Enemy of Oceans by EJ Altbacker

kill you!”
    â€œPlease, calm yourself,” Tydal said. “The princess explained that it was idle talk, a joke.”
    The furrows on the scalloped hammerhead’s brow deepened in disbelief. “My mariners say it wasn’t and I believe them. Besides, she’s old enough to know better. No one gets to have a laugh about sending their leader to the Sparkle Blue, savvy?”
    Tydal wished there was more room to swim so he could think, but the cavern was too small. The Indi homewaters were huge, but he and Xander were in a series of interconnected and defensible caverns in the royal area of the Indi homewaters. Xander had insisted on this after the latest assassination attempt. Now, even the few Indi mariners Tydal had kept around for public relations had been dismissed. All his guards were the AuzyAuzy commander’s sharks. They were the only ones who could be trusted.
    â€œAre you thinking or sleeping?” asked Xander, who knew well that Tydal wasn’t sleeping at all these days. When Tydal was First Court Shark, he prided himself on being able to remain stock still, at the hover, for so long that he would fade from everyone’s view. But that wasn’t possible as minister prime. Everyone looked to you for answers and there was never a day with fewer than a hundred decisions to make.
    â€œI cannot execute a Punjaw princess for mere words!” Tydal answered. “The family would revolt. In fact, all five of the royal clans might join together and then revolt!”
    â€œFinnivus killed a bunch of them,” Xander said. “Those same families offered to kiss his tail after each death.”
    â€œBecause he was a maniac!” Tydal yelled, bumping Xander with his snout. Not too hard, as the hammerhead was far larger, but Tydal was angry. “Finnivus would have ordered Johanna’s entire family wiped out!”
    â€œWhich is why they obeyed!” Xander answered forcefully, slapping Tydal in the belly with his tail. “They were scared of him. That’s a lesson you should learn.”
    â€œYou cannot be serious,” Tydal said, shaking his head in disbelief. “You think I should put someone’s head on a feeding platter to make a point? I will never do that. I won’t be anything like Finnivus!”
    â€œIf you let her go without a fitting punishment, you’re as good as dead,” Xander said. “You know what? I’m done. The fate of the ocean is balanced on an urchin spine, and I have to play nurse shark with you. No more! You dying doesn’t bother me.”
    Tydal used his tail to angrily sweep the seabed at Xander. “That’s so great to hear! It inspires me with so much confidence!”
    â€œDon’t mistake me for your mum! I’m not here to stroke your flank.” Xander calmed himself. “Hear me out. Yesterday, you were almost killed. Again.” That was true. This last attempt, by three spinner sharks with fake Indi Shiver markings, had almost succeeded.
    The evidence pointed strongly to the Punjaw family as they were in charge of the royal urchins who created the Indi Shiver tattoos. Unfortunately, there was no proof because all three assassins were sent to the Sparkle Blue before they could be questioned. Punjaw had loudly denied any involvement, but their princess Johanna had been heard laughing about how Tydal’s rule was about to be “thankfully and finally put to an end” a day before the attack.
    The hammerhead flicked his fins and said, “This attempt on your life could have been random extremists, as your royals say . . .”
    â€œXander,” Tydal said. “I’m not an idiot.”
    â€œThen why are you acting like one?” Xander asked. “I lost another mariner saving your yellow-and-brown hide yesterday.”
    â€œI’m terribly sorry about that,” Tydal said, suddenly conscious of his epaulette skin.
    â€œSorry gets nothing for