Beached Merperson

Editor's Forward: This was based on a prompt that can be found here. I've added italics to that portion.

You hear voices raised in conversation coming from somewhere nearby, obviously human voices you don't understand. You smell the familiar scent of humans nearby and realize they must be in the house with you but you can't move. You hear the voices again they are speaking English you can understand more clearly now, they are saying “We got her, she was half-drowned and had been living in the sea until we got her, she'll be fine once she heals, poor creature.”

“She is not alone! There are others like her out there!” another voice cries out. You struggle to say something but your voice is dried up and a lump of cotton in your throat.

“Oh, I doubt that, this one is far from alone we've found over a dozen of these things alone and there's more where she came from. We are going to do tests on her to help us gain a better understanding.”

“NO!” the voice you believe to be the female voice calls out once again “She is one of us! We need to help her!”

“She is a living creature we can't help, not until she heals.”

“Help her! She is just one of many!”

“NO! She is special! Merfolk are dying out, we need to help her now!”

“We can't help her, she'll have to help herself.”

“No!”

 You splash about in the tub. Without feet, you aren't going far.  You try to think about where you are and what you can do.

You hear the woman again “She is too badly wounded, we can't take the risk of her escaping again, they are too hard to control, we need to take her to the city and get her help!”

“NO! She must be returned to the sea! She belongs to the sea!”

“I can't do that, I won't let her go until she is safe!”

“Then we shall have to take her with us, she will die if she stays her too long without water!” They enter the bathroom. The male shields his eyes to avoid looking at your breasts, out of courtesy.  The woman does not do so. You see her expression and you cringe. They help you up and help you into a robe, they lead you out of the house and into a van. They help you onto a bench seat and hold you in place while a male takes your tail and a rubber mask is placed over your head. He wraps a cloth around your head and ties it off securely so that it doesn't slip down, leaving you with only a sliver of space for a nose and a mouth.

“I didn't know we would have to dress her like a Seal,” the man says to the woman.

“We're not seals, we're Mermaids!” the woman hisses back. “We don't go around half-naked and with fish tails, we wear clothes!”

“I am the one who decides what the subjects wear,” he says calmly. “We must look normal for humans. You saw what they did when they first saw us, we must look the part in case we need to make contact again!”

“I can't believe you would do this to an innocent creature and then dress her to make her more appealing,” the woman hisses, she is clearly getting angry.

“It's to her advantage right now.” He gives her a smug smile, clearly enjoying this moment.

“You are a monster!” she hisses back, the veins in her neck bulging out from her temples. “Hey at least I didn't try to screw her like someone did with the last one,” he says.  “I didn't even know she was a mermaid until she told me, I would never treat a woman like that!” She turns away and begins to weep.

You are not sure of the plan yet but you are certain of one thing, you do not want these people to take you back to the sea. You are not one of them but you know that what they are planning to do is not right. You have to escape before they return to the city, you are sure of it!

You try to think of where you are and what is around you. You cannot seem to get your bearings. The van makes a series of turns and you are unsure of where the van is taking you. You have never been in the city before, you are sure of that. The van makes another series of turns and you hear the man speaking into a walkie-talkie, “All clear on the north end.”

“Check all the buildings, make sure there are no witnesses,” the woman orders through the cloth over your head.

You think you feel the van stop, you cannot tell for sure. The cloth muffles the sound of the man moving about outside, you can only hear the sound of the van and the woman crying. The man moves about outside for a few moments and then you hear him say. “All clear on the south end, too, over.”

“Good, take her out onto the street, keep her drugged or asleep if possible. Don't let her regain her memories.”

“Understood.” The doors open. This is your chance. You know it's futile, but you push your way out the van door and try to go somewhere. Anywhere.  You manage to get a whiff of the man's cologne, you know it's him, you recognize it. You can feel his eyes on you. You try to run away.

You hear him say, “She's awake.”

You hear the woman say, “Hurry, get her inside.”

You hear the man say, “Yes, yes, we're almost there.”

You hear the sound of the door lock, the man moving away, and the woman sobbing as she holds her hand against her nose.

You hear the man say, “She'll be fine, just fine.”

You hear the woman say, “Oh my God, I think I broke her nose.”

You hear the man say, “Do you see any blood?”

You hear the woman say, “No, just a nose bleed.”

You hear a sound that you cannot quite place. It's like the sound a helicopter makes, only lower.

The man says, “Well get her inside quick before something notices us.”

You hear the woman say, “I think someone does!”

You hear the sound again.

The man says, “What was that?”

You hear the woman's voice say, “I think it was a plane!”

“Shit!” he hisses.

You hear the woman say, “It's getting closer...”

You hear the man say, “Get inside and be quiet!”

You hear the woman whispering something you cannot make out, she seems panicked.

You hear the man say, “Oh Christ, they noticed us.”

You hear the woman say, “What do we do?

The man says, “We can't go back now, you know what would happen if they found us here. We're going to have to move her soon before someone finds her. You struggle some more.  You want to go back to the sea?

You hear the woman say, “What are we to do?”

The man says, “I'll distract them, you get her and get out of here.”

You hear the woman say, “How?”

The man says, “We'll use the boat, it's tied up at the end of the docks just upriver.”

“You're crazy!”

“Just do it!”

“I'm not leaving without you!”

You hear the boat dock and footsteps approaching.

The man says, “OK, we need to hide her.”

The woman says, “We're not leaving her here,”

“We are!” says the man.

The woman says, “She's a threat to us, she can ID us!”

“She can't, she's still too shell shocked.”

“The guards will recognize her from the news and the picture; they'll ID her the moment they see her!”

“No they won’t.” Says the man, his footsteps are approaching.

“They will!” says the woman, “And what if they tell the cops?”

The man says, “Fine! Hide her.”

“I'm not leaving without you!”

The man says, “Fine!”

He reaches for the door latch.

“What are we going to do, tell them?”

“No.” You hear them leave the area. You are left all alone under a tarp with your rubber mask still on.  You try to get back under the water, but you're too tired.

You hear a voice, “Ms. Avery? Any chance you could wake up so we can get this over with?”

You hear a woman's voice, “Yeah, I think so.” With a burst of energy, you leap out and try to crawl. Another group of people are there. They grab your tail and hoist you into a holding tank. You are back in water, but still separated from the open ocean.

They place a breathing mask over your face with a hose attached.

“Breathe through this.”

You do as you are told, filling your lungs with the unfamiliar liquid. You immediately feel the effects. You can see them watching from the other side of the glass.  You try to blink, to look away, but your eyes won't cooperate. They are wide open and fixed in place.

You hear a familiar voice, “Ms. Avery? Can you hear me?”

You try to answer.

“Ms. Avery? Say something!”

Your mouth opens and closes, but nothing comes out except for the water from the hose.

“Can you at least nod?”

You nod.

“Good,” says the voice, “Now just relax and float as much as possible.”

You float in the water, but still can't breathe air. You wriggle out of the seal costume at least. Feeling the water against your bare naked skin begins to heal your parched state. You relax and just float. It turns out, it's easier than you thought. You even float upright.

As you drift in the water, your eyes flutter open. You see the colorful mural, the faces of the mermaids, the fish tank, and everything around you is crystal clear.

Your entire body is tingling, but you feel fine.

Your breathing has returned to normal, but your body feels alert. At least your body feels alert. Your mind feels numb, as if it can't function without your conscious awareness. You have no idea what the woman said to you, but you are pretty sure that it had something to do with “relaxation techniques.”

It would appear that you have been drugged. “She needs to calm down. Perhaps we should resume this later,” one of the men says.

“Wait!” you scream, “Where are the others!”

“They're fine,” says the man in a reassuring tone, “They'll be here tomorrow, after their shift is over.” You curse at them.  Your mouth opens, but nothing comes out. You try to scream, but you can't. You thrash about, but they hold you down.

“It's OK, it's OK.” A needle sedates you. 

The next thing you know, you are half asleep, half awake. The men are gone and you are back in your tank. You hear whispering, but you are unable to make out any of the words. Two assistants are outside the tank. A male and female.  They seem to be arguing.

“We should call someone!” says the man, “They'll know what to do.”

“No.” Says the female, “We can't involve anymore humans in this.” The female looks at you. “It's okay. I just need to perform a test. I'm going to come in there with you.” She pulls off her jumpsuit to reveal a bathing suit underneath.  She steps out of her suit. “See if I'm human, or a mermaid.”

You hear a zipper open. The male assistant says something about how she's not a specimen and she's his wife. “Why are you going in?” he asks.

She shrugs, “I like to know what I'm up against.”

She steps into the tank with you. You immediately feel her presence. Human, yet familiar. You dart away.

“I've been underwater too long.” You think to yourself, “Her scent is all wrong.”

She reaches out and touches your tail. You kick out, but she's ready and her hand stays there.

“Perhaps your suit is unfamiliar to her,” he says.

“What do you recommend?” she asks in return.

“How about we both take off our suits and jump in together?”

“I like the idea. It'll work.”

The male assistant takes off his shirt. He looks at you. “Are you comfortable with this?”

You still cannot speak but you nod your head. In truth, their swimsuits do not confuse you, but you will allow them to undress to satisfy your curiosity. You've never seen a true human form before...without clothes.  You feel nothing. You've heard enough horror stories to know not to let strangers into your most private of spaces. But they are not strangers, so you feel fine. The woman also begins to peel off her swimming suit. The straps reveal a pair of breasts, similar to your own. You are alike in this regard. 

The woman swims closer. With her suit wrapped around her legs, it is almost as if she had a tail too.  You move your hand, but you are careful not to touch her as she hovers over you. Instead, you stroke her arms and hands. She smiles. Her large green eyes seem to smile. You tug at the remainder of her suit. She smiles and thinks that she is making you more comfortable, but you are truly curious as to what humans hide.

With all the horror stories, you've never been able to wrap your head around what it is that humans are so afraid of. Then, you can't help but notice how she smells. Sweet. Earthy. So very different from the ocean. You lick your lips. Your tail starts to wag. You feel a desire to move towards her, to hug her tightly. You embrace her and she returns the favor. When you release, you dip under the water to pull the suit the rest of the way off. As it passes her hips, you finally reveal her mystery.  Her skin. It's so very much like yours. Without the scales, it's a nice shade of brown.

It's not the color of the ocean, but it's close. Where her legs meet is neat triangle of hair. Below, the skin separates into two lips. You trace along her body. It's just like yours. The same contours.

She's beautiful. The suit lazily drifts to the bottom as you both float naked. You take in the sight.  Her breasts are larger, fuller, than yours. But they feel the same. This human female has your body. Your form. Your scent. You turn your head up to look at her nose. It's small but perfectly formed. You trace your index finger along her snout,

“I am...” You say, “Your perfect...closest...human...reflection.”

She smiles. She says, “I know.”

You kiss her. Her lips are soft. Her breath is warm. You kiss her again. You feel her tongue swipe against your own. Your body reacts. You feel the familiar tugging sensation. Your tail flickers at the base of your spine. Your nipples harden instantly.

She pushes you away. She looks over at her husband who is transfixed on the two nude female forms. 

“Stay here,” she whispers. “I'm coming to you.”

She swims off. You watch her pass you by. You watch her legs, her buttocks, her hips. She beckons her husband to the tank.

You watch as she disappears.

You wait. You want to see her return. You dip your head under the water, but don't swim back. You need to see her. You need to know if she's okay.

Your thoughts are silent. You wait for her to return. She doesn't. You need to know what's going on. You need to make sure she's okay.

You push your head under the water to stay there for a long time. If she's not willing to come back, you're not going to force her.

You don't know how long you wait. You sense a ripple in the tank. She has returned with her husband. He is shirtless. His chest is similar to a merman's. You wonder how the sexes differ in humans.

The female approaches the tank, her husband following behind. She looks at you. You wave, but she doesn't wave back. Instead, she dips under the water briefly before she swims up to her husband.

“I got rid of it,” she says.

“Good.”

“I don't want to be a freak to it,” she continues. “It freaks me out.”

She turns back to you. You dip under the water. You smile. She smiles. “You aren't being a freak,” she says to him. “We're just making her comfortable.”

He nods and reluctantly agrees.

“We are?” he asks.

She holds up a hand to stop him from speaking.

“Let's just say for now, we are.” “Okay. If you think it's okay.” He loops his fingers around his swim shorts and pulls them down. She is blocking you view, so you swim slightly to the left to see what a human male looks like. 

You are disappointed. Human males are like human females, different species, but just as unappealing. Except between his legs. That part is nice. You dip under the water again, but stay close enough to get a partial view. His scrotum is dangling free, revealing a small but perfectly formed human penis. It looks...erm... much like a dangling worm. The kind you see from the lures of fishing poles.

You can't stop a shiver from running up your spine. You push it away by taking a huge gasp of air, but a smile spreads across your face as you watch him bare his chest. You dip under to watch his skin when his wife grabs your arm.

“You okay?” he asks.

You nod.

“She's likely curious,” she says. “Let her look at you. It will gain her trust.”

 You've always been intrigued by naked human skin. You can't stop your eyes from gravitating to his pectoral muscles. You wish you had more to see, but you wait for his wife to release you so you can dip back under the water. As soon as your head hits the water you feel her wrap her arms around you. You feel the tugging sensation at your tail again. Your whole body relaxes. You let your eyelids sink shut.

You don't know how long you wait. You feel her kiss your hair. You kiss her back. You hear her say your name.

You open your eyes. Her face is inches from your own. Her lips are parted and her eyes are wide open. Your lips want to meet hers. Your body wants to take her underwater. You've never had this urge before, but it's strong. You've never felt this desire for another person before, but it's even stronger. The desire to be with her is stronger than with any person you've ever known.

You feel her grab your wrist. You swim upwards, pulling her with you. Your lungs burn. Your heart pounds. Your head spins. You break the surface. You gasp for air. You turn to look at her.

She is smiling at you. She takes your other hand and kisses it. She's still smiling. She says something, but you don't understand her. She gestures up at you. She has an accent. Was it English? No, English doesn't sound like that. French? No, French girls don't sound like that. She's trying to tell you something.

Her husband speaks up. “Um, honey. What are you doing?”

You look back at her. You try to pull away, but she holds on tight. She's trying to tell you something. You open your mouth, but nothing comes out. You try to speak, but... again, nothing comes out. You point up at her. Your mouth opens and closes, but no words come out. Your brain feels as though someone's putting cotton in it. Then a curious thing happens. The woman swims over to her husband and touches the dangling but between his legs.

“What are you doing?” he asks.

“Shhh...” she replies. “We are showing her how humans are intimate. It's part of our research.”

“Oh, for crying out loud,” he says. “Let go of me.”

He rips his wife away and swims off. You watch him from the corner of your eye. He sits on the edge of the tank. His suit is far from reach, so he remains naked. You notice that despite his reaction, his penis has grown slightly. It's still small, but what the hell? You're a mermaid. Anything is possible.

You watch as he wraps a towel around his privates. The woman pulls herself onto the ledge as well. Her slick, wet body drops excess water.

“Don't be shy,” she tells him. “You knew the research we were doing.”

“Yeah, well,” he says. “Not that.”

He stands to his feet and glares at her. She stares back.

“It's just best if we keep this between us.” She beckons for you to swim over. You float just above the surface, your breasts in view. The woman pulls the towel off of the man. His penis pulses upon seeing you and his naked wife together.

“See, you like seeing this. Don't you?” she coos, running her hand along his shaft.

The man grabs his towel and wraps it around his waist. He glares at his wife. The woman looks disappointed. “Very well,” she pouts. “I'll have to do this myself.”

The woman moves her hand down to the man's balls. She lifts them up in her hand. She squeezes them gently.

“Don't worry,” she tells you. “They're not like fish balls. They're soft and squishy. You'll be able to feel everything.”

Suddenly, the man grabs his wife from behind. He forces his fingers into her mouth.

“Shhh!” he hisses. “Someone might hear us!”

The woman drops his balls. He pushes her away. “I'm sorry, honey.”

The woman glares at him, but does not speak.

You feel the desire for this man. No, not desire, but a pull. Something that you've never felt for any other human. “Fine!” he exclaims. “If you insist, we will show her how it's done. But only in the name of science. No way in hell this is going to lead to anything else! I swear! I mean it! No unplanned pregnancies, no falling in love, no nothing! Can't you see you're upsetting my work?”

“I never said I wanted...” she begins to say, but he cuts her off.

“Oh, good!” he says. “That means we can.....”

Before he finishes, his wife has her arms wrapped around his waist. She kisses him deeply. It's an incredibly passionate kiss. The man moans, his hand grabbing hold of his wife's buttocks. His hand slips around her shoulders, moving up along her belly, over her breasts, down between her legs, and he finds her pussy. You watch in awe as his fingers slip into his wife's wet, wanting depths. His wife moans, a deep, lust filled sound.

“Oh, God,” she breathes. “Yes.”

The man's finger slip roughly in and out of his wife's wet depths. She pushes back against his hand, encouraging him. He moans in pleasure. Then, his wife reaches down and grabs his penis. She strokes it and he groans with pleasure, pulling his wife to him. The woman wraps her arms around his head, kissing him with passion. His wife's breasts press up against his chest. The man reaches his hands down to his wife's breasts, squeezing them gently. His wife moans in pleasure as his fingers slide around her nipples.

“Oh, you like that,” the man says. “Hmm, you like that.”

His wife nods her head, lust heavy in her eyes. You watch as his hand moves down to his wife's moist, aching pussy. His fingers slip between his wife's legs, finding her moist depths. His wife bites down on her lip to prevent yelling out in pleasure.

“You like that?” the man asks. “You like that finger in you?”

“Yes,” his wife breathes through her nose. “Yes, yes, yes.”

His fingers slip in and out of his wife's wet depths.

“Oh, God,” his wife says. “Oh, God, yes, yes, yes.”

His wife's back arches, her lust filling her to the point of orgasm.

“Yes,” she says. “Yes, yes, yes.”

His fingers slip in and out of his wife's wet depths. He groans in pleasure. The woman bucks her hips, pushing up against his hand. His wife screams out, the orgasm overwhelming her. He tightens his grip on his wife's butt, thrusting up into her depths. His wife screams out again, arms wrapping around his neck. She holds him tight, the two of them locked together, the man groaning in pleasure, his entire body shaking.

After another few minutes, his wife's convulsions slow. She looks at you disheveled. “I need a break.”

You swim over closer to the man. His penis is throbbing from the excitement. You reach out to touch it, but he flinches.  He looks down at his wife's naked body, his chest heaving.

“Sorry, honey,” he says.

“It's okay. It's natural. Let her touch you if she wants.”

“Are you sure?” he asks. “I mean.....”

“Go ahead and show her your cock. She's probably been wanting to see it for weeks now. Go ahead.” You reach out your hand and feel the firm shaft. It is not like that of a merman. It is soft, but his balls are squishy.  They are larger than his shaft, which is narrower than that of a merman. You slide two fingers up the underside of the shaft, over the glans, and down again.

“Let me see it.”

 His wife stares at your hand, at the shaft that is still inside of it. Her eyes linger on your fingers for just a moment. Then, she reaches out and takes your hand, leading you to his groin. She looks up at him, smiling. The man stares at her, smiling back at her. She takes his penis into her palm. She strokes the length of his rod. The man grunts, leaning forward to kiss his wife. She grips the base of his rod, sliding it down into her open mouth. She sucks on the head a little bit and he grunts again.

“She likes that.” Your husband says.

A couple of more minutes pass in silence. The man's wife looks at you, smiling. She raises a leg and straddles her husband, still facing you. She slides down on his penis as he enters her. You see her lips part to accept his shaft as it disappears. You get inches away to witness the act.

His wife starts to move up and down on her husband's shaft. She rocks slowly at first, then with increasing speed. The man keeps his eyes closed, gritting his teeth. He grips his wife's hips, guiding her up and down. You notice the muscles in his shoulders and arms tense and relax. His wife continues to rock faster. She bites her bottom lip. She leans forward to kiss her husband harder.

His wife's orgasm hits. She screams out, her entire body shaking and her eyes rolling back in her head in orgasmic bliss. Her husband continues thrusting into her, his hands gripping her butt. His wife's orgasm grows, her body tensing up, releasing a torrent of pleasure all over his shaft.

“Oh, God.” You reach one finger and touch his balls. That is all it takes for him to explode inside of his wife. He pulls his wife down to the floor. He does not release her, but kisses her. She reaches out and cups his face. She kisses him back, deeply, passionately. His wife opens her eyes, which now have a glazed over look. She smiles at you.

“Thanks.” She says. A guard walks in. “What the hell is going on here?”

“We were just....”

“Shut up,” the guard says. The woman lowers her gaze.

“You were having sex.”

“I was....”

“You'd better have a damn good reason for being intimate with another prisoner here at the camp.”

“Yes, we do,” she says, her voice is soothing.

The guard looks at her. The love in her eyes makes him soften a little.

“Okay, I suppose that's no big deal. Get on with it.”

“We were just enjoying each other's company,” she says. “It's perfectly natural. You do it all the time.”

“Huh?”

“You go to work, you come home and talk and you spend a few hours with your wife and kids.”

“Yeah, but you're off work or on break. Not in here.”

“We were separated for a while, but we've been together for years now. We can't help it. It just feels so natural.”

The guard thinks about it, and then he shrugs his shoulders. He turns to you, you nod at him. He shrugs his shoulders again, a little smile on his face.

“Whatever,” he says and leaves the room.

The woman looks at you and smiles. “We were just discussing the guard's dilemma. I told him if he was so concerned about our intimacy, he could just leave. No harm done.”

“I bet he'll change his mind when he wakes up in the morning,” you say.

“Yes, I'm sure he will. The three of you paddle around the tank to settle down. The man's penis returned to its smaller size and bobs around in the current. You can't help but continue to stare. Its transformation fascinates you.  Now that you know what it's like, you long to return to your home.”

“That's understandable.”

You settle down in the water and the woman holds you close to her. She strokes your hair. The man and woman get comfortable in each other's arms and fall to sleep.

You stay there in the waters of the prison tank, drifting off to sleep and dreaming of your home. You have not swam in the ocean in years now and wonder if you would recognize it. Would it look the same? Would it feel different?

You find yourself swimming in a tidal wave. You see the home you grew up in before you were taken away to spend your childhood on land. You see your room. You feel the thick damp air of the sea and smell the salty tang of the ocean. You can see miles and miles of calm water and the rocky shorelines of the ocean.

You swim towards the shore and can see a group of people gathered there. You get closer and closer to the shore. You can see your mother and father standing there. They're crying. They look at you and you can see your grandfather there as well. He smiles at you and gives a little wave.

Your mother reaches out and wraps her arms around you. You embrace your mother and father in turn. It has been so long since you have seen them, but you feel yourself being pulled back to the water. Your head breaks the surface of the water, and the sun shines brightly on the sparkling blue ocean in front of you. Your headlamp bathes the area in a dim yellow hue.

You slowly turn on your headlamp and see the same scene you've always seen. The beach, the rocky shoreline, the people standing there, and the clear blue sky. You can even make out a faint cloud passing above you. But something is wrong. You crane your neck to look behind you and can see the prison tank floating in the ocean behind you. You spin around and look back at the shoreline. The tank is gone! You spin around again. There's no beach, no shoreline. Only rocks rising sharply from the water. You look up and the sky is a darker hue. The clear blue sea has turned black and the faint clouds passing above you are darker as well. You drop and cover your head in anguish. Everything is black and dark and dreadful...

The last thing you feel is the feeling of being sucked into the depths of the ocean.