Tragedy Off Cape Cod

“Come with me to Cape Cod, Rorqual,” Rallin pleaded with his brother.  “I want to show you the woman I’ve been talking about.”

“Oh, Rallin,” Rorqual said, exasperated.  “You know that Father would kill you if he knew you were sneaking off all the time to spy on that woman!  You’re not going to drag me with you and suffer at Father’s hand, as well!  Besides, what could possibly be so special about her, anyway?  You seem obsessed with her!”

“That’s because I find her so fascinating!”  Rallin said.  “But it’s also because I met her on my travon.*  She befriended me at a time when I was so lonely and unsure of myself.  She accepted me for who I was.”  Rallin suddenly went quiet, then said, “You have no idea how hard it is being the second son.”

“No, I don’t,” Rorqual conceded, “but my heart aches for you, brother.”  Grasping Rallin’s forearms, Rorqual said, “Alright.  If it pleases you for me to see the woman, I will go with you.  I promise not to tell Father where we are going, but I must tell him we will be gone.”

Rallin smiled.  “Thank you, Rorqual!”

As soon as Rorqual had returned from seeing their Father, the two brothers set out for the thirty mile journey to Cape Cod.  The miles passed quickly for Rallin as he swam alongside his brother, for he had seen this stretch of the ocean too many times to count.  He did manage, though, to point out to Rorqual some of the lovely rock formations down below and interesting sea creatures along the way.

“Hey,” Rorqual said, panting, when they were about halfway there.  “Do you mind...if we...rest a bit?”

“Oh, come on!” Rallin said, rolling his eyes at his brother.  “Don’t tell me you’re worn out already!  We used to swim twice this far every day when we were younglings!”

“Yeah, but we had more energy, then.”  Rorqual took another deep breath, resting a bit on a rock.  “Besides, I’ve had to put in a lot of time with Father over the past year, with him preparing me to be king.  I haven’t had as much time to go off swimming.”

Rallin sighed.  The duties of Rorqual being the firstborn and Crown Prince had always been a sore spot with Rallin.  Rorqual had always gotten all the special attention.  Then, upon turning 25 last year, Rorqual had started studying privately with their father to learn all the secrets of the kingdom and the ins and outs of being king.  Feeling left out and forgotten, Rallin started looking upon his brother with envy, wondering if he’d ever get to do anything important.  Despite this, Rallin still truly loved his brother, his best friend.  After all, Rorqual was always the first one to give Rallin a compliment, to stick up for him, and to spur him on.

Looking at his brother now, Rallin could see how the past year had taken its toll on Rorqual.  Though two years apart in age, Rallin and Rorqual could usually pass off for twins, with their similar build, blond hair, and blue-green eyes.  However, Rallin noticed that Rorqual’s body looked pale and thin, having lost some of his muscular definition, as compared to Rallin’s well-toned physique.  Not only that, but Rorqual’s face, normally so warm and full of smiles, seemed to look more wan and stressed these days.  His eyes, which had always held a certain light, now had a tired, glassy look.  Perhaps being Crown Prince has some disadvantages after all, Rallin thought to himself.

After their short rest, the two brothers continued their journey to Cape Cod.  When they were about five miles from shore, Rorqual suddenly gave a quick burst of speed and yelled out over his shoulder, “Race ya!”

Laughing, Rallin quickened his pace to catch up to his brother.  Enjoying the chase, Rallin had not realized how close Rorqual was getting to the mainland.  Rallin heard it before he saw it, and his eyes widened with panic.  Yelling with all his might, he called out to his brother, “Rorqual!  Swim down!  Get out of the way!”

Unfortunately, Rorqual turned around toward Rallin to see what Rallin was yelling about.  Rallin continued to shout, racing toward Rorqual.  Then Rorqual heard a great rumbling noise behind him and turned back around.  Just as Rorqual’s eyes focused on it, the most unthinkable happened.

A white propeller of a boat caught Rorqual right in the chest.

For a few moments, Rallin sank slowly in the water, his whole body in shock, his eyes wide, not believing the sight before him.  Then, suddenly, with all his might, he screamed.

“RORQUAL!!!”

Shaking his head a couple times, Rallin swam toward the sinking body of his brother, a thick line of blood rising to the surface of the water.  Catching the lower remains of Rorqual’s now lifeless body and holding it close in a semi-hug, Rallin wept bitterly.  Unfortunately, Rallin could not weep long, for he soon got a sense of danger approaching in the water.

Sharks! he thought.  I’ve got to hide Rorqual’s body!

He looked up, though, when he heard splashing overhead.  Two people were treading water at the surface, with the boat now nowhere to be found.

I’ve got to help them! Rallin thought.  But there was no time.  He could already see the small figures of sharks looming away to the north.  Realizing the sharks would be drawn to Rorqual’s blood and the splashing above, Rallin hatefully let go of his brother’s body and swam as fast as he could down to the ocean floor.  Finding a large, seaweed covered rock, he hid behind it and stayed very still.  Overhead, he could hear the faint cries of the people as the sharks attacked them, followed by the disgusting sounds of sharks feeding.  Then, all too soon, the sounds were gone.

Slowly, Rallin peered over the edge of his rock, the sense of danger receding.  He saw nothing except a tinge of red and a few pieces of cloth at the surface of the water.  Gingerly moving from behind the rock, Rallin started scanning the ocean floor to see if the sharks had missed Rorqual’s body.  After a few minutes, he saw a glint of something a few feet ahead on the ocean floor.  He quickly swam toward it, but stopped abruptly.  Tears filled his eyes and his hand trembled as he picked up the green, scaly piece of fin, pierced at the bottom with a small cluster of rubies and diamonds.

Rallin swam off, not knowing where, weeping bitterly.

* * * * * * *

“I wonder where Grandpa and Grandma are,” Marina wondered to herself out loud.  She stood at the large sliding glass doors of her grandparents house on Cape Cod, looking out at the waves on the bay.  Her grandparents had gone out in the motor boat that morning just to have a ride on the water and enjoy the warm sea breeze.  It was a nice, sunny Saturday in June, and the water had been relatively still all day.  Now at three o’clock in the afternoon, Marina was starting to get worried.  Her grandparents rarely stayed out on the bay past lunch time, especially only in their little motor boat, and they had said when they left that they only planned to be at most a few hours.

Not knowing what else to do and tired of pacing around the sitting room, Marina opened the sliding glass door and stepped out onto the deck to take a walk on the beach.  Walking along the water always had a way of clearing her mind from her troubles–breathing in the salty sea air, hearing the sound of gulls circling over the bay, the water lapping at her feet.  Walking down the wooden stairs from the deck to the shore, Marina took a slow, deep breath and closed her eyes as the breeze whipped her long, red hair back from her face.  She slipped the sandals off her feet and started walking along the shore.  Much as she tried to keep her mind clear of thinking anything in particular, different thoughts kept popping up: her latest project at work, what to get her grandparents for their upcoming 45th wedding anniversary, memories of the past, her loneliness....  Looking down at her feet and sighing, Marina pushed the emotion to the back of her mind–like she had been doing for seemingly all her life.

Glancing up at the shore a bit further on, she saw something sparkle in the afternoon light.  Many things wash up on the shore, but rarely anything that glinted the sun’s light in such a way.  Curious, Marina quickened her pace.  When she was still a ways off, she stopped suddenly and gasped.  A naked man lay prone on the beach.  In his open hand rested the source of the sparkling.  Walking slowly towards the man, Marina realized he held jewels in his hand:  what looked like rubies and diamonds held together in a cluster.  Not certain if the man was alive or even conscious, Marina knelt by his side and put her hand to his nose.  Feeling warm air on her fingers, Marina breathed a sigh of relief.

Good, thought to herself.  At least he’s not dead.

With the adrenaline subsiding, she finally took a good look at the man.

“Oh my!” she said with a small intake of breath.

Rarely had she seen a man more beautiful.  His blond hair was almost white and came down to his shoulders.  His skin was lightly tanned–just enough to give it color.  His face had high cheekbones, a strong jaw, a straight nose, and full lips.  His long eyelashes were as blond as his hair, and she couldn’t help but wonder what color his eyes were.  His ear was pierced with a small pearl.  The arm that held the cluster of rubies and diamonds was lean with muscle, as was his back, which tapered down to a trim waist.  Embarrassed, she skipped over his rear to his long legs, which practically bulged with sculpted muscle.

He’s got to be well over six feet tall, Marina thought to herself.

Shaking her head, she realized she ought to wake him up.  Putting her hands on his shoulder and his arm, she shook him gently.

“Hey!” Marina said in a loud voice.  “Hey, mister!  Are you okay?”

After shaking him a few more times, she heard a small moan.  Pulling away from him slightly, she noticed his eyes open–a brilliant blue-green color–and blink a few times.  He slowly started to get up, shaking his head as he did so.  Embarrassed, Marina quickly stood up and averted her face.  The man came to his knees and rubbed the back of his head.  Looking around him, he noticed Marina, and his eyes widened in alarm.

“I hope you don’t think me rude,” Marina explained, her face gazing over her shoulder at the trees lining the beach.  “I merely found you on the beach.  If you like I could–“

But she never had a chance to finish what she was saying.  She heard a splash and quickly turned her head around, only to see that the man had gone.

She ran to the waves lapping at the shore, waved her arm frantically, and shouted out to the swimming figure already many feet out to sea, “Wait!  Come back!  You might be hurt!  You....”

Her voice trailed off as she lost sight of the man.

“Odd,” she said to herself.  “I hope he’s alright.”

After gazing out to sea for a few more minutes, she looked back to where the man had lain.  Out of the corner of her eye, she noticed a large white object further down the shore.  Gasping out of fear, Marina broke into a run.  When she reached the boat, she immediately recognized it as her grandparents’.  It was turned upside-down, and the propeller looked as if it had run into something–the blades were bent, and one had a piece gouged out of it.  Frantically, Marina searched the beach surrounding the boat, shouting out her grandparents’ names.  She came upon a piece of a blue jacket that said “Land’s End” on it, and tears welled up in her eyes.  Looking on up the shore, she saw other pieces of clothing floating in the water near the shore, bobbing in and out with the waves.

“Oh, Grandma, Grandpa,” she said softly.  Sinking to her knees, Marina cried her loss.

Out on the bay, holding onto a floating buoy, the man Marina had found on the shore looked on as Marina clutched the piece of jacket to her chest, waves of red hair falling across her face as sobs wracked her body.  The man sighed and swiped a tear from his own eye.

“I had no idea the people were dear to her,” he said to himself in his own language.  “Now I wish that I had done something to help them.  If only there were some way I could comfort her–some way we could comfort each other.  We’ve both suffered a great loss today.”

Gazing longingly at Marina as she stood up and walked slowly back up the beach, Rallin shook his head.  “Alas, we are doomed to be forever apart.  I should never have let her see me,...and yet, I wish....”

Grasping the buoy tightly and giving it a shake, Rallin let out a frustrated moan.  “I am fully grown and old enough to be mated.  I could probably have any maid in the kingdom, and yet the only one I desire is a maid that is not even of my kind.  It is this cursed, unnatural desire...that caused Rorqual’s death this day...and the death of the woman’s people.”  Rallin hung his head.  “It is all my fault.  Everything is my fault.”

Feeling ashamed and filled with sorrow, Rallin gave one last look to Marina as she closed the glass door to her dwelling.  Letting go of the buoy and diving into the depths of the salty water of the bay, the grieving merman slowly started the long swim home.


*Author's note:  A travon is a three month long journey that every merboy must endure when they turn twelve.  They travel a long ways to a part of the ocean they have never been before and learn to fend for themselves during that time.  When they return, they are tested for strength of character, mind, and body before a ceremony is held, whereby their ears are pierced as an outward sign that they are now officially recognized as mermen.