Page 1 of Entangled

One

Merrow Havfine stretched out lazily atop a rock, closing her eyes and basking in the hot summer sun. Such warmth never felt so good. The light illuminated her face as well as her barely-clad body. The melodic splashing sounds of the ocean waves lapped at the sea stack beneath her. This rocky outcrop was her favorite resting spot. It also served as a preferred gathering area for the rest of her forty-nine sisters.

Being an undine, or sea nymph, made her extremely comfortable in the water. She was one with the element. A guardian of the Aegean Sea. This was her home amongst dolphins, sea turtles, and exotic fish of every size and color. Merrow had grown up with her forty-nine sisters and one brother. They all took care of each other since her mother disappeared years ago, and her father, Nereus, was usually busy since he was known as king of the sea.

A tugging sensation on her foot caused Merrow to open one sleepy eye to find her favorite sister, Galene, playfully surfacing from beneath the sea. She spouted a stream of water from her mouth, hitting Merrow right in the face. It made them both laugh. Galene silently called Merrow back into the water without even having to use words. The undines had no real powers except for the ability to converse with each other through their minds, and shapeshift into humans while on land.

The undines were all beautiful women who wore thin, wispy clothing that clung to their wet bodies, not slowing them down at all in the water when they swam.

“Galene, you know I’d love to play but this is my special time for sunning myself. With so many sisters, we need to keep to our schedules.” Merrow liked order and was in charge of keeping her sisters in line. As one of the older sisters, her job was looking after the others and keeping them safe.

She smiled at her red-haired sister, seeing the mischief in Galene’s bright blue-green gaze. All fifty of the sisters had the same color eyes that matched the gorgeous hue of the crystal clear waters of their home. All the water nymphs had long, flowing locks. Hair in shades of every color, with most of the girls having at least three hues intertwined. Merrow’s long mane was a rich brown that glowed with interwoven streaks of pink and green. Her colors mimicked the bright coral and lush sea moss found at the Mystic Reef. The girls sometimes tied up their hair in braids or ornate knots. Merrow liked to leave her hair long and free, letting it fall past her shoulders to flow out in the water around her as she swam beneath the surface.

“Please, Merrow, Melite and I want to follow Ephyra, Arethusa, and Panopea, to the Mystic Reef to search for pretty shells.”

“Sister, you and Melite are women now, and no longer children,” Merrow reminded her, reaching over to brush a wet lock of hair behind her sister’s ear. Merrow played the role of mother to her younger sisters, knowing each of their strengths and weaknesses better than even her own. “You should be tending to your underwater chores instead of being distracted by pretty baubles.”

Melite’s head came up from under the water next. She had a round face and blonde hair and was even younger than Galene. Still, they were both women and no longer children.

“Please, take us there,” begged Melite. “You know the fastest way around the jagged rocks and how to avoid the sharks so they won’t chase us away.”

“Yes, you do. Better than anyone,” agreed Galene.

“Of course, I do,” Merrow answered. “And when you’ve had as many years as I’ve had to practice, you’ll be as skilled at underwater maneuvers as well. One hundred and fifty years was how long Merrow had been practicing. The life expectancy for humans would never even come close to matching this number, but undines lived at least one hundred years past this age. While Merrow was one hundred and fifty, to humans she looked comparable to a twenty-five year old woman.

“Then you’ll take us?” Melite’s sweet eyes were filled with hope.

“You know Father doesn’t allow you to go near the Mystic Reef. Or, at least, not until you’re older. It’s much too dangerous out there. Besides, the weather is too unstable. Not to mention, sometimes strange things happen at the reef. Scary things,” she added sadly.

“We know, you don’t need to remind us,” said Melite with a sigh. “Our mother went there one day and then something happened and she disappeared. But that was a long time ago.”

It had been eight years now since the disappearance of their dear mother. “I overheard some of our sisters saying Mother left on purpose and nothing bad happened to her,” Melite continued.

“Hush!” spat Merrow, pushing up to a sitting position. She scanned the area quickly. “Don’t ever let Father hear you say that. It will make him angry. Believe me, you don’t want to feel his wrath.”

“Father isn’t anywhere near. He’s not listening,” said Melite innocently.

“Mayhap not now, but you both know that Nerites is his eyes and ears. If he hears this nonsense, he’ll report it back to Father in the blink of an eye.”

“Why can’t our brother be more like his sisters?” asked Galene with a pout. “Nerites is always snitching on us.”

“He watches over us. That’s different,” Merrow assured her sisters.

“You watch over us, Merrow. All he does is cause trouble.” Melite pouted now as well. “Take us to the reef. Please.”

“It’ll be all right. You’ll be there to protect us,” Galene urged her. “We know we’re safe with you.”

“Plus, Ephyra won’t get so angry with us if you are there to soothe things over.” Melite rested her arms on the rock, her body still submerged.

“Yes, Merrow,” agreed Galene, attaching a bright pink sea anemone to her long braid.“You always have a way of maintaining peace between all of our sisters.”

“Well, I’m not sure it’s a good idea to go there.” Merrow sat up straighter, noticing the scent of a storm in the air. The squall was quickly approaching. The clouds darkened above them, taking on an angry composure. It wouldn’t be long now before the sky opened up and rain pelted down all around them.

“We can be there and back before the storm approaches,” said Melite, knowing Merrow’s thoughts though Merrow hadn’t expressed them aloud.

“Nay. We can’t possibly swim there and back before the storm approaches.” Merrow frowned, wishing for her sunshine to reappear. Nothing made her feel happier than sun warming her face while she dangled her toes into the cool waters.

“Not in that form you can’t, Merrow. Of course, not. Don’t be silly. You have your human legs and they’ll just slow you down.” Galene hoisted herself out of the water and onto the rocks, her long tail flipping back and forth in the growing breeze. The iridescent scales of green, purple and gold reflected the light. Undines had tails like mermaids while in the water, but once they were on land, they looked and walked on two legs like humans.