Lucia opened her eyes. She looked around her cold, dark surroundings. She moved but felt a slight resistance. The sensation was all too familiar. She saw the moon's rays dancing through the ocean depths. She didn’t know how she got here, but what Lucia did know was she was far below the water's surface.

Panic overtook her as she held her breath, frantically searching for anything familiar. She had to look for air soon. There was no telling how she got so far down or how long she had gone without oxygen.

A flicker of light caught her attention, making her spin around. While swimming through the darkness, a dark figure approached. Lucia’s heart raced, and she started to kick away feebly. In a moment, the shadowed figure stopped right in front of her. Lucia felt her body unexpectedly begin to calm. Floating a few feet from her was the most beautiful creature she had ever seen. As if suspended in air, the creature had the black, sleek body of a horse and the tail of a slender fish. The two animals flowed seamlessly into one body. Its mane was the only part of the body moving with the ocean currents. It danced and swayed with the invisible motions, black and wispy. The sleek coat was smooth and matched the mane's inky color. The scaly tail caught the fleeting light and glistened a deep violet.

Lucia took a deep breath, shocked by the new life filling her lungs. She could breathe underwater. A smile spread from ear to ear. The feeling was… exhilarating. She hesitantly swam up to the majestic creature. With each stroke of her hands, she grew closer and closer to its still frame. As she approached, her warm eyes gazed at her. They were a soft blue. Lucia wondered how she had not seen their brilliance from a distance. They shone through the darkness like a still ripple of calm water, but not overbearing. Any hesitation she felt about the beast was gone. She felt a comforting warmth, a peace she had never felt. The goddess turned her subtly, gesturing for her to follow. Lucia followed. They swam through the ocean currents. The sensation of water flowing through Lucia’s hair almost put her into some sort of a trance. The warm gaze of Zyra spurred her on to new speeds she didn’t know she was capable of.

After a few moments, Lucia felt her gaze slowly turn to the surface. A faint longing filled her as if someone was calling her. She looked back at Zyra. The peaceful serenity was gone from her pale eyes, replaced with terror. Lucia could almost feel the waves of horror as if they were physical manifestations. She looked back to the water's surface. There was no denying the pull she felt. With a heavy heart, her eyes met the sea goddesses. She knew what she had to do. As she started swimming up, a dark streak passed her, and an inky figure obstructed her. The once calm and peaceful creature was now ominous and stalwart.

Lucia looked up at Zyra, her large shape outlined by the moon’s light above. She still felt this inexplicable pull to the surface. There was no denying this inexplicable pull she felt. Lucia looked up into her eyes, a silent conversation amongst the waves. Zyra’s head slowly dropped, and with a flick of her mighty tail, she swam past Lucia, causing her hair to shift behind her. Lucia felt her chest tighten. She had caused the sea goddess pain. She longed to stay in the safe waters, but something uncontrollable pulled her to the surface. With one last glance behind her, she swam up.

Lucia burst into the cold open air. The sudden change caused her to stutter a bit as she choked. Air filled her lungs, light and soft. Something about it felt foreign to her. She slowly looked around, trying to get her bearings. Again, she didn’t recognize anything. Gray slick rock stretched out in front of her. The ocean water softly caressed the cold surface. The environment around her felt brutal and unforgiving.

The moon was still high overhead. Its brilliant light cast soft shadows on the jagged stone surface.

To her right, she heard a sound, something hard-hitting rock. Whatever it was, it struck the ground in a melodic pattern, and it was getting closer. Lucia turned as the source of the sound burst around a corner. A tall, broad man with dark tan skin emerged riding what seemed to be a large animal with thick swirling horns on its head, light seeming to glow faintly behind them. The beast's eyes glowed a hot red. Its soft, shaggy wool was gray and long. Lucia had never seen any animal like it, but for some reason, she knew its name: Calos, the mighty ram. It was hard not to be in awe of his enormous size. Calos took a couple of steps closer to the water's edge. His eyes never left her unwavering gaze. As he drew closer, she heard the clip-clop of his hoof.

Lucia noticed the rider only once Calos had reached the water's edge. She had forgotten him completely. His eyes were a familiar piercing blue. Lucia started to swim closer, but his calm complexion turned to horror as she did. In a panic, Lucia turned to see what was behind her. There was nothing, just the empty expanse of ocean. Then it dawned on her. She didn’t have her hood to hide her face. She looked back at the man to find a look of complete disgust. His calm eyes turned a fiery red, and he lunged for the sword at his hip. Lucia tried to swim away, but no matter how hard she swam, she stayed in place. The man dismounted the mighty ram and slowly waded into the inky depths. He inched his way to her, eyes glowing like fire in the darkness, a smile on his face. Lucia’s heart felt like it was about to beat out of her chest. He drew ever closer, the light glinting from his sharpened blade.

Lucia screamed as he lunged for her.

Lucia sat up in a panic, frantically kicking out. Strong arms wrapped around her as she struggled.

“Lucia!” A man’s voice sounded in her ear. “Lucia?!”

Lucia stopped struggling, breathing heavily from the effort. She looked around with frenzied eyes. She was back in her cave. The soft glow of the algae ebbed and waned with the gentle breeze and the familiar smell of musty air. She was somehow back home, and she had no idea how she got there.

Warm arms slowly relaxed around her. She froze. There were arms around her. It couldn’t be Father. He’d never touched her because of her skin. She slowly turned to confirm what she was guessing. Eris was sitting next to her, arms wrapped tightly around her.

“Are you ok?” He asked.

Lucia gasped and frantically escaped his arms. He didn’t fight her as she scrambled to the opposite side of the cave.

“I’m fine,” Lucia managed to sputter out. She felt for the comforting hood that was still over her head. She pulled it firmly down to cover everything but her nose and mouth.

“You didn’t seem fine,” Eris said. “What was your dream about?”

“It was nothing.” Images flickered back from the horror she had just experienced. Her heart was still racing. Zyra, the water goddess, trying to stop her from leaving. Calos and now to her dread, Eris. Eris finding out what she looked like.

“Sometimes I feel better after talking things out.” Eris pulled himself to a sitting position against the wall. It was labored and difficult for him. He occasionally winced as he moved. Lucia wondered how he’d even gotten to her from across the room where he usually sat.

“When you feel up to talking about it, I’ll be right here waiting,” He said. A smile spread across his face, illuminated by the soft glow in the room. His eyes were blue and warm. Lucia felt herself wanting to tell him. Wanted to have his warm arms around her again, but images of the look on his face, as he saw her bare face, convinced her otherwise. Lucia opened her mouth to speak but was interrupted by an unexpected bell chime. Eris’s face turned dark, and red started to mix with blue in his eyes.

“I’ll be right back.” Lucia stood and briskly walked to the cave opening. “Please stay quiet.”

“I will,” Eris said. His tone was also darker than it had been.

“Thank you,” Lucia said.

She quickly turned and walked down the hall to meet Father. It was a pleasant interruption. She could talk to Eris more after Father left. Ask him why he had held her. She could almost still feel his arms, strong and safe. She shook her arms as she walked, trying to get the feeling of leaving, but Lucia couldn't, no matter how hard she tried to forget.