Chapter 3: Adrie's Story
(lyrics belong to Sirena, a vocal group that performs at Renaissance Festival occasionally)
Cast down thine anchor, your ship is at bay
The tide, she is calling, but I beg thee to stay
For fate, she has told me a secret of thine
From me, ne'er shall you stray...
A beautiful voice flooded the sailors' ears. The ship had caught in some fog so they decided to hoist anchor and stay put until the fog subsided. The entire ship was frantic to find whatever that lovely voice belonged to. Suddenly, the fog started to clear in one spot, to show a creature sitting on a rock, facing away from the sailors.
The sea doth roar with the wind and the gale
Yet this Hadan hall, so deep, shall prevail
For leagues below, with darkness aglow
No wind, nor rain shall assail
Heed my calling...
The fog had cleared enough to show that this creature was actually a mermaid, singing away. She gave a side glance and a sharp-toothed smile to the sailors. She was gorgeous from head to toe: beautiful plump body, flowing brown hair, pale blue eyes. She was mesmerizing. The sailors started hollering at her to join them on deck, to at least swim a little closer so they could admire her beauty up close. She shook her head, and continued singing as the sailors continued to cat-call.
Walk with me on the ocean floor
We'll stay hand in hand, till we can no more
Breathe the air of a Siren sky
And through the waters we'll soar
Moonlight strikes through the dark of the night
May mine eyes be your sailor's delight
Cease, be at ease, all fears, do appease
Your silence and peace, I do plight...
As the siren finished her song, the sailors, one by one, started diving into the dark waters to visit this beautiful woman. The siren slipped into the water and started swimming to the first brave soul.
"My... what a brave soul you must be to have started this. This is uncharted waters, and you have no fear over what is below. I praise you," she marvelled, giving him a light peck on the cheek. The rest of the men started yelling, jealous over the first victim.
She dove into the dark depths, and one by one, the men followed her under. Coaxing them further and further, each man started to lose oxygen faster and faster until suddenly, they started drowning. She went further and further down until the very last man drowned, and she was satisfied. She swam to the surface, admiring her work.
"Well well, I think this is a new record for me. Time to find the next ship," she said. Before she left though, she swam to the ship, jumped on board, and found a compass; a prize well deserved for the wonderful job she did today.
A few days later, she was swimming along when she saw another ship come into view. She sat on top of a big enough rock to lay down on, and brought along the fog.
Hail down the high ones, a good man doth come
He walked through the valley, and to death did succumb
Left me, ever lonely, lifeless and numb...
She began to sing and noticed the ship wasn't as active as it normally would be. Suddenly, a group of men came into view. Hm... strange that they weren't fawning over her. She decided to keep singing.
Sang we of heaven, and sang we of hell
I'll be your angel, fall under my spell
I'll be the bane of your mortality, in my darkness you'll dwell...
She cleared out some of the fog so they could see her. Again, the men made no attempt to fall over themselves for her. Suddenly, a few of the men dove into the water to come meet her. She continued to sing, turning to them.
Your oars, they row, your ship sails on
Memories in the night
Your body's here, your soul has gone
Nothing is left but grief and regret
And although we came together
Our fate doth lie apart
So drown this broken heart...
As the men grew closer, Adrie noticed that they had earplugs in their ears.
'Oh shit, poachers!'
She jumped into the water but didn't make it far. The man closest to her had grabbed her by the tail already.
"Throw the net!" the man commanded. A black net fell onto her, and she was trapped. She felt something snag on her tail, and another one, and another one. This was a barbed net, they were looking to kill her there!
She screamed and screamed, trying to claw her way out of the net's clutches, but the more she struggled, the more blood was drawn. She bit into the net, cutting up her mouth but setting her free. She swam as fast as she could, the salt water stinging her cuts.
Once she knew she was far enough away, she stopped to examine her body. She was losing a lot of blood, and had cuts upon cuts all over her body. She continued to swim until she got too tired from all of the blood loss. She ended up washing onto the shore of some beach, hoping someone mythical stumbled upon her, and soon.
