#failed attempt at human emulation from a clay construct

[naminethewriter]

How It All Began

Chapter Four: A New Deal

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Story Summary: Remus, son of a simple fisherman, had worked hard to become the captain of his own pirate ship. And in his humble opinion, it was going great! His crew was small but reliable and they had just stolen something that could them some nice cash from a military vessel they happened to cross on the open sea. They just needed to hide it somewhere until it was safe to sell. How lucky for them that they come across a nice, uninhabited island.

Little did Remus know just who he would find on that little piece of land and how it would change his life entirely.

Content Warning: Clay Construct that fails to emulate human anatomy, References to past Abuse, Riddles

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Logan was quite nervous. Janus had returned a few days after their last conversation to inform him that his patron wanted to speak to him in person about the request he made for Remus. She would arrive on the island the next day when the sun was at its apex to speak to him. It was just about time and Logan was pacing up and down his campsite. He was confident in Remus’ sincerity when making the request, he was unsure of whether he could properly convey as much to his patron.

Yes, he had talked with Lady Ala many times before but that still didn’t change her intimidating presence when he did. She was on the Council of Elemental Spirits for Nature’s sake! He could never meet her completely relaxed.

A rumble shook him out of his thoughts. No more time for worrying. She was here.

The ground under him vibrated as a mound of earth formed on the other side of the fire pit. It grew taller and taller, about seven feet before it formed humanoid features, a head with long hair and kind eyes on a slender body, smooth as the clay it was formed from. The limbs were just a bit too long and didn’t bend quite right which, along with the sheer height, made for an unsettling sight.

“Logan,” a melodic voice spilled past freshly formed lips that moved but didn’t have a mouth to conceal. “I hope you have been well.” Logan shook himself from his stupor and bowed. He had seen this process a few times before already, but it never failed to stun him.

“Yes, Your Grace. I haven’t been lacking.”

“Good. Good.” She smiled, her lips stretching too far along her face to seem human. “I am pleased to hear you make a request of us. I am always willing to hear you out, you know?”

“Yes, of course.” Logan did know that. Lady Ala had made it clear early on in their partnership that she wanted him to be comfortable in his new life since he had proven himself worthy of it. Still, Logan struggled with asking for more than the bare minimum he needed. His moss bed was something he had only been comfortable asking for after around fifty years of serving her.

“Though, this request isn’t technically for you, correct?”

“Indeed. It is for a… friend of mine.”

“You do not sound sure of using that title for him.” Her voice was as serene as before, but Logan felt like there was an edge to it. It must just be his nerves talking.

“We only briefly met but I do believe he is sincere. He spent a lot of time asking me questions about my… situation and was very forthcoming with personal information.”

“You spend such brief time together and yet he asked something so important of you?”

“It was a rare opportunity. There are few like me out there and there was no guarantee that we would meet again.”

“Is that what he told you or what you simple believe to be truth?”

Logan faltered. “He… did not tell me so outright but he implied as much before. And I do believe his intentions to be sincere. He does not wish to exploit you.”

“How are you so sure, my dear Logan? In such short time it is hard to find a person’s true character.”

“With all due respect, Lady Ala, but I am well acquainted with the sort of man who would seek you out solely to satisfy their greed.” Logan looked up at the clay construct that his patron had chosen to speak through. “I spent three years as their prisoner, unable to leave their ship. I know their eyes, the words they speak, the way they twist their words to present themselves in a better light. I know the ones that try to act like they pity me, that try to fool me into trusting them to get what they want. I spend three long years suffering under their hands. Remus is not like them. He is honest in his curiosity. He does not hide his blemishes. He has embraced who he is and forges his own path no matter what others say. He does not wish you harm or seek to exploit you. He is simply curious.”

Lady Ala was silent for a long moment, watching him from her high vantage point but Logan didn’t shrink under her gaze.

“You speak very highly of this person.”

“Yes, he is one of the most impressive people I have ever met. I think he deserves a chance to prove himself to you as well.”

“Very well. I will grant him a chance.”

“Thank you, Your Grace.”

“How could I not be intrigued by a man that you chose to put your trust into, my dear Logan? I was worried you were growing lonely recently.” She watched him attentively. Logan knew she saw him as one of her ‘children’ and that she cared about him more than his research, even if not everyone on the Council shared that sentiment. But he couldn’t see her in that light at all. She was superior to him, a being higher than himself, he couldn’t familiarize himself with her in that way. And she respected that, thankfully.

“I am very satisfied with my living conditions here, Your Grace. Janus and Virgil are companionship enough for me.”

“If you say so, I shall believe it.” She nodded her head and straightened her posture, towing at her full height over him. “Now then. In regard to the trial the human you call Remus shall face, along with those he travels with, I will leave it to Janus to deliver the quest. He will be his last judge. You will relocate as planned. You are not to provide aid to this human.”

“How could I aid him if I am away from here? I will be gone before he returns.”

“Indeed. However, I shall share with you the details of his quest. You are not to leave aid for him here when you leave.”

Logan frowned slightly but nodded. “Understood.”

“Good. Then listen.”

~~~

Two hours later, Logan walked across the island, following along the creek upstream. From what Lady Ala had told him, the trial Remus had to overcome to prove his worth wasn’t all that complicated, even if he knew that the instructions themselves would be presented in a riddle. Still, Remus was an intelligent man, Logan had no doubt that he would be able to figure out what he was meant to do. But there was one part of the trial that he supposed Remus could use some advice on. Lady Ala had forbidden him from aiding Remus in his quest, but Logan was sure he could leave a simple book recommendation behind for the pirate to find, right? He arrived at a familiar cliff and stuffed a ripped page from his notebook into his pocket and started climbing.

Once he returned to camp it was time to start packing. His time here was up. He just hoped he would encounter Remus again on another island somewhere out there.

~~~

Almost half a year. Remus hated that it took them almost half a year to return to Logan’s island. The damned navy wouldn’t give up controlling ships entering harbors in order to find the seal until last month. Being a pirate in general during those months had kinda been a pain, but they managed just fine. And now the whole thing had passed, and they should be able to smuggle the seal to a good buyer without much problem. Not that Remus cared that much about it anymore, he just wanted to see Logan again. The man had been haunting his dreams and maybe not just because he was an Immortal.

Maybe Remus just thought his eyes were pretty.

He was gay, fucking sue him.

Anyway, they were approaching their destination at a steady pace and should arrive there before noon the next day. Remus was so excited he considered not sleeping for the whole night. Which was a stupid plan, especially since he had already been sleeping less these past few days due to being too excited. He suspected that his crew knew they weren’t only returning to grab the seal but none of them had asked him any questions. He and Patton hadn’t told them anything about Logan so far and Remus didn’t want to share with them more until he was sure they would actually get the chance to prove themselves to the Elemental Spirits themselves.

A knock on his door pulled him out of his thoughts.

“Come in!”

His door opened but a crack before Patton’s voice floated over to him, “You’re decent, right, Captain?”

Remus snorted. “Yes, Pat. I got all my clothes on, don’t worry.” The cook peeked inside, only stepping across the threshold when he saw that Remus hadn’t lied.

“We’ll be at our destination about two hours after sunrise according to Corbin,” Patton reported with a small smile.

“Good.”

“The others are wondering how long we’re going to be docking there this time.”

“I have no idea, Pat. I guess it depends on what Logan’s got for us. If it’s just a straight up ‘no’ then I guess we would stay for like a day or two to chat, maybe introduce him to the rest of the crew if he’s chill with it. If it’s a ‘yes’ though… Well, then there’s no telling where it will lead us. As Logan said, we’ll have to prove ourselves worthy to meet the Council and whatever we have to do to do so? We’ll do it.”

“I understand. So, I’m telling the others to be ready to take off again whenever?”

“Yeah, pretty much.”

“Okay, got it.” Patton nodded while fiddling with his sleeves. “Are you really sure about this, Remus?” He asked quietly, almost too quiet for Remus to hear. He knew Patton had his doubts – well, he still had his doubts about their whole profession, but this was another other level of danger. Him using his name instead of his title just stressed how much it was on his mind.

“I’m super certain, Pat. If you don’t want to come along then I understand, of course. We’ll set you off at a good harbor.”

Immediately, Patton shook his head. “No, I promised I would stick with you, no matter what and I meant it! You saved my life, I’m staying.”

“Patton, I…”

“No, I know. You don’t see it as a debt and neither do I, I just want to help you.”

Remus sighed. “Yeah, I know. I just don’t want you to force yourself into danger for my sake.”

“I’m not. I want to meet the Spirits, too. I’m just worried what will happen if things go wrong.”

“Oh, I’m sure they will!” Remus laughed, winking at Patton. “But whatever happens, I’m sure we can handle it. We always managed before, haven’t we?”

“I wish I had your confidence,” Patton chuckled weakly. “But okay, I’ll give your orders to the crew. Try to sleep, Captain. Tomorrow is going to be a lot.”

“Yeah, I know. I promise, I’ll try to sleep. Goodnight, Pat.”

“Goodnight, Captain.”

~~~

True to Corbin’s word, they anchored by Logan’s island a little over two hours after sunrise. Remus and Patton were the only ones to set off towards land this time and the captain was determined to meet Logan on his own for now. Patton respected his choice and waited on the beach. Remus entered the jungle alone and thankfully he had a good memory and a trusty compass that guided him in the right direction towards Logan’s camp quickly.

He found the path he had traversed with Logan back then, but it was different than before. More overgrown. As if nobody had walked along it for a while. A bad feeling spread through Remus’ chest and he quickened his steps. Maybe he was just imagining it. Maybe Logan just hadn’t had a reason to come this way recently. Yeah, he was sure the nerd was fine. He had to be.

Still, the sense of dread wouldn’t leave him alone the entire way to Logan’s camp. His eyes flitted around without rest, hyperaware of every movement around him, though it was mostly leaves being swayed by the rather strong winds of the day. Remus tried to take deep breaths to calm himself down but that was kinda hard to do while powerwalking along an uneven path.

Ten minutes later he broke through the line of trees into the clearing that contained Logan’s camp.

And his heart sank.

There was nothing there.

Well, that wasn’t entirely true. The indent of the fireplace was still there but it was empty. As was the space under the stone awning that had previously held Logan’s bed and belongings.

No trace of the Immortal was left.

Remus gripped the locket on his chest through his shirt as his heartbeat picked up.

He panicked.

He began to run, calling out Logan’s name in the hopes that he was mistaken. He had to be on the island somewhere, right? Maybe he had just moved his camp for some reason. That was the only explanation Remus could think of.

Well, that wasn’t true, but it was the only positive explanation he could think of.

He forced himself to not think about the possibility that his request could have led to Logan suffering the consequences. That the Council had rescinded their blessing because he had been too greedy.

Remus ran, calling and calling, but he didn’t receive an answer.

He ran around like a headless chicken for about ten minutes until he broke through the tree line again onto a beach. Not the beach where Patton was waiting with the rowboat but a small bay that was quite hidden between two cliffsides. There, Remus stopped, gasping for breath. He leaned on his knees, staring at the sand beneath him as he tried to force air back into his lungs.

“You’re quite a loud one,” a voice commented. It wasn’t one Remus had heard before, but he was sure it was just in his head, after all, no one else but him and Patton were here. And Logan. Hopefully.

“I gotta…” He heaved for air. “I gotta find him.” Why was he talking to a voice in his head? Because he needed to sort his thoughts and talking out loud helped him with that.

“Why?”

“Because I told him I’d come back.”

“Well, he’s not here.”

“He has to be. If he’s not here then… where is he?”

“If this is about your meeting with the Council, I am here to speak with you about that.” Remus head snapped up. Maybe this wasn’t a voice in his head after all.

His green eyes met gleaming gold. A Siren sat on a stone jutting out of the sea in front of him, the tail disappearing under the waves lapping at the rock. The sun caused his scales to sparkle, and his long hair flowed in the wind like some sort of goddess paintings he had seen in the few temples he had visited.

“Fuck, you’re gorgeous,” Remus breathed. Apparently loud enough for the siren to hear because he raised a brow. “Sorry, you caught me off guard.”

“Yes, I noticed. So, the deal.” The siren opened his mouth to continue but Remus cut him off.

“Wait, what about Logan?”

“Why do you care? I’ll give you your task, that’s what you want, right?” His voice was cold, and Remus remembered Logan mentioning that both of the siren’s he made regular contact with weren’t fond of humans. This was probably one of them.

“I mean, I can’t say I don’t want it but I also wanna know if Logie’s okay. He’s my friend and if my asking him for an audience with the Council got him in trouble, I don’t want to meet them.” The siren looked at him skeptically, taking his time deliberating his words.

He seemed to deem him sincere after a few moments because he reassured him, “Logan’s fine. He just moved to another isle.”

“Why? Did I do something?” Again, the siren looked surprised.

“No. His relocation was decided long before you came here. It just happened to coincide with your appearance and request.”

“So I can go see him then? Wherever he is now? You know, right?”

“I do. But I’m not going to tell you.” The siren said it with a grin, showing off his sharp teeth. Remus scowled.

“Why not?”

“Because it would make this thing rather pointless, wouldn’t it?” From behind his back, the mer pulled a glass bottle into view. From the distance Remus could see it contained a role of paper. “This holds your instructions to prove yourself worthy of being considered for an audience, as you call it.” Remus watched as he played with the bottle, suspicious of the siren’s intentions.

“What’s the catch? And what does it have to do with me meeting Logan again?”

“If you do this correctly, then it will lead you to Logan’s new home and if you make it there in one piece, you will be allowed to take on the real tests to prove your honest intentions towards the Council. A trial run, I believe you humans call it.”

“Then give it here.” Remus held out his hand, ready to catch the bottle if thrown but the siren just smiled coyly and placed it back behind him.

“Not yet, I think.”

“Why?” The pirate grit his teeth in irritation. The mer was burning daylight, he wanted to get going, to figure out where Logan went.

“Because I’m not willing to acknowledge you as a candidate yet. Logan says he trusts you, but I don’t buy it. You two met three times and one of those you killed him. And yet he wants to give you a chance to meet the entities he has sworn to protect and serve? It doesn’t add up.” The siren stared at him with piercing eyes full of mistrust. Fine, he wanted to play this game? Remus would oblige.

“What do you want me to do then? To earn your trust?”

“I have questions for you. Answer them and I might give you the bottle. And don’t try to lie to me, I can tell when you do.”

With a sign, Remus let himself fall on his butt in the sand. “Shoot.”

~~~

Remus let himself be interrogated for hours. He answered the siren’s questions, no matter how private. At least the ones about himself. The mer also tried to get detail about his crew but Remus refused to offer up their information without their consent. He figured he did the right thing there when the siren didn’t push him further. Eventually the questions stopped and they simply stared at each other for a while. Remus didn’t speak up, daring the siren to continue badgering him.

“Fine. I have to admit, Logan’s seems like a better judge of character than I thought,” the mer sighed and threw the bottle in Remus’ direction. It landed a few feet to his left with a dull thud. Remus didn’t reach for it right away, watching the siren. “What are you waiting for, pirate?”

“What’s your name?”

“Why do you want to know?”

“I just want to know. Logan told me about two sirens that visit him and I think I know which one you are.”

“Oh, really?” the other asked, brows raised again. “Enlighten me then.”

“Janus, right?”

“Correct.” The siren looked like he had bit into something bitter as his name left Remus’ lips. “You have quite the memory.”

“I tend to remember things I find interesting. And I’ve always wanted to meet a siren.”

“You didn’t look so happy to meet me a few hours ago.”

“Yeah, ‘cause I was worried about Logan more. You promise he’s alright?”

“Yes. He is fine and doing his research like he’s supposed to.” Remus glanced at the bottle before meeting Janus’ gaze again.

“And if I manage to clear your trial, I can see him again.”

“Yes.”

“Okay.” Remus got up, shaking the sand off his pants before finally going over to grab the glass container and looking inside. It indeed was a rolled-up piece of paper. He put the bottle in his satchel to look at when he was back on the ship. “Thank you,” he said to the siren that looked surprised at his words.

“Why thank me? I kept you here and made you humor me.”

“Yeah, and that was kinda a dick move, but you also gave me a way to meet my friend again, so I’ll take it.”

“You’re strange, human.”

“So I’ve heard. Can I go now?” The siren waved his arm as if to shoo him off and with an eye roll, Remus walked back into the jungle. Behind him he heard the splash of Janus diving back into the water. He really hoped that one day he could bombard the siren with his own questions, but for now he had a seal to collect, a crew to return to and a piece of paper to pull out of a bottle and decipher. He pulled out his compass. Time to find his way back to the creek.

~~~

Around two hours later, Remus pulled Patton into his quarters. He had told his crew to set sail towards the harbor where he hoped to sell the seal. Meanwhile, he and Patton would see what was given to them by Janus.

“And you’re sure Logan’s fine?” Patton asked for the third time after Remus pulled the door shut behind him.

“I think we can trust the siren’s words, yeah.”

“I don’t like it.”

“Me neither, but there’s nothing else we can do. This—“ He held up the glass bottle. “—is the only clue we have, so let’s concentrate on that.”

“Yeah, you’re right. I just worry,” Patton sighed, sitting down in a chair in front of Remus’ desk while the captain sat behind it.

“I know, Pat. Let’s get you distracted.” With a grin, Remus held up the bottle, fully intending to smash it against the desk to break it open.

“STOP!” Patton all but screamed, eyes wide. “Captain, that’s a horrible idea! The shards would be everywhere. They will hit us!”

“Oh, right. Oops?” The other glared at Remus but didn’t say more. Instead, he took the bottle from Remus and inspected the neck and contents.

“I think the paper is wrapped tightly enough that it will just slip out if we pull the cork.”

“Boring!”

“Want me to get Emile so he can lecture you about safety procedures again?”

“Don’t threaten me, Pat, this is my fucking ship.” Despite his words, Remus’ tone was more akin to a whine than actual annoyance.

“Then don’t put yourself in harm’s way over a stupid message in a bottle.” Patton pulled out a corkscrew out of his pocket – he really carried that around with him? – and gently shook the paper out. It fell into his hands, and he handed it over to Remus who eagerly pulled away the piece of twine keeping it rolled up. It wasn’t very big and only a few lines were written on it. He read it out:

“To find where you need to go, visit the roaring mountain lying between the Mouth of the Ocean and the Ever-Frozen Isle. Offer your precious to the heart of the temple standing on the mountain’s side and then the stars shall guide you to your destiny.”

Both of them were quiet for a moment, trying to process the words. Remus read the note over and over while Patton stared at the ceiling in thought.

“I think I know what they mean by ‘Ever-Frozen Isle’,” Remus muttered, squinting at the paper in his hand, “but what the hell is a ‘roaring mountain’ supposed to be?”

“Couldn’t that mean a volcano?” Patton questioned. “I don’t know a lot about sea legends apart from what you told me since they weren’t common where I come from, but we did have some about volcano outbreaks. And in those there would be verses like ‘the mountains roared and the flames followed’ or something along those lines.”

“Hm, makes sense, I guess,” Remus hummed. “Then what is the ‘Mouth of the Ocean’?”

“I never heard of it. What do you think the ‘Ever-Frozen Isle’ is?”

“It’s a common legend about an Island in the south seas where it’s always winter. It’s supposed to be super beautiful but getting there requires sailing through quite a few hazards, not to mention that you need to be prepared for the freezing temperatures once there, so there aren’t many records about it.”

“Fascinating!” Patton was on the edge of his seat listening to Remus. “I would love to see it; I’ve never even seen snow!”

Remus laughed. “Maybe someday we’ll go there if we can find some stuff to protect us from the cold.” The other beamed. “Anyway, this will require research, I think. We’ll ask the others if they can think what any of this means but even if they do, we’ll likely need more precise coordinates and maps.” They’d most likely need to visit a library. Remus hated places that forced quietness. Patton looked at him empathetically.

“Maybe it won’t be so bad. Let’s see what the others think first? How much are we telling them anyway?”

“Just that we got something interesting going on and that they’ll get the details later. I don’t want to get their hopes up.”

“I understand,” Patton smiled weakly. He didn’t like secrets, but those were his captain’s orders, so he would stay quiet on the subject. He was about to stand and make his way to the door to gather the crew but suddenly stopped short. “Did you get the seal?”

Oh right. Over all of Patton’s worrying over Logan, he had forgotten to check the box he had retrieved from the hiding place the Immortal had shown them. He pulled the wooden container out of the satchel and placed it on the desk in front of him. Patton leaned closer to peek inside. Remus opened the lid to find the seal where he had left it, as well as a piece of paper that hadn’t been there before. He pulled it out, unfolded it and began to read.

Dear Remus (and Patton),

I apologize that I am not there to greet you, but I must to continue my research elsewhere.

This has been planned for a while and I cannot stall it any longer, nor do I truly want to.

If you are serious about your request, I am sure we will meet again soon.

Speaking of which, I was told not to aid you and I shall refrain from doing so, however, I wanted to share with you a rumor I heard while still at court before my time with the Spirits.

Back then there was talk of a book, written by a rather well-known researcher on the subject of Sirens and their culture. The man, Frederick van Woodsworth was his name, I believe, had been believed to been lost at sea for many years before he miraculously returned one day. He spoke of having been saved by a siren and living alongside them for a long period of time. Of course, he was deemed insane for his claims, after all, it was widely believed back then that Sirens are nothing but bloodthirsty creatures out to kill humans. Woodsworth was ridiculed and cast out.

He wrote his experiences down in a book and attempted to publish it but was detained for treason. The copies of his book should still exist, however. I heard of one of them being kept in the library of Marblerock Port, not far from here. It’s probably not accessible to the public, however.

I hope you find use in this tale.

Until we meet again,

Logan

Remus stared at the letter with a raised brow.

“What the fuck is he trying to say with this?!”

“I’m not sure,” Patton hummed, suddenly standing behind him and reading over his shoulder. “Maybe he just thought you might find it interesting since you told him you’d like to meet a siren one day?”

“I don’t know. I feel like he’s trying to tell me something, but I have no clue what.” Remus squinted at the letters, trying to will them to reveal their secrets to him. Nothing happened, sadly. “I don’t have the patience for riddles! And now I have two!” he groaned. Patton pat him on the shoulder.

“Let’s look on the bright side! You and I already have some leads on two parts of the riddle and I’m sure the others have something to contribute, too. And if we need to do some research anyway, going to this specific library works just as well as going to any other, right?”

“Yeah, I guess. Let’s see if the others can prove to me that it’s beneficial to keep them around.”

“That’s not nice!” Patton protested, but Remus was already moving past him.

“Relax, Pat. It’s just a joke. They could all break a leg tomorrow and I would let them stay, you know that. Hell, they can haunt me if they want, I still wouldn’t want to get rid of them.”

“Yes, I know,” Patton giggled, following his captain out of the room and up on deck.

“Okay, chucklefucks!” Remus called out loudly. “I’ve got a riddle for you and if you can help me figure it out, we can go on the adventure of our lifetime!”