The Blue Divide

Chapter 37

Eko swam to the doors of the temple. It was time. If Nerine hadn't been able to get an audience with the Nyxus she would have returned by now.

He tried to push away the fear that stabbed the back of his heart. Mellusine had always terrified him. As a small child, tales of the dragon made him afraid to go into the city at all. He was frightened she would somehow break free and devour everyone. Now he was approaching her with the tiny hope that he would get by unnoticed. Was he crazy?

He thought of Lainey at the mercy of those terrible men, and anger burned away any other emotion.

The temple of Poseidon was quiet and empty. Only a few illuminator orbs lit the corridors. He headed for the lower level where the vault was located. He saw all the architecture in Atlys differently now. What he once thought were decorative contours in the floor, were actually stone staircases. Even this glorious building was built in the Upperworld.

He could feel the Heart long before he reached the vault. Its mindmusic was so powerful, he could think of nothing else. When he arrived in the antechamber, he swam straight for the door of the vault. All caution disappeared as the will of the Heart urged him on.

The roar of Mellusine broke him from his trance, but it was already too late. The white sea dragon slammed into him, sending him careening into the wall of the temple. Nauseating pain exploded in his back and shoulders, but there was no time to recover. The dragon's serpentine frame flipped around and she opened her jaws wide.

As Eko dove for the corridor, Mellusine's fangs clipped the end of his left fin. A thin trail of blood followed him, its scent enraging the beast. She pushed off the wall and pursued him, her mindmusic erratic, as hunger drove out all thought of guarding the vault. Here was a wild creature that longed to hunt.

The Nyxus had taken the dragon in, claiming she was the last of her kind; that keeping her in the temple protected her from extinction. His power filled her mind with the irresistible compulsion to protect the Heart, but few merrow had ever been stupid enough to even attempt to approach the vault. Mellusine's services had rarely been needed. Now, fulfilling her duty enlivened her.

The temple rumbled as the dragon smashed into the walls while she attempted to turn the corner. Eko pushed himself forward, racing for the upper level. The current from Mellusine propelled him forward, but he still wasn't moving fast enough. He swam over the stone staircase and into the upper halls. He ducked behind a pillar and circled around it. Mellusine tore after him, colliding into the pillar, and wrapping herself around it, hissing and snarling while the column collapsed. The dragon screamed and Eko dove for the door.

Mellusine pushed herself ahead of Eko, blocking the exit with her snakelike body. Eko was going too fast to stop himself. He crashed into her scaly hide.

As the beast's jaws came down on him, he grabbed either side of her snout and hung on as tightly as he could manage. Mellusine lashed her head around and Eko let himself be flung towards an adjoining corridor. As he swam in the other direction, Mellusine's tail lashed around and struck him in the stomach.

He doubled over and sank to the stone floor, stunned. He had to keep moving, but the pain took away all his strength. Mellusine dove for him, her dagger-like fangs completely exposed.

He rolled just in time, and Mellusine bit down on a piece of rubble from the broken column. Eko saw a chip break off from one of her teeth. He managed to get moving again. He swam into an open room and closed the door.

Waves filled the chamber as Mellusine pounded into the door, hissing and snarling against the barrier. Cracks split the stone. There wasn't much time.

He closed his eyes and reached for the power of Poseidon. Why could he never access it when he wanted to? The Heart was so close. Why didn't it flow into him of its own accord, the way it had in Mr. Leventis's mansion when Lainey was in trouble? Or when he was almost executed by the soldiers?"

He remembered the day he had saved Nerine from those seawolves. It was before he had touched the Heart. He had no weapons, no significant strength, only the single power the Heart granted him at birth. Fish herding.

The shield over Atlys prevented any fish that wasn't herded from coming into the city, but maybe if he concentrated hard enough, he could guide some through the gate and into the temple. He closed his eyes and reached out with his mind. The closeness of the Heart made his power stronger. Despite the peril of his situation, he was able to quiet his mind and project the music outside the city. The cracks deepened as Mellusine continued her attack. The chamber was small. When the dragon broke through he would be cornered.

His mind touched a school of lanternfish grazing above the gate. He sang into their feeble minds and they instantly changed course, picking up speed as they sped through the gate. He tried to keep his breathing steady and his mind calm as Mellusine's pounding became more intense. If he broke focus now it would be too late. The door was going to give way any moment. He could sense the fish making their way through the market, through the temple doors, down the corridors, until they swarmed around Mellusine.

The dragon's attack stopped. She opened her mouth and swallowed some of them whole.

He let her get a taste and then directed the fish towards the farthest reaches of the temple. Mellusine followed after the fish, her erratic mindmusic desperate for prey.

Eko couldn't waste any time. It wouldn't take long for a creature of Mellusine's size to devour them all.

The cracked door crumbled under the pressure of his arms. He slipped into the corridor and descended to the lower level. Towards the vault.