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Serpentine Adventure

T he mists began to creep in from all sides, washing over the small boat like an ethereal wave, engulfing it in their tenebrous embrace.

“Sir," Garjulio mouthed, the word almost silent on his cracked lips. His knuckles turned white from his steely grip on the oar as he looked around with those green, oversized eyes. “This is bad omens. We should turn this boat around."

“Keep rowing," Edward urged. He sat at the front of the boat, back turned to the sea hand, peering into the thickening murk. There was nothing to see but foggy gloom through which the sun itself refused to pass.

“Sir, your request is most queer. If you would but look at the sky to—“

“It is queer indeed, Garjulio," Edward agreed, if only to throw the terrified sailor a thread of hope to cling onto. “But from what I can tell, the mists protect us as much as they can hurt us. I will take my chances with them."

“Crazy. He's crazy," Garjulio muttered to himself, sniffling back his disbelief. He was a young lad, barely a man, with tangled brown hair that washed over his rash ridden brow. After several days spent at sea, his cheeks deflated into sallow, gaunt pits, and the skin under his wiry beard cracked and bled from prolonged exposure to the salt clinging onto the wan hairs. He looked no more better than a living, breathing skeleton. Unlike one, he prattled incessantly about omens and signs that only he could see.

Not the most reliable mate to sail with, but still far from the worst.

Edward, as the third mate on their now plundered and stolen vessel, knew better than to drill sense into the frightened minds of superstitious sailors. For better or worse, his crew had been reduced to one single person, and he intended to make the best with what he had. As the saying went, beggars couldn't be choosers.

“Shouldn't have given up so easily," Garjulio muttered to himself while swinging back and forth in unison with the oar, a habit that he perfected over the last couple of days. “Focken pirates…. Could of outgunned them. Could of outrace them. Could of done anything, and captain Riley tells us to abandon ship? Focken coward, that focken, mouse faced vermin who licked the shite off everybody's arse, that dung-smelling, piss drenched…"

Garjulio grunted, spat, cursed his crew and the gods in equal measure for abandoning him to his grim fate. That's what his simple mind was capable of, to put the blame on everybody else but himself. Edward doubted he escaped the sea hand's ire. Then again, not even Garjulio was stupid enough to add the one person he could kill him to his mumbled list. Edward had made that clear to him on their first day in the boat. By the looks of it, he had to remind him again.

Edward took a deep breath of briny air to steel himself for what appeared to be another long day. With the sun at its zenith, they had several more hours to row before he gave Garjulio the order to stop, after which they would drift aimlessly. Of course, he was going to keep that information to himself. For all Garjulio knew, Edward's compass led them to the island of Jarlgrovia in a three days' time, to be rescued and reimbursed for their trouble by the one whose goods now lay in the hands of pirates: Jarl Grovia.

Lies came easy to Edward. He fed this false hope to Garjulio while he swallowed the bitter truth. No, they wouldn't get anywhere with a single oar. Yes, they would both die at sea, in this very boat, once their supplies ran out. They still had eight cans of fruit kompot and four MRE packages, along with a dozen bottles of potable water. He would share everything with Garjulio, after which he'd kill the man with the bayonet attached to his own rifle. Better to go out swiftly than to become mad with thirst or hunger, a path that lead to the same destination, only on a more treacherous road.

“Sir, do you still know… where we're going?" Garjulio's voice shook with palpable fear. He kept his breath shallow, as if to avoid breathing the mists in.

“Yes."

“Can you…show me your compass?"

He wouldn't have shown him the compass even if he had one on him to begin with! “Do you not trust me?"

Edward's rich, cultured voice settled the dog back onto its perch. Undoubtedly, his now dead or lost at sea officers would bring Edward's behavior into question, call him callous for thinking so little of his subordinates. As if manners, rank or wealth mattered more than cold, ruthless pragmatism. The Royal Navy wouldn't mourn nor compensate the families of his crew for their loss. If the authority that put Edward on that mercantile ship didn't care about him, why should he return the favor?

Regardless, everything had been out of his hands from the very beginning. He did not wish to abandon his ship, yet he followed through with that order. He fought tooth and nail to stay in line with the other boats through yesterday's storm, but the waves had a mind of their own. Heck, he did not even get to choose his boat mate. Of all the sea hands, it had to be the most fearful and superstitious one.

“Sir, I do trust you, but if you could just…"

“Just what, Garjulio?"

“Umm…." The sea hand scratched at his salt flecked beard audibly. “Could you at least look at me? It would…make it much easier for me to explain myself if I have your full attention."

“If you can't address me properly, then what need have I of your words?"

“You don't. I know you're leading us to Jarlgrovia, that we'll be saved thanks to you. I suppose…my worries don't matter. Not if they interfere with your focus, Sir."

The thick silence that ensued was only broken by the monotonous swishing of the oar. Edward considered facing the man, but that lessened his authority and portrayed him in a more humane light. Fear kept Garjulio in line, and it was fear that Edward had to exude. The moment Garjulio feared the sea serpents more than he feared him, madness would descend upon their little boat, and one of them would die.

But not yet.

So, Edward maintained his stoic position, arms crossed over his gold threaded vest, fingers scratching at the emblem of the royal navy embedded above his heart. It had been a good life. A lonely, but a good life nevertheless.

“These murky waters are the domain of sea serpents, Sir," Garjulio mouthed, his tone dim like the faltering light. “They conjured this mist. It is said the fog possesses the power to ensnare a man's senses, to pacify him like a calf ready for slaughter. Serpents like they prey obedient."

“There have been no accountings of sea serpents in any document or ledger I've read."

“And why is that? Because every sailor who has ventured into these waters got eaten! Crushed to a pulp! Dragged into the sea so deep their eyes popped out and their skull exploded from the weight of the sea alone!"

The oar rattled in its metal loop. The swishing halted, and the boat slowed to a standstill.

“Keep rowing," Edward demanded.

“No…no…" Garjulio refused. “Don't ask me to get us killed, Sir. Anything but that."

Edward exhaled the drawn-out breath that pressed upon his chest and turned around to fixate stark green eyes upon the disheveled sea hand. It surprised him, how a couple of days spent at sea turned man into beast. Garjulio's features turned gaunt, the lines and curves of his face so prominent he looked cadaverous already. Rashes mottled his furrowed brow at which he feverishly scratched with callused fingers. His feral eyes skipped around, never settling, the narrow speckles of color reminding Edward of similarly frenzied creatures.

Caged mice. That was it. No doubt Garjulio felt trapped in this boat, ensnared by Edward's orders, bound by his loyalty and honor to the navy. If those tethers didn't give in, then his mind would, a process that had already begun.

What disturbed Edward the most was how Garjulio nibbled on his nails like a veritable madman. It contradicted his calculations on the speed of his decaying sanity, and that upset him greatly. He had expected more from a sea hand handpicked by captain Riley himself…

The same man who surrender without a fight, Edward reminded himself.

“I'm not going to get us killed, Garjulio. I'm getting us to a safe place where we can eat, wash this salt off us, and board a galley to get us home, eh? You have heard of Captain Riley's achievements. Undoubtedly our unforeseen surrender had been part of his grand plan."

His fake, jovial smile put an end to the irritating rattle of Garjulio's yellowed teeth.

Now get up. Hug me, and cheer. In that order, Edward thought, spurred on by Garjulio's predictable behavior. He knew the man too well, to the point where he could anticipate every possible reaction and outcome.

Apart from Garjulio's apathy.

Edward's lips thinned into a straight line when Garjulio scoffed, turning his head to the side to gauge the horizon.

“I believe you, Sir, but I would have more faith if you could but take us around these mists. They don't bide well for us, no matter what you think. It is said that serpents conjure the mists and peer through it, like a witch through its crystal globe. They see us, hear us, feel us."

As if his act lacked a dramatic touch, Garjulio advanced upon Edward, gripping the sides of his arms in his weak, trembling clutch, inching his face ever closer to his.

“They smell us, track us, desire us, Sir. The sea's depths are old and cold, but a human's body's warm…"

“That's quite enough, Garjulio," Edward said, pushing the spindly man back.

Garjulio shook him feverishly in return, eyes bulging into their prominent sockets.

“They will maketh us unto them, sir! Insert us into their perverted orifices, to orgasm and roar out their bliss while we smother and die!"

Enough!

Edward jabbed Garjulio in the stomach to wind him, grabbed his crooked shape by his bony shoulders, and led the coughing wretch to the other end of the boat to settle him in place. His fingers seized Garjulio's skeletal jaw, twisting his head around so that his gaze bore into Garjulio's.

“We are not going to die. No serpent shall slay us, and no clump of mists shall interfere with my vow. I promised I'll get you home, and on my word as a Third mate, so will it be."

His piece said, Edward returned to his perch, tugging at his frayed sleeves with his thumbs, thumping his boot in distress, or impatience, or both. It all slipped out of his control. Garjulio, the boat, his lies. Nothing seemed straight anymore.

And just how deep did the mists dig into Garjulio's feeble mind? Edward didn't know, but even he had to attest to their eeriness. They occupied a random swathe of the ocean and trapped sunlight with uncanny effectiveness. They also carried an unnatural chill. One moment, the sun's heat had caused Edward to sweat profusely. As soon as the mists rolled in, he had to tie his arms across his torso to keep warm. Not to mention the darkness. The further they penetrated the gloom, the more light dimmed.

It's just a freak of nature, Edward said to himself. Nothing more.

Yet even so, he didn't quite manage to convince himself. There was an uncanny stillness to this air, as if this pocket of space was frozen in time. Much as he hated to admit, the weather did behave in quite the…

The boat rocked.

Edward squatted, seizing the sides of the boat for leverage. Garjulio, that unstable wretch of a person, reached for one of the two rifles stacked in the middle of the boat, clutching it to his chest as he squatted halfway down, his frenzied eyes swerving left and right.

“It's a serpent. A sea serpent," Garjulio whispered, his voice drained to a husky growl by the terror that entangled his heart. “They found us, just like I told you. Now pick up your weapon, Sir. PICK IT UP!" he suddenly bellowed, his eyes bloodshot and crazed.

“That is very perceptive of you, seafarerrrr, but you shall have no need of your silly boomstickssss."

Lucky for Edward, Garjulio's priorities shifted. The sea hand pushed himself up, tilting from one side of the boat to the other to peer into the shifting waters, his rifle lurching around with terse, snappy movements. That damned fool! He was more likely to stick Edward with the bayonet than cause harm to the serpent.

The serpent!

Against his will, discipline and years of experience spent at sea, an ominous shiver slithered through Edward's bones, draining the heat out of them, turning his frame brittle with eerie cold. The creature didn't just speak; it addressed Garjulio with a playful, serene tone, as alluring as a siren's. Was that what she was?

No. That's not possible. Sirens don't exist. Sea serpents don't exist. It's just your mind playing tricks on you.

“And what about you, officerrr? You must be a thirrrd mate, judging from your shoulder knotssss."

“Don't answer to her, sir," Garjulio advised, surging from one end of the boat to the other, pointing his bayonet at the water. “She's circling us. Taunting us. Charming us. Cover your ears sir. I shall gut the temptress like a fish once she sticks her head out the water."

Edward knew better than to trust Garjulio's plan. The man trembled like a leaf from head to toe, his sallow cheeks drained of every ounce of blood. He held his rifle under the crook of his arm, scratching his scalp bloodied with the other hand and sweeping the beading sweat off his brow on his torn sleeve.

“That's crude of you, ssssailorrrr," the creature sang with her melodious, feminine voice. “But that's to be expected from fearrrful beingssss. When cornered, you lash out, so I shall make this ssssimple for you."

Water exploded all around them, the tidal wave causing the boat to suddenly careen left. Both of the humans toppled over. Edward gripped the wooden side in front of him, positioning himself perpendicularly across the boat's surface, while Garjulio rolled inwards and flopped into the water.

Or so Edward believed. The serpent's massive tail tip slammed into the boat, her fluke—if it could even be called such, for she definitely was no dolphin—adjusting their boat to a straight, horizontal position with shocking precision. That left Garjulio hanging halfway over the boat's side, his top half submerged in the water.

Fool. He should have discarded the useless rifle he so dearly clutched. Not like he was going to do something with it. Not to a creature such as her.

The serpent splayed her fins over the boat, one of each side of the two men. They had massive spines, at least nine feet long, united by a purple hued blue membrane strewn with bioluminescent teal stripes towards the edges. Her crest and numerous sets of frills had similar coloring and markings, though the coloring there was predominantly purple to contrast with her shimmering golden eyes. The serpentine slits within them narrowed to thin lines as she adopted an almost vertical position, another row of smaller sized fins batting at the water to keep her floating.

While his bumbling fool of a sea hand wobbled onto his feet, Edward admired the serpent's beauty. Azure scales adorned her body, with the exception of her face, where they transitioned into plates along her brow and softened into ridges above her eyes, bearing the same intense blue color. Her eye ridges were dotted with small, iridescent teal spots, accentuating her utter majesty. Along her back ran wave-like, leathery frills, similar to a dragon's, colored a striking purple, just like her frills. Unlike her belly scales, the ones adorning her back turned golden on her dorsal side and bleached to a wan blue along her ventral side. Symmetrical, curvy patterns of a deep green embellished her lengthy spine, a spectacle for the eyes in conjunction with her elongated violet frills.

“Are you admiring me, thirrrd mate?"

Edward's heart lodged into his throat, clogging it with his pent-up decline. That was a lie and something—instinct, maybe—held him back.

Not that it mattered. Her attention shifted to Garjulio, who appeared to have regained his footing, his wits and his courage. He had his rifle aimed at the serpent's head, index finger curled around the trigger.

“Die, you devilish fiend."

Nothing happened, for his rifle took more than three dives throughout their journey, not to mention it actually dripped water from his earlier meeting with the sea. What an absolute moron.

“Drop that," Edward growled softly at first, until his voice regained its thunder. “Drop that, you insolent brat!" He commanded.

Garjulio looked between the two, eyes widened in mixed terror and disbelief. “I…I…Sir, she'll kills us both…"

The serpent flicked her forked tongue dangerously close to Edward's face. He didn't flinch, but Garjulio shot back, physically repulsed.

“I won't kill you. The sea shall, unlesssssss you find it within your primitive heartsssss to trrrusssssst me."

She spoke with such alluring fervor. Edward found himself drawn towards her, hand outstretched to receive her snout against his palm. Unlike Garjulio, he didn't see a terrifying monster in her; she came across like a bored, playful and mischievous creature who simply craved for the attention of another intelligent species.

The serpent confirmed his suspicions by craning her head forward, her slick scales making contact with Edward's warm skin. A visible shudder slithered under her scales as she rubbed herself against his hand, emitting a soothing, rumbling growl.

And then, just when Edward physically touched a being torn out of a myth, Garjulio charged at her with a maladroit lunge.

The third mate's instincts flared into action. He shoved the sea hand's weapon to the side, punched him in the nose to stagger him, and the serpent did the rest. Tendrils of blinding lightning shot out of her maw, coiling around Garjulio's body, their seething grip burning his eyes out of their sockets and blackening his skin to a physical manifestation of his superstitious soul. With a flick of her tail fins, the serpent flung him into the sea, her snout shoving into Edward's chest in the next second.

“Your warmth is…mrr….intoxicating to my kind."

At a loss of words, Edward continued to scratch at her pebbly scales, his mind a whirl of emotions, his heart pounding in his chest, his legs threatening to melt under his weight. She killed Garjulio. No—he did, by disarming the poor man, by shoving him into harm's way. Alas, what choice did he have? The fool sealed his fate the moment he pressed the trigger on a soaked gun.

“Does his death bother you, thirrrrd mate?" the serpent spoke, her head still leaning into his arms.

He could have lied to her, just like he lied to Garjulio all this time. Instead, Edward licked his lips, swallowed to wet his dry throat, and croaked, “No. No, it doesn't."

The monster appeared more troubled and shaken by his response than he did. She pulled away from his touch, eying him with what Edward could only regard as suspicion. “He was your friend and sea mate. His life was pledged to yourrssssss, wasn't it?"

In the heat of the moment, Edward didn't question her knowledge on human customs. He simply buried his face into his palms, heavy with her foreign, attractive scent. She didn't smell like fish. Her fragrance wasn't stale, but aromatic, with subtle traces of vanilla and other odors that Edward couldn't quite place.

“Yes," Edward muttered through his palms. “He used to be all that, but humans live and die by the choices they make."

He wove a hand through his hair, pulling the coal-black curls back and releasing a drawn-out sigh as his eyes fell upon the sea that mercilessly swallowed Garjulio's seared remains. Edward had always known how Garjulio would end up, but it happened quicker, messier, and much more disturbing than he anticipated. It was one thing to lay a weary soul to rest with a stab to the heart, and another to burn him to a husk.

“It's choices that define us. Not our nature, nor status, wealth, fame. His death saddens me, but his behavior outrages me."

The serpent leaned closer to him, her eyes narrowing. “You chose my wellbeing over hisssssss."

“And I would do it again," Edward said without hesitation, his morals pouring out of his mouth like a cathartic avalanche. “He sought to bring harm to a creature that showed no hints of aggression. I may not know who and what you are, but I shall not stand for prejudice against other sapient species."

For a moment, the two stared at each other. The serpent's gaze unnerved Edward, but it also filled him tingling excitement. This serpent, through her very presence, discredited all the foul superstition surrounding her kind. She also spoke with practiced eloquence and seemed equally baffled by Garjulio's death. Could it be that she also had a conscience? A way to differentiate good from evil?

“You are wise as you are honest, thirrrd mate. Little you may live, yet your wordsss comfort me better than the touch of my kin."

What? What was that supposed to mean?

“Join me in the depthsssssss, third mate," the serpent hissed, her fins trembling with impatience. “I shall keep you sssafe from everyone, human or serpent alike."

Edward didn't have time to process her request. With blinding speed, her tail seized him in its taut coils, draining the air out of his lungs. His bones popped uncomfortably in that vise-like grip, his cheeks acquiring a ruddy hue from all the blood trapped within them. Although he tapped the serpent's hide with weak pats, she didn't seem to take notice of his attempts to get her to lessen her hold on him.

“But firssst, air. Enchanted air for the land dwellerrr."

Her maw stretched open. Endless rows of serrated teeth greeted Edward, along with a breath as foul and stale as one could expect from a sea serpent. Surprisingly, that chocking miasma only lasted for a second. As soon as Edward inhaled next, he breathed in sharp, briny air. The air around his face and body shimmered and distorted, solidifying to a barely discernable bubble. If not for the sunlight splintering itself into the specific colors against its surface, Edward would have hardly discerned it.

“Brreathe deep, Thirrd Mate," the serpent advised, slapping her tail fins against the boat impatiently. “Isss air rrrich with magic."

“I could—cough—do that if—cough—perhaps…" he trailed off, trying to wriggle his arms free from her entrapping coils.

In response, the serpent lowered her head to his level, her slit-shaped pupils shifting in their golden pools as they analyzed him. “I don't harrrm humans who do not wish to harrm me. I sssssave them, I help them, and if they do me the great honor of accepting me, I mate with them."

Edward lidded his eyes just in time to shield them from the clammy touch of that cold, smooth tongue. The two pronged tips slithered over his face, slick and frigid like the sea.

“Warrrm, warrrrrrrrrrrrm," his female captor rumbled, her ecstatic growl akin to a husky purr. “So warrrm and nice. I know where to take you, Thirrd Mate. I know what to do with you. Deep under the sunless sea, there is a place for you and me."

The serpent flung herself into the waters, dragging Edward after her. Everything turned upside down for the human, the bleak sky replaced by the diluted colors of the depths. His teeth pressed against each other as he prepared for stinging coldness to shock his senses, but for some reason, that did not come to happen.

Strange. Even while trapped in the serpent's grip, his clothes should have absorbed the water. Edward tried to tilt his head just an inch or two to peer at his body, but all he saw were scales painted a muted gold here, under the ocean, and back frills that turned darker before his very eyes as light began to fade progressively.

He considered asking his captor about the place she mentioned earlier, but that prospect soon left his dizzy mind. Although the serpent kept her tail curled around him, thus rendering it unusable for swimming purposes, she still surged through the ocean at a dazzling speed. Her frontal fins attacked the water with broad, sweeping strokes, while the lesser pairs along her side remained mostly idle, fluttering every now and then to adjust her course.

“We're gentle with humans, Thirrrd mate," the serpent's sonorous voice cut through the darkening abyss in which they descended. “They are prrrrecioussss to ussssss, few as they are, and also warrrm! They never get wet unlessss they request it. No, no. It is imperative they remain dry and warrrm!"

Given the chilly embrace of her body, Edward could relate to her yearn for warmth. Cold blooded species required certain means to quicken their metabolism, and down here, Edward supposed the only source of heat came from fissures along the ocean floor that spewed scalding waters.

Scintillating lights scattered away the third mate's rational thoughts. His eyes blinked hard and fast, pinned hands uselessly twitching with the urge to rub the mirage out of his sight. It just—it couldn't be. Nothing could possibly emanate such intense light three thousand feet deep, or more.

And yet, the distant twinkles steadied to constant streams of turquoise, jarring shafts of light. The twirling dapples cut their way through the profound darkness, their serene glow mesmerizing.

“Yashlrasssharrr," the serpent said in that hissy, growly way of hers. Her body swerved a tight left, Edward's guts lurching from the sudden, nauseating stop. “You are not worrrthy to enter the city, Thirrrd Mate. You have not pledged your body to us serpents, nor have you spilled seed into your chosen mate."

Pledge his body? Spill his seed? Mate?!

As if noting his confusion, the female brought her head around to face him, her serpentine tongue flicking inches from his lips. “You think yourself different from others, Thirrrd mate. You may not believe the tales of your kind, but that makes you unpredictable to us. Untrusssstworrrthy. Dangeroussss."

Dangerous?! To a massive, magical underwater serpent that could squeeze him to a pulp?! Edward had to swallow back his incredulity, yet even so, he found it hard to form words when faced with such paltry claims.

“Might you have a name, fair serpent?"

She pulled her head back, as if stung by his impertinent question.

“A name is not given to an outsiderrr, to a friend, or to a lover. Only matesss know each other's names, and only they are allowed to sssspeak them." Her snout neared closers, her nostrils twitching, as if she could smell his growing panic. “You are not my mate, land dwellerrrr, but you can be. Mate with me. Spill yourself inside my body, and we shall ssssspend an eternity together inside Yashlrashar or outside of it. I'll be bound to you, as tradition demands, just like you'll be fated to a life spent at my side…on top of me…or inssssside me…"

For a short, terrifying moment, Edward's head swam with absurd images placed in there by Garjulio. She wouldn't realistically shove him into her femininity, right?

His worries quickly dispersed as the massive beast began to rub her oversized snout against his face like a giant, scaled, serpentine puppy, loosening a mellow cry akin to a mating call to Edward's ignorant mind. He might not harbor ill intent for the misunderstood creatures, but at the same time, he did not feel too inclined to pledge his life to this….this…beast. For all her magic and sapience, the female acted mind numbingly close to an animal, brushing the smooth, tiny and sensitive scales of her snout against the rough stubble of his chin and dabbing the twin tips of her tongue at his lips, rumbling her pent-up satisfaction.

“We live long, lonely lives, Thirrrrd Mate," she said once she was finally done with…whatever that was. “Us serpents are not very different from you. We choossse who or what to devote ourselves to and nobody can tell us otherwisssse. I have known the touch of males on more than one occasion, but their compassion rrrrrunsssss as cold as their blood, and their love is as dry as their seed."

Her great head turned towards the distant city. If Edward squinted hard enough, he could barely make out its layered structure. Strewn across multiple levels that began at the base of a massive underwater mountain, he could mostly glimpse domed buildings dotting the upper plateau, where the cliffs smoothed out to an even surface. The splotches of shimmering light blotted out the rest, keeping the city veiled in shifting shadows.

“It takes yearsssss and hundreds of matings for their seed to take hold. Sometimes, it never doessss, and once a male loosens his seed into you, it is that seed which you shall sleep with inside of you for your remaining yearsssssssss."

Edward quirked a brow at that peculiar informational tidbit. “But you said you have mated."

“By means of ssssssnouts, tongues, sometimes tails and fins, but never a male's shaft, or a male's seed," the serpent said, her fading voice gaining a wistful touch. “It is our city, so it abides our customssss. Though the humanssssss have built the actual structures, it is our magic that made it possible. Still, we keep to our ancient beliefs, according to which mates can be taken regardless of speciesssssssss."

She needed not speak any longer for Edward to understand her plight. Unlike her kind, humans lived much shorter lives, a loophole in her customs that he now began to understand. Oh, how it all connected now in his head! Her possessive nature, that inquisitive nature of hers, the obsession with warmth—it all made sense! She must have had a human mate—or numerous mates who…well….

A feeling of debilitating sorrow carved out a pit in Edward's stomach. His lips pressed tight against each other, his gaze avoiding hers for reasons that even Edward couldn't fully comprehend. He absolutely didn't feel pity for the creature. She was his captor, and he was her property, a kinder word for slave.

Only, that wasn't true, and within his heart of hearts, Edward knew that. Her beliefs resonated with him on a deeper note that human customs ever had. There was a certain nobility in them that overshadowed those of humans, often too materialistic and selfish to see the bigger picture. This nameless serpent cared not for benevolent acts to earn her a place in heaven, nor was she after riches to augment her status. According to her, sea serpents had but one main desire: to share their life with another. It sounded so cliché and ridiculously simple to Edward, but so meaningful at the same time.

The grip of her tail around him loosened, enough to grant him use of his arms. Edward brought his hands in front of him, waving them around, observing how the magic that encased his frame split the water from his body. It felt like an ethereal aura draped over his skin, invisible in the gloom surrounding them. To give this strange magic another test, he placed his hand on the leathery frills running the length of her spine, rubbing the cold membrane between his fingers. It felt slick to the touch, and if he squeezed it hard enough, the water greeted his skin, as if dipping a finger into a pond.

For the second time, the serpent offered Edward her head, which he graciously accepted. Stroking her ear fins and snout kept his hands busy and his urge to flee this surreal place in check, an instinct that he couldn't simply brushed aside.

Sympathizing with the serpent was one thing. Spending his life alongside her, in an underwater city, so far away from sunlight and land was downright asinine. Humans weren't made to live underwater. For all Edward knew, her magic was the only reason his lungs didn't burst, or why his heart hadn't exploded.

Plan your escape carefully. Do no waste your shot, Edward thought, his chest vibrating with the serpent's satisfied, muffled growl. Not before you have a clear opening.

“You didn't fearrrrr the missstsssss," the serpent interrupted his musings. “I have been following you and your sea hand, and I listened to your conversation."

“Then you should know that, according to me, it's just harmless fog."

She grumbled in amusement. “It used to mean more than that to the first humansss who entered our domain, back when you sailed on boats lesssser than the one you came in, Thirrrrd Mate. The currents carried them adrift. They were sick, starrrrrving, and dying. We took them in, nurtured them back to health, and assssked for only one thing in return: A home as grand as the ones they have built on land. We learned much from each otherrr. In fact, it was those very humans who advised us to conjure the mists, to separate the chaff from the wheat. Those with a pure heart would find sanctuary within the mists, while the ones who cared only for themselves feared them."

The great serpent closed her eyes, resting in Edward's embrace. He guiltily looked to the side, ashamed of looking upon her. How could a creature so ancient and wise fall prey so easily to the grip of loneliness? Blinded by her desire for companionship, she overlooked one crucial detail about the very human whose warmth she relished.

My heart is anything but pure, Edward thought. A pang of bitterness crept into his muscles, urging them to tighten with purpose. I abandoned my crew. I got a sailor killed. If you think I am going to slave away for your scaly kind for the remainder of my days, then you haven't been paying attention.

The same couldn't be said for Edward. He took in her actions, words, philosophy and goals. Now, it was time to turn them against her.

Even with the enchantment she had placed upon him, a punch to the snout would stagger her at best. He could go for her eyes and blind her, but from his position, only one of them stood within reach.

No. There was no use harming the creature, not when he had other means to stun her. Slowly and gently, Edward wriggled his legs free of her grip. His hands slid along her sleek body, caressing and stroking her scales. Trapped in the fetters of desire, the serpent's eyes remained closed, a gentle hum smoldering at the back of her neck.

“Everybody thought the sailors drowned, became lost, or had been viciously killed by ussss, when instead, they found a new life and a new purpose in Yashlarrsharrr. Each of them was aware of who they were leaving behind, and each of them agreed to help us build our city. Those whose families, cities and kingdoms have quickly and easily forgotten them are now carrrrved into the Hall of Remembrance. Unlike your kind, us serpents do not forget those who have helped ussss, who have mated with ussss."

He traveled lower down her body in search of that one spot. Every female had one, serpents included. From the numerous mentions invoking the act of mating, Edward deduced that his particular serpent would be particularly sensitive down there.

“Deft hands are a thing of beauty, Thirrrrrd Mate. Fins are large, ungainly, clumsy, whereassss handssss and fingersssss touch and stroke every scale. Yesss. Jusssst ssssso. You shall find no females of your kind in Yashlarsharrr. Only sailors, forsaken by their brotherssss but loved by ussss. Male and female serpents alike take them for mates, as their hands are as gentle as they are versatile. I shall enjoy you with every scale, with every fin and frill, thirrrrd mate. You shall be mine, and I shall be yoursss."

“A captivating tale, fair serpent, one that has touched me deeply. I, too, feel lost, purposeless, and alone. I know not where the sea shall carry me, but my journey is not going to end in your impossible to pronounce city, nor shall I be yours just yet."

Just as the serpent's eyes flung open, Edward's left hand found the source of her weakness, a slash of pink surrounded by thinning scales which gradually faded into smooth, leathery skin around it. She shivered as his fingertips dragged over her vent, her frills tensing up.

Good. That was the reaction Edward needed. His palm straightened into a makeshift spear which he drove right through that dainty slit before the serpent had the time to slink away. All of her frame stiffened once he made it into her clammy, trembling depths, serpentine body quivering from the stimulation that undoubtedly began to cloud her mind.

For fear of losing his focus and courage—which Edward obviously needed for this outlandish task—, the third mate kept his sight glued to her privates. His rhythm remained steady to avoid hurting her, while his strokes carried him ever deeper into her surprisingly sensitive body. For such a terrifying being, she sure was soft as silk down there, her love tunnel a stark contrast to her imposing appearance.

For a short, unnerving moment, a pang of guilt hammered at Edward's guts, as if to shake him out of his stupor to the reality of his situation. Pressing as his need for such act of lasciviousness was, Edward had taken advantage of a sapient species' weakness. He took her confession and turned it into a perverted, elaborate ploy to escape her clutches through the most despicable way imaginable.

This new, alien feeling throbbed in Edward's temples. It leaked through his furred brow in the form of sweat, and he smothered within his clothes in spite of the chilling dampness surrounding him. It…made no sense! Everything he did had had its own internal reasoning, and when it came to survival, every man had to fend off for himself. And still, with each jolt, quiver and growly whimper of satisfaction, the creature's vulnerability to his act of depravity amplified that almost nauseating feeling.

No, no, no! He shouted within his mind, ramming into the serpent harder and faster. You are not losing it. Not now, not ever. Focus on the task at hand. Focus on your escape. Survive!

A noticeable spasm traversed the length of her body when Edward struck a particularly sensitive swell within her. Her frills straightened all of a sudden, and her tail began to jerk weakly and erratically as Edward pummeled her slick crevice to completion. He might not have known much of how to pleasure sea serpents like her, but he recognized a shudder when he felt one, and hers were absolutely massive. Her walls clamped down upon his wrist, trapping his hand inside her body, squeezing him with trembling passion augmented by at least a few decades worth of loneliness.

Even while trapped in her grip, Edward surprised her by waggling his fingers inside her, pushing against her walls, sliding his fingertips along them to stroke at her eerily smooth flesh. Compared to the abrasive seawater, her lubrication was thin and incredibly slippery, allowing Edward to sail into her tunnel with surprising ease.

The poor creature didn't stand a chance. Whatever words she wished to share drowned in her pleasured hisses and growls. Her jaws tensed, threatening to open every now and then, while her eyelids twitched feverishly, clouding her glazed eyes.

Encouraged by the results, Edward pulled his sleeve back, locked his legs around the lower, thinner portion of her body for leverage, grabbed onto her back frills for extra aim and shoved his arm into her trembling canal, right up to the elbow. It felt odd for him, to sink into such frigid, wet layers of tightening flesh. For the serpent, however, his warmth acted as the catalyst that brought about her release.

Her tail coiled in around itself. Her frills pinned back across her head, and her fins hugged her body as a massive ripple shook her body. Her inner muscles trapped Edward in a steely grip, so strong and erotic his own manhood jolted at the stray thought of being inside her during the moment of her release. Then, without any sound to herald her climax, the serpent's body arched inwards. Her nether muscles convulsed once, twice, before spitting forth a cloud of chalky, lukewarm female cum into the waters, along with Edward's arm.

Released from her clutch, he pushed his legs against her limp body, wading towards the surface with wide, desperate swings of his arms.

It was a futile attempt at an escape. A downright moronic one.

But Edward had to try something.

She's charming, well spoken, intelligent and downright fascinating, but she forgot to account for something, which is my free will, Edward thought during his slow, awkward ascent to the surface. He never truly spoke to himself in order to keep his emotions in check. Then again, this was anything but an ordinary day. It wasn't enough that his ship got plundered by pirates. Garjulio had to get himself killed, and as an ironical follow-up, his killer wished to become his one and only mate. How utterly asinine!

“Even our young are thrice fassssster than you underwater, Thirrrrrrrrd Mate," came the playful, teasing voice of the serpent. “Wherrrrre do you wish to go? What do you hope to achieve? Death liesssss on the surface, and death lurkssssssss in the depthsssssss. Death surrounds you for thousands of miles on every side, yet you choose to head strrrrraight towards it."

She had a point, but cold logic did not take his willpower into consideration. In her vanity, the serpent overlooked the boat, nor did she truly understand how long supplies could last a marooned sailor.

“I admire your conviction. Of all the matesssss I held through the ages, none proved quite as…resourceful as you are."

Edward's heart thundered in his chest. Cold dread slithered along his spine. A sane person wouldn't have taunted a lonely, possessive sea monster. Not only that, but he downright manipulated her. For that, he expected some form of retribution.

The massive form of the sea serpent surged past him. Enormous fins pumped her ever upward, where she began to circle him expectantly.

“I'm not letting you go. No sssssserpent has ever abandoned a marooned sailor to their grim fate. I shall not be the firssssst, Thirrrd mate."

“Why do you care?" Edward accidentally shouted. Curses! He didn't expect his voice to carry so well through water. “You've known me for what, half an hour?" He shook his head, chuckling to himself. “It takes a bit longer than that to form bonds, my dear."

She didn't respond. Her lithe form flowed towards him, golden eyes fixated upon him.

“ACK!" Edward yelped as too familiar coils enveloped his body. The serpent tucked him in the embrace of her tail, his back rested comfortably against an oversized tail fin. Then, she dragged him in front of her head, where she snarled right in his face.

“You arrre not leaving, foolish human. Your place is in Yashlarshar, with me, in the Hall of Remembrance and under the Arch of Enlightenment, should you prove yoursssself worthy."

“I'm not worthy. I never was," Edward shot right back at her, courage flared by an adrenaline spike. “I let my sea hand die. I could have prevented it, but I didn't, because I was going to kill him anyway!"

The veins on his neck bulged, and his temples throbbed with unspent fury. If there was one thing Edward loathed, it was being called or thought of as some sort of hero.

“Do you understand who I am now, serpent?" Edward's voice transfigured into the thundering, commanding shout he used on his sea hands. “I am a deceiver! I toy with people's emotions, twisting them in my favor! And I did the same with you…"

His verve faltered. Fire left his limbs and voice, leaving him weak and depleted and wracked by guilt. Every man lives and dies by his choice, Edward had said to her. Garjulio had chosen his fate, but this serpent deserved better.

That was why he had to escape, or kill himself in the process if it meant sparing her of all the pain he would inadvertently shower upon her.

“Do you regret the thingsssss you have done?" She asked him plainly.

“Yes," Edward's words rushed out of his mouth without his accord.

“Then I forgive you," she said, nuzzling his face.

Edward froze in place, speechless. From which idealistic work of fiction did she copy this line from? How could a tap with her nose on the brow absolve him of all the horrible things he had done to his fellow men—to her?

Noticing his confusion, the serpent aligned her eyes with his, as if to peer into his very soul. “My kind holds lifelong grudgesss, Thirrrd Mate, and we live far too long. Humans do live and die by their choicessss, but others have died due to a serpent's rage, directed at little minds unable to accept the existence of other intelligent creaturesss."

Her words came to a stop as she closed her eyes, only to open them again. This time around, grief swam within those golden pools, ancient yet still raw. “All of your tales are true. From the foulesssst one to the mere gossip whispered in alleys, our kind lives and dies in your minds on account of the action of one or two enraged serpents. Customs forbid usss from slaying one another, and so, we must tolerate our worsssst as much as we love our bessst."

Edward chuckled at that. “Do you even know what love is, serpent?"

The serpent bared her fangs at him, spitting her ire straight in his face. “Do not patronize me, Thirrrd Mate! I have lived thirrrty five livessss and died thirrrty five timesss, and you shall be my thirrrty six."

Edward's breath stuck in his throat from the terrifying sight of those long teeth, ready to sink into him. Yet, with utter calm, he swallowed back his initial panic and addressed his captor with a calm, cultivated voice.

“You cannot keep me here. Not against my will."

The serpent's frills flared to their maximum width, as if she wasn't intimidating already. “That's wherr you are wrrrong."

Edward released an uncharacteristically loud and high-pitched sound as her maw shot forward, endless rows of teeth pointed straight at him. Arms went to his face instinctively, and his eyes scrunched shut in fright.

That was it. He was dead.

His frame tensed up, and loud, uncontrollable gasps rolled out of his mouth when one of the serpent's fangs slipped under the silken thread that tied his breeches at the front, diving uncomfortably deep, almost touching his sleeping manhood in the process. Then, she tugged against the crook of his pants, the serrated edge of her fang cutting through the flimsy thread without much effort.

“I'm not—I'm not—I'm…I'm still…haaah…haaaaaaaaaaaah," he tried to regain his composure. No amount of discipline had prepared him for such blood chilling moment. His heart must have skipped a dozen heartbeats, and stars still speckled his vision from the shock of staring death in the face.

With lingering, irrational, and debilitating terror still fettering his mind and body, Edward could only watch, grimace and yelp as the serpent deftly rolled his pants down, one side at a time. Once his cock came loose, she gave it a swift, unnerving lick, the frigid touch of her tongue making Edward grind his teeth in discomfort.

“Your will is sssstrrrong, but does the body mirror your mind's resilience?" The serpent nudged his cheek with one of the tapered tips of her tongue to get his attention. “Remain flaccid, and your fate shall be your own. Grow against me, and your seed shall be mine. What will it be, Thirrd mate?"

As a payback for earlier, the serpent didn't give Edward time to react, let alone gather his wits and come up with a plan to escape his predicament. She slammed him against the ventral side of her body, his naked crotch perfectly aligned with her smooth, slick, inviting entrance. This time, she didn't just bind him securely in place with her tail. She swam in zig zaggy patterns with him in tow, the movements of her slender frame causing his shaft to grind against her opening.

In its disheveled state, his mind failed to control the impulses—the needs—of his body. Any sailor would have grown hard when thrust against such an inviting vent. Any man would have groaned in pleasure from the pressure exerted by her slick, tight walls that peeled back his foreskin, revealing his swollen, overly sensitive glans.

“Hnnnghhh," Edward groaned against the undulating ripples of movement that forced him in and out of her against his will. With his face pressed against her wan underbelly scales, he couldn't see much in front and to the sides, and he vehemently refused to look at the perversion taking place below.

“I can sense your thrrrobs, mariner, your need for release."

Only now, when faced with the inevitable, did the proverbial boulder lift off his heart. His senses returned to him in a rush, flooding his body, leaving him painfully aware of his precarious position. At first, Edward closed his eyes and sought to regulate his breaths, but that did little to stem the fire welling within his crotch or disperse the pleasure coursing through his taut muscles.

His second plan involved failed attempts at wriggling out of her grasp. Not only did that encourage her tail to fasten tighter around him, but his abrupt struggles had driven him ever deeper into the core of her being.

With only one trump card left for him, Edward resorted to his wit. “You are….going about this the wrong way. Without my…hhhhhhghhhhhh….consent, none of this matters. I won't become your mate simply because you…breed me…"

“Not at firssssssst. Not with you. But once you visit Yashlrasssharrr, it is you who'll wish to mate, If only to spend another day in it."

Edward found that hard to believe. Then again, he found the struggle to tap into his restraint even harder. Months spent at sea had left him vulnerable down there, to the point where even a cold cunt such as hers seemed like a blissful shelter to his swollen, vein beribboned length. Despite her size, she felt tighter and more snug than any woman Edward had been with, and infinitely slicker. To add to his quandary, her muscles molded around him perfectly, squeezing and milking at his shaft steadily.

“Tiny, but warrrrm. Sssssssssso warrrrrrrrrrm."

Her speed increased, and with it, the intensity of her thrusts against Edward's fully erect member. Muffled groans inadvertently wove their way through his clenched jaws, the undulating motions of her body adding additional strain on his already overwhelmed senses. Her tail also began to tighten and loosen around him, her act of lovemaking more refined than he gave her credit for.

With his endurance pushed past its acceptable limits, Edward could do naught but squeeze his eyes shut in wake of the throbbing pleasure seeking to escape his body. His cock lurched within the slick confines of the serpent, shooting rapid strings of heated seed into her clammy depths. She immediately skidded to a jarring stop, bringing her head around to watch with smug, satisfied, slitted eyes as Edward emptied his load into her trembling body.

At least she had the courtesy not to speak. Edward could at least appreciate that. Not that her muscles didn't do that on her behalf. From the way she jolted in unison with the spurts he loosened into her, Edward half expected her to climax in that grand, messy way of hers.

“It is done." She said, easing him out of her once his cock began to deflate. “Your seed marks us as matesss."

Edward gave her a weak, instinctive nod. If this act of debauchery could at least get him a bed and a decent meal in that underwater city of hers, then he was willing to put it behind him and never speak of it again.

---

To be Continued...