guppy.
part four of 'the vengeful feminine'.
The tide rises and falls like lungs across the coast.
Endless blue is interrupted with a blotch of red.
A lone sailor is pushed onto the shore.
His jacket is torn open, revealing a gaping gash
across his chest.
His face is similarly deformed and his leg is missing.
A call from the dunes rips through the air.
The sailor is swarmed by a lone wanderer.
They lay a hand on his shoulder and he wakes with a scream.
“Send me back! Send me back!” He cries,
“I want to go to her, let me go to her, please!”
His eyes are wild and manic as he begs.
Across the horizon, a haunting voice sings.
The sailor launches his body forward and begins to
crawl and claw at the sand to return to the murky depths.
Amongst the waves, a water-drenched head of hair watches.
She crawls onto a nearby rock, shedding the ocean like a cloak.
Her skin is translucent, her fingers long and webbed.
Her eyes, black and dead, as though the pupil has consumed the sclera entirely.
She tilts her head to one side as she watches the sailor struggle towards the sea.
The wanderer watches as she screeches in horror when the sailor
makes contact with the water.
Her tail, long, slimy and scaly, thrashes against the tide.
Splashing aggressively, as if to warn away and threaten them.
They watch as the sailor swims desperately toward her.
The creature goes still as she simply watches his approach.
Waiting for something. Waiting for attack.
Her voice sings again, but it is not a lure.
It is an alarming wail, filled with menace and fear.
As the sailor reaches the rock, she stares with her endless black eyes.
She does not move. She stays still, as though frozen.
The sailor reaches out and grabs her, pulling her from the rock.
A cry is ripped from her lips, revealing rows of razor sharp teeth.
She is small, almost child-like, the sailor dwarfing her in size.
He easily overpowers her struggle and lays a kiss to her mouth.
Predator and prey, the wanderer cannot tell which is which.
The creature then strikes, cracking open her jaw and biting down.
Blood pours as she gnaws at his face before ripping away.
The sailor screams, warped and gargled through his disfigurement.
Her fingers scratch at his shoulder, tearing the flesh and
shedding a deep red into the water.
Her other arm reaches from beneath the waves and
clasps the top of his head.
His head is pushed down into the deep.
The creature pushes and pushes until she too disappears
into the ocean, the wanderer cannot see anything.
Moments pass as the water is stained with crimson.
Bubbles surface and pop, as though you could see
the sailor’s lungs burst with their final breath.
The creature resurfaces, with wild eyes and a blood stained chin.
She does not look towards the shore.
She lets out one final warning wail, so sharp it pierces the ears of the wanderer.
The creature swims away and disappears beyond the horizon.