Chapter 16
SIXTEEN
M o waited by the docks, hiding under the wooden planks away from view as he watched the crew board The Sterling Mer . He kept only his head above the surface, attempting to catch sight of his dear Kent. So far he hadn’t seen him, but with the sea of people flocking all around, it was hard to concentrate to find any singular person. Such a crowd, however, aided his stealth. So much chatter was booming, people paying attention to what was happening on land, that they would never even think to look in the water to notice him, as long as he stayed quiet.
Seagulls flew in circles overhead, creating a ring around the bright midday sun. It was a blessing that they were to leave on such a nice day, and Mo hoped the weather would continue to be in their favor for the entire journey. He himself would help as much as he could: scoping out the ocean ahead, asking passing sea creatures their advice, and leading the ship to clearer skies. With their plan now in full motion, Mo would do everything in his power to ensure Kent stayed safe.
He’d met Kent on the beach one last time the day before yesterday, and was filled in with the details that he’d discussed with the crew, along with how things went with his father. Mo was glad that everything was going swimmingly, it almost felt too good to be true. He really was going to be close to his human, together, every single day. Not just that, but they could be open about it to others; no longer did they need to hide the existence of merfolk from the humans around them. The only thing that could be better than this would be for Mo to become human himself. Which, perhaps they could find a way for him to, along the way.
Oh , and ereyesterday, they did more than just talk. Now with their newfound realization of their physical desires, they spent at least half their night simply pleasuring each other. Mo had never experienced a relationship as satisfying as this one. He never would’ve guessed that he would find himself courting a human in the first place, but then again, given his immense interest in humanity itself, he figured it was perhaps inevitable—or perhaps he was destined to meet Kent all along.
And then—he finally caught sight of Kent. Wearing a black cocked hat and an elaborate dark green coat, he walked past the mob of people and onto the dock. Their eyes met briefly, but as to stay as inconspicuous as possible as they’d discussed prior, Kent merely smiled and nodded. Mo did the same back; his cheeks feeling warm. This was it. Their chance for freedom. Kent headed up what Mo learnt was called a ‘gangway’ and boarded the ship, following behind the man Mo remembered was named Davies. The captain was last to board, calling out to everyone on land with one final hurrah.
The gangway was lowered, the ropes were untied, and the ship was off. The Sterling Mer glided through the water as men let loose her sails. Mo ducked his head under the water and swam deeper, memorizing what the underside of the craft looked like. If he were to be following along with her, he’d need to be able to identify her from any angle. He found something —a peculiar small strip of white paint was smeared on the rear bottom. Whether it was intentional or not, he’d no idea, but perhaps it was. Kent had mentioned how Captain Brooks used to have a mermaid companion. Perhaps she’d left it there long ago.
As they’d discussed prior, Mo wouldn’t resurface to meet Kent until the ship was quite a distance away from land. Over his shoulder and snug around one side of his neck was his carry-bag, holding some items he brought from his grotto home: extra coin, packaged squid, a sharp knife, and spare sea crystals in case he lost the one fastened to his necklace. He’d hunt for common fish like he usually would for the journey ahead, so food wasn’t much of a problem. He also figured if he were to join Kent on the ship, he’d get his fair share of delicious human food.
But where were he to sleep? He brushed the topic aside in his mind for the longest time, and figured he’d find safe sleeping spaces along the way, as they came. There were plenty of other merfolk cities in the ocean he could lodge at. Or if they weren’t available, perhaps there were vacant grottos he could occupy for a night. He couldn’t ask to sleep on The Sterling Mer ; he still feared the worst if he were to stay out of the water for too long. On his visits with Kent on the beach, he was only out for a few hours at most, and after some physical exertion, he’d felt more drained of his strength than ever until Kent returned him to the water.
Either way, he swam on. After some distance trailing the ship, he encountered a fin whale. He knew it was such, as by the easily spotted dorsal fin on its flat back, close to its tail. And it was large— from head to fluke, the whale was nearly as long as the ship above them. But Mo knew from his previous ventures that whales were always friendly to merfolk, despite their terrifying size. He took a chance, and swam closer to it.
“Good afternoon,” he said, slowing to a stop near its eye. He couldn’t physically speak in the same low tones as a whale, but due to his magic, it understood him anyway.
“Good afternoon,” replied the whale. “Are you traveling?”
“Yes, I am. I’m following that vessel that’s above us right now.”
The whale glanced upwards. “Ah, I see. It appears I am headed in the same direction.”
“Indeed.” Mo smiled. “My name is Mo. What may I refer to you as?”
“Your kind know me as Noon. I am she.”
“All right.” He nodded. “I’ve made it my duty to protect that ship and her crew. I’ll be following her for quite some time… possibly about three moons.”
“That is quite a long time to travel. But I have met merfolk who have swam such lengths before. Many, in fact. How do you plan to get by?”
Mo shrugged. “I figured I would find out as I go. The people on the ship plan to give me hospitality, but… there still are some things I’m unsure of. Which is why I thought I’d talk with you, if you have any insight.”
Noon hummed, closing her eyes for a moment before opening them again. “Do you have any arrangements for where you are to sleep?”
“No, not necessarily…”
“I have a way I can help you. If you are comfortable rising to the surface every so often, you may use my back as a bed. I can carry you along the same path as the ship.”
Mo’s heart raced, holding his hand to his chest. He couldn’t help a ridiculous grin from spreading on his face. “Are you serious? You don’t have to—I don’t wish to burden you. We’ve only just met.”
Noon gently shook her head, so subtle, but it nearly pushed Mo back from the force of her massive size. “You are of no burden. I have assisted merfolk like this in the past, and every single one has been nothing but kind to me, no matter who they were. I assume you are the same, with how you approached me. From what I can guess by your appearance, I am much, much older than you. I have seen many things.”
“I suppose so. I am but only twenty-five years old. I’ve never been away from home for that long before, so I deeply appreciate it. From the bottom of my heart,” he clutched onto his carry-bag’s strap, “thank you. Thank you so very much. What can I ever do for you? You are doing such a large favor for me without knowing me at all, so there must be something.”
“Tell me stories from on board the ship. That is all I ask.”
“That really is all?”
Noon let out what sounded like a laugh, deep and booming. “Yes. Humans are fascinating to me, and I will never tire of hearing the outlandish things that they get up to. It brings me immense joy.”
“Then I shall gladly tell you each and every story.” Mo laughed back. “I already have quite a few. One of the humans on board, he’s…” What could he call Kent? His friend? His companion? His beloved ? Such a strong word seemed too much to admit at the moment, especially to a creature he barely knew. “He’s someone dear to me, whom I care about. He’s what’s called a surgeon: someone who can heal and repair another’s body with use of knives, stitches, and bandages. You know what those are?”
“Oh, I know. I know much more than you could ever realize.” Noon boomed again, another chuckle.
It appeared as though Mo had just made a valuable and important ally for this journey. He wouldn’t take her for granted. He laughed as well, swimming alongside her as he kept an eye on The Sterling Mer above them.
On board the ship, Kent was shown where his quarters belowdecks were by the quartermaster himself, Edward Walker. As quartermaster, the only one with more authority was the captain himself. If men had any personal issues, they were to refer to Walker, first. Walker had curly black hair pulled back in a queue and warm brown skin, though he wasn’t the only one on board with his complexion. All sorts of men of different shades worked on The Sterling Mer, and Kent smiled as he greeted each one, being led through the corridors.
Kent was blessed with a room of his own—a small space where he found his flower-print suitcase leaning against a short dresser. Next to it was a wash basin on a wooden stand, and then in the far corner a chamber pot. There was no bed in the room, however. Instead, there was a decently sized hammock, strung along wooden posts near the window.
“I really have this room all to myself?” Kent couldn’t believe it, when so many of the crew had shared quarters.
“Yes, be thankful!” Walker laughed. “ The Sterling Mer is a large enough vessel to where the crew closest to the captain has their own spaces. Besides, my lord, you’re of nobility! And you should be treated as such.”
“Ah, yes, th-thank you.” Kent gave a sheepish smile back. While he didn’t want anyone to think of him as better than anyone else because of his status, he still appreciated the gesture. In fact, it was perfect—if Mo were able to join him here, they could have privacy. But Kent was hesitant to ask Walker that proposition; none of the crew had even met Mo yet, let alone had Kent admitted to the intimate nature of his and Mo’s relationship. So, he supposed he’d go about it slowly.
After continuing the tour of the massive ship with Walker, he was brought back above deck, and watched the men working on board. Captain Nathaniel Brooks stood at the raised helm—long blond hair flowing in the breeze under his feathered tricorn hat. Next to him was Thomas Allen: tall, broad, and handsome with striking orange hair, and appearing to be in his mid-thirties, like most of the crew. Allen was the same one who’d asked if Mo was a siren at the meeting, and Kent learnt he was the sailing master. Davies was talking with a few of the riggers tying knots on the sails, and various other mates scurried around in a spectacular dance. For the next few months, this ship was to be Kent’s home. And damn, if he wasn’t excited for what was to come.
But the most important part of this journey had yet to properly join him. Kent walked to the starboard side and leant against the railing, looking into the water. The vastness of the ocean was breathtaking, as the ship pushed through, creating white foam waves on the sparkling sea of blue. Waves, waves, waves. The ship bobbed up and down, wave after wave, and—it made Kent’s stomach bob as well. That was something he forgot could happen. Sea sickness.
He held on tight to the railing, steadying himself. At least he was at the edge, so if he had to vomit, he wouldn’t make a mess. Hopefully he wouldn’t have to at all, though.
Instead, he tried to focus. Where is Mo? They’d agreed to not meeting until the ship was quite a distance away from shore, but hasn’t it been long enough? Though, Mo was most likely busy of some sort, figuring out his surroundings underwater, or even just finding food. Kent couldn’t help but worry; what if he was in danger? If something happened to him, there was no way for Kent to help, and the thought of that frightened him tremendously.
But Mo was a merman. He knew the water better than anyone else—it was his home. He would be fine. Kent walked over to the port side, in hopes perhaps he’d see Mo from there.
Alas, his merman wasn’t there either. Calm down, calm down. His heart raced as his stomach did another flip. He held his grip tighter on the railing to steady himself, knuckles going white. I won’t vomit. I won’t. But anxiety only made the nausea worse, kicking his insides over and over, churning and churning. He squinted his eyes shut. He grit his teeth. He sucked in a breath through his nose?—
“Kent? Kent! Over here!”
He quickly opened his eyes. “Mo? Mo, is that you?” It could only be him; no one else on board would call him by his Christian name. He knew his voice, that smooth, deep melody that sang with excitement. Kent scanned the area, looking back down into the water?—
There Mo was, sticking his head and shoulders out of the ocean. The bright sun shone so beautifully on his wet, handsome face.
“I’m so sorry it took me so long!” Mo called out. The surface of the water was about a dozen or more feet away from the railing. “I needed to catch a bite to eat, and then I also met a new friend along the way.”
Kent raised his brows. “A friend? Was it another mer?”
“A whale, actually. I can tell you all about her.” He smiled sweetly—and Kent desperately wanted those rugged smiling lips touching him again already. “But to do that, can you see about me coming aboard?”
“Fareham, what on earth are you talking to—oh! Would you look at that!”
Davies came up to Kent’s side and peered over the railing as well. The boatswain’s dark brown hair was pulled back in a queue today, missing his hat. “Ahoy there! You must be Fareham’s merman.”
Even from this distance, Kent saw Mo’s face flush a little redder. He chuckled to himself at that. “Yes, I am,” said Mo. “Ahoy to you as well.”
“May we bring Mo aboard now?” Kent asked Davies.
“I don’t see why not! Here, let me tell the other lads.”