Sea Spell

Chapter Fifteen

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She'd known it!
Spinning counterclockwise in her self-created splay of water, she dove towards him. His face, once portrayed with upper-hand and accomplishment, flashed quickly to one of fear, of realization at a mistake, for he'd been too eager...
She jabbed her pointer finger sharply at his collarbone, leaning her weight into it as the nail dug into his skin, scooping up peeling layers ever-so-slightly. A rumbling chiropractic crack erupted at the inward yank of Silvinus's shoulder, and his head bobbed underwater for an accidental moment, before he was lifted through the water. Water so sheer, it nearly resembled an empty glass door on a fogged, sprinkling day, glass that rippled under weight of plopping raindrops.
Strands of hair whiplashed across her cheeks, biting like the harsh winds and bitter reality of her own naïvety, her own ability to guide herself into the jaws of a trap, like a fox- almost clever but faltered at temptation. This fueled her, she ran on failures where many plugged into success, even if one day the fuels killed her on the inside.
inside.
Pulling him threateningly close to her, she felt her lips tremble as a deeper part, a childish part crumble in the cold and anger as she struggled to keep composure. The pearl fell from her elbow chaotically into the choppy waves, plunging far out of reach in a trail of bubbles. His lack of physique took her off-guard, caused her grip to slide past, like scraping the reins on a horse until they stumbled away.
The merrow appeared tiny, shrunken as he paddled sickeningly, prodding his head underwater as waves spread chunkily over his back. A mossy tail gave a splashing flick before he submerged underneath.
Fumingly betrayed, the instinct to follow seemed reasonable for a moment as she pressed her hands together in a dive position, taking note of their webbed features and impaling spikes.
A low noise, one filled with steamed, hissing air through pursed lips but also the remainder of a rumbling growl, one that sounded of troubled breathing in an old man's stomach- unclasped her hands but tensed her shoulders. The scent, disgustingly intoxicating, warped it's way up her nostrils, dragged her backwards. She glanced achingly behind her, to see its origination.
A hardhearted, blank rock faced her directly.
But, she wasn't hallucinating, was she?
Turning back around, she was about to dive underneath and claim possession of the pearl when it came again, clearly annunciated this time.
Frustrated, she turned around stealthily, not as a true tactic but as comfort, and came face-to-face with another mermaid.
It was the mere definition of delicate, forlornly watching her with a pitiful, dying expression. A set of violet, haunted eyes had no sense of target, and if it weren't for the straight-forwardness of its form, Lana would have no idea where they were focused.
Shivering and chattering her teeth, the mermaid perked a duo of cone-shaped, marine ears that were lowly set and matched her ghostly pale skin.
She leaned towards Lanakila, who attempted to cover her left wrist subtly but failed to do so.
Wrinkles formed across her barely-tattooed forehead at the sight of the slanted cursive surrounded by agitated skin on a wrist.
Whimpering softly as her arm was yanked away by the mermaid, Lana watched it examine her arm with a palm not unlike hers.
Its eyes doubled surprisingly in size as it reeled her in with uncanny strength. Roaring open its mouth in a yawning movement, it shot three deafening cries echoing across the empty ocean.
At first, there was no response other than the sound of spraying mist and heavy heartbeats, but suddenly the entire surface erupted, bursting with motion.
Cliffs and rocks came to life as their exteriors revealed themselves to be other mermaids, falling one by one into the water as hues changed from camouflaged grays to neutral skin tones, hair trailing above them. Their hair was silken, as if gravity's powers halted the minute it neared them. They were stunning, naturally of course, innocent doe eyes filled with infantile, shiny pupils that sucked inwards vibrant arrays of color- the irises. Streaked with pallets of color, color that wavered into layers as it was drawn to an inescapable black hole. The irises were surrounded by a darkening of color that looked like the vastness of time in itself, for it was not as dark as it was a consistent reminder. Then there was white, which didn't represent nothing, didn't represent unknown- but spoke for everything. It was then that Lana concluded that eyes were not unlike the universe.
Each sported a forehead mark, though it seemed to differ in intricacy from creature to creature. Emerging from underwater, the group of seven women surrounded her in an arc, each dipping their head upwards as they eyed her up with looks of interested vultures.
Staying grounded for fear of provoking them, she kept her eyes locked downwards timorously, tucking her bottom lip underneath her pulsating teeth. The singing from before flowed from their racketed throats, broke the silence and startled her as she leapt backwards. It wailed, high-pitched and whining, a desperate plea of misery from neglect.