The Boy in the Mirror: Finding Love in the Strangest of Ways

by Bonny Capps

  My eyes grow wide. What I assumed was a tree is not. It growls and I feel a heavy, warm breath on my shoulder. I slowly turn my head and see a huge man behind me; he is smiling wickedly, revealing sharp teeth. His brow line is protruding and he has a bone going through his septum, his eyes are emerald with a black slit down the middle. His face is flesh but from his forehead up are dark green and black scales. Oh my God. I’m going to die! I feel its rough hands firmly grip my arms; its claws sink into them. I gasp.

  My eyes meet Fynn’s. He isn’t looking at me, but staring behind me. He looks pissed. Suddenly, other men much like the one behind me begin emerging from the fog, surrounding us. They are wielding large mallets, made of bone. All of them are shirtless and wear pants and have tied cloth around their waist to keep their pants in place. Many of them have scars and their most distinct feature is the scales protruding from their spines, from that they each have a long tail that drags the floor behind them. They are similar to crocodiles but also humans; I’m noticing a common trend here. Nothing is what it seems.

  These things tower above Fynn and the others. The Amphians all have their swords drawn as they frantically spin in circles. The pirates swiftly capture the Makin and his men as they struggle and try to fight back, to no avail. Two of the pirates approach Fynn, my heart jumps. No! Fynn lifts the sword and swings it at one but one of the pirates block him with the mallet and the other punches Fynn hard in the stomach. He falls onto his knees and I am filled with so much anger, “LEAVE HIM ALONE!” I scream, struggling to escape the beast’s grip only causing him to grip my arms tighter, making me flinch. He growls in my ear, “Hold still.”

  Fynn is breathing heavily as he holds his stomach, his head bowed. Tears escape my eyes; I just want to hold him.

  The pirates lead us back to their camp, threatening us with their weapons. They have tied all of our wrists tightly. There is a fire with large tree stumps surrounding it. I feel a hard hit on my back, causing me to fly forward and sending a sharp pain down my spine. I land on my knees and hear commotion behind me; Fynn is struggling against his restraints, “Do not touch her!” He exclaims. The pirate beside him backhands him swiftly across the cheek knocking him down, his head landing in my lap. He looks up at me, blood escaping his bottom lip. I lean down and kiss his forehead. “I love you.” I whisper. He looks deeply into my eyes. “I love you Mandy.”

  The same pirate that hit him grabs his arm and drags him into a sitting position, his arm resting against mine. He then grabs each of my arms and practically picks me up, bringing me to my feet. I look up at him; he has a short, red Mohawk and a tattoo on the side of his face. It looks like a tribal symbol and starts above his eyebrow, down his cheek and ends as his chin. He is very muscular and it looks as if the scales are nearly ripping out of the flesh on his chest.

  He whips me around and pushes me in front of him; I struggle to stay on my feet. We walk towards a tent a few feet away. When we enter, he digs his claws into my shoulder. “Wait here.” He whispers in my ear. Just like that he’s gone. I begin struggling against the restraint holding my wrists together, trying to escape it. I remember the knife Fynn gave me, the pirates took my bow and arrow but the knife remains in my boot. I sit on the ground and stretch my leg behind me. I manage to retrieve the knife and cut the tie from my wrists.

  I hurriedly stand when I hear voices outside the tent. I keep my hands behind my back, gripping the knife tightly. Suddenly, another pirate enters; he is much different from the others, much more intimidating. He has black straps crisscrossed across his chest and his brown hair is long, down to his shoulders. He has a deep scar down his eye. His scales go from his forehead and come to a point down his nose. His ears are gauged and a pointed bone that curls in the middle hangs from each of them.

  He walks towards me and I try hard to stand my ground. I feel like life as I know it is going to end right here, in this tent in the Swamp Land. I look intently into his eyes – trying to understand him. I search for the words to say, they sit on the tip of my tongue until I finally work up the nerve. “We are here to help save this land.” I say. Laughter escapes him and he steps closer until we are almost nose to nose, “You? You are nothing but a small frail girl!”

  I scowl at him. “What does a small girl have to offer?” He growls, his warm breath meeting my face. He does have a valid question and I’m not sure how to answer him. He reaches up towards my face and without thinking I step back and point the knife at his chest. His jaw tenses and a smile stretches across his face. Without thinking I blurt out, “We can make the darkness go away!” He takes a step back and a look of disbelief overcomes his face. “Is that so? You think you can kill Hasset? You think you can defeat the dead army?” He asks. I nod slowly, not sure where this conversation is going. His emerald eyes stare deep into mine.

  “Breck!” He calls out, our eyes remaining locked. The crocodile with the red Mohawk swiftly enters and stands at attention. He continues, “Gather the others; it seems that we have a warrior on our hands.” Breck nods and leaves the tent. My arm is still extended out as I shakily hold the knife towards him. He scoffs and hits my hand, sending the knife to the ground before grabbing my arm and leading me out of the tent. “Let’s see what you’ve got girl.” He says, looking over his shoulder as he pulls me behind him.

  Oh no. You’ve done it now Mandy.

  Chapter Ten

  “What is your name?” I ask as the large, scaled pirate leads me back to the fire. “Ardon.” He replies dryly, his eyes remaining locked ahead of us. We reach the others, Fynn is sitting on a stump, the fire is casting shadows across his bloodied face and the Amphians all stand around him. Makin looks at me anxiously. The pirates crowd around forming a circle. Ardon and I stand, exposed. I am terrified.

  Ardon walks around to face me. He smirks down at me as I look up at him wide eyed. Why did I have to open my damn mouth? Ardon steps in front of me and gestures towards me, “Brother’s, it seems we have a well disguised warrior in our midst. She seems to think that she is our savior, she will rid this land of the darkness.” They gasp and my eyes meet Fynn’s. His eyes are wide and the look on his face says it all. He is obviously annoyed and in awe of what I told Ardon.

  “Who here will take on this great warrior?” Ardon asks, I search the pirate’s faces and each and every one of them is sneering. I squeeze my eyes shut and inhale, what is this all about? He is going to put me up against a much larger man who will likely kill me? “I will take her on.” My eyes dart open and I see the pirate with the red Mohawk step forward –the one called Breck, wielding the mallet. Ardon looks at me over his shoulder, “Good luck.” He says as he joins the crowd.

  I can feel the eyes on me as I stand face to face with Breck. He looks down at me pitifully. I look towards Ardon and he throws a large sword towards me. It lands at my feet; it’s rather plain with a silver blade and leather grip. I reach for it and grasp it tightly, it’s quite heavy and it strains my arm as I lift it. I grip it with both hands and lift it up, the blade lingering by my ear. I look towards Fynn, his eyes are squeezed shut and his head is bowed. Makin stands beside him. His eyes are wide – his expression is that of fear.

  My eyes meet Breck’s once again, my god he is huge. Suddenly, he rears back – striking at me with the mallet. I jump back swiftly and the mallet barely grazes my naked stomach. He strikes at me again, this time above my head and I tuck my hands under my head and roll out from the path of the mallet. I kneel and strike back, I can hear the sword swoosh as it cuts through the air and then clang as it comes into contact with the mallet. He strikes once more, this time I block with the sword with all my might and it works! I notice the wooden handle of the mallet; my sword could cut through it. He strikes at me several more times as I swiftly move side to side. I raise the sword above my head and with all my might I slam it onto the wooden handle. The bone part separates from the wooden handle and falls to the ground. Breck’s eyes look from the broken mallet and then to me in disbelief.<
br />
  After several moments Ardon walks towards us and looks from Breck to the mallet and then to me. “You are the miracle. You are the chosen one.” He whispers, staring intently into my eyes. He turns towards the others, “My brothers, before me is an angel. She has come to save us from the darkness.” All is silent for a moment as the pirates all look towards each other. Suddenly they begin beating their fists against their chest and chant in unison. Ardon steps back as does Breck and I stand alone, encircled by the chanting pirates. Laughter escapes me. They too have accepted me. They too believe in me. My eyes meet Fynn’s. He has a huge grin on his face. The Amphians are jumping and hollering too. Breck frees Fynn’s hands along with Makin’s and the others. Fynn runs towards me and embraces me. I wrap my arms around his neck, my fingers through his messy hair. I pull away and look into his eyes. He tucks a loose strand of hair behind my ear, “You’re truly amazing.” He whispers and for the first time in my life, I truly do feel amazing.

  We sit around the fire; the pirates have managed to capture numerous small mammals and are roasting them. The Amphians have fallen asleep along with many of the pirates leaving Fynn, Makin, Ardon and I awake. Breck is standing in the distance keeping guard. Makin and Ardon are deep in conversation as I lay my head on Fynn’s shoulder. Ardon looks towards Fynn and I, “We will help you get to the Wood Land.” Fynn leans forward resting his elbows on his knees, “Thank you friend.” he replies. “This is my home too; I miss the warmth of the sun.” Ardon says. Fynn nods, “So, when do we depart?” Ardon picks his tooth with a small bone from the animal he just devoured, “Tomorrow at best, that witch probably has spies all throughout this place.” Fynn nods as he pats my leg and looks down at me, “Tomorrow it is then.”

  The next morning we trudge through the Swamp Land. We reach a large dock with a huge ship rocking back and forth with the waves. It’s made of dark wood, it’s almost black and it has huge, black sales that flap around in the wind. Fynn and I stand hand and hand on the dock as the pirates load supplies onto the ship. I look up at Fynn. He gently kisses the top of my hand and his lips linger there for a while, his eyes searching mine.

  All of the sudden I feel hands on my waist and I’m being lifted up into the ship, “Up you go little girl!” Ardon exclaims. I giggle and turn to face Fynn. He looks spectacular in his armor, his hair amuck and the boyish grin on his face, his hand resting on the sword at his side. I put my hands on the railing, my hair going everywhere as the breeze captures it. “I love you.” Fynn mouths to me. “I love you.” I whisper. The pirates begin boarding the boat along with Fynn and the Amphians. I look towards the island and see blue eyes looking back at me. It’s a stark white wolf and he peers out at me from the dark forest. I’m startled when Breck pats me on the back, “Are you ready for the journey?” I look towards him and then back to the forest, the wolf has vanished. “Did you see that?” I ask. He looks at me quizzically and then towards the woods, “No, all I see are the trees.” I purse my lips and my eyes survey the entrance of the woods, it must be in my head.

  We set off on our voyage, my eyes stay locked on the Swap Land as I watch it get further and further away. After a while the fog dissipates and we are welcomed by warm sun as the ship cuts into the clear water. The pirates and Amphians spirits have been lifted. These people – they thrive off of the sun. Surely they will not survive if the darkness persists. I have my hands on the rail at the front of the ship. Breck is steering and the other pirates are playing a game of dice with the Amphians, they are howling with laughter and it makes me smile. I’m absorbing my surroundings. The sun rests atop the sky, keeping us warm and safe. I inhale the fresh air as I close my eyes, the wind in my face and the sun on my back. I can’t remember the last time I felt this good, this warm, this confident and this brave.

  I open my eyes and see a fin in the water and then two, then three. These fins are different colors, blues and pinks and greens. Suddenly an abstruse creature catapults from the water and dives back down. It’s not a fish, or so it seems. It is feminine and she is one of the most beautiful things I have ever seen. Her face is soft and has a glow about it. There is a fin atop her head and there are gills where her ribs would be. She is completely covered with shiny, colorful scales, up to her neck and a few scattered here and there on her face. She does have arms, but they are covered in scales as well and her fingers are webbed. Her tail is long and flows beautifully in the water. Fynn startles me as I continue to watch her. “What is she?” I ask, my eyes meeting his. Fynn rests his arms on the railing, “A mermaid.” He says, watching her glide through the water. Of course she is, not exactly what I pictured as a little girl, but all the same.

  The sun begins to set, casting an orange glow over the boat. Breck is still perched in the same spot, steering us to our destiny. Fynn has been briefing with Makin and Ardon. Should I be scared? I feel as though I should but something inside me keeps pulling me forward. This place, these people – they have helped me discover that I am not just some weak girl, I have a purpose.

  I’m exhausted. I decide I’m going to go find a bed. I walk down the stairs and try to seek out a cabin. I continue down the hall and I hear voices on the other side of a heavy oak door, its Fynn and Ardon. I begin to put my hand on the knob until I hear my name. What are they talking about? I carefully put my ear up to the door to better hear their muffled voices. “What if she’s not ready?” Fynn says, he sounds concerned. “You have to let the girl live out her destiny brother. You can’t continue to put her in a bubble!” Ardon replies.

  Suddenly the door opens and I jump back, Fynn is facing me. I look up at him, trying to be expressionless even though my heart is thudding away, I don’t want him to know I’ve been spying. Ardon moves past Fynn and nods at me before walking away. Fynn’s eyes follow Ardon and then back to meet mine. “Are you tired?” He whispers. I nod and he places his hand on my back, leading me back into the cabin. There is a small bed covered with fur and a candle casting a glow in the cabin. I curl up on the bed and Fynn throws a fur blanket over me, it’s soft and warm. He leans down and kisses my forehead. I shut my eyes as he gently strokes my cheek. Finally I fall asleep.

  The sun is shining through the small round window in the cabin. I hear commotion above and decide it’s time I get up. I sit up in the bed and rub my eyes. Fynn must have removed my boots; I lace them one at a time. I walk up the stairs and the warm sun welcomes my shoulders. I inhale the warm air and look for Fynn, shielding my eyes from the sun. “Mandy!” Fynn shouts. My eyes follow his voice and I see him in the crow’s nest above, he gestures for me to come up.

  I firmly grip the rope ladder and climb up. It’s a bit scary, this thing is high up and I’m not a fan of heights. Fynn grabs my hands and pulls me up to him. He rests his arms on the rail of the crow’s nest and I follow. We sit and stare into the distance for a while. This place is breathtaking. There are colorful birds soaring through the sky in a beautiful formation, almost like they’re dancing. My eyes follow them. It makes me want to dance. It’s my passion, it was my life. But I gave up on myself.

  Fynn stands up straight and shields his eyes, looking at something in the distance. “ISLAND AHEAD! ISLAND AHEAD!” He hollers, looking down at Ardon who is now steering the ship. I squint my eyes and try to see this island he is speaking of, all I can see is a small speck. Ardon puts a small, silver telescope to up his eye and extends it in the direction of Fynn’s findings. He steers the wheel in the direction of the island, almost knocking me over, Fynn’s arm finds its way around my waist, keeping me balanced. I laugh as I look at his smiling face. “Almost there, love.” He whispers before planting a kiss on my cheek.

  The boat has picked up speed and we are closing in on the island. It’s luscious and green. Huge trees are scattered throughout it, full of leaves unlike the swamp land trees. I look towards Fynn, “What do you think is to be expected?” I ask. Fynn’s eyes meet mine, “Well, Norwins are not very friendly.” He says as he turns and begins making his way d
own the crow’s nest. I climb down behind him and set off to find Ardon, maybe he will have more insight.

  Breck has taken over in steering the ship. Makin and several of the pirates are sitting on crates, laughing and carrying on. I see Ardon alone at the rear of the boat. I quietly walk towards him. “You have questions, girl.” I stop, startled. He hasn’t turned to face me, how did he know I was coming. I stand beside him and look up at him, “Yes.” I whisper. Ardon sighs heavily, “Yes, I can imagine you are curious about the Norwins.” He pauses and looks down at me, “They love their women. That is where you come in.” I frown at him and look at the water as it rolls out from under the ship. “I don’t understand.” I reply. “When the time comes, you’ll know.” He says as he turns and walks away, leaving me alone to contemplate. What in the hell does that mean?

  After a while, the details of the island are becoming more visible. We are so close and my heart is thudding away, reacting to the anxiety pumping through my body. Suddenly, the boat jerks, hitting something extremely hard, it sends me falling and I land on my hip. Ardon and the others rush to the port side of the boat looking down into the water. I scramble back to my feet and rush over to them.

  I look over the side and see nothing. What the hell was that? I feel eyes on my back. I hesitantly turn around. Oh my God. There is a creature towering above us. It has long stringy hair; water is dripping from the strands onto its bony shoulders. He is snarling at us, revealing sharp, nasty teeth. Its hands are in front of it and its fingers are webbed with long sharp nails. It looks as if it’s covered in algae. It’s back has what looks like a tortoise shell – that must have been what we hit and he certainly does not look happy about it.

  The Amphians and pirates turn to look up at the beast. Ardon takes a step forward and draws a sword from his side; the others follow with their mallets. “WATER DEMON, LEAVE US OR DIE!” Ardon exclaims. A smile creeps across the demon’s face, he leans down and the smile disappears. He lets out a terrible shriek and I flinch. Ardon remains still – his hair blows back as the demon’s nasty breath hits him in the face, ready to strike with his sword.