HIS ATLANTEAN PRINCESS

CHAPTER 6 *TUEUR*

SIN CITY.

The sign with the name of club shone in the night’s dark under the different colours, under the changing lights that lit up the road that ran along the front of the club. 

I didn’t feel the need to go inside. When I left my palace to come here, I had thought about getting away from our world. Coming to the human world to have fun and take my mind off the things El’egro told me this afternoon. 

Now that I am here, I didn’t feel the excitement that I felt on the first day. The thrill was missing because what I heard wouldn’t just leave my mind. 

The knowledge of mother visiting this land? Was father even aware? Did she come to the human so she could have me? 

I had no answers to these questions, and it made my mind restless. 

My first thought of action was to confront mother about the secrets she’s keeping with king El’egro but I held myself back to think.

If she has her mind made up, to give me away for the Triton-Siren king not to expose her secret, then confronting her about her visits to the human land would change nothing, neither will it make her spill the secrets. 

Knowing this, it was useless going to her. Hence why I crossed the reef to come here, hoping it would help relax my mind. 

It might be impossible for me to question her right now, but I know there is leverage against her when my visits go south. 

“Hey gorgeous, what are you doing out here?” 

“Nothing, why do you ask?”

I replied to the human sitting and smiling in a weird object that looked like a big tortoise shell. 

The human tilts his head to the left at my response and he moved the tortoise shell forward, stopping it at the edge of the road, opened what I seemed like a door and got out of the weird moving tortoise shell. 

“It’s unusual to see a face this gorgeous standing outside sin city without going in. In fact, there is no beauty like yours here and that gets me curious. What a pretty damsel like you is doing out here. Did you perhaps lose your way?”

The human asks standing beside me as I looked ahead to the other humans going in and out of sin city and some getting intimate with theirself behind the walls of the building.

“I am not lost, just enjoying the view.”

I replied, not turning to him, but I could feel him stare me down and I saw Neisha walked into sin city with the human man from my previous night and I smiled to myself remembering the experience but I know they won’t even remember me if they see me. 

“Judging from the way you dressed, one could say you here waiting for a hookup. Am I right?”

The nosy human asked, and I turned to him, confused by his is statement.

“What do you mean hook up and what does it have to do with what I’m wearing?”

I questioned, curious to know what he meant, and he raised his hands up in surrender. 

“I don’t mean to be rude just voicing out my thoughts. You’re wearing a bum-short with that crop top exposing half your boobs and all the jewelries so I thought you’re out here waiting for your next hook up.”

I did a once over look, noting the things he said I was wearing, and I nod. 

I don’t know what the humans call it. 

A girl by the beach looked so cool in it and I transformed into something similar, but better.

“Okay. But what’s the meaning of hook up?”

I asked, and the human looked at me weirdly before laughing, and I frowned. There is nothing funny to laugh at.

 What’s his deal?

“You don’t know the meaning of hook up?”

He questions, and I shake my head.

“If I know, would I ask you for the meaning?”

I replied, and he nods shutting his mouth.

“Hmm quick witted. Are you new here?”

He asks, ignoring my question.

“You didn’t answer the question, why should I answer you?”

I respond to him, and he smiled.

“Smart. Anyway, hook up means casual s*x. Like a one-night stand you do for free or for money. Whatever your reasons are.”

I nod in understanding, grasping the meaning of the word hook up, but frowned when my mind rallied back to the reason he thought I stood here for hook up.

“No, wrong. What does it have to do with what I’m wearing. You shouldn’t judge people by what they wear. That’s wrong. I like the pieces so I wore it. What’s bad about wanting to look good?”

I glared at him, folding my arms against my chest, and he backed away slowly, raising his hands up in surrender. 

“That was so wrong of me. I apologise, the words just came out with little thoughts on my part.”

“Okay, accepted.”

I respond, accepting his apology, thinking he would finally find his way out of my business.

“Well, you don’t plan on standing here all night, right? Why don’t you hop in the car with me, I’ll take you somewhere else, definitely have fun.”

I shake my heads at his words, looking at the weird tortoise shell he called a car. Humans name their objects in weird ways that don’t even relate to the exact object.

Who came up with the word car for the tortoiseshell, it’s almost identical to the shell of a tortoise, just that the designs differ and this looks quite exquisite and it moves fast.

Shouldn’t they name it something associated with tortoise, something fast turtle, or SHELLTLE or SHELLTUR or FASTSHELLTURTLE?

All this sounds and fits better than, car? CAR? too simple for something that looks this good. 

“I’m not in the mood to copulate, so no. You can go have fun on your own.”

I tell the human and he squints his nose before covering his mouth and I could tell he is trying not to laugh.

“Did you just say copulate?”

He asks, and I nod.

“How old are you 100?”

He questions, laughing, and I shake my head. I’m only 80 seasons old merfolk calender and 20 in human age what’s his problem.

“No, I’m 20 years old. Why?”

“Sorry, its just the way you talk. Your choice of words is mostly outdated in this age. Anyway, I am also not in the mood to copulate, you can call it s*x though. There are other things you could do for fun without having s*x. For example, watching movies, going to the amusement park, bowling, skating, surfing, playing games, shopping, eating ice cream is fun though and sightseeing and some other things I didn’t mention.”

I listened attentively as he explained what having fun means and they all sound interesting, but two things he said caught my attention more.

“What’s eating ice cream and shopping?”

I asked, and he stared at him with a bewildered expression on his face. 

“I guess I shouldn’t even ask if you’re from here or new here. You don’t seem to know anything human. I could have guessed you to be an alien, but they don’t exist. To answer your question. Ice cream is something you eat, it’s sweet and creamy. Works like magic half the time and makes you feel better if you’re sad. Shopping is similar, it’s liberating for most girls and makes them happy. Only difference is you eat ice cream but shopping is all about buying what you love to wear on your body, it’s fun. I shop a lot when I’m bored or sad.”

The human explains, and I nod, liking his own idea of what fun is. 

Sounds a lot different from what I imagined as fun. I’m here to have fun anyway it wouldn’t hurt to explore all kinds of fun things to do here and it would help take my mind off the secrets I’m getting traded for. 

“Okay, sounds fun. Take me shopping and Ice cream. “

I tell the human, and he blinks at me. 

“Er, well, I don’t know why I’m agreeing to this, but okay. Hop in.”

He says walking to the side of the car he got out of friend and I remained standing by the car.

“What’s stopping you, enter.”

He says, gesturing to the car.

“How?”

He made a frustrated sound at my question before walking back to my side and opens the car door for me and I hopped in like he said. 

“What’s your name.”

I ask him, remembering how Neisha and the other girls introduced themselves to me the other day.

“You can call me Tueur, not my birth name, but that’s what people call me now. So it kind of stuck to me.”

Tueur says and I nod, knowing the name probably has its own meaning because it doesn’t sound like the human language I know.

“I am Ianthe, that’s what my grandparents call me.”

I tell and he grinned as he turned what appears like the control of the car and he moves away. 

“Violet flower, that’s what Ianthe means in Greek.”

Tueur says, and I nod.

“Oh, okay. What is Greek?”

I had to ask. Learning new things is one of the many reasons I’m down here, anyway. 

“An indigenous language known with a specific ethnicity, it’s different from the one we are speaking now.”

So humans have over one language? Just like Merfolks have the ancient tongue and the new one coined from the scrolls of the humans spoken language that came to our world. 

“Oh I see, thank you.”

“Do you know, in mythology, Ianthe was a sea nymph and daughter of Oceanus?”

Tueur’s question and it took me by surprise, and I stared at him for a minute. How does he know about Oceanus and his daughter; Ianthe?

Oceanus is a referred god of Merfolks, the one who was before us, who created what our world is today. 

How does a mere human know about a great god just like him, the key to the existence of merfolk, our world born out of the Ocean?

Just to prove the other god’s wrong and show the length of his power, he separated land from the ocean, turning the sea to a blanket of protection above us and a wall of water that touched the blanket up above us. 

Oceanus made the impossible, possible and land and creatures who lived and walked on two feet under the ocean’s depth. 

Stories had it he’s brothers always jest him for creating fishes that humans kill for food, they mocked his powers and the what he could. 

Oceanus had to prove them wrong, to show them he could also create life better than that of humans, creatures of the sea that looked just like humans but with abilities.

When he made the first merfolk, the other gods mocked him, said we did not differ from the fishes. This angered Oceanus and he gave every Merfolk the ability to shift at their will. 

Legs to walk and tails to swim, the ocean gave us a world of our own, out of reach to the humans.

Oceanus Gave us powers to protect ourselves, and Ianthe was the first Queen of the coast. The goddess of all queens.

But how does this ordinary human know about him, about Ianthe, and about our kind, even called us by the sacred name?

“Hey, you okay? you zoned out on me.”

The human says, tapping my hand and I blinked a few times.

“How did you know?”

I asked.

I had to know how he has such knowledge because he shouldn’t.

“About Oceanus?”

Tueur asked, and I nod. 

“Oh, I love to read a lot, especially mythology and folklore. I believe in the supernatural, and I know humans can’t be the only one in this world. Greek mythology talks a lot about these supernatural creatures, but I am more fascinated by sea nymphs. People out here call them mermaids or merman. As thrilling as it sounds, not one person out here can say they’ve stumbled upon a mermaid in the ocean. What makes it more suspicious is how there is not much written about Merfolks in folklores. There is little to no information about them on the internet, as if someone wiped out any trace or information about them. Which is why I am so fascinated by their kind. Unfortunately, the Greek mythology has little to talk about Oceanus and his daughter. I’m an avid reader so I know some things an average human doesn’t.”

Listening to Tueur talk made me realise we have something in common. He is curious about things and he reads and learns about those things. The same way I visit the scrolls of the old to learn things about our world and the invaders. 

He is just like me, someone who loves to learn and understand new things. I eased my mind at his explanation and nod in understanding.

“It’s good to learn new things. What’s internet?”

I asked, not willing to let that slide, and he smiles. 

“I’ll show you when we get to the ice cream, and I can also teach you how to use it. Do you have a phone?”

What’s phone? He keeps saying these human things that I don’t know about.

“No. Why?”

“You are a big girl, you should have one. See this is a mobile phone, you can use it to send messages to family and friends, make calls and research the internet.”

He pulled out a flat object from his pocket that illuminates his face when he touched it and I eased back on my seat as he explained the functions of the object he called mobile phone. 

“I want one. You’ll teach me.”

I tell him, smiling, and he nods.

“Okay, I feel like I am being charmed, which is impossible, by the way. Yet I can’t say no to any of your request perhaps because you’re gorgeous after all beautiful ladies deserves the best of this world.”

Tueur says, and I smiled.

Pity.

If only he knows he is actually being charmed. I wonder how he would react if he finds out a sea nymph is sitting right next to him. 

“Yes we are here, shopping first and ice cream after.”

Tueur announces, stopping his car by the side of the road and he points to a building made of glass. 

“This is shopping?”

I ask, and he shakes his head.

“This is a place where shopping happens. This is a shopping plaza where you shop for whatever you want. So lets go.”

I followed Tueur into the tall glass building and he took me through what he called racks of clothes. Unique pieces of clothing materials caught my eyes and Tueur did his best to explain the different fabrics, as he called them. 

It was exciting to go through different brands of this human clothing as I kept finding pieces that caught my eyes, shoes, even bags, and purse, as Tueur called them.

I picked so much and got my hands full, had to call on the workers who helped me take everything to the front, Tueur called the human a cashier guy. 

I didn’t have to worry because Tueur paid for everything I bought; we left the cloth shop and entered a box that carried us to the top part of the building. 

I remember asking him what the moving box is, and he called it an elevator, just as promised he bought me a mobile phone and taught me a few things before we went back to the car and he moves us to the ice cream place. 

“Can I put this in water?”

I ask Tueur, waving my phone, and he nods.

“You can, but not for long. The phone is water resistance but I don’t know how long it would hold out water. So not for long.”

I pursed my lips as I realised there is no possibility of taking it back home with me. Would it even work in our world?

Tueur said I need electricity to charge it, and we don’t have that in Ashira. 

“What flavour of ice cream do you want?”

I raise my head to Tueur, who was stepping out of the car.

“I don’t know, everything sweet.”

I replied, and he laughs. 

“Okay. Refrain from touching the wheel.”

He cautions as I moved my hands to touch the control he held to make the car move. He called it wheel?

How is this round thing a wheel?

Humans are weird.

“Here. I got you strawberry, vanilla, chocolate and banana flavour. What is your address so I can drive you up to your house? “

Tueur hands me the object containing the ice cream, and I flinched from the freezing it was. I didn’t expect it to be so cold. 

I stared at the contents for a second then watched as Tueur ate his, and I mirrored his actions, taking a small bite from the ice cream and I hard to close my eyes from how good and weird it tastes. 

“Ianthe, what’s your house address?”

Tueur asks, bringing my attention away from the sweet ice cream, and I shake my head. 

“I don’t know. I don’t have a house.”

I tell him, and he looks at me in shock. 

“You are joking, right?”

I shake my head at his question and he a strange sound rumbles down his throat. 

“You don’t have a house? Where do you live if you don’t have a house? Where would you spend the night?”

Tueur asks, sounding frustrated.

“This place is far away from home. I have a place to sleep where I’m from but I don’t have a place to sleep here, only visiting. I’ll spend the night anywhere.”

“Goddamned, you’ve got to be kidding. Do you know how f*****g dangerous it is out her. In this city? The people that roam the streets at night and you decide to spend the night anywhere. At least tell me you have money to lodge in a hotel or something.”

I don’t know why he sounds so frustrated and worried but I am fine and can take care of myself why is he feeling so concerned.

“I don’t know what that is and I don’t have money.”

I respond curtly, focusing on my ice cream.

“Oh heavens. f**k me. You made me buy you a s**t ton of clothes with nowhere to keep them. Bloody hell.”

What’s with all the unfamiliar words he’s saying and he looks angry why?

“What is that?”

I ask and he shakes his head, holding the wheel, and he leaves the Ice cream place.

“Why are you not eating your ice cream?”

“I’m driving. I can’t eat and drive. By the way, I’m taking you to my brother’s penthouse. I have the keys and he rarely uses the place. You can stay there for the duration of your visits. I’ll collect you number so I can reach to get the keys back.”

I couldn’t make sense of half of the things he said, but I didn’t care, as long as I have a place to keep my new clothes and phone in the human world, I don’t care who owns the penthouse or whatever Tueur called it. 

He seems like a pleasant person though, maybe I will keep him as my human friend, although I let him see me in my actual face. 

I didn’t change my appearance today because I thought I wouldn’t enter sin city, and it didn’t occur to me while Tueur came. Besides, there is no point in erasing his memories when we didn’t copulate. 

I’ll keep him as my little human friend for now. Maybe he’ll buy me ice cream next time.