Chapter Text
The abyss has been your home since you could remember. It’s all you’ve ever known, and all you truthfully cared to know. The heated vents that would expel gases and occasional molten rock out would keep you perfectly warm, even though you’ve grown to love the chill of the deep. The darkness never bothered you, the jagged, crackling markings running across your black tail would shine different colors with the power of your magic. Plus, you’ve come across caverns that held crystals which would glow in tune with your tail, which was very pretty to you.
It made up for not seeing the stars. For all your strength in both physical and magical, in all your deathly glory…
There was no way in hell you’d ever go near the surface. You were doing great here in your home, and what purpose would you ever find up there? Plus, it was actually really, really difficult up there. Even just going out of the mouths of the caverns you lived in made you deeply uncomfortable.
This discomfort hasn’t been with you that long, honestly. You used to swim up and back down to the abyss all the time before it. Really, it barely bothers you! You’re just going about your usual day here in the deep, alone, no others of your kind or any other real kind to socialize with when…
When you found out you were different. Way different.
The event occurred a few cycles ago, when you’d twisted your way through the tangled up cave systems that lead from your darkened, deep home out into the pretty blue waters of the typical ocean. Not much prey had swam your way before that, so you’d gone out to hunt and then would just go back home. Nothing more! Just snatch up a couple of sharks and spend the rest of the day sleeping by the heat vents, maybe messing with the stuff you find like that broken, wooden thing the surface people use. You can almost fit your entire tail in there!
Back to the problem at hand, you had been hunting. You were mostly targeting what were called Great Whites — they made a decent mouthful of food for you, the bones crunchy and the meat itself softly shredded by your teeth, they were a luxury for you — but you had scooped up and swallowed a few other misfortunate creatures that had passed you by. You didn’t even leave the entire safety of your home, just your top half was poking out of the cave opening! The rest of your flared, long tail draped across and through the cave behind you. No point wasting energy, you just stayed still and they came to you. Long, green hair made it difficult for near sighted fish to tell the difference between you and seaweed.
It had come as a surprise when, caught halfway between watching for prey and napping, a blue blur had gone across your vision. Eyes opening, you kept perfectly still yet tense, ready to reach out and grab whatever it was.
A small fish swims by in front of you, and your blue blur snatches it up before starting to chow down. You were sure your mouth had dropped open from shock. It was another mermaid! He looked...he’s tiny! The fish you saw as small was pretty big for him, and if that wasn’t enough he looked even stranger. His upper half was clearly a skeleton, and his lower was the lightest blue you’ve ever seen, your nose picking up the scent of heavy magic across it.
It was startling, you had thought for sure any other merfolk would look like you. Granted you’ve...never seen another merfolk, but you knew they existed! You knew a lot of things, honestly...wonder who taught you that?
A breath out makes the merskeleton in front of you stop. He barely even twitches as sand drifts up and around him in a flurry, before slowly turning around and meeting your gaze. Trying to be friendly, you smile at him.
He drops the half eaten fish, the corpse slowly drifting to the floor. His hands are shaking, actually his everything is shaking. Eyelights nothing more than slivers, mouth open in abject horror. He drifts a few inches — feet for him, probably — away from you before turning tail and BOLTING away.
All you hear from him, is the distant scream of
“L E V I A T H A N!!!”
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The memory sticks out so clearly, even with it being cycles ago since you saw the little mer. It had stuck with you, though. The fear on his face, his trembling form as though he was looking at one of the squids you occasionally eat.
They fed you well, but even you got creeped out by them. You often had to rip the tentacles off before eating, since they can normally get a good grab on your hand if they have enough time. It doesn’t hurt you, but it’s annoying.
...How big were those squids, anyways? If you’re so big compared to other mers, those squids must be a good size...and you often have to eat multiple to feel full!
It was disturbing, thinking of how this entire time you had thought of yourself as just an everyday mer living her life, waiting to meet another and LIVE. You...you’re just the outlier though, aren’t you?
Which is why you are currently lying across the heat vents, enjoying the feeling of molten rock on your body and stress chewing whale bones. Was it really a good habit to have? Probably not. Was it making you feel better? Absolutely.
Your thoughts wander down different currents, twisting and changing with each new question. Just how different were you from other mers? Was it a species thing? Was it a habitat thing? You doubted that tiny blue boy would be able to last down here in the depths you resided at, but on the other fin you COULD survive in his place. You just didn’t feel like it.
You’re so deep in thought you barely notice movement wayyy up above you, not until an iron scent you are so familiar with drifts down towards you. That’s blood, that’s a decent amount of blood. Enough to attract sharks…
And sharks means food!
Dropping the rib you were gnawing on, you push up from the floor and swim to the scent. Once you’re close enough, you notice you’re heading towards a new tunnel you haven’t really explored yet. The turns and twists don’t bother you, you swim past as gracefully as always. In the back of your head, you notice that your tail IS a lot longer compared to the blue mer. Just another thing to add to the list.
Poking your head out of this cave’s mouth, you see it leads to a thick kelp forest. There’s just enough space for a small, sand patch to be in front of the cave, and the blankness reveals to you the source of the blood. Tied by his tail to a rusted anchor, is another merskeleton! He’s not like the other one, though. This one has blackened bones, and his tail was a bright yellow that turned red the closer it got to his waist. Speaking of his tail, it has a long scratch on it, which looked rather clean. Too carefully made to be a proper predator attack, it was likely another mer.
Figuring he probably shouldn’t be sleeping, you poke the little guy. He groans, but shakes his head before opening his eyes. They’re such a lovely red and yellow!
...Aaaaand he looks scared too. Great.
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Error couldn’t explain why he knew the day was going to be terrible, but he absolutely HATED that he was correct. It wasn’t the usual terrible, where most of his school avoided him thanks to the fact that he was — admittingly — an outcast to the group. He usually just moved alone, would have never bothered joining up with this school, but rumors on the current was that there had been ANOTHER cave system discovered nearby. One where all the tunnels led into the depths of the abyss, and where the truest predator of the ocean lived.
The Leviathan. Even just thinking of the name sent a shudder through his bones. They were huge, and easily could take down any sea creature that dared to challenge them. They ate whatever they could find, bones and all, but the prey they so deeply desired was that of Merfolk. Merfolk held magic, which Leviathans used to power themselves and their might. While they were such big threats, though, most Leviathans never left their homes. Staying in the same area of the abyss from their beginning until their supposed end. Some would be content that way, others would rule the territory around their caverns with iron fists and chase away anything that entered.
Error hoped he would never see the feared third kind, one that didn’t mind leaving its abyss to travel the oceans and devour all in its wake.
Which leads to his current situation. There was nothing good about it. In the most idiotic of idiotic moves, his “school” of “allies” had chosen to knock him out, cut him up, and leave him where the damn thing was supposed to live! They had considered it tribute towards the beast, and that “his sacrifice would spare them” as they traveled through the Leviathan’s supposed territory.
Error’s calling bullshit but whatever.
He finally started to come around when he felt something very much alive poke him. Thankful, because it’s probably another group passing through, Error is quick to open his eyes and look towards the movement.
He nearly screams, but the words die quickly in his throat. He was being poked by a hand, attached to an arm, attached to a body. A really, really big body.
This mermaid was BIG. Even just looking behind her, he couldn’t see where her tail ended as it was twisted through the cavern like a sea serpent. Long, green hair that looked similar to the plant life around them, gray skin that could blend in anywhere, large eyes locked onto his…
And teeth. So, so, sooo many sharp teeth. Too many to truthfully count.
So this was what a Leviathan looks like.
Error was going to die.
Today REALLY is a terrible day.
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Alright, you had one mission and one mission only: Keep the Mer CALM. He was bleeding, clearly terrified — even if you were still struggling with why he was scared of you — and that was NOT a good combo. The bleeding had to be taken care of quickly as to not attract other predators. Sharks were great for you, not so much on his end. Reaching around him, you tear at the kelp forest to get a huge amount of the plants and put them down in front of him. You’d bandage him up yourself, but you weren’t exactly built to handle that kind of delicate task.
Plus the way he was looking at you really made you want to avoid touching him. Maybe his coloring too, wasn't brightly colored stuff supposed to be poisonous? Or toxic?? Shit what if this guy tried to poison you, you’ve never been poisoned before!
When he doesn’t move to the kelp, you subtly try to point it out. Maybe he can’t see as well as you can…
Or maybe it’s those chains you now see wrapped around his hands securing him to the anchor like his tail. Oops.
Slowly, you reach out to hold the chains between two fingers. The mer flinches away, and struggles to get as far as he could but you don’t let the bad reaction stop you. The chains feel thin beneath your fingertips, and they snap just as easily.
He doesn’t move away from the anchor, even after getting free. However, he does snatch up the close kelp and starts tying it up into a bandage. You keep your distance, not wanting to make things worse. Once he’s patched himself up, you try for a comforting smile.
There has to be someway to let him know you don’t want to hurt him. Some possible thing to tell when what you’re thinking...oh!
You swallow, hard, and move your jaw a bit. Hopefully this works…
“H...Hello? I...I mean...no harm…” You’re surprised it works, but it does! That’s your voice! You CAN talk, you’ve never talked before but you can! Your voice echoes around the area, and you swear it sounds like two or three people talking at once. It’s the coolest thing you’ve ever heard, why didn’t you try this before?!
The mer cowers away from you, and oh right that’s why. You’ve never HAD anyone to talk to. You keep the smile up as you desperately think about what to do next. He’s bandaged up now, but he’ll need somewhere to rest and recover, somewhere closed off and unable to be ambushed.
Somewhere like your home. It would work perfectly! No one else ever goes down there except you, so he won’t be bothered. You can hunt for the both of you, and he’ll get the time he needs to heal up. Excited at the plan, you don’t even consider the ramifications of snatching the Mer up in your hands and diving deep into the caverns.
The darkness swallows the both of you up.