Hey everyone. This is my first real story and I'd really appreciate constructive criticism.
Thanks again :)
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Captain Finn gripped the thick silver chains of the medallion in his hands. His sunburned eyes gazed into the horizon, it was beautiful but monotonous.
Blue oceans as far as the eye can see, but he was close. He knew it in the growing trepidation he felt, the wave of uneasiness that accompanied a siren's presence. But he was prepared this time. "Boys!" He boomed, turning to his crewmates. "Be prepared, I can feel Aysu, she is coming!" The crewmates nodded in understanding, all solemnly taking out cotton to stuff their ears.
Finn was young to be a captain, he did not grow a beard, just a shadow. His eyes matched the seas, and his hair matched the sands. But he was a natural, and his ship had a comradery that all the other pirates would whisper about in envy.
Which is why they had hunted the medallion for a year, and why they were now searching for a very certain siren. A year before his second in command, Terran had fallen victim to Aysu. What followed was an unhealthy obsession to find her.
Siren traps were laid out around the edges of the ship, and Finn vehemently searched the waters as he lowered himself into a rowboat. This was a deed he would carry out himself. The medallion pardoned him from the siren's song, but his crewmates were still susceptible.
"Aysu..." he whistled under his breath, circling the traps. Suddenly, one began to thrash, Finn smiled, rowing over.
He pulled up, grunting with effort, but he could sense how frantic she was. She was swimming away in a frantic spurt, but Finn was stronger and her stamina would decrease quickly. Even now, the jerks were getting less sporadic, and Finn was bringing more of the chain into the boat. Soon he saw her through the water. When they made eye contact her ethereal eyes widened.
Sirens were known for their impeccable memories, no doubt Aysu remembered killing his crewmate, and his vow of revenge. With one final thrust, he pulled Aysu upward.
The iron chain had circled her waist, trapping her.
Finn smiled as he gazed at his catch. Just as beautiful and deadly as he'd remembered. Sirens did not look like human women, but that only aided in their special beauty. She was beautiful as ice. Her skin and hair were snowy. Her eyes pupil-less, but a chilling blue.
Her features were delicate and feminine.
"Captain Finn," she hissed, but despite her anger, her voice sounded like a song. "Let me free, I order."
Finn laughed, jerking her forward. "You are in no position to be making such requests, my lovely. This is a consequence of what you have done." He began to take off the silver medallion around his neck. Her eyes followed his hands and she widened.
"No!" She began her struggles once again. "No! Please! I'm sorry!" Her eyes watered with freshwater tears. But Finn just smiled.
"You deserve this for what you've done to Terran. He was a friend, a brother. You wench, you took him from me. " His voice was hoarse with pain. He grabbed her by the hair and pulled her close. "You deserve this." He whispered again, as he placed the medallion around her neck. k.
Aysu cried out in pain, she gripped upon the sailboat for a safety. "Please!" She cried again, begging for mercy. Her words soon turned incoherent as she began to change. Finn watched slowly from the rowboat as Aysu's fins split apart, blue blood flowing from the wound. The medallion also changed, it became less of a weight and more of a lock, a small stripe of silver collaring her delicate neck. He watched as her fins turned into long, slender legs. All her fins disappeared, and as she bobbed up from the water she gasped for air. Aysu was breathing.
She stopped struggling, floating unconsciously in the salty ocean.
Finn laughed in disbelief, his shoulders suddenly lifted of the burden of his partner's death. He had done it! He lifted Aysu from her ocean, focusing for a moment on her beautiful body before going back towards the ship.
When he finished his ascent he held the naked body over his head in victory, his crewmates cheered in excitement. He lay her down on the deck so everyone could see her. They crowded around, taking the cotton stubs from their ears.
"Wow," One breathed. Nate, the youngest in the crew. "She doesn't look so menacing now."
It was true, of course. While her legs were long her tail had been at least twice as long, and much thicker. She'd curled into herself in her sleep. She lay shivering on the deck, small and frail.
"Ya," Another, Little Johnny agreed in his booming voice. Patting Nate on the shoulder with a big, beefy hand. Nate tried not to wince in pain.
Finn's second-in-command turned to him, "So what now Captain?" Will said. This paused Finn's exuberance. He looked down at the shivering woman, once a powerful siren, now nothing more than a small girl.
"You know, I didn't actually think about that." He admitted, he turned to the gathered crew. "Any ideas fellows?"
"Sell her to a whorehouse," their navigator, Will, said shrugging. "She's no good for us anyway."
Finn didn't much like that idea, it didn't seem a fitting punishment to simply sell Aysu to a whorehouse after all they'd done to get her. But it seemed all the men seemed to agree with that conclusion.