Go with him

You swim beside the young man, your arms and legs aching by the time he draws up at the next crossroads. He slicks his hair back out of his face and treads water as he catches his breath. You notice that his eyes are larger than most humans', and just as black as two pools of ink.

"You will be safe now," he says. "Benthic will not come here."

"Thank you," you say. "Now, who are you? And what was that noise? Why did it make him let go of me?"

"I am Eadrom," he says. "I make the noise. I sound like orca. Horse-fish scared of orca, call them sea wolves."

"Right -- orca hunt hippocampi," you say. "Thank you again...Eadrom, did you say? Is that your name, or the kind of creature that you are?"

"Eadrom is my name," he says. "I am a selkie."

"Oh..." you breathe. No wonder he was crying. "Does the sorcerer have your skin? Is that how he's making you do this?"

Eadrom frowns, looking confused. "I don't know what sorcerer is. My skin was stolen by bad, bad humans. They wanted to play rough, but I don't like to play rough. It hurts. So I ran away. They took my skin. Now I cannot go home. I am alone and sad." He looks like he's going to cry again.

Selkies aren't as dumb as they sound; in fact, they're quite clever, their communication and language skill are just a bit lacking. It makes them a challenge to talk to, and you could probably find a better use for your time, but he did save your ass.