Zee of the Sea

Chapter 9:

Zatanna felt the tank be rolled somewhere. She swam off the floor of the tank as she heard people talking and a banging. She focused and managed to hear what was going on.

"Our next item for offer is a rarity. One hasn't existed for thousands of years and our resident immortal can verify that," said Talia "We give you-" the sheet was removed from over the tank "-the siren!"

Zatanna swan back, trying to get as far away as possible from the bidders. People marvelled at her as she swam around the tank in the hope to find an escape.

"200 gold coins!"

"300!"

"People, please, this will probably be the last siren in all of our lifetimes," said Talia "Bidding begins at," she hit her gavel "3000 gold coins,"

"3500!"

"4000!"

"4500!"

"4700!"

"5000!"

Zatanna hated hearing them shout out numbers. She was a living, breathing, sentient being yet they treated her like livestock.

"100'000!"

Zatanna looked up and saw the person who would most likely own her. She cowered at the sight of him as he walked into the courtyard and took his seat. It was David, the Black Manta, an evil sea criminal.

"100'000, going once, going twice," said Talia, lifting the gavel.

"150'000 gold coins and 2000 silver!" said someone.

"200'000!" David said.

Zatanna swam away from them in fear. She covered her eyes as she began to cry again, her glowing tears floating up in the water. 200'000 gold coins was the same as 20'00'000 dollars.

Dick reached the island and pulled off the scuba equipment. He pulled his backpack on and started in the direction of the monastery.

"200'000'000 gold coins!" David announced.

"300'500'00!"

People stared at him in shock. Zatanna looked up from where she was curled up on the bottom of the tank. She looked horrified and started to swim around the tank again. She was scared of going to the top because there were armed minions of Ra's and Talia's standing around the top.

Zatanna swam up to the top and the minions pointed their guns at her. She was determined not to be David's property.

"Sold to David for 700'000'000 gold coins!" Talia said, banging her gavel.

Zatanna gasped and dived back down. She turned back up and swam at top speed. She jumped from the tank before the minions could shoot at her and she landed on the ground. The collar smashed and fell off. Zatanna sat up and began crawling away from them.

"The inhibitor collar is off!" someone shouted.

Zatanna took a breath and tried to use her siren abilities. Since they were new, she didn't know how to activate them. In despair, she used the oldest mermaid trick in the book. Zatanna lifted her hands and took hold of the water in the pipes. Everyone stopped when they heard the creak of pipes. Zatanna pulled her hands in and the water came bursting into the courtyard and flooding it.

Dick was hidden behind a pillar in the courtyard when the water came. He began swimming through the currents and kept having to take hold of things to steady himself. Dick swam to the surface that was like a stormy sea. He took a breath and dived back down. The waves must have moved him since he was closer now.

Zatanna was curled up on the floor as she lost control of the water and it used her as a catalyst to defy the laws of physics. She looked up and saw Black Manta coming down in her direction. Zatanna screamed and increased the currents. She began swimming away but he grabbed her tail and pulled her into his arms. He grabbed her wrists and held them behind her and held a knife to her throat.

"You're mine," he said to her.

Dick had just reached the bottom when he saw Black Manta holding Zatanna hostage. Unfortunately, he was beginning to feel light-headed from lack of oxygen. Zatanna saw him and screamed. She began thrashing and the water currents pulled the knife from Black Manta's hand.

Zatanna broke free of him and swam to her boyfriend's side. She helped him to the floor before kissing him so he could breathe. Dick gasped in breath and smiled at her. She smiled back at him and kissed him again. The water suddenly dropped and drained away. Zatanna wrapped her arms around his neck as she knelt beside him.

"Found you," Dick said as she pulled away.

Zatanna laughed.

"We gotta get outta here," she said, smiling as tears began to fall.

"Zatanna, look out!" Dick suddenly shouted.

Zatanna turned around to see Vandel Savage swinging a sword at her. She couldn't react in time and she fell back against Dick with her blood bleeding from her. Dick took her in his arms in horror. Zatanna began gasping for breath as her ability to survive in anything but water diminished.

"I can still make my monthly quota by selling her corpse," said Vandel, raising his sword again.

Dick backwards rolled out of the way with Zatanna in his arms. He got up and ran into the monestry.

Zatanna's head lolled against Dick's shoulder as he ran with her in his arms. She felt cold... something an Italian mermaid should never feel. She closed her eyes and thought about the Italian sea just off the coast of Rome, her home. The warm waters, the soft sand, the way sunlight would glint off the top of the water which set dry land ablaze. Sindella would always ward her away from big ships because of when she was speared by one.

Dick ran out of the monestry and jumped off the dock. He completely submerged himself and Zatanna under the water. Zatanna's dark red blood still leaked through the water like ink. He began shaking her in hopes to revive her in some way. They sunk to the bottom of the dock and Dick lay her on the sands. He stroked her black hair out of her face, leaned down and kissed her. He leaned back and took a small breath. Despite Zatanna not being the one to initiate the kiss, it still worked and he could breathe. Dick crossed his hands over her wound and attempted to put pressure on it.

Zatanna floated around just off the coast of Rome. She felt wonderful to be back home again but... something was missing. Dick! Dick was missing. Zatanna swam down to the bottom of the sea and touched it before turning to swim back up in an attempt to break her record for swimming down 10 metres and back. When she surfaced, she was in a cove. Sindella would take her there a lot. It was apparently where she was born 190 years ago. During the mermaid mating season, they'd turn human and, when the female bore a child, they'd remain human under the water until the child was born.

Zatanna swam to the shore and pulled herself up. She splashed her tail in the water. She looked out at the sea as the Sun set. She looked at her lap and saw one of her scales had fallen off. She picked it up and held it up to the Sun. The Sun shone through it and made the gold tip shine. Zatanna could barely recognize her own tail anymore because she was used to it being bright red with black tipped scales. Now it was violet with golden tipped scales. Zatanna lay back against the sand with her arms behind her head.

"190 years..." she said but sat up when she realized "I'm going to live for centuries but Dick... he won't,"

She began to cry and she curled up at the thought of living without him.