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In actual fact, Poseidon was amazed at how well Willow was dealing with everything. As much as he despised the idea of a human as a mate, he was starting to feel the tug of a mating bond. It was faint but definitely present. He still wished to break it, but a tiny part wanted the bond.
Oh, he didn’t want Willow, but he did crave the experience and love a mate brought.
Poseidon glanced at Willow as she ignored all protocol and urged Chatter to ride beside him. She, point blank, refused to follow in his wake, and Poseidon felt pride in that.
His mate was strong and stubborn; in time, she would be something to witness. His feelings didn’t mean he accepted she was his mate, but he found, like Emmaline, he was slowly mellowing towards Willow.
Her calm acceptance of all she’d seen and witnessed spoke volumes about her potential to lead. Because she would take charge as his other half.
Willow would be the queen to his king. Every ocean inhabitant would view Willow that way, and her bravery would be legendary.
Willow had been confronted with the ability to talk to sea life, growing gills, imprisoned, and finally kidnapped and attacked.
Poseidon guessed that Willow felt no fear towards him. She stood her ground way too often for his liking.
And she certainly had a temper and had no qualms about unleashing it on him. If he was to be brutally honest with himself, Poseidon would admit he enjoyed their arguments. They scintillated him in ways he’d not been stirred for thousands of years.
They reached the edge of the Trench, and he dived straight over and paused. Atlantis’s wall guards would react the moment they saw the prisoner.
“I’m asking you to stay behind me. The city guards will undoubtedly act the second they see our prisoner here. Let me deal with them please, then we’ll enter,” Poseidon forced himself to ask and not order. Willow would certainly disobey an order.
“Okay,” she replied, and he blinked in amazement. That had been easy.
Poseidon sent her a suspicious look, which she returned innocently. Did she truly believe he was a fool? No.
He sternly looked at Lyris, who ducked his head and seemed to be studying something below him.
With a growl, Poseidon gripped his trident and darted below. The rest quietly followed, aware of the unpleasantness ahead.
Willow
This whole day had the epic beginnings of a fantasy novel, Willow thought as she followed Poseidon down. She kept sending glares at the trapped merman, remembering how casually he’d killed the jellyfish. They may have been her jailors, but she hadn’t wanted to see anyone die.
Even though Lyris was now free of the pearl and the evil influence the merman had wielded, she wasn’t sure she could trust him. Lyris appeared honest, but Willow knew honesty wasn’t guaranteed.
As they swam into the darkness, her eyes adjusted, and she started to see forms and shapes. The sun didn’t reach here. They were too deep for the bright rays of sunshine.
Despite knowing she was surrounded by those who cared about her, Lyris and Poseidon aside, there was a desolate feeling as they continued deeper. It was as if the missing sun had taken all the warm feelings away.
Danger lurked here while coldness and sadness seemed prevalent. There was life, but it felt like it etched slowly out an existence and wasn’t living the best possible life. Everything here seemed like a challenge; therefore, when Atlantis appeared, it took her breath away with its sheer beauty.
Atlantis emerged out of nowhere, a bright, shining light amid darkness.
“The outer walls,” Lyris said with a sneer.
Willow nodded as they came into better view. They glowed a whitish pink and were as high as the Empire State Building in America. Like tiny ants, Willow could see figures moving in the far distance. What amazed her was Atlantis seemed to be separate from the seabed, and she cocked her head, trying to figure out what was wrong.
“Atlantis was an island that sunk. The entire island sits upon the bottom,” Lyris explained, and Willow saw instantly what bothered her.
Lyris was correct. The outer walls were built only three feet from the island’s edge, which ended in sheer cliffs. Of course, they weren’t uniformly straight down but dipped in and out like cliffs.
Willow estimated that the cliffs must fall a good four hundred feet down to the seabed.
“How on earth did it sink?” Willow wondered.
“A meteor hit the Pacific, causing a massive tsunami. One which has never been seen since as it covered most land areas in the initial wave. When it drained back, the inland seas were created. But Atlantis was drowned and dragged down. They were an advanced people and had long ago developed the ability to swim beneath the waves. At first, they resembled humans, but evolution soon gave them gills.
“When the meteor hit, the Atlanteans raised a shield to protect the island. But it wasn’t enough to stop them from sinking. Some of their kind fled, but others stayed, determined to save their homes. Those who fled left reminders of their magnificent land. Still, humanity soon forgot their origins, and they became myth and legend.”
