Tails Are For Water, Legs Are For Land (Unedited)

Chapter 7 - Algae!

The first thing I noticed when I woke up was that the sun was almost setting, meaning I slept for almost an entire day. The second thing I noticed was the dry blood surrounding me. "Algae!" I mumbled to myself.

This is bad. I stood up and almost fell back down. I reached for a banana to eat. After a couple, some of my strength was replenished but not all of it. I walked around the island, sticking close to the shore, looking for seaweed to wrap my injuries.

Eventually, I noticed the throbbing pain coming from my left foot. I looked down and I gagged. I was missing my left pinkie toe. In its place was a short, bloody stump. I closed my eyes and took a deep breath.

I opened my eyes and looked down at it. I grabbed a piece of seaweed that I collected and sat down on the sand. Taking a deep breath, I closed my eyes and pressed the seaweed onto the stub. I screamed, but didn't let go of the seaweed. Instead, I pressed it harder.

I opened my eyes and took a deep breath. Slowly, the screaming pain turned into a constant stinging pain. I wrapped the other ends of the seaweed around my foot and tied it in a simple knot.

I stood up shakily and decided I had enough seaweed to wrap my wounds. I took my tattered dress off, leaving me in just a bra.

I took a long piece of seaweed and started it at my hip. I wrapped it around my waist as I screamed as the salt hit my wounds. I kept going until I ran out of the piece.

Grabbing another piece, I continued the process until my ribcage was completely covered. I wiped the tears away and wrapped the extra seaweed around my wrist to change it later and put my dress back on.

I was tired, but I decided that I needed to keep swimming north. By now, they should have troops out searching for me. I heard rustling and laughing. "Josh!" a girl giggled and they stumbled forward out of the forest. They froze when they saw me.

"Oh my God!" the girl said. She put her hands over her mouth and the boy who I assumed was Josh just stared at me. "Are you okay?" he finally asked.

"Um..." I said. "Yes?" I said.

"Look at all the blood, Josh," she said pointing at my ribcage. She scanned my body and her eyes stopped on my foot. "She needs a hospital, Josh!" she said. He nodded and didn't take his eyes off of my injuries.

She rolled her eyes and took her phone out of her purse. She dialed a number and started talking. "No hospital!" I said. She ignored it and I knew I was in trouble.

She hung up and said, "What happened to you?" My eyes darted around. It was just starting to get dark, maybe I could use a pearl and lose them in the dark.

I looked back to the water and saw a boat approaching. It had red and blue flashing lights and a siren. "What's that?" I asked.

"The lifeguard. They're going to get you to a hospital and help you," she said.

"Algae, algae, algae!" I mumbled.

"Algae?" she asked. My eyes widened. She wasn't supposed to hear that. She put her hand on my shoulder. "It's okay. Everything will be al- is that a crown?" she asked looking up at my head.

My eyes widened again as I felt the top of my hair. Sure enough, my crown was resting there. I tugged it out of my hair, making some of my tangled hair fall out of its style and held it out infront of me.

"Algae!" I mumbled to myself again. I looked at the crown in my hands and groaned. "Why, why, why? Why me?" I asked. I had a few tears streaming down my side as they threw the anchor down. A few men were coming in on an inflatable boat. It was an orange color and they soon pulled up to shore. Two men took my wrists and led me to the small boat. "Let go of me!" I shouted and struggled in their grip.

"I think she's a little," she waved a finger in a circle motion next to her temple. "You know," she said. The men nodded. "Grab a sedation," one said. A man on the small boat nodded and grabbed a needle. He got off and started walking towards me. I was screaming and kicking when a girl came up from the water.

She has to be a mermaid, I thought. She was even wearing a dress.

"Let her go," she said. She looked at me and winked. "Let her go now," she repeated. She had blue hair and blue eyes. I saw realization hit her as she looked at the crown and that back to my face.

Her mouth an 'O' and she mouthed 'Oh my Gods'. She bowed her head and knelt down on one knee infront of me. "Please, forgive me. I did not recognize you in your current state, your highness."

I blushed and would have rubbed the back of my neck if I could. "Uh, apologies accepted, thank you. What's your name?" I asked. The people around us laughed and a man pointed out the crown in my hand.

"Blue, your highness," she said. I nodded. "Rise, Blue," I said. So, definitely a mermaid. I had sensed an aura, but I wasn't sure. She nodded and rose. "Please, call me Lia," I said.

She nodded. "Princess Cordelia, what has happened to you?" she asked.

"What are you two doing? What kind of joke is this?" a man holding me asked.

"Joke? Why, this is Princess Cordelia of the kingdom of Stephanie!" she said. "Let her go now!" The men looked at each other and nodded. They advanced towards Blue with a needle. "No!" I yelled. "Run!" I kicked one of the men holding me and he doubled over clutching his crotch. I looked at him and shrugged. I hadn't kicked him that hard, so I didn't know why he was overreacting so much.

I ran towards the ocean and grabbed Blue's hand. The remaining men got out of the inflatable boat and started running towards us. We stepped into the ocean and I screamed and slowed down as the water seeped through the seaweed covering my foot. Blue  looked at me and looked for the problem.

She moved to carry me bridal style and I fell on my back screaming as the saltwater seeped through the seaweed. The water rushing around me was the last thing I saw before I blacked out from pain.