Chapter Two

Once everyone is safely ashore and the sun begins to set, I back away through the dense, tropical underbrush. Lush ferns graze my fingertips and bare thighs as I turn and walk towards the river to join my harem. They swim up and down the current, rolling over in the water with slight impatience. They're anxious to walk on land again and want to voice their excitement, but they elect to stay a healthy distance away from me. They're too intelligent to disturb me prior to reaping.

My feet crumble into the black pebbles on the riverbank as I wade into the water. Slick, amethyst scales ripple up my skin, stopping just above my hips. I effortlessly dive head first into the crisp, aqueous solution, allowing myself to slowly sink to the bottom. My legs fuse together at my inner thighs and ankles as my feet expand into an opaque, violet tailfin. A spiny, raised dorsal fin snakes its way from my calves up to my lower back. Each razor sharp spike pops up in place and two identical growths protrude from my forearms. My waist length, dirty blonde hair webs out around my body. Every strand undulates and churns around my skin, scarcely grazing my bare breasts and electric yellow tattoo spread out across the underside of my sternum.

I lie on my back at the bottom of the river for over an hour, allowing all that I am to become one with the molecules of water. Over the years, I've become a fluid being by nature, so I'm often more comfortable here than on land. The soft echo of river rocks gliding past one another and the trickling of bubbles climbing to the surface play like a meditative soundtrack in my mind. Tangerine pinpricks of dying sunlight peek through the canopy of palm fronds, striking my body in the coursing water. The burning glow illuminates deep accents of jade throughout my newly formed tail and corresponding fins. I keep my eyes closed as the perfect world around me falls into darkness, each aqueous breath bringing me peace and serenity. Meditation is a necessary action to absorb the unavoidable chain of events looming on the horizon.

As blackness swallows up the back of my eyelids, the smooth, rounded pebbles on the riverbank clatter towards the spaces around me. Even without vision, I know my harem is starting to exit the water. Nightfall is the only opportunity they have to do so, so naturally, they like to milk the time for all its worth. They get especially excited when we've got uninvited guests.

I wait until they've all exited the river before I open my eyes in the rising moonlight and pump my tail to climb upwards. My head pops through the tension on the water's surface and I inhale a breath of air. I comb my hair back with my fingers, watching as a pack of women thirty strong form on the river's edge. Most of them are already back in their human forms, quietly gossiping and stretching out. Another few sit up away from the water as their tails recede and reshape into legs. I pull myself up through the pebbles and rocks, settling on a patch of green grass. Almost immediately, my beautiful amethyst tailfin splits apart. My shimmering scales assimilate back into my skin, and my dorsal and accent fins go right along with them. I sigh longingly as I stare down at a set of drab, human legs. They're long and toned, but certainly nothing compared to my tail.

I stand up and wring my hair out, pulling some wet, wavy pieces over the front of my shoulders. I skirt past the girls and make my way down a small path overgrown with vegetation. After side stepping some logs and brushing past a handful of boulders, I arrive at the mouth of a cave shrouded by hanging vines. I part the living drapery and enter a cozy space lit blue by dangling neon glow worms. A cobalt hue touches every inch of rocky, cavernous wall, giving the cave an oceanic feel even though it's on dry land.

When I'm in human form, I find myself spending a decent amount of time here amongst various items I've collected over the years. Jewelry, sculptures, a small bed, countless weapons and trunks full of silken wraps and clothing lie scattered about along the stony floors. I grab a colorful pile of wraps out of a wooden chest and hoist them into my arms, carrying them back down to the bank of the river. I drop the items onto the grass and each girl snags one to fashion around their waist. I do the same, tying a rectangle of sky blue fabric into a knot below my bellybutton. It's a strictly humanesquè act to cover up any part of our naked bodies, but the women find it nostalgically entertaining and so do I. Once they've all finished wrapping up whatever they choose, everyone goes silent. I straighten myself out and make eye contact with each and every one of them, slowly scanning their faces.

"Everyone's privy to the order of operations, correct?" They all nod in unison, their faces beaming with mischief. My newest addition nods in agreement with them, but I can tell she's nervous.

"Genesis…would you like to sit this one out?" I inquire.

She shakes her head while her mocha fingers fidget with her long, black braid. "No, I-I think I'm ready."

I walk over and take her face in my hands, offering an encouraging smile. "Once you get started, your body will kick into autopilot and it'll feel…indescribable," I explain, sighing with patience. "You'll do well, Genesis. Just follow my lead."

A few women give her shoulders a reassuring squeeze and she meekly nods. I release her face and begin sauntering through the jungle with the girls silently in tow. We walk for about fifteen minutes or so until the sound of men's laughter and radiance of a campfire pop up off in the distance. I grin to myself and take a deep breath, stretching my arms upwards towards the sky. Upon my exhale, the girls take my signal and begin humming a soft, airy tune that drifts through the jungle. They fan out one by one, forming a circle around the ring of orange fire as each note caresses the trees. Their voices flutter closer and closer towards the intended destination and the men dull down their chatter in response. My bare feet twirl on the damp earth as I walk through the center of our circle and towards the firelight. I adjust my voice to the same fine-tuned frequency which stuns every human man in preparation for the reaping. As we dance and sway in harmony, words lift from my chest and I softly sing;

I've dreamt of a beauty yet unseen,

and her voice, it whispers,

"Set me free."

Her path isn't hammered out in stone,

she runs with the sails,

the sea's her home.