The world came back violently.
Not as a gentle return, not as a slow drift into awareness, but as a brutal, choking gasp that tore through Austin's chest.
Water exploded out of his mouth.
He lurched forward, coughing hard, his entire body convulsing as his lungs seized, forcing out what didn't belong there. His throat burned raw, every breath scraping against something inflamed and fragile as he struggled to pull air back in.
Cold.
That was the first thing that settled in after the chaos.
A biting, relentless cold that clung to his skin, seeped into his bones, wrapped around him like something alive. His suit was soaked through, heavy against his body, the fabric sticking uncomfortably as the night air cut across him.
He coughed again.
Harder.
More water spilled out, mixing with the sand beneath him.
Sand.
Rough.
Grainy.
Real.
Austin's fingers dug into it instinctively, clutching at the ground as if he needed to confirm it was actually there. His hands trembled, weak, unsteady, but the texture grounded him in a way nothing else could.
I'm… alive?
The thought came fractured.
Uncertain.
He dragged in another breath, shaky, uneven, his chest rising and falling in erratic rhythm as his body fought to stabilize itself.
For a moment, he didn't move.
Didn't think.
Just breathed.
In.
Out.
In—
The air caught.
His lungs stuttered again, still not fully cooperating, still adjusting after what they'd just been through.
I drowned.
The realization settled slowly.
Too slowly.
His mind lagged behind his body, struggling to catch up, to piece together the fragments of what had just happened.
The water.
The darkness.
The pressure.
The… thing.
Austin swallowed hard, wincing at the dryness in his throat despite everything.
How did I—
He shifted slightly, muscles protesting as he pushed himself up onto his elbows. Every movement felt heavier than it should have, like his body hadn't fully come back to him yet.
The shoreline stretched out around him, dim under the pale wash of moonlight. The lake rolled in steady, rhythmic waves, each one collapsing softly against the sand before retreating again.
Calm.
Too calm.
Like nothing had happened.
Austin's brows pulled together.
No… that's not right.
He turned his head slowly.
Toward the water.
And then—
He saw her.
She stood just beyond where the waves broke, partially submerged, the lake cradling her form as if it belonged to her in a way it never could to him.
The moonlight changed everything.
It washed over her, pale and silver, catching along the smooth curve of her skin, along the faint patterns that traced across her body like living markings. Her scales shimmered beneath the surface, turquoise reflecting soft flashes of light with each subtle movement of the water.
Her hair drifted around her shoulders, deep burgundy strands catching the glow in soft highlights, framing her face in a way that made it impossible to look away.
She was—
Even more unreal here.
More captivating.
More dangerous.
Austin's breath hitched slightly, not from lack of oxygen this time, but from something else entirely.
That's…
His mind struggled to reconcile it.
This was the same thing that had dragged him into the depths.
The same thing that had held him there as his lungs gave out.
His killer.
And yet—
She wasn't attacking.
She wasn't moving.
She was watching.
Those glowing jade eyes remained locked onto him, steady, unblinking, filled with that same quiet awareness he'd seen before.
Studying him.
Again.
Austin swallowed, his throat tight.
His gaze flicked over her face, searching for something, anything that made sense, and that was when he noticed it.
Her eyes shifted slightly.
A blink.
And with it—
A second layer.
A thin, translucent lid sliding briefly over the surface before retracting just as quickly.
Reptilian.
Efficient.
Designed for something far beyond land.
Austin exhaled slowly.
Yeah… I'm definitely not dead.
Or if he was—
This was one hell of a convincing afterlife.
The thought barely settled before something else cut through.
Not a sound.
Not exactly.
It didn't reach his ears.
It didn't move through the air.
It—
Are you Austin?
The voice wasn't a voice.
It didn't echo.
Didn't vibrate.
It simply… appeared.
Inside his head.
Clear.
Direct.
Unmistakable.
Austin froze.
Every muscle in his body went still, his breath catching mid-inhale as his mind tried to process what had just happened.
…what?
His eyes snapped back to her.
She hadn't moved.
Her lips hadn't parted.
Nothing about her had changed.
And yet—
The question lingered in his thoughts like it had always been there.
Are you Austin?
His heart picked up.
Fast.
Sharp.
Confusion crashed into him, but it didn't have time to settle, didn't have time to root itself before something else pushed forward.
Shock.
Pure.
Unfiltered.
And somehow—
He answered.
"I—" His voice came out rough, broken from the water and strain, barely more than a rasp. He cleared his throat, wincing slightly before trying again. "Yeah… yeah, that's me."
His breathing steadied just a fraction.
"My name's Austin."
A pause.
Something in him compelled him to continue.
"Austin Greene."
The moment the name left his lips, something shifted in her.
Not outwardly.
Not dramatically.
But in the way her eyes focused.
Sharpened.
The glow in them flickered subtly, like something behind them had just clicked into place.
She repeated it.
Not aloud.
Inside his mind again.
Austin… Greene.
Slower.
Measured.
Like she was testing how it felt.
Like she was remembering it.
Austin's brows pulled together.
Why does that sound like it matters to her?
Before he could speak again—
Another question.
Do you have a son?
That one hit differently.
It cut through everything else instantly.
Without hesitation.
"Yeah."
The answer came fast.
Firm.
"Yeah, I do."
His chest tightened slightly.
"His name's Adam."
Saying it grounded him.
Just a little.
Something familiar in the middle of all this madness.
The moment hung.
Quiet.
The ocean continued its steady rhythm behind her, waves rolling, retreating, indifferent to the weight of what was being said.
Then—
Silence.
Not empty and definetly not hollow.
Just… still.
Her gaze didn't leave him.
But it changed again. Subtle and difficult to read.
I see.
Two simple words.
And yet they carried something behind them.
Something Austin couldn't quite place.
Recognition.
Maybe.
Or understanding.
He opened his mouth.
Closed it again.
There were too many questions.
Too many things that didn't make sense.
But one pushed forward stronger than the rest.
Urgent.
Immediate.
"What about my men?"
The words came out sharper than before, edged with something raw, something desperate.
Austin shifted, pushing himself up further despite the protest in his body. His eyes scanned the water instinctively, searching for movement, for signs of—
Anyone.
"They were with me. They—"
He looked back at her.
Concern etched deep into his features now.
"Where are they?"
She didn't answer right away.
She just watched him.
Again.
That same careful observation, her gaze moving across his face as if she were reading something written there.
Trying to understand something she didn't fully grasp.
Seconds stretched.
Then—
She moved.
Without warning, her body slipped backward into the water, the lake swallowing her form smoothly as she disappeared beneath the surface.
Austin's stomach dropped.
"Hey—!"
He pushed himself up further, stumbling slightly as his legs struggled to support him.
"Wait—!"
The water stilled.
For a moment, there was nothing.
Just the dark surface reflecting the moon.
Then—
Movement.
Two shapes broke through.
Hands.
Bodies.
Austin didn't hesitate.
He rushed forward, the cold water biting at his legs as he waded in just enough to grab them. His grip tightened instantly as he dragged the first man toward shore, muscles straining despite their exhaustion.
Connor.
Recognition hit immediately.
Relief followed just as fast.
"Connor—!"
He hauled him onto the sand, turning him over quickly. Connor's face was pale, lips slightly blue, water dripping from his hair.
No response.
"Come on, come on—"
Austin pressed his hands against Connor's chest, starting compressions without thinking, muscle memory taking over.
One.
Two.
Three—
"Breathe, damn it—!"
He tilted Connor's head, forced air into his lungs, then went back to compressions.
Again.
Again.
Again—
Connor jerked.
A violent cough tore through him as water spilled from his mouth, his body convulsing as he gasped for air.
"Yes—!"
Austin let out a sharp breath, relief flooding through him as Connor continued coughing, weak but alive.
"Stay with me man," he muttered, steadying him slightly before shifting his attention.
The second man.
Miguel.
Same process.
Same urgency.
Same desperation.
"Don't you dare—"
Compressions.
Breath.
Again—
Miguel sputtered, coughing hard as he rolled slightly to the side, dragging in air with ragged breaths.
Austin sat back slightly, chest heaving, his own breathing still uneven but steadier now.
Two.
He got two back.
But—
He turned.
Back to the water.
She was there again.
Watching.
Silent.
The same calm presence as before.
Austin swallowed hard.
"What about the others?"
His voice was quieter this time.
He already knew.
Some part of him did.
But he asked anyway.
Needed to hear it.
Her gaze didn't waver.
They drowned.
The words came without hesitation.
Without emotion.
They died.
A pause.
They will be eaten.
It hit like a punch to the chest.
Austin's jaw tightened instantly, his breath catching again as something sharp twisted deep inside him.
His men.
The ones he was responsible for.
The ones who trusted him.
Gone.
Just like that.
He looked down briefly, his hands curling into fists against the sand as the weight of it pressed in.
I was in charge.
The thought came heavy.
Unforgiving.
I led them here.
His throat tightened.
For a moment, he thought he might actually—
No.
He forced it down.
Forced the emotion back, locking it away behind years of discipline and control.
But it didn't disappear.
It just sat there.
Burning.
Waiting.
Austin exhaled slowly.
Then looked back at her.
"Why…?"
The question came quieter.
Strained.
"Why save me?"
She didn't answer immediately.
For a long moment, the only sound was the lake again, steady and indifferent.
Because you're Adam's father.
The words settled in slowly.
Confusion followed immediately after.
Austin's brows furrowed.
"What…?"
Her gaze remained steady.
Adam saved my life once.
That—
That didn't make any sense.
At all.
Austin's mind scrambled to connect the pieces, to find a version of reality where that could even be possible.
When did he—? How would he—?
Questions piled up.
None of them had answers.
But one cut through everything else.
Urgent.
Sharp.
"Is he okay?"
The words came out faster than he expected.
More desperate than he intended.
Her head dipped slightly.
A nod.
Simple.
Certain.
Relief hit him hard.
Stronger than anything else had so far.
His shoulders dropped just a fraction, tension easing in a way he didn't even realize he'd been holding.
She turned.
Just like that.
Her body shifting back toward the ocean, the water parting around her as she began to move away.
"Wait—!"
The word left him before he could stop it.
She paused.
Just slightly.
Austin hesitated for a fraction of a second.
Then—
"What's your name?"
The question lingered in the air between them.
For a moment, it felt like she might not answer.
Then—
Sirena.
The name slipped into his mind as smoothly as everything else she'd said.
Simple.
Clear.
And then—
She was gone.
The lake swallowed her whole, leaving nothing behind but rippling water and the quiet rhythm of the waves.
---
Somewhere far from the shoreline.
Far from the cold.
Far from the weight of loss and survival—
Warmth.
Soft and familiar.
Adam sat on the kitchen counter, his legs swinging slightly as he watched.
The room smelled rich.
Comforting.
Layers of tomato, melted cheese, herbs, something baked deep and slow until it settled into something that felt like home.
The oven door opened with a soft creak.
Heat spilled out, wrapping around the space in a gentle wave.
Clara leaned forward slightly, carefully pulling the dish free, her movements smooth, practiced, like she'd done this a thousand times before.
Golden layers.
Perfectly cooked.
Steam rising in soft curls.
Lasagna.
His favorite.
Adam inhaled slowly, the scent hitting him all at once, something deep in his chest tightening in response.
…this…
He didn't move.
Didn't speak.
He just watched.
Clara turned.
That same warmth in her expression.
That same light in her eyes.
And then—
She smiled.
Cheeky.
Playful.
Like she knew something he didn't.
And for a moment—
Everything else felt very, very far away.