“So this is why we can talk and breathe?” I asked, gesturing toit.
“Yes.” Shota’s eyes lit up as he looked around the ocean—he was like a kid who’d stumbled into a hidden gateway to Candy Land. “You guys, this is the coolest thingever!”
“I hate to admit it, but he’s right,” Raiden said, his normally stoic expression nowhere to be found. His face was slack with amazement as he looked around. I had to agree—the view down here was incredible. Schools of fish were swimming all around us, shimmering waves of fins and scales in a variety of shapes and sizes. Long tendrils of kelp waved at us from the ocean floor, and brightly colored fish darted in and out of the underwater forest, looking for food while hiding frompredators.
Off in the distance, I spotted what looked like a pair of sea otters chasing each other through the water, and there were some manta rays sailing through the currents as well. Many of the fish steered clear of us, unwilling to become theUmigame’slunch, but an elephant seal drew close, curious. I held my breath as it sidled up against the shimmering barrier, wondering if it would try to come up to us. But it couldn’t pass, and after a minute, it swamaway.
“Looks like the sharks won’t be able to get to us, then,” Raiden said, sounding satisfied. “I wonder what happens when we get off theUmigame’sback,though?”
“My yoki will protect you for several more hours after you disembark,”the sea turtle said.“Beyond that, you will have to ask Ryujin, or one of his children, to offer you protection from thesea.”
“Sweet,” Shota and Raiden said simultaneously. They exchanged identical grins, and I couldn’t help laughing. Personality-wise they seemed completely different, but in this moment their shared blood shone throughclearly.
Boys will be boys,I thought, turning my attention back to the view.I might as well enjoy it while I have the chance, I thought as we sped through the water, plunging into the ocean depths. Because I had a feeling we were headed straight intotrouble.
10
It tookus several hours to reach Ryujin’s palace, and I spent most of that time flat on my back on the turtle shell, catching up on some much needed sleep. Yes, I know the idea of sleeping underwater while surrounded by amazing undersea sights sounds a bit crazy. Believe me, I spent the better part of the first hour gawking at all the fish and animals. It wasn’t every day that you got to fly past a humpback whale and her calf, or watch a great white shark chase a sealion.
But those exciting moments were interspersed with long stretches of nothing but kelp forests and schools of fish, and there was only so much of that a girl could take. I needed my beauty sleep if I was going to go toe to toe with a dragon god. And seeing as how Raiden had passed out as well, it stood to reason there was no harm in taking a deep seanap.
“Hey, guys,” Shota said next to my ear, interrupting a very nice dream in which I was receiving my diploma from medical school. “Wake up. We’re approaching the palacenow.”
I groaned, stirring a little. As I did, I immediately became aware that two warm bodies were pressed up on either side of me. Tensing, I opened my eyes and sat up slowly. Sure enough, both men had cozied up to me while I was sleeping. Shota was sitting up on my left, his eyes gleaming as he stared straight ahead at whatever had caught his attention. Raiden was on my right, sleeping like the dead. Both of their bodies were pressed up against mine, and my cheeks blazed as I realized I’d probably snuggled up with them unconsciously for warmth. TheUmigame’sshield protected us against the worst of the cold, but there was still a distinct chill downhere.
“Look ahead,” Shota said, shifting his gaze and grinning down at me. “You won’t believe youreyes.”
Groaning, I pushed myself up to see what the big fuss was about. And gasped. Off in the distance, perched atop what looked like an undersea volcano, was an immense palace constructed of pink coral and sea glass. It glittered as though it was encrusted with jewels, and as we grew closer, I realized itwasencrusted…with something. Fish scales, maybe? We were still too far off to tell. A towering gate of stalactite-shaped coral surrounded the palace, and stationed around itwere…
“Are those jellyfish?” Raiden asked, looking over my shoulder at the palace. I’d been so caught up by the splendor of the palace, I hadn’t noticed him sit up. “Holy shit, this place looks like something straight out ofThe LittleMermaid.”
“Do not let Ryujin hear you say that,”theUmigamewarned, a hint of amusement in its deep voice.“He finds the insinuation quite offensive, as he built his palace long before Hans Christian Andersen was everborn.”
I blinked. “You know who Hans Christian Andersenis?”
“I may be old, but I am not senile,”the turtle said, sounding a bit miffed.“The ocean currents bring more news than you mightthink.”
“Of course,” Shota said, his voice soothing. “And you guys end up with all the books and treasure that are lost at sea, too. You probably know a lot about what goes on above thesurface.”
“Yes, and the sea birds bring us news too. We are very wellinformed.”
Well that’ll teach me to make assumptions,I thought to myself as theUmigamepulled up a few feet away from the front gates. The jellyfish guards shifted, their tentacles wrapping tightly around their spears, and I tried not to notice the crackling energy that clung to said tentacles. I had no doubt that if those guards decided to turn us into shark bait, our odds of survival werenotgood.
“Thank you very much,” I said to the turtle, swimming off his back. I knew, logically, that the water pressure should be crushing me at this depth, and yet, I swam through the water as easily as if I were in a kiddie pool. Even though it made me nervous, I approached the sea turtle’s great head, then leaned my body against it in a sort of half-hug. “I know you are powerful enough that you didn’t have to helpus.”
The sea turtle chuckled again.“It has been many a century since a human last rode atop my shell.”He nudged me with his head, and I floated back a few feet, not sure if he was nuzzling me or trying to push me away.“Good luck with your audience with Ryujin. I will await your callagain.”
Raiden and Shota swam to my side, and we watched the sea turtle swim away. I marveled at how fast he sliced through the currents, reducing his huge form to a mere spec in the distance in a matter ofseconds.
“That was really something,” Raidenmurmured.
“Yeah. And we’re only just getting started.” Shota rubbed his handstogether.
As one, we turned to face the jellyfish guards. They stood silent, waiting, and I swallowed, trying to figure out where to look at them. They didn’t seem to have eyes, as far as I could tell, or even mouths. Could theytalk?
“Speak, human,”the one on the right said, and I started. Like theUmigame, its voice was disembodied, and yet somehow I knew that it had spoken rather than its partner. “What is your business here at the DragonPalace?”
“We are here to see Ryujin,” I said. “We have important business to discuss withhim.”
