Back to the portal
“No! I won’t stay like this!” you shout. You push the swordfish’s slimy hand off and run away.
They shout your name but you keep on running. You’re not really sure where you’re headed at first, but you decide on returning to the beach and into the water. That’s where you came out of—surely you can go back there somehow.
You quickly make it to the beach. You stand at the water’s edge and look out and over the ocean. You spot a distant glow—a portal, it must be! Your suspicious were correct!
Without a moment’s hesitation, you dive into the sea. The transition between woman and seal is seamless. In no time you are swimming towards the glow, ignoring any fish you pass even though your stomach rumbles at the sight of them. It feels good to swim again and you almost don’t miss being human. Almost.
You arrive at the portal and see what seems to be a mermaid being pushed out. You don’t care about her, however. You swim towards the portal as fast you can even as it begins to close. Your efforts are for naught, however. Although you reach the portal far before it shrinks to a size you couldn’t possibly fit through, the same force that’s pushing the mermaid out of the portal also repels you away from it. Try as you might, you can’t reach the portal. You cry out in a rough seal bark as the portal closes permanently.
It seems the swordfish was right. You’re stuck like this whether you like it or not. You feel sad, but only for a moment before newfound resolve props you up. You have a different plan in mind now.
You turn to the mermaid who seems quite entranced by her own body. You swim around her, drawing her attention, and then swim away towards the shore and you hope she gets the message. She seems to because she swims behind you and together you two make it to the shore. Once there, you step out of the water and resume your female form, clothes thankfully intact. The three from around the fire are at the shore too and they look to you and the mermaid.
“You were right,” you said to the swordfish. “We’re stuck here and stuck like this right now. But—” You turn to the toucan. “We’re going to do much more than survive. We’re going to make a place here. The genie may have taken away our old lives but I’m sure as heck not going to let him leave me with no life. No.” You shake your head. “There’s more to this place than sitting around and waiting for others. Let’s make our mark.”
“That sounds nice and all,” the mermaid says from behind you. “But where am I?”
“Well…” You turn around to her. “We’re figuring that out.” You looked down at your body. “Yeah, figuring it out.”
Written by skiesofsilver on 08 March 2016
The end (for now)