Chapter 16: Deal with the Shadow

Chapter 16: Deal with the Shadow

Tom lay unconscious until evening. The sun finally released all its heat and decided to rest, yielding its post to the moon and the starry veil.

Tom might have spent this magical night alone by the unknown island, had the mysterious entity not decided to visit him again.

She gazed at his exhausted, lifeless body for a long time but eventually chose to help him.
Against the backdrop of the magical starry sky, she settled comfortably on a rock beside Tom and placed his head on her lap.

Had he been conscious, her scales would have felt to him like an incredibly soft feathered mattress, but that pleasure was not yet available to him.
Gently stroking his head, she began to chant a spell.

— Power of light and earth...
Healing, come, come, come!!!
Mend the wounds, take the pain.
Restore health!
Restore!

Tom's body began to glow, and his wounds and fractures slowly started to heal.

— Bright sun, radiant moon,
To Tom Warren, insatiable.
He believed in fate, he believed in stars.
But my hands, alas, he did not grasp.
Pure waters, gentle winds,
Wash away all that's evil and sin,
Grant strength, health once more.
And bow his head to the shore.
In the dark realm, he shall perish.
The human world, he'll soon relinquish.
Tom Warren—sailor!
Who gave his soul, his life to the sea.
He saved folks from fierce strife,
But what he needed to preserve...
...
...
...
Couldn't...
Couldn't.
No rhyme comes... Nothing comes to mind...
Poor little Tom Warren. Can't even compose a verse about you—details are missing again.
What ironic humor.

Her final words rang out too loudly, and just then, Tom's body had healed, and it seemed he regained consciousness.
Coughing up the last of the water, he awoke from a long sleep that had shielded him from reality and the sorrow awaiting him.

— Did it work?
— Damn it... Someone get rid of that fish... It stinks. I'M GOING TO PUKE!
— Ugh!
— Where... am I?
— Good morning, Tom! Or perhaps good evening?

Tom finally opened his eyes...

— What... where am I?
— I don't even know how to answer that.
— And who are you?

Tom couldn't see his savior's face; he didn't even know she had helped him.
His memory hadn't yet returned since morning, so his mind was shrouded in a thick fog that was slowly, and without much enthusiasm, beginning to clear.

— Let's start with simple questions. Do you at least remember your name?
— My name is Tom!
— Oh, that's not bad! A good first step!
— And what's your name? And who are you, anyway?

Tom tried to lift his head to see her face, but she gently, yet with a certain firmness, turned his head away before he could catch a glimpse.

— That's a complicated question, Tom. I don't think you're ready for new information right now. Ask something about yourself instead. I'm in a good mood today, so I'll answer almost anything... Well, almost.
— Where am I?
— Well... how should I put this... Honestly, I've never seen a map in my life, so I can't orient you. But the good news is you're in the world of the living.
— Not a very reassuring answer.
— Aren't you glad to have survived?
— I am, but... I don't know what's happened to my crew. And I'm expected home. And my ship... I don't even know how much time and materials it'll take to repair it, and besides, I can't manage it alone without a crew.
— Good heavens, what a flood of information! But I think we can handle that.

Of course, Tom was still not fully conscious. One might say he'd been in a feverish delirium all this time. Perhaps he thought he was talking to himself.
But logic and common sense were gradually returning. And Tom wondered where a girl could have come from in such a place.

— On this island...? Does someone live here?
— It's hard to call this an island; it's not big enough for that word. No one lives here. Well, except me—and, oh, the birds too.
— I don't understand. And why is it so... Wait.

Finally, Tom realized what was going on. Until that moment, he hadn't fully opened his eyes to notice—he'd been lying on a tail... a mermaid's tail????

— Hey! Get off me... Get away!!!!!
— Hey, what's wrong with you!?
— WHO ARE YOU!?
— Calm down, you hit your head pretty hard...
— I GET THAT! WHAT KIND OF CREATURE ARE YOU?
— Oh. I'm a mermaid.
— WHAT?!
— A mermaid. Never heard of them? Just a regular person, but with a tail instead of legs, and I can breathe underwater.

The mermaid acted as if this were an everyday conversation in a pub. Of course, she realized this might be a shock for Tom—perhaps he'd even lose consciousness again. That's why she'd tried to delay this moment of introduction.

— I've heard plenty of such legends, but... Mermaids don't exist...
— Just because you haven't seen something doesn't mean it doesn't exist. Sorry, Tom, but the world doesn't revolve around you! You can't imagine how much exists that you haven't seen. It's almost childish to think that way. Though even kids would be more excited to see me than you.
— This can't be! Even if it's true, are you really a mermaid???
— Yes! Thank you for not screaming more; my head already hurts from you.
— Even if I accept that you're a mermaid, why am I not dead yet?
— Are you sure you're alive?

The mermaid was offended by Tom's words... So she decided to tease his still-foggy mind a bit.

— You said yourself I'm in the world of the living!
— Well done! Too bad I couldn't catch you out... Darn it, so attentive...
— Why didn't you kill me? Steal my soul? Drag me to the depths?
— Why would I?
— Well, in all the legends and myths, that's what you do!
— Good grief... That's a bit sad...
— What do you mean?
— You can't imagine where humanity would be now if you ever questioned your beliefs once in a while.
— Well, I am questioning!
— Then tell me? Where did those legends and myths come from? Who wrote them? Mermaids? Or people about mermaids?
— Probably people?
— And how would they know?
— Maybe they'd have written better if there'd been at least one person who saw a mermaid and survived.
— Fair point! One point to you.
— So? Why didn't you drag me into the sea?
— Because I don't want to!

The mermaid decided to steer clear of serious conversations, as they weren't fun at all. After all, this was her first talk with a human in so long.
So she chose to pout a bit in front of Tom, now that he'd finally calmed down and lowered the tension of the conversation.

However, the number of questions swirling in Tom's mind only grew, and he couldn't leave them all unanswered...

— Why? DAMN IT! You said you'd answer my questions! So just tell me what happened, who you are, and what you want!!! Clearly and in detail! I'm tired of these riddles.
— I haven't even started riddling yet! And you're already whining! Fine... I'm tired of your constant griping. Shouldn't you be ashamed...? No?
— Let's go in order. What happened to my ship and crew?
— Your ship got caught in a storm. You should've sunk right away, but you masterfully steered and saved everyone. Still, the tempest was too strong, and the ship crashed against the rocks.
— So everyone should be alive?
— Yes, your crew is alive.
— Then where are they?
— There are other rocks around this one. They were scattered across them. You're here alone because you held the helm to the last, trying to save your crew.
— Are they definitely all alive?
— I can't say for sure; I'm not the captain... But of those I saw, whom the sea washed ashore—some have broken ribs, others just scratches, but they're alive.
— Okay, now about you?
— What about me?
— Who are you? What do you want? Why are you helping me?
— Were you even listening when I spoke? I'm a mermaid, a sea creature like that. Almost human. See, I can even talk to you. Same as you, just with a tail...
— You have a nice tail...

Tom finally calmed down a bit. The fact that his friends were alive greatly lifted his spirits.
So much so that an involuntary compliment to the mermaid slipped out.

— Thank you! Amazing, it turns out you can be a pleasant conversationalist.
But sorry, we can't be together...
— I WASN'T EVEN THINKING THAT! I'm married, by the way. I just said I liked your tail...

The mermaid blushed slightly at the unexpected compliment but quickly regained her composure and turned the tables on Tom's confidence.
Ah... Finally, this conversation was starting to get a tiny bit fun for her.

— Has marriage ever stopped a man? First, there'll be tales of sacred unions, and then... By the way, tell me about your wife?
— You still haven't said what you want! Why are you helping me? And what's your name?
— I don't know myself. As for a name, there's a bit of a problem—I don't remember it either.
— All this is so...
— Strange? Unusual? Illogical? Tom Warren, did you really think you'd comprehended the whole world with your mind? As for the name, it's odd for me too... It feels like I should know it, like the answer's floating around me, but I can't recall.
— I've seen a lot!
— And even more you haven't.
— Maybe you're right...
— I like that we've found common ground!
— Am I imagining it, or did you mention you could lead me to my crew?
— Yes, but it's deep night now; I need to head home.
— Where?
— To a place you can't go. Not yet.
— But...
— In this darkness, I might get lost in underwater labyrinths, and we'd never see each other again. The star of our love would fade forever, never blazing to its full strength. But don't worry. I'll return with the first rays of dawn.
— Oh, come on! Enough with the jokes.
— Alright, alright... I'll try. In the morning, I think I can help you and your crew get back home.
— But what am I supposed to do all this time?!
— See you, Tom Warren!
— Damn... She's already gone.

Tom only managed to catch a glimpse of the mermaid's tail as it swiftly submerged into the water. The scales glinted in the last rays of sunlight but vanished in an instant, as if nothing had been there.
As if it were all a legend spun by his boundless imagination.
Spun for what?

— I don't think she can be trusted. But for some reason, I want to believe her. I want her to... to be real?