Twice Cursed Island

(Nerina's P.O.V)

"So, you didn't actually kidnap him?" Anne asks.

"For the love of Zeus, NO I didn't kidnap him!" Calypso snaps.

"Okay, well all of that is lovely, but we need to get to Twice Cursed Island. Please," I say politely.

"No," Raine says.

"No? What do you mean 'no'?" Lizzie asks, incredulously.

"These are free waters; we can sail anywhere we like. Plus, we need to get there before we run out of time. Selene, the Moon Goddess, told us we had three days before the curse would remain forever permanent." I plead.

"Oh, for fucks sake! SELENE! Get your ass down here!" Calypso yells to the sky.

We hear a feminine giggle coming from above us, and Selene suddenly appears on the deck of the ship with a wide smile.

"Well hello Calypso. How lovely to see you again after so long." Selene glides over to embrace Calypso.

"Nuh uhh! Not today, woman! You sent these humans into our waters, on purpose!?" She shrieks.

"Yup!" Selene replies, popping the 'p' on the word.

Calypso and her sisters all groan and begin talking in the unknown language they had been singing in.

"Well now, there's no need to use that kind of language. It's not MY fault Greybeard was stupid and buried his treasure here and subsequently killed half your pod because you ladies couldn't keep it in your fins." Selene says indignantly.

A blush creeps up on the faces of Calypso and her sisters. Obviously, Selene understood what they were discussing and threw them under the bus. Or well, ship in this case.

"That's what we DO, we're SIRENS Selene. We do this to eat and to procreate. He and his crew didn't need to kill so many of us." Lakelyn whispers, tears coming down her cheeks.

Selene goes over and embraces Lakelyn.

"I know darling, I truly do. He took it too far, particularly when he went after the children."

Well, my millions of greats grandfather was a fucking dick. I walk over to Lakelyn and embrace her as well when she breaks down into sobs in Selene's arms.

"He killed one of your children, didn't he?" I asked quietly.

"Yes, we Sirens only give birth to girls, and he took not just one of my daughters but three of them." She whispers, and I can tell this still hurt her like it had happened yesterday.

"I'm so sorry, Lakelyn, that this happened to you, to all of you. None of you deserved this." I say softly.

"I'm asking you, however, to let these ladies and their male counterparts on the next incoming ship to make landfall on the island. I promise that they will not harm the children or others who are there." Selene promises, holding her hand out to the women.

As the women grasp Selene's hand and wrist, a blinding light shines around the embrace and the wind shifts slightly.

"That is my promise as a Goddess that no harm will come to them or their pod." Selene explains after seeing our quizzical looks.

"They may proceed along with the males when they get here." Raine says softly, embracing Lakelyn.

"Thank you." I say, bowing my head to them.

"William and the rest of the men are behind you; you will make landfall first. Now hurry." Selene states before she disappears.

The sirens depart, diving over the railing into the waters below.

"Holy fuck we just met the Moon Goddess, and my books are all wrong." Ashe says, as tears form in her eyes.

"Dude, why are you crying?" Kita asks her.

"Because! She looks nothing like I had her described in my books! I've offended the Moon Goddess! I'm surprised she didn't smite me down where I stood!" Ashe cries out, practically sobbing.

"Umm, pretty sure she doesn't do the whole 'smiting' thing," I reply.

"Yeah, you need to get it together chica." Lani says, looking at Ashe like she's nuts.

"Seriously doubt she even cares dude." Lizzie comments.

A few minutes later, Ashe has FINALLY calmed down from her episode of offending the Moon Goddess and we are back on our way to the island. Kita has mentioned that Calypso and her pod sisters are following alongside us, probably making sure we stay the course. The fog has since lifted, which I think was the siren's doing to be honest with you. Nighttime comes and with it a multitude of stars blanket the sky, something that you don't get to see in the city.

"This is so beautiful; I've never seen so many stars before," Corie whispers.

"Yeah, you don't see this many stars in the city and I don't think I'll ever get over the magnitude of this." I state.

Anne comes up from the galley with a tray of food for us, considering the last time we ate was…well I don't remember when we ate last. As soon as the smell of the food wafts over to us, all of our stomachs let out loud rumbles indicating that we were DEFINITELY hungry.

"Alright guys, here's some dinner. It's not much but it'll keep us full for a while." Anne states, placing the tray on a crate near the helm.

We eat in silence, just enjoying the evening glow of the moon, its light spilling all over us. After finishing eating, we all agree on shifts to steer the ship to the island and the rest of us head off to get some much-needed sleep. After a few hours of sleep, that really felt like minutes, Kailani is knocking on my door for my turn to steer the ship. The sun is peeking up over the horizon and I take a deep breath of the fresh ocean air. I honestly could get used to this life. Looking over the side of the ship, I see that the sirens are still with us.

"Calypso, can you hear me?" I call out.

She raises her head above water, and I get a good look at her face; while she is beautiful, her sharp pointed teeth are a little scary.

"Of course, I can hear you darling, you don't need to yell."

"Oh, sorry. How much further do we have until we get to the island?"

"About 100 nautical miles, you'll be there before nightfall." She states, before putting her head back in the water.

I take out my spyglass to check the horizon for any incoming ships and to see if I can spot the Bloody Hangman behind us.