Day 18 Orca
The calling from the shorelines was a powerful one when you first heard it as a young girl. The first time you heard it you were only five years old. Leaving in a fishing community by the ocean you were already used to the strange sound and sights the ocean creatures gave out. From the chittering of dolphins to the snapping of claws the crabs and lobsters would give out. But one time there was a sound that you didn't recognize.
You were outside playing with your toys like any good child would when the sounds of crying wailed through the skies above you startling a younger you into abandoning your game of knights and princesses and rushing inside to the comfort of your mother's arms as the hellish wailed outside continued sounding so far away but big and like from multiple entities at once. When you asked what it was your mother just calmly answered.
"Those are just the merfolk."
"Merfolk?"
"That's right. You know how birds have a mating season? Every five years merfolk gather up on the shores for a few weeks for their own mating season."
"Why are they making those sounds? Are they hurt?"
"No. They just sound sad. They're really just singing."
"That's singing?"
"Maybe not to us but to them they're serenading their loved ones. You have nothing to fear from them. They only do this every five years and it only lasts a few weeks. All you have to do is avoid the water and you'll be alright."
True to her word just a few weeks later the wailing ceased much to your comfort and the sailors and fisherman returned to the waters to once again work for a living. You had nothing to fear after all since you went no where near the beach. Five more blissful years passed by and when you were ten the wailing returned. This time you were inside and reading when it started up startling you but you didn't go near the beach like last time until they went away three weeks later. More blissful years passed by and you grew up like any normal child would. Having a normal transition from preteen to teenager. You were nearly fifteen so the wailing would return but you were starting to grow curious about something.
"Mother," you asked your mother one day while she was doing dishes. "I have a question. How do you know those strange sounds are mermaids and not just whales?"
"Because of the many disappearances that happen whenever somebody wonders off to the beach during the calling." She answered you without even looking up from the pot she was washing. "When you were a little baby there was a woman who lived just outside of town named Ruka. Well one day she went to the beach when they were wailing and she disappeared overnight."
You blinked in surprise. Ruka? You've never heard of someone disappearing when you were a baby. "You're teasing me."
Her hands stopped as she looked at you seriously. "Y/n, I don't joke about things such as this. Someone going missing is not a joking matter."
"Then how come I've never heard of it until now?"
"It's not talked about openly. People believe it brings bad luck to talk about tragedy. But it's true. She disappeared and she was never seen again."
"Didn't anyone try to find her? Maybe she just ran away?"
"You don't think they tried? This isn't the only time it's happened. Just be a good girl and stay away from the water. You don't have any business there."
Soon enough your fifteen birthday arrived and again the wailing started just as it did when you were five and ten years old. It still sounded the same as it last time sounding like male and female voices were screaming in high and low pitches in the distant winds. It sounded scary especially now considering what might've been implied with the news your mother gave you. But as it did with the last two times it too passed within a few weeks and so you once again let it slip your mind.
Life went on however. You grew into a young woman and upon your eighteenth birthday your parents thought it was only right that you settled down and get engaged now that you were an adult. So they informed you that they agreed to an arranged marriage with another fishing family and suddenly you were engaged to a boy you barely knew overnight. He wasn't a bad guy by any means but he seemed very disinterested in you and anytime you two would spend mandatory time together at the insistence of your parents to 'get to know each other better' he'd look bored out of his mind, spend a maximum of five minutes with you( enough time to walk out of his and your parents' eyesight), then give an excuse, and then ditch you to go off with his friends instead. Leaving you awkwardly standing there feeling annoyed and frustrated.
You were dreading the day you had to marry that worm.
Two years slowly dragged on nearing your twentieth birthday with this guy 'courting' you if you could call running off, refusing to even remember your last name, and flirting with other girls courting and soon you'd be twenty years old. Your parents were pushing you to get married before twenty one and you were starting to become really annoyed with everyone. Lately you've been taking to the beach whenever he ditched you. Just watching the water, building sand castles, and sometimes you even brought along a book to read with you until you went home. By then your parents wouldn't be angry with you for returning early from your 'courting' sessions.
So one day as usual you were ditched by your fiance as soon as you both walked past the town square without him even looking back at you leaving you alone with a book in your hands already anticipating your luck with him so towards the beach you went. You've done this plenty of time before to know how it'll end. So you walked and walked until you were past the small woods separating the village from the beach where the men would fish off the coast and found yourself arriving at the beach. It was already midday so the sun was in the middle of the sky illuminating everything brightly and you were happy to just go up the docks a little bit and sit upon the wooden piers and sit down before opening the book and started to read your romance novel of star crossed lovers.
It was a few peaceful hours as you sat down soaking your feet in the saltwater and reading the book. Hour after hour passed away with the sun beginning to get near sundown and you were noticing the sky starting to become an orange color. So you opted to close your book and start to head back before your parents could become worried. You just stood up to go when it happened.
A loud wail echoed throughout the air.
You jumped dropping the book which landed with a thud at your feet against the pier. Your eyes widened in shock as you looked upwards towards the sky as it slowly faded away leaving you to stand there wide eyed and staring out into the still waters.
What. Was. THAT?!
It sounded almost like the wails of the alleged merfolk your mother always warned you about but it couldn't be. It was almost your twentieth birthday and the wails never started until a few days after your birthday had passed every five years. There's no way it could've started early right? The wail came again this time closer and to your front northeastward. So you looked at the still waters and felt your blood run cold.
A giant black fin was crashing through the water swimming around the water.
Shark.
That's what the first thought you had was at least. A giant shark that frightened you to the core, but then you saw the end. The fin dove under was allowing a massive black and white tail to raise from the water only to slap the water and dive back under again. It was only then did a breath of relief escape you. Oh. It wasn't a shark thank goodness.
It was a killer whale.
That was a relief. And it explained the wailing sounds. You heard from fishermen that whales made deep wailing or moaning sounds, but...what was a killer whale doing here?? You've never seen one before. Weren't they supposed to live way up north or deep south where it was super cold?? Or at least around that area?? It confused you as the funny appeared again seeming to go in a big half circle. Was it lost?? Did it leave the cold waters in search of a different hunting ground?? You were confused about it however something else quickly caught your attention as the giant fin was heading directly for you.
A sudden fear gripped you and you reacted. Scooping up your book you RAN. Bare feet thudding against the wood docks as you ran as fast as you could down back towards the beach. But the whale was faster. You nearly made it to the very end when the fun tore through the water past you and towards the entrance of the docks. A giant splash echoed out as water surged up towards you. Everything happened in slow motion. The wave of water soared at you, you instinctively closed your eyes and held up your arms in front of your face to shield it but the force of the water hitting your body. Down you went with a splat against the wooden planks as the saltwater splash over your body instantly soaking you through the dress you wore. You coughed out seawater spitting out the bitter taste and shaking your head sending droplets everywhere.
"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to trip you-" you froze at the male voice. "-but you didn't stop running away."
..Who was-?? Your body sat up. A hand pushed your hair away. And f/c eyes widened as you eyes took in what you saw.
"Did you hurt yourself? You're not talking."
A man laid there on his stomach with blue fabric covering his torso, his arms holding him up. Dark blue eyes stared at you from a darker complexion and long black hair that framed his face. But his soaked appearance wasn't what made you freeze up from the sight of him. It was the fact that from his lower torso down was the dam orca!! The big black and white orca tail was halfway on the docks blocking your path and halfway in the water. You could only stare at him mouth open and blink. Mouth opening and closing for any words but you could think of none. Eventually you slammed your eyes shut shaking your head hard hoping it was just you seeing things, but when you opened your eyes he was still there. Staring at you.
"I-...." Shaking your body scrambled back a bit when he leaned forward. "W-What are you?!"
"Mammalian mermaidian."
...You..You blinked. "What?"
"Mammalian mermaidian," he repeated, "It means that I am a mammal based one of my kind."
"I-...W-What even ARE you??"
"My kind doesn't really have an official name but you humans call us mermaids. Does that make sense?"
"Y-You're a MERMAN?!" Instantly shock wracked through your body as your face paled and a horrified realization came over you. Immediately you backed up more. "S-Stay back!!"
He didn't listen and was surprisingly quick suddenly upon you as you yelped in surprise when a wet hand grabbed into your shoulder with surprising strength. "I've been watching you on the beach for a long time. You're so beautiful and I hate how that man treats you. I'm going to make sure you're never treated that way again, My Beloved."