The Sea Witch
The mer prince had heard the warnings his entire life.
"Don't go to the Whale Graveyard," They said. "There are things hiding there in the dark."
What was hiding? Some said it was just to keep the little merfolk away from sharks. Others believed there was a Sea Witch's lair somewhere amongst the bones. The prince wasn't sure what to believe, but he was fairly sure that it wasn't a Sea Witch. While some merfolk still practiced a little magic –if you could call their cheap ticks magic– there hadn't been a true Sea Witch in a long, long time. However, there was only one way to be certain, and that was to go and see for himself.
He swam out from the coral city, without telling a soul. The only one by his side was his little octopus friend, who was quite literally stuck to his side, as he made the journey over. The graveyard was massive and he could see it from afar. The water started to become a murky green around him. It was harder and harder to see through the closer he got. Soon enough, he was swimming amongst the bones of great titans. While the graveyard was mostly whales as the name suggested, there were a few other strange things in the mix, large sharks from centuries passed, giant squid, and rare sea serpents.
The prince's little octopus friend tugged against him, seemingly frightened and desperate for them to leave.
"It's alright, just a little further." He said. There were still scavenger fish nearby and a few living sharks, swimming in and out of sight. If they were still there then it couldn't have been too bad. He pressed on, deeper into the darkness. The little octopus popped off and left him, swimming back towards the city. The prince sighed to himself.
"I'll be home soon!" He promised.
Ahead of him, just barely visible, was some kind of cave opening. He approached slowly, trying to peek inside. He saw shapes in the shadows and thought there might be something there. He was pulled out of his thoughts by a tentacle brushing against his side.
"Oh so you're back-" His words caught in his throat when he looked down and saw a large, inky black tentacle that did not belong to his friend.
He turned to see the face of someone with wisps of white hair and solid black eyes. The prince growled and swam as fast as he could into the mouth of the cave, the sounds of cackling laughter bouncing off the walls after him. He sped through the cave and out of the corners of his eyes he saw the walls were lined with colorful bottles, old scrolls, and jars of body parts from sea creatures and merfolk alike. He was breathing far too quickly and it slowed him down.
"Come out, come out." A melodic voice called from somewhere. He forced himself to calm down, and speed back up. A light was in front of him now, and he almost cried out in relief.
"I can still make it out," He thought to himself.
He burst into the light, graveyard nowhere in sight, but in less then a second the frightening man was between him and escape. Tentacles grabbed at him, locking around his arms, torso, and tail. He tried to wriggle free, but the man only tightened his grip. There was no escape. The air was being squeezed out of him and he let one pitiful sound, thinking it was the end.
The tentacles dropped, and air rushed back into lungs. He gasped and coughed, clutching at his chest.
"That was fun." The man said in his sing-song voice, as if they had been playing a game. "Now. LEAVE."
The prince rushed off in a random direction, not wanting to tempt fate. He didn't know where he was or where he was going, but it didn't matter. He was never going to that place.
Probably.
Part 2: https://mangothoughtswritingblog.blogspot.com/2023/05/short-story-sea-witch-part-2.html
Part 3: https://mangothoughtswritingblog.blogspot.com/2023/06/short-story-sea-witch-3.html
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