I See Faeries

~chapter twenty~

Losing Control

~

The palace was beautiful, just as I'd dreamed. 

We swam toward the bottom of the sea, where the palace lay at the center of the stunning white city. There were no bubbles present to carry us down - Roman had snorted when I'd asked why we had to swim, and said, "It was a dream, Cass. Sometimes even your dreams involve a little extra imagination. My father has no need for bubbles to carry people to his city." 

And Roman was right - people carried themselves to King Silas's city. There was one bubble I remembered from the dream, though, that was still present while awake: the massive transparent dome that held the water back, allowing those inside to walk about and breathe normal air.

Lukas, Torrin, and I stopped when we drew near the dome, while Roman swam up to it. I watched curiously as he placed his hand on its shimmering surface and closed his eyes. Something pulsed outward from his palm - a ripple of light that traveled across the entire barrier in an instant - and then he opened his eyes again and turned, gesturing for us to follow him. 

He swam toward the bottom of the dome where it met the seafloor. My lungs were already protesting the lack of oxygen, and I was starting to see spots by the time we caught up with him. Lukas seemed fine, but Torrin looked similarly uncomfortable. His owl, Gaia, clung to his back, her talons hooked into his tunic and her wings wrapped around his torso like a hug, and I felt a pang of concern for the animal. She looked miserable. This was far from her natural environment. How long could an owl hold its breath? I wondered. 

I looked down at the tiny bird in my pocket, and hoped the answer was 'A long, long time.'  Artemis's eyes were tightly shut, and she was curled into a tiny ball with her wings covering her beak. I'd asked Torrin if he was certain it was safe to take the little owlet with me in the water, and he'd reassured me that it was, and that Artemis was smart enough to hold her breath. He was right, obviously, but I still worried about her. She was my responsibility, now. 

My head throbbed, pulling me from my thoughts. I feel faint, I realized. Oh no. Blackness was creeping into the edges of my vision, and my lungs burned like they were on fire. I need to breathe. 

Strong arms suddenly encircled my waist and pulled me forward, through the transparent barrier, before I could faint. I collapsed on the ground the moment my body left the water, gasping for air. I could feel Artemis begin to breathe again in my pocket, and felt a rush of relief that she was okay. 

"Cass?" 

Roman's frowning face came into view as I looked up, blinking the seawater from my eyes.

"I'm sorry," I said breathlessly. I carefully got to my feet, gratefully accepting the hand Roman offered to pull me up. "We just cut it a little close there, with the not-breathing thing," I explained when I was upright again. 

"Yes - some of us are human, remember?" Torrin agreed, from behind me. I turned to see him standing beside Lukas, just inside the edge of the dome, with a sodden-but-alive Gaia perched on his shoulder. The man and owl both wore surprisingly similar expressions of displeasure. 

"Well you didn't die, did you?" Roman retorted, turning away before Torrin could respond. Lukas and I exchanged a wordless glance before following the faerie. Tread lightly, the vampire's eyes had said. I shared the sentiment. Something was bothering our princely companion - as always. 

Our point of entry was just outside the palace grounds, and had been considerably more graceful than the arrival I'd previously dreamt. I much preferred walking through the barrier to falling painfully from the 'sky' into a hedge, even if it meant nearly passing out.