Cidaris and Raine

Gadilidae shook his head as he watched the rest of the merfolk race down below the surface behind their prince. “Tell me Baetica, who started it this time,” Gadilidae asked as they began their descent.

Baetica wondered if his uncle wanted to know because he truly cared, or if he only wanted to know enough to spin an acceptable tale before their prince. A fish swam into his wounded tail, and Baetica winced.

Mytilidae hissed at the fish. It disappeared in a small cloud of bubbles as it raced to rejoin its school.

“I can’t say for sure who started it,” said Baetica in a strained voice. While the injury might not have been major, it did pierce his fin and even with Gadilidae and Mytilidae’s help, it was hard to swim. “I was swimming up to check on our forward scouts when I saw them pull out their climbing spears.”

The dim, grey rock of the hospital loomed up in front of them. Baetica longed to swim faster so his tail could be covered in a soothing balm and wrapped, but the pain restrained him. To distract himself, he continued with his report. “I jumped out of the water and pulled them both beneath the surface. But they managed to harpoon Vesicula and pull him on the deck.” He scowled as he remembered the sight of Vesicula in the net with the humans dancing around him like swordfish hunting a school. “I climbed up to free him. That Garrick creature was there. He wouldn’t let us get away without a fight. As we fought, more men and merfolk joined the battle until the prince sounded the horn of retreat.”

They swam through the entrance and a nurse waved the trio into a private waiting room. Silence filled the room as Baetica rested on the smoothed rock. For the first time, he looked at the wound in his tail. Had Garrick stabbed him three fingers to the left, he might not have been able to swim at all. He gently ran his hand along his fin. His gaze seemed to be glued to the wound as his thoughts tumbled around over what he would have done had he lost it.

“Have you seen Cidaris today?” asked Mytilidae breaking the spell.

Baetica looked up at her and nodded. “Before the watch began. He was near the underwater river on the westside of the city. I went to speak with him, but he saw me and swam away.” Baetica shrugged. “I decided not to bother chasing after someone who clearly didn’t want to speak to me.”

Gadilidae sighed. “He seems to be spending all of his time there these days. Just moping around, doing who—” Gadilidae closed his mouth as a nurse swam in.

Her dark eyes ran over Gadilidae’s cheek quickly. “Any other injuries” she asked briskly as she handed him a bandage. When he shook his head, she nodded and with a flick of her opal tail, she was by Baetica’s side. She tisked irritably as she studied his wound. “Honestly, all you Gadilidaes seem to like to make more work for me,” she muttered under her breath so quietly that Baetica wasn’t sure she actually spoke. Deftly, she rubbed some silver-colored gel over the wound and sewed a patch of seaweed over both sides of his fin to cover the hole. “There,” she said as she studied her work. “If you don’t rake it over rocks, or get into any other fights, you should be able to come back in three cycles to have the seaweed removed.” She looked around the room. “Any questions?”

Gadilidae shook his head. She nodded and swam out of the room.

“Come my love,” said Mytilidae, “we have a meeting with the king.”

Gadilidae frowned but nodded and turned to follow her out. Pausing, he looked back at Baetica. “Can you find out what’s wrong with Cidaris?”

Baetica swam to his uncle’s side and together they left the hospital. “You don’t know what’s bothering him?”

With a shake of his head, Gadilidae responded, “No. And no matter how I’ve tried to ask, he refuses to answer. But since you are not his father—or mother,” he added looking over at Mytilidae, “you might have a chance of learning the truth.”

Mytilidae gripped her husband’s hand and tilted her head towards the kelp forest on their right. “He seems to have left his river. Now might be your chance.” She let go of her husband and cupped Baetica’s chin with her hands. The tips of her fingers felt rough against his cheeks. “We just want to help make it better.”

“I’ll do what I can,” said Baetica.

“Thank you,” said Gadilidae. He held out his arm to his wife. She linked her elbow through his, and together they swam towards the palace as Baetica swam towards the forest.