A Jewel In The Rubble [Vyraena]

[Ethereal-Star]

As Turquoise continued to look over the worn piece of parchment, trying to decipher its meaning, Waves sneaked another peek at the treasure chest in front of them. The key hole was rusted, and seemed to show a fairly decent sized hole in which to fit a key of some sort. The question remained, where was this key?

"Ah, I give up! I cannot make any of this out!" Turquoise threw up her hands exasperated, rolling the parchment back into the glass tube and capping it securely. She handed it to Red, who carried it for her in his mouth as both the mermaid's hands were full, one hand carrying the shell, the other carrying the magic jewel.

They continued to explore the ship searching for anything that could be used to open the chest. Waves thought she saw something poking out from beneath a couple wooden planks, and nudged Turquoise's hand to get the mermaid's attention, indicating her head in that direction. Turquoise saw what the dolphin was looking at and swam over to take a look.

Positioning the light from the shell in that area, she saw the rusted edge of what looked to be a key! Excited, she immediately grabbed the object after setting down the enchanted emerald and held up the item in her free hand. It was indeed a key, a plain brass one, its once smooth surface now covered with much rust and some seaweed.

"Found a key!"

[Vyraena]

Upon hearing her declaration, Coralia swam over as fast as she could. Seeing the key, she examined it for a while before speaking. "It surely looks like it could fit. Shall we try it?"

[Ethereal-Star]

"Yes, let's!" Turquoise wiped off some of the seaweed covering the key, looked at it more closely for a second and then swam over to the chest and tried the key in the key hole. It was a bit difficult at first, but soon the key clicked into place and she turned it excitedly, wanting to know what lay inside. Red and Waves held their breaths in anticipation.

Turquoise then opened up the chest and this time it gave way revealing its contents. She gasped in astonishment, her companions also going ooh and aah over everything. Inside was gold coins and silver coins all mixed together, with rubies, emeralds, sapphires and diamonds scattered all through the interior, peeking up from the plethora of coins they were buried in. Some of these coins spilled onto the sea floor as they continued to look over the treasure. There was even a couple silver necklaces and as Turquoise sifted through it all, she came upon a jeweled scepter too. The scepter was decorated with black and white shimmery stones and was very beautiful in its craftsmanship, however there was no magic that could be felt from it. It was just an ordinary jeweled scepter, obviously stored in with everything else because of its value. Indeed for it looked to be worth a small fortune.

"Wow!" the mermaid breathed in awe, the dolphin and fish echoing her sentiments. "This is most certainly a wonderful find!"

[Vyraena]

"Indeed, it is." Coralia said as she looked at the contents of the chest. "However, one thing remains unanswered."

She looked at the original jewel that they had found, thinking for a moment before speaking. "Why was this jewel kept separately from the rest? One would assume that they would all be kept together, safely locked away in the chest."

[Ethereal-Star]

"Good question. Maybe we can discover more about it by this piece of parchment that Red found. It seems to tell about the jewel however I cannot make heads or tails of it." she huffed in exasperation, frustrated at her inability to read the paper which very well could tell what the gem was and what its powers were to boot.

Red swam over to Coralia and nudged her hand with the glass tube in his mouth which contained said document. "Maybe ocean lady can find out more and read it?" he asked hopefully, big wide eyes looking at her innocently.

((I have a generic plot for the mystery of the jewel figured out so if you have a question about it, feel free to PM me. The jewel is quite powerful and there is a reason why it was left out from the rest.))

[Vyraena]

(Sounds good to me. If there's any extremely important details I should know, PM them to me. Otherwise I'll just follow your lead.)

"Ocean lady? I do have a name, you know!" Coralia said. She really wasn't offended, and she hoped the fish didn't take that the wrong way. "But I can see what I can do."

She took the paper out of the tube and pushed it out into the water before her. It unraveled itself and floated there perfectly. The ink appeared to have been caused to run by the water, but Coralia could easily remedy that. She started channeling some magic into the document, and the water went into the ink, which began to undo the process it had gone through and reform legible words.

[Ethereal-Star]

Red detected the teasing note in her voice so he knew the ocean spirit wasn't really offended. He gave Coralia a cheeky grin and watched with the others while she channeled her magic into the paper. The lettering repaired itself before their very eyes and soon the words could be read.

"The Gem of Wishes." Turquoise read aloud, the caption under the sketch now readable to her. Eagerly, she read the rest of the document. "It says here it can grant wishes to whomever holds the stone while stating a particular wish out loud. As long as one's wish does not go against liable probability, your wish is sure to be granted. But beware, if doth make an improbable wish, be prepared to face the consequences of your actions." the mermaid read the words, greatly fascinated by this new found discovery.

"It also reveals the origins of the jewel saying it was created in the lands of The Enchanted Isles by one of the goddesses of magic and sorcery many moons ago, circa 500 years ago." She looked up at them all excitedly. "What do you propose we do with the jewel?" she asked the group.

Waves looked at the jewel with a mixture of awe and uncertainty. "Well, maybe we should leave it be?" she questioned hesitantly. "Although it is a pretty jewel, I would hate to leave it behind."

"True, who knows what kind of destruction it could cause if the wrong person got a hold of it." Turquoise pondered a bit before replying again. "But just think of the rewards too! If we could use its powers safely, it would be a huge boon! Or I could simply just hang onto it and not use it?" she frowned, thinking.

[Vyraena]

Coralia thought for a moment. "It would be best to take it with us. Should someone else discover it, it could have horrible consequences."

Coralia had no desire to use the jewel for herself, but she wanted to make sure the ocean would be protected, and something that powerful couldn't just be left there.

[Ethereal-Star]

Turquoise nodded and snatched up the jewel again from the sea floor. Waves went around to another part of the ship to see if she could find anything else of interest. Meanwhile, Red gazed at the jewel curiously, and quipped, "Yes, we take it with us! Not sure about magic use but it very valuable and purty too."

Turquoise smiled at her fishy friend and replied, "Yes, it is very pretty and would make a nice addition to my collections."

She frowned as she thought of the jewel's potential destructive abilities, not sure exactly what could be considered 'going against liable probability.' Reading the note again didn't reveal any more insights about it, so she tucked the parchment back into the tube and handed it again to Red to carry. It would prove a useful item to take with as well, as it explained the jewel's purpose. And goodness knows the trouble humans could create with an item such as this, however it seemed highly unlikely that a human would discover it here if they did not take the gem with them, being as far down as it is.

She went over to the chest and plucked one of the silver necklaces from inside and clasped it around her neck. "Too bad there is no mirror nearby." she pouted. "Oh well." she surmised and looked over the contents again, eying the scepter with interest. She grabbed that up too and twirled it around a bit, admiring the handiwork of everything. The smooth metal it comprised of bore a slight sheen and she could almost see her eyes reflected in its somewhat polished surface, magenta colored eyes looking back at her. The stones covering it seemed to be onyx or obsidian or perhaps both, the white stones being milky quartz and white pearls. The top of it featured a small glass orb of dark blue. Overall it was simply lovely to look at. She had to take it with her as well.

Grabbing the other necklace, she handed it to Waves to carry as the dolphin came swimming back, apparently not finding anything else to bring back. "Now, it's a shame we cannot take the whole treasure chest with us. I imagine it is too heavy and bulky to carry around. What to do, what to do?" An idea occurred to her and her face brightened. "Oh! I can lock the chest and hide it, and take the key with me! That way no one else can pillage it while after we're gone!"

Waves nodded her head enthusiastically, as did Red. "I approve of this idea." Waves piped up in a squeaky voice.

Turquoise laughed and patted the dolphin's head affectionately. 'Then that's what we'll do then." she decided in finality.

Locking the chest and pushing it under some rocks and other debris, situating a few strands of seaweed over top it, she put the other necklace around her neck as well and handed the scepter to Waves with Red carrying the glass tube with the note inside it in his mouth. Handing Coralia the enchanted jewel of wishes, the mermaid herself carried her light shell and the key to the treasure chest. "We can come back later to explore some more." she told them. "Now it's off back to my home in the kingdom. Perhaps Lady Starlight is able to find out more about this jewel and exactly what it can do."

((Lady Starlight is an NPC mermaid that will be playable by both of us. She serves as seer, healer and adviser to the kingdom and its king and queen.))

[Vyraena]

(Gotcha)

Coralia placed an enchanted bubble around the jewel so that it would float by her side, rather than her having to carry it. Her light clothing flowed behind her as she swam. At the mermaid's mention of a kingdom, she became curious. She had explored the ocean quite often, but never once had she come across a kingdom of any kind. Perhaps it was because she was never looking for one.

"You live in a kingdom?"

[Ethereal-Star]

"Oh yes, a very beautiful kingdom. Its name is the Kingdom of Greenwaves and is ruled by King Goldwater and the Queen Her royal Highness Jadette, also known as 'the light of the sea.' Her beauty seems to know no bounds." Turquoise frowned, recalling her envy of the queen's fathomless beauty and sighed. She could never hope to live up to Queen Jadette's gorgeousness ever.

"Some say the Queen was blessed by the sea goddess of beauty herself. It appears to not be far from the truth." she explained as the four of them swam through the waters, the hue of the ocean getting brighter and bluer the further they went.

"I know many mermen and other aquatic folk have desired her but that is simply not possible. The Queen is loyal to the death to the King and would never betray his trust. That is not to say some haven't tried though." Turquoise laughed, recalling some of the scenarios she had witnessed of the Queen's rejections of her various admirers, some of these events where she had turned them into water frogs and toads because she got sick of dealing with them. However she was far from mean or malicious and it was simply to teach those few a lesson. It worked and they never bothered her again after the magic was lifted.

They continued swimming through the salty waters of the ocean to get to where they were going, Turquoise admiring the necklaces around her neck every now and then.

[Vyraena]

Coralia kept eyeing the jewel to make sure it was staying in the bubble and nothing would happen to it, but she was listening attentively to everything Turquoise was saying. "It sounds like she's a good Queen."

Coralia began to wonder about just how beautiful this Queen was. Coralia was far from unattractive, and when she would go onto the beach to get away from the water for a while, men would often notice her and approach her. She knew just how annoying that could be sometimes, and it sounded like the Queen was far more beautiful than even Coralia. It could only be assumed she had it a lot worse.

"Is it all merfolk, then?"

[Ethereal-Star]

"No. While merfolk and sirens make up the majority of the kingdom's inhabitants, there are others such as sea shifters, selkies, kelpies, marids and other water djinn and the occasional water spirit. There are even a few octopus men and women as well." the mermaid explained.

As they swam they passed by several schools of colorful fish, stingrays and even a whale at some point. Shrimp and seahorses they also passed by. "We should be almost there." Turquoise told Coralia. "Just a little further."

[Vyraena]

Coralia kept herself just behind Turquoise so she wouldn't get lost. Unlike Turquoise, she hadn't taken anything from the wreckage, so she just looked over at the gem every so often. "Really? That's interesting. I haven't really interacted with many races other than humans and merfolk. I'm rather shy, you see."

[Ethereal-Star]

"Have you not met any more of your own kind?" Turquoise questioned curiously, looking behind her at the ocean spirit. "Where do you call home then?" Looking back ahead, she continued speaking. "The kingdom of Greenwaves is filled with many beings and creatures as I've mentioned before, so I've interacted with many of them, although the only ones I am really close to are Red and Waves here." Indicating her head at the dolphin and fish who were swimming along beside her, listening to the conversation between the two.

"Yes, we great friends!" Red quipped up, Waves bouncing her head up and down  enthusiastically.

Turquoise laughed giddily at her friends' antics and smiled. "Yes, we most certainly are."

[Vyraena]

"I live in a small underwater cave, hidden on the side of one of the islands that are part of the Yoreiqi Isles." Coralia said. "It's hidden rather well, and as far as I know no one else has found it yet."

[Ethereal-Star]

"Ooh, hidden cave!" Red blew out a couple bubbles as he said this. "You live all lone in this cave?"

"Yes, I'd like to know that too." Turquoise glanced behind her again at Coralia. "That must get awfully lonely. I know I would get lonely living all by myself."

"Without us to keep you company? That would be very sad, me says." Waves put in.

Turquoise smiled at the dolphin sadly. "Yes, it would be." she agreed.

The four of them soon arrived at their destination. "Here we are, the Kingdom of Greenwaves!" Turquoise announced as the silver gates to the kingdom came into view, a sentry on either side of the gates guarding it.

[Vyraena]

Coralia took a look at the city. It was truly marvelous, unlike anything she had ever seen before. Turning to Coralia, she smiled and said, "It's beautiful."

[Ethereal-Star]

"It sure is." the mermaid agreed. She swam up to the guards at the gates, one a merman with a large halberd, the other a sea elf sporting a wickedly sharp scythe. "Hello, sir guards. My friends and I would like to enter the kingdom if you will. I am Turquoise, and these here are my friends Red, Waves and Coralia", indicating her head at each in turn. "While most of us live here already, Coralia is a visitor from afar wishing to see the glorious beauty of our home."

"Do you have a pass?" the merman asked.

"Oh, yes of course, how silly of me to forget." Turquoise plucked the sand dollar that served as a pass with her name engraved on it from her teal colored locks of hair and showed it to the gate guards.

The guards looked at it carefully before nodding their heads in consent, the sea elf saying, "You may pass then."

Opening the gates for the group the four of them swam in, towers of marble standing majestically in the near distance, coral reefs situated here and there, and the inhabitants who lived here could be seen swimming around, going about their normal day-to-day activities in the kingdom. A kelpie child swam past chasing a mermaid child with a pink tail playfully, the mergirl shrieking happily as they played their game of chase. A merchant merman could be seen selling his wares at the local market, goods containing many gems, pottery, necklaces, bracelets, and other such trinkets, while another merchant, an octopus woman peddled her wares of silk enchanted dresses, seaweed shawls, and hair pins made of mother-of-pearl and lapis lazuli.

A town crier could be seen shouting out the daily news nearby, while a water djinn held his fortune telling and wish granting services in another area, a large crystal ball displayed proudly in front of his stall, purple cloth underneath it surrounded by quartz crystals of many colors.

Overall the sight may seem overwhelming for first-time visitors, but Turquoise propelled them onwards toward the palace. "Come on, we are going to meet with Lady Starlight and talk to her about the jewel we found. Let's go!"

[Vyraena]

Coralia was in awe of the city and its beauty. She hadn't expected it to be anything like this. There was far more activity going on than she had prepared herself for, and she found herself watching everyone going by with curiosity about what they were doing.

However, another thought crossed her mind at the same time, and she pulled the jewel closer to herself. She didn't expect any trouble, but just in case someone saw the jewel floating out by itself and thought it might be nice to take, she didn't want to leave it unattended.

"Lead the way. I'll follow close behind."