Chapter 5 - Wings take heart
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Ariel came barrelling up, despite the fact the cannonball she was holding was very heavy.
"I got a good one! It's really, really heavy!" Ariel commented as she swam for the surface.
"Good! Here we go again!" Riko pulled Ariel into the sky, while she held the cannonball as hard as she could. And after a few seconds of being in the air, Ariel dropped the ball, and it went barrelling down into the sea.
The cannonball travelled very, very fast downward, and it hit a ray on the head, and smashed him into the sea floor.
"Those human things...they're raining from the sky?" Triton had seen the cannonball drop.
Ariel and Riko then returned into the sea. Ariel went and swam down very fast for another cannonball. But that wasn't what Triton was concentrated on, as a ray swooped down to steal his trident.
"Trident...Shoot!" Triton fired his trident at the ray swooping at him, and hit the ray in the face, where he wasn't protected. The ray then went barrelling downward into the deep.
Meanwhile, Ariel came back up to the surface with another Cannonball. And this time, King Triton saw her. It was at that moment his mind was made up about Riko.
"Captain Strong, Keep the men fighting!" Triton ordered the commander.
"Yes, your highness!"
Triton swam over to where Ariel was struggling to bring the cannonball to the surface. When he arrived, Ariel thought he was going to be mad about touching "Human things" to help deal with the situation. But Triton's intentions went another way.
"Riko...Do you have any more winged friends?" Asked Triton
"A few." Replied Riko
"Could they lift merfolk just like you?" Asked Triton.
"Yes...you want to team up?" Riko extended his wing.
Triton extended his, But since Triton's hand was the size of a basketball, Riko ended up shaking Triton's finger.
"Ok, let's do it!" Riko lifted Ariel into the sky while Triton went back to the palace to rejoin his troops.
Riko flew Ariel overhead a bunch of rays, and Ariel dropped the cannonball, and hit a group of rays with one ball, scaring them off.
"Steeeeee-rike!" Ariel cheered
Riko looked at her a bit funny.
"It sounded like the right thing to say." Ariel shrugged.
"Never mind. You go get some volunteers, i'll go get some myself!" Riko let Ariel off into the sea, while he flew off to get his friends.
Back underwater, the Evil Manta was busy nursing the goose egg Ariel had given him.
"Owww. this really, really hurts." The Evil Manta said loud enough for Ariel to be within earshot.
"And Riko said that rock wasn't going to hurt him." Ariel swam for atlantica to recruit some volunteers to bomb the rays.
In the midst of the attack, the Evil Manta actually called out.
"Ceasefire! Ceasefire!"
And at the command, both parties stopped fighting. The Evil manta then swam over to where Triton was, but had mersoldiers watching his every move.
"What do you want, Manta?" Triton asked the first question.
"I am here to tell you that...there are more mantas coming. Surrender the trident to me now...and you shall be spared."
Triton knew well enough to not believe the evil manta.
"Never." were the only words from Triton's lips.
"Then...die!" The Evil Manta swooped downward towards Triton and the 2 engaged in a struggle. The other rays continued to swoop in and attack the mersoldiers.
But back on the surface, 100 merfolk were being lifted into the air, and all of them were holding cannonballs.
"Ok, Ariel, Lead the charge!" Riko yelled out
The newly founded friends all cheered and followed Ariel and Riko as they sent 100 cannonballs sailing towards the sea surface.
The mantas were all hit by a swarm of heavy cannonballs.
"We cannot get them from the sea!" Said one ray
"That's not fair!" said another
"They're breaking the rules of war!" Said another
The cannonballs were too much for the Mantas. They began to flee in terror.
"Hey! Get back here!" The Evil Manta ordered. But his army was too scared and too overwhelmed by their new enemies, that they had no choice but to retreat. Above the surface, the new friends all cheered and yelled in victory.
"Yeah! We scared em off!" Yelled an aquaharpy
"We got rid of those jerks!" yelled a merman.
The victory cries could be heard all the way down in Atlantica. The only person left who wasn't happy to hear them, was the Evil Manta himself.
"I'll be back!" The manta began to swim off.
Sebastian crawled to Triton's head and held up his claw.
"Oh, is da poor manta ray gonna go cry to mommy? Hahaha!" Sebastian laughed
Triton even had a smile on his face, even though now he had to make an apology.
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Moments later, Triton, Ariel, and Riko were sitting in the throne room.
"Riko...me and my folk are in debted to you. I want to say I'm sorry for being so judgemental."
Riko smiled
"It's all good, your highness. We're all friends now, right?" Asked Riko
"You bet." Triton smiled
And that was the day where the Merfolk became friends with the Aquaharpies. The End!
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