Ari leaned on the wooden fence of the palace dock and groaned as he pulled up the net. He was going to kill Eli and Samson for abandoning him to go out to town, leaving him to pull up the net by himself. It was heavy and without Eli and Samson’s added weight helping him it was slipping more than usual, giving him rope burn each time it fell back towards the water and he had to pull it up again.
He gave another giant heave and almost dropped it back into the water fully. There was a girl in the net. A girl who had a tail. There was a mermaid in his net. He breathed deeply, struggling to put thoughts together. A mermaid. In his net.
The girl-mermaid-seemed to be just as surprised as him. She was staring at him from between the ropes, not saying a word. Or maybe she couldn’t speak? Did mermaids even speak Kakad? Then she said something.
“W-what?” Ari stammered.
“Let me go,” she repeated.
“O-of course,” he said and let the rope drop. Except that he was still stunned and confused from the encounter and forgot to let go of the rope as he let it drop and an instant later he was in the water, struggling to get his head above the waves.
He felt an arm around his waist and then he was sputtering, coughing out the water from his lungs and breathing the air in. When he could breathe properly again he turned to look around him. The mermaid was by his side, holding him up but the palace or its dock were nowhere to be seen.
“W-where am I?”
“Liaugh,” the mermaid answered him.
“H-how did we get here?”
“We swam.”
“Why? And h-how do I get back home?”
“You were dying from the water. Come on.” And the mermaid dived beneath the ocean, dragging Ari with her. When he woke up he seemed to be in some sort of cave. It was cold and dark. Though he could see the opening no sun made its way in. He shivered. The mermaid sat next to him. Or was she sitting? She was at a sitting height, her tail curled up under her, but he couldn’t see any chair or couch. She seemed to be floating in midair.
When he looked again he wasn’t sure it was even the same mermaid. When he had hauled her up the sun had sparkled off her wet scales, creating tiny iridescent rainbows in the air, but now in the dark cave he scales seemed to glint more like cold metal.
She smiled at him. “You are awake, my love?”
He blinked at her. “M-my love?” He didn’t want to be some mermaid’s lover. He had Sara back home. And his friends. His life. Maybe this was all a dream. Please let it be a dream. A nightmare. He pinched himself.
“You let me go when you could have captured me. To thank you I have brought you back to my home so we can get married. These caves have air for humans like you to breathe.”
Ari’s head was a mess of scrambled thoughts and when he tried to speak, to say something that would convince her to let him go all that came out was, “I didn’t want to be kidnapped!”
“Kidnapped?” She frowned.
“You-you kidnapped me.” Her face grew dark and he struggled to explain. “I want to go home. It’s-your home is very nice but I don’t want to live here and I’m already engaged!”
“You don’t want to live here? But it’s perfect here. There is no sun to burn you, no wind to blow dust in your face, no rain to land on you.”
“That’s very nice. For you! I’m human. I like those things. Please let me go home.” He was begging, close to tears.
“Fine. But we are very deep down. You will not survive making the trip so soon after the first one. I will return you in a week.” She left the cave with a swish of her long tail.
Ari didn’t know if he could trust her but a week later she reappeared and told her to come with him. He woke up on the palace dock with Eli shaking his shoulder.
“Ari! Ari, you’re alive!” He swept him up in his arms and burst into happy tears and laughter. Ari hugged him back and cried with him.
He gave another giant heave and almost dropped it back into the water fully. There was a girl in the net. A girl who had a tail. There was a mermaid in his net. He breathed deeply, struggling to put thoughts together. A mermaid. In his net.
The girl-mermaid-seemed to be just as surprised as him. She was staring at him from between the ropes, not saying a word. Or maybe she couldn’t speak? Did mermaids even speak Kakad? Then she said something.
“W-what?” Ari stammered.
“Let me go,” she repeated.
“O-of course,” he said and let the rope drop. Except that he was still stunned and confused from the encounter and forgot to let go of the rope as he let it drop and an instant later he was in the water, struggling to get his head above the waves.
He felt an arm around his waist and then he was sputtering, coughing out the water from his lungs and breathing the air in. When he could breathe properly again he turned to look around him. The mermaid was by his side, holding him up but the palace or its dock were nowhere to be seen.
“W-where am I?”
“Liaugh,” the mermaid answered him.
“H-how did we get here?”
“We swam.”
“Why? And h-how do I get back home?”
“You were dying from the water. Come on.” And the mermaid dived beneath the ocean, dragging Ari with her. When he woke up he seemed to be in some sort of cave. It was cold and dark. Though he could see the opening no sun made its way in. He shivered. The mermaid sat next to him. Or was she sitting? She was at a sitting height, her tail curled up under her, but he couldn’t see any chair or couch. She seemed to be floating in midair.
When he looked again he wasn’t sure it was even the same mermaid. When he had hauled her up the sun had sparkled off her wet scales, creating tiny iridescent rainbows in the air, but now in the dark cave he scales seemed to glint more like cold metal.
She smiled at him. “You are awake, my love?”
He blinked at her. “M-my love?” He didn’t want to be some mermaid’s lover. He had Sara back home. And his friends. His life. Maybe this was all a dream. Please let it be a dream. A nightmare. He pinched himself.
“You let me go when you could have captured me. To thank you I have brought you back to my home so we can get married. These caves have air for humans like you to breathe.”
Ari’s head was a mess of scrambled thoughts and when he tried to speak, to say something that would convince her to let him go all that came out was, “I didn’t want to be kidnapped!”
“Kidnapped?” She frowned.
“You-you kidnapped me.” Her face grew dark and he struggled to explain. “I want to go home. It’s-your home is very nice but I don’t want to live here and I’m already engaged!”
“You don’t want to live here? But it’s perfect here. There is no sun to burn you, no wind to blow dust in your face, no rain to land on you.”
“That’s very nice. For you! I’m human. I like those things. Please let me go home.” He was begging, close to tears.
“Fine. But we are very deep down. You will not survive making the trip so soon after the first one. I will return you in a week.” She left the cave with a swish of her long tail.
Ari didn’t know if he could trust her but a week later she reappeared and told her to come with him. He woke up on the palace dock with Eli shaking his shoulder.
“Ari! Ari, you’re alive!” He swept him up in his arms and burst into happy tears and laughter. Ari hugged him back and cried with him.
