The crew began to advance towards me as the shrieking got louder. These women wanted me away from the wheel. Not only that but they would probably be far happier if I was dead too. How did they have such control over the men but not me? I had only once heard of creatures like them. Sirens, I believe they were called. I had never thought that they were real until now.
The crew were walking pretty slowly, dragging their feet as if they were made of stone, but they were moving with frightening determination. Their eyes were glassy and without one spark of humanity. I had to get down to the hull. I made for the stairs. Too late. The crew were already on them on their stead march towards me. I backed up and bolted towards the other set of stairs. I was about halfway down when I realised that I wouldn't be able to get past where they swarmed at the bottom. I turned around. Jack stood behind me. He reached out for me. I was trapped… unless.
I slammed both hands down on the banister and pushed off with all my might. There were a few second of terrifying free-fall during which I braced myself for my landing. My feet hit the deck a split second before my hands did. Pain shot through my ankles and wrists, I winced but I pushed myself forwards because I knew that every second I had was precious. I was positive that I had jarred several bones in my hands and feet, but after a moment or two of running the pain seemed to lessen. I cursed myself for not keeping Indigo's foul-smelling 'gift' closer to hand. Instead I had concealed it deep inside the hull of the ship and didn't have long to retrieve it.
If I survive this the first thing I'm doing is tidying up this bloody ship.
The amount of clutter down here was beyond ridiculous and they served no use other than unhelpful hurdles for me to leap over or dodge in order to get to where I needed to be. It got darker as I descended but there was no time for me to light a candle. I stumbled through the dark and felt my way towards a large wooden chest that was pushed up against the wall. The lid creaked open and the second it did I knew that I had found the right chest. That unforgettable stench from inside was either something dead and decaying or the package from Indigo. I snatched it up and ran.
As I nearer the bottom of the galley stairs the ship tipped slightly. Something rolled in front of me and I tripped. My hands gripped onto Indigo's gift, leaving me nothing to save myself with. I slammed against the floor and was winded for a second. I looked back. It was Jack's biggest telescope.
If we survive I'm making Jack tidy his own bloody ship…
I pulled myself up and ran on, up the stairs. I burst through the doors onto the deck, retching from the smell and wincing at the harsh shrieking from the unearthly women. I ripped open the bag Indigo had given me and gagged so violently it made me drop it all on the deck. The small black bag burst open. The smell was so strong it almost knocked me off my feet. The air around it was suddenly dark and cloudy from a strange purple dust that rose out of the little black bag. I stumbled backwards, covering my nose and mouth, I ran to the wheel. Men close the bag stopped moving. Then suddenly they began to drop to the ground. They lay motionless where they had fallen. The cloud of purple dust was spreading fast. I looked at the air around me and noticed that it wasn't a dust that had come from the bag at all, but strange tiny insects with delicate ragged wings. The shrieking had stopped. The Siren's faces were twisted in ugly horror as the insects began to swarm around them. I noticed their skin start to peel away from their flesh and I looked away. I held my breath and used both hands to steer the ship towards the left-hand passage, away from the sirens. I was going to have to breathe in at some point, there wasn't much longer I could hold my breath. Beside me, Jack dropped to the ground. I rolled him over. He was breathing, seemingly just asleep. I let myself breathe in. The smell made me feel nauseous but not drowsy. Every man on board was asleep and now it seemed that the swarm of insects was concentrating their energy on the Sirens. I stood by the wheel, as the Pearl turned agonisingly slowly down the safe passage. The further away we got the clearer our air seemed to get.
I looked back. The Sirens had been completely hidden by the swarm that seemed to be devouring them like piranhas.
The sudden silence was eerie. Everyone on board was asleep on the deck and now the shrieking had stopped I felt so alone. I was scared. When you're in danger and you have to fight for yourself, or for someone you love, it is far less scary than being on your own. Fighting gives you something to distract from the fear. Loneliness is no kind of distraction at all. I prayed that they would wake up. I couldn't go on listening to the sound of my own terrified heartbeat.
I walked around trying to gently wake a few of them up, but to no avail. I consulted the book that Indigo had given us. I was right about them being Sirens. The book said that their song was only enchanting to men and the only way they could resist it was if they were put into a deep sleep. One deeper that could be achieved naturally. The insects Indigo had given us were called the Violaceus, who gave off a strong smell that put any male into a deep sleep and went on to feed on the flesh of Sirens. The book said nothing about how to wake them up again.
In my desperation I went back to the bag. Something shiny nearby caught my eye. A small brass whistle was laying on the deck and beside it a note that read 'Well done Isabel, this is to give the men back their senses.' Had Indigo known everything that was going to happen? I tentatively picked it up; looking behind me I couldn't even see the place where the Sirens had been so I guessed we were at a safe enough distance. They were probably dead already. I raised it to my lips and blew once. I heard nothing but the men around me stirred. I blew again, sustaining it this time and they all began to stretch and wake up, a look of confusion passed over them all as they saw that they were waking up on deck.
From behind me came the sound of thousands of tiny wings beating, a low buzz. The swarm, on hearing the whistle call, came flying back and packed themselves neatly back into their small black bag, which sealed itself. The crew were on their feet. I put the whistle back in the bag and looked at them all.
"Isabel…" Jack said groggily, stumbling towards me. "What in the name of buggeration is going on?"
"You don't remember?" I asked. The crew all shook their heads, looking around at each other and then back at me.
"Sirens," I said, many of them paled. A ripple went round them all as they muttered the names of the creatures in disbelief.
"Didn't they have an effect on you?" someone called.
"Course not, she's a women!" another replied before I had the chance.
"Lucky you were here, Isabel," Gibbs looked shaky.
"Yes, Master Gibbs," I said sweetly. "It was lucky you had a woman aboard now, wasn't it?"