Next update might take some time. I've got other things to work on before going for chapter 3.

Chapter 2

Ginoza

Pain…

Waves of pain…

They started out distant but slowly, little by little the waves of pain have started getting stronger but they're not intense and are actually bearable to say the least. To say, I've had worst pains before but there's still something there.

My vision is blurry but I'm not blinded by any bright source of light, everything is dim and all I see in my poor vision state are glittering rocks and even though there is definitely a lack of lighting here and that I feel wet, I'm not cold. Actually somehow the air feels slightly warm and yet damp but not cold.

I don't remember what happened all that I do remember is running away from my captors and after that I jumped off the edge of the cliff. I saw my rapid fall down into the ocean and then everything went black. The impact of the fall into the cold water sucked the breath out of me, the water hitting my body felt like multiple stinging daggers all at once and then that was it…

I don't remember anything else that happened afterwards; I don't know how I got here. Obviously someone dragged me out of the freezing water after I passed out from the pain but I don't think it's my captors who did. I don't hear their drunken laughters, everything is quiet with only the sound of dripping water on the stones is present.

I don't feel like I've been taken captive again, I'm not tied up or anything but who saved me? Where am I and how did I get here? By all means, I should be dead…

My body feels sore; it's only a reminder that everything had indeed been real and not just a dream. No… More like a bloody nightmare. Whether it's actually over or not, I don't know. Nothing feels real or maybe my mind is just hazy from that fall.

Little by little my vision is starting to adjust and I'm starting to see a bit clearer. The glittering rocks are covered in gold and precious gems of various colors and sizes. It looks like I'm in a cave, it's strangely vast and everywhere I look all I see is gold and gems. I can only imagine what people would do if they knew about this place, how many people would die in order to get their hands on this stuff…

I look to my right when I see a shadow lurking over me and a naked man enters my vision-

My reflex was to quickly jolt backwards away from the man. Ignoring the pain that was engulfing throughout my body as I continued backing away and then my hands no longer had any contact with stone as I plunged backwards, head first back into the water but unlike before the water isn't cold but is instead warm which makes absolutely no sense but at the moment it doesn't matter if I can't resurface.

The water is dark and I can barely see as I feel against the rocks, trying to find an opening in order to surface for air but I can't seem to locate anything but a celling of rocks and the more I search with little success I can feel my panic growing and growing with each passing seconds as I start feeling pain to my chest, my lungs pleading for air.

I'm almost at my limit; I know I can't hold my breath any longer. With my sudden fall I didn't have time to take a deep breath and I'm paying for it at this very moment and just when my hope was starting to fade I feels strong hands grab my sides and pull me upwards back to the surface that had been so close to me and yet I couldn't find it.

I gasp for air the moment I hit the surface, back face to face with the same man from before. His eyes a deep piercing blue, almost like sapphires and although I've seen a few people with blue eyes his are different. His are like an endless abyss and somehow if I get too close I'll be sucked in but there's something different about this man, he doesn't seem human and my questions were quickly answered when I feel something not quite human brush against my legs and I knew right then what he was. He was what I had heard about when I was a little boy from the returning sailors, the tales of Mermans and mermaids dragging sailors into the depths of the ocean, ravaging them and then pulling those men down to their deaths never to be seen ever again.

"You can float, that's a rarity." He spoke… The merman spoke just like any other human but I was told that they can't speak and if they can it's only under the water. That if they try to speak on the surface all we could hear is a piercing screech that could make our ears bleed and yet he spoke clearly and flawlessly.

I swallowed the lump that had found itself in my throat before answering a shaky yes. I don't know if he can sense my fear, I've never been good at hiding my emotions but I can see that he's obviously amused as he keeps reducing the distance between us and thanks to this cylinder hole he took me to surface, I can't flee. I'm trapped.

"Afraid human?" He asks almost tauntingly.

"I know what you are, you're not scaring me." I answer; my voice not betraying me even though I know that I'm shaking and I just hope that will be enough to convince him otherwise.

I've heard so many stories about mermans and mermaids, how they prey on defenseless humans who are alone and then lure them to their deaths. How they shouldn't be trusted, the moment they have the chance they'll drag you down to the bottom of the ocean to die a most painful death.

"You're a terrible liar, you're afraid." He says, placing his hands on my hips and pulling himself closer to me, his face only inches away from mine. "You don't have to be, I won't harm you." He adds softly, his lips brushing against mine gently and I jerk my head backwards, slightly hitting the back of my head against the stone wall.

"What are you doing?" The question came out quicker and sharper than I had intended but he didn't care. He still wore that grin on his face, amused at everything that I do and say. Exactly what is his deal? Shouldn't he have killed me by now or do mermans love to torture their preys before?

"Kiss you, all humans do this." He casually answers as he moves in to press his lips against mine and I quickly turn my head to avoid him.

"Men don't kiss other men."

"Yes they do." He quickly adds, trying again to kiss me and once again I avoid his action much to his amusement. He doesn't seem annoyed or angry that I keep refusing his advances; it's more like he enjoys it instead, like it's all just a big game to him.

"How would you know? You're not human." I blurt out as I avoid his advance again.

"Because I've seen them." He answers, pressing his body against mine, moving his hands from my hips to my behind and presses his lips against mine.

"No!" I manage to say after I pull away from his kiss and slightly push him away. "You can't just kiss me and touch me as you please. I don't want to be touched or kissed without my permission."

"Can I kiss you then?" He asks and I can't even believe that he even had the nerve to ask. How can he even think that asking me now, when only minutes earlier he forced himself onto me? What is wrong with him?

"No you can't." I answer before taking a deep breath and sinking under the water, swimming to find a way out when I feel someone take my hand and pulls me forward, going must faster than how I could have swam and before I knew it, we resurfaced back to where I had been before I got spooked and fell into the water.

I climb up onto the rocks, getting myself out of the water and only then do I start to feel a bit more relaxed. Somehow now that I'm not longer in the water, I feel somewhat safe and yet if he wanted to hurt me he could have done it just then but instead he chose to lead me here. Why?

He leans onto the ledge, laying his head in his crossed arms staring at me for a few minutes before pushing himself away and disappearing under the water and all goes quiet.

When I jumped off the edge of the cliff, this wasn't what I had in mind…

XXX

Chapter 2.5

Kougami

This human is beautiful and his scent is alluring and I just can't help myself from feeling him under my hands, his taste onto my lips is like nothing I've ever tasted before. Everything about him is just captivating and yet I feel a sense of innocence from this one. He's not like the other humans that I've seen.

"No!" His voice was sharp and firm as he presses his hands against my chest to push me away in his sudden resolve.

The fear he had in his eyes earlier has now been replaced by a strong fire, a certain will to fight. He may be frail compared to the other male humans but there's courage in him and a sense of pride. This is one is without a doubt different from the others, I've never heard of a human able to deny any of our advances and yet for him it's just seems natural to do so.

"You can't just kiss me and touch me as you please. I don't want to be touched or kissed without my permission." He adds.

"Can I kiss you then?" The question slipped through my lips and rolled off my tongue without putting in much thought and quite frankly I do not even know why I asked such a stupid question in the first place.

I shouldn't have asked, I obviously offended this human with my actions and even though I know this, I want to touch him more. I want to see more of this human's body, I want to have his taste on my tongue, and I want to hear the voice that he'll make in pure ecstasy.

"No you can't." He answered before submerging himself into the water.

I knew he'd say that, I knew that he would have denied my advance again and yet it stung to be rejected but I can't abandon this human. There's something about him that is special and maybe a little foolish but special none the less.

I sink into the water, sees him searching for another exit without much luck. He's foolish and naïve but he is without a doubt brave. In time, this human can come to do great things but I sense some insecurities and uncertainties from him which might hinder his growth but he's still young. He has time to grow but he won't grow if he dies here.

I bolt towards him, taking his hand in mind and speed up my pace and resurface where I had first surfaced when I arrived here.

He wasted no time getting out of the water. He doesn't trust me and that pains my heart, I shouldn't expect any love from a human and yet somehow I wish to receive his love and affection. I'm captivated by his beauty and the way he looks at me I know that he's also captivated by me and yet he keeps pushing me away. It's like there's a fear of me deep inside of him and that fear blocks everything else but there's also something else, I feel like he fears to love. What kind of things has this human seen to turn him this way?

I rest against the ledge for a few minutes, starring at him before I leave him for a bit and swim back into the ocean, out of the cave when I'm greeted by loud voices on the water shore.

I carefully approach, careful not to be seen as I listen to the voices. The tones of the voices are in anger and without malicious intends. The voices belonging to human males that I've seen much too often on the open sea before and only a few that I do not recognize but they keep arguing about a boy. About how they were not able to find a single boy but they didn't have to say much. I knew who the boy they were referring to and it would also explain the reason of his wary state and the bruised wrists.

There are always humans wanting to cause harm to other humans, they are merciless creatures without much care, without any sense of honor or compassion.

"Wait until I get my hands on that brat, he'll regret running." One of them spats. A rather disgusting and large male, not even I would want to touch him. I don't have to be near him to know that he reeks, piss and wine. Probably reeks of his own excrements, a complete disgusting pile of shit.

"He won't receive the same hospitality as before." Another says. This one I don't recognize but compared to the others he's better dressed and looks cleaner, his social status must be higher, much higher than the others. "When you find the boy, bring him directly to me." He orders and I can sense the cruel intent in his tone as he spoke as the males spread out in different directions.

I submerge again into the water before I get seen by them and swim back to the cave, hoping that the human didn't do anything foolish and remained there and much to my relief, he's there walking around the cave. Looking at the wall and touching the gems stuck onto the rocks.

He backs away from the wall when he hears me and I pull myself onto the rocks. He seems uneasy and wary but I can't start to imagine what has happened to this human. He ran off the edge of the earth, clearly running for his life. The things he must have seen, I feel the need to protect him.

"Do the gems attract your eyes?" I ask, trying to start a conversation, maybe not the best thing to start with.

"No… There are just so many." He responds as he looks around, a little uncomfortable as if he thinks that I'm somehow judging him for staring at shiny stones. "I've just never seen so many before, gems are supposed to be rare I just never expected to see so many in one place in great abundance that's all."

Humans have always had this fascination towards gems, silver and gold. It's only a substance that the earth creates after certain amounts of years at specific concentration of natural material and pressure. They don't have value other than being beautiful and unique but to humans, those who wield the most of these precious minerals hold great power over the others of their kind and that to me is just strange.

I smile as I watch him pace around, careful not to fall in the open holes that would take him back into the water. He's so beautiful and somehow he's even more than before. Maybe because he's fully awake now and his voice only makes his beauty stand out even more.

"Pick the ones that you like, I'm sure they are worth much in your society." I tell him and I can just imagine how he would look with such gems on him. His face, his eyes, his form is just made for such delicate things. He's not made for war, he shouldn't have to endure any pain and if I can have my way he won't have to.

"I don't need more wealth. Taking them would only be greed on my part." He states, not bothering to look at me as he spoke, peaking my curiosity.

"Ahh… Socially high?"

"Very…" He answers.

"A merchant? Or those high sailors with the fancy coats?" I ask, thinking back at those grand wooden vessels and those males wearing so much clothing and although they seemed young by their facial features they all had white hair and styled all the same. It's actually weird and a bit creepy. It's like they all want to look the same.

"No, those are low borns and soldiers…" He slowly answered with a pained smile before continuing, "My father is the king."

"A prince? I knew you were different from the others but I never would have expected that you were a prince." I tell him and that's the truth. I could feel like he was different but I never would have imagined that he was this high into society. I have to admit, I'm surprised. A prince of humans never thought I'd see one of those.

It is common knowledge to all of my people that the higher the human is socially the more horrible and beast like they are. They are the ones holding all the power and wealth and use those two things to repress the common folk. They use others to gain what they desire and if they must they will end another's life but this human who claims to be a prince is nothing of the sort. I sense compassion and kindness from this human, he's different so very different.

"Come over here, I won't hurt you. You don't have to fear me." I tell him and much to my relief and surprise he came forward and sat on a rock near me, so near I could touch him if I wanted to but I won't. He doesn't want to be touched and that's important to respect another's wishes.

"What's your name?" I ask catching a quick glimpse of his gorgeous green eyes behind those strands of black hair.

"Ginoza." He answers and adds, "What's yours?"

"You can call me Kougami." I tell him as I go to reach out to touch his hand but refrain from doing so as I remember his earlier statement that he did not wish to be touched and thus he should not be touched and that memory only helps to fuel my fear as my thought goes back to those up there on the earth. They are humans that would wish to bring Ginoza harm, to bring harm to their own prince. That is something that I cannot comprehend the ways of thinking of humans, it's insane.

Those humans had impure thoughts about him that as much I know they did. The one that was well dressed had more than just impure thoughts. Unlike the others who are much too cowards to carry out their thoughts into actions, the well-dressed one will carry out his thoughts but it will not be out of love. It will be out of lust and for the sole purpose of defiling another human; an action to dominate, to hurt and to control.

"I should apologize for my earlier behavior. Your beauty is terrifyingly striking and quite difficult to resist, I will not be touching you again unless you want me to." I say catching his eyes, giving him a smile and he returns with a soft smile. Gentle and yet so sad, I would have Ginoza smiling of joy if I can have it.

"I need to go home…" He mutters.

Ginoza is a prince of humans, someone with power but in order to utilise that power he needs to be in his world. It doesn't change the fact that the very humans that he should have power over have tried to harm him and I know for a fact that they still do so how can I allow Ginoza to go back out there? I just can't.

"There are humans who would love to hurt you. You're not safe up there, surrounded by such madness." I tell him after choosing my words carefully but my words did not reach him.

He knows of the danger that still lurks up there, I know he does. Ginoza doesn't give me like the type who would so naively believe that the danger has gone away or lost interest. He knows of the insanity that awaits him and yet he's fully okay to go back and place himself into possible dangers.

"I'll be safe home with my father. I need you to take me home." He adds but I can't agree with him. How can he be safe when not long ago he was running for his life and would have died if not for me? If I had not been where I was tonight, I never would have seen him fall into the ocean. I wouldn't have been able to save him and he would have died within minutes.

"I can't do that." I firmly state, meeting his gaze.

"Why not?"

How can he just ask me a question when he fully knows the answer to it? Does he have a death wish or something?

"There are humans up there who would want to hurt you. You're a prince, safety is a price that must be paid for power, and sadly you will never be safe up there." I say as I control the urge to reach out to touch Ginoza. Not touching him is much harder to do than I had first thought it would be. I just want to hold him in my arms, to comfort and take the pain away.

"I never wanted to be. I didn't choose my father, I didn't choose to be born into all of this but I still have responsibilities to my people. I can't stay here." He tells me and I have to give it to him that compared to other humans he doesn't run from the things that he should. So many that I've seen would have jumped on the bandwagon to flee their responsibilities but Ginoza embraces it even though he doesn't want those burdens on his shoulders. Actually it feels more like he has surrendered to those responsibilities that he's been born into.

"I'll take you home… When the time is right, right now it isn't but I'll take you home."