The Ocean Is Angry
Bright beams of sunlight traveled through the surface miles above and cast their glow upon the sea kingdom of Aquatius. A tremendous castle sat at the head of a large city of ornately designed stone buildings, roads, bridges, and railings constructed with the powerful magic used by the city’s inhabitants. Some merfolk would sleep within the stone structures of the city at night. Others took advantage of the comfortable caves within the great plateau that the city rested upon, stretching even deeper into the water.
Schools of fish in seemingly every color imaginable swam here, there, and everywhere, all throughout the city. Rays came to rest upon the stone streets and patches of sand as merfolk children gave them strokes and pets on their backs. Sharks swam among the fish in tranquility, unwilling to spill blood upon this peaceful region of the sea. Lanterns created with enchanted coral lit up the buildings and the streets of stone at night, their glow currently unseen in the daylight. Kelp stalks as tall as some of the buildings stretched up, near to the surface.
To an outside observer, it would appear to be a serene day as mermaids and mermen were coming out of the buildings and swimming about, chatting with each other. On any other day, excited chatter would fill the streets of the city, especially in the bustling central plaza of the city where the merpeople most enjoyed socializing throughout the day, swimming about as they discussed the upcoming performances at the royal ball, or the treasures they had discovered somewhere in the open ocean and were trading with each other.
But today, they were speaking quietly in hushed whispers with grave expressions on their faces. Fish passing through the city picked up bits and pieces of their conversations in the Old Merfolk language, the language of the sea.
“Did you hear what happened?”
“What? An attack?”
“Up by the surface...”
“Someone was killed...”
“Fiske? The General’s son?”
“The future prince...”
“Can’t be...”
“...the Rose was in his hand...”
“The General has been talking to King Galon all day...”
“...got too close to a boat...”
“Humans did it. Humans killed him.”
“I told him... over and over, I did.”
“Now look what’s happened...”
“Never should have left the dome...”
The kingdom was far out to sea, and had an enchanted dome of magic surrounding it, keeping it invisible to the human eye. The merfolk often left the dome to go explore the ocean or upon being ordered by the royal family for a special task, but they would always return as quickly as possible. There was no telling what could happen if they weren’t careful.
But no one was leaving today. The merfolk were hurrying to the palace, the home of King Galon and Queen Lorelei, rulers of Aquatius. They gathered within a gigantic, ornately designed chamber with a throne in the middle surrounded by hundreds of stone steps going up like a staircase. The merfolk would sit in this chamber and listen as the royal family gave speeches when the need arose.
Everyone was quiet as four royal guardsmen entered the room below, with trident weapons in their left hands and large conch shells in their right hands. They each slammed the base of the tridents into the floor and then blew into the giant shells, each producing a different musical tone as they played to announce the entrance of the King and Queen.
A mermaid with dark skin and long, beautiful braids of hair stretching outwards in the water glided gracefully into the throne room. Her dark blue tail was covered in decorative articles of clothing such as a bright silvery cloth that hung down from her waist like a dress, and a dark blue cloth that covered her chest and shoulders. Clothing was not a necessity for merfolk and often disregarded, but was also sometimes worn for enjoyment and for special occasions. In the royal family’s case, the designs they wore, unmatched by any other, also served as a sign of their position of power.
She also wore silver bracelets, a sapphire necklace, and most importantly, a shining crown of silver upon her head that signified to all the people of Aquatius that she was their beloved Queen Lorelei. She swam to her throne and waited silently, the very image of grace.
Next came her daughter, Princess Pearl. Her hair was a beautiful cloud of curls unaffected by the water, and her tail was a bright striking aqua. A silver tiara rested upon her head, and she wore similar garbs to her mother, but in a deep shade of black. Silent sympathies were murmured by all in attendance. With an empty look on her face, she took her seat upon the princess’ throne, to the right of her father, the King.
At last came King Galon, an imposing figure. His hair was a light brown, his eyes a piercing blue, and his tail a bright green, ending at his light skinned torso. While much less dressed for the occasion as his wife and daughter, he did wear a golden crown on his head, and decorative golden wrist cuffs, both of which were engraved with the symbol of Aquatius, and had a blood-red ruby placed within the center of the royal crest.
After the royal family came the Queen’s handmaidens all at once. There was Dylana, a blonde mermaid with blue eyes and an azure tail, the only one of the four to not wear decorative clothing covering her chest, a fact she seemed quite proud of.
There was Nanami, a mermaid with long black hair, Asian features, and a bright purple tail. She looked disapproving of Dylana, mostly because she didn’t like other merfolk staring at her girlfriend.
Next was Edlin, a rather pale mermaid with silvery hair, a similarly silvery tail, and a cold look in her piercing blue eyes. She was the most dour looking of the bunch.
And finally, Delphine, a mermaid with fair skin, long straight black hair, sea-green eyes, and a green tail emerged. Few paid any attention to her, which she did not mind.
The four floated in place to the left of the three thrones, nearest to their Queen, while the four guardsmen all took their place on the right side, nearest to their King.
Finally, the General of Aquatius’ army, General Dax, made his appearance. With a blood-red tail, long scars upon his face from past battles, and shining silver armor upon his arms and torso, General Dax certainly looked the part of a feared and powerful captain of war. A flowing red cape with the crest of the kingdom on it rested upon his shoulders, and a trident of pure black was clutched in his right hand, strikingly different from the shining golden one the King had.
The royal family sat upon their thrones as the General remained floating, looking up and around at all the merfolk surrounding them, seemingly waiting for someone to begin the proceedings. Finally, the Queen began to speak.
“By now, you have all heard the terrible news. One of our own was tragically slain outside of our city by a human being. If indeed this is so, our existence may have been revealed to the humans.”
There were gasps in the audience of merpeople. She continued. “We all know what they have done. Pollution and oil spills, causing terrible sickness and death for our ocean friends as well as some fellow merfolk. They have dropped their anchors into the sea and destroyed our coral reefs. In our distant history, they sought to find and capture our kind for fame and recognition. And now, they have murdered Fiske... the son of our own General Dax, Princess Pearl’s dearly betrothed, and the future Prince of Aquatius.” She turned to the General. “You may speak, General.”
Dax straightened himself up, tall and proud, yet quivering with rage. “I have made my case to the King and Queen. This horrific crime must not be taken lightly! We have been forced to hide for millennia and suffer countless indignities. And what has been the outcome of our silent suffering? Unabated destruction. Our coral reefs die year after year. Entire species fear for their future as human pollution threatens more and more lives. How much longer before they discover the truth of our existence? And when they do, what will happen to us? How much closer will we allow them to get? It is time to strike back against them. If they hurt us, we hurt them twice as much!”
Loud yells of agreement were heard from many merfolk.
“I come to you as a grieving father... but make no mistake, my mind is not being governed by grief. But by the unmistakable truths that we have all known for far too long. They have begun to think the ocean belongs to them. They think they can do whatever they want with it. Now the ocean is angry. It is time for them to remember the truth. We must make them fear the ocean as they once did!”
Even more yells of agreement.
The Queen looked worried as she turned to her husband. King Galon floated up from his throne. “That will be enough, General.” General Dax bowed his head and floated back to his spot. The King began to speak.
“The General and I have discussed what our next course of action should be. We have agreed to first launch a number of small-scale attacks upon them as they enter our waters. Sink their boats. Harm their swimmers. Give them a message to take back to their people. And that message shall be... find and bring forth the murderer of our beloved Fiske. Bring him to us, so that he may face righteous justice.”
While the chamber erupted in cheers, the look on the General’s face was sullen. The few who noticed determined that, had it been up to him, they would have launched a full-scale assault of magical proportions upon the nearby human city.
“We cannot allow this crime to go unpunished... but we also must not declare war so hastily. In the best possible scenario, they will retreat from the ocean in fear of our wrath. But we realize that war may be the only way to stop the evil of humans from increasing in severity. If we must choose between humankind and merfolk, we will choose you, our people, every single time.”
Loud cheers erupted again, and King Galon held up a hand to quiet the crowd. “And so, if this is the desire of the people of Aquatius... then the human race shall pay for what they have done.”
“Wait!” A small voice piped up. Every eye in the great hall turned to look at who had spoken. It was Delphine.
Hushed murmurings of unmistakable disapproval filled the chamber. The young mermaid’s reputation was well-known. An outsider. A shame to merfolk. For she loved to spend more time outside the protective dome than most anyone else when her work was done, often studying the humans as close as she could get without revealing herself.
While expressly forbidden for most to even look in the direction of humankind if it could be helped, Delphine was a special case, granted special permission by Queen Lorelei on her seventeenth birthday, one year ago. King Galon had, however, made it very clear that should she come to harm, he would be ordering no rescue for her, as her decisions and the consequences were her own.
And so for the past year, she would commonly leave the safety of Aquatius and return with tales to tell about humans. Very few had ever listened to her excited discoveries.
“If I may, your Majesties...” she said, softly and nervously as she wrung her hands together.
The King narrowed his eyes, but Queen Lorelei nodded her head, her voice warm and inviting. “Speak, Delphine.”
“I... I believe provoking the humans with violence would not be the best course of action...”
The court was agitated once more.
“Traitor!” Someone shouted.
“Human lover!” Another scream from the angry mass.
“Send her to them, then!”
“Let them have her!”
Delphine whimpered, crossing her arms over herself and shrinking from the attention. Two hands gripped her shoulders and she turned around to see both Dylana and Nanami smiling at her and giving her their silent encouragement, which at least made her smile. Though it quickly faded when she looked past them to see Edlin glaring hatefully at Delphine.
Queen Lorelei slammed her tail into the stone steps. “SILENCE.” Everything went uncomfortably silent again, and she focused her attention on Delphine once more, her eyes warm again. “What would you have us do?”
“I would... um, like to offer a different solution. I would like to... t-to attempt to make peace with them.”
“Peace with the humans?” General Dax scoffed. “You must be joking. Have you forgotten everything our ancient texts teach us? You would not be the first to attempt to establish an alliance with the surface dwellers, girl. They are murderers and thieves of the ocean’s glory! And now they have made sport of my son, your prince! As they would with you. You would not succeed where countless stronger, wiser, and more experienced merfolk than yourself have failed.”
Delphine looked down at the floor dejectedly for a moment before looking back up at him. “General... you have every reason to be angry with them. I can’t imagine your grief. There are most certainly horrible humans above the sea, I won’t deny that. But in the time I’ve watched them, I’ve discovered that they can do amazing things as well. I once saw a human jump into the ocean during a storm to save a small child that had fallen into the water. I’ve also seen them make great strides to clean up the damage they have done to our glorious home, and protect and rescue sea animals from their garbage and pollution. I... I just cannot accept that they are the monsters we have long feared them to be.”
More scorn was sent her way, but Delphine stood her ground.
“I believe there is even more good in humans that has yet to be brought to light, and I would very much like to be given the chance to discover what it is. Something, anything that will make you see that there is no need to start a war against them. Perhaps, even... someone. A sympathetic representative of the human race who can teach us more about them.”
“Just a moment. Are you saying you wish to willingly reveal the truth about our existence to the human race?” King Galon gave her a disapproving glare.
Delphine swallowed hard and continued. “Were I to be allowed... it would only be a select few, perhaps even just one. I would not reveal where we are, or anything that would be unsafe for Aquatius. Only that we exist, and that many people will be hurt unless we can all come to an understanding.”
“What exactly is your plan?” Princess Pearl hissed suddenly, her disgust apparent. “Swim right into one of their nets and hope they don’t gut you alive?”
Delphine’s cheeks burned as she heard the jeering laughter from many in the large crowd, and she raised her voice to be heard. “I wish to be given permission to perform the ritual to allow me to walk on land.”
This time there were loud gasps and the all-too familiar yells of disapproval from the audience. Even the Queen looked horrified. “The forbidden ritual?” Queen Lorelei asked harshly.
“Yes,” Delphine said softly, but firmly. “It’s the only way to walk among the humans so that I can learn more about them and find someone that may be able to help us. Sirena- um... the High Priestess can help me.”
More scoffs could be heard in the audience. The King and Queen still looked unsure.
Delphine looked at the Queen with a determined look in her eyes. “Please, Your Majesty... I beg of you. Give me a chance to stop the war before it ever happens. All I want is the continued safety of Aquatius.”
Queen Lorelei stared at the determined, desperate expression on the young mermaid’s face for a few long agonizing seconds. Then she turned to her husband again. “I believe we should give Delphine this chance.”
The audience did not dare to shout anything at the Queen. General Dax bristled with anger, staring daggers at Delphine. The King merely looked surprised.
“Like you said,” Lorelei said to her husband with a smile. “A war would be a costly affair for us all. If Delphine succeeds in convincing us, much unnecessary bloodshed will be avoided.”
“And if she does not?” General Dax asked icily. “Furthermore, even if she did manage this by some miracle, what would then be done about my son’s murderers?”
Queen Lorelei looked at Delphine sadly. “Firstly, if the mission comes to failure, then we will have no choice but to move forward with the original plan, Delphine. Your mission will determine the future of Aquatius. Are you prepared to accept such a responsibility on your shoulders?”
“I am absolutely prepared,” Delphine stated directly, and she caught sight of a warm pride in the Queen’s eyes. Pearl did as well, and her eyes were filled with distaste.
The King then interjected. “Of course, regardless of the outcome of your mission, someone is going to answer for the death of Fiske. That will also be part of your task, Delphine. Search for any information you can find about his killers. If indeed he was seen and killed by humans, then the news has most likely spread among them by now. Thankfully, it is unlikely anyone will believe such stories without proof, of which they have none. If you discover the identity of Fiske’s attacker, report back to us immediately, and we will then come to a decision on how to proceed. Should the murderers be brought to justice, there will certainly no longer need to be a war. Do you accept this?”
With no other choice, Delphine nodded.
“Is that acceptable, General?”
Dax seemed to deflate, knowing his anger would not get him any farther. “I accept.”
“Y-Your Majesty,” Delphine stuttered softly. “If I succeed in my original mission, but fail to find Fiske’s killers... what will happen then?”
King Galon’s eyes stared deep into her own, right to the core of her soul, and he spoke. “Then perhaps this good, noble, and kindhearted human you hope to find will be willing to give his own life for the sins of his people. A fitting sacrifice. One innocent life for another.”
Delphine felt her heart drop. “But, that’s...”
“Nothing compared to the crimes humans have committed,” he finished for her. “But let it not be said that we are an unfair people. One way or another, blood will be repaid with blood. If you wish to avoid the death of an innocent, then do not fail to find the guilty.”
Cheers filled the room once again as Delphine stared out at the unfamiliar crowd of screaming, bloodthirsty faces. bloodthirsty faces.
