I'm a Stingray?

Chapter 33: Recruitment and solidarity (1)

"Really?" The lady long fish asked, and at the same time was thankful that Tim wasn't attacking them.

"Yes really. There are a lot of us, over 40 now I think." The young stingray answered and then tried to figure out other ways of convincing these fish.

His IQ wasn't really high although it faced an upgrade. Speechcraft is low as well, his only perk was nick naming things. But here such a skill would play no value unless these fish like to be indirectly harassed.

Finally, after feeling grateful that these two speak the stingray language, he recited. "That's what I came here for, it was a long travel but I'm here to recruit fish like you."

"To fight the sharks? That's stupid, we can't fight them. Why do you think our mom died?" The male fish answered, this time his tone lower, likely because of recalling the disaster of losing a close family member.

Although Timothy wanted to cuss this fish for being such a wuss, an alternative way of speech had to be found. "We want to fight the sharks, yes. But that doesn't mean we will send small fish to fight, we have reef sharks for that."

"Sh-sharks?" The male answered once more, using basic logic to figure out that this was a bad idea.

"Yes, but they are smaller. And have lost their mothers from bigger sharks, no one will bug you there. There is plenty of food there too, so that would probably be your job in the tribe, to gather food." He couldn't believe how scared these fish are but yet again the trauma seemed to have happened just a few moments ago.

But finally the female sibling expressed a point of view, "This is a good idea, Rummy. We can live there better, food and protection is what we want."

The male long fish who apparently goes by the name of Rummy, didn't fail to contradict. "Yes Amie but we don't know these fish, what if they eat us?"

"There's literally a pyramid of food right in the middle of the den, no one wants to eat you." Tim assured, getting tad annoyed.

But then decided to use a name that seemed to work through the reef, "Do you know Marlo?"

"Marlo the shark?" Amie instantly asked, her tone cracking for once as it arose.

"Yes, that guy. He sent me." The little stingray assured and could sense the aura here ascending towards the heavens.

"Our mom spoke a lot about Marlo, we were going to find him before getting attacked." Rummy explained, his joy stronger than the other sibling.

"I guess you're lucky, but we need to find more like you and what was the other thing..." At this point he used the entire brain a 15 cm long stingray can carry, to remember a certain task.

Tim imagined Marlo shaking his thin fins while carrying a fish shaped face that doesn't show emotion enough, however that didn't act like a big landmark in terms of memorisation.

But then he recalled that recruitment is linked with the other task. Afterwards remembering Lili, the old lady sea snake, he suddenly remembered a bit of the task and built up himself what there was missing.

With a mumble, deciphering. "We have to find geezers or any other fish that isn't an orphan. To tell them that Marlo and his tribe won't ever attack them, we are bosses here and true bosses don't eat their friends."

Different but at the same time it's better than what Marlo requested. It seemed to have proved effective as well, as the long fish became happier for siblings who just lost their mother.

"We can help you!" Amie yelled out, her inspiration far out matching that of a stingray's who had just woke up. "We know 3 older fish who should know about Marlo."

His brain catching up to the entire situation by now, Tim questioned. "We are in the far north, right?"

"Yes, that's what mom called this place." Rummy assured, giving a fish lipped smile.

Shaking his head to fight away every bit of the slumber's effects, Tim demanded. "Oh good, then take me to this fish. I'll do the talking so you don't have to worry about that."

And so they continued to head north, originally the route Tim wanted to take.

It took just a bit of swimming for them to enter red coral, this was an awful place to be in considering that the colour green and yellow stand out like a zit, but the task had to be followed.

What Tim managed to notice here, was the natural architectural works. That's how he called it, yes although it was obviously nature generated.

This place has a lot of coral that twisted in circles and aiding their beauty, suppressing texture were the green sea plants that branched through these circles.

Adding something better to look at, and definitely forcing the young stingray to forget the scene of dead coral, the one he faced once dealing with Lili.

The passages between these circle shaped corals was roomier than what the young boy faced so far.

Although being in snug places felt barricading through his travel, the protection they provided would be stupid to over see.

But yet the red coated passages here seemed smooth, chipless and gave a hunch that some crazy fish had tidied up the place and carved 300 or so circle shaped corals.

He swam in between one of these special corals, and couldn't help noticing that it seemed bigger now, from up close.

It had to be around 15 feet across, but a lot less when it came to thickness. As the roof of the coral seemed about 4 feet thick.

Regardless, everything here seemed a lot more captivating, beautiful.

The increasing numbers of colourful sea plants made him ignore the main quest, especially since one of them tickled his flat stingray bum.

Until Amie interrupted with half a shout. "We're here."

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