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Whoosh!
The crashing waves rolled closer and closer to the shoreline.
It was 1924, and
the sky was a dark purple, with the sun peaking behind the towering palm trees
and the wooded area nearby. Though, this was quite an evening for two seagulls
hovering over the roaring sea.
The
two seagulls were ghostly-white and grotesque in appearance: with purple bags
under their yellow eyes, and beaks riddled with scratches and dents. One bird
grunted to his partner in scorn.
The birds had
spent the entire day, and the day before, pecking aimless at the ground near a
public square. No human that strolled by would pay any mind to them. The humans
would assume that the birds were searching for bread crumbs or stray insects.
But these birds
had an agenda: to find someone that their master wanted.
Now,
with their agenda completed, the seagulls stayed steadily afloat in the evening
sky. One of the birds let out a sharp cackle, and the ocean answered back with
a quick spray that reached upward a few feet. The spray swept the birds
downward, and two plopping sounds from the ocean followed.
Past
the array of bubbles that trailed in the birds’ wake, a murky cloud of black
ink sunk them to the ocean floor. If one were brave enough to see through this
thick cloud, you could see wings altering into disfigured fins, and beaks
morphing into mouths with rows of long and uneven teeth. Once the inky cloud
subsided, in the seagulls’ place were two purple piranhas—strange yet vicious
with eyes seething red.
After
the brief transformation, the duo began their voyage. The piranhas carefully
concealed themselves in the tall curtains of seaweed, with one fish acting as a
look-out for his partner, and they avoided the public eye of any other fish or
creature.
Do not be long… A raspy voice hissed;
only the piranhas could hear this strange voice. Take a route through the Forbidden Forest. If anyone should follow,
they would think twice before pursuing you in there. But quick. Time is at the
essence, boys.
Upon
hearing this hasty request, the duo flicked their fins and picked up speed.
They finally approached a forest of much taller, darker violet stalks of
seaweed. The piranhas then halted when they saw a small yellow fish swim
towards the entrance of the Forbidden Forest. However, the fish stopped cold
when he took a good look at what was waiting for him inside. Sensing danger,
the fish hurried away from the forest; the two piranhas mockingly grinned at
the fish’s lack of courage to go inside.
Then
the piranhas entered the forest themselves, not showing any ounce of fear like
the little fish did. This aquatic forest, in its dark ambiance, was quiet with
the exception of the creaking sounds of the tall seaweed moving to the ocean
current. The duo did not look at each other, as they navigated through this
aquatic forest. Then one of the fish swam ahead to push aside a thick stalk for
his partner to pass through.
Once
the duo had ventured through the forest, they were approaching their master’s
lair. The lair was just ahead—a rocky cavern with jagged rocks pointing outward
toward anyone who dared to approach the doorstep. The piranhas looked into the
entrance, but seeing an assortment of tiny fish bones still bearing bits of
flesh made their immunity to fear diminish. The fish bones made their stomachs
churn, but the duo couldn’t keep their master waiting. With the bones
shamelessly scattered at the sides of the entrance, this master wasn’t to be
trifled with.
Enter, the voice instructed. The fish
nodded and then swam into the cave.
As
the fish descended into the dismal tunnel, they saw tiny orbs lit a lavender
purple, giving them plenty of light to move forward. They were met with more
fish bones and decay, which gave off a bad smell, but the piranhas pushed on.
Moments later, the
piranhas approached a much dimmer light at the end of the tunnel. Once they
reached the opening, more instruction: Resurface.
Unless you want to be a new addition to my collection of fish bones… The
thought of being eaten by their master next made the piranhas hurry to a
massive, stem-like foundation that extended to the surface. One fish gestured
to his partner to resurface with him, and they immediately swam upward. First,
they built up speed, and then they pushed their tiny bodies to make a leap onto
land. As they tore through the surface, their fins returned to wings, and their
teeth shifting back into beaks.
Once the seagulls
settled onto the ground, they looked around at the interior of their master’s
lair: rock-like walls having holes and slits in them; a talk, rocky stalk at
the center of this large platform, acting as a massive tree-like pillar to keep
the ceiling from collapsing; and more glowing orbs hanging from the ceiling,
the water below reflecting the light inside the cave. The birds couldn’t see
their master, because he preferred dwelling in the shadows, but they knew that
he was lurking somewhere underwater. If he were to surface with them, his gill
wouldn’t thank him.
“You two made an
excellent job of getting here, boys,” their master spoke, not in the birds’
heads this time, but echoing through the cave. “I was worried that a sea
creature…let alone a dolphin, would
spot you two.” He spoke the word “dolphin” with disgust, and the birds agreed
by cringing in unison. One seagull laughed at the disgusted face of the other,
and then both birds laughed at each other.
“Oh?” Their master
responded.
Just then, the tip
of a strong, dark tail appeared for a millisecond to angrily strike the wall
before submerging into the water. Small chunks of rock followed the tail
downward, and the birds stopped laughing and took notice.
“You laugh?” he
resumed. “You two find it funny that anyone… especially the royal clan of
Dolphin Grotto… could’ve found you two and report back to that wretched dolphin
hag, Mrs. Dillon?”
The seagulls
panicked, for they didn’t mean to upset their employer. They cowardly shielded
themselves with their pathetic wings, and whimpered as if begging for
forgiveness.
“Hmm…” This sounded
as if their master had paused in thought, but then he cleared his throat. “I
trust that you know better. I’m quite positive that you fear my wrath, because
I can smell your fear. Good. Now you’ll hear the news that I have for you.”
The birds nodded,
slowly folding their wings back. The duo knew it wasn’t easy pleasing their
employer.
“Listen well, my
pets,” the master spoke, the walls of the cave vibrating from the echoing power
of his voice. “I called you here, because we found her.” The birds craned their
necks toward the water to cling to every word from the master. “This is very
good news, boys. After years of searching the earth and consulting the Dark
Arts of Sea Magic, my sources point to land. So, the princess must be on land.”
The birds then
looked at each other with confusion, for they didn’t understand how a dolphin
princess could survive in the human world.
“I sense
confusion,” the master noted. The birds nodded. “There is a reason why the
princess would choose to hide among the humans. With some sort of magic, I
assume that is Mrs. Dillon’s doing, the princess could pose as a human.
Although she may pass herself off as a human, she still goes by the name
Silhouette, which was given to her by her parents, the King and Queen of
Dolphin Grotto. Also, it was Mrs. Dillon’s mistake to allow the child to have a
blue strand of hair on her head—that mistake would prove fatal, because now we
know how to spot the princess among those dull-minded humans. Perhaps this will
lead to Silhouette’s demise…”
The seagulls
flapped their wings excitedly in response to the news, with feathers flying off
their disheveled wings. Clumsily, one of the birds tried to grab one flaky
feather back with his beak, but the feather fell into the water with an
accidental sweeping motion. Just then, something pink and slimy broke the
surface and stretched itself to grab the feather, before retreating into the
water with it. The birds saw this and flinched; they weren’t sure whether or
not their master had a desire to taste bird.
“The princess
resides in a place called Lavour,” he resumed, “an unusual name for a city
supposedly rich in material, and humans living lavish lifestyles. No matter.
You’ll know that she’s there, because of the blue highlight in her hair. When
you spot her, keep a close eye on her until she decides to venture towards the
ocean. I shall wait for her there. Then, when the time is right, she’ll be in
my grasp, thus ending whatever hope that Dolphin Grotto had scraped up to
secure a new ruler to replace the late King and Queen.” The seagulls nodded and
cackled in agreement. “Indeed, Dolphin Grotto will be mine.”
Just then, a
giant, snake-like body partially surfaced from the water briefly until it sunk
back down. “That’ll show that fool King Ulysses the new meaning of keeping his
enemies closer than his friends,” he grumbled.
The seagulls then
noticed that their master paused, causing a grave silence in the cave. This
silence made them freeze, for they didn’t know what to expect from him now.
Suddenly, the birds
heard a deep growl from behind them, making them stumble onto each other to get
away from the noise. They then hobbled carefully towards the edge to see what
was there. Through the surface, the birds could make out monstrous yellowing
teeth ascending from the darkest part of the water, and they immediately took a
few steps back, but they still saw their master’s teeth coming towards them.
The monster’s dark
pink gums touched the water’s surface as he said, “It’s a pity that the girl
knows nothing of her past. Therefore, she stands oblivious, as I steal a chance
to go in for the kill!” His tongue swept through the top row of teeth, and some
water entered his mouth. After a big gulp, he concluded, “Her blood will taste
just as good as her father’s and mother’s…” The seagulls watched as the monster
slowly sank back into the bowels of the cave, laughing in echoes.
Now having a job
to do, the birds jumped back into the water to resume their fish identities
until they reached Lavour.
And Lavour? Why,
that’s where our tale begins. The tale of Silhouette. The tale of the Dolphin
Princess.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Want to know what happens next? Click here to buy Dolphin Princess: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/dolphin-princess-veronica-gonzalez/1129202183
Veronica Gonzalez
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