02
It was just like any other ocean day for Anastasia – or Ana, which she prefers.
She'll wander through their part of the ocean for a while, oblivious with the merguards following her to scrutinize every reefs and sea caves for her safety. But Ana is not Ana without trouble; and a trouble magnet she is. Still, it doesn't stop her to travel ocean to ocean, in search of … what it is she doesn't really know.
Sometimes it's pearls. Mostly, shells.
It was like any other day, except today. Because today, Ana did one thing she was asked not to. Swim close to the surface. Unbeknownst to all, Ana did this numerous times, but this time, she got closer that the sun illuminated her almost white, platinum scales.
Under the sun, it shone like it's the color of the ocean, her eyes. For her, it was the greatest gift she had received in her life. A light in the darkness under the sea.
Propelling further up, she smiled as the sunrays gently caressed her cheek. Light under the sea is nothing like the sun. Under the sea, they have these lamps that produce blue hue unlike the sun, which can light all kinds of colors.
As she neared the surface, she saw something sparkle. Curious, she swam closer and with narrowing her eyes, she can make out a small fish, seemingly one of her tuna friends. It doesn't seem to be in struggle but it is very still that she got worried.
Her fin flicked back and forth in gentle caress to the water, cautiously approaching the nearing surface. She realized that the sunrays are not that bright compared to what she has experienced before. The sea is also still, not calm, but alarmingly tense. She could feel something is off in the surface.
Still, she swam nearer and nearer up.
It was not one of her friends.
She cautiously poked it and held it in her hands. It does not have gills and its fin are not flicking. Odd.
Tugging it gently, she was surprised it was connected to something. At the surface. Tugging it harder this time, she pricked one of her fingers and was not given the chance to let go when it surged her forward.
Tug.
Tug.
She immediately let go of the odd fish and tried to swam back to the darkness. Before she can do, she gasped at the immense pain in her fin and immediately recognize the smell of her blood.
Looking over her shoulder, her fin got stuck with one of the silver thing that pricked her fingers. Tugging her fin to her, the pain increased and she cried more. Her fin got hooked.
With all her might she tugged it harder, her fin got ripped but not before the hook greatly grazing her tail with deep wound.
Her cries echoed the ocean and almost made herself deaf with her screams. Suddenly, the water surged her back and forth, and with her tail and fin deeply wounded, she was not able to fight back.
Ana immersed herself in the darkness that slowly robbed her of her senses.
It hurt all over.
She could feel something moving her and could hear something ringing in her ears. she could not make it out as it is unfamiliar to her. A gentle tug on her shoulder made her open her eyes.
She was instantly blinded by the light and could only make out a faint outline of something blocking the light and moving in front of her. She closed her eyes again, to soothe it from the brightness for a while and tried to open her eyes again, wider this time.
But her eyes were not used to this light and to no avail, still can't make out what's in front of her. With pain all over, she closed her eyes and succumbed once again to the darkness that was slowly getting familiar to her.
"Ana? Ana?"
"Mother?"
"Ana! Where have you been?!"
"Just .. surface-"
"I told you not to go there! Did I?! How many times …" Carla gently rubbed her forehead and flowed aimlessly toward the large clam in the center of the room.
Ana guiltily bowed her head in shame, looking up to her mother through her dark lashes, her dark hair hovering gently around her. She followed her mother and gently, sat on the sea floor, laying her head on her mother's copper tail.
"I'm sorry, Mother."
"You always say that. But there you are again."
"I just- I don't know, I do love the sea-here-"
"-but you love the sun more." Her mother's face softened. "It's beautiful isn't it."
Ana, cautiously nods, suspicious of her mother's words. Her mother gently caresses her hair, smoothing it out from floating in the water. "Yes, I can see everything! But mother, I don't come up at the surface. Please believe me."
"I know. I'm just worried you'll never come back."
"Mother, I won't go anywhere. The ocean is big, but not big enough for me to be away from you!" Ana smiled her toothily grin.
Carla smiled which made Ana frown because her mother's smile is not her usual. It's almost sad. "I know. But I-I'm afraid."
"Afraid of what?"
"Mother is afraid that you not leaving won't be a choice to you anymore."
You always remember the sea, the ocean. Yet you always forget that there's a surface. A world where I'm not given any choices. A world where I can't reach you.
Update: 04/27 For Ana's mermaid reference, I based it on how the mermaids look like in Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides. In this, mermaids don't eat humans, they are aware of people at the surface but avoid them. They can be vicious but not really violent. Anything more than that will be unveiled in the following chapters :)
