Page 25 of Vameer

I aim lower, changing the direction of my gravito, and I start to descend.

The sun is setting, and when I land on a cliff overlooking the water, the sky is glowing red.

Standing on the rock, no humans in sight, I strip.

My fingers hesitate on my bracelet, but I don’t know if it will get damaged by the ocean water, so I take it off. I slide the bracelet into my robe pocket, then I find a large boulder to set on top of my robe to keep it from blowing away. And I tuck my sword in a crevice for the same reason.

I don’t actually need a sword. There is nothing that a piece of metal can do for me that I couldn’t do with my bare hands. But… I like it. I like having it on me. I like the way it feels against my palm. And I like having the visual reminder for others that I am a creature of violence.

Turning my back to the land, I face the freezing ocean.

Cold water never bothered me before. But with my Fire Touch quiet… and floating chunks of ice visible…

I sigh. This is going to be unpleasant.

Not wanting to prolong the wait, I dive off the cliff, using a small burst of gravito.

I break through the waves a quarter mile out, and the cold is instant. And immense. But the water is clear.

Too heavy to swim like a human, I shove my gravito forward, moving myself farther away from shore.

Below me, as the ocean floor drops away, the water gets darker.

It’s … quiet. Quieter than I remember.

I can’t hear any of the songs I’m searching for.

I go a little farther, then I pause my forward momentum. Not releasing my gravito, because I’d sink, just staying suspended in the water. Listening.

Then I feel it.

The vibration.

The low hum.

I wait a few more minutes, then, from the darkness, she emerges.

Our eyes meet, and she calls out. The sound is so low, I feel it in my fangs.

It’s a happy sound. I know that much. But nothing more.

I continue to wait. She is not one to be rushed.

But then she rolls. A slow spiral. And I take the invitation.

Matching her speed, I move alongside her in the water.

Nothing could hurt me in the ocean. And being beside her, the largest of her kind, I know she understands the feeling of invincibility.

I press my palm to her side.

After waking, after growing, from my toes to the tips of my horns, I’m at least eight feet tall. And the creature next to me is more than ten times that in length.

I smile as I curl my fingers around the front edge of her fin.

She lets out another of her beautiful calls.

I find the blood vessel I’m looking for. And in the darkening ocean, I sink my fangs into the blue whale. And I feed.