Ch. 42
Wake's voice breaks the silence between us, soft and probing. “What troubles you, Pho-ebe?”
His question catches me off guard. I hesitate, unsure how to answer. My mind is a tangle of thoughts, a web of emotions I haven’t fully sorted through. “What’s it like… living in the ocean?” I finally ask, the words tumbling out awkwardly.
He tilts his head, frowning as if the question doesn’t make sense to him. “I do not understand your question.”
I sigh, realizing I need to be clearer. “I mean, do you have a family down there? Moms and dads? Siblings?” I’m grasping at straws, trying to connect with him on some level. He’s still such a mystery to me, and I’m desperate to understand.
Wake’s gaze shifts, his expression darkening slightly. “Yes,” he says after a pause. “I have both a mother and a father, as well as three brothers.”
That admission surprises me, and I can’t help but push further. “What are they like?”
He falls silent, his eyes narrowing as he rises up to stare sullenly into the distance. Despite the dark, I can tell he’s not seeing the inside of this cave anymore. He’s somewhere far away, somewhere deep within his own mind.
Concerned, I sit up, the cool air of the cave brushing against my skin. “What’s wrong?” I ask gently.
Wake’s jaw tightens. “I do not often speak of my family,” he says, his voice strained.
“Do you not get along with them?” I venture, trying to tread carefully.
He sneers at the thought, a bitter smile twisting his lips. I go quiet, sensing that this is a sensitive subject. The only sound between us is our combined breathing, a steady rhythm that feels strangely intimate in the stillness.
After a long pause, I decide to share something of my own. “I’m an only child. My parents were great, and I had some cousins I grew up with, but… it got lonely sometimes.”
“There are times,” he says slowly, “when being alone is the preferred option.”
I frown, not quite understanding what he means. “They can’t be that bad,” I say, trying to imagine what could have driven such a wedge between him and his family.
His reaction is swift and fierce. He whirls on me, his eyes flashing with anger. “If given the chance, my brothers would end both my world and yours just to make a point.”
I stare at him, wide-eyed, taken aback by the venom in his voice. The intensity of his words hangs in the air like a threat, heavy and unsettling.
He lets out a sharp breath, the anger in his eyes receding slightly. “We were never meant to grow close,” he admits, his voice quieter now. “But I do have compatriots… friends, you would call them. They were enough.”
I want to ask more, to dig deeper into what he’s told me, but I sense that pushing him further on this topic might only drive him away. Instead, I ask cautiously, “What did you do with them? What did you bond over?”
Wake’s eyes narrow, his expression distant as he begins to recount his past. His voice, usually so direct, takes on a softer, almost nostalgic tone.
“We hunted the deep,” Wake continues, his eyes glinting with the excitement of those long-ago days. “Monsters that would make your human myths seem like children’s stories. Beasts with jaws large enough to swallow a ship whole, creatures with tentacles that could crush a city, and ancient beings older than the sea itself. We would track them through the darkest, coldest waters, where no light could reach, where even the bravest of your kind would never dare venture.”
His voice grows more animated, and I can almost see the scenes he’s describing. I imagine Wake and his companions slicing through the inky blackness of the deep ocean. I try to imagine Wake as a rebellious teen or a headstrong child, and find that I can't. But I would very much like to see the side of him that used to…play.
“We would race through the ruins of sunken ships,” he continues, his eyes lighting up with the memory. “The wreckage of your human vessels, lost to the sea, abandoned to time. We scavenged the remains, searching for anything of value—gold, jewels, weapons.
“What’s your home like?” I ask, my voice filled with awe.
But his expression shuts down again, and the spark of excitement I felt dies. He goes silent, staring at me with a guarded look. I feel frustration bubbling up inside me. “You don’t trust me, do you?” I accuse, my voice sharper than I intended. “It isn’t fair when I have no choice but to put my faith in you.”
His eyes narrow, and his voice is cold when he responds. “I do not want your faith. I require your compliance, your action.”
His words sting, and I push to my feet, flinging my hands in the air. “Why?” I demand, my voice rising in frustration. “Why is it so important that you find a mate? Why are your people in danger? How am I supposed to help you when I don’t know anything about you?”
Wake rises as well, his presence towering over me, filling the space with a dark energy that sends shivers down my spine. “If you want to know more about my people,” he says, his voice low and ominous, “you must come to the sea with me.”
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