Hurry! was his brief angry reply. He was going to run out of air soon.

How many?

Two with me. One with you.

I barely resisted the urge to stop and look over my shoulder for the naturi. I kept swimming, confident that I wouldn’t be able to see the naturi until it was already on top of me.

A thrashing in the water before me indicated I was close to it, yet as I reached out, a pair of claws raked across my back. I swam to my left with a jerk, twisting around so I could spot my attacker, but the water was too murky to see much of anything. Grabbing my blade from my waist and slipping it between my teeth, I swam, desperate to reach the hunter before his air supply ran out.

As I turned back, the claws ran over me a second time, raking across my shoulder blades. But I was ready this time. Pulling the knife out of my mouth, I reached my right arm behind me, catching the naturi as it swam by me. A garbled cry filled the water, indicating that I’d scored a hit. Kicking, I turned to find the naturi clutching its side. The creature looked human in the faint light except for what appeared to be webbed hands and feet—not exactly the mermaid I was expecting to find lurking in these waters. Gills on his neck opened and closed with each labored breath. With the naturi just in reach, I had a chance to use my unique ability. I didn’t stand a chance in an underwater fight. I was too slow. The only reason I had scored a hit already was due to surprise, and that element was now gone.

The water naturi came at me again, claw-tipped webbed hands reaching for my face in an effort to scratch my eyes out. I dodged its grasp, resulting in it getting just a handful of hair. Its fist tightened in my hair, jerking my head back. It opened its mouth, revealing rows of sharp teeth that would have made a piranha proud. Gripping my knife, I plunged it deep into its stomach. I immediately pulled the knife free and plunged my hand into the open wound before the naturi could release its hold on my hair. With my fingers wrapped around its insides, I put all my concentration into starting a fire, burning anything that I touched. The naturi jerked and kicked, desperate to be free of my fiery grip without ripping its burning organs from its body. It swiped one final time at my face while landing a kick to my stomach, loosening my hold on it. Then it kicked a couple few away before finally going completely still. It slowly floated to the surface.

Mira! Out of air! came Danaus’s panicked cry in my head.

Boil their blood! I commanded, swimming back toward him again.

Can’t.

Do it. I can’t see you. I had little chance of being able to fight off both naturi before Danaus finally passed out from a lack of oxygen. We were running out of time, and the longer he waited, the less strength he was going to have.

As I once again neared his position, there was a great commotion in the water. I was reluctant to strike—I couldn’t be sure which of them Danaus was but I could feel his power swelling in the water. He was killing the two remaining naturi by boiling their blood. I swam close, only to have someone kick me in the ribs. And then the water went completely still.

Danaus? I inquired. I could still sense him, but the feeling was becoming faint and thready, as if he was drifting away from me. Danaus! I repeated when he didn’t immediately reply. I kicked both feet, crossing the remaining distance toward where I could sense him. The water was too dark to make out anything beyond his large form.

Here came a whisper across my brain. He was exhausted and out of air. Grabbing his wrist, I swam to the surface, dragging him along. As he surfaced, he sucked in a lungful of air before coughing up the water he had swallowed.

“Are you all right?” I asked as I waved to Knox to bring the boat over to pick us up.

Danaus nodded, still struggling to catch his breath.

“Why didn’t you immediately boil their blood once you hit the water?” I demanded angrily. He had nearly been killed, and there was little I could have done about it.

“Wasn’t sure you’d jump in after me…” he said breathlessly, still struggling to draw enough air into his lungs. “Knew I wouldn’t have the strength to swim back to the surface if I used my ability.”

A part of me wanted to kick him. How could I not jump into the water after him? We needed him. I hadn’t even thought about not going into the water after him.

Knox halted the boat beside us while Tristan helped us climb out of the water. A breeze cut through the air, chilling the clothes that now stuck to my frame. I paused at the side of the boat to wring out my hair before resuming my seat at the point.

“Your back!” Shelly gasped when I walked past.

“It’s healing,” I said with a shrug. “Let’s get going.”

Taking my spot at the front of the boat, we continued the rest of the way to the island unmolested. Knox beached the boat on the sandy shore between two other boats that had been used by the naturi and killed the engine. I glanced over my shoulder at Danaus to find that his breathing had finally evened out. I wished I could give him more time to recover, but I knew the naturi would never allow it.

“Let’s go,” I announced, pushing to my feet.

“They’re waiting for us,” Danaus said, halting me. “Close by.”

“I have no doubt,” I muttered under my breath as I jumped over the side of the boat. My feet sank into the wet sand, leaving me feeling momentarily trapped. I had walked only a couple feet from the boat when I noticed several alligators creeping closer.

“Shelly, take care of the gators,” I ordered as I continued toward the interior of the island.

“Wh-What do you mean?” she asked, landing in the sand behind me.

“They’re going to attack from behind. Kill them before they have a chance to kill us. Knox and Tristan will cover you,” I said, my eyes locked on the figures I could see stepping out from the tree line.

“But—”

“Just do it! Knox!”

“I’m on it,” he called, jumping down from the boat. As we all stepped onto the island, a great splash came from behind us. I turned to find a woman standing within a geyser of water. Her skin was a pale bluish-green while her long hair was the shade of green algae. To my surprise, she stepped out of the water and onto dry land. Around her was a thick wall of mist so she could continue to breathe outside of the water.

“I just came to get what belongs to me,” I said, fighting the urge to pull the knife back from its sheath.

“We were counting on that,” the female naturi replied. Her voice was garbled by mist.

“Do yourself a favor and swim away.” I smiled at her so she could see my fangs. It was her last chance; I honestly didn’t expect her to take me up on my offer. That would have been too easy. I was simply stalling in an attempt to give Danaus a chance to regain his strength.

“No,” the naturi said.

I grabbed my knife and reached down into my powers, ready to ignite anything that moved, but the attack didn’t come from the front I’d been expecting. The sound of birds suddenly filled the night, as if thousands had cried out at once as they lifted into the air. At the same time, I heard the distinct sound of jaws snapping together. The alligators were on the move.

Find the animal clan naturi, I ordered Danaus as he stepped forward with a long knife in one hand, ready to take on the naturi as they approached. For now, they were content to hang back and let the animals under their control do the dirty work.

“Easier said than done,” he growled at me.

It was on the tip of my tongue to make a snide comment in return, but I didn’t get the chance. Birds burst from the trees and dive-bombed us, beaks and talons ready to rip, tear, and shred. With a wave of my hand, a wall of flames washed through the water fowl, burning feathers in an instant. The air was filled with an enormous cloud of orange and yellow flames, followed by black smoke. Their small bodies plummeted to the earth before us, their cries piercing the air.