Fragile Skins

Chapter six: Crabs

Sunlight broke through the surface of the water distorting it slightly, bending the rays to the light waves every twist and turn. The light exposed rock outcrops previously unseen where seaweed and other plants grew up from small cracks, and silver fish that swam overhead small crustaceans that dug their tiny bodies into the golden sand. In the distance a mighty tiger shark eyed it's next meal in a school of fish. The light warmed the sand that Kai and Sachiel slept on. Kai awoke confused as to why he wasn't in his bed back on land before remembering where he was and what he was doing. He looked down to Sachiel who was still asleep next to him. He grumbled something incoherently and stirred slightly before relaxing back into the sand. Kai found himself staring at Sachiel's perfectly round face and small nose. He resembled a small child which contrasted his long claws. Kai didn't remember mermaid being described as having long sharp claws in the place of fingernails. Sachiel finally stirred awake after a few minutes.
"Finally I thought you would sleep all day." Kai remarked jokingly. Sach hummed lightly as a reply. "So um are you hungry?" Kai noticed his own stomach rumbling.
"Yeah." Sachiel said squinting into the morning light. Kai glanced around.
"I could catch some fish." Kai offered.
"You think you can catch a fish?" Sachiel giggled and sat up.
"Um yeah. How hard can it be?" Kai got to his feet and began cautiously eyeing a nearby fish. He jumped but the fish seemingly teleported away. "What?" He gasped, "It's so fast."
"I got it!" Sachiel remained motionless before finally jumping up, flicking sand into Kai's face. Sach's claws caught onto the fish and gripped into it's flesh. "Don't worry it's safe to eat." He dropped the fish, which now had four thin holes all the way through it, in front of Kai like a cat giving a dead mouse to it's owner.
"Damn." Kai said staring at the fish. "That was so freaking cool!" Sachiel's face glowed with happiness which made Kai feel like his heart skipped a beat. Sach butchered the fish as well as he could before sharing the raw meat with Kai. "Ah this is actually pretty good..."
"Shh!" Sachiel quickly pressed his finger to Kai's lips, effectively cutting him off. Kai could hear a faint tapping on a rock behind him. Sachiel store over his shoulder. Kai looked back slowly just in time to see a mermaid like creature but instead of part fish they were part spider crab emerge from behind a nearby rock. In their right hand was a spear ending in a sharp stone.
"Humans are not welcome in this territory." They raised their spear at Kai.
"I'm so sorry we didn't know we're going to..." Sachiel said frantically.
"Shut up!" They yelled, "you're not the problem, he is." They gestured to Kai.
"Hey who are you anyway?" Kai asked defensively.
"Don't take such a tone with me! I'll have you know I am one of Queen Jasmine's most trusted."
"Yeah well tell you're queen I was just leaving!"
"Guards!" As soon as they spoke three more spider crab mermaids came out of seemingly nowhere and grabbed Kai.
"Get off him!" Sachiel ordered trying to pull the crab guard off Kai before another grabbed him. Kai struggled trying to get the guard off him, but the guard was strong and would not budge.
"And I'm not pretending I don't know who you are, Sachiel." The first crab looked Sach in the eyes. "I can't wait to get all that reward money." They grinned slyly. The crabs pulled them away to a rock that was once just in the distance. A large hole in the sand beside the rock dropped down into a large wooden room that appeared to be remains from a shipwreck. The large main room and many side rooms held many more crab people who glared at Kai and Sachiel as they were pulled past by the guards. At the end of the long hull of the boat was a throne made from perfectly crafted stone. On the throne was the biggest spider crab in the colony.
"My queen!" The first crab spoke loudly, "We have found quite the treasure on today's morning patrol! A human and the missing prince of the Coral Reef Kingdom!"
"Bring the human to me." The queen bellowed in a low voice. Kai was pushed forward by a guard.
"My people!" She yelled throwing her arms in the air suddenly, making her long black hair sweep upward by the current. "Finally we have found a human! The destroyer of our once great kingdom!" Kai looked around the room confused. He didn't think humans would destroy a kingdom of spider crabs for no reason. Glancing around he noticed crabs missing legs and claws, no one except the queen had all their appendages.
"What happened to you guys?" Kai asked.
"You should know well enough, human." She spat back, "Your people came in massive submarines and ripped body parts from my people! Many died in their wake turning the water a deep red!"
"Wait!" Sachiel yelled, "We're on the search for such humans! They ravaged a small village and killed my friend."
"Yes we had heard tales of many villages and kingdoms destroyed by the humans." The queen looked to the first spider crab, "Naomi send word we have found the prince!" Naomi nodded and ran off to another room. "Guards take the human to the dungeons."