Chapter 7

Daios liked the sound of her voice. It was a little rough, a little raspy, slightly off key—just like her singing—but it was pretty. Prettier than he'd expected. He must have heard her talking in their first encounter, but he couldn't for the life of him remember it.

Maybe that was because he wanted to remember this as their first meeting forever. With her pressed against his chest and all that long, lean body at his mercy. He'd swallowed hard the moment she'd leapt into the water. Her awkward limbs flailed, and he was reminded again of her swimming.

She was a terrible swimmer. She used her arms far too much, and there wasn't enough movement in her twin tails.

Legs, he reminded himself. Mira called them legs.

Either way, she wasn't very good at swimming. She was so slow, so weak, and now she splatted into the water like an overdramatic whale rather than the graceful dive of his people. He'd be afraid she couldn't swim at all if he hadn't already seen her survive the water, even if that was only for a few moments. Still, some part of him needed to hold on to her and so he... did. He grabbed her by that tiny waist and banished the thoughts inside him, screaming for bloodshed and violence.

Rip her apart, the voices in his head whispered. Tear at her soft flesh and see what redness she hides beneath. See if she bleeds like you want and makes this pool run red with her blood.

But even as his claws curled into the fine woven covering she wore over her skin, he found that he couldn't. Even if he had wanted to harm her, his body wouldn't let him. He wanted to dive away from this place with her, yes. He wanted to press his face against the soft curve of her neck and draw her underneath the water with him.

What would she smell like? What would she taste like as he drew her into the haven of his arm?

He already knew her scent, just barely. There was a hint of her in the pool. A vague citrus flavor like the rare underwater pods that grew in the depths. The faintest hint of sunshine in her scent, even though he knew that wasn't possible.

She was a grotesque monster. He'd hated her kind his entire life.

So why then did his fingers press against the lean lines of her back and why did he want to run his hand up her muscles? She felt so delicate in his arms, so easy to hold against him.

And she wanted to hear him speak. She wanted to hear his voice, and he wondered why that was. He had thought perhaps she couldn't hear. But now he knew that she could hear him.

"Hello," he said when she asked him to speak again.

It made him feel foolish. But he'd never been one for talking. He didn't know what to say to the opposite sex. Never had. He barely knew what to say to warriors. Daios communicated in grunts of approval or disapproval.

But then she let those strange eyes drift shut, and those dark eyelashes smudged her cheeks. When she asked him for more words, who was he to deny her?

"I am Daios," he replied, because what else was he supposed to say? He didn't know what to do with someone like this. She clung to him like some of the cleaning fish that followed him when he swam through waters that were closer to shore.

And when she peeled one of those strange, pale eyes open to glare at him, he almost grinned at her. She was a monstrous little thing underneath that strange exterior. Or she was insane. One or the other.

He wasn't sure which was better. Part of him wanted her to be insane, because no achromo should so easily throw herself at what was a terrifying creature from the depths. If she was lacking in sense, at least then he knew that he should expect the unexpected from her.

But if she wasn't senseless? If this was just a strange moment between the two of them where she had decided she wanted to touch him?

Daios wasn't sure he was prepared for that.

Then she stiffened in his arms, and he knew it was the former. She hadn't been thinking, and she had thrown herself at a dangerous creature. Perhaps it was the sudden realization she was in the grasp of a deep sea beast who could speak that frightened her so much. Or perhaps she was so disgusted at herself for touching him that her entire body tensed.

It was easier to think of her as what he knew of achromos. It was easier to swallow when she stiffened and then gently placed her hands against his chest with a soft shove.

She stared at him, her eyes widening as they both looked at each other. He couldn't guess what was going through her head. She had so many expressions, and he didn't know what a single one of them meant.

"Blink once," she whispered.

Why she would have such a strange question, he had no idea. But Daios didn't mind entertaining this small achromo, even though he knew it was a danger. He had a reason for being here, and that was supposed to be kidnapping her.

But... she'd asked. He blinked once.

With a small scoff, as though she didn't believe that he could understand her, she cockily tilted her head and said, "Okay, smart guy. Blink twice."

He didn't see any harm in this strange game. So he did.

She hissed out a long breath, one that would have been a sign of anger in his people. But she didn't look angry. He'd seen Mira's brows furrow and her face turn red. This one was not doing that. Instead, her eyes widened and her face paled.

"Can you understand me?" she whispered.

"Yes," he replied with a nod.

Apparently that very achromo-like response was the one that made her afraid of him. Her legs kicked against his sides, and Daios knew this was the moment he needed to take control. But again, he couldn't do it.

Maketes would have laughed to see the fearless warrior cowed by a woman only a fraction of his size. He let this little achromo wriggle herself out of his arms and launch back to the safety of her strange home.

Daios even let her get out of the water, not that it would save her from him. He could grab her at any moment. He could launch himself out of the water as well, and his reach was longer than hers. Even if her small pool barely contained him.

At least it was deep. Otherwise, he feared he might not be able to breathe through the gills on his ribs.

She spun around, the wet ends of her hair slapping against her cheeks as she turned. "You can understand me."

A low rumble started in his chest. This was getting ridiculous at this point. "Yes, achromo. I told you already."

She blew out a long breath, then pressed her hand to her chest. The strange being she wore on her head made a soft chirping noise, and then it held a piece of glass in front of her eye again. What was that creature doing?

He could see her eyes moving as though she were looking at something he couldn't see, and it made him uncomfortable. This situation had to be controlled, and he was not in control right now. Daios preferred knowing everything that might happen in any situation. Knowing everything was his safety net.

With a soft growl, he lunged forward. The little achromo had no time to react before he had already plucked the droid off her head. It was built a little like Byte, and he still hated that strange box that Mira carried around. This one had spindly legs that tried to stab into his hand as he lifted the glass up.

Writing?

Mira had shown him a book before, and she'd written words on the sands. He wasn't particularly good at reading their language, but he knew the word "Danger" after Mira had written it so many times.

That made him grin. Wide and feral and probably everything she'd seen in her nightmares. She certainly went white as the pale underbelly of a fish. But then he handed the droid back to her, still in one piece.

He hoped she realized what an exercise in personal strength that had been. It would bring him much satisfaction to feel the droid crushed in his grip.

She took the metal spider back with delicate hands, so small compared to his own, and he hated how intrigued the size of them made him. He wanted to hold her short little fingers, and what a curious thought that was. He'd never wanted to touch an achromo. If he was being honest, he had little interest in touching his own people, either.

How strange that he looked at this one and wondered how soft her skin would be if he ran the back of his finger down her cheek. He could see the fluttering of her pulse on the side of her neck, and he wondered what it tasted like.

A small part of him sent off warning signals, screaming that he shouldn't want to know what she tasted like. Maybe there was something wrong with him, because what if he wanted to eat her? His fangs would so easily tear through her skin. He could hurt her like he had hurt everyone else, and he'd already thought about her blood. Daios made mistakes. That was his fate. He fucked everything up. Why did he think he wouldn't hurt her?

He swallowed, suddenly afraid of what would happen if he stayed any longer. So instead, he held out his hand, which contained the small chip she was supposed to affix to the side of her head. Mira had given it to him. Once he had kidnapped her, he was supposed to put it on the head of the General's daughter. Ignore the pain it caused her, and bring her to the others.

She looked at the chip, then back up at him. "I can't install that. It goes directly into the cochlea, but mine is damaged. It can stick into my ear, but it won't work. I'm not... I can't download any translation chips." She turned her head, showing him the blank space behind her ear. "I had to have mine removed after the accident. Those devices translate the words using tones we can hear, but those are the tones that I can't hear. It doesn't work in any other way. It... it can't."

Well. That was going to complicate things. How was he supposed to communicate with her, then?

He looked down at the chip in his hand, at a loss for what to do. The voice in his head that warned him about wanting to hurt her, suddenly started whispering that this was wrong.

He would be taking her into a world where she would never understand anyone else. She already had admitted there was something different about her hearing, which meant communication must be difficult for her to begin with. If he took her with him, then he was condemning her to a life of silence. Not just underneath the sea, where all sound was muffled. But completely and wholly silent.

Those delicate fingers brushed against his. She plucked the chip out of his massive hand and held it out to the robot at her head. "Bitsy? Hold on to this for me, will you?"

He watched the robot take it, his eyes narrowing in distrust. Another robot had created that chip, but he was uninterested in any of their kind. They were unnatural and untrustworthy.

The achromo licked her lips, and his eyes immediately zeroed in on the movement. Every time that little flicker of pink appeared, he wanted to know where it came from. What other differences there were.

And if she was pink in other places.

"I saw the security footage of you coming into the city multiple times," she said, her voice almost too soft to hear. "Do you know they are tracking you?"

He shrugged. Let them. Once he was inside the pipes, they were blind.

"They're going to put droids in the piping system. Or they're going to flush it. They'll remove all the water from the city for an afternoon, probably. You'll be stuck wherever you are, and then they'll send the clean-up crew. Those droids will slowly take you apart, bit by sawing bit." She took a deep breath when he puffed up. "I know you think you can fight them, but there will be hundreds. Too many to destroy."

Though his chest puffed up even more, he had to admit that didn't sound like an ideal situation. His spines slowly rose on his back, even the ones along his arms. If he had to fight his way out of here, then he would. Daios didn't mind fighting. But he had a feeling this little achromo would not like to see what he could do with this massive body of his.

She should have been afraid of him. The sight of his anger was enough to startle most people, even his own kind. But instead, she bit her lip and just looked at him. Regarding the anger as it rose like she was watching water boil.

"If I'm guessing right, you're here for a reason."

He nodded.

"For me?"

He lifted a hand and tilted it side to side. He was here for her, yes, but they really wanted to strike at her father. They needed a chance to prove that his people would fight to the bitter end against the achromos if required. His people would be left alone, and they would take their sea back.

She licked her lip again, that aggravating movement stealing his mind until she spoke. "If you are here to take me away, then I want the same thing."

For a moment, he was tongue tied. What did she mean she wanted the same thing? Surely not. She was the General's daughter. A paragon and figure of this place. Everyone knew that she was the General's golden child, according to Mira.

She must have seen the confusion on his features. "I will explain everything if you can get me out of this city. Can you do that?"

He nodded, reaching for her. This had played into his plan so well, he almost had a hard time believing it.

But then she took a step back from him, shaking her head. "In a few moments. Can you wait here for me?"

If no one knew he was here, then yes. But he frowned and then looked pointedly up at the cameras on the walls. He knew that Mira had told him there was a tracking system throughout the entire city. They would know he was here soon enough. They had every time he'd come up to the surface. He only had a few moments before people were about to swarm this room. Surely she knew that?

She tapped the robot attached to her head. "Bitsy already took care of the cameras. As long as you stay in the pool, then no one will know you're here. Just... Give me a bit to get ready."

And so he waited. Watching as this strange creature backed out of the room and walked into the other. All the while, he wondered just what he had captured.

A delicate golden fish? Or a shark in these strange waters?