Eridan Ampora was a… Difficult troll to tolerate. He was arrogant, he was dramatic, and when he was upset, a quite common occurrence, he could get just plain nasty. But even he didn't deserve the hard hand he was dealt in life. After a relaxed and joyful childhood full of love and magic, adolescence was like a slap in the face, bringing more tears and more pain than even he could handle.

Morning as usual, was morning. Unlike most trolls, Eridan never slept in his cocoon. He hated the slimy green soper getting in every crack and hollow of his body, and it always made his hair obnoxiously greasy. So instead, every single night when the sun rose high in the sky, Eridan would change into his pajamas, dive into the chilly Alternian Sea and curled up in the warm protective tail of his giant seahorse custodian, Neptune. It was childish he knew, but nothing made him feel safer. He loved his lusus, they were close, and together, their rest was always peaceful. That particular night was no different, when he woke up in the morning; there was a gentle whinnying in his ear, and a snout nudging at his neck. The troll rolled over, groaning for five more minutes, still not all awake as he snuggled the creature's tail. He had each of his limbs wrapped tightly around it. With an impatient snort, Neptune got up from the sandy sea floor with his young troll still holding on, and began swimming towards the surface. Eridan yelped, clinging tighter. He was completely awake now, eventually managing to scramble onto his guardians back. Generally, it was a great spot for riding, but then his steed jerked to a stop, playfully flinging him onto dry land.

Smirking a bit, Eridan rolled onto his stomach and propped himself up with his elbows, chin resting on his folded hands. "Gee, thanks," He chuckled, watching as the animal splashed around, celebrating his own amusement. "See if I get ya an apple noww, don't you expect one."

He patted the white snout affectionately. "Sit tight Nep," He said, standing up and heading back inside. He immediately stripped and threw his pajamas in the wash, kicking fake wands aside as he made his way to the bathroom. He couldn't help but sneer at the mess on the floor before leaving it behind, he hated all the clutter, and he just loathed it when things were out of place. It put him in a grouchy mood, but not nearly as much as being a mess himself. That was unacceptable. Period.

So after showering up, he wrapped a towel around his waist and worked on his hair, artfully sculpting the tresses into a styled mess. He was the only troll who ever bothered to add a dash of color to that universal black they all supported. He liked it, the purple made his eyes brighter, and when he was older and they finally shifted into his blood color, it would look even better. After every last strand was in place, he dressed, grabbed his rifle, and slung Neptune's favorite saddle over his shoulder. And just when he was about to walk out the door, he paused, backed into the kitchen and plucked a juicy red apple from the bowl on the counter. All set, he headed outside only to be stopped once more, though not by his own mind. What stopped him now, was his computer. It gave a spirited sort of chime, alerting him that someone was actually trying to communicate with him.

Frowning, the seadweller approached the computer. No one usually contacted him on their own, his constant griping about the lowblooded filth that inhabited the land of their planet and his salivating over war history got under the skin of most everyone he knew. He was lonely at times, but he had his custodian, and he did by some miracle have a moiral, so it was most of the time quite bearable. It was stupid really, but he always seemed to get so flustered around others of his kind, the lowbloods especially. Though his claim to superiority was nothing but pure truth, the talk of dooms day devices and actually killing them all was mostly just talk. It was intended to make him sound tough, like a hero from his war books, but he always wound up looking like a giant prick instead. It didn't earn him too many friends, and yet, from the age of just two sweeps, his moiral stuck with him. He and Feferi Pixsis were just meant for each other. Even back then she was all he had. So when he saw her troll tag and her signature pink type, his heart jumped in his chest. Though it turned out that the chime had only meant to alert him of her logging on, Eridan decided he wanted to message her anyway, they hadn't talked in a while.

cuttlefishCuller [CC] began trolling caligulasAquarium [CA]

CC: W)()()()()(-E-E-E-E-EW.
CA: fef your online
CC: Yea)(...
CA: its been forevver
CA: i wwas gettin wworried kinda
CC: Yes, it was a pretty close call, and got kind of complicated.
CC: But Sollux finally came t)(roug)(, my tablet is fixed!
CA: man that guy
CA: hes a fuckin drama machine it is fuckin pathetic
CC: YOUR STUPID FIS)(Y FAC-E IS T)(-E DRAMA MAC)(IN-E T)(AT DO-ES NOT)(ING BUT W)(IN-E AND GLUB.
CC: 38P
CA: fuck SORRY
CA: i wwas just really wworried and stressed out i thought you wwere dead
CA: and i just spent all this time here wworryin and thinkin about stuff
CA: and i decided i havve something i wwant to tell you
CA: that ivve been meaning to get off my nub for a wwhile noww
CC: O)(, really?
CC: T)(at's good! Actually, I )(ave somet)(ing I )(ave been meaning to say to you too.
CA: wwhoa really
CA: uh
CA: wwhat is it
CA: you go first
CC: Mm, okay.
CC: But t)(is isn't easy to say!
CA: yeah i knoww
CA: its ok maybe i wwill understand more than you think
CA: wwe might evven be sayin the same thing
CC: Okay, I )(ope so.
CC: I t)(ink...
CC: Now t)(at you're behaving, and aren't really posing much of a threat to our people anymore...
CC: I t)(ink it is not really necessary for me to be your moiral.
CA: wwhoa
CA: wwait
CA: wwhat
CC: 38(
CC: I am really sorry, -Eridan. It )(as just been so )(ard looking after you and keeping you out of trouble!
CC: It )(as taken its toll, and )(onestly I am really ex)(austed.
CA: fuck
CA: this isnt what
CA: i dont knoww i wwasnt expectin this at all
CA: im not sure i can handle this
CC: I'm sorry! 38'(
CC: It will be t)(e best for bot)( of us. We can just sort of be...
CC: Regular friends instead.
CA: no
CA: please dont
CA: look im bein serious here dont do this
CA: i wont even use my weird accent while i type ok so you know im bein really dead serious and honest about this
CC: Uh...
CC: Okay, I am being serious and honest too. SEE?
CA: ok good
CA: are you sure you arent bein hasty about this
CA: i mean we are supposed to be fated to be moirails arent we
CA: isnt that how it works
CA: you cant just throw all that away cause youre sick of me
CC: I am not sick of you, Eridan! I still really like you.
CC: In order to be destined for moirallegience, both people have to be on board, don't you think?
CC: But I cannot do it anymore. So I think it just wasn't meant to be all along.
CC: And really, you just don't need me anymore. You are free to do as you wish! We both are.
CC: I can't look after you anymore.
CA: I DIDNT EVER NEED ANYONE TO LOOK AFTER ME
CA: i was totally fuckin fine
CA: and the only reason i put up with stickin my flipper in this fuckin shithole quadrant with you was
CC: Was what?
CA: nevermind
CC: Tell me!
CA: ok fine
CA: i apologize for losin my shit over this i was just caught off guard is all
CA: but maybe its a good thing really
CA: actually i might a been proposin the same thing to be honest
CC: Oh?
CA: yeah
CA: fef have you thought about
CA: since you dont wanna be pale with me no more
CA: the possibility a some other type of arrangement with me
CC: What do you mean?
CA: i mean
CA: somethin a bit more
CA: kinda reddish
CA: like
CA: brighter red
CC: 38O
CC: No, I hadn't thought about it!
CA: ok well what do you think about it
CA: now that youre thinkin about it
CC: Um...
CC: I really don't know about that.
CA: why not i thought you said you liked me
CC: I do! But I don't know if it's really in that way.
CA: couldnt it be though
CA: dont you think theres room in your collapsin and expandin bladder based aquatic vascular system for those feelins
CC: I've never had a chance to consider anything like that! I have just spent all my time worrying about you and trying to keep you from irritating everybody or hurting yourself.
CC: It took all my energy.
CC: I don't think I have anything left for those feelings either.
CA: oh god
CC: What?
CA: im the biggest fuckin idiot who ever lived
CA: i cant BELIEVE i just opened up to you like a chump when i knew what was comin
CA: i am one sad fuckin brinesucker
CA: overemotional sappy trash youre right im not better than anybody
CA: im worse than anybody
CA: EVERYBODY
CA: all the bodies
CC: STOP!
CC: God.
CC: Will you just clam up for once in your life?
CC: Always carping and carping and carping!
CC: You go completely overboard with your emotions, always looking to reel in drama wherever you can.
CC: I am up to my gills in it! I just can't salmon the strength anemonemore.
CA: i cannot
CA: BELIEVE
CA: you are doin the fish pun thing while youre breakin up with me
CA: real nice
CA: whoops i mean REEL nice
CC: HEHEHE, sorry.
CC: But really, this shouldn't be as bad as it sounds.
CC: It's time to focus on something new and -EXCITING.
CC: So )(ang in t)(ere, -Eridan.
CC: I )(ave to go now! Sollux is having trouble, and I )(ave to go )(elp )(im.
CC: BY-E!
CA: wwait
CA: dont go

cuttlefishCuller [CC] ceased trolling caligulasAquarium [CA]

CA: glub

Eridan just stared at the screen, throat hot and uncomfortably tight. After all they've been through together, it they were over, just like that. She dumped him on his ass, just like that. He hadn't been simply over dramatizing it, he honestly didn't know if he'd be able to handle the break up. Feferi was his rock, the only troll who he thought believed in him, the only troll he had been sure would never leave him lonely. He felt tears stinging his eyes, and though he was very much alone, he let his head crash down on his keyboard so the purple tears streaking down his face were completely concealed. Rejection had been bad enough, but the loss of a moiralegience? He felt sick to his stomach.

Though it would solve nothing, Eridan still felt the need to repeatedly thump himself in the head, as if killing of more brain cells would somehow bring Feferi back to him. But it mostly just put the nail in the coffin, he was pitiful. "I don't wwanna livve anymore," He mumbled, sniffling pathetically. When he finally did lift his head up twenty minutes later, he felt like the scum of Alternia, but he knew he couldn't just lie around and mope, he still had a purpose, if just one. He had a responsibility he couldn't just ignore.

Feferi's lusus still needed to be fed.

Giving a tired sneer, he pushed himself up, kicking his swivel chair over as the heart break turned into a bitter anger. "I'll hunt for that fuckin monster," He grumbled, snatching up the saddle and Ahb's Crosshairs before storming out the door. "I'll hunt so wwell she'll beg me to flush for her."

So still seething, Eridan chucked the apple into the sea, earning a sad, confused sort of look from his custodian. "Wwhat?" He demanded. "I got you your fuckin apple, stop lookin at me like that!"

Neptune bit the apple by the stem, swimming towards the shore and setting it carefully at his trolls feet. He knew Eridan better than anyone, and he could tell something was very, very wrong. The seahorse snorted softly, nudging the apple closer in an attempt to cheer the teen up. "You eat it," He seemed to say. "You need it more than me."

Eridan sighed, kneeling down with a toss of his cape. "Just take it," He said, holding out the treat in a much gentler manner. Neptune had raised him with manners, after all. "I don't wwant it."

Honestly, his stomach hurt. It was a direct result of the situation with the young princess, unlike normal trolls, Eridan's emotions always managed to affect his physical state. He could never eat when he was upset, but Neptune had no such restraints. The creature ate the entire thing whole. Eridan mounted his softly whinnying steed, powering up his gun and holding it at the ready, letting the lusus beneath him tear through the waves at top speed. His speeds beat even those Feferi reached. Though she swam much faster than Eridan on account of actually living under the water, Eridan did spend much more time in it than she knew. He did it in secret, spending the time in the one place that was only his.

He almost dismounted right then, his desire to visit this place tugging at his crippled heart. But no, he had work to do. He couldn't just leave, as much as he craved it. He'd have to find another way to express the emotions that threatened to ruin him there and then.

That was the day that Eridan Ampora filled the ocean with blood.

His energy never faltered, he shot down every flash of white he saw, and soon, there were too many corpses for Feferi to collect on her own. Body after body splashed into the sea. Eridan even steered Neptune beneath the surface, targeting creatures who had thought themselves safe. And though the teen never seemed to tire, his loyal custodian began to wheeze and shake, gradually slowing to a stop until finally, drifting exhausted to the sea floor.

Lusi had been dropping like flies all morning and well into the afternoon, the ocean was clouded with the many colors of their blood. But this, his own loyal guardian sinking down as well? His whole frame shook with worry. He took a deep breath through his gills, swimming down to kneel beside the shuddering creature just as a pain screech escaped his muzzle. The sound tore at Eridan's stomach. "N-Neptune," He choked, casting his weapon aside and pulling his custodians head into his lap. "Neptune please be okay, givve my hand a lick if you're okay, please…"

With a sad, defeated whine, Neptune turned his head away from the outstretched hand, instead nuzzling the troll's stomach in a last attempt to comfort him. "God no don't do this," Eridan pleaded, hugging his lusus tight. "Please don't leavve me, I need you Nep, please…"

It was too late, he knew it, Neptune wasn't breathing, his custodian was gone. But he couldn't just let go, he wouldn't just leave him. Tears bubbled up from his eyes, forming flawless purple spheres before melting into the salt water around him. He clutched the body close to his chest, begging him to do something, anything at all; it didn't matter as long as the beloved creature came back to him. "Eridan, he's GONE," Shouted a voice from above him. The voice was nauseatingly familiar, tearing at his spirit even more until he just wanted to die. "Let him be, there's nothing you can do for him now!"

"Fef don't you EVVEN touch him!" Eridan cried, tightening his grip. "If you lay one fuckin claww on my lusus so help me… G-god…" His throat constricted. He would never let her have his lusus, no, it was bad enough Neptune was dead, Eridan refused to let him become monster food. He would jump into the things jaws himself before he let that happen.

"I'm not going to touch him, grumpy gills!" She huffed, he hands on her hips. "Enough lusi have died already, you've been killing left and right all day!"

Eridan felt as if ice had frozen solid over his heart. "Are you suggestin that I wwoudl kill my own custodian?"

"No, Eridan! I would ne-"

"Because I REALLY fuckin hope you wwould know better than to be implyin somethin like that!"

"Now don't you dare try and-"

"Shut up, god dammit just shut up!" He cried, burying his face into Neptune's lifeless body. "Y-you make me fuckin sick, just leave us alone!"

"Eridan, I-"

"Just go awway!"

And finally, she did.