Under the Sea

Thank you for all of you who reviewed my story! It makes me so happy! And now for the second chapter!

Chapter 2: The Encounter

"A Fire-born? Swimming!" Tala laughed. "I need to get my camera, this is priceless"

"Shut up" Kai said as he walked back into his cabin.

"What about your grandfather?" Brian asked as they followed him. "You know he would have you punished for even thinking of going into the water"

"What my grandfather doesn't know can't hurt him" Kai said grabbing some swimming trunks. "Are you guys coming with me?"

"Are you insane?" Rei yelped. "The water's freezing!"

"When has Kai ever been sane?" Brian asked grabbing his swimming gear. "I'm going in. I hear it's warmer than here on the surface"

"We better take the air tanks" Tala said. "And a tracker so we can find our way back"

"Good idea" Kai said throwing him a tracker.

"OK then" Rei said sighing. "I guess I'm coming too"

"Really?" Tala said looking at him surprised. "I thought cats hate water"

"Yes" Rei said getting his stuff. "Curiosity killed the cat may have killed the cat, but satisfaction brought it back"

"Whatever" Kai said leading the way to the lower decks where it was easy to enter the water. "There's a communicator in your breathing mask. We have only 2 hours of air so if you start to loose air, go back to the surface. We'll find you through your tracker"

The others nodded and dived into the water. Immediately, they felt warmer as they slipped beneath the waves and down into the depths.

"Can everyone hear me?" Kai's voice came into everyone's mask.

"Yeah" Tala said.

"Loud and clear" Rei replied.

"Heh" Brian muttered as they swam further down.

"Damn" Tala said. "How fast are these girls?"

"Well they have fins and we don't" Rei started.

"Spare me the lecture" Tala said.

They swam for a while with no talking, until they reached the bottom. They just stared. It was like a whole other world.

"Wow" Tala's voice spoke.

"Yeah" Kai said looking around before checking his gage. "Only an hour and a half left. Lets make this quick"

They started to swim among the coral looking for the mermaids. Suddenly they heard giggling and as they peered over a rock saw the girls.

"Wow" one of them said. "That was close. I can't believe that human found out what we are"

"I'm guessing" said Pai. "That he's seen us before"

"Well if that's the case" said the red head. "We'll have to kill him. No one is to know that we went above the surface"

"You are cold" Pai said swatting her fins at the red head.

The red head smirked Tala's smirk. "I know"

Just then Tala lost his grip on some coral as he tried to lean forwards and fell forward. The others looked fearfully as he fell right on top of the surprised red head.

"What the hell!" she screeched hitting him with her tail in an effort to get away.

Pai swam forward and grabbed Tala. Seeing that he had a breathing mask, she grabbed it to pull it off when another thing grabbed her.

"Let go of me!" she shouted trying to hit the person.

Kai and Rei swam forward to check on Tala. They looked frightened as they saw he was loosing air and fast. Bubbles were gushing out of his mask that was partly off his face. He was starting to loose conscious.

"We need to do get him up to the surface! He'll drown!" Rei shouted at Kai.

Suddenly, the red head ripped off Tala's mask and shoved something into his mouth. He started to gasp until he realized that he was breathing under water. Rei, Brian, and Kai looked at him in shock. Pai slowly turned to Brian and handed him a small blue jewel about the size of a small pill. She made a motion to swallow it. He did and soon he could breathe under the water as well. The red head hand one to Kai and Rei as well.

"What is this magic?" Kai asked.

"The gifts of the sea" Pai said. "But this magic won't last long. Maybe for a day or so at the most"

"Why were yon on the ship?" Tala asked.

"We do that for every ship that sails the waters" Pai answered. "It's the agreement that the other nations gave to us when we agreed they could use our ocean for transportation"

"And who are you?" asked the red head. "I'm Tanya"

"I'm Kai" Kai said. "Of the fire born"

"You're a fire nation's child?" Tanya said gaping. 'I should take a picture! You've got to be the first one since ….well ever! I wish I had a camera this is priceless!"

The others snickered while Kai glared at them.

"I'm Rei" Rei said. "And this is Brian. We're of the animal nation"

"Oh, so beastmen huh?" Pai said. "Interesting. And I'm guessing that you're an ice child"

Tala was surprised.

"How did you-"

"You're freezing the coral behind you" Pai said shrugging. "Now you should return to the surface. And don't come back. There are many of our kind who is not fond of you"

"Thank you" Kai said nodding as the two girls swam with them to the surface.

Pai and Tanya watched the four swim out of site with interest.

"Something tells me that we'll be seeing them again" Tanya said grinning at her friend.

"Whatever" Pai said starting to swim off in the direction of the royal city. "We need to report to the rulers at the palace. Besides, I have to tell Prince Tyson what happened. He's always into that kind of stuff"

"Really?" Tanya looked surprised. "I thought he hated all humans after that fisherman killed his mom"

"I think that he wants to know why they hurt our kind" Pai said as they swam into the palace's grounds.

WWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWW

/On Prince Kai's Ship/

"Can you believe that?" Tala said as they sat around the fire sipping hot ale.

"So that's how Robert was able to talk to them" Brian said nodding. "I bet he's trying to get an alliance"

"That would be very smart on their part" Rei said sipping some the ale. "The water nation is very strong, ever since the water and storm nation combined to become one"

"Whatever happened to the Drakes?" Tala asked.

"Some say that the water nation turned them into merpoeple so that they could live in the water nation. Others say that they all died off but passed their powers to the water nation" Kai said looking into the fire. "I remember that the storm nation was strong, but they didn't want to rule any lands after what had happened during the Great War, there were so few of them left"

"I think it's a tragic story" Rei sighed.

"Well, at least they weren't completely destroyed like the wind nation" Brian said. "They were strong, but few in number"

"Yes" Kai said before standing. "I must return to the fire nation at once! I need to talk to my grandfather about the earth nation's intentions"

The others nodded standing as well. It would be better if they attended the meeting. That way, Kai wouldn't be subjected to punishment by his grandfather.

WWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWW

well what did you think of this chapter? please review!