SCATTERED PEARLS ☆ KIMCHAY AU

☠︎︎ 14. The Call of a Siren ☠︎︎

And then... Chay thought that he heard something.

Was it just his imagination? Hallucination?

... captain... captain overboard...

Did he really hear it? He wasn't sure.

He looked at Kim. Kim was clenching his sharp jaw—so sharp that Chay wanted to kiss it, to get so close to something dangerous that wouldn't hurt him, wouldn't hurt him at all. Kim's eyes, darker like a midnight ocean, were focused on the horizon or what should have been the horizon if they would be able to see it. Chay loved how Kim's eyes were usually brown like honey with that golden spark in them when you looked into them at the right angle, but when things got dangerous, when something that Kim didn't like or liked way too much was happening, his eyes turned almost black. It was like magic, and Chay was enchanted.

He cleared his throat, figuring out that he could admire his captain some other time. Firstly, they had to get out of this mess.

"I think I hear something."

Chay didn't know why he thought that Kim would dismiss him or not pay too much attention to what Chay had to say in a situation like this because the opposite was true. Kim looked at him immediately—the midnight ocean eyes focused only on him.

"What did you hear?"

"Just... some's calling for you. They said captain overboard... but I'm not entirely sure," Chay quickly said everything he thought he knew.

"Is it possible that they are stuck in a loop?" Kim looked at Arm, "I went overboard a while ago. It doesn't make sense."

"Maybe it's not them, captain."

"Yes, because as we all know, there are many ships stuck in the Bay of Sorrows right now," Kim replied mockingly. "We'll follow what Chay heard," Kim looked back at Chay. "Where did it come from, darlin'?"

"Uhmm... I'm not sure—"

"He isn't sure," Arm chuckled.

"Shut your mouth!" Kim growled and took Chay's hand, "try to focus, okay? Maybe you can hear it again. It's really important that you do."

Chay nodded, "I—I know... I think that it came from—" and then he heard it again. Closer than before, somewhere on his left. And it looked like this time he wasn't the only one who heard it or at least bits and pieces of it. Kim looked to the left as well.

"Was it—?"

"Yeah," Chay confirmed, "it came from that direction. And this time, it was louder than before. I think that we are getting closer to it..."

"Or they are getting closer to us," Arm filled in the blanks.

"That's good," Kim exclaimed. "Everyone!" he shouted. "The Reckoning is on our left! Hold on tight, we are turning!"

"What happens once we find them?" Chay asked. Even though Kim told him not to ask questions, Chay thought that he deserved to ask this one after helping Kim find the right direction.

"We'll get the heck out of here. I have no desire to be here longer than necessary," Kim replied and started turning the ship to the left. At first, it was slow, Chay could barely feel it but then a wave strong enough that Chay almost thought of it as a tsunami, hit their right side and suddenly they were turned left exactly how they needed to be.

Kim chuckled, "well, finally some help from these godforsaken waters!"

After that, it was quiet. Almost eerily quiet. The ocean seemed to calm down at least a little bit. No one on board said a word, even Kim's breathing seemed to slow down. And Chay didn't really know what else to say... he had questions, of course, he had, but he knew that Kim would explain everything to him once they would be safe again so right now, Chay just let Kim focus on what he was born to do... being a pirate captain.

It didn't take that long. Just a couple of minutes before the darkness slowly faded away, and Chay could see... they all could see... The Reckoning rocking on the ocean waves, its mighty body carrying itself with such elegance—it made Chay feel nothing but respect.

Chay couldn't look away. The Reckoning was almost twice as big as The Scorpion, and The Scorpion was already huge. The Reckoning's sails were black. The way they were glistening under the sun, which finally appeared, looked as if they were woven from stardust. In the front of the ship was an emblem carved into the wood—a cracked skull with a scorpion crawling out of it and two sabres crossed in front of it. At first, Chay thought that this was just the symbol of The Scorpion, but it seemed that it was of its captain—Kimhan Theerapanyakul.

The closer they got, the more Chay could see the surprised faces of The Reckoning crew and hear their shouts and questions. A lot of questions.

"Captain Kim?"

"What happened?"

"How are you there?"

"The Scorpion?"

"Captain Kim... you just went overboard!"

"Captain?"

Kim raised his hand, and everyone immediately went silent. Such a simple gesture, holding so much power, Chay thought as he looked at Kim. His Kim had so much power. It was somehow empowering to know that Kim held so much power, and yet Chay didn't have to be afraid that Kim would use that power against him. Not anymore.

"I'm glad to see you all still fairly alive," Kim said loud enough that his crew on The Reckoning could hear him loud and clear. "As for me, as you can see, I'm alive as well. I'll explain everything that needs to be explained once we get out of this godforsaken place. Right now, I need you to follow The Scorpion out of these waters, and once we are in the clear... I'll join you on board. Understood?"

"Aye, captain!" The Reckoning crew said in unison and went to do their respective tasks.

But Chay didn't want to 'aye, captain.' He was very much confused. He turned around in Kim's arms and looked him in the eyes, "what did you mean by joining them on board? Like... right here in the middle of the ocean?"

Kim smirked, "I think that we have spent enough time on The Scorpion, darlin'. Time for you to meet my queen."

To be continued...

P.S. Time for Chay to get to know The Reckoning 🫣