Time went on.

Minutes turned into hours.

Marina lay on the bed, looking up at the ceiling, thoughtful. A part of her was still in denial that she was in Atlantis. Her eyes wandered off throughout the room. She could not deny that the room was beautiful and ancient-looking. There were paintings on the walls of aristocrats, dancers, and other entertainers. She got off of the bed and walked to the walls. She was fascinated by the art; they were something that she read and studied about.

She wished she had her colleagues with her; on the other hand, she was probably the first person to discover the city, although Trystan lived in it.

A masculine hand touched her right shoulder. "Enjoying the walls?"

Marina flinched and squealed. She turned her body and saw Trystan, who stood, amused.

"Y-You! How did you get in!? Have you ever heard of knocking!?"

Trystan stared at her in amusement. "Why should I knock? This is my palace. My palace, my rules. I do not have to knock to gain entry."

Marina could not believe the man before her. "You have some nerve, jerk! It is considered rude to enter, especially invading a woman's room without her permission!"

The king looked at her; his eyes traced her body. Marina felt his stare as if they were touching her body.

She felt uncomfortable and put her arms around her shoulders. "Can you stop staring at me?"

"Ah, yes. I apologize for making you uncomfortable. I just wanted to make sure if I was intruding on a true woman's privacy. As I could see, you are still not a woman."

"Excuse me!?"

A smirk came across Trystan's face. "You are still a virgin, are you not?"

Marina felt her face become warm and bright red. Her heartbeat was rapid. "I-I. Wh-Why does it matter!?"

He walked closer to her, like an animal stalking its prey.

Marina walked back slowly until her back touched the wall.

Trystan stopped and put his hands on the wall; his arms blocked the chances for her to escape. He looked at her with intensity while Marina looked away. "Why do you shy away? Have you ever had a man be this close to you?"

Marina heard her heart beating faster, she wanted to speak, but she felt that she would stutter when she tried. True, she had met many men, but none of them talked to her like Trystan did. Marina hated to admit it, but it excited her. She gathered her courage and spoke up. "Stop already! Are we going to have dinner!?"

Trystan chuckled and gave Marina some space. "Ah yes, of course." He extended his right arm. "Shall we?"

She was hesitant. Marina debated whether or not she should take Trystan's arm. She gave a long little sigh and put her hand on his arm.

"Good choice, my little water nymph."

.............................

 Marina was in awe of all the art and architecture. She could not get enough of looking at the palace walls. "Professor Diotami would kill to be here," Marina thought. Her heart was beating in the excitement that she was in history.

Trystan led her to a dining room. The room's walls were made of white marble; there were sculptures, art, and plants. Also, candles were on a table, a small white marble table with candles, chairs, plates, and cups.

Marina couldn't help but notice that figures were standing by the wall. They looked like puppets that had a realistic appearance. They almost had a depressing appearance.

Trystan noticed her curiosity about the puppet-like figures. "They are the servants of this palace,  puppets. Before Atlantis was destroyed, these puppets used to be some of my many servants that died that fateful day."

Marina's eyes became a bit wide open. "Oh." She could not find the right words to say.

Both walked towards the table, and Trystan motioned Marina to sit on the chair, which she did. He went to the other side and sat on his seat. He snapped his fingers, and the puppet servants came to them with trays of food and drinks and served them.

Marina said nothing as she glanced at the puppet-like people as they served them food. Food consisted of fruit and seafood with wine and water. "Wow, how did you get all this food?"

"I hunt some of the food close by since there is typically fish and other sea creatures. As for the fruit and wine, I grow them in my gardens."

"Wow, so you like to garden?"

The immortal king gave a slight chuckle. "Back then, gardening was one of my favorite past times. It was something I was good at." He took a tiny sip from his cup of wine.

When she finished her wine, an elderly puppet walked toward her with a jug of wine and poured more into her cup. "How did these puppets...?"

The king gave out a sigh. "They are natural bodies. When the sea swallowed my kingdom, all my people died from drowning. I had no company when I discovered I was immortal and could live in my palace. I found some of the bodies of my people; I made them what they are now. They do not breathe, talk or have emotions. Their bodies move to do what they were accustomed to, serve."

The young woman looked at the puppets. Their faces were emotionless; their eyes were dead to the world; she wondered what the puppets were like when they were humans. "Atlantis is ancient. If you were king, then how did you live this long? How did Atlantis get destroyed?"

Trystan stopped eating. "It was my fault." He closed his eyes and massaged his forehead.

"How so?"

"I wasn't a good king. I was corrupt; power overcame my morality. I didn't care for my people; I disrespected the gods, and they punished me for my wrongdoings. Zeus cursed me to live an immortal life with the bitter reminder of my mistakes. I regret it with every forsaken breath I breathe. I look at these puppets and am reminded of their lost lives, my destroyed home, my kingdom, and the reminder that I'm alone."

Marina stopped eating and looked at Trystan; she felt sad for him. She could never imagine living for thousands of years in a destroyed palace, the remainder of one's wrongdoings that cost many people's lives. She saw regret in his very being and felt his sadness. "I thought being an immortal could be an amazing experience."

"Do not think that way. Being immortal leads one without purpose. I had to live day after day in this miserable existence. Every day, I wish to die."

She clenched her fists. "Such a sad life. The gods, if they are true, are cruel."

"True, the gods are cocks."

Marina giggled. "Can't they hear you? Aren't they going to punish you even more?"

The King of Atlantis chuckled as he took a sip from his wine. "I have always cursed out to the gods, even now. What could they possibly do that is worse than this? They get their power by the belief of humans, but many no longer believe in Zeus and the other Olympians."

"I don't believe much in deities, but now that I'm here, I'm becoming less of a skeptic. Do you think Zeus and the other Olympians still exist?"

"Either they are powerless or ceased to exist. I don't know. All I know is that I'm still cursed."

Marina took a sip of wine. "Can't you leave this place? Are you staying because you feel close to your home?"

The King of Atlantis drank all his wine and motioned one of the puppet servants to serve him more. "How much I want to do that, but I cannot. The gods put a curse in which I cannot leave my kingdom. I tried so many times. Whenever I get close to the surface, I get pulled back here. I can never leave." He took another gulp of wine.

"Now that is even crueler. You must have pissed off the gods to give you that sort of punishment. By the way, what did you do that pissed off the almighty Zeus?"

"I said that he and the other gods are beneath us humans; I took a piss on the statue of Zeus."

It was quiet between the two beings. Trystan looked at Marina, trying to see what her reaction would be.

About a minute later, Marina began to laugh. Her laughter echoed throughout the palace walls. Her laughs became louder. "You pissed on a statue! That's so hilarious!"

He did not know why, but Trystan felt a bit embarrassed. He could feel a blush on his cheeks.

After what seemed like an eternity, her laughs died down. She wiped out a tear. "Sorry about that. You did something in your era that no one would have the guts to do. Kudos to you!"

Trystan rolled his eyes. "Now that you know of me, tell me more about you, woman."

Marina frowned and crossed her arms. "Stop calling me woman. I have a name, you know!"

A smirk came across Trystan's face. "Well, you are a woman. Speak."

The young woman gave out a slight grunt as she rolled her eyes. "I was born and grew up in California. I am an only child and am a university student."

"What is a university?"

"It is like a school, for grownups, to get a good job to work."

The king raised an eyebrow. "A school to find work, how pathetic. Humans have gone low."

Marina huffed. "Times have changed, jerk! How could you ever understand since you practically caused the demise of Atlantis? Quite the accomplishment."

Trystan was not deterred. Instead, he gave out a small laugh, annoying Marina. "When you are angered, you tend to retaliate. You, my water nymph, are stubborn." He saw her look at him; her face blushed red.

"You are stubborn too!"

"Well, I was a king. It is a part of a king's nature. You cannot fault me for such a thing."

"A king can change his character; he doesn't have to be arrogant or stubborn."

Trystan eyed her. "Interesting perspective, but at times, arrogance and stubbornness are needed for kings. It can help them keep their power and assist them against their enemies, even if a king does not want to be that type."

Marina chuckled. "Yeah, and here is the result of your reign, your majesty."

Trystan's right eyebrow twitched. "Careful how you use your tongue." He wiggled his eyebrows. "You might never know where it may end up."

Marina looked away, her bright face red.

Both ate their meal quietly.