It All Comes Crashing Down

It all comes crashing down

I wake up to the sound of waves crashing against the wood of the porch. I could feel each hit as it radiated itself outward. The water was no longer flowing, it was crashing around me, around my home and causing an anger to stir like I had never had before.

I dressed for war, picking up the scimitars and strapping them to myself carefully. I reached for the crossbow, slinging the strap across my shoulders that would hold it and the bolts in place. Then, I kicked open the door ready to face the demons of the deep that took the once calm waters and turned them against me.

From my porch I watched; he is risen, skin as pale blue as the water on the shore. Fins of red and blue protruding from his thick arms. His hands, webbed, raised at the sky, holding himself above the water as it calmed beneath him. His hair red and blue fins framing where his scalp would be, flowing down, dripping with the glint of water down a bare chest. His face, stone cold features, timeless as my own with eyes black as the depths of the deepest ocean. Green ornate scale armor graced his strong midsection flowing down as if just another fin covering the rest of his exposed form.

Unimpressed, I loaded my crossbow. I let the first bolt fly. It grazed past his left cheek in a near hit. This was the first time he saw me. His gaze turned to me. I felt cold and warm all at the same time, fumbled and reloaded the bow.

His eyes drew me in. I hesitated to fire the second bolt. I blinked and he was upon me.

An unspoken moment passed between us where we just stared taking each other in. I drew my scimitars, pushing this enemy away from me, from my home.

He looked surprised. A smile, if you could call it one, caused the edge of his lips to twist upward. He could see I thought of him as the enemy. I could see it amused him that I did. I took the first swing with my scimitar and called out "leave my home foul water demon!"

We entangled there, me on my porch, him hovering over the water. I would take a swing he would block. His webbed fingers would reach out to strike me. I would dodge. I can not tell you how long this dance went on before I could feel him say "enough."

His arms wrapped around me pulling me into his chest. My chest heaving with anger, fighting his embrace. What he did next I never could have anticipated in all of my 125 years of life. His cold damp lips pressed to mine. When he pulled away, I could hear again "I am not your enemy."

Fear gripped at my core. I looked around found a clearing of earth 25 feet away. Mist enveloped my form carrying me away to a safer distance. Staring confused at my not enemy, lips still wet from the kiss.

"You have decimated my home. You are my enemy." I replied from my safe distance.

I watched him look around, taking in where the waters had taken over the earth. "This was not my intent." He replied. "See me as an enemy as you will, I am here for a greater enemy. An enemy that will drain my rivers dry and do far worse than flood the earth of your home. You can kill me after I have dispatched of this if you wish."

His words rung true to my ears. The wisdom of the ancestors spoke to my soul. I would let him live, for now, and we would seek out this greater threat to all of our kind.

***

My misty step was about to get the better of me. I continued to stare down the man not certain that I liked how our paths had crossed. While I believed the words he spoke, there was more I did not know. Nor would I get to know at this point in time. I had become frail, my vision clouding. As I faded away into the darkness I recalled a faint warning. "Our magic has a price child." A woman of all white said as she reached down to take my hand. Her ears pointed as mine, her eyes the same violet shade, the only color in her entire form. I marveled at them as my consciousness faded. Then there was nothing.