Created for Her

The sea was calm, but not peaceful. The guards stationed along the outer reef had been on edge ever since the trial with their eyes sharper and whispers heavier. No one spoke aloud, but all of them were waiting.

Waiting for a word from the world above.

It arrived not in a flare or burst of magic, but in the form of two familiar figures speeding across the tide.

Waves parted slightly as Wibble, the sea lion courier of the Tri-Realm Committee, propelled himself forward with grace. Riding on his back, one claw gripping a scale-loop harness, sat Tiptok — the penguin envoy from Norvainth who looked deeply unimpressed by the spray.

"This is undignified," Tiptok muttered. "I'm going to smell like brine-soaked trout."

"You already do," Wibble replied cheerfully. "Also, you asked for the ride. Said your feet hurt."

"They do. But I didn't ask for the express fish-splash tour."

"Well I didn't ask for you to share your weird spicy sardines."

"You ate half the pouch, traitor."

"That's called diplomatic bonding."

Tiptok rolled his eyes and shoved another dried river fish into his beak. "You're lucky I'm fond of you, sea blubber."

Wibble beamed. "I am pretty lovable. And you know… you really should've been named Nibble. Then we'd be Wibble and Nibble. Sworn brothers of the waves."

"Shut up, big tooth."

"You're just mad the name suits you."

"I carry the scrolls. You just carry dried fish in your eyebrows."

"But I also let you ride on my back every time."

Tiptok grunted. "Fair. I hate swimming this deep. My flippers weren't made for this nonsense."

By the time they reached the shimmering veil that marked the entrance to Uverra's central district, two guards had already spotted them. One let out a short blast of conch-sound, a signal to the inner courts.

"Brace yourselves, the gossip gulls have landed!" came the call.

As the shimmer parted, Wibble coasted smoothly through the channel, slowing down near the designated entry perch.

Tiptok hopped off mid-glide, landing on the stone platform with a spin. He shook his feathers once and turned towards the nearest scribe with the regal air of someone far too important for this nonsense.

"Diplomatic scrolls from Norvainth and Sylvaria," he announced. "One written in gold, the other in bark-glow ink. Both are sealed and pretty urgent. Neither of it is my problem anymore."

He dropped the gold tablet and scroll pouch onto the tray being held out and gave the startled mermaid a hard blink.

"Where's the Queen?"

"She's… in chamber. The council is still in session."

Wibble surfaced beside the platform and called out, "Better be quick. One of those scrolls is really spicy. The Fire-keeper wrote it himself."

"And the forest one smells nice," Tiptok added. "You're welcome."

Without another word, they swam upwards.

And just like that, the ocean's weirdest diplomatic duo dove back into the currents, still arguing over fish flavour as they vanished beyond the reef.

✧𓂃⋆༶⋆𓂃✧

Elara was finally asleep, curled beneath layers of woven kelp and silk, her breathing was calm and slow.

Kaelen slipped out quietly, with his tail flicking before disappearing into the hallway of the palace. The room where the Abyssari people were staying wasn't far from Elara's room. 

He swam until he spotted two familiar figures entering the room.

"Kaelen!" one of the elders exclaimed. "You little fin, where've you been?!"

Kaelen flared his gills dramatically. "Hello to you too. Elara just slept and I thought of coming here to talk to you guys a bit. I just wanted to know if my parents were still mad at me for leaving home?"

"They were a wreck," the other Abyssari said, arms crossed. "Your father tried to search every trench, and your mother nearly flooded our whole village with her crying."

Kaelen winced. "Oof. That bad, huh?"

"They're… doing better now. Ever since your siblings arrived."

"…Wait— siblings?" Kaelen was shocked. "As in plural?"

"Twin hatchlings. Born during the last tide-turn."

Kaelen's jaw dropped. "You're telling me I have siblings? Real ones? Not those kelp dolls they pretended were my siblings?"

"Yes, and before you ask - no, they're not pink."

He squinted. "Then what colour?"

"White."

Kaelen choked. "White?! You're joking. That's... the rarest kind of saelkyn and the one with the most magic powers! They glow at night too which is mildly terrifying."

Kaelen groaned and flopped onto the stone. "So let me get this straight. I leave once to figure out my magic, and suddenly I have sparkly overpowered siblings with better colour palettes?!"

"They don't have your sarcasm though," one elder said with a smirk. "Be grateful."

Kaelen pouted, then grew serious. "…I had to leave. I didn't want to be just a pink sea noodle with no magic."

"We know," they said gently. "But maybe… you were meant for something else."

He stayed quiet.

The older Abyssari leaned closer. "Did anyone tell you the truth about your kind?"

Kaelen blinked. "Uh, that we're adorable and slightly slippery?"

"No, sea-sprout. About the Saelkyn."

"…Go on."

"They were created by the High God. A divine gift to the first generation of Niraya — your Elara's ancestors."

Kaelen sat up straighter.

"They weren't pets. They were more like their guardians. Partners. Soul-companions born from the divine tide to protect the marked bloodline. When the Niraya were hunted down, the Saelkyn refused to bond with any other race. They fled."

"To you?"

"To us. The Abyssari were trusted by the Sea Goddess. We offered shelter to them. But they've never bonded since."

Kaelen's eyes softened. "So that's why you all knew me. And my family."

"You were born for her, Kaelen. You always felt it. You don't need your magic to show it, the bond's already growing."

He looked away. "You think I should stay with her?"

"No. We think you belong with her."

Kaelen smiled. "Then… maybe I'll stop pretending I'm just her sidekick."

"And stop stealing our pickled fish."

"I will not apologise for that."

✧𓂃⋆༶⋆𓂃✧✧𓂃⋆༶⋆𓂃✧✧𓂃⋆༶⋆𓂃✧

I was still half-asleep when Kaelen came sliding in like he'd just outrun something. His scales were a bit darker than usual, like he'd been swimming fast or maybe hiding. I looked at him from my bed.

"Everything okay?"

He opened his mouth, then immediately shut it when two mermaids appeared right behind him, arms full of fabrics, ornaments, and what looked like… sea-styled hair tools?

The taller one gave me a very bright, way-too-awake smile. "There you are! We've come to get you ready for the council."

"Council?" I spoke out loud, sitting up, and my hair was a whole disaster.

"Yes," said the other, already scanning my face like I was a project. "Royal presentation. You'll need to look like you didn't just roll out of a kelp bed."

Kaelen hovered awkwardly near the door. "I may have… mentioned where you were."

I shot him a look. 

He shrugged. "They were very persistent."

The taller mermaid laughed. "You'll thank him later. Now, hurry up. We've got about half an hour before the elders start asking why the marked girl looks like she just survived a whirlpool."

✧𓂃⋆༶⋆𓂃✧✧𓂃⋆༶⋆𓂃✧✧𓂃⋆༶⋆𓂃✧