Encounter in the dark
The sound of pen tapping against clipboard pulled me out of my thoughts. I turned to see Dr. Adrian Hale, leaning slightly against the tank, his gaze focused on the creature. He was jotting down notes, his face a picture of calm concentration, as if the creature inside wasn’t a threat, but a mere anomaly to be cataloged.
“Adrian,” I said, walking over. “I didn’t know you’d be joining us so soon.”
He looked up, smiling, his brown eyes warm in a way that made him one of the few faces on this ship that I actually trusted. “Couldn’t resist,” he replied, glancing back at the creature with a curious expression. “This is… well, it’s historic. How could I miss it?”
I nodded, following his gaze. The creature floated in the tank, still, his body eerily calm in contrast to the faint, chaotic pulse of the storm outside. Just the sight of him made my mind flash back to the dreams, to the feeling of his presence wrapping around me like a dark current.
But this was Adrian—calm, logical, steady. I could focus here, even if I could still feel the unsettling pull of the creature’s gaze, as if he were watching me through closed eyes.
“Strange, isn’t it?” Adrian murmured, nodding toward the creature. “Something that looks so… peaceful, and yet commands so much power.”
“More power than we might be ready for,” I replied, my voice barely above a whisper.
Adrian turned to me, his expression thoughtful. “I know Graves is pushing you to focus solely on the science, but if you’re worried, Lila… you’re not alone. We’re part of the Entherian Group, remember. They’re not exactly known for their restraint.”
I felt a chill at the mention of Entherian, the company funding our mission. A giant in biotech and environmental control, they’d been part of countless “discoveries” over the past few decades, from bio-enhancements to developing containment systems for strange, powerful creatures that emerged in the oceans, deserts, even the skies. The world had evolved far beyond what my grandparents had grown up knowing—species and beings once thought impossible were now known facts, tightly regulated by corporations like Entherian.
“And still, they push us into the unknown,” I murmured, thinking of Graves’ orders to press forward even when the ocean itself seemed to be fighting back. “Adrian… does it ever feel like we’re… losing control out here?”
He laughed, but it was a sound without much humor. “Control is an illusion, Lila. We’re grasping at the edges of something vast, something that could swallow us whole. This creature might just be one small part of it.”
My eyes returned to the creature in the tank. Was he really just a piece of something larger, something incomprehensible?
Suddenly, a loud, blaring alarm jolted me from my thoughts, echoing through the lab. Red lights flashed on the walls, casting strange shadows that twisted along the floor.
“What now?” I muttered, instinctively checking the monitors. The readings were erratic, signals and sensors all picking up wild data from the outside currents.
Mira’s voice crackled over the intercom, her tone panicked. “Dr. Monroe, Dr. Hale—we’re getting reports of a massive pressure increase outside. The currents have shifted. There’s… there’s something pushing against the hull.”
The hull. The reinforced steel that was supposed to keep us safe from the crushing pressure of the deep sea. I felt my stomach twist, my heart hammering in my chest as I looked at Adrian.
“It’s probably just a surge,” he said, though his voice was tight. “We’ll stabilize. This sub is designed to handle extreme conditions.”
But I could see the doubt in his eyes, the same doubt that churned in my own mind. We’d prepared for rough seas, pressure spikes, but something about this felt different. It felt deliberate.
Then, all at once, the lights went out.
Everything plunged into darkness, a pitch-black void that swallowed us whole. I heard Adrian’s sharp intake of breath beside me, the faint rustle of his coat as he reached out, trying to orient himself.
I reached out too, my hand brushing against something cold and smooth—the glass of the tank. A chill ran through me as I realized where I was standing, inches away from the creature.
In the silence, I could feel him there, closer than ever, as if he’d moved toward me in the dark, filling the space around me with his presence. My pulse thundered, each beat loud and frantic as his presence pressed down on me—cold and yet… intoxicating.
And then, in that silence, I heard it—his voice.
“Did you miss me, my vile sick dove?”
The words slid over me like oil, dark and thick, seeping into my senses until I could barely breathe. His voice was low, a rasp that held both menace and allure, sinking into every part of me, making my skin prickle and my stomach twist. But there was something more, a softness in the dark, an intensity that wrapped around me like velvet, stealing the air from my lungs.
I wanted to pull away, to put distance between us, but I couldn’t move. My hand pressed harder against the glass, though I didn’t tell it to. My limbs felt heavy, as if he were inside my mind, holding me in place. I could feel him not only around me but in me, threading his presence through my thoughts, my nerves, even my heartbeat.
Then, like a low, steady current, his thoughts began to wind through mine, tracing over hidden, quiet places I hadn’t even known were there. His voice in my mind was a caress, each word pulsing through me like a wave.
“Oh, my little dove,” he murmured, his voice a sickly sweetness, too beautiful to resist. “You feel it, don’t you? My presence in your every thought… in every breath?”
My pulse raced, a delicious, dizzy heat spreading through me, making my senses spin. I felt his touch—no, his thoughts—pressing against me, reaching deeper, a languid warmth that pulled at my mind, coaxing me open.
“I—no… I…” I stammered, though my voice sounded faint and distant, as though it barely belonged to me. I wanted to deny it, but my breath caught as his mind poured through mine, smoothing over every guarded thought, every impulse, like dark water flooding into hidden, forgotten crevices.
“Yes,” he whispered, a languorous darkness that seeped through me, threading through my veins. “Don’t fight it, dove. Let me in. Let me… taste you.”
A rush of heat poured through me, an ache, deep and unnameable, winding through my body… my… my cunt. Every nerve in me felt awake, attuned to the low, intimate pulse of his voice as it wrapped around me, consuming me, until I felt I might shatter from the intensity. It was like he was everywhere, inside and out, a low, euphoric rhythm filling my mind, tugging me deeper.
And I wanted it. Oh God, I wanted it. His presence swelled around me, flooding my senses with each whispered thought, pulling me into something that felt as close as touch, as intense as hunger.
“Feel me,” he breathed, his voice a low, sickly-sweet whisper that slipped over me like silk. “You are mine. My vile little thing… my beautiful pet.”
The words sank into me, each one a soft, languorous thrill that ignited my skin. It was as if his thoughts were stroking every part of me, tracing over my mind in slow, deliberate strokes, each one a caress that left me breathless, aching.
And then, as his presence wrapped tighter, something deep within me gave way—a pulse of euphoria that twisted through my mind, leaving me bare, open, filled with him.
I felt a hotness within my abdomen… my eyes widened realizing what it was… I wanted to cum. Whatever he was doing to me was building up my orgasm.
I felt my mind melt into his, dissolving into something both terrifying and beautiful, an endless, shared intimacy that threatened to drown me completely.
In the dark, he was everywhere, and I wanted to sink, to let go, to lose myself in the dark promise of his voice.
“Mine,” he murmured, the word soft, possessive. “Forever.”
But just as I felt myself slipping, surrendering completely, the lights blazed back on.
The backup generator kicked in, humming to life, and I gasped, stumbling backward, the cold glass no longer beneath my hand. I blinked, the light piercing, my heart racing with the remnants of his presence, his words still echoing, dark and sweet, in my mind.
“Lila, are you alright?” he asked, his eyes filled with concern.
I looked at him, struggling to shake off the fog that clung to me, the remnants of that voice still echoing in my mind. “I… I think so,” I managed, though my voice sounded weak, uncertain. “What… what happened?”
Mira’s voice crackled over the intercom again, sounding both relieved and panicked. “It looks like we collided with… something. We can’t get a clear reading, but it’s strong enough to shift the sub’s position.”
Did… did I just get mine fucked? By… by a sea creature?
I swallowed, glancing back at the tank. The creature lay motionless, exactly where he’d been before the lights went out. But I couldn’t shake the feeling that he’d been closer, that his voice had been real, wrapping around me in the dark.
Adrian rubbed his temples, muttering under his breath. “Something this deep shouldn’t be powerful enough to knock us off course like that. Unless…” He trailed off, glancing at me with a look that mirrored my own fear.
Unless something was influencing it. Something far beyond our understanding.
Dr. Graves entered the lab, his face a mix of irritation and excitement. “Is everyone alright?” he asked, barely waiting for an answer before moving to inspect the equipment. “Good. Now, enough with the interruptions. We have work to do.”
“Dr. Graves, there’s something out there,” I said, my voice edged with desperation. “The ocean’s unstable, and if we continue, we’re risking everyone on board.”
He turned to me, his gaze cold and dismissive. “You are a scientist, Dr. Monroe. I expect you to behave like one. We’re here to study, to make discoveries, not to cower at every little bump in the night.”
“But—” I began, but he cut me off with a sharp glare.
“We’re moving forward. Whatever’s out there is irrelevant. Now, either you can be part of this discovery, or you can stay behind. The choice is yours.”
I clenched my jaw, the familiar bitterness of helplessness rising within me. I wanted to argue, to make him see reason, but I knew it was pointless. Graves was relentless, his ambition blinding him to the dangers all around us.
As he left, I glanced back at the tank, my heart pounding with a mixture of fear and… something darker. I could still feel the echo of his words, his voice a lingering presence in my mind.
You are mine.
A shiver ran down my spine, and I forced myself to look away, trying to shake off the feeling. But as I turned, I knew one thing for certain.
This wasn’t over. And whatever this creature was, whatever he wanted… who he wanted….he wouldn’t stop until he had it.
The worst part of everything is I think this creature just mind fucked me.