The Mermaid Pirate

Chapter Eighteen: Search

Hey guys, this chapter will be in Nate's view. Please keep in mind, with all the view points going on, things are happening at the same time. For example, now. Nate's POV will be overlapping Julia's. Hope this makes sense, otherwise just enjoy the story. 

Chapter Eighteen:

The waters are unusually calm today with the sun's strong rays of light bashing away any cloud in the sky. My ship glides through the water with ease as my sails are filled with a chilly breeze which also provides me relief from the sun. I feel the back of my neck turn pink from the constant sun at my back. My new crew mixed with old work effortlessly together to keep my ship in her highest working condition. 

I notice tensons run high among the men, most are unwilling to fully welcome the new brutes that I've brought on. I'm vaguely aware of the issue at hand; that the new men are murderous beasts whose only purpose is to live and obey. It wasn't so hard to instill fear in their hearts, even if they had one, which surpised me and pleased me greatly. With my voice turned into a growl, and my voice more like a roar I had threatened the worst would come to them if they disobeyed me. 

None turned away and all eagerly came aboard my ship dispite their fear of me. Yes, I do admit to myself that I have turned into a beast like them but I tend to ignore it. My hair is a tangled mess ontop of my head and a growing, thick beard taking over half of my face and down my neck. My stare is always cold and hard, always unforgiving, rimmed with purple from lack of sleep. Nightmares haunt me every night, never allowing me a full nights rest, but I never seem to remember what they are.

Remeber nothing except a fracture of my forgotten childhood, a flash of a beautiful woman. She is blurred in my memory, but from her features I can tell she was my mother. She handed me a young toddler, Charlie, and placed a painful kiss on my forehead. Then the memory is gone, leaving me drenched with sweat, unable to remember anything except the blurred image of my mother. Charlie never knew this. This was a burden that I had kept only on my shoulders, unwanting to give her false hope.

"Oy, Nate. We be one night away from Fiona Piers. Want me to take ov'r?" A rumbling voice breaks my thoughts, and I realize the sun hangs low over the horizen. My third mate, Harry, stands at a distance. Our second mate, Gin, died in that slaughter and I never appointed another. We sail towards Fiona Piers where I had seen a group of mermaids and suspect they live there plus, Julia had said a woman knows the power of the necklace. A gypsy she claims her to be, great.

I nod my head stiffly at him and move to go back inside. I bark out final orders to the men, ordering them to be ready to hide our ship at the cove. The sounds of their obeying cries rings in my ear before slamming the wooden door behind me a little too forcefully. 

My boots make a heavy sound against the new wooden floors as I aimlessly wander through my ship, unwanting to head back towards Charlie's chambers. Since Julia passed out in my own, I had to sleep in my sisters. I approached the cheif's quaters, feeling hungry but I run into Howell carrying a cup of hot liquid. 

"What are you doin with that?" I ask, crossing my arms. 

He clears his throat and meets my gaze. He's the only one who has not been affected by my cold demeaner. "Julia dere be sick. Bringing her some stew to ease 'er stomach." 

"Why are you helping her?" I say, between a growl and a snarl. Howell simply raises his eyebrow and blinks at me, unaffected. 

"She not be a prisoner here Nate. Not like the two men we still carry aboard our ship, one almost at death's door by your hands." He replies annoyed. 

I open my mouth, ready to scold at Howell but then a scream echos down the hall. I look at him, making sure he heard that too and he nods in agreement. Then, Julia's high pitched English voice rings through my ears, knowing that first scream came from her as well.