The Selkies' Curse: Part II

“This is crazy.”

“It’s about to get crazier, because I need your help.”

“For what?”

“To break the curse.”

“How am I supposed to do that?”

“You’re the chosen one; I’m sure of it.”

“And how exactly do you know that?”

“You have a seal-like birthmark on your ankle. That’s part of the prophecy our people believe.”

“Just because I have a birthmark doesn’t mean I can break the curse.”

“No, you have powers as well.”

The selkie asked me to hold his hand. I complied. He held it to his forehead and, within seconds, visions of their past flooded my head. He was telling the truth. I then saw my mother; she was battling a monster with magic. She took it down, but another one got her from behind. I was overcome with rage. The air around me began to swirl and the ground began to shake. The selkie yelled and brought me back to my senses. I asked what his name was to thank him. He said it was Zaros.

The both of us then left for my house. There, I went through my mother’s belongings in the basement and found an old book. It was a grimoire. I sifted through half the book before I finally found what I was looking for. The breaking of the curse called for a ritual to be performed by the ‘Zotiras’ (the chosen one) and a selkie and the ingredients were our blood.

We collected our blood in a bowl after cutting our palms. Afterward, we chanted the spell. As we finished, Zaros fell to the floor. I tried to wake him up, but he wasn’t responding. I laid him on the sofa and watched to see if any changes would occur. The webs on his hands and legs disappeared and he woke up moments later. I had not seen the same level of excitement and hopefulness in someone’s eyes as I did in his that day. I was glad I could help him. The grimoire said that the rest of the selkies would know by instinct that the spell was performed; all they had to do was swim to the nearest shore.

—End—