Fantasy Tales Series: Rise of The Merfolk

Chapter Seven~Edited

I took a deep breath of fresh sea air. I could taste the salt from the wind on my tongue. The ocean was steady today – and while the front part of the beach was over loaded with the public I had managed to find a private spot a little while down the beach. It was surrounded by lots of  crumbling dark rock pools and rock formations shaped by years of wind and rain erosion. It was the perfect spot for me to explore my mermaid self uninterrupted. 

It had been a week since I discovered who I really was and I was just getting used to my new found powers. I had called my mum to ask her about my transformation, but how do you begin a conversation like that? So I chickened out and just caught up with her life instead. I reckoned that there had to be other ways of finding out my family lineage without looking like an insane person, city records maybe? I doubted they would tell me who in my family was a Mermaid though.

 Whenever I got a minute to myself lately, I was out swimming. I was in my black polka dot bikini and ran at full  speed into the water, the ocean waves crashing around me and spraying my whole body with mist. It chilled me to the bone at first but soon enough I felt the tingling sensations in my legs like pins and needles and I dived head first into the sea. I hated cold showers and cold baths so diving head first into freezing cold water was a new experience for me. By the time I had submerged myself fully I had transformed from legs to a tail. My Turquoise ombre tail was as amazing as ever. I figured out it didn't matter if I was clothed or not my tail would still appear, it was enchanting. 

The first time I had decided to dive underwater in private I was startled to discover I could breathe underwater- which made sense considering I was, you know, a mermaid. I wasn't sure what I was expecting but swimming with a tail was way easier than legs. In the water I could glide gracefully like porpoise and my tail was powerful and strong. I could even keep up with dolphins, orcas and probably sharks too. I cringed at the idea of facing a shark, with those razor teeth they could tear me limb from limb.

With my arms by my sides I used my torso and tail to cruise the ocean floor and it was the most thrilling, gorgeous experience I'd ever beheld. The ocean floor was white and sandy but scattered here and there all around were huge clumps of brown rocks of all shapes and sizes, all of them prickly looking. Dark green grimy seaweed grew all around in every nook and cranny and was tall enough for various fish to dart in and out of. Vibrant corals of bright white, yellow and red were what really set the scene and the multicoloured fish of all different species and sizes were what breathed life into the ocean.

I paused in my swim to take it all in and a couple of orange clown fish swam around my head playfully. I didn't how I could tell, but I could sense the sea creatures' different moods. It was yet another cool side effect of unlocking my mermaid potential. The clown fish were joyful today.

The deeper I got into the ocean the thicker the schools of fish became, but the darker it got. It was unnerving, I hadn't ventured anywhere too dark yet. Right now, I was on the edge of a sea cliff and below looked pitch black and haunting. I imagined ghosts floating up to grab me around the neck and drag me under. I had only explored short distances and I really wanted to go deeper but I was scared. They say ninety five percent of the ocean was unexplored, what if I stumbled across something, I wasn't ready to meet?

On the other hand, though, what if I found another mermaid? That would be awesome and I could have someone to talk to about all of this. Someone to ask questions to without trying to force some prophecy onto me.

It's not the psychics fault fate and destiny exist. My brain reminded me and I had to agree. The sooner I wrapped my mind around the prophecy the sooner I could accept it, but it's hard to accept something out of  your comfort zone.