Creatures from the Ocean (Sciles)

42: Poor, Unfortunate Souls

Stiles POV

I'm driving my jeep to the beach while Kira is loudly repeating the directions to the Emerald Sea that I wrote down on my phone, in hope that I will memorize them and know where I'm going. I quickly look out my side view mirror. I see a line of cars following me. I find it really nice that everyone is coming with me to say goodbye and wish me good luck. Eventually, we arrive at the beach. I pull into the parking lot and turn the engine off. I turn to Kira. "Thanks Kira, I think I have remembered the directions." I smile in appreciation.

"Are you sure you want to go through with this?" Kira asks worriedly.

"Yes, we have been through all of this yesterday." I reply.

"Just promise me that you will come back alive." Kira pleads.

"I will try my best." I grin.

"You have to do more than try!" Kira exclaims with wide eyes.

"Fine, I promise I will come back alive." I reply.

"Thank you," Kira breathes and gives me a quick hug. Once we pull apart, we get out of the car. We meet up with everyone else. Together, we all walk down to the sand. I know that my keys are still in my pocket, but they shouldn't be damaged because they are in my jeans pocket and my clothes disappear when I'm underwater and reappear when I'm on land and I'm dry. We make our way to the jetty. We soon find ourselves at the end. I turn around to everyone. "Thank you all so much. For everything. I promise that I will come back with the elken to save Scott." I tell them. Everyone is crying and sniffling. Even Samantha looks a little sad. Suddenly, I remember that I have no idea how the pack found me. "Wait, how did you guys find me in time last night?" I ask curiously.

"Well, I was really worried about you, so I called the others and we quickly went after you. Thankfully, you hadn't gotten far and your scent was easy to track, according to the werewolves and Malia." Kara tells me. I nod in understanding. Without warning, Melissa comes up to me and hugs me tightly. "I know you can do this, Stiles. We all have faith in you. I'm sure Scott would too. Be brave, be strong." She whispers to me. I nod in response as we break apart.

"I will see you all soon." I grin as I turn around and run to the edge. I jump and dive into the water. Within 10 seconds, I transform into a merman again. I float up to the water's surface. I wave and smile at my friends. Then, I dive back underwater, my tail splashing the surface heavily. I swim down towards the ocean floor very quickly, bubbles surrounding me. Once I see the sand, I dash forwards in the direction that the Emerald Sea is in. I swim as fast as I can, which is pretty fast. It is much, much faster than a werewolf swimming or running. I'd say I am probably going as fast as a speed boat. I don't even feel tired. Well, not yet anyway. I scan the ocean around me as I swim past. Schools of fish and pods of dolphins scatter out of my way as I get close. As I get further out to sea, I even see a couple of whales. I take the chance to slow down and watch them. I smile to myself. This is pretty cool. My land dwelling friends would absolutely love this. Especially Scott. There is an ache in my chest when I think of Scott. After another moment, I stop my break and keep on swimming. At this moment, I remember Dory's annoyingly catchy phrase from Finding Nemo (Scott's favorite childhood movie): 'just keep swimming'. Somehow, the phrase inspires me to keep going. As I swim through small cities, I slow down and merpeople wave at me in a friendly way when I pass by. I wonder if they know who I am? Nah, they wouldn't recognize me after all these years.

I keep on swimming for hours and hours, civilization getting further and further away until it's just me in this part of the ocean, with nothing around for miles. Even the fish and other marine life seem to have disappeared. This doesn't stop me. I keep on going as fast as I can, not even tired yet. That's a good thing about merfolk. They don't get tired from swimming easily. For us to want to slow down and rest, it'll take a couple of days. As for humans and other land creatures, that is a different story for both swimming and running. I notice the ocean get a little bit darker, but I can still see fine because of my true eyes. At this point, I start to slow down. It feels a little eerie now. As I swim at a steady pace, I look around me. There isn't that much to see, but there are dark pieces coral with sharp edges looking like that could easily slice your skin. I gulp slightly nervously, knowing that the sharp coral probably isn't a good sign, but I keep swimming for another couple of hours.