In Fate's Hands (Sinbad of the seven seas)

Chapter Seven: Marina

The screech of the sea monster's yowl pieced Marina's ear drums as she helped secure part of the sail. As if the rain wasn't already enough for their voyage for the Queen's Sea Eyes, on top of that they were battling a hungry serpent. It's scaly green ombre iridescent blue body curled around The Chimera and she could hear the wood lurch as the serpent tightened its grip. The beast is beautiful and Marina would have probably adored it to death if it wasn't trying to eat them. The beast looked down at each defending crew member with cautious black bulbous eyes. Rain drops gathered at her eyebrows and muddled her vision making it all look like some distant nightmare.

"Sinbad! It's now or never!" She screamed over the chaos of the crew organizing a defense and the serpent hissing at them. She saw a red blur swing by her before he grabbed her.

"You ready?" Marina nodded, chuckling to herself as they landed on top of the nest of the ship. She knew that glint in his eye. The glint of 'we've already won but we have to do this last bit'. She twirled her blade in her hand and he mimicked her in response. Sinbad's grip on her hand tightened, indicating her to jump. Half of the pair jumped on either side of the mast swinging on their end of the rope. Sinbad was the first to make the full swing, slicing at the serpent's throat but not enough to make it fall. Marina followed Sinbad's original cut and sliced away even more layers of flesh. Green blood slowly leaked and clotted before Marina's eyes as she was flung up to the top of the head of the serpent. Sinbad looked at her for confirmation that it worked.

"Pull." She said and threw her entire body to pull on the rope. If they couldn't kill the creature by slicing it's neck open, then surely they can at least strangle the beast. She felt Sinbad tug his end of the rope. It wasn't enough. The creature withered from the rope but they couldn't hold on long enough to at least knock out the creature.

"About time you showed up." Sinbad scoffed at Kale, who took on Sinbad's end of the rope. The two side-stepped closer to Marina so all three could pull on the rope. She could feel the strain on the rope begin to wear down with one pop and the sound of something tearing. The three fell back down the serpent's spine and into the frigid ocean water. The serpent coiled and fell into the ocean, before them.

"That one was cutting it a little too close there." Kale bobbed up and down in the ocean waves.

"Just a little. I mean hey, it wasn't the first time we've faced a sea monster before."

"Maybe not yours." Marina retorted as she started to swim back towards The Chimera.

"Hold on wait a second." Sinbad swam closer to Marina." Are you upset with me?"

"What- No. Why would I-" Marina's head swirled. Her language may have given him that impresion. But her agitation wasn't because of him, but because she didn't know how to cope with what they just did. She cut the creature's neck and she also pulled on the rope that tore the serpent's neck and nearly decapitated it. She's never had to actually kill a creature before. Not with her own hands. A simple kick to the wall to make a brick fatally land on a threat's head. Or an entire tower falls on top of a giant man eating bird.

"You just sounded like you were upset with someone and the person most likely to upset you is me."

"Sinbad no I just- why would a serpent be lingering around an abandoned holiday castle, where ships and boats refuse to go near the place?" She had a mind to tell him that she was just processing but Kale was there and he doesn't need to be a third wheel again. The reality of how wrong everything could have gone hit her in one bone chilling blow to her gut. But it didn't go wrong. Marina saw it in Sinbad's eyes.

"You think it's guarding something else?" Kale asked to confirm Marina's thoughts. Marina nodded in agreement.

"Well don't tell Jed that. He'll think the creature was guarding the entryway into the city of Atlantis." Sinbad half scoffed and half joked. But Mairna could tell that he was just as wary of the idea of the serpent being a guard dog for something bigger and more dangerous than the creature itself.