Three years later
Ursula crept behind the rocks, pupils glinting behind the sharp rocks. A soft scuttle made her avert her eyes. She raised her spear, ready to throw at a red crab. Ursula lowered her spear when more scuttles were heard, their legs clacking softly along musty rocks.
A family.
Ursula observed the mother crab hurrying her little zoeas through the water, their tiny antennae's sticking up and brushing the fuzzy algae.
Bite size. Ursula licked her lips. Perfect.
Ursula lifted her wrist ever so slightly, then flicked it, sending a message of bubbles to her hunting party. The Cecaelias gathered behind her, camouflaged, their spears ready to throw. Ursula's purple eyes darted to the left, then right, searching for a sign of more crabs. She flicked her wrist up in a blink, her hunters angled for a crab each, but then paused as Ursula lowered her fingers. Three more crabs approached the mother, one nudging the zoeas toward a small crack between the rocks. She snapped her wrist up, then threw. Her spear hit the mother's carapace, her body shielding her baby, who got speared anyway. The crabs ran, the hunters hitting each and every one, except a crab who was trembling as the cecaelias swam away.
Ursula handed her crab to a hunter, who left towards the kitchen. Ursula headed to her room, then collapsed on the bed, stretching out her flat muscles.
"Happy 9th Birthday sis! ", Ursula called out to Morgana as she entered the door.
"Got you a present."
"Let me guess. Crab, same as last year? " scowled Morgana playfully.
Ursula grinned and stuck out her tongue.
"For a 15-year old, you're still pretty immature."
Mused Morgana.
Ursula threw her spear at Morgana's head, who deflected it easily due to hours of training. She flipped it and aimed it at Ursula's slender arms, which were no longer chubby. Ursula caught it with her elbow, then flipped it over, propping her chin on the edge, hands folded beneath her taut, sturdy cheeks.
"What were you doing? " Ursula asked.
"Helping Aunt Atlantia plan the next mer-raid. "
"You mean to pillage the mers and their houses. They just raided not even 9 months ago! Mers are so weak." Ursula scowled.
"Yeah. They're not used to all the pressure. Oh! I just remembered, Aunt Atlantia wants us to join the raid." Morgana said.
Ursula sat up, suddenly excited.
"That's great! We'll finally get to be on our first raid! When is it?"
" Tomorrow. " Morgana replied simply.
"Tomorrow? I'm scheduled to be on the next three hunting parties, I'll have to talk to Trina-"
" Sorry. I misspoke. Aunt Atlantia already put us on the raid, which is going to be pretty big. We're going to camp out under their food farms. We will be raiding from the inside this time, they always expect us on the edges of their kingdom, which is closest to our territory. " Morgana smirked.
"And the edges is where it is easiest to raid." Ursula observed.
"Tell me more?"
"We discovered a crack near the edge of their territory, and it turned out that they are old tunnels which were said to be a legend. In reality those tunnels were escape tunnels which were meant to give citizens an exit in case they ever got attacked. But this was during the treaty, so the people who were building it, which were still some of our cecaelias, kept quiet about it, and during a small raid they killed all of the Mer who were working on the tunnels. They were in a group meeting, and since the king's upcoming birthday was near, the constructors kept it a secret surprise. By the time the king found them, they were dead and no one ever found out about the tunnels. "
Morgana exclaimed.
"So we are going to use the tunnels to massacre- I mean pillage the mers. " Ursula said firmly.
"Basically, yes. But there's more to it. After we exit the tunnels with the slaves, we have to get rid of the tunnels so that the mer can't use them against us. That is where my part of the plan comes in, where we come in. I will be in the back, leading as much mer guards as I can into the tunnels, so that when you, who will be in the front, be waiting for them with a bomb when I escape with the slaves and our raiding party. "
Morgana said, feeling excited as she spoke of the raiding plan part she had come up with.
"So that we can kill them. I like it! What time?"
Ursula nodded, impressed.
"Dawn." Morgana said.
"I can't wait!" Ursula was about ready to scream with glee.
Both of them were quiet for a moment, thinking.
"Well today is one heck of a birthday. And all I thought I would be getting was crab. "
Chuckled Morgana.
"You mean you just came up with this today?"
Ursula screeched, shocked.
" Don't look so surprised. Don't forget that I'm the brains to your beauty. " smirked Morgana.
"I never forget. I'm the love to your hate. "
Grinned Ursula.
"And Eli is the heart to your love." Morgana grinned evilly as Ursula's eyes widened.
Ursula grabbed an algae ball and gripped it tight. She stretched her arm back, then threw the ball hard at Morgana's face.
This time she didn't miss.