The siren’s song echoed across the waves. There in the cove, over the sound of the crashing waves on the shore, the most beautiful voice rang out across the sea. It was as if it was a chorus of voices, blending and mixing together in harmony, a symphony of one. Each part of it cascaded onto the one before it, like a wave crashing into itself. It mixed with the sea and the wind, blending into the perfect storm of sorrow and desire.

Captain Elspeth Mordan stood on the shore, her hand rested on the hilt of her sword. She stared at over the vast ocean, its dark waves crashing upon themselves, illuminated only be the moonlight reflecting upon it. Her ship was moored out there, somewhere, in the distance. Something had brought her to this place, something that sang out across the ocean, something that only she could hear. The crew thought her mad as they approached the island, a heavily fortified property that no pirate would dare step onto. But the crew of Captain Mordan was no ordinary crew. Her crew was filled with the most cunning, smartest, and most daring pirates that had ever sailed under the sea of stars.

But there, on the cliff on the far side of the island, sat a castle. Even by night, the polished white stone shone in the moonlight as though it were day. Many windows remained lit by golden glow. From one of them, Elspeth could hear the song. She reached to her side, unfastening the clasp around her spyglass. She extended it, peering through it. The lines of carriages slowly approached the large wooden gate towards the top. As the captain had learned, tonight would be a ball, and there was never quite as good of a time to strike for treasure as a ball.

“Presenting, the privateer of his majesty’s fleet, The Captain Melgrane and his first mate, Lady Elspeth.”

Elspeth grimaced, it was a good idea to play first mate and instead let Jo Melgrane take the lead. He was the finest forger and impersonator on this side of the world, however, Elspeth did not have to like the idea of playing second in command.

Jo took the lead, moving into the courtyard. Elspeth followed a step behind. Her pirating garb had been replaced by the royal navy’s colors that they had robbed off of a passing ship a few weeks past. Her hair, now brushed and washed, combed behind her head and pulled tightly into a ponytail made her scalp feel tight and pulled. She hated the pomp and circumstance. Her chest felt bound by the garment instead of her usual flowing unbuttoned shirt. Everything was cramped into this outfit.

The ballroom on the other hand, was so vast that even with the hundreds of guests there was more than enough room to move about. Jo paused and gestured around to the many riches that adorned the guests. Glittering stones and gold jewelry hung off of them in abundance. Jo made a point to pause on the occasion, gesturing towards the help, or rather the help that Elspeth’s crew had carefully replaced. Some were moving about collecting coats, swiping a bracelet here and there. Others were handing out drinks and food on trays, keeping an eye turned towards the captain herself. They were here for something, however Elspeth was not aware of what.

“Spread out. Keep an eye out for anything valuable. Try to break away with Smidge if you can, get upstairs to the private rooms where the good stuff is.” Elspeth murmured to Jo leaning in slightly. She pat their shoulder and broke off, carefully slipping through the crowd.

Elspeth passed unseen through the swarm. She was lucky enough to be able to keep her sword at her side, she half hoped that they wouldn’t demand to check weapons and was lucky to be rewarded for her optimism. It was much harder to commit a crime if you had to double back. Every so often she would slip a coin purse into her hand from a gentleman’s belt as she passed by, carefully dropping it into the awaiting hand of one of her many crew members as they crossed paths. It was a routine snatch a grab tactic that they had perfected over time, one they had run many times before.

“Will you dance with me?” A hand wrapped around her wrist, not tightly, but gently prying it away. Her fingers slid off of the coin purse she had been about to swipe.

Elspeth’s eyes raised slowly over the green silk glove that traveled up the arm of the woman restraining her. The flowing green dress that cascaded with blue accents in waves from her shoulders down to her waist before billowing outward in plumes of ocean waves. Elspeth looked up the woman’s dark skin, over her lips, soft, plump, accented by blue lipstick that matched her eyes, eyes that Elspeth could fall into like the depths of the ocean. Rich sand dusted curls hung down from her head dancing over her eyebrows before falling down towards her shoulders.

Elspeth’s breath caught in her throat. She stumbled over the appropriate response, even as the woman slowly led her towards the dance floor. The captain had never fumbled before. She had swooned and stollen the hearts of men and women all across the oceans and yet, none had ever held her like this. She could not speak, nor did she want to.

“I knew you would come to me. None can resist my song.” The woman chuckled softly, not cruelly but in a playful manner. It was as if a thousand bells chimed.

Elspeth felt the dance change directions. She turned, spinning the woman outward from her. Slowly the woman rolled back into her arms, a gentle pivot as they resumed their posture. “You’re the voice I hear. The one I followed across the oceans.”

The woman nodded and turned, pivoting slightly, her dress floating just slightly as she did. “And you came to find me.”

The captain pulled the woman closer, shifting posture. Her hand slid around her body, the dress becoming pressed between the pair. “Why me? What do you want with me?”

“It is rather what you want with me.” Elspeth pursed her lips. The song was coming to an end. She slowly released the woman, her hands moving to clap for the band, but while everyone else turned their attention towards the performers, Elspeth did not look away from the woman. The woman turned back, her eyelids drifting slowly lower. She tilted her head towards the balcony on the far side of the room, the curtains blowing in the open doorway. She led, taking the captain’s hand and gently tugging, beckoning her to follow. Elspeth allowed herself to be led blindly.

The curtains broke way, the chilly wind of the night air blowing in Elspeth’s face as they stepped outside. Her hair billowed behind her, the ponytail dancing in the night air. The woman slowly released her hand, traveling over to the railing. She leaned against the marble railing and looked out longingly over the ocean. Elspeth advanced slowly, her hand trailing to the sword at her hip, she did not know this woman and some part of her sensed she was in great danger.

“I have heard many tales about you. The great Captain Elspeth Mordan, feared pirate, the craftiest of criminals, the cursed pirate.” Elspeth tugged on the hilt, the blade coming free in the night with a solid swish. It sat placed an inch from the woman’s back, her hair blowing over the blade, the dark metal, untouched by the night air. Elspeth’s eyes burned, dark smoke trailing from the edges of her pitch black eyes. “The one who signed her soul to the sea for a thousand years on the ocean, bound to never find love or companionship except from the waves.”

Elspeth pressed the tip against the woman’s dress, the fabric smoking as it frayed beneath the cursed sword. “Speak plainly or see yourself make a quick fall into the deep below.” The words were icy, chilling the air between them with a cold bite.

“You are not the only one cursed by the sea. I wished to be free of its shackles, now I may not leave this island without the love of a broken heart. But to be a siren…” The woman turned slowly, the blade burning a dark stain across her dress. Her eyes burned a deep blue swirling wave, her skin shimmering in the moonlight with an undercurrent of sea dazed glitter. Her face was somber with longing. “Is to only be loved by those you blind with your song. To truly be loved, I dreamed impossible.”

Elspeth lowered the blade to her side. “Your song was not a call to me for love.”

“It was a call for your blade. A cursed blade to slay a cursed creature.” The woman looked up at Elspeth, longing in her eyes. She stepped forward slowly, her fingers reaching out to trail over the captain’s hand. “I implore you, please end my misery. I can no longer bare to stare out at the ocean, a world I can no longer call home.”

“You could simply sing to me and command my will.” Elspeth’s hand raised to the woman’s neck, her thumb wrapping around it as she gently raised her head to look into her eyes. The curse softened, black smoke abating to reveal her eyes.

“I would not force that act upon any. I can only implore you. My heart can not bare this burden. Please my captain, would you do me this honor?”

Elspeth’s throat tightened. She slowly pushed nudging the woman backwards against the railing. She felt her gasp softly as she pressed against it, slowly being leaned over the edge of it. Elspeth looked at her, her lips so ready for the taking. She had never wanted any like this before. Over the edges of the earth, over one hundred years, none had ever enticed her like this. Her hand raised, thumb tracing over the woman’s lips. They parted slightly, a salty breath escaping against the thumb.

Neither woman spoke, merely lost in the moment. Elspeth leaned forward towards the woman. Her lips lowered to her ear, breath heavy with a desire she had never seen before. “Call to me from the ocean and I shall run to you.”

Elspeth shoved, her hand pushing the woman by her head out over the railing. Surprise etched across her face as she fell backwards. Her dress billowed in the night air, bright shining wave that rippled as she fell rapidly to the dark depths below. She fell with a soft crash into the night, disappearing beneath the depths at the base of the cliff. The waves crashed, cracking upon the rocky base.

Elspeth spun, sheathing her sword. She turned, her first mate, Endraeth, dressed as an attendant standing by the window, her face stoic, no surprise or emotion on it. Elspeth crossed, stopping just to the right shoulder of Endraeth, pausing, their shoulders separated by a mere inch. She waited.

Endraeth did not turn, instead continuing to look out at the waves. “Should I be concerned Captain?”

Elspeth stared out over the party, the many guests oblivious to what had transpired. “I am finished here. I will return to the ship by morning, see that my quarters are prepared for a guest.”

“Should we plan to leave port by then? Or prepare a-“

“There will be no need for a return trip. See to it that the crew is well fed and prepared. We break for the other seas at dawn.” Elspeth turned her head to look at her first mate. “And see to it we are well stocked. We will be having a-“ A song danced on the air, the beginning notes of a tune that only Elspeth could hear. A smirk played at the edge of her lips “permanent addition to the crew.”

Elspeth turned and began to take a step forward when Endraeth’s hand caught her by the sleeve. “Captain, are you sure this is wise. I have sailed with you a decade now and I am not quite sure that you have considered what you are about to do.”

“You know as well as I do that a sailor can not resist the song of the siren.”

“Aye, but you are no ordinary sailor and that is no ordinary song.”

Elspeth nodded. “If I do not return by dawn, see to it the ship rides to glory.” She tugged her arm free and with it made her way through the party.

Elspeth stood at the top of the beach. There at the base, shining in the moonlight, was a woman, not unlike the one she had seen before. She lay upon the sand, basking the waves, her hair while wet, blew in the breeze. Elspeth stumbled forward, her feet tripping under her as she ran across the beach. She was thankful for the change back into her captain’s gear, her boots head more traction on the wet sand. Yet still she fell to her knees before the woman, just a foot out of reach.

The song had only grown stronger while she was away. It built, swelling into a storm that bellowed in her ears, vibrating within her chest, dragging her towards the source. She could not resist it, the song of the siren, when it called to you, to resist it was to break your very mind with insanity, to give in to it was to meet a certain death at a watery grave. Elspeth was prepared for the latter to be true.

“I called to you and you came running.” The woman said, her finger drawing circles in the sand. “And yet, you still can not love me.”

Elspeth crawled forwards onto her hands and knees. “I can not love or be loved, but then why can I not resist you. The sea would not send me to you for I can not be taken from my ship and yet, the longing in my chest can not be stopped.”

The woman reached up and brushed her hand through the opening in the captain’s shirt. Salt water stained the edges of the red top. Her hand cold, brushed against the pale bare skin, her fingers trailing over the soft flesh. “I would have you even if you could never love me. I long for your presence, the raw power that boils within you set me free, it should only be that I do the same to you.” The waves crashed against her legs, scales slowly forming on them only for them to fade as the water pulled away. Her bare body shimmering beneath the moonlight and stars.

“I can not love you in the way you deserve in your majesty.” Elspeth said turning her head away.

The woman gripped her chin tugging her head back roughly. “Yet you can worship me as no other ever could, for how could I harm one who can not be harmed. How can I force the sea to take one who can not be taken. You could grant me pleasures that no other ever could.” Her thumb gripped Elspeth’s chin and tugged it down, opening her mouth gently.

“Pray tell me your name so that I may cry it as your lips tear my soul from my body.” Elspeth whispered softly over the roaring wind.

“Cariote…” The woman whispered lunging forward. She dove at the captain, her lips wrapping around the humans. Elspeth could taste only the salt of the ocean on her lips, it burned in the small cuts on her lips and yet, she reveled in the sensation. The captain dove forward, pushing them backwards into the shallows of the ocean. The waves crashed against the pair soaking them both. The cold water soaked into the captain’s clothes as her hand’s found scaly hips, pulling them closer.

The siren pull back and began to sing. Elspeth could feel the song penetrate into her. It filled her deeply with passion and longing, a kind she had never felt before. Siren songs were always grounded in their own feelings. This was how Cariote felt, and yet, Elspeth could feel the emotion swell within her, a sensation she could not feel otherwise.

The world began to blur as slowly Elspeth was lowered into the waves. She could feel the siren crawl onto her, slowly undoing her belt. The waves crashed over them, Elspeth focused her breathing, avoiding the water that threatened to flow into her lungs. As the waves ebbed, so too did the illusion. The human looking woman, now gone, replaced by rich blue green scales. Her hair, tinged green like seaweed. Her teeth, sharpened to points, rows of them, menacing. And yet the song did not stop, and Elspeth did not fear.

Elspeth felt the waves crash against the bare skin of her legs as her pants flew over her head in a blur. It was as if everything moved in slow motion, her hands buried in the wet sand. Webbed fingers pushed her legs apart, spreading them wide as Cariote’s head dipped between her legs.

The song only built, no longer sang by echoed in the night air. Elspeth could not stop what was building within her even if she wanted to. The way the notes played against her body, the way the fingers plucked at the strings tied to her thighs, the way the siren sang her sweet song against Elspeth’s most private of parts resonated with an increased fury within her. Elspeth would die a thousand times over if this beautiful creature demanded it. She would throw herself from the highest cliff, diving over the edge into the ocean below only to be swallowed up by her. She cried out, tears falling from her eyes into the ocean below as the passion erupted within her exploding outward with the thunder of the crashing waves.

The song still carried through the night air for a long while afterwards. Elspeth became lost in it, her own voice merging with it on more than one occasion. She no longer knew where she ended and Cariote began. She was merely a vessel to hold the song within her, that was her true purpose, to be a home for the siren. She knew that now, the most feared captain on the sea, held captive by a simple song.

Cariote lay next to her as the sun began to crest the horizon, bathing it soft golden glows. The ocean washed over the naked pair, clothes long since discarded onto the dry shore. Elspeth’s fingers twitched and trembled, tangled in the sand and surf. Her body would dare not move, not because she could not, but she dared not disturb the siren. The song had long subsided within her, filling her with emptiness once more, and yet, she fell more full than she had in many years. Soon they would depart for their ship, but until then, Elspeth would revel in this moment.