Running into (away from) you

Thank you

     Once upon a time, in the oceans we now know of as North Atlantic Ocean. A young merman had dared to swim to the surface. What he saw was a large ship, a pirate ship to be exact. This young merman was curious; his young soul had been strange compared to his peers. They had feared the surface, but Eldem yearned to see it, to feel the wind and see the sun and sky clearly.

    One of the crewmen of the ship had spotted him, and caught him.

    Before he could do anything his tail was shot and he was being dragged on board the pirate ship and bound. He was terrified as the land walkers poked and prodded at him, saying things along the line of 'selling him', and how much 'money' they would gain. He tried to fight against them, but to no avail for they were stronger and he had the disadvantage of being above the water.

     He had not expected his first time outside of his home like this, he simply wanted to see the skies and feel the wind. And maybe observe the land-walkers from far away, and not get caught like how he is now.

     "Quiet! What in the world is going on here!?" A woman demanded as she walked towards him.

     "We captured a merman Captain!" One of the crewmen says.

     "Captain Nekytiran, how much do you think he could sell for?" Another crewman says.

     The captain looked angry and was downright livid when the second crewman asked his question.

     "What do you all think you're doing!? We take gold, not mermaids. And we definitely do not sell slaves!" She exploded, and the whole crew flinched. Captain Nekytiran started to order the crew around, calling for someone to help the young merman's bleeding wound before starting to unbound him. She carried him up with surprising strength and let him down on a bench somewhere under the deck.

     Eldem was still as he watched someone else take out the bullet and wrap his tail with cloth.

     Captain Nekytiran had planned to release the merman back into the water once he was healed and able to swim, and she did. But the young merman never swam away; he stayed swimming beside or around the ship. He also made friends with the crewmen, and was surprised as one of them profusely apologized to him for shooting him.

     The young merman and the captain talked endlessly most nights, the merman was brought up on deck and they spoke about everything, hobbies, family, the past, and life in general.

     One day the ship was attacked, by kraken no less. Most of the crew died, including Captain Nekytiran.

     "You know, you never told me you name merman." She weekly says.

     "Eldem" He sobbed, holding her tighter to his chest, and watched as the light was drained from the captain's eyes. "Don't you dare leave me!" He cried out desperately, begging anyone, anything, to save the woman he held.

     "I will never leave you, Eldem. You must simply find me wherever I wander." was her last words before she became limp in his arms.

     Fate sat on a throne of colourful mist, her long hair floating weightlessly around her. She watched as the merman cried for the girl in his arms, his pain evident in the screams he made and the tears that fell from his eyes. He cared deeply for the girl, unusual since he was a child of the waters while she was a daughter of the land. Fate took pity on the merman, and granted the last words of the daughter of the land.

     The skies cried that day.

     The day she left him.

~~~~~