1868, the Dawrey Ocean (we think)
No one dared go into the water. Nikolai and Xavier inched the ship as close to the island as they possibly could have, until Adelyn feared the bottom of it would scrape the coral on the ocean floor. There was an eerie silence on the deck, as though no one had quite yet processed what had just happened. Adelyn did not know the name of the man that had died, only that he couldn't have been more than a few years older than her.
Adelyn felt as though Death himself were following them, shadowing her and the entire ship, a cloud that refused to pass. The thought brought with it a gloomy feeling of dread, and just like Death, it settled and stayed.
Nikolai looked as unsure as he must have felt. They were so close to his dream, but not quite there. Not yet.
Without warning, Nik reached down and grabbed a metal bucket from the floor. The silver pail had rusted from water, but Nik was not interested in the item itself. He threw it as far as his arms would allow, and it landed upside down in the ocean, twenty feet away. Adelyn swallowed; her eyes did not move from the bucket, watching it sink, slowly.
The shadow returned, a threat in the water. Just like Adelyn and the crew, the beast seemed to watch the bucket and it's slow descent. It was not interested, however. There was no flesh, no life for it to steal.
"I don't understand," Adelyn frowned, her mind wavering. If the first witch had made it so only she could find the island, then why have an obstacle such as this in the way?
"Not all treasures are meant to be found," Nikolai muttered, his voice so quiet Adelyn wondered if he'd even meant for her to hear. His eyes, darkened by shadows of sleepless nights, were fixed on the sea before him. Adelyn could see it in his stare; he searched for a solution, but could think of nothing.
The island was only a few hundred yards away, but it would be suicide to climb into a rowboat. Adelyn couldn't help but wonder what would happen if she stepped into the water. Would the monster come after her, despite the blood than ran through her veins? She pondered, but her curiosity was not so strong as to make her consider testing the theory. Adelyn would have rather put a gun to her own head then leap into that ocean right then.
"Well, it seems we've got a bit of a dilemma." Nikolai said, pursing his lips. "Any ideas?"
Someone up near the helm called out, "Throw Jerry overboard."
There was a chorus of laughter, but Adelyn felt most of it was forced. Everyone aboard was just as afraid as she. She could feel it in the air, with every breath she drew in. Adelyn knew pirates were far from cowards, but that didn't mean they were immune to fear.
"There's an idea," Nikolai snickered. A beat later, he sighed, "Well, I guess there's only one thing to do."
He didn't give anyone enough time to question him. All it took was a flick of his wrist, and his pistol was unlatched and in his grasp, aimed at the sea below. Nikolai nodded at the man closest to the railing, his eyes hard and ready, as though desperate to pull the trigger. "Throw something overboard, Marty. Let's see how this beast does with bullets."
Adelyn swallowed, anticipation filling her veins. She watched as Marty lifted a barrel, likely once full of mead but emptied from the crew's many rowdy nights, and pushed it into the ocean. It didn't take long for the beast to resurface again, it's figure dark against the pale blue. Adelyn jumped when Nik fired, the sound, loud and alarming, ricocheting through her ears.
The beast made no noise, but when Nikolai fired again, it's jaws snapped out of the water. He'd angried it, that much Adelyn was sure of. It's teeth, sharp and pointed and more gray then white, reminded her of the siren on the front of the ship. Deadly and frightening, a horrifying mix.
"Do you like the taste of metal?" Nikolai taunted, grinning like a fool. Dark crimson blood leaked into the water, darker than any human blood could be. The beast's jaws snapped again, only this time they'd found their target: the side of the ship.
Adelyn jumped as the ship rocked. It was only a slight movement, but enough to make her heart skip a beat. Nikolai cursed, readying his pistol for another shot, he shoved a third bullet down the barrel and took aim, firing into the murky water just as he had before. This time, Adelyn heard the painful cry of a wounded animal, and she flinched.
It was a small victory, but the sound was deafening. As Nik prepared to fire yet again, Adelyn leaned over the railing, looking over the damage the beast had done to the ship. A small hole in the lowest deck. Adelyn had no idea how to assess the damage-- would such a small hole let in enough water to sink the ship?
If so, how much time did they have?
"It's retreating!" One of the men yelled.
Nikolai scoffed, "No, it isn't."
A fourth shot rang through the air, and Adelyn's ears sounded like whistles. She wasn't used to the obnoxious noises made by guns, but she figured she'd better get used to it. She had a sneaky suspicion that, otherwise, it would be a long, ringing trip on that island otherwise.
The shadow disappeared, but no one had anyway to tell if it was gone for good. Adelyn doubted it, but it seemed Nikolai had other ideas. All it took was his order, and the boats were being lowered once again. Four of them hit the water at one time, each with men seated inside, waiting. Watching.
When nothing below the waves stirred, Nikolai reached over to help Adelyn onto the last one. She did nothing to hide the fear from her face, and to her relief, he said nothing of it. Adelyn put her hand in his and hiked up the front of her skirt with her other, stepping over the railing into the rowboat. It swung when her feet touched the boards, nothing but four ropes holding it to the side of the ship. Adelyn gulped.
Nikolai climbed in after her, and then Nina and Xavier after him. Three men stayed aboard the Siren's Beckon, where they would stay for the next five days, as Nik had instructed them. The thought brought a sickness to her stomach-- she was to spend the next five days on that cursed island.
She'd never heard anything that could excite her and scare her so much all at the same time.
"You look like you've seen a ghost," Nina cackled when she took sight of Adelyn. It seemed she would not be paying her the same respects as Nik had. "Beast got your tongue?"
"Oh, shut it, you bangtail." Adelyn muttered, knocking her knee against hers.
Nikolai laughed, "Well, I never. Such a foul mouth on such a pretty thing."
Nina rolled her eyes, smiling lightly at Adelyn. The words had been a welcomed distraction, but she was rudely awakened when the boat hit the water. Every bit of Adelyn's nerves came back, and she turned towards the sea. Xavier and Nina took the paddle's, slowly rowing them towards the shore. Adelyn wasn't sure if she wanted them to row faster. She knew what dangers lurked in the water, but she knew not what hid on the shore.
Nikolai slid onto the bench beside her, turning his head to her ear. His words were a tickle on her skin, just light enough that not even Nina, who sat barely a foot away, could have heard them. "Calm down, Adelyn. It's going to be fine."
Adelyn gave a stiff nod, but she wasn't sure she really believed him.
They were the last of the boats in the train, and it made Adelyn nervous. The sound of paddles hitting water was all that she could hear, and the feeling of sun beating down on her skin was nothing in the wake of fear. All that was on her mind was the water, and what lived beneath it.
The first boat hit the shores, and three men scrambled out, hiking the rowboat further up the shore to where the ocean would not reach it. Adelyn swallowed, allowing only a little bit of hope to take root in her heart. They still had a ways to go.
The water seemed too quiet. The waves grew calmer as they approached the island, dissipating until there were none at all. It was as calm as it could be, and yet Adelyn felt anything but.
Her clothes were still damp, though not as soaked as they'd once been. They weighed down on her legs, the fabric itching her skin. She'd never felt more dishevelled in her life. Beside her, Nikolai rolled his shirt sleeves up his arm, buttoning them near his elbow. He was drier than she was, and she cursed the thin threaded fabric of men's clothing.
A second boat made it to the beach, and the two crewmen aboard it jumped out. They dragged the old wooden rowboat up the sand next to the other one. Adelyn swallowed. There were only three of them left, and the beast had yet to be seen.
Against her arm, Adelyn felt Nikolai's muscles tense. His head was turned back to look at the ship behind them, and she couldn't see his face. Still, she knew him well enough to know something was wrong.
She just hoped it wasn't what she thought it was.
"You're going to need to row faster, mate." Nikolai said, turning back to them and pulling his pistol from his belt. Adelyn felt faint.
Xavier and Nina both doubled their pace. Adelyn turned back to the water behind them, frantically looking for the shadow below the surface. Finally, she found it; swimming impossibly fast, right towards them. Suddenly the island was too far away, and the ocean was too vast. Adelyn couldn't breathe.
The beast hit the boat, and Adelyn nearly screamed. Her hand missed the boards when she reached out to steady herself, and instead hit the water beyond. She yanked her fingers back just as soon as they grazed the sea, images of teeth closing around them filling her brain.
Nikolai fired his gun, and Adelyn winced. The same murky black filled the water, only this time the beast didn't retreat. It was slower, but it's jaws were no less powerful. Adelyn jumped away as rows of sharp teeth came out of the water and took boards off of the back of the rowboat. It left a gaping hole in it's wake.
"We need to swim for it." Nina said, not wasting any time after. She leapt from the boat and into the water, and Adelyn's heart felt constricted.
It was a horrible, powerless feeling for Adelyn to watch her friend swim. The beast was no longer in her sight, she hadn't a clue where it was, and yet there was Nina, swimming for her life.
Adelyn tore her eyes away from her, looking instead back to the boat. Water had begun to flow in, and her shoes were immersed in a pool. She looked up to Nik, who shared the same terrifying look of alarm.
"Don't say it," Adelyn shook her head.
Nik's eyebrow cocked, "Now or never."
"I never want to see the ocean again after this." Adelyn said, holding her breath.
Xavier jumped, and with her hand in Niks and her bag strapped tightly to her back, Adelyn did, too.