Sirens and Scales

by Kellie McAllen

  “My soul was tainted black a long time ago. I’ve been killing for so long that there’s no way to repair mine.”

  “I feel like I cry too much.” I wiped the tears and tried to get them under control.

  Steel chuckled. “Nonsense. You have a gentle heart, which is something I never thought I would say to anyone. Especially aboard this ship.”

  I giggled. “How’d it feel to compliment someone?”

  “There’s still a bad taste in my mouth from it.”

  I smiled, but it quickly fell. “Steel, the sirens are close. I don’t think I should stay here any longer. Maybe I can lead them away from you guys.”

  “Not happening.”

  “But, Steel—”

  “No buts. I don’t want you to leave me. I’ve come to care for you. There are moments where an extreme possessiveness overtakes me and I want to cut my men down for simply glancing your way. It’s weird feeling this way, but I can’t help it.”

  As I stared into his eyes, I saw that they were their normal shade of grey. The curse wasn’t active so this was real.

  “I feel drawn to you too, but I don’t think I can get over this fear of being found. It makes my heart clench that I’m putting you all in danger.”

  “Sera, you have saved me and my crew time and time again.”

  “But a couple of those situations you all were only in danger because of me.”

  “The island wasn’t your fault. It was mine. You could’ve left us and saved yourself instead of risking your life like you did to protect us.”

  I chewed on my lip, unable to come up with a response to that. In truth, the idea of ditching them didn’t cross my mind once. Instead, I felt the responsibility of needing to be the one to get them out of there.

  Steel brushed his fingers along the scratch on my chin. “Does it hurt?”

  “Not really. It’s scabbed over and healing now.”

  “I’m surprised you didn’t jump in the water to heal it by now.”

  “It serves as a reminder to not partake in the sharing of rum ever again. I can’t think or move correctly with it in my system.”

  “It’s not all bad.”

  His fingers held my chin as he met my stare. His lips were parted slightly and my gaze was drawn to them.

  “Kiss me,” he whispered.

  The intensity in his eyes had my mind going hazy and my heart thundering. My tongue felt thick as I leaned towards him. But when his lips met mine, my body reacted like it was supposed to. Our mouths moved in unison as he gently pushed me back onto the bed.

  His soft lips moved to kiss my neck and when I thought I wasn’t going to be able to take it anymore, he moved to my ear. He nibbled at my earlobe and it made my toes curl.

  A sound like wood groaning filled the room and Steel and I broke apart.

  “What was that?” I whispered, but he only shrugged his shoulders in response.

  We shook it off and began kissing again, but the sound of wood cracking reached our ears. That one, we couldn’t ignore.

  “We must be in a battle,” Steel said alarmed as he sat up. “I don’t know why nobody’s warned me yet.”

  The door banged open and I screamed in fright, but relaxed when I saw it was Gregor. He was the messenger most likely, but disappointment filled me that Steel and I were interrupted. The universe seemed to be against Steel and me doing the deed because everything went wrong whenever we tried. I was beginning to feel like I was the one cursed and not Steel. Either that or this was a part of his curse.

  “Captain, Sera, I’m so sorry to interrupt your… um… yeah… but we have a huge situation.” Gregor was panting hard and there was a sheen of sweat on his forehead. “I don’t think The Sea Nymph’s Revenge will make it through this one. We need to call for an evacuation immediately.”

  The ship tipped sideways and sent the three of us flying. We collided with the wall and I banged my head against it. Blackness and a flash of stars flooded my vision. The ship was righted and we fell to the floor with a loud thump. Gregor’s elbow nearly missed my eye and I skittered away from him before it happened again.

  “What the Hades was that?” Steel exclaimed.

  We were still on the ground. I was scared I was going to stand up only to be knocked off my feet again. This was bringing back the memory of the rum and I didn’t want to relive that pain just yet. The scratch on my chin was almost healed and I didn’t need a fresh one to replace it. I assumed we were engaging another merchant ship, but the pallor in Gregor’s skin led me to believe it was much more.

  “That was something I’ve only heard of in tales,” Gregor said in a deathly serious voice. “The Kraken.”

  13

  Just when I was worried about the sirens again, something worse had to happen. Gregor, Steel, and I ran towards the deck, but it was a rough path to get there. The ship was rocky and it was obvious why once we got outside.

  Tentacles sprung up from the water and collided with our sails. They destroyed everything in their path and debris went flying everywhere. The crew seemed to be in a panic as they faced such a massive beast. Some had splinters of wood sticking out of them and others were unconscious. They were trying to aim the cannons at the giant octopus but didn’t seem to be having much success at harming it.

  My love for sea creatures had me admiring the monstrous beauty of the Kraken initially. It was purplish-blue in color and its head was attached to the ship. It looked like it was eating the wood and Gregor was correct on his assumption that The Sea Nymph’s Revenge wasn’t going to make it through this one. There were already several holes in the side already that had to be pulling in water. This vessel wouldn’t stay afloat much longer at this rate.

  The wood continued to groan from the pressure of the Kraken’s tentacles and the deck beneath us was starting to crumble. Steel brandished his sword, but it wouldn’t do much damage against this giant of a monster.

  “We need to get the men out of here,” I told Steel as calmly as I could manage.

  His eyes were raging with anger and fear when they met mine, but he still nodded. “Gregor, you get the men that’s out on the left side and I’ll take the right. Sera, I want you to find the nearest jolly boat and wait there until it’s full. I’ll find you once we’re safe.”

  “Yes, captain,” Gregor said as he darted to the left side and began shouting orders to evacuate.

  “But I would be more help here.” I placed a hand on Steel’s shoulder to hold his attention.

  “It’s too dangerous and I won’t willingly put you in harm’s way. How many times do I have to tell you that?”

  His lips pressed roughly against mine, but the kiss didn’t have the chance to spark into life. A long tentacle slammed into our waists and sent us flying sideways. We both landed on our backs and the wind was knocked out of me.

  Coughs continued to come as I desperately attempted to draw in a breath. Steel seemed to be having the same problem as me, but he’d managed to sit up. My ears were ringing and I tried to cup them, but it didn’t do any good.

  As the air returned to my lungs, I assessed the damage around me and it was a lot. There was still one mast left standing and I staggered towards the rope that was dangling from it. Steel’s yells of protest followed me as I began to climb up. There was no way I was taking the easy way out and leaving everyone else here.

  The rope was rough and I was still woozy from the Kraken’s hit. My breaths were heavy as my heart threatened to burst out of my chest. I told myself not to look down because then I would lose all of the courage I was able to muster up. My hands and legs shook as I attempted to stand tall on the mast and I was gripping the rope so tightly that my knuckles had turned white. The fear of heights threatened to overwhelm me but seeing the men in trouble helped me to swallow it down.

  From above, I could see Gregor and Steel leading the men to the life boats. Once they were packed in, the boats that were out of the Kraken’s way were lowered into the water. The others weren’t
so lucky as the creature’s head blocked their escape. The Kraken had to be forced from the side of the ship so the others would have a clear path to the water.

  I looked up at the swirling clouds above us and began to sing. The tentacles stopped swinging at the invasion of my voice. I’d successfully gained the Kraken’s attention as it pulled away from the ship to look up at me. Its eyes narrowed on me and I met its stare. The nerves were lessened as the siren in me took center stage.

  The Kraken lashed out in my direction and broke the mast I was on with one snap. As I mentally tugged at all of the confidence that was within me, I ran across the thin sliver of wood before it too was broken. I nearly tripped on a ripped sail, but regained my footing quickly. Once I reached the edge, I jumped and willed the lightning to follow.

  As I plummeted, purple and blue flecks of light surrounded me. The Kraken opened its mouth and its teeth reminded me of the demons from the island. This creature had more though and they looked as if they could shred anything, even metal. I grabbed onto a long, sharp tooth that stuck out from the rest and flung myself out of its mouth before it had the chance to close it. The lightning didn’t follow my exit and the creature let out a loud, deafening shriek. It let go of the ship completely and descended back into the ocean.

  My ears were ringing again as I plopped into the water. I swam deeper and glanced back to see the Kraken was now following me. Its red eyes glowed in the darkness of the ocean and I pushed my legs to kick harder. At least it’d lost interest in The Sea Nymph’s Revenge and the crew would be able to get away safely. Most importantly, Steel would be able to escape. Now, I had to figure out how to break away.

  There was no way to outrun it and nowhere I could go that would be safe even if I did. When an idea hit me, I swam up a bit so the creature and I were level and just when I thought it was going to eat me, I sent a surge of water in its direction.

  The force pushed the Kraken back a bit and it appeared confused. It let out a roar at me and I sent another wave of water at it. It was propelled away a bit more, but still kept trying to come at me. Its teeth were bared as it bellowed another roar. I had to cover my ears and the distraction nearly cost me my life. Its mouth narrowly missed me as I dove out of the way, but its body knocked into me and I was sent spinning.

  Swimming in front of the Kraken had me feeling like an ant. This beast was enormous and much larger than The Sea Nymph’s Revenge. The proximity of it sent every fiber within me on edge with apprehension.

  Instinct had me singing again as I ordered the Kraken to leave. It stared at me, but didn’t move forward. I sang and sang and the water around me stirred. The swirling bubbles formed into the shape of a trident as it went flying towards the gigantic monster.

  The Kraken jerked backwards and a red haze erupted from where it was injured. The creature sat unmoving for a moment and then hurriedly swam away. Its squeals of pain trailed behind and I huffed a heavy breath. I’d done it. I didn’t know what the Hades had just happened though. The how behind it was a mystery as well since everything was done by instinct. My survival skills were stronger than I ever could’ve imagined and I was becoming even more grateful to the siren in me. She wasn’t so bad.

  It took a moment for my skin to stop crawling and I kicked my feet to get to the surface. I took a deep breath of fresh air and glanced around for the men. I could see the small jolly boats in the distance and swam towards them.

  There were five boats in total and each held either seven or eight men. They were pretty much sitting on top of each other, but at least they were alive. A few dead bodies floated near The Sea Nymph’s Revenge but I was too scared to go see who they were. I didn’t want it to be Steel or Gregor.

  The nearest boat held Bastian and Felix the cook. There were four other men who I didn’t know the names of and I hated myself for not taking the time to learn who they were. Felix was patting Bastian’s back with a downcast look and Bastian was sobbing. It was a heartbreaking sight because Bastian was the one who always had a smile on his face.

  I remained in the water as I asked, “What’s wrong, Bastian?”

  He pointed towards the ship, but didn’t answer as the tears began to fall faster. I looked at Felix who took a shaky breath before he answered.

  “It’s Barty, miss. He is no longer with us.”

  A soft gasp escaped my lips and water pooled at the corner of my eyes. Barty had been so kind and funny. I turned towards the bodies and studied them harder. Barty was easy to spot with his bright orange hair and a weight settled into my chest. He didn’t deserve to die—not like this. Who else had we lost?

  “I’m so sorry, Bastian. He was a good man.”

  Bastian didn’t say anything in return, so I dismissed myself to search the other lifeboats. There was one face I wanted to see the most and the next three boats didn’t have it. It wasn’t until the last one that I found both Steel and Gregor.

  My tears mixed with the water as I swam towards them. Steel noticed me first and a small smile graced his face. It was out of place with all of the horror around us, but I still appreciated it. I was just so happy to see him alive.

  “You’re okay, Sera,” Steel said. “Where’s that beast?”

  “It’s gone,” I said.

  “You killed it?” Gregor raised his eyebrows.

  “No, but it definitely killed The Sea Nymph’s Revenge.”

  Our eyes went to the sinking ship and I felt my heart dropping with it. The Sea Nymph’s Revenge had been my new home and now, that was being stolen from us. Couldn’t I have one thing that was mine to keep?

  Suddenly, I looked to Steel. His eyes swam with emotion as he watched his ship descend into the depths of the ocean. I was overcome by thankfulness that he was still here. He was mine, but he was also alive and he was someone I would hold onto tightly.

  “So, what now?” Gregor asked solemnly.

  “Now, we find an island to make camp for the night,” Steel said. “We need to make our way back to Tortuga if we’re going to acquire another ship and luckily, it isn’t too far from here.”

  “How will you find it?” I asked.

  “The stars will guide us.” Steel’s gaze traveled upwards and then, he furrowed his eyebrows. “Maybe we’ll have to camp during the day and follow the stars at night to Tortuga.”

  “From the position of the sun, it looks like it’s going to be dark soon anyway,” Gregor said. “Do you want to keep going until morning?”

  “I can help by using waves to push the boats,” I offered.

  “No way, you need rest too,” Steel said.

  “Everyone needs rest after today. I’m the only one who can do this though. Besides, it’s the least I can do to pull my weight around here.”

  The men chuckled lightly at that, but it didn’t last long.

  “Should we see about salvaging any supplies?” one of the guys asked.

  “I could do a search from under the water. Fruit like apples float, so those should be easy to come by,” I said.

  “Hey, she can go get our gold,” one man cheered and the others chimed in their agreement.

  Steel didn’t add his input, but I knew he loved his treasure.

  “I can try to,” I said.

  “No, we need to get closer to the island before we run out of food. Let’s just get the necessities. We can always get more gold later, but it isn’t worth dying for,” Steel shouted so the other boats could hear.

  That was a weird statement coming from someone who willingly instigated a battle with another ship for gold. A battle to me sounded like a quicker way to die, but Steel was confident with a blade. That had to be the only reason he didn’t see pillaging as risky. I hated to admit that lingering here was risky because that creature could come back any minute.

  We took a few moments to gather what we could. It wasn’t much, but hopefully, it was enough to get us to safety. The men looked worn out and defeated at the loss of their ship and I was in the same place. This was the first time
I’d really used my abilities and man did it take a lot out of me. I felt guilty for not going retrieve their treasure, but I wouldn’t have had the energy left to help push them closer to Tortuga. I was at my limit already and we hadn’t gone far because the sun was still out. It was setting, but not fast enough.

  Steel nibbled on an apple halfheartedly and it tore at my heart to see him so upset. Bastian’s boat was now behind me and I noticed his tears had dried up, but his eyes held so much sorrow. I wondered if they could bounce back from this and if so, how long would it take? All I knew for certain was that I had an undeniable urge to be the one to help them once again. Why did I feel the need to prove myself to these guys time and time again?

  It wasn’t too much longer before the stars were burning above us and Steel pointed out the correct direction. The waves I created were moving us at a swifter pace, but I felt my reserve energy depleting with each one.

  I pushed on because I was a fighter and I was finally good at something useful.

  14

  We pushed forward for a few more hours before we reached an island. The water was calm and the night sky was clear of clouds, almost as if we hadn’t just faced the Kraken. Almost as if we hadn’t lost any men—great men like Barty.

  All I wanted to do was crawl onto the sand and fall asleep, so that was what I tried to do. The sand was still warm from the sun that day and I wanted to soak up all of its heat. We had no towels for me to dry off with, so the breeze felt colder than it should’ve.

  As I was drifting off, something warm covered me. I peeked my eyes open to see Steel’s coat. He plopped next to me with his thin, white shirt that I was unaccustomed to seeing. His coat was always around him except for when he was shirtless in bed. It was a nice change to see him in only his long-sleeved shirt and I watched him as he gazed up at the sky. The sadness that lingered in his eyes was hard to look at, but there was something else too.

  “What are you thinking about?” I asked.

  His attention remained upwards as he said, “The things I lost on The Sea Nymph’s Revenge besides my bed.”