Siren's Kiss

69: Bleeding the Leech Part One

Aside from the fins and gills appearing along their ribs, neck, and arms, nothing else seemed to change. They narrowly escaped the grasping appendages of the strange creature, which seemed to have emerged from Elysium Reef-the palace of the Siren Kingdom and the home of Ciel and his parents.

"Ahoy, this be lookin' just fine, matey!" Vic remarked, admiring his reflection in the mirror with Griff beside him. "Truth be told, I be lookin' right fierce with these, I am!"

Griff frowned at his enthusiasm. "Who be givin' a toss 'bout yer looks?!"

Ciel observed the crew silently. Despite Jo's complaints about the new additions to their bodies, the pirates seemed eager to test their new fins and gills. He watched Drake closely, noting how his pirate king appeared even more striking as a half-merfolk. Of course, Ciel was a bit biased toward his own kind, but either way, Drake didn't seem bothered-his mind was on the strange entity now in Thalassara.

"What be yer thoughts on what it is?" Drake asked, pulling Ciel close.

Ciel didn't resist, still feeling guilty for leading Drake and the rest of the Crimson Corsair crew, along with their ship, to the ocean's depths. The captain had reassured him repeatedly that it was fine, urging him to focus on saving the kingdom.

"If I had to guess, I'd say that's the true physical form of the god Lexios," Ciel replied. "Like Som, who's actually a phoenix..."

"...or Kali, who's a dragon?"

Ciel nodded. "Each of these immortal deities can appear before us in their true forms. However..."

"However?"

"In their true forms, their strength and abilities are twice as formidable."

The trio-Ollie, Ori, and Jo-slowly turned to the siren prince.

"Are ye tellin' us that Lexios be... a giant set of tentacles?" Jo exclaimed.

"I reckon he don't have no true form." Ollie countered, disagreeing with Jo. "For all we know, it could be some kind of parasite."

Shrouded in darkness within a cavernous rock formation, they spotted the "shape" rooted in the ground, stretching upward as if reaching the heavens. Though it didn't seem to rely on sight, it sensed their presence and lashed out at anything that neared its proximity.

Drake studied it through his spyglass, though even without it, they could make out the entity from the cave. Its tendrils glowed with a pulse-like rhythm, throbbing like a heartbeat as they drew close.

"We be only seein' its appendages," Drake said to his crew. "There be no face or main body in sight. Lexios must be some kind o' Leviathan-an ancient beast or a great old one."

Gus nodded in agreement with his captain. "Lexios and Nerevarus were twins, but none o' the ancient tomes or scriptures be describin' their true forms. Given their love fer the sea and creatin' a world mostly draped in water, I'd wager Lexios's true form be that of an ancient bein', slumberin' deep in the ocean."

Toby, the first mate, turned to the captain and the siren prince. "Ye said the Forgotten Isle be the tomb of Nerevarus? But ye've never laid eyes on the body of our creator, have ye?"

"The island is protected by the Phoenix God," Ciel explained. "It was part of their pact. Lexios can't claim it unless he defeats us."

Drake glanced at Ciel, a smirk tugging at his lips. "Well, me love, we've got a tough battle ahead. We need to split up, scout fer survivors, and see what we be facin'."

Jo and Ori paled at the thought. "Is it truly necessary, Cap'n?" Ori's voice trembled. As the navigator, he suspected that Captain Drake would drag him along to map the whole Siren Kingdom. He wasn't entirely confident in the new fins and gills-especially since Prince Ciel hadn't tested the pearl's effects on anyone but pirates!