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Post by clayton on Feb 13, 2012 18:16:49 GMT -4
Castiel made his way slowly north along the beach, some twenty feet from the tideline. As he turned towards the horizon, he could make out some rocky outcroppings in the distance ahead of him.
Dimly he recalled stories from the fishermen who lived by the villages near the Eastern shoreline. The ocean had supposedly gone strange in the past couple of months. The fishermen had reported seeing creatures that were much more deadly than normal demons. Some say they had a hundred arms that dragged their fishing boats i nto a dark maw of razor teeth. Others claimed that they saw a beautiful woman, who appeared to also be half fish. The woman would lure the men towards her with her beautiful voice, and once they got close enough they were never seen again.
Castiel shuddered at the thought. Demons For the past seven years he had routed out nests of evil demons and hunted them ruthlessly. Although he was born a demon slayer, he did not, like most travel in a group. He preferred to hunt solo feeling he would have a better advantage at spying on the enemy and finding out their weakness. When he had heard the whispers of the demon of the eastern ocean a few weeks ago in a village tavern, he immediately set out to hunt it.
He sighed to himself shaking his head as he scanned the empty shoreline. The sun had barely risen just over an hour ago and he had seen nothing but gulls and fish for the past three days. If there were any demons out here to be hunted, fishwomen or other, they most likely resided far out from the shoreline. Having no boat, nor any desire to swim out in the ocean wearing only his cloak and light armour underneath, Castiel began to doubt the stories of a powerful demon being out here were nothing more than than drunken tales of the local fishermen.
As he neared the outcrop he frozen. There was someone there who wasnt there a moment before. Castiel squinted his eyes in the morning light. He crouched low to the ground. Being too far from any of the rocks, and being in the middle of the beach left him wide open for whatever it was that was out there. As his eyes adjusted the figure became clearer. It was a woman, her long blonde hair, wet and shining with seawater, her body looked s mooth and pale and just below her navel merged into something else entirely. Instead of legs she had a long tail that ended in a huge fin which was draped over the side of the rock. She was beautiful, but Castiel knew it was only a ruse. If he made the same mistake the others did, he knew that the creature before him would carve him open and feast on his remains.
He ran his hand along the side of his waist where he concealed a posioned dagger. If he could get close, if he could surprise it, he could s tab the thing in the heart before it even got a chance to bewitch him.
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Post by Mini on Feb 14, 2012 1:45:11 GMT -4
It had taken a bit of effort, but Iara had finally managed to pull herself up onto the rocks that littered the shoreline. Now that the tide was actually coming in and splashing up over the rock she sat on, she wished she would have waited longer to surface. Oh well, it wasn't as if she had hurt herself by actually putting a bit of effort into pulling herself up. Her hard work had been rewarded by having a wonderful view of the sunrise. The ocean breeze blew gentle along the coast, tugging at her long strands of hair. She loved how the wind moved through her hair, causing it to dry out and become strangely puffy. Iara took a deep breath of air - real air! - and shut her eyes as she felt the warmth of the sun hit her.
"How strange it must be, to be in the air like this all the time," she commented to herself, swishing her tail around in the water as a large wave splashed up over the rocks, causing her to giggle as water fell all around her. A broken clam shell washed up on the rock besides her. Its spiky, broken edges made the perfect comb. Smiling brightly, she scooped it up and started combing the tangles and the seaweed out of her hair. As the sun continued rising and the tide kept washing waves over her tail, Iara found herself to be in quite a cheerful mood. She started to sing, choosing a song she had learned after following a group of strangely dressed sailors around the ocean for several days. The song had been about mermaids, but described them in such a funny way that wasn't the least bit true. It made her laugh thinking about it.
"You can search the world for pretty girls
Til your eyes grow weak and dim,
But don't go fishing for a mermaid, son
If you don't know how to swim
'Cause her hair was green as seaweed
Her skin was blue and pale
I loved that girl with all my heart
I only liked the upper part
I--"
Iara abruptly quit singing as she sensed a pair of eyes on her back. Her entire body tensed up. Very slowly, she turned around to look up the coast.
There was a man!!
Terrified that a human was anywhere close to her, let alone close enough to see her, she shrieked and pushed herself off the rock, diving headfirst into the water. Her tail made a loud splash behind her as she vanished into the waves.
The waves roared up against the rocks and the shore as the wind picked up a bit. Another ferocious wave exploded against the rocks, but as the waves ebbed back out into the ocean, they left something behind. Laying in the sand just beyond the rocks was a girl who looked no older than 16. Her bright pink hair was soaking wet. Some strands clung to her face, but most of it was scattered about all around her in the sand. She was laying somewhat on her back and somewhat on her side. Ragged remains of some sort of green shirt clung to her upper body. Halfway down her back, green scales started to grow until they eventually took over her entire body. Where her legs should have been was instead a very long and strangely beautiful green tail that glistened in the sunlight.
The young mermaid had several strange looking scratches and marks on her, mostly on her arms, but the wounds appeared to be several days old. If one didn't know any better, one might say they looked almost as if they had been made by some sort of blade... but what would a mermaid be doing anywhere near a blade? It was obvious just from looking at her that she had been through some sort of strange ordeal that had left her in this apparently weakened state, so much so that she appeared to be unconscious.
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Post by clayton on Mar 24, 2012 20:04:24 GMT -4
Castiel ran his hand down the handle of the knife strapped to his belt. It was fashioned so that he could reach it quickly and so that if need be, he could throw it a long distance, and still strike his target dead. Even if he missed the heart, the blade of the knife was coated with a special poison that would quickly spread through the demons bloodstream effectively killing it. He was close enough now that the wind carried the mermaid voice to him. She was singing.
Singing! Thats how they lure their victims to their deaths' he thought to himself alarmed. Quickly he scanned the beach. There was nothing, not even a strand of sea weed that he could use to block out the mermaids voice. Already Castiel could feel its effectiveness on him. Dulling his senses, luring him forward slowly.
No choice, have to try to hit it. She's still too far away though. Damn the luck!. Castiel felt his hand drop to his belt where his knife lay hidden, but before he could even unfasten it from its sheath he noticed the creature looking at him.
Damn, it saw me! He quickly drew the knife and with a flick of his wrist, quicker than a lightning, he had thrown the knife at the girl sitting on the rocks, but whatever she was, she was quicker. Disappearing into the waves, Castiels knife bounced off the rocks and landed uselessly on the sand leaving him with nothing to do but mutter dark threats to himself as he went to retrieve it. Picking up the knife he examined it, determining that it was not damaged by its impact against the stone. There was no sign pf the fish-girl, but that wouldn't mean it wouldnt return sometime soon. It, after all, seemingly had an apetite for men. He chuckled darkly to himself at that last thought.
Suddenly Castiel froze. There was something else here, something he didnt see before because of his fury at missing the creature. He bent over the rock and peered at it more closely.
It was a girl, or what seemed to be a girl. She looked no older than 16 or 17 years of age, barely the age of adulthood. Her shirt was torn and her body covered in scratches and scars, but they appeared to have already started to heal. Castiel smiled.
"Well it looks like poison isnt the only thing that can finish one of these things." He quickly nudged the thing over with his bootip. It was then that he noticed the shallow rise and fall of the girl's chest.
"Not dead' he whispered to himself. "Mortally wounded but not dead." But who had wounded her? Another of its kind? If that were so, then keeping this one alive as a hostage would be completely useless. Perhaps another demon or animal that lived in the unknown depths beneath the waves. The sea carried many strange things, this girl was probably nothing more than a minnow to its vastness.
"At least they made my job easier" Castiel admitted to himself and took out his poison knife again. He traced it across the girls chest, hoping that whatever it was, its heart would be located in the same place most humans, and human-like demons kept theirs. It wouldn't take more than a simple cut, even if the thing didn't bleed to death the poison would be quick enough. Slowly Castiel raised the knife above his head...
and faltered.
Shes beautiful. a voice in his mind whispered
and probably dangerous. Who knows how many shes killed before, or how many she may kill if she were to recover from those injuries.
Ah. Injuries in which you have no idea how she received. For all you know, the blonde haired one could be the real killer, it may have even saw this little one and thought it could make some fun out of attacking its own kind.
Castiel shook his head trying to clear it. No it wouldn't do to think like this. Whatever this creature was, its intentions good or bad. He was sent here to kill it. He would carry out his mission. Slowly again he raised the knife and aimed for the girls heart. This time, his hands were steady.
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Post by Amara<3 on Mar 24, 2012 22:05:33 GMT -4
A young looking girl, about fifteen or sixteen, had been wandering the waters just far enough from the shore that she wouldn't be seen, but she desperately wished to touch the dry sand. She kept coming to the same area for days, always before sunrise, and never leaving until after the sun would set.
She hadn't had the guts to go on shore. She hadn't noticed the pink haired mermaid before. She'd poked her head up from the water in time to see a mermaid from her kingdom jump from a rock, in time to miss a knife that hit right where she'd been only moments before. Her eyes widened as she heard the metallic clang, and drew her eyes along the beach to see where it came from.
A man, she couldn't tell his age from her distance, had been the one to throw it. This had to be a good enough reason to go on shore. Anyone trying to kill her soon to be subjects made it her business to give them a word or two. She began swimming quickly under the water, watching the distorted image go behind the rocks, and that was when she saw the green fins of another mermaid. No.
Mizale was close enough now, that she stood on the sand, about waist deep in water now. "No! Stop!" she yelled, as forceful as she could. "Don't you bring that knife down on the wounded mermaid!"
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Post by clayton on Mar 25, 2012 17:02:31 GMT -4
Castiels hands froze, the cold steel tip of the knife just inches from the chest of the creature. His head snapped up as he took in the girl who was now standing in the water. It had been her shout that had interrupted him.
"No! Stop!" she yelled, "Don't you bring that knife down on the wounded mermaid!"
Mermaid? he thought to himself confused. Is that what this thing is?
"and why should I not bring harm to it?" Castiel asked darklyto the girl as he put the knife away and got back to his feet quietly. He put his hand over his eyes to block out the sun and see her more clearly.
She was tall, that much he could tell from the half that was not under the ocean. He hair was shorter than the girl lying helplessly at his feet and unlike her, her hair was not pink but a dark purple that matched her clothes.
"This....mermaid as you call it, is the reason why so many people are dead. It lures men to the waters edge with its alluring song, then it drowns them in the dark waters. I've been sent to eliminate their threat to the local fishing villages."
Castiel knew immediately this girl could not be human. No human could appear from the water that quickly, nor could anything human take him by surprise. She was obviouslly a demon.
Excellent
"These creatures are dangerous. I dont she why you would protect one of them, especially one that seems to have already been beaten quite brutally. Unless your part of her clan and planned on finishing the job yourself?" he added noticing that the girl was only half submerged in the water. Probably hiding her tail, he thought.
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Post by Amara<3 on Mar 25, 2012 18:20:52 GMT -4
Mizale raised her eyebrows as she watched the man stop, feeling intense relief. "Mermaids do not kill people," she spoke rather harshly, moving swiftly and demon-like toward the fallen mermaid girl. "You have them confused with a sort of cousin, so to speak." As she came closer to the shore, her legs became visible, and she indeed was not a mermaid. "They don't have clans, either," she snapped. "They're quite independant, and simply enjoy each other's company. This one is hurt from something, and I won't allow you to harm her any further." She swooped down and pulled the fallen, pink haired mermaid gently into her arms. She wiped the girl's hair from her face, and wondered what could have happened.
"I'm even more dangerous than they are, human," Mizale said suddenly, recalling how he said they were dangerous. "You're lucky you stopped when I told you to. You don't want to mess with a demon of the sea like myself."
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Post by Mini on Mar 25, 2012 21:29:41 GMT -4
Unbeknownst to the two others above her, the young mermaid was very slowly starting to come out of the comatose-like state she had been in ever since she had washed up on the shore. The faint sound of waves crashing against the shore filled her ears. She thought she might have heard what sounded like someone talking, but she wasn't entirely sure. The sound of the waves was soothing, and for a while, she didn't really care to attempt to move or open her eyes. She was vaguely aware that part of her was laying in the water, and that the water was refreshingly cool against her body. The rest of her seemed to be laying in the sand, which was warm and damp from the waves. Some of it seemed to be coated against her face, which was slightly uncomfortable, but she just didn't seem to have the energy to move enough to do anything about it.
The voices seemed to grow louder. She thought she felt something cold press against her chest, but she paid it no heed. After a while, it seemed that someone had picked her up out of the sand. She felt her arms slip limply to the side as the rest of her fell against the warmth of whoever was holding her. Gentle fingers brushed wet hair of her face.
She groaned softly as the fingers brushed against her. With great effort, she managed to fidget a little bit against whoever was holding her. Everything ached. She tried to move her head and instantly regretted it, as the start of a horrendous migraine attached itself to the back of her head and all ready started trickling through her body, causing another soft groan of discomfort.
Her dazzling sapphire blue eyes finally fluttered open, at least halfway. Everything seemed very bright, and the light bothered her. It just made her headache even worse. She groaned a third time, almost wishing she hadn't opened her eyes. She blinked twice, noticing for the first time that there was someone standing above her. Looking quite dazed and out of it, she stared at him for several moments before she remembered that she had a voice. At least, she thought she had a voice.
"... Ooh... Mmm... Um... O-Oh..."
The young mermaid blinked again, looking distant for a moment. She looked very confused as she tried to look around. It was then that she noticed there was another person present. This was the one who was currently holding her, the one whose fingers had managed to stir her out of the deep unconsciousness she had been in. Her body didn't seem to want to cooperate enough to actually turn around and get a good look at her. Instead of trying, she returned her gaze back to the strange man standing on the beach.
"Oh... Oh. I... Um... Wha... Where... Where am I?"
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Post by clayton on Mar 25, 2012 23:24:05 GMT -4
Castiels eyes turned back down to the girl.
"Well. It looks like your awake." he said roughly. "Fortunately for you you've had the sudden company of this young l[i]ady[/i]. -he laced the last word with venom.- "who seems intent on saving your life. She has so far convinced me not to kill you. However, from the reports that i have received from many, many villagers, you do seem to fit the description of the monster that has recently been taking entire fisheries worth of men to a watery death."
He turned his head back up to the other woman. "You understand of course, why I would assume this, and my natural dislike for your kind gives me a reason to distrust you, but seeing as you have the upper hand at the moment, I will hear you out. Tell me more about these, mermaids, and how they are so different from what I am hunting."
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Post by Mini on Mar 25, 2012 23:44:09 GMT -4
The young mermaid tilted her head curiously to the side as the strange man spoke. He sounded quite angry about something, and he didn't seem at all as friendly as he had originally looked. At least, she had thought he looked friendly. He was standing on the beach, after all. Something about being on the beach just made people look friendly. As he spoke, she processed his words, but they didn't entirely make much sense to her.
"Saving my life?" she repeated, blinking a few times as she stared curiously up at Castiel. "Kill... Kill me? You... You wanted to kill me?" she repeated, looking more confused than scared. At the mention of "monster," she frowned and attempted to sit herself upright against Mizale. It was then she noticed that instead of having two legs, like the others had, she instead had a very long, very green, and rather pretty looking tail. It swished around as the waves lapped around her.
"Monster... Monster? Am I... Am I a monster?" she asked, now looking a bit sad along with very confused. Frowning, she reached up and rubbed the back of her head, which was throbbing something awful.
"I... I'm sorry. I-I didn't know I was a monster. I really don't know what a 'fisheries' is, but I guess if a monster did it, then... then it must have been me, because I'm... I'm a monster, I guess. And if monsters kill humans, and I'm a monster, then I suppose I could have done it. If I wasn't a monster, I would have legs, like you, I guess. I don't remember... I... I... Oh... Oh dear... I... I-I..."
A panicked look came across her face.
"Oh. Ooooh. I... I... My name!... I can't think of my name! Oh, but, but maybe I don't even have one? Do monsters have names? Maybe I can't remember my name because I don't have a name. Oh, but I think I do have a name. I... N-No, I know I have a name! A-At least... I should have a name... right? Do... Do monsters have names?" she asked, looking up at Castiel with what could quite possibly be the most pitiful, sad, puppy dog face in the entire world.
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Post by clayton on Apr 7, 2012 3:16:08 GMT -4
Castiel looked down at the half-fish girl with sudden pity in his eyes. Her pained, tearful and almost childlike expression had forcibly reminded him of Rue. Sweet little Rue, how she used to bring him all sorts of flowers after spending the day running and playing in the fields near their home. How whenever she got in trouble she would hide from him, and when he finally did find her, her face would swell up and become red with tears as she tried to plead her innocence.
But Rue couldnt laugh or cry now. She couldnt do any of those things anymore, thanks to demons like this one..
For the first time since he tried to stab her, Castiel looked down at the girl. His gray eyes tried to pierce hers and see what was inside her mind, see if she was trying to trick him.
"My report indicates that the demon responsible for several deaths her looks like a young woman but whose body ends in the tail of a fish." He frowned in confusion. "Your apparent loss of memory could be a result of a fight among your kind." Those stormy eyes narrowed ans he further tried to scrutinize her.
"Or it could be a demon trick meant to distract me!"
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Post by Amara<3 on Apr 12, 2012 14:50:43 GMT -4
"The tail of a fish doesn't give you a precise description, sir," Mizale said sternly, her accent turning slightly British at the word of 'sir'. She rolled her eyes at his scrutiny of the girl in her arms, and likely herself. "Mermaids are not demons or monsters. They are simply people of the sea, like people with legs are people of the land. The monsters you seek to kill are both too smart and too many to ever destroy with a knife like you have. You'd be lucky to kill half a dozen of them in your lifetime, if you don't die by them first."
Mizale tucked the girl into her arms a little more protectively. "This one was hurt by someone or something else. Mermaids do not fight each other like this. You will not kill her nor will you try again."
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Post by Mini on Apr 13, 2012 22:21:51 GMT -4
The young pink-haired mermaid shrunk back against Mizale as pulled her close against her in a protective manner. She felt strangely safe in her arms, even though she didn't have a clue who she was. As both the girl holding her and the man with the knife continued to talk, she looked down at her tail. Absent-mindedly, she ran one of her hands over it. Her tail was cool to the touch, wet, and it felt a little bit... slimy. No, slimy wasn't the right word. She couldn't think what, exactly, the feel reminded her of, but it was strange nonetheless.
Something Mizale said caught her attention. She blinked and turned to look up at the girl as best she could.
"Mermaid? Did you call me... a mermaid?" she asked, gasping softly. "I'm a mermaid? You mean, I'm not a monster?" she asked, a soft smile on her face. "Oh, thank goodness. I didn't think I was a monster. I mean, I don't feel like I should be a monster. Monsters have horns and fangs, don't they? I just... well, I guess I'm part fish. Part person, part fish. A mermaid," she said quietly, almost as if trying to convince herself that she must be a mermaid.
Blinking again, she turned and looked back up at Castiel. She frowned at him, but it was more of a pout than anything. "Um... I-I'm sorry, sir. I really don't think that I'm your... monster. I-I mean, I guess I might be. But I really can't remember," she said, rubbing the back of her head. She felt a rather large bump there, and she could also feel what felt like scabs on her scalp, almost as if someone or something had tried to slice her head open. Maybe that was why she couldn't remember anything?
"Ow. Oh dear. That hurts. Um... Um... Oh. But... But anyway, what I wanted to say is... I really don't think I am. I don't feel evil, at least. You know what I mean? If I was evil, then I think I'd still be evil, even if I couldn't remember. I mean, if I had been the one killing people, wouldn't I try to kill you? Or this girl?" she asked, tilting her head to the side. "Besides... I'm not quite sure how I'd even try to kill anyone," she said, laughing a little as she held out her hands. "Look, see? I don't even have fangs or claws or... or even a knife! All I have is my tail," she said, swishing it a little in the water. "Which is kind of weird, actually. I don't really remember having a tail. But... But I don't remember not having a tail, either. I guess I've always had a tail? Oh, I wish I could remember something," she said, sighing.
She stole a peek back at Castiel again, sulking a bit at him. "Um... so... I guess what I'm saying is... please don't try to kill me? I promise I'm not gonna try to even hurt anyone, let alone try to kill anyone! I would never do that. Well. At least, I don't think I would. Right now, I don't want to. That has to count for something, right? Oh! You know what? I don't think I even know who you two are. Um. I'd introduce myself, but... um... well, I can't remember what my name is," she said, frowning.
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Post by clayton on Apr 28, 2012 9:34:39 GMT -4
Castiel listened to the demons pleas of innocence and for mercy. Again he was forcibly reminded of his sister whenever she got in trouble. He sighed, trick it may be, but he was still to curious about these too to try and kill them outright,
"Well seeing as how I'm outnumbered- his eyes flickered quickly to the girl that was cradling the pink haired mermaid in her arms, washing the blood off the side of her face- and I since I don't know the full story of what is happening here, I guess I will spare you for now." He sheathed his poisoned knife back into it's scabbard near his belt. "It could very well be the other one that I saw earlier has been the one doing these killings." He stopped when he noticed the fish-girl, was still trying to convince him that she was good and innocent. The fact that she did not seem to remember anything about who she was seemed true enough. She couldn't even remember her own name.
"I am called Castiel." he made no gesture to offer his hand or to greet her in anyway other than that. "and I have been a traveling demon slayer for most of my life."
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Post by Amara<3 on May 2, 2012 21:48:42 GMT -4
"Mizale," the purple haired girl said, not going into any status she may have as anything. "For a demon slayer, you sure don't know your demons very well. The girl on the rock was a mermaid as well. They're not demons at all. Just beautiful, and half human half fish. They're harmless, but respected and loved by all the seas and the creatures in them. I expect you to leave them alone."
Mizale shook her head at Castiel, and then looked down at Mini. "If you come on land and dry off, you should be able to get legs, and then we'll see how badly you're hurt. Sometimes the water casts illusions, and it's harder to tell how bad things are."
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Post by Mini on May 5, 2012 11:46:04 GMT -4
Several hundred feet out from the shore, Iara popped back up out of the water. She had been trying to find a place to hide while at the same time see and hear what was going on on the shore. As she had been fleeing from the strange man who had seen her, she had caught a glimpse of Lady Mizale headed for the shore. Intrigued by this, she had stayed closer to the shore and had been able to hear bits and pieces of what was going on. There was some other mermaid laying on the shore, and the man was trying to kill her, but Mizale was trying to stop her. Or at least, that's what she thought was going on. It was hard to hear from all the way out here, though. Sighing, she dove back under the water and swam closer to the shore.
Meanwhile, the pink haired mermaid blinked a few times as Mizale said something about coming onto shore and drying off to get legs.
"Legs? I... I can have legs?" she asked, looking very confused. "But... but how?"
"Hey! What are you doing to her?! Let her go!!" another voice suddenly shouted from somewhere out in the water. The voice belonged to Iara, who had surfaced again. She was poking her head around another rock that was sticking up out of the water a little ways off shore. She looked scared to death to even be above the water, but she was trying to look as brave and scary as she was for her fellow mermaid's sake.
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