Colonization

by Scott McElhaney

  “Ooh baby!” she drew me in for a kiss.

  “I’m going to have to kill your son,” Rigel said to my mother while Henley and I attempted a kiss around our laughter.

  We often made these jokes just to get a rise out of Henley’s parents. It was our way of getting back at them for forcing us to wait until Henley’s eighteenth birthday before we could get married. We’d been in love with each other since we were ten and technically engaged since we were eleven. We got properly engaged on her seventeenth birthday and the wedding was scheduled for the very day she turned eighteen.

  “Before anyone gets murdered, Sarai wanted to know about the language barrier and the ongoing visits, so I would like to continue in that regard,” John said.

  Chapter Fourteen

  She brought me back to the surface via a different tunnel that brought us to a different undersea cavern merely twenty feet from the surface. Tau Ceti was setting in the distance and I’m not sure if you remember, but back then, that meant for a very dark and cold night, especially for one wearing wet clothing. We were still quite some way out from shore, and would you believe I rode on her back like someone riding a dolphin? She was amazingly fast in the water, so we got to shore within five minutes of breaching the surface. My face was red from the cold by the time we got to the beach.

  While we both couldn’t understand each other, we said our goodbyes there on the sand. She held my face in her hands and kissed me gently on the lips just like a human would. She then watched me as I went to the hopper and started it up. It took a few moments for the hover coils to warm up, and then after that, I increased the heat inside the hopper and took off for home.

  I was fortunate enough to be able to avoid everyone in the village that evening. When Chris Reese came to my house later asking why I wasn’t at dinner, I simply claimed to be tired. In truth, I wasn’t able to sleep at all that coming night. My mind was twisted up in a tangled mess of questions and curiosities. Sure, I thought a lot about this woman’s beauty and whether or not she’d be there in the morning when I returned to the cove. But I also thought a lot about the biology of such creatures. They weren’t truly cold blooded because she warmed up anytime she wrapped my legs in her tail and pressed her cheek to mine. So perhaps they were mammals like us or something similar. I had to wonder if they laid eggs like fish or had live births like whales and humans. And obviously my curiosity demanded answers regarding the intercourse of their species. Keep in mind that I still didn’t know for certain that the cheek-rubbing was kissing and I simply thought she was holding onto me with her lower body back when she would wrap me in her tail. I only found out later that this was a sexual proposition.

  I then pondered their home world. They had artificial lighting down there as well as the abilities to construct the home itself. They had to have some form of industry. Overall, to create such a home under the sea, I would expect that they were every bit as advanced as we were, and yet we had the convenience of legs and we lived our lives on the land. I had no right to think that undersea living would hinder their advancement, but as of yet, we had never met an advanced undersea race or even theorized about such a thing.

  My mind never permitted any rest throughout the night, and as I often did, I left the next morning around the time that Tau Ceti began to peek over the horizon. I was going to ‘go fishing’ without the existence of a fishing boat. I still had yet to tell anyone in the village that I’d lost our only good-size boat. I took the hopper to the cove where I quickly discovered that I wasn’t the only one to lose sleep last night. Even as I was landing the hopper, I stared stupidly at the impossibility beyond my shuttle windshield. I couldn’t even comprehend anything natural or unnatural that would have caused what I was looking at.

  Resting right there up against the dock was my boat. Everything was identical as far as I could tell, except for the fact that it was missing windows. Even as I approached on foot, I searched for some sort of holographic projector, but found nothing to explain its existence.

  I leapt from the dock to the boat and quickly looked around along the stern. All my supplies including my cooler and my music player were there, but as would be expected, the music player no longer worked. After all, it had fallen to the bottom of the sea. It was when I lifted the engine cover that I noticed something even more curious than the boat’s sudden reappearance. This engine was like nothing I’d ever seen. It was a silver cylinder resting on its side with a wide shaft leading off toward the boat’s screws. The cylinder had some thin piping rising from the sides of it and leading up into a small box attached to the top near the front. This box had a clear circle in the lid the size of a wristwatch face. That clear circle glowed a pretty orange.

  I closed the engine lid and then headed toward the cabin where I’d immediately caught sight of Sh’tha’we. She wore a shiny blue scarf this time instead of the silver one she had on yesterday. I referred to this odd piece of clothing as a scarf because it didn’t really act as a shirt or a blouse. It reminded me of a winter scarf used to keep your face and neck warm. She draped this article of clothing around her neck and beneath her hair and let it hang down naturally to cover her breasts. While its purpose was clearly for modesty, I’d noticed yesterday that it didn’t always cover appropriately especially while in the water.

  She spoke something to me and smiled widely. I didn’t know how to say ‘thank you’ in her language, so I simply approached her and hugged her, rubbing my cheek against hers. She hugged me as well, breathing out a sweet sigh when I had rubbed my cheek to hers. I was certain now that this was a kiss to these creatures. She then turned to the piloting controls inside the boat. She pointed to the wheel, which I took hold of and tested it. It was still the same wheel that belonged to the original boat. I could see a scratch mark that had always been on one of the spokes. The control panel in front of the wheel however was new. She pointed to what looked like a simple blue button. She then pressed it and the boat started humming. It sounded nothing like a boat until she pressed the red button. At that, it sounded like the screws beneath the boat had suddenly come to life.

  She then showed me the levers next to the wheel that caused the boat to accelerate. I was suddenly wondering how I would explain this alien boat to anyone who saw it. Thankfully Zane, Henley, and Thatcher must have never been on a boat before because they were the only ones who ever went for a ride and none had ever commented on the controls.

  I smiled as I steered us away from the dock and out of the cove. She had her arm around my waist as I piloted the boat onward toward one of my usual fishing spots. I noticed that my fishing tackle wasn’t in the back of the boat or in the cabin. I would learn later that she kept all those lures and turned them into jewelry which she still often wore.

  Tau Ceti brought a nice orange glow to the horizon, and again this was back when we still had some fair amount of dirt in the atmosphere. I stopped the boat after we were a good distance from the shore and turned to my new mermaid friend. She was still smiling, quite proud of the fact that I liked my reconstructed boat. I had to kiss her just then in the human way. She was as accepting of my kisses as I was of hers. She spoke something to me and pointed out toward the water. I took her hand and led her out of the cabin. I then unzipped my insulated coveralls and removed everything but my underwear. She seemed quite happy that I understood her previous statement. I was personally happy about the fact that I would have dry coveralls to wear home later. I folded them and tossed them back into the cabin.

  I then climbed over the side and leapt into the freezing cold water. She leapt in beside me and before I could even break the surface, she had me in her arms. She reached up and covered my nose with her hand. Understanding her warning, I inhaled a deep breath and covered my nose. We immediately shot beneath the surface and darted toward the darkness below. I wasn’t able to determine how deep we were going or how far we’d already gone, but I knew we were moving fast and that the water pressure was beginning to hurt my ears. I also knew I
strongly needed to breathe soon. I thought I would be drowning again to the sounds of her screams like last time just when we suddenly broke the surface inside a cave.

  I was gasping for air the very first chance I could. She stared at me with fear in her eyes as I finally caught my breath. I would later find out that she wasn’t aware of how short a period we could hold our breaths. She was frightened just then, realizing that I could have drown again in her arms. I climbed out of the water, shivering as I looked around. Two other females were in the cave lying next to each other talking. When I had stood up, one cried out and the other turned to see what had caused such a cry of fear. My partner leapt from the water and ‘stood’ next to me, taking my hand in hers. She said something to the other two who were now approaching us rapidly.

  I took a moment to examine the other two as the three of them spoke rapidly in a language I didn’t understand. Like everyone else I’d seen so far, they all had black hair, black eyes beneath an angular brow, small noses, and long sharp canines. They also wore the same kind of scarf/shirt that my companion wore, but in different colors. Beyond those shared features, it was the shape of the faces, the fullness of lips, as well as cheekbone structure that brought about their differences. These women also chose a variety of hair styles. One had her hair decorated with hundreds of beads woven into the strands. The other had her hair in an exceptionally long ponytail. Both seemed smaller and perhaps younger than my companion.

  I was still shivering, but the warmth of the cave was noticeable and I could feel the chill gradually leaving me. It was then that the bead-haired mermaid approached me boldly and looked up at my face. I smiled at her to let her know I posed no threat to her. The smile she offered however looked quite threatening as she seemed to be baring her fangs at me. She reached up and took my chin in her hand. I glanced over at Sh’tha’we, hoping that she would intervene if this woman tried to kill me. Instead, she looked like she was merely watching our interaction.

  The woman with the beaded hair then spoke something that I now knew to be my companion’s name. Then she took hold of my hand, lifted it to examine it, and then before I realized what was happening, she shoved my thumb into her mouth. I was frightened that she would bite it with those deadly fangs and could now even feel the tips of those fangs pressing against my hand. I tried to pull my hand away, looking to Sh’tha’we for assistance. Suddenly a long pointed tongue darted out beneath my palm and then wrapped around my hand near the wrist. I hadn’t seen their tongues prior to this and it made for yet another demonic feature.

  This mermaid finally released my thumb from her mouth and then licked the palm of my hand. I noticed then that their tongues returned to an almost human form when it wasn’t extended so far out of their mouths. This was still very uncomfortable to me. I would find out later that Keplerians had a sense of taste that far exceeded any other of their senses and it was even beyond anything we could imagine. And their favorite flavor happened to be the blood of any warm-blooded sea creatures of which there are many on KMA. Their tongues had the abilities to taste that warm blood without ever so much as breaking the skin.

  “So we’re now talking about vampire mermaids on this world with us?” Renata interrupted.

  “No, not at all actually. They don’t go around feasting on blood or preying on these warm-blooded creatures just the same way that we don’t go around feasting on chocolate or looking for cows to kill. Just because you have a favorite flavor doesn’t mean you are going to become some crazy beast that hides out in the shadows waiting for a chance to pounce,” John replied.

  “But they do prefer blood!” Renata argued, “Are the oceans even safe for our children to be swimming in?”

  John groaned, “Has anyone here ever been attacked by a Keplerian? Seriously, people! Get the mythical vampires out of your head and imagine an advanced society of people. I love steak and yet I’ve never killed a cow before in my entire life. And even when I see a cow, I don’t think of steak. Even when I see an uncooked steak, my mouth doesn’t water! You could swim in a pool full of Keplerians and never once would you be bitten even if they were starved.”

  “Well, then tell us. Did she approve of your… taste?” my father asked with something of a smirk.

  Chapter Fifteen

  Sh’tha’we came over and took my hand away from this woman, saying something to her in a firm tone. The other woman looked up at me and now smiled in a more pleasant way. She then reached up and touched my cheek, saying the phrase I still remember, ‘kah shol hokan’. I only remember it because it was rude. She said that I would be hers one day. My companion slapped her and then they started to scream at each other. The other mermaid with the long ponytail had come up behind me and was now touching my legs during this exchange.

  I stepped away from her, deciding that whatever was going on in the cave, it wasn’t good and I was the reason for it. And whatever ‘kah shol hokan’ meant, it was a word I would steer clear of or risk being slapped. The woman with the long ponytail followed me as I continued toward the wall and away from the loud arguing. This particular mermaid spoke softly and sweetly as she said things to me I didn’t understand. She then reached for my hand, but I quickly put it behind me. She took my arm at the elbow and tugged hard. I then hollered the only other phrase I’d heard spoken just a few moments ago. I hollered ‘Sh’tha’we’.

  My companion turned to me abruptly, then repeated it back to me. I spoke it again, hoping it wasn’t a bad phrase like the other one that had started the argument. She spoke it again sweetly and slithered over to me, taking my face in her hands. I said it back to her again and she kissed me in the human way. Apparently that was a good phrase. She scooted back, pressed her hand to her chest and spoke it again. I repeated it. She then took my hand, pressed it to her chest and said it. I realized just then that it might have been her name.

  After repeating it, I pressed my hand to my own chest and said ‘John’. She tried to repeat it, but it sounded like ‘shawn’. I said it again and she said it incorrectly again. After we tried this three more times and the others also tried to say my name, no one could pronounce the ‘J’. It was apparent to me that this was truly a sound that they couldn’t form whether it was due to the tongue or the roof of the mouth. So I accepted the name of Shawn.

  Now all of a sudden, the three of these mermaids were friendly with each other. I would learn by the end of that day that they were siblings. Sh’tha’we was the oldest of five. She also had two younger brothers who were twins and were what we would consider to be toddlers. The two sisters I’d met were what we would consider to be young adults or upper-teenagers. The one who bravely tasted my hand was the closest in age to Sh’tha’we and her name was Ha’kna. The one with the ponytail was the next youngest and her name was Kol’nor’eah. Their names were spelled with apostrophes throughout because their given names were actually full sentences describing their mother’s love for them. The words of the sentences were then shortened, leaving them with an easier name to say.

  After our five minutes of introductions in the entrance to the cavern, we retired to a different room with an even larger swimming pool. This pool was probably what would be considered Olympic-size, but since it was circular as opposed to rectangular, I couldn’t tell for certain. This one also appeared to be as deep as the one in her bedroom. It also appeared to be a public pool. I could see three mermen swimming in the depths of the pool right as we entered. Seated on the far edge were two mermaids seated next to two other mermen. As was always the custom now, all eyes were on me when we entered, accompanied by the usual whispers.

  I felt slightly more confident now that I was being escorted in by three women. I figured that it would show I was being accepted by more than just Sh’tha’we. As each of the submerged swimmers emerged, they too focused their attention on me. While I wasn’t much in the mood for a swim, it seemed that this was the way people socialized here. It made me wonder why they would even build indoor housing just to fill each roo
m again with water. I figured I might as well just leap right in to their world feet first. Then I changed my mind and leapt into the pool with a perfectly tucked cannonball.

  When I swam to the surface, I found myself already surrounded by the three men who had been swimming. I’d forgotten how fast these creatures were, so while I thought I was jumping into the vacant section of the pool, no portion of the pool would truly be a safe distance. I looked up and saw my three female escorts still standing along the edge and watching me with beautiful smiles.

  ‘Do kwa nah shkelem,’ a deep voice resonated from my right.

  I turned to him and realized that I was confronted with a very muscular man whose features seemed infinitely more frightening than those of the females. Before I could reply, Sh’tha’we leapt into the water between us and then separated me from the man. She said something to him and then turned to me. Whatever she’d said to him caused him to slowly swim away. Those three men kept their distance, but remained in the water.

  The other sisters leapt into the water and for the next hour or so, I found myself being tugged, carried, and danced with all throughout that pool. While everyone else seemed to avoid our little group of four, no one in our group seemed to notice or care. For the most part, I felt like a toy being passed between all three of these women. Each took me to the bottom of the pool more than once, never keeping me down below the water for too long. Each had danced with me underwater, teaching me some of their elegant dance moves and watching me for the cues to bring me to the surface.

  After nearly exhausting me there in that pool, we all leaned on the edge and started talking. I taught them the words for pool, water, hair, eyes, teeth, and etcetera. They taught me their words for these things as well which I’d repeat back to them multiple times. I taught them the words for my boxers and they taught me the words for their scarves that truly served no purpose underwater. I taught them the words for legs and tails and they taught me their words for these as well.