There was little time to think. It was either act or die.

It had been so long since Ritsu had done his initial research on sirens, but the dire situation brought the little information he knew back to him. His journal came to the forefront of his mind with one bullet point in particular resurfacing in his memory.

Escaping a siren: hearing/playing a sweeter song, plugging your ears and restraining yourself

Ritsu didn't have any musical ability, but he could attempt to be louder than the sirens. However, that seemed less likely to succeed than blocking out the music entirely. Ritsu slapped his hands over Kisa's ears frantically.

"Don't listen!" He shouted despite knowing his words probably wouldn't do much.

Kisa blinked as the song was muffled and he frowned, turning to look at Ritsu and instinctively trying to escape his grasp. "Richan, what's-?"

Ritsu held on to him tighter, keeping his ears covered. "SIRENS!" He shouted. He couldn't allow any room for his message to be misunderstood by his hands muffling him.

"What? But then how are you-?"

"COVER YOUR EARS!" Ritsu shouted once more. Questions later, solutions now! There wasn't time to explain.

Kisa quickly replaced Ritsu's hands with his own to block out the sounds of the sirens, though it was getting more and more difficult. The closer they got to the cliffs, the louder the song got. Kisa wouldn't be able to ignore it forever.

"Shit...shit!" Kisa cursed, looking toward the helm where Hatori currently stood. The first mate was still guiding the boat toward the cliffs. "Ritsu, get Hatori off the wheel, tie him up if you have to and get us out of here!" He ordered.

Ritsu blinked. Did...did Kisa want him to steer the ship?! Hatori had shown Ritsu the helm in the past, but Ritsu would hardly consider himself capable of steering! Oh, why couldn't it have been other sailors instead of sirens?! Ritsu would have even preferred other pirates attacking and storming their ship! At least Kisa and the rest of the crew could handle other pirates!

"I don't-!" Ritsu started to protest the mere idea of taking over at the helm, but Kisa cut him off quickly.

"There's no time for arguing! And my hands are a little busy right now." Kisa pointed out. "We can't go around plugging everybody's ears, we'll crash before we do! You've got to get us heading away from the cliffs now!"

Ritsu moved quickly, grabbing some nearby rope and dragging Kisa over toward a mast.

"I-what are you-?" Kisa tried to ask as he stumbled along.

"Just in case." Ritsu tied him to the mast quickly, wrapping the rope around his waist so that Kisa could still cover his ears. Ritsu then took the Captain's sword and daggers so he couldn't possibly cut himself out.

"Ritsu!" Kisa protested, but was unable to really resist much as he kept his hands pressed firmly against the sides of his head.

Ritsu couldn't tie everyone down to the Emerald, but he could make sure the Captain was safe. Rather, he could make sure Kisa was safe from drowning himself. Ritsu couldn't speak for much else.

The singing was getting louder.

Kisa continued to protest, but soon fell quiet as his eyes clouded with the magic once more. His attempts to block out the music was beginning to fail.

Ritsu could not allow himself to panic nor could he waste time trying to get Kisa to snap out of it. Instead he sprinted toward the helm. He paused for only a moment to consider how to get Hatori away from the wheel. He attempted to push and pull, but the pirate did not budge.

I hope this works, Ritsu thought, backing up to get a running start and launch himself at Hatori. Ritsu was significantly smaller than Hatori, but he was still a considerable amount of weight suddenly being thrown at the first mate, causing Hatori to fall onto the deck. Ritsu scrambled up and grabbed the wheel, spinning it in whatever direction was the hell away from the cliffs!

However, the magic was insistent and did not leave the first mate upon contact. Hatori stood, reaching to grip the wheel and try to turn it back toward the cliffs, being compelled to do so by the sirens' song. Ritsu struggled against him, failing to match his strength as he looked frantically between the cliffs and Hatori. The figures on the cliff were becoming more clear the closer they got. The sirens were perched, waiting, singing, and watching the ship, eager for it to crash against the rocks. Ritsu became more frantic in his attempts to pull the wheel the opposite direction, but Hatori did not let up. Ritsu couldn't cover Hatori's ears, the singing was now too loud for that to work, but Ritsu could attempt to disrupt the magic another way.

Ritsu leaned up toward Hatori's ear and silently apologized before screaming as loud as he possibly could, splitting right through the harmonious melodies of the sirens.

"What the hell, Ritsu?!" Hatori moved away from him and covered his ears instinctively, the magic wavering, but only for a moment.

Ritsu did not have any more rope on him nor was there any close enough for him to quickly grab, but he had Kisa's daggers.

He rushed forward and stabbed through Hatori's sleeves to essentially nail him down, taking care to make sure he didn't actually hurt the first mate. He hoped it would be able to keep Hatori away from the helm long enough.

Ritsu turned away from Hatori too quickly to see his eyes cloud over again. He was too worried about the wheel to wait and see if Hatori's clear mind would remain. Ritsu began to turn the wheel again, trying to remember anything and everything Hatori had taught him about the ship. However, no matter how much he had learned, he still had not received any experience at the actual helm.

But, it seemed Ritsu knew enough as he managed to breathe just a little bit as the ship began to turn away from the cliffs. However, there was still more work to be done. There was nothing stopping the crew from deciding to jump off the side of the ship and right into the ocean. Right now none of them were moving and were instead simply staring toward the cliffs, but there was no guarantee they would remain.

If I can get everyone below deck and lock them down there they'll be safe, Ritsu thought, or at least safer, but first he needed to make sure Hatori would stay restrained as the first mate was currently struggling to get back to the helm.

Ritsu allowed himself a moment to grab some more rope since they were currently on course. He tied Hatori's ankles together before removing the daggers from his sleeves. He easily toppled Hatori over now that his ankles were bound, the pirate landing on the deck with a grunt. Hatori was sure to have some bruises from hitting the deck twice now. Ritsu then tied his wrists together, trying to ignore the ironic fact that Hatori had taught him these knots.

Once satisfied with the knots and silently apologizing to Hatori again for the discomfort and possible rope burn, Ritsu rushed toward the remaining crewmates. He pushed and pulled them along urgently. He was thankful that he did not meet much resistance, the siren magic making the men hardly able to fight against him. While leaving the helm unattended was considered one of the biggest do-nots of the sea, Ritsu felt it didn't particularly matter in this moment what direction they were headed so long as it was away from the man-eating creatures.

Ritsu managed to shove about a third of the men below deck, going back to the helm every so often just to make sure they were still heading the right way. He wasn't able to get any other men below deck as he heard a 'thunk' behind him: it was the distinct sound of something landing on the ship. He whipped around and withdrew his sword, pointing it toward the creature.

On the ship, about seven feet away from him, stood a siren; a woman with gigantic wings and sharp talons. She looked him up and down, before tilting her head curiously.

"Drop your weapon." She ordered.

Ritsu held on to it tighter and kept it pointed toward her, swallowing hard and taking ragged breaths.

She frowned, displeased that he did not immediately obey. "Why don't you listen?" She hissed, clearly frustrated as she took a step forward.

"Stay back." Ritsu said, his voice shaking.

"You are outnumbered. My clan will come once I call them. Give up now and I will give you a merciful and quick death." She offered. "Or I could eat you alive, slowly and painfully, if you'd prefer that."

Ritsu glanced up toward the sky. The siren was telling the truth; the rest of her clan was not here. Yet. "W-Why did you come alone then? If we're outnumbered, why didn't you all come?" Ritsu asked, trying to buy time to figure out a plan, ignoring her threat to the best of his ability so he didn't completely panic.

"When this ship started to turn around we became concerned. I volunteered to scout ahead to make sure this ship is safe to continue to pursue." She took another step toward Ritsu.

"Well it's not!" Ritsu shouted, trying to sound intimidating, but he sounded like a frightened child, even to himself. "Stay away from me! From us! G-Get off our ship!"

"Why don't you listen?" She repeated with a frown, not understanding how this human could possibly be resisting their magical influence. She continued to move forward, but stopped and stared at Ritsu's chest.

Ritsu frowned and glanced down, for the first time noticing the gentle blue pulsing of the singing stone around his neck and the quiet, constant hum it gave off.

"Where did you get that?" She demanded. "How did you get that?"

Ritsu gripped on to the stone with his free hand protectively, worried she may try to steal it. "A friend gave it to me. A siren gave it to me."

She stared shocked before shaking her head, dismissing his claim quickly. "That's impossible." She laughed cruelly.

"It's true!" Ritsu insisted, hoping this would somehow help him. If he showed himself to be an ally to sirens, maybe, just maybe he and the others would be left alone.

"You are a liar." She said, her eyes narrowing as her amusement left her. It was funny the first time he said it, but she was growing tired of this game.

"I am not!" Ritsu cried out desperately.

"And what is the name of this siren friend of yours?" She asked, raising an eyebrow as she started to stalk closer once more.

"Saga Masamune!" Ritsu shouted in a final attempt to save himself and the entire crew of the Emerald.

She froze, her face wavering into an unreadable expression.

"How...where did you hear that name?"

"He is my friend! He is the one who gave me this singing stone and-and if you hurt me or my friends he'll be very upset!" Ritsu exclaimed, hoping she would not call his bluff about that second half.

The woman gritted her teeth and looked away from Ritsu for a moment before meeting his gaze with an intensity in her eyes. "You and your friends are to never cross these waters again. Understood? You will not get a second chance."

Before Ritsu could respond, she took off and flew back toward the cliffs.

Ritsu rushed back to the helm, ignoring Hatori's struggling form behind him as he steered the ship once more. Ritsu gripped the wheel so tightly that his knuckles turned white and began to hurt from the tension, but he dismissed the ache.

He couldn't fully trust that woman's word, she could change her mind and return with reinforcements, she could've just been trying to get Ritsu to drop his guard, they still had to get away, Ritsu had to get everyone to safety-!

The singing stopped.

And Ritsu collapsed onto the deck.

"Ritsu?"

The teen looked beside him, Hatori staring at him in alarm and confusion, his eyes no longer clouded with magic.

"What the hell is going on?" Hatori asked, trying to escape his bonds.

Ritsu, not having the energy to answer, simply undid the knots and laid back down on the deck.

Hatori stood, rubbing his wrists and trying to coax Ritsu to stand or at least explain what was happening, but Ritsu did not respond.

"A little help over here!"

Hatori looked toward where the voice came from, noticing the Captain tied to a mast.

"Captain!" Hatori shouted in alarm, rushing forward to set him free.

"Thank you, Hatori." Kisa said as the other men looked around in a daze, confused and a bit dizzy, but released from the sirens' spell.

"What happened?" Hatori asked.

"Sirens, if I remember right." Kisa said. "Now where is my sword…" He mumbled to himself with a frown.

"Sirens?! But-how-I've never heard of sirens hunting here before." Hatori said.

"Well, they're here now." Kisa said, looking toward the helm where Ritsu was currently laying. The young boy was still trying to stop his racing heart and trembling breath. "And it seems our newest member was able to deal with them, somehow."

"Ritsu? How did Ritsu-?"

"I don't know." Kisa interrupted. "But I intend to find out after we get our men to safer waters."

Hatori nodded immediately. "Yes, Captain." He said, going back to the helm and attempting to get Ritsu to stand, or at least sit up.

Ritsu slowly pulled himself up, but did not stand, simply scooting out of Hatori's way. Hatori frowned, concerned about the boy, but taking station at the helm regardless.

Kisa checked on the men that Ritsu had managed to get below deck before going over to the teenager and sitting beside him, making sure to stay out of Hatori's way as well.

"You doing okay, Richan?" He asked, wrapping an arm around him.

Ritsu leaned against Kisa, for once not fighting against the physical contact and instead feeling grateful for it.

Kisa resisted the urge to grimace as that alone seemed to be answer enough. He gave Ritsu's shoulders a gentle squeeze. "You did good, Richan. We're okay now."

Ritsu nodded slowly in acknowledgement. "It's...not always like that, is it?"

"No, no, not at all." Kisa said quickly. "We usually deal with humans. We might have run-ins with creatures like that again, but we're normally more prepared than that. We didn't know there were sirens in this area, but we're getting out of here now." He assured.

Ritsu nodded again. "She..." Ritsu started, trailing off and correcting himself, "One of them came on to the ship. I got her to leave, but she told me if we came back here we wouldn't get away again."

Kisa's eyes widened in surprise, not expecting to hear that Ritsu had actually talked to one. He really is the siren whisperer, huh? He thought to himself. "Well, I can assure you that if we ever did come back here we would be much more ready for a fight, but...maybe staying away would be a good idea."

Ritsu shut his eyes, both exhausted and jumpy, his adrenaline leaving him but his anxieties remaining.

"Come on, you should get some rest." Kisa stood and offered Ritsu his hand. It was still only morning, but Ritsu had more than earned the right to go back to bed.

Ritsu slowly took Kisa's hand and got up, letting the Captain lead him below deck.

"Don't hesitate to come get me or Hatori if you need anything, okay?" Kisa said. Ritsu nodded, getting into his hammock. "You really saved our skin, Richan. If you hadn't been here with us…" Kisa trailed off, a disturbed expression flashing across his face before he shooed it away with a smile. "Well, it's a good thing you were, right? No use dwelling on what could've been. Get some sleep."

Ritsu took a deep breath and tried to follow his Captain's orders, hoping to slip into a peaceful slumber, but he was far too disturbed.

He wasn't disturbed by the near death experience, wasn't disturbed by the sight of men completely losing their autonomies and becoming mere shells of who they once were, wasn't disturbed by the haunting song nor the sharp talons that had been mere feet away from him.

No.

The image that wouldn't leave Ritsu's mind was the siren's eyes.

Why?

Why did her eyes look so much like Saga's?

"Is he alright?" Hatori asked when Kisa returned above deck.

"Shaken up. Exhausted. Terrified, even. But he's alive and doesn't seem to be injured, which is more than what most people who encounter sirens can say." Kisa explained.

Hatori nodded. "Is he going to be able to handle this kind of life?"

"He seems to be handling it just fine. He's the reason we're all alive." Kisa reminded him. "Besides, your first brush with death is never easy. His reaction is completely understandable." He added. "He suddenly had everyone's life in his hands, which wasn't something any of us expected and it definitely wasn't something I prepared him for. Everything compared to facing on sirens alone will be a piece of cake for him, after he steels his nerves again." And Kisa did not doubt that Ritsu would do so. Ritsu may have been weary and frightened now, but he was also a stubborn boy who Kisa was sure would bounce back.

Hatori slowly nodded in agreement. "I suppose." He said. "It's a shame this part of the trade route has become dangerous. We'll have to travel out further now to avoid those monsters." He sighed. They would have to commit to more raids in order to make the trip worth it, which wouldn't be a problem if it weren't for the fact that sirens were after the same ships they were.

"Maybe they're not so monstrous." Kisa said after a moment of pondering.

"What do you mean, Captain?" Hatori asked.

"Ritsu talked to one of them and I suppose somehow managed to convince her to leave us alone." Kisa said. "Which means they can be reasoned with."

"I've been thinking along similar lines ever since we briefly met Ritsu's siren friend." Hatori admitted. "Obviously these sirens were not so friendly, but…"

"Perhaps we could find a friendly siren of our own." Kisa finished. "Later." The Captain added firmly. "Finding a siren we can ally with is not a priority nor is it likely to happen. Plus, we need to consider the morale of our crew and I highly doubt any of them will be jumping for joy at purposefully pursuing sirens, especially after what just happened." Ritsu included. And they would more likely than not need Ritsu on board.

"Yes, Captain." Hatori said.

"For now just get us the hell out of here." Kisa sighed.

"Yes, Captain." Hatori repeated.

"What was wrong with the ship?" A siren questioned Kotoko as she returned and ordered them to cease their song.

"They were prepared for us. They had some sort of magic to resist the song. There were far too many of them for us to fight, especially since our magic had no effect." Kotoko explained, half lying. It was true that they possessed magic to resist them, but it had only applied to one boy.

A boy she could've easily killed.

A boy who stood there shaking, nearly crying as he pointed his sword toward Kotoko.

A boy who was allied with pirates.

A boy her son knew.

A boy her son wished to protect by giving him a singing stone.

There were general murmurs of disappointment, as well as concern upon hearing about this magic these humans possessed, but Kotoko silenced them.

"There will be another ship. This route is busy and the sun is still high in the sky." She assured them. "No use focusing on those who have already gotten away."

The other sirens agreed with this sentiment, though they were still upset at losing their breakfast.

Kotoko slipped away from the others, taking a deep breath and staring toward the horizon with a terrified expression.

"Oh, Masamune, what have you gotten yourself into?"