Abyssal (ManxMan)

The Attacker Pt 2

Other than his mother, Kai never really had a family. He certainly never had a big one. No living grandparents. No aunts. No cousins. No siblings. No father. Before these few weeks, he didn't think he had an uncle either. Yet he did have a full-fledged merman for an uncle, and he was rapidly beginning to wish that he didn't -and it wasn't even because of the merman part. All his worst fears relating to his uncle appeared to be true, and Ryodan was right; his uncle wanted him gone so he could keep the throne.

A part of him had sincerely hoped that Ryodan was somehow mistaken in his claims and suspicions; that it wouldn't be the cliche and somewhat classic power-hungry-uncle-coveting-his-nephew's-throne scenario. It wasn't like Kai even cared about the throne, nor did he want it. Ever. What did he know about ruling a country, and an aquatic kingdom at that?

Still, his uncle's betrayal surprisingly wounded him. He hadn't expected to be taken into arms when he met his uncle for the very first time, but a part of him hadn't really believed that his uncle would try to hurt him either.

Now he knew better.

The attacker remained wisely silent.

"You need to free my mother from his grasp." Kai hissed at Marius' back, his voice rattled by fear.

Dammit, he'd never felt this level of terror before; fear so potent and rancid it felt like acid melting the lining of his stomach. He thought he was going to be sick. No what a sight that would be, the Prince of Astria puking in front of the King of Nostraza and his uncle's fixer.

He'd die before he gave either of them the satisfaction of seeing him rendered sick and weak.

"'You'?" Marius looked over his shoulder at him with a cocked eyebrow, no doubt upset because of the command. God, kings and their arrogance and pride.

"Who else? I can't do it! You said 'allow me'. Well, I'm allowing you all you want, partner! Just get my mother out of here."

Their gazes clashed and sparks flew.

Prove yourself to me now, Kai said with his eyes -he inwardly wondered if the desperation strangling him by the throat showed in his gaze.

Marius didn't respond.

What choice did Kai have than to rely on his 'partner'? His helplessness stung him badly, but now was not the time to dwell on his shortcomings.

Marius faced forward again and somehow Kai knew that he was going to offer his assistance. The relief that washed over him wasn't nearly enough to wash away all his fears, though. Only his mother safe and sound and away from this chaos would appease his worries.

Run, my Prince! The Golden Merman screamed at top volume in his head, rattling his skull.

Shut up! Not now! Kai was not one to dismiss the Spirit's warnings easily, but he had no time for self-preservation at the moment. Only his mother's safety concerned him currently.

You are in danger! No, his mother was the one in danger, all because they wanted to get to him. It would be a cold, cold day in Hell before he fled and abandoned his own mother.

He told the Spirit, who seemed to not comprehend the bonds of familial relations, as much: My mother is the one in danger. Either help me save her or keep quiet.

As if Kai needed another reason to resent the Spirit of the Sea using him as host; he would use him as a vessel but would not extend a hand to help his mother!

There is someone else present!

Kai froze. What?

The one you see before you is a decoy to distract Marius away from you. There is someone else nearby, I can sense it. Can't you?

Well, this was news to him. And no, he'd only sensed the first attacker, and just barely. Now the Spirit was telling him there was someone else? A chill raked his spine at the thought of someone watching him, ready to materialize next to him and grab him.

With extreme wariness, he scanned his surroundings, hoping to spy the other attacker. It was detrimental that he knew where he was coming from so he could react in time.

Open your senses; you'll sense him too.

For once, Kai obliged the Spirit, seeing and listening with his senses rather than his eyes and ears. If someone asked him to describe what these 'senses' were, he'd be hard-pressed to come up with a description that didn't make him sound crazy. Like an owl's gizzards, they detected that which his ordinary senses did not. A third eye.

A menacing shadow caught his attention. It was standing behind the attacker, and it seemed suspiciously familiar to Kai, as if he'd seen that looming shadow somewhere before. It was clearly male.

Kai squinted at the shadow as surreptitiously as he could manage, using Marius as cover.

Marius was wrong, it seemed. Zolban didn't seem to mind doing his dirty work himself at all.

Should he alert Marius to this new development? No, he couldn't do that without letting the shadow and the bastard holding his mother know he was onto them.

What should I do? His only option was to seek the Spirit's council.

Draw on my power.

Now this was a groundbreaking surprise.

Y-You're finally going to let me use you?

You are in danger. The Spirit repeated much calmly, but this time it actually resonated with Kai.

His life was in danger. This other attacker threatened his life, and because his life was under threat, the Spirit was more than willing to spring into action.

Damn. Shit had gotten serious real fast. 

*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*

Abyssal Book 2 has started on my Patreon for all tiers! If you'd like to finish Book 1 and start Book 2, consider joining my Patreon! You can read ahead, get early access to chapters as well as exclusive NSFW Abyssal short stories and content! I've also published a new story on my Patreon: The Djinn Prince's Captive! I'll tell you more about it soon. Thanks for reading!