A Dead Captain’s Tail (Starcaller and incendonocturne)

[incendonocturne]

-Waves whisking her away. Drawing her nearer the beautiful song. A flick of a tail as she dipped beneath the water. The orange orb kissed the edge of the water, angry waves trying to over take it and drag it under.

Her sisters song fading, replaced by terrified shrieks and twitters, the language of the Sea, echoing over the rocks, warning her to stay away.

She swam closer, curious to the cries of her sister, curious of the hulking ship that rocked against the waves.

A heavy weight fell over her, wild eyes stared between the netting. Wild cries escaping as panic set in. She flopped, tangling herself more. A strange sound came from the ship before her sister fell below the water and a blackness fell over Caerulius.-

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-a gasp split through the darkness, her eyes shot open. Her breathing erratic. A hand pressed against her chest as cool water lapped at her bare feet.

Wide and sleep filled eyes darted around the familiar surroundings. Her chest rising and falling sharply as the dream subsided.

She stood staring out at the darkened waters before her. A sea breeze shifting her nightshirt around her frame. With a shudder she wrapped her arms around herself and stared out at the rippling shape of the moon against the water. Her eyes dancing over the rocks a few miles off, sliding over the location of the wreckage that drew tourists from all over.

Tears streaked softly down Renata’s cheeks as she replayed the dream, a dream she’d had before. All in small increments. Bits and pieces as if she were watching from the other side of a shattered mirror.-

 

[Starcaller]

The crew of The Hellish Harlot worked tirelessly that night. Captain Edwin Payne had been hot on the heels of his most recent endeavor. And all knew that when the Captain wanted something, the Captain had it. His eyes, calm much unlike the waters that rocked his terrifying ship, watched as his loyal crew worked as one to best the waves that threatened to turn his beloved vessel over. The Captain needed not waste air to shout or scream at them. Each and every one of them knew that there was no fury greater than the Captain's. Not even the Gods'. For why would they then defy the Sea God in an attempt, some would have said, a foolish attempt, to capture one of His precious daughters? For that was what mermaids were. The Sea God's cherished daughters, His creation. Their beauty surpassed imagination and their song had so often dragged hapless enamored sailors to the depths of the sea, where their bones rested even now. But not even bones would be left of those who would be so daring to try and abduct one of the Sea God's daughters. And neither the crew, nor the Captain, feared that. And never would they, not under the leadership of such a stubborn and strong captain. Under his command, the crewmen feared nothing. Not death, not gods. But they feared him. And Edwin used that to keep them all under his control.

He stood, unmoved by the rocking of the ship, hands behind his back and attentive eyes scrutinizing the lower deck upon which the sailors moved like an organized chaos.

"Captain, mermaids on our starboard!" The watcher from the crow's nest shouted above all other voices, capturing the attention of the quiet man who had seemed all but detached from the moment at hand up until now. His head turned to regard the announcer, the scar right under his right eye -a poor attempt of a military sailor of dueling him- twisting with the slight smile that curved his lips and moved those otherwise stone-like facial features. Edwin returned his attention to the crew and, without much effort, he shouted, his voice booming and attracting the attention of everyone, even of his second-in-command who was in the middle of that entire mass of people moving about the lower deck.

"Bring the net, lads!"

The victory was his, he knew it. Even as the seas stirred with such fury, he remained unmoved and continued to watch as his loyal men began the process of tossing the rather heavy and large net into the water. The skies broke at once and rain fell like a waterfall as the cries underwater echoed above it. Within seconds, the storm seemed to have hit its full potential, large, violent waves crashing against the ship aggressively, throwing water overboard. Thunders rumbled in the skies that darkened within moments, covering the orange glow of the moon that seemed to have created a path on the water.

"We caught one!" A voice cried, causing the Captain's lips to draw into a grin. "Captain, the storm has become too dangerous!" The steersman's voice was heard through the whole chaos, on the background of voices that yelled and cried all at once to coordinate themselves in the effort of pulling the net from the agitated waters. Edwin turned, and while the mad rocking of the ship had an effect on his walking, too, he still walked straight, as if he was somehow part of the ship. The steersman stepped away from the steering wheel, allowing the Captain to take control. Meanwhile, on the lower deck, the shouting and cries never ceased as the sailors tried their best to pull the full net over the board, all while from under the water the net was being dragged, no doubt by the siren's sisters who tried in vain to set her free. The ship threatened to be swallowed by the waves in any second and yet the Captain kept his composure and the iron grip he had on the steering wheel.

"We got her!" Cried a voice, covered immediately by a bellowing, as if the entire sea around them had cried out in rage at losing one of its inhabitants. The Captain handed the steering wheel over to the steersman and commanded as he headed down below the deck.

"Bring her to me."

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​

Trystan came awake all of a sudden, eyes opening to glare at the ceiling above. There was sweat on his forehead, almost as if he had just been in the rain. The echoes of the dream replayed in his mind, so vivid, as if just moments ago he had been standing on a deck in the middle of a storm, watching sailors struggle. A turn of his head revealed the open window through which he could so clearly see the sea. And in the moonlight, as the moon slowly descended into the water, casting a path of light upon the surface, he could see it. The old shipwreck's frame, a mast standing erect as if trying to reach the skies.

It had always intrigued him as a child and as a teenager and now, Trystan took anyone who wanted to visit it on tours. But he dearly wished to, one day, discover the ship's tragic story.

With those thoughts whirling through his mind, he fell asleep again, letting himself fall into the world of dreams once again.

 

[incendonocturne]

-Renata stood at the waters edge a moment longer. Trying to make sense of the broken pieces of dreams. Why did it call to her? So strong that she walked in her sleep.

She stared down at the chilled waves as they lapped at her feet again and somewhere, perhaps in the back of her mind, she could hear the soft sirens call echoing from a distance.

Her gaze flicked sharply back out toward the slightly restless waters. Eyes narrowing on the darkened skeletal remains reaching toward the equally dark skies. Wispy, hair like shadows seemed to wave just around the hull, as ethereal as the imagined song she heard. Her brow tightened and she blinked, the shadows gone as quick as they’d appeared, swallowed by the rippling light of the moon as the sea shifted.

A shudder coursed through her, her arms tightened around her midsection as she stepped back from the lapping waters and turned. Her bare feet quick as she ran back over the sand to her little beach house.

Sleep was slow to come, but come it did just shy of two hours before sunrise. The dreams crept in again, assaulting her subconscious.-

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-a screeching wail as her sister was ripped from the waters, still trying to claw or tear a hole in the netting that had captured her. In the darkness that had befallen her when the waves had crashed her into the ships underside, she heard voices. Human voices. Screaming into the night above, celebrating as the net hoisted her from her home.

She shrieked at her sister, an urgent sound. The jerk of the net finally loosening the others grip, tossing her back into the water and safety. As the net continued to rise, she watched below as her sister disappeared into the roiling waves with a hard flick of her tail.

Terrified and angry, she screeched and swiped her clawed fingers through the net at the men. Her tail flicking, smacking against a few of them as she wailed, pulled along the deck of the ship.-

——————————​

-again she jolted awake, this time she’d remained in her bed, sheet clutched tightly in her fist as she sat up, staring at the rising sun through the curtains. She realized one thing was consistent through out all the dreams. The ship. She didn’t know why or how she knew it was the one down the beach but she knew. Felt it deep inside. Something was pulling her to it.

Sighing, she rolled out of bed. She made herself a light breakfast and hopped into the shower. Once dressed, she knew of only one person to get her onto that ship. A ship she’d never set foot on before nor until now, had had any inclination to do so. By ten a.m. she was knocking on Trystan’s door.-

 

[Starcaller]

The net was being dragged across the wooden floors by three men, not for the lack of physical strength but due to how much the siren struggled against it. The Captain walked in front of them, his gold adorned long coat almost brushing against the floor. His cabin was found all the way at the poop deck, but as they reached it, Edwin reached out to push open the large doors that revealed the interiors of his quarters. The Harlot was a very large ship, and so the Captain's quarters were something the size of a ballroom. The man sure loved to live in luxury, all the gold and all the silver adorning his walls and his ceiling was nothing if not impeccable and shiny. A large golden chandelier hung high above the middle of the room, bestowing light upon it through the numerous candles that burned in its grasp. And in the middle of the massive room a glass water tank had been prepared. It had taken a lot of work to make, but the Captain knew, as any other sea dog worth their salts, that a siren could only last so long out of the water. And so the Captain had ordered the devising of this tank, especially for this occasion.

The struggle to toss the being into the tank was just as great as the one to pull the siren out of the water but in the end, the siren was dropped out of the net and into the water tank, water which moved about with the movements of the ship that still rocked, caught in the grip of the storms outside. Edwin had made sure that the tank was filled with water right from the sea.

Such legendary beauty, what an interesting specimen. The Captain was mesmerized by simply looking at the mermaid. And so were his sailors who found themselves gazing at her. That was until Edwin realized it and, snapping, he ordered.

"Get out. All of you!"

The siren was his. All his. And as the doors closed and he remained alone with the creature, he approached the tank, mere inches separating him from the glass walls of it. He studied it closely, admiring the way her human body ended and connected to the fish tail. Such gorgeous beings could kill so savagely. All it took was one enthralled man to touch them and then, all would be over. And oh, the Captain would have touched her if he did not know the kinds of charms she could do. But she was scared now, distressed, and he... he was made of stone. Her cries didn't soften him in the least. They brought him no pleasure, either. With his hands behind his back he gazed long and contemplative at the being that was his prisoner, almost unable to believe that he had really succeeded. His dream had come true. A siren in the flesh on the ship. His sailors, the superstitious lot of them, had almost begged Edwin to reconsider, citing the many legends of the sirens' curses. But Edwin was not one to give up on something because of a legend. What could a poor, scared and confused siren really do, trapped there in the tank?

"I know you can understand what I'm saying." He said, his voice calm and icy, as he took a step forward towards the glass. "And I also know you can speak so, speak if you so will. My name is Captain Edwin Payne. And you are my guest. Tell me, do you have a name?"

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​

The echo of the Captain's last words rang in Trystan's ears for long, painful minutes after he came into his senses. Yet only now did the reality of being wide awake really come into full effect. Trystan's hand raised before his eyes allowed him to look at it as the sun's rays shone upon his flesh. It felt strange. His fingers flexed, turning his open palm into a fist and vice-versa. The young man remained in bed, contemplating, dreaming wide awake about the vivid feeling of being in the Captain's body. These strange dreams had been occurring for a while now and worst of all, sometimes Trystan woke up in other places than his own bed. It was as if something took control of his body while he slept.

His train of thoughts derailed as he heard the knocks upon the door. Who could it be? Tourists, this early? Trystan jumped out of the bed and pulled on a pair of shorts, not bothering with the shirt.

"Coming!"

His voice was heard down the hallway as he rushed to the door, opening it perhaps too eagerly. The familiar face in the door frame made him smile but at the same time, made him worried. It was Renata. He'd known her since they were kids and he'd learned her well enough to know that something was really eating at her. For a short moment there, her face morphed into the one of the siren, making Trystan blink quickly. No, that could not be possible, what the absolute hell was wrong?

"Morning, Ren." He smiled at her, moving out of the way to let her in. "Everything alright?"

 

[incendonocturne]

-she’d knocked again, the sound a little more urgent than before. Stuffing her hands into the pockets of her jeans, she twisted at her torso. Peering out over the waters. Watching the waves roll and lap at the expanse of beach several feet away.

A breeze swept strands of golden blond hair across her face and for a moment it felt as if she were floating in water. The breeze whispering against her skin, her ear but she couldn’t quite make out the feminine sound that seemed to mingle with it. A single word. A name. She swiped at the hair quickly, pulling it from her eyes, letting them dart over the vacant area.

Was she losing her ever loving mind? She heard Trystan calling that he was coming. And she thought for just a second that it had been him she’d heard, and the disorienting feeling she’d had had distorted his voice. Until she heard the soft siren song drifting to her on a wave again.

Just then, the door pulled open and she spun to peer up at her friend, blond curls fluttering and cascading back down to settle against her shoulders as if momentarily caught on the waves behind her. She blinked back at his blink.-

“Morning Trystan. Did I wake you?”

-she asked with genuine concern, offering him a small but tight smile in return. She’d figured he’d have been up by now. Maybe even conducting a tour or at least prepping for one. She ascended the remaining steps and slid past him quietly when he offered her entrance.-

“Yeah.”

-there was a pause before she continued over her shoulder as she turned to peer out a window.-

“No. I’m not sleeping all that great. Just tired, is all. I need something to keep me busy and awake.”

-she chuckled, turning to face him again.-

“Do you have any tours going out today? I’d like to go, if you do.”

 

[Starcaller]

"No, I just... woke up." He responded as she passed by him. There was something odd about her, something that brought back flashes from his dream. When had he ever thought about Renata being a siren? Never, far as he could recall. Yet now he did think and intensely so because there just was something about her that reminded him of the poor creature trapped in the water tank in his dream. What was that all about? Why did it still feel so real? Trystan was really confused and still slightly sleepy. There was concern readable on his face as Renata revealed that she, too, had troubles sleeping. The first thing he wanted to ask was about when she started feeling this way, however, she asked something before he could, making him all of a sudden even more curious. Since when was Renata interested in his tours? Sure, she enjoyed the seaside as much as him but she'd never been this eager to actually go out there. Besides, his tours were mainly circled around that wreck off the shore. As any other citizen of their small town, Ren was mildly interested in what exactly that wreck was, but she never seemed to be so curious as to request to go to it. Moreover...

"Touring is nearly impossible." He said with a sigh. "It's weird, the waters are acting weird all around that shipwreck, they've been doing that for the past couple of weeks..." he said, while realization suddenly struck him. His dreams, they've become more persistent and crystal clear in the past couple of weeks. Before that it had been barely snippets, unintelligible images and sounds but now, the dreams were so real, so tangible. There had to be some sort of connection between these events but Trystan didn't really want Renata to think he had just lost his minds so, for the moment, he kept quiet, in spite of his burning desire of asking her what exactly made her sleep so bad and when that "something" started.

"So uh, no tours today, unfortunately, but I want to do something even more exciting!" He said with a smile before finally moving, trusting that Renata would follow. "You need some coffee, and I do too, come on." He said, heading towards the small kitchen. Once inside, he hit the "on" switch on the small coffee maker and went to the cupboard to grab two large cups, which he set down on the counter. The idea he had for the day had come, apparently, out of nowhere, but it was one idea that he was only happy to have. It truly did come in handy at this moment. The coffee he prepared was soon ready and, after pouring two healthy cups, he finally sat down with the woman, ready to tell her what was on his mind.

"That ship out there." He said. "There has to be some story to it, don't you think? And well, since I take tourists to it all the time, I just... need to know what to tell them. And since today I won't be taking anyone to it anyway, I figured I could hit up the library uptown and see if I can find anything about it." Trystan explained before taking a sip of the hot coffee, hot enough to slightly burn his tongue. "And if you don't have much else to do, maybe you'd like to come with me? Plenty of books there, another pair of eyes looking wouldn't really hurt, right? And you're just as curious as me, I know."

 

[incendonocturne]

“Shit. I’m sorry, Trys.”

-she cringed, genuine apology written all over her features. She’d tried to wait until she was certain he’d at least have already been up. She hadn’t intended to wake him. Though she paused, her head tipping curiously. He usually was up before now. Her silent question was answered in his next statement.

A brow perked softly even as a frown stitched across her lips. Her tongue barely peeking between her lips as she wet them nervously, lips pursing inward after.-

“Just around the wreck?”

-she asked curiously. Tucking her hair behind her right ear. She bit her bottom lip softly, her nostrils flaring in thought. Around the wreck, for a couple of weeks. Right around the time her dreams had really started. Her gaze cast back out his window, watching the water as it somewhat angrily licked at the wreckage.-

“Bummer but alright.”

-she said softly, her eyes on the water a moment longer before she turned her attention back to Trystan. A curiosity lighting her eyes again when he said he there was something else he wanted to do. The fact was, they hadn’t really seen much of each other in a good month or more. Both too busy with what they were doing respectively to do much more than say hi in passing.

Indeed she followed, eagerly even after the mention of coffee.-

“Yesss...”

-she hadn’t had any with her breakfast, she was going to but upon going to make it, she’d found that over the course of the last few weeks, she’d drained her supply dry.

She curled a leg up under her as she settled at the small table, her thumb tapping a soft beat against its top as she watched him a moment before pulling a newspaper in front of her from the corner it had been thrown to. Why did she suddenly seem so nervous around him?

When he set her cup next to her, she folded the newspaper up, not that she’d actually been reading it honestly. Sliding it back to its corner, she wrapped her hands around the mug and muttered a soft ‘thanks’ before she took a sip. Watching him over the lip of the mug as he started. Her brow furrowed and she set the coffee down in front of her.-

“Wait, you’ve never actually looked into it?”

-she asked, her head tilting curiously. He took people out there for tours. She’d never been herself, so she figured he already knew a fair amount on it. She’d never questioned it.

A look of relief actually slid across her features, unchecked. While the wreck called to her, trying to draw her to it, wanting her there. She was also terrified of it. She couldn’t make sense of either feeling. They felt foreign to her.

He was right though. She was curious, regardless. After another sip of her coffee, she nodded.-

“Alright, I’ll help.”

-she chuckled softly.-

 

[Starcaller]

"As silly as it sounds, I never did look into it." Trystan said with a chuckle, shaking his head and taking a sip of the coffee. The reasons as to why were strange. Since he was a young boy he'd felt he knew more about the sad wreck than anyone, even though he actually did not know a thing. But it always felt like he had a connection to it and Trystan had long tried to understand it, to no avail. Now, more than ever, he felt curious about it, considering his vivid dreams became so intense of late. It couldn't have been just a coincidence what with the strange ways the water around that wreck acted. Their small town wasn't known for any supernatural happenings so blaming it on that was clearly not an answer. Though there definitely was something at play here. Something was amiss. Trystan sighed before taking another sip of the coffee, feeling as though things were really going wrong. And why the hell did he keep seeing that damned siren in Renata?

Either way, the fact that she was willing to help him made him smile. Though again Renata had always been there for him since they were kids. With the way things worked between them, one would've thought they were together for good, however, that was not at all true. Though they did have some sort of a special relationship with each other, they never made certain steps in that direction.

Though Trystan was still afraid to tell her what really was on his mind. Trust her as he did, he feared she might think he had lost it if he told her about all the dreams he experienced and about how they aligned with the weird events of late. And at the same time he wondered why exactly she didn't sleep well, either. But if he'd ask her, he would probably have to tell her his story as well. But he was worried for her well being so in the end, he found himself asking anyway.

"Why aren't you sleeping well?"

 

[incendonocturne]

“I would have never guessed, honestly.”

-she replied lightly. True she’d never been out on a tour with him but he did enough of them and those that went seemed pleased, satisfied upon return from a tour that she honestly figured he had, so she’d never questioned it.

Selfishly, she was currently grateful that he never had looked into it. It would give her the opportunity to help him and look into it herself without having to venture into the mouth of whatever nightmare beast was trying to lure her out there.

Peering at him across the table, there was a faint....darkness...for lack of a better word, about him. Something that drew her to him too but at the same time, terrified her. She couldn’t place what it was and that worried her. Scratching the side of her nose softly, she turned her gaze down to the creamy liquid in her mug and sighed softly at his question. She lifted her coffee to her lips and took a slow drink, her eyes studying him over the rim before she finally set it back down on the table.-

“Just weird dreams. Probably brought on by the shift in tides. Kinda like when some people are affected by a shift in weather. It’s nothing to worry about.”

-she answered, trying to brush it off as something simple. Though she knew and felt in her very core that it was anything but quite that simple. She didn’t mention the sleep walking, he would know for sure it wasn’t anything quite so simple and she didn’t want to worry him about it.

She lifted the mug again, finishing off her coffee this time. Unfolding herself from his chair, she smiled and padded barefoot into the kitchen to put the mug in the sink.-

“Why don’t you go get dressed and I’ll go get my shoes and keys and wallet. I need to stop at the store on the way back home and get some more of my own coffee. Meet you back here in ten minutes?”

-she changed the subject fairly quickly, putting them back on track of their plans for the day, instead of her nightly excursions as of late to the water front.-