Chapter 11 - My Promise to You

The spell finally relented a day later, easing its grip on Marius little by little at first, and then finally it dissipated. He landed smoothly, with one knee and one hand on the ground. He sighed and flexed his shoulders, feeling the strength return to him, slowly seeping into his limbs. 

That was... exhausting. 

A dark drop of blood dripped onto the ground. He wiped the blood from his nose and then slowly lifted his head to scan his surroundings. He had been teleported from the underwater cave, the mage Erasmus's hideout, to a small cell. 

Black bars from all four sides restricted his line of sight. Markings were etched up and down the metal bars -he recognized them as runes. They randomly glowed an ominous dark purple. The glowing runes reminded him of fireflies. Marius rather liked fireflies, though being a creature of the sea, he wasn't afforded the opportunity to see them too often. 

He wagered the runes were put in place to keep him from breaking out. 

He straightened and turned to meet the half-breed's burning gaze. How long had he been standing there? Did he watch his suffering? Did he enjoy it? 

Such hatred. Such resentment. Such undying fire. 

The half-breed had changed. He was no longer the bumbling fool he'd easily captured many moons ago, unbelievably unaware of his own heritage and powers. Everything about him was changed, from the practical way he dressed to the look on his face. He'd even gained some muscle, though he was perhaps paler, his face hardened by hatred, and his eyes... less brilliant. The human naivety was gone; replaced by, dare he say, a measure of worldliness. 

He resembled his father. 

These were the same eyes he'd witnessed in their final battle. 

More importantly, his aura was changed. Drastically. Marius almost couldn't believe this was the same weak, pathetic half-breed. It flowed around him like a calm river. And it was white. Untainted white. He was furious by the looks of him, but he was able to rein in his aura, and thus his power. He was in control. 

Erasmus's doing?

No. This was the work of a powerful entity. In a short time, he'd been taught to master himself and, judging by the trap he'd sprung on him, some of his inherited power. 

But not all of it. He still wasn't at the level his father had been at when he died. 

Marius had to act quickly. 

He had been concerned about exactly this happening: while he wasted time searching for him, the half-breed would learn to wield his power and use it against him. It seemed like his concerns were legitimate and had borne fruit. 

"There you are, half-breed," he put on an unaffected front. Allowing the half-breed to see he'd been... rattled would be a mistake. 

The half-breed glared. He was standing in front of the cell, easily within reach... 

Was he so sure of his newfound strength? Or of the runes? Or both? 

"I'm almost impressed. Did you come up with this plan all by yourself? Or did the mage help?"

Kai savored the sight of the mighty King Marius behind bars. He would relish it until the last of his days. Truly, a greater sight he could not wish for. 

"You're finally where you belong, criminal." 

An eyebrow was arched, his eyes flashing a warning. "You surely must not mean me, half-breed." 

"Who else is here? Murder, war, kidnap. You've ticked all the boxes. This is exactly where you should be instead of terrorizing the ocean."

Marius's face darkened. His aura darkened with it. 

He stepped close to the bars. 

It was a scare-tactic. Kai refused to be intimidated. 

The muscles in his the Black King's jaw tightened. "So now you care for the ocean and its people? When just a year ago you didn't even know who you are? Ha, what utter nonsense."

Kai didn't like how much truth was in Marius's words. "Well, I'll have you know-"

"You think you know me, half-breed. But you do not. I am a patient merman. I waited for you to show yourself for years. I can wait here in this cell however long it takes to have you in my hands again," he boasted his promise, shoulders squared. 

Kai's hackles rose. He bristled. He would never fall into the hands of Marius again. 

Then Marius added, "But the ocean cannot."

Kai understood what he was getting at. 

"Once I've killed you, I'll see to the Dark Zones myself." Kai declared with all the malice he could muster. 

God, he hated him. He hated him so fucking much. 

Marius laughed. If a passerby would have chanced upon them now, he would have seen a handsome man laughing, eyes squinted in mirth, especially with him being in his human form. No one would suspect him to be so ruthless, even unfeeling. Dangerous. 

"It baffles me how you continue to wield the Spirit of the Sea when it is so clear the sea isn't your first priority. Rather, revenge is."

"My priority is H-!" 

Kai reigned in his tongue before he gave away his weakness. Oh, how he pissed him off to the point of losing himself!

Marius, noticing Kai finally riling up, persisted with dogged determination. He would make him squirm where he stood. "What does the Spirit see in you?" It was spoken with such blatant disdain. 

"Obviously more than it sees in you." Kai shot back, smiling tauntingly. "You'll never have him. That is my promise to you."

Kai had forgotten how fast Marius moved when he wanted to. Honestly, how could a six foot five inch giant be so light on his feet? It was against nature! 

Marius's hand shot forward through the runed bars, penetrating the seals placed by Erasmus as easily as shoving his hand into butter. His iron grip seized his neck -his fingers nearly wrapped around all of his neck- and pulled with irresistible strength. 

Kai's forehead slammed into the bars, making his skull rattle. 

He looked just in time to see Marius leaning forward. 

"You bastar-!"

Marius's tongue darted out. It licked Kai's mouth, silencing him. 

Kai made a choked sound in the back of his constricted throat as his show of exclamation. 

"We'll see about that, half-breed. All I need for the Spirit to be transferred to me is to fuck you." 

Marius had lied, of course, but the half-breed didn't need to know that. Content with the dumb look across his red face, Marius released him and he fell backward.