Pt 2. Choppy Waters
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Mordecai cried out indignantly, slammed his knife on the bloodstained table, and grabbed the fish without thinking; he threw it as hard as he could over the side of the ship and furiously looked around, but all was quiet and still. The waves gently kissed the side of the boat, and who was he kidding? He was all alone in the middle of the ocean, it was simply unbelievable, to even himself, that there was something amiss. Before he’d even lifted the parring knife, he saw out of the corner of his eye, something splashing out of the water for just a moment. Probably a whale tail, Mordecai assumed, but what whale had a red and white tail? The only creature he could immediately think of would be some breed of shark, but Mordecai couldn’t recall any off the top off of his head, and he knew the ocean well. He knew he’d seen it this time. Was that thing a mermaid? Mordecai thought, blinking twice and rubbing his temples with a hand. He was acting out of pocket and desperately needed a beer soon, with his mind was swirling with insane theories. Nothing was making sense today; perhaps it was time for him to call it a day.
Mordecai noted that the sun would be setting shortly, and that it was probably best he wrap up before delusion completely overwhelmed him. He washed his hands quickly and headed inside of the ship’s body to indulge in a drink or two. Mordecai couldn’t shake his persistent thoughts, his swirling theories; not even ale could numb his mind to the persistent intrusions. He was so lost! He sat at a long table in the barracks of the ship, down below; he was thankful to not be alone on deck. He knew he was being ridiculous about the mermaid theory, but it was the fact he couldn’t shake it that drove Mordecai to upset.
Lilith came in, and his demeanor brightened a little. If anyone knew anything about mermaids, it would be her! Although, Mordecai was remiss to ask; Lilith didn’t particularly enjoy bringing up the experience and was often known to be cold when interrogated about it, but one look at the fisherman, and Lilith already knew something was wrong. The redheaded, former Siren looked up from the project she had been focusing on and waved to Mordecai before walking over, crumpled map in hand. Lilith looked as if she hadn’t slept in days, but was still happy to see her companion; her, Mordecai, Brick and Roland had all been friends since their young adulthoods, and they knew one another nearly their entire lives— they had lived together longer than they ever had apart. They really were like family; a big, dysfunctional, pirate family.
“Mordy, ya alright there? You’re looking at me like ya just saw a ghost. What’s on your mind, killer?” Lilith tilted her head curiously and sat down opposite Mordecai, taking a drink of her own while they casually chatted and overlooked their plans for raiding Hepduff Holm, a border island that was nestled about 150 miles east of the Helios Isle; there were rumors swimming around that Hepduff was the home of many hundreds of thousand dollars worth of gold and jewelry; that’s if Jack’s greedy paws hadn’t gotten to it first. They were expecting an ambush of Hyperion lackeys once they reached Hepduff, and had spent the better part of two weeks preparing for the onslaught.
Mordecai took a deep breath and considered Lilith’s question, unsure if he would be believed should he answer it honestly. “I think I saw a mermaid in the water today.” He forced the words out and prepared to be laughed at, only for Lilith to stagger back like she’d just been shot point blank. “Look, I don’t know what the hell I saw, but,” Mordecai threw back another ale and relaxed into the cheap seating. “I was cutting up shit today like I always do, and there were some fish I couldn’t use and threw them back into the water. You following?”
“Mordy, get to the damn point.” Lilith rolled her eyes and leaned forward, clearly still interested in this story.
“Okay, okay! Anyways, I threw the fish back out and they just… it was like someone was throwing them back on the boat. The first couple of times I chalked it up to just being a mistake, like they might not have made it over the side of the boat. But after that? It was like whatever it was was teasing me, like it was playing around.” Mordecai didn’t mention his teeming thoughts, or that it was as if the interaction was on constant replay. “Lil, I know you don’t like to talk about it, but you’ve never told us if there were more of you out there. That seems like an important thing to know!”
Lilith took a breath and nodded. “There are both mermaids and Sirens lurking in every ocean, down to Mariana’s Trench. I don’t know if what you’re dealing with is a Siren or not. Did it sing to you?” She asked suddenly, slamming her fists on the table in emphasis.
“What? No, it just threw fish at me!” Mordecai scowled and crossed his arms, staring out the window of the boat. He could see the waves lapping.
“Then you’re most likely just dealing with a mermaid; they’re harmless. Pranksters, dumb as rocks, but mermaids won’t hurt you. Sirens are what you have to worry about— they’ll infiltrate your every waking thought until you throw yourself into the ocean. Then they suck out your soul and use your carcass as underwater garden gnomes,” Lilith mentioned, her humor dry and somewhat awkward; Mordecai appreciated the attempt nonetheless. “I honestly wouldn’t think so hard about it, Birdman. If Bloodwing would’ve noticed something was off, she’d have alerted us.” Lilith mentioned, which seemed to put Mordecai at ease. “Anyways, I mapped out the possible locations of Graves Lucius’ loot. Judging by what Jack’s given to us in the past, it’s more than likely his crew is already excavating Hepduff, and they’ll be waiting for us when we get there.”
Mordecai nodded and sighed deeply through his nose, rubbing his temples. “Love it,” He commented, standing once more and brushing his hands off. “I’ve gotta get cooking, Lil. Chow’s gonna be in about an hour.” And that was that. No goodbyes, no formalities. Mordy was busy, and he needed to get back to work after Lilith’s little pep talk, although retrospectively, it hadn’t helped as much as Mordy had hoped it would; it only left the man with more unanswered questions.
Mordecai exited the foyer and took another step into the fresh, salty air, then headed towards the side of the ship, peering down into the murky waters. What if he did end up seeing something? Would he be excited? Terrified? Threatened? He wasn’t sure, and his mind was hallucinating the curious shadow of a figure lurking just below. “What the fuck?” He mouthed, leaning over for a better look.
SPLASH!
A small wave of water went over the railing and soaked Mordecai to the bone. “AUGH! ¡Tienes suerte de que yo mismo no pueda bajar allí, puto gilipollas!” He yelled into the ocean, glaring at the choppy waves. Mordecai still couldn’t get a good look at whatever was seemingly tormenting him.
But he would.
He’d get more than just a look. Mordecai’s head burst with ideas until he settled on a surefire plan to stop the mockery once and for all, and all he needed was a fishing net.
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