Chapter 404:
Lorelei
It is warm.
I move closer into the warmth, curling toward it like a creature seeking shelter from the cold. The heat seeps into my skin, into my bones, into the parts of me that have been frozen for years.
I drift back into dreamless sleep.
*
When I wake, I do not know where I am.
I look around. Wooden walls. Wooden ceiling. A small window that looks out onto open water. Human accommodations.
My heart races.
I sit up immediately, my hands searching, reaching—
The egg.
I find it.
It rests on the chest of the human. She sits in front of a... picture? I watch as she adds color to the surface, bringing something to life with small, precise movements.
On some days, I would not hunt the ships. I would observe them instead, hidden beneath the waves, listening to the humans talk. I think... this must be... painting?
I have heard the word before. I have never seen it.
I look at the picture.
It is me.
