An old wooden dock
At the rear of Nocturna
Provides access
To the narrow city canal.
Used by occasional delivery barges,
And small wooden
Personal craft.
Often frequented by
An ornate wooden
Steam Launch
Owned by
Captain Abercrombie Marlowe.
Stepping from her
Polished timber deck today,
Is the Captain’s daughter,
Selena Marlowe.
As Selena stepped ashore,
Her dark hair
Still carried the scent
Of river water.
Ms Marlowe is a renowned
Nautical folklorist,
And is visiting with her father
This evening
To meet with Artemis Fogg,
Cartographer,
Folklore enthusiast,
And, according to the Captain,
A scallywag.
The Captain’s impression
Of Fogg
Is due to the fact
That the handsome young rogue
Has apparently stolen
The heart
Of Ms Marlowe.
The pair,
Have been smitten with each other
For some time
And have chosen this evening
To officially celebrate
Their recent engagement
With a small gathering
Among friends.
Captain Marlowe
Stepped onto the dock
First.
Surveying the narrow canal.
Then the young man
Waiting beside it.
Artemis Fogg
Was neatly dressed,
Dark-haired,
Bright-eyed,
And smiling
Far too confidently
For a man
About to meet
His prospective
Father-in-law.
Marlowe regarded him.
Fogg regarded Marlowe.
and neither spoke.
Selena sighed.
“Father.”
“Aye.”
“You promised.”
“I promised to be civil.”
“You also promised
Not to interrogate him.“
“I said
I would endeavour
Not to.”
Artemis smiled.
“Captain.”
“Mr Fogg.”
“I believe
We’ve already met.”
“Aye.”
“At the club.”
“Aye.”
“Twice.”
“Aye.”
“Then perhaps we’re making progress.”
Marlowe narrowed
His pale grey eyes.
“Don’t get ahead of yourself, lad.”
Selena laughed.
And took
Her father’s arm.
Together
They walked
Towards Nocturna.
Behind them,
The small boat
Rocked gently
Against the dock,
Its brass fittings
Glittering beneath
The lamps.
A small brass plate
Upon the stern
Carried its name.
THE MERMAID’S TALE.
Nobody,
It seemed,
Had ever thought
The name particularly
Coincidental.
Inside Nocturna,
Marcel Carreau
Had already assumed
Command of the evening.
As Manager,
Host,
And occasional instigator,
He had inspected
Every room,
Every table,
Every bottle,
And every candle.
Daniel Hargraves
Guarded the entrance.
Gideon Rook
Moved silently
Between the dining room
And bar.
Edgar Brillows
Was preparing rum.
A considerable amount
Of rum.
Mabel Cobble
Was overseeing
The tea service.
And Mason Grey
Had arrived
With several carefully selected
Tea chests,
Each containing
A different blend
For the evening’s courses.
Madame Akiko Tsukishiro
Had contributed
A small arrangement
Of pale sea-coloured flowers
From the Botanic Collection.
Masaru Endō
Had spent the better part
Of an hour
Trying to prevent them
From being knocked over.
He had failed twice.
By eight o’clock,
The guests
Had gathered.
Walter Crookshank
Was first to approach
The Captain.
“My dear Marlowe.”
“Crookshank.”
“I hear congratulations
Are in order.”
Marlowe grunted.
“They are.”
Walter smiled.
“And?”
“And what?”
“Do you approve?”
The Captain looked across the room.
Selena was laughing with Artemis.
“Ask me at the end
Of the evening.”
Walter chuckled.
“Then I shall.”
Nearby,
Denham Carter-Smythe
Had begun studying
A map spread
Across the dining table.
Artemis approached.
“Thirteenth-century?”
Denham looked up.
“Fourteenth.”
“Apologies.”
“Most people make that mistake.”
Artemis leaned closer.
“You’ve marked the Phantom Isles.”
“Of course.”
“But they aren’t real.”
Denham adjusted his spectacles.
“That is precisely
Why they are interesting.”
Selena joined them.
“The Phantom Isles
Appear in three
Different maritime traditions.”
“Four,”
Said Artemis.
She smiled.
“You’re counting the Breton account.”
“I am.”
“Most folklorists consider that derivative.”
“Then most folklorists are wrong.”
Selena stared at him.
Then smiled.
“That’s why I love you.”
From behind them,
Captain Marlowe
Made an unhappy noise.
Walter heard it.
And laughed.
The first course arrived.
Gideon Rook
Served it with quiet precision.
Mabel followed
With tea.
Mason Grey
Watched each guest
Take the first sip.
Dante Ververs
Raised his cup.
“Excellent.”
Mason bowed.
“Thank you.”
“Smoky.”
“Precisely.”
“With a hint of something maritime.”
Mason smiled.
“Juniper.”
Dante considered this.
“Naturally.”
At the other end of the table,
Oleg Bloom
Was examining
A small parcel
He had brought
For Selena.
Latty Flouse
Whispered to him.
“Are you certain that is appropriate?”
“Entirely.”
“You found it in a swamp.”
“A very old swamp.”
“That doesn’t make it romantic.”
“It might.”
Latty looked at the parcel.
Then at Oleg.
“Fair enough.”
When dinner had reached
Its second course,
Marlowe rose.
The room quietened.
He lifted
His glass of rum.
“To Selena.”
Selena smiled.
“To Artemis.”
Artemis raised his glass.
“And to whatever fool
Agreed to let him
Marry into this family.”
Laughter
Filled the room.
Marlowe stared at him.
Then,
Against his better judgement,
Laughed too.
“Well played, lad.”
The Captain sat.
Walter leaned over.
“Progress.”
“Don’t push it.”
The gifts then began.
Walter Crookshank
Was first.
He approached
Artemis carrying a long,
Flat parcel.
“For the cartographer.”
Artemis opened it.
Inside was an antique
Coastal chart.
Its paper was yellowed
With age.
Its coastline was unlike
Any coastline on any modern map.
“The Whispering Straits,”
Walter explained.
“Or so the sailor
Who sold it to me insisted.”
Artemis ran a finger carefully
Along the ink.
“Where did he claim it was found?”
“Inside a bottle.”
“At sea?”
“No.”
Walter smiled.
“Inside a church.”
Artemis laughed.
Selena looked delighted.
“A fine beginning.”
Walter nodded.
“For a man who draws maps
Of places he hasn’t yet visited.”
Marlowe grunted.
“Good lad.”
Walter raised an eyebrow.
“Was that approval?”
“No.”
“Sounded remarkably like approval.”
“It wasn’t.”
The Captain drank.
Denham Carter-Smythe
Then presented
A small leather case.
“For you, Miss Marlowe.”
Selena opened it.
Inside lay a brass star-taker,
Beautifully engraved
With stars
And navigational markings.
“A reproduction?”
“Certainly not.”
Denham adjusted his spectacles.
“It belonged
To a Venetian navigator.”
Selena stared.
“You’re giving me this?”
“I’ve no further use
For it.”
“Why?”
“Because I have discovered
That the stars
Are considerably easier
To understand
When one is not at sea.”
Artemis laughed.
Selena kissed
The old scholar
Upon the cheek.
“Thank you.”
Denham smiled.
“Use it well.”
Madame Akiko approached next.
She carried a small black box.
“This,”
She said,
“is for both of you.”
Inside
Was a pressed specimen
Of a strange sea-green flower.
Its petals
Were almost transparent.
Selena leaned closer.
“Where did it grow?”
“On a cliff.”
“Near the sea?”
Akiko smiled.
“Very near.”
Artemis looked at the flower.
“What is it?”
“Nobody knows.”
Selena laughed.
“Then it is perfect.”
Akiko nodded.
“Some things should remain
Uncatalogued.”
Masaru,
Standing behind her,
Quietly added,
“She means
She hasn’t finished
Cataloguing it.”
Akiko looked at him.
“No.”
Masaru sighed.
Mason Grey then stepped forward.
He presented a small tea chest.
Inside were four porcelain jars.
“Four maritime teas,”
He explained.
“The first
Is smoked over
Salted oak.”
Selena opened it.
“The second
Contains sea buckthorn.”
The third was scented
With juniper.
“And the fourth?”
Mason smiled.
“A blend I call The Siren.”
Artemis raised an eyebrow.
“And what does it do?”
Mason looked at Selena.
“That depends
upon who drinks it.”
Artemis laughed.
“I’ll take two.”
Marlowe looked suspiciously
At Mason.
“Just one.”
Mason smiled politely.
“Of course, Captain.”
Mabel Cobble appeared next,
Carrying a small silver tea strainer.
“For your voyage.”
Selena examined it.
Tiny mermaids
Had been engraved
Around its rim.
“How beautiful.”
Mabel smiled.
“I thought it appropriate.”
Artemis looked at the strainer.
“Does it have a story?”
Mabel glanced at the Captain.
“Everything at Nocturna
Has a story.”
Captain Marlowe
Coughed into his hand.
Mabel smiled.
“Some are simply
Better left
For another evening.”
The Captain looked relieved.
Oleg Bloom then presented
His parcel.
Selena opened it.
Inside was
A piece of pale,
Calcified coral.
It was covered
With delicate
Mushroom-like growths.
“What is this?“
“A specimen
From a coastal cave.”
Oleg explained.
“An unusual symbiosis
Between coral
And a marine fungus.”
Latty interrupted.
“Or so Oleg believes.”
Oleg looked at her.
“It is…”
“Probably.”
Selena laughed.
“I love it.”
Oleg nodded.
“It seemed appropriate.”
Latty then produced her own gift.
A tiny glass vial
Filled with
Pale blue spores.
“For the folklore.”
Selena held it to the light.
“What are they?”
“Bioluminescent fungi.”
Artemis looked impressed.
“Could they grow on a ship?”
Latty considered.
“Possibly.”
“Would they glow?”
“Possibly.”
“Would they kill us?”
“Possibly.”
Artemis looked at Selena.
“Wonderful.”
Selena laughed.
Silas Pembroke approached next.
His gift was wrapped
With scholarly precision.
Inside was an old book.
A collection
Of maritime legends.
Its leather cover
Was almost black.
“The first edition,”
Silas explained.
“Of a particularly
Poorly researched compendium.”
Selena smiled.
“Then why give it to me?”
“Because,”
Said Silas,
“poorly researched books
Are often the most useful.”
Iris Pembroke added,
“They tell you which parts
To investigate.”
Selena opened
The book.
Several passages
Had been marked in pencil.
“Did you both annotate this?”
Silas nodded.
“For thirty years.”
Iris smiled.
“Your father
Would have burned it.”
Everyone looked at Marlowe.
He raised his glass.
“I might.”
Soon,
The dinner continued.
Rum flowed.
Tea flowed.
Stories flowed
Even more freely.
Walter Crookshank
Argued that
No sailor
Had ever genuinely
Seen a sea serpent.
Oleg Bloom
Suggested that
Several reports
Could be explained
By floating fungal colonies.
Denham Carter-Smythe
Proposed that
The phenomenon
Was probably
An atmospheric disturbance.
Dante Ververs
Insisted
The entire matter
Would be settled
If someone simply offered
The serpent a proper cup of tea.
Latty Flouse
Asked whether
Sea serpents
Had been observed
Growing fungi.
Silas Pembroke
Produced three references
To medieval accounts.
Iris claimed one of them
Was almost certainly
Written by a man
Who had never seen the sea.
Mason Grey poured more tea.
Mabel quietly replaced
The empty cups.
Gideon replenished the rum.
Edgar Brillows
Eventually announced
That the bar
Had become
“dangerously optimistic.”
Marcel Carreau
Simply smiled.
It was,
By every reasonable measure,
A successful evening.
Then,
Someone asked
About Selena’s mother.
The conversation
Softened.
“Will she not be joining us?”
Selena smiled.
“She sends her love.”
“Family commitments,”
Marlowe added.
Walter looked
At the Captain.
“Ah.”
There was a pause.
Then Dante asked gently,
“Forgive my curiosity,
Captain,
But Selena has never
Said much about her.”
Marlowe stared into his rum.
“No.”
“Is she well?”
“Perfectly.”
“Does she live nearby?”
“Sometimes.”
That answer
Produced several raised eyebrows.
Artemis looked at Selena.
She smiled.
Her father continued.
“Her mother
Was always a difficult woman
To keep track of.”
“How so?”
Marlowe leaned back.
A smile touched his beard.
“I met her at sea.”
The room quietened.
“Of course you did.”
Marlowe ignored the interruption.
“It was many years ago.
I was young.
Much younger
Than any of you
Would believe.”
Walter smiled.
“That must have been
Quite some time ago.”
“Watch yourself.”
Walter laughed.
The Captain continued.
“There was fog.
Terrible fog.
No moon.
No stars.
Nothing but the sea.”
He looked across the table.
“And then I saw her.”
Selena watched him.
“What was she like?”
The Captain was silent
For several seconds.
Then,
Very quietly,
He said,
“She was a vision of beauty
Unlike any I had ever known.”
Nobody spoke.
“Where did she come from?”
“The water.”
Walter raised an eyebrow.
Marlowe looked at him.
“She appeared beside the ship.”
“From the water?”
“Aye.”
“Captain…”
“She was standing upon a rock.”
“In the middle of the ocean?”
“Aye.”
Walter glanced at Artemis.
Artemis was trying
Very hard not to smile.
Marlowe continued.
“She spoke in a language
I didn’t understand.”
“What language?”
“One I’d never heard.”
“Then how did
You understand her?”
The Captain smiled.
“Some things don’t require words.”
Selena lowered her eyes.
Artemis reached for her hand.
Marlowe noticed.
For once, he said nothing.
Someone finally asked,
“Captain…
Are you suggesting she is a mermaid?”
A silence.
A long one.
Marlowe looked
At the mermaid pipe
Hanging from his mouth.
Then at his daughter.
Then at Artemis.
He smiled.
“Ridiculous.”
Everyone laughed.
“Of course,”
Said Walter.
“Entirely ridiculous.”
Marlowe raised his glass.
“Now…”
He pointed at Selena.
“She is the important part of this story.”
The Captain
Turned toward Artemis.
“Tell them.”
Artemis looked puzzled.
“Tell them what?”
“How you met her.”
Artemis smiled.
He looked at Selena.
Their eyes met.
“I suppose,”
He said,
“It was rather like meeting a siren.”
Selena laughed.
“Careful.”
“I mean it.”
Artemis continued.
“The moment our eyes met,
I knew I was in trouble.”
Marlowe grinned.
“Good.”
Artemis laughed.
“She lured me in
Without singing a note.”
“That’s my girl.”
“Like a siren,”
Artemis continued,
“She drew me closer.
And once I had heard
The sound of her voice,
I was lost.”
Selena kissed him.
Marlowe looked away.
Walter noticed.
“Captain?”
“What?”
“You appear to be smiling.”
“I am not.”
“You are.”
“I’ve got rum in my mouth.”
Walter laughed.
Marlowe looked again at Artemis.
The young man
Was holding his daughter’s hand.
He was laughing.
He was listening.
He had remembered
Every gift.
Every story.
Every name.
And when Selena spoke,
He looked at her as though
The rest of the room
Had disappeared.
Marlowe sighed.
“He’s all right.”
Walter smiled.
“Indeed.”
“I still think he’s a scallywag.”
“Of course.”
“Too handsome.”
“Probably.”
“Too confident.”
“Certainly.”
“Has absolutely no respect
For maritime danger.”
Walter considered.
“That sounds rather like you.”
Marlowe stared at him.
Then laughed.
A great booming laugh
That rolled across the dining room.
Artemis turned.
“Captain?”
Marlowe raised his glass.
“Welcome to the family,
Lad.”
Selena smiled.
Artemis stood.
He raised
His own glass.
“Thank you.”
Marlowe nodded.
“Don’t make me come looking for you.”
“I wouldn’t dream of it.”
“Good.”
“Although…”
Artemis smiled.
“If I ever disappear,
I’ll probably be following Selena.”
Marlowe looked at his daughter.
Then back at Artemis.
“Aye.”
He smiled.
“I understand.”
Edgar poured a round of drinks.
Gideon carried the glasses.
Mabel brought tea.
Mason brought more.
Marcel watched his guests
Laughing together.
Madame Akiko
Quietly arranged
The sea-green flowers.
Masaru corrected one of her labels.
She corrected his correction.
Walter began another argument
About sea serpents.
Dante offered his tea.
Oleg discussed marine fungi.
Latty contradicted him.
Silas quoted a medieval sailor.
Iris claimed the sailor was lying.
Denham unfolded another map.
Then looked to the bar for Olga.
And Captain Abercrombie Marlowe,
At last,
Sat beside his daughter,
His new son-in-law beside her,
And drank rum with a smile.
The evening had begun
With suspicion.
It ended
With another member
Of the Marlowe family.
Inside Nocturna,
The laughter continued.
Outside,
The Mermaid’s Tale
Rocked gently
Against her moorings.
Beneath the canal,
Did something move?.
Was it something pale?
Something singing?
Perhaps just the moonlight.
Perhaps only a fish.
Perhaps it was nothing at all.
