"She is a mermaid, but approach her with caution. Her mind swims at a depth most would drown in."
~J. Iron Word
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Despite the small ships, they carried more than enough pirates to outnumber those aboard Felicity Coventina. However, the Cordelian crew were more than just sailors. They were soldiers as well, trained by one of the best swordsman alive herself: Laurel.

"Ready?" She asked, standing back to back with Logan.

He swung the sword over the back of his hand. "Ready."

They watched as the pirates made their advance, climbing up the sides of the ship. Cordelian archers let loose volleys of arrows into the enemy ranks, swiftly taking out the first wave. However, the second wave wasn't far behind, and the pirates quickly made their way onto the deck, charging at the closest person they could find.

Logan's sword clashed with another held by a one-eyed, haggard woman. She snarled at him as she slashed at his neck. He blocked the blow, the strike vibrating viciously down his arm. The woman held her own frighteningly well for someone with a disadvantage, but Logan was younger and quicker. The next time their swords met, he spun around and elbowed her in the face. The pirate staggered back, unable to react in time as Logan's sword ran through her. She collapsed to the ground, and he picked up her weapon before going after his next target.

Everywhere one looked, soldiers and pirates danced around the deck in a deadly tango, neither willing to surrender until they took their last breath. Logan and Laurel were blurs of chaos, taking out anyone who crossed them and generally wreaking utter destruction on their enemies.

Until Logan came face to face with the pirate captain Grayeyes, a hulking, atrocious man who dwarfed the prince.

"You're hideous," Logan remarked, unable to help himself. "Maybe if you cut off some of that hair, shaved your beard, and jumped into the water, you'd be more attractive."

"You're stalling. How unbecoming of a shrimpy little prince," Captain Grayeyes said, advancing on the prince. Logan backed up in response.

"Everyone's a shrimp compared to an abomination like yourself. I'd called you a monster, but that would insult all the real monsters out there. Besides, the stalling worked."

"Oh, did it? I don't see anyone around here but you and me, boy."

"True, but you forget one thing." Logan grabbed onto a rope.

Grayeyes lifted his sword and pointed it at Logan's throat. "What would that be?"

"I'm a lot smarter, and I know my sister's ship better than you do. Au revoir!" Logan yanked the rope, and Captain Grayeyes found himself soaring in the air, swinging madly upside down. His sword clattered to the ground next to Logan. The pirate yelled out an impressive string of curse words in languages Logan recognized and ones he didn't. He waited until the captain stopped swinging before wrapping a cloth around the man's mouth. Logan glanced over at the Poseidon's Pride, anchored next to the Felicity Conventina, and said, "Pretty ship. It'd be a shame if something were to happen to it."

Grinning devilishly at the muffled Captain Grayeyes, Logan dashed off. Grabbing onto another rope, he swung onto the primarily empty ship's deck. Two pirates remained behind to control it; they zeroed in on him, but only one approached. The other continued steering.

Logan went on the defensive, blocking and parrying each blow and jab the pirate directed at him. Dropping to the floor and rolling away, Logan popped up next to the entryway to the decks below. Ignoring the enemy chasing after him, he scrambled down the steps to the naval magazine, locking the door behind him and rolling a barrel of gunpowder in front of the door.

"Okay, there are always two doors in a magazine, so I need to block the other one," Logan decided, talking himself through this horribly winged plan. He'd have to convince Laurel later on it had been planned all along, especially after he'd gotten onto her about being brash less than half an hour ago. He'd never hear the end of it if he didn't.

Finding the second door, Logan locked it and rolled another barrel in front of it, preventing anyone from entering until he was ready. He took a second one and emptied its contents into the middle of the floor. Then, he took a handful and began spreading them to the remaining, highly flammable barrels. Logan doubted the pirates would succeed in escaping Laurel's ship, but in the event they did, at least they'd only have one ship to utilize instead of two.

Logan worked diligently and rapidly, spreading tendrils of gunpowder to as many barrels as he could. Once satisfied with his work, he pulled out his flint and struck it until the gunpowder ignited. He now had maybe three minutes to direct the ship away from the Felicity Coventina before it exploded, five if he was lucky.

Moving to the original door he entered, Logan pressed his ear to the wood and listened for any sound of the pirate on the other side. He only heard silence and the waves crashing against the side of the boat. Cautiously, Logan moved the barrel away just enough for him to squeeze through. He took the stairs three at a time and returned to the deck, where only the pirate steering the ship remained. Logan sprinted over to her, sword in hand and at the ready. The young pirate tensed, grasping the hilt of her own weapon and preparing to fight and steer simultaneously. Logan skidded to a surprised stop, realizing the girl before him couldn't be any older than fourteen or fifteen. Chances were, she hadn't been given an option to join this crew. Maybe Logan could use that knowledge to his advantage.

"Listen, I'm giving you one chance and one chance only to escape now. This ship is about to be blown sky-high, so you might want to jump overboard," Logan said, motioning with his sword at the turquoise waters. "You're the only pirate I've ever given this option to, and it's because you're young. You can still turn your life around, and this would be the opportunity to do it. I'm Prince Logan of Cordelia. I can get you leniency if you return with us, and maybe after a year in prison, they'll set you free, and I'll get you a trainee position anywhere you want. Do we have a deal, Miss?"

The girl hesitated, studying him, gauging whether or not he spoke the truth. Dropping her hands to her side, she stammered out, "I- I can't swim. Will you let me jump onto your ship first?"

Logan didn't lower his sword but nodded. "Go. When you get on there, surrender immediately and say parlay. If I'm not on the ship before my sister sees you, say Kaiakenna. She'll know what it means. What's your name?"

"Penny Quinn, Your Highness."

"Nice to meet you. Now get going. We're both wasting precious time." Penny scurried off, but not before Logan called out, "And Penny? Don't make me regret my decision to trust you."

"You won't!" She promised, grabbing a rope and swinging onto the deck of the Felicity Coventina. Free to do what he needed, Logan spun the steering wheel to the right, jerking the pirate ship away from his own. He stayed at the wheel for as long as he dared, ensuring there was enough distance away from the Felicity Coventina before he swiped a nearby bottle of alcohol and dumped it on the steering wheel. Taking out his flint, Logan struck it until flames engulfed the mechanism. Now, even if the last pirate returned to turn the ship back, he wouldn't be able to.

Thoroughly pleased with himself, Logan backed himself up against the railing, took a few deep breaths, and then shot off full speed, leaping gracefully into the air and swan-diving into the water. Without surfacing, despite the seawater stinging his eyes, he propelled himself forward, wanting to place as much distance between himself and the soon-to-be exploding ship. At least Logan could hold his breath for extended periods of time, something he'd trained himself to do after his near-death experience eleven years ago. Although Logan never expected to be in such a position a second time, he didn't want to be unprepared in case it did.

He would never let himself be vulnerable like that again.

As Logan swam towards his ship, movement out of the corner of his eye caught his attention. He spun around, preparing for a fight, firmly believing either the pirate had followed him into the water or a predator saw its next meal. What he did not expect was to find a mermaid following him, strikingly familiar with her turquoise and green tail. This one unnerved him, however. Contrary to the mermaid who boarded the Kaiakenna- whose brown eyes were identical to a human's- the ones staring at him now were solid black. No iris, no whites, just black as the pits of hell.

Logan flinched away from her, wondering if he could swim away or defend himself if she decided to attack. He'd never heard of such a thing, but maybe there were different breeds of mermaids, ones that weren't as nice as the one who he met eleven years ago.

Noticing his reaction, the mermaid blinked, and her eyes were no longer black but a soft brown, possibly hazel. Logan couldn't quite tell in the water. She smiled at him, almost apologetically, unless he was mistaken. He returned it, cocking his head curiously as the mermaid appeared to inch closer to him. She acted as fascinated with him as he was with her.

BOOM!

The sound of the explosion immediately garnered Logan's attention. He turned around to find debris floating in the distance, the only reminder of the pirate ship that once sailed. At least his plan worked. Triumphantly, Logan turned to face the mermaid again.

She had disappeared.

Logan spun in circles, searching to see where she had gone, but there was no trace of her. Had he hallucinated seeing the mermaid?

Dismayed, Logan allowed himself to breach the surface. The Felicity Coventina sailed away from him in the distance, the last remaining pirate ship drifting aimlessly amongst the rocks of Mermaid Bay. Laurel had undoubtedly won, but he wondered if she had any idea he was at least a mile away from him.

Shit. Logan thought, dismayed. So much for your brilliant plan.

Sighing, Logan began swimming after his ship, giving up after only a few minutes when he realized the Felicity Coventina had distanced herself even further from him. Logan weighed his two options. He could continue swimming after it and wait for Laurel to notice his disappearance and turn back for him, but he risked swimming the long way home, a distance much more challenging and dangerous for him than a state-of-the-art ship. His other option was to swim through Mermaid Bay. It was a much shorter and more direct distance to Cordelia, but he risked not being found when Laurel realized he was no longer on the ship.

As Logan watched the Felicity Coventina become smaller and smaller on the horizon, he made up his mind. Facing Mermaid Bay, Logan steeled himself for the journey ahead and began making the long trek back, praying he made the right decision.