Shadows of the Deep

A Taste

Layra tried to move her body, but nothing happened. Those eyes, those lifeless eyes held her in place.

Her tentacles hung like dead stems below her, and her paddle-like arms felt too heavy to be. She could not look away not close her eyes from the dark creatures before her. 

They were 'The Fallen' shadows of the deep, according to the book. These dark entities yearned for nothing more than wandering souls at sea, life them below the water with there songs and the would devour the lost person's soul.

A chill slithered down Layra's back.

She fought against the invisible force with all her might, but to no avail.

 "What do you want, demons!" Circles of water rose from her mouth as she screamed desperately at the creatures.

 To her horrow, the shadow by the doorway glided forward, its hand reaching towards her, the fingers were long and gnarled.

 "I don't want to die! I can't! I have to save my people!" Layra felt a thin warm line trace down her cheeks and was sure she was crying. Tears in the deep sea, lost to the coldness of the water.

 The creature stopped short. It tilted its head to the left, as it deciding how best to swallow her, at least that's how it looked to Layra.

A mournful cry seemed from its hidden lips, ringing her heart with sadness. The other eleven creatures joined in, their cries falling on Layra's ears like shards of ice. Warm threads streamed down her cheeks and her body shook. Layra realised she was sobbing along with the demons before her.

With another mournful cry the creature lifted its hand and touched a finger to Layra's foreheand, ice froze in her veins and her mind went blank for a moment.

In a colourful coral reef, there were twelve of the most beautiful creatures ever to grace the earth. Six mermaids and six mermen, their gold scales flickering brilliantly in the warm sunlight. Long gold hair flowed behind their elegant bodies like liquid gold and their eyes shun golden beneath golden eyelashes. The twelve began to laugh, a most magnificent sound that would make angels cry, for it was pure and true. They twelve beauties danced and played with the sea creatures making them reproduce at a spectacular rate, the corals growing to ten times their size and fishes eggs hatching and developing into maturity within seconds.

Suddenly a human child fell into their midst, the little girl's short blonde hair dancing around her round fair face. The girl fought frantically against the water with her little arms and legs, but the dress proved to large and heavy to lift under water.

The twelve muses stopped laughing, all life stopped growing. 

They looked with curiosity at the human child as her face became red and bubbles burst forth from its lips and flared nostrils. Its  body began to thrash, then bob violently, then it grew still. They muses golden eyes watched with fascination as the body floated with the rhythm of the current below the water, and a sadness grew in them. 

A mournful note tore from their lips and all the life of the ocean wept. A darkness began to spread from their head, turning their hair and body black, silver veins snaking around their limbs and torso. Their tails sagged and ripped down the middle, becoming black legs that throbbed with pain. The light in their golden eyes faded as the child's body floated to the surface, and darkness encased them,leaving white empty pupils where life should be. From the ground rose black stone that danced and curved around the morning creatures until a building with six arches and a circle railing encased them, ending with a crystal water drop at the top.

Layra blinked and saw the sad creatures before, the mournful twelve, and felt an abyss open inside her heart. They eleven moved in a slow circle within the arched building. The dark creature before her, lowered its hand and moved to joined the others.

Suddenly something stirred deep within Layra, and without a thought, she reached forward, wrapped her arms around the shadowed mused, and kissed it on the lips. She was rough, pressing all her love and joy and will to live through her lips and tongue into the creature's. They stayed in that passion for a long moment, Layra kissing until she could breath no more. Then, their lips parted.

 Layra cheat rose and fell as she filled her lungs again, her eyes locked onto the creatures. Their bodies untangled and they drifted a feet apart. Layra's cheeks felt flush. She waited.

It was slow at first, like a trickle of water finding a leak in a dam. Small, flowing weakly until the weight of the joy broke free of its bonds and burst forth. 

A laugh peeled from the creatures lips, ringing loud and clear. Layra felt her lips smiled and her body wiggled as the others began to laugh.

Their bodies twisted and twirled then arched back like a cat. Then Layra watched with astonishment as their bodies returned to their golden beauty, lustrous and pure.

They laughed and danced and the crystal water drop shattered into a million pieces. Layra screamed as the sharp shards fell toward her. She threw her hands around her head to protect herself.

BANG!

Layra woke with a start. A full pain throbbed at the back of her head where she hit it falling off her bed. She looked around and saw her room, the evening sun streaming in through her open window. She looked at her bed and saw that the blue leather bond book lay open on the black drawing of the twelve fallen ones.

She smiled curiously at it, reached forward and snapped the book shut.