We had to be nearing the end of his five minutes.

My heartbeat was so loud, I could swear the ocean itself was pounding in my ears as I crossed the sand far too slowly. Eila stabbed her spear toward Rayna’s throat, and with my cry, I pushed the sea to react.

Water sliced through the wooden hilt, removing the point of the spear before it could cut my sister-in-law.

A tentacle shot off the ocean and ripped Eila backward, forcing her to stumble away instead of following through with the stab.

I used another wave to clear the beach and sent Rayna with it, hoping like hell that she was well enough to fight for herself in the group of selkies I’d just thrown her into.

It was the best chance I could give her in the situation.

“You’re here for me,” I called out to Eila, stopping in front of her on the sand. She’d recovered insanely fast from the throw. She was covered in salt, sand, and blood, but her entire being was alight with whatever was driving her to be there, on the beach, attacking the merrae.

My breaths came out shallow and fast, my heartbeat still drowning out the other sounds on the beach.

I didn’t try to send Eila off with another wave.

My energy was fading fast, and I didn’t have any more magic to waste on trying to take her down that way.

She was still holding the spear in her hand, and now the point on the end of it was made of water.

That could work to my advantage.

Or it could not.

Only time would tell.

“I need the throne,” the woman finally yelled.

“You can’t take it without killing me,” I called back, holding my arms out at my sides to tell her to get it over with.

The sooner she attacked, the sooner I could try to block it or retaliate. And considering how much energy I had left, it would be much better to get through it quickly.

I sent another wave over the sand without looking behind me to see how many selkies I had to take down.

I was nearing the end of my magic’s current limits. More blood was dripping from my nose, and I was starting to get dizzy. I could feel the edge of my power, like I had that day in the cliffs. If I kept pushing it, it would snap.

But I could hold out a little longer.

Triton had to be almost done.

Eila finally gave a battle cry and launched her spear through the air. It flew toward me, spinning perfectly. The moment was so surreal, it felt like something out of a movie.

I used the water on the tip to send it flying past me, and heard an awful noise as it impaled itself on a selkie who was emerging from the water.