The guest quarters in the Coral Palace were a masterpiece of bio-architecture, but to Simon, they felt like a waiting room for an execution. The walls were translucent, revealing the slow, hypnotic dance of bioluminescent jellyfish outside. The air was thick, humid, and rich with oxygen, designed to keep surface-dwellers comfortable, but Simon paced the floor with the restlessness of a caged tiger.
Evelyn sat on the edge of the massive, shell-shaped bed. She had scrubbed her face three times, trying to wash away the feeling of inadequacy that Joanna's gaze had left on her skin. She wasn't a jealous person by nature her Starlight gift was one of clarity and peace but being called a "pet" in front of the Royal Court had stung more than she cared to admit.
"You're going," Evelyn stated. It wasn't a question. She watched Simon's back as he stared out into the abyss.
Simon turned. He was shirtless, wearing only a pair of loose training pants provided by the palace staff. His skin was glowing faintly in the dim light, the azure scales on his hand pulsing in time with his heartbeat.
"I have to," Simon said, his voice low. "She challenged me, Evelyn. If I don't show up, I look weak. And in this kingdom, weakness seems to be a capital offense."
"She wants to separate us," Evelyn said, her fingers twisting the sheets. "She knows the bond is strong, but she also knows it's... divided. She wants to see if she can make you choose."
Simon walked over to the bed and knelt before her. He took her hands in his. His grip was firm, grounding. "There is no choice, little star. You are my first breath. You are the light that woke me up. Nothing she does can change that."
"But she's the water," Evelyn whispered, looking into his turquoise eyes. "And you were dying of thirst on land, Simon. I saw you. I saw how much you needed this place. I can give you light, but I can't give you the ocean."
"I don't need you to be the ocean," Simon said fiercely. "I need you to be the anchor. If I go into that water without knowing you're waiting for me, I might lose myself to the deep. You are the only thing keeping the Wolf alive right now."
He leaned up and kissed her a soft, lingering promise. Then he stood, grabbing the sharkskin strap of Wave-Cutter and swinging the sword onto his back.
"I'll be back," he vowed. "And I won't be alone. I'm bringing the respect of this kingdom back with me."
Evelyn nodded, forcing a brave smile. "Just... try not to let the mermaid drown you, okay?"
"I'm a Tribrid," Simon smirked, though the humor didn't quite reach his eyes. "I'm pretty hard to drown."
The Training Atoll was located on the outskirts of the Coral City, a natural amphitheater formed by a ring of jagged volcanic rock rising from the seabed. Unlike the palace, which was enclosed in the air-dome, the Atoll was open to the ocean. To enter, one had to pass through a shimmering membrane that separated the air from the water.
Simon stood at the edge of the obsidian platform, looking through the membrane. Beyond it, the water was dark and churning. The sun had not yet risen on the surface miles above, so the only light came from the glowing moss clinging to the rocks.
Standing in the center of the arena, suspended effortlessly in the water, was Joanna.
She looked even more formidable than she had in the throne room. She wore armor made of black scales that hugged her form like a second skin. Her long green hair floated around her like a halo of seaweed, and in her hand, she held a trident made of white coral, its tips glowing with a dangerous, magical energy.
She saw him. She didn't wave. She simply pointed the trident at him, then at the water.
'Come in, Wolf,' her voice echoed in his head. It wasn't through the Soul-Link they hadn't bonded yet but through the sheer projection of her will. 'Or did you forget your floaties?'
Simon took a deep breath. He centered himself. He called on the Wolf for courage, the Dragon for heat, and the Lagoon for adaptation.
He stepped through the membrane.
The transition was instant. The heavy, crushing weight of the ocean slammed into him. For a second, panic flared the instinctual mammalian fear of suffocation. But then, his body reacted.
Snick-snick.
The gills on his neck tore open. The water rushed in, cool and revitalizing. His vision shifted, the blurriness vanishing as his pupils dilated to absorb the low light. His legs fused together, the bones reshaping with a sickening crunch until a powerful, silver-teal tail propelled him forward.
He swam toward her, Wave-Cutter still strapped to his back. He stopped ten feet away, hovering in the water.
"I'm here," Simon bubbled, his voice carrying clearly through the liquid medium.
"You're late," Joanna said coolly. She circled him, her movements predatory. She was examining him like a shark examines a wounded seal. "And your form is sloppy. You swim with your shoulders, not your core. You're fighting the water, Simon. You treat it like an obstacle."
"I lived on land for seventeen years," Simon defended, turning to keep her in his sight. "Give me a break."
"The Void won't give you a break," Joanna snapped.
Without warning, she lunged.
She didn't use the trident. She used the water itself. She thrust her hand forward, and the current slammed into Simon like a freight train. He was spun backward, tumbling out of control.
He righted himself, snarling. He reached for his sword.
"Ah, ah, ah," Joanna tutted, wagging a finger. "Weapons are for warriors. You aren't a warrior yet. You're barely a tadpole."
She moved with a speed that was terrifying. One moment she was twenty feet away; the next, she was directly above him. She kicked down with her powerful tail, her fin slamming into his chest.
Simon gasped expelling bubbles and plummeted toward the rocky floor of the arena. He hit the sand hard, a cloud of silt exploding around him.
He was angry now. The Wolf didn't like being humiliated.
He roared, the sound vibrating through the water. He pushed off the sand, rocketing upward. He aimed a tackle at her midsection, intending to use his superior mass to pin her.
Joanna didn't dodge. She smiled.
Just as he was about to make contact, she spun, creating a vortex. Simon was sucked into the spinning current. He was trapped in a washing machine of her making, spun around and around until he didn't know which way was up.
Then, the vortex collapsed. Joanna grabbed him by the throat and slammed him against a pillar of rock.
Her face was inches from his. Her green eyes were wild, glowing with bioluminescence.
"Is that it?" she hissed, her nails digging into the scales of his neck. "Is that the Tribrid power my father talks about? A clumsy charge? A growl?"
"Let... go," Simon choked out. He clawed at her hand, his talons scraping against her armor.
"Make me," she challenged.
Simon's eyes flashed gold. Fire.
He summoned the heat of the Dragon. He pushed it into his skin. The water around them didn't just warm up; it boiled. A cloud of steam bubbles erupted around them, the sudden change in temperature shocking Joanna.
She hissed in pain, releasing him and darting back. "So, you do have some bite."
Simon didn't wait. He used the cover of the bubbles to move. He didn't swim straight this time. He used the current. He twisted, mimicking her movements. He appeared behind her and locked his arm around her neck in a chokehold.
"I learn fast," Simon growled in her ear.
For a second, they were locked together, drifting in the silent blue. Joanna's body was strong—solid muscle under cold skin. She smelled of amber and raw power.
Joanna didn't struggle. She laughed. A dark, throaty sound.
"Good," she whispered. "But not good enough."
She didn't fight his grip. She expanded her gills and let out a sonic shriek—a burst of high-frequency sound that hit Simon's sensitive ears like a needle.
He cried out, releasing her and clutching his head. His vision swam.
Joanna spun around and kicked him in the chest again, sending him drifting backward. But she didn't pursue. She hovered there, watching him recover.
"You fight like a wolf," she critiqued, crossing her arms. "You look for the throat. You look for submission. But the Ocean doesn't submit, Simon. The Ocean endures. It erodes. If you want to claim me, you don't pin me. You have to overwhelm me."
Simon shook his head, clearing the ringing in his ears. "I don't want to conquer you, Joanna. I want to work with you."
"Then you will die," she said bluntly.
She swam closer, her expression shifting from mockery to a cold seriousness. "Do you know why I called the Starlight girl a pet?"
"Because you're arrogant," Simon spat.
"Because she is fragile," Joanna corrected. "Starlight is beautiful, yes. It burns shadows. But it breaks, Simon. If you hit a diamond with a hammer, it shatters. If you hit water with a hammer, the water swallows the hammer."
She reached out and touched the scales on his chest, her touch surprisingly gentle this time.
"The Void is coming from the Trenches, Simon. It isn't just shadows on the wall. It is leviathans made of rot. It is darkness that crushes submarines like soda cans. If you bring that girl down there, she will crack. And if you are too busy trying to protect her, you will crack."
Simon looked at her. He saw the fear hidden deep in her green eyes. She wasn't being cruel for sport. She was terrified that the Savior of the Prophecy was going to get them all killed because he was too soft.
"She is stronger than you think," Simon said firmly. "And so am I."
"Show me," Joanna whispered. "The bond is calling, Wolf. I can feel it itching under my skin. But I won't accept it. Not until I know you can handle the weight of the crown."
She backed away, spinning her trident. "Round two. And this time, I'm using the trident."
The "training" session lasted for three hours. By the time the sun's rays began to filter down through the miles of water, illuminating the Atoll in a ghostly blue light, Simon was battered.
He had cuts on his tail from the coral. He had a bruise on his ribs from the trident. His energy reserves were drained.
But he was still swimming.
He had learned to anticipate the currents. He had learned to use his Dragon heat not just to boil, but to create thermal layers that confused her sonar. He had even managed to land a few hits, grazing her arm with Wave-Cutter.
They floated opposite each other, chests heaving.
Joanna looked at him. Her hair was a mess, and there was a small cut on her cheek where his sword had nicked her. She wiped the blue blood away with her thumb and tasted it.
She smiled. A real smile this time. Sharp, dangerous, but respectful.
"You endure," she noted.
"I'm stubborn," Simon panted.
"It's a start," she conceded. She sheathed her trident. "Go back to the palace, Wolf. Feed. Rest. Your body is still adjusting to the pressure. If you stay out here much longer, you'll get the bends."
"Are we done?" Simon asked, sheathing his own sword.
"For today," Joanna said. She swam closer, stopping just inches from him. The "Second Pull" flared, a magnetic force trying to smash them together.
She leaned in. Simon thought she was going to kiss him. He tensed.
Instead, she bit him.
She sank her sharp teeth into the junction between his neck and shoulder. It wasn't a mating mark—it wasn't deep enough to hit the gland—but it drew blood.
Simon cried out, more in shock than pain.
Joanna pulled back, her lips stained with his blood. Her eyes were dilated, swirling with a dark hunger.
"A taste," she whispered, her voice husky. "To remind you who rules these waters. You belong to the Moon, Simon. But your blood? Your blood tastes like the sea."
With a flick of her tail, she shot upward, disappearing toward the surface currents, leaving Simon floating in the silence, bleeding into the water.
He touched the bite mark. It stung, but it also throbbed with a strange, pulsating power. He felt... connected. He could feel exactly where she was in the ocean, a green beacon on his mental radar.
She hadn't accepted the bond. But she had acknowledged it.
---
Simon returned to the guest quarters looking like he had wrestled a kraken. He shifted back to his human form at the airlock, but the transition was rough. He stumbled into the suite, dripping wet, clutching his side.
Evelyn was waiting. She had paced a hole in the carpet. When she saw him, she gasped.
"Simon!" She rushed to him, her hands glowing with healing light before she even reached him. "What did she do to you?"
"She taught me," Simon groaned, collapsing onto the sofa. "Lessons in the Lagoon are... hands-on."
Evelyn touched the bite mark on his neck. Her fingers froze. She recognized the pattern. It was a claim. A warning shot.
"She bit you," Evelyn whispered, her voice trembling with a mix of hurt and anger.
"It was combat, Evelyn," Simon said, closing his eyes. "It's how they fight. It's primal."
"It's intimate," Evelyn corrected. She pulled her hand back. "She's marking her territory."
Simon opened his eyes. He grabbed her hand, refusing to let her pull away. "My territory is here," he said, placing her hand over his heart. "She bit my shoulder, Evelyn. You hold my heart. There is a difference."
"Is there?" Evelyn asked, looking at the wound. "Because from where I'm standing, it looks like she's trying to rewrite you."
"She's trying to keep me alive," Simon said wearily. "The Void is down here, Evelyn. I felt it during the fight. Cold spots in the current. Watching us. Joanna knows that if I'm weak, we all die. Including you."
Evelyn looked at him really looked at him. She saw the exhaustion, the new scars, and the lingering terror of the deep in his eyes. He wasn't the invincible Alpha right now. He was a boy carrying the weight of three worlds.
She sighed, her anger melting into resolve. She sat down beside him and placed her glowing hands over the bite mark. The light felt warm, soothing the sting of the salt.
"I hate her," Evelyn muttered, concentrating on the healing spell.
"I know," Simon chuckled dryly.
"But," Evelyn added, "if she makes you strong enough to survive this... I will tolerate her. For now."
Simon leaned his head back, letting the Starlight wash over him. The bite healed, leaving only a faint, silvery scar.
"One down," Simon murmured, half-asleep. "Now I just have to figure out how to get the Shark and the Star to exist in the same tank without eating each other."
Evelyn kissed his cheek. "Good luck with that, Alpha. Because I think the Dragon is going to be even worse."
Simon groaned. He had almost forgotten about the Dragon.
Far away, high above the clouds in the floating Dragon Nest, a girl named Peace sneezed, setting a tapestry on fire.
But that was a problem for another day. Today, Simon had survived the Ocean. And as he drifted into sleep, the sound of the tides was no longer a roar—it was a song. And for the first time, he knew the words.