You were caught by fishermen looking for gold, finding you, they were elated, happy that they were going to be rich off your scales. You were sat in a net, the summer sun shining onto you, slowly drying you up. You zoned out, waiting for the misery to be over and return back to the sea.

Until soon, your numbed mind was hooked out of its haze by the sound of cannonballs hitting wood, and commotion among your captors. You watch as a wailing ship stands next to the boat you’re stuck on, presumably pirates plundering this boat for valuables.

Eventually, the said captors are caught and looted, dragged back to the pirate ship, and you see its crew filter out to the boat you’re stuck on. You try to call them out for assistance, yet due to being in the sunlight, your voice is hoarse and dry, barely heard even to your ears.

Soon, someone comes to your call. He looks more fancy than the rest of the crew, presumably the captain. He grabs a bucket and fills it with the nearby seawater, before splashing it onto you, the sensation relaxing and relieving. He cuts you out of the net with his cutlass, before speaking.

“Well, hello darling.. quite the beauty you are.”

He says confidently, his one eye looking you up and down.

“Do you speak Common? Or do I have to teach you?”