Aeipathy's A Memory

20: A Dip of Something Else

Dried out and shriveled on the floor. Who's the savior, you or me?

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Zak huffed as he reached the final tank. He lifted himself up and felt his arms collapse under him. Zak sluggishly rolled forward towards what looked like a new pair of doors. He was ready to crawl through them when they burst open. His stomach took a sharp twist when he locked eyes with the same fisherman that slashed his tail the first time. His crooked eyes had the same crazed obsession he saw before.

"You."

Zak gulped. "Me?"

"Yuh fishy little fuck. You're the pest that kept messing with our stuff!" The fisherman grabbed a rope that was conveniently placed near his feet and approached the terrified siren with beady eyes. "I'm going to hang yuh over a fire and I'm going to cook you alive."

Zak couldn't move. He couldn't scream. He couldn't cry. He was stuck. Stuck in his own head. In his unfocused gaze he saw the man move quick. Then he was brought back to the here and now when he threw the rope around Zak's neck and tugged, making the siren choke. He continued to bound the siren while Zak finally screamed and wriggled around, pleading for mercy.

"Mercy? Heh, you must not be aware of how things are with us sailors." He leaned in closer, so close Zak could smell the distinct scent of rum and salt wafting as the fisherman spoke in a harsh tone, "We don't find mercy very appealing."

Zak's eyes widened when he felt a strong yank from the rope that tangled his freedom. He was dragged through the door to what he thought was his fate. He was sure of it when his eyes landed on the blazing cauldron with a fire as big as the pits of hell lapping at the bottom of it.

The room was styled like a 1700s royal kitchen. Zak felt sweat beginning to form on the upper half of his body. His sweating worsened when the fisherman dragged him down a flight of stairs that led to another staircase up to the rim of the cauldron. Zak whined each time he went down a step and hit his head. His back was already scraped up from being dragged around, which only made his whining more noticeable.

"Quit you're complainin'! You think you can get away with acting so immature? Look at you, you're grown enough to know not to mess with people like us!" The man screamed on and on, spewing hurtful words as they got closer and closer to the bubbling pot.

When Zak realized this he tried crawling in the other direction, scratching at the floor. A hard pull made him yelp. Not wanting to give up he grit his sharp teeth and pulled away harder, managing to get a few feet before another yank loosened his grip and he was sliding back towards the pot with bubbling water, if it even was water.

Zak started crying now. He was going to die in this trial and he hasn't even saved Darryl yet. The image of Darryl's terrified expression sped around Zak's head.

I'm going to fail him.

That thought was more overwhelming than the words the fisherman had said to him. It hurt more than ramming his shoulder into the tank lid. It made him queasy knowing he could harm Darryl far worse if he didn't do something.

Would I hurt him?

The heat of the bubbling liquid inside the cauldron made him want to back away, but there was no way back. The vengeful man grabbed a large hook attached to a line that connected to some sort of contraption near the ceiling and brought it neat the rope tied around Zak's tail. He lifted the siren upside down and set him on the sharp hanger. Zak swung forward and let out a startled scream. As he spun around whilst twirling in midair, his eyes caught periodic glances to the fisherman who was reaching for a lever. His hands wrapped around it and pushed it down.