by J G Barber
Laura, Ellen and Paul glance at each other, not knowing what to say about what happened. Laura break the silence. “You’re one of them now. Why did you stay with us?”
He looks into her eyes, calming her fear with his radiant love. “I keep telling you, Laura, my heart belongs to you. And our son.” He strokes Jason’s cheek.
“How is it even possible?” Ellen asks. “I mean, what you did… no one can do that.”
“The Atlanteans shaped our world in ways we still don’t understand. Looks like I inherited genes from all three races: Atlantean, Sirenian, and human. I choose my life. I will continue my life as a human.” He holds out his arms, and Laura hands Jason to him. He connects for the second time with his son. “I am your father, Jason.”
Jason smiles. Paul admires the boy’s presence and the fierce, calm consciousness firing behind his tiny eyes. He breathes in the proud father moment.
“I’m done, sis.” Ellen heads toward the villa. “I gotta get the fuck out of here. I’m going back to Seattle.”
“Totally understand,” Laura says.
Ellen looks back from the doorway. “Alexei left me everything he owned. That guy was fucking rich! His new airplane is mine. Can you believe it?”
Laura shares the moment with her sister before Ellen disappears inside the villa. She enfolds Jason in her arms. “Where do we go now?”
“Let’s hitch a ride with Ellen to the gulf coast.” Paul grins. “We’ve got some money to spend too. Time to buy a new boat.”
Laura shakes her head. “The Australians left us their money, didn’t they?” Paul nods. “We’re getting a luxury boat this time. No more cramped quarters.”
“I picked one you’ll really like,” Paul says.
“Let’s get to it.” Laura stands up from the wheelchair, checking her physical confidence with Jason on board. “I don’t need this anymore. Time to get strong again.” Paul folds up the wheelchair. They head inside to pack. “You’re flying us to the gulf coast,” Laura shouts down the hallway to her sister.
Ellen returns to the central room with her bags already packed. She was ready to go before Paul arrived. “Okay then. Pack up your shit and let’s get the fuck out of here already.”
“Language! There’s a baby here,” Laura reminds her. She hands Jason to Ellen and disappears down the hall with Paul. Ellen enjoys her one-on-one time with Jason as they pack up their stuff.
Paul and Laura return with a duffle bag full of baby gear and Laura’s backpack. Paul’s only belongings are already in the jeep. They lost everything else they owned when the cartel destroyed the rental house and the Oddyssey.
The three of them pause at the spot where the cartel killed Warren. They shipped the body back to his father for burial in the family cemetery, the blood cleaned from the floor and walls, and the furniture replaced. They look together out into the yard where El Anciano’s life ended. They returned him to his people for a ceremonial funeral.
Paul drives the Jeep, following Ellen’s directions down a series of back roads that lead them to where Alexei parked his new airplane. The plane is just big enough to hold the four of them and their gear. They lift off and head for the Gulf of Mexico.
Up high above the mountains, Paul wonders. “Will you still be able to love me, after all I’ve done and all I have become?” he asks Laura.
She considers her answer. Laura places her hand over her heart, then places the hand on his heart. “Yes.” Jason responds to her heart opening with a big, happy grin.
“I don’t know if we can ever forget what happened here, but let’s try,” Paul says.
Laura checks to make sure her sister is listening. “Does this mean we’re finished as siren hunters?”
Paul rests a hand on each of their shoulders. “Hell yes! This entire ordeal has been a major distraction from my plan. Time to get back to it.”
“Which plan are you talking about?” Laura teases.
Paul looks at her sideways. “Seriously? We just talked about this. Retire early. Buy a boat. Sail around the world. That’s what started this whole thing.”
He lifts Jason from her arms and shows him the view out the window. Jason looks out with intelligent and inquisitive eyes, present and aware for an infant, taking it all in without fear. Paul studies him; Jason has grown six inches in a matter of days. Is this normal? He considers asking Laura if she noticed his growth spurt, but keeps it to himself.
“What are you going to do in Seattle, sis?” Laura asks Ellen.
“I’m not going back to work, that’s for sure.” She considers her options. “What the hell, I might as well head to Iceland for a while. Learn all about ancient sorcery and all that. Should be a good place to hide from the cartel.”
“Will the cartel come after us?” Laura asks Paul. He responds with a haunted look, reminding her of his murderous deed.
He shrugs. “Who’s come after us? There were no witnesses. The meltdown destroyed the evidence. Those who remain in the cartel will be too busy fighting for control and telling stories about the mysterious disappearance of El Aniquilador and his men.”
“Time to refuel.” Ellen steers the plane toward an airstrip in the mountains. “Alexei gave me a map of all the airstrips across this region and marked the ones not controlled by the cartel. One fill-up will get us to our destination.”
Paul hands Jason back to Laura, watching for her to notice their son’s growth sprit. She’s too focused on his bright eyes and smile to notice. Paul kisses her hand. Looking into Jason’s eyes, he wonders, What will you become, Jason, because of what I’ve done? And what will become of me?
Chapter Twenty-Eight
Leucosia closes the final door and sings a song to lock down the facility. They completed the massive task of packing the Labrys for their cross-oceanic voyage yesterday. The sirens secured the underground gallery, protected the windows with steel storm shutters, and sealed every entrance. They covered the helicopter with a massive camouflage canvas layered with earth and brush to prevent humans from spotting the location by air. Solar panels on the roof of the facility will power the security system for as long as necessary, in case they ever need to return.
The seven sisters gather with Leucosia for a final moment on the patio balcony. They look out over the Pacific Ocean together. “I shall miss this place,” a very pregnant Lorelei says. She sings a sweet, sad song of longing, hoping one last time that Paul will respond to her call and join them to fulfill her prophecy.
Her sisters embrace her in a group hug, moved by her song.
“I sing for Achelous. He longs for his father.” Lorelei emerges from the group hug to look out on the ocean, her face expressing the vulnerability she feels now that she’s incarnate in human form.
Leucosia strokes her hair. “He will not come.”
“Perhaps not today,” Lorelei says. “But he will come.” Leucosia takes her hand and leads her to the stairs. Narmaya checks the gate at the other end of the patio to make sure it’s locked. They all head down to the beach. Narmaya follows them down, locking the gates behind them as they traverse the sand to the dock.
Jiao arrives on the boat first. Motivated by an idea that occurred to her during their descent to the beach, she searches the boat. She returns to the dock as the others arrive with Lorelei. She holds up a tiny device. “Location tracker. Search the boat.”
Leucosia remains with Lorelei on the dock, as the others inspect every crevice of the boat and every object on board. They deliver three more trackers to Leucosia, and then dive into the water to check under the trimaran. She helps Lorelei on board the boat to rest while the others continue the search. Satisfied there found all the trackers, the sirens emerge from the water in their mermaid forms, morphing back into human form as they pull themselves onto the back of the boat.
Jiao hands four more trackers to Leucosia. “We found all of them. Thank you, Great Mother, for giving me the clue before we sailed.”
Leucosia inspects the devices and then ju
mps onto the dock to drop them inside a storage box. “We must assume the cartel’s interest in us lives on,” she says as she returns on board. “We must take great care during our passage. We cannot to leave any indications of our trajectory.”
Jaio nods. “I will see to it.” She thought through the details of how to mask their itinerary as they travel through the Panama Canal and head for the Indian Ocean. She already has the contacts, the technology and the skills to make it happen.
Lorelei groans as she buckles over in pain. “What is happening to me?” Her sisters check her out as Achelous’s movements inside her womb become visible.
Mami watches the movements. “The birthing process begins.”
Maraja addresses Leucosia. “We should attend to his birth before we set sail.”
“No. We must proceed out to sea,” Leucosia commands. “Achelous will be born in his original form. If he is born here, his instincts will identify with this place as his home. We cannot allow that. He must become a child of the sea.” She pulls the others away from Lorelei. “Set sail at once. I will attend to sister Lorelei.” Leucosia sits with her as the others untie the trimaran from the dock and stow the ropes and fenders.
As Jiao and Narmaya start the engines and adjust the instruments to motor out into the ocean, Lorelei’s face wrinkles to express the unfamiliar discomfort she feels. In her centuries of possessing human bodies, she has never experienced the birthing process. “How long must I endure this?”
“Perhaps a day,” Leucosia says. “Long enough for us to travel beyond the sight of land and human pollution.”
“I am not sure that I can bear it, my queen.” Lorelei buckles over in pain.
Leucosia strokes her hair. “Once you are in the water, your experience will become graceful. You rest in Great Mother’s hands now. Your suffering shall be short-lived.”
The Labrys continues southwest through the night. Lorelei’s journey is difficult for her, but she takes comfort in the love and attention from her siren sisters. As the sun rises, they arrive in an area Jiao identified via satellite and online research to be relatively free of humanity’s toxic outputs.
Jiao cuts the engine and the sisters raise the sails so they can navigate to the exact place Great Mother calls them to, the place where Achelous will be born. As if guided by Great Mother’s breath, the wind gusts to propel the Labrys to its destination, and then stops.
“Drop the sails,” Leucosia commands. The sisters obey.
“Great Mother speaks to me. It is time,” Lorelei says. The sirens remove their clothing and dive into the water together, morphing into mermaids as their bodies pierce the water.
Underwater, Leucosia and the six sirens form a circle around Lorelei. They sing a soothing song of welcoming and rejoice, and it echoes through the water like a whale song. Lorelei closes her eyes to receive the effect of the song and to surrender to releasing Achelous from her womb. She takes in a deep, powerful breath of sea water. On the exhale, she lets go, and Achelous emerges from the birth canal. Leucosia cuts the umbilical cord with her claw. Maraja ties it off on Achelous’ belly as Suvanna does the same for Lorelei.
Achelous swims in the water, aware in his first moments after birth. He takes in the loving gazes of his mother, his queen, and his six new caretakers. The eight sirens continue the song of welcoming and rejoice as each of them embraces and kisses their new son. The moment of destiny has arrived. The father of New Sirenia is born.
“What do you think?” Paul asks Ellen as she emerges from the cabin of the new Douglass family sailboat, a Beneteau Oceanus 55.1 outfitted with the Incidence D4 Performance Pack. It’s an elegant and comfortable world cruiser with all the high-tech toys a modern sailor could want, the luxury appointments Laura demanded, and plenty of room for a family.
“Much better choice than the last one,” Ellen says. “Looks expensive. I guess Clive was loaded too?”
“Yep. And Sorcerer named Jason as the benefactor of his will, with Laura and I as his guardians.” Paul looks out to the highland mountains toward the west. “We’ll keep the crap shack in the family in case we ever need a hideout again.”
“Or a weapons stash.” Ellen looks at Laura. “How do you feel about all this?”
“I like this boat.” Laura holds Jason close to her bosom. “We’ll stay close to shore until Jason gets a little older.”
“I’m going to head out now.” Ellen gives Jason a kiss. Paul holds him as the sisters exchange a long, tearful hug. “Come visit me in Iceland sometime.”
“Will do, sis.” Laura takes Jason back.
Ellen gives Paul a hug. “Pretty fucking amazing, dude. Someone needs to tell your story someday.”
“That would be me,” Laura says. “I’m starting my new career as an author as soon as we set sail.”
“Write on, sis.” Ellen kisses Paul on the cheek and jumps onto the dock. He and Laura watch Ellen walk away.
Laura heads down below with Jason while Paul finishes preparing the boat to motor out of the marina. “You are a sailor like your father,” she explains says to her son as she gets him settled.
Paul finishes his final checks. Laura gives him the ready signal, and he unties the boat. Paul steers out into the marina, and heads for the open water.
As he sets sail, the sea calls to him in a way he’s never felt before, as if the cells of his body long to transform into a merman and swim in salt water. He thinks of his distant relative, Leucosia, and her seven mermaid sisters, wondering where on Earth they might be. The longing grows. Strap yourself to the mast, he reminds himself. You’re not a siren hunter anymore. Or a Sirenian super soldier. Images of the day he killed several hundred humans and destroyed an ancient pyramid flash through his mind. Or a murderer.
Epilogue
INDIAN OCEAN, A FEW MONTHS LATER
Despite its size, the four bedrooms on the sirens’ trimaran, the Labrys, make for a cozy stay for eight sirens and a child on a cross-oceanic voyage. They make the best of it with a musical chairs sleepover party every night, and sailing breaks to swim with the sea life during the day. The oceanic lifestyle speeds up Achelous’ rapid growth. As soon as he’s ready, Lorelei teaches him how to morph into a merboy at will.
As the Labrys continues crossing the ocean, the sirens witness the devastation visited upon it by modern civilization: dead zones caused by radioactive water flows from Japan, massive collections of plastic waste and abandoned fishing nets, and large masses of rotting dead sea life. The evidence reignites their desire for vengeance and their shared story that demands the cleansing of invasive humans from the Earth.
After months of sailing in open water, the Labrys arrives in the Indian Ocean. Though they are still hundreds of miles from the island, the original Sirenian gossip senses them coming, feeling the seething rage in their sisters’ hearts. The gossip lets down their psychic walls long enough to allow Leucosia and the seven sisters to hear the old Sirenian song of peace. Their rage fades as soon as they hear it. The song ignites a spirit of excitement and hope after their long voyage. The song continues, preparing them for their arrival.
“I can see it!” Sirena shouts from the bow. The island appears on the horizon as a tiny pinhead amidst a parting of low clouds and fog.
Leucosia trims the sails. The strong wind blows toward the island, propelling them at a high speed toward their destination. The trimaran glides into the small bay, protected from the wind. The siren sailors set anchor. They scan the pristine, sandy beach and surrounding waters. The beach is quiet. Desolate. They exchange looks, wondering if the hologram led them astray.
A single mermaid head pokes out of the water. Leucosia is the first to spot her. Their eyes connect, moving Leucosia to tears. A dozen more mermaid heads emerge around the bay. The sirens on the Labrys sob as they connect with the mermaids.
The mermaid sings a call of invitation. The siren sailors dive into the water in unison, transforming into mermaids as their fingertips touch the water. A gleeful water danc
e unfolds as the mermaids swim together in a playful celebration.
Leucosia swims to greet each of the originals, connecting with their eyes and hearts. She reunites with Raina, for the first time since the aftermath of the Great Flood, when the surviving Sirenians scattered their gossips around the world.
The thirteen original sirens gather around Achelous as he swims with them, curious, excited, and afraid. A Sirenian male? The gossip asks in unison.
Yes, Lorelei responds. Achelous will be the father of New Sirenia, when he comes of age.
Hello Achelous, the thirteen think as a single thought. The original sirens giggle with delight as they swim and play with Achelous. They understand what he means for the future of the Sirenian race. It has been only us for so long, the gossip thinks as one before they break into another playful dance, leaping out of the water and swimming around the new members of their society.
The mermaids swim to shore together, morphing into their human forms as they swim onto the sand. The original Sirenians are perfect. Piercing emerald green eyes. Long and sumptuous hair, a mix of redheads, blondes and brunettes. Sculpted breasts and torsos with long muscular legs. They are each unique but bear a striking resemblance to each other, unlike Leucosia and the seven sisters, who represent various human gene traits.
The original gossip leads Achelous and their new sisters into the island forest to begin their new life. A dense fog ring forms around the circumference of the island, leaving a vertical column of blue sky to allow in the sun, veiling the island from the sight of any passersby.
El Jefazo takes a leisurely stroll around the Cartel Nuevo Ciglo’s safe house apartment in Ixtapa, enjoying a cigar and a whiskey. He lingers on the balcony, looking south towards Barra de Potosí, wondering what will become of the sirens’ facility.
He returns inside and sits at the desk that once belonged to El Aniquilador with a powerful intent that shows he’s claimed the role of El Jefe Superior as his own. El Jefazo sets down his cigar and drink. He brings up an interactive map on his laptop that displays the Pacific coastline with location tracking for the Labrys. The tracker shows the Labrys remains in the Zihuatanejo Bay marina, which he knows is not true, as his men reported their departure days ago. “Of course.” He smiles, at once realizing they removed the tracking devices. El Jefazo closes the tracker and unlocks up a password-protected document: a list of Atlantean symbols translated to their English meanings.