Fins: A New Beginning

Chapter Ten

        After training with Bagerah, my whole body felt sore. Wielding a sword underwater is a lot harder than it looks. When we entered Bagerah's living room, I heard a knock at the door.

       "Come in." Bagerah calmly stated. The door swiftly opened with Kaito following behind it.

      "Hello Bagerah, How have you been?" Kaito asked nervously.

     "I'm fine, thank you Kaito." She replied.

      "That's good to hear. Anyway, I've come to retrieve Prince Dimitri." Kaito stated as if he was being held at gunpoint. I'm not sure what was making him so nervous.

      "Very well. See me again tomorrow Young Prince. We have much to do." Bagerah ushered me out the door. Kaito and I walked the path through the streets of Hades silently for a while, until he spoke up.

      "So, Prince Dimitri, how has your stay been?" He stated sheepishly.

      "Oh, fine I guess. You don't have to keep addressing me as 'Prince Dimitri.' You can just call me Dimitri." I reassured him. He let out a sigh and relaxed his shoulders.

      "Sorry. I wasn't sure. I didn't used to be an advisor before you got here. I used to work as an amour boy." He said frankly.

      "Why did they promote you then?" I inquired.

      "I'm not sure. They said I had potential and this was a chance to prove myself. Honestly, I was fine with being an armour boy." Kaito rambled on about his life as an armour boy until we could see the palace.

      "I'm sorry. I didn't realize I was rambling. How is the surface world? I've never been." His eyes lit up with curiosity.

       "Oh well, we have big buildings, like the ones downtown. We also have schools, libraries, all the basic stuff you guys have, just that the people walk on legs instead of swimming with fins." I explained.

      "Maybe you could take me up there some day. I'd love to see it." Kaito said.

       I replied, "Yeah. Someday." Before we knew it, we were on the palace steps.

      Kaito escorted me back to the palace, where my parents were waiting for me.

     "We have given it quite a lot of thought," my father started. "Your mother and I have decided that you will be staying here for the time being. We will be in and out because of your sister." I thought for a moment.

      "Wait, what will you tell her about me?" I asked.

     "As far as Bella knows, you have been enrolled in a boarding school, but son, please do not take this personally. You are still allowed to return to the surface world when you are ready." My mother chimed in. A boarding school was the best idea they could come up with, not that there's anything wrong with it, it just seems cliche. Torin approached our circle from inside the palace.

       "Well, since the young prince will be staying a while, we have prepared him a more permanent room." Torin nodded. "Kaito, please escort the young prince to his new quarters and help him get settled in. Dinner will be ready soon." Torin returned to his duties.

      "Please follow me, your highness." Kaito said as he gestured toward the door. I followed him as we headed towards the deep interior of the palace. "Here we are." He said as he opened the door. This room was a lot different than the guest room. It was much bigger, and the room was decorated with more sapphire lined furniture rather than emerald. The gold trimmings shined in the light of the bio-luminescent chandelier.

      "Let me know if you need anything else, your highness. You can contact me with this." Kaito handed me a device that looked like a hologram. "Just press my name here and send me a message or call." Kaito bowed his head as he left the room.

       I needed a moment to process everything that has happened. One day I'm just another normal kid, and next I'm a merman. Not just any merman, a prince who is a descendant of a very powerful merman king that was a tyrant and terror.