Those who were taken...
They never came back, dragged beneath the waves never to return.
Their haunting screams were a symbol of their horrific deaths.
Like shadows they lay in wait, the deep blue waters hiding them from view.
With sharp claws they...
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~•~
When Cally awoke that morning, Atlas was gone. She hadn't realized it before, but she knew it now. Calliope missed his presence and that scared her more than anything she had ever encountered. She always wondered where he was when he hadn't been with her, and at the time she had thought that to be simple curiosity, but last night's events proved to be rather enlightening.
She wasn't the only one to find enlightenment that night. Atlas stormed from the tent as soon as the sun rose that morning. He had never protected anyone before, never spent time with anyone, never grown to care for another, but he had now.
He has protected Calliope, provided for her, learned of her culture and people, and now he... he cares. And so he was paying the price. He had wounded his little human in some way, therefore he would do everything in his power to fix it. The time he had with her was limited and he couldn't afford to lose the little trust she had in him.
When he arrived back on the beach that morning, he was soaking wet but very proud of himself. He caught a large fish that was a delicacy to his people and scavenged fruit from a neighboring uninhabited island, which was in his mind, the most perfect meal.
When he returned to the tent, she was gone, and for that he was thankful. She was most likely bathing and the girl was always happy after a bath. In the meantime, he set about preparing the fish and fruit. He cooked the meat just like he had seen her do many times before and sliced the orangish fruit, removing the nut.
He couldn't help wondering about the humans and the kinds of relationships they shared. Cally had told him all sorts of things and he wondered how he felt about Cally in human terms. He thought about married people and how she explained their love for each other. They pledged themselves to each other for their length of life on earth.
Did he.. did he love Calliope like she said spouses did? He really wasn't sure. To be fair, Atlas didn't really know what love like that was supposed to feel like. Humans accepted only one lover and at first he thought that was silly, but did he know anyone else like Cally? Did he know any other female who had her smile, her aspirations, her little human legs?
He didn't. To Atlas, there was only one Cally--one Cally just for him.
By the time all was finished, Atlas was quite proud. Already he knew exactly how she would react with her bashful smile, blushing cheeks and kind words. Yes, this would certainly fix whatever wrong he had done to her.
When Cally returned after her morning wash, she was surprised to see Atlas waiting for her with fish already cooked and sliced mango fully prepared for her to eat.
