AN: So, I've come back to this and I'm crossposting what I have on another site with here. It's been a while so, figured might as well let the readers here also get in on it.
All My Dreams Are Of Atlantis (Crumbling To Sand.)
Kaldur's eyes narrowed slightly while in his pod. It had been a year since he began this venture. One year of humbling and appearing a certain way to the world and he was certain he was about to punch something. At first, it had been difficult. He had slipped up a few times calling his father 'father' and not by his codename.
Fortunately for him, the royal couple and his ..'step father' believed it was just a tick. After all, he's lived his entire life with Black Manta. It was just natural that the boy kept calling him 'Father'. It was to be expected. Indeed, a lot of it was them giving him a chance and a pass whenever he forgot himself for a moment. He had reported only some of it to his father, when he managed to get away to somewhere more private. His father, much to his relief, had only assured him that such slip ups were only going to help his cause but to not do it often.
Yes, at this point, he had successfully fooled everyone. His 'friends', his teachers, the Traitor Calvin and even royalty. Everything was going smoothly there except-
His mother.
Sha'lain'a of Shayeris was no one's fool. Even his father had doubts he could fool the woman that birthed him. As warmly as the Atlantean had welcomed him, she watched his every move almost like a hawk. It vaguely reminded him of his father when he was helping Jackie plan some prank on some poor guard that his father needed.
However, much to Kaldur's confusion, she never did anything. He was extremely certain that she had caught him one day talking to his father behind a boulder near the dwelling he lived in with them. She had to.
He felt he needed to confront her on that because it was becoming more frustrating than not to leave it as it was. He ignored the little voice in his mind that reminded him he was undercover and this was a really stupid idea. Father would not be proud of it.
But father wasn't here either. No one he knew was here. He would have to make the call himself on whether it's useful or not.
Besides, he wouldn't mind getting down to the bottom of things as to why she left him too.
The day he picked was when Calvin Durham would not be home for hours. Whatever reason it was for, he didn't say. His mother, of course, would be. She was in the kitchen, considering what meals they would be having soon.
"Mother?" Kaldur had planned this out in his head perfectly. First, he would work his way up into asking-
"You know, Kaldur'ahm." Sha'lain'a hadn't looked at him, but at the row of fish that swam by, "I think living on land had spoiled me. How about you and I go there for lunch?"
He blinked. This...this wasn't part of his plan. Though, he hated to admit it himself, but she was right. A year of living on cooked, season-less food had taken it's toll on his tastebuds. It didn't taste as awful but it wasn't pleasing at all to him now.
"If it pleases you." Kaldur replied. The words are so formal still. Even after a year here, he couldn't muster up the slang well or even casual language.
"It does." She turned and smiled at him, "Come, my son, let us go."
His mother continued to baffle him even further once they'd reached land. There was a beach with a few people walking along on it, that paid no mind to them as they emerged from the watery depths of the sea. A transition he had gotten used to somewhat by now, per the Academy's training. Though the Academy and his father didn't quite prepare him to expect his mother walking purposely to someone's belongings left unattended and rifled through them picking out a sunscreen bottle and opening it.
"Mother, what are-?" He began to ask but she shook her head slightly.
"Quiet, Kaldur'ahm." Her voice was gentle as she pulled out hidden cash from the bottle. "Land dwellers are getting quite clever these days." She placed a pearl inside before getting up and leaving, "Now, we may go."
Again, Kaldur was completely confused as to what was going on here. Did she just steal someone's money? Like it was no problem?
They stopped at a beach shop where she went in, and in perfect American English, she spoke to someone else. Even more to his amazement, it seemed the person's first language was not that, and she switched over to their native tongue. He'd learn enough Spanish to somewhat understand what was going on but the dialect was something he didn't quite recognize and could only make out a few words at a time.
"Kaldur'ahm?" His mother's voice broke his thoughts as she gestured to the young man she was speaking to, "This person here will help you select clothing befitting of your age."
Kaldur only nodded mutely, but couldn't help watching as she went off to pick some clothing for herself.
Almost half an hour later, he managed to get some flipflops, a simple track suit with a high collar to cover his gills. They were far more noticeable now than they had been when he was much younger. A curse, he supposed, of being an Atlantean.
"Are you ready?" Sha'lain'a appeared to be more than content with her new outfit. A white tied short jacket on top of a black halter top and a white skirt with sandals. She also had a large beach bag and sunglasses. His mother had taken the liberty of braiding her hair as well, since it hung behind her still somewhat wet.
"I am." He still wasn't sure what to make of her.
"Good, let me pay the good man then." She gave him a once over but withheld herself from 'tsking'. At least that's what it felt like to him.
Was there something wrong with his choices? And why did he even care?
When they went back on the street, his mother continued to make a few more purchases that seemed even stranger to him. Why did she need a cellphone? What could she possibly want with that lotion? He found out about the lotion bit when she took it and rubbed some on her hands and arms then a little on the face before doing so to him.
"Uh- mother?"
She smiled, " It'll keep you from being too dried out here, Kaldur'ahm." She offered him some chapstick, "I'm sure your father has told you this, correct?"
He shifted a bit, " He has. Black Man-"
" You can call him however you see fit, my son."
He breathed out, but stared at her. She actually was almost as tall as his father. He still had some growing to do in that area, as he still had to look up at her. " I don't understand you."
"Understand me?" She ran her hands through his hair, making sure it was covered with a little olive oil she had purchased earlier. Her amusement with him seemed to increase when he batted at her hands, embarrassed. " Hold still, my child, I still haven't gotten the back of your head yet. You don't wish for that to dry out, believe me."
"You!" Aggravated, he stepped back, frowning, " I don't understand you. Why are you acting like.. like this? Why do you pretend you don't know what I'm doing?"
Sha'lain'a tilted her head a little, watching him, "There's a vendor near here. Let us eat and I will speak on what you wish to know."
"But-"
"Food first, Kaldur'ahm."
Why did he feel like she was laughing at him?
He told himself he wasn't sulking when she bought nearly every single bit of food along the vendor stalls except for ice cream. That, she had said, she was saving for last. With their haul, she found a nice place along the rocky shores to sit and eat their various foods and drinks.
"It was nice that there was a two for one sale going on." Sha'lain'a was saying and then devoured half of her fries. "Poseidon take it, I will be too full even for supper tonight!"
"Mother," He began again, though relished eating something that was not only hot but crunch. Gods, he missed crunchy foods. "I still don't understand this."
"Hm?" She was nearly finished, "Well, your father quite liked this spot and I do as well. He was the first to show me that the land dwellers' foods were quite exotic in their own right. It completely spoiled me for anything else." Chuckling, she wiped her mouth with a napkin, "Can you imagine having a pizza down in Atlantis? Or anything of the bread family?"
It was a funny image. One he couldn't help but laugh at. Though he caught himself. He wasn't here for this, he wanted answers. That's how this even started.
"Why did you leave Father?" Maybe now he'll at least get an answer there.
The smile on her face seemed to change, soften somehow, but still she picked up her soda and sipped it from the straw, "I do like how everyone on land has different drinks. Or drinks at all." After a moment, her gaze went to the ocean, listening to the sounds of the water rushing the beach and the distant seagulls that bothered other people. "Kaldur'ahm, I do not care what your father has planned for you to do in Atlantis. "
She looked over at him, "If you must know, I do not truthfully care what you were sent here to do. I only care about your well-being."
Again, this was really not what he had asked, but he would take it. "How did you find out? Even Calvin Durham was fooled."
Now she definitely was laughing at him . "Oh, my poor son." She brushed his cheek, amused really, "Calvin is also not your mother. He may know David well, but he doesn't know him as I do. I know when David has lied and you hold the same tendencies as he does. Though, admittedly, a little less refined."
He felt a little put off by that.
"As to why I left him, it is simple." She went back to her meal, opening a plastic container of clam chowder. "I do not condone massive loss of life. It is really that simple." She sampled it, " Though your grandfather was far better at making chowder. I do miss him."
"Massive loss of life?" Then he blinked, eyes widening a bit, " You met my grandfather?"
"Hm, genocide does tend to give one cold feet." She still ate it but sighed softly, "Truthfully, I was angry with Atlantis and its' inability to completely eradicate the Purists fractions that constantly- and still do- hound people that look more aquatic than human. Your father and I had many things in common in that. We all did. Though your grandfather was a bit set in his ways, he welcomed me warmly enough. He shared with me their family's stories and secrets. Things that Calvin would never know, I did for I was close to your father's heart. A heart that had been damaged badly by Atlantis in some shape or form."
Pursing her lips, she seemed to think of something. "I left your father because I could not stomach the thought of killing everyone. Every adult and child within the kingdom just to make the kingdom he wished to have." She paused, "Well, not every one. He had promised me that aquatic being would survive such a purge, but I could not do it. Calvin shared my feelings on that matter. Your grandfather knew."
That..that was new.
"He knew? Why didn't he tell father? " Kaldur couldn't help but ask. He wasn't sure how he felt about his mother at this moment. His image of her was changing completely from what he had at the beginning. It was starting to become difficult to maintain his dislike of her.
"Because as angry as David was with Atlantis, Abraham believed that he would turn out even worse if he went through with it." Now she moved on to her fried shrimps. "That he would no longer have a way back from that. "
His grandfather's name was Abraham. His father never mentioned him by name but he'd seen pictures of him. Now, he had to figure out what to do with this information. It was a lot and not all of it he completely understood but he tried to.
"Kaldur'ahm." His mother had his attention again, "There will come a time when you will have to make such decisions in your life. Things that you have to know whether or not you could live with for the rest of your life. That is the path your father has put you and your brother on."
"What do you think I should do?"
She shrugged, then took a bite of the burger again. "It is your life, my son, what do you wish to do?"
He wished to destroy Atlantis.
That's not right, but it was in a sense. He wanted to dismantle every inch of the kingdom right now. It's just a small fight between him and another but the boy he was fighting had friends and all of them thought he was nothing but bait to be fed to the sharks.
It had started out as a fairly simple day. He had to go to the conservatory of sorcery to finish up an assignment under the Queen's watchful eyes, when this boy found him. He didn't know his name, but he'd seen him around speaking loudly about how the school lost all its' prestige by allowing impurities in. Particularly, he had looked over at Kaldur gesturing that he was a child of a murdering land dweller and impure woman. A swimming abomination.
Kaldur didn't quite remember what started it but he did remember being hit with rocks. He remembered headbutting that purist piece of crap and breaking his nose. He also remembered using his unstable constructs well enough to knock all the boys into the ground below viciously.
And now he faced the head of the school- the Queen herself, with her displeasure well known.
"What am I to do with you, Kaldur'ahm?" She questioned, " I know you are a good student. I know you would not have fought without reason, yet I must still punish you for using magic and fighting as well."
"They called me an abomination." His jaw was set, " That I did not deserve to be here. They attacked me first, Queen Mera. I merely defended myself."
The red haired Queen sighed softly, " Yet they say you attacked them without reason."
"They are without reason!" No, he needed to get a handle on himself. He had to. "They were the ones that speak ill of me as such. I had to defend my honor."
"Honor?" The Queen shook her head slowly, " Perhaps, but your honor has cost you something. You need to think more carefully, Kaldur'ahm. People know of your lineage and they do not forgive easily. This will make things difficult for you."
He kept his mouth shut, recognizing the futility of the moment. Nothing he said would go over well.
"Then what is my punishment?"
Garth had found him a while later, staring out at the city brooding.
"My friend, I have heard about what happened with that sea scum, Terrack." Garth settled beside him, "I heard you won the fight against him."
"I did." Kaldur stared off still, "But at what cost? Queen Mera has ban me from practice and I am to volunteer my services to the guppies."
"Do not look down so." Garth offered an encouraging smile, "She only does it because The family Terrack is from holds much sway over the funding of the school and the support of the royal family."
Kaldur frowned, "How do you know this?"
"I listen, perhaps a bit too much to the teachers."
He fell silent at that, there was so much going on and growing up here was hard enough. Sometimes he wished he had turned his father down and stayed on land with him and Jackson. It gnawed on him, wanting to go back to familiar ways and to end this but his father had said it would test everything he had. He just wished he had more.
Wished he wasn't fond of his mother as he was now, as well.
"Kaldur'ahm!" Garth's hand is on his shoulder, his body tensed, " Do you hear that?"
"Hear what?" Kaldur blinked and strained to hear. There! Grunts? Something being yelled? "What is that?"
"I do not know, but we must find out!" Garth's eyes were lit with excitement, "It could be the king!"
"King Orin?" Kaldur hesitated. He had thought of several ways of dealing with the murderous king, but he hadn't realized he'd get a chance so soon. Was he really ready for it? Could he?
"Come!" Garth was gone from his side and so was his choice in the matter.
Kaldur kicked off and followed after the other, determined to follow through with his father's plans.