Sanguine Tides - Book 3

Chapter 1

Coming January 12th ;)

(I'm keeping that there because you guys are hilarious)

Thank you to rare.candykale for the amazing art! What a great way to kick off a first chapter!

(Book Inspiration: "Without you" by  Ursine Vulpine & Annaca)

~I want to get lost in your storm
~pulled by your gravity
~ravaged by your waves
~Until I wash up on your shore, drowned
~And my body broken
~At least then I will know
~That I loved you

- Dr. Rhagaven (From Circia - My original upcoming story)

Middle English: from Old French sanguin(e ) 'blood-red,' from Latin sanguineus 'of blood,' from sanguis, sanguin- 'blood.'

Sanguine Tides

Alberto POV

A flash of sapphire scales, a warm embrace, and a sad song.

That was all that remained of Alberto's childhood memories. All he knew growing up was the island and the retired tower that rested on its surface. The island was his beginning, his entire world. And the only other person in that world was his dad.

Cairo was young to be a father of two, but Alberto didn't know that. All he knew was his dad would be with him always and forever. They were inseparable. Father and son did everything together, from repairing their home in the tower to gathering food to wasting time sunbathing on the seagrass. On rare occasions, Cairo took Alberto on long-distance trips, exploring new reefs and uninhabited islands. Those were some of the happiest days of his life. Just him and his dad, spending every moment together.

When they weren't gathering materials for the tower home or taking naps, they were gathering food. His dad was often satisfied with eating mouthfuls of kelp. But no matter how hard Alberto tried, he couldn't stomach it. Sometimes Cairo would catch a crab or find a muscle for him, but most of the time, Alberto was responsible for feeding himself. There were many nights in his younger days when he went to sleep with a growling stomach.

But over time, he learned to fend for himself trapping crabs, shrimp, and the occasional lobster. He tried to catch fish but only managed to get them if they were already injured.

Cairo often left to the human town in the summer days. He would be gone for three or four days at a time, leaving Alberto on the island alone. Alberto counted down the days by making marks on the tower walls. But he never had to make more than a few marks before Cairo returned, and Alberto erased them.

When Cairo came back from the human town, he smelled weird. Alberto noticed that he had difficulty staying upright and slurred his words together. It was often that the morning after his return, Cairo would complain of headache and tell Alberto to leave him alone.

Despite spending a lot of his time alone, Alberto cherished the time he had with his dad. When Cairo was home and willing to give his son attention, Alberto clung to every word. His favorite stories were of the human town. His dad told him about humans and especially about their inventions. Alberto's favorite human invention was the chair with wheels. His dad told him that if you sat on it, it would take you anywhere you wanted to go.

On one of his birthdays, his dad brought him a poster of the chair with wheels. It was called a Vespa. Alberto hung it on the wall of their tower and stared at it for hours. It was the best birthday ever.

When his dad was gone or busy, Alberto made games for himself to play. He skipped stones, explored the reef, and built hideouts out of slate rock. He knew there was a village nearby called Carollina, and he sometimes glimpsed villagers working in the fields. But Cairo warned Alberto to never interact with the Sireni that lived there.