"Didn't you want to eat me?" Daniel asked, voice echoing strangely through the water.
"Here I am. Go on."
The mermaid in his grip did not look tempted anymore.
Her earlier hunger was gone. In its place was pure instinct—escape. She thrashed, tail snapping hard against his side, striking him with enough force to shatter bone. To her frustration, it did nothing.
She hit him again, trying to twist free.
"Nope," Daniel said calmly. "The others ran. I don't feel like chasing them."
Her eyes widened as he pulled her closer instead of letting go.
"So I'll just take you as a souvenir."
He shifted his hold and lifted her into his arms in a clean princess carry despite her struggling. She clawed at his shoulders, tail lashing violently in the current.
Daniel bent his knees against the ocean floor—
—and launched upward.
Water split around them as he shot toward the surface like a missile, dragging the resisting mermaid with him. The pressure lessened, light grew brighter, and a second later they broke through the sea in a violent spray.
He landed atop the water's surface, still holding her securely while she writhed in his arms.
"Relax," he muttered, adjusting his grip. "You're not on the menu anymore."
The blue flames faded. The burning skull dissolved, and Daniel's face returned to normal as if nothing had happened.
Out of the water, the transformation began. The mermaid's silver tail shimmered, scales retracting, splitting, reshaping. In seconds, it was replaced by human legs. She gasped sharply at the sudden shift, still struggling in his arms.
Now that the water no longer distorted her features, Daniel finally saw her clearly.
He narrowed his eyes.
"…That face looks familiar."
He leaned in slightly to get a better look—
—and she slashed at him with sharp nails, aiming for his throat.
Daniel tilted his head and dodged easily as she writhed in his arms.
"Oh, now I remember. Tamara, right?'
Her eyes flashed with fury.
"Unhand me, you filthy human!" Tamara spat, still trying to twist free.
"Yep," Daniel muttered. "Definitely you."
She was not an ordinary mermaid. He hadn't expected to catch her.
"Nope," Daniel said calmly, tightening his hold just enough to stop her from kicking. "You're my prisoner."
He paused.
Then frowned slightly.
She was out of the water. No tail. No scales.
Which meant—
"…Right," he muttered, glancing away briefly. "You'll need clothes."
***
"Jack, turn the ship around. Now." Elizabeth grabbed his collar and shook him hard enough to make his hat tilt sideways.
"Ladies—ladies—compose yourselves," Jack protested, trying to steady his footing. "If anything, it is the mermaids who should be deeply concerned at present."
Evelyn said. "Yes, we are worried about them."
Jack blinked.
"We're worried," she continued flatly, "that if we wait any longer, he'll come back with an entire school of them."
Elizabeth nodded sharply. "And I refuse to share deck space with a dozen half-naked sea predators."
Jack paused.
He considered this.
"…Ah."
The image clearly formed in his head.
"Yes," he admitted slowly. "That is a distinct and alarming possibility."
He straightened at once and turned toward the helm.
"Turn her about!" Jack shouted. "Bring her back toward the bay—quickly. Before our dear friend decides to expand his collection."
"Captain…" Gibbs said carefully, peering through the thinning fog. "We don't even know where we are. One moment we were in the bay, next we vanished and reappeared here. Judging by the shoreline… we're on the other side of the island."
Jack froze.
He slowly looked around at the unfamiliar cliffs and calmer water.
"…Ah."
Elizabeth released his collar and let out a long breath. "It seems we're too late."
Evelyn crossed her arms, scanning the sea. "Yes. Which means we should prepare."
"Prepare?" Jack repeated cautiously.
"For the possibility," Evelyn replied evenly, "that he returns with a mermaid."
Elizabeth added, "Or several."
On the far shore of Whitecap Bay, Daniel dragged Tamara clear of the water and onto the sand.
She struggled the entire way.
"Stay still," he said flatly, trying to keep hold of her wrists as she twisted and kicked. "It's not appropriate to wander around naked."
"I will eat you if you don't release me!" Tamara hissed, baring sharp teeth as she tried to wrench free.
"You already tried," Daniel replied. "It didn't go well."
He had managed—through sheer persistence—to force her into undergarments from his inventory, but now came the harder part. She fought every movement, claws scraping at his arms as he tried to pull a simple shirt over her shoulders.
"Let me go, you filthy human!"
She broke loose for half a second and bolted toward the sea.
Daniel caught her by the ankle before she could take three steps. She yelped and fell forward into the sand, hair flying across her face.
"Not happening," he said, dragging her back.
With one swift motion he pulled a pair of shorts up her legs while she thrashed and cursed in a language that sounded far older than the island itself. Then he finally forced the shirt over her head, tugging it down before she could tear it off again.
"Done," he muttered
The response was immediate.
Tamara swung.
Her fist connected cleanly with his face.
The impact snapped his head slightly to the side.
He blinked once, then looked back at her.
"…That was rude."
*****
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