A Pirate's Song

Chapter Two.

I was ordered back below deck and there I sat, reading as much as possible about the first treasure as I could until Caleb came down the stairs. He started stripping once his feet hit the room floor, throwing his clothes in every direction with little care in the world.

He was drunk and reeked of rum as he stumbled across the room to the nightstand. He forced open the top drawer and grabbed a silver locket in hand. He curled his fist tightly around it and collapsed down on the bed beside me.

I lowered the book and placed it down on the sheets beside me "Sing" came the word in a low grumble, followed by heavy breathing as he blinked up at the ceiling. I put some more distance between us and leaned back against the wall, tilting my head back to look up at the cracks between the floor boards where the stars were glistening in the sky.

“Safe and sound at home again, let the waters roar, Jack. Long we've tossed on the rolling main. Now we're safe ashore, Jack" I sang, thinking back to the various songs I had heard over the years, waiting at the bar where sailors used to drink to the early hours in the morning.

Caleb closed his eyes and listened to me sing well into the night until he finally fell asleep. I stayed up most of the night, reading as much as I could and a few hours before dawn I was just about to fall asleep with the book in my lap when Caleb stirred from beside me.

“M-Mary" he muttered in his sleep and began thrashing. I jolted upright and looked down at the struggling man beside me. It looked like he was trying to get free of something, his head rolling from side to side as he continued to repeat the name that so desperately clung to his lips.

“Mary!" he yelled, thrashing more violently. I made a split-second decision and threw one leg over him so that I was straddling his torso. I reached for his shoulders, pinning him down on the mattress.

“Caleb!" I called out to him but it was no use, he tried shoving me back but I grabbed hold of his arms and tried desperately to pin them down beside him.

“Caleb, wake up!" I cried, hands cupping his face and his eyes shot open to look up at me. His entire body stiffened at my close proximity.

My face was mere inches away from his.

His arms fell limp at his sides and his breathing deepened as he tried to catch his breath. I slowly began to sit back on top of him, letting my hands slide down to grip his shoulders as his hand unclenched around the silver necklace. The metal cluttered down to the bedroom floor and caught my attention.

It was a locket but a familiar heart shaped one with fine detailing. It sprang open when it came into contact with the floor to reveal a set of gears and mechanisms inside. A tune began playing, soft and gentle but it stopped half way as the gears began to jam.

“That song" I whispered, remembering it from somewhere but I couldn't place my finger on it. I leaned down and reached for the locket but Caleb shoved me off him and onto the bed, getting up and stuffing the locket into the pocket of his pants. I fell back onto the soft material of the bed and gasped from the sudden movement.

“Where did you get that locket?" I asked, breathlessly to his back as he sat perched on the edge of the bed. I pushed myself up onto my elbows as I waited for his response. There was something odd about the locket and the way he acted about it. He didn't respond and instead ran a hand across his features. I shot up, grabbing hold of his shoulder.

“Answer me" I demanded but he wrenched his shoulder out of my grasp and stood up from the bed. He reached for his boots and tugged them on one by one. I stood up, allowing the book to clutter down to the floor from all the movement. I glanced back down at it as Caleb shrugged his jacket on over his shoulders and started towards the stairs.

“Wait!" I called and he froze but refused to look back at me as he waited for me to speak. I took a step towards him and mustered up enough courage to speak the words I had been thinking "You can either tell me what that locket means to you or I refuse to help you find the seven treasures" Caleb's back muscles shifted through the material of his coat and his boots thudded as he slowly turned to face me. His jaw was set and his hands balled into fists at his sides. There was no going back so I straightened out my shoulders and held my head high. He crossed the room in a few steps and took a stand in front of me.

“Ye really want to know?" he asked, his eyes searching mine for a trace of uncertainty but he found none as I slowly nodded my head. He dug his hand into the pocket of his trousers and pulled out the locket, holding it up between us for me to see.

“This trinket used to belong to the woman I loved before she was taken from me by the sea" he said, twisting and turning the locket in his hand before he crushed it in his large fist and stuffed it back into the pocket of his black pants. He then turned and stalked his way back above deck, leaving me alone to maul over what he'd just told me.

I found myself contemplating whether it was possible for a pirate to love but from the crazed look in his eyes when he spoke of her, it was clear that they could.

I noticed a pair of woman's boots, placed off to the side. They were made of brown leather and matched my dress with a white trim on them. I went over and tried to tug them onto my feet. They were a size to big but I managed to walk in them as I made the bed and tossed the book back down on top of it.

I noticed the sun rising through a port hole in the side of the ship and reached for my pirate's hat, deciding to head above deck. The crew were hard at work, some scrubbing the deck while other's maned the sails.

They bowed their heads in respect as I passed them on my way to the back of the ship where Captain Caleb was perched, looking out onto the sea while steering his vessel. I Climbed the stairs and gripped the railings tightly as the ship rocked from the waves. I kept my head down for fear of seeing and being drawn to the open sea.

My feet moved once the ship stilled and carried me over to the map that was fastened to the table that was attached to the ship. I placed my palms flat against the wood and studied the map but there was nothing but random lines. I turned to face Caleb.

“Where are we?" I asked but got no reply as he brooded and tapped his finger-tips against the helm of the ship. Rolling my eyes, I made my way around the wheel and in front of him so that we were stood face to face yet he still refused to even look at me. My earlier courage had given me a new sense of power when it came to the Captain.

“Caleb-." I began to which he slammed his fist down on the helm and leaned across it, towards me. His lips parted to reveal a set of pearl white teeth, one of which was gold on the upper right.

“Do not, call me by my name" he snarled, his breath fanning my face and smelling of sea food. I shrunk back slightly but caught myself. The ship rocked again and I stumbled slightly as I watched the man lean back and once again place his gaze onto the horizon.

“Well then, Captain-." I spat the word "I believe, I asked you a question" Snaggletooth coked on a chicken bone, on the deck below as the rest of the crew went quiet, waiting for their Captain's response.

Caleb looked down at me and turned to face the map behind him. He retrieved a compass from his waist belt and slammed it down on the table. He used an odd device that had a needle on each end and walked it across the paper as he calculated where we were.

“Thirty-five degrees North of South America" he replied, tossing the device and his compass down on the map as he turned back to the wheel. I examined the map, curiosity driving me as I tried to determine how he'd figured that out.

“The Caribbean?" I questioned to the Captain's annoyance. He sighed heavily, his arm resting on the wheel as he tried to ignore me. When he didn't reply, I picked up the compass and started toying with it, watching the needle point in a random direction that was supposed to be North.

“Teach me" I insisted, turning to face Caleb's back with the compass in hand. His body tensed and the crew grew dead silent again.

“Teach ye what?" Caleb bit out in question. I walked around the wheel for the second time, to face him head on and raised the compass "Teach me how to navigate the seas" the crew burst out laughing accept for one man who sat brooding in the corner. He lowered his head and scoffed, catching the attention of everyone on board. I looked back at him from over my shoulder.

“Ye first mate can't navigate, Captain" the previous second in command highlighted as he glared up at us from beneath his black bandanna.

I lowered the compass just as Caleb shoved his way past me. He jumped down the stairs and stomped his way over to the jealous man, grabbing him by the collar of his shirt and leaning him over the side of the ship.

“What did ye say?" Caleb demanded as he leaned into the man's face. The man struggled against him, looking down at the raging sea below him. The crew watched with fear in their eyes as the man struggled against their Captain.

I dropped the compass and hurried after Caleb as soon as I noticed that the man was in danger "She can barely read a map, yet ye decide to make her ye first mate!" the man yelled in a frantic hurry.

I reached the pair and grabbed hold of Caleb's arm, trying to pull him away from the Irishman. The young man from the day before hurried to my side, wrapping his arms around my waist as he tried to peal me away from the two, territorial pirates.

“Let go!" I cried, struggling against the young man as he dragged me away from the pair. Caleb didn't bother paying me any attention as he snapped.

“But she can read, can ye?" he demanded of the man, sticking his arm further out and causing the former second in command to lean further back until he was barely on board the ship.

“N-No, Sir!" he quickly answered, hands clawing at Caleb's one that was wrapped around the fabric of his stained and dirty shirt.

“Then ye are of no use to me" Caleb said, returning the man back onto his feet and tossing him off to the side on the deck of the ship. The Captain then stalked his way back to the wheel, ascending the steps that lead to it with a growl in his throat. The man was gasping for air on the ground as the one holding me, loosened his grip on my waist but I was frozen in place.

“Around here, fights are common" the young man explained, his lips grazing the shell of my ear when he spoke and snapping me out of my daze. I turned my head to glance back at him from over my shoulder to find his eyes staring at my lips.

“What is your name?" I questioned, deciding that I wanted to know. He loosened his arms from around me and settled for placing his hands firm on my hips instead.

“Ben" he answered, his eyes searching my features as his grip tightened on my hips. I grabbed hold of his forearms as I felt something inside me stir.

The former first mate staggered to his feet and spat in my direction "Ye, nothing but a woman" he threw at me then stumbled off to go down a bottle of rum.

I pried Ben's arms away from my hips and turned to face him with hopeful eyes. He instantly let go of my waist but didn't move as I turned.

“Will you teach me?" I questioned, searching his brown gaze and taking in his blonde curls. He was rather handsome with a toned jaw and dark, tan skin. He wore simple clothes and still had manors unlike the rest of the crew.

“Teach you?" he asked, not sure what I was referring to. I motioned towards the upper deck where Caleb was stood watching and explained "How to navigate?" Ben shot a glance in Caleb's direction but the Captain did little, only staring straight ahead at the sea so Ben nodded his head and agreed.

He showed me to a small room above the Captain’s chambers where the men would go to eat. He sat me down with a few maps and various devices including a compass and began to teach me. I struggled to even begin to understand how to navigate and eventually found myself exasperated.

“Enough already" I complained, to which Ben chuckled and started rolling up one of the maps. I was lying on my arms with my face buried in them as I listened to him tighten up the room.

“You were the one who wanted to learn to navigate" he reminded me and I groaned, raising my head to look at him. He was stood over by a desk, stuffing the maps into one of its drawers as he waited for my sarcastic response but before I could cleverly retort Caleb's voice pierced the air "Port Gull!" Ben, tilted his head back and looked up at the ceiling of the room to where Caleb was most likely positioned near the helm.

“Looks like we'll be making port" Ben announced as I rose from my seat and glanced towards the deck. I stepped out onto it to find that the sun was starting to set over the horizon. A small town sat in the distance, made up of wooden houses and much smaller boats. Ben followed me out onto the deck and gripped my shoulder.

“We'll continue your studies tomorrow" I groaned at the thought of having to be taught again. I was never one who liked learning new things and sometimes even despised it. I used to procrastinate a lot but something told me that Ben wouldn't allow it.

“Dock the ship!" Caleb's voice bellowed and the crew, including Ben began to scale the sails, rolling them up and tying them as the ship sailed into the bay.

It jerked and I stumbled slightly as a few crew men tied the ship down and hopped off the sides, onto land. Most of the crew were already on the docks when a loud thudding of feet approached me from behind. A pair of strong arms scooped me up into the air.

“What are you-?" I demanded as the man held me over the side of the ship.

“Catch" Caleb's voice demanded, followed by him dropping me. I screamed as I fell through the air and into a pair of equally as strong arms. Ben chuckled as he placed me down onto my feet. I huffed, brushing out my dress skirt as I watched Caleb throw himself over the side of the ship.

He landed in a crouch beside me and I yelped in surprise. The entire crew burst out laughing at my shock. I glared at them but they just stumbled off towards the nearest bar, leaving me alone with both the Captain and Ben.

My eyes caught sight of the horizon that was starting to turn a bright orange and that voice that called out to me, once again began beckoning me towards the sea.

“I wish to go swimming" I decided to announce. Caleb shot me a look then left for the bar, without even bothering to care whether I wanted to go swimming or not. Ben on the other hand decided to be much nicer than the Captain.

“There're a few lagoons up this way" he informed and started leading me in that direction. We stepped off the docks and onto sand and I instantly untied my boots, carrying them in my hands as I walked along the shore. Ben didn't care much for the sand and kept his shoes on his feet.

“Don't you enjoy the sea?" I asked while looking back in the direction of the bar. A few of the crew members were seated on the beach with no shoes or coats, sipping on a few bottles of wine and rum as they laughed and sang yet Ben refused to remove his shoes.

“I never liked the ocean" he responded, hands held behind his back as he walked, looking down at the sand and tensing every time the water would get too close to us.

“But you're a pirate" I argued which drew a chuckle from Ben as he stopped walking and motioned towards a set of rocks that stood beside us, there were holes in them further down where people could swim.

“Just because I'm a pirate, doesn't mean I like the sea" he said and then started towards the bar, leaving me alone with my thoughts.

I began climbing the rocks and made my way to the farthest lagoon where I sat my shoes down and started untying my dress. It was a pain to remove the corset but eventually I managed to loosen it enough for me to slip through, next was the dress which was a breeze compared to the corset. I stood naked on the rocks and stepped down into the water.

The lagoon was deep and clear as an orange hue was casted onto it from the setting sun. I stepped onto a rock in the water and sunk down to sit on it. My legs up to my knees were consumed by the water as I reached for my necklace. I unclasped it, taking a deep breath in and set it aside.

It wasn't long before my legs began to shimmer like silver in the water as I kicked them back and forth. They merged into one and I gasped when scales started to rise on them. A fin formed at the base of my feet and soon it was swishing back and forth in the water.

I glanced back in the direction of the bar to make sure that it was safe then leaped into the water. My eyes grew accustomed to the salt and the rest of my lower body took on the form of a mermaid's tail as I moved through the water. I breathed in through the gills that formed on my neck and swam down to the bottom of the lagoon.

A crab was walking along the sand but froze when I approached it. I watched as fish swam past me and an octopus retracted itself into the cracks of the lagoon wall. I glanced towards the surface of the water where the sun's rays danced along it and closed my eyes to listen. A whale cried out into the water nearby, a dolphin clicked and the movement of fins could be heard through the liquid as I sat on the lagoon floor.

Minutes turned into hours that I swam along the walls, longing to break free of its cage but knowing that if I was to escape into the sea, that all hope would be lost. I breached the surface a few hours later and hoisted myself up onto the edge of the lagoon.

I glanced down at my tail, shimmering in the moonlight. It was a pale silver color that sometimes appeared violet. It matched my pale skin and snow-white hair perfectly. I reached for my necklace and clasped it back on, only to find that the scales were starting to disappear from the waist down but stopped where my feet were still dangling in the water. I heaved them out and placed them on the rocks where they once again turned into feet instead of a fin.

I stood and began dressing, deciding to carry the corset and boots in hand as I walked back to the ship. My legs gleamed and glistened but by the time I reached the rest of the crew, they were back to normal.

“Ye enjoy ye swim, girl?" a random crew member asked when I approached them. I brushed it off and went over to where Caleb was lounging underneath a tree, looking out onto the sea.

A bottle of half drunken wine was planted into the sand beside him and most of his clothes were also discarded. He only wore his pants and hat. I dropped my corset and boots down onto the pile he had made with his clothes and joined him.

"What do ye want?" he asked without bothering to even look at me. I reached for his bottle of wine and took a swing of it. This caught his attention and got him to look up at me from over the rim of his hat.

“What do I want?" I repeated, setting the bottle down and looking out onto the sea. The waves beckoned to me, calling out my name in an enticing whisper. I tucked my legs in underneath me and buried my hands into the still warm sand.

“I want to be free" Caleb rolled his eyes and turned his head to the side, looking down the beach to where the former first mate was yelling curses into the ocean while waving an empty bottle around.

“Don't we all" the Captain muttered under his breath. The man tried taking a swing of his empty bottle but there was nothing so he threw the bottle into the sea and fell down into the sand.

“Sing" Caleb demanded, turning his attention back to the sky above. He crossed his arms beneath his head and tipped his hat forward to hide his face as he tried to fall asleep. I looked up at the stars and began to sing the first thing that popped into my head.

“The King and his men stole the Queen from her bed and bound her in her bones. The seas be ours and by the powers where we will, we'll roam" a few crew members nearby heard me singing and listened intently to my song. I continued to sing until the song was done and the members were snoring into the shore, around a bonfire that they had started earlier.

Caleb rolled over, onto his side and caused the locket from before to tumble out of his clenched fist. I reached for it, picking it up off the sand and holding it in the palm of my hand.

It was then that my breath caught in my throat and an image clouded my vision.

I was stood beneath a waterfall, wearing nothing but a sheer white, button up shirt and running my fingers through my hair. I laughed and looked back into the rocks where a younger version of Caleb sat watching me. He smiled, something I had never dreamed of seeing and got up to join me in the water. I turned as he stepped towards me and stood up on the tips of my toes to press my lips to his.

I threw the locket down on the sand and shot up off the ground, looking down at it as I blinked my eyes a few times, trying to clear my head. I shook my head and glanced down the length of the beach. The sun was starting to rise over the horizon and I furrowed my brows, wondering where the time had gone.

Caleb stirred beside me and sat up in a groggy blur. He blinked down at himself then started to panic. He searched the sand around him until he found the locket and reached for it but his eyes caught sight of my bear feet. He looked up at me with fear in his eyes.

“What did ye see?" he asked which terrified me even more since he'd known that I saw something. I began backing away from him, taking slow, messy steps back. He got up on his knees and stuffed the locket back into the pocket of his pants.

“Mary" he started and a chill ran down my spine. My name wasn't Mary; it was Evangeline but he didn't know that. I turned on my heels as he reached out to me and started running in the opposite direction. I tripped over one of the sleeping crew members and he muttered something in his sleep as I struggled to my feet and bolted for it. I climbed the hill that lead to the forest and disappeared into it, running until I couldn’t run anymore. I toppled over, falling to my knees in between the leaves and dirt as I thought back to the vision.

The woman, me, had blonde hair instead of white but other than that she looked exactly the same as me. Her eyes were mismatched and her figure was the same as mine. Her skin tone was a bit darker but other than that she was the spitting image of me.

I looked up at the forest ahead and took a few deep breaths before I shot back up off the ground and continued running, my bear feet threading over the earth until I was lost in the forest of the port. I had been running for nearly an hour when a familiar voice pierced the air from behind me.

“Mary!" I turned to look back at the man chasing me. He was gaining on me as I turned my attention back in front of me. I came to a sudden halt when I broke through the forest and found myself on the edge of a cliff. I stumbled back a few steps, gripping at my dress skirts as I gasped for air.

My back hit solid rock and I tensed when strong arms wrapped around me, turning me to face the man, in charge of them. Caleb looked down at me with wild eyes. He still wore his hat and his pants but his chest was bear as he gripped my shoulders and forced me to look at him.

“Mary, listen to me-." I cut him off, tearing myself free of his grasp and taking a small step back.

“My name is not Mary, it is Evangeline!" my voice was shaking, along with my body as tears began to fill my eyes. I felt threatened for some reason, like there was something going on that I didn't know about. Caleb stiffened at my decree and had to pause before he reached for me again.

“Evangeline, ye need to listen to me" he said in a calm tone but I shook my head and took yet another step back, feeling the earth start to crumble out from beneath me. I turned my head to stare down at the raging waters below. I contemplated jumping and dragged my feet back a few inches.

Caleb shot forward when I began to fall back and grabbed the material of my dress in his hand, yanking me back onto my feet and into his chest where he wrapped his arms around me and took a large step back, away from the edge of the cliff.

“Ye be the reincarnation of my love" he said into my hair as his one hand tangled itself into the white strands, pressing my face into his chest as the other tightened its hold on my waist. I had to take a few moments to process his words as he leaned back against a nearby tree.

I pulled away from him to look up at his face. The scar hadn't been there in my vision and his hair hadn't been as long. He looked to be at least a decade or so older than me and I understood.

“Mary" I whispered, placing my palms flat against his chest and pushing him away from me as I took a few steps back. I needed to breath as I thought about what I'd seen and heard.

“The locket" I muttered, my brain only able to process little pieces of information at once.

“That's why you took me" I concluded, looking up at him and he nodded. I searched his features and turned on my heels, heading back in the direction of the ship and its crew. Caleb called out to me and hurried to follow as I stormed my way through the forest.

He only wanted me because I looked like his previous lover.

“Evangeline!" he called as I broke through the tree line and onto the beach. The crew stood nearby, watching as their Captain ran after me. One of the crew men shook his head.

“Our Captain be losing it over a woman" he muttered as I stepped onto the docks. Caleb reached for my wrist and turned me to face him. I was ready to slap him but froze when I noticed the way his aura seemed to change.

“I don't care if ye is angered, ye will get me to the seven treasures and ye will not speak a word of this to the rest of the crew" I shrunk back at his harsh tone and whimpered when his grip became bone crushing around my wrist. Ben appeared on the deck of the ship, looking down on us in question.

“Captain?" he asked, forcing Caleb to let go of my wrist. I rubbed at the sensitive skin and looked up at the angered man before me. Caleb turned towards the shore and yelled out in a snarl.

“Bring me my things!" the crew instantly snapped into motion, hurrying over to the tree where Caleb had been sleeping to scoop both his clothes and mine up off the sand along with what remained of the bottle of wine. The Captain shot me a look before he climbed up the side of the ship and barked for Ben to get me on board so that we could set sail.

When Ben finally got me on board the ship he asked me if I was alright but I ignored him and headed straight for the Captain's quarters where I collapsed down on the bed with my face buried in the pillows and sheets.

I eventually fell into a deep sleep.