A terrible storm strands a ship and its crew on a mostly deserted island. Supplies are low, but the island is full of natural resources ready for the taking. The water found in the center of the island, in particular, boasts an impressive transformative effect, rejuvinating the body and easing the worries of those who drink it. Perhaps. Bit too potent to be honest.



Men and women into young feral dragons


Been on the back burner for a while. A story in which no one is left scathed.

====



“Close the sails!” a voice roared, desperation conveyed but not identity.

Thunder and lightning streaked the skies as terrible wind and crashing waves buffeted the boat; the storm came in an instant and ensnared the ship almost by surprise. It was a wooden thing, a fairly sturdy vessel all told, but even it would have a hard time making sure it wouldn't capsize in the fury of wind and waves.

Dozens of men and women scrambled across the deck, handling rope and securing hatches and doing what they could to ensure their survival, but despite this the sails still hadn’t been secured and were getting slowly torn to pieces.

“Sails aren't getting secured captain!” shouted one man, to another who just stepped from the later below deck.

“Well do something about it! We can’t risk the sail getting torn up!” The other man clearly was someone in charge. He bore a fine shirt and vest, not say upper class material, but definitely a sort of attire that was a cut above the men who tirelessly worked in plain clothes. His rugged features though marked him as someone past his prime, though he still had enough muscle that he might have been a match for anyone on his crew. It probably had to do with the greying salt and pepper beard.

The crewmember rushed off and went to deliver the order.

“Is it safe, Rusal?” a woman said from behind him. She was similarly aged as the captain was, but she clearly was no sailor, at least, not one who needed to exert herself much. Her dress was a compromise between wanting to be dressed finely and practical work clothes, being slimmer not to impede on flexibility, and her reddish hair still bore enough color to not need dyes.

“Not now, Tera!” said Rusal. “The ship’s falling apart. Did you find Cray? Keep him below deck!”

Tera shook her head. She didn’t seem to know where their son was.

“Captain!” a man shouted in the storm. “Cray’s on the main mast!”

“Damn it, boy!” Captain Rusal barked raising a fist in the air in a mock curse.

Above, a figure stood at the top of the mast, holding a knife as he began to cut free the sails. Lightning and thunder boomed overhead, but not harmlessly. A jolt of lightning struck the spire, igniting a blaze that would not be quenched by the mist-like rain that permeated everything. And with that the mast came tumbling down.




====

With weary eyes the crew finally managed to make it to shore, free from the storm’s grip once it slowly died and gave way to a foggy dawn. The storm had tore and ravaged at the ship’s hull, ripping aside the mast, and breaking most of the steering controls. The fierce winds might have weakened since, but the waves still held the ship hostage up until the crew managed to find a place to run the ship aground.

“We’ve made it captain!” said one of the crew members.

“Aye,” said Captain Rusal. The surroundings didn’t seem populated, but there was enough land to sustain a small forest, albeit it seemed to stretch on for miles. The island didn’t seem much from so far away, but here, well, there seemed to be enough here to survive, at least for a little while. “Make sure the ship is moored properly here, and get someone to search for food and supplies. If there’s trees here, there’s probably some fresh water.”

“Yessir!” said some more crew members as they disembarked.

The ship had a slightly mixed crew, all said. Mostly, it was men, of course, as they were sailors, and physically fit, but the women served a role too, mostly for improving morale. There was after all a need for cooked food and certain tasks to be performed. This was especially true in regards to Rusal’s wife, Tera. The aged woman walked down the extended boarding ramp. “How long?”

Rusal shrugged. “As soon as it takes to repair the mast and fix the rudders.”

“I’ll get comfortable then,” his wife replied, almost dismissively bored. This wasn’t the first time they had been stranded after all.

Rusal nodded and then turned to the figure next to his beloved, a disapproving tone in his voice. “As for you, boy, what were you thinking?”

Cray was a young man, definitely an adult by some jurisdictions yet almost decidedly too old to be called boy. It was simply a statement of how the relationship he and his father had. He was taller, muscular, though not as toned as most of the other sailors, maybe he was more agile? He did appear a bit injured from his encounter with the raging storm, his outfit burned and cut in places. “I did what needed to be done!” complained Cray. “We could have rode the storm out its path.”

“And at the cost of the mast!” replied Rusal, bringing a hand to his temples.

Cray, apparently used to having conversations like this with his father, just rolled his eyes. “Hey, you’re the one who told me to take risks if I see them! Besides, we both know the mast would have been blown anyways.”

“Only if you listen to that sort of crockery those new fangled philosophers spew,” said Rusal. Apparently, he didn’t like modern philosophers. “Back in my day, they actually had brains!” He then paused and added.“Don’t make a foolish choice, boy, it’ll cost you dearly.”

Cray just shook his head, unconvinced. “Well… whatever.” and then he decided he would rather go out foraging for food.

Tera, the mother of the family, apparently also used to talks like this stayed quiet, only until her son had left. “You know, he’s alot like you back when you were younger.”

Rusal snorted. “I have never been so bullheaded and stubborn in my life.”

“Well, if that’s what you think…” Tera said, her tone playful. From her perspective, things were quite different.

Rusal didn’t want to hear a word of it and went to coordinating the men on repairing the ship’s hull. It would have been hard without some form of sealant to waterproof the hull, but they had to try. Tera, feeling ignored, set to work on getting the ship’s women to perform some quick laundry, since all of the ship almost flooded and the men might have needed the morale boost. Cray meanwhile, decided he would rather lead than be led, even if it was just on a quick scouting mission.

As a family of sea based traders, the three of them had more or less been in similar situations before, and despite their ongoing familial problems, they still had enough sense to do their part. It worked surprisingly well considering how many close scrapes they had to go through to get to this point. All they knew was that they needed to get off the island.

====

Cray climbed up a tree, navigating his way through branches and limbs like an acrobat. He had practice and it wasn’t as bad as doing that in a storm. He didn’t fear heights, not when it was so useful to be above everything else. Atop the tree he stood on, he could see further away, and in the distance he could see something gleam.

“Sir?” one of a dozen men spoke below. The scouting party was mostly there to gauge how dangerous the environment was and determine if there were any valuable resources to be had.

“Water,” Cray said, as he slid down the tree. “There’s a lake, uphill from here. Could be fresh.”

“Up hill? Really?” said one of the men. “How? Where is the water coming from? It’s above sea level and well… at the top of the hill?”

Cray just shrugged. “Maybe a dormant volcano crater that collected rain water, but does it really matter? Most of our fresh water was lost in the storm and we don’t have time to rely on a catching rain to make up for it or purifying sea water.” He pointed at a direction and said. “Top priority, that way.”

“Right…” said the man.

The rest of the scouting party went ahead as was told. They determined quite quickly there wasn’t much in the way of large animals here; rabbits seemed to the largest beasts around. That was good in the sense there was unlikely to be any dangerous predators, but that also meant that relying on hunting to feed the whole crew was not a viable option. Instead, they’d need to see about setting up some sort of fishing while they were stuck here. Plant life seemed as diverse as any woodland on the mainland, so maybe they could find some berries to forage or some wild vegetation to feed on. In Cray’s estimation, this was one of the better islands to get stranded upon, given how… safe it was.

After a trek that felt longer than it actually was, the scouting party finally made it to the lake. The area was atop small peak, curved just so that it wasn’t quite visible from the coast and distant enough that it would be a chore to haul water back and forth from the camping site and this place. No rivers flowed out from the lake, and despite how stagnant the water was, it looked almost clear.

“Wait, we’re going to need to check if it's safe,” said Cray. He set down his pack and took a canteen. He filled it up with lakewater and brought it to his nostrils. “Doesn’t smell off, but that can mean anything.”

“Uh, should someone else drink it?” one of the crew members provided.

Cray shook his head. He wasn’t going to back away from a storm, he certainly wasn’t going to back away from a beverage. He drank a gulp and the water flowed down his throat until it hit his stomach like a stone. It felt satisfying and refreshing in a way that only seemed to make him feel like he hadn’t been low on sleep or suffered some slight injuries. In fact, he felt better than he ever did in a long time. Laughter was his only response.

“Uh, sir?” one of the crew members said.

“Uh… nothing,” Cray said, reining himself in. He just felt so good. Maybe the water was laced with alcohol, because he felt like he was slightly drunk. “Okay, so, let’s fill up, I’m sure loads of folks will want a drink themselves too.”

The rest of the party, seeing that their leader was fine filled up their canteens as well, right after taking some gulps of their own. Everyone there felt very good about themselves as they went to share their discovery with the rest of the crew.

=====

Captain Rusal surveyed his ship some more. The storm hadn’t completely destroyed it, but several sections of the hull did flood, particularly the pantry. The water was able to be pumped out before the ship sunk, but there was damage done. That essentially meant the food had to be checked to see if it could be saved, but the water was pretty much unsalvageable at this point.

The crew was intact, if a little bruised and beaten. That meant more of a workforce to get things into working order, but that also meant more mouths to feed. At the very least, he was fine with his family being okay, even his son was a bit of a pain. “Okay, so, let’s see about getting some grub. How are the rowboats and nets?” he said.

“Fine, we can begin once we have temporary shelter set up,” said one of the crewmen.

“Perfect, I’ll join you,” said Captain Rusal. Going out on a short fishing trip was a good way to get his mind off of his problems, even if for just a time. He had set up enough of the other activities already so his disappearance wouldn’t have been missed.

“Father!” he heard Cray shout.

“Cray?” Rusal said, surprised. He hadn’t been expecting to see his son back for a while longer, usually, he would have sulked out a bit more before returning. He was also likewise surprised that he sounded so… cheerful, like some sort of good news had come. “Uh, what happened?” he managed to say.

Cray took out his canteen and presented it to his father. “Fresh water, on the island. It’s a fair distance, but we can get it!”

It was almost… unnerving how active Cray was acting, but Rusal didn’t feel like pointing that out. It had been a while since his son had been more… cheery, so it was a decent change of pace. Besides, news of fresh water was more important and something to get excited about. “Oh, excellent. We should clear a path then, to give the wheel barrels an easier time.”

Cray nodded his head vigorously in acknowledgement.

“There’s water?” said another voice. Tera stepped into view. “Well, I suppose that means we’ll need to clear out some of the barrels we’ve been using to clean clothes.”

“Yes, Mother,” Cray said. “There’s plenty to drink. All we need to do is get it!”

Tera nodded his head. “Yes, that’s good news. Maybe we can make some soup tonight.”

Cray nodded his head took out another of his canteens and gave it to his mother. “Can it be rabbit soup? There’s plenty of them all over the island!”

He didn’t even wait for confirmation and just left, apparently off to set up a small hunting party.

“He’s certainly seemed active,” said Tera, holding up the canteen in skepticism. She guessed there was something strange about the water here, given how her son was behaving.

“It’s probably not too harmful,” said Rusal, also investigating the water. He let out a shrug. “We’re going to have to drink it anyways. Besides, you know Cray doesn’t handle stimulants well.”

“Oh, I know,” said Tera. “Still, I’m kind of hesitant about it.”

“There’s hardly any other water left,” said Rusal. He shook his head. “Look, if it’ll make you feel any better, I’ll drink it with you too.”

Tera let out a laugh, the kind that came from being part of an old married couple. “Oh, you.” She took up the canteen and brought it to her lips.

Rusal did the same. “I can be a little reckless if I want to be,” he said. Besides, it was just some strange water, what harm could there be?

Both drank the water and felt a strange energy seep into them. It made them feel like they were years younger, giving them an energy to keep going forward in spite of how grim things seemed. Maybe it wouldn’t be too bad, not if it felt this good.


Both smiled at each other for a long moment and then parted ways. They still had jobs to do, they could deal with each other later on.


===
Tera went back to addressing the rest of the ship’s ladies. While they weren’t as strong at many tasks as the men, they were adequate at their jobs and came with a fair price. Some actually came along with their husbands, much like Tera herself for that matter. She saw that many of them were busying themselves, cleaning up what they could and foraging for supplies. Others, were being handed water canisters and barrels, no doubt from the new shipment.

“Not enough for everyone, just yet, but another shipment will be coming in soon I wager,” said one of the women.

Tera nodded. “Yes, it’s inconvenient to have to haul it all the way from the heart of the island, but it’s the only fresh water we have at the moment.”

“Wish we had a mule,” said one of them.

“Or we could just ask your brother,” replied Tera.

The women burst up in laughter and the one slighted woman hefted a towel playfully slapped one of her close-by friends. That caused more laughter from the other women and another started a short lived bout of laughter and slapstick humor.

Tera had been in this business with Rusal ever since he was a small time sailor serving under someone else back as a teenager. The two of them got engaged and eventually managed to earn their own seaworthy vessel, adventuring and traveling ever since. Mostly, it tended to be quite boring, especially these days, but when she was younger, crashes like this were more common and more exciting, but it has become quite repetitive over the years.

Tera wasn’t as active as she used to be and nowhere near as quick, but she still had enough kick in her to keep moving along… especially since she drank that canteen. It almost reminded her of some of those other tonics she used to try when she was younger, maybe it was similar. She felt like she could do cartwheels in place or climb up the side of the landed ship… or maybe even pick a fight of one of the men, she hadn’t done that in a while.

Tera hefted one of the soaked rags and hung it atop one of the makeshift laundry line set up by the others. The sun was at its peak and hopefully quite soon the things would dry up. Still, the task was boring her more than it used to, it didn’t feel exciting to do such a tedious task. She wanted more excitement, more thrills, not to hang up things one at a time.

Tera looked down at the barrel before her, noticing how full of soap sudded seawater it was and how it would have been such a waste to not make use of it all. There was plenty of water right, she could have some fun. It wasn’t useful for anything except for getting something else wet. She picked up the barrel with a strength she didn’t know she had and emptied out its contents… onto everyone next to her.

“Mistress!” the other women shouted, in laughter.

Tera didn’t feel guilty, she didn’t need to, since someone else started it. She laughed and threw small buckets full of water at every direction, causing the other women to retaliate with their own suddzy waters. “Can’t catch- ME!” she tried to say, but was interrupted by a fit of giggles as she was pelted with water as the other women caught on. She was quicker than she thought she was, managing to evade most of their attempts to splash her, oh this was what she lived for!

“We’ll get you!” laughed one of the other women.

“Stand still!” dared another.

It went on like that until the barrels ran out, and then they tried pelting each other with mud, sand, and fresh sea water.

Tera claimed victory the moment, she saw the last of her underlings throw up hands in surrender. She felt like she could keep going on and on, never tiring after that. She smiled at the rest of her crewmates and prided herself on her triumph, even if her fine dress was pelted full of mud and soaked wet. “You all need more practice,” she said.

The other women just shook their heads in defeat.

“Drinking water!” said a sailor in the distance. Several sailors were hauling barrels on large wheelbarrows; one of the other groups must have came back after getting more from the lake up ahead. How long did that moment of play take anyways? “Fresh water!” he shouted again.

Tera smiled and turned to her underlings, each of them dirtied from earlier roughhousing and work. “Come on, it’s great!” she said. “It makes me feel ten… twenty years younger!”

“Ha, you look it too!” laughed one of the women as she stood to get her fill.

Others followed suit.

Tera eagerly wanted to share the water with her ladies and felt like skipping on the sands as they made their way towards the beach. She encouraged them to take entire mug-fulls before her, though she did manage to catch a glimpse of herself once she made sure everyone else had their fill.

Mostly she was curious, she thought her shipmates were joking when they said she also looked younger, but something told her that it was more than that. She looked at her reflection and noted that her hair was redder than usual, did she dye it last night? Did her arms seem stronger, more fit? She felt it, either way. Did she trim her nails? They seemed sharp. And what was this on her hands? Did some stains get stuck to her hands?

She bent closer and noticed a patch of crimson spread underneath her palms. Tera thought it was blood, but it wasn’t wet, it wasn’t dripping. Her skin was changing, turning a darker green shade, almost unnatural for a human’s hand except for maybe the color of what some people’s veins were like. What was this? Was it connected?

====

Captain Rusal approached the small rowboat. Three other men came along with him, one of which carried the ship’s net while the others rowed forward. Even if Cray wanted to get rabbit soup, there were plenty of mouths that needed feeding and he doubted a single hunt would get enough food for everyone.

The waters were quick, tidal currents pulling things away from the shoreline. Living things danced just beneath the waves, appearing to be an appetizing meal for many hungry sailors.
The ship wasn’t designed to haul a large catch, but it would have to do.

For Rusal, this was at least one way of sorting through the mess and getting his hands on the problem plaguing the crew at the moment, while simultaneously acting as an outlet to relax and make himself comfortable. That drink he had taken earlier had really done a number on him, making the old seadog feel unable to sit in one spot. He just needed to keep moving and moving and moving. “We ready yet?”

“Aye, aye, captain!” said one man.

“Net’s fixed and ready!” said another.

“Good to go!” said the last.

Captain Rusal nodded his head approvingly and let the men embark on the rowbow. He decided that with his arms bursting with energy, he might as well do the honors.

Once everyone was seated, Rusal pushed the boat off the sand and shoved it into the water, leaping in at the last moment. “Row!” he shouted and two of the men took oars and rowed the boat out to the coast.

The boat wasn’t going to travel far, there was plenty of fish near to the landing site. Hopefully, they could get a big haul on the first pass.

Rusal and another sailor took the net and readied themselves once they were far enough away, fish leapt out of the water in a taunting motion. “This is very promising,” said the sailor. “Should we get it?”

“Yes!” Rusal said impatiently. There were fish right there, why did he need to ask?

The two men tossed the net into the water and scooped up dozens of small fish into the net and tried to lift it onto the boat. It proved quite heavy and almost immobile, as the net seemed to swell even larger as more and more fish seemed to leap at the opportunity to jump in.

“Stubborn isn’t it?” Rusal shouted out, giving it his all. It had been a long, long time since the last time he had to strain himself like this, but he felt like he could hold on.

Unfortunately, his partner proved himself the weakest link. In a flash, the sailor’s hold slip and Rusal felt himself being dragged underneath the water and plummeting rapidly as the bag of fish weighed him down.

He tried to let go, but in his zeal to hang on, his hands somehow got tangled up in the net and he was trapped.

Rusal struggled, and pulled and felt the air in his lungs strain under the increasing pressure. Nothing seemed to do anything as the captain kept plummeting down. A tidal current then seemed to tug the sailor even more forward, out into the bay, ever deeper and deeper. If his sailors had jumped in to get him, he was already quickly gaining distance separating them. Rusal felt the air in his lungs give out as he reached his limit, he couldn’t hold his breath and longer.

At the very end, Rusal quietly said his prayers and exhaled for the first time. Water rushed into the man’s lungs and… he wasn’t drowning. Rusal found it quite odd that despite being in water and being forced to inhale fluid; he wasn’t having a hard time, you know breathing. He didn’t struggle to breath in and out anymore, as if the water was like air for him, and perfectly capable of sustaining him. This confusion gave way to quiet contemplation as he was still being slowly pulled in by the net full of fish. Why was he breathing? Did he become part fish? And more importantly, what could he do to get out of this?

Thinking quickly, he realized that there was an option he could try, one he didn’t know why he didn’t do it before. He reached his head down against the spot where his hands were tied to the rope and began nibbling himself free. Rope tasted awful, especially since it was slightly moldy, but Rusal knew his sharpened teeth were more than capable of cutting through anything. It took quite a while, but Rusal was stubborn enough to do it.

After a few minutes of cutting through, the net came undone and swarms of fish burst open from the net and darted in every which way. Rusal found himself free, in some sort of underwater grass land, filled with all manner of strange coral like things. He thought a moment of floating upward and getting some air, but the captain felt like he could get away with some more exploring.

Curiosity got the best of him and he quietly scanned around for anything of value. He didn’t walk persay, he had this… idea of how to swim properly, like it was second nature to him. There were a bunch of shellfish on the ground fresh for the taking for one, maybe there’d be pearls in them! He gathered a small cache of random items and curiosities, whatever he could find.

It felt kinda fun searching through and discovering this whole new world right beneath the water, it had been so long since he had seen anything like this before. Rusal wondered why he had forgotten how exciting was. At the same time, Rusal wondered if maybe the problem between him and Cray was that he was simply that Cray wanted a little bit of independance. He understood, he hated it when his parents would boss him around…

That thought ended the moment Rusal spotted these… hairs floating in the water. They seemingly came out from nowhere, forming as clumps of the stuff that floated away and broke apart. Rusal thought to grab one of them, but he then brought his hand over to his chin… strangely, his beard was missing? But why would he have one of those? Well, it’s probably nothing.

A familiar shadow came over Rusal and that was all of the captain needed to know that it was time to get out of here. He darted upwards and burst over the waves.

“Captain?” one of the crew mates shouted.

“Is that you?” another said, almost incredulously.

“Water’s great!” Rusal shouted, letting out a laugh as he did. He didn’t understand why his crew were giving him such looks, he felt great! He held up some shellfish and offered it to the group. “Here have some!”

====

“Slow down!” the men called out.

A half a dozen men in hunting supplies hurriedly chased after Cray, the young man having darted off into the woods to chase his prey.

“Keep up!” he said instead, as he darted forth. “They’re getting away!” Cray just felt like he had the energy to keep going, the strength and speed to actually catch a few darting rabbits, even bare handed if he needed to.

There had to have been some warrens around here, and there had to be rabbits to hunt somewhere. He had seen them before at least once or twice on the island, yet he could hardly find any now that he was actually looking for them. Now if only, his hunting companions were able to keep up with him. He wondered for a moment why none of them could keep up, but then again, maybe they were thirsty?

Cray darted through the underbrush and into short grass. He could almost smell the rabbits nearby.“This way!” he said, directing them with a single arm. They were in the grass, a warren was nearby.

Two men armed with bows came forward and stood next to Cray in the grass, readying themselves, though looking quite confused. “Don’t see them.”

“It’s obvious!” said Cray. How could they be so blind? He sniffed the air and found the trail and using his sense of hearing, he could pinpoint where they were. The rabbits were silent, but Cray could almost hear their hearts. He ducked down into the ground and slid on all fours, approaching them with a predatory gait.

The other hunters came by at this point, but were still lost and unable to see the rabbits in the brush.

Cray crept forward a dozen half steps and found his target. He leapt forward and trapped a rabbit in his mitts. The creature didn’t have time to even think about what had happened and it died either from the shock or the strain. That was good enough for Cray though.

The successful hunter rose out of the brush with his prey and lifted it over his head like it was a trophy, dancing and shouting with cheer as he celebrated. “I did it! Yay!” he cheered.

“Uh good going, uh...sir!” said one of the men.

Cray brought his prize down to his arms and turned towards the hunters after him, flashing them a smile. “Yeah! Yeah!” he repeated. He couldn’t want to show his father what he caught! He’d be so proud. This called for celebration! “We should go back now!”

“Uh…” the hunters turned to each other with apprehensive looks. “We didn’t come out all this way for a single rabbit. I mean, sir, we have important things to do….”

Cray was broken from his revelry and looked at his men more closely. They seemed nervous about something. He pouted and barred his fangs in displeasure. “Oh, come on! It’ll be fine. We did good…”

“Maybe,” another said. “But, uh, well, what are we supposed to do?”

They hardly did anything, to be honest. Cray didn’t know why he needed them before, he had a plan for them, but they turned out to be quite useless. Was it to use their bows? But that was silly, since it was just easier to snatch prey using claws and teeth anyways.

“Oh, okay!” Cray shrugged his head. “If you want, I’m sure you can carry all of the rabbits I catch back!”

====


Once word of freshwater came in, it didn’t take long for the haulers to come in and take several barrels full of water back to camp. The path was still mostly uncleared at this point, but they managed it all the same. The camp soared into life as the first delivery came in and brought fresh drink; and the mood only grew brighter and cheery once the travelers drank their fill.

Tera and Rusal reunited, seeing other for the first time since their separation. At the first, they didn’t realize it, having changed so much since the last time they saw each other.

“Tera?”

“Rusal?”

“You look… young!” they said to each other.

Rusal had gone from an aged captain, to a young man, young enough to have at most peach fuzz instead of a proper beard just as soon as his hair returned to that auburn color it used to be in his youth. He was younger than his own son was, having become almost so young he could hardly be called a man at all. He wasn’t that much shorter, but he moved with a quickened step that spoke as though he didn’t feel the need to be cautious. His garments barely fit on him as well, his sleeves almost too long for his hands and his wet trousers threatened to fall down with his shrunken waistline. That wasn’t all that had changed about him: his eyes had shifted to almost reptilian slits, but that was subtle compared to everything else.

Tera likewise had become a young woman, decidedly Rusal senior by at least a few years. She was still bloomed and mature, yet her hair had taken on a fiery red that Rusal had once associated with her in an age long past. Her clothes still fit, though were definitely not meant for a woman of her much leaner and athletic figure. He face had become similarly appealing, bearing a light sort of playfulness and eager thrill seeking in those eyes. He nails had grown longer since then, having turned into almost talon like limbs, with a very dark green sort of tint to her hands which could be easily ignored.

The two of them resembled a young couple that has just started dating more than any old married pair. And the funny part was, such a stunning change didn’t seem alarming, concerning to either of them; if anything, it was more embarrassing, like being caught in the wrong set of clothes.

“My, you look…” Tera laughed. “Aren’t you supposed to be the older one?”

“Uuuh, yeah…” Rusal replied, his face turning red and his hand rubbing his temples. He didn’t feel like a veteran ship captain much anymore, as if the confidence he had from experience was taken away from him in his change. He almost felt embarrassed to look at his wife, as if ashamed to have someone so pretty as his. “...You look great.”

Tera smiled. “Oh, I feel great too!”

“Uh...yeah!” Rusal said, still feeling quite embarrassed. It was like he was in his awkward teenage years, again, speaking a to a woman way beyond his league.

Tera took his young husband by the arm and laughed, apparently aware of what was going on his mind. “Oh, don’t worry! You’ll always be my special someone!”

Rusal let out an awkward smile at that reassurance. Still, even despite his awkwardness, this wasn’t all that bad, he supposed. He still had Tera. “So uh, what happened?” Rusal managed to stutter out, “We’re… younger.”

“Among other things,” said Tera showing him her elongated nails. “You think the water might have been the cause of all of this?”

Rusal shrugged, turning his gaze over to the refreshments tent his crew members set up several yards away. The men and women gathered there seemed delighted and animated by a sort of energy that did not at all match the kind of movement a recently crashed crew would have had. If anything, it was almost like they forgot about that and wanted to have a party… or a game.

“It seems kinda fun,” Tera suggested.

Rusal couldn’t help but nod in reply.

It was at this time that Rusal and Tera had noticed there was a boy, a young teenager around Rusal’s age running around the tent. He had spotted them and dashed up to them.

“Mom, Dad!” said the boy.

“Cray, is that you?” Rusal said incredulously.

Cray nodded. “Uhuh! Uhuh!”Cray had undergone a rather weird change. He was much younger than either of his parents before, but if anything he was right around their age bracket now. He in a way looked more like a brother to his father than anything else, having become a young teen instead of young adult. His movements and mannerisms though almost didn’t make sense on him, like he was a little kid in a teenager’s body; he was too active, too wanting to move. And even weirder was that Cray’s face had slightly elongated into a snout, his teeth sharpened to for an almost predatory bite.

Rusal and Tera blinked a few times, still not really believing it.

Cray then raised his hands and shown his parents two rabbits, just as he promise. “We can make soup now!”

“Uh, that’s great…” Rusal was finally knocked out of his revelry, distressed at the change of relationship between he and his son. Could the two of them really be that anymore? And what was happening to his son? And his wife for that matter? He looked down at the rabbits and noted the bite marks that exposed the rabbit’s flesh. “... Did you bite it?”

“Yup!” Cray nodded cheerfully. He wasn’t his normal sullen self and… was that a tail wagging behind him? Whatever was happening to Cray he was the furthest along, whatever this was. “Can we eat now?” he said, lifting the rabbits to his mouth. Cray was obviously watering in his mouth. He seemed like he wanted to skip cooking the soup and just eat them already.

Rusal had to admit, the temptation was getting to him too. It must have been so juicy. Absent mindedly, Rusal took one of the rabbits and promptly sunk his teeth into it.

“Rusal!” Tera said.

“Hey!” Cray complained.

“But I wanted it!” Rusal complained.

Cray leapt forward and tried to take the rabbit back, both boys pulling with all of their strength.

Tera shouted, clearly the most mature physically and mentally. “Boys!”

The boys pulled and shoved and were distracted from everything else, not even realizing the sailor who was passing by, carrying a barrel full of drinkable water. The two of them pulled and tugged, the rabbit however gave way and both boys were flung backwards, one of them knocking into the sailor and causing him to lose balance and the barrel to spill its contents right onto Tera.

That caused Rusal and Cray to forget about the rabbit for just a moment and see Tera.

“Mom!” said Cray, his eyes flashing with concern.

Tera wiped away the water from her face and then let out a giggle. “... That sounded so funny!”

Before their eyes, Tera shrank rapidly. She changed from a young woman into a young girl of no more than 10. She rapidly lose height as her features lost maturity and grace.. Her breasts, which had become more supple since becoming a woman “unbloomed” until she was flat chested. Her features which were defined became softer and less refined, turning into a girl’s cute features. Her clothes didn’t fit her anymore, her dress while still on her smaller frame, its hem went far past her feet. The changes didn’t seem to stop at her body however as her look of shock and surprise turned a more excited and thrilled look; she didn’t seem worried, quite the opposite in fact.

“Uh, Tera?” Rusal managed to say. He was trying to make sense of what just happened, trying to find out how he should respond when his wife’ face lit up like that.

Tera looked to Rusal with a big grin on her face that showed she was happy with this outcome. “Ooh! Rusal, look at at me! I’m a young girl again! I can’t believe it!”

“Uh, mom?” Cray asked again.

Tera looked at her son and stuck out her tongue. “I can’t be your mom silly!” she said, laughter in her voice. “I’m too young for that! Well, now I am!” It seemed like some sort of big joke to her apparently, that she had a son that that was older than her.

“Oh, I get it!” Cray said, giving a nervous smile. “So, does that make you my little sister?”

“Maybe!” Tera supplied.

Rusal felt conflicted on this matter. On one hand, he was quite disturbed by the whole thing; his rational mind wouldn’t accept this, his wife wasn’t… a child. On the other hand, he felt a strong pang of… jealousy, as if he was kind of envious about Tera getting to be a kid again. It was like… he saw it as real inviting. And besides, it might have been… fun?

Tera’s features changed further, adopting features similar to her new brother, gaining a small snout and by the look of how her dress moved, a tail just underneath. “I’m changing again!” she cheered as she examined herself. Her hands reshaped into large claws. “Wow!” I wonder how I look!”

“We should play!” said Cray. Cray noticeable grew a bit shorter, going to the very onset of puberty. It was like her… sister’s changes triggered something in him. His voice started to crack, features slowly softened, though not all that much relative to what happened to Tera.

“Uh, guys...” Rusal said, mature concern still in his words. He was still concerned and still fighting the urge to just join Cray and Tera at whatever game they wanted to play.

Tera and Cray looked at each other and then without a word, Cray shoved his Rusal back a few steps and darted off, screaming, “Tag, you’re it!”

Tera followed suit, leaving Rusal behind. “Can’t catch me!” she raised the hem of her oversized dress and tried to run away.

In that moment, whatever reservations and concerns Rusal had about anything more complex than leaping in and play, vanished as a long forgotten instinct taken root. He couldn’t just let them run away! He had to chase them, here and now.

Rusal leapt forward into a sprint, chasing after the younger kids. “Hey!” he shouted. “Come back here!” But laughs interrupted his voice.

Tera and Cray stayed close together, leading Rusal just behind the two of them. Rusal might have been taller and older, but he wasn’t gaining progress. The two went through working boys, chore laden girls, and even climbed in and out of the beached ship without a second thought. The chase wasn’t long, as far as sprinting play went, but in a way, it had its own sort of timelessness about it. Every now and again, the three would slow down and catch their breath, only to resume a moment later. It was in these lapses of activity that Rusal had time to process what was going on.

In the camp, there was hardly anyone that was over 25. The water had been distributed and everyone had drank at least something. Whatever effect it was having on the sailors and travelers, it seemed to grow only stronger with each passing gulp and ticking minute. Men that Rusal had known to had been greying found themselves as young men at best, while a fortunate few were already beginning their descent into boyhood. Women were practically nonexistent at this point, only young ladies remained. And everyone bore at least some manifestation of their eventual scaly fate.

Rusal himself noted just how baggy his clothes had been, how often his pants would get caught in his legs, especially with his tail. He was thinking of getting rid of them, especially since they were just slowing him down at this point. The bridge of his nose was very visible in his vision, a tiny horn poking ahead at the middle. His boots were left behind and forgotten a long time ago in the chase, his feet replaced by taloned paws that were almost vaguely reptilian. He knew he had lost plenty of height since he last did inventory, becoming almost as short as his… family? What did he call them now?

Cray stripped out of his shirt a while back, left only in a wrap. His body was covered in dark greenish scales, with the only exception being the lime-ish underbelly. Two stubby wings were on his back, tiny and flailing, but somehow getting stronger seeming with each moment. Cray almost didn’t look human, but he was noticeably a boy. He stood like one, moved like one, and clearly laughed like one.

Even stranger, Tera was further along than even Cray, and Rusal was almost shocked to realize just how much she change. He didn’t realize when Tera dropped her dress, but apparently she didn’t feel she needed it since it was so large and kept her from flexing her wings. She didn’t have hair anymore, instead had some distinctive horns. She also didn’t stand up anymore, instead deigning to move on all fours, like some sort of dog. And yet, despite this, Rusal just knew it was still her. “What’s wrong, brother?” she said, her tone shrill.

Brother? Wasn’t he her husband? But that was kinda… odd to honest. Why would she be? They were both too young for that, but they did… things before. Rusal felt a bit uneasy, he didn’t understand what was happening to him. He was so confused and conflicted. He knew how things should be, at least, he thought he did, but he didn’t know what he was supposed to really think about it. Was he really supposed to be bigger? “Uh… no.”

Cray chimed in, stopping in his tracks. “Maybe brother needs a break? He must be so tired…”

Rusal did feel tired, tired and just plain drained. The energy just seemed to drain right out of him and he could have really used some food and drink. He nodded his head. “Okay, let’s go…”

Cray and Tera both nodded their heads and gently pushed Russal forward.


Rusal was led by his… siblings into the camp. Almost everyone was playing, mostly they were just scaly boys and girls that were older than Rusal, but a couple were like Tera, on all fours and almost like winged lizards. A few were even jumping across tables using their wings to extend their jumps; they couldn’t fly, not yet, but it all looked so fun. He felt oddly jealous about how carefree everyone was being, why weren’t they doing their work? But then again wasn’t that all boring stuff no one wanted to do?

They arrived at the table where all of the food and water was supposed to be, but seemingly all of the barrels containing them were tossed aside and empty. A few younger whelps were sleeping in the disused barrels, apparently having drank them all and crashed in. They woke up and barked at Rusal, greeting him with playful yips.

“Get out!” Rusal complained, shooing them away. He didn’t care about the whelps. He was hungry and tired, not in the mood for play.

A few of the whelps were frightened off, but even more seemed more than willing to disobey. A small handful of whelps about half of Rusal’s size mobbed him then and there, biting and clawing their leader with dull and soft teeth and paws. They might have been each weaker than Rusal was, but with this many, there was no fighting. They tore away his massively oversized clothing, leaving young boy bare scaled and covered in tiny cuts and licks.

“Hey! H-heeyyy!” Rusal howled, his voice turning even sharper as he changed. He struggled against his… playmates, annoyed and hungry. He felt like he was getting worse at pushing them away, as though he was getting weaker at each shove. A couple of them seemed fairly larger than he thought they were, almost frightening, but that gave away to a merry sort of laughter that seemed to overwhelm everything! “Stoooop!” he yelped between giggling fits. “Stoooop!”

Eventually, the other whelps all settled down at let Rusal go, smiling at him with amused glances. “Play?”

“Later!” Rusal found himself looking up at them, still excited, though hunger took priority right now. He rolled onto his belly and pushed himself upwards, finding it odd for a second why he was using all of his paws to stand, but that feeling faded away in time.

“Aw....” several of the whelps moaned, but they seemed willing to accept, based on how hard of a time they were having trying to keep their tails from wagging!

“Rusal!” shouted Cray, a short distance away. “Come on! We found food!”

Rusal’s eyes perked up and he immediately made a dash towards the sound of Cray’s voice.

The… elder whelp was busy watching over an overturned barrel that some fish spilled out of. Tera was already tearing her way into a portion of the meals, which if Rusal thought if she continued on there might not be any left for him. He dived in and hungrily started on chewing on some fish, happily devouring it fresh and raw. The taste felt oddly satisfying, he didn’t know why he didn’t do it before. And each of them were so big, some of them were like half of his body length if you remove the tail.

“Glad you can make it!” Tera said in between mouthfuls.

“Yup!” Rusal wagged his tail. He felt kinda odd for some reason. Did Tera seem larger than him? “... When did you get… bigger?”

Tera laughed. “Silly! I’m your bigger sister! Of course I’m bigger!”

Rusal thought about it for a moment and nodded his head. Well, they obviously couldn’t be mates because they were just younglings… so maybe that was right. It seemed silly to think he could be older than her… And come to think of it, wasn’t Cray slightly bigger as well? Did that make him his older brother?

Cray stepped in between the other two whelps and took in his fill as well, almost like a slightly larger Rusal when it came down to it... “And I’m bigger than you!”

“Not by much!” Rusal denied, turning up his snout and tail in protest. Maybe he was like a few pounds heavier and a big older, but there wasn’t that much of a gap.

Cray leapt at his younger sibling in a surprise attack, causing the two males to tumble out a few feet away in a ball of yips and giggles.

“Hey no fair!” Rusal laughed out, fending off more bites and yips.

“Wait for me!” Tera said, jumping into the fray.

The three whelplings rolled and tumbled into the wet sand, covering themselves in dirt and detritus. It didn’t last for long, though, as ball they made collided against something hard, breaking them apart. They looked up and saw this strange wooden thing towering over them, a ship wasn’t it? Wasn’t it Rusal’s? It seemed inviting! Even if it had those holes in the belly.

“Ooh can we fix it?” said Rusal, tail wagging enthusiastically. He somehow felt like he really wanted to go sailing.

“Sure!” said Cray. Dozens of other younglings came into the fold, as if noticing the vessel for the first time.They swarmed onto the deck and and scurried all over the ship.

It would take alot of work to make it seaworthy, but maybe it’s be fun. Besides, it’s not like they really needed it anyways.