Chapter 33 - De-evolution
Mi Aok woke up with a start as cold water gushed into his gills. He weakly opened his eyes, looking up at the brown wooden ceiling. 'Where…' He was stuck in a small barrel-like container with his tail slightly squished under him. The water was not fresh seawater but blood-mixed ocean water. 'I remember now… I was taken...'
The moment his wretched uncle left the prison, he quickly de-evolved into his childhood form and swam out with all the energy he could muster. De-evolution is not a skill that is widely used. It is only taught to royal heirs in case they're stuck in a very difficult position. Losing their adult body is such a disadvantage because with this small body, he was not able to change into human legs. Plus, he still had to be in water to live.
He had swum up and away from their kingdom with all the strength he could muster. His tail stopped moving after. Like a corpse, he floated around with his other Mer folks. Just the sight of his kind being killed so cruelly like that shattered his heart.
He closed his eyes tightly, shedding sorrowful tears. 'I will avenge them!! I will avenge them all!!' He blinked open his heavy lids again. 'The water level is too low…' He was not able to get a good breath in here. Suddenly, a hand reached down and touched the top of his head, pushing him further down. "Those bastards could have at least filled it up to the brim. Why did they do this… this child is suffering," a soft voice muttered under its breath.
The warm hand gently touched his cheeks. "He is alive, right?" A head poked from above, looking down at him curiously. Mi Aok gazed at him, eyes narrowed. It was a young man with short black choppy hair. His black eyes innocently looked around as if he could not see. His nose twitched slightly. 'A hybrid… he can't see in the dark, can he?' He pushed the man's hands away by shaking his head slightly.
"Whoa... you're awake… kid?" the man smiled dazzlingly. For a second, Mi Aok froze. 'Who is he? Why is he so happy to see me alive...' "Hey, can you hear me?" the man whispered, lowering his head further in. His silky-smooth hair fluttered down, tickling his cheeks.
Aok opened his mouth, but only small breaths of air escaped. Frowning, he touched his throat. 'I can't talk…' It was one of the side effects of de-evolution at such a rapid stage. He had changed from a fully adult Mer body to a ten-year-old child's body, so parts of his body would not work properly. 'This is more annoying than I expected.'
The warm pair of hands gently cupped his face. "Are you hurt anywhere? Why aren't you answering me? Oh, I'm sorry I forgot to introduce myself. I'm Kui… what is yours?" Aok pushed his hands away by shaking his head again.
"Can't you understand me? I was sure that Mers understood this language..." the hybrid named Kui pouted slightly. "Or can you not speak at all?" he touched the top of his head. "Nod if you can understand me?" Hesitant, Aok nodded. "Oh! You can understand me?" he exclaimed in a whisper. "Good, good. We both were kidnapped by this gang. They are currently taking us somewhere… let's escape together, okay?" the man gently touched his hair.
Aok frowned deeply. The hand was annoying him, but right now, he did not have any way to communicate with this hybrid. Hybrids were just a mix of Mer and human genes, but most possessed more human-like features than Mer. The man in front of him was one of those hybrids. He inhibited more human-like features. That's why he was not able to see in the dark.
Without the ability to talk, he had to tolerate the hand that kept touching his face. "Are you hurt anywhere?" the man worriedly touched his cheeks. Aok shook his head and nodded. He was not hurt per se; his body was intact, but the poison his uncle had fed him was running rampant throughout his body. His tail was powerless. He was just a limp Mer without any power to swim away even if he was released into the water.
"Shit how could they hurt a child? Are you bleeding?" Aok shook his head. "That's good…" the man sighed. "The door can be kicked open, I think. Wait here; I'll go check on it," the man left in a hurry. Kui slowly moved his folded hands and held the rim of the wooden barrel and pulled himself up with all his strength. Holding his breath, he looked out into the dark shaking room.
One look and Aok was left in a state of grief. All around him, his Mer folks were slaughtered, tails cut, and hung from the ceiling, bodies just tossed on the ground bleeding all around them. It shattered his heart to pieces. Whimpering, he closed his eyes tightly. 'I have to live… I have to avenge my people.'
Soon his eyes fell on the young man. He was seen awkwardly crawling over the corpses, making sure not to step on them. "Sorry... gosh, I'm so sorry I stomped on you. I didn't mean to..." the man muttered under his breath. Aok watched him curiously.
The man got to the wooden gate and slightly shook it. There seemed to be a lock outside. "Fuck, this door is heavy... I don't think I can kick it open…" The man gazed back. "Looks like we are going to have to wait until these guys open this door."