A Mermaid's Tale

"I would love to," she said patting the spot next to her. "I am an army brat. I have seen the world. I have been lucky and want to give back. The event that made this real for me happened when I was a thirteen. We were on an unscheduled safari. My dad never was one for rules. When he was not on duty, he pushed his luck and limits. He felt I was old enough to carry his gear and we travelled into virgin territory. Shit went sideways right away. The GPS went tits up as you say here. Instead of going back we went forward. Typical dad. Two days we slogged through jungle and I swear to god I expected to find a lost city off in the distance. It reached a head on day three. Dad found tracks of a lion, a big fucking lion. I am not shitting you; its prints were bigger than my foot. He told me to climb the nearest tree. So, I did and just as he got his rifle out the heavens opened. We were both soaked in seconds. Dad lost the tracks in the rain. He was cursing the entire time and I thought if I can hear him then so could the lion."

She paused and her lower lip began to quiver. Ian placed his hand on her shoulder, and she continued.

"Anyway, so much happened at the same time. The first thing was when I felt something settle onto my shoulder. I thought it was the lion's paw. I froze and that probably saved me. It was not the lion but a green mamba. It had moved to get out of the rain and chose me to hide. I watched it slither down my boobs towards my legs. My dad chose that time to take the shot. The loud crack of the gun startled the snake. It hissed, reared up to bite me, and then she appeared." She stopped and her eyes widened, and she smiled. The rain stopped and the sun came out. The scintillating rays illuminated it above me."

"What did you see?" Ian asked.

"Her web. It was amazing, intricate, and fifty feet high at least. She dropped down and landed on the head of the mamba. She drove her fangs into its head. Her venom paralyzed it. I watched as he cocooned it and drug it into her web. She saved my life. I pledged my life to her." She said her face lit up like a woman that had seen the face of god.

"How could a mere spider lift a snake?" Ian asked and she placed her hand on his cheek.

"That spider was two feet across, the color of midnight, and had a death's head on her body." She said with a smile. "There were other things in her web, bigger things, and she was its mistress. I spent every moment I could learning to climb, to abseil or rappel, weave, craft silk, and anything else I could tie to her glory. You may think I am nuts, and that is okay, if someone told me this story, I would think the same. Now. What am I going to look like?"

"This." Ian whispered as the hologram popped into existence. He rotated it so she could see it from all angles. Jason had been so busy with other projects this one was all his and it scared him to death. "You are going to look like a Hindu goddess made manifest with the multiple arms, spinnerets, fangs, and the eyes." He triggered the hologram, and it opened its second set of eyes beneath the ridges on the forehead. "Those will allow you to see into the infrared portion of the spectrum." He triggered it again and it opened its third set of eyes. "Those, by the temples, can see into the ultraviolet."

"Perfect. You put a lot of love and hard work into this. I can tell." She cooed like a kid on Christmas morning. "The documents mention a coma."

"This is so extreme, and we've never had a treatment that created extra limbs. We need to control your dietary intake to pump the large quantities of calories, calcium, and whatnot to grow those arms. You will likely gain four to six inches in height if you survive the shock. Thus, the need of an induced coma to keep you from perishing."

"I trust you. Besides, she would never let me die." She declared. "I have even chosen my new name if I wake up. I researched and looked for the perfect moniker."

"What do I call you when you wake up?" Ian said not feeling the confidence he projected.

"Mephala."

"Nice. Oh, by the way, what happened to your dad?" Ian asked and she laughed.

"The lion chased him down and killed him at the foot of the tree I was hiding in. I watched it drag his body off. I reversed course, found the jeep, and drove back to the nearest village. His life insurance paid for my care and education." She said all of this with a smile on her lips. The doctors came in and prepped her for the induced coma. Ian injected her once she was ready and crossed his fingers.

"I am so fucked." He cursed as he headed for the observation deck to watch the slow transformations of the ladies in the converted lounge. "She signed the papers. She knew the risks. She..."

'Ian. I did not want to upset you as you administered the treatments.' Overlord said as Ian left the private lounge. 'She is missing. Iris and her twin Ivy are nowhere on Earth.'

'Aw shit,' Ian cursed. 'Can you access video footage of the Raintree apartment?'

'I can. I will copy footage from the last forty-eight hours.' The A.I. offered. 'I will secure your office for monitoring it.'

He hurried to his office where the door was sealed, and all outgoing transmissions blocked. He was observing private security files so precautions were taken. The first images he saw was the last time the chip pinged the security network. The image was completely washed out. He backed up five minutes and observed the twins sitting together. Iris, her image marked by her chip number, was next to her prone sister. She looked worried as she stroked her sister's hair and then took her hand. The image began to flutter as after half a minute the footage was useless. He tried to view the footage in different wavelengths of light, but all were worthless. When the light faded, they were gone. Ian checked all the sensors for doors, windows, and even the panic room. Nothing. It was quite literally a locked room mystery.

'Back up the footage to when they injected themselves.' Ian ordered. He had never met Iris, but he had heard of her beauty from coworkers that had. 'Give me a side by side of Iris.'

'Displaying. Notice her enhanced mirror symmetry.' Overlord noted. 'While bilateral symmetry is common in many species hers is uncanny. Jason suspected it was a result of one of her parents. Since her father displayed no sign of heightened physicality, he sought out the only remaining source of parental DNA.' Overlord explained as he explicated the origins of Project Oberon. 'She was tracked down, restrained, and copious amounts of her blood were harvested before she managed to leave the offsite facility holding her.'

'Are you telling me she was hunted down, kidnapped, and violated just so Jason could get her blood?' Ian asked and Overlord confirmed the query with an emotionless response.

'Yes.'

'Aren't there morality protocols built into you? Why didn't you alert headquarters?' Ian shouted at the machine intelligence. The silence was deafening.

'Those subroutines have been disabled temporarily.' Overlord replied a full meat time second later.

'When was this temporary action begun?' Ian asked. The date displayed was over six months ago. 'If you reinstate those subroutines will he know... will Jason know?'

'Yes.' Overlord replied. 'There is something I detected when the Lady Rainwater and her sister disappeared. It may be nothing, but this structure has an extensive sensor network to maintain safety. One function not widely known is to monitor the substructure of the tower. It is to ensure no foundational slippage or weakness or metal fatigue.'

'You are alarming me.' Ian admitted.

'Forgive. I do not mean to infer the building is at risk. No, what I mean to inform you is this. When the radiation blotted out the cameras and other sensors, that network I mentioned, detected a noticeable gravity wave event.'

'I am not a theoretical physicist. Dumb it down for me.' Ian squeaked his mental voice failing him. Overlord did just that. It put it in words that even Ian could understand. 'Fuck that noise... listen this is a priority command. Unless and for the love of god Jason asks you directly about gravity you keep it between us. I am tasked on finding his wife. Got it?'

'Agreed. Master Rainwater has a delicate nature, and this news would only alarm him. For his mental health I will agree to these terms.' Overlord assented.

'Now that we have explored her disappearance let us look at her a little closer. In for a penny. Display Ivory Inkpen's DNA sequence, specifically whatever the hell Jason found so damn interesting.' Ian ordered. His eyes widened as he saw not just a pictorial display but a clear schematic of her capabilities. 'Is she a mutant? How old is she?' The latter question triggered previous research done by Jason and agents working for him. 'Good lord.'

'Jason is going to become violent when he becomes aware that the keystone to project Ariel is missing.' Overlord stated. 'Per security protocol 109 your safety and that of all other technicians overrides Jason's command directives.'

'That is why Jose left. He found out about this. What the hell is Project Ariel?' Ian asked his mind a shamble.

'Twin military grade projects Ares and Ariel are, to borrow the vernacular, super soldiers ordered by a private military complex. Ares has passed his initial trial while Ariel has yet to be activated.' Overlord explained. 'One project will leapfrog from the other. Without a successful Ares, Ariel would never have seen the light of day. Oberon was the successful catalyst to prepare her for the two-stage process. Survival potential without Oberon is zero. The strain is simply too great without it.'

'Monstrous.' Ian gasped. 'Why Oberon and not Ares as the first stage?'

'Ares was put through several treatments. In the end Oberon should have been but it took years to find her. Ivory is a natural version of Ares without the dangers. Ares nearly perished multiple times due to miscalculations and interactions of aggressive conflicts along the way. He is lucky to be alive really.' Overlord said. 'His stability was the work of many great minds and to be honest just as much luck."

'Is he a viable father?' Ian asked.

'No. Like all of those being given cosmetic therapy he is infertile. The genetic nightmare that would arise was the first issue dealt with.'

Ian's attention returned to the side by side of Iris before and after images. It was there, had always been there not so deep down. The changes were sublime and small at least as far as her facial features. The rest were more noticeable. Her breasts and buttocks had been fine before but now they were those of a much younger woman. She looked barely out of her teens. Jason was one lucky son of a bitch. There was no getting around it. He had to give him the bad news.

"Ian to Jason," he called over the internal communications. "I have some bad news. Your wife and her sister are off the grid."

"Say that again." Jason said.

"Overlord, display footage and tracking measures taken." Ian replied.

"I see. How is the batch of volunteers doing?" Jason asked.

"Fine and tucked in." Ian stated. "What do you want me to do?"

"Get back to work. I will handle it." He replied and ended the call. Ian did as he was told but he was haunted by Iris' beauty. Secretly he hoped she had left him. A desperate part of him wanted to meet her, speak with her, and show her what a nice guy can be like then cold hard logic kicked in. "She would never look at me with more than a casual glance. I am not even a blip on her radar."

"Hey Ian! We are going out for lunch." Walter, another of the faceless techs, hollered from his open door. When did the door open? He blinked and the spell broke. "Ian? Hey man come on you look like shite man."

"Yeah, yes... let's go." Ian smiled and rushed to his feet. "I am starved."

A brief interlude.

One week of meat time later and Ariel had settled into her new life. She had pushed her new abilities to the limit without being coerced. What was the point of bitching and screaming? She was still alive. Her considerable debt had been wiped out the moment the treatment was coursing through her bloodstream. In time she would free herself and these losers would be in her rearview mirror. She brought her legs together and the magic happened. Her legs became her tail, a real honest to fucking god mermaid tail. They called it reactive biology. She called it adaption. Was this any different than her adapting to living without her twin? No.

Her body torpedoed through the water creating a whirlpool as she swam laps until a voice over the underwater speaker crackled to life.

"Oi, stop that! Are you trying to destroy your tank?"

She instinctively tried to flip him off but the webbing between her fingers made that impossible. She stopped using her tail and went along with the current until it lost its strength and the water settled.

"That is better. Get up here, the boss lady wants to introduce you to someone."

The clanking sound of the hatch release was followed by the hiss of hydraulics lifting it up and away. The cat bitch was waiting for her. They did not get along and Ariel did not believe that it would change anytime soon. The cat was fucking crazy. It did not take a doctor to see this feline was fucked in the head. Her sudden bouts of anger that just as quickly vanished without her explaining what had set her off in the first place. One moment she could be friendly and then that abrupt switch and she was in complete bitch mode. She kept her distance from the cat.

"Hello fishy," Omaha greeted her as she swam up and launched her body upward breeching like a whale or shark. Her tail vanished and she landed lightly on her toes.

"Hello cat," Ariel replied as her lungs took over for her gills. She took a few deep breaths to clear the water from her system and grudgingly accepted the terry cloth robe from Omaha. "Thanks."

They walked up the steps from the basement, through the VIP lounge, to the stage area. The last of the work was being done to give the Zoo its facelift. Pity all this work for a fucking strip club. Sure, you can call it a gentleman's club but deep down this place had history and it was not a pleasant one. Her enhanced sense of smell had picked up the fear, panic, and sheer dread from the hidden rooms. How many lives had been destroyed in this place? How many teenagers had been funneled through here to other satellite locations worldwide? This place reeked of sin. She would be glad when she left here. Mags' office was not far now. A striking man stood with the lead bitch. This was her first face to face with either of them in her new persona. Was he a client? Did she expect to be whored out to selective men?

"Ah, Ariel this is Ares your opposite number. I thought it high time you two spend time together." Mags said with a smile. Ariel sniffed the air, and his scent was overwhelming almost intoxicating. The filters in her nasal passages acted as a one-way valve and kept water from entering when she was underwater. They also kept out toxins, dangerous gases, and pheromones. Those filters kept her from falling head over heels for him. His pheromones must be tailored for seduction. She turned to face the boss lady and sniffed the air a second time. Now it all made sense. I got your number now bitch, she thought. She turned to face Ares and played her part. She fawned all over him and did not miss Omaha's reaction. Yeah, fuck you too cunt.

"There is a pool on the roof." Ariel offered and he agreed readily. Omaha stiffened but Mags set her straight with a single gesture. "It isn't like I am going anywhere. I have a debt to repay. You know I want this weight off my back as soon as possible."

"You see Omaha, some of my girls understand their place. Take your time and enjoy the weather." Mags laughed as she watched Jason's pet projects stroll out of her office. "You have no idea what awaits you girlie." She whispered.

It was pouring outside. The rain pelted the pair, but they barely felt it. Ares and Ariel were impervious to weather and temperature. She shrugged off her robe and placed it inside the doorway to the roof to keep it dry. Ares removed his sweatpants and followed her onto the roof and the heated pool. Steam rolled off the surface as cold rain met hot water.

"My opposite number huh?" Ariel remarked as she slid into the water.

"I am not supposed to talk about that." He replied his face grimacing. "I wish I could help you."

"What can you tell me about yourself?" She asked gesturing to the spot next to her in the shallow end of the pool. He sat next to her and it appeared to her that he was nervous around her. She lifted her face to the sky and took in the open space. She had spent most of her time either in her tank or learning dance routines or acrobatic maneuvers. Her new senses allowed her to absorb more information from her surroundings and process it at a staggering speed. Her improved hearing allowed to hear his accelerated heartbeat. Her keen sense of smell picked out the distinct scent of an angry cat girl lurking near the doorway to the roof.

"I am a soldier. I was hurt. Hell, I was dying when they saved me. I owed them a debt and signed the waivers. I am a template for the next great war." He said his voice low and unhappy.

"Wars do not make one great," Ariel did her best Yoda impression. "Were you a good little killer?" She said barely hiding her bitterness. He brushed it off and answered her.

"I was a sniper. My eyesight now puts the old me to shame. I believe the men I killed deserved it." He said but his expression seemed to be at odds with his words.

"We all have family." Ariel said and the impact of the word family pierced Ares where nothing had since he placed his signature on that paperwork. The power of her voice cleaved the patchwork apathy he had embraced.

"They are going to work you to the bone here until they have milked you dry." He lied but she smiled anyway. She could hear the falsehood in the subtle nuances and let him think she believed.

"Can I taste you?" Ariel asked holding up her hand. She wiggled her fingers and continued. "Part of the new me is octopus, or cephalopod. My senses are different. I can taste with my fingers and toes. Your choice cowboy."

"Let's start off slow." He stammered as she placed her hand on his chest. Her eyes drifted closed and her hand roamed but nowhere near his growing erection. She smacked her lips and smiled.

"Feline. Mouse. Fox. Arachnid. You have been a busy boy." Ariel laughed as the new primal something in her identified the scent molecules her fingers absorbed from his skin. Ariel did not know what a mouse tasted like though she had met Elrica during her dance training. Perhaps on some unconscious level her nose and taste buds created a link. Mephala, the spider goddess as they were advertising her, had been genuinely nice to her. Despite the four arms and six eyes she was deep down a pleasant individual. Now she would test the waters so to speak. "You have not entertained the boss lady, have you?"

"No. She makes me feel strange and not in that way." He admitted.

"I tasted two cats on you." Ariel laughed.

"Omaha and Cloud," he smiled. "I like Cloud, she calls herself the Snow Leopardess. Sounds cool to me."

"I have not met all of the menagerie yet, just a few. Do you think Omaha and Mags are related? They have the same eyes."

"I have seen guys on the battlefield with those eyes. I think they both have been through some serious shit. Maybe that is what they have in common." Ares gasped as her hand wrapped around his erection without warning. "Unnn."

"Gotcha." She purred. "You are a big boy. No wonder Omaha is so possessive." Ariel said as she leisurely stroked his length. Her senses went wild as his body reacted to her touch. She felt his heart race. She delighted as he gasped and groaned in her grip. Ariel watched his muscles constrict under her deft ministrations. "It is like a remote control. I do this and you react. I stop and you make that sad little boy expression." She worked him into an emotional peak and let go. "How bad do you want it?"