A Clutch of Mermaids

"One of them," Rachel cut in, "asked us if we were taking part in a hunt."

Karl's look turned thunderous.

"Who?"

"Does it matter?" Sara replied.

"Look, I don't know what he told you..."

"Very little," Rachel interrupted. "But you hear things hear and there ..."

"... and we'd kind of..." Sarah continued.

"... like to hear more," her friend finished.

Karl sat back in his chair.

"You two have been good employees," he said. "We're impressed. The guests really like you; we've had compliments. We've been considering asking you to come back next year."

The girls looked at each other. So?

"So why am I surprised to hear you two asking about something which really is none of your business?"

The two looked properly abashed. They hadn't thought of it that way.

"But," he said, a grin starting to grow on his face, "since you ask..."

+

"I see you accepted Karl's little challenge," Kami said, in a dry voice.

Rachel and Sarah looked at each other. How much of this had been spread around?

Kami read the look correctly, grinned.

"Not to worry, you two. He told me 'cause I'm his wife and the co-owner. I also make the 'special' fins for the 'special' mermaids."

Reassured just a little, the two looked at her.

"Would you a tea, some water, juice?"

The two shook their heads. "No, thanks," Rachel replied.

"Karl briefed you on the rules, had you sign the contract and the NDA?"

They nodded.

"OK. Well, what you'll be wearing on the Hunt will be very different from what you've been wearing here. Give me a couple of minutes. I'll be right back." With that, she disappeared into the gloom of her workroom.

A few minutes later, she re-emerged into the sunshine carrying three pairs of flippers.

"I'm pretty sure about Sarah's, but you're a big girl, Rachel, so it could be either of these."

'These' turned out to be very different indeed from their work costumes.

They appeared to be like skin-diving fins, but much larger. And colourful -- far more colourful than any other set of flippers. They looked like fins a mermaid princess would be proud to call her own, fins which, a hundred sizes smaller, would win prizes in tropical fish club conventions. The boot parts were high; they'd reach half-way up the calf of the woman wearing it.

Kneeling before Sarah, she held up a shimmering blue pair. Putting one aside, she positioned its mate in front of the girl, like a helpful sales clerk offering a new pair of high heels to a customer.

"Try it on, hon."

Sarah took the boot and pulled it onto her foot. It was a snug fit, but not that hard to get on. A sturdy full-length zipper ran from the inner ankle all the way to the top.

Running a finger up inside to prevent pinching, Kami zipped it up all the way.

"How's that feel?" she asked the small blonde.

"Good. Actually, really good."

Kami smiled, presented the other 'boot'. A few seconds later, it too was on.

Kami took one of them by the heel. Stretching Sarah's leg out, she gave a hard pull.

"C'mon, work with me, woman! Try to pull this off."

Thirty seconds of struggling showed that neither boot could be removed without being unzipped.

"'Kay," she said. "Your turn, Rachel." In a few minutes, the first set having proved too small, a second pair, orange this time, was firmly zipped up on the tall girl's legs. They too proved impossible to remove.

"Right, then," Kami said, sitting back with a satisfied look on her face. "Here's where we go all Oscar for the Academy members." She picked up a small fob-like control from a side table.

"Put your legs together, girls." She knelt in front of Sarah, arranging the flowing material covering the stiff core of her fins, making slight alignment changes.

"OK, don't move now." She brought the fob up, pointed it at the fins and pushed a button.

The girl squealed as her legs snapped together and locked into one. Looking down, she saw that her lower legs had been transformed into an almost-perfect mermaid's tail, one starting however rather below the knee. Soft foam filled in the gaps between her calves, making the costume look like one very fish-like tail vice two human legs held together.

The young woman flicked her new 'tail' experimentally, smiled. It looked good - very good. She tried to separate her legs, found it absolutely impossible. She noticed that both zippers were hidden between her calves, inaccessible.

"We'll do some spray-painting tomorrow to help the top of the fins blend in with your legs. It takes me about 20 minutes each. It'll last the week and will come right off with hand lotion once you get back."

She handed the blonde woman a folder of photographs of young women wearing the special fins. With the body paint continuing the fin color and scale pattern above the top of the boots, it was hard to make out where the fins ended and their legs began.

Sarah made the mistake of trying to stand up to hand the photos to Rachel. Kami jumped to catch the girl when it became apparent that it was almost impossible for her to keep her balance while wearing the fins.

"Here, hon," she said, sliding one arm around her waist. "Let me help you into the water."

With Kami's help, Sarah slid into the pool and was delighted to discover how well she could swim in the new fins. It was a dolphin kick, to be sure, but she was certain she was swimming far faster than she ever had before.

"Rachel," Kami directed, "if you turn around, you'll see that you can walk backwards. Just be careful."

The tall woman carefully turned and edged backwards to the side of the pool. Swivelling around, she sat down. With a slight adjustment and a push at the fob, Kami locked her legs together as well.

In a moment, the girl slid into the water with her friend and the two began frolicking in the sunlit water. The maneuverability and speed the fins gave the two trained swimmers was remarkable. All three women were soon laughing together.

"OK, you two. Out of the pool!" Kami ordered.

She unlocked the fin sets with the fob, allowing the two girls to remove their fins.

"Just so you know," she advised, "the fabric on these things is very permeable. Your skin will be able to breathe very well and they dry out quickly, so don't worry. You could wear them for two weeks if you had to.

"The hunt starts tomorrow at 0900," she added. "I'll need you here by 0600 for prep. Make sure you wax or shave tonight. Mermaids don't have pubic hair... Otherwise, it's all your time until then."

"Prep?" Sarah asked.

"Mainly the body painting for your legs."

Kami gave each of the girls a parting kiss and closed the door behind them.

The two stood there for a moment.

"Wow!"

"You said it! Those fins..."

"Like I said, wow!"

With that, the two of them headed for dinner.

+

Day 1

"OK," Karl said once the aircraft had taken off. "Listen up, ladies. One last set of reminders."

The four girls listened intently over their headsets.

"The island we are going to -- islands, plural, actually -- is perfectly safe. There are no sharks, no snakes, no jellyfish or other creepy-crawlies and, amazingly, not even mosquitoes. There are a couple of fresh-water springs by the shoreline which are quite safe to drink. All of the fruit trees there are OK to eat as well. Actually, they'll be your main source of food for the next while. With me so far?"

The four young women seated behind him replied together, "Yes."

"There's a camp for the men on the island; you'll see it when we get there. In an emergency, there's a radio there but, asides from daily check-ins, it's never been used.

"The men are free to look for you anywhere and at any time they wish and use any method to catch you short of violence -- no spears or clubs, for instance. Once you're caught -- and by that I mean them just getting a firm grip on you anywhere, you stay  caught. No trying to slip away, no trying to help others escape - that will void your contract. Understand?"

"Yes."

"There are quite a few hiding spots for you on the minor islands and in caves along the shore. You'll find them if you look. Some of them even have some treats waiting for you. But keep in mind that none of them are out of reach for the men.

"They,"   he said almost grimly, "are the hunters and you  are the hunted."

Karl circled the new island several times to let the four girls get their bearings.

If the sea level had been 10 feet lower, it would have all been one fairly round island. As it was, much of the overall shape was underwater. The northern semicircular side comprised the bulk of the land, but even it was bisected by a sort of slowly-bending channel or passage across its middle. The southern half was little more than a broad lagoon edged by a semicircle of tiny tree-covered islets, none bigger than a tennis court.

The entire island was covered in bright vegetation. As they circled, the four women could see the roof of a simple shelter on the main island.

"Once I drop you off, I'll be flying back directly to pick up the men. That will give you lot an hour, maybe less."

"How many men?" Jade asked. This was Jade's first time with the Resort, too.

"That would be telling," Karl grinned. "You'll find out soon enough."

The landing in the lagoon was smooth and the little airplane glided to a stop near one end.

"OK, out you get."

At Karl's direction, the women shed their clothes and placed them inside the aircraft.

With Tammy's help, the four were soon sitting on one of the floats. Karl passed down their fins and, hopping into the shallow water, helped the girls put them on. Then, climbing back into the aircraft, he produced a fob; their legs were locked together with a push of his thumb.

"Any last questions?" he asked. "No? Well then, good luck - off you go! See you in a week."

The four slid off the float and swam slowly away from the aircraft. The lagoon was shallow enough where they were for them to stand on their fins as they watched the red Beaver rev up, accelerate and take off. They waved as Karl flew over and waggled his wings at them in farewell before heading back to the Resort.

The four looked at each other. "Any hints for us, Tammy?" asked Rachel.

"Not to be a bitch, dear, but no, I don't. You're all grown-ups and any energy they expend on you is less they'll have for chasing me." With that, the girl turned and headed towards the main island, her firm buttocks and golden tail alternately coming out of the water as she swam.

Jade looked at the others, her eyes wide. She shrugged.

"Good luck," she said before turning and following Tammy towards the main island.

Sarah turned to Rachel with a what now?  expression on her face.

Rachel shrugged.

"The boys will head to the camp first," she said, thinking out loud. "So, I think we really need to find where the drinking water is and then we need find a place to hide."

She looked around and continued.

"Karl said there were springs by the shoreline. If we have an hour, let's head along the shore and see if we can find at least one. It'll only take 10 minutes to swim back across the lagoon and I think that one of the little islands would be a good place to hole up, at least to start. We'll be able to see where the men land and, if we get cornered, we can cross the lagoon faster than they can, right?"

"Makes sense to me," Sarah said as she pushed off toward the shore.

Day 3

As predicted, the mermaids had been able to evade the men initially. There had been one series of shouts and yells from the main island yesterday, but it hadn't lasted long. The pair had speculated that the boys had caught one of the other mermaids, but soon saw two tall figures sweeping the island again, so the girls decided that it had been just a close call.

Rachel and Sarah had found two springs and some fruit trees -- plums, oranges, bananas and a bunch of others they couldn't name. One problem was the lack of a knife to open some of them or a spoon to eat some of the others with. Still, they were not going hungry.

The air was warm enough that, even nude except for their fins, the two young women were never cold.

The fins themselves had proved to be amazing in the water but an annoyance out of it. They were comfortable enough, but the Resort costumes had been easier to move on land with. With these, they could only crawl.

They had, on the plus side, found one of Karl's promised 'treats'. It wasn't much, but it was definitely prized -- a large, heavy plastic comb. Truth be told, it was much needed, for both girls' hair was becoming snarled and tangled. Much to their amusement at the meme they were echoing, the two spent hours away from searching eyes on the far side of their islet simply combing their long hair.

"Aren't we supposed to be singing songs to passing sailors or something?" Sarah snickered.

"Not this mermaid, kid," Rachel laughed. "And I've heard you try to sing, so maybe just No, period."

A much bigger problem than tangled hair was that the fruit on the small islets was becoming depleted and the only springs were across the lagoon on the main island. It was a classic prey/predator situation, with the predators sooner or later going to stake out the sources of food and water.

Most of the fruit and one of the two springs they'd found were actually on the main island, on either side of the channel splitting it in two. The channel wasn't all that big, but it was wide enough that it couldn't be jumped and in many places was too deep to wade. There were a couple of fallen trees here and there which provided convenient bridges for the men. The water was fairly calm, occasionally reflecting ripples down its length if the waves outside were particularly large.

The girls had cautiously explored part-way up the channel one evening, but it made them nervous. They could easily make their way along the passage, but were very aware of the heavy vegetation on either side. It would make ideal cover for a man lying in wait and, in a couple of places, branches heavy enough to hold a man's weight grew completely over the channel. Vines grew everywhere.

Hiding on the islet furthest away from the island, the two friends lay low on the sand behind a palm tree, watching the lagoon and pondering their options.

"I don't think we can stay here much longer," Sarah said.

"It's a good hiding spot," Rachel replied. "I think the boys figure that this place is too small to hide on."

"Maybe, but there's nowhere to go if they come this way."

"Sure there is, Sarah. We can head to the island."

Rachel paused, spoke again.

"But you're right anyway, Sarah - food's becoming an issue. It'll be another four days until the plane comes back and it's going to be a hungry time if we have to depend on this." She pointed her finger upward at a depleted plum tree.

"We're already having to cross the lagoon a couple of times a day for water, Sarah. If we double that looking for food, we're going to be spotted, sure as sure."

"Got a plan?" Sarah asked.

"No, not really. But Karl said there were caves on the island by the shoreline. Maybe we should take a look tonight?"

In the event, the decision was made for them.

Rachel was dozing, hiding from the bright sun under a tree when Sarah woke her up by putting a hand over her mouth. The tall woman came awake in an instant.

"We've got problems, girl," the small blonde whispered in her ear. She beckoned her friend to follow her as she crawled further up the white sandy beach and into the vegetation. In less than a minute, they could see the full expanse of the lagoon. A man was walking between the second and third islets on one side.

"Oh, poop!" Rachel muttered.

"There's another one over there," Sarah whispered, pointing.

Sure enough, a tall figure could be seen emerging from the vegetation on an islet on the other side. It looked like William, but he was too far away to be sure. He waved at the other man before wading into the water and heading for the next islet. The water rapidly rose over his knees, was at his waist and soon enough the man was doing a clumsy breast stroke, his head up and alert. His companion was already halfway to the next islet.

"That's it for this place," Rachel said. "They're sure to find us once they get here."

"So, we're going to have to swim for it," her friend breathed.

"Looks like."

Sarah rolled over next to Rachel, threw an arm over her bare back. "Whatever happens, Rache, we're going to get through this."

The tall girl wiggled back a few inches until their heads were even. To her surprise, Sarah's hand shifted to the back of her head, pulling their lips together.

Girl kisses are common and they'd shared many of those. This was not a girl kiss.

Rachel's heart started pounding as she felt her friend's tongue sweep her lips. Confused, but still very much attached to Sarah, she opened her lips and matched tongues.

It didn't last long; Sarah surprised the tall girl again by being the one to break it.

"Um..." Rachel gasped.

"That's just a promise, Rache. I don't care what happens to you, to either of us. I'm going to be here for you no matter what. You're my BFF and more. You know that, right?"

Rachel took a quick look through the bushes. The two men each had another couple of islands to go over before they reached where the girls were hiding.

She turned back to Sarah. "Erm, more?"

Sarah shrugged. "Let's just say that William over there isn't the only one who's been leching on your, um, bouncy assets, Rache. I'm not pushing, but I wouldn't say No if you asked."

Rachel was shocked. Her friend had never indicated any interest in girls before.

Sarah took another quick peek over at the lagoon, turned back. "But right now, let's think of a game plan."

Rachel looked back and forth at the approaching men. She was mightily confused, but tried to focus on the situation at hand.

William -- it was William, she was now sure -- was dressed in just a pair of cut-offs. The other man, somebody she'd seen but not met, was a ginger, shorter, stockier. He was wearing swim trunks and was close enough that she could see the patch of reddish hair at his chest.

"How's the other one at swimming?" she asked.

Sarah giggled. "Like a cow. He asked me for a photo op back at the Resort. His name's Tim and he seemed pretty nice. Tipped well. But, yeah, he swims like a cow."

"Then let's wait until they each get into the bushes at the next little island," Rachel suggested. "That'll give us a head-start."

"OK, but where to?"

"Heck, we can outswim both of them easily. We should be able to get to the island 10 or 15 minutes ahead of them."

"Then where?"

Rachel thought for a second. "I don't know. But I don't think they've caught Tammy or Jade yet. That means that there has to be cover over there, someplace we can hide. We've only been a little way up the middle, but from what we saw from the plane, the creek or whatever it is goes all the way through. My vote is that we do a sprint to the shore and then cut through the island via the channel. By the time they get back there, we should be out the other side and -- hopefully -- will have found a hiding place."

"And if not?" Sarah asked.

"Then we'd better hope they've got tanning lotion for the soles of our feet, Sarah, 'cause otherwise they're going to get seriously burned."

Sarah gazed in astonishment at her friend. Such a remark was utterly unlike her.

Rachel took the comb and wedged its handle inside the boot of one of her fins. "All packed!" she announced.

Watching the two men approaching, the young women figured they'd have another 10 minutes or so before they had to make their break.

Rachel turned her head to her fellow mermaid. "Sarah...?"