The Little Water Elf

25- Sea Foam

「 She cast one more lingering,
half-fainting glance at the prince,
and then threw herself from the
ship into the sea, and her body
dissolved into sea foam. 」

That night, Callum's mind kept returning to Rayla, and how broken and beaten she'd looked as he took her from her cage and led her to a place where she could escape the castle. It was worrying how much she seemed to fade away right before his own eyes.

Claudia had appeared, fretting over how he'd suddenly disappeared.

They'd kissed, almost like they'd been doing it for years, and nothing had felt wrong about it. It was normal, safe, what he'd always wanted.

Yet why, then, was his love for Claudia seeming to slowly ebb away, just like the tide.

When he finally managed to force himself asleep, he saw a girl in his dreams.

And then he heard a voice.

He was surrounded on all sides by water, as far as the eye could see. Bits of debris drifted through the currents, the riptide pulling him downwards. Deeper and deeper and deeper.

Callum wasn't scared, though, and he didn't know why.

Then, a figure appeared before him. White hair spread out around her in a small halo, skin clear and flawless, elven markings evident on her face. Bright, coral eyes cut through the darkness, and the next thing her knew, he was being lifted onto the sand, a gentle hand pushing his hair off of his brow and letting the sunlight dry the water on his face.

Then, she sang.

Her voice was soft, hesitant, and enchanting. Creating a lull of the sea, pulling him into a safe, warm lullaby that brought back memories of home, of simpler times.

He'd opened his eyes only briefly, peering up at the girl — the elf, as he now realized — whom had saved him.

Callum woke with a start, adrenaline pulsing through his system as he frantically rolled out of bed, his eyes looking out the window gazing over the ocean. There was a figure standing there in the sand, right on the edge of the retreating waves.

Rayla.

Callum burst out of his room, not bothering to quiet his footsteps. He didn't care, he needed to see her, he needed to talk to her — no matter how that would be. He needed to confirm his suspicions, needed to know for certain.

Rayla.

He was an idiot, why hadn't he noticed before?

Why hadn't he seen what was right in front of him.

Rayla.

It was Rayla.

It had always been Rayla.

He ran through the castle's empty halls, making his way to the staircase that led to the sea. His feet hit the steps painfully, the breaking marble and exposed sandstone cutting into the soles of his feet. He didn't care though, none of that mattered. His pain was nothing.

"Rayla!" his scream cut through the silent night air as his feet touched the sand, the air around him thick and humid. It felt suffocating.

She turned, and Callum slowed to a stop, his breath catching in his throat.

She looked like a ghost.

Bits of light began twinkling over the edge of the ocean's horizon, painting the sky with faint shades of orange. It stained the sea red.