to Walk on Water || NaNoWriMo 2023

Chapter 2 | A Painful Banishment

They were coming for him.

That was the only thing he could be certain about right now. That the king and queen and every single mer would hunt him down. Not because of what he'd done or because it was his fault. But because they needed someone to blame and he was the easiest target.

Of course they couldn't blame the royal family. And of course they couldn't blame the prince that had been engaged to her. But he was different.

He was just a poor warlock. He was the one that gave her legs and stole her voice in the process. He was the one a lot of suspicious stories were told about.

It didn't matter that he had once been a highly respected person by the king and the merpeople. It didn't matter that he had laid down his life for the good of the kingdom.

All that mattered was that they were angry. And they needed someone they could blame for the loss of their princess.

He had already been given a warning, when the princess had just entered the human world. Her disappearance hadn't gone unnoticed and at one point a warrior had knocked on his door demanding answers. Answers he had gladly given them. Then they had let it go, they wanted the princess to be happy and she would still be married to a prince. Something that had been very important to her parents.

So they had let his involvement slide. Something that wouldn't happen now.

Though when he had packed all his belongings, he still needed to leave things behind, and he opened the door. The endless ocean bottom couldn't be seen, because of the soldiers standing there. Waiting for him.

There was no point trying to escape. He could make it he knew that, but what was the point. He knew what a life on the run could do to a person. Something he never wanted to experience again.

So when he saw the soldiers standing outside his door, he simply surrendered. Their faces full of surprise and suspicion told him they had prepared for a long fight to the death. But instead of being happy he cooperated, they questioned his motives. Why wouldn't he fight for his life or freedom?

The reason was simple. He honestly didn't care what the king would do to him. It could never be worse than he had already gone through. And he did have another trick up his sleeve.

When he had helped the king to win his war against the other ocean, he had received payment. In return for the soldiers he sent as help, the king had to ensure his life and safety.

No matter how angry the king was, he was unable to kill the warlock. Maybe he had forgotten. But the magic hadn't.

Magic would never forget a promised payment.

It lived on it. And though the king only needed to spare the warlock's life once. It was enough to ensure his safety in this situation.

No matter how angry the merpeople were, they couldn't kill him.

•••

When they finally entered the palace, the evening had arrived. During the day the ocean was a lively place with a constant buzz of sounds. But when the night came, slowly all life seemed to be drained from the ocean.

It became a dark place, without any safety.

It fitted the occasion though. No matter how this day would end, the warlock knew he would never set foot on the ocean bottom again.

Simply because he was murdered or because he was banished. Never to enter the sea again.

The merpeople obviously expected the first option. So when the king after a short court decided the warlock, who had stolen their princess from them, would be banished from all the oceans. An uproar could be heard throughout the entire kingdom.