Of Land and Sea

Tumultuous Waters

When Elliott awoke the next day, he could tell the day would be one full of trouble. No light beamed down to greet him, no beautiful blue could be seen from above, and the waves grew to sizes most concerning; so big that even underneath them one was pushed by the forces. It was days like this that Elliott wished he could stay in the school, relax as the world above toiled in a chaotic mess. But unfortunately, days of rest were few and far between in his school, and today he was to be sent with a small group for debris collecting.

The swim to the designated area was challenging, to say the least. The water's temperature was far hotter than it normally was, causing Elliott to feel overwhelmed quite often and in need of a pause to go to higher waters to cool off. The waters swirled in the most confusing manner, disorienting Elliott far more than he liked. But eventually, his small group of fellow scavengers made it to the location; a good few miles away from the school, where the land could be seen from the distance if one were to breach.

As they arrived, the group noted a mysterious black shape above the waters, swaying with the waves. Assuming it to be a human vessel, one scavenger clicked out a swear, letting out a rude gesture before beginning their duties. The other simply kept their distance, swimming down to the bottom to locate any taint. Elliott, meanwhile, paused to look at it, wondering if that was the same human vessel he had seen just yesterday. The area was about right, and the size and shape seem familiar to him...

"Scavenger, get to work, please!" the angry scavenger clicked, looking towards Elliott with an annoyance. "I've dealt with humans before, we don't need to worry as long as we stay our distance. So any concerns you have can be put to rest until we're done."

"Oh um... right. My apologies, scavenger," Elliott clicked back, not caring to admit his pause of thought was more out of wonderment than worry. Soon he met up with his fellow scavengers, combing the floor for any human taint they could find. A secondary goal was also to locate shells for mermaid pendants, but for the most part, the group was assigned the duties of cleaning up human waste. Objects of beauty were hard to find among debris, after all.

And indeed, this location was full of it. Blue cylinders that blended with the water, smudged writings on bizarre, soft wood, circles that seemed to have trapped a poor soul and left a corpse in its hold. The sight was absolutely disgusting, but it was to be expected this close to land. As Elliott picked up one of the blue cylinders, he noted the cold touch the object had and the writing that stuck out even with the water. "Joja Cola."

"More of this "Joja," it seems..." Elliott clicked, sighing as he took the cylinder and placed it in his holder. "Everywhere we go, we find these things. Mixed with the water, sometimes producing a most foul liquid as well."

"I wouldn't be surprised if "Joja" is some cult humans worshiped," the more distant scavenger clicked out in response. "I've heard tales that humans often leave behind signs of their false rulers, hoping to lure others to their strange faiths."

"Bah, humans. Their stupidity knows no end," the bitter scavenger clicked, flinching as he lifted one blue cylinder that leaked out a pungent foam. "How they could think taint like this would make us consider joining their foolish ranks."

Elliott was simply silent, preferring not to join in to the derogatory nature of the conversation. He had always been raised to be wary of humans, to loathe how they contaminated what they didn't care to keep. But yet, he could never find himself fearful of them, he could never force himself to feel a hatred like the others of his school did. Something about humanity interested him, something he felt his school was not keen on... and something he wished to discover one day.

And he had the feeling this "Joja" may have been a clue to discovering that hidden detail.

As he went to pick up a new cylinder, the waters began to grow chaotic once more, causing Elliott to lose his location as he was swept away from his small group. Clicking out a swear, he tried to steady himself, but to no avail. The waters simply continued to pull him away, his fins being assaulted by the force of water to prevent proper movement.