The Sea in our Veins
i know life took us far away

As Virgil swam through the ocean, he kept noticing about how different things were. He never ran out of air and his eyesight was really good. He could see through the water all the way down to the bottom. Wesley kept by Virgil’s side with Ivan and Jack right behind him as Wesley led Virgil deeper into the ocean. As they went deeper, Virgil could hear Jack and Ivan talking quietly behind him but they were too far away for Virgil to make out what they were saying.

After a while, Virgil was starting to feel tired of swimming and his tail was starting to hurt from swimming for so long. But as he was about to ask Wesley if they could slow down, Virgil saw a glint of something on the ocean floor. As they swam closer, Virgil’s jaw dropped. Underneath the water was what looked like a fully functional city. The buildings rose high above the ocean floor. As they swam closer, Virgil saw different people, who Virgil realized were mer, swimming around. Not only were there mermen, but there were also mermaids and Virgil was even able to see some kids who were mer, though Virgil was unable to see any young children. Virgil noticed that on each of the mers’ backs there were the same kind of marks that he had, though none were as large nor as decorative and elaborate as his and Wesley’s. When the people saw Wesley, they stopped to do some sort of bow before continuing on. Wesley would acknowledge them and occasionally said a quick word to a few, through he didn’t stop. Virgil felt a few pairs of curious eyes looking at him and he kept his eyes down. Finally, they reached the largest building in the center of the underwater city. Here, the crowds stared to thin out, which Virgil let out a sigh of relief at, and they swam up to what looked like the entrance to the building, though it was off the ground and closer to the roof. Virgil spotted guards standing near the entrance, though when they saw Wesley, they both bowed.

“Is my father here?” Wesley asked.

“He’s in his study,” one of the guards replied, “It’s good to have you back, Your Highness.”

“Thank you,” Wesley replied, “It’s good to be back too, Xander.” Wesley led Virgil past the guards. Virgil glanced back and saw the guards looking at him but they quickly turned around when they noticed his gaze. Virgil felt slightly relieved to see Ivan and Jack still following behind them. Wesley and Virgil swam through various large corridors, which were pretty empty but occasionally various mer swam by going about their duties. Virgil couldn’t see the ceiling or the floor of the hallways which scared him slightly and caused him to stick closer to Wesley. Wesley didn’t say anything as he stopped in front of a door. He opened it and together, Virgil and Wesley swam through. Virgil’s jaw dropped when he saw the room. The room opened up to reveal the night sky and it took Virgil a moment to realize that it was actually painted onto the ceiling. Along the circular walls, there were what looked like books, filling the shelves. In the center of the room there was a large table filled with paper and different rocks holding the paper down. And standing next to the table, going over some of the paper was a mer that looked identical to Wesley, though Virgil could tell that he was older.

“Hi father,” Wesley said, “I’m home.”

When the man heard Wesley’s voice he turned around with a smile on his face, “You’re back,” he said, “I thought that you were planning on staying for away for longer.”

“I thought it was time to come back,” Wesley explained.

“Well it’s good to have you back,” the man replied. He turned to Jack and Ivan, “Did Wesley do any work during his vacation?”

“No sir,” Jack said. The man gave him a look and he melted, “Okay, maybe he did a little bit.”

Wesley glared at Jack, “Anyway,” he said, “I want you to meet Virgil.”

The man finally noticed Virgil and he froze, “Rafael?” he asked, confused, “You came back?”

Virgil shrunk at the look that the man was giving him and glanced confused at Wesley.

“Actually,” Wesley said, “That’s what I wanted to talk to you about,” he turned back to Virgil, Jack and Ivan, “Do you mind waiting outside while I talk to my father.”

“Can we give Virgil a quick tour of the palace?” Ivan asked.

“Sure,” Wesley replied.

Ivan and Jack led Virgil out of the room and let the door quietly close behind them. “Who was that?” Virgil asked.

“That was Wesley’s father, Callum, the king,” Jack asked.

“Wesley’s royalty?” Virgil asked, confused.

“Wait, you didn’t know?” Ivan asked, “Never mind, let’s take you to the kitchen. The cooks might make something for you to eat and you can try our food.”

Jack led the way down the hallway with Ivan and Virgil behind him.

“What are you guys?” Virgil asked.

“What?” Ivan asked, confused.

“I mean if Wesley’s a prince, then are you guys his servants?”

“Actually, we’re his guards,” Ivan replied, “though we’re also his friends,”

“So do you live here?” Virgil asked.

“In the palace or city?” Jack asked, “We have rooms in the palace to stay at if we work long shifts but our families live in the city.”

“You have family?” Virgil asked.

Ivan laughed, “Of course,” he replied, “Maybe if we have time, I can take you home. My mom’s food is to die for.”

“What do you eat?” Virgil asked before making a face, “Do you eat raw fish?”

“It actually tastes better than you think. We also have other vegetables to round out our diet.” Jack said before stopping in front of an ornate door that looked like it was made out of coral, “Why don’t you take a look inside here.” Jack said.

Virgil examined the door, “What is it?” he asked.

“These are Prince Rafael’s rooms. They’ve remained untouched since he disappeared.” Ivan replied.

“And is Prince Rafael the guy people think that I am?” Virgil asked, “Who was he?”

Jack was unsure how to answer. Virgil looked exactly like how Rafael would have looked like if he hadn’t disappeared except that Virgil didn’t seem to know anything about Rafael or mer in general.

Luckily, Ivan saved him from answering, “Yeah. We can try our best to explain after we get food,” Ivan replied, “But would you like to check the rooms out before we get food?”

“Sure,” Virgil said, “I’ll check it out.” He pushed open the door and swam inside. The walls of the room were decorated with what looked like paintings of various water scenes and scenes of the beach. In the center of the room was a large bed. The bed looked so soft and Virgil really wanted to test it and see if it was as soft as it looked but he restrained himself. Other than the bed, the room was empty which made Virgil feel sad for some reason. Virgil noticed another door against the wall and swam over to it and opened it. He was confused for a moment when he saw another bed and then he stuck his hand through the door and felt air.

“All of the royal residences are built in water and also with air,” Ivan replied.

Virgil didn’t realize how long he was staring at the prince’s empty room until Jack said quietly, “Let’s go.”