“Trust your instincts, viperling,” Drecken whispered.
Jesper nodded, his reassurance flooding the matebond.
“You got this, venom baby,” Slater told me.
“I’ll jump right after you, lethal darling,” Dimitri promised.
“Then I’ll go, pretty little poison,” Zuko said cheekily.
“See you on the other side, little vixen.” Koa’s reassurance trickled down the bond with worry.
“I’ve been wanting to explore this ever since the first time I saw it,” I admitted, walking toward the edge and looking down.
Below, the glassy water showed the mouth that waited just beneath the surface, ringed in teeth, each one as long as my leg.
My stomach clenched.
I rolled my shoulders back and jumped.
Cold water swallowed me as I plunged straight down, arms tight to my sides. The enchantments in the suit stopped me from freezing as I sank deeper.
Rows of ancient teeth slid past me. My skin crawled, but the maw didn’t bite down.
It was like diving through a throat that had forgotten how to swallow.
The pressure shifted, and I moved my arms to push myself deeper. I turned face down and swam, holding my breath.
I swam and swam until my lungs burned.
Bubbles emerged beside me as a door formed.
But it wasn’t really a door like Dad had suggested. Instead, it looked more like a rip in reality or a portal. A thin vertical line sliced the water, glowing faint gold. It split open like an opening eye.
Beyond it pulsed a corridor of darkness and faint green light.
I swam closer, and a sharp pain split my head open.
Take the memory of Aura—not Allison—but Aura.
My vision blotted as I attempted to swim into it again. This time, it swallowed me whole.
I burst from the water into empty air, falling several more feet before hitting a slick stone floor with a grunt. My wet hair plastered to my temples, and I inhaled a greedy stream of oxygen into my lungs as I pushed to my feet.
“Fates,” I hissed, wringing out my hair. “Who did I just forget?”
I racked my brain but came up empty.
Six matebonds pulsed in my chest, and the memories of my parents and brother remained.
Therefore, I didn’t care who I’d forgotten.
It wasn’t just the absence of light in this tunnel; it was a silence so dense it felt like cotton had been shoved into my ears and down my throat.
The air inside the doorway was warmer than in the pool, tinged with the scent of damp stone.
The door closed behind me with a soft hiss.
Faint green sigils pulsed in the stone beneath my feet, just bright enough to outline a narrow corridor ahead. The walls were slick black rock veined with a dull, greenish glow.
