Love and Deepwater • A Rafayel story

Hug of the Sea

Hi!

Double update.

Make sure that you have read the previous chapter~

Enjoy

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Rafayel's descent into Despair was fast and fierce.

He had been unaware of the tragedy unfolding in Enoria's chambers, as he gave freedom to Lukian and hurriedly saved as many Lemueian as he could, most of the time being spotted and, as he couldn't attack the soldiers, the old merman battled the humans whilst he saved his kin. It seemed that a little war was brewing in the streets of the Southern Shore, as more and more merman joined the first and battled for freedom.

Rafayel moved with urgency as the battle raged around him, the clash of steel and the cries of wounded filling the air. He was oblivious to it all, focused solely on saving his kin and ignoring the screams of soldiers dying against rescued merman that seek revenge. Rafayel focused on saving whilst the others battled around him.

Then, in the middle of battle, he felt as if the bond that joined him to Enoria turned dark, until fading completely. It meant only one thing: death. Thinking the worst and believing the opposite, fear gripped Rafayel's heart as he ignored Lukian's pleas and the battle around him, he abandoned the fight and raced toward the palace, disappearing with his flames to Enoria's chambers.

At first, he found Enoria's room in disarray. The scent of blood hung heavy in the air as his heart pounded, and dread clawed at his throat.

There, in the flickering candlelight, he saw the unthinkable: the Lord cradling Enoria's heart, its luminescence fading, as somehow it had crystallized, fractured, and beautiful. A hunter next to him, armed and ready for battle looked surprised at Rafayel's sudden appearance surrounded by fire.

Gazing at the unfolding scene, Rafayel struggled to comprehend the events that had transpired. His eyes locked onto the Lord's smug gaze, triggering memories of Lukian's cryptic words about a weapon capable of wielding ultimate power against the seas. Clutched in the Lord's hands was the heart —a once freely given scale heart, now possibly stolen by the very humans who had vowed to protect her, her own kin turned betrayers. The weight of betrayal settled heavily upon Rafayel's heart, intertwining with the ancient magic pulsing through the stolen artifact.

Rafayel was left to stare at Enoria's corpse, pale and cold, blood soaking her nightgown and spilling onto the ground, staining it crimson red.
Her eyes, still open, but lacking the life and stars that once lived inside.

Rafayel couldn't believe that he wouldn't be able to see her again, the bond was cold, like a hollow inside of him that kept growing and growing, eating away every good thing about himself, all the happiness, hope, empathy, goodness, righteousness... all devoured by an insidious darkness that had lain dormant for eons. Now, as everything crumbled around him, that hidden darkness emerged, casting its shadow over Rafayel's shattered and void heart.

The bond that had once connected Rafayel to Enoria now felt like an abyss within him.

Enoria's hair, once a cascade of moonlight, now clung to her like a blood-soaked crown. Her delicate hands reached out, frozen in their final plea. Fear etched into her features —the same fear she had worn when they took her life. That expression was forever etched into her beautiful face, and would forever be haunting Rafayel's memories.

But then Rafayel's gaze shifted to the Lord, the one who held Enoria's heart. He understood it's pulse, the power a contained inside of the orb as they were just a fragment of his own. Lukian called the relic that Humans has been searching for: the Heart of The God of the Seas, a gift bestowed upon her, his intended mate, by Rafayel himself. A desperate childish attempt to heal her weakened heart, to grant her immortality, and to bind her to him forever. A childish plea to be able to see her again.