Light Redeemed (Shadowguards Book 2): A Gay Urban Fantasy by Ken Sanchez

Author:Ken Sanchez [Sanchez, Ken]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Independent
Published: 2024-03-16T00:00:00+00:00

14

Leviathan

Eryx

Triton led them to the outskirts of Atlantis, then instructed everyone to pair up. With a wave of his hand, bubbles of shimmering air enveloped each pair, allowing them to breathe and move freely underwater.

Eryx took Alex’s hand as they floated up, encased in the sphere. It felt solid around them, though slightly yielding to touch. Eryx peered at the glossy surface, mesmerized.

“You sure these bubbles are safe?” Lucas asked nervously as he rose inside his own alongside Olivia.

Triton flashed a roguish grin. “Completely safe. I make them all the time to impress sea nymphs.” He waggled his eyebrows playfully.

Olivia made a disgusted sound. “Ugh, typical boastful male.” But there was amusement in her tone rather than true annoyance.

“Hey, it works. The ladies find me irresistible,” Triton said, puffing out his chest in mock bravado.

Emma laughed, the sound muffled inside her bubble with Gabe. “Considering you’re half god, I’ll bet they do.”

Triton preened comically before turning serious once more. “Right, enough chatter. Let’s dive.”

He plunged into the ocean depths ahead of them, swimming with preternatural speed. Their bubbles trailed in his wake, propelled by some invisible force.

Eryx tightened his hold on Alex’s hand as the ocean yawned below them. The bubble’s glossy membrane flowed smoothly over his skin, allowing sensation but keeping the freezing water at bay. Magic thrummed through its every atom.

“Incredible,” he marveled. “I can see why sea nymphs would find this romantic.”

Alex chuckled. “Gods do know how to show off when courting.” His thumb stroked Eryx’s reassuringly. “But I’d take a nice dinner over this any day.”

Eryx smiled. “Agreed. Candlelight and wine beat freezing ocean depths.”

Eryx gasped as alien ocean scapes unfurled around them on all sides. Triton led them through forests of kelp swaying hypnotically in the currents, past spiraling manta rays and schools of neon fish. The ocean’s beauty was breathtaking.

After what felt like hours of diving deeper, a rocky outcrop emerged from the gloom. Triton angled toward a cave entrance in the submerged cliffside. Hovering at its mouth, Eryx could make out huge stone doors etched with swirling glyphs that seemed to shift in the watery light.

“That’s a big damn door,” Lucas remarked. The rest of the team murmured in awed agreement.

Triton held out his hand, summoning his trident in a flash of blue light. The prongs glowed as he traced patterns in the water, mirroring the runes on the stone. In response, the massive doors trembled, then slowly swung open.

One by one they slipped inside, clicking on waterproof flashlights to pierce the darkness. Past the entrance, the cave opened up into a vast subterranean space. Triton led them upward through a tunnel until they emerged onto an island of rock surrounded by still black water.

As their bubbles popped, Eryx took a grateful breath of fresh air. “What is this place?” he asked Triton, peering around in wonder.

“The Abyssal Maw,” Triton intoned grimly. “Where the souls of the damned come to be judged.”

Eryx felt a chill race down his spine. For set being a place of judgment, it carried a palpable aura of malice.

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