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The stench of gunpowder and metal hung heavy in the air, and if one dared to inquire further, the sweet smell of burnt skin still lingered near the place of the attack.
There was something extremely disturbing in the way crimson flowers bloomed near the unconscious body of a woman, painting that macabre scene in the most vibrant hues.
A glimmering skiff through a sea of grey waters, swaying back and forth, changing its course when the wind toyed with it without mercy. It rolled around a few times, uncertain whether to make port or braving the uncertain waters of that red expanse.
At last, the skiff succumbed to the ocean, drowning in the bleak despair of the merciless abyss.
Something was calling to her, she could feel its pull. Sha Hualing lifted his head, eyes lazily drawn to the surface of that abyss.
It was dark there, but that faint source of light felt like a lighthouse to her, the green light at the end of the dock. Irresistible, but impossible to reach- maybe, if she stretched her fingers enough, if she could get his body to cooperate, she would break through the surface and catch that lifeline.
She was so close, the pirate could feel the warmth caressing her skin, slowly coaxing her to the surface, the chant of a mermaid that she couldn’t resist. One last push, she knew she was close to the surface, all she had to do was-
The lovely melody dancing in her ears shattered and abruptly turned into an agonizing shrill, almost like someone was scraping a blackboard with their fingernails, the water growing agitated and murky. The woman was caught in the current, and no matter how much she thrashed around, she couldn’t escape that vicious grip.
Her head hit something, the world contorting and dancing before him until everything faded out.
What the fuck?
That was the first, confusing thought that came to Sha Hualing’s mind when she woke up to a white ceiling and the intoxicating smell of alcohol filling her nostrils. Sha Hualing felt like throwing up, even if she couldn’t feel anything, her body numb and unresponsive to her commands.
She didn’t dare to lower his eyes, somewhat knowing what she would find there: a dead, broken vessel, parts of meat reshaped and sewed together again, a piece of a puzzle trying to find its companion but failing again and again.
She may not know how she ended up in that place, but she remembered the blade violating her body again and again, almost as if wanting to turn her insides inside out.
The pirate slowly blinked, trying to clear the haze from her vision and lift the veil that separated her from reality. She raised a hand as if she could physically manipulate that soft gauze, but there was a weight she hadn’t expected, a warmth spreading from her fingers to her arm.
Sha Hualing trailed his eyes down half expecting for the Reaper to be there and smile at her, telling her he was there to collect her. Instead, she found lustrous black hair and a pair of slitted eyes, too unnatural to be human.
She didn’t know what to do, if not continue to stare with a gaping mouth, because that stranger was so damn pretty that she thought for a moment an angel had come to take her.
She tried to speak, to do something, but when she tried to get her mouth to work she felt like his tongue was stuck to her palate and her throat had become the fucking Gobi desert, leaving her to wheeze like an idiot.
A hand was placed on her collarbone, trying to get her to lean on the stone wall again. “Hey, calm down. Don’t force yourself.”
Fuck. Even her voice was ethereal, which was really unfair towards poor mortals like Sha Hualing.
She let her eyes roam down her body, letting herself appreciate the softness of her hips or the fullness of her breasts. Bare breasts, without anything to cover them, which was uncommon. Her cheeks heated like a fire was raging on her face, and she was quick to let her gaze drop towards the floor of the cavern. Still, she couldn’t get out of her head the burning need to peek behind the veil that covered the woman’s face. What, she was so ugly that she couldn’t show herself?
There was a lake in the middle of it, or maybe they were in one of those underwater caves. Not that she could tell the difference, given the general lack of light. More than her not knowing her whereabouts, what was alarming was the tail that was splashing in the water. She blinked a couple of times, certain that her injury was making her see things that weren’t there.
However, when she looked again at the woman seated on the ground, her tail was still immersed in the water. “How can I calm down with a fish talking to me?” She was hysterical at that point, if the high pitch of her voice was any indication.
“I’m a mermaid, not a fish.” The woman corrected gently, as if scolding a child.
Was it weird that Sha Hualing was into that? She seemed nice enough -seeing as she saved her and all- but there was a ferocious instinct in the pirate that wanted to see the mermaid snap.
She rolled her eyes, mildly amused. “Same thing. Rather, do you have a name?”
The half-fish looked hesitant at first, biting on her lip and looking at Shua Hualing’s shoulder with furrowed eyebrows. “My brother says that we shouldn’t give our names to humans. But it’s not like you’re going anywhere, no?” There was a mischievous glint in her eyes, someone holding all the cards in her hand. “My name is Liu Mingyan, and yours?”
Sha Hualing scoffed. “I’m Sha Hualing. But most importantly, you do everything your brother tells you? What an obedient sister.”
“I’m perfectly capable of making my own decisions, like saving you. I could’ve left you to drown in the middle of the ocean, but I didn’t. Don’t you think you should be more grateful?” She quirked an eyebrow, and Heaven knows how much she wanted to rip that expression off.
Or, maybe Sha Hualing didn’t? She would’ve been content with shutting her up in other ways.
She was pissed off at herself, she wasn’t a fair maiden begging to be saved, no- she was a fearsome pirate, she just had been ambushed by another crew! Yes, she had misstepped and that had almost cost her life but she was ready to face the consequences. If it was death, so be it. Hell, why would anyone care about a wounded woman thrown into the sea, why would Liu Mingyan? Despite all, Sha Hualing couldn’t ignore the foreign feeling tugging at her long forgotten heart, it had been a while since anyone had looked out for her.
“I can be grateful, you know?” she grinned, extending her arm until she could touch a lonely strand of hair.
She was intrigued by the mermaid, and the urge to touch and explore was too strong to be ignored. She had never seen one, only heard about them in a filthy tavern between one port and the other; honestly? She thought they were children's stories, no more than something people made up to entertain others.
She regarded the hand as if it had burnt her, “I don’t want anything for saving your life, a simple thanks will suffice.”
Sha Hualing hummed, shifting her hand upwards, fingers tracing her ear where the silk veil stopped. “You should know that I’m very skilled with my hands, or with my tongue for the matter.”
Her ear was frilled, different from the touch to what she was used to, but she didn’t mind it. Liu Mingyan seemed to enjoy the soft caress and the occasional pinch, so sensitive that her skin was turning a faint blue color. She took advantage of the mermaid’s distraction to slip her fingers under the strips of cloth that anchored the veil to Liu Mingyan.
She almost gasped when the fabric fell, revealing the most beautiful piece of art Sha Hualing had ever seen. She was mesmerized by that face, it was almost as if an artist had carved it from marble: an ethereal beauty coming to life under her fingertips.
On the other side of the canvas, Liu Mingyan was even more speechless. She had turned an even deeper shade of blue, and her pretty mouth was gaping, trying to comprehend what was happening. There was something feral in her eyes, as if the already taut string that held her together had snapped. What did the veil mean to her? Could it be important?
Sha Hualing was trying to reign in the fierce storm that had erupted inside her core, but in the end, she succumbed to the force of it. How could she resist, when something like that was presented to her?
She leaned in, grasping that chin with her fingers and exploiting the moment to press her lips to the mermaid’s mouth. She was too hungry to be gentle, more in need of sating her desire than taking her time to taste that sweet ambrosia. Then, something finally snapped in Liu Mingyan and the pirate found herself pressed to the rocky wall, with her wrists pinned on either side of her chest. The mermaid kissed her back without mercy, as if trying to best her at that dance they were playing with their mouths.
There was something predatory in those eyes, a promise lurking beneath the surface. Would Sha Hualing be so foolish to jump in without looking back, his only anchor being Liu Mingyan’s warmth? Then, something incredibly sharp bit at her lower lip, almost drawing blood.
Seeing her baffled expression, the mermaid curled her lips to reveal a row of sharp teeth, that Sha Hualing hadn’t noticed earlier.
Fuck. That was too hot, there wasn’t anything she loved more in the world than a woman with danger in her blood.
“You know, I’ve been stabbed by blades sharper than your teeth. So, don’t think that-”
She was interrupted by palmed hands circling her waist, drawing her body closer so that Liu Mingyan could sink her canines into her shoulder. Sha Hualing let out a surprised gasp laced with pleasure, eyes fluttering close while her hands tightened on the woman’s forearms.
She was fairly certain that she was already gone, even without Liu Mingyan’s melodic voice dragging her to the depths of hell.
Sha Hualing didn’t really have feelings for Liu Mingyan.
Not one fucking bit.
Really, there wasn’t any other reason she continued to hang around the mermaid, if not that her wounds needed medical attention. Sha Hualing could’ve had a physician deal with them, but why would she do that when Liu Mingyan was there and available? She wasn’t an idiot, after all.
She turned back to Liu Mingyan, who was following her near the coast. “You know, you don’t have to keep following me.” And, of course, she just had to say the opposite.
Sha Hualing kicked a bunch of sand, sending it flying everywhere, and- “Fuck, goddamnit it! Fuck your ancestors!” She sent it in her eyes too, since she was that lucky.
She couldn’t even clean her eyes with water, since all she had was saltwater! She just stopped walking, muttering curses under her breath while she waited for her eyes to stop burning and watering pathetically. She started when she felt a wet hand touching her ankle.
“Hey, are you okay?” Liu Mingyan had no right to sound concerned, not when it made her feel strange things!
So, she hissed the usual mean remark. “Do I look okay to you?”
Then, Sha Hualing frowned, filled by the guilt that followed her incapacity to communicate like a proper human being. It was so weird, why would Liu Mingyan follow her if she was such an asshole? “I- I’ll be fine, I just have to wait a bit.”
Liu Mingyan tutted, tugging at her sleeve until she was sitting on the ground. “Here, let me see.”
Sha Hualing cursed all the gods, her lack of sight put her at a disadvantage, because she couldn’t see what Liu Mingyan was doing to her. What if she tried to bite her to distract her? She wouldn’t be able to handle it, not when it made her incredibly horny.
Unexpectedly, Liu Mingyan just brushed the grains of sand away from her cheeks, soft fingers pressing on her skin in what felt like a caress. Oh heavens, she could feel her breath tickling her skin, she was so close. However, before she could tip forward and steal a kiss from her, Liu Mingyan let go of her face.
She cleared her throat. “Uh, at least this way you won’t have any more sand get in your eye.”
Sha Hualing opened her eyes, wincing at the remaining grains trying to burn a hole through her retina. “Shouldn’t you stay hidden in the water? Someone could see you.”
“You were hurt.” She stated, like that. Like she didn’t almost kill Sha Hualing on the spot with her pout.
“I wasn’t dying.”
Sha Hualing rolled her eyes. “Hush, let me take care of you.”
Nobody dared to talk to her like that, like she was some bratty child! Maybe, if she misbehaved a little she would have those teeth on her skin again. She liked that, more than a sane person should.
“Besides, the tail can transform into a pair of legs if the need should arise.”
“I- how? Wait, I don’t really need to know. Just don’t do something this reckless again, we still need to find my crew.”
Apparently, Liu Mingyan wanted to gain more experience in the human world and had asked her to join her crew. The mermaids lived in a closed-off world, blooming ignorance and causing them to be hostile towards humans. Liu Mingyan, though, was curious to explore the lands over the sea; she claimed that she had no intention to be chained to the ocean floor for her whole life, not when she had had a taste of freedom.
“Oh, yes, and I still have to marry you.”
Sha Hualing’s eyebrow rose so much that it was touching her hairline, her expressions out of control. She started sputtering, “I- what? Marriage? Me and you?”
Liu Mingyan continued, without a care in the world. The blue tip of her ears was the only indication of her embarrassment. “You took off my veil, and only married couples can do that. So, we have to get married.”
Sha Hualing regarded her with suspicion. “You are shitting me.”
“We’ll see, wife.” She winked at her, and then disappeared into the water.
Sha Hualing was doomed, wasn’t she? It seemed that, in the end, the mermaid had really stolen her heart.