“Is there anything more we can do for you?” Lóngjūn asked.
“Yes,” Ana said. “One day travelers will come seeking your aid. They will have the touch of the goddess about them. Help them in their cause and know that when you help them, you are helping me. Should you ever have need of me, simply call and I will hear your plea and send aid as I am able. Go now,” she said. “Build palaces in your domains and find peace and safety in your new homes.”
One by one, the dragons rose in the air, undulating like ribbons in the wind. When the last one disappeared in the clouds, I asked, “How are you, really?”
“I am recovering as we speak. You may set me down now. I believe I can stand.”
“What if I like you right where you are?” I asked, nuzzling her ear.
“I thought those small kisses were to welcome one home.”
“They can be for other things too,” I said, kissing the arch of her neck.
“There will be time for a third lesson later. We are nearly finished with our list.”
I lifted my head, surprised. “Really? I thought we’d never get done.”
Ana peered at me through lowered eyelids. “Perhaps, if we can finish today, we can take a… What is it called? A vacation?”
The thought of relaxing on a faraway beach somewhere with Ana in a bikini was more than enough motivation for me finish our work. I set her down gently. “What’s next?” I asked a little too eagerly.
“I believe it is creating the Ocean of Milk and assigning a guardian.”
Wrinkling my nose, I said, “The mermaid?” I sighed. “Okay, let’s go find a mermaid.” She was about to teleport us away from the mountain when I took her hand and said, “Wait.”
“What is it?”
“We didn’t wipe the minds of the dragons. They’ll remember me.”
Ana grinned. “It’s doubtful.”
“Why?”
“To them, all of us humans look alike. Except perhaps to Yínbáilóng. He is quite intelligent. His mind seeks to learn. I’ll have to visit him again soon and tell him to limit what information he shares with you in the future.”
Ana wrapped her arms around my waist and the mountain disappeared. This was followed by vertigo and a severe popping in my ears. Ana and I both bent over after the transition, clutching our heads, but soon, the sensation dissipated. “We’re deep beneath the ocean,” I explained. “I think that’s why it hurts, but it seems the amulet is protecting us from the pressure.”
Her eyes grew wide. “Truly? We are under the sea?”
“Yes. This cavern is part of an ice tunnel the white dragon uses to move beneath the water without getting wet.”
“And what of this Ocean of Milk I am to create?”
I described the fountain, the mermaid, the key, and the fact that I was the one who’d had to swim for it. Ana created the fountain easily enough and used the water piece of the amulet to fashion a vast lake in the cavern, but as far as I could tell, the water wasn’t unique in any way.
“It should be white. The water, I mean,” I said.
“Then I will summon the guardian. Perhaps she will know.”
Ana called to the trident, dipped its spikes in the water, and stirred. Closing her eyes, she whispered, summoning a wanderer willing to serve. Her eyes flew open suddenly. “She is coming,” Ana said. With a flourish of her hand, the trident vanished.
A moment later, the water rippled and a blonde-haired mermaid peeked out. “Hello there.” she said. “Did someone call for a siren?”
“A siren?” I said quietly to Ana. “Does that mean she’s like those who live in the great tree of Shangri-La?”
“In a way.”
I heard a giggle and the mermaid turned to fog. Her ghostly form moved through the passageway toward the fountain. We followed. When we arrived, she was already lounging in the pool. “How lovely!” she said. “Though I wouldn’t mind if you turned up the heat.”
Ana obliged and steam filled the air around her. The mermaid sighed contentedly and relaxed back in the water. “Will you serve for a time?” she asked the mermaid. “Travelers are coming soon and they will need a key.” Ana produced a key in her palm. When I asked her how she knew it would open the temple, she said the temple hadn’t been built yet but that we were going to do that next.
The mermaid leaned over the lip of the fountain, deliberately arching her body to show it off. “I suppose I can do that. With the right incentive,” she said, winking at me. “Hi. My name’s Kaeliora.”
Frowning, Ana asked, “What boon would you like for helping?”
Kaeliora pretended to think about it. “I’ve been lonely for so very long,” she said, lifting her long tail out of the water and trailing her hands provocatively down her scales. “I think a kiss would be enough to motivate me.”
“You wish for me to kiss you?” Ana asked with a grimace.
The mermaid rolled her eyes. “Not you. Him.” The way she said him, by making the little mmmm sound at the end, made me shift uncomfortably.
“Look,” I said, “I don’t think that’s—”
Ana cut me off. “Is this your only demand?” she asked stiffly.
“Oh, I think that should be enough. As long as he puts his back into it, so to speak.”
I said, “No,” at the same time Ana said, “Very well.”
The mermaid clapped her hands giddily. “Yay!” She slid her lithe body up to the bench at the edge of the fountain and held out her dripping arms. “Come here, gorgeous,” she beckoned, laughing huskily.
Turning to Ana, I hissed, “Can’t we offer her something else?”
“This is her demand,” Ana said. “You know this closeness to another being is what provides them sustenance. In essence she is asking for food. How can we think to deprive her of something so basic?”
“Yeah, I know but…”
“Just do it and be done with it,” Ana commanded irritably.
“This feels like a test,” I said. “Is this a test?”
“I do not know what you are referring to.”
“A relationship test. They’re common in Kelsey’s time. Women give men little tests regarding their integrity and commitment.”
“The only assessments I employ regarding men is in their ability to protect my back during battle. If they fail in that respect, they are assigned to other duties or dismissed. You have long since proved your valor in this occupation. As this is a part of our work, it therefore does not apply to our…relationship. Rest assured, I am not testing you in any way.”
Logically, I understood what she was saying, but my instincts still told me something was off. “Are you sure you want me to do this?”
“I am certain.”
“Okay,” I said, trudging toward the fountain as slowly and nervously as a man heading to the hangman’s noose. I kept glancing over my shoulder at Ana. At first, she waved me on and then, when I got close, she turned her head away. I didn’t know if that was a good sign or a bad one.
“Now, you’d better make it count,” Kaeliora warned. “Otherwise, it’s no deal.”
It’s just sustenance, I thought. Grimly, I sat down next to her and took her voluptuous form in my arms. She wriggled, jostling closer until her scaled curves were pressed so tightly against me I was surprised she could breathe. She licked her lips, slowly, hungrily, and I lowered my mouth to hers. In the matter of a few seconds, I forgot where I was, who I was. All that mattered was her luscious kiss.
The taste of her and the scent of her were driving me mad. I needed more. Taking hold of her slippery body, I pulled her halfway out of the fountain and onto my lap, uncaring that I became soaked in the process. The water was hot, but not as hot as the woman in my arms. The bare skin I touched scorched my hands.