A Mermaid's Tale

Chapter 23

"So, I think you owe me an explanation."

The Queen Lady bobbed on the dark sea as her crew directed her away from the Gulf of Misery. Arthur and the mermaid stood on deck watching the sun set over the watery horizon. Behind them was the Eastern Continent and the Ruins of Tantus. The Captain's eyebrows furrowed unintentionally when he thought about what a hassle it was to get out of the cannibal-infested ruins.

After the mermaid had found him, they had run for their lives around in the maze-like ruins while trying to find an exit. The cannibals had been on their heels the whole time. Eventually, they had found a spot where the wall had crumbled enough to open up to the overgrown forest outside. The two made it back to the spot where they entered and found the crew members they had left behind waiting. Apparently, there was nothing of interest at the end of the hall, and they couldn't find any way to get down below where the Captain and the mermaid had fallen other than the hole. Arthur had chewed them out for being cowards.

The mermaid sighed from Arthur's right, which brought him back to the present. She held up the strange object she had been holding since she found the Captain in the ruins. It was oval shaped and fit comfortably in her palm. There were two small points on the top, and one of them had something that looked like a bow on it. The whole thing seemed oddly familiar.

"It was so weird," she said after a while. "After they got you, I...I attacked one of them. Then they all freaked out over my knife." She drew the blade, now free of blood, with her free hand and stared at the Leviathan design. "They started calling me Princess and dragged me away to some strange room with more carvings."

"Yes, go on," Captain Kirkland urged after she went silent.

"That was where I found this." She held up the gold object. "I don't know why, but I just knew this is what we were looking for."

Arthur inwardly kicked himself. He had forgotten all about the thing Yao wanted them to find. "And then what?"

"I didn't want to grab it with all of them looking, so I had to wait for a bit. They were all really excited to have me there, so it was hard to get away. I asked one of them...Banksy I think...where they took you. He told me, and then I...I..." She lowered her head.

"What happened, love?" Arthur didn't know what to do. She seemed so upset. He hesitantly wrapped his arm around her waist and gave her a gentle kiss right above her ear. "It's alright. You can tell me."

"I couldn't get him to leave me alone, so...I...I killed him."

"(Y/n)-"

"But that's not it!" The mermaid looked up with pain filled eyes. "With his dying breath...he said to me, 'killer'. I'm a killer, Arthur. A heartless, cold blooded murderer."

Silence replaced her quiet words. The Captain didn't know what more he could do for her, so he pulled her closer. "He wasn't wrong."

"What?!?" She looked like she was about to fall apart like a delicate glass bauble on the edge of a table.

Arthur grabbed her wrist before she could run away. "What was is he called you?"

"K-killer..."

"Princess." The mermaid froze and turned around. "They all said it. You're a princess. Don't ever let anyone say otherwise."

"You...you really mean it?"

The Captain smiled. "Of course, princess."

She managed a smile and hugged him tightly. "Thank you, Arthur."

"Is that all I get?" he asked mischievously.

The mermaid leaned up and placed a gentle kiss on his lips. Arthur ran a hand through her hair and savored the salty scent that clung to her. It reminded him of the ocean on a calm summer day.