Short Stories | Series

Siren's Fin

In the realm of dreams, where our hearts dared...

In a coastal town named as Tailshore was shrouded in mist, where crashing waves echoed through the narrow streets, there lived a siren named Seraphina. With her enchanting voice and ethereal beauty, she possessed the ability to lure sailors to their doom. But Seraphina was no ordinary siren; she was an outcast among her kind. While her fellow sirens reveled in their predatory nature, finding delight in the demise of unsuspecting victims, Seraphina viewed humans with a different perspective. She saw beyond their flaws and weaknesses, recognizing the depth of their emotions and the potential for compassion within their hearts. This emotional viewpoint set her apart, marking her as an outsider among her own kind. The other sirens scorned Seraphina for her empathy, deeming her weak and naive. They couldn't understand why she refused to revel in the misery of those she lured towards their watery graves. Seraphina's solitude became her sanctuary, seeking solace amidst the crashing waves, far away from the scornful gazes and disapproving whispers. She sang by herself while sitting on the rocks, "On the moonlit shore, where the ocean meets the night, I sing my song, a lullaby of delight. With a voice that dances on the waves so free, Come, dear listener, and heed the call of the sea..."

But as fate would have it, one fateful night, Seraphina's hauntingly beautiful melody caught the attention of a troubled soul. Ethan, a tormented artist who had lost his way, was drawn to her voice like a moth to a flame. He found solace in her melancholic songs, resonating deeply with the emotions they stirred within him. Intrigued by his presence, Seraphina she yelped, "Oh no! I will leave don't kill me please!". Ethan calmly assured her, "I was wandering, I have no ill intentions against you. Your voice was truly enchanting I want to know more about you; that is if you allow me to..." cautiously enough she allowed Ethan into her secluded world. They started meeting every night swimming, talking, singing and enjoying the moonlit night and through their every encounter, a unique bond began to form. She unveiled her forbidden emotions, speaking of her disillusionment with her own kind and her belief in the capacity for goodness within humanity. "I believe sirens and humans can be allies rather than mere prey and predator. I disagree with my clan as they believe humans are betrayers and only good as a toy but I feel humans have so many more emotions than just greed. I wish someday they see the way I see the world." Sighs.

Ethan, in turn, shared his own struggles, pouring his heart out to Seraphina like he had never done with anyone before. "You know before meeting you I had lost the will to paint or create an art piece, lost the will to live, to survive, to go on. I just wanted to dissolve into the water as if I were a sea foam. But that drunken night I met you, the day I wanted to drown myself in not only alcohol but also the waving sea and I felt like I was reborn after that night." Together, they found solace in their shared vulnerabilities, creating a refuge within the storm of their individual lives. But as their connection deepened, danger lurked in the shadows. A jealous siren named Calista, resentful of Seraphina's ability to captivate, harbored a venomous hatred towards her. Consumed by envy, Calista plotted to rid herself of the outcast siren and claim her place as the most alluring and powerful in their realm.

One moonlit night, as Seraphina and Ethan wandered along the deserted shoreline, Calista's treacherous plan was set into motion. With a swift and silent strike, Captain Jolly Crossbones and his crew ambushed them. The crew tied Ethan and threw him in a cell while carried Seraphina in the other directions. They both screamed for each other while getting separated forcefully. The crew looked sinisterly towards Seraphina, Captain kicked his minions aside screaming, "Ahoy, ye scurvy lot! Ye be naught but vile swine! Did I grant ye permission to lay a finger on her? She be under me ownership now. I will have my way with her, so mind yer lowly station, ye vermin!" He starts tracing his fingers on her tail, while Seraphina tried to struggle to get out of the iron shackles.

After Seraphina's disappearance an uproar started to know what happened. The sirens got divided in two, a part thinking she might have ran away with the low life human Ethan, whom Calista recalled seeing her with last time. While the others thought she might be in a serious danger due to her good-hearted and naïve out-look. Calista exclaimed, "Why should we worry about a betrayer? Someone who has always boasted about humans and their feelings while shamed us for protecting ourselves. Moreover I believe she might be a helper to hunters to plot against us!" Firoja another siren of the clan believing Seraphina might be in some trouble lashed out, "How can you say something so absurd against a member of our own community?! I never expected you to be so vile and disgusting, you have no empathy whatsoever. Be all brutal to your prey but we cannot turn our backs on our members, we need to find her. We will not rest until we know she is alright by herself." Calista pissed just gritted her teeth in silence plotting something much worse from her initial thought.

It had been three months since Seraphina's disappearance, Captain extracted every single one of her scales which were made out of gold and sold them. While they beat Ethan to death and threw him in the ocean leaving him as a food to the sea creatures. Calista approached the Captain asking for Seraphina, but he refused. She mocked him to be such an uncapable man of doing just one job properly. Enraged by her words he tried to kill Calista but she plunged a dagger into Seraphina's heart, extinguishing her life force. Seraphina who was barely hanging between life and death was at last freed from her sufferings. Captain did not wish to kill Seraphina as he was starting to grow feelings for her. Seraphina screamed giving away her last breath. As Seraphina's voice faded into silence, the waves whispered a mournful lament. Captain Crossbones, paralyzed with shock and grief, cradled her lifeless form in his arms, tears streaming down his face.

The siren's clan mourned the loss of their mysterious siren, unaware of the dark intentions that had led to her demise. In the wake of Seraphina's death, a profound change swept through the coastal town. The residents, touched by her compassion and kindness, began to question their own prejudices and judgments. They realized that there was more to humanity than the surface-level flaws and frailties they had focused on before. Seraphina's murder, though tragic, became a catalyst for transformation. The town united in the face of their loss, vowing to honour her memory by embracing empathy and understanding. The legend of the outcast siren who dared to see the good in humanity lived on, inspiring generations to come. And as the waves continued to crash upon the shores, a haunting melody whispered in the wind—a reminder of the siren who defied her own kind, the one who, even in death, became a beacon of hope and compassion for a world in need of redemption.