Page 14 of Craved By the Kraken Warlord

“My home is here,” I say. “With you. You’re my home, Va’thar. You’re my heart. You’re my everything.”

His eyes close, and he shudders. *“Mira…”*

“Shh,” I murmur, brushing my lips against his. “It’s okay. I’m here. I’m not going anywhere.”

He holds me tight, his body trembling against mine. I stroke his hair, whisper soft words of comfort, of reassurance. Slowly, he calms, his breathing evening out, his tentacles relaxing around me.

When he opens his eyes again, they’re filled with wonder. With gratitude. With love.

*“I never dared to hope,”* he says, his voice thick with emotion. *“I never dared to dream… that someone like you… could love someone like me.”*

“I do,” I say. “I love you, Va’thar. All of you. The monster, the warlord, the man. I love you.”

He pulls me into his lap, his tentacles wrapping around me, enveloping me in his warmth, his love. *“Then take me back to the deep,”* he murmurs. *“Take me back to the sea. To our home. To our life.”*

I kiss him, long and slow and deep. When we break apart, I smile. “Let’s go home.”

His bioluminescence flares bright, casting us both in a glow of love and light. And together, we dive into the deep, into the sea, into our future.

BENEATH THE STORM

The first thing I notice is the silence.

Not true silence—the grotto hums with the same low, living frequency it always has. But the crushing roar of the storm above feels distant now, muffled by layers of ocean and the steady beat of Va’thar’s heart against my back.

I float on my stomach in the pool, arms dangling. My hair fans out around me like seaweed, strands catching the grotto’s blue-green glow. The water isn’t water anymore, not really. It moves with me, parting when I exhale, curling around my fingers like a loyal hound.

*Bond perks,* I think, smirking.

Va’thar’s tentacle flicks my ankle in reprimand. *“You mock sacred magic.”*

“You’re reading my thoughts again.”

*“They’re loud.”* He’s lounging on the slab, one arm behind his head. The bioluminescent markings along his ribs pulse lazily. *“And incorrect. The bond is not a ‘perk.’ It is a merging.”*

“Same difference.” I kick gently, propelling myself backward until I bump into his legs. “Still getting used to the whole…” I wiggle my toes. The webbing between them glimmers faintly.

He sits up, trailing a claw down my spine. *“Does it trouble you?”*

“The gills? The night vision? The fact that I can hold my breath for an hour?” I roll onto my back, looking up at him. “Nah. Just makes skinny-dipping more fun.”

His snort vibrates through the water. The sound still startles me sometimes—how human it is. How *normal*.

Lightning flashes far above, fracturing through the pool’s surface. I tense instinctively. Va’thar’s tentacle wraps around my waist, pulling me against his chest.

*“It’s time,”* he says quietly.

I don’t need to ask. The sea thrums with it—the ritual’s pull, weaker now but still persistent. My fingers curl into his shoulders. “Will they send someone?”

*“Yes.”* His voice hardens. *“But not for long.”*

We rise together, breaking the surface. The grotto’s air feels thick, charged. My lungs adjust seamlessly, drawing oxygen from both water and atmosphere. Another upgrade.

Va’thar hesitates. *“You don’t have to—”*

“I’m coming.”

He exhales through his nose but nods.