Blank Thoughts

The air was filled with the scent of sea salt, the warm sun giving their skin a slight shimmer.

They glanced around, dazed and confused, their chestnut hair draped behind them, dripping clear beads of water.

They glanced off into the distance, noticing that they were just sunbathing on a rock facing land.

They ran their fingers through their hair, trying to remember what was happening or who they were, when a clear and crisp voice sounded behind them.

"CASPIANNNN!" The deep feminine voice sounded.

Immediately, Caspian's brain seemed to start working again. Although, the quiet mer felt something was a tiny bit bit off, xe turned around to look at xis sibling Andrina.

Andrina was a slightly more feminine mer, with a slim body slightly resembling those of female humans, but xey still had nice muscles along xeir arms and abdomen.

Caspian's memories reminded him that didn't have specific genders. They could either look more masculine or feminine, usually depending on the temperature they hatched at. Of course, this didn't bother them much.

Caspian glanced blankly at his older sibling, trying to get his thoughts together again and form an understandable sentence.

In the end xe only managed a soft "En"

Andrina glanced at xem, then swam up to get a closer look, xeir vibrant auburn and red tail swaying as they swam.

Caspian looked at xem confusedly, scooting closer to the edge of the rock. Xis tail was white, with splashes of crème and gold. Two smaller fins sat slightly below xis waist.

"Something wrong?" Xe managed to ask, his thoughts sorted out.

"Are you having trouble remembering things again? You usually look like that after regaining your senses." Andrina cupped Caspian's face in xeir webbed hands. Xis face looked more round and cute this way.

"Er… yes." Caspian admitted, Xe knew xis sibling was only worried for his health.

Caspian had been having semi amnesia recently. He'd usually blank out for no reason at least a few times a week.

It wasn't just him though, many other mer were also having this problem. Some even had it worse, losing their memories for more than a day before recalling who they were. Even worse, the mer had no way of treating this.

And all this was due to one of their biggest problems.

Pollution.

"Those damned humans!" Andrina hissed, xis eyes filled with obvious rage. Xey couldn't bear watching xeir younger sibling Caspian look at them like a stranger, or constantly remind xemselves what they are doing, in a sad attempt to not succumb to the sickness.

Caspian's mind was now fully cleared, xe smiled sadly at xis sibling. "Should we go back? You also seemed pretty excited just now…you can tell me about it on the way to the palace."

Andrina sighed, nodding xis head, "Something good did happen. Come, I only know part of it, but I'm sure father can explain it."

Caspian slid off the rock, sinking into the cool water, xis hair floating behind him as xe used xis powerful tail to keep up with Andrina.

Andrina explained that she had heard snippets of conversations between the most knowledgeable doctor in their kingdom, Breena, and their father, King Ryn.

They were able to find a land plant that could help alleviate the amnesia.

The plant was called Ginkgo Biloba, the humans used it as medication.

That was all Andrina knew of the plant, though.

Along the way to the main palace, trash could be seen floating around. Many fish swam around with deformities, and grey dead corals littered the ocean floor.

Andrina and Caspian did xeir best to help any trapped fish or sea creature they came across. But xey both knew, even with all the mer in the sea, xeir species couldn't fix everything alone.

Entering the gate to the main city, Delphine, Caspian took one last long look at the ocean around him. Xis golden orbs filled with indescribable emotion as xe remembered how it looked in xis childhood.

The vibrant green seaweed forests with an abundant amount of fish, where many of xis sibling would play hide and seek.

The coral reefs teeming and overflowing with life, where xe would help Breena look for new plants or any interesting creatures they could use as medicine.

And now…

An ocean of life was slowly transforming into a gloomy wasteland.