Somewhere in the Sea

Chapter 07

Marjan left the castle at midnight. The queen had given her instructions on how and where to leave the castle. "Don't swim out through the windows. You'll draw too much attention. At exactly midnight, the duty of the guards at the back gate changes, so you can sneak out of there then. Swim towards the North Gate and you'll see a secret exit down at the base. Take that exit and you'll be outside the kingdom. Once out, look up for the waves moving towards the shore. Use them as a compass as the island is south of that." Marjan left the castle at exactly midnight. Following the queen's direction, she reached the North Gate, found the secret exit and escaped. 

This was the first time she was out of the kingdom and everything looked so scary. The moonlight illuminated the vast reef and she could see small fish moving in shoals coming out to feed, anemones moving with the water currents, corals sticking their tentacles out to feed on the micro organisms. It all looked so beautiful, thought Marjan as she stopped to stare at them. But just as she stopped, a shoal of fish swam by her quickly and she came back to her senses. "The reef may look beautiful but it's a hunting ground at night so be careful!", Marjan was reminded of her mother's advice and as she looked closely, the corals were actually devouring little crustaceans, the big fish were eating the small ones and the starfish was busy nibbling on a snail he just caught. Marjan got scared as a shoal was getting closer. She tried to swim back but the current was just too strong and the shoal was coming in closer and given the number of fish in the group, she could get seriously injured. She needed to act fast but what?

Marjan shouted, "Stop!" and closed her eyes. Her seashell glowed and in an instant, the current dissolved and the fish dispersed. Marjan opened her eyes and was astonished to see what happened. She looked at her necklace. The seashell was glowing and then it returned back to its normal state. "This will protect you on your journey", her mother's words echoed in her head. "Thank you Mother!", said Marjan smiling and holding the necklace and she moved on. But there was one problem. She didn't know where to start. All she knows is that her sister was being controlled and turned into a merciless killer. She didn't know where her sister was and who was controlling her. It was no use asking the inhabitants of the reef as they were feeding and she was most likely to get injured during that so she began to go further up north following the waves above. She found a shipwreck where she decided to spend the night and to continue the search in the morning. 

Next day, she went back to the reef where the atmosphere was much more relaxed and happy. The anemones were waving freely, multicolored little fish were swimming around the reef, moray eels peeking out from their homes. She went near one of the sea fan coral. "Excuse me sir". "Yes Mermaid, what is it?" "I am looking for my sister and wondering if you have seen her." "And why should I tell you that?", inquired the sea fan. "Your kind has always been a scavenger when it comes to our homes. Taking what you need and leaving us in pieces. You and humans alike!" Marjan was quite taken aback by this behavior. She knows that her community is based on reefs but they would never harm them. "But Sir-" Marjan tried to say something but the sea fan went on ranting, "You take us apart piece by piece and then use us for your jewelleries and decorations and -" "Would you lighten up old man! The sun just got out and the first thing I hear is you yapping about how tragic your life is!", The flowerpot coral next to the sea fan retorted back. She made a yawning sound and shook her tentacles lightly. "Hey Rio, mind shutting this old timer up! He's up babbling again." A moray eel emerged from the side and yawned. "Oh no, not again" Rio said and went up to calm him down. "Forget about grandpa here. That fossil is older than the dinosaurs. What is it that you need honey?", the flowerpot said in a reassuring tone. "I am looking for my sister Sanho. She's been missing for a while now and nobody knows where she is. Plus they're charging her for murder of those fishermen. But I know Sanho. She wouldn't hurt anybody", said Marjan. "Your sister, huh? Well I doubt you merfolk are killing anyone but there are a few rumors flying around. Some fish who come to feed here said they saw a mermaid not far from here but she didn't look normal like the others." "Was there anyone with her?" Marjan inquired. "Not at the time, no. Hey Rio!", flowerpot called out to the moray eel who swam back. "What did the fish say about that mermaid?", she asked him. "They said there was a rogue mermaid out there who was killing those humans. But nobody knows where she comes from and where she goes. Its as if she disappears into the bubbles", Rio replied. Marjan went in a deep thought. So Sanho is doing all this. But they said the mermaid didn't look normal. Is it possible that somebody else is impersonating her or is she under the control of dark magic? Oh Sanho, where are you? 

The corals invited her to stay with them for the time being. They were very hospitable and were keen to help her in anyway possible. They told her about their history. "We originally lived in the Maldives Islands. But the great tsunami struck our waters and destroyed our homes. We were only little polyps then and the water currents dispersed our families all over the ocean. Some of us migrated all the way here and formed our homes. Old timer was one of the first ones here and he and friends together started the reef that you see today. Eventually the fish and other creatures migrated here as well and we've been living here ever since. The humans haven't interfered much but the plastics have been a nuisance. They just come and fish and leave their trash everywhere. But there are good humans too. Ever since we were discovered, some humans come down regularly check up on us and to make sure we're okay. God bless them all." Marjan was happy to hear their story. At least there are good humans in this world. If only her father could understand it too. "I am sure you'll find your sister soon", said flowerpot. "Thank you", said Marjan. "Thank you everyone". Marjan decided to stay there until she can move on further.