Chapter Text
“Come back here, you brat!” The captain screamed, running through the alley, one hand clutching at his breeches to keep them aloft and maintain some amount of dignity in front of his crew, despite having already lost sight of his quarry, who unbeknownst to him was watching from a rooftop and finding the whole sight quite hilarious.
From the rooftops, Amelia Watson took a second to admire the belt buckle she had snatched, embossed with pearls and rubies. Honestly, it was an eyesore and she was doing the world a favour by pulling this beauty from that greasy idiot.
Taking one last look at the scene below and chuckling to herself, Ame pocketed the treasure and slunk back into the shadows to wait for things to die down a bit.
Mud covered her boots with each step. Drunken sailors, trash, and followed stench were common for Ame’s senses to such extent that Ame sometimes considered her nostrils burnt from the toxic smell. But soon enough she was struck by the fresh salty breeze of the dock part of the island, and with a smile, the rogue pirate headed forward.
The town of the Skull’s Eye Island was pretty big for the outlaw hideout. Thanks to the cliffs surrounding the island and the only one way to get to the harbor, the pirates were able to make a good defense against the Navy. And thanks to that, the town itself became a bustling place. Numerous taverns, big pirate group residences, a huge trade market, and of course treasure exchange house. To which Ame happily made her way.
But Ame’s attention was caught by the conversation. She heard the word “murmaid” and “sell” which made the rogue pirate frown. She knew legends about mermaids and sirens, but she never believed in any of them.
Until her eye glanced over a fish tank with… someone swimming inside.
Ame couldn’t believe what she saw. She slowly got her way to the group of pirates, who stood beside the tank, sneaking through the barrels and boxes. Soon, she stood before the tank. It was huge, with this size being able to fill half of the deck of the small ship. Soon, through the muddy water inside, Ame recognized the huge tail, and then, the mermaid herself.
The girl, as Ame assumed by the look, was pretty small, definitely shorter in the “human” part in comparison to Amelia herself. But the mermaid’s tail was… Big. Really big. Even from the outside, Ame could tell that the girl was strong, with her tail slowly swaying in the water, hitting with hard thumps against the glass. The tail was covered in scars, some fresh, red cuts, some already healed with lighter blue scales. Ame hummed, trying to be as quiet as she can, trying to leave, not wanting to be caught, but before she was able to do so, her attention was caught by the light knock on the glass.
When she looked, Ame saw the mermaid’s eyes. Blue, deep blue, the color of the ocean, filled with sorrow and despair, and with the plea.
‘Help’
Ame’s heart ached, knowing how it feels to be trapped in a such hopeless situation. The rogue pirate looked again at the crew, to see the fact that they still talking. After that, she slowly, without a sound, came closer to the tank, looking for the lock. When she saw one, Ame took some simple metal straws from her pocket, trying to pick the lock. Ame knew she could do that, she just needed some time.
But before she even could feel the turn of the lock, she felt a heavy tug on her shoulder. Soon, she was turned and pinned to the tank itself, hissing from the blunt pain.
“Didn’t know there are rats in the dock.” With a low voice captain - Amelia assumed - brought the attention to her, which garnered attention of his crew. “Ye’r not being sneaky, you shithead. And y’should know what we do with brats like you.” The captain grinned with a full of rotten yellow teeth mouth. “Throw her into prison cell! We will sell her with that murmaid!”
Ame’s heart froze. Now, she was in big trouble.
***
‘Those assholes could have been at least careful…. Oh, who am I kidding…’
Ame groaned, trying to sit somewhat comfortably. Her hands were cuffed, and her sides burned because of the hits by the crew. The only thing she could remember from the two hour ride in the prison cell is that she is going to be sold as a slave. Which wasn’t in her plans.
At least, as she was left alone down there, Ame was able to think. First, the cuffs were a simple rope, which is a plus, so her first goal was just to take them off. As she did that, she checked her pockets, and to Ame’s relief, nothing was stolen from her pockets.
‘Probably thought I don’t have anything valuable… What idiots.’
Ame grinned to herself, taking a look at her surroundings.
It was a simple hold of the ship, pretty big, with some boxes and barrels tucked into the headpiece and visible glimpses of treasure chests on the side. Besides her stood the tank that got her in the trouble, with the merfolk swimming inside.
‘To be fair it was my fault though… The poor girl did nothing.’
Ame let out a sigh, looking at the tank, and leaning against the bars of the cell.
“Hey. Are you there?”
She stretched her arm as far as she could to knock on the glass. Ame did it once, twice, but there was no response. Ame frowned. When they only met, the girl inside was in a bad shape, sure, but she was moving. But then… Why she didn't respond to the sound?
Then, Ame looked at the amount of water inside and it made her eyes go wide. The water was pretty much to the brim, only a few inches away from the cap. So it meant that probably all oxygen was gone, and with a seal on the cap, there was no way for the air to be refreshed.
Ame heard a weak thump against the glass.
When she turned to see the thumping was coming fromm her fears were confirmed. The poor girl lay at the bottom of the tank, her breath shallow and eyes weak. She hold on to her throat, mouth wide open and the flaps of her gills moved heavy and slow, as she tried to grasp as much air as she possibly could.
Ame turned out her pockets, trying to find something that could help. Her eye soon caught the glimpse of the belt buckle and she got an idea. She aimed for the top part of the glass to not let any water spill, and, when she took the piece in her hand, she struck as hard as she could with the front part, using the gems.
As she was hitting, Ame noticed how the girl inside looked at her, with hope in her eyes.
“Just gimme a moment…”
Ame struggled, trying to break the tank, not having enough leverage because of the bars. It took a while before Ame noticed the crack in the glass. With the last hit, she broke a small window, cutting herself in the process, but she didn't care a bit about the wound. Ame looked at the mermaid, leaning closer to the gap, gasping for some fresh air.
With relief Ame looked at the girl, smiling. The sight made Ame less tense, but the fact she was still stuck on the enemy ship wasn't a good thing. And as soon as the pirates find out she broke the glass, Ame will get another round of beating.
Ame let out a sigh, frowning and rubbing her temples.
“Now we need to escape…”
“I-I can help.” The mermaid called with a raspy quiet voice, looking at Ame through the glass.
“Hah, you are a merfolk anyway, don't make me laugh.” Ame smirked, sad as it was. “The moment you will be out of the water, you will be useless and an easy target.”
The mermaid frowned. “Not like we know each other enough to be worried…”
“Well.” Ame grinned. “I got into this shitty mess because I wanted to help you. Let me worry about this, us, a bit more before we escape, okay?”
The girl smiled back, weak, but enjoying the talk.
But their chat was interrupted by something. Some noise happening on the main deck, that Ame couldn't fully recognize.
She tried to focus. Soon she was able to make out words. Loud grouchy voice of the Captain, who wasn’t happy with the situation going on.
“Prepare the canons… Wait… What do they mean?” Ame got tense again, soon hearing the words she didn't want to hear.
“Enemy ship?!”
And the moment after, the ship tilted heavily to the side, the loud sound of wood breaking from the heavy hit, mixed with screaming and yelling, filled Ame’s ears. With a groan, she bent down and tried to cover her head, so not to be blasted.
“H-hey!” The girl squealed trying to get Ame’s attention “Your cage!”
Looking from the position, Ame noticed, that the door was struck and, to her luck, now wide open. Trying to keep herself low to the ground she slowly escaped the jail.
“I will go look, you stay quiet.”
After the mermaid gave a nod, Ame approached the stairway to the main deck. As she peeked from the side, the rogue pirate’s heart froze.
The ship got raided.
It was a mess. After an unexpected hit, the enemy crew boarded the ship, engaging in fight. The sound of metal hitting against metal, the pained voice from the wounded and shots, blood covering the floor. Despite all of the chaos, pure and horrific, it was as beautiful as watching a dance. Step by step, moving in the spar of life and death, on the verge of being eaten by the depths of the ocean. Courage, fear, anger, frenzy.
But soon everything came to a halt by the yell of another captain. The main deck of the ship was finally connected by the boarding bridge, and, with the lighter thumps of boot on wood, no, of heels on wood, the captain of the enemy crew joined the stopped battle.
And Ame wished she was dreaming because of who she saw.
It was Calliope Mori herself. The legend of the seas, living myth, and captain of the ghost pirates. Her posture was great, looking down at everyone in her sight. In her hands was the infamous scythe, Rickora. Her dominant aura made every opposing pirate drop their weapons on the spot, some even buckled and fell to their knees.
Ame felt a cold shiver run through her spine. Mori herself glanced at her.
And the rogue pirate knew she is in trouble.
She ran as fast as she could back down to the hold of the ship. She knew that Calliope didn't care about merfolks, so as soon as she was done with her, Mori will bombard the ship and the mermaid will sink to the bottom of the ocean, trapped inside of the shipwreck. So, Ame needed to get the girl out.
To her relief, there was a gaping hole from the canon shot, right opposite the cage.
Ame hummed, thanking mentally the canon who got her out, soon trying to pick up the lock again. Once the cap was unlocked, she tried to get the mermaid out of the tank.
“What's happening?!” The girl screamed a bit.
“There’s no time to explain.” Ame shouted, holding the mermaid in her arms. “I need to get you off the ship. You are in danger.”
“But what about you?”
“I will stay.”
“Why?! You will die then! J-Just go with me, I can help.”
Ame shook her head. “If I go, it's possible that Mori will go after you. You had enough danger in your life and I don’t want you to risk it any more.”
“O-okay.” The mermaid got closer to the hole, ready to jump. “Before I leave, can I know your name?”
Ame smiled “Amelia. Amelia Watson.”
The girls’ eyes glimmered for the moment “Gawr Gura. And thank you.”
And as soon as Gura jumped into the water, Ame heard the shout from the stairway.
“Didn’t expect to find you here, Watson.”
The cold face of death met Ame’s blue eyes. Calliope walked slowly towards Ame, the rogue pirate not able to move, frozen by the only presence of the infamous pirate.
“Fate is a strange thing, isn’t it?” Ame smiled, weakly.
“Don’t joke around. Your family always was a pain in the ass.” Calliope grumbled, her scarlet eyes piercedthrough Ame’s very soul. Mori’s expression was stone cold, but her eyes filled with a strange sense of hatred and want of blood. “I’m in a good mood today, so I give you a choice. Tell me where your Uncle is and I will spare your life.”
Ame gulped. “I-I don’t know. Honestly, I have no idea.”
Moments passed, seconds, though it felt longer. Calliope let out a sigh, leaning back.
“What a shame.”
All of a sudden, Ame felt a sharp pain. She looked down. Her eyes trembled. Rickora's blade pierced her.
“Navy also wants your head, but I have no desire to play their games. So the only way is to kill you.”
As she said that, she pulled the blade, leaving Ame bleeding on the floor.
“Goodbye, Watson. Tell some tales to the fishes.”
And as pain filled Ame’s mind, right before she blacked out, she heard Calliope speak again-
“Sink the ship with the crew.”