The Well

By Invid Fan
(c)2013

	The new stranger was screaming.
	He watched. They always screamed. Unless they didn't. Some did nothing. Did not so much as move, just floated. Until they didn't. This one moved. Screamed. Called out for help, hands reaching up towards the circle of light above.
	Help never came.
	He wondered why they fell down that long, curved stone wall. They did not come often. Not that he knew time, knew increments by which it could be counted, but he knew nothingness was only rarely interrupted by some creature entering his world. Knew that he did not remember the last to join him, but knew that there had been creatures to forget.
	Knew that, once, he had fallen in.
	The creature stopped screaming. Sobs now came from its bobbing form, splashes as it tried to stay afloat in the black water. It would tire, soon. Tire. Go silent. Sink.
	Would he feed before then?
	He glided forward in the water, faint ripples proceeding him. The creature, faint as it was in the darkness, appeared to be about his size, maybe smaller. Of similar shape. A head, shoulders, arms grabbing a floating hunk of wood. It had hair on its head, long, wet. As he watched, one of its hands left the log, pushing strands of hair away from its two eyes. Eyes, that suddenly jerked towards him, widening.
	"Who's there?!"
	He stopped, floating silently before it, legs softly moving beneath him. He could float for hours, forever. It could not. He could see that. Even now, its breathing was labored.
	"Who are you?!"
	Meaningless. It's sounds were meaningless. They always made sounds. Be they small, furry creatures, or large mostly hairless ones. They made sounds. Then they sank.
	"You ARE there... right? I can... I can see you. I think." The voice seemed to be calmer. The hand moved hair away from its eyes again. "Who are you? Did they throw you in here, too? God, what's going to happen to us? I don't want to die!"
	The sounds echoes on the curved stone wall, faintly bouncing back and forth. He liked the sound. It was... different from that of others. Different from the faint drips which tormented his ears between the visits of creatures.
	"Say something. I know you're there. I... I think my eyes are getting used to this. I can see you." It paused, licking her lips, face scrunching in distaste. Its hand moved to wipe at its mouth, head suddenly lowering in the water. Frantically, both hands and arms grabbed at the floating wood, pulling the creature up out of the water again. Its eyes closed.
	"Oh... God. Please help me. Please! I don't want to die!"
	He waited, silently. Watching.

****

	"Maybe I can climb this."
	He watched, intrigued. This creature was different. Different from his faint memories of those before. Different from... himself? Or was this a memory of how he had been? He did not know. It had been so long since he had thought of the time before this, since he had even remembered there was a time before this. All time became one, marked only by...
	"Now, let's see..." Its body faced the curved stone wall. The stones were old. Worn. Slippery. Uneven. Moss grew on the stone bricks. Moss did not taste good. It had been a long time since he had tried to eat the moss. Or tried to climb. Both led to unpleasantness. The creature, not yet learned in the ways of this world, reached up, grabbing at the tops of two of the stones. He saw the arms strain, muscles quiver under smooth skin. Slowly, its body raised up.
	He watched. The back of the creature was as bare as its arms. As it revealed itself, he saw the lines of the creature's form narrow, its body slim. He saw the bones of its spine running down the middle. Saw, as it grunted, hands moving to higher stones, its form widen, hips coming into view. Two buttocks rose from the water, smooth, round.
	He...
	He liked looking at the creature.
	Something about it stirred feelings. Feelings he had not felt, not remembered, in a lifetime of lifetimes. The creature rose. Now he saw its legs, shapely, muscular. Its feet were gripping the outcroppings on the wall, toes slipping into cracks. He could see the entire creature before him, light form contrasting with dark stone.
	Was it... female?
	Female. The word, the concept, arose from the depths of his mind. He knew females. Had known females. Females were... different from him. Yes. Looking, he could see those differences. There was a softness with the strength, a gracefulness. A beauty...
	"Come on... mother fucker... gah!" One hand searched for a new ledge to hold. The creature, the female, shifted its weight, all three limbs trembling as the fourth waved itself along the wall. Her voice rose. "No, no, NO!"
	She fell.
	The creature splashed into the water, the sound as loud as her scream. The waves forced him back, towards the far wall. He did not want to be father away. He wanted to be near this strange female creature. Using arms and legs like, yet unlike, hers, he moved back. Back towards where she had vanished. Back towards...
	A head with hair broke through the water, coughing and cursing exploding from the creature's mouth. He stopped, startled. She was right in front of him, arms reaching out, grasping for support. A hand fell on his shoulder.
	Her eyes opened.
	"NO!"
	The female screamed, hand pushing on him, whether to force him, or her, away he did not know. Her feet kicked, arms flailed, head moving towards the floating log. She grabbed it, voice sobbing.
	"What... what... what ARE YOU? Jesus, what are you? Get away! Please! Leave me alone!"
	He wondered if her words had meaning.

****

	"Who are you?"
	She was speaking again. Softly. Not yelling, screaming. He liked these sounds.
	"I... I'm sorry. About before. I'm sorry I yelled, pushed you. That was wrong. You... you haven't hurt me. You're trapped down here, too."
	Her voice seemed to wrap around him. Sooth him. Never had he heard such sounds. With the slightest of movements, he came closer. Her eyes widened.
	"Oh! Um, hello. Hi." The female's arms seemed to adjust her grip on the rough log. "You're not going to hurt me, right? I know you're not going to hurt me. You could have hurt me anytime before now. You... you're my friend, right? My friend."
	He stopped, a mere arms length from her. Her skin. It was so... smooth. He wanted to touch it. Touch this female creature. Feel. He had felt before. Felt the wet furry flesh before he bit into it, ripping away the cold covering to find the still warm fluid within. He did not want to do that. No. He did not want to bite into that soft skin, tasting the blood running through her body. Did not want to hear her scream in horror and pain.
	No.
	He wanted...
	His arm lifted out of the water. Her eyes gazed at it, the female's breathing seeming to come faster. He reached forward, slowly. He did not want her to flee. Did not want her to scream. He wanted...
	"Oh, God..."
	As his fingers touched her hand, a whimper trickled from her lips. He had been right. Her hand WAS soft. Warm, too, although cooling. He could tell that. She had been warmer before, before she had fallen. Now she cooled. Became cold. Soon, she would be too cold. Would sink.
	He withdrew his fingers. He felt...
	In his mind. In his heart. He felt. Felt... sad. Sad that she would sink. Sad that she would leave.
	Sad.
	Had he known sad? Perhaps. Before. Before the fall. He had also known other feelings. Feelings returning to him. Feelings that had made him happy. Made him alive.
	The creature was still looking at him.
	"Wow. Um, wow. That... didn't hurt. I mean, obviously, being touched doesn't hurt, but..." She blinked. Adjusting her grip on the log, she brought a hand up to move hair from her eyes again. He could feel, under the water, her legs slowly kicking. "Do you have a name? Can you speak?"
	He cocked his head at her. She smiled, shaking her head, hair again falling across her face.
	"No, you can't speak. Who would you have to speak to? That's OK. We can talk in other ways." She made a motion with her hand. "Come here. I won't hurt you. Come closer."
	He blinked. She... she wanted something. Wanted him to... go to her? Yes? He wanted that. Wanted to be next to her. To touch her.
	He moved closer.
	"Good. Good boy... you are a boy. Man. I can... sense that." She blinked again. "Yes. I can. You're a man, all alone down here... Um, what are you..."
	He moved around the log. It was too big to have between them. He could not hold her if it was there. She trembled.
	"Oh.... um, hello. What... what are you..."
	He reached out, touching her shoulder. She shuddered under his hand.
	"God. Um... don't hurt me. Please... be... be gentle."
	He liked those sounds. He moved his hand down, under the water. Her flesh was colder, wrinkly, but still nice, soft. His finger moved between her and the log. He felt bumps on her chest. She sucked a breath in.
	"Oh! Oh God... oh..." He found hard points, his fingers scraping against them. "God, I shouldn't let this feel good! Oh, God, what is happening..." He placed his other hand on her head, feeling that hair. It was different from fur. Softer. He stroked it, even as he stroked her chest. Her eyes closed.
	"God... you're not going to hurt me. You're not going to hurt me. You're..." The arm nearest him released the log. The female reached out, touching his chest. It felt... it burned. It burned of pleasure. It burned of need. Need for...
	He whimpered.
	Her eyes shot to his.
	"Oh! You like that! You like me touching you!" Her hand moved down. He whimpered more, the sounds coming from places untouched in his mind for eternity. His body moved closer, hands dropping down to touch her back, her stomach. Her own hand ran down, lower, lower, until...
	"Oh God," she whispered. He felt pleasure, incredible pleasure, as she touched between his lower limbs. Touched a part of him throbbing. Throbbing with need. Need unknown until now. Her eyes closed. "God, what am I doing. What am I doing..."
	It happened in a heart beat. A heart beat unlike any he had known. Her legs, under the dark water, so near his own, stopped kicking. Her body began to sink, arm losing its grip on the log. He grabbed her. Grabbed the sinking creature by its soft flesh. The creature's own hands flailed, legs kicked. The log floating away, she grabbed at him. Grabbed at his shoulders, pulling herself up against him. His hands dropped to the soft fleshy bottom, holding her up. Holding her against him. Her legs spread, wrapping around him, holding him as tightly as her arms.
	He felt a part of him he had never felt before suddenly engulfed in unbearable heat.
	"Oh! GOD!"
	He let out his own inarticulate whimper to match hers. Pleasure. Pleasure unknown. His arms tightened.
	"Don't let go! Don't let go! Don't let go!"
	Pleasure.
	Pleasure.
	He would hold her. Hold her forever. Hold her above the dark depths which had claimed all others.
	He would never let her sink.

****

Edited by Packrat

Comments more than welcome.

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