Black Hearted

Part 70

Mark followed Granny up to the next level. Mersharks bustled around the ship caring for all the wounded. Unlike the burly Mersharks, these were leaner and almost feminine looking in their beauty. One of them approached Granny, asking her curiously. "You're removing him? I haven't finished checking him-" Granny waved the man away, saying casually. "It's ok. Your treatment worked. He's feeling much better." The Mershark crossed his arms over his chest with disapproval but nodded to her and added. "I'll get him some clothes then..." The Mershark smirked, starting to leave, when Mark grabbed his arm. The Mershark yelped in a sharp voice, while Mark squeezed his arm. Pulling him closer, Mark lost his temper and growled out. "You find something funny, boy?" The Mershark shook his head, squealing out in a pained voice. "No! I was... You're impressive... I'm sorry." Granny reached out to put a hand on his arm, tenderly telling him. "Mark... Let him go. You'll break his arm."

Mark released him, letting the Mershark quickly race away. The other Merfolk in the hammock beds, all stared at him with wide eyes of fear. Mark caught his reflection in a circular mirror on the wall, seeing his eyes were a solid bloodred. Mark lowered his gaze to the floor. Granny accepted clothes from a Mershark, handing them to him as she told him. "It will take a while to get used to it." Mark's eyes rose to meet hers with a dark expression. Taking the clothes from her, he uttered out in a dark voice. "You don't know that..." Mark stormed around her, heading to a corner to dress himself. Granny followed him, seriously telling him. "The important thing is to keep your emotions under control. If you don't-" Mark finished pulling up his pants, cutting her off to snap out sharply. "I could destroy the whole ship and everyone on it?" All the Merfolk around them froze in fear. Granny waved a hand to calm them, but Mark moved closer to her, adding grimly. "I couldn't control my emotions before... What makes you think that I can now?"

Granny put a hand on his bare chest to lift the amulet, upon saying softly. "Cause you wanna save them." Mark's grip on Nate's katana tightened, retorting to her coldly. "That doesn't make me calm. They never should have been taken in the first place." Mark turned to go up the steps, stating over his shoulder. "Now tell me about Kai." Granny raced up after him, following him across the deck as she told him firmly. "Before I do that, you need to cool off. Carrying this anger is dangerous. You have to harness it or you'll-" Mark spun around to face her, growling out. "Let me make this clear. Being angry is all I know! I don't have time to waste! Just tell me what I need to know, and I'll improvise! It's the only thing I'm good at." Granny started to tell him something, but her voice faded as his ears began to pick up sounds from all over the ship. He could hear conversations within the ship and even beneath it. Everyone was talking about him and how dangerous he was. He even found his own crew in a separate med bay as they talked about him.

Mark took a deep breath, feeling the water and staggering a bit from the knowledge of it. He could chart the sea like reading a compass and could hear the voices of the sea creatures for miles. Raising his hands, he covered his eyes and groaned loudly to drown out all the noise. He couldn't hear himself think and couldn't concentrate on anything. His mind kept darting from one thing to another. It was giving him a headache. Granny touched his shoulders, asking with concern. "Mark? What's wrong? Talk to me!" Mark heard the splashing of water like a hurricane in his ears. Looking to the Merfolk beside the ship, he saw them using their power to bring the Battle Ballad up to the surface in pieces. They were trying to fix it. Mark tensed with annoyance. He could hear the wood straining as they pulled the water from the pieces in order to dry them. It was like listening to nails on a chalk board. Slow and torturous. Frustrated, he rushed toward the side, shouting out. "STOP IT!" Granny tried to grab his arm to stop him, but he yanked his arm away from her.

The Merfolk shuffled their feet with confusion. Granny swatted his arm, yelling at him. "Mark, stop! What are you doing?! Calm down!" Mark ignored her, shoving the nearest Merfolk away as he bellowed out angrily. "If you're going to take all fucking day about it!" Mark jump up onto the side of the ship and extended his hands out over the water. The Merfolk in the water, dashed away as fast as they could. Granny shouted something, but he wasn't listening. He was feeling the energy coming from the pieces of the ship. The tips of his fingers began to glow with soft blue light, causing the runes on the ship beneath the water to glow. Raising his hands slowly, he felt all the pieces of the ship slowly rise up from the water. Closing his eyes, he pictured the ship in his mind and moved his fingers around. Just like a puzzle, he moved the pieces around and pulsed the runes to bind them together. As the ship shaped itself, Mark felt a weird sense of Déjà vu. How did he know he could do this?