Now mermaids aren’t as they are in story books. They are dark creatures, in touch with all things mysterious.

James had grown up with the mermaid stories. His mother told them on night when the ship was rocking violently with the waves. He was always told, mermaids were dark creatures… and to avoid their territories at all costs.

“Mermaids are real, James.” His mother had told him. “But they’re not horribly deformed fish… they can be beautiful… because they’re meant to lure boys like you in. They’re a mistake from Satan, himself.”

Those words stuck with James. Long after his mother died, long after his father gave up piracy, and long after he laid the old man to rest.

Unlike the rest of his crew, James enjoyed the dark nights on the ocean. He kept the ship on course and didn’t mind the creepiness of it all.

He’d seen one once… a mermaid or maybe a siren… He didn’t know. For all he knew it could’ve been a trick of the moonlight on the water. But he swore he saw her, she was beautiful and she looked deadly… predatory.

The moon sat high in the sky over James as he steered the ship through the ocean. The water sparkled under the moonlight, until a thick fog moved in, making it harder to see. He was used to nights like these. The creaking below deck was the first thing that caught his attention, of course, he assumed one of his men were moving around in the darkness. Then the screaming started. By the time he got to the lower deck, she was already gone, as was one of his men. A blood trail led to the latch in the lower deck, and way out in the water, the screams could be heard and the silhouettes could be seen as she drug him under the water.

That was two days ago, and it left a sick feeling in his stomach. His men were not safe and neither was he. He and the men began to stay on the upper deck, where it would be harder for anymore of those creatures to get to them. They took turns keeping watch. His mother’s words replayed in his head. Mermaids are beautiful creatures, but incredibly evil. He’s now learning that the hard way.

As the sun began to set, the ship was pulled into a cove in a rock formation. There was an eerie feeling about this place. A feeling he couldn’t explain, no matter how hard he thought about it.

During the night, another man went missing. Picked off without a trace, like he was lured away by something… or someone. James was becoming irritable. He couldn’t protect his men when a man eating wench was hunting them down. She had the upper hand. The powers, the abilities, the speed, the beauty. It was all so irritating and terrifying… and alluring.

Just once he wanted to see her, this so called mistake from Satan whom was torturing and feeding off of his men. Would she be worth the hunt, the fight? Or would she cower away when she was surrounded by multiple pirates who were all conscious and alert? He would find her, if it got him killed. He wouldn’t go down without a fight.

As the sun began to set, he stepped off the ship for some privacy from his men. Had them keep watch. As he stepped onto the wet sand and rocks, he noticed something. Footprints and droplets of blood.

He followed the trail deeper into the small cove, keeping his hand on his sword and at the ready.

As he stepped into the shadows of the cove, he saw her. A frail girl, there was no way this was her. She was huddled over the man who was missing from his ship. He was dead, and she was feeding from a hole in his chest, from her teeth.

He stepped to the side, the rocks crunching under his feet. When he looked back up at her, she was watching him. Her eyes trained on him. If he moved, she would.

Her eyes stayed trained on him, watching him with the same look a lion would give a sheep. And the worst part, she was beautiful, dark, terrifying. She looked exactly how he’d imagined, and he was scared for his own life.

His foot slipped, causing a sudden movement that caused her to lunge at him. He was able to grab her, and restrain her, as she shrieked in panic.

“Calm down now!” He screamed in her face.