Chapter 2: The Devil and the Deep Dark Ocean

In the greatest depths of the ocean, the inescapable darkness of the Mariana trench a underwater wave spreads perturbing the ocean life around it and emitting a powerful red light. In it's origin a gate of never seen proportions just opened and from it, something unexpected appears. A woman, or at least half of one and the other half with a fishlike nature, her beautiful scales shining with all the colors one can imagine and brown her reflecting the slight light of their scales. Her size comparable to that of an blue whale, no... even bigger than one. In this place where no one can see her, a scowl of fear and doubt is stamped on her dazzling face as she softly holds something small in her hands.

Meanwhile up at the surface of the sea a naval battle is raging furiously, canons explode with fury, releasing balls of energy at the neighboring vessel, that shook furiously in the raging water. Many men and women fought mercilessly with weapons of many different varieties, such as blades, swords, hammers, guns  and even magic seemed to be thrown around as the great skies above darken like the very depts of the ocean were reflected in the heavens.

"Die motherfuckers!" A womanly voice screamed at the top her lungs while severing the head of an enemy. Turning around, her long red hair swaying in the wind, she shot her pistol but what left it was no bullet but a rush of insanely pressurized water that exploded the torso of another. "This is getting out of hand Edward! None of this was part of the plan!" She shouted upwards where Edward in his trademark black shirt, jeans and blue scarf was fencing his two blades against two different enemies while maintaining his balance in one of the vessel's masts.

"Hey! How was I to know that such a powerful cohort of blooded would be here?! They hadn't even appeared above deck until this madness begun!" He retorted furiously as his blades shone in red deflecting an ice lance that was headed to his torso, while also severing the arm of the other attacker. "In the first place, you're the one who wanted the spoils of this specific ship!"

"Yeah but YOU are the one who had to make a plan and research the ship as you know that I suck at that kind of thing!" She retorted running toward one of their cremates having a hard time and stabbing his opponent at that back of the head.

"T-thanks Fortune!" The man said turning around and begging another skirmish.

"No problem!" She answered. "Try to not get yourself killed." Heavy rain had begun to fall at this point making Anne that much deadly of an opponent due to her water affinity. The fighting went on for what seemed an eternity for those involved. Bloodied, every muscle of their body sore and drenched in sweat the pirates and their enemies barely noticed what was transpiring around and below them.

Back in the depths the mermaid looked behind her, fearfully and began her ascent to brighter waters, when out of the gate a bellowing roar can be heard, one which shakes the very foundation of the ocean and which later would be mistaken for a seaquake of calamitous proportions. Even those amidst the frenzied battle above felt it as a huge whirlwind began forming in the water below. From the mystical portal several tentacles, eyes and gapping jaws swam forward with no hesitation or though, just bloodlust.

Suddenly a cold current with the force of a thousand hurricanes ascends after the mermaid .

Noticing the commotion behind her she uses all her strength to propel herself faster as a wave of monstrosities chases her around the murky waters. An incomprehensible creature, a chimera of a megalodon shark and a kraken extends it's abhorrent tentacles towards her fin which shines in bright energy and cuts her way free with unbelievable swiftness.  She swims between rock formations which are destroyed in a deathly rumble behind her, now a sort of seawater piranha swarm tries to surround her as she draws a weapon out of thin air, a golden trident. Spinning it like the blades of a helicopter she tore trough the flesh eating fish in seconds, despite receiving a few wounds from the same. Every inch of ocean water seems to be pulling her backwards and making the strain on her body double and the blood seep out of her wounds hemorrhage. She gives her all and in a mad dash heads to a sunken ship on the ocean floor to hide and gather her strength. Inside, she swam in huge hall, probably some of the only rooms in the vast vessel that would fit the huge mermaid. She gets a few more seconds of respite before the whole thing begins shaking, lifted up by uncountable tentacles and torn apart by maws of not just the previous megalakraken but also a squid with three heads and dozens of tentacles and beaks around it's entire body. Steeling her resolve, she thought: " It doesn't matter the cost I must get him away!" Energy swelled with her as a torrent of water tore the ship apart and sent the sea leviathans hundreds of meters away giving her space to slip away. Many smaller monsters of the sea were attacking her and drawing blood but she ignored them all only fighting back against the bigger and more deadly abominations while letting out a guttural siren cry. The water was turning ever brighter as she approached the surface, the deadly whirlpool storming around, constantly refracting the light on her sparkling scales and beautiful figure.

Up on the surface all hell broke loose, as the whirlpool grew larger and larger, the ships began crashing into each other. Splinters flew as bullets hitting those unlucky enough to be on their trajectory tearing through flesh and bone. Many were thrown off board where they were met with violent waters and possibly even monsters waiting to grab a quick bite. Only those highly proficient in fighting on rough waters like Anne, Ed and the commander of the blooded from the enemy ship could even keep their balance. Anne took the opportunity to finish off as many enemies as she could, sliding, jumping and dashing while cutting and shooting, both blade and gun with their own personal whirlpool following edge and bullet. That is until she was interrupted with heavy blow to the side of her chest, sending her flying and hitting the rails on the sides of the ship, twisting their metal outwards.

"Anne Fortune! Captain o the fortunate pirates! You guys choose the wrong ship to attack this time! Even if you escape, the government will hunt you down like the rabid dogs you are!" The man had a white cap, pale skin, black hair and an eye patch on his left eye. In his hand a heavy warhammer which he masterfully wielded with a single hand.

"Like we give a damn! When did you government asses ever even treated any of us as human beings?!"

He moved to deliver another deadly blow at the already wounded pirate when, from his blind side something hit him full force. It was Ed, swinging on a rope cut from the mast where he was before.

"Yo ugly! What ya think you doing with my Anne?!"

He was about to throw him off the rope and into the stormy waters when something he had failed to account for happened. The ships had endured enough pressure from crashing at each other constantly and thus the masts, like two blades in a furious clash, broke and fell into the ocean with a deafening splash. Both men had fallen.

"Shit! Edward!" Anne grunted trying to get up having at least a couple of broken ribs. At this point the waves were washing over the ship's hull and the frenetic fighting had died down as everyone's priority became survival in the fierce weather.

She finally got herself up and walked to the safety rail on the side of the ship and looked at the waters in apprehension.

"C-captain you aren't thinking of-" Before the crewmate who was saved earlier could even finish, she dove right in. The water was cold, way colder than usual,  redder too with the blood of those who fell into the sea of violence. Some bodies slowly floated like they were suspended in time entirely while others were trashed and tossed about in current. If she didn't have her water affinity she would've ended up just like them, raggdolled until she drowned.

Every bit of her instinct screamed to get out of the sea, which seemed entirely different from what she was used to, but she held herself steady, honing in on her senses and focusing beyond mental strain. Willing the water to help on her endeavor she began searching for the mast which Ed was strapped to. In just a few seconds, she found what she was looking for, drifting deeper and deeper the mast was dragging her man to the unfathomable depths. The current of her power begun taking her closer and closer when she realized a swarm of monsters feasting on the corpses all around. " God damn It, couldn't be easy could it?"

She focused and tried keeping the water shifting around her still, disturbing the area as little as possible, had there not been a considerable amount of blood in the water already, her wounds would already given her away and turned her into lunch for the monstrous fish the size of car. The pressure of going deeper and deeper made her ears pop as she was finally getting closer to her beloved unconscious the rope completely connecting him to the mast extended upwards. That's when she saw it, behind him, deeper than what could even be imagined something was making a quick ascent something shiny and, opposite to herself, was using the very flow to make its ascent. Swimming faster and preparing for battle against a vastly superior opponent she finally reached Ed, she immediately made a water blade and began cutting the rope which he was strapped to. "I won't make it! That thing will reach me!" Despair had gripped the lady's heart when the human-like forme was made clear.

Meeting eyes with the great mermaid that was only a few meters away, in a split there was almost  a semblance of understanding was between the two and then Anne looked behind her and saw it. A horrendous view straight out of hell, the monster horde from the depths... unending mouths, eyes,. squirming tentacles and darkness on a colossal scale eagerly awaited. Now fear was almost overwhelming the young woman when a smile appeared in the mermaids face at the same time as rope snapped and again tied, this time to Anne herself. A hand was extended and as it opened a small bundle flowed to Anne's arms. "A child?!" she thought. "What do ya freaking want?! how am I to swim up with two dead weights?!"

Before the thought could even finish in Anne's mind a bright radiance surrounded the mermaids scales and as if it was the most natural thing in the world a true geyser of seawater sent the trio upwards in extreme speeds. The pirate thought she saw the mermaid's lips move: "Take care of him." And thus they were launched up in the air high above the ocean waves which formed a sort of reverse whirlpool beneath them.

Fortune used her last ounce of strength to accumulate the water suspended in the air around them forming a Buble of protection before they crashed in the solid wood ground of the ship.

Below water the mermaid was longingly staring up, but she knew her work wasn't over, her radiant spell had attracted the attention of everything with a deadly maw in kilometers of water around her. And with a stoic determination in her blue eyes she swam away in mad dash the furthest away from her beloved child as she could the swarm of abominations tailing her.

Back on the ship a baffled crew eyed their captain and first mate while an unexpected sound ringed in everyone's ears. The sound of a crying baby.