Summary: On the way back from a business trip in the northeastern part of the Sundering Sea, Partitio stumbles upon a curious sight: an unconscious man floating upon a boat made of ice. He rescues the man and learns that humans really are resilient creatures, Osvald being one of the best examples.
"Shee-oot! It sure is cold 'round these parts..."
Partitio's face scrunched up as a shiver coursed through his body, and his tail swished through the water with more vigor than usual, propelling him up from the depths of the Sundering Sea towards the surface. When he had volunteered to visit the merfolk village in the northeastern part of the sea, he wished his pops had warned him about the drastically cooler water temperature.
A beaming smile crossed Partitio's face as the light of the sun brightened and warmed up his surroundings as he got closer to the surface. Despite his displeasure about having to swim through the freezing cold water, he couldn't help but be excited about the upcoming Merfolk Merchant's Fair that he was helping to organize. Humans and merfolk hadn't really engaged in trade with each other until recently, and with this fair, Partitio was hoping to really kick start some big trade deals between them.
Partitio was snapped from his thoughts when a shadow passed over him, and he cocked his head to one side, brow furrowing as he tried to make out what kind of object was floating over him. It was shaped like a small boat, but it was transparent, and that was certainly something that Partitio hadn't seen before. His eyes narrowed when he saw a human-shaped shadow lying flat on the boat, and his curiosity got the better of him and he hurried to the surface.
Partitio cringed when the brisk air hit his skin, and he paused a moment to rub his hands over his shoulders. He turned his head and spotted the weird boat again, and he quickly swam over and pulled himself up to look over the side.
"What in tarnation?" Partitio gasped when he saw a man lying face down on the cold-as-ice boat, which was quite literally made of ice. Well, that was certainly a first for him, but he would have to wait to investigate that further, because the man lying unconscious in the boat looked like he was in trouble.
Partitio frowned as he pulled himself fully onto the boat, ignoring how cold it felt against his tail, and he turned the man onto his back. His heart started racing with worry; the man's face was white as a sheet, with clumps of ice stuck to his beard, and the pulse at his neck was faint. If Partitio didn't get him off of this ice boat and warmed up soon, the poor man probably wasn't going to make it...
"Well, this ain't good at all..." Partitio chewed on his bottom lip and hummed as he pulled out a map from the travel bag strapped to his back. It seemed that he was currently close to a small, uninhabited island to the south, and luckily it seemed to be in warmer waters.
With his destination set, Partitio stowed the map away and pulled out a large blanket, warming the man's face first to melt the ice clinging to his beard before wrapping the poor man in it. This would have to do until Partitio could get him to dry land and build a fire.
"Just hang in there, partner..." Partitio said, giving the man's cold hand a quick squeeze before rolling over the edge of the boat back into the water. He left his travel bag on the boat so that he could swim faster, and he wasted no time in pushing the boat towards his destination.
It was hard work that had Partitio sweating and panting heavily by the end of it, but he eventually made it to the island, and he sighed with relief at the fact that it wasn't covered in snow. He quickly pushed the boat onto the sand and pulled the man out of it before carefully dragging him up past the tide line with some effort; Partitio's tail, as much as it helped him excel with swimming, was more hindrance than help on land. In no time at all, using the supplies in his travel bag, he had the man safely tucked under a small tent, wrapped in all of Partitio's blankets.
Partitio had built a small fire, and he had stripped the man of all of his damp, freezing clothes, except for his underclothes. They were hanging next to the fire to dry on a small clothes line, and Partitio was thankful that his pops had let him borrow this magical travel bag that could fit so much more in it than it should be able to from looking at it. It was a product of the combined creative, magical, and mercantile efforts of merfolk and humans. Partitio hoped that if the fair went well, they could collaborate more and come up with many more fascinating inventions that would help improve the lives of everyone in Solestia.
For now, Partitio needed to focus on saving this man's life. He slid back up next to him, his heart pounding with worry, and he pressed his hands to his face. His cheeks seemed to be warmer now, and when Partitio pressed a hand to his neck, he felt his pulse beating at a more normal pace. Sighing with relief, Partitio carefully tucked the blankets more snug around him and lay next to him, finally able to get a good look at this mystery ice-boat piloting human.
Partitio didn't think he'd ever seen a human quite as tall and large as this man. He was muscular and fit, but at the same time his skin was an unhealthy-looking pale color, and his clothes were nothing but rags. His light-colored hair was gorgeously long, but unkempt, and his facial hair was much the same. He had bags under his sunken-in eyes, and Partitio couldn't fathom where this man had come from that put him in this condition.
"Hmm..." Partitio tapped his chin, closing his eyes as he racked his brain for an answer. Wait...there was one thing he knew that might be an explanation: he knew of a human prison on an island somewhere in the northern sea, and from what Partitio had heard, it was like a frozen hell where no one returned from.
"Just what happened to you, partner?" Partitio muttered to the man, who was still lying unconscious. He was very curious to hear his story, but he would have to make sure he survived this ordeal if he ever hoped to hear it someday.
Perking up when the man jerked in his sleep, Partitio reached up to gently brush the hair from his face as it contorted. Partitio frowned at the pained look on the man's face. He had no idea who he was or what his story was, but Partitio wanted to save him nonetheless.
"Rita...Elena...Sorr...y"
Partitio tilted his head as the man mumbled incoherently, and his heart clenched when tears leaked out of the corner of the man's eyes and slid down his cheeks. Cupping the man's face, Partitio gently brushed his tears away, and he continued to brush his thumbs over the man's cheeks.
"It'll be alright, partner, you'll make it through this, I promise," Partitio whispered. He knew that the man couldn't hear him, but his eyes went wide when his breathing evened out and he seemed to slip out of his distressed state and back into a soundless sleep.
"Whew...That's a relief." Partitio offered the man a soft smile, but he suddenly felt a wave of exhaustion course through him, and he pursed his lips, realizing that they felt very dry; he needed to get back in the water for a bit.
Partitio hesitated to leave the man's side, but he knew that he would be no good if he let himself get dried up like a washed up piece of seaweed. He made sure that the man was good and tucked in once more, moved his glasses to a spot where he wouldn't roll onto them, and threw some more wood onto the fire. When he was satisfied at the state of things, Partitio made his way back to the water, pausing to glance at the man over his shoulder.
"You'll make it through. I won't let you die out here," Partitio said, a determined look blazing in his eyes, and he dove into the sea. He would only stay in the water until he was fully hydrated again, and he would be back at that man's side, for as long as he needed to be.
"Rita!" Osvald screamed as he jerked awake, groaning while slapping a hand to his sweaty face. He panted, trying to calm his rapidly-beating heart, and he closed his eyes, biting his cheek as he took a few deep breaths through his nose. The last thing he remembered was...floating aimlessly on his makeshift ice boat, after watching Emerald go down with the inspectors' ship that he had set aflame. He had collapsed, cold and weak, and the fact that he felt warm and secure right now told him that he wasn't dead. So where was he...?
"Howdy, partner! Glad to see you up and at 'em!"
Jerking into a sitting position, Osvald cringed as pain shot through him, and he cursed when he realized that he was too weak to conjure up a spell in defense. He flinched when he felt a pair of hands grab his shoulders, and he slowly opened his eyes when he felt his glasses being placed onto his face.
"Here ya go! Might help you see a bit better."
Osvald blinked a few times, letting his vision come into focus so that he could see who this voice belonged to. He found that he was looking into the face of a young man, whose beaming smile was as blinding as the sun. But something was…odd about him, and when Osvald's eyes scanned the man more closely, he realized exactly why: he was not human like himself, but a merman.
Osvald's eyes shot to the hands that still held his shoulders, and his heartbeat quickened when he saw that the fingers were webbed. His gaze traveled up the merman's arm, of which was covered in soft skin like his own, but of a darker shade. However, from his elbow up, he was covered in hard yellow skin that was peppered with brown speckles. The yellow skin covered both shoulders, his upper back, and his collarbone, and a matching yellow coronet sat on the top of his head, nestled within his messy black hair.
As the merman rolled over to poke at the fire that sat a few feet away, Osvald's eyes wandered down to the dorsal fin that stuck out of his lower back, surrounded by the hard yellow skin that took over his body from his navel and below. Where a human's legs would be, the merman had a long yellow tail that curled a few times at the end, and it was lined with bony plates on either side. Osvald wasn't an expert on merfolk in the slightest, but he had read some texts out of curiosity. So, if he had to make an educated guess, he deduced that this merman was of the seahorse variety.
"You hungry?"
Osvald was snapped from his thoughts, and he felt his face heat up when he realized how long he had been staring at the merman. Clearing his throat, he offered him a slight nod, and the merman beamed as he filled up a bowl of something from a pot that was cooking over the fire.
"I couldn't ask ya what you like to eat, considerin' you were stuck sleepin' for three days, so I hope you like fish stew!" the merman said as he crawled back to Osvald a bit awkwardly with one arm. Osvald blinked at him as he set the bowl in his hands, and Osvald stared down at it as the merman went over to fill another bowl.
"I was out for…three days?" Osvald finally managed to say, and the merman nodded when he came back to him.
"You sure were!" he said as he handed Osvald a spoon, "I was mighty worried when I found ya just floatin' all alone in that weird ice boat of yours."
"I see...Thank you for saving me, Mr...?"
The merman winced and smacked his forehead. "Aw shoot, where are my manners? My pops would chew me out if he were here." He chuckled and held a hand out to Osvald. "The name's Partitio, of the Merfolk Merchant's Guild!"
Osvald took his hand and shook it. "Good to meet you, Partitio."
Partitio laughed as Osvald finally took a bite of his stew. "I know you're hungry, but don't leave me hangin' now! What's your name?"
"Osvald," he said quickly so that he could take a few more bites of stew, "This is...incredible." He relished in the warmth that spread throughout his chest and his stomach rumbled, as if it was crying out with relief at finally being filled after so long. Partitio beamed at him again with that oddly radiant smile of his.
"Hehe, glad to hear it! I reckoned that you'd be mighty hungry when you woke up, so I made a big ol' batch. Have as much as you like!"
"...I see."
A silence fell over them as they ate. Partitio seemed all too eager to help Osvald refill his bowl of stew a few times, and Osvald was grateful that he had been rescued by such a kind soul. Osvald knew that relations between humans and merfolk had been gradually growing over the years, but due to them having to stay near water for the most part, most humans had never interacted with them. Osvald knew that merfolk had passed by Conning Creek on occasion, but he had never engaged with them personally.
"Shee-oot! That was some tasty stew, the best I've ever made I reckon!" Partitio said, flopping onto his back next to Osvald. He pushed himself up and curled his tail around himself so that he could sit comfortably, and Osvald's curiosity got the better of him.
"Apologies if this is overstepping, but you are a seahorse merman, correct?" he asked, and Partitio nodded, grinning as he ran a hand through his hair.
"Sure am! A yellow seahorse, if you wanna get real specific." Partitio chuckled and rubbed his chin, giving Osvald a once over. "You're pretty smart to guess that on the first try! Most humans have no clue that there are boatloads of different types of merfolk."
Osvald hummed as he tugged at his beard. "I suppose so. I was a scholar of some renown, before I..." He trailed off and frowned as the dark parts of his past came flooding back to him. Partitio was watching him silently, his striking blue eyes soft and kind, and before he could stop himself, Osvald was telling him all about his past and how he had gotten onto that ship of ice.
"Osvald…" Partitio sniffed and rubbed at his eyes when Osvald had finished; he had started crying at some point during his story, "That's…I'm so sorry you had to go through all of that."
Osvald averted his gaze and went silent, his chest tightening as a pit formed in his gut. It was horrible, to put it lightly . Osvald had lost everything; his wife, his daughter, his home, his freedom . It took five years of careful planning and enduring the abysmal conditions on Frigit Isle to regain one of the things that he had lost, but the others were lost for good, and his hands started shaking as he clenched them into fists. Harvey...he would have his revenge.
"Hey, Osvald?"
His hands were suddenly engulfed in warmth, and Osvald stared down at Partitio's, which were covering them. Osvald lifted his gaze to Partitio's, who was looking at him with a sad smile on his face.
"I know we just met and all, but if there's anything, anything that I can do to help you make that bastard Harvey pay, then all you have to do is ask, alright?" Partitio gave Osvald's hands a squeeze, and Osvald felt his cheeks heat up; Partitio certainly was unlike anyone he had ever met, and it only had a little bit to do with the fact that he was a merman.
Osvald was suddenly feeling embarrassed, so he pulled his hands from Partitio's and brought a fist to his face as he cleared his throat. "Er, so this camp you made...where did you find all of this?" Osvald changed the subject and gestured to the tent, clothesline, and the large pot that was now empty of stew and sitting next to the fire. Judging by the fact that Partitio had set up this camp in the first place, Osvald deduced that this island was uninhabited, and there was no logical way that Partitio had carried all of this with him.
Partitio grinned and reached over to grab his travel bag. "Well, it all came from here, of course!" Osvald raised a dubious eyebrow as he examined the bag; it was much too small to fit all of these supplies.
"Nonsense. That bag is of insufficient size to carry all of this."
"Hehe, that's where you're wrong, my friend!" Partitio made a show of opening the bag and pulling out a hat, stool, very long metal pole, and a few other random items that had no business fitting into a bag that size. Osvald's jaw dropped as he shook his head in disbelief.
"This here is a product of merfolk and human collaboration! My people supply the magic that lets it hold so much stuff, and human wind magic keeps everything nice and dry while traveling underwater!"
Osvald had never heard of such a thing, and the scholarly side of him was absolutely intrigued by such magic. "A magical, waterproof travel bag that fits items it shouldn't normally be able to? Fascinating."
"Heh, just a little bit o' mermaid magic, plus a dash of mercantile ingenuity!" Osvald's lips twitched slightly upwards when Partitio winked at him. Osvald was preoccupied with his quest for revenge, but afterwards he wondered if he could collaborate with some of these merfolk scholars...
Osvald still wasn't well enough to travel yet, so Partitio stayed with him and helped to nurse him back to health for a few more days. When Osvald could finally move around on his own and had made sure that he could cast spells again, he conjured up another ice boat after Partitio had packed up their camp. Partitio took him to the nearest landing spot on the Eastern continent, which was the small town of Cape Cold.
"Thank you again, Partitio, for everything," Osvald said after he had climbed onto the dock. Partitio grinned and nodded as he held himself up on the dock by his arms.
"It was no trouble at all, Osvald! I'm glad that I was able to help." Partitio's face fell a bit and his voice took on a serious tone. Even though they had just met, Partitio was going to miss this peculiar human, and he didn't like that he was possibly sending him into danger alone. If only he could magically conjure some legs for a little bit of time…
"But you take care of yourself, you hear? This journey of revenge of yours sounds like it'll be mighty dangerous."
"I'll be fine," Osvald said quickly, and he huffed as he hefted the small pack that Partitio had lent him over his shoulder. "I will pay you back for these supplies as soon as I have the leaves."
"Ah shoot, you don't owe me anything, partner!" Partitio waved a hand at him. "Just make sure you've got a success story to tell me when we meet again!"
"When we meet again..." Osvald turned back to Partitio, and offered him a small smile. "Yes, I'd certainly like to meet again. I have many questions about this 'mermaid magic' of yours."
Partitio felt his face heat up; he had always thought that humans had pretty smiles, but he reckoned that Osvald's was leagues above the rest. "I'd be glad to show you some more, partner!"
"I'm looking forward to it. Farewell, Partitio." Osvald turned to start walking towards shore, and he held a hand over his chest, an odd warmth bubbling up within him. He had no idea what was in store for him when he confronted Harvey, but he was determined to see this particular merman again, purely for scholarly reasons, so he would make sure that he survived by any means necessary.
"Take care of yourself, Osvald!" Partitio reiterated, and he waved vigorously as Osvald left the dock and eventually disappeared into town. Partitio figured he was going to be heading to the port in the Brightlands, as he had mentioned that his first stop on his revenge quest was somewhere on the Western continent.
"All right, Partitio, time to go home and get ready for the very first Merfolk Merchant's Fair!" he said to himself, punching a fist into the air before he dove backwards into the sea to begin his journey home. Even though his work was now at the forefront of his mind, he couldn't help but hope that his mission would bring him and Osvald together again, however unlikely that was.