Chapter 27: Escape

"Okay, okay, okay, okay, okay, okay, okay, OKAY! I'm here!"

Brine jumped. "Teal shhh! The guards!" Angrily he waved, urging Teal to hush. Guards were everywhere, and underwater sound travels fast. "What took you so long? Where have you been?"

Teal collapsed beside Brine, clutching a frozen coral for support. "Not talking too much or saying anything inappropriate AT ALL, I can tell you that!"

Brine stiffened at Teal's sarcasm. "What? Teal did you tell anyone I'm rescuing Wendy?"

"…mayyyybe."

"You did!" Brine's stomach dropped. "Teal! I told you to grab Csilla and get out without talking to anyone! This ruins everything, we might get caught! Can't you ever clam it?"

"You know you're not supposed to tell me secrets! It's called a curse for a reason, Brine!"

"Who did you tell?" Brine demanded. "Leviathan?"

"Yup. He asked why I wanted Csilla. So I told him you were going to heal the human girl once you broke her out of prison to fulfill your sickeningly sweet infatuation –"

"Why didn't you lie?"

Teal shook his fists. "It's a curse Brine!"

"Teal! Shhh! I'm sorry, just…" Brine glanced over his shoulder. The guards had paused in their rounds. One hovered over the frozen bubble retaining Wendy. Brine bit his lip. "…just try to calm it, okay Teal? Wendy could dry up if we don't get her out soon."

Teal cocked his head. "I think that's the point, right? Arid climate? High pressure? Small space? Her guts will probably be smeared across the inside of that bubble when you crack it open. Whoa!"

Pop!

Brine grimaced as Teal's bubble popped in his face. "Thanks Teal. Gross and supportive as ever. Did you at least get Csilla?"

Teal thumped his chest. "Sure did!"

"Where is she?"

"Oh I'm here!" Csilla un-suctioned herself from Teal's hip. She chopped all five limbs wrathfully at Brine. "I'm here and I'm grouchy! You can call me Ms. Tude because I've gotta whole lot o' starfish at-ti-TUDE to shove up your gills merboy!"

"You go girl." said Teal.

"What were you thinking?" Csilla continued, encouraged by Teal's comment. "Saving a human? A girl? It's disgusting! Ain't got no respect for your ped-i-gree!"

"Amen!" Teal laughed.

"And now!" Csilla ranted. "You want me to heal the human girl! WHILE your mother-of-pearl flesh and blood, Leviathan, has wounds from bashing into that pirate ship! Nope! Ya'll send Chatty here to kidnap the starfish – "

"—hey!" Teal objected.

"— to save the human girl when she should be Friday-fish-fry dead! Mmmm-MM! Humans! Don't know what is wrong with you and Nixie – "

"Csilla, you said you liked Wendy." Brine said, glancing at the guards.

"Cute as a coral – but human as a pirate! Mmmm-MM!"

Brine closed his eyes, searching for patience. "Csilla, can we rescue Wendy now?"

"Mmmm- hmm. Whatever you say."

"Okay." Brine said. As Csilla grumbled, he analyzed the prison landscape. There weren't many guards, but enough to prevent Wendy's escape. Brine bit his lip. This wasn't going to be easy.

Brine turned to Teal and Csilla. "Okay. Listen, this has to go perfectly. Csilla you're with me. I need you to suck the whale muck off the bubble."

"May I ask why?"

"Come on Csilla." Teal grinned. "We all know you like it."

"The bubble won't pop with a layer of whale muck around it." Brine explained, "It's like a greasy clam shell protecting the water surface. The muck keeps the bubble from collapsing onto itself. So I need you to suck it off."

Csilla scowled. "Anything else? Prince Brine?"

Brine peered at the guards, planning his approach. "Just use your regeneration secretions to heal Wendy's wounds when she's free."

Csilla paused. The honeycomb bumps covering her epidermis puckered with concern. "Wounds?"

Brine nodded. "She…got caught in the graveyard." Grimly he stared at Wendy's bubble prison. "With all the hooks."

"All Hadal's fault." Teal said. He nudged Brine. "But guppy here didn't even save her! It was that pointy-eared human that got her out –"

Pop!

Teal spluttered as the bubble burst against his nose. "Whew! Sorry bro! But it's true! Brine did nada! Right?"

Brine stiffened, but did not retaliate.

So Csilla retaliated for him. "Merboy!" she slapped Teal. "That mouth is going to get you into trouble someday!"

Teal grinned. "Too late! Right Brine?"

Brine glared at the frozen bubbles. "Come on. Let's save Wendy. Csilla you're with me. Teal you ready?"

"Oh yes!"

Brine scanned behind. "Where is Tiller?"

Teal shrugged. "I dunno. Off somewhere not talking."

"Teal!" Exasperated, Brine raked his hair. "Tiller was supposed to help you with the diversion!"

"Help me with the diversion? Tiller?" Highly amused, Teal produced a broken harpoon shaft. Cheerfully he swam for the guards. "Please. I'm all about theatrics."

"Teal!" Brine hissed, trying to catch Teal's fins. "Teal! Don't overdo it! It has to be subtle enough for them to believe – "

"Clam it bro!" Teal said confidently. "I got this. One hundred sixty four percent. Ah – he –hem…"

Clearing his throat Teal flicked into open water. Sticking the harpoon under his armpit to feign a fatal blow, Teal flung back his head and gave a tasteful, subtle performance.

"AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH! PAIN! MURDER! AGONYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYY!"

"Mmmm – MM!" Csilla humphed as the guards jumped right out their fins. She humphed again as the mermen rushed to Teal's aid, leaving the frozen bubbles unattended. "Mmmm – MM! Glory that merboy can act!"

Rolling his eyes, Brine grabbed Csilla and darted for Wendy's prison. Weaving cautiously around Teal and the guards, he placed Csilla on the bubble.

"Okay Csilla." Brine probed the icy sides. He could just see Wendy's silhouette. "Suck!"

"The last time someone said that to me – " Csilla said, fattening over the bubble. " – it was mating season and I looked fantastic! Okay merboy – get ready for this mother of pearl to pop!"

Csilla spread her limbs. She started to suck the greasy whale residue from the bubble like a high power vacuum, leaving a shiny white streak in her wake. The starfish worked fast, but Brine was impatient. Fins swaying, he glanced at Teal, still stealing the show with the death and dying theatrics. However, several of the guards were pointing questionably to the harpoon. They were becoming suspicious. And annoyed.

Brine lowered to the base of the bubble. He smoothed a hand over Wendy's shadow. "Don't be afraid." he whispered as much to Wendy as to himself. The bubble's tension slackened under his palm. "Don't be –"

Crrrrrack POP!

The bubble shattered. Praying that Teal's wails had masked the sound, Brine scooped up Wendy, grabbed Csilla, and swam without looking back.

Until Wendy stopped him.

"Brine – "

"Don't be afraid!" Brine whipped through a school of glimmering cod, "I'm taking you to Lumi's floe!"

"Brine –"

"Lumi will take care of you!" Brine said, thinking furiously. "You'll be safe there!"

"Brine! Peter! You forgot Peter!"

Brine's heart melted. Then, it hardened.

"No." He swam faster. "I didn't. He stays."

Wendy gasped. "Brine! Brine you don't mean that! We can't leave Peter – "

"You can't." Brine squeezed Wendy's waist. "I can. He doesn't understand you Wendy –"

"Brine – "

"— and he hurts you when he doesn't understand!" Brine said, trembling with anger. "And I would betray my own family before I let that flying rat hurt you again – "

"Brine!" Wendy clenched Brine's shoulders. He swerved, arrested by the tears in Wendy's eyes.

"Brine." Wendy begged. Her voice was so weak, hardly a whisper. "Please. Please don't let Peter die."

Horrendous though it may be, Brine would have let Peter die. Convinced of Peter's crimes against Wendy, Brine might have killed the boy himself. After all, Brine was a mer. And regardless of species, this story has shown that mer are killers; from the spiteful mermaids of Neverland Lagoon to the militaristic mer of the Northern Neversea.

But Brine, as this story has also shown, was a rare exception to his species. For reasons to be described at a later point, Brine was altruistic. He cared. Deeply. However, Brine could still draw upon his instinct to justify a grudge with slaughter. And again, Brine would have killed Peter Pan…

…had it not been for Wendy.

Brine sighed. It took one look into Wendy's blue eyes to break his malice. Gently, he rest Wendy upon the ocean floor.

"Wait here." Brine said. Wistfully, he smoothed a finger through Wendy's hair and under her blue, blue eyes. Then, with Csilla, he departed to free Peter from prison. "And don't be afraid.

But Wendy had every reason to be afraid. For as Brine and Csilla released Peter – "You dirty rotten codfish!" – they were surrounded by guards. And as the guards hefted Teal into the guilty circle, Hadal and his narwhale emerged from the darkness.

And Hadal had Wendy.

"Mother and Father will be displeased." Hadal smiled as Peter and Brine called out to Wendy. Turning with his narwhale, Hadal dragged Wendy under the ice. "Which is fortunate. They're waiting for you Brine. And the two humans – for punishment. Or death."