The Pirate and the Mermaid
Chapter 4 – A Fateful Meeting
Solu fell through the air as she fell in an expert dive, feet first toward the massive endless black of the water below. As she got closer to the person in the water she was shocked to see that they were in fact a woman. Solu was doubly shocked to see that she was a mermaid. The woman had no hair, and instead of ears she seemed to have fins growing from her head. Solu barely remembered to close her eyes just as her feet hit the water.
Solu fought against taking a deep breath in as she hit the freezing water. Every inch of her wanted to gasp from the stinging cold. Slightly disoriented, she braved opening her eyes under the stinging, salty sea water, hoping she could tell which way was up. She was surprised by what she saw. The moonlight caused ripples of light across the mermaid’s scales making them glitter like gems and she nearly forgot she was underwater.
Solu worked her way up to the surface with strong practiced strokes of her muscular arms. She took a deep, gasping breath as she broke through the surface of the water, just for a wave to dunk her back underneath. She returned to the surface sputtering and looked around before swimming her way smoothly over to the mermaid.
The absurdity of trying to save a mermaid from drowning hit the woman as she approached the startled looking creature. Solu really hoped the woman actually needed help, because otherwise the teasing from the crew about her trying to save a mermaid from drowning would probably kill her.
“Um… hey, I’m not sure if you’re in trouble or not?” Solu, scratched her head sheepishly, “I was thinking you were in trouble but then on the way down here, I noticed you were actually a mermaid, so maybe you aren’t?” A sudden gust of piercing wind Solu’s back and she shivered, nearly sinking beneath the water again, as the mermaid gave her a quizzical look.
The mermaid started singing, and Solu’s mind went completely blank for just a second, before she shook her head and started looking around confused. Solu couldn’t really understand what she was singing.
Maybe that’s how they talk, she thought, In which case, she pobably doesn’t know what I’m saying. Great, how can I make her understand then? Solu tried to hand the mermaid the loop of rope, and gestured at the rope around her own waist, hoping that maybe she would understand. The mermaid smiled and reached for it, clearly nervous, but when it touched her hand, she dropped it.
Maybe she doesn’t know what it’s for, Solu thought to herself, and tried to wrap the rope around the mermaid’s waist, when she started singing again, and Solu’s mind started getting fuzzy and blank again. After a few moments her mind began resisting whatever was affecting it. Solu shook her head, hoping to clear her thoughts.
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“Can we maybe find some other way to communicate? When you sing my head starts feeling weird. Look, I’m trying to help you.” Solu said, trying to show the woman the rope again. The mermaid looked at the rope and shook her head.
Oh. She’s trying to say no, Solu thought. The mermaid started to sink underneath the water.
Wait, Solu thought, her head still a little fuzzy from the singing, maybe she does actually need help. So she started swimming after the sinking woman with strong meaningful strokes.
The mermaid turned and looked at her, there was a strange look in her solid black eyes and Solu couldn’t fully grasp the meaning, but she felt herself wanting to know more about this mermaid. Then the mermaid sang a short, heartbreaking melody, and Solu was overcome with the need to know more.
It was then that the rope started tugging painfully against her waist. She looked up to see her crewmates yelling something, clearly alarmed. She still had breath though and she wanted to try to swim a little further but with every stroke she was moving backward from the crew pulling her back.
Solu flinched as the mermaid pulled a knife out of her waistband. It looked deadly and sharp despite being made of stone. The mermaid came at her with the knife. Solu tried to change direction suddenly to get away from her, but she was far slower than the mermaid in her natural environment.
Much to the relief of Solu, instead of attacking her with the knife, she started sawing at the rope behind her. It took a few minutes for the woman to cut through the tough rope, but soon enough she felt herself slip free from the painful pressure around her middle. Her mind still kind of fuzzy, Solu was relieved that the sharp pain around her waist had stopped, though the ache remained.
The mermaid began singing again, enticing Solu to follow her. Solu felt as her mind started to build a resistance to whatever enticement magic was laced in the woman’s voice. It still hadn’t fully resisted but she felt her thinking start to clear a bit.
Looking at the mermaid’s guileless face, Solu couldn’t help but feel that she wasn’t trying to cause her harm.
Perhaps, Solu thought, she knows of a way for me to breathe down here and we can come to some sort of understanding. So when the mermaid grabbed her hand still singing, Solu didn’t resist. She did periodically shake her head trying to help clear her mind, as it built up a barrier.
The mermaid reached out her hand and Solu blushed as she took it. She also noticed that the mermaid was blushing as well. The mermaid really was interesting, despite the unsettling black of her eyes. Solu found herself hoping that wherever they were going there was light because she wanted to see more of the mermaid.
The entrancing mermaid, hand in hand with Solu, began to drag her down to the dangerous unknown of the depths.