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Chapter Text

Off the coast, in the hottest days of the summer, the reef was at its peak. Teeming with life, schools of colorful fish dancing together in a flash of scales. The first rays of sunlight had already begun to glitter though the clear waters, waking the ocean from its darkened slumber.

Hua Cheng swam leisurely along the lowest points of the reef. Keeping to the shadows of the tall coral, his movements unrushed as he patrolled. This was the closest to the shore he had been since his pod migrated nearby. Seeing the shallow waters, the crash of white capped waves not that far above, slightly unnerved him. The turbulence of the water's surface always set him on edge, especially on days with rough waves. He never liked being this shallow either, he wanted to make this patrol quick, yet he couldn't bring himself to rush. He was waiting, searching.

Waiting to hear the familiar call of the mermaid pod he had heard off in the distance yesterday. He was searching, and the best place to search for a mermaid logically, was in a mermaid pod.

The siren began to hum to himself, a soft familiar tune. One his mother frequently sang when he was young, something to sooth his nerves as he swam through the unfamiliar reef.

The fish flittering about finally noticed him, the school darting in a multitude of directions as if to escape. Hua Cheng paid them no mind, he wasn't hungry, and he didn't kill sea life for fun. It was just another stigma of his dark black scales, the red fins of his tail and his lengthy black claws.

He was the very image of a killer, he knew it. The fish knew it, the ocean knew it.

He continued his quiet humming regardless of the terrified reef dwellers, slightly changing his course to steer farther away from the panicking fish. A small mercy, one they didn't have the brains to process. It didn't matter to Hua Cheng, he would attempt kindness whenever he could regardless of how the fish viewed him.

Sand kicked up into a flurry behind his powerful tail as he moved lower, along the sea floor on the edge of the reef. Weaving through the sparse kelp, taking extra precaution with his razor sharp fins so they didn't slice the greenery down to roots as he passed.

It was a stupid thing, it was just kelp. He knew he shouldn't bother trying to avoid giving it an unintentional trim, yet that irritating saying flashed into his mind. Taking over any second thoughts and instinctively keeping his fins from harming, well anything.

I want to protect all sea life

It wasn't his ideals, Hua Cheng grew up ruthless in his manners, fully living up to his siren heritage but it was the simple few words that he had said to one of his podmates long ago. The only words burned so deeply into Hua Cheng's core that he himself had begun to live them as if he was told the decree and not just the story of it.

In the distance, the high pitched trillings of a mermaid pod made his ears perk up with interest. The soft vibrations melodically fill his ears and his heart with hope. Hua Cheng immediately changed direction, heading straight for the foreign calls with more purpose than before. He shoved down the hope that had begun to make him antsy, pushing away the itchy crawling feeling under his skin and scale forcing himself to calm down and be logical.

He had been let down too many times, this pod would be the 799th group of mermaids he would have encountered since meeting him. that's 799 times he let himself feel the bright pulse of hope, only to wince as it stung him with empty reality.

The ocean was vast, nearly endless blue waters full of dangerous creatures and the sick humans that patrolled the surface. It's not even guaranteed the one he was looking for was even still alive, but Hua Cheng was anything if not devoted.

A squid darted out from a jagged rock, rushing past him with its red coloring. His hand shot out, yanking it closer as it tried to escape. Its sticky tentacles curled around Hua Cheng's arm coiling around like several snakes.

“Stupid trash” He muttered as he wrenched the creature free from its death grip, pressing hard into the squid's center mass. Not enough to harm, just force the squid to release its ink. As soon as the poor thing released a torrent of black ink into the water he released it, propelling it a few yards away from him and the ink cloud.

The thick ink burned as it traveled into his gills, Hua Cheng held back a cough but made no motion to flee the nasty shadow fully enveloping him. It clung to his skin, tainting his scales and fins in its potent black ink. His eyes stung as the clouded water began to clear, leaving him covered head to tail in the scentless pigment. He gave his body a once over, rubbing his hands over any parts that weren't fully masked and spread the ink until he was satisfied.

His scent was now completely gone, concealed by the squid ink. A dirty but extremely effective way to camouflage himself as he neared the mermaid pod. He had no intentions to fight them, and if he was spotted, he knew all too well the way the mermaids would react to their most dangerous enemy. Stealthily scoping out the pod was the fastest way to search for him.

He crept into the shallow waters of the unsuspecting mermaid's territory, their trilling so close it made Hua Cheng's heart race in his chest. Closer, he heard the chittering of two mermaids, he recognized a few of the phrases as they talked. Hua Cheng flattened himself into the darkness created by the slowly waving kelp, shadowed even more by a looming rock that stood so tall it broke the water's surface to meet the wind blown waves. He tucked his tail close, flicking it under the sand until it was dug in similar to a stingray hiding itself to prevent his fins from swaying in the gentle current. Hidden, forcing his body into complete stillness he watched.

Several tail lengths away, oblivious to the dangerous siren lurking in the kelp, two young mermaids playfully tossed shells at each other. Hua Cheng dared not to even breathe as he watched them, listening to their conversations for any signs of a white mermaid living amongst their pod. He wasn't planning anything violent, though if they realized he was there, they wouldn't believe otherwise. He had made that mistake when he first started his search so many years ago, approaching mermaids only to result in them fleeing in fear, or fighting for their life. He was an exceptional student, learning painfully quickly just how hated sirens were when it came to mermaids.

Yet even tucked away from their sight, a vile uneasy feeling slowly began spreading in his chest, matching the loud pounding of his heart threatening to give him away. He wasn't afraid of being caught, or even having to fight a few mermaids. Hua Cheng knew he could easily intimidate both of the young mermaids into fleeing with a single hiss. The uneasy feeling was coming from his inability to fully understand them.

He could recognize a few of their calls, the chirps of greeting and common words his newest podmate had taught him in the past few months but it seemed he was good at everything except the mermaid tongue. He wanted to hiss at himself, for his shortcomings when it came to this. How could he learn enough dialects to speak with almost any intelligent species, to include the humans he despised. Yet struggle so badly when it comes to speaking mer?

His podmate, the mermaid and her seal companion had been giving him daily lessons yet he was still struggling. His siren vocal cords couldn't seem to mimic the same pitch mermaids usually used. They were two different species after all as Yushi Huang would constantly remind him. It ate away at him, especially when Yushi Huang was damn near fluent in the siren tongue within a month of living with his makeshift pod.

Hua Cheng, relentless in his endless search spent his days traveling along the coast with his odd podmates. Practicing his terrible Mer trillings to any podmate willing to listen, usually earning himself several irritated groans. When he wasn't tormenting everyone with his mimicry, he was patrolling. Always on the lookout for a pod of mermaids that he would be forced to essentially stalk in order to hear anything about the white mermaids' whereabouts.

E-Ming, his closest podmate, was constantly there to remind Hua Cheng exactly how ‘trash’ he was at speaking Mer. Hua Cheng would always hit the siren back with ‘you’re trash at surviving.’

E-Ming, nearly blind from an incident with some sick sailors, would always just shrug, and say something along the lines of ‘he can still see well enough to bite fins off.’ Hua Cheng knew this to be a lie, but humored his podmate regardless.

The thought of another fruitless stalking session, especially one so deep into his enemies territory gnawed at him. All he needed was some sort of confirmation, something to prove the white tailed mermaid is still alive. If it wasn't for Banyue, he would have thought it was his imagination, hallucinating his savior from his youth. Hua Cheng wasn't patient, but with this. This he had to be. He had someone to be patient for.

Hua Cheng's claws dug into his palms as he watched with his frustration building. If only he could just ask, just swim out. Politely ask if they know of such a mermaid, if they don't he would just head home, readying his pod to migrate to the next location. It would make his life astronomically easier. If only he could. Impulsively he bared his teeth at no one but himself, stupid siren.

He looked back at the two mermaids with envy. One of them, its bright green tail adorned by several glittering gems and jewellery that reflected the early morning light, was holding out its hands in a circle as the other practised tossing shells into it. Hua Cheng quickly concluded these two must be siblings, both with green tails, matching patterns in their scales, the only difference was one seemed to have no interest in jewellery. Well that and the fact he was a male, and the jewellery loving one was clearly a female.

The female laughed when its sibling tossed a heavy conch, it missed her hooped arms by several tail lengths. The brother hissed in annoyance, flaring his fins out before thrashing forward and tackling into the female. Her jewelry clinked pleasantly as she struggled to escape his grasp, the two erupting in laughter that reminded Hua Cheng of his own pod. Part of him wanted to swim home, surround himself with his makeshift pod, forget for just a moment the one thing that was always clawing at his mind.

That stupid white mermaid.

The siblings separated in a playful bout of hissing, the female teasing her brother about being slow. Hua Cheng was slightly impressed he managed to understand the uncommon words. They circled each other with wide smiles, the female quickly darting down and grabbing the conch from before. Raising it above her, fully intending to probably beat her brother with the shell.
Watching them play around was vastly different than what he was used to, it was more flashy, involving more tail and dancing around.

Compared to the way a young siren would play, he was completely out of his element. E-Ming always dissolved into a fit of laughter anytime he attempted to play around with Yushi Huang. The other siren, still able to see foggy shapes, thought it was hilarious to share his useless opinion. He just didn't have the tail for it. His tail was too long, his scales blackened with red towards the ends. His fins were too short, too sharp compared to the softness in which a Mer could swish them around. A siren's fins were sharp enough to slice prey. Every part of a siren was built for a quick kill, while as a Mer relied on coaxing prey into their grasp with their glittering, colorful scales. It made sense their play styles reflected this.

His attention snapped back to the way the female froze, trilling what he knew was a danger call. Hua Cheng pried the dancing kelp around him to the side, getting a better view of what she was staring at. Her gaze was transfixed on the edge of the reef, slightly near where he was hidden, yet they weren't trilling about him.

The way the male immediately spun confirmed his theory, both of them at the ready, claws out and tails flared out defensively. He memorized the way they took pose, burning the stance into his memory, he might need that in the future. His heart was rapidly thumping in his chest with excitement when he recognized more from the siblings, ‘shark’ and ‘fight.’

He was right again, pride swelling within himself as he realised he was beginning to understand at least some things, even when these siblings have a different accent compared to the way Yushi Huang speaks, slower and more pronounced. He felt giddy, the shark would likely not fight two semi-adult Mers, but if it decided to make a meal. He could at least learn their fighting style, this time without being attacked by a Mer himself.

Sure enough he had fought more than enough Mers, from all over the sea, nearly from every pod he encountered. Yet their styles differed each time, Yushi Huang says its a unique pod thing but he would waste no opportunity to learn more. Maybe he could impress the Mer from his youth with his extensive fighting capabilities? Possibly even a fighting style from his home pod?

He nodded to himself at the thought, silently urging the shark to pick a fight. It came into view, swimming high above the reef's top, iconic white belly and black darting eyes. A juvenile great white, too small to take on a single Mer.

Disappointment flooded in, for a moment he thought about swimming out from his hiding spot just to mess with the siblings. Just to see them in action. Thankfully he decided against it, this was the nearest Mer pod he could find for miles, if he got caught in their territory it would be insanely difficult to keep sneaking back in.

Even covered in the foul squid ink.

At the sight of the small shark, both siblings visibly relaxed. Chirps and laughter quickly followed as they pushed each other. The female straightened a golden tiara in her braided locks, looked at her brother and shrugged. “Let's go home.”

Hua Cheng watched with even more disappointment when the brother agreed, saying something he couldn't yet understand, the male spoke too quickly and with too much of a drawl.

They swam off in the direction of their nest, presumably for breakfast or to avoid anyone noticing they were messing around on their patrol. He watched them leave, flipping his tail to remove the sand that was anchoring him down. He needed to leave too, no doubt Yin Yu must be looking for him by now. He's been out searching for the mermaids' territory for nearly a whole day and night. He took note of the direction the two Mers headed off in, tomorrow he would get closer to the nest. Close enough to see if he could spot that white tail that haunted his dreams. Both awake and asleep.

The sun was fully in the sky, lighting the waters to his disadvantage. The juvenile shark remained near the surface, paying no mind to anything below. He had to swim quickly, keeping low and to the darkest depths of the shallows he could to avoid detection.

He crossed a familiar line of rocks from earlier, stacked neatly together. Stones laid one upon another every few tail lengths signifying a mermaid pod's territory and he immediately headed towards the deeper waters of his own temporary territory.

As he swam back he scanned the floor for a sea sponge. It didn't take long for his sharp eyes to land on one, his nails snagging it as he passed over. He began to dutifully scrub the ink from himself until his scales glimmered the usual red in the sunlight before discarding the ink stained sponge.

He swam for quite a while, even at the brisk pace that his tail propelled him. The waters chilled the farther from shore he got, a welcome cold he was accustomed to. The deeper, darker waters suited sirens much better.

The massive shipwreck he called home for now appeared. It wasn't much, most of it had crumbled and collapsed when it sank but it was one of the better shelters he was able to find for his pod. They have only been here for a few days, and probably wouldn't stay much longer regretfully. Yushi Huang was fairly vocal about her thoughts on staying longer, even making the sunken wreck a longer more permanent home.

Hua Cheng didn't blame her for wanting to settle down, it was in her nature afterall. On the contrary, sirens were naturally migrative, usually living most of their lives alone unless mating while they followed the popular shipping routes. Sailors were easy prey, it just made sense they would follow their ships.

As he approached the broken hull, a dark shape shot out from the wreckage around the entrance. Yin Yu was barreling towards him, trilling in a siren's tongue as if he was one.

“HUA CHENG!” Yin Yu all but screeched as he came to a halt in front of him, flattening himself to the sandy floor in submission. “WHERE HAVE YOU BEEN?”

He gave his podmate an inquisitive look, swimming down to Yin Yu and nudging him upright.

Hua Cheng replied as he examined his podmates longer fins, coated in the usual squid ink just as his had been earlier. “Scounting? What happened?” He asked while his hands ran along the smaller podmates tail scales and gently inspected the fins.

Yin Yu rarely was seen by anyone without his tail covered in ink, the mermaid was adamant about appearing as close as he could to a siren. His softer fluffier fins that swayed in the current, dashing around as he moved, gave it away to anyone who looked too closely but Hua Cheng kept that to himself. Yin Yu felt like he needed the ink, and Hua Cheng cared too much about the adopted mermaid to ever argue.

Yin Yu spread his tail, allowing his pod leader to carefully groom away any loose scales as he always did. It was one of the more common ways his pod bonded with each other. “It’s Banyue,” Yin Yu explained, his words causing Hua Cheng's heart to nearly stop as he paused his hands. He abandoned Yin Yu’s tail, turning to face Yin Yu as anger began to boil under his skin sending a blood thirsty itch into his claws. The thought of his youngest pod mate injured or under any duress was about to make him go feral.

“She thinks she saw him!” Yin Yu quickly explained. He must have noticed the way Hua Cheng already began to fume with murderous rage.

Now his heart fully did stop, for a brief moment as he processed those words. Him? My him? He shook his head to clear his running thoughts enough to actually reply. “Him? With the scarred tail?”

Yin Yu grabbed his hand, yanking him towards the ship. “Ask her! I’ve been trying to find you since she came back from patrol.”

He allowed himself to be led by his podmate, who rushed him almost haphazardly through the ship's corridors all while murmuring to himself about finally getting a raise. Hua Cheng snorted at his little comment but didn’t say anything else. In the open area of the ship's galley and what once was the messdecks he saw the rest of his pod. Well most of it he realized as his eyes scanned the room. He Xuan was still nowhere to be seen, but it wasn't unusual for the siren to go absent for days on end.

Banyue was in the center of the room, her loud voice carrying through the water as she held the pod's attention. She spoke fast, jumbling some of her words with her excitement. “And then I followed the blood scent! I thought for sure I was in for a real treat, maybe an injured shark or a good snack to bring back!” Banyue exclaimed, enthusiasm dripping over every word. She paused and glanced up, licking her lips as if she was recalling seeing the tastiest meal she's ever come across.

Beside her and casually chewing on a fishbone as if he was bored he spotted E-Ming. The sirens foggy eyes aimlessly looking past Banyue but his ears twitch ever so slightly. The only sign that E-Ming was actually even paying attention, Hua Cheng knew he was listening for any signs of a lie in her story.

“I didn't even think it would be a mermaid out this deep!” Banyue continued, pausing to glance at Yushi Huang and then Yin Yu with an apologetic look. “No offense,” she said quickly. “Anyways but that's why I didn't even realize at first, but let me tell you it was him! I’ll never forget that tail!”

Hua Cheng's attention flicked across the room to Kemo. The larger siren spoke up, flicking his deep green tinted tail in irritated motions. Kemo's tone was clipped as usual, the siren was almost always irritated. “Banyue you can't even remember what you ate yesterday? And you expect us to believe you now?”

Banyue looked at him with a nasty glare Hua Cheng was almost proud of. Her sharp teeth exposed as her lips were moments away from pulling back into a threatening hiss.

Just like he taught her.

Her eyes finally noticed Hua Cheng entrance, her fierce features instantly softening at the sight of her pod leader.

“It’s true! If I forgot what his tail looked like, Hua Chengzhu would never!” Banyue argued with an arrogant huff before she instinctively lowered herself to the deck. His pod all spun to face him, copying the submissive lowering Banyue started. He nodded for them to rise, ignoring the fact E-Ming didn't even turn his blind head in acknowledgment. Rude.

“Banyue, start over. I want to know everything” He ordered.

The young female siren rose from her submissive flare with a sly grin. “Of course.”

She shot a look towards Kemo before she began her tale of the mermaid encounter once more. Hua Cheng tried his best to school his expression as she spoke, his tail subconsciously lashing when she mentioned blood.

“I was on patrol this morning, but I went a little further out than usual because I heard some orcas wailing. I know I shouldn't have gone alone, but I was going to stay hidden! I was just going to scout it out, then I tasted blood and knew something was off” Banyue said, almost jittering as she recalled it once more. “Then I saw a dead orca, it was an absolute bloodbath, recent too because the orca wasn't a floater yet” she clarified with a scrunch of her nose. “I couldn't see any sharks, nothing was eating that orca yet, but I could smell another trail of fresh blood, but not the orca.”

Hua Cheng was positive the siren was somehow speaking even faster than before.

“So I followed it, hoping to see what managed to kill an orca and live. Maybe I could finish what the orca started and we could feast on the orca for a week!” she laughed, it was a bubbly sound. Infecting his pod until a few others snorted and chuckled at Banyues thought process. “Anyways I followed the blood and it led me to a small cavern between some rocks.. I barely managed to peek inside when I saw claws coming back at me! I thought I was a goner! But I swear to you I saw that white tail, unmistakably his! Exactly how I remember it too, he must have been freaking out because he was trying to claw my eyes out so i just fled! but I swear! Hey Kemo dont look at me like that!”

“Was he hurt? You're sure this mermaid was him?” Hua Cheng asked. His own voice hardly contained the desperation and pure need that he was reeling with.

Banyue agreed quickly with several enthusiastic nods of her head. “Yes! On my life, if I am wrong I'll run all the morning patrols for the rest of the summer!”

Her words, albeit funny to hear, were weighing heavy with confidence. Patrols were the bane of Banyue's existence, ever since she became old enough to tag along for the first time she has always despised them. Being the youngest of the pod, she usually did get the worst routes at the worst times of night though so Hua Cheng couldn't help but sympathize. He wanted to believe her, desperately wanted her words to be true. He wanted this more than he wanted to even breathe.

He felt uneasy, hopeful yet nervous. It was a flood of emotions cycling one after another, all of which he thought he had prepared for long enough to handle better. He had been searching for this Mermaid since he was an adolescent, hardly old enough to even travel alone.

The long scar along his chest burned with the memory of that night. The night that changed him in every way, rewired his brain until all he could focus on was that beautiful white tail and his hatred for mankind.

He had been young, far too young for a siren to be alone. His mother was killed months prior by another siren intent on mating with her, when she fought the siren off her wounds were so deep she succumbed mere hours later. Hua Chen was left alone.

His tail hadn’t even begun to shed his hatchling scales and regrow into his current red tipped flare. The hatchling of an apex predator, when alone, would be nothing but prey.

He did what his mother had taught him, followed the shipping routes. the very same one the pair had been traveling along.

Hua Cheng thought he was lucky when he found a small fishing boat, occasionally tossing old or unwanted fish back into the water for him to sneakily snag. He was finally able to eat, after weeks of nearly starving he cherished every bite he managed to steal. He grew bolder, swiping fish directly from their net as he followed them, not a lot though. Just enough to keep his body swimming forward.

He remembers the cold of the storm that night, the burning in his stomach contrasting until it was all he could think about.

food.

The opportunity drew him closer, closer than he should have been but he was motivated by the familiar pangs eating away at him. The turbulence of the waters was too rough to be careful, his yet to develop fins were too weak to counteract the rush of water.

A fast current, fueled by the crashing swell of waves just above had swept his frail tail out, propelling him up. Straight to the surface, a wave taller than he could even see hit him immediately after. Hua Cheng fell victim to its power as he was thrown straight into the netting being trawled by the boat.

The sheer panic as his limbs became so entangled he couldn't even process where his own tail began and where it ended. Dragged along and being thrown around as if he was nothing but a drifting leaf for what felt like hours. Screaming and thrashing until his body couldn't even twitch. His mothers name, dying on his lips in exhaustion.

Then the net began to rise.

the storm never weakened, he thought if anything it was growing as time went on. Lightning struck with painful claps as the net was lifted out of the water. The sky lit up in white flashes, enough to see two human faces. Their eyes wide as they excitedly shouted at each other as he was suspended over the deck.

That was his first time experiencing a human, seeing first hand just how savage they were. It wouldn't be his last.

The net had dropped him with no mercy. He hit the solid wood with a crack he was sure was his bones and not the thunder. It hurt worse than anything he had ever experienced so far, yet it only got worse.

One man clutching a blade, its length covered in what he knew was fish guts as the pelting rain slowly cleaned it off. When he approached, the sick glint in his dark eyes made Hua Cheng accept his own death at that moment. He was too weak to even hiss one single time at his killers.

There was a flash of lightning streaking across the sky, another flash of white propelling itself out of the water. The thunder cracked, closer than any booming echo yet. His ears rang as he realized what had happened. A bud of all too familiar pain blossomed in his chest, spreading down his torso like its own bolt of lightning.

His young mind was in such chaos he couldn't even process the wound. For a moment, he swore the streak of white must have been lightning itself, its flurry of white and silver entrancing yet dangerous.

Only upon blinking tears and rain from his eyes could he see the tail.

Brilliant white, glimmering like a beacon within the stormy weather. It was the most beautifully patterned tail he had ever seen, he found himself unable to tear his gaze away. He swore it was glowing.

It was a male mermaid without a doubt, this he knew. The Mer had landed with a battle cry, directly on the human man that just slashed at Hua Cheng. It was a clash of claws and teeth, the human collapsed dead almost instantly. The blade that had painfully kissed his chest seconds ago was somehow thrown overboard during the attack.

The mermaid threw the man's bloodied body aside, backing up defensively between the young siren and the other human. He hissed loud enough Hua Cheng almost mistook it for thunder. His large tail fanned out, blocking Hua Cheng from the man's sight.

Hua Cheng never saw the mermaid's face, the white tailed mer had trilled a series of words he couldn't understand and then suddenly Hua Cheng was airborne.

The white tail swatted him off the boat, back into the safety of the water. As he fell into the dark depths Hua Cheng's eye caught a detail he would never forget.

On the tail of his mermaid savior, a thick scar ran up almost half his entire length. Splitting the white and silver scales, divided in the center by the rugged pale scar tissue. He was ethereal even with his body coated in red blood, he looked fiercer than any mermaid Hua Cheng's mother had ever described to him in stories. He had been told they were soft. Weak.

He searched everywhere for that boat once he regained enough strength to do more than drift with the current. Looking everywhere for his white scaled savior. The only thing he had to remember the scarred Mer was the long gash stretching across his chest from the fisherman's blade. It wasn't deep, he was saved just in time but it was still there.

A sick and twisted part of Hua Cheng wanted to keep the wound bleeding forever, keep it hurting until he could thank the Mer for saving him. He purposely refused to tend to the wound, allowing it to scar in the worst way possible, sometimes even intentionally digging his claws in to re-open it once it started to close up. He couldn't help it, he wanted to be strong like the Mer. Wanted to have a memory of when he was weak, vowing to never allow himself to be so fragile again.

Months after that night, he had found another juvenile siren. This one was several years younger than he was, and horribly maimed. His name was E-Ming, another survivor of mankind's cruelty.

They vowed to stick together, protecting each other the way the white mermaid protected Hua Cheng. For a while it was just the two adolescents, fighting off adult sirens or anything hungry enough and seeking any opportunity to kill a human.

Hua Cheng later gained his full color adult scales, fully committing to his retaliation against boats and earned himself the moniker ‘Crimson Rain.’ Slowly the two sirens created a makeshift pod. It was all survivors, fighters and creatures seeking asylum in the lonely ocean. Sirens who went against their solo nature, lost sirens craving more than a life of solidarity.

They took in several sirens, two mermaids and even a black seal that befriended one of the banished mermaids. It was an odd group, unlike ever before seen but they were a pod none the less. They trusted each other with their lives, that's why Hua Cheng felt so strongly he needed to believe Banyue.

Afterall she was also the only other siren to ever have met the scarred white mermaid. She claims a white tailed mer had saved her from an adult siren who was preying on her, this happened years after he saved Hua Cheng from the fisherman. At least he knew the mer survived until he met Banyue. Hearing her story, the details matching Hua Cheng's account leaving no room for second guessing, it was the same Mer. As terrible as it was for Banyue to experience, it brought a whole new meaning back into Hua Cheng. They grew close over their shared savior, both vowing to find him no matter what.

This is why her story from patrol, specifically from her, was sending his emotions into overdrive.

“Yin Yu, protect the ship. No one leaves without my permission. Banyue, show me where.” Hua Cheng ordered.

Yin Yu, his second in command nodded and flared his fins out in a dominant display. They were larger than a siren, quite intimidating when he stretched them out to full length, if you ignored the fact they were softer than silk. The rest of the pod trilled in understanding and began to gossip among themselves. Most of the pod never fully believed there ever was such a mermaid going around saving sirens.

Hua Cheng wasted no time darting out the ship led by the youngest pod member. Banyue hadn't fully shown her adult scale colors yet, but she was scrappy and fast enough he didn't feel the need to bring anyone else to protect her. If this really was the white Mer, arriving in a group of deadly sirens would surely frighten him, especially after he unknowingly attacked Banyue. He wanted to ask Yushi Huang to come with, but he thought otherwise after remembering the overprotective black seal that never left her side. If the white mer showed any aggression towards her, the seal would fight to the death without a second thought.

Together they swam fast, far outside their usual territory and into the open sea. He began to taste the bloodied water Banyue had said as they approached. Her story became more and more real, the orca was where she described. The only difference was the carcass being torn into by at least a dozen sharks of various kinds.

Hua Cheng led her lower, avoiding the sharks until he could smell fresher blood, not as strong but definitely an open wound. They followed it, closer until Banyue grabbed his arm to slow him. She didn't speak, just pointed at a dark opening in the rocks along the seafloor.

“There” she mouthed, her eyes wide and tail swishing fast enough to kick sand up.

This was it. This was his chance.

He flicked a long black claw in the direction of their ship wreck, “go home.”

Banyue's mouth opened like she wanted to argue, only stopping and lowering her body to the floor when Hua Cheng aggressively spread his razor sharp fins. “Now.”

Banyue quickly swam off, keeping low to the floor as she raced home. He let out a sigh of relief, glad the young siren knew well enough to stay away from the shark frenzy.

Hua Cheng slowly began to swim towards the dark opening. Should he mimic a mermaid trill? If the white mermaid was truly inside, would he come out for another Mer? His thoughts began to race as he came to a stop outside, tasting the water and recoiling at the fresh blood on his tongue. Thinking about the white mermaid injured was sending his heart crashing into pieces.

He couldn't wait any longer, he had to know. He had to.

Hua Cheng cleared his throat, thinking back to every time he ever stalked a Mer and heard that common friendly greeting. Every time he practiced with Yushi Huang, every soft correction she gave on his tune. He could do it, he had to do it right this time.

Hua Cheng flattened himself to the floor, tucking his fins close to his body, burying his distinct siren tail under the sand. When he was confident that for a brief moment maybe he wouldn’t be recognized instantly as a siren, the mortal enemy of a mermaid.

Then he trilled the greeting.

Chapter Text

Everything was aching. A sharp torturous pain pulsing under his skin. It felt like ice had been put into his veins, so cold it felt hot.

His blood was steadily pouring out of his mangled forearm despite his weak attempts to hold the wound closed. It wasn't helping much. The orca got him good, at least now he can say that he survived the thrash of an orca's jaws. Just another thing he had experienced and survived, another thing he would much rather never have to experience again.

Xie Lian groaned weakly as the metallic taste of his own blood clouded the water. He knew sharks would be headed his way soon, after they no doubt tore into the dead orca he left behind. They'd come for him next. But Xie Lian knew he would be no match for even the smallest predator at the moment. Not with the way he was losing blood, at this rate he suspected he'd be unconscious fairly soon.

A pang of sweetened worry swarmed his mind, he desperately needed to get back to Ruoye. He curled himself up as tight as he could get while cradling this arm. The warm flood of tears broke the seal of his eyes despite the way he forcibly held them shut.

His thoughts wandered back to the baby seal this was all for. Had it managed to get away? The poor thing didn't deserve to become an orcas plaything. It was young, still covered in fluffy brown fur and smelling of its mothers milk. He hoped it got away, hopefully the lost baby could even find its mother in the process.

He hated orcas. He hated things that preyed on the weak more importantly, which usually meant sirens, orcas and sharks. The damn orca wasn't even trying to kill the baby, it was just terrorizing it. Throwing its tiny body into the air, watching it hit the waves with a crash before it would snag it and repeat the process. If he hadn't shown up, the poor thing would have been quite literally tossed to death for the orca's amusement.

Yet even curled up in this tiny cave no bigger than his own body while profusely bleeding and simultaneously freezing. He couldn't bring himself to regret what he did. He’d do it again, and again, and again. As many times as necessary regardless of the consequences.

This is what his parents had taught him, this was what they left behind for him. Their impossible ideals, saving the weak.

protect all sea life.

He was shivering in the darkness, coupled with the searing pain in his arm it was a terrible feeling. He was deeper than he normally would venture, his Mermaid body wasn’t built to handle such deep dives or cold waters. Xie Lian hoped Ruoye was warm. Maybe basking on a rock like he usually did in the mid day heat.

He let his mind follow the heat of his thoughts, praying that just thinking of the sun would be enough for now. Oh how desperately he wished he could feel the warm rays. The gentle soothing feeling he felt only yesterday morning, Xie Lian was clinging to that memory as if it alone could save him. Anything to trick his psyche into being anywhere but his current situation.

He curled his white tail closer to his body, impossibly close as he ached with the contortion. Uncontrollable shakes took over his body, from the pain or the cold he wasn't quite sure. His fading attention snapped back into reality as his ears twitched. A rustle coming from outside the cave entrance, quite yet just enough to send alarms ringing in his head.

A shark?

He braced himself for another fight, pulling his good arm out and readying his claws. His mind was spinning, fear wreaking havoc and pain forcing his psyche down farther into the spiral of survival instinct.

His frenzied golden eyes watched the opening to his hiding spot, every nerve in his body going haywire. He couldn't smell anything besides his own blood to tell him what his attacker could be but he didn't need to.

Sharp black claws appeared, gripping the edge of the entrance. Their sharp points curled and dug into the rock as the weaker parts crumbled under its touch. He recognized those claws all too well.

A siren.

He couldn't fight off a siren like this, not with only one arm while the other was almost torn off his body from the orca.

Another set of claws appeared as the siren reached farther in, mere moments from coming fully into his sight. Time felt as if it was slowing down, a mercy from the gods. Xie Lian felt like he was finally thinking fast enough to act. He couldn't wait to be trapped down here, if the siren realized how corralled he was in the tiny cavern he would have no chance at survival.

He couldn't wait.

Rage fueled his hiss as he burst forward with everything he felt he had left. His ears flattened and teeth flashing as he put on the best show of aggression he might ever have before.

He couldn't see the siren's face, but he felt the rush of water past his claws as they narrowly avoided his swipe. The claws vanished as his attacker quickly backed out the entrance.

Xie Lian still didn't stop hissing, he had to sound strong enough for the siren to give up. Had to sound as if he could fight back, even if he couldn't.

He heard a soft grunt as his attacker swam back, presumably shocked he was still alive enough to take a swipe at them.

He curled himself as far back as he could into the crevice, his back pressed firmly against the rocky wall trapping him in. He didn’t want to die like this. At the very least the siren could wait a few hours for him to die of blood loss before it ate him. It was common for a siren to eat carrion anyways, he has seen them eat a lot worse than a freshly dead body. At least this way his body could be used to give the siren life. He just wanted to be dead before he was eaten, it wasn’t much to ask.

He waited for the attacker to press in once more, his whole body vibrating with adrenaline. He never felt more ready to face those blackened claws, never felt more ready to die.

The siren didn’t come back. Not immediately at least. Xie Lian was too exhausted to check outside the entrance. The passing thought reminding him this could all be a trap, lure him out of his defensive position. If it was a trap, he didn’t want to fall for it.

He’s safer here.

Time passed, seemingly faster almost as the fight or die adrenaline dissipated. He wasn’t sure how long he stayed like that, eyes trained on the opening to the point he couldn't see anything else through his tunnel vision. He did know that he had in fact lost consciousness a few times.

This he knew because each time he did reawaken it was with a startling jolt swiftly followed by a rocket of pain traveling down to his mangled arm. Through his clouded vision he could see the water tinted a deep red, and tasted his own essence with every ragged breath he took. The red water slowly seeped out the entrance as the gentle current pulled it out and away.

It was a vicious cycle, in and out. Awake and seething in pain. Asleep and blissfully numb to it all. Xie Lian knew even in his subconscious that he needed to wake up, despite how badly he wanted to stay in the dream world he created in his mind. He needed to somehow stop the bleeding, get back to Ruoye.

Oh Ruoye. He was probably so worried about him. Xie Lian had promised he would be back before the sun peaked at noon. It was much later than noon by now.

What was he even doing here? Oh right, the orca. Xie Lian groaned as his body started to feel like his joints were locking into their current position. Why did he fight that orca again? He couldn't remember through the haze of his mind.

Ruoye.

Ruoye.

It was so cold, he blinked rapidly trying to refocus his vision. Runaway thoughts raced through him, it was almost painful trying to remember any details that might help him survive just a while longer. Faintly he recalled a stretch of sea grass he could have sworn he swam past while making his escape. Probably too far for him to make it right now, especially with a mermaid hunting siren no doubt lurking outside.

Xie Lian yanked off the strap of the bag he had with him, grimacing as he ruined one of the few nicer things he had managed to hold onto. His claws made easy work out of the sea worn fabric, it was thin material but roughly two fingers wide. Not enough to stop the bleeding but enough t o stop his blood flow at least.

Any other time Xie Lian would have laughed at his luck, because of course the bag he found and was so fond of would be used to make a tourniquet. Of course.

Lose my life? Or lose my Arm?

Choking back the scream that ripped through his throat, he pulled the makeshift tourniquet tight around his upper arm. Hot guttural pain flooding in from the unwanted pressure, he pulled tighter. Holding the other end in his teeth as he tied the knot.

Within seconds he could feel his arm going numb. It was a blissful yet bitter relief from the pain.

This would have to be enough. Xie Lian hoped. With shaky fingers he tied away the excess strap, the shaking intensifying the harder he had to focus on just being able to see straight enough. It was taking longer than he would have liked, with darkness creeping into the corners of his vision, threatening to drag his mind back under their depths. His eyelids grew heavier, heavier and heavier until he felt it. That sweet painless release as he was dragged back under.

Xie Lian woke again, always with a hiss at the feeling in his arm. Like static electricity fueled by searing pain. His fingertips were blue from his blood flow being cut off, numb to the point he couldn't even twitch the useless digits. His heart thumped in his chest accompanied by tiny bolts of pain in his sore ribcage. The thumping turned quickly into full blow panic when he realized what brought him out of his blood loss slumber.

A trill.

One he recognized, well mostly.

Maybe the fight with the orca damaged his eardrums? He remembers being in its jaws, the blood rush to his head as he was thrashed back and forth. Maybe that did leave some lasting damage.

It sounded off, yet unmistakably he knew it was his native tongue. It was a greeting, one used to greet another's close pod mate.

It wasn’t Ruoyes' damaged voice either. Xie Lian had no pod, just Ruoye. What Mer could have found him this deep into the waters?

Outside the entrance he heard it call out again. This time louder but Xie Lian noticed the same off key start as before.

Maybe it was a younger Mer? Maybe it was hurt in a similar way Ruoye was and that's why it couldn't properly use its full vocal range.

Xie Lian intently watched the entrance, he couldn't see anything besides sand and the pale beams of light fighting against the depths.

Softly, he replied to the strange Mer.

He chirped back, but with a greeting more suited for strangers that held no ill intent. Then he waited.

The pause felt like eternity before the Mer outside spoke once more.

Help?

Is it asking him if he needs help? Xie Lian pondered. He couldn't help but let out a small whine in response. Shifting and full of uneasy energy he grabbed the entrance edge for support. He held back another cry he knew would be pitiful as he pulled his body free.

He was halfway out the crevice opening, the bloodied water following his wake, spilling out into the open. Slowly dispersing with the current like a curtain of sweetened red behind him. His eyes darted around nervously, landing on a Mer several tail lengths away.

It was flattened into the sand, an odd mannerism but Xie Lian wouldn't be one to judge. It was so low that while it held its head down to avoid eye contact, Xie Lian couldn't make out any of the distinctive tail patterns that would hint at the Mermaid's identity.

Tentatively he swam completely out, freeing his tail from the rocky confines as he called out to the stranger.

Who are you?

He didn’t recognize the Mer. From what he could see it was a male, with long black silken hair framing an attractively sharp face. He looked familiar yet no name came to his mind.

The Mer didn’t respond, his eyes still downcast and body unmistakably tense.

Hello? Xie Lian called out once more. His own instincts took over briefly as he heard the undeniable sound of a Siren in the distance. Far yet close enough any Mermaid would be set on edge.

Xie Lian watched as the stranger's ears twitched once in the direction of the call. There was no missing the beat of recognition in the way the other Mermaid seemingly almost lifted his head and replied. He should have been afraid. Why was this Mermaid not afraid?

His heart beat quickened as he started connecting the string of oddities with this stranger. His eyes trailed down to the bundle of sea grass in the mermaid's hands.

His claws were too long.

Vastly different from his own shorter pale claws.

Blackened and twice as long as any Mer could ever possibly have.

The realization hit Xie Lian the the same way the orca had thrashed him. Hard.

He wasn't a mermaid. He was a Siren.

The siren lifted his head and they locked eyes. Two intense gazes both swimming with fear oddly enough. The siren's eyes caught his attention, one a darkened almost black color, the other a startling red. Xie Lian sucked in a breath, his eyes were captivating. Entrancing enough that if he was a fish he could be convinced to swim right into his jaws for dinner.

A beautiful kind of deadly, had he seen these piercing eyes before?

Both the Siren and the Mermaid quickly realized that the other knew the truth in their identities and the water around them seemed to chill. It felt like the current which was gentle in its flow had completely stopped, leaving the two bare to each other at this moment.

He could have sworn he saw fear flash across the beautiful siren's expression. Why would a Siren be afraid of him?

He wasted no time pondering this thought, he dashed out with a powerful and painful thrust of his tail. Headed towards that field of grass his previously drifting mind had recalled in the distance as fast as he could.

Behind him, a blood trail lingered in his wake, like a red string of fate connecting Xie Lian to his soon to be killer. The siren lagged back, its sharp tail thumped against the sea floor once clearing the sand before giving chase to his prey.

Xie Lian’s mind was strangely clear now- panic wouldn't get him anywhere. But swimming like hell with everything he had left just might get him away from those nightmare claws of the no doubt hungry siren.

He didn't know exactly where he was headed, for all he knew it could be even farther from Ruoye. He only knew he had to get away. He kept low, his tail kicking up sand as he skimmed the seafloor, belly scratching along the bottom. Small blossoms of pain growing where his scaleless underbelly scratched the occasional jutting rock, he paid it no mind.

The green wall of sea grass came into view, it wasn’t exactly the shallows he wished he could hide in, but it was better than open water.

Relatively speaking, anything besides open water would be his best chance to outpace a siren. Xie Lian knew this all too well, his marred tail was a constant reminder there would be no out swimming a siren. His only chance was to fight or hide and he knew he wouldn't last a single moment if that siren got close enough. He had to get away.

Ruoye needs him.

Not far behind he could hear the siren call out to him. He recognized it once more, his own Mer tongue coming from the sly lips of that mimicking siren. The nerve he had to use such a tactic to lure a Mermaid out was downright cruel. Xie Lian wanted to hiss in anger but his only focus was breathing and not passing out in the open waters.

Wait. Wait. Please wait! The siren called out with a tinge of desperation that confused Xie Lian. He didn’t allow himself to think about how this siren was able to mimic so well. Or even why he was trying to lure him out with false aid. Had the siren taken a mermaid captive, tortured the creature until he learned enough of his language to trick more mermaids? Was this some sort of sick game?

Xie Lian knew of a siren who enjoyed such games, his experience with that one left him watching over his shoulder and avoiding dark corners. It left him scared. It was scarier thinking that there might be more than that one sick minded siren in the world.

This seemed like a lot of work just for a meal, especially a half dead meal that Xie Lian knew himself to be.

There was a new sense of rigor spreading through him as he worked his muscles into overtime. The adrenaline tingling like his numbed arm and flowing into the tips of his tail fins.

He broke through the wall of green, swimming higher off the floor to stop the sand clouds his tail swatted up. Grass smacked him in the face as he twisted through, cold and slimy. Familiar.

This was more of a mermaids element, he just needed to keep the Sirens line of sight broken for long enough! Behind him, the sadistic Siren continued to call for him.

Wait, wait, WAIT! It seemed to be begging almost. Somehow it fueled Xie Lian to swim faster.

He pushed through the flowing grass, his tail flicking it closed like a curtain being pulled at the end of a show. In a way, he hoped it was the end of the Sirens pursuit but he had a feeling he wouldn't be that lucky.

He never was.

With nature's green shield obscuring him, the Sirens next words struck a cord within himself.

It was too late. By the time he registered just what that Siren had said, he had already broken through a small break in the sea grass.

DANGER!

Xie Lian swam headfirst into an old fisherman's net, tangled and caught up on a sunken log with his body ensnared. He thrashed and hissed, his body was being torn into by the coral that had begun to grow along the rope. The more he flailed the more he felt the barnacles slicing into him like tiny daggers, as if they themselves were made of metal. The sharp pricks of pain are nothing compared to the now mind numbing throbbing in his arm. It was almost all he could think about.

WAIT! The Siren called out once more as he broke through the opening in the grass. His heterochromia eyes instantly landed on Xie Lian who froze within the confines of the aged netting.

Xie Lian barred his teeth, hissing with every ounce of anger he had as tears welded in his eyes, uncontrollably slipping past him. His eyes dared the Siren to come close, at least he would be able to get one good bite out of him before he was shredded to ribbons by those claws.

A crude thought, but his circumstances were rather unfortunate. Not surprising at all to Xie Lian though, he had always been extremely unlucky.

Of course after years and years of being able to defend himself against any threat, the one time he was defenseless he would be caught like this. Ha, of course he was quite literally caught. Any other time he was sure he would have laughed out loud at this.

The Siren dropped the green bundle, having carried it while giving chase. Odd. He raised his hands, palms out in a gesture probably meant to calm Xie Lian.

Yet Xie Lian's eyes locked on those claws, and he couldn't rip his petrified gaze away from the weapons.

The Siren must have seen the fear in his golden eyes because he instantly lowered his hands, curling his fingers to hide the claws. Please, wait He said again. They can help.

Xie Lian stopped hissing though he didn't stop showing his teeth in the most ferocious way he could.

The Sirens misuse of the correct pronoun intrigued Xie Lian. He must have tortured a lot of mermaids, maybe he was going for Xie Lian next? To keep him captive until the mimicking siren was better at speaking the mermaid tongue before eating him. Why would this siren even claim to help him? It must be a ploy, some Siren trickery to get his prey to swim right into his grasps.

Whatever it was, Xie Lian wouldn't fall for it.

The Siren swam down to the sandy bottom, flipping belly up and allowing its long tail to flow limply in the current. Xie Lian watched with a gnawing curiosity, the Sirens eyes held no mischief or hunger yet he couldn't bring himself to trust the killer and whatever the hell he was doing.

Xie Lian wished that for a moment, probably the first time ever in his life that he paid more attention to his Guoshi in school. He recalls that horrible week Guoshi spent on Siren history and habits. He had been much more preoccupied with learning new fighting techniques, not whatever odd displays sirens did in their own time. It never mattered to him, Sirens were always attack first, ask questions later so why would he need to know their history?

History wouldn’t save his life, or so he thought.

It was now that he finally and fully took in the killer's appearance. A slender black tail, the edges of his fins glimmering red and his scales reflecting the tiniest bit of light the same deep bloody shade. Short fins, yet even from this distance he could see their razor sharp edges. The siren's tail was longer than Xie Lian's, and appeared to be younger than he was. Though he couldn't confirm that theory since never paid attention in Siren biology. He did know the color tipped fins meant the siren was fully mature.

He really should have listened to his Guoshi.

The Siren slowly reached out a hand, moving so gently it was as if he thought Xie Lian would swim away at any moment.

He would if he could though, but that was a different matter. The siren swam closer, keeping his body low and loose. Treating Xie Lian like he was a terrified babe, averting eye contact while he lifted the discarded kelp bundle once more.

Help. the siren said.

Xie Lian hissed softly, who are you.

The siren didn't seem to understand, his eyes darted around as if searching for the answer.

Xie Lian tried again, flicking his eyes towards the bundle of green in his grasp, why?

He seemed to understand this, his ears perked up and he lifted his gaze to meet Xie Lian's. The siren tilted his head as if trying to remember something before he replied with a slight hesitation.

Hurt, they can help you. They am a friend. The siren said, seemingly proud he put together the string of foreign words. Xie Lian understood what he was trying to say, the siren was clearly confused on how to use pronouns properly.

When Xie Lian didn't respond, the siren pointed at his own arm, then to the kelp. Help. He repeated again with a fanged smile.

Xie Lian had to admit, the siren was beautiful when he smiled, the darker thought was how many victims of his fell for it? Was he going to be next?

The siren came closer chirping about something he couldn't understand, stopping only a tail length away from the trapped mermaid. Xie Lian’s eyes tracked his every move, noticing how the siren looked like he was hurt upon seeing the fresh blood oozing from several new wounds along his body.

An odd siren indeed.

Xie Lian closed his mouth and stopped flashing his teeth, tasting the water tinged with his own blood. The pain in his arm was slowly increasing especially at the spot the tourniquet was cutting his blood flow. The natural adrenaline he had from the chase was wearing off leaving him to face his wounds unassisted once more.

He glanced down at his own arm, grimacing when he saw the makeshift tourniquet had actually loosened quite a bit. A steady flow of blood making its way out from the deep gashes.

So that's why it was hurting so much more.

Once more, in the distance he heard that same siren call from earlier. He watched inquisitively as the red siren tensed, looking off into the kelp. Xie Lian noticed he didn’t look towards the call, rather in the opposite direction.

The siren looked back at him with a nervous glint in his eyes, Danger. Lets go friend.

Xie Lian's gills flared with unease as the siren made his way towards his tail, his claws avoiding coming too close for comfort as he began to slice the net. The siren worked faster once they saw a shadow looming above them. The tell tale body of a tiger shark circling them from above.

The siren glanced up, chirping repeatedly. Danger, danger, let's go. Friend. Friend. Friend. It seemed the red siren didn't know many words in his Mermaid tongue as he worked on releasing Xie Lian.

Xie Lian remained completely still as the siren worked, his tail end freed. Was he just trying to save his meal from being stolen from the shark? Why was he being so gentle?

The whole time he watched the siren slicing the net, never once did his claws even touch his scales, he moved with care and precision. Yet Xie Lian couldn't help but anxiously watch the deadly black claws as they came within inches of his body. Both the siren and Mer stopped breathing all together, their ears twitched at the sharp sound of jaws snapping closer than they were comfortable with. Their eyes locked, golden meeting red and black. The tiger shark was too close and Xie Lian was still mostly tangled in the net.

If the siren didn't leave him now, he would be the appetizer before the shark finished Xie Lian. Despite the overwhelming feeling of wanting to be freed, he couldn't let this siren die for him. Xie Lian didn't always have the best sense of self preservation anyways.

His mind was reeling with the strange turn of events. He couldn't understand why the siren was so gentle, why his touch was so soft, and why his eyes were so full of pain. The oddity that this siren was, he couldn't see him as a full enemy entirely. For some reason he felt the strange urge to just trust.

He had no problems with sirens, it was just every mature siren he had ever encountered had tried to make a meal out of him, unsuccessfully. All but this one so far.

Once his tail fins were freed he flared them out, go, go! he ordered the siren. The siren shook his head violently, his eyes meeting Xie Lian's were full of raw determination. He was thankful the siren understood, at least they could communicate with simple words and phrases. Regretfully he didn't know anything in the siren's native tongue.

The snapping jaws, a warning from the shark as it made its intent known. Each second passing allowed the creature to get closer and closer.

Xie Lian's heart, which had been working overtime since the orca and then the siren. Felt like it would burst from exhaustion now dealing with a tiger shark.

“Go, go, go!” Xie Lian urged.

The siren ignored him, his hands moving faster, this time working on freeing Xie Lians good hand. Xie Lians ears perked up as the siren began to sing. It was beautiful, mezmerising him with every note. Almost familiar, yet so foreign. He had heard several songs from sirens in the distance, but this. So close, it felt surreal.

The last bindings on his good hands were cut loose and he flexed his arm. Xie Lian quickly noticed the way the siren flinched at the movement, but made no effort to dodge any potential attacks. Xie Lian immediately got to work slicing the netting around his bad arm while the siren backed off.

He was singing louder now, eerily beautiful notes ringing in Xie Lian's ears, calling out to his heart strings and nearly pulling. He wanted to be closer, is this what the sailors feel when entranced by a siren? Would the siren just leave him for the shark now?

Xie Lian didn't waste anymore time thinking about it, he had to get the rest of these ropes off. His eyes caught a deadly flash of gray in his peripherals, the distinctive pattern on its skin nearly flashing as it moved. He's out of time.

A chorus of more sirens singing erupted in the distance, the same direction he had heard that call previously. It must be the siren's mate and family. He's really out of time.

Xie Lian winced in pain as another sharp barnacle cut into his palm as he struggled, one handed was a lot more difficult than he had anticipated.

The siren swam a few tail lengths away and flared his fins. The sharpened edges fanned out like a retractable blade. In a way, they were. It was a breathtakingly deadly display. With his long tail spread out to the side Xie Lian immediately recognized the stance.

It was a defensive mermaid position. Why would the siren do that? Sirens don't flash tails in the same way his kind did…

His red fins flashing, faced away from Xie Lian, positioned between him and the approaching shark. The siren was no longer singing, but his hissing was sending chills down his spine. He was glad he couldn't see the others' teeth and claws. Xie Lian always got a little spooked when a siren barred its teeth. They were unsettling to see, retractable and able to lengthen nearly twice as long as a Mers. He knew first hand how absolutely terrifying it was to witness. Still, he did not know this siren, and he also never fought with a tiger shark before. There was a ping of fear for the sirens' survival chances. The rumors in his old pod made him nervous. Tiger sharks were one of the few sharks that would dare attack Mers, even in groups the sharks were ruthless. His mind recalled the bloody mess his old pod mates Mu Qing and Feng Xin had been in after a fight with a tiger shark, they hardly managed to escape.

If Xie Lian couldn’t get free, the siren probably didn’t stand a chance against the shark. He had witnessed a smaller tiger shark kill a siren a few years ago, but part of him didn't want to see this particular siren fall to the same fate. He had to get free. He had to help, he was the best fighter in his old pod even with one arm he could be useful if they worked together.

His hands trembled as he worked to set himself free, trilling the danger call he knew the siren could understand.

The siren roared, in a flash he was gone. A blur of red and black launched at the larger gray shark. They met each other with teeth, stark white and quickly followed by red blood erupting like a volcano from the contact.

Both creatures moved so fast Xie Lian couldn't see if the siren was the one bleeding or not. There was a violent sound coming from what he thought was the siren as he heard the shark's teeth snap again.

It was too fast, they were entangled as the shark thrashed back and forth spreading the blossoming cloud of red. He couldn't tell where the siren was anymore, if he was even alive. The rush of blood had begun to obscure the two entirely.

A red cloud of death.

A third creature dashed out from the blue depths, Xie Lian couldn't tell any coloring as it entered the bloodied fray with a screech.

Another siren no doubt rushed to the red siren's defense, probably its mate Xie Lian realized. Sirens were solo creatures, the only time he had seen multiple was always mated pairs and their juvenile offspring.

Xie Lian sliced the last of the netting binding him, now fully free but he paused as he felt the pressure of wanting to help and wanting to flee. He heard the sound of flesh being ripped apart, growls and jaws clashing dangerously.

Flee or help?

The sight of several more adult sirens approaching made his decision for him.

Flee.

Flee now.