Chapter 2
I stared at her a moment, trying to interpret what she could mean with such a statement. She giggled once again, breaking the silence that had settled between us. “What brings you to my domain, anyway?” She asked.
“I came to strike a bargain with you.” I sat down, taking off my boots and rolling up my pants, letting my legs dip into the warm water. Nixie positioned herself between my legs, her hands on the rocks, dangerously close to my thighs. She gave me an innocent expression as if such a position wasn’t immediately scandalous.
“And what would that be?” She batted her eyelashes, small pieces of coral decorating their tips, making them look even longer than they actually were.
“I believe it would be beneficial to both our races if we struck an alliance between the Pirates and the Oceanids.” I paused, gauging her expression. When she didn’t comment, I continued. “The Inland people are starting to disrespect us Pirates, calling us vermin. They don’t trust us and think that we use dirty tactics. Now, I’ll admit we occasionally bend the rules, but we aren’t crooks.” I balled my hands into fists on my thighs. “If we formed an alliance, the Pirates could protect the reefs.”
Nixie seemed to contemplate this for a moment before she laid her head on my thigh. Her long, silver hair glittered in the bright moonlight. Her eyes gazed into the distance as if she were in deep thought. Then she let out a long sigh. “I wish I could help you… but alas, it’s my nine hundred and ninety-ninth year and when I turn a thousand, I’m destined to marry Poseidon, God of the Sea. I don’t have the authority you need. Only after my marriage would I be able to aid your cause, but I fear that by then, it’ll be much too late.” She looked up at me, her eyes full of longing. In that moment, I was possessed with a need to kiss her sweet lips, but I refrained. Instead, I laid a hand on her wet hair, gently smoothing it against her skull.
“You don’t want to marry him, do you?” I asked in a whisper.
She sighed again. “Poseidon may be a God, but he doesn’t have my heart.” She said, looking up into my eyes. I felt my own heart skip a beat at her words. Could she mean…?
“Nixie, isn’t there some way you could postpone the marriage? Call it off. Anything.” I paused, cupping her cheeks in my hands, pulling her closer. “What if… what if I marry you?” I spat it out before I could regret saying it. My dark eyes burned with hope.
Her expression darkened and she looked away, swimming out a bit. “Alas, the only way I would even have a chance of convincing my father to let me marry you, would be if you had a royal title…” She let her words drop between us.
I frowned, knowing I was nothing more than a lowly human. “What if I was the Pirate King?” I said suddenly, getting up in my excitement.
“How would you manage that?” She asked, cocking her head to the side, her hair framing her delicate face.
“I’ll defeat King Atlas and take his place!”
Nixie gasped. “But King Atlas is a vile man! He has been at war with us Oceanids for years. You cannot, must not, fight him!” She pleaded with me, grabbing hold of my ankles, imploring me to reconsider.
I shook my head, firm in my conviction. “I’d fight Hades if it meant being with you…” I squatted, placing my hand under her chin, lifting her face up to me. Our eyes locked together and I smiled at her. “I’ll stop at nothing to make sure that your people are safe and more importantly… that you’re happy.” I whispered, my eyes shining with excitement.
She looked at me, her piercing blue eyes gazing into my soul. I shivered, once again feeling the urge to take her into my arms and kiss her. “Alright.” She finally agreed. “If you’re adamant about this suicidal mission, then I’ll aid you in any way possible.”
“Could you start by bringing me back to my ship?” I asked, blushing slightly at the fact that I didn’t know how to swim and was therefore marooned on the rocks.
She chuckled, an amused look on her face. “You’ll never learn, will you?”
***
It took several weeks to find the notorious King Atlas. His fleet was large, consisting of at least twenty Barques and Galleons of the highest quality. I didn’t let this deter me, however. I knew Nixie was counting on me and I couldn’t let her down. With this in mind, I sailed into enemy territory, aligning my ship with Atlas’.
We made eye contact, both of us standing at attention at the prow of our ships. “Permission to come aboard?” I shouted out to him.
The man, with his greasy red hair and unkempt beard, grinned at me, showing off a lack of teeth. He raised his hooked hand and suddenly pointed it straight at me. Seconds later, cannons were fired, volleys being cast in our direction. Hooks were dug into my ship, tethering it against his. I ground my teeth, growling. “So that’s how you want to play, is it?”
I looked back at my crew. They had already started preparing for battle, loading up the cannons and buckling jewel-hilted swords. If old Atlas wanted a fight, he was about to get one.