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Namor had thought Talokan was safely tucked away where no human could ever find it. It was a well-kept secret and he had ensured his people’s safety for the past century. So when he found the carnage of what once was a human along the outskirts of his kingdom he knew something had gone wrong. He followed the wreckage of metal and fabric before coming across a bloodied harpoon lying buried in the sand, the twisted metal snapped in half. Whatever the human had been hunting had obviously won the fight, but had been wounded. The water was tainted with the scent of blood. The creature wouldn’t survive very long on its own. He should have turned back then and returned to call out patrols to ensure the safety of the other borders, but something was pulling him forward. He found himself at the mouth of an underwater cave that he would often times use to hide away in when he needed to think.
When he surfaced inside he found the walls still held the paintings he had left there when he was younger. Though there were more creeping vines and glowing flowers along the walls than he remembered. The scent of blood was strongest here. It seemed the creature had fled here to try and tend to its wounds. A figure lay against the far wall and it took him a moment to realize it was a person. He thought you were a human but you didn’t share many of the characteristics of one. However, you didn’t resemble the people of Talokan either. So what were you?
You jolted upright when you heard him emerge out of the water. Namor was taken aback when your ink-black eyes locked with his. You were unlike anything he had ever seen before. You had slits along your ribs that resembled that of gills, along with sharp claws that adorned your hands. Tiny scales decorated your shoulders and the sides of your face sending soft iridescent rays of light against the wall beside you. You were absolutely breathtaking.
You pressed yourself further back into the corner, pulling your legs to your chest to get as far away from him as possible. He approached you slowly. Not wanting to scare you any further than he had.
“What tribe are you from?” He asked, kneeling a few feet from you. You simply glared at him, gripping the rock you held tighter. His gaze trailed over your trembling form to the dark purple pool of liquid beneath you. It was then he realized you were sitting in a pool of your own blood. It would appear the creature the human had been hunting, was you.
“You’re wounded. Allow me to help,” He said, reaching toward you. He was rewarded for his attempt at kindness with a rock hurled at his head. He was quick to dodge it and when he looked back at you, you seemed even angrier than before. He knew he should just leave you be at this point and let you deal with your injuries on your own but he felt drawn to help you. Even if you didn’t want him to. You must understand that you were going to bleed to death without assistance, so why were you being so hostile?
When the children were afraid of such things they felt more at ease when someone showed them what it would do and that it wasn’t painful. Perhaps the same trick would work in this situation as well. He placed a small strand of the kelp over a small cut on his arm, attempting to show you it wouldn’t do you any harm.
“It heals what it touches, it doesn’t harm,” He stated softly. You hesitated for a moment, your eyes darting between his face and the kelp upon his arm. After a moment you reached out, flipping his arm over to examine the freshly healed wound. Once you were certain that he was speaking the truth you gave a small nod, allowing him to do what was needed. He placed the kelp over the wound on your shoulder, giving you time to process what it did and how it felt before he placed a few more strands on your stomach. You flinched but didn’t make any sounds of protest as he dressed the rest of your wounds.
“What is your name?” He questioned. You cocked your head to the side, your brow furrowing as you watched his lips move. You didn’t seem to understand his question. That or you thought it was foolish for him to say such a thing.
“My name is K’uk’ulkan,” He said, gesturing to himself. Your mouth moved silently with his as you tried to figure out how to enunciate the word he’d said.
“What is yours?”
You tapped your chest, making small gestures with your hands as melodious notes left your chest in reply to his question. Namor sat in silence at your voice. It wasn’t like anything in this world he’d ever heard. Was this your language? Some type of musical harmony that sounded like the chimes of a flute or pipe? It was gorgeous and captivating.
“I apologize, I’m not sure I can manage to say that,” He said, offering you a small smile. “But I promise to try.”
Over the next two weeks, Namor would return to the cavern as he continued tending to your wounds. You weren’t nearly as shy as he first thought and you were constantly poking and prodding him. Apparently, you hadn’t seen anyone like him either. He would explain each thing to you as you examined him. Telling you what the paintings on the walls represented and why he looked the way he did. He often times had to gently push your hands away whenever you tugged on his earrings or tried to touch the wings at his ankles. He knew you were only curious but he couldn’t help the feelings that would begin to build whenever your fingertips brushed against his skin.
He had also been attempting to teach you words from his own language but you didn’t seem interested in speaking. He knew you recognized the words he said but you’d never spoken them back to him. Instead, you would nod along or give your own replies in your native tongue. He had returned to your make-shift home one day for your evening talk when you smiled at him.
“K’uk’ulkan!” You called cheerfully. He remained crouched at the edge of the pool, wondering if he had heard right. You had called him by his name! He couldn’t stop the smile that made its way to his lips as he nodded.
“Yes, I’m K’uk’ulkan.”
After that, your vocabulary excelled faster than he could possibly teach you. You’d even managed to pick up words he had uttered when he first met you and you hadn’t known what they meant. It appeared you had a gift for languages. The two of you sat at the edge of the pool leading back into the ocean. You always shied away from it, keeping at least three or four feet from the edge. He didn’t ask you why you avoided it but he hoped one day you would join him when he left. He wanted to show you his world. The one you would beg to hear stories of but never got to actually see.
“Can I have one?” You asked, startling him from his thoughts. He glanced over his shoulder to you, his voice tinged with confusion.
“Have what?”
“A name in your language,” You explained. Namor didn’t even have to think of what name to give you. He knew what he would call you every day if you would let him.
“Jats’uts,” He murmured, his gaze remaining on your face as you repeated the word back to yourself.
“Jats’uts. What does it mean?”
Namor returned his gaze to the pool of water before him, wondering if he should have given you a different name. One that wasn’t so intimate. But it seemed fitting since it had been his first thought when he saw you, and the one he had every time he laid his eyes upon you.
“It means beautiful.”
Namor thought he would be able to take you back to Talokan with him once you trusted him more, but he kept running into the same problem every time he left. He would try to coax you into following him each evening you were quick to retreat as far back into the cave as you could go. He couldn’t understand your fear of the water. You were obviously built for such a thing, yet you were terrified of it. Was it because of when you were attacked? Or was there something else amiss that made you afraid? He let out an irritated sigh as he sat on the edge of the pool, the cool water lapping at his legs as he prepared to leave. He knew that patience was the answer if he ever wished to find out what made you hide away, but he was starting to lose his patience the longer time dragged on. He gave up on trying to be subtle and instead asked the question that had been eating away at his chest since he first met you.
“Why haven’t you left this place? Don’t you have a home or family that waits for you?” He frowned, watching the sadness that seeped into your form as you hugged your knees to your chest.
“I lost them. I’ve never been separated from them before and I don’t know how I would find them,” You replied quietly. “In truth, I had expected my fate of dying here until you found me.”
Namor’s heart missed a beat as he stared at you in disbelief. You were going to allow yourself to die here?
“But since you came I’ve found a new home of sorts, with you,” You said, offering him a small smile. While your words reached his heart, they didn’t make him happy. You needed a place of comfort, with space to move and a soft bed to rest in. Not a cramped cave with little light. He held his hand out to you, his jaw ticking as he spoke.
“Come with me.”
“I’ve already told you, I can’t,” You retorted, beginning to move toward the back of the cave. He lept up from the edge of the pool, catching your wrist before you could make it any further.
“And I promise you, I will allow no harm to come to you. No being is capable of defeating a God in his rightful domain,” He snapped, his voice filled with conviction. You glanced between him and the pool of water behind him. After a beat of silence Namor thought you would pull away and hide yet again. Instead, you drew in a shaky breath, your webbed fingers interlocking with his as best they could. You gave him an anxious look before you whispered.
“You promise to keep me safe?”
“Upon my life,” He replied sternly. Your grip tightened on his hand as he led you back to the pool. You took a deep breath before the two of you plunged into the cold sea, the familiar sting of the saltwater biting at your skin from being without it for so long. The gills along your ribs flared open as you drew in your first breath, your body beginning to change to accommodate your surroundings. Namor’s breath caught in his chest when your legs became encased in a sort of iridescent membrane resembling that of a tail with shimmering designs that danced along the sides. Your pupils shrunk to a more normal size allowing Namor to see the color that had been hidden by your landform. The scales he thought were like jewels seemed to grow until it looked like someone had decorated your skin in the shavings of opals. If he had ever encountered a goddess he imagined she would look like you did now. He’d never seen anything so completely and utterly breathtaking.
“I almost forgot what it felt like,” You hummed, closing your eyes as your body began to relax. No longer did your skin feel like it was going to burst from how dry it felt, no longer were you straining to breathe or see. You let out a slow breath as you gave Namor’s hand a grateful squeeze.
“Are we going to your home?” You asked, turning to look at him. His mouth opened and closed for a moment as he tried to find his voice. His mind was still enraptured by the sight before him to properly form words.
“Yes, I’m taking you to my home,” He breathed once he finally remembered how to speak. He knew now why he hadn’t turned back that day, why he had been drawn to you, why he hadn’t left your side even when it would have been easiest. You were meant to be his goddess. The one to rule by his side and for him to cherish as the night sky did the moon. Your eyes met with his and he wondered how any precious gem in existence could compare to such a color. He could search the sea for eternity and never find a single stone that compared to your beauty.
“K’uk’ulkan?” You questioned, breaking the trance you had unknowingly placed him under. He cleared his throat, tracing his thumb over the back of your hand as he smiled at you.
“I’m alright. Now, let me show you my kingdom that you’ve been wanting to see for so long.”