The seabed continued to grow clearer and some of the fish started to swim up towards her, the light sparkling upon their scales. As they drew nearer she was alarmed to see that they were no cold-blooded aquatic beasts, but other women contained within costumes, coming to greet a new arrival.
Through their visors they watched her sink, swimming about her, beautiful, dazzling and terrifying all at once. They looked so wonderful and elegant, the waters rippling their fins, but the bondage was a dark impediment to any sense of awe Mina could muster.
The fish played about her, escorting her descent until with a thump she landed on a rocky outcrop. The mound was coated in a coral garden of wild hues. Polyps drifted their plumes of tendrils upon the current, while other aquatic plants rocked gently on a languid current, a display of sea blooms more beautiful than any land based specimens.
Tilting aside, Mina collapsed onto the rainbow peak and rolled off, drifting down before dropping onto the sandy ocean bed, a cloud of particles rising up from her landing and then slowly settling about her. The coils of her umbilical started to pile up and then with a dull thump the canister landed near her. Staring at the featureless bulb of metal, she wondered just how much air she had left.
The fish continued to swim over her, circling and watching, joined now by more legitimate varieties, the tiny creatures dancing in shoals or cruising as individuals about the mammals posing as them. It was like being in tropical waters, save that the sky was now filled with a dozen dazzling suns instead of a single one. The lamps drifted high over head, anchored in place and pouring their rays down onto the area like a greenhouse, letting the coral thrive and the fish dwell secure and safe.
At this depth Mina knew there should be nothing like this, only barren stone and eternal blackness, but Korin had dragged a patch of heaven down into this lonely trench and let it flourish.
Mina could see plumes of fluctuating water spilling from the ground like geysers. These areas had the greatest concentrations of bound humans and real fish, suggesting that hot springs either artificial or natural were here, keeping the waters temperate as opposed to the expected freezing temperatures.
The women swam and frolicked amidst flicking shoals of coloured darts, the fish travelling idly through the coral reef, conducting their natural rites. Larger and more ornate species took more leisurely paths, meandering gradually as this aquarium obeyed nature’s tenements. It was a gorgeous sight, and she felt almost cosy beneath the lights, save for the havoc being imparted to her body by the lingering bondage.
While she lay on the sand, Mina started to notice that there were different species of human fish here. As well as the main population of silver specimens, there were two other distinct varieties of lesser number.
The first was a skittish breed, one that generally kept low, amidst the rocks, furtive and timid like the stingrays they were dressed to imitate. They were deep blues and greens; the shadows they lingered in making them appear black. They were sealed within a full suit of such gloomy latex, their legs compressed into a single strut which then tapered to form a withering tail several metres long that culminated in a forked tip. With their torso compressed within darkness, their arms were free and sealed within sleeves that ended in a tight bunch, lacking fingers or even mittens, forcing their hands into a fist. From their armpits spat thick struts, a thin veneer of rubber stretched between each spine, this fabric being a mottled series of dazzling greens and yellows. The fins connected them from wrist to hip and like the wings of a ray these were their primary means of propulsion. Their heads were sealed in dark hoods with a thin visor of silver reflective material, their breathing apparatus hidden amongst the hood, letting their dark painted lips slip through a tiny vent.
The other breed was the one nearest a true mermaid; their naked assets were left brazen, a cross strap over their shoulders helping hold the tail in place and keep a small canister on their backs. From just below the bust line they were sealed within a black fishtail, the garment keeping their legs pressed together and ending with two fins of silver rubber. Black struts helped keep the tail rigid, serving them as a large and efficient paddle to grant motion.
Their arms were free and bare, their fingernails painted black. Their hair flowed behind them in undulating waves, the manes bleached completely white. A ball gag was forced into their maws, their jet lips suckling on it, for two cables ran along the straps that kept it in place and reached down to their back and the air supply.
The strangest aspect of these creatures was their eyes, in that they were utterly black, without feature or colour. Clearly contact lens, Mina guessed that they protected the sight of the wearer from the seawater, letting them swim perpetually without the need for attendance.
Mina spent her time marvelling at the sight all about her, regarding this living masterpiece and longing to be part of it. To be held in the caste of one of the fish, to swim and play in this halcyon environment, it seemed alluring, but she knew it would soon become terrible with the loss of freedom of movement. But maybe she would adapt? Either that or she might well lose her mind. Were these even women any more playing above her? Had this entrapment melted their human intellect? Deprived of natural form and dry land, had they become little more than the beasts they had initially only pretended to be? If so, they would never leave, each unable to conceive of such notions, feeling safe only in their one true landscape.
It was an amusing thought, that if her diagnosis was accurate, a long-term prisoner in this garden could be dragged from the waters and dropped on dry land and like a real fish she would flounder and flick, trying to get back into the sea that nurtured her.
With strong beats of legs and arms a bright form of red and black latex emerged overhead, swimming past at a swift rate, a speed assisted by flippers and paddles.
The man was strong of limb, his form toned through this manner of exercise. A black hood like that of the fish adorned his head, leaving his mouth free as his air was fed to him through his nose. Red and black tentacles slipped from the hood in a cascading mane that trickled behind him. His body was held in a suit of black rubber, the material decorated with red stripes, like those of a tiger. A flat moulded pack upon his back was the source of his air, a small nozzle at its summit the means to refill it. Gloves of jet were incorporated into the attire, the red webs between each finger making him swift and dextrous in the water. The red flippers on each foot further enhanced his speed, and as he streaked past, Mina saw the apertures that let his genitals hang free, his shaft hard and defiant of the water, jutting out as he cruised steadily. Holes also exposed nipples and buttocks, letting the man indulge himself however he wished, every orifice open and able for use.
With a sudden turn he began to chase a fish, the woman spotting his sudden interest in her and trying to make her escape. Her legs kicked at the water, trying to outpace him, but he was far swifter than she and caught up after a quick and unremitting pursuit. But he did not strike, instead he let his quarry keep a distance, prolonging her weaving flight, letting her try every trick and manoeuvre she could as she tried to shake him, the male staying hot on her trail, keeping the pace to fully relish the hunt.
The woman passed back over Mina’s head, dashing amongst the rocks to try and lose him or at least let him mistake a different fish for her, but the male had made his selection and like a shark was upon her in a sudden flurry of movement.
A great cloud of bubbles poured from her mouth as he snatched her elbow fins, using them as reigns. She continued to struggle, but was effortlessly reeled in, a wide grin stretched across the hunter’s lips.
A webbed hand ferreted into her tail, unlocking something before he pulled out a large dildo from her rear passage. The infernal toy was still connected to her by a cord, allowing him to discard it, the instrument sinking and hanging in the waters about them. Without delay he locked his arms around her and replaced the artificial sex with a fa
r more real version. He groped at her encased breasts as he sheathed himself into her rear.
Gasps of intense satisfaction emerged as clouds of silver that scuttled for the surface, the woman’s initial flight either feigned or the result of expecting something far less tender from her partner. The couple kissed as he continued, their passion in the water a remarkable thing. Together they rode a swift pace into orgasm, the male arching back as he thrust into her with frantic jabs before slowing, quivering slightly. As though all life had been stolen he let himself drift back, his length slipping tardily free of the fish.
Sinking down he clasped her dildo, keeping hold of her as he flopped slowly onto the coral. Resting a moment, he gathered his senses, faint lines of his seed still hanging in the water, a slight milky trail reaching back to the fish as she circled over him, tethered by the cord to the fake phallus.
Recovered enough to act, he pulled her in and despite her resistance he forced the toy back and sealed the aperture he had exploited. With a slap to her rump the woman was sent flitting back into the shoals. The male watched her, his form hanging motionless in the sea, and then with twirling corkscrew turns he slithered away, satisfied by the exchange and already contemplating a repeat.
Mina was left speechless. The scenario had her aching to join them. It was one of the most wondrous sights in her memory, and she cursed her bondage, wanting to be free of it more now than ever before. How marvellous it would be to lose herself to the caste of a fish, to be no more than that, no complexities, no duties, just animal instinct and decadent prurience.
A new form emerged into view; an enforced mermaid, her shapely body trapped in a costume that bequeathed her this mythological visage.
The sheath of silver was tinted blue, each scale like a shining sapphire. Her tail poured forth its fins, trailing spectacular fluttering banners behind her as she waved her legs, beating the water to propel herself forward. An aperture let her buttocks emerge, the tight rim squeezing them together and forcing them out. Another opening performed the same effect for her breasts, squeezing them out to stand pert and proud. A similar canister to the male was set on her back, exposed because her arms were not twisted up in the manner of the other fish. But even though her arms were not fixed in place, they were not truly free. The limbs were sealed within sleeves that draped long fins before ending in a featureless bulb, her hands compressed into cones.
Without any concession to manual dexterity beyond gripping, she could not interfere with her attire. Her arms were useless for paddling and could only avail her for steering, keeping her mermaid façade all the more accurately enforced. Her hood set free the long fins, her visor hid her eyes and her blue painted lips dribbled free great silver clouds of bubbles as she swam.
A shoal of the normal fish women trailed the mermaid, if normal could be a word applicable to such bizarre a creation. Were these fully restrained females the Nymphs she had heard of? Or were the fish the lowest caste? There was so much she didn’t know, so many questions to ask, questions her gag would never let her articulate.
The mermaid spotted Mina, and began her descent. She wafted overhead and snatched the cable as she went, increasing the strength of her movements once she had caught it. A tug came and Mina was dragged up and into the waters, carried by the mermaid towards the main structure, the last grains of sand slipping from her and falling away.
The fish followed and watched her, and over to her left she could see a red-hued mermaid towing one of the other reclaimed females. She assumed these were some custodian caste, trustees of this undersea domain. Thus Mina doubted they were the Nymphs she had heard tell of, making it more likely that it was the fish who bore this title.
The structure ahead grew more clear the closer they got, the layers of obscuring fish, both human and real thinning, the mist of the waters parting to allow an increasingly better view.
It was a great dome set amongst the coral, its body coated with neat rings of large oval windows, like blisters across the entire surface that offered glimpses of the rooms and corridors within. It was massive, the light that streamed from the windows illuminating the entire area, negating the need for the overhead lights. It was at least eight storeys in height, with countless chambers, and from the amount of movement she could spot within, it had a significant population.
The mermaids started to congregate towards the base of the undersea station, and she saw the other two recruits being hauled in by a yellow and a green tinted mermaid.
A large corridor several storeys in height was big enough to accommodate the submersible should it attend the station, and together the women were drawn into the vast passage.
Potent lights all around filled it with a bleaching glow, dazzling Mina’s eyes. Windows along each side revealed internal corridors where women walked, all of them sealed in silver chastity belts like hers, and clearly the other ‘recruits’ she had seen in the Charybdis files, all of them lured into this lair and ensnared by it.
Many of the slaves were affected by other additional modes of bondage, each ranging immensely from the mild to the severe and extremely impeding. Rubber clad mummies ambled, hindered by hobble chains and contortion, while others strolled more freely, affected only by hood, gag or cuffs. Some were little more than pets, scampering on all fours, with tails, muzzles and pricked ears, a new breed of latex smothered quadruped, subservient to whoever held its leash.
The sights of such owners were rarer, and the men and women who walked the halls were dressed opulently, their own garments sculpted primarily from leather, latex, or vinyl. The primary means to recognise such a vaulted denizen was that they were almost always armed with a weapon of corporal punishment. Crop, tawse, whip, cane, strap, whatever they held, it was the badge that marked them as a dominant rather than one of the enslaved submissives about them.
In addition, she could see that each wore a silver band, the ring marked with a jewelled portrait of great detail, further confirming who were the rulers and who were the ruled in this place.
In small alcoves along the passages she could see women displayed in confinement, their bodies tied with rope or straps, keeping them in some manner of undignified or uncomfortable pose. Suspended, contorted, cursed with clamps or intruding phalluses, they served their sentence in silence, all of them hooded and gagged for the duration. Was this arbitrary treatment, or had they warranted such a fate because of their felonies against Korin’s rules? What were the laws of this place? What, if any, were the limits set to those who had control? Could they do anything they wished to the servile prisoners?
The ceiling lifted and accessed a round pool, which the mermaids led them to. Mina watched, hanging beneath the surface as the women hauled themselves up onto the ledge, their shins and flippers still remaining in the water as they offered the hoses to the rippling images she could see beyond the surface.
The shifting mercury pane gave hints that people were moving about up above, and she could just make out their hoses being fed onto other machines. This was it. She was going to enter Charybdis, and there was an unerring premonition in her thoughts that told her she would never be the same again.
Chapter 8
A rhythmic mechanised yank to the cable swiftly stole all the slack and they were once more being drawn upwards. The mermaids dropped into the water, wreathed in a great cloud of bubbles that their impact forced down with them. The wreath of silvery orbs spilled upwards, flowing on their bodies, leaving tiny offspring clinging to their rubber skin as the waters cleared of alien oxygen. The mermaids shook off this unwanted buoyancy with twists and turns, luxuriating in their return to the waves.
Swimming away, they passed by the doomed captives as they were being reeled in, circling their gathered quarry a few times before their sleek forms darted back down the huge passage and to open waters.
Mina’s helmet left the pool, the fluids running off the exterior and letti
ng her see the large round room that housed the pond. Overhead winches drew them up out of the water and swung them over to the side where they hung above the floor, their bodies dripping, a row of four latex stalactites.
Other far more industrial cranes were more directly placed over the pool, ready to haul up submersibles.
Still possessed by a lingering sense of duty, Mina’s instincts were immediately drawn to the cameras located throughout the room, observing everything that occurred within. Once she had strategically noted these devices, she allowed herself to assess what else was around her.
The walls bore rows of Nymph suits, all neatly arranged and hung up in readiness. A smaller section catered to new colours of mermaids, a dozen shades awaiting any who earned such a privilege. On the other side were rows of lockers, the plastic containers being the storage areas for the suits of the dominants who dwelt here, and perhaps costumes of more rarefied purpose.
As the four of them hung there, indistinguishable from each other, women dressed solely in chastity belts moved about, tending and maintaining the equipment, checking oxygen canisters and cables.
A trio of such females were forcing a weeping blonde into a Nymph outfit, the shaven head of the female held tight as she was pushed into the attire. A young man stood over the scene of regression, dressed in close fitting latex leggings and tall boots. A studded belt held a holster for his short crop, and a loose white shirt hung upon his wiry physique. A mane of black hair fell about his features as he watched with amused intensity as the slave was bound at his whim.
The male also held a leash, the chain links reaching to one of the pets, the woman contained within a latex suit. A moulded snout emerged from her face, two eye slits being the only break in the full-fitting hood. Two ears jumped up by her real ones, and a thick studded collar encircled her throat while a slender tail arose like a flagpole from between her buttocks, connected to a plug whose base was just visible through her cheeks. The woman’s hands were locked in constructed latex paws, denying her any use of them as short chains reached to a corset-like device about her waist, the lengths keeping her crouched and low. Mina had not seen the chains on the others she’d spotted, so she guessed this woman was new to her lot, and was still being accustomed to it. Her feet were in similar confinement, the footwear moulded into a replica paw, the foot posed as though in a stiletto heel, while her legs were kept folded to have her in a perpetual crouch on all fours. The costume stretched latex between her mid-calf and the tops of her thighs, stopping her from straightening them and granting her hind legs the required visage to complete the transformation. The suit allowed her breasts to emerge, forcing them out by tight rings at their base, her nipples ringed with silver hoops, her engorged assets the only piece of naked flesh that could be seen.
Captured by Charybdis Page 10