Chapter 1

‎[BEYOND THE TIDE‎]

Tristan

On a chilly day, long ago, The Storm made its annual visit to our town and brought havoc, per usual.

My parents were stern with me every time it arrived: Never go out when the wind blows hard.

Yet, that day, I disobeyed their rules and wandered off into the hellish storm. The wind threw my body back and forth like leaves.

After reaching the docks, I looked off into the distance and saw an endless sea, both of roaring waters and thunderous clouds. Then, I fell. And I plunged straight into the freezing water.

The angry tides threw me back and forth and for a moment, I thought I almost died. That was, until he saved me.

Who? I don’t know to this day. All I knew was that a pair of hands grabbed me amidst the currents and dragged me back to the surface. My dad was already yelling for me.

Once I was back inside and warmed by fire, my parents pestered me about what I had heard, seen, and felt. I spent the rest of that storm season being interrogated by my parents.

To this day, I still don’t know why they were so hung up on that event. But it seemed their death only left more questions than answers for me.

Dorado, the town I grew up in. Bland and tiresome, there was no reason for me to stay here after my parents died. True to its name, the only reason people come and stay is for the gold, which can be found plentiful by the sea.

As if a storm that comes by annually and kills people wasn’t a deterrence enough. Though, there’s gold. And my dad always used to say how people would sacrifice their lives just for that element.

By the time I had smelled the salty sea, I knew I was close to my town. I could already see the shanty homes and how almost every yard was littered with utensils used for digging gold.

Indeed, the sign welcomed me, an inner part of my soul turmoiled. And it only let another groan when my car indicated a need for more gas.

Despite how decrepit the town was, there were a few diamonds in the rough that at least made this place appear civilized.

For one, the town center catered to the needs of the people and tourists. Shops and diners lined the streets. And a gas station was where I was heading.

I parked my car and checked which pump I was at. Once paying for a few gallons, I exited and heard loud laughing coming from the rest area.

“Tristan?”

Sweet like a melody. I recognized that voice. And I watched her walk to me like she had seen a ghost.

“Ah, Mackenzie…” I replied. Could she tell I didn’t want to speak to anyone? I held a candy bar in my hand and my hair was like a bird’s nest.

“How have you been?” She asked.

She twirled her hair, just like I remembered when we were in middle school.

“I’m okay.”

I managed to summarize over a decade of my life with just two words.

Mackenzie looked back at her group as they called her over.

“How long are you going to be in Dorado for?”

“Not sure.”

I watched as she bit her lip and looked back before turning again to me. She leaned a bit closer.

“Uh, be careful, okay?”

Before I could ask why the ominous warning, someone else called my name. However, this one elicited my ire. My blood boiled just from the way he said my name.

“Tristan…”

I gritted my teeth. “Hey, Kilian.”

The way he stood tall and looked down at me always managed to infuriate me.

“I see you’re back. Was being a city kid too much to handle?”

“Kilian, leave him alone.” Mackenzie told her brother.

My fingers found themselves at my car keys. I pressed the alarm button quickly and my car’s alarm rang loudly.

“Sorry!” I yelled. “Gotta go!”

Mackenzie waved at me while Kilian glared at me. I had to get out quickly and I managed to do so in a few seconds.

I knew I would run into the McNish eventually. They are one of the most affluent families here. And I knew I would receive a lukewarm welcome.

Nearing the coast, I found my childhood home. The place I grew up in for sixteen years. Sixteen years now tarnished by the emptiness left behind by my parents.

It was a bittersweet feeling. I could feel the happiness and pain from all the memories. It still was in pristine condition considering my parents left in their will it would be well kempt afterwards.

The hydrangeas at the front were blossoming and the doorknob remained polished. Before stepping in, I looked through the windows and caught a peek inside. It was still the same.

Running down the stairs for Christmas breakfast, the time I ran into a door and knocked out my last baby tooth, and the idiotic laughter from my dad’s jokes. I missed it all.

I needed to relax. Looking at this house of memories was more draining than I imagined. There was always one place I always found myself relaxing when the going gets tough.

The docks.

A journal in one hand and a sandwich in the other, I glanced out at the sea and watched the sun slowly descend. It was just noon when I arrived. Did reminiscing take up that much time? I should be careful before I get stuck in the past.

I wrote what I felt that day in my journal. A simple entry where the last line was ‘I’m home.’

When night came, I walked into my old childhood bedroom. Strange, it was like my old routine just came naturally. Only this time, my mom wouldn’t say goodnight and my dad wouldn’t annoy the house with his loud electric toothbrush.

But the sea breeze did cool me down on that hot night. The blankets still smelled fresh.

My reasoning for coming here isn’t too complicated. I simply missed home. It has been over a decade since I last came here.

Part of me felt like I never left this place. Everything came over me like it was second nature.

My melancholy was interrupted by a splash in the water. Faint, just audible.

I glanced out my window. The ocean was dark, only parts illuminated by the glowing waning moon.

Perhaps it was a dolphin. But I saw something in the distance. Something like a tail.

A Dolphin? Or perhaps a baby whale? The tail flapped up again. It shimmered against the moonlight.

Something drew me to it. Like a calling from the sea to come greet this guest. Yet, exhaustion simply won me. And the last thing I saw before drifting to sleep was a head coming out of the water and looking towards me.

Maybe that stormy night all those years ago wasn’t just a random event.

Chapter 2

Tristan

The attic was always off limits to me. Sometimes, my parents would be up there for hours and come down only at night before running back up again after a few hours of sleep. 

Luckily, I didn’t mind. I had whatever I wanted and thus couldn’t care enough about what they were doing up there. 

Well, they aren’t here now. Their bodies were scattered at sea, meaning they couldn’t tell me to not go up here. 

After toying with the lock, I opted to break it instead. I felt a gust of wind brush over me quickly before a salty smell entered my nose. 

I was attacked by the smell before simply sucking it in and climbing the ladder. 

Unlike the rest of the house, this place was dusty and dark. I found a light and saw the room reveal itself to me. 

What stood out to me the most was how messy and decrepit the room was. Bookshelves with the book messily stacked, papers thrown all over the room, and gadgets that made no sense to me. 

For a moment, I believed squatter was living here. However, one of the papers had my dad’s handwriting. This was just how it was. Totally the opposite from what they normally were, which was calm and organized. 

Rolling up my sleeves, I knew I would be spending a bit of time organizing through these papers. 

Hours passed by, and I managed to organize the chaos that had been left festering for a decade. 

The contents of the documents were odd. Drawings of strange creatures and journal entries about strange anomalies. I knew my parents had hobbies, I just never knew what it was exactly.

One of their machines was a weather radar. It took a while to boot up, but I somehow was able to do it. 

All these random collections of items, I wondered what my parents were trying to do. Were they looking for something? Did they have a theory they were trying to prove? 

My mom’s journal is what really intrigued me the most. She wrote many entries and wrote down her findings. They all had something in common. 

They were about the yearly storm that ravishes our town. 

Apparently, my parents tried to find the origins of that storm. I’m still going through their findings and research. Perhaps I can do something with what they left. Though, I might not be suited for that. 

A drawing in my mom’s journal stood out the most. A charcoal drawing of a half human-half fish. It was burly, her notes saying it was a creature that swam past them one day while out at sea. 

A mermaid? Either my parents ate some weird… ocean psychedelic or they were onto something. 

I could feel an incoming headache. Information overload! There was one place that could calm me down: The dock. 

With my dad’s camera in hand, I sat on the dock and dangled my feet into the water. He took many photos. Of me, my mom, random sea shells, and clouds. 

The last photo he took was that of the clouds, a week before he and my mom died at sea. The malicious storm clouds were incoming and would bring their usual destruction. 

Those clouds always terrified me. Gray mounds of treachery that clashed and levied destruction where they went. I love my mom and dad, but going out at sea during a storm was always a stupid decision. 

I gasped loudly when I felt something touch the bottom of my feet. I pulled my legs out and saw a piece of seaweed floating by. 

Just seaweed. My parents’ obsession with the occult must be making me paranoid. 

It was just me, by the sea, watching the waves go by while I tried not to cry. 

Perhaps I shouldn’t have come back. Curiosity got the better of me. What happened to my home that had been vacant for over a decade? Does the town still worship that damn gold spear?

It was all the same. Nothing had changed. I think that’s what I didn’t want to see. Something should have changed. But it remained the same. 

I slumped and felt the camera slip from my hands and fall into the water. 

“Fuck!” I watched the camera slowly sink to the bottom of the ocean floor. 

I guess I’m not getting that back unless I send a dive team. 

Just as I was bumming myself out, my camera was rising again. However, a hand was holding it. 

Wait, a hand?

Breaking the water, first was my camera. Then a hand. Then an arm, with sparkly blue scales. Then a body. Then a head. 

For a moment, I thought he was just some swimmer that caught my camera. But details seemed off about him. 

His arms and torso were littered with scales before turning into pale skin. There were fins on his arms, a deep dark blue color. But when I looked down, a large appendage was where his legs were supposed to be. 

Almost like a tail…

A tail? Wait…

“Oh my God…”

The creature kept holding up the camera while looking into my eyes. His eyes… deep dark brown that I could’ve sworn flashed bright blue as he observed me. 

“What the fuck!” I shouted. 

He seemed startled and dropped my camera from his hands, sinking again. 

In a flash, he disappeared back into the water. As he swam back down, I caught a better glimpse at his tail. It was long, scaly, and beautiful. It reminded me of mother-of-pearl. 

“Ah! I have caught it!” He said, swimming back up with my camera. 

He handed the camera to me. 

“Here you are.” 

His hand briefly touched my leg. That confirmed that I wasn’t seeing things. 

Once he placed my camera down on my lap, I glanced back at him before leaning forward and falling into the water.

Chapter 3

Clarke

The human was startled. His face became a pale white color before he fell into the water below.

I chuckled loudly. “Silly!”

Then, I remembered. Humans can’t breathe underwater.

“Camano?” I asked. The fish looked at me before diving into the water.

I followed and found the human slowly sinking to the ocean floor. My hands grabbed at his arms and dragged him up to the surface, where I placed him on the area he fell from.

“Uh, what do I do?”

Camano opened his mouth and closed it.

“Good idea.”

I lurched up onto where the human was and observed him. His body felt cold. Do I help him? How do I help a human? My hand landed on his chest and began to pat it.

My body was turning slightly painful and I could feel the sun’s heat bearing down on me. I had to be quick.

“Ugh! Wake up!” My hands punched down on his chest. The human then jolted awake, coughing and hurling over.

“Ah, damn!” He struggled to breathe.

“He’s alive!” I cheered. The human looked at me and quickly jumped back.

“What the-!”

My arm and back began to hurt. I quickly jumped back into the water and felt coolness hug me again. Now I feel better.

The human was watching me like I was a strange creature. Humans are not supposed to see our kind. Yet, I couldn’t keep away from him.

I stared at his face. I could recognize his hair. Yes, he was that boy from all those years ago. During that stormy day.

“What are you?” The human asked.

“Uh…”

Camano nudged himself against me. I knew what he was telling me. Mother would be angry if she were to see me talking to a human.

“Are you a mermaid?” He asked.

He looked at my tail. I tried hiding it behind my back. Damn scales are bright, however. Why did they have to shine in the sun?

“You’re very… beautiful.”

Beautiful. I know little of humans but know that word is used to describe things that fascinate them. I guess I can call him beautiful too.

“Can you speak English?”

I slowly edged back into deeper water. I’ve exposed myself too much to him. He shouldn’t know I’m here. I just came here to see if I was right and that he returned after I had waited so long.

“Can I take a picture-”

I didn’t allow him to and quickly dove into the water.

“Wait!”

That was the last thing I heard from him before his voice grew muted as I went deeper.

“That was close…”

Camano looked at me and flapped his fins quickly.

“I know! I know! I messed up. But he didn’t seem evil. He seemed… nice.”

Perhaps I trusted the human too much. He is the one I saved all those years ago. Does he remember? Would he have recognized me?

I returned to the castle quickly and found my mother’s spy-snail, strapping it to my chest plate.

Before entering the castle, I turned to Camano. “Not a word about the surface, okay?”

Camano nodded. He’s a fish, my mother couldn’t understand him if she tried. It’s a gift of mine I appreciate.

The guards welcomed me. They bowed as I swam through the tunnels until reaching the throne room.

“Ah, Clarke! Welcome back.”

Mother swam to me and hugged me. She knew I was coming. It’s why she had me take this snail everywhere. To spy on me.

“Hi, mother.” I muttered. Camano gaped his mouth open.

“Hannah, can we continue this talk later?”

The senior nodded her head. She swam past but stopped when she approached me.

“Hmm.” Her right eye was foggy, something that allows her to have her magical abilities.

“Something wrong, ma’am?” I asked her.

“Nothing.” Her voice replied. “I’ll see you at the ceremony.”

Mother swam to the dining room and I followed close.

“We’ll begin preparations for the ceremony next week before the storm arrives.”

“Yes, mama. I know. I’ve done it my entire life.” I replied.

“Good.” Mother rubbed my head. “It’s vital we do it. Otherwise, the gods’ wrath will fall upon us deadlier than the humans on the surface.”

Her saying surface caused me to stiffen. She saw this and asked me what was wrong.

“Nothing. Uh, just tired. Warm water, ya’know?”

“Eat up, then. The foragers found a bloom of red algae a few kilometers from here.”

“Nice!”

I ate and wondered if humans could eat this. What do humans eat? Kelp? Shellfish? I hope shellfish.

Once dinner ended, I went to my room and looked around at the few things I had found over the years that humans have dropped.

My mother calls these trash. She says they are nothing but human pollutants that poison our waters. However, if cared for properly, they can be beautiful things.

“Okay, Camano. Can you go scout around?”

Camano nodded and swam out the window. I placed the snail I had on my bed and covered it. Camano returned a while later to tell me what he saw.

“Perfect. Doesn’t seem like a lot of security.”

He blew bubbles and asked a question.

“I’m visiting the human.” I replied.

I went to exit but Camano swam into my face, his way of trying to get me to stop.

“Come on, Car. I’ll only take a small peek. Then I’ll return. No one will notice.”

Camano’s fins swam faster.

“I’ll get you some worms. Will that make you feel better?”

He stopped and let out one large bubble before moving aside. I swam out the window and he followed close.

The moon wasn’t as bright tonight, which was perfect for me. I returned to where I had seen the human and poked my head out of the water.

His home was entirely dark. Nothing glowed like the night before.

“He must be sleeping.” I whispered.

A small hum rang through. I watched as a large machine-like thing approached the home. I hid behind a rock and watched.

A few men came out from the machine and carried something in their hands. They threw whatever it was into the plants before quickly getting back inside and the machine went away.

“Strange.” I said to myself.

The human was in there. I know it’s him from that stormy day. Where did he go? Why did he leave for so long?

As always, I had many things to ask him. Humans are such fascinating creatures. I know my mother and my kind have always said to never approach them.

Yet, it seems I can’t help myself. It was a call from the surface.

Chapter 4

Tristan

By morning, I kept thinking back to that mermaid. However, that ended when I checked on my hydrangeas. 

They were dead. Not wilted, but like Death’s finger touched them and they just died. I inspected them and figured I’d do research on it later. 

For now, I had bigger fish to fry. 

My mom’s journals featured a few drawings of mermaids. However, they were blurry or some sort of rendition based on what she wrote as observations. 

Back in the attic, I looked back at the drawings. I tried to compare the drawings to what I saw yesterday. 

He wasn’t that menacing. At least, not after getting a better look at him. I couldn’t remember much. I failed to get a picture or properly take in his frame. 

Perhaps my parents were on to something. Maybe this whole place wasn’t them being insane but noticing something that wasn’t there. 

I went back to reading their journal entries. They focused on the storm and the strange occurrences that happen in Dorado from time to time, such as sightings of strange creatures in the water. 

Curse! This doesn’t help me one bit. All it did was leave me with more questions.

Are mermaids real? How many are there? Could they be connected to the storm?

And it led me to another question. 

Did my parents really get lost at sea? 

I had to shake my head harshly to try and stop those thoughts. It would do no good for me. 

What I did know was that I needed to see that mermaid again. I’m sure he was the one from the night I first came back. 

Maybe I had a stalker. I had to see him. 

Back to the dock I returned. I let my feet touch the water and opened my mother’s journal. 

I waited for some time, trying to appear as normal as possible. Perhaps he’ll come on his own. 

After a while, nothing happened. I kept seeing this one fish swimming by my feet before swimming away. 

Last time he came was because I had fallen into the water. I don’t feel like risking my life just for a meet-and-greet. 

Something else had to get his attention. I had seen enough movies to know many mermaids are interested in human items. 

I glanced at my wrist and saw the watch I wore. Unclasping it, I dangled it over the water and dropped it. 

“Oh no! My watch!” I shouted and tried reaching for it. 

It disappeared. Regret came and I realized how stupid it was to drop that. 

Right as I was tempting to swim down there myself, a hand emerged from the water with my watch in hand. 

He was back. The mermaid with black hair that was long and tangly. His dark brown eyes had hits of blue in them. 

Star-struck. He was here again. I didn’t know what to say. 

“Uh, thank you.” I held my hand out. He placed the watch in my hand. His skin was cold to the touch. 

“You’re welcome.” He muttered. 

So he speaks. Good. That can make this easier. 

“How long have you… been here?” I asked. 

He looked down. I saw the same fish from before next to his muscular torso. 

“A bit…”

He was watching me. I think he’s scared. 

“My name is Tristan.” I said. 

“Tristan.” He repeated. 

“Yeah. What’s your name?”

“Clarke.” He replied. 

He has a human name. Curious. 

“So, are you interested in humans?”

Clarke nodded shyly. His skin was slightly pale, and the area of his shoulder began to turn red. 

“Do you want to see it?” I held out my watch. 

He seemed hesitant. I watched him mutter something to the fish and could’ve sworn I saw it nod at Clarke. 

Clarke made up his mind and approached slowly. He gently took the watch from my hands and looked at it carefully. His long fingers felt the metal and tapped the glass watch-face. 

“It was a gift from my dad.” I explained. 

“It is beautiful.” Clarke said. 

“Yeah, it is.” I took this moment to quickly draw his outline. I didn’t know how long he was to be exact. But I estimated from his head to tail he was nearly eight feet long. 

And his tail. How marvelous it was! A mix of light and dark blue scales that shimmered in the sunlight, as if it were glowing like constellations. 

Some water splashed on my legs. Clarke’s fish was squirting water from its mouth onto me. 

“Camano…”

“Is that its name?” 

Clarke nodded. “He is my friend.”

“Can you talk to fishes?”

He nodded. The fish swam back to him and hid under his arm. 

“Cool.” I wrote that down in my mom’s journal. 

There wasn’t much to be said afterwards. The watch gave Clarke some entertainment. He was a really curious type. Was that for all mermaids? 

No, I didn’t think so. If it were, others would’ve made the effort to interact with humans. But our worlds have remained apart. This was my first time seeing such a thing as a grown up. 

“Uh, I should get back.” I said. 

Clarke looked up and nodded. He handed me back the watch and I stood up. 

“Thanks for this.” I told him.

He looked confused. “I didn’t do anything.”

I chuckled. “Hey, I wasn’t lonely today. So that’s good.”

His face turned red. It was easy to tell because of how pale he was. 

“Will you be back tomorrow?” He asked me. 

“Of course. Don’t worry, Clarke. We’re friends now.”

“Friends…” Clarke muttered. “Like Camano?”

“Uh, yeah. Except I’m not a fish.”

He nodded quickly. 

I waved his goodbye and took my stuff with me. As I went inside, I turned and saw Clarke was still waving at me with a goofy smile. 

He stayed there for a while until he tilted down and entered the water. The last thing I saw was his tail flap and sink. 

Strangely, I didn’t feel odd that I had met a mermaid today. In fact, I was quite elated.

Chapter 5

Clarke

Endless blue and bubbles. I was bored when I returned to the castle. I was entertained by my thoughts of Tristan. 

Tristan this. Tristan that. I wanted to know more about him. His clothes. That thing he wrote on. The way his hair was brown and waved in the wind. Or that his skin was slightly darker than mine. 

Now I confirmed it’s him, the one I saved. He doesn’t seem to remember, though maybe soon. 

“Clarke.” Mother said, knocking on my door. 

I swam over and opened it. “Yes?”

She swam into my room. “The ceremony is under way.” She picked up a shell from a rock. 

“Yes, I understand.”

I began to worry as she reached the large clam in the corner of my room. Camano quickly nibbled on my mother’s ear. 

“Ow!” 

“Camano!” I shouted. He swam and hid in my hair. 

“I guess that fish isn’t friendly to everyone.” She said, coming back towards me. 

“Sorry. He’s just protective.” 

“Well, as long as he protects you, you can keep him.” She adjusted my chest plate and swatted away some seaweed off me. 

Mother glanced at my face and sighed loudly. “You look exactly like your father.”

“I know.” I giggled. “You tell me that every day.”

“I’ll be busy today. If you need anything, ask Kitts.” 

“Got it!” I replied. She kissed my head and left my room. 

I sighed in relief and swam to the clam. 

“She was so close.” 

Camano swam out of my hair and made a few bubbles. 

“Thanks. She’ll get angry if she saw this.” I opened the clam and saw the items I had collected over the years. 

I didn’t know what most of these were. A weird hard metal thing that was shiny. A toy that resembled a hippocampus but without a tail. Just more legs. 

Maybe Tristan can answer some of these questions I have. 

“Should I bring him a gift?” I asked. 

I looked through the clam but realized he probably has all these things. He needed something he probably didn’t have. 

“Mother’s busy all day…” I muttered. 

I smirked at Camano, he rolled his eyes. I escaped through the window and swam into the deep blue. 

Far from the castle, I swam through the ocean floor and scanned for anything interesting. I tickled a clam open and saw a pearl the size of my hands.

“Nah, what would he do with something like that?” 

There were sea sponges of interesting sizes and rocks with glowing colors. 

I turned and saw Camano poking at something. I reached under the coral and pulled out a shell. 

“A murex!” I shouted. It was long and had a pink inside. 

The shell was empty and there didn’t seem to be any other creatures using it as a home. Before taking it, I called out to ask if anyone wanted it. Luckily, there wasn’t an answer.

I’m sure Tristan doesn’t have something like this. They’re quite rare, especially one intact and perfect. Fitting for Tristan. 

“Come! Let’s get back to the castle.”

We swam back and arrived in time for mother to check on me.

While putting the shell in a sack, I came across something my father had left me several years ago before he left. 

Before he left, he left behind a starfish. It wasn’t a real one, it was made of stone and shaped into one. But underneath were a few engravings that looked like bunch of random lines. 

For so long, I just kept it away and sometimes looked at it to remind myself of him. 

“Hey, Prince!”

I jumped and tucked my bag behind me. 

“Oh, hey, Douglas.” I cleared my throat.

“Have something back there?”

“Uh…” 

Douglas swam closer until he stopped. “I’m just messing with you.”

“Thanks…” I muttered. He clanked his sword on his green tail. 

“The Queen asked me to let you know that preparations for the ceremony are almost done and you should get your necessary materials.”

“Understood.”

He rubbed my hair. “We’ve been lucky, Prince. Unlike those humans, we actually take care of our kin. So, don’t do anything stupid.”

“You know, I can have you punished for speaking that way to me.”

Douglas chuckled. “Yeah, sure.” He swam out of my room. 

Camano emerged from somewhere and went to push my door closed. A strong current of water blew into my room through the opening. 

The storm was getting close. In a few days, this place will be ravaged by roaring waters. 

Despite having to worry about myself and the others, I couldn’t help but think about Tristan. How would he manage with this storm? Perhaps I’ll go give him a warning. 

Though I know this is just an excuse to see him again.

Chapter 6

Tristan

Before the storm could start, I had to run to town and pick up on a few essentials. My plan was to simply stay inside and wait out the storm until it dies down. 

I’ve done this routine before. For sixteen years, it’s ingrained in my memory. Close the windows, tie the boat, bring in anything that isn’t bolted, and have plenty of firewood. 

Word of my arrival had spread. Of course, Tristan, son of Helena and Manoel, has finally returned to Dorado. 

A hoodie and sunglasses seemed to make me avoid all their stares. Though, I knew they were whispering amongst another as I passed through. 

“Special sale on tuna!” 

I glanced and saw the fish was on sale. I grabbed a few cuts and went on my way. 

I walked through the shopping center, seeing shops board up their windows. Then, I came across the infamous statue. 

Mackenzie was already giving the usual tour, holding a small flag in her hands. 

“My grandfather, Moore McNish, slew the infamous monster, Dagon. And he used only a spear!”

The statue was some old guy. In his hand was a golden spear that was piercing a serpentine creature. 

“Since then, our town has been blessed with an abundance of gold that washes onto our shores every year.”

The tourists took photos while they admired the golden statue, which felt almost like idolatry. 

“Haven’t seen you here…”

I turned and saw Kilian McNish making his way towards me. 

“Jesus,” I muttered. 

“So, out shopping?” 

I looked at the bags in my hand. “What do you think? Shall we do a process of elimination?”

Kilian’s eye twitched. “Let’s try to remain civil, yeah? I know we’ve had our differences-”

“You mean like how you borderline harassed me since kinder?” I replied. 

He chuckled. “Ah, we were just being friends!”

I didn’t like how he was acting like we were friends. I have never gotten along with Kilian. If it wasn’t for my parents’ money, this guy would’ve actually laid hands on me. 

“Leave him alone, Kilian.” Mackenzie ran up, using the small flag in her hands to slam them on Kilian’s head. 

“What? Can’t I say ‘Hi’ to an old friend?”

“Yeah? Well, we aren’t friends, Kilian. And we never have been.”

I stormed past him and walked quickly to my car. Before leaving, I saw Mackenzie running to my car. 

“Uh, Tristan!” She shouted. I turned off my car and let her come close. 

“I’m sorry about him.”

I never had a problem with her. She was the better of the McNish children. Thus, I was a little upset that she was apologizing for him. 

“It’s whatever. I just need to get home.” I said. 

Mackenzie bit her lips, as if she was contemplating something. “Stay safe, Tristan.”

“Thanks.” I replied. I tried not to read too much into her words. 

I got home quickly afterwards and put away my groceries. Then, I walked over to the dock and sat down with my items. 

“Clarke!” I shouted. Was he here stalking me again?

I picked up one of the slices of tuna and dropped it into the water. A hand caught it and Clarke emerged from the water. His teeth sank into the fish like a rabid animal. 

“There you are.” 

My emotions got better upon seeing him. I didn’t know why, but his mere presence gave me exhilarating joy. 

“Hello…” He said between bites. 

Once finished eating, Clarke reached for a bag that was slung over his shoulder and placed it on the dock. Even his bag was incredible, it being woven kelp with decorative shells.

“I brought you something.”

He pulled out a large spiky shell and handed it to me. 

“Woah,” I said, holding it. “It’s pretty.”

It was one of those large shells that have several spires all over them. I couldn’t imagine how valuable this was. 

“I found it… for you.” Clarke said, looking down at his reflection in the water. His body turned red. 

“It’s amazing. Thank you.” I set it to the side. 

He swam around while I threw a few pieces of tuna and drew his body in my mother’s journal. 

Clarke was truly a beautiful sight to behold. His tail was gorgeously long, and the scales shimmered greatly when reflecting the sun. 

I knew he could tell I was watching him. He stopped swimming and tried to hide his tail. 

“What’s wrong?” I asked. 

“My tail. It is embarrassing.” He said. 

“What?” I shouted. “How could you say that? It’s perfect! Why do you hate it?”

“Because everyone else’s tails are green or a dark blue. Mine is too bright. It makes me stand out from everyone.”

“Clarke, standing out is a good thing. Trust me.”

“How so?”

I sighed and looked to the sea, where the sun was slowly preparing to kiss the sea. 

“I wasn’t like the other kids growing up. I was too rich to fit in with the others, but the rich kids saw me as strange because of my parents.” I explained. 

“So, you too are different?” 

“Yes. But I’ve learned to love it. I mean, I can’t change it. Might as well embrace it.”

Clarke looked down at his tail. A small smile appeared on his face. 

“Oh! The storm is coming soon!”

I nodded. “Yes, it is.”

“Are you preparing for it?” He asked.

“Yeah, I am. I’m preparing to board up my windows soon. And I have food for me. Gonna spend it just reading a few books and watching movies.”

“Movies?” 

“Ah, don’t worry about it. How will you prepare for the storm?”

Clarke swam a little closer to me to where I could feel the current from his movement on my feet. 

“We have a ceremony we perform before the storm to offset as much damage from us. Then, we stay in our homes and wait for the currents to slow down.”

I noticed he used ‘we.’ This implies that there are a lot more of him that live deep in the ocean. And a ceremony. And homes.

They have some sort of religious practices and are civilized enough to have homes. 

“Does anyone… die?” I asked.

“Nope! We’re lucky. Mother thinks our ceremony appeases the gods that we aren’t hurt.”

“Gods?” I asked. 

Camano, the little fish that Clarke carries with him, nudged its head against Clarke’s chest. Clarke saw the sun slowly setting. 

“Oh, I have to go now!”

“Okay then.” I closed my journal. “Thanks for the gift!”

“You are welcome, Tristan!”

“See you tomorrow.” I waved. 

Before leaving, Clarke waved back. He made a show to jump up and let his tail curve perfectly against the sun. I was showered in a wave of glows from his tail before he descended into the ocean. 

He had gone quickly. I sometimes wish there was a way he could stay here. Based off his words, I knew it wasn’t up to him. Someone is commanding him to return at a certain time. 

There was so much I wanted to learn about Clarke and his kind. Did they call themselves something? What gods do they worship? 

For the storm, how does their ceremony operate? What is the ritual? And how have they managed to not have any deaths while we humans have at least a dozen every year?

But most of all, it wasn’t a question, but I knew that they had a lot more knowledge about this storm curse. 

And perhaps be the key to ending it for good.

Chapter 7

Tristan

At the docks again, it had become a daily ritual for me and Clarke to meet up at high noon.

Clarke enjoyed the food I brought, and he’d let me examine him and compare them to my mom’s notes. 

Since my mom perhaps didn’t get a good look at a mermaid, her sketch of one was rather hasty and poorly drawn. So, I filled in those gaps. 

Mermaids were just like us, at least the top half. Their skin was pale white, like spilt milk. And their bodies were sturdy and strong. At least, that’s how Clarke was. 

Then, there was the tail. Much longer than their top half, it extended long below and was riddled with scales. Clarke says normal mermaids have a green or dark blue hue to them. 

He was the exception, having a light blue like aquamarine. A few other things stood out, such as Clarke having fins on his arms that I assumed are used to swim. His tail was also like ribbon, flowing through the water softly. 

By the time I sat up and looked at my notes and drawing, I realized that it was me trying to get all of the good information about Clarke. In short, I think I romanticized him. 

“You said you can speak to animals, right?” I asked Clarke. 

He stopped swimming around the dock pole and nodded. 

“Yes!”

“Can I see?” I asked.

Clarke nodded and faced the ocean. He hummed and something began to swim our ways. A sea turtle swam by and floated near Clarke.

He looked at me with a smile, waiting for me to praise him, probably.

“Make it do something.” I told him.

Clarke patted the turtle’s shell. The animal then began to swim around him and came towards me. It placed itself under my feet and acted like a footstool. 

“Amazing…” I muttered, writing this down in my journal. 

Clarke commanded the turtle to leave afterwards. 

“So, can you befriend other bigger things, like whales?” 

“Uh, kind of. They’re harder to control and it can also be draining.” 

Clarke truly was an amazing specimen. Even my dreams began to involve him, though they were a bit too romantic for my liking. 

“Could you tell me a bit more about your kind? I have so many questions about it all.”

“Such as?” Clarke dipped into the water quickly to hydrate his body before emerging again. 

“Like, how many of you are there?”

“Not sure.” He replied. “But there are several all over the world. Though, mother doesn’t let us stray far. She says it’s too dangerous now.”

I once again wrote all this down, creating a different section for all data about mermaids. 

“Do you call yourselves mermaids… or sirens?” I asked.

“Mermaid is common. Siren, no. Those are other creatures. Officially, we are recognized as Tritones.”

Tritones. It sounded like Triton, son of Poseidon. But that’s crazy. There’s no way Triton is a real being. 

“Wait, are you telling me that you are descended from a god?”

“Yes!” He shouted. “Triton is the father of all Tritones. Which means our lineage can be traced to Poseidon, then Kronos, then Ouranos.”

It was like hearing some insane lore. As much as I wanted to dismiss it, the very idea that an actual mermaid–or Tritone–exists before my eyes is proof enough that there is some value to what Clarke says. 

“Fascinating. And how do you know English?”

“Uh, I learned it.”

That wasn’t really what I was wondering. How do Tritones know English? But that was easy for me to figure out. It’s the same way I know English, because I’m taught. 

I guess I was expecting them to know some sort of ancient fish language or Greek. 

“This is a silly one, but is there, like, discrimination between other Tritones? Like, does an Arctic Tritone hate a Mediterranean Tritone?”

Clarke nodded. “Yes, different seas and elevations do not like one another. Mother and the others don’t like deep sea Tritones because they think the deep sea ones are barbaric. And the deep sea ones don’t like coastal Tritones because they see us as trying to be akin to humans.”

If the Tritones had mystical properties of godly creatures, you can be sure that their human side brought about prejudice. I found this interesting. 

Note: Tritones can experience and be racist. 

There was one other question I had. “Besides Tritones, are there any other magical creatures running amok?”

“Yup. I know there are centaurs, satyrs, hippocampi, and werewolves, though they prefer to be called Lycaons for some weird reason.”

Werewolves? Centaurs?

“Wait…” I muttered. “H-How is this possible!”

Clarke looked to his pet fish and shrugged. 

“I don’t know.”

I hoped that I wouldn’t encounter those other creatures. Just the idea that mermaids exist is already mind-blowing enough for me. 

These were notes I wrote down. Somewhere out there were other creatures that wandered the earth. As interesting as it would be to hunt them down and research them, I first wanted to finish my Tritone data. 

“I’m guessing it’s not really Greek mythology then.” I muttered.

“Myths?”

I looked at Clarke. “Myths, like folklore tales often involving supernatural elements.”

“Oh,” He looked down at the water. “We just call that history.”

Right, of course. 

It had been too long since I brushed up on my Greek myths. I never really cared for such things, preferring Egyptian mythology. 

“Oh, I wanted to give you something.” 

I reached into my pocket. 

“Since you gave me that shell, I wanted to return the favor.”

It was the watch that I had dropped into the ocean that time I tried getting Clarke’s attention. I handed over the silver and leather watch to Clarke. 

He was looking at it like it was some prized treasure. To be fair, it is very expensive. But I have no use for it. 

“What’s this?” He pointed at the glass.

“The watch face. It tells the time.”

“Woah!”

I giggled as he messed with the watch band. I beckoned him over and aided in putting it on his wrist. 

“It looks good on you.” I said, leaning back to get a good look at him. 

Clarke brought the watch down to show his fish. The fish slammed its face onto the glass. 

Something about the way he smiled… How is it that simple human things bring delight to him? They’re nothing special. 

“I should get home.” Clarke said. He glanced at the sun. 

“See you tomorrow?” I asked.

“Of course, Tristan!” 

I threw the last pieces of tuna to Clarke. He gobbled the food quickly before waving at me with the arm that carried the watch. 

Clarke then left. Gone before the evening sun settled. I wish Clarke could stay longer. Our talks could go on longer and we wouldn’t have to depart every day. 

That night, I finished up the last of my mother’s drawings. I drew Clarke’s long hair and his fins on his arms. 

The last touch of detail I added was the watch and the curiosity in Clarke’s eyes. 

Note: Tritones love human things.

Chapter 8

Clarke

At dinner, I poked my food around, not really wanting to eat it. Mother glanced at me with a look. 

“You’re not hungry?” 

I cleared my throat. “Not really.” I replied.

“Are you sick? Cold stress? Did you swim into infested waters?” She swam towards me and placed her palm on my head. 

“Ah, no. I just had some muscles earlier. Kinda spoiled my appetite.” 

That was a lie. I missed the tuna Tristan had fed me earlier. Something about eating it on the surface just made it taste better. What other human foods would taste great to me?

She grumbled and smacked my head. “Fool! Don’t eat before meals! If you’re not hungry, off to bed with you!”

“Yes, mother.” I swam away and raced to my room. Camano mindlessly swam around until I arrived and made his way to me. 

After making sure my window was closed and my room was locked, I opened the large clam in my room and found the watch Tristan had gifted me earlier that day. 

Among my collection were other things I had found. Large machines that floated in the water and made loud noises would pass by and drop things onto the ocean floor. 

Standard procedure would be to get rid of them, but I like to sneak some away in secret and admire them on my own. 

One of them was a watch, though not as shiny and brilliant as Tristan’s. There was a small flat card-like thing that was wrapped in a shiny encasing. There were two humans with their lips touching. 

At first, I thought it was strange. Why were two humans giving each other a sea’s touch? Is this something humans do but for a different reason? 

Would Tristan know what a sea’s touch is?

Tristan has a lot of weird things whenever we meet. 

A strange black thing that he aims at me and I hear a click from it, like a sperm whale calf would make. Another is a book, which I know what it is, and he writes down things whenever I speak. 

Is he studying me? The same way I study the many tales my mother and the elders tell me? If I were to ask him to show me, would he? 

I feel like I can ask Tristan many questions. And he seems eager to answer them all. So far, I like this exchange we have. It feels like I have a friend.

“Tristan is my friend…” I muttered.

Camano rammed into my chest. 

“Don’t worry, Camano. I’m not replacing you.”

He flew a huge air bubble and swam back to the opened giant clam. 

I like being Tristan’s friend. I like when he asks questions, I like how concentrated he looks when he’s writing things down. I like how his cheeks get a bit red the more he stays in the sun. 

“Hey, Camano. Guess what we’re doing tomorrow?”

He glanced at me and then tapped his fin on Tristan’s watch.

“I have to see him, Camano. Hah, he’s so amazing!”

I swam high up to my room and felt like I had just swallowed pufferfish serum. I was on a rapid current, the way my heart skipped several beats. 

Did my tail glow brighter? Is my hair longer? Was the water around me always this clear? 

I know how dangerous it is. Mother has told me all the stories of what happens when Tritones get too close to humans. The death, the heartbreak, and the fear it instills. 

But Tristan isn’t like that. I know it. 

By morning, I was prepared again to leave for my trip to the surface. I went earlier than normal since I grew impatient. 

It was almost morning. Tristan wasn’t out yet, so I swam to the dock and waited patiently. 

Then, a shift happened in the water. I felt something coming. I heard a rumbling sound that many of those big machines that fly over us make. 

Humans. 

Camano and I hid where the docks were, and I watched as a large white machine, a boat I think they’re called, swam slowly near Tristan’s home. 

A human on the boat threw several things into the water. When the boat left, I swam close and saw something that shocked me. 

Crabs. Green ones. There were many and they were slowly swimming down the floor. Something didn’t feel right. 

I’ve taken enough lessons to know that this many crabs can destroy the wildlife and coral reefs. 

“Camano!” I shouted. He nodded and swam away. 

I closed my eyes and began to hum the right rhythm. Then, I heard the chips and squeaks. When I opened my eyes, I saw a raft of otters swimming in my direction. 

“The crabs! Get rid of them!” I told them. 

An otter whistled and they got to work. Camano arrived with a shiver of leopard sharks who also got to work. 

Some crabs arrived at the coral reef but were gobbled up by the sharks. The otters took care of the ones still floating. I found a basket coral and gathered as many as I could. 

It was a quick effort, but all the crabs were eliminated. I thanked the otters and sharks and let them return. I’ll make sure to make an additional offering to the gods to bless them. 

Tristan was waiting at the dock when I was done. He looked concerned and saw the basket of crabs in my arms. 

“Uh, were you busy?” He asked me. 

“Ah, not anymore!” 

“So, why are you holding a basket of crabs?”

I explained to Tristan what I saw. The boat and the crabs that were thrown in. And how I saved him.

“Fascinating.” He wrote something down again. “So, you had otters and sharks help you?”

“Yes.”

“And why didn’t you command the crabs to go somewhere else?”

“I could feel that they weren’t native. It takes a lot of effort to communicate with creatures from different oceans. A whole army of them would’ve drained me. It was better to just eliminate them.”

Tristan smiled. He called me over and placed a hand on my head. 

“Good job.” He told me. 

My body felt like I stepped into warm water. 

“Can I have one of them?” He asked, pointing to the crabs in my arms. 

I handed him one. He brought out a box where he puts his black box thing in and placed the crab inside. 

“Now, what should we do with the rest of them?” 

“They don’t really look edible.” I said. “If they had just finished molting, they’d be perfect.”

“Ooh, you eat soft-shelled crabs too?” Tristan asked.

“Crabs that have just molted? Yes, they’re so good!”

“Yeah, they are.” 

Tristan grabbed another crab and told me to call a seagull. I did and he would throw the crab in the air and let the bird catch it mid-air. 

I threw some too and we would just throw crabs in the air and let the birds finish off the rest. By the end, all the crabs were gone. 

This was just part of how our days went. It wasn’t about questions, it was just having fun. Though, even asking questions with Tristan was fun, too.

Chapter 9

Tristan

It didn’t take long to identify what type of crab had been thrown into the water. A simple internet showed it was a European green crab, an invasive species known to terrorize the coastal waters. And I think I have an idea of who it was. 

“Tristan? Is something wrong?”

I glanced at Clarke. There was a seagull perched on his head. 

“Ah, no. Not really.”

“Is it about the crabs?” 

He’s vigilant in asking questions. If he were someone else, I would’ve found it bothersome. But it was Clarke, a half-fish man. 

“Well, let’s just say that my family and another family don’t exactly get along.” I said. 

“How so?” 

I leaned forward, my legs sinking further into the water. “You see this house? See how big it is? My family comes from many fortunes. And there’s another family too that has fortunes: The McNish.”

Clarke nodded. “And do you two not get along?”

“Not really. My grandparents bought several properties back when the storm began to happen. The McNish family did the same, too. Quickly, the town was either owned by McNish or Muir.”

“And how do the crabs fit into this?”

“The McNish family has been trying to buy off my family’s properties for decades. But my grandparents and parents refused to give in. And I guess they’re now trying to scare me away.”

Clarke’s eyes widened. “Ah, I get it! It’s like how we play chase and when the chaser is slow, they throw sand into their prey’s eyes to blind them!”

“Exactly.” I said. “It’s an attempt to weaken their opponent. I’m guessing their plan was to have the crabs destroy the ecosystem and get me to either move or sell.”

“But you won’t let them, right?” Clarke asked me. 

“Hey, I can put up a fight.”

He blushed and shook his head. The seagull squawked and flew away. 

“I-I know you can fight, Tristan. I know you can! But it seems dangerous. What if there’s too many bad guys or you need help and I’m not there!”

“Woah, hold on, Clarke.”

He calmed down. 

“It’s not your responsibility to protect me. Don’t put that burden on yourself.”

“But, you’re my friend. And friends protect each other.”

I had to calm him down. I called him over and placed my hand on his wet hair. 

“Well, it’s admirable. But I also want to protect you, Clarke. And I can’t have people discovering you. Don’t forget, the world doesn’t know about your existence. And if they find out, you and your people will be in danger.”

Clarke pouted. “It’s unfair.”

“I know.” 

He glanced over at my journal and pointed to it. “I’ve been wanting to ask what you do with that.”

I picked it up and opened the first few pages. It was mainly notes and small doodles. 

“It was my mom’s. She wrote down a lot of her thoughts and theories about things.”

“Anything about me?” He cheekily asked. 

I flipped the pages and landed on the sketch I had finished of him. Clarke awed at it and almost touched the paper with his wet hand.

“It looks just like me!”

“I made sure to get your eyes.”

“You drew it?”

“Mhm. Finished it after we first met.”

“What other things have you drawn?” 

I skimmed more and showed him recent drawings I made, such as Camano, Clarke’s coral chest piece, and the shell he gifted me. 

“My goal is to finish this journal and answer all the questions my mom had left unanswered for me.” I said. 

The main one being the origin of the storm. From my parents notes, the storm is an anomaly that is not natural yet strangely natural. 

Something about it seemed off. The way it always claims lives every year and how, after its waves of destruction, the amount of gold that washes up on the shores doubles. 

It’s the reason why the McNish want to get my parents properties quickly since much of that land is coastal. 

Unfortunately, my parents never got to answer that question. They died at sea. The ship was never found, and their stupidity for going out during the storm was to blame. 

“Are your parents gone?” Clarke asked. 

I cleared my throat. “Yeah. It’s been a few years.”

“Ah, my father disappeared too.”

Oh, another thing we have in common. 

“He too wanted to find out what the source of the storm was. He planned to return quickly but he never returned.”

I guess the storm does claim Tritone lives. But if the Tritones themselves don’t know the origin of the storm, could it be assumed that it’s a larger power at play?

Is something more dangerous behind it? Afterall, the storm is deadly. Perhaps it feeds on the destruction and blood. 

A sharp cold breeze came through. I shuddered while Clarke glanced at the distance. 

“The storm is coming.” Clarke muttered. 

“Isn’t it just wind? The storm doesn’t come until two more weeks.”

He sniffed the air like a dog. “I can tell it’s coming.”

They are more connected to the ocean. I’m assuming that Tritones could probably detect changes in the air and water and make predictions. 

“It’ll be more windy this year than rainy.” Clarke said. 

“Uh, thanks for the info.” I said. 

If that’s true, I’ll have to bolt everything down. 

“You should get back.” I said. 

“Will you be okay?” He asked me. 

“Yeah.” I stood up and slipped on my loafers. 

Clarke looked nervous to say something. I grabbed the green crab that I had been studying and threw it into the air. A seagull grabbed it and flew off. 

“I’m gonna miss you!” Clarke shouted. His face was red as he shouted that. Even his pet fish swam away from him. 

Looks like he was shy to say that. 

“I’ll miss you too. See ya tomorrow.”

He waved at me before diving into the water and left. I chuckled and picked up my journal and camera before heading inside for the day.

Chapter 10

Clarke

Tristan and I didn’t meet today. He was busy with preparing for the storm. I took this chance to swim around the shore to spot for something.

I approached the cove and saw the same large white machine. I think Tristan called it a boat. It was the same one that dropped the green crabs a few days ago.

“I’m gonna get close.”

Camano shook his head.

“Just a peek. I won’t take long.”

He sighed and stuck close to me. I swam deep enough and approached the boat.

There were large machines on the shore that looked like they were digging into the sand. I slowly broke through the water until my eyes met the air.

“It shouldn’t take long to fix. I reckon we can have it done by the time the storm passes.”

Someone was speaking on the boat. I heard people walking around.

“The forecast is saying the storm will be wetter this year.”

Silly. The gods are not predictable. We can only guess how their wrath will punish us.

“As soon as the storm ends, we’ll dispatch all our men to the sites quickly. It’s how we’ll get as much yield.”

Yield? Are they talking about that weird rock that appears after every storm? What was it called again? Gold?

I glanced up and saw a man walking by with sunglasses. He was young, perhaps the same age as Tristan.

“Any luck with the Muir kid?” An older voice asked.

“Ugh, I have it, father! Don’t worry. By the time the storm comes, he’ll be gone from Dorado.”

Muir kid? That’s clearly about Tristan. They were talking about him.

“Kid’s family lies on the part of town that produces the most gold. If we get that, then we’ll triple our income.”

“Then I can be in charge of the company afterwards?”

Why was gold so valuable to them? It’s just a rock. It isn’t as shiny, isn’t as strong, and isn’t as important.

The most we use gold for is decorating our walls. In fact, some of our food we harvest is considered more valuable than that rock.

But I know humans have a different way of life. Gold is valuable. Perhaps other stones too. Tristan doesn’t seem the type of care about those things.

My gift brought him happiness. Maybe he likes pretty things over dull things.

I was interrupted by Camano ramming himself against my chest.

“Yeah, let’s go.”

It’s clear that the McNish family wants to get Tristan away from this town. They want his gold.

But I can’t let them. Tristan is precious to me. And I don’t want to see him hurt.

“Camano, should I slay them all?” I asked.

He gasped a large air bubble.

“Isn’t that how humans understand each other? Through bloodshed?”

I was urgent. The storm was coming soon and the McNish were planning something.

Then there was the other issue about protecting Tristan. I couldn’t be there with him all the time. I at least needed something to keep an eye on him.

And if not him, then the McNish.

“How can I watch them?” I thought out loud.

Camano flapped his fins quickly.

“What?”

He flapped them faster.

“Ah! You’re right!”

He gave me an idea. It was so simple, really. The answer lies directly in what I do before I come to the surface.

I’ll need something from Tristan first. And I happened to swim by his house.

Tristan was outside. He wore his usual attire that showed his nice sun-exposed skin. I swam quickly to the dock and made a large splash.

“Tristan!”

He jumped and turned to me. Then his face smiled.

“Clarke!”

He ran to the end of the dock and sat on the edge. I got closer to him.

“Am I interrupting?” I asked.

“Not at all. It’s good to see you again.”

I chuckled while Tristan brought a hand to my head. I like it when he does that. His hand had a warmth similar to the sun.

“Oh, right!”

I glanced at Camano. He nodded.

“Do you have a snail?”

“A snail?”

“Mhm! I need it for something.”

“Uh, I can check.”

Tristan walked off somewhere before returning with something in his hands. It was a snail. Though different from the ones I’m used to, it would work.

“Camano, bubble!”

He opened his mouth and created a large bubble that covered the snail. Tristan was looking closely.

“What’d you need it for?” He asked.

“Something to protect you.”

“How will that work?”

I laughed. “Uh, it’s a secret.”

Tristan rolled his eyes and sat on the edge of the dock.

“Shouldn’t you be getting ready for the storm?” He asked.

“The servants do all that for me.” I replied.

“Servants?”

Ah, I forgot. I never told Tristan my true identity, besides being a Tritone. I thought he would’ve figured it out by now.

“I’m a prince.”

“A huh?” He leaned closer.

“A prince. My mother is the queen and I’m next in line for the throne.”

His mouth was open while I let the bubble with the snail float around the water.

“I never knew you guys also had royalty. What does being queen or king do, exactly?”

“Well, they are responsible for their local kingdoms. They take charge of ceremonies and make deals with other kingdoms.” I explained.

I’ve had my training done since I was a child. I know pretty much everything there is to be a respectable king. Not only will I have to rule over my people but also protect them from dangers of the human world.

So, in a way, becoming friends with Tristan can be seen as a way of establishing allies. At least, that’s what I plan to tell my mother if she ever finds out about our secret meetings.

“Interesting, tell me more.” Tristan pulled out a smaller looking journal from his pocket and began to write more things down.

I eagerly told him as much as I knew. And that one day, I would become this kingdom’s king.

Chapter 11

Tristan

The storm clouds were coming. I could feel it in the air. A strange cold that not only made my skin frigid, but shook my very core.

I didn’t think of it before, but there was something strange about the storm that seemed… other worldly. Or at least godly.

Clarke mentions things about gods. And it’s clear that the Tritones at least have a grasp of this situation.

But I didn’t have time to think about that. Right now, I had to boot up my parents’ weather machine.

It had been so long since it’d been used. I pressed the various buttons and wires before managing to get it fixed.

The machine showed the atmosphere and I saw that a front was coming ahead. It was going to be big this year.

According to Clarke, this year’s storm would be windier, not wetter. I trust his words and focus my efforts more on nailing things down so the wind doesn’t blow them away.

Everything was set. I had enough food and would read or watch some movies. Then, when the storm ends, I’d continue researching Clarke.

I heard a splash at the dock and knew who had arrived.

“Clarke!” I shouted, running down the docks barefoot.

“Tristan!” He replied.

I sat at the edge and dipped my feet into the water. Clarke doted on my legs as he swam until he was touching me.

“I brought you a pearl!” He held out his hand.

In his hand was an uneven orange pearl. If I was a jeweler, I wouldn’t have given this a second glance.

But it was beautiful. The orange hue turned a peach cream like color in the sand. It must’ve been the size of a nickel.

“Thanks.” I took it from him. It didn’t look like a normal pearl.

“It’s a conch pearl.” Clarke told me.

Ah, that makes it even more beautiful. How lucky I am to have this. To have him.

“I feel guilty. I didn’t bring you something.”

“It’s fine.” He said.

Camano bobbed his head out of the water and looked at me before returning back under.

“Your words are good enough.”

Something about the way he doted on me. Was he in love with me? How would that even work? I’ve wondered about the possibility of a human and mermaid union.

“Ah, I forgot to tell you!”

Clarke was more alert. He explained a story from a few days ago where he swam up to the McNish’s boat and overheard their conversation.

From what he managed to explain, it seems that the McNish are indeed trying to run me out of town.

“Makes a lot of sense.” I muttered.

My wilted flowers, the green crabs.

Our families have had a longstanding rivalry. After the storm curse happened, and many residents moved away, my grandparents bought up much of the land on the coast.

Because of that, and the storm leaving gold, they became wealthy. And my dad, then I, were able to live a comfortable life.

Yet, it seems the McNish’s greed knows no bounds. And they’re set on driving me out of town or possibly getting me to hand over my family’s property.

Lucky, my lucky merman here has my back.

“Good job.” I patted his hair.

Clarke blushed. “I just want you to be safe.”

Then, I sighed. “But don’t ever get too close to the McNish. That was really dangerous. They could’ve seen you.”

Even Camano seemed to nod at my words.

“I feel guilty now.” Clarke muttered.

I chuckled. “Want more tuna? I went to the store one last time and–”

“Yes!” He jumped.

“Alright, stay there.” I stood up and walked back inside.

While grabbing the fresh tuna, I saw my harmonica that I had stopped using years ago. I grabbed it and returned outside.

“Yummy!”

I threw a piece at him and even pulled out some frozen shrimp for Camano.

Now that I had a better look at Camano, I realized what kind of fish he was. A moorish idol. He reminded me of Gil from Finding Nemo.

Imagine that, a nearly eight foot long merman talking to a fish the size of a small orange.

“Mm, you don’t want any?” Clarke asked.

“Ah, no, I’m good.” I replied.

“I wonder how food tastes on the surface.”

“Well, it varies.” I said. “Different places and people have their types of food. And it all tastes different.”

“Like?” He used his teeth to bite a piece of tune before chewing loudly.

“Fish. Sometimes, it’s cooked and seasoned with all sorts of things. It’s served with rice, vegetables, or just by itself.”

All of that seemed to confuse him more. They eat their fish raw, of course it wouldn’t make sense to him.

I threw the last piece of tuna at Clarke. Another cold breeze came through, chilling me.

Even the water seemed more erratic. The small sailboat jostled from the currents. I’ll have to tie it down more.

“I must leave soon.”

I pulled out the harmonica out of my pocket and handed it to Clarke.

“Here. I felt like I should give you something too.”

He accepted it. I briefly explained what it was. He put his lips on it and blew some air. The harmonica made a loud, irritating noise.

“Amazing!”

I smiled and beckoned him over. I placed my hand back on his head and didn’t want him to leave.

“I don’t want to go.” Clarke said.

He was saying exactly what I was scared to say.

“You must. It’s dangerous out here for you.”

“And for you too.”

“Hey, I’m strong, remember? And if I’m in danger, I know you’ll be here.”

Clarke nodded solemnly. He left my grasp and slowly went back under water. He waved at me before entering back into the deep blue.

Once I saw his tail was fully gone, I stood up and returned inside. I was getting tired of being alone, my only time with another being cut short because he couldn’t come on land and I couldn’t go into the ocean.

It must be some cruel joke.

Chapter 12

Clarke

I had to visit Hannah to pick up something I had entrusted her with. She, luckily, understood that I had secrets I’d rather keep from my mother. 

“Is it ready?”

“Yes.” She handed me the satchel. I peeked inside and saw the air bubble with the sleeping snail inside. 

It was perfect.

“Thanks.”

“Anything for the prince.” She replied. 

I was ready to swim away until I stopped myself. Yesterday, it seemed like both Tristan and I didn’t want each other to leave. It made me upset. 

“Uh, Hannah.” 

“Yes?” She asked. 

“Ah, I know it’s forbidden to ask. But is it possible for us to turn… human?” I asked.

I was prepared for her to reprimand me for asking something forbidden. Instead, she nodded without hesitation. 

“Absolutely. It’s how our ancestors managed to survive when humans began to pollute the waters. King Triton granted us such ability, but only for extreme measures.”

“Extreme measures? Such as?” I asked.

Hannah grinned, showing a tooth made of mother of pearl. 

“You’ll understand when it happens.”

I nodded and thanked her before leaving the temple. I swam with the bag close to my body. A strong current rushed past me and almost threw me against a rock. 

“The storm has arrived.” I said. 

Camano bit onto a strand of my hair. 

“Come! Mother is starting the offering soon!”

I arrived back at the castle. Mother was at the altar with her basket of offerings. I gathered mine too and joined her. 

“Where were you?” She asked. 

“Uh, collecting urchins.” I replied. 

“Then we shall begin.”

Great god and father of the Tritones, King Triton. And his father, Poseidon. Venerated, great, and powerful. Mother also made small offerings to other gods like Thalassa, Okeanos, Tethys.

With this, our kingdom will be protected from the storm. Already, the currents no longer hit our walls. 

However, I wondered how Tristan was handling the storm. I did warn him about what type of storm it would be. That should give him enough time to prepare. 

“It’s almost time for dinner. Go get dressed.” Mother kissed my forehead. 

“Ah, see you then!” I quickly swam to my room and shut my door. 

Camano sprang up and swam to me. I tickled his belly. 

“I don’t know. Something just doesn’t feel right.” I muttered. 

Camano blew a few bubbles. 

“Yeah, it’s Tristan. What if I went up there and checked-”

He swam into my chest harshly. 

“Hey! Come on! He’s my friend. I should know he’s safe…”

If only I had come up with the idea of the snail a few days before. Then I’d be able to keep an eye on him. Then I wouldn’t be this worried. I guess I can try to keep my mind off of it. 

Dinner passed through. But everything reminded me of Tristan. The shiny plates like his smooth skin, the way the algae waved like his hair, even strange things like scallops. 

I couldn’t sit. My tail would instinctively try to swim towards the window as if it knew I wanted to flee to Tristan. 

My fingers tapped on the stone I sat on. Something didn’t feel right. And it wasn’t even my nervousness. 

“I’m going to check on Tristan!”

Camano tried to stop me, but I swam past him. I grabbed the bag with the snail and quickly swam out of my window and into the open ocean. 

As soon as I passed the boundaries of the kingdom, the currents became heavy and strong. I used all my muscles to try not to get thrown around. 

“Here!” I held out my hand for Camano. He swam into my palm and I held onto him. 

Getting closer to the surface, the currents were stronger. When I reached the surface, the entire sky was dark and rain fell like small stones. 

In the distance, lightning flashed. The great Thunderer was also here. 

I steadied myself at the dock and heard something yelling. 

“Get away!”

I glanced to the front of Tristan’s house and saw humans gathered around, all wearing black. 

Tristan was yelling at them to get away. I knew it, something was wrong. 

“Ah, what should I do?”

I couldn’t expose myself to them. But I had to do something to get them away.

There were a few stones that were at the bottom of the ocean floor. I grabbed a few and threw them as far as I could. 

One of them hit the head of a human. 

“Got one!”

Spear practice definitely paid off. I threw as many as I could, hitting the humans in all parts of their bodies. It was working. 

“They’re leaving!” 

They had all gathered in their machine and left quickly. Tristan came out of his house and saw the mess of stones before turning to me. 

“Clarke?”

I waved my hands and felt better when he smiled.

“Clarke!”

He ran to me. The wind almost caused him to fall. By the time he got to me, he kneeled and grabbed my head. 

“What? How?”

My face warmed up. “I protected you.”

Tristan had water coming from his eyes. “You big idiot!”

The storm grew harder. Waves reached high and almost caused Tristan to fall off the dock. 

“You should head back!”

When I tried to swim down, I found the currents prevented me from getting any lower. 

“I can’t! It’s too hard to swim through!” I shouted. 

Tristan groaned. Even the waters by the shore were crashing against the sand. 

“Come inside my house!” 

“What?” I asked. 

He didn’t wait and grabbed me from under my arm. I pulled myself onto the deck, feeling the wood. 

“Camano!” I called out. 

He had created a bubble of water and Tristan picked him up in one hand. With the other, Tristan slung one arm over his body and dragged me to his house. 

“Don’t worry, I’ve got you!” He grunted. 

I was utterly useless, only being weight for him to carry. 

After passing through the docks and his surface plants, we reached the front door. And Tristan pushed us inside. 

I fell onto the floor and tried swimming before remembering I wasn’t in water anymore. 

Now, I had committed one of the greatest sins a Tritone can commit. Coming on land.

Chapter 13

Tristan

I had to think quickly now that I had a merman inside my house. First, I placed Camano into a glass cup.

“Ah! The tub!” 

It was the best idea I could think of. I grabbed a flailing Clarke and brought him to the nearest bathroom and filled it up with water. 

“How does fresh water sound?” I asked, filling up the tub. 

“It should be fine.” He replied. 

His body seemed to relax as the water reached every part of him. His skin stopped paling so much, and his scales glistened once again. 

“Is this yours?” I asked, pulling out a knitted sack made of seaweed. 

“Yes. I had something to bring.”

Inside was an air bubble with a snail inside. I popped the bubble out of instinct, and the snail began to move along my palm. 

“I’ll be right back.” I placed the snail on Clarke’s shoulder. 

I quickly went outside again and gathered a bucket of salt water. I found an old fish tank, filled it up, and placed Camano inside. 

“Let me guess, this was his idea?” I asked the fish. 

He nodded yes. 

“Tristan! Uh, there’s magic in your tub!” Clarke shouted. I ran to the bathroom and saw pink foam coming out of the water. 

His large tail must’ve thrown around some of the shower products. A bath bomb probably fell in.

“It smells nice.” He giggled. 

I sat next to him and stared at him blankly. 

“Clarke. You shouldn’t be here.”

“I know. But I felt something was wrong. And I was right!”

It’s true that I was in danger. And if it wasn’t for his catapults of rocks, those men would’ve come inside and robbed me, or worse. 

Clarke, despite literally swimming against a storm and almost exposing himself to other humans, remained happy. 

“You…”

I sighed in defeat. I guess he’ll have to stay here. At least until the storm settles down. 

“Who were those men?” Clarke asked.

I thought back to what Clarke told me when he spied on Kilian. There was no doubt this is what they had in mind. 

“Seems like the McNish are ramping up their attempts to get me to flee.” 

“All the more reason for me to come here.”

I had to replace the water in the tub when the bubbles grew too suffocating for Clarke. 

Meanwhile, I fed Camano and prepared dinner. 

“What am I going to do?” Clarke asked.

“Here, read a book.” I handed him one from my stash. 

“Woah.”

“Just be careful with the water. Paper doesn’t do well when wet.”

Clarke took my advice and used the ends of his fingers to scan the pages. I wasn’t sure if he could read. 

“Each soldier was the living image of the others, but there was one who was a bit different.” Clarke read out loud. 

Ah, so he can read. Good to know. 

“Stay there. I’ll prep us some food.”

While I cooked, the only sound I heard was the howling of the wind outside and Clarke asking me how to pronounce certain words. 

Yet, it was nice not to be alone. This was my first time in ten years experiencing another storm. Out of the three in the house, one and a half were fish. 

“Food’s ready.” I knocked on the bathroom door. 

Clarke sat up and sat the book aside on the wet floor. 

“I already fed Camano. I think he’s… sleeping?”

“Ah, silly thing.” Clarke said. 

I placed the cooked salmon in front of him. He stared at it in awe. This would be his first time eating something cooked. 

“How do I…?” 

I showed him how to use a fork. Did they eat with their hands? I won’t judge. 

Clarke grasped (literally) how to use a fork rather quickly. And he dug in. At first, he was sophisticated. But when the first bit of fish touched his tongue, it was like he became rabid. 

He grabbed the fish entirely and ate it quickly. Pieces of vegetables and fish landed all over the tub and floor. I simply stared at him before I could even eat. 

“Good?” I chuckled. 

“Uh, yeah.” He wiped his lips with his arm. I stopped him and used a napkin. 

“You didn’t even get to add the lemon.” I remarked. 

Clarke’s face turned red. I could tell he was embarrassed. 

“Well, I’m going to eat now.” 

I held back while I ate. Clarke stared at my food intently. When I finished, I grabbed our plates and walked out the door, then stopped and looked back at him. 

“So, want more?”

The storm continued on outside. Harsh winds hit onto the walls, and the waves outside thrashed angrily against the docks. 

I chose to set up a blanket on the floor and lay down next to Clarke. I showed him what a phone was and showed him videos of underwater scuba diving, in case he felt homesick. 

Before sleeping, I got another look at him. His big tail couldn’t fit properly in the tub. It was too small and any small movements would knock water out. 

Clarke slept quickly that night. He snored quite loudly and brought a hand down to grab mine. 

It was nice to fall asleep that night with him next to me. 

And by morning, I strangely felt cold. I was covered in water. 

The entire bathroom floor was covered in water. Clarke still held onto me. 

“What the? Clarke? I told you not to…”

As I stood up, I saw Clarke in the tub. However, instead of a merman with a strong torso and a large shimmering tail, he was just human. His tail was gone and was replaced with legs. 

“Clarke? Clarke!” I shouted. 

Clarke thrashed and woke up quickly. His legs waved around as he finally came to his senses. 

“What? My tail!” 

Indeed, Clarke’s tail had disappeared. The only remnant was a few scales scattered at the bottom of the tub.

Chapter 14

Tristan

How was this possible? I mean, the very idea that mermaids exist in itself defied all of what I knew.

But this? It just felt even stranger.

“Are you sick? What’s happened?” I panicked.

Clarke just smirked. “Extreme measures.” He giggled.

“What?”

He turned to me. “Ah, Hannah, our priestess, told me that Tritones can become human under extreme measures.”

Extreme measures? I guess this qualifies as such. Being trapped in a small enclosed space with no salt water.

“I’m human! Haha!”

Even the fins on his arms were gone. Then I realized something. He was entirely unclothed in my tub.

I grabbed a towel hanging on the side and approached him.

“Uh, Clarke. I need you to cover up.”

“Why?” He asked, looking up at me innocently.

I coughed. “It’s considered improper to be unclothed.” I looked away from his pale skin.

They must live deep enough in the ocean to not experience harsh sunlight.

“Can you stand up?” I asked.

He shook his head. Guess I’m going in.

I stepped into the tub and crouched down. I got his arm over my shoulder and helped him stand up. Clarke’s legs shook like a deer’s.

“Think you can step forward?”

“I don’t know.” His voice quivered.

“Hey, I’ve got you. Okay? Just watch me.”

I showed Clarke how to step forward and focus his efforts on shifting his weight on that leg.

Clarke did as I said and stepped forward. His hand grabbed my back tightly. I didn’t let go.

“Now the other one.”

Another step. It was slow, but we were getting somewhere. The next step would be stepping out of the tub.

“Ready? The floor will be a bit slippery.”

Step. Then another. And another. He was quick to catch on even after losing his tail. He needed to work on transferring that balance onto his main body and legs instead of his tail. At least, that’s what I theorized.

“Good. You’ve got it.”

His face turned red.

“Uh, Tristan. Something feels weird.”

“What is it-”

I glanced down there . Oh… my… God…

“Jesus!” I shouted.

“Wha-”

Clarke crashed into the wall and we fell on the floor, him on top of me. I shut my eyes while feeling Clarke’s warm breath on my face.

“I- I’m sorry, Tristan!”

He was so close to my face. I turned away and slowly pushed him off me. Both of us were red-faced.

“Here.” I handed him the towel. He was still confused and I helped him up and covered him. Though it was a bit difficult because of that .

“Let’s get you out of here.”

“Okay!”

I turned and saw the mess the bathroom was in.

Clarke held onto me while I walked him to the living room. Camano stopped playing with the rubber ducky and turned. I swear that fish’s eyes bulged out.

“Hey, Camano! Look! I’m human!”

Camano stared while I helped Clarke to the couch and sat him down. I used another towel to dry his hair.

Clarke simply touched the fabric of the couch. “So soft.” He muttered.

“I’m going to check if I have anything for you. Stay here.”

I ran away quickly. While it was true that I needed to collect a few things, I also wanted some privacy.

That was… intense. Everything from Clarke becoming human to falling on top of me. I had to distract myself to calm down.

There were some clothes that looked large enough to fit Clarke. I didn’t know his exact size, but it seemed with his tail gone, he lost about a foot in height. That still meant he was still over six feet.

Plus, I retrieved my mom’s journal. This was definitely getting added as new information.

Clarke sat still in the living, his eyes staring at the fire at the hearth.

“Pretty.”

“Huh? Oh, yeah. I guess.”

“No, you.”

“What?”

Clarke returned to squeezing a throw pillow. I brought the clothes and put them on a coffee table.

“Can I draw you?” I asked.

He nodded. I used a charcoal pencil and blending stump to draw Clarke. He still retained his muscles on his chest and arms.

Surprisingly, his legs also appeared strong. That would make sense considering their tails have to be strong to propel them through the water.

I hesitated if I should also add additional details but chose to draw a towel with a side note that Tritones, at least this one, came well equipped .

“Get dressed.”

“Huh?”

He also doesn’t know that either. I had to calm myself again and took the lead in dressing him. Is this what having a younger sibling felt like?

I only found a plain blue shirt and khaki shorts to fit on him. Since I was giving him a makeover, I also combed his hair a bit. I’d say Clarke looked quite dapper. Though I might be biased.

“Do I look human?” He asked.

“Yeah.”

He stood in the living room and continued to practice walking, using furniture to hold on.

I turned back to my mom’s journal and flipped the pages. I stopped at one when I saw a folded note stuck on one of the empty pages.

My mom’s writing. I recognized it. I pried the note open and read it.

‘Our observations have become clear. We know the origin of the storm and who is creating it. But it seems the creator also knows that we know.’

Huh?

“Ah! Ow!”

I looked and saw Clarke had touched the fire.

“Shit!”

I walked over and pulled him away. His right pointer finger was turning red.

“I should’ve warned you. Fire hurts.”

“How does something pretty hurt so much?”

He winced as his finger left a mark. I walked him over to the kitchen sink and ran it under cold water.

“Ah, that feels nice.”

What else do I have to teach him? Distinguish between hot and cold. How to walk and run. Radios? Music? Dancing? Love?

“I’m sorry.” Clarke said.

“About?”

“I’m upsetting you, right? You have to stay with me now because I don’t know anything.”

“Staying with you feels more like a gift than curse.” I patted his hair.

The storm still wasn’t showing signs of dying down outside.

“You like human things, right?”

“Mhm!”

“Then I’ll show you. Come!” I held his hands and brought him back to the couch.

I turned on the TV and played a movie. The Little Mermaid.

I showed him music. I read him books and fairytales. Things like cooking, cleaning (which I made him clean the bathroom), and drawing.

The storm outside was slowly dying. It would pass soon, and Clarke could return home.

But I wondered something. How does he go from human to merman again?

Chapter 15

Clarke

The storm outside had calmed down. For the first time in my life, I didn’t want the storm to leave. Because if it left, it would mean I would have to return home and leave Tristan. 

I had just gotten used to walking, knew what fire felt like, tasted chocolate, and knew the feeling of a soft blanket. 

The door opened and Tristan walked in. “Not too much damage. Your warning definitely helped.”

He removed his shoes and walked to me. 

“So, what now?” I asked. 

“Well, we’ll figure out how to revert you back to Tritone. Can’t stay up here forever now, can you?”

“I wish I could…” I muttered. 

I could already hear Camano telling me that I’m an idiot. But I think he also likes being here. The shrimp Tristan feeds him sure makes him go crazy. 

“I’ll need groceries. I didn’t expect to run out so quickly.”

Tristan glanced at me as I ate the cookies he left out. 

“I’m heading to town.” 

“Can I come with?” I asked. 

He raised an eyebrow. “Uh, you sure? You’re still a little bit awkward walking and acting human.” 

“I got this!”

Camano didn’t fight back, meaning he trusted me. Tristan grabbed a small chain with small shiny things hanging on them. 

“Fine. Follow me.”

He called it a car. I liked how bright and shiny it was. I sat on one seat while Tristan sat next to me. 

“How does this work?” I asked.

“Instead of walking, this thing will take us.”

Huh?

Rather than ask more, I watched Tristan activate something within the car. It began to move, which threw me off for a moment. 

The surroundings passed us. I watched the surface plants that were bright green and the flowers that had bright colors to them. 

Instead of currents, I felt wind passing through my face. Tristan chuckled as I stuck my head out a window and let the air hit me. 

At some point, I saw other homes and people walking around. Some picked up trash and recovered from the disaster. 

“Here we are.”

Tristan stopped the car and hopped out. I struggled to take the belt he made me wear until Tristan came to my side and got it off.

“Seatbelts are important.” He told me. 

I had gotten the hang of learning how to walk. Tristan stayed by my side while he walked alongside me into the store. 

According to Tristan, humans go to these places called grocery stores where they buy food. There were so many things I hated about that. Why not trade with neighbors, or grow it yourself? And why did he have to travel so far to survive? 

Humans made no sense to me.

“All good, Tristan?”

We turned and a young woman walked up to us. 

“Ah, Mackenzie! Yes, I’m good.”

Mackenzie. She was a part of McNish. So I grew weary of her. She glanced over at me.

“And who’s this?”

“Uh,” Tristan stuttered. “This is Clarke Ebb. He’s a visiting friend.”

Mackenzie looked me over before smiling. “He’s incredibly handsome.”

I prefer beautiful. It’s what Tristan calls me. 

“How’s the damage?” 

“Oh dear. Estimated death is around five this year. Possibly more since many residents haven’t started searching.”

Tristan did say that many people die from the storm. This always confirmed that the storm was a curse and takes blood as a payment. 

The McNish girl had to leave afterwards. Tristan and I continued with his chores. He picked out food, looking at me sometimes while I watched everything. 

“That should be all.”

“It was very loud in there.” 

He chuckled. “Hah, yeah. It gets like that sometimes. You’re lucky it wasn’t the day before Thanksgiving.”

“Thanksgiving?” 

“Nothing.” 

Tristan fixed the shirt I was wearing. 

“Did you notice those people staring at you?” He asked.

“I was only noticing you.”

“Well, it’s not every day some tall handsome stranger comes into town.”

Now that I looked around, some were glancing at us. I couldn’t tell if they were judging or what. But I could tell that Tristan didn’t like all this attention. 

“Let’s go home right now.”

“But we were going to buy you clothes.”

“No, I’m okay.” I said. “Come.”

Tristan drove us away from the store. He glanced around the area and saw how everyone was recovering from the storm. 

He stopped by a store that read ‘Dry Cleaning’ and returned with bags on clothes. Before he could drive away, someone called his name. 

“Tristan!”

We both turned and saw someone walking up to him. His voice was similar. I had heard it before. 

“What are you doing here?”

Ah, now I remember. He was the one I was spying on, on the boat. Kilian McNish. 

Tristan became more hostile. He glared at Kilian the way a shark would. I got out of the car and got ready. Tristan had told me before that the two don’t exactly get along. 

“Need something, Kilian?”

“Not at all.” He scratched his neck. “Ya’know, our drills got swept away during the storm.”

“Is that my problem?” Tristan asked. 

“One of my men told me that your drills were secured, as if you were expecting the winds to be stronger this year.”

Tristan laughed as if he heard a funny joke. “What? Are you accusing me of seeing the future? Or controlling the weather like some god?”

Kilian shrugged. He then glanced over at me. “Oh? A friend?”

“Don’t-”

I placed my hand on Tristan’s chest and nodded at him. 

“Hi, I’m Clarke.”

Kilian glared at me. I was taller than him, perhaps that’s why he didn’t attempt to get aggressive with me. 

“Hm, so I guess you didn’t spend the storm alone. Good to know.” 

“Shouldn’t you be doing something else right now? Like helping people?” Tristan asked. 

“Nah, they’ve got it. But I really should get back. That gold isn’t going to collect itself.”

Before he left, I grabbed Kilian’s shoulder and forced him to turn around. He was shocked before I hugged him. 

“It was so nice to meet you!”

“Clarke! Stop!” Tristan pulled me away. “I’m sorry, he’s a bit awkward.

Kilian fixed his shirt and huffed in annoyance. He then glared at the two of us. 

“Whatever. Keep that freak away from me!”

He stormed off. Tristan tugged on my shirt. 

“Let’s go back home.”

“Okay!”

I turned back to Kilian as he walked down the street. On his back, I had placed the snail. Now I would be able to listen to him. To protect Tristan.

Chapter 16

Clarke

After returning home, Tristan taught me how to read big words. He taught me what certain sounds letters made, and the different sounds letters put together made. It was really fascinating.

“Now say this one.”

“A-Ah, bun, dance.” I said slowly.

“You’ve got it.”

The sound of a conch horn rang loudly. Tristan and I stopped and walked outside. Near the docks was a Tritone.

“Cooper?” I walked towards the end of the dock.

“Ah, Prince Clarke!”

“What are you doing here?” I asked.

“I should be asking you that, Prince Clarke! Your mother, the Queen, is furious and has been desperately searching for you.”

My face felt hot. I turned to see Tristan walking towards me.

Cooper then looked at me, particularly my legs.

“Prince Clarke?” His face dropped.

“Don’t worry! It’s not permanent!”

“You’re human! How? What has happened? The Queen will be furious if she discovers this!”

“She won’t.” I said.

Cooper was confused. I knelt down on the dock, getting closer to him.

“Can you not tell my mother where I am? Or of my new… Form?”

“But what should I tell her, then? She won’t stop until she finds you.”

I glanced at Tristan, now standing next to me. Then back at Cooper.

“I’ll be back soon…” I muttered. “Tell my mother… the Queen… that I’ll be back soon and not to worry.”

Cooper bit his lip before lowering the conch shell.

“Fine, Prince Clarke. But don’t take too long. The Queen is already planning to look at the Hawaiian Kingdoms.”

“Got it.”

He swam away, back into the ocean.

“Looks like I’ll have to go soon.”

Tristan’s jaw tightened. “Uh, understood.”

He was looking down. I didn’t want to leave either. I want us to stay here, where Tristan can show me more things that he likes.

Why must the world be so cruel? Is it that hard for us to be together?

“How are you going to get back?”

We glanced down at my legs. I had so much fun with them. They still feel weird, and I didn’t like how I could ache on both of them rather than just one tail.

But I was doomed to return to the sea.

“I just jump in.”

“What?”

“If being outside the ocean gets rid of my tail, getting back in forms the tail again.”

Tristan looked confused but I carefully got into the water. I was planning to jump in but quickly realized I didn’t know how to use my legs for human-swimming.

“Do you have to go right now?”

“No.”

I stepped away from the ocean and returned back to him. I wanted to stay a bit longer with him. Who knows when I’ll be given this much freedom? When I could have this much fun again.

My mother would definitely be incredibly upset with me when I return home. She’ll be more strict and watch me closer, so now was the time I had to spend with Tristan.

The biggest concern I had about leaving Tristan was the McNish family. Now that I had seen them up close, I came to the conclusion that the Mackenzie girl was rather nice, but the Kilian guy definitely wasn’t.

Before leaving, I listened in on what Kilian was doing. All I heard was moaning and quickly stopped spying on him.

If he’s busy with that , hopefully Tristan can be at peace for a while.

Back at the dock, I held Camano in my palms and threw him first into the water. I then stepped in slowly.

“So, how long will this take?”

“Uh, a while, maybe.”

I kept holding onto the ladder while my legs got used to the water. I hadn’t learned how to swim like a human but figured swimming as Tritone was more effective.

“Your mom is going to be really angry when you get back.” Tristan said.

“I can already feel the water boiling from her anger.”

“Are you going to tell her the truth?” He asked.

“Of course not! Mother loves me, but if she discovers what I did, she’ll lock me away until it is time for me to ascend the throne.”

Tristan pulled some of my hair behind my ear.

“Well, when you get back, don’t rush too quickly to return. I don’t want you to get into even more trouble.”

“No worries! I’ll send Camano to check up on you!”

Camano rolled his eyes in defiance until Tristan threw him a few pieces of shrimp.

“Look!”

Tristan pointed to my legs. We were so busy talking that I hadn’t noticed that my legs stopped swaying in the water.

Slowly, my legs were binding until the skin merged back into one. There was a bit of pain in my bones like they were snapping into multiple pieces.

Once that was gone, my scales slowly returned to their brilliant blue. They extended far past my tail and onto my torso.

It was like I had returned to normal. I even took in a deep breath underwater and my entire body relaxed immediately.

“I guess it’s time you leave now.”

I stared at Tristan. There is a way he can come with me. Would he want to?

Tristan was staring back at me. And he began to lean in.

Wait? Did he know? Did he also want to come with me?

Yes! I leaned up and placed my lips on his. Tristan was surprised, but I quickly slipped my tongue into his mouth.

“Clarke!”

I pulled away. Tristan was breathing quickly and his face was red.

“Ready?”

“Huh? What?”

I don’t know why he reacted that way. I merely gave him the sea’s touch .

“I should go!”

Tristan stood up and ran away. I waved back but felt bad, like I did something wrong.

“Goodbye!” I shouted.

He waved back, stumbling on the dock before running back into his house.

As much as I wanted to stay, I had to return home. I swam a few laps and got used to swimming with a tail again.

By the time I returned home, it felt like the castle was a mess. As soon as I swam inside, the guards stopped and clamored around me like sardines.

“Prince Clarke! You have returned!”

“Where in heavens did you go!”

Their concerns ended quickly when my mother arrived. All stepped aside as my mother, a panicked look in her eyes, swam to me and hugged me.

I thought she wasn’t angry, until she dragged me by the ear to my room.

“Mother!”

“Do you know how worried I was?”

“I’m sorry.”

She huffed and threw me in my room.

“I won’t even ask where you were. I know you won’t tell me.”

She was right. I guess Cooper kept his promise. I’ll need to find a way to thank him.

“Mother.” I said before she left. “Just know that I made sure not to get into trouble.”

Mother rolled her eyes. It was the bare minimum. She quickly swam away. When I tried to open the door, it was locked. Even the window had been covered by a large rock.

“At least no one knows.”

Camano emerged from my hair and slapped his tail against my cheek.

“Ow! My ear already hurts!”

He blew some bubbles at me and swam to his moss bed.

Yet, that pain didn’t hurt at all. That was because I knew that Tristan was safe. I spent time on the surface world, with Tristan. I learned to walk, with Tristan.

As long as he was safe, and as long as I kept an eye on the McNish, he’ll be protected. Mother would scold me even more if she knew that I didn’t regret running away.

I’d give up the rest of my freedom for just a bit more time with Tristan.

Chapter 17

Tristan

Clarke is clueless. But surely, he isn’t that clueless. He must know what it means to kiss another person-err, human. 

Regardless, his reaction seemed both confused and elated. I’ve wondered how Tritones show gestures of affection. 

Gift giving, perhaps? It’s universal, whether it be humans or animals. Tristan has already gifted me a conch pearl. 

But I couldn’t focus on that too much. The storm had just passed, and I had to return to the drawing board. 

According to my parent’s journal entries, the curse began a little over fifty years ago, right around the time the town first started getting recognition for its abundance of gold. 

Those two are definitely connected. 

And with the discovery of the Tritones, I’ve since added more to this theory. One being the Tritones being able to predict the severity and type of storm. But also that they make sacrifices and are left unscathed. 

This leads me to my main theory. The storm is a curse. One that was placed by some god the Tritones know about to harm the people of Dorado, our town. 

The storm either needs sacrifice, such as the case with the Tritones, or is punishment. Maybe both…

My parents definitely gravitated towards the first reasoning, where the lives lost are some sort of blood sacrifice.

Would those gods really be that blood-thirsty? What gods do they worship again? I think Clarke said something about Poseidon and Triton. 

I’d have to talk to him again. It’s better to get this information from him directly than some online article. 

That means I’d have to see him again. But it’s totally because of my research. Not because I’m already missing him. 

Clarke didn’t come for a few days. I got worried until Camano arrived at the docks one day. 

While I don’t speak fish (Fin-nish I jokingly called it), we managed to work out that Clarke was safe, he was just (sea) grounded. 

At least he’s safe. And I seem to be safe too. Seeing Kilian that day reminded me that he’s the one behind trying to get me to leave town. 

Only he doesn’t know that I have a half-fish half-man protecting me. 

Finally, when a week passed, Clarke arrived at the end of the dock. It took a lot of self-restraint to not run quickly. I had to appear nonchalant, like I wasn’t just sitting by the window waiting to see him. 

“Tristan!” He shouted. 

Was it me? Or was his smile getting bigger every time he saw me?

“Everything okay with your mother?” I asked. 

“Yup! She was angry but seems to have calmed down.”

Ugh, his smile. He had little regard for his safety, risking getting hurt or killed just to save me. How irresponsible… and kind. 

“So…”

“How are you…”

We both talked at the same time. He offered to let me speak first. 

“So, I have a few questions.”

“About?” 

I sat on the dock and let my legs dangle off. Clarke swam closer, subtly telling me to place my hand on his head, which I did. 

“Ah, it’s about your gods.”

He perked up. “The great gods! Yes! Ask away, Tristan!”

“What’s the difference between Pontus, Thalassa, Okeanos, and Poseidon?” I asked.

Clarke clicked his tongue, something he’s been doing ever since we’ve met. 

“Well, the first three are the Primordial Gods. They were the generation before the Olympians usurped the Titans.”

“They’re all ocean deities, though. What’s the exact difference?”

“Pontus and Thalassa are a pair. They are said to be the parents of all sea creatures. Okeanos is the deity of the river that encircles the ancient world, before Zeus ordered the expansion of the world by ordering-”

“Yeah, I got it.” I shushed him. As for Poseidon, well, everyone knows about the great Earth-shaker, god of horses and, what was the other thing? Oh, right, the ocean. 

“Is this because of the curse?” He asked.

“Yes. I suspect that one of those gods were the ones that placed the curse.”

The gods are known for placing curses on people, such as Aphrodite with Hippomenes and Atalanta or the story of Ceyx and Alcyone. 

“What makes you believe it is one of the greater gods? Why not a nymph or some daemon?”

“Because the storm attacks a town, not just a single person. And the humans it kills must mean it is some type of retribution.” I explained. 

Simply put, this storm has too much power for it to be placed by some minor deity. No, this is something bigger. 

“Ah, before I forget! I brought you a gift!”

Clarke reached into a seaweed-woven bag and pulled out a blade. The handle of the blade was encrusted in mother-of-pearl, giving it an iridescent appeal like Clarke’s tail in the sunlight. 

“It’s…”

“Beautiful.” He finished. 

I held it and saw the blade itself was finely sharped. It was a dark purple color, like obsidian. 

“Why are you giving this to me?” I asked.

“I felt bad because we hadn’t seen each other in a while. I figured you were alone.”

He blushed while looking down. 

“As long as I knew you were okay, that was all that mattered.” I patted his head. “Plus, Camano’s updates brought me assurance.”

The fish appeared and nodded. I tossed some chopped shrimp at him. 

“Uh, I could check the records in the castle. Maybe there’s something in there that could give you some more answers.”

Clarke, once again, ready to help me at any moment. Was he half fish or half dog?

“Just don’t get into any more trouble.”

“You’ve got it.”

I glance back at the blade, then my pen. “Here.”

“Your pen?”

I handed it to him. “I don’t think it’ll work underwater, but it still looks…”

“Beautiful.”

I nodded. “Yes.”

The pen was made out of some dark rock with streaks of blue along it. There was a glossy finish, and the tip was gold. 

“I know I’ll use it one day.”

Well, I’m not sure how he’s going to do that. But it’s his now. Whatever he does with the pen is up to him. 

I’ve just realized we’ve skirted around the kiss incident. Do I bring it up? What if he’s already forgotten about it? I’ll bring it up first.

“Uh, Clarke. That day when you left.”

“Yes?”

“Why did you kiss me?” I asked. 

“Kiss? I don’t think I did that.” He replied. 

Was he forgetful? That was definitely a kiss.

“Ah! The sea’s touch !”

“I guess…?”

“It’s something we Tritones can do when we want to give another species the ability to breathe underwater! We simply put our lips and grant them such power!”

Oh, so it wasn’t a kiss he was giving me. It was just some cultural difference. Well, it’s not like I was expecting him to announce his love for me or anything. 

Clarke and I are different species, after all. Falling for him would seem like an unnatural union. Perhaps we’re just meant to be friends. 

“Got it.” I muttered. 

“I must leave right now! I can sense my mother calling me.”

“Alright…” I said. I waved at him. “See you tomorrow!”

“Of course! Always!” He held up the pen again before diving away. 

Regardless of my heartbreak, I did write down what Clarke had told me. It was fascinating that they could also share their powers. 

So, when he “kissed” me, would I have been able to go underwater? How long do the effects last? I don’t think I’ll ask him for it anytime soon considering what it means to me and Clarke. 

For now, our lips will remain separated, one day fated to join again.

Chapter 18

Tristan

Currently, I am preoccupied with a meeting at my house. The workers in charge of collecting the gold had given me a summary of this year’s harvest.

“Have there been any incidents with the McNish?” I asked.

“Nothing out of the ordinary.”

‘Out of the ordinary,’ he said. I know about how the McNish sometimes try to sabotage collection by blocking roads or cutting off the power to the machinery. So, it just seems the McNish are only attacking me, trying to get me to leave town and hand over my land to them.

While they gave me more updates, I glanced outside and saw the familiar blue tail flap up and go under the dock.

Luckily, it seems Clarke understands that I have guests over.

“Is that all?”

“Yes, Mr. Muir.” I saw them out and waited until they were completely gone.

“You can come out now.”

Clarke swam from under the dock and revealed himself. Something about him caught my eye quickly.

“Your chest plate.” I got closer. It had gone from a nacre blue to a green coral color.

“The castle upgraded our armor! Isn’t it beautiful?”

“Yes, it is.”

“Who were those people?”

“Ah, some of my workers. They just gave me updates about the gold collecting.”

I saw at the dock and beckoned Clarke over. He arrived and I touched his new armor. The smooth parts reminded me of the knife he gave me a few days ago.

“Any updates on your research?” Clarke asked.

“None. Have you found anything in your systems?”

“Still trying. But I think my mother suspects that I’m up to no good. Security in the castle has become tighter. It takes me longer to escape now.”

Of course there are a few bumps in the road. It was expected, though I’m not exactly sure what we’re looking for. Perhaps some evidence that the storm is generated unnaturally or some past records of similar curses.

“I’ll keep looking! Even if it takes me a year.”

“That’s good. It’s nice to have someone like-”

“Oh, my God!”

Clarke and I turned and saw someone standing a few feet away from us on the dock. It was none other than Mackenzie McNish, having dropped a container of cookies and mouth gaped.

“Ah, Mackenzie!” I stood up and walked over to her while signaling Clarke to hide under the water.

“Tristan… there’s…” She pointed.

“It’s nothing! Come inside. Let’s have some tea and-” I tried bringing her inside.

“I saw something. Someone!”

“I’m sure it was a dolphin or…”

“And he was beautiful…” She muttered.

“What?”

Her eyes almost had a sparkle as she escaped my grasp and walked towards the end of the dock. She kneeled down and put her hand in the water.

“I know what I saw, Tristan.”

Shit! It’s already dangerous that I know about Clarke. Another person, let alone a McNish, was even more dangerous.

“Listen, Mackenzie. I don’t think you should be here.”

“He was that friend you introduced me to a while ago, right? Clarke, was it?” Her voice was calm now.

I’ve always liked Mackenzie over her brother. She was the nicer of the two, not caring that our families were at constant war with one another.

Could I trust her? And what about Clarke? His secret was revealed, yet it doesn’t seem like Mackenzie is all too frightened about it.

“Yes, it’s him.”

I signaled at the water and Clarke slowly emerged, his face slightly red. Mackenzie jolted back but quickly had a smile.

“Ah, so I wasn’t seeing things. Clarke, it’s you, right?”

Clarke looked at me. I nodded and he nodded back.

“Yes, it’s me.” He replied.

“Wow, so you’re what? A mermaid?”

“Tritone.” Both Clarke and I said. It took a while, but I explained it to her in a way a human could understand. At least the basics. She didn’t have to know too much.

“Fascinating. So, you’ve been living off the shores and we’ve never noticed?”

“Precisely.” Clarke said.

“May I touch your fins?”

Clarke brought up one of his arms. She gently touched the blue finds and traced them carefully.

“I guess you weren’t alone, then, Tristan.”

“What?” I asked.

“I was worried because I thought you were here alone with no one. But I guess I had nothing to worry about. I see you’ve had plenty of company.”

Indeed, Clarke is great company. Though I didn’t say that out loud. My face was already burning.

“Mackenzie. Can I trust you to keep this secret?” I asked her.

“Of course, Tristan. God knows what my brother would do if he found out about them.”

“Are you sure?” I asked for more security.

Mackenzie looked at me and gave me a firm nod. “I’ve always seen you as a friend, Tristan. You can count on me for anything.”

Clarke seemed to agree with her. I trusted both of them, thus I rested easily for now.

“Ah, that’s right! Tristan!” Mackenzie stood up and approached me. “My brother is planning something else.”

“So, you know…”

“About my brother’s plot to drive you away? Yes, but I only found out after the storm came by. He’s planning to destroy the coral reef soon.”

The coral reef is one of the most prized possessions that accompanies this property. My parents specifically chose this home because of the coral reef.

Plus, the coral reefs are also protected. I don’t know the specifics, but I’m sure the property gets a tax cut as long as we preserve the reefs. And judging by the fact that this is California, a property tax really goes a long way.

“Thanks for telling me.”

“Of course.” Mackenzie returned to feeling Clarke’s arm.

I felt a bit angry. Was I… jealous?

At first, I didn’t know how useful she could be. But an idea came to mind.

“Can I ask you for a favor?”

“Sure.”

“Could you access the death certificates of the people that died during the storm?”

She glanced at me questioningly.

“Are you… planning something?”

“Some research.” I replied. That was all she needed to know for now, that is, if there was even something to suspect.

“I’ll see what I can do.”

Clarke looked at me. I gave him a smile.

There was something that I wanted to see. If I wanted to find more evidence of the storm, I’ll need to look at none other than the victims of the curse.

Chapter 19

Tristan

I forgot that I lived on the oceanside. Most of my time was spent indoors when I realized that an ocean was outside my window. 

The day grew hot and with the arrival of Clarke, I found myself getting a swimming lesson from him. 

Though, it wasn’t going all that well.

“Do it again.”

I lunged forward and let go of the dock ladder. I did what Clarke told me, which was move my legs in a wavy-motion. 

Rather than propel forward, I began to sink. Luckily, Clarke grabbed me and brought me back to the surface. 

“Maybe you’re doing it wrong.” He said. 

“Clarke, did you forget that you have a tail and I don’t?” 

“Ah!”

As if a brick was thrown at his head, he glanced down and saw my legs paddling in the water while his tail swayed. 

“Maybe I should just get some lessons from a human swim instructor.”

“Good idea.” He chuckled. 

Still, Clarke didn’t let go of me. His skin was cold, but oddly smooth against my skin. 

“Remember when we cuddled in your bed when I had legs?” He asked.

“Clarke! Don’t bring that up!”

“Why not? I miss that feeling.” 

“Well, if I could breathe underwater, we’d do it on a bed of algae.” I said. 

I then remembered the sea’s touch he told me about. The ‘kiss’ that isn’t actually a kiss. 

“Do the thing.”

“The what?”

“You know? The sea’s touch thing. Do it to me.”

Clarke didn’t hesitate and slammed his lips against mine. I expected furor from the ‘kiss’ and tongue, which was delivered. 

He finished quickly. I hid my reddening face while he appeared satisfied. 

“So, what now?”

“We dive!”

He grabbed my shoulders tightly. “Wait, Clarke-”

I was plunged underwater. I winced and held my breath, expecting to start drowning. Instead, I felt calm. Too calm. 

“Open your eyes!”

Slowly, my eyes opened and I saw the surroundings. The water didn’t appear opaque, it was clear. I could even see the sea floor. Plus, my breathing appeared steady, and my skin didn’t feel cold anymore. 

“How do you feel?”

“I… good.” I muttered. I looked down and saw my legs moving quicker despite me not doing anything. As if my body was naturally adjusting to this new environment. 

“Come on! Let’s swim!” Clarke grabbed my hand. My body told me to follow him. So did my mind. 

We descended lower and my vision grew sharper. Small traces of light became more sensitive to me, and I could spot even the sparkle of sea glass quicker. 

I wish I could write this down right now. So many new things. 

“That’s where I first found Camano! He was but a mere fry!” He pointed at an arch structure. 

Clarke waved to all the fish as we swam by. They all respected him. Was it because of his powers or because he was a prince? 

“When will I be able to visit your home?” I asked him. 

“That’ll be tricky. My mother would probably be able to spot you a mile away.” 

Makes sense. Even for me with these limited powers, I could sense when a crab snaps its claws below. 

“Do you hear that?”

Clarke and I stopped swimming. I listened close to the surface and could hear Mackenzie calling for me. 

“Let’s go back.”

I broke the surface and saw Mackenzie standing at the end of the dock. She held a folder of papers in her hand. 

“Ah, there you are!”

I joined her on the dock and used my towel to dry off. 

“What’s up?”

“I found what you asked for.”

I opened the folder and scanned through the pages. 

“Is there something you’re looking for?” Clarke asked. 

It’s believed that most people die from the storm due to either drowning or being crushed by debris. I mean, it’s obvious why that would be the most assumed cause of death. 

But perhaps that wasn’t right. Maybe something else was afoot. 

“Was it hard to get these?” I asked. 

“Yeah. It was weird. The mortician was strangely secretive of them. I had to reveal who I was to even get them.”

“And for good reason.” I said. 

I held up one of the papers. It was a person that had recently died in the storm. Their cause of death was strange. 

“Died from being choked?” Mackenzie asked.

“There’s more.” I held up another death. “Cause of death, a stab to the heart.”

Something else that was strange was that most of the bodies had signs of being pinched by large crab claws. 

“I’m confused.” 

“Exactly. This only adds more questions.”

What if all deaths are not what we believe them to be? What if their deaths are not from the actual storm? 

“What if the storm is merely a transportation method?” Clarke suggested.

“What does that mean?” Mackenzie asked.

“Some gods will use certain methods to travel. Poseidon has his hippocampi, some gods use chariots or animals. Maybe the storm is just how this god travels.”

“That sounds plausible.”

“How?” Mackenzie asked. I had to remind her that we’re dealing with powerful deities. I pointed at Clarke to remind her that rationality had to be abandoned by this point. 

“Keep investigating other deaths, Mackenzie. This theory will be strengthened if we have more precedent.”

“G-Got it.” She stuttered. “Tristan, are you planning to end the storm?” 

My purpose was never to get too involved in this. I just wanted to complete my parent’s research as a final wish. 

“Maybe.” I whispered. 

“Then I’ll keep looking.”

“Be careful.” I told her. 

“You too. Both of you.”

I held onto the documents, planning to add them to the ever-growing pile of evidence. 

Clarke then spoke up. “Don’t worry, I’ll find something!”

At least he still remained happy. Especially when we are faced with the power of a powerful god, we’re definitely getting involved in something dangerous. 

“Now, how about we figure out how to divert Kilian’s plans?”

For now, I had dangers to face here on land. I’ll deal with Kilian and then see how to navigate these treacherous waves.

Chapter 20

Clarke

The McNish girl said today was the day Kilian would make another attempt to get rid of Tristan. Thanks to her and the snail I planted on Kilian, we got enough time to come up with a plan to stop him. 

D-Day (that’s what Tristan called it for some reason) arrived, and I got ready on the rocky shores. We hid amongst the large rocks and waited. 

“I see them.” Tristan said, holding these weird things up to his eyes. 

“Let me know when to do it!”

“Almost there…”

I could hear the humming of the boat. Once they breached past a barrier, Tristan signaled for me to begin. 

Pulling out my mother’s conch shell, I blew into it and made the loudest sound I could. 

As soon as the conch sang, the waves in the surroundings began to thrash violently. The boat where Kilian was on became unsteady. 

“Damn it! What’s going on!” I heard Kilian shout through the snail. 

“The waters have become rocky! Should we-”

“No! Keep going!”

Tristan signaled for me to blow again. The waves grew taller and almost capsized the boat.

“It’s too dangerous! We must turn back!”

There was shouting coming from the boat. Both Tristan and I chuckled as we watched the boat begin to turn around. 

“Fine! Abandon the plan! Head for open ocean and begin the next phase!”

Next phase? What were they planning next? I noticed the boat didn’t return from where it came from but rode out into the ocean. 

“Well, at least that’s over.”

“Did I do a good job?” I asked.

He patted my hair. “Yes. The best.”

I huffed while Camano shook his head. 

“I need to head back, Tristan! My mother will notice the conch shell if it’s missing for too long.”

“Aw, if you say so.” He bent down and hugged me. “My hero.”

Tritones are not sensitive to temperatures like humans. Cold is nothing to us and warmth only comes from the sun. 

Yet, Tristan hugging me made me feel warm too. But it didn’t feel like it came from the sun or his skin. It was… better than that. 

“Uh, goodbye!”

“Bye!” 

I looked at him one last time. He was waving at me with the largest smile I’ve ever seen. Did he like me that much?

By the time I reached the castle, my mother was preparing to head out. 

“Put your armor on.” She told me. 

“For what?”

“Hannah says she has urgent news.”

That was off. Hannah, the kingdom’s priestess, usually doesn’t order these kinds of gatherings. Not even my mother could avoid them. 

In the grand temple, all Tritones were gathered while my mother and I approached the center. 

“Are all here?”

“Yes, your Majesty.”

Hannah cleared her throat and all quieted. She raised her hand and showed something that made everyone go into a panic. 

One of the gold mackerel had died. 

“Goodness!”

“The gods are angry!”

“We must repent!”

Hannah quieted everyone. 

“It seems that a human had once again angered the gods. And this is their warning.”

“What must we do?” Mother asked. 

“The fish is clearly an augury of disaster. We shall hold an impromptu ceremony at this moment and hope the gods’ ire sweeps through us!” Hannah explained. 

A quick ceremony was performed. All grabbed a personal belonging and tossed them into the pit as a form of repentance. 

As I was preparing to throw my food, I remembered Tristan. He doesn’t know that a storm is coming. If I had learned about this earlier, I would’ve sent Camano to at least warn him. 

But it was too late. The current has begun to grow stronger already. And mother had already sent people to watch me. 

However, I had an idea. 

“Found it!” I pulled out the harmonica Tristan gave me long ago. It was a personal item of his. 

I threw it into the pit when no one was watching. This way, he’d be safe. 

Hannah continued the ceremony and slowly, the currents died down. But many remained wary. 

“This explains my dream.” A Tritone said next to me. 

“Did you have a strange dream too?”

“Yes. I witnessed the waters turn red.”

“I saw lightning strike the castle three times.”

Others had omens or some strange thing that happened to them. 

The temple was left open in the meantime if anyone was worried about the coming storm. I opted to return to the castle. 

“Hey, Camano. Is it weird that I believe this ties back to Kilian?”

Camano tilted his head. I explained what I heard on the boat earlier. 

“Either I’m going crazy or he is definitely behind this.”

He seemingly agreed with me, which made me wonder if he himself had gone crazy too. 

From out my window, I saw the surrounding coral reefs. The plants grew restless as the currents pushed them around. 

I made a shrilling sound, and several creatures made their way into the kingdom for shelter. 

“I hope that harmonica thing works.”

Something about this storm felt off. Even through the barrier, the force felt strong. The thunder above almost sounded like a roar. 

The gods were definitely angry. The humans were just barely recovering from the recent storm. 

This one was going to be bigger. And that means it was going to be deadlier too.

Chapter 21

Tristan

The day turned sour after Clarke left. It wasn’t just his absence that felt gloomy, but so did the rest of the world. 

Something was wrong. I could feel it. The weather machine my mother had left was going haywire. 

“Another storm?”

It wasn’t good. Clarke had told me that the storm was a sign from the gods. This has to be another one. And they were not happy. 

Things were too hectic. Winds blew stronger and waves rippled into mini-tsunamis. There was no time to tie everything down. My safety came first. 

I wondered how Clarke was doing? His people probably predicted the coming storm sooner and perhaps did one of their rituals. 

However, instead of creaking or slamming, everything around me felt calm. Even though the outside world was toiling in trouble, my home remained untouched. 

Huh?

After a few hours, the storm had died down and the clouds disappeared. The sun was beginning to set by this point. I was unscathed. 

“Did Clarke do something?” I wondered. 

There was no time as I heard the familiar shouting of my name at the end of the dock. Clarke had arrived. 

“Tristan!”

He seemed fine. Nothing out of place. I ran to him and held him. 

“Jesus, what was that?” I asked. 

“Another storm.”

“Yeah, but why? The recent one just passed.” 

He shrugged. “The priestess believes the humans have conjured up another plan that angered the gods.”

I then glanced back at my house. Everything was normal. Even the boat remained untouched by rainfall. 

“Did you do something, Clarke?” I asked. 

He reddened his face. “Ah, I made an offering to protect you. But I used the harmonica you gave me.”

“Woah.” I muttered. “Well, it’s fine. At least we’re both safe.”

“What about the other humans?”

That was true. This storm felt stronger. The weather machine couldn’t even comprehend the wind speed or atmospheric pressure. 

“McNish.” I said. “I know he’s behind this.”

“Me too.”

“Should we ask Mackenzie?”

As if by some divine intervention, Mackenzie McNish parked her car near mine and ran out towards me. 

Her hair was wet and even her car had a cracked mirror. She briefly glanced at my untouched home before running towards me. 

“Mackenzie! Are you okay?” 

She collapsed in my arms. “It’s bad, Tristan!” She gathered her breath. 

It took her a few seconds to compose herself. I used my sweater to dry her hair. 

“What’s the damage in town?”

“At least fifteen reported dead.” 

Fifteen? That’s higher than usual. 

“But that’s not why I came here.” 

We sat on the dock. Clarke got closer and was listening intently. 

“My brother hasn’t been seen.” 

I hid my lack of empathy. Personally, I didn’t care what happened to him. And I hoped Mackenzie wasn’t going to make me pity for him. 

Instead…

“I know he’s behind this.”

“How?” I asked. Clarke and I had the same idea.

“He’s been talking about something out at sea that would triple our family’s fortune. Some sort of gold mine. He took off right after you deterred him.”

So, I guess him going out into the open ocean wasn’t random. There was something out there that he wanted. 

“He definitely did something he wasn’t supposed to.” 

Mackenzie nodded. “Now people are dead and we aren’t sure how much damage there truly is.” 

She pulled out her phone and typed quickly. 

“Plus, I did some more research on the past deaths.”

Just as I had predicted. All of the past deaths that happened due to the storm died in mysterious ways. Bite marks, crushed by claws, some missing their limbs as if they were ripped off. 

Not only does this conclude that the gods are behind this madness, but they themselves are the ones coming down. They’re treating it like some sort of hunting game. 

And all because of the actions of one man. As usual. 

“But something feels off.” Clarke said. 

“What is it?”

“Why would such records be kept private? Surely there are others who know about the real cause of the humans’ deaths.”

“The mortician is definitely in on it.” Mackenzie said. “And my brother and father.”

“But if they’re hiding it, then that means they too know about this curse.” I said. 

“For sure.” 

I found it ironic how Kilian used to make fun of my parents for being weirdos, yet he knew all along that they were right in some way. 

If they knew about the curse, could they also know how it started? And perhaps how to end it?

But then I remembered how the storm brings in tons of gold. The McNish won’t want to end their sole money-maker. 

Yet, that opens another can of worms. Does this mean they’re technically responsible for hundreds of deaths just for their greed? 

Mackenzie must’ve come to the same conclusion because she looked sick. 

“Why don’t you head inside and get something to eat?” I offered. 

“I can’t. The townspeople need my help. If my brother and father are going to risk people’s lives, the least I can do is give back.”

Honorable she was. She didn’t hesitate to run back to her car and drive off. 

“Did you find anything?” I asked Clarke.

“Yes! The crab claw marks were really interesting. So, I looked in the records and found something.”

He pulled out what looked like a dead sand dollar with engravings on the back. There was a painting of a man with the tail of a fish and crab claws hanging from his waist. 

“It’s Phorcys.” Clarke said. “He checks all the boxes. A primordial sea god. He is said to personify the hidden dangers of the sea. And, he is the father of many monsters, such as Medusa and Scylla.”

I had Phorcys as one of my suspects. 

“Has he ever placed curses on entire cities?” I asked.

“Yes. There tells a tale of a city that scorned a child of Phorcys and were turned into water-living mammals.”

There’s precedent. However, instead of turning us into sea creatures, I assume Phorcys wants blood as payment instead. 

Whatever a past human did really pissed this god off. 

“Are we going to stop Kilian?” Clarke asked.

“What? Why? We weren’t the ones that pissed them off.”

“Yes, but many humans will keep being killed. Do you not worry about their safety?”

“Not really.” I said. 

Clarke was shocked. I guess I never expressed my disregard for this town. I had been gone for almost ten years. The people treated my family like the town’s freaks. Whether it was because of Kilian’s words or the rumors they heard. 

As long as I stayed safe, I’d be fine. 

“Look, we can keep researching and tracking any possible future storms. How does that sound?”

“Like a mystery movie?”

Those were his favorite genres when he stayed at my house. That and romance. 

“Yes. Like a mystery.” 

At least I can find this out myself. For now, there are a few questions I have. 

The first: Why did Phorcys place a curse on our town? Next: How do the McNish have a connection to the curse? And the last: How do we end it once and for all?

Chapter 22

Clarke

I was restless in the coming days after the second storm swept through us.

Sleeping was hard. I had to ask Hannah for some remedy to make me sleep.

That night, I received a strange dream. It was of that statue in the middle of the human town. The guy that slew that one beast.

But the statue itself wasn’t the main point. It was the spear he wielded. And unlike the one in the town center which was entirely gold, this one looked like a normal wooden one.

“Avenge me!”

Was it speaking? To me?

“You must return me to the sea!”

Ah, the spear! When the dream ended, I knew quickly what I had to do.

“Camano! Let’s go!”

In the early morning, we left for Tristan’s home and arrived to see him in his pajamas.

“Tristan! I found something… or dreamt something!”

“What is it?”

“I had a dream. And I think it was from the gods.”

Tristan wrote down what I said to him about my dream. I wish he taught me how to write when I was still on land.

“Didn’t you tell me something about that spear?” I asked.

“Yes. It’s said that Moore, the man wielding the spear, used it to slay a monster. From that point, the town became known for its gold and the storm curse.”

“What if the monster was a child of Phorcys?”

Tristan’s eyes widened. “Hold up, that could make sense! Maybe when Moore slew the monster, Phorcys placed that curse as retribution.”

“And perhaps the spear is the thing needed to be returned to end the curse entirely!”

Okay, at least we know now how to possibly stop the storm. However, I knew Tristan wouldn’t want to do anything about it.

“Should we get it?”

“It’s too much of a hassle to simply snatch it from the center.”

“Right,”

“Luckily, there is someone I can ask.”

That McNish girl. Her brother and father are still missing, most likely still at sea. While Tristan may not care too much about them, I’m honestly just intrigued at what they’re doing.

They were for sure the ones that aggravated Phorcys again. What did they do out there? Kill another one of his children?

The only option is to actually travel to the middle of the ocean.

But Tristan wouldn’t want to do that.

I felt a nudge on my chest. Camano had been urgently trying to get my attention.

“My mother?”

He nodded.

“Uh, Tristan! I have to return! I think my mother is looking for me.”

“Understood. Go, I’ll ask Mackenzie for the spear.”

I reached up and he reached down. It was a tight hug, but I liked how close it was.

In the castle, I walked in and picked up on how silent it was. And it wasn’t a good thing.

“Mother?” I called, swimming through the halls.

The door to my room was open. I swam in and saw my mother standing in the middle of my room. Laid around her were the human relics I had collected over the years.

“M-Mother?”

She turned. “I’ve always felt I had given you too much freedom.”

The door behind me shut.

“I can explain…”

“Explain? Go ahead, then. Explain. Explain!”

I lowered my head. Her tone made it clear that, no matter what I said, it would all be useless.

“What have I told you time and time again?” She asked.

“Not to care about humans.”

“And yet, you collect their trash that pollutes our home like relics. Do you wish to be human?”

She held my shoulder with a firm grasp.

“No, mother. I don’t wish to be human! I just… find them fascinating.”

She scoffed. “Do you enjoy their technology? Their emotions? Their clothing?”

I glanced at the various items I had collected. Some I now knew what they were called thanks to Tristan. An ID card, a can of soup, superhero action figure.

“The same technology that wages war against another. The same emotions that are nothing but greed. The same clothing that pollutes the ocean.”

Wrong! She was wrong! Humans are not all like that.

“Go on, speak! I can see you biting your tongue! Am I wrong?”

“Yes!” I shouted. “You’re wrong. Not all humans are like that.”

“How could you possibly know? Unless…”

I looked up at her. Her eyes shocked. She swam back as if I had become infected with some disease that can only be contracted through humans.

“No… This can’t be…”

“I’m sorry, mother. But I do not regret meeting him. I…”

My eyes swelled with tears. “I love him.”

“Clarke… How dare you!” Her eyes filled with rage. She wielded her scepter and began to destroy all my treasures.

“Stop! Mother!”

I grabbed her arm while she trashed my room. Everything I had collected became nothing but broken pieces.

“Stop, please! Mother-”

She moved her arm back and her scepter grazed my face. The water around turned red and the mere sight of my blood made my mother stop.

It hurt, but I couldn’t react. Not when everything I had collected, something I had been proud of, was destroyed.

“Clarke!”

I held out my hand to stop her and got on the floor. It was the pen Tristan had given me. It was covered in sediment that I wiped off to reveal its blue and gold pattern.

“Please, leave me alone.” I muttered to my mother.

“I didn’t mean to-”

“Just go!”

Her tail swam away. The door opened before it shut again. Even the windows were blocked off.

“Camano.”

He appeared beside me.

“Can you deliver a message to Tristan?”

He nodded.

“Good.”

The pen in my pen had a small dent on the cap. I opened it and saw the black ink from the tip turned the water near it black. It was large contrast from my bleeding wound,

“I have a feeling I’m going to be here for a while. Tristan will have to do this by himself.”

Camano nodded again. He’s delivered messages for me once. Tristan was able to pick up on them.

I patched up my scar quickly afterwards. Then, I cleaned up everything. The rubbish that laid on the floor was placed in a bag. Some items could still be saved if I put enough effort into fixing them.

But the rest, I knew it would have to go in the trash.

I won’t see Tristan for a while. But I know he’ll be safe. Even if I’m not there, he’ll be perfectly safe because that’s the type of person he is.

Chapter 23

Tristan

The difficult part of stealing such a precious item is how public it is. The spear, wielded by the statue of Moore McNish in the middle of town, is the definition of standing out.

Most people were focused on rebuilding again after the next storm had arrived.

The ideal route would’ve been to ask Mackenzie, but she was busy helping the town.

I slowly walked to the center fountain and made sure no one was looking. The spear was tightly in place but I managed to get it free.

It wasn’t as heavy as I thought it would be. Considering it’s made out of gold and has several jewels on it, it was otherwise underwhelming.

The spear was placed in a pile of other planks of wood I had collected. It’d be hidden in there while I tried to appear like I was doing maintenance work.

“Mr. Muir!”

One of the volunteers ran to me.

“Uh, what are you doing here?” She asked.

“Just helping the community.” I said.

“We really appreciate your help.”

She glanced at the pile of wood I was holding.

“If you want, I can take that for you. I’ll have it disposed of.”

“That’s okay. I don’t want to put extra work on you.”

“No, it’s fine.”

She reached out her hand and tried to grab it. I looked around and pointed at one of the destroyed stores.

“Ah, look! I think they need some extra help.”

“I’ll go! Thank you, Mr. Muir!”

The volunteer ran off quickly. I sighed and put all the planks of wood in my car and drove off.

I got the spear. Now the question was: what do I do with it? It’s clear from what Clarke told me that this spear has something to do with the curse and the god that had placed it.

Do we hold some ritual or destroy it ourselves?

I wasn’t sure. Clarke wasn’t even here for me to ask him.

Soon, someone would notice the spear was missing. I had to hurry and do whatever I had to.

That night, as I slept, I had a strange dream that felt off.

“The spear! The spear!”

It was a voice I couldn’t describe nor explain. It was coming from somewhere, yet it felt like it was everywhere.

The statue of Moore McNish appeared. However, the spear in his hands wasn’t the gold one I had been holding.

“I thought this was the spear.”

“Imposter! That is not the spear!”

Ah, I understood. The gold one was a fake. Of course it was.

“I shall get you the real spear!”

Whatever force had been speaking to me seemed to have calmed down and its energy faded.

When I woke up, I quickly grabbed my phone and called the only McNish I was friendly with.

“You want the original spear?”

“Yes.”

“How do you know about that? Only the McNish family know the town center one is a replica.”

“Would you believe me if I told you it was a god?” I asked.

She chuckled. “Honestly, it wouldn’t surprise me.”

“So, is getting the real spear doable?”

“Yes. My family is gone. I’ll bring it over soon.”

Perfect. Meanwhile, I put the gold spear in my room.

The weather machine has been going hectic recently. Warning signs blared that another storm was coming.

Dammit. Where is Clarke?

Was I going to have to fix this by myself? Confronting a god wasn’t something I had on my agenda when returning home.

But I felt like I had enough information from both Clarke and my parents to come up with some plan or an idea on how to finish this curse

Here is what I knew so far:

1: The curse is a result of something humans did.

2: It is essentially a type of retribution from a god who personally comes down to execute it.

3: The curse can be bypassed by a ritual, meaning it is of high power and possibly placed by Phorcys.

4: The spear is the focal point in the curse.

5: Whatever the McNish did recently has angered the god even more and they must be stopped.

With all the data, I sighed loudly and realized something.

I’m going to have to go to open waters and solve this myself.

I had dreaded wanting to get involved. I knew now how to bypass the curse by asking Clarke to make an offering on my behalf.

This town wasn’t really my home. Only this beach house and surrounding land was truly where I grew and loved.

Yet, even those memories were tied to my parents. And they were dead. I had no reason to come back home nor to want to protect the very ones who scorned them.

But something about Clarke…

I knew that the storm was also affecting his people. And not all humans were bad.

Mackenzie proved to be different from her family. She put herself in danger to help the townspeople when she could’ve easily stayed cooped up in her mansion.

That was when I realized that if my actions could save at least one good person, it would be worth making this sacrifice.

“Let’s get the boat ready!” I shouted

My dad loved his boats. Some of my fondest memories were riding aboard his speedboats during the hot summers. He’d let me control the boat and would call me Captain Tristan.

He even promised that when I was old enough, I’d be able to ride the boat myself. He wasn’t here, but I’m old enough now to complete that wish of his.

I didn’t exactly know how long this trip would last. I gathered enough remaining supplies and stocked up on every small thing I’d need.

Everything was set. I saw Mackenzie’s car arrive in the driveway and she walked with a long box in her hands.

“Is that it?”

“Yes.” She handed it to me.

“It’s so… old.”

“Yeah, that’s why father stored it so securely.”

She glanced at my boat and noticed the supply boxes.

“Going somewhere?”

“Mhm. Not sure where, but I think I might be able to stop the storm.”

Mackenzie nodded. “I trust you’ll make the right decision. Whatever you must do, don’t hesitate.”

She left quickly. I put the real spear, Dagonphontes, on my boat and waited for Clarke to arrive.

A storm was brewing and the distance showed more storm clouds headed their way. I warned Mackenzie quickly.

“Huh?”

I looked down and saw none other than Camano swimming towards the dock. Clarke wasn’t with him.

“Did something happen to Clarke?”

The fish nodded.

“Is he in trouble?”

Shake.

“Did his mother find out about us?”

Nod.

I knew this would happen. Clarke was spending too much time up here. After the first storm when he stayed here must’ve ticked off his mother.

“Does Clarke want me to go ahead with returning the spear?”

Nod.

“Is he going to join me soon?”

Nod.

“Alright, then.” I sniffled and prepared myself.

Clarke will join me soon. I had to be brave and go ahead first.

“I’ll be on my way. Make sure Clarke gets here safely.”

I readied the boat and headed off to open water. I waved goodbye to my house, not sure when I’ll see it again.

Spear on deck. Wielding my shiny sword Clarke had given me. Weather machine analyzing the wind temperature. And my mom’s journal opened and ready to help me finish what she started.

Chapter 24

Tristan

By this point, the waves had gotten stronger. I hadn’t even left the main bay of my home as I was thrown back and forth. 

Camano had left, but I saw a group of fish were still following me. 

Something about the waves was off. It was as if whatever god was out there didn’t want me to escape into the ocean. 

Rain came over me and drenched me entirely. I knew just enough to make it through. 

“Hold tight!” I told myself. 

The waves hit the side of the boat with vigor. Had I even let go of the railing, I would’ve been thrown overboard. 

‘Tristan!’

A voice called my name. But it wasn’t from outside. It was in my mind. 

‘Tristan! Where are you!?’

It sounded exactly like my father’s. 

A large wave came towards me. I maneuvered around it just in time. It would’ve capsized the boat otherwise. 

The waves brought me back to when I was young. 

At five, I had been outside when the storm arrived suddenly. Instead of listening to my parents’ warning to go inside, I stayed outside. 

As the waves grew heavy and the sky roared, I fell into the ocean. The tough currents pushed me until I felt myself slowly disappearing into darkness. 

‘A human!’

Why had I forgotten this? 

‘I know I’m supposed to hate you, but I can’t help but save you!’

The figure pressed their lips on mine. I could remember their cold fingers and the shimmer of their tail. 

I had received the sea’s touch that Clarke told me about. When the figure gave me that touch, I stopped struggling to breathe and my vision brightened. 

‘Who are you?’ I asked them. 

Waves and thunder roared. 

‘Ah, my name is…’

“Clarke!” I shouted. 

That’s who it was. It was Clarke that saved me that stormy night. If it weren’t for him, I wouldn’t be here today. 

I had to get this spear back to whoever demanded it! If not for me, then for Clarke!

There was one final wave that I had to cross. This was the biggest one that loomed over me. 

With whatever power I had left, I sped up and rode against the waves. The boat growled and the engine roared. 

The waves went through. I almost gave up but looked at the knife Clarke had given me as if that item was giving me strength. 

When the wave passed through, I was back into the open ocean. While it wasn’t exactly peaceful since it was still raining, at least the hard part was over. 

“Let’s get this spear back.”

The fish would sometimes stop and one of them would stay behind. They were forming a bread-crumb like path for when Clarke joins me. 

I glanced back at the spear and stopped the boat for a while. 

When I opened the box, I heard a loud noise coming from the spear itself. 

“Return me!”

“Avenge me!”

It was talking and demanding. 

“Where do I even go?” I asked it. 

“Take me out!”

“On a date?” I asked.

“Take me out of the box! I shall show you!”

The spear was delicate, and the wood chipped just from touching it. The metal tip had a bit of dried blood. 

I set the spear down on the deck and watched as the tip glowed.

It moved like a compass and pointed towards a certain area farther out sea. 

“Guess that’s where I’m going.”

What exactly did I have to do with this spear? Throw it into the ocean? Offer blood by cutting myself with it?

Maybe Clarke would know. 

The clouds by this point began to dissipate. But they formed an interesting pattern. I had seen this pattern before.

I grabbed my mom’s camera and quickly scanned through the photos. That’s when I saw it. My mom had photographed the exact same thing. 

A cloud formation that was in the photo presented itself before. And I took a photo of it. 

It had a maze-like shape. But a certain trail was darker than the other. Perhaps a map. 

Now that I was ready, I returned to the steering wheel and began to make my way into the sea with the spear leading the way for me.

Chapter 25

Clarke

I didn’t panic too much since I knew Camano would look after Tristan for me. I was still locked in my room, and mother didn’t seem keen on letting me go right now. 

Still, I prepared an escape bag if even a chance came. 

With the windows and room locked, the only way to get out was through the guards that occasionally came by to drop off food. 

Perhaps one of the few remaining trinkets that weren’t destroyed by my mother could help. 

Most were destroyed. I had cleaned up the pieces and stored them in hopes that Tristan could fix some of them. 

While I do hate my mother for what she did, I understood that it was for my protection. But was it protection when she sliced my face with her weapon? Humans hadn’t hurt me. She did. 

And she’d beg to differ. That it was for my own good. It was humans after all that summoned the curse. They are the force of destruction that pollutes our waters and has caused countless of us to die. 

But not all of them are bad.

Some humans are quite amazing. Tristan himself, if mother met him, would probably sway her opinion of humans overall. 

Luckily, the pen Tristan had given me was still intact. It’s not like I had use for it, but it was a gift from him, meaning it means all the more. 

I removed the cap of it and saw the gold tip let out a bit of black ink. The ink mixed with the surrounding water just like my blood had moments ago. 

It was like a squid or cuttlefish. I waved the pen around and a trail of black water was left in place. 

An idea came in my head. I hope the pen has enough ink. 

I brought the edge of some broken porcelain to my face and reopened the wound my mother had given me. Blood came out. 

“Uh, Cooper?” I knocked on the door. A small piece of wood was removed to show my guard’s eyes peering at me. 

“Yes, Prince Clarke?”

His eyes were soft. I know he doesn’t want to keep me trapped. 

“My wound is hurting a bit.”

He glanced at my face and saw the blood coming out from my cut. 

“I’ll escort you to the healer.”

The planks of wood were removed. Cooper, holding his spear tightly, beckoned me over. 

“Come.”

I hid my bag behind me while I opened the pen completely. A small tube of ink was inside. Using a knife, I made a small cut then quickly covered it with my finger. 

“Where’s my mother?” I asked. 

“The Queen is off at the edge of the kingdom.”

“Why?”

“There’s another storm headed this way.”

If Tristan followed what I instructed Camano to say, he should be out in open waters. I didn’t know how far the storm extended, but he should be safe from that distance from the shores.

“Ah, wait!” I stopped and pretended like I had stubbed my tail on a rock. 

“Clarke-”

I looked down and placed the tube of ink in my hands. I snapped it in half and got the ink to float everywhere. 

“Clarke! What is happening!”

“Sorry, Cooper!” I shouted. 

While Cooper was distracted, I took this chance to swim through the halls and outside. I didn’t stop for a moment and breathed in the fresh water of outside. 

Now I have to find Tristan. 

Some fish waited for me when I crossed the border. It told me that Tristan was ahead. 

Finally, I saw it. A single boat on the open ocean. Camano swam up to me and I patted him. 

“Thanks for keeping an eye on him.”

Before I surprised Tristan, I watched him from a distance. He walked around on the boat and muttered to himself. 

“Ah, no. That path’s too long.”

He looked down at something then ahead. 

“Eh? You want me to keep going forward?”

Tristan sulked. “But I want to take a break!”

I giggled. How silly he was. 

“Let’s greet him!”

I swam forward and emerged from the water. 

“Tristan!”

His head almost spun as he turned to me, happiness in his eyes as he ran to the edge of the boat. 

“Clarke!” 

He held a hand down and I held one up. Our hands locked. Tristan cried a few tears. 

“I knew you’d be back!”

I smiled at him. “I could never let you do something alone.”

Tristan walked over to what was called a swim platform. It was a piece of the boat that extended just below the surface of the water. He kneeled down and got a better look at me. 

“How was prison?” He asked. 

“Not too bad.”

“Your fish friends have certainly been of great help.”

“Yeah, they kind of are the best.”

Camano nudged himself against me. 

“Put your bag on here. We have a long journey ahead of us.”

Tristan caught me up to date on what had happened while I was gone. 

It turns out that the spear in the middle of the town wasn’t the original spear that we needed. That explained why the one I saw in my dream was ordinary and not encrusted in jewels. 

Also, the spear has been talking. I didn’t believe it at first until it spoke to me about needing to be returned. 

Plus, it was guiding us to where we needed to go. It seems to have more use than just ending the curse. 

“Can you detect anything?”

“Uh, nothing. Just waters from here on out.”

“Isn’t your mother going to be even more furious when she sees where you went?”

“Unbearably. Especially since…”

I looked ahead and swallowed hard.

“My father disappeared the same way, trying to stop the curse.”

“Clarke…”

“Mother loathed humans. But if she were to know that I was here, following the same steps as my father when he disappeared, she would probably die of shock.”

Tristan patted my head. 

“Then we’ll just have to make sure you get home, yeah?”

I nodded. I don’t know what would be different this time. We had yet to find all the answers and were diving into danger headfirst. 

With Tristan by my side, I at least knew I wasn’t alone on this. Like the moon, Tristan controls the waves of my heart. And no matter how loud and harsh they may be, it was still a sight to behold.