Mistress of the Damned

Flipp

Iwas relaxing, kimono and all, in the hammock, feeling better than I had in a while. The sea sickness was gone, thanks to the ginger that Azil had given me. My stomach was settled, and my days of puking over the side of the ship in front of everyone was a thing of the past. Now that I was feeling better, I was quite enjoying being on the ship. The sway of the ship back and forth as it crossed the Bay of Blood was actually relaxing, when you didn’t feel like you were dying. Being in the bunks allowed me a lot more privacy than being up on the upper deck. I didn't necessarily have to worry about anyone bothering me.

We had already been at sea for a couple of days now and I was starting to get antsy. It was quite clear that I could never make it as a pirate. I was anxious to get started on my new life, even though I had no idea what that looked like. I wasn't sure where we were going to dock and whether I would stay or move on. There were so many different areas to explore once you got off Demon Isle.

I placed the piece of dry bread on my tongue, feeling it soften before I swallowed it. I could eat dry bread all day, it was a comfort food, and after my day of vomiting, I needed something simple to ease my hunger. It worked together with the ginger to settle my stomach. There was just something about laying in a hammock, wearing a kimono, and eating dried bread that made me feel like I had finally made it. I rolled my eyes. That was the furthest thing from the truth, and it seemed that I was fighting for my life daily. I knew that I needed to get off this ship and away from the Sirens.

I stretched lazily, and suddenly the hammock was moving until I found myself slamming hard against the floor. My teeth chattered against one another, and I almost bit my tongue off. I grabbed my arm hoping that nothing was broken.

“What the hell?”

I looked up and saw two Sirens above me that had come out of nowhere. They were taller than most of the Sirens I had come into contact with, and they were built like trucks. Getting away from them was not going to be easy. They must have snuck up behind me while I was daydreaming and flipped my hammock over.

I no longer felt luxurious in the kimono, I now felt vulnerable. I would have felt much better in my pants and leather boots.

“You have two choices, whore. Give us your food rations or spread your legs.”

My mouth hit the ground and I suddenly felt rage build up. It was always the same thing with these guys. What did the humans used to say; “The way to a man's heart is through his stomach?” It was embarrassing.

“Piss off,” I hissed at the two Sirens.

They didn't seem the least bit deterred by my words. They were closing in on me, and I started to get to my feet, ready for a fight. I saw something out of the corner of my eye, but everything was chaos, and it was happening so fast that I couldn't make it out. One of the Sirens grabbed the front of my kimono, pulling me towards him. I was about to raise my knee up into his crotch when he was ripped backwards. I fell to the ground hard, feeling my bones rattle.

I looked up and saw Xagon throw the Siren across the floor. “Get out of here. What do you think the two of you are doing?”

The other Siren said, “She’s just a Demon wench, what do you care?”

“What do you think Azil would think of you touching his precious cargo?” The Siren turned and looked at me, as if he was seeing me for the first time. Fear was written all over his face at the very thought that he would piss Azil off. They couldn’t figure out for the life of them why Azil was keeping me alive instead of throwing me over the side of the ship.

“Get out of here, the both of you.”

When the two Sirens scuttled back to the upper deck, Xagon turned and stared at me. His eyes trailed over me in this silky kimono and I suddenly felt ridiculous.

“Uhhh, thanks for your help.”

“Don't be so weak.”

The audacity and arrogance of Sirens never ceased to amaze me. I glared at him as I got up off the floor, dusting myself off.

“Screw you. I am not weak.”

“Oh really. Did I not just save you a moment ago?”

“Things had barely just got started. You think you know me, Xagon. You have no idea who I am, or what I am capable of.”

“Aside from getting yourself killed? Prove to me that you're not weak.”

I smiled slightly as my glossy mane curled itself around my horns. I always made sure it was out of the way if I was going to fight. I was in tight quarters with no weapons, so I was very limited in what I was going to be able to do, but I wasn’t going to back down or have him call me weak again. I moved into a fighting stance before I high kicked him right across the face. His head snapped to the side, and he was sent off balance for a moment. He turned to me in surprise. I felt good for a moment, before I saw the smile spread across his face. He wasn’t the least bit worried about the harm that I could cause him.

I went to kick him again, and his tail separated into four pieces, catching me off-guard. One of them swung to the side and took my feet right out from under me. I hit the ground and scrambled away from him. I saw my utility belt underneath the hammock, and I unsheathed my blade. Just as he was leaning over me, I put the blade against his throat.

“You would have already been dead.” He moved back slowly, the smile still on his face. I would have loved nothing more than to wipe it off his smug face.

“You have a tail, Flipp. Why don't you use it?”

“I’m a trained assassin, Xagon. I don’t need a tail.”

He raised an eyebrow. “Those tricks might not always work on Sirens. You need to use all your gifts, choose your weapon based on the person you're fighting.”