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Authors: Jeffrey Quyle
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Marco protested. “How can they travel with me wherever I need to go?”
“You’ll have to make sure you go back to them,” Neptin answered. “If they return without you, or you return without them, then your companions will not be released.”
Marco looked about pleadingly, looking for anywhere he could appeal. His eyes met Kreewhite’s, and he saw the pity that was there, but no hope for reversing the outcome of the village ruler’s decision. He looked over at Glaze and Porenn, and silently mouthed the word “Sorry” to them.
“It’s not your fault, Marco,” Glaze said loyally.
“When shall we leave?” Marco turned back to Neptin.
“Tomorrow at daybreak,” he answered. “Cassius and Pesino should have time to settle their affairs in the village and prepare themselves for this trip.”
There was an air of absolute silence, except for the sound of small waves gently lapping upon the fire platform and the crackle of the wood burning.
The merpeople began to slowly depart from the gathering, swimming off in ones and twos towards their own homes. Marco turned and gathered Glaze and Porenn in a mutual hug as they stood by the fire.
“I’m sorry,” he told them both repeatedly.
“This isn’t your fault Marco,” Glaze loyally said. “You didn’t do anything wrong. And this may not be so bad for us. He said they’d treat us fairly.”
Kreewhite came over next to them. “Marco, I never had any idea this would happen,” he apologized. “I’ll do everything I can for these two.”
“I know you will,” Marco said. “What can you tell me about Cassius and Pesino?”
“Cassius is one of the most reliable people you’ll ever meet. He’ll be the head of the village someday – he’s that well respected,” Kreewhite said.
“Pesino could spend the next twenty years sowing her wild oats and she still wouldn’t be done. I don’t know what Lord Neptin was thinking when he assigned her to go with you. She’ll be a handful, but Cassius should be able to control her,” Kreewhite considered.
Marco rolled his eyes at the thought of a mermaid partying her way through the challenges he faced.
Kreewhite’s mother came swimming over to the small group at that moment, and apologized for the unhappy turn of events.
“You all must be very hungry,” she said. “Let us get some food for you. Stay right here and Kreewhite and I will be back,” she said with a meaningful look at her son. The two of them swam off, and the three stranded humans sat down together in a huddle by the fire.
Minutes later Kreewhite was back with a basket of fish and plantains. They placed the fish on the stone platform right next to the base of the fire, and did the same with the plantains, smelling the savory aroma that quickly rose from their impromptu meal.
They ate their meal, and stayed sprawled on the stone platform, dry, resting in the setting sun and chatting amiably, as though they weren’t in a precarious position and about to be separated the next morning.
“I used to herd goats,” Marco admitted when it was his turn to tell an embarrassing story on himself. “One day one of the goats was missing in the afternoon, and I went all over the hillsides looking for him.
“I was on the edge of the river, and I thought I saw a white spot across the river, and I thought it was my goat. So I stripped off all my clothes, and I started to wade across the river. But I slipped on some rocks in the river, and the current washed me down around a curve in the river.
“When I managed to climb up out of the river and wiped the all the water out of my eyes, I looked up to find where my goat had gone. Instead, I discovered that I had walked into the middle of the convent school for girls on an outing to visit a hermitage, and they all were staring at me!”
The group laughed as the sun set into the flat horizon.
“Does it seem strange to anyone else that this fire is still
“You’ll have to make sure you go back to them,” Neptin answered. “If they return without you, or you return without them, then your companions will not be released.”
Marco looked about pleadingly, looking for anywhere he could appeal. His eyes met Kreewhite’s, and he saw the pity that was there, but no hope for reversing the outcome of the village ruler’s decision. He looked over at Glaze and Porenn, and silently mouthed the word “Sorry” to them.
“It’s not your fault, Marco,” Glaze said loyally.
“When shall we leave?” Marco turned back to Neptin.
“Tomorrow at daybreak,” he answered. “Cassius and Pesino should have time to settle their affairs in the village and prepare themselves for this trip.”
There was an air of absolute silence, except for the sound of small waves gently lapping upon the fire platform and the crackle of the wood burning.
The merpeople began to slowly depart from the gathering, swimming off in ones and twos towards their own homes. Marco turned and gathered Glaze and Porenn in a mutual hug as they stood by the fire.
“I’m sorry,” he told them both repeatedly.
“This isn’t your fault Marco,” Glaze loyally said. “You didn’t do anything wrong. And this may not be so bad for us. He said they’d treat us fairly.”
Kreewhite came over next to them. “Marco, I never had any idea this would happen,” he apologized. “I’ll do everything I can for these two.”
“I know you will,” Marco said. “What can you tell me about Cassius and Pesino?”
“Cassius is one of the most reliable people you’ll ever meet. He’ll be the head of the village someday – he’s that well respected,” Kreewhite said.
“Pesino could spend the next twenty years sowing her wild oats and she still wouldn’t be done. I don’t know what Lord Neptin was thinking when he assigned her to go with you. She’ll be a handful, but Cassius should be able to control her,” Kreewhite considered.
Marco rolled his eyes at the thought of a mermaid partying her way through the challenges he faced.
Kreewhite’s mother came swimming over to the small group at that moment, and apologized for the unhappy turn of events.
“You all must be very hungry,” she said. “Let us get some food for you. Stay right here and Kreewhite and I will be back,” she said with a meaningful look at her son. The two of them swam off, and the three stranded humans sat down together in a huddle by the fire.
Minutes later Kreewhite was back with a basket of fish and plantains. They placed the fish on the stone platform right next to the base of the fire, and did the same with the plantains, smelling the savory aroma that quickly rose from their impromptu meal.
They ate their meal, and stayed sprawled on the stone platform, dry, resting in the setting sun and chatting amiably, as though they weren’t in a precarious position and about to be separated the next morning.
“I used to herd goats,” Marco admitted when it was his turn to tell an embarrassing story on himself. “One day one of the goats was missing in the afternoon, and I went all over the hillsides looking for him.
“I was on the edge of the river, and I thought I saw a white spot across the river, and I thought it was my goat. So I stripped off all my clothes, and I started to wade across the river. But I slipped on some rocks in the river, and the current washed me down around a curve in the river.
“When I managed to climb up out of the river and wiped the all the water out of my eyes, I looked up to find where my goat had gone. Instead, I discovered that I had walked into the middle of the convent school for girls on an outing to visit a hermitage, and they all were staring at me!”
The group laughed as the sun set into the flat horizon.
“Does it seem strange to anyone else that this fire is still
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