A Pirate's Song.

Chapter Nine.

Once the sun had set, Ben left to go help stock the ship with barrels of wine rum, crates of bread and vegetables.

He told me to examine a map and determine how long it would take to sail from point A, that he circled in black ink, to point B, by the time he got back.

The candle he had lit was flickering beside me on the table as I pondered over the current flow, wondering what time of the year we would sail such a length and feeling frustrated since he left me so little to go off of.

There was a bang and my head shot up in the direction of the opened glass doors where Rebecca was slumped against the door frame, a bottle of rum in hand. She was certainly a force to be reckoned with, a lady with a dirty mouth who drank rum straight from the bottle was never one to risk upsetting.

“Rebecca?" I greeted, a slight question in my tone as she pushed off the door and moved towards me.

She lapped at her bottom lip where a few drops of rum threatened to trickle down her chin and stopped on the other side of the desk.

“Becca, call me Becca" she placed her free palm flat against the table surface and leaned in closer. Her eyes narrowing as they searched my features, taking in my button nose, my mismatched eyes, my curly white hair and plump, pink lips.

“It's like staring at a ghost" she muttered, bringing the bottle to her lips and throwing her head back to take a long swing of the liquid.

I knew she was referring to how much I looked like Mary and wished that they would stop comparing me to a woman I barely knew. I wanted to know more about her but asking Caleb would only anger him and since she was the only other person on the ship who had personally known Mary, I decided to take my chances.

“What kind of a person was Mary?" Rebecca pulled out a chair and fell into it, her shoulders slouched and her arms dangling at her sides, causing the bottle to scrape across the floorboards below. She huffed as if the question was too hard for her to answer, eyebrows furrowing up as she tried thinking back. She was drunk and thinking at the moment was a difficult task.

“Mary-." she breathed the name, her eyes darkening, a sadness filling them when she remembered what we were talking about. There was an unsettling silence that followed and I began to squirm, wondering if I had made a mistake by asking.

Just as I was about to change the subject she spoke "She was a noble woman from the South, raised rich and isolated from the world" Rebecca paused to take another swing of her rum, as if trying to drink away the memories that she was calling forth.

I listened intently, wanting to know as much about Mary as possible. A rich noble woman and a pirate Captain? How had it come to that, how had she fallen in love with such a beast of a man?

“She was obsessed with the sea and its mysteries but being locked away in that stuffy mansion meant that she could only stare at it, sometimes for hours on end" my head throbbed and I squeezed my eyes shut when an image of a mourning Mary standing on a balcony, wearing a laced up ball gown flickered across my eyes.

“She had heard rumors of pirates venturing towards the South and sneaked out one night to go meet them" I could see Mary in a black cloak, glancing around a cobble stone corner to see if there was anyone there before she scurried along the narrow streets, her head held low and her hand gripping at the cloak to shield her from the eyes of the people.

“She had always envied the life of a pirate, free to do as they please, come and go as they desired but the thing she was most jealous of was their intimate connection with the sea" my hand slipped from the table to grip the side of my head, my mouth gaping at the sharp, intense pain that came along with the images.

I could see her looking at the old oil painting that hung above her father's fireplace in the study of their mansion that was of two ships battling on a stormy night. One was a pirate's ship and the other a fleet vessel. Her eyes looked haunted, empty as she stared at the flag on the pirate ship, dreaming, longing for such a life.

“She met with the Captain that night, one Caleb Campbell, the bloody moron, and he agreed to take her out onto the sea" Rebecca uttered the insult, taking another swing of her rum.

I tried opening my eyes to look at her but everything was a blur, clouded with images of a blonde haired woman pleading with a golden eyes pirate to take her out onto sea only if it were to be for just a few simple minutes.

“He took her places she could only dream of, showed her the beauty of the water and somewhere in between their months together they both fell in love" the first vision I had seen of them in the pool near the waterfall flashed past my eyes, the sight of them kissing with her dressed in his shirt.

There were thousands of images, one by one filling my mind at a speed so rapid that I couldn't keep up, a small cry escaping my lips as I tried to force them away. I wanted to tell Rebecca to stop talking but at the same time I had to know what happened to Mary, how she had died.

“Their relationship was to be kept a secret because of her status as a noble, quite the cliché romance if you ask me" the sound of rum swishing inside the bottle met my ears followed by a loud gulp.

Mary and Caleb meeting at an old abandoned church outside the city came to the surface, sharing a passionate kiss as they met at around midnight, their acts forbidden but made worth it by the smiles they both wore.

“But as his love for her grew, her love for the sea outweighed their bond to the point where she sacrificed herself to become one with it" Mary stepped up onto the side of the ship, staring down at the water below then leaped, diving under the water only to sink further and further down as Caleb's voice frantically called out to her in the background.

“They were out on the water one night and she dove in, unable to swim, she began to sink and Caleb tried his best to save her but in the end she got what she wanted, she drowned to forever be with the love of her life”

A calming look came over Mary's features as she watched Caleb struggle on the surface. Her eyes closing when she felt the water enter her lungs, filling her and causing her chest to burn but she was happy, she was smiling.

I gasped, my hands gripping the table in front of me when the images finally stopped and I could breathe. Rebecca had barely even noticed my struggle, too drunk to process the world around her.

“That's the story, I guess" she babbled, shrugging her shoulders and tipping her empty bottle upside down to shake it, as if expecting more rum to come flowing from its neck.

She abruptly stood and nearly fell forward onto her face but caught herself.

“I'm going to go get some more rum" with that she left, leaving me staring at the ground with wide eyes, my body trembling and chest aching from the emotions I had just experienced.

Footsteps neared the room I was in just as my hands lost their grip on the table and I tumbled to the side, about to hit the floor but strong arms scooped me up against a solid chest before I could hit my head.

“Evangeline?" a frantic voice called and I knew from the tone that it belonged to Ben.

Maps were strewn across the floor and he had dropped a trey of food in his rush to catch me. My eyes began to droop, my arms dangling at my sides, too weak to even move a finger.

“Caleb" I whispered the name, feeling the person beneath me stiffen as I once again passed out, the image of his face smiling down at me dancing in my mind, such a beautiful image, the image of a man in love.

I was back in the Captain's quarters when I woke up, the ship was moving again and I was alone. Shouting came from above deck and the sun's rays danced into the room through a port hole.

It was growing colder the further we ventured North and from the way my breath condensed I would say that we were getting close to the location of the second treasure.

I threw my bare legs over the side of the bed and could barely feel the cold nipping at them. As a Mermaid I couldn't really feel the cold since I would have to swim in arctic waters if I was to live in the sea.

I reached for the boots near the foot of the bed and tugged them onto my feet, one by one followed by a thin jacket that I had found in one of Caleb's drawers. It hugged my arms and torso, making it seem as if I was trying to keep warm to the people around me.

I snatched my hat from the night table and headed above deck to find ice drifting around the ship, white planes stretching out into the distance as far as the eye could see.

The crew were awestruck by the sight while Caleb steered the ship deeper into the biting frost.

I hurried to the bow where Rebecca was fast asleep, perched on a barrel near the wheel of the ship, a blanket draped over her shoulders as her head rested on the railing of the Sunken Soul.

“We're here" I announced, appearing beside Caleb who looked at me with furrowed brows that eventually faded into a stern, annoyed scowl. My eyes looked at what awaited us ahead and found that we were heading towards two large ice shelves that would surround us like walls on either side once we'd enter. The path beyond that wound and was unknown.

“Slow her down!" Caleb snapped to the crew, causing Rebecca to stir from her slumber and the crew to do as they were told, tying down the sails so that the ship crept into the narrow space between the shelves.

The red head blinked up at us, her eyes adjusting to their surroundings as I stared straight ahead, focused solely on the treasure.

“Evangeline?" she questioned but I ignored her when the sight of a shipwreck came into view. I rushed past Caleb and took a stand in front of him, hands gripping the railing as I cried out "There!”

The Captain nodded, his teeth gritting when he ordered for his crew to lower the anchor. The ship jerked and I grunted when my torso connected with the railing of the ship from the force.

I gazed down at the ice waters and the pieces of ice that floated across it before rushing to the side of the ship, hurrying down the steps to use the net that was attached to the side to climb down until I was stood on one of the ice slabs.

“Evangeline!" Ben called after me while I danced across the ice to where the ship had been wrecked on some rocks. I climbed up onto one of the rocks and was able to get on board the ship.

“Lower the boats!" Caleb yelled out from somewhere behind me followed by some heavy objects colliding with the water's surface.

I tentatively stepped onto the floorboards, hearing them creek underneath my weight, groaning as I slowly moved across them to the rope ladder that lead up to the lookout point on the ship.

“In the crow's nest" I repeated, my memory going back to the book and its words. I started climbing up the ladder, my hands burning and legs trembling as I scaled higher.

I glanced down to find two rowboats traveling towards the wreck I was on; Caleb was at the head of one while the Irishman was at the head of the second. Ben and Rebecca had remained behind to guard the ship.

“Get me that gem!" Caleb snarled at me when he noticed that I had stopped climbing. I nodded and hurried to the top, dragging myself into the nest where I breathed heavily, not used to using my muscles so much.

There was something odd about the way I felt, weaker, dizzier than usual as if I hadn't slept in days when in fact I had just woken up from a night's sleep.

I could hear heavy boots thudding on the deck below and was snapped out of my daze, my eyes searching for something in between the straw, empty bottles and snow. I fell to my knees when I noticed a blue gleam catching the light of the sun and scooped it up to find that it was a gem identical to the first with the only difference being their color. I stared at the jewel and furrowed my brows up in confusion.

“This was too easy" I breathed when realization struck. I jumped onto my feet and peered over the edge of the lookout point to find that most of the crew were staring at the water below, including Caleb who drew his sword, metal scraping against metal.

My eyes landed on a figure that was as white as snow but had water for hair and was leaning towards one of the crew. Her eyes were as black as the ships sails and claws decorated her webbed fingers.

“Sirens" I uttered, watching her lunge and grab the man, dragging him into the water that quickly turned red as it was stained with blood.

“Sirens!" I yelled when more of them surfaced. Caleb turned slicing the head off one that had lunged at him. My eyes were following him as he moved, cutting down a few until one managed to pop up right in front of him, exposing her fangs that were similar to mine.

I searched for something, anything, eyes landing on one of the bottles that I grabbed and threw directly at the Siren, the glass shattering against the side of her head. She hissed, her eyes narrowing onto me before Caleb managed to cut her down, black blood splattering across the wooden floorboards.

I heard a loud, high pitched cry and looked down at the pole of the crow's nest. One of them was climbing up towards me, her albino form standing out against the dark wood. I stumbled away from the side she was ascending on only to find that a second Siren was scaling the opposite side.

“Evangeline!" Caleb's voice called out to me, drawing my eyes onto him in the crowd below as men fought against the flesh eating creatures. My chest rose and fell as I contemplated which rout to take, my eyes landing on the water then on the gem. I stuffed it into the pocket of my coat then hurriedly stripped out of it.

“Caleb!" I yelled as I threw my coat to him, he caught it in confusion as I kicked my boots off and stepped up onto the side of the crow's nest just as one of the Siren's reached me, reaching out to claw at my leg.

I cried out in pain when she pierced skin and leaped from the perch, tearing the necklace from my neck as I dove into the water, red blood pooling around me as a few Siren's dragged some of the crew down into the dark depths to feast.

My legs twisted into one, a fin decorated in silver scales as my eyes began to glow and my fangs extended, hands webbing as more scales decorated my chest, face, torso and arms. My ivory hair danced around me in the water, skin as pale as moonlight.

I found myself watching the Siren's, wondering how I was any different from them? I called Caleb a monster but in truth, I was the monster.

I looked to the surface where I could hear the voices of men shouting and swords swinging. My lips parted and I began to sing, a sound that resembled that of a whales cry, low and haunting. The Sirens halted, clutching at their ears and shrieking, some fleeing at the sound of my voice, a voice that could cause an eardrum to burst from how high it was. Human's couldn't hear it which meant that they had no idea why the Sirens were retreating, thrashing in the water until they were out of sight and I could stop singing, taking a deep breath through my gills before clasping the necklace back around my neck.

My tail parted into two limbs, my eyes returning to normal, webs fading as I returned to my naked, human self, dangling in the water with no air to breathe until I was sure I could return to the surface.

I kicked violently against the current and broke through the water, gasping for air, breathing hard as I clung to the side of one of the rowboats.

Caleb sheathed his sword and rushed over to me, my coat in hand as he leaped into the boat, reaching for my arm to pull me from the water, pressing me firmly up against his chest as he wrapped the coat around me as an attempt to try and keep me warm.

I was trembling from the cold but not as much as I would've if I had been human. I would most likely have had hyperthermia by then if that were the case.

“Return to the ship!" Caleb ordered, holding me rooted in place as his men hurried to row us back to the ship before the Siren's returned. I knew they wouldn't but remained silent, my hands gripping at the material of his shirt and jacket.

They hoisted the rowboats back aboard the ship and Caleb scooped me up into his arms, causing me to cry out in agony. He glanced down at my right calve where I had a set of four claw marks running across the flesh, dripping blood onto the deck.

My eyes landed on Ben who was about to hurry to my side but Rebecca grabbed hold of his shoulder and shook her head, motioning towards the boats. Caleb turned to quickly carry me below deck, to his chambers where he sat me down on the chair he had been sleeping in the night I had first passed out.

“It hurts" I whined, gritting my teeth and clutching at the wound with my hand to try and stop the bleeding. The warm liquid pooled past the gap in between my fingers and spilled down onto the rug and wood.

Caleb stayed rooted in place, his face stern and his eyes searching my features. I looked to him with pleading eyes once I realized why he wasn't helping me. It was because of how I reacted when he tried to clean the wound from where I had hit my head. I was shaking, exhausted, terrified because of what I had seen. Men being torn apart in black water by creatures like me, by people of the water.

“Help me" I squeaked out, my eyes stinging with tears from the pain, I gritted my teeth, my eyes squeezed shut as I cried "Please!" the word was frantic, strangled like the whine of a wounded, dying animal.

Caleb hurried to get everything he needed, a needle and thread, a bucket with some fresh water, wine, a cloth and bandages. I let go of my leg to grip the arm of the chair when he took hold of it, turning it to examine the wound then grabbed the bottle of wine, removing the cork with his teeth.

“This is going to hurt" he warned but before I could protest a sharp sting shot through me, I threw my head back, mouth gaping as I screamed, my back arching and muscles tensing in response to the pain.

The coat I wore had slid down my shoulders, leaving me naked to his eyes but neither of us seemed to care. I was too blinded by the pain and he was too focused on disinfecting my wound.

He poured some more wine onto the wound then set the bottle aside as my nostrils flared and my breathing came in short, quick pants.

“Breathe" he instructed, his eyes flickering up to my face. I was staring at him but could hardly process what was happening. He wet the cloth in fresh water and began dabbing at my leg, it didn’t hurt as much as before and it gave me time to calm my breathing down.

My eyes had drooped shut and I was about to fall unconscious when something pierced my skin. I shot back up, eyes wide and mouth gaping, a shriek piercing the air. He dug the disinfected needle into my skin again, repeating the action as I wept and screamed and pleaded for him to stop, to stop the pain.

“No, no, stop, please stop, please! Please, stop!" He ignored me and went from one gash to the next until all four were stitched up with thread. He tied off the last stitch and tossed the needle aside to once more dab at my wounds with the wet cloth.

Sweat was dripping down my forehead, my body was shaking and my mind was spinning. I felt him bandage my leg, gently folding the fabric around and around until it too could be tied in a knot below my knee.

My arms dropped to my sides, knuckles scrapping across the floor as my head fell limp onto my shoulder.

“I'm so sorry" his arms wound themselves around me, moving me so that my head was resting on his shoulder as he held me around the waist, still kneeling on the ground between my parted legs. His breath was warm as he whispered the words, his hand running through my hair as if to try and comfort me.

“T-Thank-." I coughed, my body shaking from the sudden fit. My voice was raspy from the screams and would scratched my throat whenever I would speak.

“You-u" I felt like I was dying, like my body was going to give in at any moment but before it did I had to give him the jewel. I tried moving my arm but it only made things worse, using up the little amount of energy I had left.

The jacket slipped down my arm and cluttered to the floor, the blue rock tumbling from the pocket and onto the wood. Caleb stared down at it for a while, in silence.

“We head…S-South-East" I managed to get out before I slipped from his shoulder, his arms catching me when I was once again thrown forcefully into a deep slumber, wondering why I was willing to do so much for a man I barely even knew.