Author's Note: This story and chapter constitutes part of an experiment on my part. I found that further background and explication were necessary before I continued on to Chapter 13 of Sael, "Mothers and Daughters," which is itself well underway. For those who have waited for so long for the next installment of Sael, I shall offer this then, with my special thanks to Blue and Rose, whose encouragement always heartens and inspires me.

Note 1: Oh! As an aside, it's probably worth noting that I revise and update my profile with information that pertains to my stories and TLM in general, and I think perhaps to do this more often. Sometimes I wonder if the forums might be a nice venue to use as well, as I like the sense of community within the Fandom.

Note 2: I found an error in the original version of the story that undermined its internal logic. The present posted version corrects it and required significant revision which happened to add a greater element of drama to the chapter. If you read the versions posted before September the 12th, let me know if you can tell what it is and why I made it.

Publication Date: Sunday, September 6th, 2015 (Emended Thursday, November 24th, 2016)

Atalantë

Chapter 1 – Beyond the Wall of Dawn

~~~ Sunday, the 17th of November, 1793AD ~~~

~ 6:30 a.m. ~

Eastern Reaches of the Warm Sea – The Wall of Dawn

~ The Sea Kingdom ~

It was a small island, an ancient volcano actually and one that had not yet seen the end of its violent days as could attest the many smoking vents and hardened flows of lava on the seafloor surrounding it. Nearly three thousand feet it towered above the eastern rim of the seas that Men called the Caribbean, the peak itself had been long ago given the evocative name of "Mount Scenery."

Among Men the origin of the name of the island was debatable. Most maintained that it had been at first a word among the extinct natives signifying "rock." Others held that by some path torturous and lost the name had come into common use from the Arabic of all languages; this being the name in that language for the realm of the mysterious "Queen of the South" from the Book of Kings.

To Men though, unlike the towering rock itself, the long-held name of the island was uncontested. It was called Saba.

There were other isles nearby, most of these being in that day possessions of the Netherlands and Great Britain. Some of these too had been contested in the wars that had so recently been fought, mostly but not all over disputes half a world away. One such island, the next closest to the south had finer beaches and shores than Saba, which had few if any, so sheer were its cliffs. Among men it was known as Statia, this itself being a shortened form of Sint Eustace, for it had been named for a Christian martyr, legendarily the Roman General Placidus who became known, like Job in his travails, as the Man Tried by Fate.

Sailors, particularly the Sabans and Statians, knew that south and west of those isles the sea held life in great abundance and variety. Though nigh currentless, those waters were hazardous, dotted with shoals that would ground or hull a vessel that trespassed upon them; thus ships sailed with care when venturing into and across those seas, the teeming and broken waters that Men called the Saba Bank.

Little however, did the Men know of the hidden civilization that lay below those seas.

The undersea Kingdom of Atalantë was situated on a great massif of volcanic rock nigh forty miles across that rose over half a mile from the floor of the Caribbean Sea around it, finding its shallowest reaches only nine miles southwest of Mount Scenery. To the Ëarhin of Atalantë, the isle of Saba was known as "Arin," the meaning of this being "morning," for to the Merfolk, it seemed that the dawn came from beyond it and to its south, lying as it did just to the northeast of their watery realm. It was the only isle visible from within the borders of their realm. Through what must have been sheer coincidence, scholars of the old tongues of distant Arabia might have proposed the very same meaning to their "Saba" as well.

The world of the Merfolk was well defined. Their surrounding waters were called I Laucairë, "the Warm Sea," and the waters beyond the kingdom's bounds I Ráva, "the Wilderness." The northeast boundary of Atalantë was I Áraramba, "the Wall of Dawn," an undersea ridgeline crowned with a magnificent reef of living coral, rock, and white sand that arced nearly ten leagues from the north and then back around again to the southwest. To the northwest of the Dawnwall lay a broad plateau of sand, this appearing through the waters as a bluish-white expanse that sloped gradually down to a depth of more than six hundred feet before the bank at last fell away. In the dark beyond it lay the abyssal realms, and above, the Wilderness; depths into which not even the hardiest of merfolk could descend, regions into which only the most daring or unsuspecting would swim. It was in the northern reach of this expanse where the white sands met the northern extent of the Dawnwall that the Oššenan stood – Oššenan, the ancient Palace of the Sea Kings.

Wreathed in swirling midnight hues ever the Oššenan was, for little light found its way from the surface to its depths. To the eyes of the merfolk, this was normal, for all natural colors within the great deep seemed shades of blue. This is not to say that neither light nor color was entirely unknown within the deeps, that there were no yellows, oranges, or reds. There were, though very subtle such that to Men they would have been nigh imperceptible, yet the Merfolk saw with eyes different than those of Men, different yet still close akin. In the dimness of those depths, they were sensitive to the subtlest variations in shade and color, far more than those of a human would have been. On the surface, however, beneath the sun or even the full moon though they might be blinded. It took time for their eyes to adjust to the brightness.

To illuminate the depths they made themselves lights, marvelous filaments and globes that shone of their own luminescence through some ancient artifice, one that if ever Men had known it, had long been lost to them. Welling forth the most diffuse golden and silver halos, no flame could to be found within them.

The numbers and brightness of those lanterns, their variegated colors and radiances, these were greatest at times of great festivals, and by far foremost among the places where they were to be seen was within and about the waters surrounding the Oššenan. That morning, though, even though it was to be a day of celebration and thanks, the Queen of Atalantë and her seven daughters were far from that place, far from their home.

~ Breath of Air ~

"Girls, is everyone ready?" A soft and melodious voice rung through the dim morning waters, though even had a human been present he or she could not have heard it. "Hold hands and wait here. I'll motion when it's safe to come to the surface."

There was a moment of quiet, flanked only by the washing by of the waves above as the eldest of the mermaids looked with care into the eyes of each of her daughters. Finding understanding, albeit mixed with both anxiousness and excitement, she decided it was time.

Athena looked upward, her eyes growing wide in reverence and awe, remembering the first time that she too had risen above the waves. Beside and below her, seven little mermaids followed their mother's gaze up to the surface … all save for the youngest that is, for her eyes had never left it.

Above and beyond the passing waves flew the Sun, its brilliant white disc and shining halo surrounded by a nimbus of sapphire that rippled and wavered before Athena's very eyes. Around the young Queen and her daughters there descended a glorious shower of slender blue rays, their darks and lights interleaved; an aquatic glory that waxed and waned again and again beneath the passing waves. Even here, she could feel their warmth upon her delicate forehead, her soft cheeks, and her elegant chin.

She felt it strongly then, that yearning within her, the anxious yet restrained longing to know. She longed again to feel true warmth and dryness, to give the gift of the Sun and Moon, the rolling waves, the endless blue sky to her little daughters whom along with their father she loved more than anyone and anything else in existence. They would know green and sandy shores, running waters so sweet and so fresh their equal had never been tasted beneath the sea. They would know the keen scents and smells of the land. All of these would be a part of their world.

"Atínë dear, watch over them." she said, looking at her eldest daughter with a gentle smile and a caress of the girl's cheek.

"Yes mama." The girl smiled brightly in response feeling somewhat proud that her mother trusted her so. Ever more often, the young mermaid found herself in her mother's confidence, watching after her sisters when she was away from the palace, or for brief moments like this. Still, her mother seldom left the girls alone. Even when she had to, there were always others to watch over them to whom Attina might turn for help.

Satisfied that her words had been understood and that her eldest would watch after the other girls in her absence, Athena looked upward and flicked her tail, rising swiftly to just below the troughs. Breaching the surface, she rose slowly out of the water allowing only her crown of vermilion hair and emerald eyes to be seen.

Athena blinked several times against the already bright morning light, letting the water clear from her eyes and ears as she surveyed the waves about her; she was alert for any sign of danger to her daughters and herself. Having already deemed the waters below clear of sharks, she now sought signs of another peril.

The brightness of the sun, the dryness of the air, the need to quickly clear and then dry her lungs before breathing, they always disoriented the still-young mermaid. Deep yet gentle swells lifted and lowered her again and again in a soft rhythm as her aquamarine tail swayed beneath her. The air was quiet, with only white smudges of seabirds aloft in the skies above to be seen, their distant cries lost upon the wind as it swept across the sea. Wary of unseen danger, she held her last breath of seawater in her lungs, feeling its freshness dwindling. A cresting wave blown on the wind broke across her face, forcing her to close her eyes.

Not far away she caught a glint of sunlight, the armor of one of their three merman guardians. They were an elite few who had been hand-picked from among her husband's warriors and always escorted her and her daughters when she and they journeyed beyond the bounds. It was a necessary evil that Athena had long struggled with, one that she had learned to sometimes appreciate, yet at other times regret, feeling her freedom sorely restricted.

A gray fin rose and disappeared in a smooth motion not far away. There were dolphins about. This came as a surprise to Athena since she had not seen any such large creatures before she had surfaced. That she had missed them left her ill at ease. Had she missed anything else in what now seemed her haste to look upon the blue sky once again? The young queen took comfort that she could hear the playful chirps and clicks of the animals growing louder and closer, especially when the waves washed over her ears. It could have been worse, much worse. The dolphins and whales had always been their benefactors, even at times their guardians, though ever a mystery with their friendly but alien minds and their fascinating but inscrutable language.

A slap and toss of water sounded behind her with a slender crack, making Athena jump and twist about.

Spinning quickly and blinking her eyes over and over again, the young queen found herself still unable to focus, but the patch of crimson red that played before her and fit of coughing that ensued was enough for the woman to know what had happened. She swam as fast as she could to her youngest's side.

Having waited to clear her own lungs only once she had determined the surface safe for her daughters, Athena found herself needing now to do so quickly and before she was ready. Moreover, her last breath had grown stale. She needed to breathe. With a painful convulsion, a desperate half-cough, half-wretch, Athena forced some of the seawater from her lungs, gasping and pulling in a ragged breath immediately thereafter.

Athena felt the remaining moisture in her lungs foaming, preventing her from breathing properly. Her next drawn-out rasping wheeze proved hardly a breath at all, as she struggled to contain her unexpected panic, finally forcing up the rest of the seawater that had remained pooled and frothing in her lungs with a single desperate, choking exhalation.

"Áriel!" she cried, rasping again for air. "I … I … told you …" she paused to take in yet another pained breath. "… to wait …" she paused "… to wait below!"

"Bre … breathe out!" she paused drawing in another deep breath of the surface air, her voice beginning now to return somewhat as she fought against her distress and caught her struggling little daughter in her embrace.

"Áriel dear, push … push the water out darling, breathe out … quickly." Athena said in a soft but urgent voice as her youngest continued to cough fitfully, her eyes closed as she nestled in her mother's arms. Athena was fearful that the girl would soon faint as her confused gills and lungs both refused to work; just as she herself almost had.

Ariel coughed, trying to expel the seawater from her delicate lungs again, swaying her emerald tail back and forth in a gentle unconscious rhythm beneath her amid the crystalline waters. It was her first time to the surface, at least that she remembered. Finally, instinctively, the little mermaid managed to force most of the sea from her lungs. It hurt … just enough to make it distinctly unpleasant. Ariel felt lightheaded, as though she was going to sink, but leaned heavily against Athena as she felt the woman's reassuring arms still around her.

"Can you … breathe … darling?" she asked, cradling her youngest in her embrace, still trying to catch her own breath.

Ariel nodded her head, her eyes still closed as she rested her head on her mother's shoulder, trying to let her lungs adjust to the air as her mother had told her they must before they had set out that morning. As the little girl did so, she wondered why "dry" felt like this.

She felt the sensation of something touching her body, many somethings really, all too new and unknown for the girl to make any sense of them. She took another halting breath, one that caught in her throat as her lungs tickled, burned, then ached. They were coming more easily though, her breaths, and the odd burning, bubbling pain from within that had been prevented her from breathing had greatly diminished.

By then Athena's own head was clearing somewhat, but she waited, dreading what must come next. She had to call her daughters to the surface, the exact reason she had previously been holding her last breath of the sea; but she didn't want to leave Ariel either unprotected or alone. "Can you swim dear?" she said, looking down at her youngest daughter.

The girl nodded her head, her eyes still closed, and pulled slightly away from her mother, only to remain within arm's reach. This was enough to satisfy the young queen. "Alright dear. Wait one moment while I call your sisters."

Dipping her head while still holding Ariel's hand, Athena closed her eyes and reluctantly inhaled. Letting her lungs adjust and opening her eyes once again, she looked down and called quickly to her remaining six daughters.

"You can come up now girls, but do so slowly and be very careful when you take your first breaths, the waves are high today." she said, not wanting to have her family separated any longer and distressed by the already unexpected difficulty with to her youngest. Her eyes alighted on Attina with only a brief glance at Ariel and a slight shake of her head as remonstration.

The girl shrugged and smiled sheepishly in reply. "I'm sorry, Mama."

Once again, her baby sister had just gotten away from her, Attina thought, embarrassed that she had tried with all of her heart to keep her six sisters in order, but as usual, Ariel had just slipped away. How could she possibly be expected to care for her other five sisters when she knew that Ariel would always be the one to slip away? Had it not been Ariel's birthday, Attina would have been very upset with her, which she was, but she would let the matter go … for now.

After all, it was because of Ariel that they were getting to go to the surface in the first place.

"Atínë, come up, but I'll need you to stay below and watch for sharks until we reach the cove. There's a pod of dolphins behind us." Athena said in a calm voice despite her still-passing panic. Raising her head above the waves, she once again endured the painstaking process of adjusting to the surface air, worried that her eyes had still not yet adjusted to the surface.

By ones and twos, the remaining mermaids surfaced, with Attina being the last, as she made sure her younger sisters had made it safely through the waves. All were more experienced than the youngest in surfacing, though not by much. Alana was the first to her mother's side, after Ariel that is, and took Athena's arm as she and her sisters acclimated themselves to breathing the dry air. As soon as they were together, Attina, the eldest, dove back down again, taking her mother's free hand and keeping a keen eye out not just for sharks, but other hazards as well. There were more perils than sharks within the Sea. Soon, all seven of the girls had encircled their mother and held hands with one another as they waited, just as their father had taught them. It was the only safe way.

"Mama, does it always … hurt so much? Why does it t … take … so long?" Ariel asked with some effort, drawing out the last word in a half-hearted whine while rubbing at her eyes and coughing up a last dribble of froth and seawater.

"I'm sorry darling; your body just needs time to adjust." Athena replied. "Our bodies are of the sea and made for life beneath the waves. Leaving the sea isn't natural to us. Our lungs must dry and their gills first close to breathe the surface air. That takes time, and it takes time for one's eyes to grow used to the sunlight, to the dryness of the air up here." she smiled, looking into her youngest's deep blue eyes and marveling at the girl's strikingly red hair, even more so than her own, now resplendent beneath the full light of day.

"Mama, if we aren't supposed to breathe air … why do we have lungs?" Ariel asked, the other girls now looking keenly at their mother as their eyes and lungs continued to adjust to the surface.

"No one knows love. We just do, like dolphins and some kinds of fish who use theirs to keep their depth." she offered, truly not knowing the answer, but instead repeating what she had herself been told as a girl not much older than Ariel. "… and don't worry, it always … hurts a little, but the hurt fades and does no harm. You'll get used to it … I promise."

She smiled, and looked to the others. "Do you feel it now girls … the warmth?"

The girls smiled, Ariel most happily of all as she looked upward toward the sun but then quickly averted her eyes. "It's so bright … and … and …" she thought furiously as she bathed her face and shoulders in its light and warmth, her tail continuing to sway in a gentle rhythm beneath the waves.

The Sun, it was like nothing she had ever before felt beneath the sea, not even the hot churning waters that welled up in eerie places from beneath the floor of the sea. Those were warm, even unbearably hot if one came too close, but they were also dark and very dangerous. She had only seen them once, and that had been with her father who had once taken her and her sisters for just that purpose. One thing she also remembered, the waters tasted and smelled foul about them; but aside from the discomfort it offered her eyes, Ariel saw and felt only beauty in the Sun, especially here above the waves.

"It always stings my eyes." Alana whined, shielding her eyes with her right hand as she too coughed up the little water that remained in her lungs, her green tail reflecting an iridescent pink sheen as it swept back and forth below the surface in the same gentle rhythm as those of her mother and sisters.

"Be patient dear, it will pass." Athena soothed, placing her hand to shield her second eldest daughter's eyes. "It's alright to close your eyes for a few moments if it hurts too much."

Alana looked down, nodded and frowned.

After several minutes, the lightheadedness had passed; blinded and blurred eyes had adjusted to the star of Day. The strange sounds of the surface called to them, the lapping of waves, the sighing of the wind across the gentle swells, so different and so much sharper than the sounds beneath the surface. There were smells too! At last, they were again able to breathe air, fresh air that was always clean and filled with scents, scents unlike anything else, scents that grew ever stronger as one neared land. Ariel had never experienced anything like it, and her special day was just beginning, they hadn't even come close to land!

Athena, being of course the most proficient in surfacing, knew that this was the most dangerous moment in any such expedition, especially one meant for enjoyment and celebration as this one was. There was always a chance of encountering sharks, other hostile sea life, or even humans. The humans of Arin had never troubled them in all the years since her husband had reigned as king, but this was little comfort, for they were not the only Men who passed upon these waters.

Soon, the older girls were chattering and even giggling as they splashed each other, swam playfully about their mother, or holding their breaths leapt and twisted through the air before plummeting back below the surface again. Andrína and Aquata were the first to do so, being quite careful now to keep seawater from entering their lungs until they were ready to return to the waters and home. Breathing the surface air had been too hard and painfully won to surrender so carelessly, and there was an entire day and evening that remained before that.

By now, the pod of dolphins surrounded them, and the guards had drawn in closer. Looking about a final time and seeing no threats, not even a human boat, the young Queen finally decided that all was well and that she and her daughters would be safe going further. "Come along girls." She said, signaling to Attina beneath the surface with a gentle tug at the girl's wrist. With a gentle flick of her tail, she beckoned Ariel and Alana to follow her as she leapt through the waves toward the distant shore.

With three of her girls at each side and Attina below the eight mermaids swam, with the Queen setting a gentle pace for her daughters to follow.

A distant mountain, wreathed in a ring of white cloud and mist stood in the distance, its verdant slopes ending in thousand foot sheer cliffs that fell precipitously into the sea below. The green life of the land could be seen atop them, sometimes animals, and sometimes … even humans.

Author's Note:

While I had intended this as a backdrop, like so many of the ideas I have and stories I want to tell, it seems to want to go on and tell more itself; and it shall, as what is contained or will be contained within its pages continues to prove necessary, informative, and hopefully … enjoyable. I may come back to make emendations to this first chapter (of who knows how many). If so, I'll note it in the opening author's note. Thanks for reading everyone!

Acknowledgments and Credits:

Cover Art: The cover art is "Blue Underwater with Sun Rays" by PSDgraphics.

www psdgraphics com/backgrounds/blue-underwater-with-sun-rays-background/

Creative Contributions: None that I can think of, but if I do, I'll note them here in the future!