The Moon Rituals


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Reeses

7:04pm Dec 19 2009 (last edited on 10:28am Dec 20 2009)

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The Moon Rituals
 
 
Prologue
 
"Every since the day the mermaids rose up into existence (approximately 5.8 thousand years ago), there has always been the same number of mermaids and mermen- 49.  Too many mermaids in existence would risk the discovery of the entire population...which is why the grand spirits declare there to always be 49 mermaids- no more, no less, except in between certain moon rituals.  Every full moon, a human would be chosen to become a merperson.  They will be an average human who somehow has proven themselves without knowing it to the great spirits, and must be kind of heart.  Even if they take the change as a burden, the great spirits would refuse to change them back.  Their family and friends will forget them, and they will be forced to reside in the ocean with the rest of the merpeople.  At a total of 50 mermaids, when new moon comes about, the battle begins."
 
"All merpeople, no matter what age, must participate in the battle.  Mermaids aged 13 and up must sing against everyone in their age group, and the songs must be very fast and difficult as to entertain the great spirits as they watch them compete.  Mermen have to run from a certain creature the great spirits let loose- a cursed beast kept in slumber until the time comes when it must hunt out the weakest...in a way, it is survival of the fittest.  They each start in one place, and have a five minute start to gain distance between themselves and the beast.  As they run through the large maze of a field, the beast chases them, giving no mercy as it searches for the weakling.  Whoever is caught in its grasp is the one eligible to be the merperson that is lost to bring the population back down to 49...the one who will lose all memories of being a merperson.  As for the mermaids, there will be one mermaid chosen from each age group  that is considered 'untalented enough to no longer be a mermaid'.  Another contest will be held, and the most untalented mermaid out of them will be chosen to be eligible.  The merchildren have it much simpler.  They are each given a simple image with a shark hidden in it, and the one to find it last is the one chosen to possibly be kicked out.  Once all three have been gathered at a public meeting, they are introduced to the community and the other merpeople help to decide who is the one to be kicked out."
 
"The merperson who is chosen to be kicked out will have their memory wiped, thrown back to the place where they came from, and their family and friends will regain their memories.  In a way, it was as if they never experienced the magic of being a mythical creature.  Most merpeople pray that they will not have to suffer this fate for long, but as they age, the chance of them being kicked out increases with each pas-sing ritual.  They all know the benefits to remaining a mythical creature of the sea.  Though you are not immortal or ageless, you have a higher survival rate.  The waters of the ocean heal you, and it's rare that a merperson would die from any cause.  In the event of one dying, if the population dropped to 49, the next new moon ritual will be skipped.  If it was already at 49, and it dropped to 48, the great spirits immediately host a full moon ritual, despite the current moon phase."
 
"It's time to compete."
 
-Ex-mermaid, 1672.
 
 
***
 
"Mia!  Where is she?"
 
"I can't see her..."
 
Dark, chocolate-tinted eyes widened as the scene of pure chaos errupted before her.  No one acknowledged her confused questions or her frustrated sounds.  Either that, or she was unnoticeable as usual...but never this much.  Her eyes screwing shut, the girl inhaled deeply and counted to ten, still hearing the cacophony of terrible screams flowing through the air.  Sand edging its way between her toes and rubbing into skin, she hesitantly stepped backwards, suddenly fearing danger.   The sudden feeling of cold water splashing onto her right ankle startled her, and she scurried forwards.  Desperately trying to find the source of all the commotion in the suffocating night, she searched the crowds for a familar face.  A strange sound reached her ears- the type of sound that signalled something was dreadfully wrong and wasn't working properly.
 
"My daughter is on that ship!" The familar sound of her father's voice rang out to her, oddly tinted with anxiety.  Confusion sparked in her chest at his dramatic tone.
 
Mia frowned- on the ship?  Ah, right, memories flooded back to her.  Of course- she had been on a cruise.  It was a gift to celebrate her seventeenth birthday, and the best one she ever received in her whole life.  Her mother had accompanied her, being that her father was 'frightened of the water', just like her.  However, despite her fear, hopping aboard a cruise ship sounded interesting, and that was all she wanted.  All that excitement...wait, the ship?  In a panic, she whipped around and stared in cold shock as the sight of a burning ship greeted her eyes.  It wasn't close to the sho-re, but the people jumping off it were within sight.  Mia narrowed her eyes in confusion- if she was standing here, how come nobody noticed her and how come she wasn't on the ship?
 
"Father," Mia turned around, trying to get her father's attention, "I'm not!  I'm over here!"
 
She lightly shook her foot, attempting to dry it of the icy water that she had non-too-cautiously splashed into.  Her father didn't move from his position, bare feet slightly submerged in the water as he stared forlornly and with desperation at the sinking ship.  The man wrung his hands in despair, and staggered further into the water in disbelief.  Fear edging its way into her heart, Mia cautiously took a step towards him.  A sudden, overwhelming, feeling evaded her, seeming to crush her lungs and block out all her vision.  The girl parted her lips to let out a scream, but the pressure blocked her from moving.  She felt her body hit the sand, writhing as she fought it, and let out a strangled gasp.  Everything around her was black.  
 
Black...
 
She felt as if she was falling into it.  Into the black, around the black...just blackness.
 
A shudder ripped through her as she lost consiousness.
 




Wat.
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Mars

8:42pm Dec 19 2009

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Posts: 969

Very interesting, I like the idea of it. It actually sincerely kept my interest. 

Sand edging their way between her toes and rubbing into skin

--

Might wanna change that to "Sand edging its way," but I'm not sure which is grammatically correct.

 

"My daughter is on that ship!" Voice filled with anxiety, the familar sound of her father, sparked hope in her chest, but then more confusion.

--

It took me just a moment, but I figured out how that all flowed together. You may want to revise it, just as not to confuse anyone. 






Reeses

8:44pm Dec 19 2009

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Thank you Murgy.  I'll change those.  I appreciate your input.




Wat.
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Reeses

11:21am Dec 20 2009 (last edited on 1:44pm Dec 20 2009)

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Chapter One
 
A creamy, almost-white toned hand gently caressed the top of her wrist, lightly arrousing her from a deep slumber.  Feeling unbelievably vulerable at that moment, Mia shot up to a sitting position, jerking her hand from the touch and swiveled her head to its owner before contemplating her surroundings.  Pulling his hand back and smiling mischieviously, the boy, who appeared to be a mere two years younger than her, shook his head.  Silvery-white hair fell around his face without grace, giving him a shaggy look.  His skin, almost egg-white, glistened with droplets of seawater.  A wide-set of almond eyes observed her, irises a deep, ruby red.
 
"Adoren," He stated, tilting his head slightly and shifted his lower body.
 
Mia blinked, "Wha-"
 
Then she saw it.  Where the boy's legs should have been was a graceful, elongated fish tail.  The scales layering it couldn't be counted as a pink, but rather some sort of a pale red.  Breath hitching in her throat, she attempted to inch back only to realize that her knees were apparently glued together.  The moment that feeling of her legs being glued together came to her, she shut her eyes.  Her body quaking in fear, she heard the boy chuckle, and the frightening image of the fish tail emerged into her mind.  Then, the memories came.  
 
First there was the ship...something gone wrong, and the crew ordering pas-sengers to leap into the lifeboats.  Mia had been terrified, observing the long drop and the lapping water below.  There had surely been enough lifeboats, but the panic that overwhelmed her as she stared at the sea pumped through her veins to the point of driving her insane.  The lifeboat closest to her was her pas-sage to safety, and everyone knew it.  However, only one seat remained on it, and it was supposed to be hers.
 
Mia gladly would have leapt into it, despite her fears, and not have to leap into the water.  What stopped her was the sound of two cries- one of a young woman, and the other of a startled child.  At first, she could only locate the woman- a member of the lifeboat she was about to board, she sat on her knees, eyes reaching out for something.  Following the woman's gaze, Mia's eyes fell upon a lone child, literally bawling her eyes out.  The child didn't know where to go, only knowing that danger seperated her and her mother.  Though it pained Mia to do such a thing, she gently grasped the child and allowed her to take her seat on the boat.
 
The next lifeboat Mia gladly would have waited for...if only she hadn't been shoved off the ship.  Standing by the edge wasn't the safest thing to do, even if the railings were up.  In a frenzy, people jostled each other around in a hurry to arrive at a lifeboat before they were in anymore danger.  Amongst the chaos, one had elbowed her roughly, causing her to stumble a bit and reel over the edge.  Emotions surged through her, fear and shock among them, as she careened through the cool air.  Mia's state of shock had been broken the moment she hit the water, and of course, for some reason, that was when she lost consiousness and had startling dreams.
 
"Jeez," The boy's voice brought her out of her whirlpool of memories, "Nearly everyone is a complete mess of either verbal or silent hysterics when they found out.  Ever heard the saying just go with the flow?  What's happening is what's happening."
 
Taking a deep breath, she slowly opened her eyes again, "What now?"
 
Continuing to smirk, he shook his head, "Why don't you look at your...legs?"
 
"I think I already can as-sume what I'll see," She snapped, trying to hide her fear, "God."
 
"Why as-sume?  Just stare at the truth already," He laughed, but his laughter didn't hold any hint that he was attempting to be cruel.
 
 
*UNFINISHED*
 
I'm going to go frolick in the snow.  When I come back, I'll finish this chapter.




Wat.
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