2 Part 2
Near another, more damaged shipwreck, the mermaid from earlier swam for dear life, dodging sharp wood and rocks as she fled from the howling white sirens that trailed close behind. They chased her under the cloud were it was harder for her to see until she reached a small opening big enough for her tiny body to fit through. The sirens slam into the wall one by one and begin fighting over the hole only their arms could slip through it with ease. One of them scratches her. She screams in pain. Seconds later, the group of sirens get rammed away from the hole and into a towering rock. Killing a few. Conch now has their full attention. He grins a hungry grin as if he just found diner. He has. The siren left alive swam for their own lives, scattering about and out of the cloud, leaving the dead ones behind. He picks up all the bodies and swims off. The mermaid watched the whole scene from her safe hole until he left the cloud. She peeks her head out and watches him swim off to meet Coral, who soon started drooling from excitement. They're having siren meat tonight.
Conch grabs hold of the pearl and lets Coral carry the bodies and they continue to swim away without question.
They were gone from sight. The mermaid quickly swims off herself.
It's now night. Conch and Coral swim to a sunken ship far off from the gorge they just explored. They were home just in time to eat their fill.
Coral-
Ah~!! So delicious! Siren meat! Siren meat!
Conch-
Hurry up and eat before I do. It's my kill after all.
Coral-
Urgh! I wish you could have gotten more.
Conch-
I would have if I had brought my shell today, but no. You said I didn't need it.
Coral-
Alright. Fine it's all my fault.
Conch-
Nah. You got me a leviathan's pearl. So your off the hook for now.
Coral-
"For now" he says.
Conch-
Hey we gotta live to get there, eat to live, and hunt to eat. That's been our life style since birth.
Coral-
But once we get out of here we don't need to worry about hunting, or selling and trading...
Conch-
Or even being hunted for that matter.
Coral-
Mm...! Siren meat! Siren meat!
Conch-
Hahaha!
They finish their meals and head off to their places. Coral to bed and Conch to his work station with his new pearl. He unwraps it from the bag and it begins to glow it's eerie green and blue light.
Conch-
Quite a pretty thing aren't you.
He sets it on the floor in the center of a bowl he made from clamshells. The room began to resonate with the pearl. The items in the room started to wiggle as the pearl grew brighter until a star shaped crack forms on the pearl, scaring Conch. He thought something went wrong. The pearls light begins to pulse slowly. He move closer. The pearl opens with each movement he made. When he was close enough, he looked inside the crack. It was cloudy but beautiful as little bubbles pop from its center as if it were breathing. One bubble grows over the crack just enough to cover it over. In it the cloud fills the space and shows an image. The grand city of Atlas. With its merfolk, seafolk, and even fish folk and fish alike moved around as if it were a snow globe. It revealed to conch his own secret wish. To be one of them instead of leaving. He won't tell Coral. He can't. It would break his best friend's; his only friend's heart. He leaves the room to rest, leaving the pearl to dim its light, deflate its bubble, and close for the night.
The next few months Conch studied the pearl to see what else it would show him; how to make a pod into a man. Coral went back and forth to the cloud pool near the Bermuda gorge to gather the other treasures they left behind that day, doing as he always did to sell and trade now for Conch's resources. The material he needs to give them legs for good. Soon, Conch had all he needed to start his first project. Every now and then the pearl would interrupt his progress as it taught him the skill while Coral was out hunting and collecting goods. It shows him the same image of Atlas only in his presence, then return to his work moments later. He realized it was only following what he wished of it. If he wished to help Coral, it gave him all he needed to know. If Coral wasn't around his initial focus wonders and the pearl shows him what he wants to see. This made him focus more on his friendship and the pearl continues to teach him. He eventually memorized every detail of the transformation. He was ready to test it. The pearl bubbled up a large bottle and funnel to add the final touches to the potion he made. Hesitant, he pours it into the bottle and the bottle vanishes in the cloud. He questioned if it was okay. The pearl bubbles up the mix in a smaller bottle with a label that read pour.
