A Merman's Soul (COMPLETED)

Chapter 6

It was midnight. Logan had to do it now. He had to escape. He heard a whistle from above the brig and knew it was Patton giving the signal. He fumbled with the lock, scratching and clawing at it before finally breaking it and whistling back. Patton crept down the stairs, holding a lantern. He offered a smile to Logan as reassurance but said nothing. He seemed to be asking if Logan was sure about this. Logan nodded and Patton sighed before putting the lantern down and picking Logan up. Logan blushed slightly as his markings shone brighter than they ever had before. Patton bit back a giggle and crept back up the stairs to the deck.

Once out on deck, Patton nodded to Logan and dropped him over board.

"Are you out of your goddamn mind?" Someone whispered from behind Patton. Patton turned around.

"Virgil, what are you doing out here?" He whisper-shouted. "If Captain finds you-"

"I already have." Janus said, emerging from the shadows, holing a lantern and smirking. "Good stunt you pulled there, Patton. But I'd like to keep my prisoners on the ship if you don't mind."

"Logan was a person too." Patton said, pointing over the side of the ship into the waves below where Logan had disappeared. "He needed to be free. He wasn't happy."

"Pat, he couldn't have been happy! You said it yourself, he has no emotions." Virgil said, reaching out to grab Patton by the shoulder. Patton shied away and Virgil sighed.

"It's not his fault. He has no soul!"

"How do you know that?!" Virgil yelled. "How do you know that he isn't lying to you to gain your sympathies?" He sounded more worried than accusing. Patton looked down, thankful for the dark as he felt a tear fall from his eyes.

"I-I don't know." He muttered. "But I'm choosing to believe that Logan wouldn't lie to me. I am not a child, Virgil. I can look after myself." He said, shocking both him and Virgil.

Before either of them could say anything, Patton was grabbed around the waist and pulled over the side of the ship from behind.

"PATTON!" Virgil yelled, running to the side of the ship. But Patton was gone.

Patton braced himself for the force of the water hitting his back. He still wasn't prepared for the ice he felt spreading through his entire body when he hit the waves. He screwed up his eyes as he felt the salt sting his face. Suddenly, a pair of lips were on his. Patton opened his eyes in surprise and found that the salt didn't sting them anymore. Logan pulled back from kissing him, his face bright red and the marks on his arms shining so brightly that they lit up the water around the two boys.

Patton felt something odd on the side of his neck. Reaching up, he found that he now had gills. Looking down at where his feet should be, there was a sky-blue tail. His fingers elongated and ended in sharp claws and all the way up his arms ran markings the same colour as his tail. They were shining as brightly as Logan's.

"Sorry for pulling you away from your ship." Logan mumbled as Patton found that he could hear and understand him perfectly under water. "But I cannot lose you again, Patton."

Patton looked up at the Mermaid's Pride, distorted through the waves. Then, he looked back at Logan. Carefully, he took Logan's hand.

"I'm glad you took me with you, Logie." He said quietly. "I'd rather be with you than on a ship."

Logan smiled a tiny smile before flicking his tail and beginning to swim away, pulling Patton with him.

"Come on. There are so many people I want you to meet."