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The sun hung high in the sky as it warmed the deck of a certain ship cutting through the vast blue sea. Seagulls screeched above while the waves crashed relentlessly against the front of Captain Knuckles’ ship.
For months, Knuckles and his crew had been scouring the treacherous waters in search for a treasure more precious than gold — a mermaid. Word had spread like wildfire among rival pirates who had already captured a few, selling their catches for unimaginable riches. Knuckles, however, was still empty-handed, and he would not let this stand.
“Brace yourselves, ye scurvy dogs!” Captain Knuckles hollered to his crew as he spotted an island far in the distance. “There it be!! Siren’s Shore! Soon enough we’ll be catchin’ ourselves a fine sea-lassy to sell for a fortune! Get ready to make history, lads!”
His crew cheered, high-fiving and kicking their feet. One member of the crew in particular was more excited than the others, that being Knuckles’ first mate, Sonic. Unlike the rest of the crew, he’d never seen a mermaid in person before, and was thrilled to finally encounter one. And earning all the riches that came with it would be a huge bonus, of course.
“Ye ready, first mate?” Knuckles said to Sonic, who was holding the railing of the ship, excitedly looking towards the upcoming island ahead.
“Aye, captain! I’ve been preparing my whole life for this moment!”
“Well, we’ll see if ye really be up to the task. Up ahead is Siren’s Shore, the best place to find us a mermaid. I’ve heard many tales from land lubbers of them spottin’ a girl with a fish tail. And soon she’ll be ours! We’ll all go onto that island, but I want you to be the one to catch her, ye hear?”
“Aye aye captain! I’ll do my best!” Sonic saluted enthusiastically.
Soon, their ship reached the island, and a few of the crew members came off onto the sandy beach of Siren’s Shore. Sonic looked around, barely holding in his excitement.
“Alright, scallywags! Split up, and holler when ye find anythin’!” Captain Knuckles called to his crew.
“Aye aye captain!” Each member of the crew headed in different directions.
Sonic ran through the thick jungle of the island, his thoughts racing as fast as his legs, moving the canopy leaves out the way as he made his way along the rough jungle floor.
“I wonder what she’ll look like,” he said to himself, lost in thought. “Do mermaids have fangs? Maybe the one I’ll find’ll be half shark instead of half fish, that’d be cool! Maybe she’ll have long hair, or maybe—“
Sonic wasn’t looking where he was stepping, and tripped over a root sticking out of the ground. Before he knew what was going on, he found himself tumbling down a hill, landing face-first at the very bottom. He wasn’t seriously hurt, but he wasn’t totally fine either.
“Ugh— ow! Squackin’ seagulls!” he said, rubbing his head, but stopped when he saw what was in front of him. It was a cave, but not like any ordinary one he’d ever seen. The cave entrance was covered in seashells and pearls, and seaweed hung from the roof. There was a slight blue glow coming from inside.
“Shiver me timbers, this must be it!” He was about to call the rest of his crew, when he heard something. It sounded like…singing? There was a melodious voice coming from the cave. Sonic couldn’t help but inch a bit closer, to see what was making that beautiful sound.
“It must be a mermaid,” he thought to himself. He knew he should call his crew, but what if the mermaid swam away when he did. He’d always wanted to see one, and this was his chance. His curiosity got the better of him, and slowly, he made his way inside.
Inside, the cave walls were decorated similarly to the outside, with pearls, seashells, and seaweed. The dirt was moist and the air was misty. The singing got louder and louder as he walked. At the very end there was a large room with sparkling rocky walls. There was a pond that was somehow glowing, creating blue reflections on the walls. In the very middle of the pond was a small rock.
Sonic’s eyes widened. There she was, on that rock. A mermaid. Her back turned to Sonic as she continued singing, failing to realize someone behind her. Sonic was mesmerized, the thing he’d wanted to see himself for ages, right in front of him. He began walking closer without thinking.
He stepped on a stick, creating a large cracking sound that echoed through the cave. The mermaid jumped, turning to see what made that noise. Instantly, fear filled her green eyes as she gasped.
“A PIRATE!!” She shrieked as she jumped into the water.
“W-wait!!” Sonic called behind her, “I-I’m not gonna hurt ya!”
“Liar!! You’re a pirate, all you guys ever do is hunt us!” She shouted, getting as far from the shore as she could, huddling herself against the back wall of the cavern.
“Uh— I..” Sonic didn’t know what to say. She was right. It was the whole reason he was here.
Trying to come up with a quick response, he couldn’t help but get a good look at her. She had chin-length pink quills that curled at the ends. She wore a red seashell top that matched the seashell headband on her head. Her tail had sparkly, iridescent green scales, the same colour as her eyes.
Her eyes. Sonic looked into them, and couldn’t look away. She was the most beautiful thing he’d ever seen. His heart skipped a beat as she looked into his eyes too. They stared at each other for a second in silence.
“Well? W-what’re you gonna do? You’re not gonna call your crew?” The mermaid said warily, breaking the silence. She was still backed off, far from Sonic, who realized he’d been staring for far too long.
“Well….” He thought about it, turning towards the cave entrance. He really did want to make his captain proud, to show him and the rest of the crew what he’s capable of and give them tons of riches.
Then he turned back to the pretty mermaid. She looked so scared. So helpless. He didn’t know what would happen to her if they sold her. Where would she go? What would the buyer do to her? Would they store her in a little tank in an aquarium? Cook her up and eat her? Kill her just for the fun of it?
Thinking about these things, his excitement of the adventure that filled him before suddenly drained out of him. He felt bad for her. He didn’t want to hurt her. The treasure his crew had been searching for was right in front of him, but for the first time, he wasn’t sure if he wanted it.
“No… I’m not..”
“What? R-really? Why not? Don’t all pirates just wanna hunt mermaids and sell them?” The mermaid relaxed a bit, but didn’t move any closer.
“Well, to be honest with ya, I did. That’s the whole reason I’m here, actually.” Sonic scratched the back of his head, figuring out what to say. “Listen. I get it, I wouldn’t trust me if I were in yer shoes—or tail, I guess. Like any other pirate, I wanted the gold and glory of findin’ a mermaid.”
He paused for a moment. “And well, I admit I’d never actually seen a mermaid before, I didn’t know what I was expectin’. And—uh, well… now that I finally saw ya, I just think somethin’ like you shouldn’t be sold off as a prize to who knows where.” His voice faltered, and for a second, he looked embarrassed.
The mermaid blinked, her eyes softening as she studied him. She was quiet for a moment, her tail flipping back and forth and she swam a little bit closer. Still far away, but closer.
“You really mean that?” She asked, barely above a whisper, trying to test the sincerity of his words. “You really aren’t just trying to get me to trust you so you can sell me later?”
Sonic looked at her with a seriousness she’d never seen in a pirate before, the cockiness completely gone from his face. “No, I ain’t gonna sell ya. I— I just don’t wanna see ya locked up or worse..”
“You… you don’t even know me.”
“No, I don’t, lass. But… maybe I could get to know ye?” He gave her a shy, crooked smile.
The mermaid didn’t know how to respond. Her first instinct was to laugh it off or give a snarky remark, but something about the way he said it stopped her. He wasn’t playing games or trying to lure her like any other pirate she’d encountered. What he said felt… genuine.
She took a breath, trying to push past her defensiveness. “You’re serious… aren’t you?”
Sonic nodded. His smile was sincere.
She wanted to trust him, something about him made her think she could. But still, could she? “You’re asking me to trust you? Just like that? After everything I’ve heard pirates do to us..”
“Aye, I know. I can’t make ya trust me, but at least let me show ya I ain’t like the others.” He took a few slow steps closer to the water’s edge.
The mermaid felt a strange warmth in her chest for a split second. She wasn’t used to this. Not only was he not trying to catch her, but something in his eyes told her that he really wasn’t like other pirates that chased her. She swam closer to him, locking eyes.
“Well.. me name’s Sonic, what’s yer name, lass?” Sonic asked awkwardly.
The mermaid was silent for a second, before answering. “Amy.”
“Amy..” he repeated to himself, “that’s a nice name!”
Silence. Awkward silence. No one knew what to say next. Of course, none of them were ever in a situation like this, so that makes sense.
Amy spoke first, “So what now?”
“Uh— I dunno, I didn’t think that far ahead. I’m not usually the ‘plan’ type o’ pirate, kinda just go with the flow” He said, grinning.
Amy raised an eyebrow, “‘Go with the flow’? Seriously?”
Sonic chuckled. “Well, we could just talk if ye like? What’s it like livin’ in the water? Havin’ the whole ocean as your backyard must be interesting. You ever get tired of swimmin’?
“You’d think that, but no, I love swimming. The ocean is my home, it’s peaceful and wonderful!”
“Must be nice. I don’t care for swimmin’ myself actually hahah, I sink like a rock in the sea.”
“A pirate who can’t swim? That’s a first!” Amy’s melodious laugh filled the cavern. It ringed in Sonic’s ears just like the melody she was singing earlier. He liked it.
They talked for a bit, getting to know each other. They told each other stories, some about them, some made up. Amy sang a song for Sonic, while he showed her a few sword fighting moves he knew. Time passed without them even realizing.
Amy slowly started trusting Sonic. She felt her heart beat faster as they talked, though it didn’t feel like fear to her. She didn’t know what it was. All she knew was that she liked being with him.
Suddenly, a voice from far away broke their bonding time.
“W-what was that?!”
“Oh no, it be my crew!” Sonic panicked, not knowing what to do. He knew the moment Knuckles laid eyes on Amy, he’d capture her. He looked at her as she stared at the entrance of the cave. The look of fear in her eyes hurt his heart.
“Quick, we gotta hide ya!!”
“But where? The pond isn’t deep enough, they’ll definitely see me!”
“Is there any way outta here you know of?”
Amy thought for a moment. “Well, there’s the way I got in here. There was an underwater passage at the bottom of this pond that led out to the ocean, but it’s been blocked off by a huge boulder for days. I’ve tried everything, but it won’t budge. I’ve been stuck in here since.”
Realizing it was the only option he had, he knew what he had to do.
“Show me where it be.”
“B-but you can’t swim! You might drown!”
“Show me!” Sonic said firmly. Amy hesitated, but nodded in agreement. She dove into the water as Sonic followed, holding his breath.
As she swam, she looked behind her to see Sonic far behind, struggling to swim. She swam back up and grabbed his hand, pulling him deeper into the pond with her. Among the chaos, both of their hearts were beating wildly, neither of them knowing if it was because of the fear of being caught or the fact that they were holding hands.
They reached the bottom. “It’s this boulder,” Amy said, pointing to a large rock. Sonic could see a current being pulled out from little spaces around the boulder. He looked at her, signaling her to push at the same time he did. She nodded. “We better hurry, I can hear your crew making their way to the cave entrance..”. Sonic gave her a look, one that told her not to worry.
Amy counted down. “Alright, here we go! 3, 2, 1.. PUSH!!”
They both gave it their all. When Amy tried pushing the boulder before, it didn’t move an inch. But now with Sonic’s help, it slowly began to shift. With enough strength, the boulder was finally out of the way, giving Amy enough space to escape. She turned towards Sonic with a grateful expression.
“Alright, now let me get you back to shore–” Sonic shook his head. He couldn’t speak underwater, but she knew what he was saying. By the time she’d get Sonic to the surface, his crew would probably see her. She looked at him, worried. Time was running out, and so was Sonic’s air. She didn’t know what to do.
“I–I can’t just leave you here!! You won’t be able to swim back up and–and..” Even underwater, Amy’s tears welled up in her eyes, floating upwards. Sonic put a hand on her cheek, and gave her his crooked smile, but with soft eyes. Amy’s heart skipped a beat. His touch was gentle and warm despite the icy cold water around them. He motioned towards the exit. She shook her head, begging him to let her save him. But the determined look in his eyes told her everything.
She could hear the muffled sound of his crewmates at the cave entrance. They were making their way in. Amy hesitated. Then, without a second thought, leaned forward and gave Sonic a hug, wrapping her arms around him. Sonic froze for a second, before hugging her back, both their hearts pounding. They pulled back, and Amy gave him one last look, eyes meeting, before flicking her tail and swimming away. She looked back only once. He was waiting for her to leave, that same crooked smile on his face. She closed her eyes, turned, and swam away.
Back at the cave, Sonic kicked his feet, waved his arms, and did everything he could to reach the surface. But the water kept pulling him down. His lungs were burning. Slowly, darkness creeped at the edge of his vision, his mind screaming for him to keep going. But he couldn't anymore.
Everything went black.
When his eyes opened again, he was lying on the damp shore of the cave, right next to the pond, gasping for air. His whole body felt heavy, but he was happy he made it out. Though, he didn’t know how.
“How did..?” he was about to ask himself, when a noise from behind startled him.
“Ahem.” It was Captain Knuckles and the rest of the crew. His arms were crossed, and gave Sonic a suspicious look. “What happened to ya?”
Sonic stood up slowly, still a bit dizzy. “Ahoy captain! I was just–*cough*-- takin’ a dip in that pond there, thought I saw–*cough*-- somethin’ shiny. Turned out to be nothin’ but a rock. Probably shouldn’t have done that though, knowin’ my swimmin’, nearly didn’t make it heheh..” Sonic hoped Knuckles believed him.
Knuckles narrowed his eyes, but didn’t ask any more questions. “Alright well get yer sea legs back on. This trip’s been nothin’ but a dud. Let’s head back to the ship, matees.”
“Aye aye, captain!”
Sonic waited before everyone left the cave before glancing back at the pond. He realized what really happened. She had come back. She had risked herself to drag him to shore, and luckily escaped before the others saw. He smiled to himself, happy that she was safe.
Back on the ship, Sonic leaned on the railing, lost in thought. He kept replaying their hug in his mind. He wondered what the chances of ever seeing her again were. He really wanted to, but knew she was better off far away from him. She belonged in the sea. He was about to turn away when a hint of iridescent green caught his eyes near the bottom of the ship. His heart skipped a beat.
“Captain, I’ll be right back! I – uh – forgot something below deck!”
“Aye, but don’t take too long.”
He saluted, and dashed towards the stairs. Below deck, there was a small window at the very back of the ship, low enough where it was just above the water. He opened it and stuck his head out, smiling. Swimming next to his boat was Amy, grinning.
“Ahoy Amy!” Sonic whisper-shouted, making sure no one else heard.
“Thought I’d come back to see if you made it,” She teased, her eyes soft. “You really scared me, you know!” She fake-pouted.
Sonic laughed sheepishly, rubbing his neck. “Aye.. guess I ain’t the finest swimmer, huh? But, thank ya, Amy. for comin’ back, I mean. Ya risked your life for me.”
Amy laughed her melodious laugh. Sonic was glad he got to hear it one more time. “You risked your life first, I wasn’t about to let you drown after that!”
They just stared at each other for a moment, no words, just the sounds of the crashing waves. Sonic wanted to say something clever or snarky, but all that came out was a genuine smile.
Amy swam a bit closer, a bittersweet look on her face. “I suppose… this is goodbye.” she said softly. Though, her voice told him she didn’t want it to be.
“Aye.. guess so. But, maybe not forever?” his signature smile creeped onto his face.
Amy smiled, and gave a soft giggle. “We’ll see, you old scallywag.” she said playfully.
She reached up onto the windowsill, taking Sonic’s hand, and tying something around his wrist. It was a bracelet, made of tiny seashells strung together with a blade of seagrass. “Here. Something to remember me by.”
Before Sonic could say anything, Amy jumped up, and gave him a soft, gentle kiss on the cheek. Sonic’s eyes grew wide, cheeks turning red instantly.
“Take care of yourself, sailor!” She winked and waved, as she disappeared into the waves, leaving only a trail of bubbles.
Sonic stared at the bracelet, then at the waves, a dumb grin appearing across his face. Somewhere out there, she was swimming free – and in his heart, he knew they’d meet again someday.