The Little Water Elf

1- Across the Rift

「 mermaids cannot cry.
sirens cannot fall in love.
they kill and swim,
they sing and dream.
seduce and destroy,
pierce and enjoy.
mermaids do not cry.
sirens do not fall in love. 」

The water seemed brighter in the Xadia side of the sea, with kingdoms near the surface, so close to the shore that there were even several coral-stone buildings peaking out above the waves, with glass roofs to let in the bright sunlight. Reefs of rare and magical fish filled the waters with bioluminescent lights throughout the nights so that the cities were never dark, and any creature present was always friendly and bursting with curiosity. The waters were warmed by the magic the ocean elves possessed, and all throughout the year. Even when the surface became laced with frozen snowflakes and ice began weaving into the sea foam, flowers continued to bloom below the wave break. Endless mixtures of colorful coral gardens filled the yards of each merperson.

It was paradise, the thought of leaving as foolish a thought anyone could ever have.

It was forbidden to cross the border to the human side. Rayla didn't care.

Fishing boats were commonly found on that side of the rift, and a giant trench marked the boundary that cut off the ocean's elf kingdom. Rough sharks were said to roam those waters, and magic had long been stolen from its vaste emptiness, the only fish were large and dangerous, incapable of being domesticated, shipwrecks littered the floor, almost as common as the reefs within the merfolk cities. Each rotting hull was filled with weapons and rusting objects meant to kill her people. The forbidden seas held an air of danger, of risk. For someone who couldn't leave the safety of the sea, and craved adventure, it was an endless joyride.

Her kingdom was peaceful, and even if full-out war broke out on the surface, the "merfolk", as they referred to themselves, could always journey to the deep, away from any harm and violence.

That's what drove her to constantly cross the rift.

The water here was cold, and the surface seemed so far away. Rayla kept her small, empty, sea-silk woven bag clutched close to her chest, her eyes scanning the sea floor for anything of interest. She passed a small, dying reef, and found herself face-to-face with the largest human ship she'd ever seen. Rayla's eyes widened at the sight. The hull was caved in, large splintering chasms easily visible through the clear, silent water.

A small grin stretched across the mer-girl's face, and, without another thought, she dashed out downwards, to where the boat sat in a half buried state.

She entered the wrecked boat quite easily, her eyes gleaming as she made her way around broken furniture and rusting coins as she searched for anything to add to her collection.

Rayla moved a broken mirror to the side, barely looking twice at the reflection of her sea foam-white hair and coral colored eyes. Behind it was a glimmering box, shut and locked.

Humans had an obsession with locking their treasures away, it was quite annoying.

She stowed the box away in her bag, proceeding to search for the small key that would unlock whatever it was that happened to be in the miniature treasure chest.

It was in the next room that she found the first skeleton.

Rayla nearly let out a scream at the sight, and instead forced the repulsion of seeing the bones of a human down, and started rummaging through the pockets of the tattered clothing that still clung to the corpse.

Her clothing was extraordinarily fancy, gems and gold sewn into the hem of her dress that was slowly becoming covered in holes and tears.

Rayla's hand gripped a short, thin rod of metal, and she smiled in success.