It was amazing the difference two additional sirens could make. How much security could be achieved with a patrol of three sirens and one hybrid.

Elijah made sure to keep his senses pinned on any mer activity in the neighborhood while the rest of us focused on ships approaching the island.

And as Cain had suggested, the four of us had given the boats around some sightings in order to chase them away from the area.

After all, we all knew multiple stories of our kin, that we were supposed man devouring monsters. Elijah had taken the lead with the first few ships, observing them before lunging out of the water when someone got close to the banister.

I was pretty certain that Elijah had a little too much fun, given that he nearly dragged a sailor overboard during one lunge. He made sure that he was fast enough to be unrecognizable to the humans, scales now covering his facial features.

But myself and the other sirens more than clearly saw the toothy smirk Elijah sported when the human screamed and clawed its way back on deck. Kicking with his legs and losing a shoe in the process as they all started screaming and panicking.

Riley and myself made sure to leave several scrapes on the hull of the ship, visible to the sailors. After all, it was typical of humans that anything they didn't understand or explain was thought to be fantasy or illusions.

If we didn't leave any permanent marks, the sailors would assume they all got drunk or ate something bad. Anything they could to not have to accept there were other things on this world they didn't understand.

"Oh merciful Lord, have pity on us!" One of the sailors prayed as Cassandra popped out of the water further away, humming lowly under her breath. Just loud enough to catch the humans attention but soft enough that they didn't get enchanted by her voice.

Instead, it had the opposite effect. Considering the humans were already under attack by us, the implication of her singing caused an eerie sense of dread and fear that went beyond instincts.

Soon enough they were scrambling to get away as we snarled and hissed at them when they started jabbing at us with poles and pikes.

As the ship left with visible proof of our encounter, we sank back into the water, where Elijah sighed contently. "Wonder how long it's going to take before the word spreads?"

Shrugging, I turned back towards the island and languidly started swimming home. "Depends on where they're going and what other boats they meet along the journey. A few days, weeks or months, depending on the situation."

The stories would spread from sailor to sailor, boat to boat until the entire fleet knew about it. And while some may not choose to believe in the stories that would become more exaggerated with each recounting...

They would believe those boats encountered something due to the marks that were left for all to see. And whatever that something was, most humans wouldn't want to mess with it or find out for themselves what it is.

"What do you think they'll come up with? The other humans I mean." Riley questioned, checking the slight scrape he got from the pike.

"Maybe it'll be a kraken this time around." Cassandra joked, making all of us snort and shake our heads. The scent of the ocean and its inhabitants followed the bubbly sensation of inhaling the water before my gills harmlessly pushed it out of my body.

Glancing behind us, I was happy when the only mer I could smell, was Elijah. Who noticed my behavior and smirked lightly, letting his eyes wander around the area for a moment as well.

I couldn't help but chuckle before pointing out "Last merchant ship we spooked away, they were screaming about sea dragons."

Even Elijah snorted, sighing tiredly. "Seriously, what is wrong with their eyesight? Humans see us attacking them, we even slowed our movements so they could clearly see us, and they still claim dragons and krakens?"

"They'll deny the truth even if it bites them in the ass." Riley mocked, shaking his head. He had already informed us of their own encounters with humans in the past, when they were too young to control their gills.

And even with their gills clearly visible and moving, the few humans that spotted them, had latched onto the statement that the two sirens were simply injured. That the wounds were moving along with their breathing.

Never mind their inability to explain the lack of pain or bleeding, the humans had refused adamantly to believe anything else but what their brains had concluded.

I had my own stories to share where humans seemed to skip over the available information right in front of their eyes and made something up. Simply because they couldn't understand or wanted to understand something, they were more than ready to believe a lie that pacified them.

Compared to humans, our species were far more practical. If we hadn't encountered an event before, that didn't mean it wasn't plausible. We lived in the here and now and thrived on facts.

Plus, we were supernatural creatures ourselves. Who were we to deny something from existing?

"The only thing we might have to deal with, is idiot collectors thinking they can snatch one of us." Riley mentioned, making me raise a brow as I turned towards him. "What? Haven't you seen those circus groups roaming around displaying rarities?"

A grimace pulled over everyone's faces at the very idea of being captured by one of those people. Just the thought of being stuffed in a tank on wheels and pushed around for human's joy...

Or even worse, to be handed over to some quack doctor who'd dissect them simply to try and make medicine from their bodies without any reason or knowledge it worked. All of them had encountered their fair share of humans deceiving others, scamming them out of their money with false remedies that were often more dangerous than the disease they promised to cure.

Some of those quacks even straight up diluted poisons and sold it to the highest bidder before they ran away with their victims money. I had even came across a supposed doctor who tried to sell me a serum that allowed me to breathe in the water made of siren scales. While some sailors fell for it and bought the vile liquid, I could tell from a glance that it was just a blend of fruit juice and fish scales mixed together.

I swear, sometimes humans seemed to be incredibly intelligent only to contradict themselves the very next moment.

"Even if there are collectors coming over to catch us, they'll just add to the stories once they disappeared." Elijah said with a shrug of his shoulder, ignoring our stares until he scoffed. "What? You want me to be kind and patient with people who want to abduct and experiment on me? Fuck no!"

The mer snorted, flexing his tail lazily as he turned to look at us. "You guys may have issues with killing but some of those bastards deserve it. I'm not about to get myself kidnapped and experimented upon simply because it would be morally incorrect to kill someone."

"Spoken like a true pirate." I snickered along with Riley and Cas while Elijah simply rolled his eyes. Truth be told, all of us would probably be considered pirates at this point, considering we had stolen 'property' that didn't belong to us and refused to return it.

Not to mention that we were harboring pirates and hiding them from the law. Considering the fact that Cain had pointed out several corrupt officials who would "save" the former slaves on the island, only to sell them for a tidy profit, I didn't feel a hint of remorse.

It felt weird, to go from hating every single pirate in existence to understanding that not every pirate was evil. Sure, some were the absolute scum of the earth that deserved to be wiped out but most of them had become pirates due to circumstance.

Some became pirates because it was the only way to earn money for their loved ones. Others didn't have any options as they were escaped slaves or wanted for made-up crimes by corrupt officials.

A sigh escaped me as I realized I was now starting to mentally excuse these pirates. Well, at least this particular group.

Saving slaves from their former masters and setting them free without expecting any monetary reward was the opposite what one would expect from a pirate after all. Sure there were pirates who attacked slavers and their compounds but that was simply in order to steal their cargo and sell the slaves for a profit.

The saddest part was that sometimes, these former slaves had no place to return to. They hadn't been captured and taken against their will, no. Their own families and friends had sold them.

Parents who sold their own children so that there were less mouths to feed or purely out of greed. While I hadn't seen it personally, apparently Riley and Cassandra had seen it firsthand when they were hopping from island to island to avoid detection by the local mer pods.

During one of those visits, they saw a house with a sign out front. Proudly declaring there were children for sale, the mother too ashamed to show herself while her husband shoved his youngest son into the awaiting arms for his buyer.

Over a simple gold coin.

Disgust and anger made my stomach twist and burn as we raced back home. The feeling lessened somewhat once we got dressed and walked into the settlement under the sound of laughing children playing and adults bantering.

However, that vicious burn returned with a vengeance when I spotted a few of the children quietly observing from a distance. Flinching at random noises, unwilling to join the crowd as they circled the outside of the gathering, watching every tiny motion like a hawk.

Or perhaps, they simply didn't know how to join. Were afraid to show weakness out of fear of what could happen if they showed it to the wrong people. Even several of the adults acted in the same way, the tone of their voice clinically polite and smiles calculated, yet their eyes showed the worry they felt.

Perhaps it was because our little group technically were classified as predators, but such small, minute changes to one's expression was easy to detect. One simple glance around the gathering still showed the trauma these people had gone through.

I let out a soft sigh before smiling as the children made way for Elijah as the hybrid headed straight for his lover. They had learned their lesson after some kids had decided to make a game out of who could get closest to Elijah in some weird game of chicken.

Elijah had no issues with the kids but when one decided to poke him, he released such a threatening snarl that before he could've even turn around, the children had fled to their parents. Now they always gave Elijah a wide berth whenever he passed, though they couldn't help themselves from flocking around the mer and follow him around like ducklings.

Of course, the second the mer so much as looked over his shoulder, they scattered like sardines spotting a shark. But I could tell with the slight smirk Elijah had on his lips whenever he heard that telltale pitter patter, he kind of enjoyed the attention and awe he gained.

Now however, he was looking for a different kind of attention judging from the way he was bobbing and weaving through the crowd until he found Archer and latched on. I could hear Archer laugh and excuse himself before turning to face Elijah.

And then walk him back to their own house.

"Of course the first thing he does is distract my quartermaster." Cain chuckled behind be before I was wrapped in his arms. "How did the raid go?"

I smiled up at him and shrugged. "Same as usual, terrified the humans and they scurried off to tell the tales of the horrors they've encountered. There already has been less ships coming near the island."

"Good." Cain murmured, letting out a deep humming sigh that thrilled through my body. "Now we just need to worry about getting more supplies so we can turn this settlement into a self-sustaining one."

Nodding, I agreed "It would be impossible to try and trade for goods in the first place. One word of the missing slaves being relocated and these waters would be infested with slavers before we can blink."

Most of what we needed could be made or grown by ourselves. What we truly needed was craftsmen and women who'd be able to improve living conditions. And like I had pointed out to Cain, it would be extremely suspicious if we simply started buying and shipping all these goods to the island ourselves.

All it took was one person to take a keen interest and follow us around before the island's secret would be discovered. Cain sighed in agreement before he grumbled to himself. "I suppose you don't have any siren friends who are capable craftsmen..."

I shook my head instantly as I didn't have much contact with my own kin to begin with. "Perhaps Riley or Cassandra know a few people. They've been roaming about more than I have." Pursing my lips in thought, I tried to remember if I even knew any craftsmen that could be trusted.

Sure there was the occasional human that had impressed me with their skills but they wouldn't just uproot everything they know to follow a stranger and work for basically free. If we could find Sirens to come live with us, Sirens that knew certain crafts, that would be amazing.

I guess we would have to start looking around on our travels and see if we could find anyone. That is to say, if Riley or Cassandra didn't know anyone that could help. And if that failed, we could still look for people who would be trustworthy and willing to come to the island, social outcasts that had nobody else to rely on.

"What do we need?"

Cain scoffed, "For starters a blacksmith and carpenter that can make tools and general improvements. Although several of the people we've saved have some talent, it's nothing compared to an actual craftsman. Plus the craftsmen slavers go after are usually sold instantly and kept on smaller ships."

That made me hum thoughtfully before I smirked. "Didn't you say that you worked together with other pirates who freed slaves? Surely they have a middleman on the inside."

"Aye, but we can't just raid the slaver ring without heavy repercussions." Cain lamented, shaking his head. His dark eyes gazed at the azure horizon where the sun reflected against the ocean below. "I've thought about it before but the slave markets are heavily guarded. The easiest way to get those slaves, would be before they enter the facility or when they leave. And not all of them arrive or leave on ship."

Another thought made me grimace, knowing that Cain wouldn't like the idea one bit. And as I shot him a glance, I could tell he was already coming to the same conclusion I had and was adamantly rejecting the very notion.

However, if we managed to work together with the pirates that were liberating slaves and managed to find this location, we could rather easily get the slaves.

If Cain was willing to sell myself, Riley and Cassandra as supposed slaves. All we would need was to start singing the second we were well within the building and everyone would be putty in our hands. The hardest work would be to actually convince Cain that this was the plan we needed to go with.