Prince Andrew of Aqualis was born beneath the sapphire waves, heir to a kingdom woven from coral and light. His people said the ocean itself had blessed him — that when he was born, the tides rose higher than ever before, and every sea creature sang in harmony.

By the time he was grown, Andrew could command the currents with a flick of his hand. He was charming, brave, and endlessly curious — but curiosity, his father warned, was a dangerous current.

“Do not look to the surface,” said King Nerion, his voice like the deep rumble of the trenches. “The world above has nothing for us but ruin.”

And yet, the surface called to him.

When he was alone, Andrew swam upward until the sunlight burned silver on his skin. He would hover just beneath the waves, watching the silhouettes of humans walking along the shore. They looked so free — unbound by the pull of the sea, their laughter carried by the wind instead of the currents.

Then came the storm.

It was the fiercest the kingdom had seen in centuries — black skies, roaring waves, lightning that split the horizon. While others fled for shelter, Andrew swam toward the chaos. He saw the shattered hull of a ship tumbling in the foam, and among the wreckage, a girl clinging to a piece of wood.

Her eyes met his for one heartbeat — wide, terrified, and full of life.

He didn’t hesitate. He brought her to shore, laid her gently on the sand, and placed around her neck a small seashell pendant glowing with soft blue light — his own charm of protection. Before she awoke, he vanished into the sea.

He told no one.

But he couldn’t forget her. Night after night, he returned to that stretch of beach, hoping for a glimpse. For weeks, there was nothing — until one evening, under a full moon, he saw her.

She was alive.

Her name was Elara. She was a sailor’s daughter who had survived the wreck and returned, searching for the one who saved her.

When she saw the glow of his tail through the shallows, she didn’t scream — she smiled. “I thought you were just a dream,” she whispered.

From that night on, they met in secret — a prince of the deep and a girl of the shore. Andrew showed her the wonders of the sea: dolphins that danced in moonlight, gardens of coral that shimmered like jewels. Elara told him of her world — the smell of rain on dry earth, the taste of fire-roasted fruit, the music of human voices joined in song.

They were from different worlds, but their hearts beat in rhythm like twin tides.

But secrets have a way of surfacing.

One of Andrew’s guards followed him one night and reported everything to King Nerion. The king’s fury was swift and cold. “You’ve brought danger to our gates,” he thundered. “If the humans learn of us, they’ll hunt us, as they did before.”

Andrew pleaded, “She would never harm us! She’s kind — she’s curious, like I am—”

“Enough!” Nerion’s trident struck the ground, sending ripples through the court. “If you cannot abandon her, then you will abandon the sea.”

With a gesture, the king sealed the upper waters with an ancient curse. A shimmering barrier of light formed at the ocean’s surface — no mer could pass beyond it.

Andrew’s heart shattered. He swam to the barrier and pressed his hand against it, feeling the hum of magic. Beyond it, the moonlight rippled, unreachable.

Days turned to weeks. The sea grew colder without the warmth of the surface, and Andrew grew silent. Even the currents seemed to mourn.

At last, unable to bear it, he made his choice.

He went to the Oracle of the Deep — an old sea witch whose eyes glowed like pearls. “I need to break the king’s seal,” he said. “Just once. To say goodbye.”

The Oracle studied him for a long time. “Magic that strong cannot be broken,” she murmured, “only traded.”

“What do you ask?”

“Your crown,” she said. “Your birthright. The power that binds you to the ocean.”

Without hesitation, he agreed.

That night, the sea flared with blue fire as Andrew rose to the surface. The curse cracked open for one final breath, and he emerged beneath the same cliffs where he had first met Elara.

She was there — waiting, as if she’d known.

When she saw him, tears filled her eyes. “Andrew… I thought I’d never see you again.”

He reached for her hand, his voice trembling. “I shouldn’t be here. But I had to see you — one last time.”

The tide surged higher, washing around their feet. The barrier was already mending, shimmering like dawn light over water.

“Come with me,” she begged. “We can find a way—”

“I can’t,” he whispered. “The sea is my home. And soon, it will forget me.”

He lifted her hand and pressed it to his lips. “When the sea and sky meet again, I’ll find you.”

Then the tide pulled him back — and the waters closed behind him.

In Aqualis, the king felt the power of the sea shift, and for the first time, he wept. His son’s sacrifice had calmed the storm that had raged between their worlds.

Centuries later, when the moon turns red and the tides rise higher than the stars, sailors claim to see a figure near the cliffs — silver-eyed, crowned in coral, watching the shore. And sometimes, when the wind is quiet, you can still hear his voice beneath the waves, whispering a name the ocean will never forget.

Epilogue

Elara soon became a well known tradesman, and when she was older… She gave up the land and became a mermaid to be with Andrew for the rest of their lives. They had 6 kids and 22 grandkids with two Great grandkids on the way. They were happy they had met on that dark, stormy night and they told their story often to their children and grandchildren

The End