Mermaiden in the Sea

[serynsatina]

Aslena smoothed down her hair in the broken mirror sitting on her dresser. Her light green tail flipped once in excitement as she reached for her coral comb. In approximately six hours, she would be performing in front of the entire city of which was ruled by her father, Thorinvelen of the Fathoms. Granted, her sisters and brothers would also be on stage, but she was always glad for the support. Water dancing was her passion, and she embraced it as one who would make a life from it.

"Ara?" she called softly.

The old maid poked her head through the beaded curtain.

"Yes, Miss?"

"Please call Reme. I would like to go out of the city today."

Ara hesitated only briefly before nodding in assent. She withdrew.

Moments later, the gentle whickering of her sea-horse, Pearl, summoned Aslena.

Aslena kissed her stable man, Reme, once on the cheek.

"Thank you, Reme. That will be all."

Reme nodded, tipped his hat at her shyly, and left. He was a silent but sweet man, and did not talk.

Pearl snorted. The special-bred seahorse was a pure white, beautiful, instinctive, loyal, and kind species, a gift from her great aunt Morgane. The seahorse was more of a companion for Aslena than a beast to ride on. Thor had been at ease when Aslena went out with Pearl ever since the fiery creature had fended off a young shark by itself. The fact that Aslena always wore a deadly steel pin in her hair helped, as well. Freedom was a privilege easily earned.

"Pearl," she whispered as she wrapped an arm around the creature's neck, "let us go."

With that, the seahorse took off, the young mermaiden gracefully hanging on the side, so that from a distance, one cannot help but wonder if the sight before their eyes is not some exotic creature from the depths of the ocean.

[tpfan]

((Oh. I like mermaid rps. I'll join, but first I'd like to know more about the Alliance and the Order? Which one is against the king, if any? Are they just spies, or warriors, too? What are their plans? Do they wish to rule the sea, or something?))

[serynsatina]

//Eh, I X'd that part out. I'd much rather the other players contribute to the RP, too. You can still use the Alliance and Order when RPing, but I'm not going to force you to RP about it.

The Order is the one against the King, and the Alliance is sort of mad at the King for not placing better protection on things outside the main city. The Order is sort of like a gang, and they exist solely to inflict troubles upon the undersea kingdoms. The rest will go as we RP. //

[tpfan]

((Ah... Okay.))

"She's leaving AGAIN?" A merman growled, going to the stables to retrieve his own seahorse. "My job can never be bloody easy, can it?" He cursed colourfully under his breath and saddled Kelp, an inconspicuous-looking brown mare. "C'mon, girl, we gotta go make sure the princess doesn't go and break a nail."

Merrac was a large, irritable young merman. He had green blue eyes that were normally flashing with anger or annoyance, and a dull grey tail. He wore a dark brown shirt that doubled as armor, and he was quite adept at using his 6 foot long trident. Kelp was a nasty piece of work on her own, adoring Merrac but attacking anyone else that dared to come close to her. Which explained why Merrac was saddling her, instead of one of the hostlers. Merrac was assigned to guard Aslena, no easy task, since the princess seemed to hate the thought of any responsibility. If he could turn down the task that the king gave him, he would have in an instant. He would have rather been out defending their territory, rather than babysitting some spoiled royal.

He sighed and got onto Kelp, following Aslena.

[serynsatina]

Aslena gracefully disengaged herself from her mount. Pearl whickered softly.

"Shh...quietly, Pearl," she murmured.

They were in an alley, on the outskirts of the city. She could still see the bright glow of the lights of her father's Palace.

"No doubt Merrac will be after me," she muttered to herself. The poor merman assigned as her guard. She liked him enough; his temper was, at the least, unpredictable.
((Sorry, only trying to draw conclusions from your post. I don't mean to powerplay.))

She led Pearl down the alley, and down another. And another. Soon, the lights of the Palace could no longer be seen.

Aslena felt a small sense of satisfaction as she made her way down the back alleys of the ghetto region.

A small shadow slipped by. Aslena froze, and Pearl tensed.

From the corner of her eye, Aslena made out a young merboy. He was hiding behind the gap between two buildings. A silver glint in his hand caught her eye.

"A knife," she gasped.

Quickly, she threw her arm around Pearl's neck without pausing to think if the knife was of any danger to her whatsoever.

"Quickly, girl! Quickly!" she urged breathily as they fled.

She glanced behind her to see if the boy was following.

She could not see anything. Everything was dark.

[tpfan]

((No problem. You got Merrac's character down-pat.))

Merrac groaned as he saw Aslena enter the ghetto-ish region. Nothing in his life could be easy, could it? Why couldn't he guard someone that didn't go and obliviously put themselves in danger every 3 minutes?

Kelp whickered nervously. She didn't like this area, it was where Merrac had found her years ago. Her previous owner had not been a good man.

"You have more sense than that princess does, girl. Don't worry, I'm here for ya." Merrac smiled.Then he looked up. Aslena had already disappeared down an alley. "Buggrit! C'mon, we gotta go." He ugred Kelp on, trying to figure out where the princess had gone in this maze of a place. "If anything happens to her, the king'll have my hide."

Merrac's sharp ears picked up some sound coming from his left. He grimaced and tihtened his grip on his trident, then rode quickly and quietly down the alley, hoping to surprise whoever was there.

[serynsatina]

Aslena gasped as she recognized a voice. Merrac.

At any other time, he would have been a welcome friend. But she wanted time to herself. And to explore.

She hastened her pace, glancing back to make sure that he had not followed.

"Pearl," she muttered grimly as they went, "I will have my adventures."

The beautiful seahorse whinnied softly and rolled her eyes, as if to say, you do that, Aslena. You do that.

The young mermaid brushed her long dark hair out of her face as she paused.

"Pearl," she began. "This isn't a very good idea, is it?"

Pearl stopped and looked at her sideways. You just realized?

Aslena nodded in satisfaction.

"Good. Let's go. Before Merrac comes."

((Hey, Merrac is a page in POTS. xD))

[tpfan]

((Actually, it's Merric. I, not a. But he is kinda the the character model for Merrac. Kelp is a little like Peachblossom. ;D There doesn't seem to be much interaction between our characters. Pr'haps I'll double. We need an antagonist, after all.))

Merrac reached the area he had last heard Aslena's voice. She was gone, down one of the winding alleys. the youth with a knife was gone, too. Merrac swore. "That... that... that brat! Can't she stay still for a moment?" He ground his teeth and smacked his trident against the wall.

"You shouldn't do that. You might bring this entire structure down on us," a voice sounded from the shadows, "And you wouldn't want that, would you?" A hag-like mermaid swam slowly towards Merrac, grinning toothlessly. She wore a ragged purple top, and both her eyes and her tail were a sickly shade of yellow. Her frzzy white hair waved around her head like a living organism. "You wouldn't bring down a building on a helpless old crone like me, right?"

Merrac started. He didn't know anyone was in the alley. Kelp snorted as the mermaid came closer. Merrac pulled on Kelp's reins, warning her to behave. "No, I wouldn't. I wouldn't suggest getting near Kelp, 'ere. She's pretty nasty when she sets her mind to it. Say, have you seen which way Princess Aslena went?"

"Oh, yes, I have. And don't worry about me, I'm sure a pretty lady like this wouldn't lay a fin on me." The crone grinned again, laying her had on Kelp's snout. A flash of light blinded Merrac, and he was thrown off his horse, against the wall. His trident flew flew several feet away and floated to the floor. Kelp lay on the ground, motionless. "What did you do, sorceress?!" he roared. He wanted to attack her, but his body did not respond to his commands.

"Oh, nothing. It's just a knockout spell. I can't have you getting in my way, following the princess so obstinately as you have. I'm impressed, actually. You managed to retain conciousness. Of course, I'm sure your horse took the brunt of the spell." She placed one gnarled finger on Merrac's forehead. "Nighty-night." Another flash of light. Pravus grinned and pushed the two limp bodies into a corner. "I'm be back later, I'm sure I'll find some use for you. But right now, the princess is top priority."

((Is that okay? I still need to think of a reason why Pravus is doing this, though....))

[serynsatina]

((oh.))

((Ransom, maybe? I dunno. Think of something...xD))

Aslena heard nothing more of Merrac. She did not know whether that was good, or bad. Had the boy gotten him?

"No, Merrac is a good hand at weapons," she whispered to Pearl. The seahorse whickered softly, but her eyes rolled. Aslena did not notice. Her mind was elsewhere.

"Maybe there was a ravaged ship," she muttered excitedly to herself. "And it's abandoned...maybe there are treasures!"

She was still too inexperienced to know that had there been a broken ship, bandits and sharks would have claimed the area.

"Come, Pearl. Slow down. Let us go that way." She gently steered her mount toward the east, feeling a tingling in her tail.

Aslena looked around her warily as she passed, one delicate hand reaching up to pat her deadly hair pin.

Her eldest sister had taught her the ways of a warrior, as her husband was one.

If a bandit attacks...she shuddered apprehensively. Suddenly she wished she had slept in less and attended more morning practices with the rest of the Court's finer merladies.

[serynsatina]

((doubling is fine...I might have to as well, only I need to think of someone...eh. I'm possibly the worst at multitasking.))

[requias]

{Anyone wanna let a young waterdragon in? or.......any other creatures or characters needed? o.o *smiles all half-assuredly* i've never played under water before...}

[serynsatina]

((go for it, as long you can find a way to fit in. ))

[serynsatina]

Aslena grew jumpier and jumpier as the moments passed. She waded through kelp warily, and wrapped her arm tightly around her seahorse.

A movement to her left caught her eye. She froze, hidden by the kelp bed. Pearl went still as well, sensing something.

The same young boy who she had seen in the alley was making his way out of the city. The knife was no longer in his hand, yet it glinted silver from his belt.

Aslena felt curious. The boy looked this way and that, but he missed seeing her in the kelp.

Looking satisfied, he continued on his way, glancing in all directions as if he were afraid of something.

Aslena felt excitement mounting in her.

"Pearl," she whispered. "We're following him."

((doubling as boy. xD))

[tpfan]

((Nah. Pravus doesn't strike me as the money-grubbing sort. Maybe for power. Does Aslena have a talismin, or something that an evil mer-sorceress would want?))

[serynsatina]

((No. But I can spiff up her hair pin, maybe; deadly and magical. Whoot. xD))

As they wove through the kelp silently, Aslena kept an eye on the boy. She kept reaching up to touch her hair pin. The warmth emanating from it assured her that she was safe.

"Pearl, hurry up a bit," she urged as the boy, once again, disappeared behind a tall rock. The seahorse whickered disdainfully, but sped up a hair.

Aslena felt something tug at her hair. Sharply turning, she discovered that her hair had gotten caught on the rock. Cursing silently, she impatiently worked it free. Her hair pin had come loose.
Quickly, Aslena unpinned it from her hair and studied it before giving it a quick rub and replacing it on her head. The hair pin, simple but elegant, held enough power to help her out in any tight spot. Her mother, a sorceress, had fashioned it for her before she left.
When she was nine, she had gotten lost in the depths of the city. The hair pin, which she had worn in her hair, helped her get home by lighting up when she turned the right direction. From then on, Aslena never parted with it. She even slept with it nestled in her gentle fingers.