Calm and Calamity

Chapter 33

Day: 542

Days Left: 4938

Lives Saved: 2

Using the green wisp's glowing light, Klei, Kai, and Corinna cut the ropes tying three of the water nymphs to the rocks that kept them captive and forever imprisoned underwater. Once they had been free of their bonds, their bodies slowly floated up to the surface and were hauled onto the shore.

The three water nymphs gasped and spluttered; their damaged lungs were unable to breathe. Their skeletal hands wrapped in peeling skin reached out to their saviours, gnashing what little teeth they had left, hungry for anything that moved.

"What do we do now?" asked Kai, backing away from the creatures slowly attempting to crawl their way to him. "Are they going to be alright like this?"

"I'm assuming it's better than drowning forever," said Klei. He turned to Corinna, who was currently in her golden knight form, for the added strength and endurance to combat the tides. "What did Calixte do? How did he recover?"

"I don't know," answered Corinna. "He doesn't exactly like talking about it. But his human form has barely recovered from it all since he stayed in his mask form, as the amphibian, so that he wouldn't have to endure the pain." She carefully picked up one of the water-nymphs in her arms. The creature clawed and bit at her, but in her golden knight form, her armour protected her from any harm, the nymph's brittle teeth breaking upon impact, leaving only minor black scrapes on Corinna's golden armour. She gently laid the nymph in a wheelbarrow, then did the same for the other two, placing them in two other wheelbarrows.

"Hopefully, we'll be able to save more nymphs in the future," continued Corinna. "But for now, we should keep it small. Once we've finished building the houses, we'll have more people available to tend to them."

The three, each commandeering a nymph in a wheelbarrow, headed back to the construction site.

*

Clarence's screams echoed throughout the community of houses. "What the hell are those things!"

Riley and Jackson rushed to his aid and then glanced over to the three water nymphs in the wheelbarrows.

"You really have lost your mind now," scoffed Riley as she crossed her arms. "You're letting anyone in now?"

"They are prisoners just the same as us." Corinna flicked her finger underneath her chin, and she transformed back into a human.

"Oh no, pet. They are quite different from us," said Princess Alfreda, wafting her paper fan as she looked down on the groaning and crying water nymphs. "Do you know why their legs were tied to rocks? Why were they made to forever drown? Because they deserve it. What you just saved, pet, are likely child molesters and serial killers with a score larger than your own ridiculously sizable family."

"Calixte wasn't. He just committed treason-"

"True, some of these nymphs may just be here for treason. But what are you planning to do once these nymphs have healed and you can see their brand, see their crime? Are you going to throw them back into the ocean?"

"No, I-"

"No one deserves to suffer like that!" yelled Klei. "No matter what their crime was!" He looked around at the gathering crowd of people. 

Everyone had heard the commotion and rushed over to see what was going on. They all stared in horror at the three water nymphs in wheelbarrows, the creatures howling in pain and hunger, their hands reaching out to anyone nearby.