Heart of The Trident

Three ~ Nia

I hit the ground as Cade pounces on top of me, squeezing my eyes tight and holding my breath as I see the bricks start to fly above our heads, hearing them shatter all around us.

Finally, after a few minutes, the noise barrage ceases. All I hear now is Cade's heartbeat pounding on top of mine.

On top of mine…

“Are you alright?” he asks as he pushes himself off me, his eyes, dark as wet sand, gleaming with concern.

I nod. “Are you?”

He examines himself, smoothening the front of his white shirt. “I guess you're not the only one who’s lucky.”

Lucky? Me? I’ve never thought of myself as such, not once in my whole life. In fact, I’ve always felt like a prisoner, an outcast.

I was a closed-up clam, Miss Ginny, one of the caretakers at the orphanage, said, but that once I reached the ocean, I would open up, swim away and be free.

Miss Ginny.

Now, she’s gone, along with everyone at the orphanage.

All that’s left of the building where I’ve lived for twenty-two years is rubble now. And dust. And some ashes.

“Who could have done this?” I ask, staring at the ruins as I slowly get on my feet.

“I don’t know,” Cade answers. “But I think we should leave. The cops might wonder why we’re here.”

Cops? Are those what the sirens are announcing?

Right. I remember now. Miss Irene said the cops were the peacekeepers, that they were good people but that we should also avoid running into them because they ask a lot of questions and ultimately, they served and protected their people, not us.

I don’t feel like answering any questions right now, not when I have too many of my own.

I let Cade usher me back into the car, which he then drives off just moments before the police cars with their blaring sirens arrive. We stay silent until the sirens are far behind us.

“Are you sure that was the orphanage where you lived?” Cade breaks the silence first, glancing at me.

I nod. “Like I said, I’ve lived there for 22 years. I would know.”

“Well, like I said, there seemed to be nobody home. I know you were disappointed with that earlier but it turned out to be a good thing, right? At least, no one got hurt.”

If that is true, then I’ll feel relieved but I don’t know for sure.

As I look out the window, I try to remember the days before my departure. The misses were sad, knowing I was leaving, but they were also happy, knowing I was taking my place in my world. They’ve always known I didn’t belong here above the surface. None of us at the orphanage did. That’s why we stayed there all our lives, leaving only for occasional tours and errands.

Ever since I can remember, I’ve been told I’m different, special. I’m a Xyraean, a being meant for the ocean, on land only because I need the sunlight. At 22, I’m supposed to have had enough of it that I can go down and have my tail and use my magic. That’s why I headed out to sea.

But no. For some reason, the sea has rejected me. And now, the place I called home for years has been reduced to rubble. I can’t help but feel both events are connected somehow or that both are a foreshadowing of worse things to come.

Come to think of it, I did see Miss Elena and Miss Ginny talking seriously in the kitchen one time, just a week or so ago, whispering something about dark times and fearing for us young Xyraeans.

What were they talking about? Are they still alive? If so, where have they gone?

Where have they all gone?

Cade reaches across to squeeze my hand. “Don’t worry, Nia. I’m sure they’re alright. And you will be, too.”

I look at him, puzzled. First, he was sure I was a good person and now he’s sure everything will be alright.

If anyone asks me, I think he’s the unusual one.

“I don’t know about it,” I say, placing both of my hands on my lap. “I don’t even know where I’m going to go now or what I’m going to do.”

“Well, until you figure out, you can stay at my place.”

I lift an eyebrow. “Your place?”

--

Cade’s apartment is on the seventeenth floor of a building that has twenty, with windows where one can look out at the city below and glimpse the Golden Gate and the ocean beyond.

It’s a beautiful place, spacious, neat and elegant. I especially like the fact that every inch of the floor is covered in soft carpet and that the place seems to have a touch of the ocean, just like my old room – pillows shaped like shells on the couch, a chandelier made from pearls and paintings of the beach on the walls.

“You like the ocean?” I ask Cade as I stare at one, a painting of a hermit crab crawling across the beach at dusk.

“I do,” Cade admits. “It’s one of the reasons I chose to live in San Francisco.”

“I see.”

He stands beside me. “It seems you do, too.”

“Oh, I don’t just like the ocean.” I run my fingers over the chain around my neck. “I love it.”

“I suppose you inherited that from your mother?”

I look down at my pendant, wrapping my fingers around the golden shell. “That’s one way of putting it. What about you? Why do you like the ocean?”

Cade shrugs. “I just find it soothing, I guess.”

I glance at him. “It’s not always calm, you know.”

“I know.” His gaze meets mine. “And I know that there are a lot of things going on under the ocean.”

Oh, he has no idea.

“But it’s always there. The ocean has been there for centuries and it will be until the end of time. And no matter what happens, the waves always come to the shore and then always return to the sea. There’s something relaxing about that.”

I nod, smiling as I remember all the times I’ve stood on the shore, simply watching the waves. “I see what you mean.”

Suddenly, the corners of his mouth turn up.

“What?” I ask him.

“It’s the first time I’ve seen you smile. You look…radiant, like the sunset.”

At the words, my heart stops and I look away.

I feel like I’m the sunset, warmth swirling inside my chest and feeling like it’s about to burst.

But no. One explosion is enough for today.

Taking a deep breath, I calm myself down. I’m not going to be the sun. I’m going to be the sea, swallowing, drowning and washing everything away.

“What’s wrong? Did I say something bad?”

I shake my head as I go to the couch to sit, suddenly feeling tired.

“I shouldn’t be smiling. I don’t have a reason to smile right now.”

Cade sits beside me. “Believe me, it is when we don’t have a reason to smile that we must smile.”

I look at him curiously. He really is an unusual person.

“Now, you’re the one giving me a weird look,” he says, pouting.

“I just don’t understand why you’re helping me,” I answer, grabbing one of the pillows and putting it on my lap, my hands on top of it.

He sits back and folds one leg above his knee. “Well, you’re my patient.”

“You help all your patients?”

“I try to.”

“You must be the best doctor in the world.”

His knee bounces. “Some people have told me that.”

The corners of my lips curve up. “You’re not at all modest, you know.”

“If it makes you smile more often, I think I can do without modesty.”

I can feel his gaze on me again, making me feel like the sunset. I press the pillow on my lap against my chest, hiding the lower part of my face behind it.

“I’m not your patient anymore, though, am I?”

Cade shrugs. “Said who? Once a patient comes to me, I always consider that person my patient even though he or she has healed.”

“I imagine you’re the only doctor who thinks that.”

He shrugs. “Maybe.”

“Why don’t you just admit it?” I tell him. “That you feel sorry for me. That’s why you’re helping me even if you don’t have to.”

“But I don’t.” He places his foot back on the ground and leans forward. “I don’t feel sorry for you. If you must have a reason, fine, then I’ll tell you it’s because we are kindred souls.”

“What does that mean?”

“We have two things in common – our love of the ocean and the fact that we’re both orphans.”

My pillow falls to my lap. “You’re an orphan, too?”

Well, technically, I’m not really an orphan. My parents are still alive, just somewhere at the bottom of the ocean. I guess I might as well be an orphan now, though, since I may never see them again.

“My parents died in an accident when I was nine,” Cade explains. “My uncle took care of me.”

“I…I’m sorry.”

He smiles and shakes his head. “Don’t be.”

He’s the one who’s truly an orphan and yet he can smile like that?

Just then, I hear a meow from somewhere behind me. Moments later, a white cat comes in sight, rubbing against Cade’s lap.

“Speaking of orphans…” Cade picks the cat up. “This is Maggie.”

“Maggie?” I raise an eyebrow.

“What? Don’t tell me you’ve never seen a cat before.”

“I have. We just never had one at the orphanage.”

“Pity.” He moves closer to me. “Here. You can pet Maggie.”

I hesitate.

“Go on,” Cade urges.

Raising my hand slowly, I place it on the cat’s back, running my fingers through the fur, which is softer than I expected.

The cat purrs.

“See.” Cade smiles. “Maggie likes you.”

I gaze at him. “So, do you take in all orphans?”

“Just the irresistible ones.”

Wait? I’m irresistible?

He gets off the couch, placing Maggie on my lap. “You know what? Why don’t you take care of Maggie for a bit and I’ll fix us something to eat. I’m sure you’re hungry. Then you can take a bath and go to your room and rest, sleep even.” He yawns. “I know I need a few winks myself.”

“Okay.”

I guess we’re both tired, though something tells me I’m not going to get a good sleep for a long time to come.

--

I’m falling.

There’s nothing for me to hold on to, only water all around and I don’t feel like swimming, not with my heavy legs.

It seems like an eternity but I hit the bottom. I stand upright, somehow still able to breathe. The sand tickles the soles of my feet.

I start walking, stopping when I hear someone call my name.

“Nia!”

Who is that? I can’t tell.

No, it’s not just one person. There are many voices calling me. They’re all around me. I stop, not knowing where to go.

But their voices keep calling out my name and then, they start crying, wailing.

I want to ask who they are and what they want with me but I can’t find my voice.

I start running in one direction but I trip over a rock. When I get up, I can see Xyraeans in the distance, their hair billowing, tails glimmering. But they are in a golden cage.

No.

I run towards them. I’m getting closer but just when I’m a foot away, I feel something wrap around me like a giant hand, picking me up and lifting me towards the surface.

“No!”

I wake up panting, sweaty.

I knew I wasn’t going to get a good sleep but I didn’t expect this nightmare, especially not one that feels all too real.

As I walk towards the window, gazing out at the ocean that’s starting to glisten as the sun rises above the horizon, I can still hear their voices calling for me.

My people are calling for me.

I can’t stay here.

Gripping the pendant of my necklace above my pounding heart, I run out of my room and out of the apartment.