Status: Completed
Revenge of the Mermaids
Revenge of the Mermaids
As Daela climbed aboard the large carrying ship, her heart pounded ferociously in her chest. She pulled her heavy hood further so that it covered the stray hairs that escaped her loosely pinned bun. Her cloak dragged along the wooden deck as she scurried to the hull of the boat. Once she was under the deck she knew she would be safe.
The sailors would not board the boat until the sun rose, providing Daela with the perfect amount of time to properly conceal herself amidst the barrels and sacks that lay below.
She searched the deck hastily. Finally, she found the thick iron ring that was attached to the trap door that would lead to her dwellings for the next few weeks.
She pulled hard on the iron ring, feeling the heavy door rise in response. She heaved harder, throwing her arms above her head. She quickly realized that she couldn’t allow the door to drop to the deck for fear of waking the guards who walked among the boats outside.
She positioned the door against her back as she carefully lowered herself into the hull. As she reached the bottom step on the ladder, she gently closed the wooden door above her. She exhaled deeply. She was safe; for now, anyway.
She stepped off the ladder, feeling the boat quake slightly beneath her feet as the waves rolled in. She stretched her hands in front of her to keep from stumbling into objects whilst she walked. It was so terribly dark and briefly, she regret leaving her matches and candles at home.
As her eyes adjusted to the lack of light, she began to see the outlines of various objects in the room. She made her way to a corner where many barrels were stacked. She moved a few to the side, gently pushing them back into place as she made her way through the sea of cylindrical objects.
When she finally reached the wall, she stacked a few barrels around her and one on top so she could not be seen from any angle. She leaned against the wooden wall of the ship, releasing a sigh of relief.
She settled into her new found home and allowed the waves to rock her gently to sleep.
She was awakened, what felt like a few moments later, by someone moving the barrels aside.
Scared, Daela wrapped herself in her cloak, hoping not to be seen by whoever was searching.
When the final barrel was moved from in front of her, Daela peeked out through a hole in her hood.
Before her stood a woman. She wore a tattered cloak, just as Daela did. She seemed shocked.
“Sorry! I had no idea someone else was already here!” She exclaimed.
“It’s alright. Sit down and replace the barrels before anyone else sees!” Daela ordered.
She could tell by the shadows cast in the room that it was light outside. She knew that the sailors had to be close, if not already on the boat.
The woman managed to squeeze into Daela’s hiding spot. The two then began replacing the barrels, stacking each one on the last, building flimsy walls between them and the sailors.
When they finally finished moving the barrels, the other woman spoke.
“Forgive me, but why must we hide from the sailors?” She asked.
Daela stared at the woman, dumbfounded by her lack of knowledge.
“Haven’t you heard the stories?” She exclaimed.
“What stories?”
“When sailors find women on their boats, they tie them up and throw them into the ocean to drown- and that’s if you’re lucky! Some women are kept and tortured for years on end, forced to bear illegitimate children and withstand horrible beatings.”
The colour disappeared from the other woman’s face.
“Why are you here then?”
“Same reason as you.” Daela replied, matter-of-factly.
“Why’s that?”
“To escape.”
Daela could tell by the other woman’s lack of argument that she had suspected correctly. They had both come to escape their current lives. They were both oppressed, neglected and unwanted. They both sought better lives.
“What is your name?” The other woman whispered.
“Daela.”
“I am Elisia.”
“Pleasure to meet you.”
“The pleasure is all mine.”
Daela desperately wanted to continue to talk to Elisia, to find some sort of ground on which they could bond. She turned to speak to Elisia once again, but the woman’s eyelids were closed and she was breathing deeply. Daela sighed.
Daela leaned back against the wooden wall of the ship, feeling the water swell against her back. She closed her eyes, relishing the soothing motion. Eventually, the ocean’s waves lulled her into a peaceful sleep.
She was awakened suddenly by the sound of men’s voices coming closer. Her eyes flew open, and she gently shook Elisia to wake her from her slumber. As Elisia rubbed her eyes, Daela listened intently. She realized that the voices were coming from above deck.
“What’s-“ Daela shoved her hand over Elisia’s mouth to keep her from speaking.
“I hear the men.” She whispered.
Elisia’s pupils dilated with fear. She inched closer to Daela, fingers gripping the edges of her cloak until her knuckles went white.
“Will they find us?” She asked in a tremulous voice.
“I sincerely hope not.” Daela replied.
The two women huddled together, shaking in terror as the footsteps above deck made their way to the trap door that led to the hull of the ship.
Slowly, the trap door inched open. A small amount of light filtered in. Daela was suddenly aware of how vulnerable they were. She pulled her hood down over her face and urged Elisia to do the same.
The footsteps came closer, but they had a weird sound to them now. Daela dared to peek out of her hood and saw that there was a man descending from the ladder. She gulped, her throat tight .
“I’m just gonna go and check the inventory, Claude.” The man shouted.
His voice echoed off of the walls of the hull, sending shivers up Daela’s spine. She curled herself into a tight ball, praying to stay invisible.
The footsteps came closer and suddenly stopped only a few feet from their barricade. The man began removing the barrels one by one and opening them. After peering inside for a few moments, the man closed the barrel, pushed it behind him, and moved on to the next one.
He moved with great speed, and soon he was pulling the barrels away from their barricade. At first, he did not seem to notice the two women, but when he turned to grab the next barrel, their eyes met.
Daela clenched her teeth to keep from screaming out as the man’s eyes bore into her skull. She watched his expression change from placid to pure fury.
He reached out and pulled Daela’s hood from her head. Elisia’s head snapped up in response, and the man ripped her hood from her head as well.
“Women.” He hissed.
Daela and Elisia shrunk back against the wall, trying to get away from the terrifyingly large man. But, it did no good.
He grabbed Daela by her hair, forcing her to stand. He threw her against the wall of the hull and proceeded to pick up Elisia, throwing her over his shoulder. He then grabbed Daela, once again, by her hair, and started toward the ladder.
Daela tried to fight the man as he dragged her against the wooden floor, but he only tugged her hair harder until she called out. Tears welled in her eyes, threatening to spill over.
Elisia, however; was surprisingly relaxed. She did not fight, nor did she call out. Daela watched her expression as she hung over the man’s shoulder. Her lips appeared to be moving. Upon further inspection, Daela decided that she was praying.
They reached the deck finally. It appeared to be twilight, and they were surrounded by only ocean. No one to help them.
Daela and Elisia were thrown to the ground and tied to the large mast of the boat. The sailors gathered around, one by one, studying them. Daela lowered her head, trying to relieve herself from their gaze.
Despite no longer being able to see them gazing at her, she could still feel their eyes boring into her. She felt vulnerable and exposed, as if they were undressing her with their eyes.
A man walked over to she and Elisia. Daela tried to shrink into the mast, but it did no good. The man grabbed both Daela and Elisia by the hair, twisting so that their eyes met the sailors once again. Elisia whimpered, which only made the sailor tug harder at her hair.
Daela watched as the men discussed something in low voices. Finally, the nodded between each other and gestured to Elisia. Daela stared at the men, terrified.
“What does that mean?” She screamed.
The men looked at her, laughing. It was clear that they had no intention of telling her anything.
Suddenly, they split into two groups of men. One grabbed Daela and the rest of the rope, the others grabbed Elisia. They threw Elisia to the ground and crowded around her. Daela couldn’t see anything through the sea of men, but she could hear Elisia’s gut-wrenching screaming. She felt her heart breaking.
The men then began to tie Daela’s legs together as well as her arms. She tried to fight them, but it did no good. They were too strong.
They lifted her up and carried her to the side of the boat. She gasped, realising what was about to happen. She screamed one last time, just as they released her from their grip. She fell and plunged into the icy ocean water.
She felt her body being dragged down by the ocean’s currents. Her lungs burned and her head pounded. She knew she was going to die. With her last ounce of consciousness, she prayed. She prayed for someone to save her. Then, it all went black.
~
As Daela regained consciousness, her mind was very foggy. She opened her eyes slowly and saw a beautiful woman in front of her. She opened her mouth to speak, but the woman gently placed a hand over her mouth to silence her.
She sat up slowly, looking around. They were inside a boat of some sort, she observed. But, there were holes everywhere. She noticed that there were fish swimming around her and her hair floated gently around her. She gasped.
“I must be dreaming.” She managed, voice raw and gravelly.
“You are not. You have been saved.” The woman said, voice rough, as if she hadn’t had anything to drink in centuries.
“Where am I?”
“You’re in the sea, of course!”
“How is that possible?”
“You’re a mermaid now.”
Daela looked down, shocked, and saw that she and the woman both had tails of fish. She ran her fingers along her new, scaly tail, admiring it.
It was the colour of the sky, a beautiful bright blue, though it had silver streaks in some parts. It faded slowly up her body, until there were only a few scales covering her breasts and neck.
“How did this happen?”
“The sailors put you to death, and we saved you. This was the only way we knew how.”
Daela felt more eyes on her, and as she looked around, she noticed that there were more mermaids swimming toward her.
“My name is Roselle,” The woman explained. “These are your new sisters.”
“I am Daela.”
“It is wonderful to have you in our family.” A beautiful blonde mermaid chirped, despite her rough voice.
The woman, Roselle, could see the confusion written on Daela’s face.
“We all drowned. The salt water makes our throats raw, thus our voices are rough.” She explained.
“Where is Elisia?” Daela asked.
“Who?”
“Elisia. My friend. She was on the boat with me.”
“We haven’t seen her.”
Daela felt tears swell in her eyes, once again, but she was unable to cry. Instead, the tears burned like a hot iron on her skin.
“Come with us. We’ll get your friend back.” Roselle stated.
Daela obeyed, following the other mermaids to another location.
They all met on a large rock. There were about a dozen of them in total. Daela admired the different colours of their scales; some bright pink like the sunset, others as black as the night sky.
“Ladies,” Roselle called.
The mermaids stopped their chatter at once.
“We have a mission.”
The mermaids cheered gleefully. Daela wasn’t sure what they were so happy about, but she couldn’t wait to find out.
“We must find the ship that contains Elisia and save her from the sailors’ clutches!” She boomed.
The mermaids all cheered in agreement.
“However; we must teach our new friend our tricks first.” Roselle stated.
“We sing a song to lure them to the rocks. Then, we allow their boat to crash and drag them into the depths of the ocean. We shall only save Elisia.” The blonde mermaid explained.
Daela nodded. She was thirsty for revenge. She needed to watch the sailors die just as they had watched her. She wanted the salt to burn their throats and their chests to explode. She wanted to watch every second of it.
They began swimming to the surface. In a group, they looked like a rainbow. Daela laughed at the irony of their beauty. How could something so precious come from such a horrible death?
When they reached the surface, Roselle called to the other mermaids.
“I see the ship!” She boomed. “We must follow it, singing.”
The mermaids did as they were told, and began singing a beautiful song. Their voices sounded like honey, and they became even more enticing as they reached the side of the boat.
They swam alongside the boat, singing their song. Daela listened to the sailors chatter.
Suddenly, the mermaids veered off to the left, leading the men to the sharp rocks just ahead. Daela watched as the boat followed them without a second thought.
When they reached the rocks, the mermaids lay on top of them, basking in the glow of the moon. As the boat reached the rocks, their singing turned into a disgusting assortment of rough voices screeching at the top of their lungs.
The sailors were released from their trance, but it was too late. The boat smashed against the rocks, allowing the salty water to enter through the large holes.
As the men jumped into the water, so did the mermaids. Daela followed the crowd, searching intently for Elisia.
She watched as Roselle swam toward a sailor. As she opened her mouth, Daela noticed that she did not have teeth, but instead her mouth was full of razor-sharp spikes. Her eyes were huge and black, and her voice sounded like the Devil himself.
The mermaids grabbed all of the sailors, dragging them down. Daela wanted to watch the sailors die, but she had to find Elisia first.
She swam through the wreckage, checking every barrel and post along the way. There was no sign of her friend.
Suddenly, the top of a barrel popped off and blood floated out of the wooden container. Daela swam toward it, hoping that Elisia wasn’t too badly injured.
As she reached the barrel, a hand floated out, then a foot, then a bloody cloak. She peered inside and saw what remained of Elisia. Her head was near the bottom of the barrel. Her green eyes stared up at Daela. A look of horror was frozen onto her face.
Daela screamed at the top of her lungs. She vowed that day that she would seek revenge. Revenge for the loss of the innocent woman named Elisia.
The sailors would not board the boat until the sun rose, providing Daela with the perfect amount of time to properly conceal herself amidst the barrels and sacks that lay below.
She searched the deck hastily. Finally, she found the thick iron ring that was attached to the trap door that would lead to her dwellings for the next few weeks.
She pulled hard on the iron ring, feeling the heavy door rise in response. She heaved harder, throwing her arms above her head. She quickly realized that she couldn’t allow the door to drop to the deck for fear of waking the guards who walked among the boats outside.
She positioned the door against her back as she carefully lowered herself into the hull. As she reached the bottom step on the ladder, she gently closed the wooden door above her. She exhaled deeply. She was safe; for now, anyway.
She stepped off the ladder, feeling the boat quake slightly beneath her feet as the waves rolled in. She stretched her hands in front of her to keep from stumbling into objects whilst she walked. It was so terribly dark and briefly, she regret leaving her matches and candles at home.
As her eyes adjusted to the lack of light, she began to see the outlines of various objects in the room. She made her way to a corner where many barrels were stacked. She moved a few to the side, gently pushing them back into place as she made her way through the sea of cylindrical objects.
When she finally reached the wall, she stacked a few barrels around her and one on top so she could not be seen from any angle. She leaned against the wooden wall of the ship, releasing a sigh of relief.
She settled into her new found home and allowed the waves to rock her gently to sleep.
She was awakened, what felt like a few moments later, by someone moving the barrels aside.
Scared, Daela wrapped herself in her cloak, hoping not to be seen by whoever was searching.
When the final barrel was moved from in front of her, Daela peeked out through a hole in her hood.
Before her stood a woman. She wore a tattered cloak, just as Daela did. She seemed shocked.
“Sorry! I had no idea someone else was already here!” She exclaimed.
“It’s alright. Sit down and replace the barrels before anyone else sees!” Daela ordered.
She could tell by the shadows cast in the room that it was light outside. She knew that the sailors had to be close, if not already on the boat.
The woman managed to squeeze into Daela’s hiding spot. The two then began replacing the barrels, stacking each one on the last, building flimsy walls between them and the sailors.
When they finally finished moving the barrels, the other woman spoke.
“Forgive me, but why must we hide from the sailors?” She asked.
Daela stared at the woman, dumbfounded by her lack of knowledge.
“Haven’t you heard the stories?” She exclaimed.
“What stories?”
“When sailors find women on their boats, they tie them up and throw them into the ocean to drown- and that’s if you’re lucky! Some women are kept and tortured for years on end, forced to bear illegitimate children and withstand horrible beatings.”
The colour disappeared from the other woman’s face.
“Why are you here then?”
“Same reason as you.” Daela replied, matter-of-factly.
“Why’s that?”
“To escape.”
Daela could tell by the other woman’s lack of argument that she had suspected correctly. They had both come to escape their current lives. They were both oppressed, neglected and unwanted. They both sought better lives.
“What is your name?” The other woman whispered.
“Daela.”
“I am Elisia.”
“Pleasure to meet you.”
“The pleasure is all mine.”
Daela desperately wanted to continue to talk to Elisia, to find some sort of ground on which they could bond. She turned to speak to Elisia once again, but the woman’s eyelids were closed and she was breathing deeply. Daela sighed.
Daela leaned back against the wooden wall of the ship, feeling the water swell against her back. She closed her eyes, relishing the soothing motion. Eventually, the ocean’s waves lulled her into a peaceful sleep.
She was awakened suddenly by the sound of men’s voices coming closer. Her eyes flew open, and she gently shook Elisia to wake her from her slumber. As Elisia rubbed her eyes, Daela listened intently. She realized that the voices were coming from above deck.
“What’s-“ Daela shoved her hand over Elisia’s mouth to keep her from speaking.
“I hear the men.” She whispered.
Elisia’s pupils dilated with fear. She inched closer to Daela, fingers gripping the edges of her cloak until her knuckles went white.
“Will they find us?” She asked in a tremulous voice.
“I sincerely hope not.” Daela replied.
The two women huddled together, shaking in terror as the footsteps above deck made their way to the trap door that led to the hull of the ship.
Slowly, the trap door inched open. A small amount of light filtered in. Daela was suddenly aware of how vulnerable they were. She pulled her hood down over her face and urged Elisia to do the same.
The footsteps came closer, but they had a weird sound to them now. Daela dared to peek out of her hood and saw that there was a man descending from the ladder. She gulped, her throat tight .
“I’m just gonna go and check the inventory, Claude.” The man shouted.
His voice echoed off of the walls of the hull, sending shivers up Daela’s spine. She curled herself into a tight ball, praying to stay invisible.
The footsteps came closer and suddenly stopped only a few feet from their barricade. The man began removing the barrels one by one and opening them. After peering inside for a few moments, the man closed the barrel, pushed it behind him, and moved on to the next one.
He moved with great speed, and soon he was pulling the barrels away from their barricade. At first, he did not seem to notice the two women, but when he turned to grab the next barrel, their eyes met.
Daela clenched her teeth to keep from screaming out as the man’s eyes bore into her skull. She watched his expression change from placid to pure fury.
He reached out and pulled Daela’s hood from her head. Elisia’s head snapped up in response, and the man ripped her hood from her head as well.
“Women.” He hissed.
Daela and Elisia shrunk back against the wall, trying to get away from the terrifyingly large man. But, it did no good.
He grabbed Daela by her hair, forcing her to stand. He threw her against the wall of the hull and proceeded to pick up Elisia, throwing her over his shoulder. He then grabbed Daela, once again, by her hair, and started toward the ladder.
Daela tried to fight the man as he dragged her against the wooden floor, but he only tugged her hair harder until she called out. Tears welled in her eyes, threatening to spill over.
Elisia, however; was surprisingly relaxed. She did not fight, nor did she call out. Daela watched her expression as she hung over the man’s shoulder. Her lips appeared to be moving. Upon further inspection, Daela decided that she was praying.
They reached the deck finally. It appeared to be twilight, and they were surrounded by only ocean. No one to help them.
Daela and Elisia were thrown to the ground and tied to the large mast of the boat. The sailors gathered around, one by one, studying them. Daela lowered her head, trying to relieve herself from their gaze.
Despite no longer being able to see them gazing at her, she could still feel their eyes boring into her. She felt vulnerable and exposed, as if they were undressing her with their eyes.
A man walked over to she and Elisia. Daela tried to shrink into the mast, but it did no good. The man grabbed both Daela and Elisia by the hair, twisting so that their eyes met the sailors once again. Elisia whimpered, which only made the sailor tug harder at her hair.
Daela watched as the men discussed something in low voices. Finally, the nodded between each other and gestured to Elisia. Daela stared at the men, terrified.
“What does that mean?” She screamed.
The men looked at her, laughing. It was clear that they had no intention of telling her anything.
Suddenly, they split into two groups of men. One grabbed Daela and the rest of the rope, the others grabbed Elisia. They threw Elisia to the ground and crowded around her. Daela couldn’t see anything through the sea of men, but she could hear Elisia’s gut-wrenching screaming. She felt her heart breaking.
The men then began to tie Daela’s legs together as well as her arms. She tried to fight them, but it did no good. They were too strong.
They lifted her up and carried her to the side of the boat. She gasped, realising what was about to happen. She screamed one last time, just as they released her from their grip. She fell and plunged into the icy ocean water.
She felt her body being dragged down by the ocean’s currents. Her lungs burned and her head pounded. She knew she was going to die. With her last ounce of consciousness, she prayed. She prayed for someone to save her. Then, it all went black.
~
As Daela regained consciousness, her mind was very foggy. She opened her eyes slowly and saw a beautiful woman in front of her. She opened her mouth to speak, but the woman gently placed a hand over her mouth to silence her.
She sat up slowly, looking around. They were inside a boat of some sort, she observed. But, there were holes everywhere. She noticed that there were fish swimming around her and her hair floated gently around her. She gasped.
“I must be dreaming.” She managed, voice raw and gravelly.
“You are not. You have been saved.” The woman said, voice rough, as if she hadn’t had anything to drink in centuries.
“Where am I?”
“You’re in the sea, of course!”
“How is that possible?”
“You’re a mermaid now.”
Daela looked down, shocked, and saw that she and the woman both had tails of fish. She ran her fingers along her new, scaly tail, admiring it.
It was the colour of the sky, a beautiful bright blue, though it had silver streaks in some parts. It faded slowly up her body, until there were only a few scales covering her breasts and neck.
“How did this happen?”
“The sailors put you to death, and we saved you. This was the only way we knew how.”
Daela felt more eyes on her, and as she looked around, she noticed that there were more mermaids swimming toward her.
“My name is Roselle,” The woman explained. “These are your new sisters.”
“I am Daela.”
“It is wonderful to have you in our family.” A beautiful blonde mermaid chirped, despite her rough voice.
The woman, Roselle, could see the confusion written on Daela’s face.
“We all drowned. The salt water makes our throats raw, thus our voices are rough.” She explained.
“Where is Elisia?” Daela asked.
“Who?”
“Elisia. My friend. She was on the boat with me.”
“We haven’t seen her.”
Daela felt tears swell in her eyes, once again, but she was unable to cry. Instead, the tears burned like a hot iron on her skin.
“Come with us. We’ll get your friend back.” Roselle stated.
Daela obeyed, following the other mermaids to another location.
They all met on a large rock. There were about a dozen of them in total. Daela admired the different colours of their scales; some bright pink like the sunset, others as black as the night sky.
“Ladies,” Roselle called.
The mermaids stopped their chatter at once.
“We have a mission.”
The mermaids cheered gleefully. Daela wasn’t sure what they were so happy about, but she couldn’t wait to find out.
“We must find the ship that contains Elisia and save her from the sailors’ clutches!” She boomed.
The mermaids all cheered in agreement.
“However; we must teach our new friend our tricks first.” Roselle stated.
“We sing a song to lure them to the rocks. Then, we allow their boat to crash and drag them into the depths of the ocean. We shall only save Elisia.” The blonde mermaid explained.
Daela nodded. She was thirsty for revenge. She needed to watch the sailors die just as they had watched her. She wanted the salt to burn their throats and their chests to explode. She wanted to watch every second of it.
They began swimming to the surface. In a group, they looked like a rainbow. Daela laughed at the irony of their beauty. How could something so precious come from such a horrible death?
When they reached the surface, Roselle called to the other mermaids.
“I see the ship!” She boomed. “We must follow it, singing.”
The mermaids did as they were told, and began singing a beautiful song. Their voices sounded like honey, and they became even more enticing as they reached the side of the boat.
They swam alongside the boat, singing their song. Daela listened to the sailors chatter.
Suddenly, the mermaids veered off to the left, leading the men to the sharp rocks just ahead. Daela watched as the boat followed them without a second thought.
When they reached the rocks, the mermaids lay on top of them, basking in the glow of the moon. As the boat reached the rocks, their singing turned into a disgusting assortment of rough voices screeching at the top of their lungs.
The sailors were released from their trance, but it was too late. The boat smashed against the rocks, allowing the salty water to enter through the large holes.
As the men jumped into the water, so did the mermaids. Daela followed the crowd, searching intently for Elisia.
She watched as Roselle swam toward a sailor. As she opened her mouth, Daela noticed that she did not have teeth, but instead her mouth was full of razor-sharp spikes. Her eyes were huge and black, and her voice sounded like the Devil himself.
The mermaids grabbed all of the sailors, dragging them down. Daela wanted to watch the sailors die, but she had to find Elisia first.
She swam through the wreckage, checking every barrel and post along the way. There was no sign of her friend.
Suddenly, the top of a barrel popped off and blood floated out of the wooden container. Daela swam toward it, hoping that Elisia wasn’t too badly injured.
As she reached the barrel, a hand floated out, then a foot, then a bloody cloak. She peered inside and saw what remained of Elisia. Her head was near the bottom of the barrel. Her green eyes stared up at Daela. A look of horror was frozen onto her face.
Daela screamed at the top of her lungs. She vowed that day that she would seek revenge. Revenge for the loss of the innocent woman named Elisia.