{"id":595,"date":"2017-01-27T13:10:40","date_gmt":"2017-01-27T21:10:40","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.hidden-shelf.com\/?p=595"},"modified":"2017-01-27T13:10:40","modified_gmt":"2017-01-27T21:10:40","slug":"the-transition-of-elijah-brooks-commission","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.hidden-shelf.com\/?p=595","title":{"rendered":"The Transition of Elijah Brooks [Commission]"},"content":{"rendered":"

A young man and his older sister, both missionaries, journey to a remote to join their parents, unaware of what awaits them.<\/em><\/p>\n

Written on commission from fredwirtz on SoFurry.<\/em><\/p>\n

This is definitely not my usual style and is very dark so, heads-up! Read the tags for any particular trigger warnings for you.<\/em><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Concepci\u00f3n buzzed around me as dusk settled upon the city like a mantle. \u00a0Bright city lights ticked on one-by-one, illuminating the streets and shops in the small district. \u00a0I watched two young artists from one of the many universities set up canvases on tripods while musicians found their corners, instrument cases open to accept donations.<\/span><\/p>\n

It was a young city full of beautiful men and women. \u00a0Alive with a frenetic energy that was contagious. \u00a0I smiled as a man took his date by the hand, twirling her away before pulling her back into her arms and hugging her close. \u00a0A grandfather, relaxing in a well-worn chair by an old shop, shouted out encouragement. \u00a0The girl blushed and pulled her lover through the growing crowd.<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

I watched them for a moment before turning back to the letter in my hand:<\/span><\/p>\n

Elijah,<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

I’m sending this letter back with the captain. \u00a0I don’t have much time as the captain seems eager to be off. \u00a0We weren’t greeted at our arrival but we have a map and your father and I are well suited for finding our way. \u00a0If we were able to survive our time in the Amazon then I’m sure we’ll be fine here. \u00a0<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

It’s an interesting area (and now I have to write faster, the captain is already trying to leave, he’s grumbling behind his scarf about storms and spitting quite a lot like a fat old, angry llama) with broken, weathered columns overgrown with moss and ivy. \u00a0A light mist covers the ground but the sun should burn it off shortly. \u00a0There’s a certain smell but I think (hope) it will lessen as we move inland. \u00a0<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

Oh, the captain is yelling at me now. \u00a0I have to go. \u00a0Give my love to Delilah and I can’t wait to see you both in three days!<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

With love,<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

Mother<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

I couldn’t hear the distant sounds of the port but I could see it from where I sat. \u00a0The ocean lay beyond and, somewhere over the horizon, the island of New Raleigh waited for me and my sister. \u00a0I checked my watch and sighed. \u00a0Delilah should’ve been here by now. \u00a0She’d last texted that she was touring the library at the Universidad de Concepci\u00f3n and I had no doubts she’d lost herself in the depths of it.<\/span><\/p>\n

With a last check of my phone, I texted my sister to let her know I would go meet with the captain. \u00a0I folded my mother’s letter, placing it as a bookmark into my Bible and then left, apologizing to everyone I bumped into on the crowded street.<\/span><\/p>\n

The old streets in this district were cobblestone and made for foot traffic. \u00a0The amount of noise was nearly overwhelming: \u00a0laughter and loud, fast conversations blended with enthusiastic music. \u00a0I passed a slim young man quietly singing what sounded like a love song and then, later, a quartet blaring the local flavor of Chilean rock. \u00a0A crowd gathered around the latter, singing and dancing and I had to squeeze through all of them. \u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

I was sweating by the time I left the largest of crowds behind. \u00a0A cool breeze wafted from the nearby water, bringing with it the salt of the ocean. \u00a0Far into the distance, I swore I saw a bright flash of lightning. \u00a0My sister and I had waited two weeks for Captain Agustin to return. \u00a0Port Authority told me a bad storm had hit shortly after the captain had dropped my parents off. \u00a0They’d only regained communication yesterday.<\/span><\/p>\n

The captain should’ve arrived this morning but I didn’t want to harass the man until he’d had time to unwind from his extended travels. \u00a0Someone from his crew had left the letter at my hotel with a note to see the captain in the evening and so I made my way to where he’d docked.<\/span><\/p>\n

It took only five minutes to find the <\/span>Pampero<\/span><\/i>. \u00a0In the darkness, I could only see a few crew aboard, moving slowly at whatever tasks they had. \u00a0The ship had been a yacht before (so I’d read while waiting) the captain purchased it and refitted it. \u00a0Now it served to ferry people along the coast or for longer distances when needed. \u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

The ship looked worn. \u00a0Barnacles clung to the sides, just above the water line and a scummy patina covered the sides. \u00a0The ship’s name was nearly completely covered by a slick green film that seemed to glow in the light. \u00a0\u00a0I shivered and pressed my palm against my nose as a sudden chilly wind sliced through me, carrying a foul stench with it. \u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

A loud popping sound startled me and I caught a shower of sparks from the corner of my eye as one of the nearby lights went out. \u00a0A few men shouted behind me and I watched them walk to the lamp, pointing and arguing over it.<\/span><\/p>\n

When I turned back to the <\/span>Pampero<\/span><\/i>, a dark shape stood on the dock next to it. \u00a0Water lapped at the dock and it swayed but the man (or woman) stood preternaturally still. \u00a0Unmoving as if rooted to the planks. \u00a0I saw him from the side and as my eyes slowly began adjusting to the darkness, I saw clothes that hung loosely over a thin frame. \u00a0As if a child wearing his father’s clothes.<\/span><\/p>\n

I waited for a few minutes, unsure of what to do. \u00a0I felt unnerved for some reason, shivering again. \u00a0The figure never moved and I began to wonder if my eyes were playing tricks on me, confusing a large sack for a person in the darkness. \u00a0Yet, it wasn’t there when I’d turned to watch the men working on the light.<\/span><\/p>\n

Clasping my hands to my mouth I called out, “Hello!”<\/span><\/p>\n

It, <\/span>He (for it surely was a man), <\/span><\/i>turned to me. \u00a0First his head swiveling on neck and then shifting, his body turning. \u00a0I took a step and then hesitated.<\/span><\/p>\n

“I’m- I’m looking for Captain Agustin!” I said, loudly. \u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

The man said something but I couldn’t make out the words. \u00a0I swallowed, took another step and then nearly laughed at myself for being foolish. \u00a0Shaking my head, I walked forward.<\/span><\/p>\n

And then stopped. \u00a0Facing the man. \u00a0My sweat turned cold and I shivered involuntarily.<\/span><\/p>\n

He stared at me through milky, unblinking eyes. \u00a0Even in the dim light, I could see how white his skin was and I swore it glinted in a distant light. \u00a0Despite the heat, he wore a thick, ragged scarf that covered his neck and hung to his waist. \u00a0His dark hair clung to his scalp in odd patches and I couldn’t tell how old he was. \u00a0He looked as if his skin was stretched over another man’s frame.<\/span><\/p>\n

“Is,” I swallowed hard. \u00a0The man’s gaze was unnerving. \u00a0Could he even see me through his cataracts? \u00a0I clutched my Bible close my body as if it were armor. \u00a0“Is Captain Agustin h-?”<\/span><\/p>\n

“Are you the boy?” the man rasped.<\/span><\/p>\n

“I’m sorry?” I asked.<\/span><\/p>\n

“Are you the boy?” the man said again, in the exact same tone he’d just used. \u00a0Water dripped from the man’s scarf and it hung heavily on his shoulders. \u00a0I swore I saw it shift around his neck for a moment.<\/span><\/p>\n

“I don’t know who you’re looking for,” I told him. \u00a0“I’m Elijah Brooks and I’m looking for Captain Agustin. \u00a0I’m supposed to meet him tonight to plan my trip to New Ra-“<\/span><\/p>\n

“I’m Captain Agustin,” the old man replied, cutting me off again.<\/span><\/p>\n

I opened my mouth to reply and then closed it again. \u00a0<\/span>Fat angry llama<\/span><\/i>, my mother had written. \u00a0The man before me seemed withered and unable to rouse any kind of emotion but he had a scarf like my mother had written. \u00a0I shifted my weight and saw dull silvery light shining at the back of the man’s eyes but when I blinked, it was gone. \u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

The hair along my neck seemed to stir and I swallowed. \u00a0Some instinct pulled my gaze and I looked up to see six men standing at the railing of the ship, staring down at us. \u00a0They moved as one when the ship rocked and I could feel their eyes upon me as if it were a physical pressure.<\/span><\/p>\n

“I’m sorry,” I explained, looking back at the man. \u00a0“I don’t mean to be rude but I was expecting someone else. \u00a0Captain Agustin was described to me by my mother and-“<\/span><\/p>\n

The man before me suddenly animated at the mention of my mother. \u00a0He blinked and I swore I saw his cataracts shift as his eyelids closed. \u00a0He clasped his hands together beneath heavy sleeves and bowed his head, giving me a good view of the mottled skin of his scalp. \u00a0He began rocking back and forth before me and I turned as I heard the crewmates beside us murmuring.<\/span><\/p>\n

The men on the ship had their heads raised, swiveling back and forth while they hugged their bodies. \u00a0I struggled to hear what they were whispering but I was certain they were just repeating “The mother” over and over again.<\/span><\/p>\n

“We leave in two hours,” the man told me, jerking my attention back to him. \u00a0“You will come with us, boy.”<\/span><\/p>\n

“I- but, captain,” For who else could it be if not the captain himself? \u00a0“It’s night. \u00a0Surely it’d be better to leave in the morning? \u00a0I don’t mean to tell you how to do your job but sailing at night seems reckless.”<\/span><\/p>\n

“Kek,” the man gasped, as if his tongue had rooted itself to the top of his mouth. \u00a0He touched the scarf along the side of his neck, pressing water-wrinkled fingers against the fabric. \u00a0Water welled around his fingers before being sucked back into the thick wool. \u00a0“We leave in two hours.”<\/span><\/p>\n

I watched the captain shamble up the simple plank leading to his ship. \u00a0His crew had settled and continued to watch me until I turned and made my way back into the city.<\/span><\/p>\n

—–<\/span><\/p>\n

“I’m telling you, Delilah, something’s wrong.” \u00a0I sat in the room I shared with my sister. \u00a0My Bible was open and I held my finger to mark my place in the middle of Matthew, chapter three. \u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

My sister stood at the side of her bed, arranging her clothes. \u00a0Barely thirty minutes had passed since I’d left the port and I still felt out-of-sorts. \u00a0I’d been reading my Bible to calm myself until my sister came back. \u00a0She seemed unperturbed by the news and was excited to be off.<\/span><\/p>\n

“Elijah, you always worry about everything,” Delilah said. \u00a0Her voice dropped deeper as she mimicked our father. \u00a0“Look to the Lord and his strength; seek his face always.”<\/span><\/p>\n

“You didn’t see him,” I said. \u00a0“The entire thing was just incredibly creepy. \u00a0I think we should write to mother and talk to the officials in the morning. \u00a0Maybe it was the wrong ship.”<\/span><\/p>\n

“There is no other <\/span>Pampero<\/span><\/i>, just the one. \u00a0You know that, Elijah,” Delilah replied. \u00a0She turned to me and sat on her bed while placing a few of her smaller clothes in her backpack. \u00a0I sighed as she assumed the exasperated older sister look. \u00a0I was very familiar with it. \u00a0“Look, I know this is your first mission. \u00a0I remember mine when I followed mom and dad to Africa and I remember how terrified I was. \u00a0It’s okay to be scared, truly. But New Raleigh isn’t Africa. \u00a0Or the Amazon.”<\/span><\/p>\n

“I’m not scared,” I lied. \u00a0My things were already packed. \u00a0I’d spent the morning arranging my things to rid myself of the nervous energy that had overcome me when I’d received word of the captain’s arrival. \u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

“They asked us here,” Delilah said, zipping up her backpack. \u00a0She set it on the floor with the rest of her luggage. \u00a0“We’re expected and wanted. \u00a0We’re not walking into some… some… hostile village trying to convert anyone. \u00a0New Raleigh was founded by Americans back in the early days. \u00a0I read about it at the library today. \u00a0There wasn’t much and the book was very old but a little before the 1800s, back in New England, a group of Methodists broke from the church after receiving some sign from God. \u00a0They came down through South America before sailing off to found New Raleigh.”<\/span><\/p>\n

“We’re not Methodists,” I reminded my sister.<\/span><\/p>\n

“Neither are they,” she answered. \u00a0“Not anymore. \u00a0I didn’t see the letter they wrote to the church or what the church told mother and father but, from what I gather, they’ve lost their way. They’ve been cut off a long time. \u00a0Honestly, I’m excited about going and not just to spread the Word. \u00a0I just really want to see what they’re like now. \u00a0How they’ve changed and adapted over the, well, the centuries.”<\/span><\/p>\n

I chewed on that for a moment, feeling my anxiety twist my stomach into knots. \u00a0Although it was only for a moment, I couldn’t stop seeing that flat silver light through the captain’s cloudy eyes.<\/span><\/p>\n

“Pray with me, Elijah, before we leave,” my sister said. \u00a0She knelt at the side of her bed, turning towards it and bowing her head.<\/span><\/p>\n

I placed the letter in my Bible to mark my spot and knelt next to Delilah. \u00a0Her presence was soothing. \u00a0She’d raised me while our parents were gone, spreading the Word of the Lord as missionaries. \u00a0She’d been firm but fair and never complained about her duties, even the times when I’d misbehaved. \u00a0The many times.<\/span><\/p>\n

“I’ll lead,” Delilah said, her hands clasped before her. \u00a0“Dear Lord, please look over us as we set off on our journey. \u00a0Watch over the captain and his crew as we cross the ocean to-“<\/span><\/p>\n

I repeated the words in my head, feeling myself calm. \u00a0And yet, twin tarnished silver lights stared at me in the darkness behind my closed eyes.<\/span><\/p>\n

—–<\/span><\/p>\n

The ship groaned around me, rocking and swaying and swooping on the open water. \u00a0I lay in my bunk, my sister asleep above me. \u00a0Her breathing was strong and steady with the occasional snort that was immediately followed by her twisting in her sleep and mumbling a sleepy “sorry”.<\/span><\/p>\n

The captain had met us without a word and barely acknowledged Deliliah. \u00a0The ship was utterly dark and no crew members seemed to be aboard. \u00a0We followed the frail man along the deck until he brought us below and to our cabin.<\/span><\/p>\n

I couldn’t help but plug my nose a few times along the way. \u00a0And, even now, I could taste the faint scent of the ship at the back of my throat. \u00a0I couldn’t place my finger on it, whether it was sewage or swamp or just the smell of a ship constantly on the water but it was strong and sometimes made my eyes water.<\/span><\/p>\n

Turning to the side, I stared into the dark. \u00a0Pale shafts of mossy-green light flickered from the floorboards as the ship rolled. \u00a0I looked for dust particles floating in the light but saw none. \u00a0I expected the ship to be louder and was surprised at how quiet it was overall. \u00a0Especially since I thought our cabin was located in the stern (I’d asked my sister what the proper word was) and, therefore, near the engines.<\/span><\/p>\n

I lay in my bed, feeling the worm of anxiety twisting in my stomach. \u00a0The darkness was heavy on my shoulders. \u00a0I closed my eyes and whispered fierce prayers to the Lord to keep me and my family safe. \u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Eventually, I drifted in sleep.<\/span><\/p>\n

And I dreamt.<\/span><\/p>\n

I was alone in the cabin and the ship thrummed around me. \u00a0I was surrounded by the same green light from when I was awake. \u00a0Standing in it, my stomach twisted and I tasted bile in the back of my throat, mixed with the cloying stench of the ship. \u00a0The light seemed to caress my skin with an oily touch that made me shiver.<\/span><\/p>\n

I looked for Delilah but she wasn’t there and so I left before I vomited. \u00a0I ran up the short steps and stood on the heaving deck, gripping a metal handle set by the door. \u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

The sky was black with red outlining gigantic ominous shapes that coiled and moved in ways no clouds could. \u00a0Watching them made something deep within me – some ancient animal instinct, perhaps – recoil in fear and hatred. I wanted to find the nearest rock to cower under.<\/span><\/p>\n

To the fore were seven dark shapes. \u00a0Six of them arrayed in a semi-circle at the bow while the seventh stood behind them, facing forward. \u00a0The thrumming that I thought was the engine was coming from them. \u00a0Powerful chants that cut through the night, causing the not-clouds to twist and roil overhead. \u00a0The lone seventh figure had its arms raised, screaming into the night. \u00a0Something was wrong with its arms but when I tried to focus more clearly, the ship crested a wave and I lost my grip on the handle.<\/span><\/p>\n

I slid and cried out, sure that I’d be lost overboard but I slammed against the railing and clung to it.<\/span><\/p>\n

The ocean glowed a sickly green that made my bones ache. \u00a0Bloated dead fish floated on the water, pulled along in the ship’s wake. \u00a0A few burst when they surfaced, spraying red blood that the very air seemed to absorb. \u00a0My stomach heaved at the smell of them, thousands of dead creatures weaving in the water as if they were the trailing tentacles of a kraken.<\/span><\/p>\n

And then the ocean opened.<\/span><\/p>\n

In the dark beneath the green, a single baleful eye, wider than the ship moved. \u00a0Focused on me. \u00a0It <\/span>knew<\/i><\/b> me in a way I couldn’t understand. \u00a0I screamed, tearing my throat from the force of it. \u00a0I tasted blood and the chanting filled my mind until I knew nothing else.<\/span><\/p>\n

—–<\/span><\/p>\n

I woke, sitting in my bed and drenched with sweat. \u00a0My throat was sore and I could hear a torrential rainstorm outside. \u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Stumbling, fearful, I made my way up the stairs, opening the door that led to the deck. \u00a0I held the handle while my heart hammered in my chest. \u00a0Before I could stop myself, I wrenched open the door and stepped out.<\/span><\/p>\n

The deck was empty and the sky was clear and full of stars. \u00a0I still heard the rain so I rubbed at my ear. \u00a0And felt wetness. \u00a0My own blood was smeared along my fingertips, thick and red and speckled with black flakes. \u00a0I touched my other ear and felt the same.<\/span><\/p>\n

I heard a whisper above me that drew my attention but the sky was clear and quiet. \u00a0Away from the city, the sky seemed afire with points of light. \u00a0I found myself looking for the constellations. \u00a0To find anything recognizable that I could anchor myself against. \u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Turning in a slow circle, I only felt my heart race faster.<\/span><\/p>\n

No, <\/span><\/i>I thought to myself, turning again. \u00a0My fingers turned white while I clenched my hand on the handle by the door. \u00a0<\/span>No, no no.<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

Stars filled the sky but none were the constellations I’d always loved to find.<\/span><\/p>\n

Where the North Star should shine was a single red star glaring at our world.<\/span><\/p>\n

—–<\/span><\/p>\n

I woke, terrified that I was still dreaming. \u00a0Every muscle in my body ached.<\/span><\/p>\n

“Hey, you’re up,” Delilah said. \u00a0I startled and looked over at her. \u00a0She sat at the small desk in the room, reading again.<\/span><\/p>\n

“What,” I rasped. \u00a0Swallowing, I tried again. \u00a0“What time is it?”<\/span><\/p>\n

“You slept through the day,” my sister told me. \u00a0“Tossing and turning. \u00a0I almost woke you but I thought you’d know how much sleep you needed.”<\/span><\/p>\n

I touched my ears, expecting to feel blood but my skin was smooth.<\/span><\/p>\n

“I had the worst nightmare,” I told her. \u00a0I tried to remember it but it was all gone. \u00a0Chanting. \u00a0I remembered chanting. \u00a0And a red-eyed monster. \u00a0My head throbbed and my throat was incredibly dry. \u00a0“Is there any water?”<\/span><\/p>\n

Delilah handed me a plastic bottle and I gulped it without pausing to breathe until it was completely gone. \u00a0I was still thirsty but I’d survive. \u00a0I rubbed my temples and then my neck, massaging the tender skin while rolling my head.<\/span><\/p>\n

Only then did I realize I had an erection. \u00a0I shot a glance at my sister as my face flamed bright red. \u00a0I quickly pulled the blankets up around my waist and sat there awkwardly, waiting for it to go down. \u00a0It throbbed beneath the blankets, in time with the pain in my head.<\/span><\/p>\n

“Is,” I cleared my throat, looking at the stairs, away from my sister. \u00a0“Is it still light out?”<\/span><\/p>\n

“No,” Delilah said, distracted by her reading. \u00a0“You literally missed the entire day. \u00a0The sun set nearly an hour ago. \u00a0Are you hungry? \u00a0I couldn’t find the captain but I didn’t look too hard. \u00a0I’ve mostly been keeping inside the cabin except to go out and look at the water for a little bit. I have some food I brought with us.”<\/span><\/p>\n

The thought of food turned my stomach so I shook my head. \u00a0I couldn’t stop staring at the smooth curve of my sister’s neck and I cursed my hormones while telling myself what a disgusting person I was. \u00a0I didn’t want my sister. \u00a0It wasn’t <\/span>that<\/i><\/b>. \u00a0It was just that I was a young man and I couldn’t help it. \u00a0My father had taken me aside when I was younger to explain things. \u00a0And he’d talked to me since then over the years. \u00a0Sex was natural. \u00a0Our bodies betrayed us. \u00a0Hormones forced us to act like animals. \u00a0Uncontrollable. \u00a0But we weren’t animals. \u00a0And we could restrain ourselves. \u00a0There was no shame in acknowledging that we had the urges but to act on them, that was the sin.<\/span><\/p>\n

So, no, I didn’t think of my sister in that way. \u00a0But I also couldn’t help a last glance at her smooth neck and collarbone and the way a few strands of her beautiful hair had escaped the lazy bun she’d made.<\/span><\/p>\n

I found my Bible and read from Matthew, chapter 4 in order to remind myself of Jesus’ temptation by the Devil. \u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

I lost myself in the Word until I felt something thud against the hull of the ship. \u00a0The ship rocked up and then down but was still.<\/span><\/p>\n

Delilah turned to me, blinking rapidly to adjust her eyes away from her book. \u00a0“We can’t be there already.”<\/span><\/p>\n

I closed my Bible and stood as my sister did, following her up the stairs and onto the deck.<\/span><\/p>\n

A vast island stretched out before us and, even in the dark, I could make out tall trees and a large spire (a mountain? \u00a0I couldn’t be sure) at the center of the island. \u00a0The gangplank was down but I couldn’t see any crew. \u00a0I saw a large orange glow somewhere between us and the mountain.<\/span><\/p>\n

“I’ll get our things,” I told Delilah, heading back to our cabin. \u00a0I’d packed light (too light, my sister had said) so I was able to carry both of our gear together. \u00a0By the time I was back, my sister said she’d found the crew – waiting for us on the shore.<\/span><\/p>\n

The crew were in a line beside the captain. \u00a0They were all hunched and rocking slightly. \u00a0I suppose too long at the sea or ocean might do that to people. \u00a0My sister and I walked down the plank and then stood on the pier. \u00a0I thought for a moment that it was swaying under me until I realized I’d grown used to the ship’s movement in the short time I was aboard.<\/span><\/p>\n

We stood together for a moment, waiting for the captain to say something. \u00a0The moment grew longer and more uncomfortable until Delilah cleared her throat. \u00a0She moved her arm as if to offer a handshake but then seemed to think better of it.<\/span><\/p>\n

“Thank you, captain,” Delilah said. \u00a0“I have no idea how we got here so fast but it was a pleasant, short journey. \u00a0I hope you have a safe trip back.”<\/span><\/p>\n

“She waits for you,” The captain hissed, his face hidden in the dark. \u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

“She-?” \u00a0Delilah half-turned to me. \u00a0“Our mother?”<\/span><\/p>\n

The six crew fell to their knees, arms outstretched before them. \u00a0“Mother! \u00a0Mother!” they cried, heads down against the ground. \u00a0The captain trembled and bowed, backing away.<\/span><\/p>\n

“L- Let’s just go,” I said nervously. \u00a0“Come on, they’ll be waiting.”<\/span><\/p>\n

We made our way inland. \u00a0When we reached the treeline, I paused and looked back.<\/span><\/p>\n

The crew, captain included, were wading into the water. \u00a0I watched for a moment as, one by one, the disappeared beneath the surface to leave their clothes floating above them.<\/span><\/p>\n

“They just-” I said, swallowing again. \u00a0I really needed more water. \u00a0“They just swam off into the water!”<\/span><\/p>\n

Delilah looked backed and shrugged. \u00a0“Probably untying knots and whatever. \u00a0Come on, I want to find them before it gets too dark.”<\/span><\/p>\n

We hiked through the forest for a short distance until we reached a village. \u00a0I’d expected something large and at least a little modern but was surprised to find something more akin to ramshackle buildings. \u00a0Worse, the entire little village seemed to be empty.<\/span><\/p>\n

A large fire roared at the center of the village and I shielded my eyes against the enormity of it.<\/span><\/p>\n

“Hello?” Delilah called out. \u00a0“Is anyone there?”<\/span><\/p>\n

I thought I heard a twig snap in the distance. \u00a0I rubbed at my neck nervously while looking around. \u00a0I could <\/span>feel<\/i><\/b> the moisture being drawn out of me by the fire.<\/span><\/p>\n

“Hello! \u00a0We’re the missionaries that-“<\/span><\/p>\n

“I know who you are, child,” a voice spoke from our left. \u00a0Delilah gasped and we both turned to see an old woman, bent by her age and hidden behind a heavy cloak that hung to the ground to cover her feet. \u00a0She walked with the aid of an old stick and I could only see the edge of her chin from within the hood. \u00a0“Come, we have rooms prepared.”<\/span><\/p>\n

“I’d- I’d- <\/span>We’d<\/i><\/b> like to say hello to our mother and father first, please,” Delilah said, stepping forward slowly.<\/span><\/p>\n

“It’s late, child, and they already sleep. \u00a0There is time in the morning. \u00a0Come, come, I have your rooms ready.” \u00a0The old woman turned without waiting. \u00a0She moved quickly for her age, her cloak swishing around her.<\/span><\/p>\n

I moved away from the fire as we walked, on the other side of Delilah. \u00a0I couldn’t understand how she could stand so close to it.<\/span><\/p>\n

The old woman stopped at one small shack and pointed. \u00a0“Girl.”<\/span><\/p>\n

“We’d prefer to stay together,” Delilah said, looking over at me.<\/span><\/p>\n

“No,” the old woman said. \u00a0“It is against our- our \u00a0faith that you should. \u00a0You’ll sleep apart.”<\/span><\/p>\n

“Please,” I whispered, my hand going to Delilah’s. \u00a0I was suddenly terrified without knowing why.<\/span><\/p>\n

“It’ll be okay,” Delilah answered quietly. \u00a0“Look to the Lord and his strength; seek his face always. \u00a0We’re safe in his light.”<\/span><\/p>\n

I watched Delilah going into the little hut and then followed the woman to another building, further along.<\/span><\/p>\n

The old woman watched me. \u00a0I saw her eyes shine under her hood and I shivered at a memory. \u00a0She seemed to be taking my measure until, finally, she said simply, “Boy.”<\/span><\/p>\n

I entered the small room and closed the door behind me. \u00a0It refused to stay closed until I found a simple leather strip to hook around the frame. \u00a0There was a bed and a desk and a pot that smelled bad. \u00a0The bed was simply a frame raised off the ground with a hide of some kind stretched between the slats. \u00a0There was no chair for the desk but there was a stone cup and jug.<\/span><\/p>\n

Licking my parched lips, I dropped my backpack and poured a cup of water. \u00a0I swallowed the entire cup of water before wondering if I should’ve smelled it first. \u00a0But then, would I know what bad water smelled like? \u00a0I finished the jug and then lay on the cot, feeling it sag beneath me. \u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

I wouldn’t be able to sleep. Not after the ship. \u00a0And the nightmare. \u00a0Not in a strange, unwelcoming place like this. \u00a0With a sigh and a regretful look at the empty jug of water, I grabbed my Bible from my backpack and found my place.<\/span><\/p>\n

I remember dozing through some of the night. \u00a0On the edge of sleep but not entirely. \u00a0The huge red eye stared at me every time I thought I began to drift off.<\/span><\/p>\n

When dull morning light crept through the holes in the wall, I groaned and swung my legs over the bed. \u00a0My joints were sore and hot and so I stretched to work them out. \u00a0Groaning against the pain. \u00a0Leaning against the wall, eyes closed. <\/span><\/p>\n

The red eye stared back at me. \u00a0Knowingly. \u00a0I gasped, stepping back from the wall so fast that I fell, landing on my ass. \u00a0My heart raced and I blinked several times until the image faded. \u00a0I looked down to see my pants straining against my manhood. \u00a0The memory of pale, soft, smooth skin flared in my mind’s eye clear enough to make my teeth ache and my cock throb. \u00a0I grit my teeth and pulled my knees to my chest, holding them there until I was flaccid. \u00a0I don’t know how long it took but I recited the Lord’s Prayer again and again until it was over.<\/span><\/p>\n

I unhooked the simple door latch and stepped into the open, breathing in the humid air as if I were drinking it. \u00a0The fire had burned down to ash. \u00a0I glanced around to get my bearings and then made my way to where Delilah had stayed. \u00a0The door was ajar and I pushed it carefully.<\/span><\/p>\n

“Delilah,” I called softly. \u00a0I peeked inside but it was empty except for her belongings. \u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

I turned and then cried out as a cloth bag was pulled forcefully over my head and powerful hands gripped my arms. \u00a0I kicked instinctively but found nothing to hit.<\/span><\/p>\n

“Let me go!” I cried out, panicking as sharp nails dug into my skin. \u00a0I tried to work my arms free but the hands holding me seemed as strong as chains. \u00a0“Let me go! \u00a0Please! \u00a0I’ve done nothing wrong!”<\/span><\/p>\n

I waited for my captor to say something. \u00a0Anything. \u00a0No words were spoken but a sibilant laughter filled the air. \u00a0The hands pulled me and I found myself being pushed, stumbling on my own feet.<\/span><\/p>\n

“Please, oh God, oh Lord above, please, listen to me,” I said, hot tears running down my face. \u00a0“My family and I are missionaries. \u00a0We’re harmless. \u00a0We’re just- \u00a0oh God, where is my sister? \u00a0What have you done with Delilah?”<\/span><\/p>\n

No-one answered me. \u00a0I kicked back, finally striking the person holding me but didn’t even elicit a grunt. \u00a0I winced expecting a return strike but, again, nothing happened.<\/span><\/p>\n

“Please,” I moaned, slumping as my legs gave out. \u00a0“Please just tell me what you want. \u00a0Please.”<\/span><\/p>\n

I felt myself lifted and my feet dangled free from the ground. \u00a0Carried as if I weighed nothing at all.<\/span><\/p>\n

I sobbed most of the way, occasionally begging for the person to tell me what was happening. \u00a0To tell me <\/span>anything<\/i><\/b> instead of just the silence I was served. \u00a0My voice ran out as my throat went dry and I hung, defeated.<\/span><\/p>\n

Eventually we stopped.<\/span><\/p>\n

“Let him go!” Delilah cried out. \u00a0My head snapped up and in her direction when I heard her voice. \u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

“Del-” I called and then screamed as I was flung in the air. \u00a0My hands went up over my head and I curled into myself, expecting the worst. \u00a0It hurt when I hit the ground but I rolled and sat up, pulling the sack from my head.<\/span><\/p>\n

I was in a simple metal cage made of thick metal bars. \u00a0Four huge, cloaked figures stood at each side, armed with a large staff. \u00a0I couldn’t see their faces but their arms and legs were massive. \u00a0Delilah and I were separated by a line of bars through the middle of the cage. She pressed herself against the metal, reaching for me with her hands. I ran to her and clutched her hands to mine and we cried together.<\/span><\/p>\n

“She- she’s here,” Delilah whispered. \u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Still holding my sister’s hands, I turned to find the old woman standing by the door to the cage. \u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

“What do you want?!” I yelled, emboldened by my sister’s presence.<\/span><\/p>\n

“You, boy,” the woman answered. \u00a0My heart sank. \u00a0“You will complete the ritual. \u00a0You will be the seed to breed the children needed to free Father. \u00a0Glory be to Him.”<\/span><\/p>\n

“I- Never!” I screamed as Delilah’s fingers clamped painfully against mine. \u00a0“I walk in the Light. \u00a0The Lord watches over me!”<\/span><\/p>\n

“Are you thirsty, boy?” The old woman asked. \u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

The odd question stopped me, confusing me. \u00a0I swallowed and licked my dried lips and answered, voice cracking slightly. \u00a0“No.”<\/span><\/p>\n

“It grows,” she says. \u00a0“You’ve seen it, haven’t you, boy?”<\/span><\/p>\n

My fingers went to my throat. \u00a0“S- Seen what?”<\/span><\/p>\n

The old women leaned close, her face nearly touching the bars. \u00a0She whispered in reverence, “Father’s gaze. \u00a0The Red Eye.”<\/span><\/p>\n

It flashed before me and I fell back, pulling my hand away from my sister. \u00a0Heat coursed through me and I choked, gasping for air as I tried to scream. \u00a0When I came to, I was on my back and the old woman was gone. \u00a0My hand was tight on my own throat and I hissed through my teeth as I relaxed my fingers.<\/span><\/p>\n

My throat was swollen and hot and I licked my dry lips. \u00a0I rolled to my side and groaned as my erection rubbed against the ground. \u00a0My traitorous hips rocked once before I went to my knees, hugging myself.<\/span><\/p>\n

“Elijah?” \u00a0Delilah asked carefully. \u00a0“Are- are you okay? \u00a0What did she tell you? \u00a0Are you hurt?”<\/span><\/p>\n

I’m fine,<\/span><\/i> I tried to say. \u00a0Shame burned in me and I shook my head.<\/span><\/p>\n

“Elijah, you’re scaring me,” Delilah said. \u00a0“Talk to me. \u00a0Please.”<\/span><\/p>\n

“I’m okay,” I whispered. \u00a0Was I talking to her or myself? \u00a0“I’m okay.”<\/span><\/p>\n

“What did she say?” Delilah asked again.<\/span><\/p>\n

“Nothing,” I lied. \u00a0Soft, pale skin from her neck to her collarbone. \u00a0And the hidden swell of her breasts. \u00a0“I don’t remember. \u00a0It’s nothing.”<\/span><\/p>\n

“Come here. \u00a0Please. \u00a0Sit with me, Elijah.”<\/span><\/p>\n

I shifted, feeling my manhood. \u00a0Hard and thick against my thigh. \u00a0Groaning. \u00a0I shook my head and then, out loud, “No. \u00a0I’m sorry. \u00a0Give me a little bit. \u00a0I- I feel sick. \u00a0Give me a minute.”<\/span><\/p>\n

Delilah clutched at the bars, watching me with tears in her eyes. \u00a0I wanted to go to her for the comfort she always gave me but I couldn’t. \u00a0Not with my shame apparent for all to see. \u00a0Not with the dirty thoughts whispering in my head. \u00a0I moved slowly, pushing away until I felt the cage against my back. \u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

I breathed deeply and slowly, swallowing to taste the moisture in the air.<\/span><\/p>\n

“Do- Do you remember when you found father’s matches?” Delilah asked. \u00a0She stood and walked to the same side of the cage I sat against. \u00a0I chanced to look in her direction and saw her looking ahead, toward the mountain piercing the sky. \u00a0“And you accidentally started the fire in library? \u00a0All I heard was you scream and then run. \u00a0I put out the fire and hid everything but we didn’t find you until bedtime. \u00a0You were so young that you don’t remember, do you? \u00a0I told mother and father that we were playing hide and seek and that’s why you were missing.”<\/span><\/p>\n

I only remembered it vaguely. \u00a0Hiding in the dark. \u00a0The fire. \u00a0Thinking I would be sent away.<\/span><\/p>\n

“I protected you. \u00a0I always will, Elijah,” Delilah told me. \u00a0Her voice trembled. \u00a0“I raised you and protected you. \u00a0We’ll make it through this together.”<\/span><\/p>\n

A whimper escaped my lips and I hugged my knees close.<\/span><\/p>\n

“Is your throat okay?” Delilah asked me. \u00a0“You screamed so horribly and then you choked yourself. \u00a0Your face turned- Are you okay?”<\/span><\/p>\n

I touched the side of my throat. \u00a0It was still sore and hot, as if I were feverish. \u00a0I had no doubt that I was. \u00a0I breathed deeply, shuddering at the edge of sobbing and I felt something <\/span>shift<\/i><\/b> within my throat. \u00a0An alien feeling that made me gag. \u00a0I ran my hands along the nearby grass until it was wet from the morning dew. \u00a0The water was cold and soothing as I rubbed it against my neck.<\/span><\/p>\n

“I’m okay,” I lied again. \u00a0I desperately wanted to change the subject. \u00a0“What was mother like when I was young? \u00a0And father?”<\/span><\/p>\n

We talked, sitting apart, separated by the bars. \u00a0Our captors brought water and some kind of soup, which I ignored, despite the rumbling in my stomach. \u00a0I could see vegetables but also some kind of meat floating in it that I didn’t trust. \u00a0Delilah picked at her soup, nibbling on a few of the vegetables in the broth before putting it aside. \u00a0We talked, laughing over stories of growing up and getting into mischief together.<\/span><\/p>\n

The sun sat on the distant horizon, huge and fat and red. \u00a0Our conversation had winded down and we sat together quietly, lost in our own thoughts.<\/span><\/p>\n

“Boy,” a voice called. \u00a0I turned to find the old woman standing behind me. \u00a0Without another word she tossed something into my cage. \u00a0My Bible.<\/span><\/p>\n

I scrambled for the small book, thankful for this one kindness. \u00a0Feeling a small seed of hope beginning to bloom.<\/span><\/p>\n

Until I opened it.<\/span><\/p>\n

The Bible was my own, I’d recognize it anywhere with it’s worn edges and notes in the margins. \u00a0Now the pages were vandalized. \u00a0Where I randomly opened it was a lewd picture of a woman on all fours being pleasured by a man from behind. \u00a0Drawn crudely in thick, black ink, I saw the man had three eyes and gills and the woman had rows of sharp teeth and three pairs of breasts.<\/span><\/p>\n

I picked another random page and found hurried writing in a script I didn’t recognize. \u00a0It hurt my eyes to read it and my head throbbed, forcing me to draw in a sharp, deep breath. \u00a0I subconsciously rubbed more dew on my neck before turning the page again. \u00a0More writing around an illustration of a woman squatting to lay eggs while a single malevolent eye looked on. \u00a0My manhood stirred, sliding against my thigh and I shuddered from the feeling of it. \u00a0<\/span>Warm soft flesh tearing biting licking blood forcing her open Dagon opening the way Ph’nglui mglw’nafh Cthulhu-<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

I cried out and threw the book, pushing the heels of my hands against my eyes and sobbing.<\/span><\/p>\n

“Elijah!” \u00a0Delilah yelled, against the bars of the cage once more. \u00a0“What is it? \u00a0What’s wrong?”<\/span><\/p>\n

“They- they- they-” I hiccuped. \u00a0I couldn’t tell her so I just shook my head and cried until there were no tears left in me.<\/span><\/p>\n

—–<\/span><\/p>\n

They came for Delilah at sunset. \u00a0Three of them with the old woman at the front. \u00a0All cloaked in simple robes with the last fading rays of the red sun casting shadows within their hoods. \u00a0They stopped in front of Delilah’s side of the cage and she fled, pressing herself against the bars opposite. \u00a0The old woman stamped her staff and the lead figure disrobed.<\/span><\/p>\n

He, for it had to be a he with his erect penis, stood eyeing Delilah. \u00a0A monster made real. \u00a0His skin was scaled and segmented like an alligator, mottled with green and black spots. \u00a0A long tail, as thick as my thigh curved behind him, the blunt tip little brushing the ground. \u00a0It – <\/span>He<\/span><\/i> – licked his lips. \u00a0His face was misshapen. \u00a0Elongated with two small slits for a nose and a jaw lined with sharp fangs. \u00a0His neck fluttered to reveal small gills and I gagged, clutching at my own throat in response. \u00a0An old, ragged scarf hung around his neck.<\/span><\/p>\n

“No!” screamed Delilah, pressing herself back as hard as she could. \u00a0“NO!” \u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

The creature stalked into the cage when the old woman opened the door. \u00a0Delilah ran to the corner of her cage and crouched. \u00a0She was hyperventilating, eyes wide and white as the lizard man walked to her. \u00a0It hissed with a thick, long tongue that seemed to taste the air until, finally, he stood above her.<\/span><\/p>\n

“Please,” I begged. \u00a0“Please don’t do this. \u00a0Please. \u00a0I’ll do whatever you want. \u00a0Just make this stop. \u00a0Please don’t hurt her!”<\/span><\/p>\n

The old woman turned to me and I looked at her. \u00a0She blinked and I saw not cataracts but a nictitating membrane that slid over her eyes. \u00a0She smiled warmly.<\/span><\/p>\n

“Boy,” she said, her grin widening until it nearly split her face in half. \u00a0“You can’t stop this. \u00a0Not any of it. \u00a0She is lesser and will learn her place. \u00a0As you will learn yours.”<\/span><\/p>\n

I heard my sister scream and I looked over at her to see her on her knees, her face pressed against the ground. \u00a0I saw her sex between her spread thighs just as the monster pierced her. \u00a0Birds took flight as my sister shrieked loud and long.<\/span><\/p>\n

I vomited noisily to the side as the old woman laughed.<\/span><\/p>\n

Oh god. \u00a0Oh god. \u00a0I could <\/span>smell<\/i><\/b> my sister’s blood. \u00a0My manhood stirred and the old woman laughed louder, deep enough to nearly drown out my sister’s screaming.<\/span><\/p>\n

“Stop,” I moaned, my lips trembling as my pants grew tight. Each thrust from the creature caused my sister to scream louder. \u00a0“Stop. \u00a0Please make it stop! \u00a0Please! \u00a0Oh God. \u00a0Oh Lord in Heaven, please. \u00a0Please help us! \u00a0Please!”<\/span><\/p>\n

The creature was grunting and I could hear him slamming into my sister again and again and again and again. \u00a0Wet with her blood. \u00a0My sister’s screams had been reduced to choking sobs but I dared not look at her. \u00a0The old woman’s laugh dug into my brain, raising the hackles on my neck.<\/span><\/p>\n

“Stop!” \u00a0I felt dizzy. \u00a0Nauseous. \u00a0My head spun and the scent of blood filled my throat with every breath. I couldn’t fill my lungs. \u00a0Despite gasping for air, I felt like I was choking. \u00a0\u00a0“Stop! \u00a0Just- Just stop! \u00a0Just! \u00a0SHUT THE FUCK UP YOU WHINING CUNT!”<\/span><\/p>\n

I clasped my hands to my mouth in horror at what I’d said. \u00a0I gagged. \u00a0And choked. \u00a0And gasped and then sweet air filled my lungs.<\/span><\/p>\n

But my mouth was closed. \u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

The skin along my neck trembled, tickling in a strange way that made me moan. \u00a0I touched my neck in horror and felt wet, raw flesh beneath flaps of skin. \u00a0Three rows of gills, drawing air into my lungs.<\/span><\/p>\n

I looked at the old woman to find her crouched outside the cage next to me. \u00a0She no longer smiled.<\/span><\/p>\n

“No,” she whispered. \u00a0“You can’t stop any of this. \u00a0And, soon, you won’t want to.”<\/span><\/p>\n

I didn’t notice when they left. I sat stunned, my mind chewing on nothing but the horror I was living through. \u00a0No, no, I had to be Ph’nglui. \u00a0Had to be. \u00a0Nothing more than a dream.<\/span><\/p>\n

Eventually, I came back to myself with a shudder.<\/span><\/p>\n

“Delilah!” I said, running to the divider. \u00a0She lay on the ground with her tattered clothes covering her naked body. \u00a0For a moment, I worried that she was dead but her leg moved and I breathed again. \u00a0I clamped my hands against my throat, feeling the strangeness of the gills. \u00a0The air didn’t taste nearly as sweet without them. \u00a0“Delilah! \u00a0Oh God, Delilah.”<\/span><\/p>\n

She said nothing but I pleaded with her anyway. \u00a0To talk to me. \u00a0To tell me she was okay. \u00a0That she was alive. \u00a0Instead, she curled herself into a tighter ball and shook quietly.<\/span><\/p>\n

I grit my teeth and clamped my hands against the thick wood separating us. \u00a0My gills fluttered and the sharp scent of blood and sex filled me until my knees weakened. \u00a0I fell and sat, staring at nothing. \u00a0Feeling nothing. \u00a0Worn out. \u00a0I was exhausted but still couldn’t sleep.<\/span><\/p>\n

—–<\/span><\/p>\n

The night was deep and quiet when three figures approached my cage. \u00a0I huddled back, trembling in fear. \u00a0Wondering if it were my turn to be violated.<\/span><\/p>\n

“E- Elijah?” the lead figure asked. \u00a0I knew that voice. \u00a0I would always know that voice.<\/span><\/p>\n

“Mother?” \u00a0I asked, going to my knees. \u00a0“Mother! \u00a0Oh thank God, you’re still alive! \u00a0Delilah, mother’s alive! \u00a0She’s here!”<\/span><\/p>\n

“No,” came Delilah’s soft voice but I ignored it and ran to the bars to greet her, reaching my hands out to her.<\/span><\/p>\n

Long, slim hands reached for mine. \u00a0Thick, translucent skin connected her fingers together.<\/span><\/p>\n

I yelled, pulling my hands back to clutch them to my chest.<\/span><\/p>\n

“N- no, mother,” I stuttered. \u00a0<\/span>Please, God, no. \u00a0Please.<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

The figure – my mother, slowly sank to her knees and her hood slid back. \u00a0I could hear the pain in her voice when she called to me, hiding her hands in her sleeves. \u00a0“Elijah, please.”<\/span><\/p>\n

Her face was transformed. \u00a0Heavy ridges distorted her cheekbones to pull her face wide. \u00a0Her lips were thin and pale white over a mouth too big and too wide. \u00a0She tried to hide it but I could see the tiny sharp teeth behind the lips. \u00a0A clear membrane slid quickly across pure black eyes, a mockery of a blink. \u00a0Her luxurious brown hair was gone, leaving behind thick skin that glistened in the moonlight as if wet. \u00a0Her skin had tinted green with black spots and black lines. \u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Beneath my mother’s head, her neck was thick and wide and her own gills fluttered with each breath she took. \u00a0As I watched, she closed her eyes, leaning against the cage to draw in my smell. \u00a0Her nose was now merely a bump with two slits for nostrils. \u00a0The slits widened and something within them opened, quivering as she filled her lungs.<\/span><\/p>\n

“Ohh,” my mother moaned. \u00a0She gripped the bars with her webbed hands and pulled herself up on her knees. \u00a0Her cloak slid open to reveal a wide, heavily muscled body. \u00a0Her skin was slick down her torso, shining in the pale light and I could see the curves of her breasts, small and high on her body. \u00a0I looked away, feeling my cheeks flood with embarrassment. \u00a0“Elijah. \u00a0My son. \u00a0My boy. \u00a0They told me \u00a0you were here. \u00a0Come. \u00a0Come closer. \u00a0Let me hold you. \u00a0Let me touch you. \u00a0They said. \u00a0They said you were here. \u00a0They said I needed you. \u00a0And you needed me.”<\/span><\/p>\n

I couldn’t move. \u00a0I watched as my mother shrugged her shoulders and the cloak slipped to the ground. \u00a0She was nude and now I couldn’t look away. \u00a0She’d been petite before but now she was as wide as father. \u00a0Wider. \u00a0Her arms bulged as she flexed against the cage. \u00a0My gills flared to take in her scent and my cock stirred. \u00a0It slid in my jeans and I pressed it, unable to stop myself. Grabbing it. \u00a0Twisting it until I felt the head of it slip from the band of my pants. \u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

And then it <\/span>grew<\/i><\/b>. \u00a0My cock swelled and pressed forward. \u00a0Changing. \u00a0I groaned at the ache building in my stomach. \u00a0The head of my cock bulged as ridges formed around it and small bumps formed along the shaft.<\/span><\/p>\n

“My boy,” mother said, rocking her wide hips in a circle. \u00a0I saw the curve of her ass. \u00a0Mesmerized. \u00a0“I understand now. \u00a0She comes. \u00a0She comes to purify me. \u00a0Oh. \u00a0Oh. \u00a0Oh, She’s so beautiful! \u00a0A pure red light shining in the darkness and I will be Hers! \u00a0Yes! \u00a0Oh, Elijah. \u00a0My son. \u00a0My handsome boy. \u00a0I can see how much you’ve grown. \u00a0I can smell how much you want me. \u00a0My womb <\/span>aches<\/i><\/b> for you. \u00a0I want to be filled by you, growing fat with Her eggs. \u00a0Feeling them slip from between my pussy, knowing they’re yours and mine. \u00a0Father Dagon send it happen soon. \u00a0I- \u00a0She-“<\/span><\/p>\n

She turned to show me, pressing herself back against the bars on her hands and knees. \u00a0My mother rocked her hips, sliding her sex up and down as if beckoning me. \u00a0I watched as the skin around her vagina move. \u00a0It… <\/span>stretched<\/span><\/i>… and her ass and hips widened, pushing her asshole up as her womb widened.<\/span><\/p>\n

For me. For me and the eggs I would give to her.<\/span><\/p>\n

I swallowed. \u00a0Reached for her. My hands trembling. \u00a0Wanting her. \u00a0To fill her with my m’tinh until she was full of it. \u00a0She moaned, lowering herself and I saw her spine press against her back. \u00a0The bones pierced her skin and I pulled at my cock, licking my lips at the scent of her blood. \u00a0Her spine grew into sharp bony protrusions. \u00a0Her tailbone cracked and slid out and I saw her sex tremble from the pleasure of it. \u00a0Trails of blood slid down from her growing tail, mixing with her the wetness between her thighs.<\/span><\/p>\n

My sister whimpered and I blinked.<\/span><\/p>\n

“Oh!” Delilah cried out. \u00a0I turned, the spell broken. \u00a0She was on her knees, her clothes on the ground around her. \u00a0“Oh! \u00a0I see it! \u00a0I see it! \u00a0Father!”<\/span><\/p>\n

I looked around, my heart racing. \u00a0Father? \u00a0Father was here?<\/span><\/p>\n

“Father!” Delilah moaned, tears streaming down her face. \u00a0Her pert breasts shook as she trembled from emotions. \u00a0“Father Dagon I see your gaze upon me!”<\/span><\/p>\n

No,<\/span><\/i> I mouthed. \u00a0My sister stretched before me, her torso lengthening as black spots appeared beneath her skin. \u00a0Her breasts pulled into her body, shrinking slightly. \u00a0She ran her hands along her body and only then did I see the blood along her neck and chest and chin. \u00a0Sharp little teeth were pushing through her gums, breaking the ones she’d had until her mouth was lined with the deadly fangs.<\/span><\/p>\n

Delilah hissed with a smile that grew too wide for her face.<\/span><\/p>\n

I braved a look in the sky but saw nothing. \u00a0No grim red eye staring back at me. \u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

“Father, no!” Delilah yelled, jumping to her feet to clutch at the bars of her cage. \u00a0She reached to the dark sky. \u00a0“No, Father, please! \u00a0Don’t go! \u00a0Show me! \u00a0Show me more, please! Faaaaather!”<\/span><\/p>\n

I pulled into myself. \u00a0Into a small ball on the ground as my sister sobbed. \u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Exhausted beyond my limits, I eventually fell asleep.<\/span><\/p>\n

—–<\/span><\/p>\n

I awoke with a scream. \u00a0Senseless dreams of things larger than our world deep beneath the oceans. \u00a0No. \u00a0Not beneath the ocean. \u00a0Beneath the world. \u00a0Waiting for us. \u00a0R’lyeh wgah’nagl fhtagn. \u00a0Always waiting. \u00a0Swallowing us. \u00a0Staring. \u00a0Staring. \u00a0Always staring.<\/span><\/p>\n

“Delilah!” \u00a0I called out.<\/span><\/p>\n

“Here,” my sister answered, dully. \u00a0“I’m here, Elijah.”<\/span><\/p>\n

“Oh thank G-” \u00a0I stopped. \u00a0Her long, lithe body lay against the bars, her back to me. \u00a0She wasn’t covering her nakedness. \u00a0I saw hints of green in her skin with faint stripes and spots of black. \u00a0Parts of her skin looked slick and patches of her hair was missing. \u00a0“Delilah?”<\/span><\/p>\n

“I prayed,” she said. \u00a0“While you slept. \u00a0I can’t sleep. I can’t close my eyes. \u00a0I see It. \u00a0I see Him there. \u00a0Every time I blink. \u00a0Staring into me. \u00a0I’m. \u00a0I’m forgetting the words, Elijah. \u00a0I’m forgetting them. \u00a0The prayers. \u00a0I can’t. \u00a0I can’t do this. \u00a0I feel it inside of me and it terrifies me because I’m starting to-“<\/span><\/p>\n

“Don’t,” I told her. \u00a0“Don’t give up. \u00a0Just. \u00a0Just give me a minute. \u00a0Just wait.”<\/span><\/p>\n

I found my BIble in the corner. \u00a0I took it carefully, closing my eyes. Feeling a strange, cool slick skin slid against them.<\/span><\/p>\n

The flesh between my fingers was transparent with corpse-white coloring lining the edge. \u00a0I could see the tiny red blood vessels inside. \u00a0I swallowed and breathed at the same time and then opened my Bible.<\/span><\/p>\n

On this page, a winged nightmare wrapped a three foot long tongue around a screaming man’s cock. I could still read the text underneath the crude drawing.<\/span><\/p>\n

“B- But he said to me,” I read. \u00a0“‘My grace is- is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.’ Therefore I will boast-“<\/span><\/p>\n

My eyes were drawn to the picture. \u00a0I swallowed and rubbed myself, staring at the woman’s tongue. \u00a0She had a lizard’s fat tail and I wondered, briefly, what it felt like. \u00a0I looked at the man’s horrified expression and then back down to the woman’s tongue, seeing how it slid against his length as my hand slid against mine.<\/span><\/p>\n

I heard Delilah moan and I stopped. \u00a0She was facing me now, pressed against the bars. Her tongue lapped at the air and her eyes were nearly all black.<\/span><\/p>\n

“Delilah,” I stammered. \u00a0“I didn’t-“<\/span><\/p>\n

“Elijah, my pretty boy,” my sister purred, almost a perfect copy of mother’s voice from last night. \u00a0“Always so pretty. \u00a0I watched you. \u00a0Always. \u00a0Always watching you. \u00a0Caring for you. \u00a0Touching you. \u00a0Do you know why I bathed you every day, Elijah?”<\/span><\/p>\n

“No,” I whispered. \u00a0“Please, Delilah, no.”<\/span><\/p>\n

“Oh, yessss,” Delilah said, her tongue flicking out. \u00a0“Yes. \u00a0I cleaned you so well, Elijah. \u00a0You’d laugh and swat my hands when you were older but I told you to hold still so I could clean you so well. \u00a0Only in my own bed, late at night did I pretend I was using my mouth to do it.”<\/span><\/p>\n

Bile filled the back of my mouth and my gills trembled. \u00a0“No, this isn’t you. \u00a0This is- This is the thing controlling-“<\/span><\/p>\n

“We were so alone all the time, Elijah,” Delilah cooed. \u00a0Her dream-like expression hardened and she grunted as bones snapped in her jaw and face. \u00a0Drool escaped her mouth as her lips strained to contain her growing muzzle. \u00a0Just like the creature that had taken her in the night. \u00a0“Our parentsss off ssssaving ssstupid villagersss in the middle of fucking nowhere. \u00a0Leaving usss. \u00a0You were all I had. \u00a0I almosssst took you ssssso many timesssss. \u00a0I thought about lying and ssssaying it wasssss a game or a sssssecret or sssssomething good boyssss did for their sssssssssisssterssss but I wassss ssssuch a good giiiiiirl. \u00a0Sssssinning every night with the thought of you inssssside of me. \u00a0Elijah. \u00a0You were alwaysssss mine but now, you’re hersssss. \u00a0Mother’ssss. \u00a0Mother! \u00a0Mother ssssee me! \u00a0I’m your faithful sssss-“<\/span><\/p>\n

Delilah flailed, clawing at the ground as dull black claws slid from her fingertips. \u00a0Her back bowed and split and I looked away. \u00a0Just like mother. \u00a0Just like last night. \u00a0<\/span>Delilah, oh God, Delilah no.<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

My head swam and I spat into the ground, breathing heavily. \u00a0Pain flared in my joints and my fingers broke. \u00a0The clear skin between grew up, spreading my fingers wider and wider and wider. \u00a0<\/span>Dagon save me from this pain. \u00a0Please, god, I can’t. \u00a0I can’t be like them. \u00a0I can’t gh’weg like them.<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

“Elijah,” a beautiful voice said. \u00a0Clear as a bell and sweeter than anything I’d heard in my life.<\/span><\/p>\n

I turned, tears in my eyes. \u00a0Mother stood in my cage. \u00a0Her legs were thick with muscle and hardened skin and small fins. \u00a0She shined in the morning light of the red sun.<\/span><\/p>\n

She was a hideous monster with the voice of one of God’s angel.<\/span><\/p>\n

I pushed back, sobbing. \u00a0In time to see Delilah’s cage open. \u00a0Three lizardmen stood there and she threw herself at them, grabbing one’s erection while taking another in her wide, foul mouth. \u00a0The old woman struck Delilah and Delilah hissed, rocking to her heels.<\/span><\/p>\n

“Cur!” the old woman screeched. \u00a0“You dare! \u00a0You dare act thus before the Mother? \u00a0Crawl! \u00a0Crawl worm! \u00a0Crawl to the pit to join the others!”<\/span><\/p>\n

Delilah lowered herself, her heavy, scaly tail flat against the ground. She slithered behind the lizard man like a snake. \u00a0Without a backward glance. \u00a0Two of the men turned to step into my cage and I pushed away from them, hiding my face away from my mother. \u00a0<\/span>No,<\/span><\/i> I thought. \u00a0<\/span>No, not my mother. \u00a0Not any more.<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

“You still resist?” the old woman asked. \u00a0“You’re strong. \u00a0That’s good, boy. \u00a0That’s good. \u00a0Mother Hydra needs strong seed. \u00a0She-“<\/span><\/p>\n

“Silence,” my mother said. \u00a0There was no malice in her voice but it cracked with authority. \u00a0“Elijah, look at me. Look upon my body. \u00a0Look upon my earthly vessel. \u00a0See your Mother.”<\/span><\/p>\n

I shook my head, not trusting my voice. \u00a0My traitorous gills drew in her heady scent. \u00a0She smelled of death and things rotting in the swamps. \u00a0Of terrible flowers spread open, hiding their poisonous thorns. \u00a0She smelled of blood smeared with feces and the cold tv’fwig of ph’than. \u00a0And I’d never felt myself more hard than I was at that moment. \u00a0I wanted to cry but if I opened my mouth, I knew I might beg. \u00a0For her.<\/span><\/p>\n

I felt her draw close. \u00a0I <\/span>felt<\/i><\/b> it. \u00a0Her presence pulling at me. \u00a0Singing to the very blood coursing through my body.<\/span><\/p>\n

“I am no longer your mother, boy,” she said to me. \u00a0It took willpower not to face her. \u00a0“I am Mother of all. \u00a0Mother Hydra reborn in this vessel. \u00a0And I yearn for my mate. \u00a0Locked beyond the stars, weakened by these… <\/span>pathetic<\/span><\/i> primates and their ancestors.”<\/span><\/p>\n

She lowered herself and I moaned, clutching my sides with my wide, webbed hands. \u00a0I could feel my nails growing, sliding from my fingertips to pierce my shirt and dig into my side.<\/span><\/p>\n

“I am She of many,” Mother Hydra whispered sweetly, her breath smelling of middens and death and the promise of sex. \u00a0“I will spawn with your seed. \u00a0Laying my eggs deep within the pit of the earth until they burst and crawl their way to me.”<\/span><\/p>\n

Mother Hydra leaned forward, her thin lips nearly touching my ear. \u00a0I shuddered and felt the gentle caress of my hair falling from my scalp in clumps. \u00a0I was so <\/span>incredibly<\/i><\/b> thirsty. \u00a0The veins at my temples throbbed. \u00a0Below, my monstrous cock ached to be free, bumps and ridges scraping against my belly and the clothes I wore. \u00a0Fire burned in my stomach.<\/span><\/p>\n

Only then did I realize she wasn’t speaking in English.<\/span><\/p>\n

“Our children will break the world open like a rotten egg,” Mother Hydra promised. \u00a0“And Dagon shall be born from the wreckage. \u00a0The ones that remain will bow to us, changed as the one you called your sister. \u00a0Until our power grows and we find new realms to conquer. \u00a0I shall set you above them. \u00a0Do you desire that?”<\/span><\/p>\n

No. \u00a0<\/span><\/i>Yes.<\/i><\/b> \u00a0<\/span>No, I desired <\/span><\/i>Her<\/i><\/b>. \u00a0Dear Gods in the depths, save me, I pray to you, Lords. \u00a0Save me from this temptation.<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

“Hold him. \u00a0I’ll not force myself on him.”<\/span><\/p>\n

Strong hands gripped my arms and legs and I twisted, kicking and shouting wordlessly, still afraid to speak. \u00a0Afraid that Her name would be first on my lips. \u00a0Cold claws shredded the remains of my clothes and I lay naked, my manhood tall above me. \u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

She stepped over me, standing above and I saw Her through the thin membranes covering my eyes. \u00a0I strained and felt something tear in my sides. \u00a0I gasped in pain and bucked and the skin below my ribs separated. \u00a0Oxygen flooded my body from the gills at my throat and, now, the large ones at my sides. \u00a0They drew the moisture from the air as they drew Her scent. \u00a0Father Dagon save me, I could feel my strength leaving my body. \u00a0My hands itched to touch Her perfect, slick skin. \u00a0I closed my eyes and prayed to the red sun for redemption.<\/span><\/p>\n

Mother Hydra slid forward and I felt Her cold, slick lips sliding along my cock. \u00a0I looked at Her then, straining for Her, my tongue snaking out, longer and longer, to lick at the tiny white nipples atop Her shrunken breasts.<\/span><\/p>\n

Father Dagon, please!<\/span><\/i> \u00a0I prayed. \u00a0Clenching my mouth shut, I felt and then heard my teeth crack. \u00a0Blood filled my mouth and I swallowed it greedily. \u00a0\u00a0<\/span>Please. \u00a0I can’t-<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

The black streaks in the red sun opened. \u00a0And focused on me. \u00a0I trembled from His attention. \u00a0Bones in my face cracked and I screamed, bucking my hips as my Mother impaled Herself on me. \u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

“HE SEES ME!” I screamed in the Language. \u00a0I was reborn. \u00a0I could feel the pull of them in the pit. \u00a0The feral lower ones. \u00a0Chanting for Mother and Father. \u00a0Chanting for <\/span>me<\/i><\/b>! \u00a0The creature I’d thought of as the old woman abased herself, weeping tears of joy. \u00a0Power flooded me as Mother Hydra lowered herself, gripping my cock tightly with her sex. \u00a0“FATHER DAGON! \u00a0I am yours!”<\/span><\/p>\n

The ones holding me released me, unwilling to touch my flesh. \u00a0As far below as I was to Mother Hydra and Father Dagon (as an ant to a black hole) I was a god to them still and they would never touch me again.<\/span><\/p>\n

I wept cold tears as Mother took my hands to hold Her body. \u00a0To explore the skin she wore. \u00a0I dare not move as she pressed Herself to me, again and again. \u00a0Her nearly human sex gripped me so tightly, the fish-white lips rubbing against the bumps along my thick cock. \u00a0The earth moved every time she flexed Her hips. \u00a0Small quakes trembled deep in the ground at the power from Her. \u00a0And the promise of what was about to happen. \u00a0My webbed, clawed hands glided along Her slick body as she raised her wide mouth to sing Her praises and promises to Her mate hidden beyond time.<\/span><\/p>\n

She was beautiful. \u00a0Shining like the molten red and gold of the volcano stirring beneath the island. \u00a0I dare not look too long for worry of my eyes shriveling in their sockets.<\/span><\/p>\n

I grunted. \u00a0Feeling the seed within, waiting for release. \u00a0And yet, I awaited Her pleasure and command. \u00a0Hissing through razor sharp teeth, I held on as long as I could and the strain split the skin along my back. \u00a0The earth died where my blood touched it and my spine dug into the ground, sprouting sharp spikes. \u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

The world trembled and, for a moment, I saw my Father’s realm. A silver labyrinth from which I could see Him wandering. \u00a0Searching for the way out. \u00a0Lost in the twisting folds of space and sliding geometry.<\/span><\/p>\n

“Now,” Mother commanded, drawing me back.<\/span><\/p>\n

I howled and filled Mother with my seed. \u00a0The world burned pure red and our servants died, dissipating into nothing while the ones deep in the pit shook in fear and adulation. \u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

The light passed and Mother stood and thick, graceful legs. \u00a0My cock slipped from between Her sex and a long line of my blackened seed trailed between us, leaving us connected for just a moment longer. \u00a0She stood back and I struggled to kneel before Her.<\/span><\/p>\n

Bones from my spine continued to push out, surrounding itself in raw red muscle and thick black flesh. \u00a0My growing tail lashed behind me. \u00a0I could feel my toes cracking and breaking to grow fins as was proper. \u00a0The pain was nothing.<\/span><\/p>\n

Mother Hydra touched Her belly and Her eyes flashed to red. \u00a0The taut skin beneath Her hand bulged and She sighed.<\/span><\/p>\n

“Come,” she commanded. \u00a0I stood, eyes low. \u00a0Sure of my position far below her and thrilled that She would address me.<\/span><\/p>\n

The island was bare. \u00a0Blackened by the power released from her impregnation. \u00a0Steam rose in thick columns from the ruined edge of the island and the volcano trembled a warning. \u00a0I prayed to Father that my children would be born before the ch’tull could mount an offense againste us.<\/span><\/p>\n

I chanced to look at Mother and saw Her full belly. \u00a0She groaned and I took Her hand when She gave it.<\/span><\/p>\n

Father Dagon watched from high above as I escorted Mother deep within the earth and into the old city of R’lyeh.<\/span><\/p>\n

I would guard my children and lead them deeper into the city to break the prison. \u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Ph’nglui mglw’nafh Cthulhu R’lyeh wgah’nagl fhtagn. \u00a0The dream was almost done.<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

A young man and his older sister, both missionaries, journey to a remote to join their parents, unaware of what awaits them. Written on commission from fredwirtz on SoFurry. This is definitely not my usual style and is very dark Continue reading The Transition of Elijah Brooks [Commission]<\/span>→<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[4],"tags":[287,386,53,152,384,387,385,44,93,9],"class_list":["post-595","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-story","tag-corruption","tag-cthulu","tag-horror","tag-incest","tag-lizard","tag-lovecraft","tag-monster","tag-rape","tag-tf","tag-transformation"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p42NMN-9B","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.hidden-shelf.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/595","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.hidden-shelf.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.hidden-shelf.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.hidden-shelf.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.hidden-shelf.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=595"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/www.hidden-shelf.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/595\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":597,"href":"https:\/\/www.hidden-shelf.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/595\/revisions\/597"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.hidden-shelf.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=595"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.hidden-shelf.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=595"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.hidden-shelf.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=595"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}