The Mermaids

They were beautiful.

The two mermaids introduced themselves as Marina and Ionan, and accepted a handshake he offered. Their skin was fully covered in soft iridescent scales that shimmered in all the colors of the rainbow, and their delicate webbed fingers ended in sharp nails. Their forearms and backs had long fins, currently neatly folded up since they weren't moving much, only lazily floating with only their heads above the water, with their long tails stirring slowly. They had large, beautiful eyes, pale and shimmering blue in color. Marina's hair was curly and black, heavy from the water it was soaked in, and Ionan's was pearly white, freely floating on the surface around her. Marina's scales were a dull, dark purple color, with occasional shimmering grays spotted through, reminding him of freckles, while Ionan was shining in soft pastel colors. When they smiled at him, their teeth were sharp like those of sharks. He didn't think for a moment that Adanita would bring him to danger, but seeing the two mermaids suddenly made him lose all will to go for a swim.

They were as terrifying as the raging sea. They were fantastic.

And it was difficult to look away.

Ionan used her chance at a handshake to tightly grip his arm. For a moment he feared she would try to pull him overboard, but instead she simply used him to grab a hold of the dinghy. She rested her arms on its side, looking at him with a smirk. She was lazily showing off the colorful tail fin, slowly dragging it in and out of the water.

"New lover, hmm? He is rather good looking, Nita."
"For a human, at least," Marina said. She swam under the dinghy and came out on the opposite side. She had no trouble getting herself up in the same pose as Ionan.
"Although he seems weaker than the last one."
"I don't need a strong man. I'm more than enough," Adanita said.

He was surrounded. He moved away towards the middle of the boat while the mermaids giggled at him, but Adanita's lack of reaction let him know they were only teasing him. He was in no danger, they were simply unnerving him because they could.

Calm. Focused. He could keep himself under control.

"I try my best to support Adanita in her endeavors in a more peaceful approach. Duels and battles aren't exactly my forte," he politely said, while Adanita began to laugh.
"Hah! As if! The first thing he did when we met was challenge me to a duel."
"Oooh, who won?" Marina asked.
"Adanita, of course," he admitted. "She also rescued me from drowning right before I challenged her."
"How ungrateful," Ionan said.
"How horrible," Marina agreed. "She should've thrown you back. Then we could've had some fun with you."
Rosamund's hairs stood on ends. Were they going to-

Ionan stopped his mind in its tracks. "Don't be ridiculous, don't you see he is blessed?"
"Huh?! He is?" Marina raised herself up higher, staring at him intensively.
"I am," he said. "Officer Teodolit identified it as a minor blessing from the god of the brackish waters."
"Oh, disgusting. I feel bad for touching you." She pushed herself away from the ship and elegantly went back underwater. She started slowly circling around Adanita instead, thoroughly disinterested in him.
"Hm. Rude," he said.
"Perhaps a little, aye." Ionan slammed her tail fin against the water, skillfully splashing Marina's face. "Do excuse her, I suppose. It's simply not fun to play with humans who are immune to the Song."
"But he isn't," Adanita said lightly. "I tried it on him just now."

Ionan's lips parted in a truly cruel smile. "Is that-" she started. Before she managed to finish her question, Marina already was singing.

Ŧคгєฬєɭɭ ๓ץ ๔єคг เ'๓ ๒๏ยภ๔ Շ๏ ɭєคשє ץ-

Adanita violently pushed her head underwater to force her to stop singing. The quiet tune escaped through the sea nonetheless, distorted by the water. I'm bound away but will ne'er deceive you. Adanita kicked her in the face, still keeping her head underwater. Ionan observed him with a smirk while she stared up at him with eyes of genuine terror and concern. "Are you alright?"

Hm. Strange.

"I am perfectly fine," he said.
"ฬђคՇ?" Ionan hissed.
"I can hear it's magic, and it sounds rather nice I must say," he admitted. "You ladies sing quite beautifully. But it's not really doing anything, I'm afraid."
Marina was struggling against Adanita's grip, so she released her. Both mermaids moods seemed thoroughly soured.

"You pulled on my hair," Marina loudly complained.
"You tried to eat my lover! Count yourself lucky you are alive," she replied.
"Oh relax, I would've left most of him. Perhaps just an arm or a leg," she said with a grin. Her mouth was bleeding. She pulled out a loose tooth and flicked it away into the sea.
"I've had quite enough drowning and mauling in my life, thank you very much," Rosamund said. "I am here because I wanted a nice outing with Adanita and because I wanted to meet her friends. If the two of you don't intend to behave properly towards me, I will defend myself."
"Please do. They deserve it," she said. "Have a knife on you, please."
"I have my weapon, love," he said. She gave him a smile.

Ionan flicked her tail at her, spraying her face with a few droplets of water. "Let's go for a swim, Nita," she said.
"I want to wait for Adriana. Why is she not here yet?"
"You know how she is. She will come when she feels like it. Let's go. Your man is boring and I'd much rather hear of your latest exploits." She let go of the boat and let herself sink underwater.
Adanita frowned. "And what about you?"
"I thought to stay here. He seems like he could be entertaining~" Marina said.
"Absolutely not."
"Aww... but he looks so delicious. I just want a little nibble. It's not fair only you get to."

Did she mean his hickeys? Is this what she thought those were?

"You keep pushing. I've seen what he looks like when he gets angry," Adanita said. "Won't end well for you."
"Hmpf."

"Adanita, a word, please?" he asked.
"Oh, of course." She glared at Marina and Ionan until they distanced themselves a little and held onto the side of the dinghy, just like the mermaids. He sat down on the bench next to her. "Are you alright?"
"They are... not what I expected, I must admit. Are you sure you're safe around them?" he quietly asked.
"Aye, they won't eat me. I am pretty sure they won't try to attack you, either. They're just looking how far they can go. Just kick them if they cross a line. Or cut them. It's fair game, they're very durable. Just threatening might work, too." She noticed how uneasy he was with her casual approach. She pushed her hair away from her face, trying to think of something else to reassure him with. "They know you're with me, so you're safe. And you have your blessing to protect you."
"Right... Marina is bleeding, though. She won't call sharks here, will she?"
"No way, she only lost a tooth. She'll be fine in a few minutes. If a shark is stupid enough to come here, we'll have a nice lunch tomorrow from what they won't eat. Don't worry."
"Sorry, I must. I love you," he said. He leaned in for a small kiss, just brushing his lips against hers, and she placed her fingertips on his neck, gently sliding them up and down. Her skin was cold from the sea, he felt a chill going down his spine. He could warm her up- no. He was calm. "I must admit, the ladies are lovely, but they can't match your beauty at all. Not even close." Her smile gave him butterflies in his stomach. "I believe you know what you're doing," he continued, "so I don't think I can honestly ask you not to go. But considering everything, I'd prefer if you didn't swim too far."
"We'll stay in the bay," she promised. "I won't go out of your sight. Well, perhaps for a minute or two, if there's something interesting to dive out around here, but you really don't need to worry. I'm safe."
"Alright." If she could say that while swimming naked and unarmed, then he really couldn't argue with her. "I might go for a swim later, but I'm not too sure. They didn't seem too inviting."
"That's alright, too. I won't be gone for long. Don't sit in the sun for too long, you might get sick."
"And you be careful, too. Have fun," he wished her.

She took a bottle of wine with a wide grin and swam away.

She was so beautiful... The mermaids were pretty, too, but he was rapidly losing interest in them thanks to his immunity to their song and the fact they wanted to eat him, possibly. He knew he was a snack, but he had standards. He wondered what was the cause of such a radically different reaction to their singing. Maybe these women just couldn't do magic as well.

Rosamund spend some time watching them play around in the distance, but it made him somewhat sleepy. He decided to take a bit of a nap again, now that he took a day off to fully relax. He was allowed to rest. He laid on his back with his arms under his head and his ankles crossed, reasonably comfortable considering he was quite literally on a wooden plank. His head was in the shade of the mast - Adanita let the sail rest freely in the wind for to keep them from burning in the sun or getting a heatstroke - so he was feeling quite well. The sea under them was pretty shallow. The boat was gently rocking on the sea, the waves splashing against its sides. A quiet hum, carried on the wind, was calling him to close his eyes. He was feeling... nice. This was nice and cozy. The sea carried the quiet sounds of the women chatting and laughing. They were safe and well, and everything was fine. He allowed himself to close his eyes, and his breathing slowed down as he was dozing off.

Everything was fine...

เՇ ฬคร ค รยภภץ ๓๏гภ ฬђєภ ฬє รєՇ รคเɭ
คภ๔ ฬє ฬєгє ภ๏Շ Ŧคг Ŧг๏๓ Շђє ɭคภ๔
ฬђєภ ๏ยг ςคקՇคเภ ђє รקเє๔ ค ๓єг๓คเ๔ ร๏ Ŧคเг
ฬเՇђ ค ς๏๓๒ คภ๔ ค ﻮɭครร เภ ђєг ђคภ๔

Շђєภ ยק รק๏кє Շђє ςคקՇคเภ ๏Ŧ ๏ยг ﻮคɭɭคภՇ รђเק
คภ๔ ค Ŧเภє ๏ɭ๔ ๓คภ ฬคร ђє
Շђเร รฬєєՇ ๓єг๓คเ๔ ђคร ฬคгภє๔ ยร ๏Ŧ ๏ยг ๔๏๏๓
ฬє รђคɭɭ รเภк Շ๏ Շђє ๒๏ՇՇ๏๓ ๏Ŧ Շђє รєค

Շђєภ Շђгєє Շเ๓єร г๏ยภ๔ รקยภ ๏ยг ﻮคɭɭคภՇ รђเק
คภ๔ Շђгєє Շเ๓єร г๏ยภ๔ รקยภ รђє
Շђгєє Շเ๓єร г๏ยภ๔ รקยภ ๏ยг ﻮคɭɭคภՇ รђเק
คภ๔ รђє รคภк Շ๏ Շђє ๒๏ՇՇ๏๓ ๏Ŧ Շђє รєค

Rosamund opened his eyes and fell off the bench, his heart beating in his ears. The magic was all around him, he could feel its soft, hypnotizing touch all over his skin. It combed through his hair, it blurred his eyes, and he waved with his arm to make it go away. Inexplicably, it worked. The terrifying grip on him dissipated in the sunlight despite the continued song. He was- hm. He was perfectly fine, once again. He was simply caught by surprise, but he was feeling absolutely nothing new, except mild annoyance.

The mermaid was holding onto the side of the ship, observing him with a neutral expression, resting her chin on her hand as she continued singing.

She was beautiful.

Her hair was a thick colorful braid, tied in place with a creative use of rope, almost as long as her tail. Its shimmering colors were swirling and interweaving in the complex creation, smoothly transitioning between red, orange, pink, and yellow. Her hair reminded him of fire. He wondered what it would look like it if was set loose.

Her body was more muscular than Marina, who was rather lean, and Ionan, who was comfortably chubby. The pattern on her scales reminded him of orcas, white on her front, and deep blue on her back. Her eyes were shining gray, nearly white in color, and she stared him down.

Still singing.

"Good day, Adriana," he politely said.
"๏ђ? ץ๏ย кภ๏ฬ ๓ץ ภค๓є," she said.
"I do, yes. Adanita mentioned you to me. You may stop singing now, as you can see I am perfectly fine."
"ץ๏ย รђ๏ยɭ๔ภ'Շ ๓เภ๔ ๓є ς๏ภՇเภยเภﻮ, Շђєภ," she replied.
"I do mind. It is rude to try and charm a man you wish to talk to." Where was Adanita? Ah, in the distance. He didn't feel like he needed to call for her just yet, but he wished she was aware of the situation.

He almost lost his balance as the dinghy suddenly tilted. Adriana put her full weight on the side, expertly slinging her long tail onboard. She sat herself on the bench, dripping all over as she started squeezing water out of her hair.

"ŦгเﻮђՇєภє๔?" she asked.
"Should I be?" he replied.
"Hmm... not particularly, no," she said, finally stopping her music. "I have no effect on you, and I suppose it would be rude to attempt to kill you, too. You do have me at a disadvantage, however. Adanita never mentioned your name."
"Rosamund," he said. "Rosamund Alsop en la Dale."
She reached for one of Adanita's bags and started digging though it. On one hand, he felt the urge to stop her. On the other hand, it looked as if she knew what she was looking for. He was curious to see how this would play out. "You don't look much like a sailor," she commented.
"I am not."
"How curious. When did you drown, then?"
"Decades ago," he said.
"How?"
"That is also rude to ask."

Adriana frowned. "I suppose she doesn't take a comb with her anymore," she said.
"She does. She put it in a bag over there," he said, pointing towards the front of the ship. Her frown deepened and he quickly put two and two together. While the two of them were lovers, Adanita surely considered a comb to be a high priority item. She was knocked down rather far from that. He wondered if she did it on purpose. In either case, it made him happy. Comparing Adanita to the beauty of mermaids was an easy choice, but thinking how she went from Adriana to him was... on one hand highly flattering, on the other hand, he felt his subconscious start to compare his own looks to hers.
Adriana sat up almost royally placing her hands on her tail. "Fetch it for me, then."

Rosamund tiredly rubbed his eyes. Fine. She was already knocked down a peg. There was no need to make her crawl around on the boat to get to a stupid little thing he could hand her with ease. He handed her the comb and watched her undo her braid. Her hair was silky smooth. It was hard to look away from her as she shook it out to loosen it up. The vibrant colors were shining in the sun, and soon she was almost fully covered in what could only be called a mane. It was drying surprisingly quickly in the sun, salt crystallizing in her strands as she carefully flipped it all on one side, towards the sea. Her body was now exposed for Rosamund once again, and she observed him, still holding that cold, neutral expression.

He mirrored it, completely unfazed.

"Sit here by me," she said. "I don't bite."
"I find myself doubting that," he said. She started to slowly comb through her hair, in almost hypnotically repetitive movements, slowly gliding her sharp fingers through, followed by the comb.

He tiredly looked away. Where was Adanita? Perhaps he should call for her. He really had no idea how to handle someone's ex, let alone a mermaid. Let alone a combination of both.

"If a bigger wave hits the boat, you might get injured. And then I will be blamed and beaten. Sit, before you fall. I want to speak with you more."
"You have a strange way of showing that."
"What do you mean?"
"You attempted to put me under a spell before you even knew my name. I don't think it is a conversation you wanted."
"It was just a little game. I saw you have a blessing on you to stop the Song."
"And here I thought it enables me to see magic," he said neutrally.
"To see through the murky depths, to find a light to guide you home. To save you from straying twice. It is given to men whom the god pities, whom they wish were not left to the fate of being taken by mermaids. Seeing all magic is more of a side effect than anything."
"I suppose you mean to call me pitiful, then."
"Are you not, human? It is a sad way of life. You are a corpse walking as if you aren't rotting inside. Can you even call yourself living?"
"Thank you for your insight."
"Of course. Rest assured that no mermaid would want to taste your flesh, Rosamund. It would be akin to blasphemy. Now, sit."

He was really lucky when it came to fantastical creatures, it seemed. First the devil, now her. Reasonably reassured he won't get attacked, he decided to sit down next to her. There had to be a different reason why she wanted him so close, and they were at least pretending to be cordial. He was curious to see how it would play out.

"What is it you do, Rosamund?"
"I am Lord Governor of these lands," he said. Screw being polite. He looked away from her as she continued to play with her hair. Adanita was a much nicer view, no matter how far she was in the distance.
"What an important sounding title. So you must hail from Bretonia?"
"I do."
"How did you meet Adanita?"
"Through chance. She saved me from drowning."
"A second time? You must be really unlucky. I wonder how you can stand it on this boat at all."
"I am managing, thank you for asking."
"Did you know we were lovers?"
"Yes," he said. "Are you trying to make me jealous?"
For the first time, she smiled at him. "Is it working?"
"About as well as your singing."
She frowned again. "It is not as if I need the Song to capture the hearts of men. I caught Adanita with no trouble at all. She was such a delicious treat, too, kissing me all over until she'd remove all the salt from my scales, warming me in the cold currents when we swam together... Ahh, I do get shivers just thinking about it. Such a shame. You seem much less interesting than I am, but I mustn't be bitter."
"If it was so great, why aren't you still with her?" he asked.
"She said I was hurting her. I just loooved to take a little bite of her. Draw just a single drop of blood... Hmph. I spent so much time trying to learn the ways of humans to understand her. She'd hit me if I misbehaved, like she does with any mermaid, but I wouldn't be allowed to have anything my way?"

Suddenly he could perfectly visualize the extreme toxicity that happened here. A mutually abusive relationship... He wondered how much Adanita even saw mermaids as people, considering the way she treated Marina and Ionan. She was young and stupid, and Adriana didn't seem to understand humans, either. What a sad situation that had to be... He will need to speak with her about it, to learn more about her. And to let her know, just in case, that if either of them ever considers violence for even a moment, he would simply have to leave.

The tail fin gently slid up his throat.

Adriana sneaked up on him without him even noticing, and in a flash of sheer panic, he pushed her tail away, moving all the way to the end of the bench.

"Did she hurt you too?" she quietly asked, leaning towards him.
"Don't touch me," he firmly said.
"I can see your neck is full of bruises. You must be hurting ร๏ ๓ยςђ. But don't worry. I know her well, so I ยภ๔єгรՇคภ๔," she quietly whispered, leaning close to his ear. Her soft hum was gently enveloping him, making him feel as if he was drowning. She was leaning closer and closer to him.

"เ ς๏ยɭ๔ ๓คкє เՇ คɭɭ ๒єՇՇєг Ŧ๏г ץ๏ย. ץ๏ย ๔๏ภ'Շ ภєє๔ Շ๏ ๒є เภ קคเภ..."

Fuck this.

Rosamund pressed his revolver against her throat, pushing her head away from him. "Get away or I will blow your brains out."
"Oh, feisty," she said, giving him a bright smile.
"Do you honestly think I'd kiss another woman while I have a lover?"
"Some men would," she said with a shrug. She moved away from him and resumed with treating her hair, while Rosamund firmly held onto the gun in his hand. "Some humans would try to jump me the moment I climb on board. Some would get seduced later. Some would deny me, like you."
"So this was a test?"
"Oh, yes."
"Is Adanita in on it?"
"Of course not, she hates it when I try something like this. I am sure she'd try to keep me from being alone with you if she knew I was here."
"You do this commonly? You are disgusting," he said. He couldn't help it. He was angry.

Who wouldn't be?

"It is better she is angry with me, than to have her heart broken by a scumbag," she said quietly.

He was left speechless.

She raised her arms towards him. "You passed. Toss me overboard before I grow legs," she said.
"Gladly," he snarled. He got up and stepped towards her, aiming his gun at her. "Hands to yourself. I mean it." With an entertained smile she crossed her arms on her chest. Rosamund picked her up in a princess carry and unceremoniously dropped her into the sea with a splash.

Adriana lazily resurfaced, spreading all her fins in full as she floated and circled around the dinghy. Her colorful hair was spilling all around her, but he didn't care about any of that anymore. He shouted for Adanita and waved to her to come back. She noticed him and waved back.

"That's an interesting pistol you have," Adriana said. "I've never seen any like it. I didn't even notice it."
"The next time you see it, it will be firing at you," he said. He wasn't joking. Trying to calm down before he did something moronic, he put it away back in its holster. Deep breaths. In. And out. She was visibly entertained with his antics, but didn't comment further.

"Did Adanita really beat you?" he asked.
"Oh, yes. But it was in self-defense. I couldn't help myself, I thought she could take it... but I hurt her. I didn't mean to..." she sighed tiredly.
"You lie better than a devil," he let her know.
"Of course. I have no soul, and devils are overflowing with them. I imagine they must be terrible liars."
She didn't even look offended! He couldn't believe it! "If this is your attempt to protect her from getting hurt in the future, I feel the urge to let you know you are still hurting her."
"Hmph. You don't understand. And that's alright, you are only a human. I love her dearly, but she doesn't understand it either. We are fickle and cruel and uncaring. Loyal to few, and even that is a maybe. You seem to think of me as if I am a human. It will land you into trouble one day..."

Her face softened up when Adanita came near. She could immediately see he was upset and she gave Adriana a downright murderous look. "What did she do?" she asked.
"Nothing~" Adriana innocently said, flicking her tail.
"She tried to kiss me," he said, as calmly as he could. He reached down to place a hand on her shoulder before she did something unnecessary. She looked as if she was about to try and attack a mermaid in the water, and he was rapidly realizing it could only go badly for her. "I am fine," he quietly said. "Let me help you on board."

He couldn't tell if it was the sea, or if her eyes were tearful. In either case, he gently helped her up and wrapped her up in a blanket to help her dry and warm up. "I'm sorry," she quietly said.
"Everything is fine," he reassured her. "I will tell you everything later."
"You two are downright disgustingly sweet," Adriana commented. Rosamund responded with a rude gesture and she laughed, holding onto the dinghy once again. Her tail fin was drawing hearts on the surface of the sea. "Hey there, Nita~ What can I do for you, my love?"

Adanita seemed to be battling a migraine. He gently placed his hand on her back, carefully massaging her neck to give her at least a moment of respite. She gratefully smiled at him before turning to Adriana.

"I need you to fetch some magical ingredients for me."
"Oh? Whatever for?"
"A devil stole my soul. I suppose I need it back."

Adriana slipped up and fell into the sea, hitting her head on the way.