Call of the Mermaid [M]

[Celegwen]

@Elf Lady Love


The waters of the sea remained undisturbed, a strange thing not only because of the plethora of ships humans seemed to constantly be adding to, but because there hadn't been a sighting since the break of dawn. Three sisters lounged on the sandy shore of a nameless island, soaking in the last of the light and warmth from a drowning sun. From the other side of the island, the pearly crescent had already risen well above the treetops, accompanied by the first few glistening lights which came without fail on every clear evening.

A brunette woman laid on the cooling sand, eyes closed with a faint smile on her face; a blonde laid on her front and propped herself on her elbows, feather-like fluke arched over her back; and the last woman sat with her tail completely submerged, her deep auburn hair draped over her right shoulder and fingers mindlessly twisting her long locks.

"Your turn, lovely," the blonde whispered in her smooth voice. The brunette opened her eyes and turned onto her side, as the redhead looked towards the horizon. As was expected, the black silhouette of a ship was surprisingly close to the rocky shore.

The brunette flicked her tail with a light giggle. "Foolish men," she cooed. "We didn't even need to go to them!"

"Shouldn't be much trouble," the redhead said almost tiredly. Raina Ambryl gave a short, devious smile to her sisters, then gracefully arched her back, disappearing instantly beneath the black water. She maneuvered easily through the treacherous waters, as she had done countless times before.

Her long hair glistened in the moonlight, deep blue eyes holding captive the few stars in the sky, as she effortlessly slid onto a low ledge of one of the taller stone formations. Giving one glance to her sisters on the now distant shore, Raina took a slow breath, releasing the same hypnotic melody she had breathed upon the minds of so many sailors whose bones graced the sea floor.

The only curiosity which kept her singing her song was who would join her morbid collection this night?

[Lowen Thorn]

Some people would call him mad for sailing out at sea alone, but Silas never understood their meaning of mad. Everyone is a little mad in their own right, and he was mad for adventure and discovery. Unfortunately, neither of those things had been found yet. It had been several days since he set sail on the blanketed seas, and although it had been a very peaceful trip, it was becoming a bit... boring.

Alone at sea and bored out of his wits. Because of course he was. His mind began to wonder.

Perhaps if he stayed behind with the rest of the crew he would be at a party right about now. Yes, a party full of food, laughter, and drink. Tipsy lips and lazy eyes as he met all sorts of interesting people. Maybe that would have been so, he thought. Or maybe he would have met a woman. A woman who wields a bow and arrow and rides horses, and he would spend all hours of the night trying to charm her with quick wit, poetry, and cheesy one-liners.

Well, a man could dream, and that sounded like a damn good one.

As he cast his gaze at the open waters before him, he began to hear something that just might turn his dull day around.

Just maybe.

"Is someone... singing?"

[Celegwen]

Well, this was an interesting turn of events - or rather, lack of one. The ship's course hadn't budged, and Raina actually took offense to that. Her song had worked without fail for over fifty years. Who did this crew think they were? Resisting her? That couldn't have been the case. Perhaps the men on board the vessel were simply hard of hearing, which seemed to be a shared thought, as her sisters glided up beside her. The same melody flowed from the lips of the femmes fatales, power enough to bring any human man to his knees in seconds.

"Into the sea,
Hold you close to me."

Yet the ship kept her course.

"Slide 'neath the waves,
Down into the caves."

It had now become personal to the three girls, especially to Raina whose pride had taken a decent hit. "Come, sisters," she whispered. The other girls, already mostly submerged in the water, disappeared into the depths. The last girl waited another moment before making a flawless dive into the still waters, her aqua-teal tail reflecting the red sun that had barely a sliver refusing to let go of the day.

"Kiss me, my love.
Come rest in my arms."

The song they sang was only amplified under water, traveling undisturbed beneath the surface. The girls' bodies radiated the faintest blue glow in the water, making them visible when they were close to the ship. While the others simply were trying to draw the vessel back towards the rocks, Raina's curiosity was peaked. She had to see what kind of people had the power to listen to her song without succumbing.

"Dream your dreams with me.
Slide beneath the sea."

Her auburn hair lifted from the sea with the gold and teal crown hiding her hairline and giving her regality on top of the mysterious allure. Raina's song kept flowing, a voice to match her supernatural beauty, as she swam beside the ship to discover the men immune to her spell.

"Come to me, my love.
Forget the land above."

[Lowen Thorn]

The singing grew louder, and Silas couldn't help but feel a tug of his chest at the hymn. It was a beautiful song. Perhaps the most beautiful song he had ever heard, and something about it was just so haunting that it radiated a strange feeling inside of him that he couldn't describe. He felt like..

He felt like he was being hunted. The call for adventure was strong, but he didn't want to die either. He had heard the tales of brave young men lost at sea, never to be seen again with no proof of death or whereabouts of their body. They just vanished into thin air.

"Fuck this," he muttered under his breath, heading for the helm to turn the ship around.

Then he saw it, or rather, them. The blue lights swimming underneath the ocean surface, dancing and circling around his vessel with subtle purpose.

And then, he saw her.

Red hair and blue eyes peaking up at him from the the sea, and for a moment, time stood still. She was the most marvelous, most beautiful creature he had ever seen, leaving his eager, afraid, and mesmerized all at the same time.

"..Whoa.."

[Celegwen]

How was that possible? One man should not have been able to sail such a ship alone, which meant he must not have been destined for any true journey. Still, something about there not being a full crew soothed Raina's ego, as it meant only one fought her magic. That of course would not be excused, but at least it wasn't several people.

If she wasn't furious at his resistance, the mermaid might have even found him physically appealing...for a human.

Raina parted her lips ever so slightly, sending him the smallest smile and diving into the water again, not a single rogue droplet evident of any kind of disruption to the surface. She twirled slightly beneath the water, then emerged once more, gliding smoothly towards the ship.

"Kiss me, my love.
Come rest in my arms."

She brought her left arm out of the water, fingers slender and skin kissed by moonlight. Raina smiled at him again, warmth and comfort emanating from her oceanic eyes. "Kiss me, my love," she whispered, as her sisters continued to sing. "Come to me..."

The song echoed across the waters, as though creating an entire world where a mermaid and her sailor were the only two beings in existence.

"Silas," she sang in the softest voice. "Come closer... Feel the warmth of my skin, Silas, like a night by the fire... Know the touch of a woman after so long at sea... What better feeling is there in the world? Experience safety and comfort with no worries of what troubles will befall you. Us, Silas."

Raina smiled, eyes reflecting the crescent moon. Her arm began to reach upward, beckoning him to touch her...

"An endless adventure," she whispered. "Come with me, Silas. Hold my hand, kiss me. Just us, until the end of time."

[Lowen Thorn]

What a beauty.

The most beautiful thing about a woman, in what Silas believed, was her smile; and Gods, what a mesmerizing smile this one had. Looking at her for the briefest second, he caught her smile with his own, lips curling in pure enchantment as she slid back under the sea surface.

"Wait, don't go," he whispered, almost absently as he took a step forward and tried to follow her figure through the rippled waves before she returned back to the surface.

Her singing felt more like talking at that point, a well-versed discussion in attempts to get the man to throw caution to the wind and jump overboard to join her in the water. He was typically pretty well-versed himself, or at least he thought of himself as so, but at that moment no words were coming to his mind.

There was only curiosity burning in the back of his mind as he extended his own hand, getting just inches away from sliding his fingers into hers.

But he quickly withdrew, and then he throw her a cocky little smile. "That all sounds wonderful," he teased, "but I think I would have to buy you dinner first."

[Celegwen]

Raina's heart started racing, not out of love or desire, but instant fury. First, he had insulted her magic - intentionally or not was irrelevant. Now, he actually has the nerve to respond to her enchantments with sarcasm? Despicable!

Her deep blue eyes suddenly captured the glow that her body emitted under water, and her gentle smile disappeared. She put her arm down and backed away slightly. "I think you would be wise to save your coin, sailor," Raina said, her words laced in poison. "After all, you just might need a new ship."

The song suddenly stopped, and the other two mermaids shot past the redhead towards the beach they were lounging on originally. There was a sudden rumbling clap, echoing uninterrupted across the open waters. A smile returned to her face, though this time it wasn't seductive or gentle. She looked to the stars which rapidly vanished behind blackened clouds that seemed to roll in from nowhere.

Thrusting one hand forward, the mermaid sent a strong pulse through the water, easily enough to capsize his ship if it had been just a bit smaller. Raina released a light chuckle, beginning to retreat slowly towards the island without turning away from the scene she had just created. "If you had just come with me, Silas," she started, "we could've had eternity."

Two lightning strikes flashed in the black sky with thunder following barely a second after.

"Some may survive hearing a mermaid's voice, as that's how tales are passed on." Raina lifted her arms and clenched her fists, making the heavy clouds pour and winds start swirling. "There is a reason that you've not heard tales of a mermaid's wrath." She smirked, staring at him as the glow disappeared from her eyes. "Someone would've had to survive it."

[Lowen Thorn]

Maybe this was just a bit too much for adventure.

Silas's heart raced from both fear and admiration as the beautiful creature just became an angry beautiful creature. "Hell, I'll build a ship," was his sarcastic retort. "I'll build us a ship, and then we can have dinner on it!"

Without waiting for a response, he dashed back to the helm of the ship, almost stumbling over himself once or twice as the waves pounded against the vessel in threatening form. Romance could certinaly wait a day if it meant he wasn't going to die. A little storm certainly didn't scare him, but sinking to the bottom of the ocean did.

Spinning the wheel to full lock, he attempted to steer the ship around when another thunderous crash of ocean wave launched him off of his feet.

Shit. Shit. Shit.

Gravity took over, and his body was flung forward and, if it hadn't been for the handrails that uncomfortably broke his fall, he would have surely fell overboard.

And then he almost fell over, again, as another pulse hit the vessel with a lethal blow, and he could feel his boat capsize from underneath him.

Shit. Shit. Shit.

'I'm going to die.'

"You there, stop!" he called to the mermaid frantically. "What's the point of eternity if you-"

Silas couldn't finish his sentence before it happened. A stray piece of wood from the ship cargo traveled with the storm's wind, lugging him in the back of the head. Rendered unconscious, he flipped over the railing and dropped to the sea.

[Celegwen]

As the storm took on its own life, Raina laughed, turning to join her sisters on the beach for the show. The sailor was frantically trying to gain control of his vessel. It was adorable when they thought they could actually ride the storm. Her attention was drawn again when she heard the sound of a hard impact. His words didn't capture her, so much as they intrigued her. All men would find some way to plead for life, but he actually seemed angry. She turned around just in time to see his limp body vanish into the sea.

A small sigh escaped her lips, disappointed that there hadn't been more entertainment in his demise. Raina has summoned an entire storm, but he couldn't even die in an interesting way. Humans.

She continued towards the island, but she felt something tugging at her mind. It wasn't right. The girl refused to let him die like this; it was too easy, and she wasn't having it. Surely there would be some questioning to endure from her sisters, but Raina whirled around and submerged herself in the water, once again encircled in the faint glow.

Her sight underwater was perfect, so finding the unconscious man wasn't difficult at all. She swam over to him, eyes looking him over briefly. On a normal day, the mermaid would've simply let him join her collection as so many had before, but his ability to resist her song with such ease interested her. It wasn't a simple task, so she wanted to know more.

Raina held his hand in a firm grasp, pulling him quickly to the surface. The waters above had begun to calm, and even the clouds were starting to fade like the entire thing was an illusion. Of course the evidence was present in his sinking ship. Saving him was one thing, but she was proud of her work on the ship. That was a trophy she would keep!

There was another island off the coast of Serendipity a little less than half a mile away, so that's where she decided to bring him. It was tiring, but if she could summon a storm, she could pull a human to shore.

Raina pushed him far enough out of the water that he wouldn't slide back in, but she couldn't go too far out. She put her hand on his chest, carefully manipulating any water he might've taken in out of his lungs. Though, he would probably be tasting salt for quite a while.

[Lowen Thorn]

What a strange dream.

Silas was venturing out at sea on his own, much to the disapproval of his comrades and other friends alike. He had set sail and coasted the sea for several days until he happened upon this majestic creature in the water that brought a terrible storm with her.

But it wasn't the storm that caught his attention. She was the most beautiful woman he had ever laid eyes on, with the most beautiful voice he had ever heard, both while talking and while singing. 'Kiss me and take my hand' were the words she said, or some arrangement of them, and he was more than willing to throw caution to the wind and do just that.

There was a terrible storm, with terrible lightning and it was working its might against his vessel.. and, that's right! The ship was destroyed and brought down into the depths of the ocean. Well, thank gods it was only a dream.

...What happened next?

Right, he was pleading with the stunning woman in the sea before he.. blacked out.

---

Silas gasped back into consciousness, his chest burning but otherwise no apparent injury, not including the throbbing at the back of his head. It took him several moments for his vision to return, and that's when he saw her.

The woman of his dreams.

"Oh, hello."

[Celegwen]

Raina laid in the water, the small waves splashing softly against her back. She was propped on her right elbow, flicking her tail with a piercing glare aimed at the recently awoken man. There wasn't even a hint of a smile on her lips, and she clearly clenched her jaw a few times.

As soon as he spoke, the girl slammed her tail in the water, aiming to splash him. The logic behind the action wasn't really well thought out, but it was just something that kind of happened when she got frustrated.

"You're truly a disgrace to sailors and humans in general," she said, not bothering with any small talk. "I sang to you; my sisters sang to you; I summoned a damn storm and overturned your ship... And you fall overboard after being knocked unconscious by a piece of wood? That's one of the most boring deaths I've ever seen, so clearly you'll have to do better the next time."

Raina slapped her tail in the water again, sitting up and folding her arms across her chest. She looked him up and down briefly, then sighed, turning to swim back out to sea, but something stopped her.

"How did you resist me?"

[Lowen Thorn]

Silas sneaked an amused grin as he watched the woman throw a mild tantrum with her tail.

He tilted his head, looking the woman up and down in awe. "Well, if I remember correctly, I did offer to buy you dinner. So I wouldn't say I entirely resisted you," he informed her cheekily. "And I can do that too, by the way." He moved forward until he was on his knees, and slapped the water drifting to shore with the palm of his hand. "What are you anyway? Clearly a woman, that much is certain, but definitely not like any I've seen before."

His eyes glided over her one more time, lingering in certain areas they probably shouldn't have for more than just a few seconds.

"Definitely not just any woman," he noted, now moving his fingers across his chin in speculation. "Certainly beautiful, of course, but certainly different. I'm not sure why-"

He stopped, just then registering something the woman had said before.

".. What do you mean you overturned my ship?"

[Celegwen]

Did he just...slap the water? Raina thought. Her eyes widened slightly and switched rapidly between his mismatched eyes. That was certainly not something she'd experienced before, and it really took all of her energy to keep from appearing amused.

"What?" She asked, leaning down again to stretch her body out. "Never seen a mermaid before?"

While human women would probably have taken offense to a man leering at areas considered to be private, the temptress didn't say a word, enjoying the attention he was giving her. She knew she was mysterious and beautiful, so it was only to be expected that a man would want to look. But...

At the mention of his ship, Raina released a breathy laugh. "You foolish half-life," she said, plucking a small shell from the sand and held it on the water's surface by solidifying a small part of the wave. "You misbehaved, so I had to take away your toy." She liquified the water again, making the shell sink. "I would tell you to look if it had been struck by lightning." The mermaid waved her hand over her shoulder.

[Lowen Thorn]

She sunk.. ...my ship?

Silas sat there for a moment, still on his knees as he looked upon her with his mouth slightly agape. After several more moments he went to speak, but stopped again and blinked at her.

"Well, why the hell would you go and do something like that?" he finally asked, folding his arms over his chest and very much pouting. He looked away from her,  his nose turned upward as he refused to acknowledge the beauty that was in front of him. "I don't think I want to buy you dinner at all anymore," he said flatly. "It was going to be the best dinner of you life, too."

He fell back, off of his knees and onto his rear, arms still crossed and face still positioned away from her. "No I've never seen a mermaid before," he huffed. "I thought that was just an urban legend."

[Celegwen]

"Now you listen to me, you arrogant shit," she hissed, eyes burning. "Do not overestimate your worth. I saved your pathetic ass from drowning at sea, but I can drown you right here on this beach without even touching water. So I suggest you think about your words carefully."

The mermaid stopped flicking her tail, frustration quickly turning into anger at his overconfidence. She made sure to think about what she said as well, since something about this human seemed to bring out the worst in her. Gods, she actually saved a human because of him... What's wrong with me?

Taking a breath, she made sure to keep herself under control. "As you can see, mermaids are no legend," the girl said. "It would be wise to keep that in mind the next time you take to sea."

Raina released a small sigh and rolled her eyes. She hoped he wouldn't speak at all and just allow her an opportunity to slip back beneath the waves, but something about Silas made her pretty positive that he liked to hear himself talk.

[Lowen Thorn]

Oh boy.

Someone certainly has a quick temper.

He threw her a sharp look and raised both hands in defense. "Well, I certainly see that now," he said with a smirk on his lips. "You obviously saved me for some reason, right after you tried to kill me, of course."

He waved the thought off before running his hands through his hair. "You should just make up your mind. Drown me or leave me," he almost teased. "I'm as good as dead, anyway. It is not like I can swim all the way back to Serendipity."

He sighed, studying her face for another moment. "So tell me, Sea Goddess," he started. "Why did you save me?"

[Celegwen]

Seeing the smirk on his lips, Raina flashed him one of her own. "That's the point, Silas," she said. "I've already told you: you did a horrible job at dying last time, so I'm giving you another chance."

The mermaid straightened herself out completely, holding herself up with her arms, while her tail was extended behind her. Raina saw his curiosity, but she was pretty certain he wouldn't like the answer to that question.

"Since you clearly won't provide an interesting death at sea, you'll stay here. It's a small island, not even a mile across. There's no food for humans, nor is there any fresh water. I'm giving you an opportunity to earn the right to your life and, more importantly, entertain me the way you should've in the first place."

The girl flicked her tail, submerging herself completely under the water and coming back up again.

"If you can survive for one week, all seven days, I'll personally bring you to the mainland and even restore your ship," she said. "But if you can't survive, I'll have the pleasure of watching you wither away to nothing until you rot." Flashing him a sadistically satisfied smile, Raina shrugged. "I wouldn't suggest trying to swim for it. Serendipity is well over a dozen miles away, and the sea is filled with legends. See you in a week, Silas." Raina began to turn herself around to swim back towards the ship she had wrecked.

[Lowen Thorn]

Silas heard her words clearly before watching her drift off, back into the sea.

Seven days then. Count on it, he thought. At that point, he was more interested in learning more about the woman whose name he had failed to catch, despite her knowing his. Sure, he would take up her offer to bring him back to the mainland, but no doubt he would shoot for a little more than that.

Of course, he failed to mention his own intentions. Details.

Day 1

The mermaid wasn't wrong - this little island he found himself on wasn't more than a mile long, and there wasn't enough substantial shelter for him to lay his head comfortably. He did find a little shade under a dying tree, however, and that's the spot where he awoke that morning. 

Sitting upright, he stretched his arms out and yawned as his vision focused in on his surroundings. The sun was already beating down on him, but at least the little shade he had kept his skin from blistering too much.

Okay. No food. No fresh water. How was he going to get through this for seven days? Well, the water didn't have to be that fresh, so he may as well start there. He remembered seeing a small watering hole on his way to find shelter, so he got to his feet and tracked it down.

And he drank the most that it had to offer at that time. Crazy how parched a man can get while being stranded on a remote island by some sadistic sea goddess.

Okay. Now time to find some food. The woman said there wasn't any, but she could be wrong. At least, that's what he kept telling himself as he searched high and low for any sighting of food, only to inevitably fail. It was only the morning and his stomach was already growling.

He was fucked.

Not only that, but he was fairly certain that water he just drank was doing something to his stomach. He probably should have listened to the woman about that, but to hells with it, he was angry with her, and surely it wouldn't be that bad.

There was certainly one way to take his mind off of things, at least for a few moments. He peered around, making sure that there were no legends nearby to watch him. Then, his shoulders sank and he leaned his head back as a brief moment of relaxation washed over his body.

Tinkle Tinkle. Tinkle Tinkle Tinkle.

"Ahhh," he exhaled in satisfaction. "Well.. I feel be-"

He stopped, eyes widened, as his words betrayed him and so did his stomach. The water he had previously drank came surging out of his mouth with very little warning, leaving him hunched over the sand with a burning throat and teary eyes.

"G-Gods," he choked, wiping his eyes. "How the hell am I suppose to survive for seven days on nothing?!"

The rest of the day went exactly like the morning, and he eventually found himself back under the dying tree with growing hunger and lingering dehydration.

[Celegwen]

Day 2

She decided to watch from a distance. Raina was serious when she said she'd get the enjoyment of watching him die, so why would she stay away?

It wasn't every moment that she hovered around the island, though. After all, she had better things to do than watch a stranded sailor attempt to survive. Instead, the mermaid took the opportunity to explore the sunken ship.

There wasn't a whole lot that captured her attention on the ship. Whoever it was that owned the piece of crap really didn't have much of a collection.

Raina maneuvered her way around the vessel, emerging from one of the quarters to see her sister, Crystal. "You saved a human man?" Crystal asked telepathically, judgment evident from her frown.

"From drowning, yes," Raina responded. "He'll be dead soon, though. Trapped on a desert island, miles away from the mainland. Starvation or dehydration will probably get him, but it could be fun to see heat exhaustion."

Crystal gave her sister an approving smile, then swam off. Raina smirked, watching the coral-colored fluke start to fade away. She swam through a broken door into what she assumed was where the captain stayed. All kinds of fancy furniture and art, though most of it was in disarray from...well, being dragged to the sea floor after a storm.

Smacking her strong tail into an overturned desk, she broke a few of the locks. Some random trinkets fell out of it, but a small box caught her attention. Raina picked it up and opened the box to reveal a necklace with a teardrop aquamarine. It didn't look like anything really special, but something about it struck a chord with her. She slipped the necklace on and left the ship.

Making her way back to the little island, Raina saw Silas slump down against the same tree he had slept beneath the past two nights. He looked pretty bad, and this was only the second day. If he didn't get it together soon, he'd probably have only a little over a day left before dehydration took him.

[Lowen Thorn]

Day 3

Oh for fuck's sake.

Why did it have to be so gods damn hot on this stupid little island?

Seven days. Seven fucking days. He was only on day three, and he could already feel himself start to go a little mad. The second day was no more successful or eventful than the first, and the third day was starting to sing that same old song as well.

Nothing to eat. Nothing to drink. Nothing to eat. Nothing to drink. All just because he wanted to set sail on some stupid fucking adventure BY HIMSELF. They told him not to go by himself, they told him!

He had been slumped over under the tree for most of the day now. He hadn't even bothered getting up. What's the point? Nothing to eat. Nothing to drink. He may as well sit there with his eyes closed and conserve his strength for a while. Surely a human could survive without food or water for seven days, as long as he didn't die from the heat.

Yeah. That was something to hope for.

He sighed. "Fuck the strength," he decided. If he was going to die, he was going to die doing something he loved.

Softly, he began to sing. He'd sing it several times after that, and a few other songs after that, too. He kept singing through most of the day, remaining in his designated position against the tree, until his voice started to grow hoarse.

Now he was really thirsty. Wonderful.