The sea raged with chaos.
Every direction she turned, blood and bodies of people she considered her family met her eyes. The sea smelt of death and terror, something she wasn't familiar with.
The sea had turned red and her once beautiful kingdom that stood tall under the waters was nothing but ruins. Shrill screams from her people reached her ears causing her to cover them in fear. Their cries muffled and distorted as though they were caught in glass. From where she hid, she caught a glimpse of shadows of merfolks trying to fight off the monstrous silhouette. Everything seemed like a nightmare,one she hoped dearly to wake up from. Dark red blood clouded the once bright blue of the kingdom's heart.
Serelina swam away from her hiding place as one of the creatures charged towards her. She had no idea what they were or how they had made their way into their kingdom but it felt as though they knew every corner of it. Her heart pounded against her ribs like a war drum. She couldn't believe that her home,one she had lived in her whole life, was collapsing right before her eyes and there was nothing she could do about it. There was nothing she could do to stop the monsters from killing her people.
Everything had happened so fast that she couldn't even explain what had happened. One moment she has been at the gates of the palace getting ready for her birthday party. The next, screams and explosions ripped through the ocean shattering everything.
"Daddy!" She screamed, turning around as her eyes found her father lying unmoving on the ocean ground. The current of the water was too powerful making it difficult for her to swim, throwing her into another body that floated around, unmoving with eyes wide open and staring.
Dead.
She let out a shrill scream, swimming away from the body.
A whoosh sound reached her eyes before something sharp grazed her fin drawing blood. It was a harpoon.
The force sent her backwards but she managed to catch herself before swimming away fast, her tail suddenly felt sluggish. As though heavy weights had been wrapped around her.
Looking over her shoulders,she noticed one of the creatures swimming towards her. Something about him felt familiar. His eyes. She knew that she had never seen any of these creatures before so why does he look so familiar. The weapon in his hand glinted as he got closer to her . She let out a loud scream as his fingers grazed her tail,the sound warping the water into ripples.
That was the voice of a tideborn. The royal bloodline.
The creature recoiled,his skin burning where her voice had touched him. But it seemed as though her voice had also attracted more of them.
So many more.
Her body shook violently as tears fell from her eyes, hardening to form pearls before they fell to the ground. Mermaids really cried as they were happy creatures.
She had never seen something like this. Her parents had raised her with love teaching her to lead with peace. To use her voice to heal and not to destroy. But here she was surrounded with bodies of her families and evil creatures that wanted her dead. She had no one to protect her, no family, no crown.
The water surges again but this time it didn't feel natural. It was as though a magical rift had been torn open. A strong force pulled her into it like a black hole. Her body slammed against the sharp edge of a coral tearing her skin. Her hands reached out instinctively as she tried to hold on to something, someone… but no one held her hands.
"No—!"
She pulled her tail to her chest as a sharp pain enveloped her. Her body twisted painfully. Then… light.
A bright golden light shines through the night. A wave of force sent her spiraling.
It suddenly felt as though she was rising very quickly and away from her people.
A loud gasp escaped her lips as her body broke the ocean surface with a violent crash and for the first time in her life,she tasted air. She had never been this high above her kingdom.
It hurt so bad.
Her gills burned as though they were on fire. Saltwater clung to her skin causing her to look whiter than she actually was as she was hurled through the storm like a discarded baby turtle.
Her eyes cracked open, catching glimpses of the sky crackling with lightning as thunder rolled across the sea.
She struggled to breathe.
It felt as though her body no longer belonged to her. As though something in her bad changed. Raising her upper body with her hands,she watched as her tail flickered in and out of form. Her muscles spasmed painfully as her scales slowly faded,flesh forming in broken patches.
Legs.
It was a form of punishment for merfolks to grow legs after being cast from the sea but that was only after a ritual.
Why did she suddenly have legs?
"What's happening to me?" She whispered hoarsely,her voice shredding like sandpaper. "Is this the part where I die?"
She had barely finished her sentence when a forceful wave slammed into her causing her to turn over. She coughed hysterically trying to swim away with limbs she had no idea how to use. Water entered into her mouth and nose causing her to choke.
The sea that had once been her home was now trying to drown her.
Lightning flashed allowing her to notice the jagged rocks ahead of her which she was slowly being pulled towards.
"No!" she gasped.
She didn't want to die. She wanted to live. Her hands dug into the sands but it slipped through her fingers,the current sucking her down. A sharp pain exploded in her chest as she landed on the rocks back first.
There was a crunch. A scream that never made it past her lips.
And then—
nothing.