Damor and Holly returned to the cave where both Algar, and Kree, had previously resided.

"Alicia!" Cried Holly as she made her way over to her stepmother. "Alicia please wake up!"

"She can't." Damor informed her. "Her body is in a complete stasis. She's alive, but I had to drastically slow down her mental function. It was the only was I could use my power to stop the bleeding in her brain. If I were to release her from her stasis, she wold likely die."

"You said you would get her back to the surface." Said Holly. "You said she could get the help she needs."

"My nephews have destroyed thousands of ships over the years." Damor told her. "They have collected many trophies, including what you would call life boats. I could send her a drift, as soon as I spot a ship that we know would rescue her. I would not do so unless it was a ship that you yourself approve of, and I'll make sure that she will be well protected until she is rescued. I promise that I won't let anything happen to her."

"But what if she dies after she is rescued." Asked Holly. Damor gently placed his hands on her shoulders.

"The stasis that I have put her in, will keep her alive until she gets the medical treatment that is needed." He told her. "Once your human doctors start treating her, it'll depend on just how skillful they are. That is what will determine whether or not she will survive. I have already erased her memory of what has happened to her. All she will remember, is that the boat she was on was in a terrible accident. She will not remember how or why. But she also won't remember me, or my nephews."

"Then she won't remember what they did to her?' Holly asked.

"No." He replied. "But now you have a choice to make. I've realized after everything that has transpired, that keeping you here forcefully would be wrong of me. You are going to have to make a choice. If you choose to stay with me, Alicia will not remember that you are alive. She will assume that you were killed along with everyone else. But I understand why you would believe that she needs you to take care of her, and to watch over her. It also may be easier for her to know that you had at least survived along with her."

"But I won't be allowed to return to you, will I?"Cried Holly. "You're going to erase my memory too, aren't you?"

Damor looked at her with complete sorrow in his eyes.

"Holly, I—!" Damor began to say.

"No!" Cried Holly. "That's not fair! Why do you have to make me choose? How can you be so unfeeling as to just throw me away? Don't you love me, don't you want to be with me?"

Tears came to Damor's eyes, as he threw his arms around her and held her in a tight embrace. As he did so she continued to sob on his shoulder.

"It's tearing me up inside!" He cried. "The thought of loosing you forever! But if that is what is best for you, for her. Than that is what I must do. I love you more than anything in this world, even enough to let you go if I have to! But Alicia means a lot to you, so she means a lot to me. This is why I wanted you to wait until you made your decision. You needed to see her current condition."

"I honestly don't know what to do!" Cried Holly. "I love you both so much!"

Damor then slowly released Holly from his embrace. As they stared into one another's tear filled eyes, he gently took her hand and placed it over his heart. She could feel the powerful rhythm, as it was beating through his chest. He looked at her and smiled.

"Holly Hobby." He whispered.

"Oh Damor!" She cried, she was now more confused than ever. More than anything she wanted to stay with him. But she felt that it would be wrong of her to leave Alicia. She also hated the thought of Alicia being alone, and even believing that she was dead. What would her father want?

Damor gave Holly a sad smile, he then bent down to Alicia, and removed the engagement ring from her finger. He placed it in Holly's palm, and closed her hand around it.

"You know." He began. "The reason my nephews, and I were able to use the ring, is because of the strong connection that the two of you share with it. Perhaps that in itself is the answer."

Holly could feel the warm tears as they were streaming down her face. She had remembered how excited she was the day, she helped her father pick it out. As she continued to look at it, there was something she had never seen before, there was an inscription.

"Oh my god!" She said. "I didn't know he had it inscribed."

"I saw the hieroglyphics." He told her. "But I couldn't understand the symbols."

"Actually they're letters that make words." She explained. "Its how we read our different languages."

"What does it say?" he asked. A flood of emotions hit her all at once. It was a combination of both joy, and sadness, as she read the message that her father gave to Alicia.

"Roger and Alicia~forever and a day." She told him.

"I don't understand." He said as he looked confused. "That's impossible."

"It's symbolic." She replied as she smile. "He used to tell James, and I the same thing. It means that the love between them is so great, it could go on even beyond forever."

Soon the ring started showing her flashes of happy, and loving memories between Roger and Alicia. It even showed how they came from different worlds, and so many logical reasons of why they shouldn't have ended up together. But their was one reason for them to be together, it was their unconditional undying love.

Than all of a sudden, a scene from around five years prior, flashed inside her head. It was when she was helping Alicia to get ready for her wedding, to her father. She was ecstatic that Alicia had asked her to be her maid of honor. With all sincerity, she told Alicia how happy she was that Alicia was going to marry her father. Not just because she cared so much about her, but because she knew how happy Alicia made him.

Then she remembered what Alicia told her that day.

"My wish for you is that one day you find a man as wonderful as your father. If he is good to you, and you love one another unconditionally, never let him go. Even if it seems as though you are from two completely different worlds, or that logically everything is stacked against you, promise me that you will choose love. Promise me that you will choose your heart. If I hadn't, I never would have made it to this day with your father. And I would never have had the honor of having you as me stepdaughter. Remember, only you can truly know what is best for you."

All of a sudden the visions stopped, and Holly let out a large gasp.

"Are you alright?" Damor asked her. "You looked as though you were in a trance."

"For how long?" She asked.

"Maybe a minute, or two." He replied.

"That's all?" She asked feeling confused. "It seemed a lot longer than that."

She then took his hand, and placed it over her heart.

"Damor." She smiled, as he gave her an inquisitive look. "I'm choosing my heart. I'm choosing to stay with you."

++++++++++++++

As Damor surveyed the surface of the ocean, he spotted a US naval ship. This was just what they had been hoping for, it had only been a couple of days since he started searching for the right ship to rescue Alicia. Even though Alicia had been unconscious the whole time, he knew it was going to be difficult for Holly to let go of her. A small part of him worried that Holly might change her mind, and decide to go with her stepmother.

As they started to leave their secret island, Damor gently placed Alicia in the life boat that was once part of his nephews' collection. Holly got in with her, and wrapped her arms around her in one last embrace. Damor then pushed the boat into the water, and the three of hem headed towards the naval ship as he moved the tiny boat along.

When they reached a safe enough distance, Damor looked in the boat. Holly was holding onto Alicia as she had a teary eyed smile upon her face. He felt guilty, knowing that he was going to have to separate them forever. And yet deep down, he knew that love can sometime find away.

"I'm afraid it's time for us to tell her goodbye." He told her.

"I know." she replied with a sad smile upon her lips. "It's just do hard."

Damor took Alicia's hand and then kissed it.

"Goodbye Alicia ." He said. "You are a remarkable woman, and may you find the happiness that you rightly deserve. And I pray that you never remember, or experience, the hell my nephews put you through. Thank for helping to shape my beloved into the woman she is today. Safe journey, my lady."

"Damor told me that the last words you spoke, were about how much you loved me." Said Holly as she began to cry. "But I already knew that. I know you're only ten years older than me, but you are the closest thing I ever had to a mother. I don't think I could have loved you anymore, even if you had been my real mother. Thank you for being a part of my life, my father's life, and of course all of our lives. I love you, and I'm going to miss you! Goodbye, mother!"

With that she placed a kiss on Alicia's cheek, as she and Damor exited the boat. He placed his life force around Holly, and himself, as he pushed the small boat closer to the ship. As it got closer, they observed for afar. Sure enough, a sailor aboard the ship seemed to have spotted the the small boat. It was soon after that, that the sailors scrambled to rescue her.

+++++++++++++++++

As they continued to observe what was happen, Holly buried her face in Damor's chest, and began sobbing profusely. But she wasn't sure if they were tears of joy, or tears of sorrow. Maybe a little of both. Damor soon enveloped her in a warm, and loving embrace. He began soothing her, as she could feel his hand gently rubbing circles around her back.

As she slowly pulled away, they stared into one another's eyes. They both shared the same teary smiled expression of love in their eyes. And like a powerful force that they could not fight, they were soon locked in a passionate kiss.

As they soon broke the kiss, Damor looked at her and smile.

"I love you, Holly Hobby", he told her.

"I love you too, Damor." She replied. "But you are immortal, and I am not. Are you going to be able to handle watching me grow old and die. Are you still going to love me fifty years from now?"

Damor began to laugh.

"In my eyes Holly Hobby." He said. "You will always be beautiful, no matter how you age. But every time I share my life force with you, I share part of my immortality. That means I won't live forever, but you will live many centuries longer than a normal human's lifespan. And you will definitely not age for a very long time."

"But won't I be slowly killing you?" She asked.

"If I am correct, are lifespans shall end at the same time." He told her with a smile. "That is the greatest gift two lovers can ever give one another. Now come my queen. It's time for use to return to our kingdom."

And with that, they had headed towards the undersea world below.

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

The medical technicians got the unconscious woman to the infirmary as quick as they could. Who was she? Whoever she was, she was more than likely the most beautiful woman they had seen in their personal lives. As she had been gently taken off the gurney, and placed on the hospital bed, the doctor soon arrived. He soon began his medical exam.

"This woman's alive, but barely." He stated. "My guess is that she will need emergency surgery as soon as possible. We're not that far off the coast of Miami. Get a helicopter here as soon as possible, and alert Miami General of the situation!"

As everyone around him did as they were told, the doctor turned his attention towards the beautiful young woman.

"Don't worry, my dear. We're going to to everything we can for you, I promise."

As he looked at her, he saw that her lips were moving. It was as if she was trying to tell him something. But what was she trying to say? Only one word escaped her lips.

"H-holly...."

😊