A Mermaid's Cry

Chapter 26-A Battle Barely Begun

"Aren't you precious," the male says, foul smelling breath like rotten fish traveling up my nose. "My brother and I will have much fun with you."

I growl behind his hand, wishing I could sink my teeth into his palm before he could gut me like wriggling prey. The male forces me forward, moving us into the clearing as the fronds part for us. The blond male looks up at us, me held at knife point while his brother no doubt, smiles at his catch.

"Where'd you find her?" he asks, standing up and swiftly making his way over. "Certainly not here, pretty thing like that shouldn't be roaming around alone."

With his rough hands, he examines a piece of my hair. Rubbing the strands with his fingers, as if marveling at the blood like hue of the locks.
"Her hair is familiar brother," the blond says, stepping away to rub his slightly scruffy chin.
"Reminds me of something father told us, a fight with a Southern male with red hair years ago."

The very mention of the Mer in question, with a description matching that of my father, has me growling low in my throat. Murder written in my eyes as I stare the Northerner down. "Careful brother," my captor says, reposition his knife and placing the razor sharp edge against my stomach.
"I don't think she likes that, and this little female seems oddly feral."

Feral, I'll show him feral. Regardless of his knife, I'm furious enough to open my mouth and clamp down on his skin. The iron tang of blood and salty skin, makes me want to gag, but I keep going, driving my teeth as deep as they'll go.

"You little bitch!" her grunts, dropping his knife so he can turn me around and slap me onto the ground. I land on my stomach, the air quickly knocked out of me along with a mouthful of foreigner blood. Immediately, long harsh fingers grab hold of my hair and pull me to my knees. I smile up at the blond, while his brother lies sitting on a boulder clutching his injured hand.

"Have you ever heard of the Red Haired Menace of Isla de las Madres?" I ask, licking the blood from my lips and making my captor sneer in disgust.

"Why, do you know him?" the blonde questions, swiftly placing the tip of a knife at my throat.

"Yes, I do," I answer, letting my voice turn melodic and unsettling. "I am his daughter, his very own warrior prodigy."

I chuckle, canting my head up at this foreign male, taking in the nicks on his face and the flare of fear in his eyes. Good, fear me enough that you don't see my companion stalking behind your brother. The moment I catch Ares's sleek form parting the brush, I go limp and drag my captor down to the ground with me.

He lands on top of me, growling low in his throat making the arcing tattoos on his neck look like the twining tails of snakes. Repositioning the knife at my throat, he forces his weight onto my stomach. Forcing the air out of my lungs, and making it a struggle for me to breath. "Didn't work out for you did it?" he chuckles, leaning down and putting his lips near my ear.

"I wouldn't be so sure," I hiss, as the sound of iron sinking into flesh whispers through the air.

Her turns his head, just in time to see the spear point jutting out of his brother's throat. In a heated rage, he throws himself forward giving me the chance to leap onto his back. Like a whip, I knock the knife from his grip, making it fly into a collection of tangled vines. Before swiftly wrapping my hands around his neck, squeezing with all my strength as he writhes underneath me.

The wheeze of air coming out of him, mingles with the wet choking sounds of his dying comrade. I bare down, increasing the pressure till my nails sink into flesh and the male gasps out his last breath as his body goes limp beneath me. The tang of blood immediately fills my nostrils, and the reality of what I've done hits me.

Crawling off the downed male, my heart starts beating frantically in my chest. I force the bile in my throat down, and roll him over with my foot. As expected, the pallor of death and the blank far away look to his eyes, confirms that he shall never see the next sunrise or sunset ever again.

"We need to go," I utter, as a familiar warmth seeps into my right side. "The others should be at the tree line connected to the beach by now."

A single callused finger, touches my chin and turns my head towards its owner. A frown plays across his handsome face, one of sharp planes and angles. A distracting face that hides his dangerous intentions, and even worse a secret kindness that I have yet to find.

"You are unhurt?" Ares asks, using that same finger to trace down my neck to my collarbone.

"Of course," I huff out, swiftly removing his hand from my skin and setting to work divesting the bodies of their weapons. Unfortunately, I find nothing but a few sharp knives. Probably their owners thought that they could beat anything with brute strength, when patience and cunning I've learned are far more fruitful. As I add the blades to my makeshift belt, Ares appears again by my side and holds out my forgotten spear.

"I promise you treasure that I have done nothing to it," he adds, quickly spotting my wary and unamused glare. "It would be inconvenient to not have you fully armed."

I nod and take my spear, relaxing as the fine carved wood settles into my grip. The spear smooth like the Northerner's skin, a thought that makes my body shudder with revulsion. Fortunately, Ares is already diving back into the brush, leading us closer to the commandeered stretch of sand.

Our movements are quiet, carefully stepping over tree roots that seem to burst out of the earth like an elder's gnarled fingers. Through the chittering of animals and wind, I hear the not so distant sound of waves crashing onto shore. Soon, the tense feeling in my muscles dissipates when I see Adila and her sisters appear on the path.

"There you two are," Ikari scolds, her voice low and quiet as she prowls over and traces her piercing gold gaze down our bodies.
"Octavia has been worried sick after everyone met up and you both were no where in sight. Your lucky we were able to get the rest of them, although Amani decided to leave one gagged and tied to a tree."

"The male was harmless," Amani cuts in, glaring at her sister in irritation. "He was not much older than Corintha's brother. Those Northern Mer are cruel to send one so young into foreign waters."

"Regardless of how you dealt with the sentries," Ares cuts in, striding up to the girls with menacing ease. "We have them all taken care of, which means it is time to send out the bait."

Three matching smiles, filled with anticipation and hunger, appear on the girl's faces. Three cruel grins of sharp white teeth that stokes my own fever for battle. "Then let's get going," I whisper, brushing by them and continuing down the trail.

However, the moment we reach the small clearing that we have all known since childhood, a roar of rage sounds from the beach. "You didn't," I snarl, turning to face the girls as a sudden rumble and blast of an ear numbing sound pierces the air. "You used Morzan's gunpowder!" I yell, watching in horror as the animals scream around us while the birds take to the air in fright.

"Only enough to use that small cannon he had hiding in his hut," Amani replies, before taking off into the trees with Ikari hot on her heels.

"How did they get ahold of the cannon?" I growl at Adila, watching her shrug her shoulders and then race after her sisters.

"Come on treasure," Ares drawls, grabbing my hand and pulling me along toward the beach.
One that I can see through the many trunks and branches, covered in a haze of black and grey. Already littered with the bodies of the dead.
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🌼 The big battle scene will be next, however I will probably wait till this weekend to start it. I have three big assignments I need to do so please persevere with waiting.🌻

🌺I'm so grateful that you are all enjoying this so far. I would really appreciate hearing what you all like about the book, it will help me greatly with writing more chapters for you guys.🍃