Page 39 of Battle Fluke
“So we can contact Soulara?” Honour asked slowly, the information still dawning in her mind.
“If she still has the stone.” But Kyree bit her bottom lip. “If she can still see Nylah’s soul.”
“Why wouldn’t she be able to?” Hudson asked.
Honour and Hudson had both drawn closer to Kyree as she spoke. Honour hadn’t noticed just how close they had gotten until Hudson reached out a hand and trailed her fingers over Kyree’s arm.
“There are many reasons. If the soul is pulled from the water. Or if Soulara is out of the water. I’m not entirely sure. I’ve never heard a story that matches these circumstances. But we can try.”
“Yes.” Honour and Hudson spoke together.
Honour reached out and placed her own fingers lightly on Kyree’s hip. She needed the connection with Kyree and with Hudson. She moved her other hand just enough to offer it to Hudson without forcing it on her.
Hudson’s fingers interlocked with Honour’s almost instantly. The connection was complete.
A rush of hope and strength filled her. They could find Soulara.
Right now, they had to focus on contacting Soulara and ensuring she was safe. But this connection with the sea life—that was something beyond Honour’s imagination. It was a power entirely unknown to her own people. Her mind reeled with the potential, and she found her energy renewed for the battle theywere already in the midst of, and for the war they wouldn’t lose without a damn good fight.
“Are you with us, Hudson?” Honour asked. She needed to know. Would Hudson hold off her battle to win the war? Facing those pale blue eyes, Honour held her breath as she waited for an answer.
“Fuck yes.”
14
Alightness stole over Kyree’s heart, lifting her from the pit she’d found herself in before she’d left Reine.Nylah. She wouldn’t allow the possibly temporary nature of the connection to drag her down. Not only did she have her companion with her once more, she had two amazing mermaids who seemed as taken with her as she was with them.
She looked at them from the corner of her eye and the way they awkwardly stayed in each other’s presence. What exactly she had interrupted when she saw Nylah? She’d been so excited that she hadn’t even managed to pause and take stock of what was happening.
If she wasn’t mistaken, they seemed far more taken with each other than previously. Had it just been the camaraderie of battle? The memory made her shudder. She wanted never to be in the middle of another one, but she also understood that this war for their home was far from over. Heaviness threatened to weigh down her heart once more. But Nylah danced in front of her, their energy electric in the water, and now bordering on impatient.
“Yes, we can connect and reach out to find your stone.” Kyree chuckled.
“How does it work?” Honour asked. The question was hesitant on her lips, but it filled Kyree with warmth, and if the look on Hudson’s face was anything to go by, she enjoyed seeing Honour’s curiosity as well.
“We meditate and hopefully I’ll be able to become one with Nylah for a short time. We should be able to find Soulara again if she still has the soul stone. They might even be looking for us. That might be why Nylah is here.” Warmth continued to fill Kyree, wrapping her up. Was that just her own elation, or was it Nylah’s mingling with hers?
“And all your animals have a soul floating around the waters?” Honour asked, reaching out tentatively to touch Nylah’s back.
“Companions are different from every other creature that swims in the sea. These companions are raised, brought up within our community. You remember Neyon, right? The companion with Kaelin?” Kyree looked directly at Honour, hoping she knew what Kyree was talking about. “The soul stones were lost many years ago. It’s been many generations since we’ve seen one, aside from Zendalia’s. The memory of them has been nearly lost and we’ve had only rumors of their existence. It wasn’t until Zendalia came to the deep sounding tribe that we realized the stories were true.”
“Oh.” Honour’s eyebrows furrowed together.
“That’s fucked,” Hudson said.
Kyree laughed, and it felt wonderful—the open freedom to be herself with the two most unconventional mers she could have ever imagined. More so because this entire experience was well beyond anything her life had ever prepared her for. And she couldn’t find an ounce of worry in herself.
“Yes.” Kyree settled down in the sand. “No one knows how the stones were lost. Those stories have died with our ancestors.”
“How can we help?” Hudson asked.
“Sit with me.” Kyree met Hudson’s eyes and then turned her gaze to Honour. “Both of you.”
“That’ll help you?” Honour asked, already coming in to join Kyree and slide next to her.
“Yes.” Kyree nodded as they both settled down into the sand with her, tails brushing against her fluke as she sat between them. Nylah seemed to enjoy the closeness of the other two mers as well as they danced in the center of the trio. “It takes a lot of energy and focus.”
“Can you take our energy?” Hudson asked.