Heiress of the Sea

Chapter 14

THREE WARNINGS BEFORE YOU READ THIS CHAPTER:

WARNING #1: This chapter is a bit longer than usual.  So sorry for the extra time it will take to read.

WARNING #2: You might experience "the feels" while reading this chapter.  Don't say I didn't warn you.

WARNING #3: The song I pasted is the I imagine one Soren and Ailith dance to.  I'm an orchestra nerd, so this was a hard decision!  If you listen to it, you won't regret it :)

OKAY--let's get into this!

"My son," Zeus responded, a grin appearing on his face, turning to face me. "Oh...I remember you. The little sea warrior. Gods and Goddesses, you look so much better now than you did before. Now tell me, son, how long have you been married? Is she pregnant yet? I want the details. You know better than anyone that I'm quite the romantic at heart. Tell me the whole story."

His grin widened as he seated himself across from me, swinging his legs up onto the table, crossing them at the ankles and grabbing Soren's wine goblet.

"Actually," Soren responded, through his teeth. "We're not married yet."

Zeus's face molded into a scowl. "Oh. Well...no, no, no; that just won't do. Poor Poseidon won't be happy about this at all. Soren, I thought you'd be handling this much better than you are," he said, eyebrows furrowed, turning to me. "I'm sorry, sea girl, but you and my son are going to have to marry tonight."

"What?!" I exclaimed. "The prophecy states that we must marry before the first snowfall of winter. Doesn't it?"

I turned to Soren.

Relieving me of my immediate stress, he nodded. "Yes. Stop trying to mess with us, father, because it won't work.'

"Aw, you're really no fun. And I find it humorous how you call me 'father'," Zeus remarked. "You're soon going to be so much more powerful than I, yet you still address me like I am your superior."

"What do you mean he's going to become more powerful?" I asked.

Zeus's gaze turned to me, and he grinned.

"You didn't tell her?"

Soren shook his head. He looked sick.

"Once we marry," Soren explained, gulping down nerves, "I will take my father's place as King of Kings. I will inherit all of the power I was ever meant to have. There are still some skills that have yet to be unlocked, as I am unwed."

I raised a brow. "Wait...what does marriage have to do with unlocking extra power?"

"It brings on the prospect of an heir," he responded matter-of-factly, and I felt my eyes widening. "Which—which will unlock my full potential."

I hadn't even thought about that. I mean, I had, but never seriously. I felt myself wincing and flushing at the same time.

"In the distant future," he added, to which I felt a bit relieved.

Zeus chuckled. "You know, when I first met Hera, my first wife, and your mother, Soren, we conceived you the very day we met."

Soren cringed. "Thank you for letting me know, father."

"What can I say? We're both people of passion. That's why I've had to take many other lovers in my lifetime, as you know." Zeus sighed, sipping out of his wine goblet.