soft, white glow drew his attention and he lifted his head to stare out the window.

"Sangie." He breathed, tapping his friends shoulder to get him to turn around. "Look."

All three boys glanced through the windows on the left side of the window, mesmerized by the flowing movements getting closer and closer.

It was the unicorn.

It turned its head from side to side, surveying the area while tiny fairies flitted around its head. Then it slowly walked forward and pointed its horn at the car.

A brilliant flash followed, making all three boys cover their eyes as quickly as they could.

Had it been there the entire time? If so, why hadn't it helped??

San ground his teeth together in an attempt to hold back the anger that threatened to break free again.

When the light died down, Yeosang leaned forward to touch the handle. He paused, eyes flicking between Jongho and San, then exhaled sharply. With a light tug of the fingers, he pulled on the handle and gasped when the door swung open.

Jongho and San opened their own doors and they all ran around the car to stop in front of the unicorn.

"Thank you." Yeosang said finally. "Do you know where they went?"

The unicorn shook its head and shuffled in place. Its tail flicked behind it endlessly, swishing through the air with the lightest of sounds.

San clenched his fists and stormed over to the driver's door. "Let's go."

"San." Yeosang scolded.

"He is getting further and further away with each second that passes!"

"You don't think I don't know that?!" Yeosang threw his arm out in the direction the trucks had left. "I watched it all happen, same as you! Now you need to start using your head and calm the fuck down or we are never going to find him!"

San opened his mouth to shout back, but he didn't see the point. So he got in the car and slammed the door, rocking it back and forth from the power of his action.

He knew Yeosang was right. He knew.

But fear was a powerful thing...

And San was so, so terrified that this was the end.

If he lost Wooyoung forever... then he would be lost too.

Lost in a raging sea of endless longing.