Dawn's Dusk on the High Seas

“Men! Prepare for a shock!” Jack shouted as he reached the shore.

His crew looked curiously at him, the food they’d collected by their feet. Palming the eyes, Jack held out his other hand before the waves flooded towards him and lifted him on a solid platform of water. They then placed the crew and food into the boats before also picking up the boats and bringing everything to the ship. Everyone was wide eyed at their captain as he slid down the water onto the deck of Vitae. Striding to the Captain’s Quarters, he opened the shuttered doors, the smile on his face quickly disappearing. Colton sat with concern next to an ill Laura. Laura lay with several blankets over her, and her face leeched of color. She also continually mumbled of aches.

“Colton, why didn’t you send for me?!” Jack hissed, a thin layer of shadow covering him before he began to question Laura of what she felt to be happening.

Laura responded in short and exhausted breaths before he began going over what treatments he would be able to give her. Then, another passage from the journal snared his thoughts.

After being able to carefully glean information about the Eyes, I have discerned that they are empowered with some sort of life healing and world bending abilities. Although, both cannot last. One mermaid had been kind enough to tell me that the stones could heal people for the rest of their lives if they touched the stone when another focussed on it…

“Laura, give me your hand,” Jack ordered.

Not knowing or caring what he would do, Laura slowly slid her hand from under the sheets and held it out to him. Placing her palm atop the Eyes, Jack focussed their power into her, and the stones glowed before light snaked through her arm and through her body. She gasped as if a sudden pain caught her, and she began to struggle and writhe as the Eyes’ power infused with her. The light faded, and they all noticed smoke rising from beneath Laura’s other palm. When she lifted it, a flame floated in her hand. The three of them stood awestruck as she shrunk the flame in her hand to nothing before making it reappear and slither between her fingers.

“How did you do that!?” Colton began, looking to Jack.

“These, are the Eyes of Poseidon. They healed Laura and, apparently, accelerated her pregnancy. By the looks of it, she’ll give birth tonight. And before you say anything else, I need to heal Alice to make sure nothing ever makes her sick again,” Jack explained as Laura slipped out of the covers, playing with her newfound abilities while her womb had increased dramatically in size before starting quickly out the doors and across to The Jackal where he found Alice wandering about the ship.

“Alice! I have much to tell you. But first, give me your hand,” he started, placing her palm over the Eyes like he had for Laura before concentrating.

The glow went quickly through her, and she didn’t writhe as the power flowed through her, but then quickly faded. Jack removed her palm from the Eyes.

“What was that about?!” she questioned.

Water blasted up behind her and formed a roiling tentacle. The ship started to rock unnaturally on the now thrashing waves.

“Calm down! You’ll sink the boat!” Jack warned.

“Ha! How?” she barked.

Jack smirked and pointed to behind her. Her jaw dropped as she saw the tentacle move the ways she wanted it to, and the waves calmed.

“What did you do?!” she laughed in delight.

“Looks like you and Laura have new abilities!” Jack returned.

Alice leapt at him before he caught her and she gave him several kisses of joy.

“This is amazing!” she squealed.

“Indeed it is!” Colton said, striding next to them.

“It seems that you’ve given control over fire to Laura and control over water to Alice,” he commented.

“Indeed it does. How interesting. But, Colton, I must ask you something. Remember that time when I told you I’d take my own island paradise to live on? I found it. Forget England and Cuba. I’m staying here. With our newfound powers, we should be able to make living here easy. I believe my crew would too,” Jack responded.

“What are you saying?” Colton demanded.

Jack put a hand on his shoulder and smiled.

“My crew and I’ll be staying here. There’s a chain of islands. We could have one. You could have one. Our crews can have some. I’m storing The Jackal somewhere safe on the island and I’m going to stay here with my family. I met mermaids on that island. I consider them family. And so do they to me,” Jack sighed.

Both Colton and Alice looked baffled by him.

“You can’t be serious,” Colton muttered.

“I sincerely am… Men! Did I not promise an easy retirement of relaxation for the rest of our days?!” Jack answered quietly before shouting to his crew.

Each crew member shouted their agreement.

“Well here it is! These uncharted islands are ours! Let us map the island and divide it amongst the crew! As Boaz has seen, there is a glen not far from shore that has many mermaids. That, is the area I will be claiming. The glen will be the center of the area where I will take a half a mile in all directions. The rest of the island is how you choose, ” he hollered.

The crew “hoorayed,” shrugged their shoulders from their captain’s claim. He could have it. The islands were big enough, and his claim was rather small. One member brought up a large piece of paper with several quills and ink, before beginning to chart the island and mark off where Jack had taken claim. Colton looked betrayed from his friend as Jack turned around.

“Colton, we’ll still sail everywhere, but I’d like to make this my home. The crew seems happy enough, they’re already planning their claims. There are three other islands other than this one, and after seeing so many of the English and Spaniard’s charts, these islands aren’t likely to be found. I mean, we’re still in the center of the Devil’s sea. Any self respecting sailor would rather swim back to Spain or Cuba than enter here. And look what we found. Paradise. Try embracing it. You might enjoy it,” Jack suggested.

Turning to Alice, he opened his mouth to speak, but she cut him off.

“Yes I’ll stay with you. Even with whoever these mermaids are. If you’ve adopted them into our family, they must be very kind. I’m sure the children will be excited. And with my newfound power, I believe that living here will be much nicer.”

Jack sighed before laughing, “Well that was easier than I thought it would be. And yes. The mermaids are somewhat like children. They don’t know much, but are sweeter than the best sugar and honey. They haven’t met another woman before, so meeting you will be an exciting experience for them.”

Letting out a long sigh, Colton conceded, “Fine. I’ll try marking my my own land and settling down with Laura. She’ll need to be on land anyway.”

“That’s the spirit. Why don’t you give your crews orders to divvy up the rest of the islands for you and themselves. I bet they’ll be happy to gain land without having to pay,” Jack cooed.

“I will give you that. Fine. Good luck to you and your crew with that island. Now, I need to make sure my child is born healthy,” Colton chuckled before striding off and shouting orders, which his crew happily followed.

“Will you tell the kids and then go to help Colton? Laura might need some advice,” Jack suggested.

“Sure. Go make sure we get what you claimed,” Alice snickered before walking away with a spring in her step.

Sighing, Jack walked down to where his crew stood huddled around the cartographer and peered through. They’d clearly and correctly marked his, he’d thank Everin later. Several were pointing and giving their own ideas, while Everin scribbled away. A few argued over the land, but Everin divided it up evenly. Aside from his own, Everin was a voice of reason on The Jackal and his crew usually looked to him with advice about matters that were a bit more personal. After tedious minutes of his crew claiming and trading their land, Jack quieted them.

“We have precious hours until the sun sets and it’s too dark to see. Let’s get moving and start marking trees and rocks for territory. The shrine that we so happily destroyed is the marker of the edge of my land on the West. The beach will be the marker in the North. I will go set several markers for my land and return to the ship. Be sure to make it back before nightfall, you don’t want to get lost. To the boats!” Jack announced before kicking the mast and catching his knife.

He’d be carving a lot of trees. Gathering in the boats, they quickly rowed with vigor to the island and separated.

“All of you, stay with Everin! He has the map, so you listen to his directions! Within reason! If you work together, this’ll go quickly!” Jack ordered before following his trail to the glen.

Starting to the East, he counted his steps before reaching his boundaries and producing his knife once more. Carving a “JD” into the trunk of a tree, he began into another along the line until he’d reached the beach. Walking back to the southern side of his land, he marked the trees in the same initials before taking a break and leaning against a tree. He was done. Now to meet with his... daughters or wives? While he strode to the glen, Jack pondered deeply on whether they should be his adopted daughters or his wives. They loved him like a wife, but he felt like a father when he taught them. By the time he’d reached the glen, he’d decided both. They were his wives and daughters. Coming upon the now familiar sight of the mermaids splashing, playing, and talking. Continuing his stride, they all cheerfully greeted him, and Jewel shifted before joining him on the shore.

“What did they say?! Can you stay?!” she questioned nervously, toying with her hands.

Taking a fake, long sigh, Jack schooled his features into depression. Jewel looked as if he’d ripped her heart from her chest.

“I can stay,” he laughed suddenly, his features becoming light and happy.

A few other mermaids giggled as they saw Jewel’s confusion before she burst into an ecstatic smile and hugged him.

“My crew and I are going to stay on the island, along with my family, and I’ve reserved this area for me and my family. The crew is going around the island to mark where they’d live, but this piece of land and all a half mile away is mine. We’re free to stay here for our lives. Colton and his crews are going to the other islands to find places to stay as well. I’ve found my home. Here with you and your sisters. We’ll be safe, and live happily,” Jack divulged.

Everyone cheered in glee as they learned.

“I have to go back to my ship now, but I promise I’ll be back in the morning to start building. My friend’s wife is about to have a baby,” he added before saying goodbye, giving them each a kiss, and walking back through the forest.

Jack was right, like always. Laura was screaming about the pain in her womb. His child would be born tonight. Colton sat for hours with Laura as he and Alice gave words of encouragement. The sun began to set when Jack arrived from marking where his boundaries were. When Colton asked about the rest of the crew, Jack glanced behind his shoulder and told him that they were returning at that moment. Laura screamed again, and Jack’s medical teachings flared. His attitude changed to calm and focussed, as well as soothing and reassuring. He gave her instructions while she took Colton’s hands. Setting a blanket down for the baby and having Alice get one to wrap it in, he waited at the foot of the bed. Laura continued to pant and shriek as well as practically crush Colton’s hand in her grip and grit her teeth. Eventually, Jack wrapped the wailing baby in a cloth and declared its gender. It was a girl. Colton produced a small knife and cut the umbilical cord away before Jack wrapped her. Handing Laura her daughter, she had sweat soaking her brow along with a heavy amount of exhaustion weighing down on her.

“What should her name be?” Colton whispered.

“Madilyn,” Laura murmured.

“Madilyn Samantha Daybreak,” Colton replied.

Madilyn had her arms waving lightly, before she wailed again, and lightning suddenly shot from Madilyn’s tiny fingers. Jack brought up shields of shadow to block the bolts before he began smothering the flames that had started. Laura wrapped Madilyn’s arms and hands into the cloth before sighing when she quieted.

“Another new ability. For one so young, this could be dangerous. But, once she gets older, we’ll be safer,” Jack chuckled, keeping the shields up.

Madilyn gave out a quiet yawn before falling asleep against her mother. Luckily, no more sparks of lightning. But, for the sake of not taking a chance, Jack left the shields up.

“That was uncalled for,” Colton whispered before quietly chuckling.

“It certainly was. And, there is no way that little Madilyn can stay on your ship without setting it ablaze. Best to keep her in a nonflammable area,” Jack replied.

“Everything keeps going your way, doesn’t it?” Colton snickered, raising an eyebrow.

“Don’t jinx me. Please, I’d like everyone I care about to live through their life,” Jack laughed, with a hint of warning.

“I didn’t mean to,” Colton returned.

“Well, Alice and I should go. It’s getting late, and Laura needs to rest. We’ll begin building a place to live tomorrow morning,” Jack ended before quietly walking out the doors.

Alice smiled a congratulations before following after.

“Good night Colton. See you in the morning,” Laura rasped as she laid back with Madilyn in her arms and falling asleep, her child nestling close.