Connie's first instinct was to change shape, until she remembered how she had been unable to connect to Skylark. So she remained in her human form, her lungs bursting for breath. At last she managed to find the surface, coughing and spluttering. In the midst of the slopping waves she strained to find Col and Skylark. The waves had carried her further than she had thought- she could not make them out, it was too dark.
Then something silver caught her attention. She paddled towards the source of brightness, and then wanted to scream. That glow was the Leviathan's body. He was half-submerged, his head, neck and tail raised above the water. And he was staring at Skylark and Col, who were stranded on the rocks.
"Universal," the Leviathan began, "you will cease this meaningless fight, or I will crush your friends."
Connie felt her chest tighten. She had no choice- she would have to give up. There was no way she would put her lost bonds before Col. She swam towards them, but when she half-way to them she was blocked by the Leviathan's head. The veil of mist had all but disappeared, and the shimmer of his eyes was almost back in full force.
"A wise choice," the Leviathan rumbled.
"Let them go," Connie demanded. "The pegasi are not kindred to the water- they will die in seconds if they fall in."
"Do not patronize me, Universal," the Leviathan said. "I will release them. On condition that you remove your defences, and allow me to be your one true companion."
No way out, Connie realized with a pang of sadness. She had lost.
"Alright," she said. "But I don't know if I can do so."
"I will help," the Leviathan said. "Do you give your word?"
"…Yes."
After she had spoken, the Leviathan's tail slithered away from Skylark's hooves.
"Tell them to leave," boomed the Leviathan. Connie swallowed.
"Col, you have to go back to shore," she said.
"Connie, I won't!"
"If you don't, the Leviathan will drown all of us," Connie answered. "Please, go back to shore. I'll…I'll think of something."
Growling, Col kicked Skylark's sides and they rose. Connie watched them disappear, and then turned back to the Leviathan.
"Remove that barrier on your spirit," the Leviathan hissed. He supported Connie with his fins, so that she would not have to struggle in the water to stay afloat. Connie felt a strange warmth from his coils, which kept the cold of the sea at bay.
"I will," she said. "But first, I want to share something with you."
"Oh?"
Connie closed her eyes, and entered her mind. The Leviathan was there too, sitting in her ocean, which was more grey than silver. The chasms surrounded him, spilling water into their endless depths.
"I will show you my memories," Connie said, standing on her island. "I want you to see that you're wrong. Every species does care for me in their own way, a way that is different to that of their companions. With me, they see themselves in a new light. And with me, they are able to unite."
The velvet sky changed as Connie called on her first memory. The Leviathan watched in silence as Connie recounted her time with the sirens. Not one of the Society members, even the companion to the Italian sirens, had been able to stem their bloodlust, but Connie had connected with them, and bought time. If only for a brief moment, they had broken free from Kullervo's sway, and had listened.
The scene changed, this time showing a forest. Connie was atop a tree, staring down a dark griffin, the power of the Gorgon in her. But rather than use it to defeat her foe, she let the griffin go, aware of the consequences of her actions. She possessed power- great power- and yet, even for a child, also possessed the will to use it wisely.
A new memory came forward; a gathering of wounded mythical creatures in a mine, shunned by their companions and deformed by lack of care. The Leviathan saw how Connie's sword technique enabled the well creatures to heal the sick ones- something he had never seen, nor thought possible. He witnessed how Sentinel was given his duty as protector of Connie's mind, in spite of his blindness, and how Sentinel was forever grateful, his purpose in life restored, although he remained without a companion of his own.
Other, shorter memories fleeted by, but each showed the same thing; that every creature respected the universal, experienced her in a different way, and treasured their time with her.
"Do you see now?" Connie said. "I'm not a tool for others' whims, Leviathan, as you think me to be. While it is true that there are creatures who despise me, particularly for defeating Kullervo, many love me, as if I were their own companion."
"But they have companions to return to," the Leviathan said. Connie was surprised to feel a new emotion emanate from him- sadness. "It is alright for them. I, I have no-one to return to, not even a fellow Leviathan. You are all that I have."
He rose from the water, coming to rest at Connie's feet.
"You, too, know what it is to be alone," the Leviathan went on, staring at Connie's mental self. "Companion to all, and yet none to call your own. I had thought that a chance to settle with me would have made you happy."
"I can't," Connie answered. "I have a responsibility to all mythical creatures, but that includes you. Isn't that enough?"
The Leviathan hissed.
"But the boy, he will take your place if you accept me. It will be his responsibility, not yours." Connie bit her lip.
"I don't want him to be the only universal," she found herself saying. "I don't want him to face all the trials I had to, because I was…"
"Alone," the Leviathan finished for her. A brief flicker of understanding passed between them. "Then I see. You both have more need of each other, than I of either of you."
"What are you saying?"
"I have grown tired, Universal. Two hundred years is a long time, even for my kind who live centuries beyond you humans. And yet I finally see my folly. You and George, like me, are the last of your kind. For me to take you away from your kin would be no better than murdering my own." The Leviathan's eyes glimmered. "So I shall restore you, Universal, to your former strength. But I cannot wait any longer- your seas poison me, your ships disturb me. I no longer wish to suffer without a companion or a brother to comfort me."
Connie's heart quickened, as she realized what the Leviathan was trying to say.
"Leviathan, no!" she cried. "I can be your companion, your link…"
"I will only burden you," the Leviathan said. "You will be wanted by all creatures, and you cannot be everywhere at once."
"But you can come to Hescombe," Connie could barely keep her voice level, her emotions threatening to burst. She had wanted the Leviathan to see reason, not to throw his life away. "I'll visit you every day, you won't be alone."
"Universal, your waters are too shallow for me, waters which are already home to the sirens, the Kraken, and many others besides. I will only make their lives harder. But I will treasure our bond, always. You have freed me from my selfish ways. I have no more regrets."
"Leviathan, please!"
But Connie's words could not reach the Leviathan, so great was his despair.
"Goodbye, Universal," he said, raising his grotesque head, his jaws poised at his own flesh. "You have eased my loneliness for my last hours- and for that, I will be eternally grateful. Remember me." And then he clamped his teeth around his belly.
"Leviathan, stop!" Connie's tears were flowing freely now.
Her mental image jerked, and then she was back in the sea, floating above a sinking corpse. The Leviathan's huge form plunged deeper and deeper into the dark currents, as he let out his final breath.
"Farewell…companion to all…" he whispered. "Serve the creatures…well…"
Connie was heart-broken. She had witnessed the demise of the last ever Leviathan. They were truly gone forever. The sea mingled with her tears.
"Goodbye, Leviathan," she thought, starting to swim towards the surface. "I hope you find peace."
As she broke the water, coughing and spluttering, she experienced an odd sensation. It was as if water had filled in the chasms of her ocean, restoring it to completeness. She felt the presence of a local minotaur, who was asleep in a cave on the Spanish shore, and the dark thoughts of the Kraken, who was prowling the sea floor, many miles away. And just faintly, she could sense the edges of Morjik, who roamed the skies far to the west.
"You have done well, Universal," boomed the voice of Kullervo. "It is no small thing to have defeated a Leviathan."
"I don't want to talk to you," Connie snapped. She wished she had never even considered taking his advice to kill the Leviathan.
"As you wish." Kullervo's presence vanished from her mind.
"Connie!"
A shout from above made her look up. Col and Skylark were hovering about the waves, looking for her. She raised her hand, which suddenly felt like lead. She had been in the water for hours; fatigue was catching up with her.
"There!" Skylark dived, flying towards the half-conscious girl that bobbed in the tide like a rag doll. They had returned to look for her when Skylark had heard her cry out. There was no sign of the Leviathan. Col reached down low, grabbing Connie by the shoulders, and this time managed to haul her into his arms.
"Gotcha," he murmured, placing her astride on Skylark's back and wrapping his arms around her waist. "Skylark, let's go."
The pegasus and companions fled back to shore. It was a long way back to camp, and with everyone exhausted it would not be feasible to return this night. Fortunately the cove was full of caves, so Col guided Skylark into the largest one, where they would be able to spend the night with privacy. Skylark staggered into the cavern, his wings drooping, while Col dismounted, laying Connie against the pegasus.
"She's cold," Col said, feeling Connie's forehead with the back of his hand. "We'll have to keep her warm." Without embarrassment he stripped off Connie's sodden top and trousers, her pale skin reflecting the moonlight outside. Then he took off his own jacket and shirt, before pulling Connie into a close embrace, draping his clothes around them. Col lay against Skylark's flank, which was warm from his exertions.
"Col…" Connie murmured. Col hushed her.
"It's okay," he said. "Everything's going to be fine."
Connie closed her eyes again and soon drifted off.