Chapter Text
She came from the ocean,
this wild girl from the sea,
her hair flowing southwards,
she walked towards me.
A west to east smile,
with eyes steely grey,
like a storm in the distance,
rolling in from the bay.
We kissed with the sunrise,
made love when it set,
a promise by moonlight,
came dawn, my regret.
He left for the ocean,
this boy from the land,
his spirit soars northward,
his heart in her hands.
-The Mermaid, Michael Faudet
“Let’s go!”
As fast as they arrived, they drug the boys by their hair, out of the decaying brick domicile and into ropes and chains.
“Out! Now!”
The moon shone brightly in the somber sky, painting the world in a dusty grey, illuminating the tear streaks on the children’s cheeks. Even the youngest, a mere 7 month old infant, was crying.
“Let’s go, rats! Outside! In a line!”
These meager boys, orphaned at young ages, now severed from the only home they knew, and dragged into the life of incarceration. And what did the nuns do?
Watched.
They watched the children, bound by their captors, counted like cattle, herded like sheep. For they could not do anything. Anything, but watch. Chains taut on their legs, ropes binding their torsos, the boys were seized, a prize conquered by this malicious horde.
None could resist. The juvenile boys, feeble and jaded, had become nothing more than a victory, mere treasure for these raiders.
Fire licked at their feet, eating away at the bits of moth-eaten fabric covering the pale, gaunt skin. The boys wept, pleading with their subduers for mercy. These capturers whooped and chortled, taunting the children in their despair.
They clung to each other, tremoring and chilled to the bone in the twilight. Young, blistered hands displayed child labor, forced by the nuns.
A single star twinkled above, peeking through the overcast clouds, giving hope to a young boy amidst the array. He yearned for a change. One where he apperceived just what family felt like.
He gazed up at the star, the lone star that felt like him. Perhaps it understood him, and that was its cause for residing overhead, unaccompanied by others. Even among the mass of children, he felt widowed.
His meager hands held the sorrowing babe, snug to his chest. Even as a bloke attempted to wrench the bundled infant from his grasp, he held tight, vowing to keep this child protected from the raiders.
The pitiful infant was torn away, passed from man to man, equivalent to that of a rubber ball with which one plays with. The boy watched, as the nuns had watched them. The harrowing scene splayed before him reminded the boy that his mere existence was not for himself.
For his life was always in another’s hands.
And forthwith, it was in the possession of pirates.
The ocean beneath rocked the large ship back and forth, lulling those below deck to sleep. However, one young man could not find peace in slumber. He stood on the quarterdeck, the cool dawn breeze lightly nipping at his face. His hands gripped the splintering wooden railing, eyes watched as the waves pushed and pulled, dancing around the ship in a display of peace, calm.
One hand left the rail, reaching upwards to run his fingers through his bangs. Compared to most of his crew, he preferred his hair short. It never tangled, and never blew too far into his eyes.
He gazed up, watching the last few stars twinkle before they departed, signaling a new day. As each went out, like candles being blown, one remained bright. A small, lonesome light in the sky, holding on as the sun arose, pinks and yellows above him. He sighed, the star slowly dimming, until it too succumbed to slumber, leaving him alone once more.
His eyes darted out to the stony blue abyss laid before him, a sight he was accustomed to. Every dusk, he retired to the same damp cot below deck, and every dawn he arose, subjected to a life he never requested. Even so, he diligently did as he was told. Day in and day out, he was a pawn in someone else's game of chess.
For once, he wanted his own game.
And he was willing to do whatever it took to achieve that.
“Heave! Pull the net! Abaft! We caught one, boys!” A few men whooped, cheering at the news. Others raced towards the aft, gripping at the large net being pulled behind the ship. Fingers brushed over each other, commands being shouted into the wind.
“Pull!”
“We got three!”
“No, four!”
“All together! Heave!”
The net slowly arose from the blue, shouts getting muffled by what sounded like dolphin screams, piercing the air, sharp and painful. Hands on the net wavered, snapping up to cover open ears.
“Don’t falter! Pull!”
With one hard pull, the net came up, water pouring onto the desk as it slid across the wood. The squeals only grew louder, shattering nearby eardrums as aquatic creatures floundered around, emitting the ear piercing screams.
One drug claws into the deck, wood curling upwards. Its large tail thrashed around, slamming into the dark wood, splintering from the sheer force. The tail, a gorgeous mix of reds and oranges, was over six feet long. The large fishing net apprehending the creatures began to wear. Men held it down to the best of their abilities.
“Cut the tails! We’ll sell ‘em in two’!”
“Aye, Captain!”
An axe raised, catching the sun in its metal head. In a sharp downward swing, a sickening slunk filled the air, followed by a deafening shriek. The axe found the light again, then slammed into the tail. Repeatedly it hit, slicing the large, magnificent, fire hued tail off. With each downward stroke, the shrieks got louder, until the tail was completely severed, a pool of blue laid underneath the creature.
A second creature, one with a white and grey toned tail, clawed out of the net. It swung its large, scaled tail, slamming into one of the men aboard. The man flung into the railing, snapping the wood, sending the man off the deck, and into the deep underneath. The creature shrieked in response, taunting the men surrounding it.
Each time a tail was cut, it was dragged away, the living half of the creature being thrown into the brig.
Was this his opening? His opportunity to gain control of his life? A life that was once stolen, ripped from him when he was a mere child?
Once the sun began its descent towards the horizon, he ducked below deck. Quietly, he crept into the brig, carefully watching the creatures from a distance.
They had done nothing to warrant this sort of torture, this horrific attack. They were peaceful creatures, living normal lives like humans on land. Like he wishes he could live.
The one that once possessed the fire-like tail laid in a large pool of blue, claws retracted. It- no, she was a normal girl, now without a bottom half. Her long blonde hair was tangled, mopped around her face and bare chest, covering her like a blanket. She lay panting in the mess of her blood, eyes pulled shut in pain. The others were like her, no longer possessing their gorgeous tails. Tails that were sold as prizes.
The young man’s eyes gazed over each creature, each half human, half fish being. He had seen them so many times in his lifetime, but never this close. They were beautiful. Magnificent, godlike creatures one could only imagine in dreams.
He was lucky, as some would say. He was allowed to see the creatures, see the world past the green of grass, brown of mountains, grey of stone. He was allowed to explore the world, the deepest blues and brightest yellows, the brilliant creatures and lavish landmarks.
But this wasn’t the life he chose, nor wanted. Some may say it’s a blessing, but he claims it’s a curse.
His gaze froze on one, the smallest of the four. A young man, face contorted in fear as he stared back. The two locked eyes. Two almost opposite colors of irises clashed, yet an unspoken peace floated between them.
This was his opportunity to reclaim his life.