Y/N sits bolt upright, snatched from sleep by a door slamming in the hallway outside. Frantic, whispering voices can be heard from a ways away.

She silently swims from the bedroom to the main door, pressing her ear against it. Two distinct voices, one male and one female, are speaking in urgent tones.

"Your presence is long overdue," the woman seethes, "the ship has already been lead to the rocks."

"Merchant vessel?" The man queries. Their voices begin to fade as they head down the corridor.

"Yes, a brig."

Y/N cracks the door open and watches the two murdukann hurry away.

A ship?

That must mean humans are nearby. But what do the merfolk want with them?

She knows it can't be anything good. She makes a move forwards, but hesitates. Is she really going to do this?

Y/N's gills flare shakily as she looks down at her skimpy nightgown. She doesn't have time to change if she wants to catch up to the two murdukann.

Sighing, she brushes away her nerves and dives down the corridor. Peeking around the corner, she spots the female's dark orange tail swishing up a trapdoor in the rocky ceiling. After waiting for a moment, Y/N banishes her worry, then kicks her legs to propel her forwards.

The dim tunnel snakes upwards, its jagged walls covered in slimy algae. The spindly strands sweep against her bare arms and legs, making her shiver. She swims upwards for what feels like forever, before the passage makes a sharp right.

Y/N emerges into a rugged cave and climbs out of the water, ducking behind a row of boulders. She knows she has a better chance of staying unseen if she sticks above the surface. Her lungs splutter and cough out sea water, expanding as she takes a steady breath of air. She can feel her gills snap shut.

Yells echo from ahead. Crouching low, Y/N pads to the mouth of the cave. Peering around the corner, she has to clasp a hand around her mouth to stop herself from screaming.

A merchant ship is stranded on shallow rocks, heaving back and forth as murdukann push and pull at the hull. They tear at the wood with their long nails, breaking it apart piece by piece. The mast snaps, shredded sails careening onto the battered deck.

Sharp fins surge from the waves, slicing into wood and flesh. Sailors yell out in despair as they are dragged from the ship into the dark depths.

Y/N chokes, her heart plummeting to her stomach as she sees a familiar red and black tail leap from the water. Lysanthir bears his teeth and sinks them into the neck of a sailor, dragging him overboard. A deafening crack tolls as the ship splits in half.

The sailors' screams go silent.

Y/N's eyes swell with stunned tears. She turns away from the massacre, sinking to the floor. Bile rises in her throat.

She runs her hands down her face, internally berating herself. How could she be so stupid? Letting Lysanthir seduce her with his pretty library and soft touches.

Trying to fool her into forgetting he's a monster.

Seeing the murdukann's jaws clench around the sailor's throat...she closes her eyes, but images of her family dart through her mind. Images of them suffering the same fate.

A tidal wave of nausea overwhelms her and she gags and retches. Hugging her knees to her chest, she digs her nails into her palms, trying to quell the horror raging inside of her.

Splashing echoes. Y/N holds her breath, slumping further behind the boulder.

Ryfon's whooping laugh is unmistakable.

"The looks on their faces are always priceless. How many was that?"

"Sixteen."

Y/N recognises that icy voice as belonging to the female murdukann she followed here, the one with the dark orange tail.

"Next time, Ryfon," she continues, "don't play with your food."

A third voice scoffs. Lysanthir's.

"And how many centuries have you been telling him that, Vesryn?"

Centuries? They have been alive for centuries? How many people have they murdered in all those years?

The splashes and voices fade as the murdukann head back down that long tunnel, back into Athtar.

Y/N's heart begins to calm. They're gone.

They're gone. Oh no. Y/N springs to her feet. Lysanthir will go back to his rooms and discover she's gone.

She wrings her hands, debating her options. She has to decide quickly.

As much as she wants to escape, she would need sturdier clothes and supplies. She can't just go running off with nothing but a silk nightdress. And then there's the matter of Lysanthir. She knows in her heart that Lysanthir would hunt her down to the ends of the world to reclaim her.

Shaking, Y/N dives into the water and down the tunnel. Her lungs shudder as they welcome in sea water. Down and down she goes, bristling against the algae.

Then, she runs into a solid door. The trapdoor. And it is locked.

Y/N pushes against it frantically, but to no avail. The murdukann must have closed it after them.

Her throat goes tight. This was her only way of getting back into Athtar unseen. She doesn't know of any other entrances apart from the main gates, which are guarded.

She gives one final shove and then gives up. The door definitely isn't budging.

Y/N presses a hand to her temple. She thinks of going to the gates and just surrendering herself to Lysanthir.

But she can't bring herself to. He would know what she had just witnessed, and she is petrified of the consequences. He could very well lock her away, shackled forever to prevent an escape.

That only leaves her one option.

Y/N pauses. All she can hear is the soft billowing of the tunnel algae. Lysanthir hasn't realised she isn't still in his bed.

She still has a head start.

She springs into action, speeding back up the tunnel. Y/N explodes out of the water. She sprints across the cavern floor, tripping over loose stones.

Frigid, salty wind blasts her as she makes it to the entrance. The bones of the merchant ship are just visible above the waves, sinking ominously into the ocean.

Y/N shuffles along the side of the craggy edge, her back to the rocks. Ridged boulders form a steep ledge to her left, and she uses her arms to lift herself up.

Ever muscle in her body aches as she scrambles higher and higher. Her elbows are raw from the sand and stone, but she continues on. She has to get as far from the water as possible.

The ground begins to tremble, and Y/N has to grab onto the rocks to stop from falling.

A terrible howl splits the air, rumbling from deep beneath the mountain.

He's coming.