Mermaid

This blue-eyed, curly haired sailor spikes my curiosity. He's different somehow. His eyes hold a gentleness I have never seen before. Unlike the usual lust the male eye beholds at the sight of us, he stares with an unusual kindness.

My desire and hunger is momentarily forgotten in the depths of his eyes. Instead I find myself curious to feel the touch of his lips on mine and not solely for the purpose of trapping him as my prey.

His gaze shifts from me, beholding the sight of my sisters joining in my call. Annie, Johanna and Madge, as well as many others including Clove and Glimmer have taken their post on the railings and the sailors gravitate towards them.

I place my hand upon his cheek, the warm skin is supple beneath my hand, and I draw his attention back to me. I need to satiate this curiosity.

I notice in my peripheral that Clove and Glimmer both have their prey in hand and have begun to tempt them down into the waters. As soon as the first have fallen the rest will begin to panic. If I am to quench my curiosity I must do it before then.

I pull his face to mine and collide my lips with his. The overwhelming warmth fills me as his lips mold with my own. I release him quickly; the shock of such feelings overcomes me. He breathes a gasp against my lips.

I hear the first scream come from the other side of the ship. No doubt it is a youngling. They can hardly wait long enough to satisfy their hunger.

A few of the sailors regain their bearings and panic arises. "Mermaids!" Some shout, the reaction is instantaneous. They know our sport and have regained their senses.

The man before me doesn't step back though. I can tell he is slightly panicked but he makes no move away from me. He holds me in his gaze.

I see Clove and Glimmer pull their victims into the water with a kiss but the other sailors are prepared. A grimy man grabs a large barrel and hurls it into the water, knocking Clove away from the sailor she had seduced. He swims away and climbs aboard the ship.

Another vicious looking man grabs a long and pointed spear and aims it into the depths. I hear Glimmer cry out in pain and her prey resurfaces alone. He clambers aboard, uttering many of the curses of man.

"Herd them into the cove!" A serpent like man with evil in his eyes snaps at the panicking sailors. He holds a net in one hand and I watch as he tosses it over the ship. He begins to pull with a malicious grin.

I know now I must flee. I drop into the rolling waves. I can hear the screams of those sailors who were not so lucky to be rescued. Explosions begin all around me and I do my best to swim away. I can see alarm in the expressions of many of my sisters. We had not been expecting this; we were not prepared.

…:::…

Man

The crew throws barrels of lit gunpowder into the disturbed waters below. They explode before hitting the water and the mermaids are desperately attempting to escape and to avoid the blasts.

I tried to seek out my grey-eyed beauty but I see her nowhere. I only hope she escaped.

Captain Snow hauls out a blonde and a black haired mermaid from the struggle below. The blonde lays quietly in her net, while the black haired one stares us down with a menacing glare and growls and shrieks at us all the while attempting to move free of her netted cage.

We load up the boats and part from the ship, into the cove where the explosions, or nets, or armed sailors trap many a mermaid. They recognize the danger and are attempting to flee but unfortunately have nowhere to go.

A few yards away I see another mermaid tied up in a net. A radiant red haired mermaid struggles but cannot free herself. They load her onto the boat and head back to the ship.

I see a few sailors fall prey to their mermaid foes and their screams echo in my mind. Many manage to get past us; cleverly they outsmart us.

Ahead I see my grey-eyed beauty; she has been trapped beneath a fallen rock. No doubt from an exploding barrel that hit the cliff face. She struggles desperately, her beautiful face marred by fear. I wish her safe, not trapped like many of her kin. So I rush to her and push the boulder from her tail. She stares at me in disbelief before she begins to move away.

Captain Snow blocks her path, appearing as if from thin air. She reels back and attempts a new route. But he sees her rouse and takes his sword and stabs through the thinner fleshy bit of her sea-green tail.

She screeches in pain and I feel tears prick my eyes. She bares her teeth and attempts to hide her pain.

"Haul her to the ship boy." The captain commands as he throws me a net.

I approach her and see the pain in her eyes. When I am close enough I whisper, "I'm sorry," and hope she understands. When she is secure in the net I remove the sword from her tail, she whimpers in pain. It tugs at my heartstrings to hear her hurt.

Captain Snow accompanies me back to the ship; I have no chance to release her. He throws her to the deck and she lays entangled in her net. She barely struggles; every time she does it only seems to increase her pain. Her face contorts despite her attempts to feign indifference. I imagine it must feel similar to if I were to be stabbed in the foot.

The three other mermaids turn their attention to her immediately, seeing the wound and the blood beginning to seep across the wooden deck. "No!" The black haired one growls. "You bastards!" She actually speaks, and in our language which surprises me. Although it is also surprising to hear such language from a female…even though it shouldn't be, it is not like she knows our society's manners.

Weakly the grey-eyed one lifts her head to acknowledge her captured kin. But it is short lived, the pain spasms through her body. She slumps back to the deck, which is stained by her blood where she lies. I ache to help her but cannot think of a way.

Captain Snow barks orders to fill a few large barrels with water and haul them below deck. Once that task is complete we carry our prisoners down below. We dip them partly in the barrel, only to the tops of their tails, and bind them to the rafter to hang by their hands.

When asked why we provided them any water at all he simply answers. "It is just enough to keep them alive. To see mermaids is rare. To capture them is even more so. These four will fetch a hefty price." Greed laces his voice and seeps into every word.

…:::…