This place is cold. The people here are cold. My own kin are cold. But why isn't there anyone feeling it? Is it only me that felt this coldness? Why am I left alone to survive? What do these people see in me that I have to be chained liked this? It doesn't make sense. I have done nothing to disturb anyone for anything in my life, all I ever wanted was to feel belonged … somewhere.

Here I am, all alone in one of the channels that the ruins made in this destroyed underwater city. With a collar and a long chain that always reminded me that I am only their tool, their weapon, something that they own. Letting me to claim the waterways as my own territory, I was left to fend off anything that may come as a threat to the one that had imprisoned me in this cruel life. Touching the scar that they gave me on my left eye, I retrace my past as I remember the time when my freedom was taken.

As long as I could remember, I have always felt alone, left out. Even among my own pod. For some reasons, my own family kept avoiding being around me. Others would kept me away from them, either snarling or hissing at me to stay away. They kept on their threats until I was out of their sight. I was confused by their actions. Was it because of my black arm with a glowing green cross and pale skin? Or was it because of my white hair and silver tail that are unnatural in my pod?

Whatever the reason, they made it clear that I was not welcome. So I distanced myself not far from my pod and swam around the shoal near the ruins that we have taken refuge from the outside world. The waters outside are dangerous as many of our kind were hunted to near extinction, by the creatures that took on the appearance of our own without tails but with two long appendages which I later learned are called legs and they are known as humans. There are some of them down here but they don't bother us much; they do hunt us for reasons that I never got to know from my pod until now.

While I was hunting for some shellfish that inhabited these waters, I later caught a scent of a whole bunch of them piled up at one of the most shallow snd rocky pools that connected to the open water. I was so hungry and young that I disregarded the dangers that awaited me and crawled my way around and carefully dragged my tail behind me so that the rocks won't scrape my shiny silver scales.

I sniffed my way around and found what I have been looking for and without a care in the world, I lurched forward and ate my fill. When I was done and was about to leave the shallow pool, I noticed that a net was blocking my only way out. It spread across the only exit that led me here and something about it that sent a chill down to my tail just by looking it, as I examine closer I noticed that it had scents of dead fishes as well as dried salt.

While I was looking for a way to get out, I frozed my movement as I picked up a scent that I don't recognised. And that there were more than one of them surrounding me! I began to panic as I could not see nor hear them! I frantically swam around the small pool, with so little water I couldn't do much. Not even being able to jump over of the net that seperates me and the open water.

Suddenly, something pinned me down from behind that I cried out loud for help! Then I saw them! The humans, with tanned skin and bulky build! I began to struggle to get out of their hold but more of them came and were holding me down even harder! I shrieked out of fear for help for my pod to aid me but none came, not even a respond. Was I trully abandon by my own pod? The truth hurts more than any pain I felt at the moment. I felt so scared that I slashed my tail against my captors, screaming, clawing and bitting at them to free myself from their bounds but more came to hold me still!

I felt so defeated when I was left panting for using all my strength, another net was then thrown onto me and I struggled uncontrollably trying to free myself. I was outmatched. They have dominated me. They have captured me with these nets and ropes that limited my movement. Then I felt a pull from the bounds that holds me, dragging me towards the sand. I tried to stay away from that one place that would leave me vulnerable to my captors but it was futile, they were strong and had pulled me onto the dry sand with ease.

My entire body shook under their gaze, they were watching me so intensely that I was left afraid of what they want from me. I lie on my side with my tail coiled around me as to protect me from their cold gaze, they were talking but I could not understand them. One of them slowly came towards me with something in his hands, it looked hard and shines with the colour of gold under the light but it gives out a feeling of dread. I hissed, trying to intimitate him even though I was completely in his mercy.

I backed away when he crouched infront of me. He held out the strange object towards me with it outstreched, with me trying to bit his hands off it seemed liked a diffecult task. So two more of them came to my side and had something holding my mouth and kept pulling from behind my head. The other hold onto my head to keep me still until the strange object was around my neck, snapping it with a click sound! I panic over the foreign thing as they let go of their hold. I quickly ran my hands around my neck and thankfully the object did not cover my closed gills around my neck, but it had holds for them to breath when I need them to. It took me a while to know that the object around my neck was actually a collar, made to imprison other creatures and bind them to their captors.

From there I was taken to their superior which is now my master, I then realised that it was their emperor that had ordered them for my capture when I noticed the looks on their faces. I was confused as I was so little then that it seems that I was too young to be of any use, how wrong was I then.

I was later placed in a pool surrounded by high stone walls, with the base of it made with fallen statues and broken pillars. Overall, there was no way out for me. Years of training they gave me, most of them were commands that I now learned to obey while others were ways to strenghten me in fights or survival. If not, they would either whip me or let me starve for a while. It was harsh but I survived through all of it.

That was when I noticed that my kind lives longer than these humans, the trainer that comes to train me would change once every few decades of human years. Although I can't understand their language, I have mastered their commands and the skills that they taught me after 40 human years. Their language was hard and even now I could not understand them except their commands.

From then on, I was relocated to their emperor's broken palace where there were many channels and pools for me to get around fast. By then the emperor was an old man while I was still a mere merchild that still looked like a 4 year old human child. They secured my long chain onto a marble wall, the chain was made long enough to swim the entire city but not enough to leave the edge of the city.

Living liked this did not affect me much when your meals are in abundance and your master may throw in few treats if you have done what they asked. Occasionally, I would see other pods of merpeople swimming at the edges of the city resting but never my former one. It left me wondering, do they miss me or were they happy to have got rid of me. But my life wasn't easy and I found it in the hard way.

It turns out, there were some adolescence mermen that would try to venture into my territory to snack on my quarry of fishes and shellfish. Other preydators came too to take over my territory. It was so often that I was forced to fight them off, which always led me to multiply injuries that I have to heal them myself. From then on, I became more vicious and territorial because if I don't they will eventually finish me off. Fighting my own kind taught me a lesson, you can only trust yourself so that no one could betray you. I also discovered that I was more stronger and faster than any other merpeople around, I became more ferocious with each and ever encounter that I would leave them with bloody injuries.

Thinking back now only adds on the loneliness in my heart, I have never been able to have someone care about me. Not even my own parents nor my pod, and definitely not my master. Am I destined to forever be on my own and not have something to call my own? Why am I so different from everyone? Why must I be different from everyone?! Why must I be alone because of- splash!

What was that? Smells human but, all of them knew that this is my territory so how could they be so foolish enough to step in here?!

The scent…it is slightly different? And it is coming from the edge? Could it be outsiders? I'll show them that they could not simply stumble into one's turf whenever they want!

Wait, there are more of them? Just how many have come here? They do look different from the ones living here, did they come from the outside world? No matter, they have no right coming to my territory. I have to take them out from the weakest until the leader is left.

( Swimming towards the intruders, sneak up on them and retain the element of surprise. )

Swish! Splash!

Splash! Whip!

Slash! Claw!

Shoot! Smack!

Now most of them are down, the only ones left are them. How am I going to separate them? One of them has a long weapon with holes on one end, then the other is holding a fire? I'll have to stay away from them for the time being, I'll just take out that man first, he seems to be the leader.

( Swimming closer to the man until just within range, lurch forward but he had put his hand out to block! Bit into his arm with his blood oozing out.)

Bang! AAAAAHHHHH!? Whack!

The pain! What was that?! It's so painful! I can see my blood coming out from the wound on my right arm that the man with the strange long object made. I knew that it was made to spit out metal balls when I was nearly hit by one but I manage to avoid it and it hit into a nearby rock, but the metal made a really deep cut on my arm and then with the other man that had knocked me down onto the hard and dry pavement when I release my hold on their combrade just made it worst for me to recover in time.

I need to get away since I could not overpower them when they have weapons that I have never encountered before. I have to get back to the safety of the water before it is too la- shackle!

My chain! I can't move! The same man that had injured me has gotten my chain under his foot! And he is keeping me on the same spot! I have to get out! I don't want to relive that life again! I don't wa- Chuck-chuch.

The noise made me look up and I could see the man now holding the thing right in front of me. I smelled foreign metal scent from its two holes and I was frozen in fear of what torture awaits me. I whine and I close my eyes when the pain on my arm is so much than I could handle, laying on my side with my tail coiling around me while waiting for my doom.

The noises of someone's footsteps could be heard but I did not pay any attention to it as I am more focuse on stopping the bleeding. Suddenly, the man that I have bitten stop the man before me. What was going on? Does he want to make me suffer by himself? He's coming! His friend must be really worried to have made a face like that. His arm with my bite seems to be wrap in some cloth that I have never seen before.

The man crouched before me, while I try to make myself smaller with my tail coiling my body tighter to make myself look like a small ball. I'm afaid. Extremely afraid. He look at me and then at my wound at my arm, and then back at me with emotions written in his face that I couldn't describe. His good hand reach out and I shut my eyes tightly, waiting for the pain to come.

Nothing happen.

I slowly open my eyes to see him looking at me, smilling with his hand just inches away from my head. Gently, he pat me. This feeling…is weird. He then proceed to stroke my head in a way that I have never experience before, his touch is so gently and warm. Is this…some kind of a trick? To trap me? Or a way to confuse me? However I no longer am afraid of him, he seems too kind to even hurt anyone. So this is what relax really feels like. Somehow I want to continue to enjoy his warmth as long as I can because I know that it may be the last time I'll ever get to enjoy it.

Suddenly I open my eyes without realising that they have closed to the sudden warmth coming from my torso where my skin connects to the silver scales of my tail. I tense up everytime I feel something moves on the surface of my tail. I slowly look up to see the man is now stroking my tail ever so gently from my torso down to the end of my tail. My tail is so sensitive, every touch sends a shiver.

I whimper which then he stops before he look at me again and smile. I then notice he has the same roll of cloth that his injure was wrapped with in his hands and then he begin to tend my wound! He…he actually tend it. No one was ever this nice to me, and I bit his arm earlier, but he doesn't seem to care about it. With the smoothness of his voice while tending my wound, I find myself feeling safe with someone for the first time in my life.

Then the weight of my chain is gone and I look to see the man from before had removed his foot to allow the chain to move freely as I please. I stare at the kind man that finished tending my wound, I'm really am confuse on why did he do it. As if he knows what I'm thinking, he speaks in a language that is far different than the ones the people living here spoke but it is very smoothing as if to comfort me. I do really wish that he would stay here so that I won't be alone and I won't have to feel alone. This man has give me warmth and kindness that no one else is going to give me, he seems to become like a parent to me and I want him to stay.

After a while I move myself into the water but I didn't leave, I continue to stare at the man and he seems to get what I'm waiting for. I want to know who he is and what does his group want to do here that they have travelled from the outside world to come here.

For the second time he stroke my head as if to put my worry to ease, he speaks softly and points a finger to himself and said a word that I'll remember it with all my heart. It suits him well with all the warmth and gentleness that he has given me.

Mana.