by Noah Harris
Was he alive?
He looked around. There was no mistaking. He was deep below the surface of the water. He reached forth and touched the smooth chest of the creature swimming before him.
The creature smiled.
It took his hand in its own and started to swim.
Thomas was carried along like a little rowboat towed by a fleet sailing ship. Together, they passed through the water at incredible speed, the creature’s phosphorescence lighting the way, illuminating schools of fish darting past and the weird bulbous body of a jellyfish floating across their path.
A strange, high squeak came from the creature that held Thomas’s hand. Its powerful legs kicked down, and the two of them shot upwards over the jellyfish before cutting down quick to loop around it. The jellyfish spun in the water like an autumn leaf in a sharp breeze.
The creature looked back at Thomas, its face cracked in a wide smile, and let out another squeak. Thomas realized it was laughing.
Thomas smiled back. Was any of this real, or simply the mad vision of a dying man?
Thomas reached forward with his free hand and touched the creature’s flank. It was smooth, silky. The creature turned and smiled. Thomas noticed that other than the webbed hands and feet, and the strange glowing blue hairless skin, the creature looked like a normal man. Thomas touched him again, and the creature grew erect.
It smiled at him and let out another high-pitched squeak. They continued through the water, the creature shooting through the ocean like a fish, Thomas being pulled along, not knowing whether he was mad or in some strange afterlife. He felt his head where the bullet had struck, and while the spot was a little tender, he could not detect any wound.
They surfaced. Thomas felt a strange tug of his lungs, a slight choking. He coughed and then found he was breathing air again. A low beach lay before him. He struggled out of the surf and across the sand to sit down hard on some lush grass, his mind in a whirl.
The creature emerged from the surf, moonlight gleaming strangely off its blue skin. It let out a little cough, much like the one Thomas had made when he had made the transition from sea to land. It stood there a moment, studying him. The phosphorescence of its skin faded, and his coloration turned to something more human. Thomas watched, astonished, as the webbing between its fingers and toes retracted.
The creature took a deep breath, smiled at Thomas, and looked around.
Thomas did as well, and his breath caught at the beauty of what he saw.
They were on a low island - just a sandbar with some vegetation at its center - at the entrance to a small bay. Beyond lay thick jungle, lush and impenetrable, and a few hills behind. Palm trees and thick fronds waved languidly in the wind, catching the glow of the full moon. The bay itself glittered in the moonlight like a thousand pieces of silver. All was quiet save for the shush of the waves lapping and the soft rustle of the vegetation on the far shore.
Thomas blinked and understood. The treasure map had shown this place, and had called it “Bahía de los Tritónes”. Thomas did not understand Spanish, but Bahía must mean “bay”, and Tritónes sounded like “tritons”. Tritons was another word for mermaids and mermen.
He glanced back at the creature that had saved him. It now looked like a man, as all shifters did. Was this a merman, a male mermaid? Thomas gave him a warm smile, which was returned. What luck! Most sailors yearned for mermaids. What would he have done if some lady of the deep had come to save him? The poor mermaid would have gone away disappointed. Thomas chuckled and stood up. The merman also laughed, and unlike its high squeak when underwater, his laugh sounded human.
Thomas looked back at the island. Beyond the bay, he could see a dark line of hills just like the map showed. Somewhere on the slopes of one of them was the cave where the crew of the Guerrero had hidden the Spanish gold shipment.
A touch on his shoulder made him jump and turn around.
The triton stood behind him, looking at him with a coy expression. He put a hand on Thomas’s cheek.
Thomas looked past him, out across the sea. Where was the pirate longboat? He couldn’t see the lantern. Had they really swum so far, or had Paddy covered the lantern so as not to be seen?
He turned to the triton.
“There was another man who leapt from the boat,” Thomas said, hoping it was true, “younger than I with blonde hair. Did you see what happened to him?”
The triton’s smile did not fade, but he gave a little shrug to indicate he did not understand.
Thomas slumped. Of course, he did not understand. Why would this handsome creature of the sea speak his language? Did he speak any language? Were those squeaks he made underwater some sort of language?
The triton moved closer to him, touching his clothes with evident curiosity. The shifter himself was quite naked.
The shifter’s smooth fingertip touched the skin revealed by Thomas’s half-open shirt. A tingle went through his chest at the contact, and despite all that was happening, Thomas began to focus on the strange being standing in front of him. The webbing in the shifter’s hands and feet had retracted, the blue phosphorescence had faded, and in the moonlight, he looked almost human.
The creature plucked at Thomas’s shirt, apparently uncertain as to what it was. It slipped a hand inside and ran its palm along Thomas’s pectoral. Thomas couldn’t believe what was happening. Here he stood, minutes after thinking he was a dead man, in the moonlight of an unknown island, being fondled by a merman.
He wondered if the Spaniards had enjoyed their time at the “Bahía de los Tritónes.”
The “Bay of the Tritons.” He never thought learning Spanish could be so much fun.
The triton or merman or beautiful erect male standing in front of him was fumbling with his shirt. Thomas smiled.
“Here, let me help you.”
The shifter watched, fascinated, as Thomas unbuttoned his shirt and dropped it beside him. He did the same with his shoes and pants. Within a moment they stood facing each other, their erect cocks crossed like a pair of swords.
They embraced and melded into a kiss. The merman’s skin felt deliciously soft and silky. He ran his hands along the creature’s body, exploring every curve, every cleft, and found no hair, only more of that wondrous skin. Their hot tongues explored each other’s mouths as the lust rose in each of them. Thomas fell into a delirium much like that given by the musk, although this shifter did not seem to give off a scent other than the faint tang of the seawater that clung to them both.
They began to rub against each other, still embracing, still kissing. Thomas shivered with delight at the smooth feel of the merman’s skin against his sensitive groin. He would shoot too soon if he wasn’t careful. He drew a little away and knelt down, grasping the shifter’s thick member, opening his mouth…
…and then the moonlight reminded him of the warning he had received. A shifter’s semen carried the magic of lycanthropy. If he swallowed it, or took it inside him in any way, he would become a merman.
Thomas let go and sidled back. The shifter looked down, confused and disappointed. Thomas motioned to the moon and understanding dawned on the merman’s face. He pointed at Thomas, and then at the sea, making swimming motions. Thomas shook his head.
“I am already different, my friend,” Thomas said. “And look how long it has taken me to accept myself.”
The merman smiled and knelt, grasping Thomas’s cock in his smooth hands. Then he lay back and spread his legs, pulling Thomas towards him.
“Well I suppose I can do this,” Thomas said in a hoarse whisper.
Thomas settled into the merman’s embrace, pressing the tip of his cock between his savior’s ass cheeks. The merman pulled him closer.
Thomas gasped with delight as his cock slipped easily into the willing hole, which flowered open, slick and giving, and yet still enticingly tight.
They kissed again, the merman’s hands running down Thomas’s back, his heels pulling against his lower back, getting him deeper ins
ide with each thrust. A steady motion, like the rocking of a ship on calm, peaceful seas. A slight quickening, like the choppy waves of a stiff breeze on a clear day. Stronger now, as a hard wind before a storm.
And then the storm broke, the seas leapt, and Thomas let out a cry of joy as his liquid desire crashed into the merman’s willing hole. He felt those soft fingers run down his neck, felt those strong legs wrapped around his waist, holding him close. For a mindless minute, they lay locked in that position—two bodies, two different beings united in pleasure.
Then Thomas rolled off the shifter, his head reeling. The merman kissed him again and sat up, his member still stiff and eager.
Thomas reached over and grasped it. The shifter stood and Thomas followed. Embracing him from behind, Thomas stroked the merman until his juice arced out of him to splash into the sea, carried away an instant later by the waves.
Thomas raised his hand close to his face. Pearly drops of the shifter’s cum remained on his fingertips. Thomas licked his lips and felt the urge to suck his fingers dry.
He remembered himself, bent down, and washed his hand in the sea.
Thomas arose and put on his soaked and dripping clothing. While the triton had distracted him for a time, his worry over Radbert’s fate was redoubled. Plus, he had to fear for himself. He was marooned on an island in the middle of nowhere with the only other people being a triton he couldn’t speak with and a pack of pirates who wished him dead.
What to do?
Thomas finished dressing as the triton studied him. The shifter rose up and pressed himself against his side, treating him to another of his languid kisses. Thomas allowed this, then gently pulled away and pointed to the mainland of the island.
“Can you take me there? To the shore of the bay?”
The triton did not seem to understand his words but seemed to understand his intentions easily enough. The creature led him to the other end of the islet, a walk that took barely a minute, and took him by the hand. Once again, they dove into the water, and once again, Thomas felt that strange choking as he went beneath the water.
He panicked for a moment as the triton led him deep below the waves. It took a conscious act of will to draw breath, and as before, he found he could breathe underwater. He did not know how it could be possible, but he suspected that he needed to remain in contact with his merman friend. The shifter kept a tight grip on his hand. The creature’s hands and feet were webbed again, and his entire body glowed with an eerie blue light that illuminated their path for several yards ahead. Thomas looked around in fascination at the creatures of the sea.
Together, they swam for the shore, in search of a treasure Thomas did not know how to find and closer to where he knew that boat full of killers would be.
As they swam, the triton let out a complex series of squeaks and clicks, and Thomas thought he heard a distant response. It was difficult to tell, because the sounds were at the high edge of his hearing, almost too high to be heard, and the response he thought he heard came faint and muffled through the water.
The creature that held his hand made another series of noises, briefer than the first. This time Thomas heard no response.
He spied a soft blue glow beneath them that slowly grew in strength. It took him some time to realize it was the sand, reflecting the light that this strange creature gave off. The bottom of the bay sloped up ahead of them. They were almost to the shore.
They broke through the surface, both of them choking and coughing. Thomas staggered onto the beach, wiping the water from his eyes and picking a bit of seaweed from his hair. The journey had been wondrous, but he was happy to be on dry land again.
Yes, he was on dry land, but he was also marooned. He slogged across the beach to the line of vegetation, dripping wet. Once he got off the sand, he peeled off his clothes, wrung them out, and laid them on some rocks to dry. The night was still warm, and he did not think it would take long.
The triton approached him, obviously interested in his state of undress. Thomas smiled, and put a restraining hand on his chest. As tempting as this shifter was, he had more immediate concerns than satisfying his libido. His heart still ached for Radbert. It seemed impossible that he could have gotten away.
A loud rapping like of a heavy stick against a tree trunk echoed through the thick jungle. It sounded as if it was coming from farther along the shore. Thomas spun in that direction, his heart clenching with fear, but he could see nothing.
The triton put a hand on his shoulder and smiled. Then he bent over, picked up a stone, and rapped it three times against a nearby tree. Another three raps came in response, and the shifter indicated that they should walk down the beach.
Thomas gathered his clothes and followed. All his nerves were on edge, but this creature had saved his life. He did not think it would lead him into danger.
After walking a couple of hundred yards along the tree line, Thomas received the shock of his life—another merman stepped out from the shadows and next to him followed Radbert!
The German was as soaked as he was and, like Thomas, had also removed his clothing. When they saw each other, Radbert stopped in his tracks, stunned. Thomas ran to him and embraced him.
“Thank God you’re alive!”
Radbert stiffened, and not in the good way. He pulled out of Thomas’s embrace.
“I wish I could same the same about you,” the German growled.
“Wait, please listen!” Thomas pleaded.
He told him the entire story, from start to finish. Radbert listened in silence as the two mermen stood by, watching with their liquid black eyes.
When he was finished at last, Radbert studied him for a minute. Then he said what Thomas had been dreading.
“I’m not sure I believe you.”
Thomas’s heart sunk. Why would he believe him? Just because Paddy had tried to kill him didn’t prove his innocence. They’d killed Osier, after all. And listening to his own tale, it all sounded too tidy, too much like he was the innocent victim and not the backstabber. Plus, it had all happened away from Radbert. He hadn’t witnessed any of it and could ask no one who had.
Thomas ran his fingers through Radbert’s wet hair. Radbert, after an instant’s hesitation, pulled away.
“How did you get here?” Thomas asked.
Radbert looked with wonder at the shifter who had accompanied him. “He plucked me out of the water. It was remarkable. I could actually breathe!”
“That happened with me, too. Not only that, but Paddy or one of the others shot me right in the head and this creature healed it somehow.”
Radbert stood on tiptoe and examined Thomas’s head in the bright moonlight, his sense of wonder at the recent events temporarily making his anger subside. Thomas eagerly looked for sympathy in the youth’s pale blue eyes, but saw only curiosity.
“You have a small patch of hair missing. That must have been where the ball struck. It doesn’t look like it’s bleeding, though.”
“It doesn’t even hurt anymore.”
Radbert looked down at Thomas’s body. Thomas became acutely aware that they were both quite naked.
“What else did the mermaid - or I suppose merman - do to you?” Radbert asked.
Thomas’s heart leapt. Was that jealousy he heard?
“We, um, we had sex. But we didn’t make love.”
Radbert snorted. He inclined his head towards the other shifter. “He and I had a little roll in the sand ourselves.”
“I wish it had been you and I,” Thomas said in a low voice. He reached his hand out for his lover. Radbert’s own hand reached halfway to his, and then he let it drop. The German looked about to speak, but was cut off by the sound of singing coming across the bay.
The two pirates and their merman companions turned. In the moonlit, the silhouette of the longboat glided across the water, heading for the beach.
“We have to get away from here. It’s not safe,” Thomas said.
The shifters led them into the trees inla
nd. The going was slow as vines caught their feet and branches caught their arms and chests. The tritons appeared unused to walking on land and had more trouble than the two men.
“Why did they help us?” Radbert wondered aloud.
“I’m wondering the same thing. I’m also wondering if they helped Osier,” Thomas replied.
“Still pining for him?” Radbert said with a sneer.
“No, but I wouldn’t want to face him without a weapon.”
After several minutes, they arrived at a clearing. The sounds of the jungle were all around them, birds cawing and animals rustling the branches and vines high up in the canopy. The two men looked around fearfully.
“I hope there are no wild beasts who feel hungry tonight,” Thomas said. “Let’s get some sleep. Those fellows won’t make any moves in the dark. They’ll camp by the beach and look for the cave in the morning.”
They spread out their clothing to dry and settled down on the thick grass. It was soft and spongy, like some luxurious bed. Thomas felt the urge to lie down by Radbert’s side, but the youth’s entire demeanor showed that he was not welcome closer than a few feet.
The shifter that had saved him lay down next to Thomas, while the other lay down by Radbert. They looked at each other curiously, motioning for the two humans to get closer together. Radbert shook his head. After a minute Thomas spoke.
“I see now why they saved us. Somehow, they could sense we were men who liked men, just as they are. I suspect no mermaid has ever gotten satisfaction from these mermen.”
Despite his black mood, Radbert chuckled. “We were fortunate, indeed. If a mermaid had saved me, I don’t know what I would have done.”
“But how could they have sensed that? And how did this one heal me?” Thomas wondered aloud.
He had no answers. There was magic in this world. All his life he had been of a practical frame of mind. He had never believed in stories of werewolves or mermaids or sea monsters or magic, but all those things were true.
As his eyes hooded with sleep he saw Radbert lying nearby, his body gleaming whitely in the moonlight as he stared at him. The shifter lying behind Thomas put a warm, silky arm around him. Gently, Thomas disengaged, meeting Radbert’s eye as he did so. The youth merely shrugged and turned over.