3 A Gift from the Sea

"JAMAL!!! MAN THE WHEEL!"

Zac shout made his second mate ran to his side and grabbed hold of the wheel before he even let go.

Even in the dark sky, he could see it was a human head coming towards them. No, it was not big. He just has this keen sense of the living things around him.

The wave was getting closer and whoever this person was will be crushed and die by hitting his ship.

Zac was not going to allow that.

So he ran.

He looked at the ropes that his crew was pulling, trying their best to secure the sails. One snapped and was swinging wildly. He grabbed it, sprinting on the deck till he reached the railing, and then he leapt.

Like an action film on its very climax, everything moved in slow motion.

Jamal saw what his captain was going to do and directed the ship in that direction. As soon as Zac lept, the sea dropped the body onto his outstretched arms.

Yes, dropped.

Zac was also shocked that he looked at the wave that was supposed to hit 'His Precious', slowly receding. He had to blink several times, because the water currents somehow spoke to him.

"Care for her…"

Her?

Confused, he looked at his baggage and noticed how silver the strands of hair were. The second his feet touched the ship's deck, everything began moving back to normal.

Not only that, but the sky and the sea began to normalize again. The turbulent waves died down, the dark clouds faded as if nothing happened.

Yet the body in his arms tells him otherwise.

Zac could see Jamal observing their horizons. Everything was quiet again. The sudden storm that nearly demolished his ship and crew for thirty minutes, became a figment of memory.

Looking around though, everyone was in a daze.

Jamal ran to where he was, on the way to his side, he saw him tapped Marcus shoulder, indicating for a swap. The other man nodded and started shouting orders to everyone.

"Captain, are you – the stars is that?!"

Zac looked down and saw what the sea had 'dropped' on him.

A woman.

A naked woman, whose skin was fair and…filled with scars.

Some of fhe scars that were red and infected. Her chest was ridden with welts, the same with her thighs. Her arms were scar free, but her back spoke of a different story.

Her silver hair was almost covering her face. It smelled like salt water and seaweed but it did not diminish the fact that she there was a beautiful face hidden underneath that wet hair.

Jamal threw a wet shirt over her. Zac was grateful for it. It was hard to move when both arms were occupied.

"Did the sea just drop a mermaid?!"

Zac had to groan internally. There were times that his second mate would lose most of his brain cells when a body of a naked woman was in front of him.

"Do you see a tail?" Zac dryly asked.

Silence, then, "No, but I can alway –"

The rest of his words were drowned by a kick on his leg. "I will be giving you more than a kick on the leg if you try anything else."

There was something about the tone of Zac's voice that made Jamal raise his eyebrows. Whatever it was it must have been that dire for him to…

"Take charge, see how much damage it caused, and if our supplies are still okay. Report to me after, I will see to her wounds at my cabin."

His crew had noticed something was amiss and was now trying to get a closer at the woman he caught. Zac felt a bit protective and made sure to cover all her private parts before standing up.

"You heard the captain! Move you lazy scallywags! Those damaged parts won't scream and say, "Heal me!", Imitating a voice of a damsel in distressed, "So move your tush and work!"

Zac shook his head and adjusted the woman in his arms. They needed to warm up, her pale complexion was not boding well for him. She was also starting to shiver as well.

She was on the curvy side, yet it didn't bother him one bit. The rest of her hair fell down, uncovering her face. Her lips were cracked and it looked like she had a cut in her forehead. Her nose also looked like it had been broken too many times.

Zac anger built. Whoever did this to her, has no right. Women were not supposed to be hurt, even if they were causing too much mischief.

There were ways to punish them, but never like this.

The sea was calm, making it easy for him to climb down the lower deck. One of the younger mates saw him and ran ahead of him. The boy opened his door and began to pull the cover off the bed.

"Thank you, lad. Could you bring some hot water so I can bathe her?"

Zac waited for a reply, none came. Irritated, he looked back at the boy, only to realize who the boy was.

It was the mute boy they rescued a while back. It was rare for him to see this boy, yet here he was. Anxiousness was written all over his face as he looked at the woman on his bed.

"Raze? Lad, look at me," Zac said in a soft voice, he waited till the boy's eyes were upon him before he continued, "she will be okay, I will take care of her. But I need your help, okay?"

Raze was wringing his hands in nervousness, Zac touched it, and gave him a reassuring pat. It must have come across, because he nodded and wiped the tears that were in the corner of his eyes.

"Call Brent and ask for his help," Brent was one of his older crew members who had taken Raze as his mentee. "We need some dry clothes for her…"

Zac could only gape at what was happening in front of him. Raze must also have the same expression. What they were seeing was something no one had seen for more than a million years.

They were actually witnessing a myth coming true.

Her silver hair began to change color as each strand began to dry. The silver color slowly faded, and was replaced by a midnight shade that made her look more vulnerable.

Zac could only watch because the last person who had this trait died.

The Silver King. The most powerful person in his world. He died more than 100 million years ago.

So who was she?