Tidus

 

            Seth breathed in the salty sea air. He had lived near the beach for most of his life. He walked along the shoreline in the waning afternoon light. It was low tide, so the beach seemed to stretch out much farther than normal.

            This was Seth’s favorite time to be near the water. The low tide meant that he walked on the wet sand which was a lot more firm than higher up on the beach. Spotting something, he leaned down to pick it up. The stranded starfish in his hand was still alive, but it wouldn’t be for long if it continued to stay out of the water. Seth gently tossed it out to the ocean, far enough that hopefully, it would be okay.

            Seth smiled as he continued walking. This was another reason he liked to come out at low tide. He loved to see the starfish. Who knew if it really made a difference, but Seth knew that he had at least saved a few of them. He continued to walk along to a rocky outcropping near the water. This was a fantastic place for tide pools. He would generally spend about a half hour studying what the tide had left before he walked back home.

            As he reached the rocks, he thought he saw some crabs scurry around the rocks toward the waterside. Seth hurried to get a better look. He gasped when he saw that there were at least 20 large crabs standing together in a group. These weren’t the ones that were usually found in the tide pools. These were at least three times bigger than the small crabs that Seth was used to seeing. They were also the brightest neon orange that he had ever seen.

            Seth gaped at the crabs as they stood without moving, watching him. Nothing seemed to move except for the waves that were getting closer to the rocks. Seth took a hesitant step forward, and the crabs started to back away toward the water. Slightly disappointed to see them go, he watched as they all went into the waves.

            The last crab disappeared, and Seth sighed. Suddenly, a monstrous, roaring wave reared up where the crabs had just been. Seth gave a little yelp as he quickly backed away. The wave crashed right where Seth had been standing, and then quickly retreated back to the sea. In its place stood a strange looking man with wild long hair. His clothes seemed to be covered in seaweed, or were they made out of it? Seth couldn’t tell. The man was staring right at Seth with piercing blue eyes.

            “You are the one who helps the starfish?” the man asked Seth in what almost sounded like a watery voice.

            The question seemed so odd, that it took a moment before Seth could answer, “Well, I throw them back in the sea when I come across them on the beach.”

            The strange man nodded and said, “You’ve saved hundreds of starfish over the years, and I want to formally thank you.”

            “You want to thank me for saving the starfish?” Seth asked, confused. “Who are you and how do you know if I’ve saved that many?”

            “I’ve been known by many names over my lifetime, but you may call me Tidus. I’m the ruler of the sea and I’ve noticed what you’ve been doing. We’ve been watching you for a while now. Not many people do what you do.”

            Seth started to feel uncomfortable. Ruler of the sea? How could any man be a ruler over the water? “Well, it’s really not that hard. I like starfish and even saving one life is a good thing, right?”

            Tidus smiled and said, “If only every human felt like you do about saving lives that they feel are beneath them.” His eyes got a faraway look in them, and he grew quiet.

            Seth stood there awkwardly, not sure what to do. Finally, he said, “Well, Tidus, it was nice to meet you, but I’d better be going now.”

            He started to turn away, but Tidus said, “Wait, what is your name?”

            “Seth,” Seth said warily.

            “Well, Seth, because of what you have done, I can grant you a boon.”

            “A boon? You mean like a wish?”

            Tidus chuckled and said, “I’m not a genie, but I might be able to grant your wish, if it’s in my power.”

            Seth thought about what kind of wish this strange man could grant. Who was he really? Where did he come from?

            Tidus chuckled again, and said, “You have no idea who I really am, do you?”

            Seth shrugged his shoulders, and Tidus laughed. He held his hand out over the water, and the water moved up into his hand, like it was going through an invisible pipe or something. Then the water changed into something solid, and Tidus was holding what looked like a trident.

            Seth was flabbergasted by what he had just seen. How could this be possible? “A-are you…?” he couldn’t finish the question. It was too crazy.

            But Tidus finished it for him. “Poseidon?” he asked, laughing now. “Yes, that is one of my most popular names.”

            Seth looked at Tidus in awe. An ancient Greek God, right here in front of him? “Whoa,” he breathed.

            “Well, now that we’ve established who I am, what about you?” What boon would you like me to grant you?”

            Seth’s mind raced as he thought about what the God of the Sea could do. “I want to learn more about the ocean,” he said slowly. “Would you teach me?” He held his breath, hoping that he hadn’t gone too far.

            Tidus, however, was nodding as he said, “Yes, but I can do better than that. Let me show you.” He held out his hand to Seth, waiting.

            “What?” Seth asked, confused. “You know I’m only a mortal human, right?” I can’t just go with you in to the ocean.

            Tidus’s piercing blue eyes stared right in to Seth’s brown ones. “I promise that no harm will come to you.”

            Seth believed him. He took a deep breath and shook Tidus’s outstretched hand. Immediately, Seth felt engulfed with water all around him. He was no longer standing on the shore, but he was still breathing – underwater.

            Tidus took Seth on a short tour of the ocean. They traveled to places that Seth had never even imagined. They saw ancient shipwrecks on the sea floor. They saw nightmarish-looking fish in the deepest parts of the ocean. Seth lost count of all the myriads of kinds of fish that they saw. He saw the neon orange crabs guarding what appeared to be an underwater palace.

            Seth tried to take everything in. There was so much to see, and they were traveling so fast. Then, he was on the beach again, next to the same rocky outcropping that they had left from. Seth shivered as he realized that he wasn’t even wet from their trip. “Thank you,” is all he could say to convey the tumult of feelings inside of him.

            Tidus smiled kindly back at Seth. “You’re welcome.”

            Another wave crashed over Tidus, and when it had retreated, Tidus was gone. Seth stood there, thinking about all that had happened as the tide started to wash over his feet. He realized he needed to get home before his family started to worry about him. He started to run home, but stopped when he saw another starfish. He immediately bent over and picked it up. He threw it towards the ocean and said softly, “Thanks again, Tidus.”