Palace Walls

Part Nine

 Her heart pounds. It forges the cold metal pain into something shiny and warm, something they can see and believe. Every hour melts slowly. She breathes in and out as they note her heart's blazing glow. It falls into her hand, as the blood of a dream stains the earth.

Miss Kwak couldn't breathe. All she could see was blue-black, all around her, with some swirling silver bubbles. She turned to the surface, where sunlight glinted softly through the water, only to be yanked down by another long, slimy tentacle.

This is it, she thought, This makes my skincare nonsense feel like any scraggly pink cloud drifting through the ancient sky.

She squeezed her eyes shut, as the energy drained from her sore limbs. Her heartbeat slowed. Her body swirled toward a massive blob of dark-green scales. She shuddered-- a giant faceless octopus! This is how my life ends?! Heart pounding, she pressed a hand into the tentacle, only to pull away something warm and smooth. What? Oh, I guess I'll never know....

Her stomach dropped. The tentacle let go, shoving her up and away like a torpedo. She shot through the surface, gasping for her air. The sun stung her eyes, so she could hardly see the small ship looming overhead.

"Miss Kwak?" asked a familiar voice, "Oh, thank the Goddess...!"

Her vision focused. Lord Cleone! Rage burned through her body as she swam to the prow and climbed back in.

"Why didn't you help me?!" she demanded, "You took me out here, knowing full well there was a...monster, and you didn't help?!'

Lord Cleone went silent, his face wrinkling with concern.

"She only targets humans, but that was years ago."

"That's not good enough for me. You should have done something."

"I tried, but...."

"Well, it wasn't good enough." She frowned at her fist, at the smooth warm thing trapped inside. Should I look, should I not...?

"I'm sorry," he breathed, "You're right, but...there's a lot I haven't told you."

"The octopus has no face," Miss Kwak gasped, "I know that."

Cleone paused, then opened his mouth. His eyes glimmered, as if this was something deeply important to them, then closed it.

"I-I just wanted to say," he continued, "That sea-opal has been hunted for centuries. The ancients called it...faitrine."

Kwak looked down at the warm, smooth stone in her hand. Its color shifted from soft lavender to a dark green. She gazed into it, completely mesmerized.

I don't believe him, she thought, Not the faitrine thing, but he was clearly gonna say something else....

"So you don't believe me?"

She shuddered at his words. But how did he know?!

"You think you know everything, doncha?" she demanded.