The Triton

Chapter 7: Vivien

CURRENT DAY

"Specter? That's your real name?"

"Yes."

I raised my eyebrows, but nodded in agreement. "Sure. And, Specter, what are we doing here?"

"A lot will be happening, and soon. Because of you. I need to meet with some old friends, and we need to lay low."

"Because of me?"

He didn't respond.

"Fine. Will we be safe...wherever we're going?" I asked, gripping my fingernails into my palms.

"I am not sure."

"Will you ever actually answer one of my questions?"

"That was an answer."

I scoffed. "Fine. What's the hold up, then? What's happening right now?"

"I need your permission."

"Oh?" I actually laughed at that. "What for?"

"To change how you look."

My laughter was cut short. "Change how I look? What's wrong with my appearance?"

"Not like that, girl," he muttered.

Then it hit me. In the chaos of the last few hours, I'd forgotten what I looked like, who I looked like. Standing underneath the waves next to this over 6-foot beast, scaled muscle bristling, I felt tiny, insignificant, weak. My white 'Laguna Beach Lifeguard' shirt had soaked through and was torn in a few places, showing my necklace and two-piece underneath.

"Oh," I said. I opened my mouth to speak, but his finger raised once more.

"If you say another word, girl." The threat hung in the space between us, drifting like a log in a river. "You're much too loud. Stay here."

He left, swimming out of the cave. A moment alone was all that was needed––the walls were already closing in.

Alone in the dimly lit cave, my mind raced with a million questions, each one more urgent than the last. Specter's warning echoed in my ears, a reminder of the danger that lurked beyond the safety of our temporary refuge--but I wouldn't just sit here.

I glanced down at my torn shirt, the fabric clinging to my skin like a second layer of dampness. It was a stark reminder of the violence that had brought me here, the chaos that now surrounded me.

I steadied myself against the floor of the cave. I couldn't stay here, waiting for Specter to return with whatever plans he had in store. I could swim back. Probably. I just needed to get away from him.

But how? The cave offered little in the way of escape, its walls enclosing me like a prison cell. And beyond its confines lay the vast expanse of the ocean, an endless sea of uncertainty and danger.

I took a deep breath, steeling myself for what lay ahead. Determination curled in my fingertips as I clenched my fists shut.

With renewed resolve, I scanned the cave for any signs of a potential exit, my eyes searching the shadows for any glimmer of hope.

I pulled at the edges of the rock cave, pitiful in comparison to his speed and grace beneath the waters, the waters and rocks around me were suddenly so large, so never-ending and extensive, and I was so small in comparison. They rose in ranges, mountains of underwater corals and creatures weaving through their depths. Visibility, with whatever Specter had given me, was as clear as a day without smog.

Specter sat at the edge of a nearby rock face, looking away. Perfect. I pulled myself further, back presses against the rock behind me. Inch by inch I pushed further and further from the beast, his trident held loosely in his right hand.

It was a tense few seconds of silence. I ached for this stupid beast to twitch, to move, to show any fraction of anything, but he didn't. I inched further.

Then he did. I pulled myself into whatever shadows I could find, pitifully close to nothing, but he did not turn.

At least it looked like a twitch. In a blur of movement, he suddenly held a small red dagger and spun it deftly through his fingers. His eyes still looked forward, as if nothing had changed.

I heard a warm, inviting sultry voice drip from behind us, each word slow and smiling. "You're getting slow, Specter."

He held the dagger aloft, a half-curl of a grin coming over his face. "Sasha."