Beneath the Vents

There weren’t always dragons in the valley. Sea dragons that is. Caeruleus wasn’t sure how they had adapted to the chill and pressure of the deep, but the destruction of their home kelp beds had forced the leafy sea dragons down into her people’s territory.

It wasn’t the humans’ fault really - they didn’t know the damage they were causing. But mining down here? Honestly? Caeruleus shook her head as she tapped on her yeti crab’s carapace to guide it around the mining equipment scraping at the seabed. The crab obediently climbed around the machine and up the hydrothermal vent, heated water ruffling the white fur-like setae on her legs. The vent rumbled and belched out gas, threatening to vibrate Caeruleus off of her mount. Towering crimson tube worms retreated into their protective tubes with the release. Caeruleus held tightly to her crab and sighed. With humans becoming more present down here by the day, she doubted the worms would ever relax. She fondly patted one of the tubes as she passed by, then spurred her crab to crawl faster over the uneven terrain toward home. She was late for the meeting that would change everything.

The ever-calm Malacia was mid-argument when Caeruleus arrived, gesturing sharply with her webbed hands. Pharos stood stiffly in front of her, his face grim.

He waited for Malacia to finish before saying “we must, Mala. There’s no other way.”

Pharos turned toward Caeruleus as she slid off her crab and slapped her on the back of her carapace, sending her out to forage for mussels.

“Nice of you to join us, Cari.”

She ducked her head, abashed that she was late.

“Sorry father, I was out checking the fields - “

Pharos cut her off with a gesture and sighed heavily before smiling at her.

“It’s ok, daughter. How was the harvest?”

Caeruleus tugged her heavy pack off of her shoulder, and opened it, exposing cobalt, zinc, and manganese in their raw, dull forms. She hadn’t been able to find any silver or gold this time. The humans had been mining it, and it was getting scarce. Luckily the other minerals could still power their magic, even if they weren’t as efficient. They each took a small mineral. Caeruleus nabbed her favorite, cobalt, and swallowed it whole. She immediately felt lighter and more awake. Malacia glowed slightly, and the water shimmered around Pharos. Caeruleus would deliver the minerals to the rest of their people after the meeting. They had started to trickle in and find seats along the sandy floor, warming their backs against rocks heated by the vents.

Her people were of all shapes and sizes, depending on their job. Flustra was slender and graceful, like the kelp that grew in the shallows. The sea dragons flocked to her because her long flowy hands were similar to their weedy fins. Even now in the meeting, a sea dragon floated next to Flustra, her long leafy hand gently stroking back and forth on its flank. Caeruleus thought Flustra reminded them of their former kelp beld home. Flustra’s job was to make sure the deep sea currents continually flowed, bringing nutrients up to the surface waters. Altor, on the other hand, was broad of shoulder and built like the earth’s crust. He periodically pried it open to create more vents with the help of Pharos, who scooped out the magma with enormous hands.

Caeruleus had never met any of the terrestrial peoples, but she had heard that the tree sprites were green and had arms like vines, and that some sprites could even fly among the clouds. She had also heard horrifying stories of sprites who couldn’t heal their ecosystems fast enough, disappearing as their magic faded away and lands that were once lush forests became deserts through human greed. Ocean sprites had seen their fair share of trying times, but never before had her people’s home been so stressed. She hoped they would never end up like the terrestrial sprites, but it was a real possibility. Today’s meeting would determine their next steps in preventing that dark fate.

One by one they entered until just Caeruleus’s family remained standing. Pharos spread his arms wide and addressed them, his deep voice booming across the seafloor.

“My friends, thank you for joining us today. I wish it was under better circumstances, but as you all know, the human situation is worsening by the day. The time has come for us to make a decision.” He paused for a breath, and Malacia cut in.

“My mate is correct. The situation is dire - more minerals are mined by the humans each day, and our home is beginning to show signs of wear. We cannot keep the ecosystem balanced if our magic is low, and with fewer minerals I fear we will soon fail entirely.” Malacia gestured to Caeruleus to begin handing out the day’s harvest, and she quietly floated around the group, distributing minerals from her backpack.

“We have discussed many options,” she continued sadly, “but there is really only one way to get the humans to leave the deep. We must cause an eruption. One so catastrophic that the humans don’t come back.”

The people around Caeruleus gasped, and began murmuring. Altos spoke up, his normally stoic demeanor strained.

“What of a protection ploy? Like we’ve done before?”

Caeruleus nodded. In the past, when humans became too destructive, sprites would reveal something magical to capture their attention and care. Her personal favorite was when the coastal sprites had convinced humpback whales to start protecting smaller creatures from predators. The humans had been obsessed with that behavior, and had slowed down their ships to stop hitting the humpbacks. The revealing of giant squid had also been a big success for promoting deep ocean conservation. Caeruleus started to feel hopeful. They could do it again!

Pharos raised his hands, and then spoke softly but firmly. “We have considered a protection ploy. However, we have nothing to offer the humans that would interest them other than the minerals. We must evacuate as many creatures as possible, and then cause one of the vents to erupt. It’s settled. We begin at dawn.”

The voices rose again as her people argued, and Caeruleus slipped quietly through the rock formation in the back. Her stomach was in knots but she had an idea that just might work to save her home. She broke into a run, bounding along the sand, her namesake cerulean hair flowing behind her in long wavy locks. She blew out a thin stream of bubbles as she ran. They swirled around her and popped, releasing the whistle she had trapped inside. A moment later, her favorite skate swooped beside her, and she greeted him fondly. He lowered his left pectoral fin, and barely slowing, Caeruleus climbed onto his back. With a few flaps of his fins they flew away from the seabed and soared toward the dropoff to the deepest part of her home, the Marianas Trench.

The skate descended into the darkness of the trench, and Caeruleus felt her eyes widen as they adjusted to the inky blackness surrounding her. Her friend Meg lived in the deepest part of the trench. She was an introvert and very shy - only allowing Caeruleus and a couple other creatures to visit her. Her surroundings became dimly visible and she glanced down to see the entire floor of the trench undulate slowly back and forth. Except it wasn’t the floor, it was Meg. She was so massive she seemed to be part of the ocean itself. Caeruleus slipped off of the skate, and sank down through the chilled water until she lightly landed on Meg’s dorsal fin.

Meg jerked violently, whipping her gigantic head frantically. She snapped her jaws shut repeatedly, teeth far bigger than Caeruleus reflecting in her night vision.

“Meg!” she shouted, “it’s me!”

Meg abruptly stopped thrashing and squeaked out “Cari? Is that you?”

“Yes,” Caeruleus said, nimbly sliding down Meg’s head to slip off and float in the water next to her giant eye. “Sorry for scaring you,” she said sheepishly, “I thought it would be fun to sneak up on you.”

Meg glared at her then sighed. “Ever since...you know...I’m a bit jumpy. Sorry, I didn’t mean to snap at you.” She paused, then giggled at her own pun. “Hehe. SNAP at you. Get it?”

Caeruleus rolled her eyes. She never understood how a sixty foot shark as rare as the rocks around her could laugh at such horrid jokes. Meg had earned the right to be jumpy though. It had been forty years since the elite humans had come down and slaughtered her family, and although Meg was just a pup at the time, she remembered it vividly. She had fled down into the trench and never resurfaced. As far as Caeruleus knew, her family had been the last of their kind, and now it was just Meg. She had asked Pharos about the attack, and he said it had been a stealth mission - that the regular humans didn’t know about Meg and her family. They thought they had died millions of years ago. It was all sad to think about, but it was also partly the reason Caeruleus was down here today. Meg had been alone for too long.

“How is everyone around the vents? I miss them. Is Altor still full of himself?” Meg snorted, “of course he is. That guy thinks he can join the great white riders as if the only requirement is being strong.”

“You know it.” Caeruleus cracked a smile at the thought. Great white sharks were showboats themselves, always leaping out of the water to scare and awe the humans, and the sprites who rode them were just as full of swagger. Altor had always bragged about the one time he joined a shark sprite for a ride, terrorizing humans in an underwater cage. He imagined that he could be one of them if he wanted to.

“I’m here for my people, Meg. We need your help. The humans are pillaging the vents, and our magic is dwindling. We need someone to enthrall them and get them to care for the deep, rather than just exploiting it. We need you.”

“Me?” Meg squeaked. “How can I help?”

As Caeruleus expected, Meg was resistant to the plan. But after cajoling her for a while, she agreed. Caeruleus grabbed her dorsal fin and held tight as Meg launched her massive body upward. They soared out of the trench into the warm waters of Caeruleus’s home. Caeruleus heard gasps and cheers from her people, who had been gathered around the largest vent, preparing to cause the eruption. She waved to them, realizing too late that they weren’t cheering. They were screaming and frantically gesturing for her and Meg to move. Caeruleus glanced down and realized the vent was pulsing.

“Meg!” she yelled, “Swim!!”

Meg took the cue and propelled herself upward, her incredible size lending her speed. Black smoke rose around them, the vent’s plume boiling the water it touched. Meg whipped her powerful tail and the filtered light from the surface waters burned Caeruleus’s eyes. She had barely adjusted when Meg let out a battle cry and they broke the surface in an explosion of smoke, water, and blinding light. They soared through the air and Caeruleus felt time slow as she saw the ocean from above for the first time. Sunlight danced and sparkled on the waves, and the briny air was cool against her face. Gravity finally won the battle and Meg’s massive body fell back toward the waves, landing with a crash that nearly overturned the humans’ ship.

“It’s MEGALODON!” they screamed in terror and awe, whipping out their phones and filming as Meg leaped again into the air. Landing with a splash, she dove back down to the darkness and warmth of the vents. Relieved to see her family safe, and their home relatively unharmed, Caeruleus broke into a wide smile.

“Ready?” She called.

Meg snapped her jaws in affirmation, and sped back toward the surface to blow the humans’ minds once again. This time Caeruleus spotted a young human girl on the ship. Her eyes were wide, but glinted with joy instead of fear. She tugged on the shirt of the man standing next to her and pointed at Caeruleus and Meg, smiling with delight. In that moment, Caeruleus knew her home would be ok. Some humans may not know the harm they caused, but there would always be those who cared. Together, they would protect the deep, as sprites in every environment around the world had since the dawn of time. She was just getting started.