Chapter 2

In a few meters beneath the sea by the beach, decorated with white sand, colourful corals and sea creatures of different colours go about their day, not far away from the busy life beneath the sea, a certain mermaid laid down in a patch of clean sand without any corals or rocks. 

It's been almost half an hour since Noe had to accept the fact that he had changed his species from human to mermaid. Getting used to it, is another matter.

Sighing in melancholy, Noe had to pause because even that felt weird. Raising his hand, Noe glanced at the hand with thin webs in between finger that would have looked delicate if it were not for those deadly looking sharp nails and cautiously touched his neck, for fear of accidentally cutting his neck with his own hand. Noe clamped down the ticklish feeling coming up his spine  and carefully touched the six, probably gills. Three on both side of his neck.

Up from his neck was the fin-like ear that felt soft to the touch. And sensitive.

Withdrawing his hand, he turned his attention towards the pain on his chest that has been going on since he was awake. Seeing the deep wound right at the place where his heart was, Noe had to question whether he was dreaming or not because if this is the reality, this wound, directly exposed his beating heart to the world. Literally.

Noe: Zombie mermaid (  ▼ _▼)

So, this is a quack reincarnation/transmigration? Suddenly, he want to go and search for the being who brought him here after death because there’s no way he got here out of coincidence and giving him a body that is damaged from who knows what and might be on the verge of death, doesn’t seem to be advantageous to him.

Just as Noe was contemplating on how to navigate living with this big wound on his chest, with no appetite nor reason to live, a voice called out to him, snapping him awake from his reverie.

“Hey? What’s a mermaid doing here alone so far out?” the voice travels to Noe in a unique echo of soundwave. Although he had never heard of this particular sound wave or even understand the ‘language’, Noe could hear the meaning of it. Which is very interesting to him. and he was thankful that at least, the being that put him here had the decency to not let him be a fool or illiterate.

“You don’t seem to look good.” The mermaid perceived Noe’s condition that wasn't looking good with the echolocation and grew even more worried as he noticed the lone mermaid was lying the without moving even a fin. “Wait there. I’m coming over to your side!”

“I’m fine.” Noe replied using the same manner of communication instinctively. His attention was quickly pulled away with the bizarre feeling of his throat making such thin-like sound like the dolphin made he'd seen in national geographic yet have a distinct meaning in the language that he could understand.

Busy experimenting with these new communication, the other mermaid was bombarded with all sorts of weird vocals like a mermaid cub just started to learn speaking but he didn’t mind it and even increased his speed. Soon, he saw a mermaid with a tail colour that he has never seen nor heard before in his entire life living in the sea and that’s quite a long time considering mermaid can live long.

“I see you now! Don’t move first, I’ll—AAAAAHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!” the mermaid screamed in horror as he saw what state Noe was in and was horrified to see a heart beating without the cover and protection of skin and meat!

Well, I guess that answers the question of how abnormal his situation is, Noe mused dryly as he watches a mermaid with light blue tail, almost turning blue ice in certain light, with long blond hair and dark blue eyes, froze in mid water with his hands covering his cheeks and a face that was horror-struck.

“What the fuck is wrong with your chest!!!!!!” this time, the mermaid no longer used the soft sound wave that was used for communication but a sharp one that disturbs one’s mind if they’re not mermaid.

The scream was so lethal that a lot of nearby sea creatures ran away in fright and stayed away from the two mermaids.

Noe lifted a hand as a greet for the friendly mermaid that came to help. “Was hoping that maybe you’d have the answer for this.”

The mermaid soon arrived near him but he didn’t know what to do other than failing his hands in panic. “Name’s Dawn. Do you feel any pain? Can you swim?”

“Noe. Yes, it stings more than when I starved to death and I’m not sure if I can swim.” Noe calmly replied without missing a bit. It hurts. If his tear gland works properly, he’d probably be able to cry a bucket worth of pearls. If the rumor about mermaids crying pearls is true.

Dawn’s eyes reddened, altough he didn't know if starving to death is true, Noe's words still made him tear up. He put his hand a few inches away from the wound and sang a soft song. Soft blue light envelope Noe in its embrace and he saw many fishes gravitates towards them, as if they were lured by the mermaid’s singing. He even saw a cute baby seahorse the size of a kitten, swaying like a drunkard, the fin that looked like it was injured repaired as it listened to Dawn's singing but unfortunately, nothing changed in Noe’s wound.

The blue mermaid frowns in distress. “This is more complicated than I thought. Usually, the song intertwined with the magic of healing would be able to heal even a half dead mermaid. But yours didn't move even a bit.”

“We need to go and see the High Priest.” Dawn supported Noe’s shoulder and asked. “Try and see if you can swim? We’ll have to go to the main city, which is fortunately, isn’t far. But I’m worried about your heart being so open like this!”

What if a small fish accidentally hit it while we're swimming?! Ooh, he really doesn't want to imagine that happening! There's no other words that could describe that picture other than horrifying!

Noe stared silently at the fretting mermaid for a minute and slowly smiled. But it quickly disappears when Dawn glanced at him. “I’ve never tried since I got this wound.” which, he conveniently didn't mention how he never swam with a fish tail before this.

With the help of Dawn, he slowly floated up from the sandy floor. At first, Now didn’t know how to use the tail but after swimming a few meters, he finally began to figure out after accidetally whipping Dawn's tail a few time in his struggle and realizes that he could just treat the tail as his legs unconciously and when he wants to move, the tail would immediately paddle like a 'normal mermaid'. Just like walking.

Thank goodness. The embarrassing feeling like a cub just starting to walk was too lethal. He never wants to experience that feeling ever again!

It's just, this tail is too pretty, he thought, looking at the transparent blue black frills around his waist and the gorgeous big tail fin that spreads as they moves.

Noe: Is he a male mermaid or a female mermaid?

Then again, the male creatures usually does have prettier appearances to court females. The peacock for example.

“Here,” Dawn had a clean and big conch the size of two hands that can be tied to cover the wound. It seemed that while Noe was in a daze, he had swam by himself while Dawn had went looking for a conch to protect the exposed heart.

They tied up the conch with seaweeds several times and swam a few laps to check if there were any discomfort before they continued moving.

“Have you eaten yet?” Dawn asked munching on the meat of the conch he cleaned. He had rushed towards Noe before eating breakfast, his stomach had been gurgling non-stop since then.

Not enough, Dawn captured a few more fishes that was swimming by. The sharp nails cleaned the fish and ate the meat up with delight. Although it wasn't as delicious without some preparation, it's still enough to pad his stomach.

Noe, who hated eating, did not hesitate to shake his head and lied in front of the blue mermaid with a straight face. “Ate some before you came. There was some shrimp nearby.”

The mermaid who didn’t know Noe well enough nodded. After all, who would lie about whether they were hungry or not when they have a companion who can help you hunt them meat when you’re hurt. That’s just common sense.

Apparently, common sense did not apply with a certain dark blue black tailed mermaid.

"Alright. Tell me if you're hungry and I'll catch a few more for you. Right now, you can't move too big. We still don't know what's going on with your wound." Dawn cautioned.

After successfully avoiding the threat of eating, Noe finally had the time to look around in the sea and he was immediately mesmerized. They were in the deep parts of the ocean but the sun provided enough light for him to see the beautiful scene underwater.

The fishes moving in group, riding the waves, scattered as they eat from the corals, the big fishes that lie in the cracks of the colorful coral as they wait for their prey to get close, the turtle swam as if they were floating leisurely, the baby seahorses behind the big one and were moving in line.

“This is…amazing.” Noe whispered.

Dawn, who was swimming beside him, chuckles as he watches Noe’s reaction. “You sound as if you’ve never seen these pictures before.”

“No, I have never…” the words trailed off as Noe realizes what he just said. He kept his mouth tightly closed and continued watching as he ignored the words that revealed more than he thought.

Hearing those words, Dawn remembered how Noe acted like a mermaid cub acted when they first started talking when he contacted Noe. If it wasn’t because they could converse fluently after that, Dawn would’ve thought he was a mermaid cub who just woke up from hibernation. A realization came upon Dawn as he further remembered how clumsy Noe had been when he first swam, even though, Noe tried his best to hide it, he had thought it was weird but thought it was because the wound had been too severe and made his tail stiff for a time.

But now, everything starts to come together.

Although, he can basically confirms it, Dawn didn’t say anything. The world is full of surprise. Since Noe can become a mermaid, maybe, this is what the world meant. Now, he needs to send this pup-like mermaid to the High Priest for inspection on the wound and educate him on some things that a mermaid should know as it was the common sense of mermaids.

They still have some time before arriving at the main city and that should be enough.

A miracle is a miracle but the mermaids would never shun their kind even if they’re different. Instead, they would do anything to help each other despite everything. This is their teaching from the old to young.

He just hopes that this freshly baked mermaid could warm up being in their midst. But then again, thinking how unique Noe seemed from the time they interacted, he could probably integrate even faster than he imagined.

Dawn smiled as he thought so. the mermaids are so gonna love and be thrilled with the new addition to their big family.