Moments of Clarity

The sun sets as a lone fisherman lies asleep in a dinghy out at sea, an empty beer can in one hand and a photo in the other. The photo consisting of newlyweds dressed in all white with the groom in a Canali tuxedo and the bride in a David’s Bridal gown. The bride smiles with her head laying down on the groom’s chest, their hands in front showing the rings of their union. The photo had been in the fisherman’s hands ever since leaving his affair with an escort he visits routinely to this day. After bar hopping, they stumbled towards a dock where his dinghy nearly floats away from a loosely tied knot.

The escort lowers him to the ground, reels the boat in, and reties the knot before laying the fisherman inside to sleep. Being away from home longer than intended, the fisherman needed more time transforming into the only permissible illusion of his character. And only the boat knows the burden of sustaining this illusion due to carrying him through many nights of depression and alcoholic binges. The tides also pitied him as they pry the boat free from the poorly retied knot and set off into the sea.

Waves crash intermittently as the boat continues to drift until low sounds of humming echo from a distance. The fisherman immobile as he continues sleeping. Then the humming grows, and the waters begin to calm as a final wave forms to splash his face. Shaking his head and arms uncontrollably, he wakes into full consciousness, traumatized from nearly drowning. His flailing hands accidentally releasing the photo into the waters where a circular vacuum produces, sucking the picture out of existence.

“Who’s out there?” shouted the sailor, searching frantically to find no ship, dock or port anywhere nearby. He then sits back and stares into the sky, taking a deep breath while pulling a beer from his pants. Suddenly there were two thumps and the fisherman flinches, tracing their source to a celestial creature. Shell-covered bosoms, loosely curled hair, navy-blue colored pupils and an angelically carved face.

He drops the beer can and gazes at her appearance until he spots what is assumed to only exist in myths or legends: a tail. He rubs his eyes and looks again to verify whether he was still dreaming. Moving his hand near her cheek, she catches it in one of hers and pulls his head with the other. His heart drops as he watches her pupils turn white before dissolving into a full moon and waves crashing inside, the image of serenity.

He closes his eyes and moves in to kiss her, pausing to savor the moment until her lips unexpectedly become hardened and cold. Opening his eyes, his face starts to flush at the sight of a cold and dull creature with coal-colored eyes. Her webbed hand quickly covers his mouth, subduing his screams while another grabs his back and pulls him overboard. The dinghy flips over with several beer cans popping out from under, floating for a few moments before ultimately sinking.

Back at the dock where the dinghy departed, an expectant mother paces back and forth while holding her stomach. She continues this cycle until her foot feels a paper cut, locating a photo seemingly responsible. Shaking the water off, she recognizes the photo of her and her husband with the words “Thank you for celebrating with us! Love Mr. and Mrs. Edmond” printed at the bottom. She slaps the photo against her right leg and wipes her face with her left hand. I really need some distance between me and my parents, she thought. The endless whining over Dad’s disappearances yet never confronting him when he comes home. But in her opinion, 30 years committed to this qualifies her to judge my own marriage… Ha! Then I guess football fans losing bets on games are also qualified to later become sports commentators. The growing infant begins to kick, forcing the woman to lean against one of the dock’s legs. And as the waves crash, the tides grow higher adding to her stress until she hears a humming sound.

The woman follows the sound to a sharp dorsal fin, swimming back and forth as the waters settle again. A face emerges showing only its navy-blue eyes, compelling the woman to scramble for a weapon until its pupils suddenly flash white. The flash causing the woman to freeze for a moment as a full moon and waves crashing appear within, the hallucination reminding her to later book a counseling session. Then the eyes rise into a full smiling face, a low taper fade, broad shoulders, and muscular body shape. He reaches for her hand and pulls her into the water, as white rays under her feet prevent her from sinking. Gliding one hand behind her neck, pulling her hair to tilt her head back. He slides the other underneath her chin, gently pushing her up to align his face to her belly, the white rays underneath maintaining her balance.

Bewilderment and curiosity render her body motionless, until she discovers an unbelievable explanation: a tail. I’m definitely booking that appointment ASAP when I get home. But for now, let’s see where this goes. He presses his head against her stomach and her eyes close subsequently, taking in the small moment of intimacy until she feels something cold. She opens her eyes and detects a different creature now holding her: a cold and bloody body with webbed hands gripping tightly around her. His eyes turned into coal as fangs grew near the corners of his smile. To this, she screams while trying to free herself until he squeezes her hard forcing her water to break. Her screams stop abruptly at the painful impact, and he pulls her down to meet her eyes again where tears streamed her face. He drops his smile and licks his teeth, forcibly kissing her to sleep before finally pulling her down into the waters. The waves crash loudly until they subside once more, washing the traces of yet another victim’s soul.

It is almost dinner time as Jala swims along the current. Eshini, her Sea Matriarch, flings a severed hand into the air with her tentacles. Eyeing the direction of the flying hand, Jala jets her body out of the water and catches it between her teeth. Her fangs piercing through as though a shark seizing its prey. Thoughtless of the life once attached to the hand as she is already burdened by the curse of Temoja. A curse where a hunger for blood regulates her decisions, and a pearl determines her life expectancy. Who knows if the owner of that piece of flesh led an honest life.

Truthfully the real culprit is the moon tonight. For though the moonlight exposes the cannibalistic act to deter others, the glimmer from her eyes and tail testify to the beauty that only it sees. An act of love between the moon and the siren, even if it is possessive. Eshini raises one of her eyebrows to the scene, carefully cleaning her tentacles before she begins to speak.

“I heard they caught two this time. Enough to feed both groups,” said Eshini.

“Yes, a father and daughter if I remember. Their vitality would be enough to strengthen the pearls of the group for the upcoming Big Feast. That feast will be flooded with vitality for everyone to gain their lives back.”

“Are you prepared?”

“As long as the current is favorable.”

“You need only to judge the rhythm of the current to maneuver the waves in your favor.”

Jala nods and closes her eyes, arms stretched out, tail straight. The sea vibrates for a moment while she maintains this position before reopening her eyes. Her navy-blue eyes glowing as she begins to judge the current for another minute. Then her tail glows as she uses its power to push the waters upward into a rogue wave. The wave builds up until she reaches the center and stops, Jala’s eyes and tail continuing to glow. A rare image of her original appearance. She scans her surroundings inside the enormous wave for any visitor that may lurk about. But the silence and tranquility only reaffirm the somber solitude for which she was sentenced, her face attempting to mask any hint of disappointment. Another flash of light and the wave descends into the current again.

The glow of her tail dimming as the current’s rhythm now matches her speed, her eyes returning to their navy-blue color. At one moment, her tail flickers and long, thick black lined shadows begin to surface near her, flowing at the same speed. Half of each line also flicker before illuminating into other tails swimming rapidly. The picturesque scene of a multitude of sirens swimming gracefully along the seabed, marred by wounds forever leaving tiny droplets of blood along their course. Hoping to attract any living organism they could feast to temporarily numb the effects of their curse. Many mermaids, mermen and sirens do not remember much about their pivotal encounter with Temoja except the pain of their transition. Some claim that her face is carved by the gold and treasures left from abandoned ships. Others claim that she lives within the depths of the Bermuda Triangle where she either entertains or devours any unexpecting guest. Of all the rumors, one is consistent: only she is responsible for the curse and so only she can lift its hold. Jala’s own memory fragmented as she tries to recall the day of her transition, unable to remember how she found herself inside the sea. The pain of transitioning from human to siren is undoubtedly excruciating, but it was the looming voice within the waters that retain its hold on Jala.

Another soul in turmoil has expelled themselves into me

Who’s there?

I am the sea where your life now dwells

My life? I don’t want to live here. Why am I here?

If I remember correctly, you came on your own. It was also your heart that called me.

Yet my body is in pain… especially my legs. Wait… they’re gone. What is happening?

You will soon have a tail to help you maneuver through the tides

A tail?! I don’t want a tail, nor do I want to stay here. I want my life back!

And what kind of life was that for you desperately want it back?

…

If you insist, I will help you on one condition. There are five seasons of clarity for you to experience, each containing a green pearl. Collect the green pearls to join the pieces of your own and you will have your life back.