The Anti-Fairy Tales The Water Demon Arc Part Four

 The Demon Witch

The following day Pheoshan, now dubbed Pheoshan O'meriol, woke up hoping that the day before was nothing but a nightmare, however when she saw the coral ceiling above her she knew that it was not. The tail also confirmed this also, she was a mermaid now. She had become the adopted daughter of the mer king. She let out a groan.

This is not good. I have to find a way back to land.

She then practiced swimming, knowing that even though she would do whatever she had to to get back to land, age did not know just how long that would take. So she swam to and fro. She swam for as long as she needed to to ensure that she had mastered it. She did her best to swim up and swim down and circled around. She swam left to right. Then swam to the chair.

She then looked at herself in the mirror, she had to take in what she was looking at. She could not help but notice that, with her paper white skin and her purple eyes and the fangs that her canines had become, she looked like a vampire. She noticed that she had a strange innocent look on her face, yet unlike all of the other mermaids, there was a slight cold beauty there.

She let out a sigh.

Looks like I am just going to grin and bear this. Also, I hardly think that I will be able to do anything here.

So she swam to Livea as she was the only one that she knew. She knew that she might get to know the rest of her adopted family if she stayed around the place long enough in her own time. Yet she could not ignore her hunger either.

"Good morning!" She said.

"Good morning Pheoshan, did you sleep well?"

"I did." She said trying not to clutch her stomach. "I am sorry, but I am going to have to ask, where do we go for our food?"

She smiled as she laughed.

"Oh, just follow me!"

She swam to the right.

"Tell me, is there a library or something like that around here?"

"Yeah, why?"

"Well as I am new around here,  I do need to know the history of the pace and how not to offend anyone. Also if I am to stay here, as your father-"

"Our father!" She corrected.

She let out a sound like a south and a laugh.

"Our father, sorry, decreed, I think that I ought to ensure that I familiarize myself here as much as I can."

At this her eyes lit up.

"Sure! You know,  I'm glad that you're my sister now. I mean I do have other sisters,  which you are sure to meet, but they're always doing their hair and talking about mermen. Sometimes I find it kind of creepy. I mean just imagine others talking about you and fighting to be your mate!"

She smiled at this as she let out a slight chuckle. Livea looked at her.

"Wow! That's a good smile!"

She looked at her slightly stunned and yet confused. She had never had a compliment like that. Well none with such honesty and without any hint of malice. She homely did not know how to react or what she should say.

"What?"

"N-nothing."

"Come in! You can tell me!"

"It's nothing alright! Now I think I ought to get our food. Then I will have to focus on adjusting to this new life of mine."

"Alright! How about I give you a tour after?"

She smirked.

"Sure, sounds interesting." She said trying to sound less interested than she was.

"Awesome!" She exclaimed, hugging her. "Oh it's going to be so much fun having you around."

She smiled to cover her feeling of guilt. She knew that regardless of what she felt, she knew that she had to get back to the surface. She also knew that age would have to seek out her friends,  just to know what happened to them. Even still she has a feeling that she could fit right in here regardless of how little she wanted to admit it.

She soon came to a dining Hall where the food was fish, crabs and different types of seaweed at the top and there were mermaids swimming up and grabbing the fish and seaweed and bit into it. She also noticed that the fish and crabs were raw. She then swam to it and took one and had to bury her disgust as she bit into it. She found that it tasted better than she thought that it would! She suspected that this was due to her transformation as she one that she could not stand the taste as a human. She soon ate it. She tried the crabs and the seaweed all treated great.

"Good morning." Spoke King Mertry.

"Oh good morning father."

"Urm…good morning…urm father." She said,  feeling slightly uncomfortable upon calling the man father.

His eyes softened.

"Good morning. I am glad that you are eating well, I know that this would be a big adjustment but I am glad that you are making an effort to do so."

"Thank you."

"Also,  you do not have to force yourself to call me father, call me that when you are ready to do so."

I nodded and bowed.

"I think…calling you that now will help make me more comfortable."

He smiled.

Livea smiled as she ate her fish and seaweed. Once they had eaten until they were satisfied.

"We will be going now. I'm going to show Pheoshan around."

He chuckled.

"Go on ahead!"

"Thank you."

Livea then showed her around the castle and then the city. They then swam to the towns and villages. She was amazed at how fast they could go and how much distance that they were covering. By the time the morning was over they were already at the outskirts. Then her eyes rested upon a wall of darker water at the edge that was like a river.

"What's that?"

"Demwit River. None ever go there."

"Wait what! River, an underwater river?"

She frowned.

"Yeah. Father says it had something to do with the properties in the water that means the waters don't mix."

"Oh."

"So where to next?"

She smiled.

"How about the library?"

She too smiled.

"Now you're talking."

"Alright but we need to swim to the other side of the kingdom."

"Alright,  but first I think that I need to take a break." She said sitting on a bench.

After a short break, she swam on and they soon arrived at the library. She could not believe just how many books there were. Yet she noticed that the books were made of gold and silver.

How am I going to find a way back here?

She looked all around the library and started to read some of the spine of books but she could find nothing. Yet her eye turned to a section. She then swam to it and spotted a book with the word Ursmor in the spine. She was about to reach out and grab it.

"Pheoshan! No! That's the forbidden section!" 

She looked at her.

"Oh, sorry. By the way,  who's Ursmor?"

Livea went pale.

"We don't mention her around here. Father forbade it!"

"Care to tell me why?"

"No,  now the history is over there."

She looked over to the right and nodded. She swam over to it. She looked at the dates and took the one with the lowest date. She then started to read. She looked up and found a slab where she could read.

"Would it be alright if I stayed here for a while?" She asked.

"Sure. I will see you later!"

"See you later. I hope that I will learn to fit in better after reading these."

She nodded and swam. Pheoshan ended up spending the rest of the day there reading and containing page after page. Yet regardless of how long she spent reading, she could not get the name Ursmor out of her head.

"You want to see Ursmor." The librarian said.

"No."

"But she wants to meet you!"

She frowned as she looked at the librarian. She had a red tail with blue hair and black eyes. They looked strange, almost emotionless.

"Why?"

"She can give you your wish."

She placed her book down and started to swim over to her out of curiosity.

"And that is?"

"You want to become human again and see your friends."

She frowned.

How did she know?

"And why would you say that?"

"She can help you. She helped me. Unlike King Mertry, she does this gladly."

She looked down, she wondered what she would do. Yet she knew that she should turn this down,  but she could not help but think about her friends and was desperately concerned about her friends. She knew that there would not be another chance so she had to take it and pay whatever price she had to later.

"Alright, take me to her."

She smiled.

"Come with me."

They left the library. They swam for a long time yet Pheoshan recognized where they were going. She soon speed Demwit River. She swam through into the dark water. She noticed that the river was a smoky lavender colour. She wondered why that was then her mind returned to her thoughts on her friends.

"This way."

She turned to her and nodded. She swam on and a strange smell entered her nose and felt strange as she swam too. She felt strange in her head too. Her brain felt fuzzy and her thoughts became foggy. It was almost like,  whatever was in the water was switching off her ability to think. As she swam, her mind became like a dull and blunt blade. Her mind almost fell into a strange trance-like state.

"What's happening?"

"The plants here relax the brain."

"Why?"

"It puts people at ease as Ursmor has a certain look that makes people scared of her. It hurts her every time people see her and scream. See, King Mertry, your adopted father,  cursed her to look like that."

She spotted that the coral had started to turn to purple crystal. She also noticed that they were swimming to a narrow but deep cave. She followed the librarian in. She noticed that there were strange lights on many colours inside the crystal pulsing like a heartbeat.

"What are they?"

"I do not know. Ask Ursmor. She will know."

She noted feeling uneasy. She could feel something off about them. She could hear voices coming from the lights. Then she was able to make out what sound was coming from them. It sounded like a strange and distorted screaming sound. Some were more distinct than others. She would have been shocked by this, if she was not in the right frame of mind.

She continued and soon she was in a dark purple chamber with an even darker purple desk in the center. There were other holes all around that led to other chambers.

"Ursmor!"

"Thank you, dear Mofa." Said a deep voice behind her.

Pheoshasn turned back to see a woman with a black mermaid trail with a row of tentacles around her waist like a skirt. With sharp blood red books on the suckers. Her skin was a deep green with the face of a piranha with glowing red eyes with a slit with thin whiskers for eyebrows. She had tentacles for hair with the exact same red hooks on the suckers. Her noise was sharp like a goblin shark with gills in her neck. With long sharp teeth like that of a shark.

"Hello Pheoshan."

"How did you-"

"I have been observing you for a long time."

"Why?"

"The King Wolfox demands it. He has shown a great interest in you and your future."

"Do you work for him?"

"Indeed child. Which is why I look like this. I was tricked by him and I need my husband to help me defeat him."

"Who's that?"

"King Mertry, your recently adopted father. Although I prefer not to use you in this, no. All I want you to do is win the heart of a land Prince, Rice and bring the land and the water together."

"Why would I do that?"

"To get back to your friends. After all, I think that you would want them to know that you are alive, I presume?"

"Yes."

"Then we have a deal."

She looked around and then noticed that Mofa was nowhere to be seen. That was when she looked down to see that she was unconscious on the floor of the chamber. She was very still and her skin was as pale as paper.

"Is she-"

"Yes,  she just needs to sleep. So do we have a deal?"

She spotted that there were no bubbles coming from her nose.

"Remember you won't get another chance!" She sang.

Say no! Get away from here. Kill her and get out of here!

"Yes."