Forever(26)

Thayde descended, allowing gravity to pull him down to me. Ezen and Tiesa wrapped themselves around each other and followed suit. As soon as the three of them were within reach, Yanix dipped his head in a dive, morphing into a pilot whale, his legs gliding up into his torso and pushing out from the sides, forming fins. There was no light, no shimmering or shaking vibration. He simply melted into a black whale – it was extraordinary to watch. When he was finished, he dwarfed us.

Tiesa uncurled from Ezen and squeezed me like an orange. “We were in Miami picking out my wedding dress! It’s fabulous! You totally have to come with me and see it. Ezen thinks it’s lovely, don’t you bunny?” Her grin would have lit up the mall at Christmas time.

“Bunny?” Thayde chuckled and Ezen looked about as thrilled as I would have been if I had learned my tattoo was on my face.

“Yeah, she says it’s a cross between baby and honey.” His tone was clearly a warning to Thayde to be quiet.

“Bunny. Honey bunny,” Thayde said to himself and Ezen punched him in the arm.

Yanix squeaked suddenly, drawing us back to the matter at hand.

“I can’t wait to see your dress,” I hugged Tiesa and then got straight to the point. “Naira is in limbo.” Ezen and Tiesa’s faces fell. “She’s fallen in love with an angel and she’s dying. There’s not any way I can bring her back that I know of. Also, Herra’s building an army to try and defeat me. I have a lot of questions and I need to confer with the Elders.”

“They are supposed to have their decade meeting this month sometime,” Ezen interjected, “you could always call them into the meeting now.”

“Call them?”

He nodded. “Send them a mental message. They’ll be there by the time you arrive.”

“That’s pretty short notice. How?”

“They have their ways. They are obliged to assist The Link.”

“I’ve never met these people before. How am I supposed to send a message to someone I don’t even know?”

Ezen looked at me as if I were an idiot. “Morgan, you do realize you’re The Link, right?”

“What’s that supposed to mean?”

Thayde tugged on my fin. “It means you need to stop doubting and just do what you know is right.” His voice was kind. “Now hurry up and get to it. We don’t have much time.”

“Thank you.” My sarcasm made him smile.

Turning away from my friends, I faced the depths of the ocean without a clue what to do. I focused on the rippling surface and was reminded of how much I had grown to love the ocean. The way the silky waves glided against the air holding it down had always been one of my favorite images; it made a beautiful, undulating canopy.

I’d never been drawn to the ocean. My childhood was spent in the mountains of Stanley, Idaho. The closest body of water was the beautiful Redfish Lake. The ocean had never factored into my life plans. Now, as I looked out across my second home, I couldn’t imagine existing without it. Then it came to me.

I pulled my arms out straight from my sides and created my orb. The beautiful burgundy light grew from the size of a small dime to encompass my entire body, and I held tightly between my hands. Relaxing my mind, I repeated my message:



The time has come to assemble

I call all of you to meet me in the great hall.

I would not change the date if it were not

of upmost importance.

Please be there immediately.



Finished, I released the orb and it flew from my arms, speeding forth, flooding the water like a red dye dropped into liquid. Moments later, it disappeared.

“That,” Tiesa said, “was awesome!”

“That,” I murmured, “was unexpected.”

“Pretty cool, nonetheless.” Ezen nodded in agreement with Tiesa.

“So now we just show up at Neridia?” I asked, barely believing it could be that easy.

“It is that easy.” Thayde’s strong arm wrapped around my waist, anchoring me to his side. “You ready?”

“What about Tiesa and Ez?” Neither could speed swim and leaving them behind was not an option.

They have Yanix. His deep voice resounded in my mind. Ezen and Tiesa took hold of the large pilot whale’s dorsal fin and he took off, leaving us bobbing behind in his wake.

Wow! I tried to wrap my mind around his speed. He’s incredible!

He’s the fastest in the world. But he can’t dive all the way to Neridia – it’s too deep.

What does he do then? Stay at a certain depth and wait?

Thayde looked back at me, the side of his beautiful face accented by the sun.

“Exactly,” his smile was brief before he shifted his gaze back to the ocean. I held my breath.