He remembered the dragon’s fire, the warmth that burned his skin. A memory so long lost that it was strange to be so close to it now. But the fire burned again. It burned in his lungs with every breath he took and though his body was surrounded by water there was nothing the young prince could do to extinguish it. He was close to giving up, to realising that it all had been a mistake. But there was no going back any longer. He had given up his home, his charms, his legs, only to be with her. He needed to find her.
In any other situation the prince of Dale would have been mesmerised by his surroundings. This new world, under water, was beautiful in its own way for light had a different meaning down here. Colours surrounded him, drifted away in the current, played with life... He passed coral reefs as red as blood, bouncing with small and big fish, glinting in all the colours of the rainbow. It was such a huge contrast to the green and brown that controlled his home. He liked it, but he had no time to enjoy it.
It took Mattis what felt like eternity until he found the underwater castle of the mermaid king. If his voice had been still within his reach the young man would not have been able to stop himself from rambling about the beauty before his eyes. It was like a fairytale had appeared before him and he did not believe it. Unsure about the right way to find the mermaid he was searching for the young prince began to explore this new found heaven on the ocean’s floor. His mind raced with all the things he would say to her. If he could only speak! Oh, what a cruel spell it had been, yet the only way to be close to her. And when he finally laid eyes on her again it seemed worth it within an instant. Mattis knew how lucky he was to find this merwoman in a kingdom as big as this, yet the hardest part was only just beginning. What to do? How to approach her?
There was nothing the prince could do except for stopping in his track and starring at her for one heartbeat after another, a shy smile appearing upon his lips. If he could only call out to her! Explain that he was looking for her!