#for it — gentle highlights or shading in a block before i put the hatching in

[wigglebox]

(o´Д`) 

[original]

[yourdeepestfathoms]

Cast in a Chasm

Sequel to this fic

Word count: 3895

———————

Aragon dreamt of blood and crying and broken eggs. Her eyes eventually snapping open was both a relief and a thrill because she was out of that terror, but also because the human was awake. It— SHE was huddled in between her front talons and staring at her with wide, glossy eyes- poor scaleless thing didn’t even have second eyelids to see clearly in the water! How were they not extinct yet?

“Hello there,” Aragon said, nudging Orca in the chest with her snout.

Orca made a pitiful noise of fright and then jolted away. Aragon jumped to her feet immediately.

“Wait!”

She pounced, managing to trap Orca under her front talons. The human yelps, its yellow fur billowing around its head.

“No running.” Aragon said sternly, as if she were talking to a pet tortoise she’s once seen a Leviathan have. “Bad.”

Orca blinked up at her.

Humans must not be able to understand Leviathans, but that made sense. Aragon wasn’t sure how she was going to communicate with Orca.

She took a small step back and Orca flailed awkwardly as she began to float. Her limbs didn’t move in the right way to swim at all! Funny little thing.

Aragon looked around her room as Orca continued to drift upwards. She found a long rope of gelatin hanging from one of the hooks and picked it up. She tied it tightly around her chest and then handed the other end to Orca, who blinked at her. She points at the knot she tied and Orca seemed to understand after a moment because she began tying her piece around her chest.

“Good girl!” Aragon said, patting Orca’s head. Pride swelled within her. Her human was so smart!

Orca blinked at her curiously again. She pulled herself down the length of the rope and then stopped a few feet away when she got close enough to Aragon, anxious. Aragon held out one talon and, after a moment of hesitation, she latched onto it.

“My name is Aragon of the Seahorses,” Aragon said.

“Seahorses,” The human repeated.

Aragon perked up. “You understand me!”

“Smeeg smog smockeefee,” Orca chattered.

“Well, I’m not sure what ‘smockeefee’ means, but I’ll keep note of that.” Aragon said. She tilted her head at the human in her talon. “So you don’t speak Levia?”

“Mrrrrowrr,” Orca said, along with several other chittering noises.

“Definitely not.” Aragon reached up and set Orca on her head. “Stay up here, okay?” She can feel Orca’s tiny paws grasp tightly to her horns. She paddled over to the terrace and got a grand view of the kingdom below her tower, which was glowing in brilliant shades of blue and green and purple and pink. The hatching ceremony was already being set up, although Aragon wasn’t surprised. That was very in character for Seymour, who always wanted to be on top of things.

Orca yelped and gripped her horn tighter when she suddenly plunged off of the balcony and began gliding down to the city. She cants her wings and spiraled around the grand crystal palace until she reached the front gateway. Seymour wasn’t at her throne when she peeked in, but she did see Howard sitting beside it, for once not glued to the queen’s side.

“Where is Seymour?” Aragon asked the pup.

“In the royal hatchery,” Howard answered. “She doesn’t want anyone bothering her right now.”

Aragon looked her up and down. She wondered if Howard was jealous at all, since she was just a ward, not the queen’s actual daughter. Or maybe she was excited to get a little sibling- she couldn’t tell.

Howard fiddled with her tail before looking up. Her rose pink eyes widened.

“Is that the human?” She said.

Aragon reached up one talon to her head and felt Orca pat a claw with one of her tiny paws. She was still there.

“It is,” Aragon said. “Her name is Orca.”

“Oooo,” Howard murmured in awe. “That’s a pretty name!”

Aragon smiled proudly and was actually about to offer Howard a chance to hold the human, but then she heard a voice call out to her.

“SEAHORSE!!”

“Not again...”

Boleyn swam up to her in a whoosh, causing the water around them to spiral and twist wildly before simmering back into calmness. Cleves came with her, this time, but she crossed over in much more gentle strokes, making sure her tentacles didn’t hit any of the ancient architecture in the throne room.

“It appears you have a little monster tied to you,” Cleves observed, eyeing the harness connecting Aragon to Orca.

“It keeps her from drifting off,” Aragon informed. “This is Orca.”

“Hi, Orca!” Boleyn hovered over Aragon, waving to the human, who blinked up at her with big grey eyes before slowly raising a paw to wave back. “She’s so cute!”

“Isn’t she?” Aragon smiled, that feeling of pride swelling within her once again.

“Are you going to bring her to the celebration tonight?” Cleves asked.

“Of course.” Aragon replied. “I can’t leave her anywhere else.”

“Beemish rrrpl zob!” Orca announced.

“Oh! Oh.” Cleves tilted her head. “She doesn’t speak Levia. Why am I surprised?”

“What is a ‘beemish’?” Boleyn wondered out loud.

“No clue,” Aragon admitted. “But I’m sure I’ll learn eventually. Or she’ll learn Levia.” She looked around again, despite knowing she wouldn’t see Seymour. “Well. I’ve got to go get ready. An advisor has to look nice for this.”

Boleyn and Cleves waved as she swam through one of the branching hallways and went back up to her tower. She united herself from Orca for the time being and let the human hang onto a shelf of antique decorations.

“There’s a party today,” Aragon told her. “For the queen’s pup. They’re hatching.”

Orca blinked at her, then squinted her grey eyes. Aragon remembered that she probably couldn’t see clearly at all. It must have been uncomfortable.

Aragon looked around, then paddled over to one of her chests. She dug through it until she found a small block of sea glass. She pulled it out and heated it up at the stream of warm bubbles shooting out of the floor in one of the corners until it was soft enough to carve away with her claws. Orca watched her curiously as she formed the glass into a spectacle-like shape with closed sides that wouldn’t let water pour in. She softened the edges with clumps of algae and then strung a piece of stretchy kelp through either side. When she was finished, she handed the goggles to Orca, who turned them over curiously and then put them on. She gawked at Aragon through the glass eyes, seeing her clearly for the first time.

“Hello,” Aragon grinned. “Are they okay?” She points to the goggles and Orca nodded.

After she had her human seeing properly, she swung around to a tree carved from dark brown mahogany, which was where she kept all her jewelry. She brushed through the strands of jewels, picking up a few to hold to her scales and see which went best with her burnished color scheme. It was always hard to tell- did she want blues and greens to try and match the other Leviathans or did she want to go with warmer shades like oranges and reds?

She feels a small touch on her shoulder- Orca has swam over to her and pulls herself in front of her. She clung to one of the tree branches and squinted through the goggles at the string of rubies in Aragon’s left talon. She shook her head disapprovingly.

“No?”

“Eeemego noomobleck rubieooo,” Orca lectured her.

Aragon blinked. Orca sprung off of the branch and snatched the rubies from Aragon’s talon. She sank almost instantly, finding the jewels much heavier than she had even expecting, but she kicked her little legs and managed to hook it onto a mahogany limb. Then, she clambered up the side of the tree, observing the jewelry thoroughly before heaving off a moonstone necklace. She made a series of loud squeaks and pointed at Aragon’s right talon until she held it up. She brought the black gemstones to the golden scales, analyzed the color mix, then nodded. She set the necklace on Aragon’s talon.

“You’re good at this, huh?” Aragon smiled, winding the moonstones around her neck.

“Good?” Orca echoed in Levia. Aragon must have said it enough in the short span of time she’s been awake to have caught on on what it meant.

“Yes! Good!” Aragon said excitedly. She ruffled the fur on Orca’s head affectionately. “So smart!”

“Good,” Orca repeated proudly. She lugged a strand of emeralds into Aragon’s talon, pointed at it, and said, “Good. Noo gobbish!”

“Well, good thing I wasn’t planning on being a gobbish.” Aragon said. “Whatever that is.” She put on the shimmering green gemstones. As she does so, Orca swam to the very top of the tree, where necklaces turned to armbands and tailbands and earrings and other fancy jewelry she got because of her advisor status. She seemed to be momentarily dazzled by all the accessories before getting back on track and grabbing some matching emerald earrings, which she’s actually able to pick up easily.

“As you wish,” Aragon said as she clipped them on. “Anything else?” She gestured to the tree so Orca would know what she meant. But Orca shook her head and swam over to her shoulder to hang onto. “Very well.”

Aragon waded over to the mirror and pivoted around slowly a few times before nodding. The black and green really did highlight her golden scales.

“Good job, Orca,” Aragon praised the human. She was about to take off down to the courtyard to meet up with Cleves and Boleyn, but then she was stopped by a smaller strand of moonstones hanging on a thin branch of her jewelry tree. It was too small for an adult Leviathan, but it would fit Orca, so she plucked it up and gently wove it around her neck and shoulders.

“Perfect.” She smiled.

“Hubblesnubble.” Orca agreed.

Aragon laughed, quickly tied Orca to her again, and then set off to the ceremony.

—

The city was glowing in dazzling hues of purple and pink, green and blue, yellow and orange. The light from the bioluminescent paste and fire trapped in sea glass orbs gleamed against the crystal buildings and domes, setting them off in radiants of rainbow. Aragon hoped all the light wouldn’t blind Orca.

After sweeping past the band of Leviathans playing the queen’s favorite instruments, she found Cleves and Boleyn at a buffet table loaded with fried lobster and minced tuna and pickled shark, chatting away. Cleves was simply wearing some silver wires that wound around her thick, but short horns and circled her forehead and dark topaz wristbands, while Boleyn had strands of pearls hanging from her neck and a winding tailband on the top of her tail that was designed to look like a snake.

“There she is!” Boleyn cried when Aragon lands before them. “And you brought Orca! Hi, Orca!”

“Yeemo!” Orca waved from where she was situated on Aragon’s head.

“Haha! Yeemo to you, too!” Boleyn said enthusiastically.

“So,” Cleves began, rising out of her sitting position, which always looked so odd because of her tentacles. “What first?”

After a moment of consideration, the three of them (well, four, because Orca gave a helpful, “Zim!” in the process) decided to just swim through the festivities and see what they could find to entertain them until the hatching ceremony.

They sailed past grand glass statues and pups playing with each other and Leviathans dancing aquatic dances until they came to a quiet game pavilion. It was dressed up in fire-lit beads of amethyst and lime and azure and gold, which were braided across the underwater oceanic trees. Swathes of specially-sewn aquatic silk curtains billowed around the outside of the area, shielding it from the cold ocean currents and muffling the noise from the rest of the festival. And there, an elegantly long, but short Leviathan sat alone.

Her scales were a deep indigo color so dark they almost looked black, but there were a few markings that faded to purple in some areas. She had a prehensile tail that she was using to hang onto a piece of coral and four strange segmented wings, almost like a dragonfly. She was playing a game by herself that involved small marble pieces into increasingly complex towers. As far as lame solitary party games went, it was kind of at the top, frankly.

“Heeeey, Nautilus!”

Ice blue eyes, a bright contrast to her dark scales, glanced up at the ground as they landed. A scowl formed on her snout.

“I told you not to call me that,” Blount of the Nautiluses grumbled. “What do you want? And what is THAT?” She peered up at Orca.

“You looked lonely,” Cleves said.

“And this is Orca,” Aragon added.

“A human. Down here.” Blount said. “Wow.” She tipped her head back down to her game, but glanced up momentarily when Orca swam down from Aragon’s head. “Don’t let that thing anywhere near me.”

“Awww, don’t be like that!” Boleyn said. “She won’t hurt you!”

“I beg to differ,” Blount growled, climbing further up the piece of coral to create a distance between her and the human. “Is it your pet or something?”

“Sorta?” Aragon said, watching Orca pull herself onto one of the branches of coral, much to Blount’s dismay. “Orca, this is Blount.” Then, to Blount, “Be nice.”

Blount grumbled something and tried to resume her game. Aragon had no idea how she could always be so angry all the time. It must get exhausting.

“Oh! Oh!” Boleyn suddenly perked up. “Let’s go to the shipwreck!”

“That’s a good idea,” Aragon mused. “Orca can get air there. I’ll also have to give her a new scale.”

And so, it was settled. The four of them, including Blount because she got dragged along, swam off to the large shipwreck on the outskirts of the city.

It was a cargo ship, the break bulk kind, now submerged in the loose sand of a large, empty plateau at the bottom of a cliff face. Strangely, it had air pockets in various areas, which they weaved their way to after entering through a large gash in the metal exterior.

The area they popped their heads into opens out to a large, gently sloped storage room, illuminated by coral. There’s an open central room, with support beams forming shelves on either side. Toward the back, the floor and the shelves extend out into an air pocket. The whole floor here has been covered with a layer of rocks and sand over time.

Orca looks at the dry area with longing. Aragon unties her and she immediately begins to climb the slope eagerly. After a moment, however, she falls to the ground coughing, gasping, spitting out water. The sounds echo against the metallic hull and makes Aragon jolt in fear. She leapt out of the water, her wings slapping frantically against the surface, and thumped down onto the incline. The entire ship rocks and creaks with the sudden force.

“You bumbling whale!” Blount hissed. “Do you want this thing to come down on us?”

“Why is she doing that?” Aragon said in fright, ignoring Blount. Her talons hover Orca’s writhing form helplessly. “Is she okay?”

“She’s expelling the water she breathed in,” Cleves said, swimming over to the shallow area. “It’s normal. Don’t worry.”

At the same time, Orca gave Aragon a weak thumbs up and then returned coughing.

“Oh.” Aragon said in relief. “Thank the whales...”

It takes her a moment, but Orca is eventually back on her feet and has taken to energetically romping about the sand and gravel. When some of it drifts into her nose, she sneezes hard enough to knock herself backwards. She gave Aragon an indignant look.

“Well, stop putting sand in your nose, then.” Aragon suggested.

“Urrmgle,” Orca said before getting distracted by an adventurous crab and following after it until it disappears into a hole much too small for even her. She turns away, disappointed, but perks up quickly. “Blnnnt!!!”

The Leviathans blink at her weird squeaky exclamation, then Boleyn swung her head around to Blount.

“I think that means you.” She said.

“Awww,” Aragon cooed. “She knows your name!” She held out a talon and Orca rushed under it, nuzzling against her warm scales. “So smart!”

“How did THAT happen?” Blount exclaimed. She lashed her tail, splashing Cleves, who was settled in the shallows with her.

“I think it’s cute,” Cleves said helpfully.

“Why me?” Blount said woefully. “I don’t even like it!”

“Her.” Aragon corrected.

“Whatever.”

Blount bundled her four wings in close to herself as Orca steps into the water when she notices some small fish swimming around. She held still for a moment, jumped forward, and missed.

She whirled around, looking very confused and startled. Then, she tried again, missing even more than the first time. On the third try, she hauled her clumsy body all the way underwater and still managed to catch only sand.

Amused laughter swells through the group at the human’s attempts at catching a fish. It earns them an adorably annoyed look.

“Smurggle furgle,” Orca growled.

Eventually, Orca does manage to catch a fish, but it slips right through her claws. That couldn’t be fair!

“They’re slippery!” Aragon called from the bay.

Orca readied herself and dove again. She overestimated her speed and smashed her face directly into the sand below. She resurfaced with a sputter and then attacked again, snatching up a daring fish who got too close. Victory was short lived. The tail slapped her in the face and she dropped it. She makes a miserable noise and gives up, returning to the slope.

“We should get going,” Blount said, finally uncoiling herself. She stretched out her strange wings. “The egg will probably hatch soon.”

They all agreed. Aragon quickly gave Orca another scale to put in her mouth, and then they all set back off to the glowing city.

—

It was a boy.

The purple snout came out first, then the webbed talons, and finally the strange, butterfly-like wings opened and broke the rest of the egg. He tumbled out into the water, his gills flaring open instantly, and the audience of Leviathans gaped at how beautiful he was.

His scales are a clash of gem-like azure and shiny violet. His four wings, much too big for his tiny body, are shimmering purple and blue, as if they were sapphires and amethysts mixed together. Elegant magenta and lavender horns with royal purple tips and highlights rise from his head, and cobalt whiskers billow around his purple snout. His tail is shaped into a dolphin’s, just like his mother’s, who scoops him up into her talons.

Eddie of the Porpoises is the name that was declared. A string of pearls is laced around his long neck. He immediately put a few orbs into his mouth and made an adorable pup noise.

It absolutely sickens Aragon.

She left the ceremony without a word. Her wings beat furiously through the night tide as she tried to distance herself from all the joy and happiness and unfairness. Her mind kept replaying scenes over and over again— blood, eggshells, coldness against her palms. It all repeated nonstop.

Orca is chattering loudly on her head. She tugs at her horns and Aragon growled low in her throat. All the noise definitely isn’t helping her mounting anger. She doesn’t get a chance to snap at the human, though, because the chain net she swam right into quickly became her top priority.

Immediately, she began to struggle, but that just managed to ensnare her further. She growled in anger, lashing her tail and beating her wings furiously to no avail. The net began to rise up- she broke the surface.

It’s a ship. Smaller than the shipwreck, but definitely big, and it was filled with several chattering humans. They point to her and holler to one another in shock. She bared her teeth at them.

Arms reach down. Orca squeals. The gelatin rope connecting them is cut. Aragon roared when she realized they were taking her away.

Then, pain.

Blinding pain.

Blood burbles up Aragon’s throat. Her gills have been cut.

The pain consumed her as she began to choke.

Eggshells, fragments—

The net releases her. She began to sink. The boat speeds off as fast as it can.

Eggshells, twisted bone, tears—

Aragon sinks.

Twisted bone, bits and pieces, nothing left—

Above her, she can see the shimmering full moon high over the surface. She reaches her webbed talons up towards it. Red and black clouds of blood billow around her.

Nothing left to mourn—

She closes her eyes, and when she opens them again, she thought she could see her pups staring back down at her from the endless starry sky stretched over the ocean. Sassy Siren, little Starfish, mama’s girl Sandbar, rambunctious Undertow, bookworm Pearl, and Turtle, the king of giggles.

Eggshells, blood, the limp body of pup in one talon, the broken neck of another in the other—

They were taken from her.

And now, her one last chance at motherhood was being ripped from her again.

Aragon clenched her claws.

Blood, eggshells, her poor, helpless, dead—

No.

Not again.

Aragon took a deep breath, the water stinging in her ripped gills, then slammed her wings downward. She jetted upwards in a flurry of crimson bubbles, swimming faster and faster until she breaches the surface with a tremendous, earth-shaking roar.

The ship didn’t get far. And it was no match for a furious mother Leviathan.

Aragon crashes into the side of it with all her might. It rocks, and some humans go flying off of it, but she can hardly care. She climbs up onto the deck, screeching in anger. She swung her tail around, knocking off two more sailors, then gouged her claws into one that held a pathetic excuse for a weapon. He squirms beneath her huge talon while she snaps her jaws down on a second attacker. He struggles, too, but then she bites down and devours him whole.

Humans taste awful. Much too fatty and oily.

Aragon spots Orca with what must be the captain, or at least someone important. He has her by the necklace, choking her, and was glaring at Aragon. He yells something, but she wouldn’t care even if she could understand. He was no match for her.

Aragon sprang forward, crushing a human male into a puddle of bones and blood and organs, and closed her razor sharp teeth around the man seizing Orca. She grinds her fangs until the bottom half sticking out falls off, then swallowed the rest.

The boat begins to break, so Aragon takes Orca and flees. The water soothes her gills as she swam back to her tower and unceremoniously tumbled inside, laying on the smooth floor in a puddle of scaly limbs. Orca had been jarred free from her grasp when she fell, and she clung to one of her talons to keep from floating away. Then, she leaned forward and bumped her nose with Aragon’s.

It was as if she were saying, “I’m safe now. Safe with you.”