The Siren

Prologue:

Bats sung a melody of various screeches to the moon, as their wings danced in the reflection of the glowing water. The shimmering surface only showed the twinkling stars and the murky depths were left unknown. Unknown except to one, the man wading into the darkness following the exposed back of a woman. Her long hair trailing in the water behind her, spread out like seaweed on an ocean surface. The woman began to settle into the water, and turned so only her eyes were available. Her eyes. They glowed green so light they were almost translucent. She lifted a hand, beckoning the man to her. The water droplets trickling down her pale skin and bouncing off light, creating the look of luminosity like a pearl. The man drifted closer to her, the black water up to his hips. His arms reached her face, cupping it, his eyes transfixed by her hers. He slowly brought her face up to his, pulling her out of the water. She rose to meet him, as if to kiss. The moonlight revealing her torso of scales. Scales of the deepest green with wicked sharp ends that gleamed to slice. The man began to real back in shock, arms flailing as he tried to turn to swim away. A serpentine like tail breaking the mirrored surface of water and wrapping around his neck, yanking the man to the body of the girl. She smiled at him, the skin around her mouth tearing and revealing a dark hole. She closed her mouth, holding him to her, her claw like nails ripping into his back. The man went limp and she released him, slipping back into the murky depths to prepare for her next prey. The man's body left grey, lifeless and hollowed out, as if she had not only sucked out his soul but his blood.

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Yet another image for our newspaper depicting a dead male washed ashore, was handed to me across the table by my boss. I inspected the way the skin clung to the bones of the lifeless body wondering how it could have happened. Although, judging by the way my boss was observing my inspection of the image, it would be my job to find out. Smoke curled from his cigar as he flicked it before putting it out. It was now my cue to listen, although my journalist senses were telling me, this was my story.

Arriving at the lake was easy, getting to the location the body was found, not so much. The forest that surrounded the lake was thick, and blocked out the sun almost entirely, making it feel like night and a fog crept up on me, the closer I got. I eventually broke free of the ferns holding me captive, falling onto a sandbank. I stood and as I looked up, the view almost sent me back to the sand. A large lake was spread before me, so beautiful that no photo could have prepared me. The shallow water was clear, the sunlight shining through it like glass so I could see the seaweed dancing to soundless music. The deeper the water got, the darker it became, the sunlight only breaking through a couple of centimeters leaving the depths below a mystery. I bent down, reaching for the water, my fingertips brushing the surface creating ripples that shimmied across the expanse of the lake. The water was cool to touch, not freezing, but not warm either. I glanced around one more time, wondering who would spoil such scenery with a dead body. As my eyes drifted back over to the surface of the water, I noticed large ripples coming towards me. Confused, I let my eyes follow them back to where they started, my sight darting around to find the cause. In the corner of my eye, I saw movement, causing my head to snap to the left in time to see a reptilian looking tail slip under the water. I stared at the spot, trying to make sense of what I saw, and that's when I noticed something that had been nagging at the back of my mind the whole time. The lake and area surrounding it were completely silent, and void of animal life. Not a bird to be seen or a rabbit in the ferns covering the forest floor around the lake. Deciding my time here during the day was up, I decided it was time to leave, and that I would return when the evening came to see the last sight the man saw before he died. I turned, and began my trek back through the forest, fighting against branches to stop me from leaving.