Penny’s mind was racing, she felt her heart pounding in her chest, and she was as close to a full born panic attack as she ever had in her life. Her eyes darted around the ocean floor around her trying to find some way out, she knew which way was up since she could still see the rays of sunlight coming down and she knew the way she had come. However while she seemed to have full control over her head her arms, legs and the rest of her body stood totally relaxed.
“It’s alright, child you are going to be alright.” said the mermaid, Aquaria as she rested part of her tail in the sand to simulated standing at eye level with Penny. “What is your name?”
“Penny.” answered Penny amazed that she could speak and yet alone breath under the water.
“Penny…haven’t heard that name before, but I have been sleeping for around 2000 of your human years.” stated Aquaria considering. “Is it short for Penelope? I knew a few Penelope who became some of my subjects when I transformed them in Greece in what you would call the ancient past.”
“I don’t know.” answered Penny still freaking out but trying to calm herself down.
“That is alright, things change after my long sleep.” reassured Aquaria “Now about your friends, tell me about them.”
“Why do you want to know about them?” inquired Penny
“They are going to become my subjects just like you will.” stated Aquaria
“One of your subjects?” inquired Penny
“Yes, you are going to become a mermaid…maybe a merman depending on whatever fate decides.” explained Aquaria “I tend to let fait decide that, it would be as if you where born a merfolk.”
“But….” Strutted Penny “I don’t want to be a mermaid.”
“I am sure the innocent merfolk who where slaughtered by your distance ancestors in the past didn’t want to die, so you have no say in the matter, you and your friends are becoming merfolk.” stated Aquaria defiantly
“I will never accept being a mermaid.” snapped Penny showing her fighting spirit but Aquaria only smiled at it.
“Everyone who has ever said that before me, has come to thank me for the change in the end.” stated Aquaria “I believe it was a Chinese poet who I transformed said, he didn’t understand the beauty of living among the waves until one day he did.”
What Queen Aquaria wasn’t going to tell this human or any other human was that was actually part of the transformation. It was like a worm, at first a newly transformed merfolk would enjoy how fast they could swim in their new form, or how their bodies became more beautiful after leaving humanity behind. Then they would start to like more and more of life as a merfolk then one moment they would find themselves loving their new form and new life.
“I will not tell you anything.” Stated Penny as Aquaria nodded her head, as she reached out and ran her hand over Penny’s chest, drawing something on her chest.
“Very well, I will send you forth to become my new subject.” stated Aquaria “Don’t worry, your friends will soon be with you.”
Before Penny could say anything more, a portal opened up before her and she walked through the portal to the capital city of the merfolk long hidden from the world of men, her body still not under her control.
She walked down the “streets” of this ancient looking city not fully believing what she was seeing. It was a strange mix of ancient Greek/Roman designs with some Egyptian with a pinch of eastern Asian and some central American designs all mixed together somehow. An Egyptian style obelisk standing before a mezzo American pyramid standing on top of roman colonnades was one of the many structures.
The area was alive with multiple fish and the like, some of them didn’t even seam wild. Some of the largest crabs Penny had ever seen in her life was working on clearing a fallen column.
“My God.” Said Penny as she walked up toward one of the largest buildings she had ever seen. It looks more roman then anything else with a large dome surrounded by columns but inside was an Egyptian style pyramid covered with images of humans transforming into merfolk.
“Ah…a human our goddess must have sent you to have the honor of becoming the first new merfolk in centuries.” Stated a voice as a dark shape came down from the domed roof. It was some kind of octopus, a talking octopus.
“Now lets remove those human items, they will not be needed and get you ready to become one with the sea.” Stated the talking octopus