dark paradise

chapter one: the waves

Layla was angry. Angry at Leah. Angry at Seth. But more important, angry at Poseidon. The anger burned under her fingertips, hot and white and ready to pounce. She watched the waves crash against the rocks on the cliff below, as she prepared herself to jump.

It had been two months since her dad's death. Two months since Poseidon had visited her on that beach and passed along the powers that had the course to change history. Something had snapped within Layla that night. It was as if she was one with the water, which was proven a few days later when she went swimming and managed to grow a mermaid tail.

None of her family cared what was going on with Layla. Leah was off frolicking with Jacob Black, sticking her tongue down his throat whenever she got the opportunity. Layla rarely went home anymore, instead sleeping in the sea due to the fact her and Leah shared a room. A room that Jacob Black seemed to occupy anytime Layla wanted some time to herself. It was so stupid. Her mother had already started planning out the wedding, and it was as if everything was normal. As if their dad hadn't just died.

To make matters worse, Bella Swan was sniffing around, and apparently she was trying to try it on with Sam Uley. Who was supposedly flirting back. As if he didn't have enough people licking his backside recently. Seth had recently taken to being his lapdog, always running errand for him or staring at him with lovestruck eyes. Once again, no one in her family thought this behaviour was strange. Which it totally was. Layla wasn't being dramatic, right?

The waves seemed calm tonight, and the wind picked up around Layla as she turned out her hand. She was lifted off the floor with ease as she flung herself down into the depths of the ocean. The water absorbed into her skin as her legs twisted and bent into a strong, pink mermaid tail which quickly propelled her away from the beach of La Push.

"Hey Rosie," Layla murmured, stroking the humpback whale softly, kissing it softly on it's back.

"Layla's back! Layla's back!"

The sea seemed to chant her name as she swam around, checking in on each of the creatures in La Push. She finally felt at home. Her hair glowed a soft blue as she fed the coral surrounding USA. Trying to reverse the damage caused my humans had been Layla's first step when she became Poseidon 2.0. Or Poseidina. Whatever you wanted to call her.

She had quickly gone vegetarian after finding out about her powers, another fact that her family hadn't noticed. A swarm of orca's surrounded her, and she stroked them softly, giggling to herself.

"What new skills have you learnt?" One young orca called to her, clearly excited to meet the young girl who the whole ocean had heard so much about. Layla closed her eyes as she softly began singing, and her hair glowed brighter. The orca's watched in fascination as a storm swirled above her head, and Layla sent it in the direction of the Amazon rainforest. She was doing her best to restore the world's ecosystems.

"That was so cool!" The young orca chirped, rubbing its head on Layla's tail before swimming off after his mum and pack. Layla smiled softly, wishing that her dad was still here. She had always been a daddy's girl. He would realise she wasn't sleeping in her house, he would put an end to Seth running off after Sam Uley.

But he wasn't here anymore. And Layla wasn't sure how she was going to cope.