All the water people stopped smiling, suddenly uneasy. A little merman boy swam too close to one of the nets and got trapped in it.
“My son!” cried a mermaid mother, diving toward the net.
In the chaos that followed, as the water people tried to free the child and Kemeka tried to protect his nets, everything went terribly wrong. The merman child was injured. Enraged, the people of the waters killed Teméka. His body was later found floating on the river. The news reached King Embaku in less than an hour.
He sat on his throne, his face darkening as the village elder recounted the events.
“Your Majesty,” the elder said at last, “the people are afraid. If the water people can kill our best fisherman…”
King Embaku leapt to his feet, his voice thundering throughout the throne room.
“Bring me my advisors, and send a message to every village along the river!”
That evening, the king delivered a solemn declaration from the palace steps.
“They have taken one of our own,” he thundered, his voice echoing against the stone walls. “From this day forward, no member of the people of the waters shall be allowed to swim at the surface of the Muya River. Anyone who dares defy this decree shall be put to death immediately. The peace between our peoples is broken forever.”
That decree changed everything. The people of the waters withdrew to the bottom of the river, where they built their own kingdom, ruled by a strong and wise man, King Elloï.
