{"sf1_id":959646,"sf2_id":null,"title":"Aquata Cove - Chapter 65","author":"Mirron Tenshi","words":5921,"posted_at":"2016-01-29T09:07:00.000Z","tags":["Mermaid","Otter","Polar Bear","Turtle","fish","merman"],"url":"https://fse.anthro.fr/stories/959646-aquata-cove-chapter-65","original_url":"https://sofurry.com/view/959646","image_url":"https://www.sofurryfiles.com/std/thumb?page=959646\u0026ext=.jpg","description":"","content":"\nAquata Cove\nChapter 65: Cold Salvation\n \n \n \nThe Piscien Noitas of the Kenovani pod, the Holsien Noitas\nof Olaroc's clan of reptiles, and the unbeknownst Amnien Noitas on the other\nside of the Sazae Graveyard all wave and dance smoothly in their movements to\nbring the tide of the ocean up to an unnatural level of height.\n \n \nThe otter Noita and her half-bear daughter focus as they\nfind difficulty in this cast and craft under the untrue evening of the eclipse.\nThis Noita has sensed the presence of a familiar aura - the son of an ally of\ntheirs, belonging to Noita Umiato of the Piscien merfolk. Though what he could\nbe doing here, of all places, when she can't sense any Piscien pod anywhere\nnearby, is anyone's guess, but doing a friend a favor by bringing the ocean\nhigh enough to safely bathe him during a Black Sun is the least she can do for\nan old friend.\n \nAnd then there's another reason for her being here and doing\nthis. She senses the soul of another familiar merfolk. A very young soul. Too\nyoung to be out here all-alone instead of here, with his original family, yet\nis legally obligated to no longer be with them. \n \nFor old time's sake, and for the fact that he was exiled for\nsuch a trivial reason, Noita Rayette feels she must do everything in her power\nto help prevent an unfair transformation for poor, little Arnaav.\n \n \n\"Almost there...\" Samudra says as he glares at the tippy top\nof the graveyard. The surface has just enveloped the very last of the mountain\nof shells, and now they await for any further length of which they can exploit\nto come in - ideally, once under the water, anyone should be safe.\n \nThe water inches up ever so slightly, reaching further up,\nbefore the very tip of the Graveyard touches the surface.\n \n\"Now!\"\n \n\"Forward!\"\n \nSamudra, Olaroc, and Ebba swim swiftly upward to the deadly\nfield of the shells of eternal sleep.\n \n \n\"I will return swiftly.\" Triton Bertone pushes his mighty\narms as the polar bear merman jets up to the Sazae Graveyard, past his casting\nNoita and Adra, and up to summit of the Graveyard.\n \n \n~~~\n \n \n\"C'mon, it's still safe to see, gurl.\" Jamal says, \"Why I\ngotta put on these weird-ass glasses?\"\n \n\"So you don't fry your eyeballs out, Dummy.\" Yuri says as\nshe reaches up, and yanks those goggles down, \"Quit taking them off already!\"\n \n\"I STILL don't git how's an\neclipse supposed to make me blind.\"\n \n\"Just something about the umbral rays of the moon amplified\nby the position or seeing the peek of the sun when the moon moves to the side.\"\n \n\"Psssh, yeah right, you don't\nknow either.\"\n \n\"Oh, shut up before I rearrange your entrails.\" Yuri growled\nbefore she turned around, \"ADAM, HURRY UP, YOU'RE GONNA MISS IT!!\" She\nbellowed. Moments later, Adam comes trotting over to the back porch with his\ntwo roommates, holding onto his pair of specialized goggles.\n \n\"Alright, alright, I'm here.\"\nAdam puts on his eclipse goggles, and walks beside them. \n \nThey look with awe at the large black circle in the sky.\nDespite being 2 O'clock in the afternoon, everywhere in sight looks as though\nit's 2 O'clock in the morning. It's so dark outside, and the sky looks so thick\nwith ebony, and yet there isn't a single star in the sky, not a tiny spec of\nwhite in the darkness.\n \n\"So,\" Yuri said, \"Mermaid\nquestion, Adam.\"\n \n\"Yeah?\"\n \n\"If merfolk find their love during a Lunar Eclipse, do they\nfind their worst enemy under a Solar Eclipse?\"\n \n\"No, not really. Something does\nhappen though.\"\n \n\"Oh, right!\" She said, \"They\nturn into a mutant or something, right?\"\n \n\"Yeah, only if they're out of the ocean though.\" Adam\nanswers, \"When I was at the Agency, they showed me the corpse of a Gorgon that\nthey found in Greece - just like Medusa, you know?\"\n \n\"Wow, you're kidding.\"\n \n\"They even made me look in the\neyes...\" Adam frowned. Yuri turns with a shocked look.\n \n\"Oh my God, they did not!\" She\nexclaimed.\n \n\"Weren't you turned to stone,\nman?!\" Jamal asks as he shoved Adam around to see him.\n \n\"No, I wasn't, but I WAS\nparalyzed for a couple of hours or so.\"\n \n\"Oh Adam, I'm so sorry,\" Yuri\npouts as she gives Adam a hug.\n \n\"It's fine, I'm ok, and they\nactually told me I took it better than most.\" They parted, and Adam continued, \"Merrick\nalso said he once saw a flock of bird-like merfolk that used to be Amnien\nmermaids. He says it's very unpredictable as to what a merperson would become\nif they are unlucky enough to end up on the surface during an eclipse.\"\n \n\"I'm sure he aight,\" Jamal said.\n \n\"Who said I was worried?\" Adam\nasked as he turned to look at Jamal.\n \n\"No one. You just one big\nwusseh!\" Jamal commented with a playful smirk.\n \n\"Well fuck you, rat bastard!\" Adam laughed as he came over\nand started smacking the big guy around.\n \n\"Ugh, I swear,\" Yuri leans on the railing, \"Am I the only mature\none here?\" Here is a rare event in the sky where the moon blocks out the sun,\nand casts a part of the world in a colossal shadow, and all these two\nnumbskulls can do about it is insult and wrestle each other?\n \n \n~~~\n \n \n\"No...\" Ebba covers her mouth as\nher eyes glimmer with tears, \"This cannot be...\"\n \n\"We are too late...\" Olaroc says\nwith his head bowed down.\n \n\"Merrick... I am sorry...\" Samudra sighs as his stomach feels a\ngrave sinking deep inside him.\n \nBefore the three merfolk, within the shallow, heated area,\nis now being cooled by a large formation of glittering ice. The white mass of\ncrystal has almost encased the entire spiral shell of which it had been placed.\nWaves of warm and cold waft invisibly in the water as they look at the huge\npatch of frozen entity before them.\n \n\"Is that really... Him?\" Samudra\nasks with a heavy heart.\n \n\"Yes...\" Ebba nods sadly, \"That is truly him... His link to me\nis within...\" She can barely hold herself from sobbing.\n \n\"Why ice? ...?\" Samudra asked, in a sort of way to distract\nhimself from the tragic truth if only for a moment.\n \n\"His mother is Umiato, of the Arctic Veil merfolk,\" Olaroc\nsays, \"From the icy waters of the North. Under the Black Sun, his mother's\nblood must have reacted, and come to the surface of his whole being.\" He\nexplained drearily.\n \n\"And Arnaav...\" Samudra mumbled to\nEbba, \"He is also...\" \n \n\"Yes...\" Ebba places her hand upon the neutral temperature of\nthe shell before the beautiful shapeless tower of ice, \"He is just beyond the...\"\nShe sniffles and continues, \"I cannot say for certain if he has transformed\ntoo, but...\" White, shimmering wisps dance from her eyes, \"I need to hope that...\nHe is at least well...\"\n \n\"Hello?\" Comes a deep voice. They turn to look, and see a\nlarge, white and fluffy merman pad from behind the crystalized shell, \"I am\nTriton Bertone, of the Amnien merfolk.\" He holds his trident up for the\ntraditional salute of the tritons, but pauses as he sees the sadness in their\neyes. \"I apologize, I... I do not understand, what...\"\n \n\"Why are you here?\" Samudra asks\nas he closes his eyes.\n \n\"My mate... My Noita has sensed the presence of two familiar\nauras on top of this Sazae Graveyard.\" Bertone explained, \"One...\" He takes what\nseems like a bracing inhale, before continuing, \"Former member of our pod, and...\nThe son of an ally of ours. We thought we could... Help.\" Bertone loses his\nfeeling motivation as he looks at these merfolk.\n \n\"Hmph,\" Samudra scoffed as he glances at the polar bear\nmerman, 'So this was his Triton, eh?' He thinks to himself, \"Even as Arnaav was\nbanished for something as trivial as playing with a infantile human, you would simply\ncome and rescue him, just like that?\" He asked with a cynical glance.\n \n\"Not everyone who looks upon a Coshiton sees a plague of\nnothingness, Holsien.\" Bertone answered as he feels a chip in his own chest,\n\"He was far too young to leave us...\"\n \n\"Well, even so...\" Olaroc intervened, \"This Arnaav should be\nwell enough. However... This ally of yours, no doubt you are looking for an Adra\nTriton by the name of Merrick, are you not?\"\n \n\"Yes. My mate says he would be\nhere.\"\n \n\"Look to your left, and you shall find him.\" Olaroc said to\nhim. Triton Bertone does so, and furrows his brow as he touches the freezing\nwall of ice before him. A faint glimmer comes from ice sculpture, before he\ngasps silently, before looking to the others.\n \n\"No... You are not saying-\"\n \n\"We tried...\" Ebba sobbed as she covered her face, \"We tried\nto save them... We have already lost too many on this sun...\"\n \n\"No...\" Triton Bertone looks with aggrieved eyes as he presses\nhis large paw onto the ice, \"Oh Kaiken...\"\n \n\"Merrick was banished from his pod long ago.\" Samudra spoke\nup. Bertone looks at him with disbelief, \"For the crime of mating with a human\nmale. Merrick and Arnaav were with me...\" Samudra closes his eyes as he shook his\nhead, \"They were MY responsibility... As a Triton, I was supposed to be their\nleader... Their guardian, their protector as well as my Noita... And now I will\nhave to come to the home of his love, and tell them that he has been lost.\"\n \nBertone sniffled as his free fist rose up, and rubbed one of\nhis eyes, \"Merrick and Arnaav were practically brothers, for the short time\nthey have known each other.\" Samudra continued, \"Ever since Merrick has joined\nus, he held Arnaav's hand, protected him, stayed by his side... It is not easy\nfor any sort of merfolk to simply adopt affection and rightful feelings for\nanother, but for Merrick, it just seemed to have come easy. He was the only one\nin the pod who treated Arnaav with the sort of nurture a meryin needs.\"\n \n\"I have only known Merrick a few times,\" Olaroc said with a\nweak smile, \"His Sister would always want to come and play with my own children\nwith Merrick... Though my Adras were not so willing to have such a spry mermaid\nwant to push in on their games, Merrick would not refuse her.\"\n \n\"Yes...\" Bertone sobbed as he wipes his eyes, being such a\nbig, emotional lug himself, \"I have only met him once... He and his pod helped\nmine when we were under attack by a few Niseags... That Adra Triton was so brave,\nlike his Father... No, this is not fair...\" The polar bear merman grits his teeth\nas he forces himself to swim to the other three.\n \n\"Merrick has endured too much pain in his young age, and\nheld himself for so much blame and responsibility... He placed Arnaav's needs\nbefore his own,\" Samudra says as he looks upon the diamond-like formation\nbefore them, \"And by the grace of the Sea Mother, he turned himself into a\nshield of ice to protect Arnaav from the Land Father's slumber...\"\n \nEbba continued to cry as they looked in despair at the\niceberg. The formation has a very elegant curved design to it, as if the\ngoddess of the moon Herself sculpted it. It's a tribute worthy of such a\nsacrifice, so much so, that even touching it would feel too much of a gross\nviolation, regarding on how remarkable it is, and for what it stands for.\nSadly...\n \n\"We are out of time...\" Olaroc says, \"If we do not move, the\ntoxin of the Sazae will send us into sleep.\"\n \n\"Yes...\" Samudra nods, \"Ebba... I trust Arnaav still yet lives?\"\nHe asked. The Razirah sniffles, and nods, \"And as does Merrick, I am sure... In\nhis new state...\" He takes a deep, mournful breath as he takes up his trident,\n\"The Waves of Fate truly are cruel, are they not...\"\n \n\"Wait, stop!\" Bertone puts his strong arm onto Samudra's\nweapon, \"You are not going to-\"\n \n\"We must.\" Samudra answered, \"Arnaav yet lives. Merrick gave\nhimself to protect him. As much as it pains me to do this, and please believe\nme...\" Samudra gently pushes that huge paw off of his trident, \"It breaks my\nheart to do this...\" \n \n\"In order to save at least one young life,\" Olaroc says as\nhe drifts forward, \"We must destroy our former comrade...\" \n \n\"No...\" Triton Bertone huffs and pants as he sees the two sea\nturtles approach the ice statue. He whimpers as he grips his own trident with\nboth paws, and reluctantly paddles his strong legs along with them, \"Kaiken...\nYour Son was...\" He mumbled with great sorrow, \"The finest Piscien I have ever\nseen...\"\n \n\"Ebba... Please stay...\" Samudra called to her, \"Arnaav will\nneed warmth once he is free.\" Ebba nods as she turns away, and faces the open\nwater as the three mermen corner the magnificent crystal tower. \n \n\"Triton Merrick, my friend...\" Samudra raises his trident up\nas he aims it, \"Forgive me...\" He shakes his head of the tears misting from his\neyes, \"I have failed you...\"\n \nThe solid, three pronged weapon then SLAMMED right into the\nice! Shards and chunks of ice break from the mass of ice. Ebba flinches from\nthe harsh cracking and demolishing taking place behind her. She huffs and\ncovers her ears to try and block out the noise of destruction. Please just let\nit be over soon...\n \n\"Ghh! HHHhhh!\" Bertone weeps as he hammers his trident into\nthe cracking of the massive ice. It's so thick and solid. With every strike he\ndeals to the crystal, he feels as though he's ripping Merrick's very soul\napart. He wishes he can just turn back around and leave to his pod so he wouldn't\nhave to desecrate the remains of such a young and worthy merman.\n \nOlaroc grunts as he works his heavy, armored arms into his\ntrident, and crush into the ice beneath him. 'It's truly a shame...' Olaroc\nhammers into the deep freeze, driving the sharp ends of his weapon into berg,\nand chiseling a heavy chunk off and away from the mass, 'Son really liked you,\nAdra Merrick... You should have seen the look of sadness my son had on his face\nwhen he learned that you were banished.' He wipes a smidge of ice dust floating\nnear his eye as he tightens his grip, and stabs into the ice some more, 'I\nwonder if Kaiken will still pretend that you no longer matter, even after\nlearning how you ended...' Olaroc scowled as he focused a sense of anger into his\ndigging, 'Honestly... How so much compassion as yourself has somehow spawned from\nsuch a superficial merman such as your father, is far beyond me!' More large\nshards break and shatter as Olaroc drills his trident into the ice.\n \nSamudra grimaces as he forces his weapon into the jagged\nditch of the ice. He can practically hear the screams of agony from the\ninanimate ice as the three Tritons pummel and strike sway at the ice, 'I am\nsorry, Merrick... I am so sorry...' Free tears swim from his eyes as he works his\ntrident at several different angles. Merrick was so scared, was so young... And\nVanora, she said she can see a whole tapestry of darkness and misery inside of\nMerrick on the first time they have met... To have to exist with a hurricane\ninside one's heart, and yet function as if nothing is hindering them... \n \nHe can already see himself walking upon the beach, with each\nheavy step, onto the human's dwelling... To Adam's house. He can imagine Adam's\nface consumed in horror as Samudra tells him is lover has been reduced to a\npile of shards in a graveyard of giant slugs. Adam holds his own face as he\nfalls to his knees, and cries hysterically as he feels his heart break inside\nhim. To lose the only person you give your heart to in a tidal crash of\nhappenstance... To say that he changed and died bravely is of very little comfort\nin the wake of loss.\n \n \nAs the three Tritons dig and break into the ice, the chip\naway at the thick crystalized water, and see a glimmer of blue/aqua color in\nwhat looks like large, leaf-like plates of pitch-black flake. They reach in,\nand break off small plates of ice, and see the flakey blackness of the strange\nnew substance.\n \n\"What...\" Triton Bertone plucks at the flakey leaves, only for\nthe flimsy material to break apart just from a light touch. Trying to grab a\nfirmer grasp, or scoop, really, the polar bear soon infects the immediate area\nwith a tiny flurry of black snow, glimmering in the low light with beautiful\nbluish-cyan sheen, \"I do not understand...\"\n \n\"His father was a Navyn Tail merman,\" Olaroc told them,\n\"That is the essence of the other half of his being.\"\n \n\"Let us continue,\" Samudra said, already feeling his body to\nbe heavier than it was. The three males nod, and they continued to chip and\nchisel away at the ice. The force of each stab and hammer breaks and scatters\nthe flakes in a rather bothersome blizzard of flake. Each merman now breathes\nin shallow gulps, as to not inhale any of the Navyn flakes.\n \nOlaroc chips and forces his weapon down further. He huffs\nand growls as he jams his weapon down with force, breaking more and more ice,\nand then-\n \nSHUNK!\n \nHis eyes widen as his trident\nsuddenly sinks into something else.\n \n \n---One Hour Ago---\n \n \nTaci tilts his head as he looks upon Merrick. His body is\ntwitching and writhing, all the while turning pale, very light blue, even,\nbefore Merrick stops moving altogether. His thin, fairy-like wings shake as the\ninsect gives a shiver, before they zap up, and he buzzes down to his former\ncompanion.\n \nThe bug drops down, and looks unto Merrick's face. His eyes\nare still open, but he doesn't seem to be awake. His whole form is covered in a\nthin layer of frost, growing like a rapid white moss over his being. Small\ncrackling noises can be heard as the ice can visually be seen growling along\nMerrick's flesh, climbing and gradually consuming his hands while his blonde\nhair turns into shiny, pale yellow as it turns into a brilliant silver fleece.\n \nThe insect waves his shiny, twig-like arm over his face, but\nMerrick gives no response. The insect pouts as his wings wilted with empathy.\nBuzzing sadly, Taci picks up one of the decorative scales piled onto Merrick's\nfrozen body - which are sparkling white beautifully, despite the fact that\nthere isn't any light for them to reflect, they're even vibrating ever so\nslightly. \n \nIn a last-stitch tribute for the sake of respect for placing\nArnaav into the shell, Taci arranges the scales around the Piscien's naked\nhuman body. He places one onto Merrick's forehead, onto his chin, a few over\neach pec, around his stomach, a few elegantly lined alone his arms, and down\nhis legs, a couple over his genitals.\n \nHe arranges the scales in a sort of symbolic array on and\naround Merrick. It's not much, but at least they look like pretty black jewels\naround him. Taci lifts another scale up, before it started to spark and vibrate\nmadly.\n \n\"EErrrraarrtt?!\" The insect spazzes out, and drops the\nscales he was holding. The scales were all spitting tiny dots of fire as they\ncrackled and warped, biting on every inch of Merrick's body.\n \nVVVVVVVFFFffffrrrrrrvvvvvv \n \nIn a fit of panic, Taci flies away as black and ice start to\ncreep and engulf Merrick, twisting his body as it grew like a mound of\ncrystalline soil.\n \n \n~~~\n \n \n\"STOP!!!\" Olaroc shouted. Samudra and Bertone cease their\nforceful digging, and look to the blue and white sea turtle.\n \n\"What, Brother?\" Samudra asks.\nEbba turns to see the sudden interruption.\n \n\"Look here...\" Olaroc points to the end of his trident, where\nit seems to be leaking a dark fluid. Bertone swims around, and puts his nose\ntowards the dark mist around the area. Olaroc pulls his trident out of its\nspot, and thus letting more of the substance out.\n \nBertone sniffs the new liquid dancing slowly in the water,\nbefore looking up to them, \"It is blood... Of a fish...\" \n \nAll three paused before Samudra takes his trident up, and\nSLAMS it into an upper part of the ice! Bertone places his trident aside, and\nstarts to grab and break apart the ice with his bare paws, while Olaroc does as\nhis brother does, and breaks apart the ice in huge chunks.\n \nThe polar bear merman brushes and shreds the large black ashes\nforcefully, until he pushed his fingers into them, grasped something soft and\ncold. He quickly pushed away the other flakes, almost making a cloud of black\ndust, until he felt a smaller webbed hand on his huge paw, with his other paw\non an arm, \"HURRY!\"\n \nThe two turtle Tritons keep digging and shoving, making\nhaste before they realized the boundary of the black flake. They all started to\ndig and pad away into the pile. Olaroc replaces and pushes around the flakes\nuntil he can make out a glinting silver key with a heart-shaped jewel at the\ncenter of it. Bertone pants as he pushes through the layers of shiny black\npaper, and he eventually pulls his paws at a thick tail with frilly membranes\non either side. Samudra scoops several handfuls of flake away, until he was\nable to see a face. His heart pounds as he blows the flake away, until he sees\na sleeping blue face with a pearlescent sheen with a field of sharp fins on the\ntop head.\n \n\"By the Sea Mother...!\" Ebba gasps as the three Tritons pull\nMerrick from the ashes. His eyes closed and otherwise dormant, his head slowly\nbows down, his arms hang on either side with his left arm issuing a dark red\nmist from a deep puncture wound, his tail drifts away from the hole of flake\nand ice.\n \nBertone looks into the cavern, and gasps as he sees the\nsmall otter merman. He reaches in, and picks up the small, fuzzy boy, shivering\nin the sheer cold.\n \n\"He is...\" They inspect him, from head to tailfin. No spikes, no\nwings, no grotesque anomaly of any sort. Faint red marks are over his body,\nincluding a few shriveled spots on his fins. They hold him in their arms as he\nremains comatose in dreamless sleep, before Ebba comes to them, and places a\nhand firmly onto his chest, and then over to his gills.\n \n\"He is not breathing,\" Ebba\nsays, \"We must get him to the Noita!\" \n \n\"Let us hurry! We can still save him!\" Olaroc and Samudra\ntake Merrick by each arm over their necks, and swim swiftly away.\n \n\"Amnien Triton,\" Ebba says as she turned around, \"You-\" She\nstopped before she could say anything. She lowers her hand as she looks upon\nthe other two Amniens.\n \nTriton Bertone weeps as he holds the meryin in his huge\narms, burying the boy within the confines of his very thick white fur. Holding\nArnaav this close, he can feel every shake the little one makes. He pushes his\nface onto Arnaav's head, snuggling close.\n \n\"I thought I would never see you again...\" Bertone whimpered\nas he holds him close, \"I thought I had lost you to the sea...\" He sobs as he\nholds his son as tight as he could without crushing him.\n \n\"Wait, then he is...\" Ebba asked lowly. Bertone, having heard\nher through his sniffling, nods as he holds Arnaav closer, \"But he never said\nhe was... He only said-\"\n \n\"He was far... Far too young to know... He did not understand\nanything...\" Bertone sobbed, \"He did not listen when he was given the chance...\"\n \n \n~~~\n \n \nComplete darkness is only\nvisible. Black and silence. \n \nA faint humming can be heard from outside. Lines and specs\nof light flow through unseen openings and holds, littering onto a few shiny\nsurfaces. The humming gets louder as the small lights shine brighter and\nbrighter.\n \nThe light in the dead center of the dark wall cracks a\ncentimeter larger, before a horizontal light draws all around the dark space.\nThe line widens and opens up by the pearly white hands of a beautiful white\nmermaid. \n \nThe sphere of light around the chest dissipates as the\ncaster accesses the old treasure chest. Savarna pushes the two corners of the\nchest's lid upward, until it is fully opened, and the many ancient riches\nrevealed in their musty residence. \n \n\"Very well then,\" Adra Savarna mumbles, \"Which shall I talk\nwith me to the...\" She ponders as her eyes looks here and around the pile of gold\nand jewels, until she spots something completely different from the hoard of\ntreasure: a very small scallop shell with a black symbol upon it - what looks\nlike letter that looks like 7-pointed star drawn of 4 lines and 2 dashes. \n \nShe gives a light gasp as she instantly sees the aura of her\nown brother imbedded to the shell, inside and out. The black kanji symbol wisps\nof a human aura, but it's more or less overpowered by that of the energy of her\nkin.\n \n\"What...\" Her dainty hand picks up the small shell, and she\nholds it delicately with both hands. \nHer mouth eventually turns into a weak smile, before her\nfingers softly close around the shell, and she brings it to her chest.\n \n\"He is alive...\" A gentle sense of joy starts to pleasantly\nflow into her as she takes this small moment to at least relish this unexpected\nsentiment, \"You are alive...\" Savarna mumbles, \"Brother... I hope you are... Please\nbe safe...\"\n \n \n~~~\n \n \n\"Nnnnhh... Hhhh...\" Merrick groans as his eyes peer open, very\nslightly. Every part of him aches, he can feel himself shaking, trembling\neverywhere on his body. His vision blurs as he can eventually make out his own\nhand, down to this blue fingertips. He bids his fingers to move, and they give\nan obligated twitch.\n \nAs Merrick's webbed fingers curl into his palm, he can soon\ndetermine that his body is pressing down upon the cool sand of the ocean, while\nalso feeling a dying sting receding within his other arm. He winces as his body\ntenses in an attempt to move, but finds that he's too weak for even a shift.\n \n\"They really were just minor fire marks,\" Says a familiar\nfemale voice, \"They erase almost as instantly as I heal them. Same as his\ntailfin.\"\n \n\"Is there nothing we can do to cleanse them of the Sazae\ntoxins?\" Asked a familiar deep voice.\n \n\"No, we are not in the area for any animal or plant that may\nperish the poison. Merrick and Arnaav will have to let their bodies filter\nthemselves.\"\n \nMerrick clenches his eyes as he gives a harsh groan.\n \n\"Oh, he is awake!\"\n \n\"Merrick, you mean?\"\n \n\"Unnhh...\" Merrick groans again as he tries to manage a few deep\nbreathes. His insides feel so painful and solid, which is why he's determined\nthat he shouldn't even move right now.\n \n\"Merrick, are you here?\" Comes a voice, \"Are you awake? Do\nyou understand me??\"\n \n\"Where...\" Merrick moans, \"Where am I... I feel so cold and... My\nstomach feels almost sharp...\"\n \n\"You are recovering from a vicious sleep,\" He soon remembers\nthe face of Vanora as he hears it overhead, \"As I can see, you have not\nsustained anything that I cannot heal.\"\n \n\"What... I do not understand...\"\n \n\"You and Arnaav were trapped on the top of a Sazae\nGraveyard. Did you not know?\"\n \n\"What...\" Merrick feels so dizzy and confused, \"What is a\nSazae... And what graveyard... I was not in any...\"\n \n\"I thought so,\" She continued, \"You do not know of Sazaes...\nWe will tell you later,\" She said.\n \n\"Arnaav...\" \n \n\"Yes,\" Vanora said, \"You were-\"\n \n\"Arnaav,\" Merrick grunts and whines as he tries to push\nhimself up, \"Where is Arnaav... I need to find him... I tried to protect him, where\nis Arnaav-\"\n \n\"Stop, keep calm!\" Vanora pushes Merrick down, making him\nstruggle, \"He is well! I assure you!\" Merrick settles down reluctantly, still\nhurting badly in the inside as he can feel the healing energies still trying to\nthaw his body, \"He was protected. You were able to cover him. He is well, but\nhe is dormant.\"\n \nMerrick's eyes feebly open as he endeavors to force himself\naware. Slowly, his blurry vision allows him to make out a rather large, white\nmass that is adorned with various gear of shells and kelp. \n \n\"Nnhh... Tr... Triton...\"\n \n\"That is Triton Bertone.\" Vanora said, \"While you above the\nsurface, I along with Daughter, and Noita Shazde and Adra Bauru tried to raise\nthe tide. Soon, Noita Rayette and her daughter came to assist. We soon found\nyou, with Arnaav hidden inside a shell.\"\n \n\"The...\" Merrick mumbles, \"Black Sun... I was... So cold...\"\n \n\"You had undergone... Transformation...\" Vanora said, \"And yet,\nyou are you right now.\"\n \n\"I... I duh...\"\n \n\"Just rest.\" Vanora said. \"Be still. You have done enough.\"\n \nTriton Bertone turns, and swims to Merrick, swooping slowly\ndown to be level with him, \"Is he?\"\n \n\"Yes.\" Vanora nods, \"He is awake, but very weak.\" Merrick\nwhines as moving his hand is still the best he can manage.\n \n\"Hah... You have grown so much, Merrick.\" Bertone smiles, \"You\nwere half your size the last time I saw you; when you blinded that Alpha Niseag\nin both eyes at your Father's behest.\" \n \n\"I... Remember...\" Merrick groans. He looks up with weary eyes,\n\"Is... Arnaav safe... Where is he...\"\n \n\"He is here,\" Bertone gently moves, and places the small\notter child onto Merrick's side. Merrick groans as he moves his arm over, and\ngently touches the sleeping boy on the cheek.\n \n\"Arnaav...\" Merrick's eyes feel misty as he sees the small,\nfuzzy chest inflate, and lower in his sleep, \"You are alive... You are still\nhere...\" He smiles as his cold chest begins to feel a warm flood of emotion. \n \n\"I can go home...\" Merrick smiles as tears shimmer from his\neyes, coming to the realization that as far as he can tell, he's as normal as\nhe's always been. \"I can see Adam...\" His chest quivers as he cried silently, \"I can\ngo home... Adam... I can see him again...\"\n \n \nBertone left the boy to sleep by Merrick, and swim up to the\nothers. \n \n\"Thank you for your assistance, Brother, Noita Shazde and Adra Bauru,\" Samudra\nturned his gaze upon the otter Noita, \"And to you, Noita Rayette, and Adra\nAricio.\" He nodded to them, \"As we Coshitons, you could have turned away and\nleft us behind, but I am very grateful to be in your debt on this sun.\"\n \n\"We thank you for taking in and protecting our precious...\"\nRayette sighs as she shakes her head. Technically, she is no longer supposed to\ncall Arnaav by who he is to her, \"We thank you, for protecting him.\"\n \n\"I suppose you will...\" Samudra looks, and is curious to see\nhis brother holds his own trident in one hand, with his other hand onto the\nshaft of his trident, and holding it out. After a moment, Samudra gives an\nemotional smile as he took his trident, and held it in the same fashion and\ntouched the tridents in an X fashion.\n \n\"I, Triton Olaroc of the Holsien merfolk, greet you\npeacefully, in the name of Guardian Kraken.\" He said.\n \n\"And I, Triton Samudra, of the Kenovani pod, greet you\npeacefully, in the name of the Sea Guardians.\" He turns to Triton Bertone as he\nholds up his own weapon.\n \n\"As well as I, Triton Bertone, of the Amnien merfolk, greet\nyou peacefully, in the name of Guardian Charybdis. So let it be.\"\n \n \n~~~\n \n \nOn that night, all three pods are on the surface, in\nreverence of the full moon illuminating the sky. Upon the stony tops of the\nTower Trenches, every mermaid in attendance sings beautifully into the clear\nsky. The females lend their melodies all around in an oceanic chorus to the\nfull white circle up on high, and also for a more melancholy reason.\n \n\"On the sun of this very moment of life, we have lost five\nof our brothers and sisters, in our small pod of outcasts and loners.\" Samudra\nsaid to everyone in a ceremonial circle. The other leaders of the pod are here\nas well to pay their respects for the fallen merfolk.\n \n\"Karkos, of the Cage-Heart Crab merfolk, now passed; we will\nbe at a loss without his inventive mind. Ehecatl, of the Dugong merfolk, now\npassed. As caring as she was hurt, her service to our younger members will\nalways be remembered.\"\n \nMerrick and sits with his head bowed as the names of the\ndeceased are announced in a small eulogy \"Myles of the Sting Fang Lizard\nmerfolk, now passed,\" Vanora says next, \"He fought bravely in our struggles - I\nwill never again meet as tough and ready a merman as he. Inciro of the Dusk\nFish merfolk, now passed. I am sorry that his dream of battling his rivals in\ncombat will never come to fruition.\"\n \n\"And Taci, of the Meko Shark merfolk, now changed,\" Ebba\nfinishes, \"Though he sought to change the course of his life, to redeem the\nsins of his past, the Land Father's dreams has thus evolved him to an unknown\nform. Where ever he may be, may we pray that he finds the redemption that he\nseeks in his new life.\"\n \n\"And let us thank the Sea Mother,\" Vanora says, \"For seeing\nour survival through. For giving each and everyone of us new chances and new\npaths in this life from the very grace of Her life and light. And know that our\nfallen companions now dwell in the Shores of Light, to forever watch over their\nloved ones in the gracious winds and waters of fate and reality.\"\n \nEvery mermaid in the pods sing their hearts and souls into\nthe air, to the full moon, to give thanks to the Shining Sea Mother Atargatis,\nto give mourn to those the Kenovani has lost.\n","previous":"https://fse.anthro.fr/stories/956467-aquata-cove-chapter-64.json","next":"https://fse.anthro.fr/stories/964067-aquata-cove-chapter-66.json"}