“This is good?” Florian groaned. His stomach churned, half seasick and half anxious.
“Just a little further now,” Carl continued as if he hadn’t heard Florian. They were far from the island, farther than Florian thought they would be—though its summit loomed up ahead, dominating the horizon.
“We need to never tell Kade about any of this,” Florian muttered, leaning closer to Koji, who chuckled but nodded.
“Agreed,” he said. “And I’ve never been more thankful for your ability to teleport, so we never have to do this again.”
“There it is,” Carl interrupted. But the noise of the motor didn’t die down, and they started moving in careful circles around a point in the water that was, thankfully, far enough from the center of the rapidly churning whirlpool that Florian thought they had a decent chance of making it. He couldn’t make out where exactly the curtain was, though; Carl pointed, but it all just looked like the shimmer of light reflecting off the choppy water.
“I don’t see it,” Koji said, echoing Florian’s thoughts. They were both leaning over the side of the boat, peering in the direction that Carl was pointing. The old man swore under his breath.
“I’ll try to get closer,” he muttered, before the sound of the motor drowned him out once again.
Something in the water seemed to sparkle with a different light than the water around it, and Florian gestured at it quickly.
“There,” he said, nudging Koji. “I see it!”
“Got it?” Carl called out, and Florian nodded. Koji still looked dubious, peering out into the water. “Listen. I’m going to circle as close as I can, then you’ll have to jump.”
“I think I see it,” Koji murmured, his voice soft and nervous next to Florian. “I’ll follow your lead, okay?”
Florian nodded, his eyes trained on the faint shimmer in the water. Was that really it? It had to be—he desperately hoped that was it, and not some trick of the light. Koji’s anxiety was all but palpable in the air beside him, just like his own.
This was insane, he thought, but they had no other choice. For an instant, he was overwhelmed with how desperately he wished Kade was here; the wolf shifter would have been in full control of the situation, would have known exactly where the curtain was and exactly when to jump. But it was just him, nervous and uncertain, and Koji trusting him to lead the way.
“Now!” Carl shouted, snapping him from his thoughts. Florian hesitated for a second, wondering if they were about to drown. But there was no other choice.
“Jump!” he exclaimed to Koji, then leapt off the side of the boat. The icy shock of the water ripped the breath from his lungs, completely disorienting him. He’d expected the water to be cold the way the ocean was at home—but this was on another level entirely, chilling him to the bone in an instant.
At the same moment he became aware of the current tugging at him, he realized Koji was splashing in the water beside him. Which way was up? He couldn’t focus, couldn’t think—blindly, he threw a hand out where he could feel Koji thrashing, his fingers curling around what felt like the strap of his backpack. Panic swelled in his throat, taking every ounce of self-control not to start hyperventilating.
As the current pulled them down, he felt something else rush by—magic prickling his skin, even through the cold water. It had to be the curtain. He couldn’t see anything, salt stinging his eyes and bubbles blurring his vision, but blindly he swam back towards it, hauling Koji with him. It had to be there, even if he couldn’t see it; he had to trust that his fae blood would bring him to it, drawn toward the magic of the Veil.
His free hand reached blindly, fumbling through the rushing water, until finally it felt like it caught on something—he wrenched on it as hard as he could, and suddenly the current shifted, sucking them through like a storm drain. Despite himself, a startled yelp escaped his throat in a shower of bubbles, and he could barely keep his grip on Koji.
The current died away all at once, and abruptly they were in almost pitch darkness. Wherever the curtain had shunted them to was much deeper; he could feel the pressure in his ears immediately. Well and truly panicking now, Florian started kicking, searching for the surface. A faint glint of light on some bubbles was the only thing he could see, and he desperately tried to follow them, unsure of how far the surface was.
All thoughts of Koji or the kraken shifters had left his mind now. Survival mode had taken over, and his sole focus was getting to the surface so he could live. But he couldn’t swim fast enough—he would run out of oxygen soon, unless—
I can breathe,he told himself.I can do it, I can breathe the water.If this didn’t work, he was absolutely going to die, but he sucked in a tiny breath anyway.
The saltwater stung his nostrils, but when it hit his lungs, he didn’t choke. Relief flooded him so thoroughly that for a moment he was motionless, breathing in the water to make his lungs stop screaming.
Koji.The realization hit Florian all at once, panic overtaking him all over again. He looked frantically around, but it was so dark, he couldn’t find the other boy, and the saltwater still stung at his eyes.
Then a shadowy shape surrounded him, making him thrash and kick against it on instinct. His first thought was that it was a kraken, guarding the entrance and prepared to drown any intruders by pulling them down into the depths. But then sharp claws grabbed his back, and suddenly he was surging up, up, up toward the surface, far faster than he could have on his own.
Koji had shifted, Florian realized, and the long serpentine movements that they used to fly could get them through the water much more efficiently than his humanoid limbs. He went limp with relief, grateful that Koji had seemed to keep his wits about him more than Florian, or maybe he’d just reached for the only magic he had, too, knowing he had a better chance of surviving as a dragon than a man.
Light flooded his vision, then an instant later they were breaking the surface of the ocean in a tremendous splash. The water Florian had been breathing came gushing out of his mouth and nostrils, making him gag and choke as Koji lifted them into the air. The dragon hacked up water too, his coughs much deeper and guttural as his body coiled defensively around Florian.
“I’m—I’m good,” Florian finally choked out, patting the part of Koji’s back that he could reach. “I’ll shift too. Good idea.”
Koji gave a low growling sound and loosened his grip. Much as he hated the sensation of his bones lengthening and his form growing so much, his dragon form was a better alternative now that they were both in the middle of the ocean, so they could both fly and communicate more effectively. Florian grit his teeth against the pain as he shifted, Koji releasing his hold when he was able to hover on his own.
Good idea,Florian thought at him, flashing his teeth in a thankful smile.
Koji grinned back. Then he tossed his head, gesturing to the side.Think that’s it?
