He shook his head, tears freely flowing down his face as he mourned his brother's imminent death. There wasn't medicine that could fix this.
"Siren," Adjo coughed. "Kesia says you asked about my wife, is that true?"
I nodded. "It is. When I first came upon your ship, I saw her in the water. She was beautiful."
He smiled weakly at me and then to his brother. "I want to be with her. I want to be with my Zuri." Adjo coughed again, blood trickling out of the corner of his mouth as he struggled to speak. "Can you take me to her, Gia?"
My eyes widened, and tears threatened to spill. I looked from the injured man to my two hearts, and opened my mouth to speak, but no words came out. I blinked away the tears and nodded.
"Gia, you'll come back, won't you?" Kesia tugged on my hand, a light pull that told me she needed something. Reassurance. I turned around and wrapped my arms around her for the second time.
"Of course. You're mine. I told you."
"I just wanted to hear you say it," she whispered through a smile.
Kamil tugged me into his chest and leaned his forehead against my own. "I love you, Gia. Thank you for doing this for my brother. He's an honorable man . . . of course he would want nothing more than to be with his wife in his afterlife."
My throat threatened to close around the emotions surging inside me. I nodded and dashed away the tears with my knuckles. I was leaking all over the place.
"Bring him to the rail," I murmured and moved back to the side of the ship. My bones hurt from changing back and forth so much in a short period of time, but these humans were worth a little pain.
Kamil and Kesia lifted Adjo from the deck and helped him toward the side of the ship. He looked out at the sun glancing off the water and a tear rolled down his face. "Thank you, Gia."
"You're welcome," I choked out.
I slipped my hand into his and smiled when he gave it a squeeze. I dove overboard, pulling him with me. Adjo didn't yell as we careened toward the water, head first. He didn't scream in fear or pull out of my hand in disgust as I let my skin shift back to the green it was meant to be. We hit the water together, and I swam away from the ship toward the place where Zuri rested in peace, tugging her husband alongside me.
Chapter Nine
I floated in the water a few feet away from the two mounds at the bottom of the sea. These bodies wouldn't be touched by sharks or other predators. They were covered. Marked. Nothing in the sea was stupid enough to interfere with a siren's mourning, and that was exactly what these graves would mean to them.
Tears fell from my eyes and drifted away in the water. Zuri, a woman I'd never gotten to truly meet, had brought me on this amazing journey. The whirlie had brought me here to sink a ship, and instead, I'd given a piece of myself to not one, but two humans.
I flexed my hips and shot away from the sad piece of sea. I'd cried over the two lost souls long enough. I'd done what I could to set them at peace. I swam toward the ship that held my hearts.
Chapter Ten
I circled the ship for the second time, cresting the surface. The water reflected the sunset. I came to a stop just off the starboard side, letting my eyes rest above the water. My hip fins swirled at my side, and I sang out to whoever was listening on the ship.
It didn't take long before a man came and threw a rope down for me. I wrapped my hands around the cord and waited to be pulled up. The tingle of my human form slipping into existence coursed over my lower body. I held on tight as the men pulled me up on deck.
Fingers dug into my arms and shoulders, hauling me over the edge until I spilled onto my side, staring up at them. Wide smiles greeted me. I took the hand closest to me and let myself be pulled to my feet.
"Thank you," I murmured.
"Thank you."
I ignored the thanks and searched the crowded deck for my hearts. Kamil and Kesia were nowhere to be seen. I rushed across the deck toward the captain’s cabin. I raised my hand to knock but stopped when I heard sobbing coming from inside the room. I pushed on the door—surprised when it opened—and peeked inside.
"She’ll come back," Kamil murmured to the small woman tucked into his side.
My heartbeat sped as I watched him stroke her hair, holding her ever so tenderly against him. I stepped into the room, dripping water across the floor.
"Gia!" Kesia cried and leapt to her feet, rushing into my arms.
"Yes, love, I'm here."
I kissed her head and held my other arm out for Kamil. I needed both of them. Kamil strode across the room in a quick step and tucked both of us against his broad chest. I sighed, leaning against his strong body as Kesia leaned against mine.
"I thought you’d left us," she said with a sniffle.
"Never," I murmured.
Kesia tilted her head up and kissed me. This wasn't the soft kiss she usually gave me. This was liquid emotion dripping from her lips to mine as she sucked and tugged on my lips. I slid my hands up her neck, cupping her face. Her tongue dove inside my mouth, testing, tasting, taking. I moaned softly against her lips.
"Love . . ."
"Shhh," Kamil whispered against my shoulder, kissing the skin as he moved up the back of my neck.
Goosebumps erupted across my skin. Kesia whimpered against my mouth, and then we were falling onto the bed. I landed on top of her, pinning her hands to the bed as I kissed over her jaw, her neck, and down her chest. I leaned back on my knees and pushed her dress up, tugging it over her head.
Kesia raised her shoulders off the bed, helping me undress her. Behind me, Kamil did the same. He pushed my dress up my hips and over my head. I slid my arms out of the sleeves of the dress and dipped my head down to suck on the pebbled nipples waiting for me.
I traced my tongue over the flesh as my hand slid down her side to her bloomers. Tugging those down her thighs, my hand brushed up her inner thigh and teased the wet folds waiting for me. I gasped against her breast when I felt Kamil doing the same to me. Kamil's fingers slipped inside my core, and I slid mine inside Kesia, both of us moaning.
"Hell," Kamil cursed, his breath ragged.
"You like this, love?" I moaned, biting down on Kesia's breast. My thumb circled her clit in quick, measured circles.
"Yes!" they both answered quickly.
I chuckled but stopped short when Kamil slid his fingers out of my pussy. I whimpered at the loss.
"No," I murmured, kissing down Kesia's belly to the coarse patch of hair between her thighs. I wanted to taste her, but I didn't want Kamil to stop either. "Please."
I kissed over her inner thigh before flicking my tongue across the sensitive flesh at her core. I twirled my tongue through the soaking wet folds and circled her clit.
Kamil groaned behind me, and I arched my back low in preparation. He rubbed his cock along my slick entrance and pressed just barely inside, hissing in a breath. I moaned, rolling my hips back against him. He sank deeper inside me with a sigh, and I began moving my fingers in and out of Kesia in time with his thrusts.
"Gia!" she whimpered. Her fingers clenched the sheets, pulling at them in fits. My mouth latched on to her clit, my tongue flicking over it in a steady, deliberate rhythm.
Kamil slammed into me harder, and I moaned, my teeth grazing her nub. Kesia arched beneath me, crying out as she came against my mouth. I lapped at her seam, whimpering as Kamil pounded me from behind. His hand came around and gripped my tit, pinching my nipple. Every time he bottomed out inside me, my face bumped against Kesia's sensitive pussy.
"Oh, god," she whimpered.
"Seas! Oh, seas!" I cried out against her slick center.
Kamil's fingers twisted my nipples while he rammed into me from behind, pushing my fingers deeper into Kesia.
"I can't—"
"Cum for me," I begged, lifting my head up to stare into Kesia's eyes. I slammed my fingers in and out of her. The look of torturous ecstasy on her face pushed me over the edge, and I shuddered, my pussy tightening around Kamil's cock.
"Shit!" he cursed, his cock swelling with every thrust. "Oh gods, oh gods," he gasped behind me, the sound of flesh slapping flesh an erotic accompaniment to our song. My moan came out a melody as he filled me with his seed.
Beneath me, Kesia groaned through the shivers racking her body. I slid my fingers in and out of her at a measured pace, pulling her aftershocks. Kamil kissed my shoulder, murmuring nonsense against my skin. I slid forward, pressing my lips to Kesia's before I fell to her side.
Kamil smiled down at both of us, then kissed me gently. His tongue swept over my lips, and I sighed into his mouth.
"I love you both," I whispered.
"I love you, heart."
"I love you, as well, my heart," Kamil whispered as he pressed his lips to my ear.
I bit my lip, staring at the ceiling and contemplated the ways to open this conversation. I had to leave, no matter how much I loved these humans. I had to go home to the sunken city. I didn't want to leave them here without me. I'd promised, and I'd meant it. They are mine.
"It's time for me to return home," I whispered into the darkness.
"Where is home?" Kamil asked, raising up on an elbow to look down at me.
"The sunken city. Will you come?" I turned to Kesia, brushing my knuckles down her cheek. "Will you both come?"
"Into the sea?" Her eyes widened, and I nodded.
"Anywhere you go, I go, heart," she answered without hesitation.
Kamil nodded his head in agreement, and I blinked away the emotions trying to leak from my eyes. We lay there in the darkness for a moment, not speaking, just a tangled mass of legs and arms until Kamil finally spoke.
“What will become of us?”
I thought about that for a moment, thinking of Davy Jones. There were ways to keep humans. I wouldn’t be the first to have done it. Keeping two might prove to be a challenge . . . but it would be worth it. These were my hearts. The human phrase they used to describe their position warmed me to my core. I could feel their love inside me, bubbling through my bloodstream, heating me up from the inside out.
“You’ll be mine. Forever,” I whispered.
Kamil slipped his fingers into my hair, holding on to me like a tether. I looked between him and Kesia, slowly absorbing the emotions as they flashed across their faces. Shock, fear, love, hope. I couldn’t explain to them what would happen. I’d never done this before. I knew, in theory, what would become of them, but it was an entirely different thing to do it, and succeed.
We padded up on deck, searching for the night watch. The former captives were teaching themselves to sail, to man this ship. Whether they'd make it home or become seafarers remained to be seen. Two men stood at the wheel, pouring over a map of the stars with a lantern between them.
"Are you ready?" I whispered to my two lovers.
They nodded in unison as we stepped toward the port side of the ship, farther away from the sight of the men on deck. My heartbeat thundered in my ears as we half ran to the edge of the ship.
"Jump," I hissed, before swinging my own legs over the railing and free falling toward the water. I gave in to the tingling of my tail, my gills, my true skin the moment before I hit the water. I quickly broke the surface again, searching for my hearts.
Splash!
Splash!
Two splashes sounded to my right, not even a second apart, and I swam toward the sound. Kamil was the first to surface, and then Kesia. I leaned back, giving her my tail to lean against.
"I'm ready," she murmured, linking hands with Kamil.
"Yes." Kamil's eyes locked to mine. That one word was all the consent I needed.
I leaned in and kissed Kamil slowly, sucking at his lips until mine grew tender under his affections. Turning to Kesia, I wrapped an arm around her neck and slipped my tongue between her lips. I pulled back from the kiss and waited for them each to nod before I slipped one of my hands into each of theirs and dove down beneath the gentle waves. My tail flicked behind us as I lead my hearts into the dark depths, where they would be mine forever.
Leave Her, Johnny
By Kendra Moreno
Wicked lady of the sea
Singing songs of sorrow,
Tempting fate with kerosene,
Begging ships to follow.
Bloody temptress, spin your lies,
You know not what you sing for,
"Lock her up," the people cry,
So she sinks them far from shore.
Curiosity brings her forth,
Like a glittering jewel of blood,
She'll come alive to show her worth,
And bring pride to her kingdom.
But she who thinks with her voice,
Might never break the water,
Ships will sink, men will drown,
And no one will be able to stop her.
Wicked lady of the sea,
Sing your song for the dead,
Tempting ships with kerosene
As you paint the water red.
Chapter One
Luecoisa
The water felt colder than normal, but perhaps that was just my mind projecting my thoughts on my surroundings. I didn’t wish to be there, fulfilling this asinine task set forth by men thousands of years ago, but I had to admit I was just a little bit excited for the event. I’d always had a bit of a cruel streak compared to my sisters, but that didn’t mean I liked being told when and what I could do. Why did my father insist on following such outdated traditions? Death is death, whether it was our own people’s or the humans’. But I understood. My sisters might not have relished our rite of passage and would not have completed it had it not been necessary, but I knew what I was meant to be.
I found myself swimming in the opposite direction of my sisters, determined to return back home in due time, and that I would have fun on my adventure. If I completed my rite, I would never be forced out again, not against my will. It would be my decision when I wanted to sing, my decision when I wanted to go forth into the mortal world. The direction in which I steered my fate should be my decision.
My fate shouldn’t have rested solely on the shoulders of men who were long since sands in the ocean, yet here I was.
Beside me, my faithful eight-legged friend glided along, staying close without getting in my actual space. The large, orange octopus had taken a liking to me years ago and decided to stay as my companion. I call him Orca, because he once took on an orca when he thought I was in danger from it. Surprisingly, he did well in the fight. Nothing confuses a creature quite like an eight-legged mess of slime trying to bite your face off.
“You don’t have to come, little warrior,” I told him, gliding through the sea with hardly a sweep of my tail. This area of Atlantis was quiet, eerie even. I rarely ventured out to these parts, for they spoke of death and dishonor. This section was where three sirens once attempted to destroy their home, determined to silence the voices of sirens to come, but I didn’t like to dive into such history. If those three had succeeded, my sisters and I would never have been born.
And what a sad thought that was.
For all the curiosities of my sisters and I, we were the three jewels of Atlantis. We were held to a higher esteem, no matter what our father pushed upon us. We might have to sing, but we will have far more freedom than other sirens would ever be allowed.
Orca chittered beside me, one of his tentacles brushing against my arm in acknowledgement. I understood him immediately—he would follow me whether I wanted him to or not. His loyalty made me happy, a rare thing to encounter in a sea creature with the instinct to run. I reached out and let him curl one of his tentacles around my wrist briefly, before I started to move through the water faster. There should have been a whirlie around there somewhere, a small one compared to the ones my sisters, no doubt, chose.
In front of me, vibrations in the water alerted my senses, telling me that I was close, the slight pull across my skin added to the certainty. I rounded a large stone wall covered in vibrant coral and smiled at the sig
ht.
“There you are.” I glanced at the chipper octopus at my side. “Are you certain, Orca? I don’t know where it will spit us out.”
Instead of answering, he moved closer and gently wrapped around my waist, anchoring himself but being careful not to harm my skin with his powerful suction cups. It ensured we didn’t become separated during our journey. Whirlies were odd things no one truly understood, but we utilized them often. They spanned time and oceans, allowing a siren to travel between eras, between seas, appearing in any body of water. Of course, the correct name for them were whirlpools, but where was the fun in calling them that? Besides, my sisters and I loved the nickname for them. I was the one getting into trouble most often. I was certain the whole kingdom thought me an ill-mannered guppy, but I would get to show them the extent of my powers. I’d be coming back with the most successful rite in history. That was the plan anyway.
I took a deep breath. Going through the whirlie meant I’d be on my own, without my sisters to serve as backup should something go wrong. But what could possibly go wrong when I was a siren? When I had such powers at my fingertips, at my lips, what could stop me? I was a child of Poseidon, a jewel of Atlantis. This was my birthright, even if I would have preferred doing it on my own terms. Was one ever truly ready to kill? But I thought of my task as a blessing rather than a curse. The sea was a brutal lover, and she accepted the dead into her depths without fail, cushioning them for the rest of eternity. What better way was there to die than that?
“Let’s go, Orca.” I guided my body towards the small whirlie, as the current from the hole pulled at me, swirling my hair faster. With no time for hesitation, I forced myself to move forward until I no longer had to sweep my fin from side to side, until I was being dragged in. If I had changed my mind, it wouldn’t have mattered. I wouldn’t be able to escape the pull. The sea had already accepted my intention, and she would not change her mind so easily.
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