It only took a little over an hour before Kai showed up, dripping wet and walking up the stone walkway in front of the castle where the rest of the group was gathered.

"Where are they?" he asked without preamble, and Killian put a hand on his shoulder, guiding him over to where the others stood. It only took a moment for him to notice Meriel, and she stepped forward, wrapping her arms around his waist.

"They're alive, Kai," she said, her voice breaking. "They're alive."

"Where?" Kai asked again.

"They're being held at the mouth of the river Yorn, according to my grandmother," Killian supplied. "It was she who saw Roan take the children there. The river is fed by an underground source, that surfaces beneath a large, sacred tree. There are caves underground, and Ursula knew the power of the tree would block the twins from anyone who searched for them."

"What are we waiting for?" Kai asked, "Let's get going."

"It's not that simple," Emma said. "We need to talk strategy first."

Kai looked exasperated, but at a nod from Meriel, he reluctantly listened. He squeezed his wife's hand.

"I thought you wouldn't be here for another few hours."

"Anton walked fast," Meriel smiled. "He loves the twins, you know that."

"Right," said Killian. "So here's the plan. We take the Jolly Roger upstream on the River Yorn - according to the Queen here," he gestured to Alona, "There's a sheltered inlet not too far downstream from the source where we can anchor the ship. We'll go on foot from there."

"The River Yorn is the most powerful river in all the realms," Kai said, concerned. "The current is so strong, it's not even used for trade any direction but downstream." He turned to look at Killian. "I know the ship is made of enchanted wood, but it's going to take more than that to get us upstream."

"That's where we come in," Finn said. "You and I are going to control the current while my father steers the ship."

Kai looked wary. "I'm not even sure that will be enough. I'm not kidding about the power of the river - it can easily kill us all."

"We may be able to pull in some extra assistance," Finn replied.

"From who?"

"From me, I assume." Everyone turned, shocked at the sound of his voice. It had been nearly seven years since she'd heard it last, but Meriel's blood ran cold. Somehow, she managed to keep her voice light.

"Triton. What a lovely surprise," she said, with a horribly fake smile.

The slight tightening of his eyes was the only sign that she was irritating him. He stepped off the wave that brought him to the walkway.

"This shouldn't be a surprise at all. Kai has sent word throughout the sea that he seeks me. If there's surprise to be had, it is entirely mine." He shifted his bored gaze over to Kai. "This had better be worthwhile."

Kai gave his father a very unfriendly look, but managed to keep his tone civil. "I assure you, it is. Ursula thinks to take your crown from you and rule the seas."

Triton threw back his head and laughed. "Is that all? Ursula has tried many times, through one scheme or another. It's impossible." He started to wave his trident, but Kai stopped him.

"Wait. This time it's different. This time, she thinks to enact a curse with the blood of the Gemini."

"Gemini?" Triton quirked a brow, considering. "Well...that's troubling, but still, it may not be enough. She's used Gemini before, and it got her close, but she still had to battle me."

"These Gemini are different," Kai said reluctantly. "They're mine."

Now Triton looked alarmed. "Yours?"

"Yes. So they carry your blood. Which means - "

"They can touch my crown," Triton finished, reaching up to readjust the crown on his head.

"There's more," Meriel interrupted. Triton's eyes slid to her, looking her up and down in a thoroughly infuriating way.

"What are you? Siren? Mer?" He demanded.

"Part Naiad. Now do you understand the problem?" She held his gaze, refusing to let him intimidate her. "My freshwater blood combined with Kai's saltwater heritage."

Triton sucked in a breath. "She thinks to rule it all - all the water realm."

"Yes," Kai said. "We think so. She's taken the twins, and we need your help to get them back before the full moon."

"She's gone mad." He looked at Kai. "She's tried before to take the seas, once while plotting to take control of the land, as well. But this..." He shook his head.

"How was was she to take the land?" Alona asked, stepping forward. "I've heard of no such plot."

Triton gave her a smug look. "You don't have the sources that I have. And it was right under your nose, here in the Northern Kingdom. She was working with one of your own people."

"Roan," she said coldly.

"He delivered your daughter to King Markus, who in turn, promised Ursula their firstborn child," Triton continued. "She'd planned to use the blood of the child to ensure her free reign to use her powers upon the land. Markus backed out, and she cursed the sea around his kingdom. I've let the curse stand because he deserved it, working with the sea witch."

"You have the power to lift the curse on the sea?" Killian asked.

Triton gave him a superior look. "Of course I do. But there's nothing in it for me."

"Listen, buddy - " Emma started, but Killian's hand came down over her mouth. "Now is not the time, love," he said in a low voice. "Later."

She gave her husband a dirty look, but she nodded.

"So," Triton said, putting his trident over his shoulder. "I assume this trip up the River Yorn is to find the Gemini. Let's get going."

"There's more," Finn said.

Triton gave him a sour look. "Isn't there always with you people? I thought I was done with this family."

Finn ignored him, pressing on. "The Dryads are gathering, preparing for a war with humankind."

"So?" Triton gave a dismissive wave. "I don't care what happens on land."

"We're the humankind," Emma said darkly. "They're going to try to attack us as we approach."

"Let them try," Triton shrugged. "They're no match for me."

Alona rolled her eyes, then turned to David and Snow. "It's likely Roan will send some of the people here, as well, to take the castle. That way you'll be unable to arm yourselves if you return."

"Right," David said. He turned to Brandt. "You should stay, and keep Anton with you - he'll be able to see them coming. Pull all of the remaining villagers into the keep, and arm those who know how to fight."

"I can help," Lorelei said. "Can we put a protection spell on the castle?"

Emma looked skeptical. "I've never done anything that big. I don't know. And Ursula got through the one I put on the ship."

"What if you had help?" Lorelei asked. "You and I together?"

"Ursula is very powerful," Snow pointed out. She turned to Triton. "Would someone that powerful be able to get through a protection spell raised by two people?"

"Most likely not," Triton said. "The more power you put into a protection spell, the more difficult it would be to remove."

Emma nodded. "Sounds like it just might work. Let's go."

"Meet us on the Jolly Roger," Killian said. He turned to Triton. "Can you tame the river?"

Triton actually managed to look uncomfortable. "It's likely the river is going to be even more turbulent with me upon it," he griped. "The Naiad who rules the River Yorn is a former acquaintance of mine."

Meriel gave him a scathing look. "An acquaintance? Like so many of your other former acquaintances?"

"No," he answered, narrowing his eyes. "She's very powerful."

"Really?" Meriel gave him a delighted smile. "She's my great-grandmother, you know."

Triton glowered. "That makes perfect sense. I decided she was too much trouble to be worth the effort."

"Well, as I was saying before you popped in," Killian said, "We might be getting some assistance from her, if she's around."

"And where exactly are the Gemini?" Triton asked.

Before Killian could answer, Kai interrupted. "We're not telling you. You'll know what we want you to know, when we decide to tell you."

Triton looked at him coldly. "You don't trust me," he observed.

"No."

"But these are my grandchildren," he said, in a perfectly oily voice. "I can't harm them. Do you really think I'm a danger to them?"

"Yes." Four voices chorused at once: Killian, Kai, Meriel and Finn. Triton's fingers tightened on his trident, and the sky above darkened slightly.

"Fine. We'll do it your way," he said evenly.

"Yes, we will," Killian affirmed. "And those are my grandchildren," he said, poking a finger at Triton's chest. "You're a bloody stranger to them, and we're going to keep it that way."

###

The water was like ice and Bryony realized immediately that she'd a horrible, terrible mistake. The current was battering her, whirling her around to the point where she had no idea not only which direction she was going but even where the sky was versus the water. The water flowed up from the surface with the force of pounding ocean waves, and she was struggling even more with the weight of the twins pulling her under - she struggled to the surface to drag in a breath and ended up taking in water instead. She coughed violently and managed to get a glance around and the riverbank looked miles away.

She struggled again, sucking in a breath to stop the burning in her lungs as her mind dimly registered Zale and Ondine shrieking as she forced her arms and legs to move, feeling like she was swimming in circles as the current pulled and tossed her around. The river was too deep to touch bottom, and her fatigue was growing more and more pronounced. She felt her vines pulling back into her body, and she was too exhausted to stop them - and without earth beneath her, she was helpless to anyway.

Her head slipped under again and it took her longer to struggle to the surface this time. By the time she got her lips open to suck in what little air she could find, she realized that she was alone - the twins were no longer holding onto her. She turned frantically, screaming for them every time she could get a breath, trying to hear any sound over the rushing of the water, looking for any sign of them, but finding nothing.

And the water was pushing her down...down...down...

###

Reversing the current of a powerful river was taking every ounce of effort they could give it, including an extra push from Emma as she sent magic into the sails to keep them full and pulling against the current. Marissa arrived shortly after they'd started up, and with her, Kai and Triton pushing ahead in the water, they were reversing the flow. Finn - along with a pleasantly surprised Meriel - who had just discovered she could manipulate water - were stationed at the sides of the ship to smooth out any rapids and call out maneuvers to their father at the helm.

They were nearing the tributary that Marissa had described to them, when suddenly Kai let out a shout.

"Ondine!" He dove under the water as Meriel rushed to the front of the boat, her eyes scanning the surface frantically. She caught sight of Ondine, and a moment later, her eyes landed on Zale. Both were swimming the powerful current like it was nothing, laughing and shrieking as if this were just another family fun day on the water. She was about to call out to Kai when she realized she wasn't the only one who had eyes on Zale. Triton was already moving toward him, and something in Meriel's gut told her that wasn't a good thing.

She didn't think - she just reacted, diving into the water even as she heard her mother scream her name. Killian had seen exactly what Meriel had, and in one smooth maneuver, he brought the ship about, cutting Triton off. His arms strained powerfully at the wheel, as the current began to return to its former strength, and Finn did all he could to help his father stabilize the ship.

Meriel swam hard, but Kai was right - the current was incredible. She was struggling, even with the added push of her magic. She kept her eyes on her son, shouting out his name.

"Zale! Come to Mama! Zale!"

He let out a delighted shout, and swam to her easily, as if there were no current at all. A moment later, he was in her arms and she was covering him with kisses, even though she was still struggling. She felt a pair of hands at her waist, lifting her and aiding her as she swam for the ship, and she looked over her shoulder apprehensively, only to relax when she realized it was Marissa and not Triton.

Emma lowered the rope ladder, and Meriel and Zale grabbed onto it, with Kai and Ondine joining them a moment later. Marissa pulled Kai back just as he started to climb up after his daughter, whispering urgently in his ear, and he nodded, pulling himself up.

Triton, in the meantime, stayed in the water, giving them all a glare that should have set the seas to boiling. Once he'd handed his daughter off to Emma, Kai made his way to the bow of the ship.

"Thank you for your help," he called down to his father. "We won't need your assistance any further."

Triton folded his arms across his chest with a smile. "You might want to rethink that," he said smugly, gesturing over his shoulder with his trident.

That's when they saw them - the dryads. Hundreds of them, standing in closed ranks, as if prepared for battle, lining the riverbank. Finn stepped up to Kai's side, giving him a discreet nod.

"It's me they want," Finn said. "Roan told them that I murdered the queen."

"Then we only need to put her out here where they can see her," Kai said. "That ought to calm them down."

Alona stepped forward. "They may think you have me prisoner," she said, shaking her head. "You have to get me to land."

"I'll get back in the water," Kai said, nodding. "That tributary is just ahead."

"By-nee!"

Finn's head whipped around, as his niece repeated what she'd said. "By-nee!"

He ran across the deck, skidding to his knees in front of the little girl.

"Bryony?' he asked urgently. "Ondine, did you see Bryony?"

She nodded enthusiastically. "By-nee!"

He grasped her shoulders. "Where? Where, Ondine?"

Zale answered for his sister. "Water!"

"She's in the water?" Finn's eyes grew wide.

Ondine jumped up and down, clapping and laughing. "Water! Water!" After all, the water was pure joy for the two of them. They'd cut through the river like it was nothing. But for Bryony...

"She's in the water!" Finn shouted. Kai gave him a nod, diving over the side as Finn ran up to the rail.

"Let Kai handle this," Emma said, coming up behind him. "He'll find her."

Finn shot her a helpless look, gripping the edge of the rail, hard. He rocked from foot to foot at a frantic pace, scanning the river as it rushed by both sides of the boat. He turned his gaze down to his great-grandmother, calling out to her.

"Hold the boat here! If we reverse the current again, we'll be sending her away from us," he pointed out.

She nodded to let him know she'd heard him, extending her arms to hold the force of the water back as Kai started to swim against the current. A quick glance to the periphery showed Finn that even more dryads were now lining the banks, shouting out angrily and a few were even shooting vines toward the ship. Alona was calling out to them, but over the roar of the river, they couldn't hear her and likely thought she was calling for help.

He scanned the river again, putting his hand to his talisman, concentrating hard. That's when he caught the barest glimpse of something pale flashing in the water just ahead of them. He looked again, and he recognized the curve of an elbow as an arm came out of the water, and her face followed, gasping for air before the current pulled her down again.

"Bryony!" He shouted her name, and before Emma could get a grip on him, he was over the railing, swimming hard to meet her.

And hundreds of vines were snaking through the air and the water toward him.