Changes In Paradise: Part 16 - Science, Sons, And Sirens ... The Saga Continues! free porn video

Disclaimer: If you're underage, stop reading. If you're offended by transgender or transsexual ideas, stop reading; and if you're unlikely to enjoy erotic descriptions of sex, stop reading. This story is adult material. Finally, if mermaids aren't your "thing," read this story anyway; it might change your mind. Please read "Changes in Paradise, Parts 1 - 15," if you haven't already, and please take a moment to post a comment to the site on which this story appeared, or send an email. New comments on the old chapters are sexy. For newbies, when dialogue is set off in brackets, [like this], the characters are speaking via CHEW, which is--more or less-- telepathically. I want to thank those of you who have left comments on the various sites posting this saga. In particular, I am grateful to Josh (and his fan- fic), Len, and Pat(rick) for their help and encouragement. I would not have finished this chapter as quickly without these fine (fin) people. I very much appreciate your time and interest (and obsession). For those asking about "Another Slice," the work continues and nears completion. Hopefully it will appear within a few days of this work being posted. Thanks for the comments, suggestions, and encouragement on the previous parts. I really appreciate it. Your willingness to say anything is of great value to me. So, thank you again! Permission granted to repost to any free site with attribution. Changes in Paradise: Part 16 - Science, Sons, and Sirens ... the Saga continues! By Patricia I used to be a man, Bonnie thought as her legs stiffened and her arms lifted away from her sides. She remembered a similar swirling of energy within her body when she started her change in gender a scant three days previously. Then, it started as a tiny tingle that grew more powerful, shifting her mental state so thoroughly that it surprised her even though she was ready for the change. Now, the changes were still surprising, and the feelings encompassed her entire body. If a Navy man had to become a woman, it's best she be a mermaid, Bonnie thought with irony. She felt frozen, her eyes locked with Annette's, but sensing Joy and Mac as they hummed and stroked her body. Bonnie saw the spark of awareness in Annette's immobile eyes, her mouth frozen in a post-sexual smile, and she imagined her own face looked quite similar. She knew her body was spinning, propelled by the shimmering embrace of thousands of tiny bubbles as the microorganisms began their work. Although unable to move her body, she felt every inch of it. The energy from Mac and Joy's mer organs pressed on her like a heavy blanket, covering her entire body. There was a sweet eroticism in that pressure, knowing she was unable to resist their invisible touch. It seemed similar to the first moment when she capitulated in Mac's embrace, feeling the power and control radiating from his body while it squeezed out from her own. Wrapped in his arms on the floor of the tank viewing room, the powerful energies overwhelmed and transformed her emotional and sexual feelings. Now, floating and spinning in the tank, the changes were merely physical. Merely, she thought with a silent laugh! The changes were stretching; almost pulling her legs, as they prepared to merge. Her hips were also stretching painfully, her pelvic passage opening wider so that one day she might carry a baby mermaid through to term. Slowly, her slim Vargas girl hips expanded closer to Annette's generous proportions, but the wash of siren cells flowing through her body quickly overwhelmed the discomfort from her hips. Her already generous breasts expanded, the rising bubbles caressing her firm, round flesh as they flowed past her developing curves. She had no sense of time passing. She only knew that her body kept changing. The pressure in her legs eased as the skin between them dissolved while her muscles wove themselves together in new configurations. A series of sharp, quick jabs of pain accompanied the shifting of her leg bones into the segmented, single limb of a mermaid. She couldn?t feel the new connections growing between her knees or ankles, only the blanket of pressure continuing as new fins pushed out from her elbows, hips, and former knees. Her feet began to spread out into the classic fantail flukes of a mermaid. In her lower torso, her womb expanded as her vaginal opening moved forward and a bit lower to the surface of her tail. Although she couldn?t look anywhere else other than Annette?s eyes, she sensed both her own and Annette?s hair growing longer. Her lover?s hair turned brown, like her own, she thought. Ripples of energy raced over her entire body as her skin cells transformed into chromatophores that would keep her hidden. Finally, a great spasm gripped her, an intensely pleasurable stab forcing her body into a backwards circle, her new flukes arching up behind her, quivering over her head. She blinked and her camouflage snapped on--all over her body--and finally, she relaxed in the water. Her mer-senses came on-line, like eyes growing used to light after a long period of blindness. It took a few seconds, before sensing her three pod-mates, as well as hundreds of fish sharing the tank, but she focused on the power and clarity of Annette?s, Joy?s, and Mac?s signals in those first moments. Her heart swelled as she plumbed the depths of this new connection, feeling the warm and colorful energy crackling through her entire body. She looked down at her long tail, her new fins slowly brushing back in forth, her body?s autonomic systems keeping her steady and balanced. Her impressive breasts partially blocked her view, but because of her camouflage, they mostly looked like the bottom of the tank. She glanced up at Annette and recognized that while she could see her mate clearly, Annette?s skin was also broadcasting the fish, rocks, and fauna behind her in the tank. As she looked at the shimmering beauty that Annette had become, Bonnie felt a new power wash over her and intense need rose up from her new womb. Heat flared up in both her chest and her tail as her bioluminescence flickered to life for the first time. Annette?s body responded as well, and they both turned towards Mac. Joy positioned herself along one of his fins and ran one hand along his magnificent cock. Annette swam over to the other fin, smiling at Bonnie, and pressing her own vent over Mac?s vibrating fin. ?You?re technically the virgin here,? Annette said. ?You should have the honor.? Unconsciously, Bonnie reacted to Mac?s powerful body, her fins pushing her towards him without thought. He reached out and guided her hips towards his, stopping her when his penis softly speared her still opening vent. He moved her hips in gentle circles, stimulating her body, sending her need higher and higher. Bonnie?s flukes caressed Mac?s lower tail, feeling overwhelmed by the sensuousness of the tactile perception of her flukes fluttering against something. Joy and Annette ran their fingers lightly along Bonnie?s shoulders, arms, elbow fins, and pelvic fins, sending additional thrills of energy across her twitching and quivering body. Bonnie grabbed Mac?s face and kissed him deeply, thrusting her tongue into his mouth, instinctively curling the ends of her flukes around his tail to bring her hips into his. ?Uh, uh,? Mac said playfully. ?Not yet,? he teased her, keeping her hips back but rotating them in smaller and smaller circles, keeping the head of his cock outside her vent. As her need grew, Bonnie?s breasts filled with pressure. She pulled herself to Mac again, this time forcing the head of his penis into her canal before Mac could stop her. She growled and arched her hips towards him, forcing another inch inside her. The stretching felt wonderful and she wanted more, deeper, NOW. But Mac was too strong. He kept her at bay, and started rotating her hips again. She cried out in frustration, but he silenced her with another kiss. She hungrily kissed him back, still struggling to force more of his cock inside her. She felt another inch slip in, and then she felt a tightness, a hitch in her canal. Her virginity. She really was a virgin! Mac pulled his head back and looked down at their union. One either side of them, the two mermaids were leaking milk into the water, each building towards their own orgasms. Bonnie looked down as well, feeling three inches of mer cock inside her and seeing another seven or eight inches left to go. Her insides quivered at the thought of all of that moving into her. ?Ready?? He asked, his eyes full of love and gentleness mixed with need and lust. Bonnie nodded, as her face was a mask of lust too. Mac kept his hands on her hips and drew himself nearly out of her vent, then paused, their eyes locked. He waited a brief second and then pulled her hips forcefully, slamming into her with a thwack. All three mermaids vocalized in unison. Bonnie barked in pain, which quickly dissolved into passionate moans while Annette and Joy grunted as Mac?s fins vibrated sharply in their vents. Mac pulled out slowly and slammed back in, Bonnie moaning deep in her throat, feeling every inch as it slipped out and then slammed back into her. Mac?s rhythm increased steadily until her breasts let down and milk began pouring from her nipples. Bonnie vocalized constantly and could both see and sense the bioluminescence race across all four of them. Bonnie never felt anything so consuming and passionate in her life. Joy erupted first, grunting out her orgasm, jerking with each individual spasm. Annette was next, her orgasm rolling over her in continuous waves, her body quivering like a tuning fork. ?Yesssssss,? Mac groaned as he gushed into Bonnie, feeling each pulse racing up his penis and unleashing itself within her new vagina. Mac?s first hot splash deep inside her body surprised Bonnie. A mermaid could feel something that deep inside her! Then her own orgasm erupted, her body going rigid as Mac stroked in and out a few more times, sending pulses of semen into her tight, tense body. On his third stroke, an enormous spike of pleasure turned her body into jelly, and she collapsed onto Mac, her womb throbbing and thumping as the rest of her flailed limply. Mac pressed his body to hers, and her throbbing vent squeezed out one more pulse from his cock. It took many minutes before Bonnie could recover, and when she did, she discovered herself still impaled on a rigid and ready merman?s cock. ?My turn, my dear,? Annette said, pushing gently at Bonnie?s hips, causing Mac to slip out of her vent. ?Yes, my love,? Bonnie said, barely able to move of her own accord. ***** Jack divided his time between the video feeds from his computer and the amazing sight of the transformation of the two mermaids. A few minutes after the transformation began, he watched the helicopters hover and disgorge a group of commandos, and swarm over his island, little blobs of green pulsating on his computer screen. They surrounded the house and outbuildings while one of the two boats pulled up to the northeast side of the island where another group of commandos jumped from the boat into the bay. They scrambled up the grassy shoreline a few moments later and fanned out, forming a perimeter along that side of the island. At the same time, the other boat pulled alongside The Slipper and vomited more commandos who swarmed up the dock, fanning out to form a similar perimeter on the other side of the island and surrounding anyone in the house or outbuildings, cutting them off from any escape. Unless they could swim out a tunnel, of course. The audio and video feeds hidden around his island tracked the progress of the raid. Kyle walked outside as soon as the troops dropped from the sky and immediately lay down on the ground, his hands outstretched over his head. Three men grabbed him quickly and cuffed, frisked, and then hustled him down to the boat at the dock. Jack had no idea what they were saying, but he hoped that Kyle was doing fine. More than that, he hoped Kyle shredded most of their notes from the last two days. He didn?t want any of their potential recruits to get sucked into this mess. In the meantime, the black-clad commandos continued to swarm over the entire island and into every room of his house. The basement passway to his hidden, underground tank remained undiscovered, but Jack knew that wouldn?t last forever. The helicopters flew away, presumably returning to whence they had come, probably Quantico, Jack thought. The men then began a more thorough and methodical search of the island, the outbuildings, his house, and its furnishings and effects. He cringed when he saw his computers and other equipment, including the short wave radio with the dial still set to its last frequency, hauled out to the military boats. Two more boats arrived while the search continued. One was a similar looking military boat while the other looked like a civilian yacht, but Jack knew better. After a short while, the three military boats took on all of the commandos and departed, presumably with Kyle still aboard. Seven men left the yacht, all of them in overcoats and carrying black cases of various shapes and sizes. Jack smiled, the screen on his computer looking very much like a bad action movie. Sometimes the spooks acted exactly as Hollywood expected. The men marched up to the house and began unpacking their equipment. Jack opened yet another screen on his computer, got past his own security, and then initiated a series of protocols making most of their electronic gadgetry useless, overwhelmed by countless sources of electronic emissions, 90% of them bogus, buried in nearly every nook and cranny of the house and island. There was a slight hitch in the lights in the tank viewing room as the protocol initiated, but so slight that the men in his house did not see it. As night gave way to morning, the men above kept up with their fruitless scans of the island. They knew something was here, but with so many of their devices overwhelmed by so many false sources, they had resorted to old-fashioned searching. They went from room-to-room, tapping and knocking on walls, floors, and furniture. Jackson wished he had installed some sort of active defense on his island, sleeping gas or something. However, his interest and attention was mostly on the tank, watching the two newest mers blossom within the veil of bubbles roiling around them. As dawn approached, the two new mers winked out of view. They then provided the most spectacular, and erotic, light show Jack had ever seen. A light show repeated, with changing partners, three times. It was nearly 9 AM in the morning before the mers snapped back into view, their heads and hands lined along the top of the glass wall of the tank. ?Got any food?? Mac asked. Jack nodded and went into the storeroom, returning with a case of MRE?s. ?Perfect,? Mac said. ?I love military food.? ?I hate military food,? Bonnie said, taking one of the packages anyway. ?What?s with the ceiling?? Joy asked as she ripped open the mylar bag of her MRE. ?We have visitors,? Jack said. ?They took Kyle, all my computers, the radio, everything.? ?A family matter?? Asked Annette her new voice silvery and shimmering like Joy?s voice. ?Unusual for the Company to act against a domestic target,? Jack said. ?I can?t be sure, but it has a military feel to it.? ?With your estate donated to the MMI, might that make you a non-domestic target?? Annette asked. ?No,? Jack answered. ?The MMI is legally based out of San Francisco, which despite what some conservatives think, is still part of the US.? ?What?s the status?? Mac asked, looking up at the thick slab above their heads. ?We are sealed in, for the moment,? Jack said, walking over to the wall console. ?There are seven men topside. I?ve rendered their electronic surveillance and search devices useless. They are currently moving room-to-room searching by hand.? ?Estimate?? Mac asked. ?Later today or tonight, maybe,? Jack said. ?If they find the passageway, they won?t gain access. It would take a bunker bomb to open this place up, and they can?t risk one of those in the middle of the Chesapeake.? ?Recommendations?? Mac asked. ?We wait,? Jack said. ?I?ve asked some friends for help, including Mr. Kolbert, which I hope was adequate warning to him that the game?s afoot.? ?I hate waiting more than Bonnie hates military food,? Joy said, watching her new sister-wife grimace as she choked down her food. ***** ?He says he won?t eat,? Bridget reported. ?I suppose this is his way of taking control of the situation.? ?How long will he stay alive if he is successful?? Pat asked. ?Depends on how much water he drinks,? Bridget said, drawing on her pod?s medical knowledge gained thanks to mer bonding. ?Without water, in this heat, he wouldn?t last more than three or four days. With water and without food, I?d say about four or five weeks. But I don?t think he can do it. He seemed unable to resist food and water on the boat.? ?Well, we can force him to drink water,? Pat observed. ?So that Valencia?s wishes that Malaki should be witness to her transformation can be fulfilled.? ?Yes, that?s easy, even without fancy medical equipment,? Bridget said. She turned towards Malaki?s hut, took a few tentative salamander steps in that direction and then looked back over her shoulder. ?You know, he really is a nasty little man.? ?I know,? Pat said. ?I probably wouldn?t have said this a year ago, but we really are doing the right thing,? Bridget said. ?Thanks, sis,? Pat said, moved. ?That means a lot to me, actually.? Pat watched her sister salamander out of the shallow water, back up the beach, and into the small hut where Malaki was a prisoner. A moment after she entered, a colorful and creative stream of swear words and curses competed with the sounds of the gentle surf in which Pat rested. The sound of someone gagging on water choked off a particularly loud curse, followed by more coughing, then by more curses, then followed again shortly with another fit of gagging and coughing, and so on. Pat smiled and shook her head at the man?s stubbornness. She looked down the beach towards the southern arm of the lagoon where MuSu?s pod lay gathered around Emma senior and the Basras. Pat saw Emma explaining something to her mother, perhaps the mechanics of mer transformations and changing genders. Pat?s heart fluttered a bit as she remembered the separation she and Danni endured to get Gabriel?s pod started. Ah, Michael, she thought, he was a good man, but now Gabriel was an excellent leader to his pod. Three tiny mermaid tails fluttering across her own as her pod?s daughters swam over and around her tail interrupted her musings. ?Come here, you!? she cried as she reached for Maureen. Her daughter wriggled away from her grasp, and Pat?s mer organs sensed the giggles erupting from the tiny mermaid. Freya popped up out of the water and flipped onto Pat?s lap. She looked up at Pat with toddler eyes, shining with mischief and excitement, her Shirley Temple curls bouncing around her angelic face. She made a face at her aunt, and then flipped back into the water to chase her sisters. Pat felt a tug on her fluke fringes and scooped up little Cynthia who was trying to tickle her pod-mother. ?What have we said about pulling on fringes?? Pat asked with a playful but serious tone. Cynthia, now cradled in the bowl created by Pat?s curled flukes, made a play to pull on Pat?s fringes again. ?Uh, uhhh, no pulling,? Pat said, flipping the little mermaid up into the air and back into the water. The little mermaid squealed with delight as she splashed back into the surf. Pat couldn?t help laughing at the little squirmer?s antics. A second later, Phoebe, Danni, and John surfaced just beyond the breakers. All three little mermaids made a beeline for their father. ?I feel someone tickling me,? John said. ?I wonder who it could be?? ?Three guesses,? Pat said, admiring her handsome mate. ?Here, give this to the babysitter,? John said, handing a bag of collected food to Phoebe. He smiled and then ducked under the water to play with his children. Phoebe and Danni glided up to Pat and then flipped over and sat on either side of her, the three mermaids all facing the sea. Phoebe handed Pat the bag having an assortment of oysters, sea grasses, and one small bonefish. ?We?ve already eaten,? Phoebe said. ?You enjoy.? ?Thanks,? she said, opening the bag and nevertheless sharing a few of the oysters. The three ate in silence, listening to the wind, surf, and the occasional coughing fits from Malaki. The early morning sun sparkled and danced on the lagoon?s gentle waves, a calm occasionally broken by the eruption of a tiny mermaid arcing across the surface, trying to avoid her father?s tickling. The three mermaid mothers finished eating and unconsciously assumed the same position, their arms behind their torsos, their tails stretching into the shallow surf, their long hair cascading down their back, the long ends floating hydrophobically on the surface, their tiaras flashing in the morning sun, while the surf sparkled and danced gently all around them. ?Does it bother you that we have to constantly forage for our food?? Danni asked. ?No,? Pat said. ?Don?t you miss tables, knives and forks, cooked food, and waiters?? she persisted. Pat thought for a moment. ?Sometimes, but fresh food is really good, and there?s something honest about catching it yourself.? ?Or having your pod-mate catch it for you,? Phoebe said. ?Will we ever farm the ocean?? Danni asked. ?Eventually,? Pat said. ?Really?? Danni asked. ?There?s going to be nine or ten billion people on the planet pretty soon, and unless we develop a sustainable way to farm and trade with the landlubbers, we mers are going to be in trouble,? Pat said. ?I don?t want to be a farmer,? Danni said. ?No one will make you be a farmer,? Pat said, smiling. ?I?m just saying,? Danni said, pulling a lock of her hair forward and twirling it in her fingers. ?I won?t be a farmer.? ?I think we can find people who do,? Pat laughed. ?What do you want to do?? ?Love you guys,? Danni answered. ?It?s a lot of work to love a couple of scientists. You work late, leave me with the kids a lot, and then there?s John to keep happy.? ?So, where exactly is the hard work part,? Pat asked. ?Oh, nevermind,? she said seeing Danni?s smirk. She turned to Phoebe. ?When do you think Alexis and Galina will be done testing the samples that Harold collected from the hot tub this morning?? ?Probably not too much longer,? Phoebe answered. ?While we wait, why don?t we join John and the children?? Pat tossed the empty collection bag on the sand behind her and then doubled forward and sprang into the waves. ?I?ll take that as a yes,? Phoebe said as she swung her tail behind her and wriggled herself into deeper water, Danni right behind her. Soon, the entire family was cavorting in the sparkling waters of the lagoon. ***** Bart Kolbert rubbed his chin as he read the email from Jackson Baker, his eyes narrowing as he read the message. He pushed himself back from his desk, laced his fingers behind his head, craned his head back to look at his favorite thinking spot on the ceiling, and let out a loud sigh. For a man he had known only a few days, Mr. Baker was making his life far more interesting than was desirable. ?What?s up boss?? his secretary asked from the next room. ?In a minute, Lucia,? he said, keeping his attention fixed to the ceiling. He glanced back towards the laptop on his desk, confirming that the email was, in fact, real, and yes, he had read it correctly. He returned to his study of the ceiling. After a few moments, he closed his eyes. ?We?re going to need to make some calls,? he said loud enough for Lucia to hear him. ?We have a problem.? ?Don?t we always have a problem,? she responded, walking into the room. Lucia Washington was a short, energetic, young woman with dark, flashing eyes and a toothy smile. Her mixed African-Anglo-Mexican heritage was visible in her generous lips and short, curly dark hair, which hung in ringlets about her face. She was working her way through college, taking night classes at the local community college, and Bart hoped she would one day achieve her dream of going to law school. ?That?s why people get lawyers,? she said. ?What?s the status of that special order we put together the other day?? he asked. Lucia took out her smart phone and opened an app. When it launched, she entered an authorization code and then waited. She looked up at Bart. ?It shipped today. Is that the problem? We sort of fudged the dates on the bill of lading for that.? ?Nah ? it might be, but I don?t think so,? he said. ?It?s going out by air right now and then by ship?? ?Yes, should be in Tuvalu in a few hours, and man, that cost us some serious cash,? she said. She looked back down at her app. ?An agent will pick it up at Funafuti International Airport and then take it to the MMI by tramp cargo. It should get there late today or early tomorrow, depending on weather.? ?It?s tomorrow there already,? he said. ?Oh, yea,? she said. ?I forgot. Well, it should be there in 6 to 10 hours from now; will that work for you?? ?Lucia, how long have you worked for me?? Bart asked, sitting up and facing her. ?Three years,? she answered. ?You know about our confidentiality requirements, of course,? he said. ?Yes, of course,? she answered. ?Yes, you do,? he said, rubbing his chin again. ?You?ve been one of my best executive assistants, if not the best one I?ve ever had.? ?Thank you, sir. I do my best,? she answered, sitting slowly in the chair facing him across the desk. ?This sounds like a very big problem.? ?Yes,? he sighed. ?I might be brought in for questioning.? ?Oh, no!? she said, straightening up. ?That shipment wasn?t illegal, was it?? ?No, it wasn?t. But I won?t be brought in because of something I?ve done that?s illegal,? he reassured her. ?I?m pretty sure that I?m not personally in trouble. However, the work that we?ve been doing on the Marine Mammals Institute has hit the radar of some of the security agencies for the Federal Government.? ?Why would Homeland Security care about dolphins?? Lucia said. ?Actually, they have no idea what they are dealing with, and neither do you. It?s time I told you the truth about the MMI,? he said. ?When I?m done, you will tell no one except the people whom I authorize to discuss these details, and if I am taken in for questioning, you will contact these people immediately. Do you understand?? ?Yes, sir,? she answered. ?What is the problem with MMI?? ?How do you feel about mermaids?? he asked. ?Mermaids, sir?? she asked. ?Mermaids, yes,? he said. ?You know, stuff like this,? he pulled out a copy of News of The World from his desk. The supermarket tabloid showed lurid pictures of pop stars on the beach or drunkenly leaving clubs and claims of alien abduction. In the bottom right hand corner was the headline, ?Mermaids kidnap prostitutes!? There was a picture of an elderly Filipino woman pointing towards a commercial looking house with a dock out the back. ?Mermaid and alien abductions! Yeah, right. Where, exactly, are you going with this, sir?? she asked, looking at him as though he had suddenly sprouted a second head. ?What if I told you that mermaids were the marine mammals that the institute was actually for?? he asked. ?Are you crazy?? she asked. ?I mean, that?s crazy. Mermaids. Shit, mermaids. Wait ? you?re serious, aren?t you?? ?Very,? he said, folding his hands on his desk. ?Real, live, honest-to- God-mermaids. In fact, although few people know it, this story is actually true, but they didn?t kidnap the prostitutes, they rescued them.? He pushed the tabloid across his desk to his stunned assistant. She looked at the picture and then the text next to it, and then back at him. ?Fuck!? she said softly. ?Shit, oops, sorry. I mean ? seriously? Mermaids?? ?Like a heart attack,? he answered. She looked at him for several seconds, searching for the clue that he was kidding. ?No kidding, for-real mermaids?? ?For real,? he said. She looked at the tabloid, and then back at him. ?You mean some of this stuff is true?? she asked. ?Like, Men In Black was for real?? ?Alien stories, as far as I know, aren?t real, but this one is, though no one seems to believe that poor, old woman,? he answered. ?Holy shit,? she said, reading the short article. ?They attacked people?? she asked. ?Bad guys only,? Bart answered. ?I actually know some of them; or rather I used to know them before they were mermaids.? ?You mean they weren?t always mermaids?? she asked. ?Yes, they were people just like you and me. They?ve discovered a way to become mermaids and mermen,? he answered. Lucia?s jaw literally dropped to her chest. Bart had to stifle a grin. He waited. ?They BECAME mermaids?? she asked. ?Yes, it?s a long story, and not important to what we have to do now,? Bart said. ?I?ll explain it all later.? ?You?d better,? she said, trying to gather her wits together. She sat up, struck with a thought. ?Then why are you their lawyer?? She asked. ?I mean, you can?t swim and you hate the water.? ?That makes me perfect, because I will never be tempted to join them,? he explained. ?Oh, that makes sense, I guess,? she said. She put her chin in her hands again, drumming her fingers along her lower lip. She sat up again. ?This is gonna be a shitstorm, isn?t it?? she said, her eyes wide. ?A for-real shitstorm of media, black helicopters, and crazy shit.? ?Exactly,? Bart said. ?Sorry about the swearing, boss. You just rocked my world,? Lucia said. ?Don?t worry about it. Hell, I may even let one or two slide out, myself,? he said with a small laugh. ?So, here?s what I need you to do ? ? ***** ?Well, it is not possible to be sure,? said Galina, looking around at the assembled mer community gathered on the beach in the midday sun. ?This is science, right. We need to test on a live subject to be more certain.? ?And we?re ready for testing?? Danni asked. Pat nodded, ?Yes, the colonization of the hot tub is stable, with the microorganisms staying dormant until they?re triggered by the enhanced superoxide radicals that type II siren cells excrete as metabolic waste. We?ve confirmed that it?s the presence of the ESRs that trigger the cascade of the micros and siren cells into a transformative critical mass.? ?If only we could stop the siren cells at that stage, we could solve a lot of problems for the transgendered community,? Debra said, smiling at Trixi. ?Nah,? Trixi said. ?Being a mermaid is much better than being a mere- maid.? ?What?s a type II siren cell?? Peter, the retired chemist, asked. ?Are they different cells or do they change roles over time?? ?They change based on environmental conditions, we think,? Pat answered. ?The siren cells function like a stem cell, and so depending on epigenetic or environmental influences, they can become nearly anything. Type I siren cells do cellular repair, which is why we fully restore our health. We don?t actually become younger, as our cells are merely repaired so that they function at optimal levels once again.? ?Cells are merely repaired,? Peter said. ?That?s an incredible understatement.? ?Probably,? Pat agreed. ?Type I Siren cells are nothing compared to Type IIs, however, which are triggered when hormonal shifts in the subject dramatically raises or lowers the levels of prolactin.? ?Isn?t that one of the hormones that associated lactation?? Peter asked. ?Yes,? Phoebe answered, jumping in. ?This is one reason why mermaids constantly lactate; we have higher levels of prolactin than normal females. But prolactin is in both sexes, and it is the hormone that also reinforces relaxation and submission.? ?So, it?s not the merman semen that triggers the change?? Sandi asked. ?I thought you told us it was; or was it that it would make the change go faster?? ?We thought so too, originally,? Pat admitted. ?But we?ve discovered that the trigger is internal to the changing body, not external to the source of siren cells, which is actually just like the original painted shellfish from which the original goop was created. God, that seems like a lifetime ago, now.? ?Seems like only yesterday to me, my dear,? John said. ?So, there?s no difference between siren cells found in mermaid milk and merman semen?? Peter asked. ?Not any functional difference,? Phoebe said. ?Remember that the siren cell?s baseline is a female configuration, which is why all our children are female, just like those fish. When prolactin levels spike or dip, that?s what triggers the change in sex.? ?So,? Peter said, putting his chin in his hand in the classic ?thinking? pose. ?A high level of prolactin would trigger a reinforcement of--or a return to--the female baseline. Therefore, an act of submission or retreat big enough would trigger a male to female transition in an otherwise normal human male.? ?Exactly,? Pat said. ?And since humans culturally construct oral sex with men as submissive, the subsequent spike in prolactin triggers further change.? ?So what about the reverse, female to male?? Gabriel asked. ?What happened to me?? ?Prolactin levels drop dramatically when you?re feeling aggressive or powerful, and testosterone, also present in both sexes, spikes,? Phoebe said. ?Mers can probably go between sexes more or less like a toggle switch, but the switch to male only happens when there are enough siren cells present, and a huge shift in prolactin levels occurs.? ?Enough?? Peter asked. ?Low levels of siren cells tend to be limited to Type I activities,? Pat answered. ?Change to or reinforcement of the baseline doesn?t seem to take many siren cells, it just takes time. A little dab will do ya.? After an awkward pause, Phoebe said, ?I told you no one would get that.? ?Anyway,? Pat continued. ?Major changes, like female to male and human to mer, require an abundance of siren cells. However, once a siren cell is present, you will someday be a mer, and probably a mermaid.? ?So, if there are lots of siren cells, but no change in prolactin, what happens to a man?? Peter asked. ?That?s one of the things we want to find out,? Pat said. ?We believe that more siren cells cause a faster Type I effect, but no other change,? Galina said. ?And what about the tail colors, shapes, sizes, what changes all that?? Gabriel asked. ?Oh, those are the epigenetic effects of our mer organs,? Phoebe says. ?Which means you still don?t know,? Gabriel said. ?That much I know from my lovely Galina.? ?Yes,? Pat admitted. ?We still don?t know.? ?And and Type III siren cells the ones that achieve the ultimate transformation into mers?? Peter asked. ?What triggers that change?? ?Yes, Type III?s are the ones that take us from human to mer,? Pat said. ?We?re still nailing down the particulars, and we learn more with each transition. The major factor, we believe, is a superabundance of siren cells; that?s why we must feed before we can transition into mers, whereas changes in age and to the female sex are more or less inevitable, once a single siren cell is introduced.? ?But all this is hypothesis, right?? Peter asked. ?Pretty good hypothesis,? Galina said haughtily. ?But we still need confirmation under controlled conditions,? Pat agreed. ?And that is where we come in,? Peter said, waving his hand over the humans who were sprinkled among the mers. ?We?re going to be your test subjects.? ?If you?re willing,? Pat said. ?I?m willing,? Valencia said. ***** Bill Tatnall, Assistant Director of the Electronic Surveillance and Intelligence Command Center of the Central Intelligence Agency stood stiffly at attention in the office of his boss. He only had two more years until retirement, and he was counting the days already. To a casual observer, Bill Tatnall looked like computer nerd, an old computer nerd, but a nerd nevertheless. His clothes looked like they?d been slept in and his hair hadn?t seen a comb in several days. He was a big man and unused to standing for very long. Between the unexpected physical work he was doing and the stress of being called before his boss, he was sweating like a whore in church. Behind him were at least half a dozen other officers and agents who were equally nerdy and equally uncomfortable. Susan Perelli, a petite woman with severe, though attractive, features, tapped a pencil on her desk, gazed at Agent Tatnall over her vintage cat-style reading glasses, watching him shift uncomfortably before her. Other than the flinty glint in her eyes, one might easily mistake her for a timid librarian. ?Didn?t anyone think to simply call?? she asked rhetorically. ?This is an intelligence agency, after all. Doesn?t anyone gather intelligence anymore?? ?It wasn?t our raid,? Bill said, almost apologetically. ?I don?t know how we missed it, though. In retrospect the electronic chatter was pretty thick.? ?Not good enough, Bill. I?ve got my boss demanding answers yesterday,? she said, irritated. ?The stupid idiots over at NSA or the Pentagon, I can never tell who does what these days, have a politically problematic prisoner who apparently doesn?t know anything. But no one over there will return any of my calls, and my own elite team has no idea how a military raid on one of our own operatives in his own civilian residence--a civilian who is now missing, I might add--could have happened under our noses.? Bill shifted his weight again as his boss put her face in hands, resting her elbows on her desk. She thought for a few minutes and then raised her head. ?First priority is to get those goddamn NSA fucks off Taylor?s Island,? she said. ?When you and I were there a few years ago, didn?t Jackson mention something about being able to survive nearly any physical or electronic attack? I?ll bet that Mr. Baker will reappear once they leave him alone. I mean, he?s one of ours, for fuck?s sake. Why didn?t they just call us?? ?Tribes,? Bill said, sensing a break in the tension, running his fingers through his greasy hair. ?Fucking tribes.? ?I?ll get started on tracking down the chain of command and try to get the cowboy who authorized this raid to back down,? Susan said, grabbing her phone. ?I want the rest of you to figure out what we missed that would have told us an operation on this scale was happening in our own backyard.? Everyone heard the command in her voice and began to leave. ?Bill,? she said, halting his exit. ?Find out everything you can about who has the prisoner and why, see if we can?t find a way to pry him loose.? ?It?s that friend of Jack?s, right?? Bill asked. ?The guy with the boat?? ?Yes, that?s him,? Susan said. ?I wish I had remembered that earlier. Mr. Kyle Johnson of Hopkins, Virginia. Maybe he?s a vet or something. Let?s embarrass the shit out of those idiots.? ?You got it boss,? Bill said, turning to leave the office. Susan watched him retreat to his cubicle. She often felt like a mother hen to her brood of misfits and hackers, constantly tending to their quirky needs, hurts, and slights, all the while herding them back to the task of making the world safe for democracy. Someone had attacked one of her brood, and she wasn?t going to put up with that. She dialed the phone. ?The Office of the President, please,? she said. ?I?d like to speak to Miriam Danders, please.? Sometimes the best way to find something out was to call up an old friend. Of course, it helped if your old friend was secretary to the chief of staff for the President of the United States. ***** ?You?ve never even had a speeding ticket?? the Navy JAG officer asked, increasingly frustrated with the taciturn old man across the table from him. ?Ah, nope,? Kyle Johnson answered, secretly enjoying the obvious stress the young man was under. ?And you have no idea why Mr. Jackson Baker?s property was raided by ? um ? our security forces?? the young man asked, flipping nervously through the too thin file folder in his hands. ?Nope,? he answered. ?Is there any other information you can share? Sir, you?ve known Mr. Baker for nearly 50 years. Surely you can provide me with some information that will help us settle these issues,? Officer Eldridge Jones said. ?Known him for 58 years, since we was both five years old,? answered Kyle. ?Fifty-eight,? Jones wrote on the otherwise blank page in his notebook. The young officer shook his head, amazed he had gotten any information from his prisoner. Deciding on a new tack, he straightened up, and looked Kyle in the eye. ?Do you have any questions for me?? he asked. ?Ah, nope,? Kyle answered. ?Nothing?? Officer Jones asked again. ?You haven?t asked any one of the people who have questioned you why you were brought here or what?s going on. Why not?? ?Would me knowing change anything?? Kyle asked with a wry smile. Jones furrowed his brow, trying to formulate an answer. There was a knock at the door, and Jones put down his pencil, rose and walked to the door, opening it a crack. ?A word, Lieutenant?? a feminine, though authoritative voice asked from the hallway. The young JAG officer straightened to attention, walked back to the table, put the file, his notebook, and his pencil in a slim attach? case, and then walked back out into the hallway, closing the door behind him. Kyle remained motionless in his chair, as he had for the past eighteen hours since his arrival at this navy brig. After five minutes of silence, another officer walked into the interrogation room in which Kyle had spent most of his day. ?Mr. Johnson?? he asked rhetorically. ?Ah, yup,? Kyle answered, looking up. ?I?m Captain David Pomo,? he said, extending a hand. Kyle rose and shook it. ?I?m sure you have lots of questions, but I?d like you to come with me. It seems that there has been a serious breach of national security which has caused this unfortunate incident to occur.? ?Shit happens,? Kyle said laconically. The captain looked at his charge humorously, reappraising him. ?Yes, sir. All the time,? he agreed. ?We have some necessary paperwork to fill out, and I am afraid that I?ll have to ask you to sign a confidentiality agreement before I can release you.? ?You want me not to talk about it?? Kyle asked. ?Yes, sir,? he answered, opening the door to usher him out. ?Don?t like talking much anyway,? Kyle said as he walked out the door. ?Yes, sir. We?ve noticed,? the officer said, a smile tugging at the corner of his lips. ***** Michael Thompson stood on the forward deck of The Johanna, watching the retreating tramp merchant ship disappear to the north. He glanced back at Peter and Leonard and watched as they secured the lines and nets that Wong and Tuo?s pods ran around the forty-foot container floating off the stern. The massive, rust red box was nearly as long as The Johanna, but only the top few inches of the shipping box appeared above the surface of the waves. ?Do you think they bought our story?? Liz asked, watching the ship as it grew smaller and smaller. ?No. They probably think we?re drug smugglers or something,? Michael said. ?It was a Somali ship, and so they probably deliver questionable things all over the globe. I?m sure they think we?re doing something illegal.? ?Will that be a problem?? Liz persisted. ?Let?s hope not,? Michael said, watching as the mers made a final loop around the box. ?Jaclyn?s lawyer was supposed to take care of everything.? ?Mr. Kolbert,? Liz nodded. ?He was very good at settling up my assets. I?m sure we?ll be fine.? ?Let?s hope so,? Michael agreed. ?All set!? Tuo shouted. Peter and Len both gave him a thumbs up. ?Inflate the bladders,? Michael shouted back to the mers. The colorful pods both disappeared under the waves, and a few seconds later, the massive container rose in the water, supported by inflated air bladders secured by a web of nets and ropes. When the box was nearly halfway out of the water, and drafting nearly the same two meters as The Johanna, Michael shouted, ?Alright Liz, all ahead by half.? The engines throbbed, the ropes snapping and creaking as The Johanna pulled the massive container back into the lagoon, which was too shallow for the cargo ship. Michael watched Liz gently guiding both the yacht and the container through the shallow gap in the reef into the pristine lagoon they were now calling home. Peter and Len cast off the ropes as Liz swung the boat back out towards the sea. From behind the container, the water roiled madly as the mers pushed the container from behind like a massive, organic, outboard motor. The box grounded slowly onto the sand of the beach, about ten meters away from the high water mark in the sand. ?I hope they packed everything in watertight containers ,? Len said. ?Otherwise we?re about to ruin a bunch of electronic equipment.? ?Yea, it?s too bad we don?t have a crane or something,? Peter said. ?I hope this place never gets a crane,? Tuo said, his breath coming in great gasps while recovering from the effort of trying to push the box further up onto the beach. ?Mer power is all that we?ll ever need.? ?I wish I could agree with you,? Pat said, surfacing next to him. ?We?ll probably need all kinds of power if we are to survive the next few months.? ?I just don?t think we should have a crane,? Tuo said. ?It would ruin the lagoon.? ?Don?t worry, my fine merman,? Pat said, waving Galina, Alexis, and Phoebe forward to start supervising the unloading of the goodies sent by Bart Kolbert to the MMI. ?We?ll never put a crane on this island.? ?Alexis, don?t carry anything heavy, you hear me?? Pat said watching the beautiful pink and white mermaid dash into the now open container, with water sloshing about inside the box. ?I?m not due for six more months,? Alexis? voice echoed from within the container. ?I?ll be fine.? ?Where?s Eric when I need him,? Pat asked rhetorically. ?Over here,? he said, surfacing along with Sally right next to the container. Sally had her eyes fixed on Alexis and her work inside the container. ?There are just too many mers in the lagoon to keep you all straight,? Pat complained. ?Will you please keep an eye on your mate?? ?I?ll keep an eye on her, because she?s beautiful,? Eric said. ?But I might as well order the moon to alter its orbit rather than try to get Alexis to change her mind once she?s made it up.? ?Not helping,? Pat said with good humor. ?Don?t worry,? Eric said. ?I?ll keep her safe and healthy, but nothing will slow her down. Alexis knows how desperate Sally is to learn what?s happening to her father.? ?I know,? Pat said. ?Me too.? ?That?s why we?ll have the new and improved satellite up-link working in no time!? Eric said before he ducked inside to join Alexis. ***** Petra, Xing, and Gabriel sat in the surf on the north side of the lagoon, watching the commotion surrounding the unloading of the container. Nearby, Danni and John watched over their three children who were playing with Michelle and Bao, and Liga who was nursing Mari. Petra watched as her tall, scientifically inclined pod-mate glanced over a plastic covered paper in one hand while pointing to the mixed assemblage of mers and humans who sorted through those items slated for the caves and those staying topside. Petra felt a twinge of guilt watching Galina working with all the others, so many mers and humans toiling together to drag tightly sealed cases up the beach or back out into the surf all strung together in a long chain. She caught Gabriel giving her a long look from where he lay with his tail in the water, his upper torso on the wet sand. ?I saw that,? he said. ?You?re just as important to all of us as Galina, so don?t start feeling guilty that you?re over here with the kids.? ?Sometimes, mer senses are just too sensitive,? Petra complained. ?I can?t keep anything to myself anymore.? ?Not me,? Gabriel said. ?I wouldn?t trade feeling your love the way that I can for all the privacy in the world.? ?You always know exactly the right thing to say,? Petra said, feeling that special love rising throughout her body. ?I love you.? ?I love you too,? he said as he lay back on the sand, stretching his three-meter long body. ?I?m not feeling guilty. Someone has to be over here to protect everyone.? ?Don?t work too hard,? Petra teased, flipping a bit of sand at him with her pelvic fin. ?Gotta keep myself ready, energy in reserve,? Gabriel continued, closing his eyes, surveying the lagoon with his mer senses. ?How long do you think they?ll be gone?? Liga asked as she switched her daughter from one breast to the other. Liga?s pod-mates--Eric, Sally, and Alexis--were already halfway up the mountain, along with Peter, getting ready to install the newer and more powerful, solar powered satellite dish and up-link near the top of their extinct volcano. ?The last time anyone was up there, other than Harold, was about four months ago when Trevor and Rose helped Alexis and Galina set up the gun controls,? Petra said. ?She was still Robbie back then,? Liga said. ?Has it really been that long since a mer went up the mountain?? ?It?s a long way to salamander,? Petra said. ?I only remember Galina going up there once, but she was fine. It did take all day, though. Don?t worry, Eric and Sally know what they?re doing, and Alexis ? ? ?Is Alexis,? Liga finished. ?She is so stubborn.? ?She?ll be fine,? Petra said. ?I didn?t slow down until my ninth month, and then only just a little. She?s not even showing yet, and so she will be fine.? ?I just worry,? Liga said. ?You?re a mother; it?s required,? Petra said with a smile. ?Yes,? Liga said, looking down at her tiny daughter. ?I am.? ***** ?I wish I had thought of that,? Jack said, watching another camera go off line. The seven men searching the house and island for clues as to Jack?s whereabouts were putting electrical tape over camera lenses as they discovered them. They were intent on depriving him of information. Fortunately, for Jack, they only discovered about half of the tiny devices embedded in rocks, trees, bricks, walls, floors, and ceilings. Nevertheless, they would win that battle with enough time. ?Well, eventually we?ll be blind,? he reported, turning towards the mers who were lying together in a erotic heap the middle of the floor. ?Can someone give me a break? I gotta go.? ?I?ll watch,? Bonnie said, extracting herself from her pod mates. She salamandered over to the wall console and pulled herself up onto the stool that Jackson had put there for the mers to perch. Once she was sitting, she curled her tail around the base of the bar stool and turned her attention to the screen. Jackson went into the storage room where an emergency commode sat in one corner. After a moment, he returned to the viewing room. ?They still haven?t figured out the basement yet,? Annette said encouragingly. ?Maybe they won?t?? Jack shrugged. ?Maybe we should sabotage their boat,? Mac said. ?No, that would only bring an intensified response,? Joy said. ?As much as I hate waiting, I would hate to see a return of those soldiers. They would tear this place apart until nothing was left.? ?Hey, something is happening,? Bonnie said, pointing to the screen. Jack walked over to the computer, looking over Bonnie?s shoulder, noting how her thick hair was now dry and smelling of salt-water and flowers. He was tempted to caress her shoulder and hair, but instead forced his eyes to the computer screen. Although they had lost visuals on about half the house, he could see that the activity had changed from searching to packing. ?They look like they are packing things up to leave,? Bonnie said. ?They won?t leave completely,? Jack said. ?Either they will leave someone or a monitoring device.? ?More likely both,? Annette said. ?If they do leave, how secure can you make the island?? ?I can find anything that is giving off a signal not one of my own,? Jack said. ?But finding it and disabling it will tell them we?re here.? ?They are going back to their boat,? Bonnie answered. ?But I only count six men. I can?t see where the seventh man might be.? ?I really wish I had a weapon handy,? Jack said. ?All that?s down here are spear guns, which don?t really work well out of the water.? ?We?ve got weapons,? Mac said, twisting his tail up, exposing his barb to Jackson. ?Of course, it?s really only good close up, in hand-to-fin combat.? ?Hand to fin,? Jack smiled. ?I like that.? ?The seventh man just got onto the boat,? Bonnie reported. ?They are all leaving.? ?Well, Jack ? it?s your island,? Annette said. ?What do you want to do?? ?Wait,? he answered. ?I know,? said Annette turning to Joy, ?you hate waiting.? She blew her new sister wife a kiss, which mollified Joy a bit. ?Alright Bonnie, my turn back at the computer,? Jack said. ?While we wait, I?ll try to figure out if any of my calls for help are the reason why our guests have left.? ***** Valencia watched Harold and Michael drag her father from his hut and brought over to where she stood. Even now, nearly a full day later, she couldn?t believe what was happening to her life. Her life, she thought. Amazing. Although she was still a young man, she now easily thought of herself as a female. Incredible. She thought about the progression she?d undergone. Only a few days ago, ?his? only thoughts had been to kill ?his? father and take as much money as possible to run away, hide somewhere and try to rebuild ?his? life anew. But the mers had changed all that! She could rebuild ?his? life completely and in a way that would cause his father humiliation and anguish. To become a girl, and then a mermaid! At first, the idea grew out of anger at her father, but then it sweetened into something that could honor of her mother. Then, in the last twenty-four hours, the idea grew even larger, evolving into something more, something exciting, and something erotic. As a teenager, she never fantasized about being a girl, but now that it had happened, it became increasingly exciting to her. She reached down and adjusted the swim trunks she?d borrowed from the stash of clothing the mers no longer needed, trying to restrain her penis. As she watched Harold and Michael drag Malaki towards her, she tried to imagine feeling attracted to Harold. Intellectually, she could understand why a girl might be attracted to the short, but well-built young man. Harold?s dirty blond hair was long and wavy, and uncut since he had arrived on the island. His face was handsome, a strong chin, a quick and easy smile, and clear blue eyes. His modest build was well proportioned and deeply tanned. Valencia saw it all, but there was no spark, nothing. She looked back over at Maja and Antonia, relaxing after feeding from the mermaids. Even after only a few feedings, the changes in both girls were dramatic. When they first arrived, each girl, though beautiful in her own way, was haggard, worn, and beaten down. Their hair was dull and tangled, their eyes sallow and dark, and their skin bruised and pockmarked. Now, both were the picture of health and vitality. Valencia?s cock reassuringly twitched as her gaze washed over the two shorter women. Maja was a petite Filipina, barely five foot tall (154 cm), with classic dark hair, dark eyes, and a slender figure. Antonia also had dark hair, but she was nearly five inches taller than Maja and had flashing green eyes and a generous, attractive pear-shaped figure. Her face was a classic, pale oval, reflecting many New Zealanders? Celtic heritage. Valencia looked over her own, still male body. She and Harold were both about five feet eight inches tall, and she wondered if she would become much shorter. Her gaze swept back over the two girls, and she imagined herself becoming a delightful mix of those two. She wondered what breasts would actually feel like, and she hoped she would get ones more like Antonia?s than Maja?s breasts. The three of them started feeding from mother mermaids the previous evening to prepare for the afternoon?s experiment. Harold had not fed, which was also part of the experiment. Valencia could still taste the sweetness of Petra?s milk she finished drinking only a few moments ago. Her hands trembled as she touched her lips, remembering the feeling of that incredible breast pressed into her mouth, the large nipple gushing milk down her throat. She didn?t think she wanted breasts that big, but the thought was exciting. Valencia looked again at Petra. Oh my, she thought to herself, Petra used to be a man! It was hard for her to believe that anything so powerfully female, so beautiful, so graceful, could have once been a man. Her cock twitched again. ?Do you feel anything changing yet?? Maja asked, startling Valencia out of her reverie. ?Not really,? Valencia answered. ?You?? ?Yes,? Maja answered. ?I?m growing.? ?You and Antonia are slowly maturing to about your mid-twenties,? Petra answered. ?And your breasts and hips are growing more than they might have normally. Valencia was already in her twenties, so she won?t change much until the type II?s kick in.? ?How much more will my breasts grow?? Maja asked, looking down at her tee shirt which was already tenting more dramatically since yesterday. ?Hard to tell,? Petra said. ?Part of the experiment you guys are undertaking is that you?re not bonding to a male yet. Normally that focus has some influence. Once you get to the mountainside tub, the changes will finish in only a few minutes.? ?Only a few minutes, and I?ll be legal to drink in bars,? Maja giggled. ?Yes, and then you?ll look twenty-five or so for many, many, more years,? Petra said. ?How much influence can a male exert?? Valencia asked. ?A lot, as far as we can tell,? Petra said. ?But it doesn?t have to be a male; it can be anyone with mer organs. I was among a mixed group when I became exactly what I wanted to be.? ?You wanted to look like that, I mean, the way that you do now?? Valencia asked her. ?I mean you?re beautiful, but ? um ? wow.? ?Yes, I know,? said Petra smiling and stroking one of her incredible breasts. ?You?re too young to remember, but there was a nude model who looked like me back in the 1980s. I asked my pod-mates to help me look like her, and it worked.? ?Valencia is still a male,? Maja said playfully. ?Maybe you?re affecting my breasts?? She arched her slim body, pushing forward her small, but growing, breasts. ?It could be anyone here,? Valencia protested. ?And if you don?t stop teasing me, you?ll ruin the experiment,? she continued, pushing her penis back between her legs. ?I?m trying to become your sister-wife, and you?re not helping.? ?Maybe we are all affecting each other,? Antonia said, gently caressing Maja?s growing curves. ?My breasts are growing too, but not as much as yours.? ?Mermaids have larger than average breasts,? Petra said, still stroking her extraordinary examples. ?After all, they have to do a lot of work.? ?You didn?t need yours to grow,? Maja said to Antonia. ?Yours were already beautiful.? ?I never thought I?d think of myself as beautiful ever again,? Antonia said, smiling and looking around at the paradise in which she found herself. ?I hated my body, and I hated my life.? ?Me too,? Maja said. ?I can?t believe we got rescued.? ?I can?t believe we?re going to be mermaids!? Antonia said. ?Tell me about it,? Valencia said, smiling at her future pod-mates. ?I hope I turn out as beautiful as you two?? ?You?ll be beautiful,? Antonia said. ?It starts on the inside; that?s where it counts.? ?Thanks, I?ll do my best,? Valencia said, a tear forming in her eye. ?Is all of this o.k. with you two?? she asked. ?What do you mean, O.K.?? Antonia asked. ?You know, this whole changing and bonding thing,? Valencia said, looking down. ?I can?t wait,? Antonia said. ?Really?? Valencia asked. ?Thanks to your dad, my life was over, ruined,? Antonia said without malice. ?I thought for a long time that I would die, and there were times when I really wanted to.? ?Me too,? Maja said, her attention drawn away from her breasts for a moment. ?This whole ? everything ? is ? so ? unexpected, so amazing,? Antonia continued, waving her hand over the horizon. ?It?s like a rebirth, a second chance.? ?A baptism!? Maja said. ?We have to go in water and everything to do it! We?re going to be reborn, baptized!? ?Yeah, well, I suppose you could look at it like that,? Antonia agreed. ?Sorry, I was raised Catholic,? Maja said. ?But that sort of died after the fiftieth rape.? ?Anyway,? Antonia said, steering the conversation away from religion and prostitution. ?I really like the vibe here, you know? I feel like I?m a little girl again, and I?ve regained some sense of my innocence that was taken from me.? ?Wow,? Valencia said. ?Yea, I can see what you mean. I guess I feel that way too, except I don?t know what it?s like to be a little girl.? ?That?s alright, you can skip to the woman part,? Maja said. ?I hated being a little girl, mostly because I was really little.? ?I think you?re beautiful,? Valencia said. ?Thanks. Hey, what do you want to look like?? Maja asked. ?Even though this is an experiment, can we still affect her?? she asked, turning to Petra. ?I don?t know,? Petra said. ?Your proto-mer organs may not be developed enough to affect the process, and those organs are what affects those changes.? ?What?s going to happen to me, do you think?? Valencia asked. ?I think you should end up looking like other women in your family,? Petra said. ?But you all have had several feedings from mother mermaids, and the changes are much quicker with mother?s milk. So, maybe some effects will still be possible.? ?I hope so,? Valencia said. ?I want to be little bit like both Maja and Antonia.? ?Man! All this talk ? about changing! Wow! I don?t think I?ve ever been this turned on before in my life,? Maja said. ?When I was a slave for Anjo, nothing ever turned me on. I had to fake everything, but now, everything seems to turn me on!? ?Sex is always wonderful when all the participants are willing,? Petra said. ?That?s what?s so great about being a mer. There?s always someone loving you who is willing. Nothing is better than making love. Anyone can have sex.? ?And here it was that I thought I was just horny all the time,? Xing said, leaning over to kiss her pod-mate. ?You can call it anything you like,? Petra said after they kissed. ?As long as you keep kissing me like that.? ?Valencia,? Pat called out as she emerged from the surf with several other mers. ?You ready?? ?I?m ready,? Valencia answered, watching Pat salamander towards her. ?I?d like you all to swallow this,? she said as she pulled her hand from a pocket in her slim utility belt that nearly all the mers wore. In her palm were four small, purple capsules. ?These are sensors that will monitor your changes from within. It transmits data to this receiver,? she said as Phoebe handed her a small device. ?If one of you will take this with you, it will relay the information to our computers in the lab.? Antonia sprang up and examined one of the capsules in Pat?s hand. ?It won?t hurt him, I mean, her, will it?? she asked, looking protectively at Valencia. ?I?ll be fine,? Valencia said, taking a pill from Pat and swallowing it. Behind them, they heard Malaki?s muffled curses. ?The internal power will only last about six or seven hours, and it should pass naturally within a day or two,? Pat explained. ?If it works, we?