The black waters dip and fall as the storm clouds roll over the horizon. The castle, perched high on the hill, illuminates small sections of the water. The light beams off golden hair as its owner's head bobs in and out of the water. The slight glimmer catches the eye of the dozing off Telmarine positioned low on the rocky cliff above the small rough beach. He sharply elbows his fellow soldier. The response he receives is a startled cry and in return he laughs as the stout younger man tumbles off the rock he had been perched on, landing face first in the sand.

"Wha' was that for?" The man sounds perplexed more than agitated, but his watch partner quickly leaps off his rock and shushes him. Quickly and quietly, the more alert man creeps his way down the shore of the beach. The soldier, partner close behind, climbs atop the rocks of a small inlet and slowly walks with great precision on the jagged, uneven rocks. "What are we…"

The head soldier briskly shushes the stout soldier again, stepping out to the very end of the inlet. The rising waves crash on both sides of the rocks, spraying the soldiers' boots. The second soldier nearly slips in surprise and sheer fear as one rather large wave splashes up against the inlet and soaks him from the waist down. "Carzan, are you sure this is such a good…"

"Quiet you fool," Carzan snaps, leaning forward and squinting his eyes at the water. "Look, look there!" he whispers urgently, pointing to the small hint of gold peeking above the water.

"Is that…" the other soldier whispers back in utter disbelief. His mouth hangs open and his eyes grow wide in curiosity.

"It must be," Carzan replies with a slow nod, his lips parting slightly before he licks them in anticipation. "Well boy, ready to catch yourself a mermaid?" The soldier is brought out of his daze and nods with childish enthusiasm, slowly drawing his sword out of his sheath. Carzan slaps the hand away and the sword slips back in place. "Have you ever learned anything? That'll only scare the thing away. You have to look like you aren't expecting anything."

Carzan straightens himself and begins a slow pace up and down the inlet, avoiding the splashes and unsteady rocks with ease. He begins lightly humming an old sea song, but soon increases with volume and spirit. His fellow soldier looks at him with awe and tries to follow his step and rhythm, but his tune wavers and falls flat as does his feet. However, the lead man's energetic song is enough.

I peer over a large rock from the left of the inlet, only allowing the top of my head to be possibly seen. My slick black hair never fails to keep me hidden though I cannot say the same for my blonde haired sister. I can sense her in the water and I can sense the melody drawing her forward toward the inlet. The tune is intoxicating even with the missed notes and failed harmonies of the younger man's attempts. I keep my hold on the rock, though, anchoring myself away from the two men having heard their plans.

My eyes take to the blonde head bobbing closer and closer to the inlet. I desperately want to call out, but my selfish instincts tell me not to make myself known to the soldiers. I slip once again behind the rock and dive deep into the water, hoping to reach the mermaid in time. I call out a warning, but receive nothing in reply. I call more desperately again and suddenly a loud screech echoes through the water and rings in my ears. I slap my hands over my ears and resurface, hands still clenching over my shattered ear drums. Once the initial shock wears off, the message becomes clear. This mermaid is not blind to clever little melody. She is no mermaid of old.

My fingernails claw at the upper surface of the rock and I use my weak strength to hoist myself back over the top. My arms waver, but my head once again goes above the top of the rock. Carzan is still pacing and humming, louder if possible, as his partner scurries behind him, memorizing his every move and becoming even more desperate to repeat it perfectly. The blonde hair reaches the very tip of the inlet and I hold in a breath as her whole head emerges above the water.

Immediately, she begins humming along with the soldiers. The pair does not immediately notice her, but their steps slow and their bodies sway slightly as if put at ease by the new voice. The mermaid's voice is not powerful, but it still has effects the human ear. They have already fallen victim.

"Your song is simply beautiful," the mermaid whispers in a sultry, low voice. The men trail off and the humming ceases. The stout soldier is closer to the edge of the inlet and any fear he had of falling off the edge is quickly forgotten as he rushes to close the few feet separating him and the mermaid. "What is your name, dear soldier?"

"I-I…I am Regas," the soldier stutters, a fierce red hue rushing to his cheeks. He kneels as best he can on the edge, captivated by the mermaid's beauty. "Who-uh, who are you?"

She lets out a faint, sing-song laugh that lights up Regas's face. "I will give you my name in exchange for one small thing."

Regas begin to profusely nod his head. "Anything you wish, I will grant you."

"I only desire one kiss from such a brave soldier," she says, her voice dropping lower still as Regas grows closer and closer. I sharply intake a breath and my grip tightens so greatly on my rock that I feel the jagged edges cutting into my fingertips. I suddenly feel a strange urge to help the poor, defenseless soldier. What has he done to deserve an early, watery grave?

The feeling frightens. I, a mermaid, feeling some apologetic feelings toward a human. And not just any human; a Telmarine, of all types. What has this man done to elicit such a foreign feeling from me? He bears no such emotion for me. He would only be captivated by my beauty. However, he never sought out to kill the mermaid. That was the fault of his partner. Whatever this strange need to protect this man, it is overtaking my sense of judgment.

Regas is close enough now that his lips are ghosting the mermaids. I resist my instincts, but from the corner of my eye I catch rapid movement. The other soldier, Carzan, has drawn his sword, poising it to strike Regas out of the way so he can catch the mermaid. He edges down the inlet and I can no longer sit and watch this whole affair. I let out a sharp cry before diving into the water and swimming fast toward the inlet.

It all seems to happen in a split second. My cry breaks the spell the mermaid had on Regas, but not before she pulls him under the water. I swim quickly toward the struggling soldier, desperately trying to break the surface and find air. My hands ensnare one of his arms, just as the other mermaid recovers from her confusion. She growls at me and tries to grab hold of his other arm. She does not want to relinquish her prize.

I manage a quick burst of speed to pull the man around the other side of the inlet, but I feel the mermaid approaching fast behind us. How did my quest to save the mermaid turn into my saving of the man I was determined not to help? However, I must follow through now as if I leave in fear, the man will surely die and if I stop to explain, he and I may meet the same fate. I continue as fast as the man's body weight will let me and manage to reach the rocky beach. Pulling him on to the shore is another task entirely, but I manage to get his head above the water, allowing him to take shallow, lifesaving breaths.

I slip back into the shallow water, only to have a strong hand curl around my wrist. The hand drags me closer toward the shore and brings me face to face with the blonde. "You traitor," she hisses venomously in our native tongue, hatred glaring in her eyes. "It would have been one thing to steal my kill. It is another to save a man who only thinks to kill us. Do rocks fill your brain? Does sand rest in your ears?"

"He was not the man who sought to kill you," I argue, trying to wrench my wrist away from the seething mermaid.

"No, but he might as well have been. He is one of the many corrupt men. He is not worthy of your attention, of your life," she growls, refusing to release my wrist. If anything, her grip is harder still. Only a little more pressure and my wrist will surely break. "Kill him yourself and I'm sure his blood will tell you the stories of the sisters he has slaughtered."

"I will not," I say defiantly.

She releases my wrist and glides slightly back, but the cold stare still fixates on me. "You are a fool then. You believe the humanity of Narnia can still be saved. You are wrong and you will die because of it. Do you not believe these men have killed our kind? Do you turn a blind eye to all the sisters we have lost?"

I cast my eyes down at the water, unable to meet her cold, black eyes. "That is the reason I interrupted you. I did not wish you to meet the same fate as the others."

She lets out a dark laugh. "Is that what you truly believe? I feel your selfish, unwise heart. You would not sacrifice for me. Maybe even not for him. You did it to try and hold on to the idea Narnia can still be saved. You do not wish to see that nothing can bring back the world that has been so brutally taken from us."

"How did you succumb to such darkness," I whisper in disbelief, but also in horror. Horror, because part of my heart chooses to agree. Looking at the man still coughing and choking on the beach, I realize I care little about his well being and I care little about the mermaid spitting vial things at me. What do I care about?

"I see you are beginning to believe."

"But I don't want." My voice quivers and I begin shaking my head, praying the thoughts will leave.

"Just when I believe I got…"

A blood curdling scream breaks the dark silence around the castle and waters. I am stone as I watch the net ensnare the blonde mermaid. She tries in vain to fight, to swim, to escape. Carzan must have gotten aid from other places on the shore. Four men pull at the net around the mermaid, pulling her on to shore. She struggles and growls at the men, slapping her tail against the sand and clawing her fingers at the net.

Carzan takes a long sword and raises above his head, smirking as he plunges into the end of her tail. She screams as dark blood splatters the sand. My eyes never leave the mermaid and I watch as her face turns from fear to anguish to utter defeat. One tear escapes my eyes and slides down my cheek. I do care for my kind more than I know.

"Get the other one!" I am finally unfrozen as I hear a man call for my capture. Fight or flee?

Flee.

I come to logical senses for the first time this dark, blood tinted night. I hiss at the men on the beach, cast on last look at the poor mermaid and dive into the water, swimming as fast as my tail will allow me. I swim on and on until I can no longer feel the vibrations of their heavy footsteps and loud voices that ring through the air.

Finally, my will power gives out and come to an abrupt stop. I just witnessed the beginning of the end for one of my own. First comes capture and then…I cannot even bring myself to think of what happens next though many mermaids have had to suffer through it. Because of me, that mermaid will be the next in the long line and it will not end with her.

I didn't even know her name.

Her words keep repeating in my head. I am a fool. A fool who believes that all the Telmarines aren't the same. How wrong I am. They despise the Narnians and they will kill us while telling their children we are the savages. For them, hope is lost. I need to get out of this Telmarine sea. Inland and fresh water has never looked so inviting.

But, part of me still does not want to give up hope altogether. There must be something humans have that can save this place. I can feel it. But…

…what is hope worth now? That was over a hundred years ago. The waters have grown a little colder, the land a little deader, and my tail darker still.


A/N: Hello, and welcome to my story! It is set during Prince Caspian and is Edmund/OC. As you can already tell, the OC is a mermaid and the whole background of the mermaids will be told in the next chapter. It will be first person, but I will also add third person perspective for parts with the Pevensies. I hope you enjoyed the prologue and stick around for the story. Reviews are always wonderful!

-Emma