A Heart of Coral

part 3.

"Fathers gone."

"What?'

"He's dead," Maera yelled.

 ❖❖❖

"No... no, no, no. You're lying. It's only been three days."

"You've been gone for 7 days." 

There was an eerie silence in the room. Brynn felt her lips tremble and throat burn. When Brynn opened her mouth, she let out a gurgle. She realized she was crying.

"I told you to take a swim," Maera sputtered, " not leave for seven days." Brynn was so numb. She couldn't feel anything. Her heart, it felt empty, like a heart made of coral, dead coral. Suddenly, there was a high pitched sound. The potion had made contact with the floor.

"I was trying to save Father while you just stayed here, doing nothing!"

Maera's eyes wandered down to the ground and she knew Brynn had gone to the Murky Seabeds to see Terra.

Maera whispered, "Who are you? You weren't like this when you were a little Nero." There was a slight shake to her head. "You should have just let him pass away! Move on with your life. Do you know what kind of pain you caused him when he was on his deathbed? You didn't care to say goodbye to him!"

"I thought I could save him! That he would still be breathing!"

"But he's not here, your plan never worked!"

There was a series of slurs and tears.

"I hate you!" Brynn's throat was sore.

"I wish you were never my sister!' Maera gave one final nasty glare and turned to abandon the room.

Brynn crumbled to the ground and screamed with all her might. Brynn yearned for her father to still be alive and that she didn't have to interact with Maera. Then she would be happy.

Terra heard Brynn and her wishes. Despite this, she could not answer Brynn's plea of reviving her father again. In a blink, Brynn's skin started to crack as greenery grew around her, evolving and branching out. Her body expanded and increased in size. In the end, she became land.

 All the while, vulnerable Maera grew smaller as a shell surrounded her, turning her into a sea turtle. Half of the Nerodes lost their gills, webbed hands and feet, turning into humans and terrestrial animals while using the land as safety. The rest of the population joined Maera as they turned into marine life. Over the eras, the land split apart while Brynn's soul collapsed.