Old Captain and The Lady in The Seashell (part 2)

Old Captain makes an unlikely friend in captivity. Meanwhile, in her shell prison, Meredril has discovered an unexpected freedom through dance and creates her own music with her voice echoing through the spiraling walls. 

Transcript

Old Captain Awakens in the Desert

Speaker 1 0:09

Hi, hope you like and follow so you can get notified of new episodes. And now it's time to Tell Me An Old Captain Story, episode 14, old Captain and the Lady in the Seashell, part 2. Old Captain woke up face down in the desert, grains of sand pressed into his cheek and forehead stuck to his face as he struggled to lift himself up. It was warm and very quiet. His head was pounding. A dim light sputtered in the distance. He noticed a pinkish-white mountain to his right. He got to his feet and brushed himself off. Where am I? He said aloud to himself. He picked up his hat and brushed it off, placing it back on his head and looking around. For a desert it seemed awfully cool. He assumed it was morning or maybe dusk, as the sun appeared to either be dipping into the horizon or rising from it. He wasn't sure what direction he was facing. He turned to the mountain, which was not really a mountain but more like a boulder. He gave it a closer look. It was a sandy, pinkish color with white lines like waves and a little brown. There were strange rock formations on one side which tapered to a rounded point versus a blockier and rounder surface in the opposite direction. The formations were protrusions, like miniature points that got larger the closer to the boulder they got. No, he said, his heart sinking down to his boots. It can't be. He looked again at the sun. It had not moved at all and, come to think of it, it was not round like a sun but resembled something more like a candle flame. No, no, no, no, no, no, no Old Captain took a step back and then his knees gave out as he fell to his butt in the sand.

Speaker 1 2:14

He wasn't looking at a boulder or a mountain, he was looking at a giant conch shell, bee conch shell. No, he pounded the sand with his fists. How can this be? He ran through what he remembered from before. He'd been sitting in a chair listening to the shopkeeper Saren's story about the mermaid and the Sasquatch. He had tea and watched a moving scene made of pipe smoke play out before him. Then he suddenly looked at Saren and the man had become a giant. Then it dawned on him. I'm inside the glass case. He shrank me. He looked around, but how Magic, said a voice behind him.

Meeting the Lady in the Seashell

Speaker 1 3:04

The vault captain turned to see a woman. The sound of her voice, even though it had only uttered a single word, was calming. You're the lady in the shell. Old captain muttered half to himself I am. He could scarcely think of what to say. It was also strange. After a long pause he managed the only words that he could muster I thought you were a mermaid. I am or I was. I don't understand how this happened. How did you make us so small? Old Captain felt exasperated, put his hands on his hips and moved the sand with the toe of his boot and blew a raspberry. I don't know how I'm going to get out of this one.

Speaker 1 3:52

The shell had a great, wide opening that you could see light through, in the same way you can see light through your fingertips when you hold them to a flashlight. It was from there that the woman had emerged. She had long, sun-colored hair. She was stoic and appeared thoughtful, but said nothing more. Then she glanced up and turned away toward the inner chamber of the shell. Your name's Maradril, old Captain said. She stopped and half turned her head without looking at him. He told you my name. She said Interesting. Old Captain opened his mouth to respond but then heard a great sound above, like someone had just sucked the air from the sky. Wait why? He asked. Why is that interesting. A shadow quickly crossed the sand until it was upon him. Old Captain did not have time to react but was taken in the grip of a giant hand. Old Captain did not have time to react, but was taken in the grip of a giant hand Saren's hand which was not actually a giant as Old Captain was now tiny. It lifted him away from the shell and the sand and the lady walking away. He just barely heard her speak before she was out of sight. I've never heard him say my name before.

Trapped in the Terrarium

Speaker 1 5:06

Saren held old captain fast and he could not break free as he pulled him out of the case, leaving Maradril, the lady in the seashell alone. Why, old captain, shouted at the man, why are you doing this? Saren did not respond. He did not even look at old captain but carried him in one step over to the terrarium where, just the day before, old Captain saw a cricket meet its end. No, he cried, not there.

Speaker 1 5:34

Saren opened the top of the terrarium and lowered Old Captain in, dropping him near a dying bonsai tree Right in front of the turtle skeleton he'd seen the day before. The remains were rather haunting to look at had been a box turtle, from what he could tell the day before old captain could have held the turtle's body in his hand, and now it was nearly the size of a dinosaur to him. The smell inside the enclosed space was oppressive. He immediately felt that he was being watched. Slowly, old Captain pushed himself from the ground and scanned the area. What was it that Saren had said was in here? A troublesome mouse he remembered.

Speaker 1 6:17

Just then Old Captain heard something not far from him, behind the turtle's skeletal shell, perhaps Whatever it was. It sounded large, though he wondered if that was just spear working. Old Captain wondered just how big this mouse was. He had nothing to defend himself with. He looked for a stick or anything, but all he found was what he figured to be the toe bone of the dead turtle. It wasn't much, but in his miniature state it was like holding a short baseball bat.

Speaker 1 6:51

You shouldn't do that, said a voice from the terrarium cave. A mouse that talks, old captain thought, shouldn't do what old captain called out. He hoped that they could talk and that maybe he wouldn't be eating it. That's Phil's what? Old Captain looked around. Who's Phil? That's his toe, said the voice, or it was his toe. It's disrespectful to mess with the dead. Old Captain looked at the toe bone. You're awfully talkative for a mouse. I'm not a mouse. The voice came from behind Old Captain.

Speaker 1 7:30

This time he wheeled around towbone at the ready. There before him stood a man-shaped creature covered in thick fur. He was a full head taller than Old Captain and his muscle was evident even with the fur covering him. You're the Sasquatch, old Captain said incredulously. The mountain of fur said nothing at first, but Old Captain looked in his eyes and did not feel the fear he imagined that the cricket had. Despite the rugged appearance he had kind, intelligent eyes. Then the Sasquatch emitted a deep, strange growl Oof. The Sasquatch said that's a bad one. A bad what, oh? Old Captain coughed and plugged his nose. It wasn't a growl, after all. The smell was horrendous. He backed away, his eyes watering horrendous. He backed away, his eyes watering Really. He said Now I know what killed that poor cricket. Very funny.

Speaker 1 8:29

After the air cleared a little and Old Captain realized he was not going to be eaten by the very large man-beast, he ventured a question Is your name really Bob? He told you my name. That's funny, old Captain said. She said the same thing, bob. All but leapt forward, grabbing Old Captain by his shoulders. It was so fast that the old cavalier had no chance to evade the powerful hands of the Sasquatch. You saw her. There was a desperate look in Bob's eyes, followed by one of rage.

Speaker 1 9:07

Old Captain then learned what a Sasquatch roar sounded like. When he was done roaring, bob grabbed Old Captain again and shook him. How is she? What did she say? How does she seem? Is she okay? Old Captain felt like a ragdoll being shaken by a big dog. Would you stop shaking me?

Speaker 1 9:58

Bob finally stopped, lowered his head and took a deep breath, letting out a heavy sigh. Forgive me, he said as he slumped to the ground. It has been so long. Bob leaned his back against the skeletal shell of his long-dead turtle friend, phil. How long have you been here, old Captain asked. Bob did not look up at him but tapped on the turtle shell behind him with his knuckle.

Speaker 1 10:28

Old Captain did not see anything at first, but walked around the other side and there he saw it the turtle shell which still had some of the shell left, besides the rest of the animal being dried out bone, had each segment filled with hash marks. There were too many to count. Each set of four vertical slashes, with the fifth one diagonally. Are these days, months, weeks, years, years. I've forgotten the sound of wind in the trees, but what it feels like to stand in the sunlight, said Bob. Old Captain felt his heart fall to the bottom of his shoe. He slumped to his knees, eyes glazed over. Just a glance at the hash marks told him the number was well over 100. He couldn't begin to think what this meant for him. Would he be stuck in this terrarium forever, doomed to be the size of a Star Wars figure? Why is he doing this? He muttered more to himself than anything. Old Captain lifted his gaze to the glass case with the big conch shell. It was across the dimly lit room, though it may as well have been across the ocean. For all he could do Inside the shell, maradryl, the now two-legged mermaid, began to hum.

Maradril's Secret Dance Magic

Speaker 1 11:54

The sound bounced off the curved, spiraling walls inside the conch shell. She could feel the sound bounce through her and echo in her bones. As a result, she started to move, swaying side to side. While sitting, she let her neck roll with her body and connect the sound. Her voice was soft but had a chord of strength through it that was undeniable. With it she created her own music that provided the beat and melody that compelled her body to move. Once she stood, her heels together, feet facing out at a 45-degree angle, she started to vocalize with simple vowels, never really using words. The sound of her voice created an air of energy around her. She let the sound course through her as she slowly rose to her feet. Every millimeter of movement was intentional and she could feel it down to her marrow.

Speaker 1 12:56

Maradril started with a tendu movement, sweeping her right foot out in a wide arc, toes pointed, and touching the floor then again with the left. This connected the shell with her body and she felt the spirit of the long-dead sea snail that once called the conch home. Welcome her to dance. This could be her chance. Welcome her to dance. This could be her chance. You forgot the ceiling cells, saren, she thought. I hope you don't remember. For years she'd practiced.

Speaker 1 13:29

It took time to learn walking, running and moving with legs, at first so foreign to a mermaid Earlier. In her captivity, saren, in a twisted effort to win her affection, brought her to see dancers in the local bazaar. One day He'd meant to win her heart. While keeping her imprisoned She'd become so mesmerized by the movements a person could make with their bodies the curve of a leg, the sweep of an arm, the way a hand cuts the air with such precision. Maradril had never even dreamed that legs could do so much. She studied their every move, learned the images of their bodies in motion into her memory to draw on later.

Speaker 1 14:18

It was that day Saren had unwittingly handed her the key to his perfect cage, when she'd used her mermaid magic to trade her tail for legs. She walked and ran with Bach together in the forest or on the beach, feeling the sand between her toes. They climbed rocks together, him spotting her, showing her where to put her feet. They'd hiked mountains. She'd done so much with her new life on land.

Speaker 1 14:41

But she never knew she would dance. The feeling of her feet on the floor of the shell, executing every turn, every sweep and plie, every spontaneous move made her free. She could feel the cage of glass and her shrunken form disappear when she danced. She could feel the cage of glass and her shrunken form disappear when she danced, as if she were her whole self again and she needed nothing but her own voice to set the melody. But before the visitor, the man Saren had dumped on the sand, before the shell. She was unable to use the dance magic to break free of the glass. Saren had sealed it with his own magic. She had not been able to break it. She was determined never to let Saren see her dance. He could never know that she found freedom inside this prison, however fleeting. It was hers and hers alone. Not even he could take that from her. Whenever she walked on the sand outside the shell, which she did mainly when he was asleep, she feigned a limp. She would not give him the satisfaction of seeing her dance, much less find out what she was really doing.

Speaker 1 15:55

Garadro sang, vocalizing every vowel in the alphabet. As she did so, the sound echoed inside the conch shell, filling it with her melody. As she did so, a sound echoed inside the conch shell, filling it with her melody. Almost automatically, she stood and, with a subtle flourish, started to dance. She moved with such grace that it was almost as if she was moving in water. Each step, each plie or pirouette created energy that was stored in the shell. That energy, a sort of dance magic, filled the shell with a pale, warm glow. Then, as she continued to move so gracefully, she began to float as if she were in water, dancing. This continued for several moments until she felt a bead of sweat, leave her brow and fall to the floor of the shell. At the very instant that that single drop of perspiration hit the floor, it became a flood.

Breaking Free from Captivity

Speaker 1 16:50

Why are you here? Bob asked. I'm trying to figure that out myself. Old captain replied how did he get you, I don't know exactly. One minute I was sitting in a chair and the next thing I knew everything went dark and I woke up over there. He gestured toward the glass case with the shell in the sand. Bob merely grunted in reply.

Speaker 1 17:12

Who is he anyway? Saren? Bob said he was a mermaid like her. What Merman, I suppose. Meryl changed her tail to make legs so we could go inland and be together. I told her not to that she didn't have to give up the sea for me, but she did.

Speaker 1 17:33

Bob hung his head and closed his eyes. Then he raised his head again and stared into old captain's eyes. This was a noble creature, old Captain thought, and he was hurting. Mermaids and mermen are magical creatures, bob continued. Saren used his magic to change his body to pursue us on land. Only, his magic didn't work all the way and it lamed him.

Speaker 1 18:00

Old Captain remembered then the strange fishy smell that seemed to accompany the old man. That and his distinctive limp and use of a cane. Do you remember anything else? Bob asked? Old Captain shrugged he was just telling me a story. What? Bob replied incredulously. He told you a story. What kind of story?

Speaker 1 18:21

Old Captain and Bob the Sasquatch were sitting on opposite sides of the skeletal turtle shell. He told me about you and her. Old Captain said the mermaid and the Sasquatch. Why? Old Captain shrugged, beats me. He said it seemed innocent enough at first. It was interesting. He scratched his beard, but now I wonder if he had a guilty conscience. I don't know. If he had a guilty conscience, why would he put you in here? Bob's tone had changed. He got up and stood before Old Captain. Good question, the Old Cavalier said, looking at the terrarium floor, which consisted mainly of a darkened and dry dirt. Old Captain looked up to see the Sasquatch standing over him, his eyes searching for an answer to something. What is it? Bob didn't answer, but raised his head, sniffing the air and looking all around him. Bob said, sniffing the air and looking all around him, something's changed. It's different in here. Different how? Not sure Feels different, bob said, without looking at old Captain.

Speaker 1 19:35

The Sasquatch walked over to a stone that was the size of a watermelon. He picked it up with ease and with one hand the great Sasquatch hurled it as if it were a baseball, at the glass of the terrarium. The glass cracked with a pattern like a spiderweb. Yes, bob jumped up and raised his arms in victory. He turned to Old Captain, who by now was getting up and brushing off his backside. He forgot the sealing spell. Bob said what's a sealing spell? Bob pointed to the crack in the glass that Old Captain saw earlier on the far side of the terrarium. See that. He said. I did that years ago, the last time he forgot the spell. I would have escaped if he hadn't put it back on. Well, what are we waiting for? Well, what are we waiting for?

Speaker 1 20:19

Old Captain reached down and grabbed the biggest rock he could find and lift and hurled it at the glass. It had about the same effect of a pebble on a windshield. Bob, however, took another stone, this one the size of a pumpkin, and hurled it with one hand, sending another great crack in eight different directions, but the glass still held. Tiny cracks like tiny little thunders sounded in the terrarium. The Cavalier and the Sasquatch laughed as they threw rocks together like two boys who became fast friends in a schoolyard, united in one goal. After a few moments of throwing, old Captain and Bob the Sasquatch each flung one more stone, hitting their target at the same time and sending the glass wall of the terrarium down. Both man and Sasquatch raised their arms in victory. Yes, they shouted.

Speaker 1 21:15

When the last piece of glass fell and Saren's shop Worldly Wares and Wiles was open to them. They saw the glass case in the shell cross the room. Something was happening. Their celebrating stopped. What the said Bob, his mouth agape and eyes widely fixed on the seashell where his love had been imprisoned.

Speaker 1 21:38

The conch shell was glowing, or more accurately, a glow was coming from within it, a luminous blue-green. It was dark in the shop, perpetually dim-lit. There was only the faintest line of light from what old Captain presumed was the roof, though it was impossible to tell the time from just that. The cavalier looked around for the shopkeeper Saren, but did not see him. The light from the shell got brighter and it appeared to be shaking. What do we do now, old Captain asked. He looked for a way down from the tall stand. The terrarium had rested on when Bob grabbed his arm. Look, had rested on when Bob grabbed his arm, look.

Escaping into a New Life

Speaker 1 22:24

A sudden burst of light blue and green poured from every crack hole or tiny opening in the conch shell and started to fill the glass case. Then the shell exploded. It was not a fiery explosion, but a watery one great force. Old captain and bob dove behind the turtle shell and used it as a shield as sharp shards of conch shells showered them. The shrapnel stuck in the trunk of the tiny bonsai tree.

Speaker 1 22:51

The cavalier and the Sasquatch each felt a blinding headache overcome them, and their arms, legs and bodies racked with a sudden and intense pain. When they opened their eyes, they saw they were out of the terrarium and now inside the shop, though everything was submerged in roiling water that reached the rafters. It was all very disoriented. Old Captain felt like the shop had gotten smaller. The terrarium was gone, glass and sand and the dead turtle Phil's bones floating in the torrent of water. Everything seemed so small now. Then he looked and saw a shape in the watery gloom. It was coming toward him. Then he looked and saw a shape in the watery glue. It was coming toward him.

Speaker 1 23:37

Outside the merchant shop Worldly Wares and Wiles, a vendor selling fried turtle feet and frog's legs noticed something strange. First there was the sound of wood creaking, as if under great pressure. She looked all around until she finally realized it was coming from the creepy old man's shop, the one people seemed to avoid more than anything. The wooden doors groaned. Water started to trickle out from under the doors. Then suddenly they burst outward, forced open by an incredible amount of water that somehow filled the interior of the shop until it couldn't hold any more. Riding on the great wave of water pouring. Somehow filled the interior of the shop until it couldn't hold anymore.

Speaker 1 24:17

Riding on the great wave of water pouring out of Worldly Wears and Wiles, there were three figures a man in a pirate's hat, a huge and hairy Sasquatch and a woman with golden hair and a mermaid tail. The three, along with a scattered assortment of shop's contents, spilled out into the bizarre street. The water ran through the city and dissipated, leaving Old Captain Maradrill and Bob all lying in the middle of the busy market, soaking wet and back to their normal sizes. They each coughed and sputtered water. As the water receded into the town, maradril's mermaid tail morphed back into the legs.

Speaker 1 24:55

She danced to create her escape. She stood and brushed herself off, flinging her long golden hair out of her eyes. Then she looked up and straight ahead. She froze there. Before her, some twenty feet away and obscured a little by the crowd that had now gathered, was Saren, the sorcerer who imprisoned her. He must have been out in the market when she broke through the conch shell. Mirdrel's eyes met with Saren's and she feared he would use his twisted magic to imprison her again. But then she saw the look in his eyes.

Speaker 1 25:32

Bob helped old Captain up and the two coughed and regained their bearings. When Bob looked up to see Saren staring straight at Maradryl, he growled and started to move toward the man who'd stolen so many years from them. But Maradryl stopped him with a light touch on his arm. No, she said evenly, he can't hurt us anymore. Saren looked at Maradryl, then put his hand over his heart and bowed his head. He would not look up again. We're free, maradryl said. With that, the mermaid, the Sasquatch and the old cavalier three new friends walked out of the town together. The three would become the best of friends Eventually. Maradril and Bob settled down and married. They had many adventures with their friend old captain and the three became like family. Then the mermaid and the Sasquatch got a dog and named her Cocopelli, and over the next few years their family grew. When they welcomed two sons into the world, the first they named Simon, and his little brother would be Miles. See you next time on. Show Me your Captain's Story. Thank you.