Gillian

Ten years later, now in his mid- 50’s, Sea Trident found himself on the same beach as that day. He had no idea of what had brought him there, so early in the morning. This was a Sunday; the one day he did not fish.

As he stood there, staring at his boat, he thought back to that fateful day; the day the fish scales appeared. They served no real purpose, other than to make the other fisher ponies on the docks talk. He used to smile and wave them off but each time they teased him, he felt sad and lonely. He started wearing long sleeve shirts, even in the heat of summer, just to cover the arms. His unicorn doctors were mystified as to their presence and nothing they tried would make them go away. By now, Sea Trident had finally learned to live with them and did not bother to cover his fore legs.

In fact, at that moment, he wore no shirt at all. No shirt, no shoes... nothing at all as he walked with a purpose down to the beach; not even his normal fishing boots which he used to put on habitually as he left his home.

Cora watched from offshore as the fisher pony walked down to the shoreline. Her magic was not as strong where he lived, upon the top of the slope. She had to rest for a long time to gain enough magic for her song to reach him, but even then, it was only a feeling; not the compulsion it was supposed to be. The closer he got to the water, the stronger her song became.

Cora hated to use the Siren’s Song on this pony but he had shown a good heart, even for being a fisher pony. She would watch as he only ever took the really big fish and threw all the little ones back in.

She knew that he lived alone, practically shunned by the fish scales on his fore legs, as was their intended purpose. He was considered old by the ponies but to her, he was practically a foal. That was the reason why she had not taken him when she first saved him. Cora knew she could wait a little longer for him; there was no rush. She made sure that he’d only scrape by a living on the fishing boat, and thus give him more reason to stay with her.

“He’ll want to stay after I'm finished with him,” Cora said quietly to herself; then she sang louder than ever, directing her voice to the pony now belly-deep in the ocean.

Before Sea Trident could stop himself, he was in belly-deep water, standing there just waiting. But waiting for what? He had no idea what was to come. He just knew that he had been “called” to the ocean and he must not ignore it because it would mean something new and wonderful.

Cora waited until he was in belly-deep water and swam up to him. Her magic was still weak and he seemed to be completely aware of what was going on. He looked right at her, with the look she had seen on many stallions long before him. They were all the same; they did not accept the changes and they drowned themselves before she was finished. Cora hoped that this one would be different.... she hoped that he’d be the one for her.

Cora worked quickly with her magic, her unicorn horn glowing like a full moon, swimming around Sea Trident swiftly enough to form a whirlpool around him. Her magic kept the pool going when she stopped swimming; then her magic descended upon Sea Trident.

Sea Trident’s fur fused with his skin, transforming his hind legs into one smooth and powerful tail of multi-toned blues. Large, translucent fins appeared at his hips and his whole body sunk into the water. Air bubbles poured gently from his mouth as the weight of the tail dropped him further, into deeper water. He marveled as the pony years melted away from his torso, hooves and arms. Feeling his face, he knew he looked like his 20-year old self again; his hair thickened and grew very long in length. Actual gills appeared behind his ears, not quite hidden by the mane.

The sensations he felt, when the change was complete, were amazing. He could see & hear further underwater than ever before. As he breathed in the water, he could taste the salt on his tongue and it was pleasant rather than bitter or strong.

With the transformation complete, Sea Trident experimented with his new tail and found it easy to control, with some practice of course. He marveled at the speed he could swim, how far he could breach on the surface; he loved the coloration of his tail and the youthfulness he felt; he was no longer gasping for breath, even when on the surface breathing air.

Cora watched Sea Trident swim and explore from a large growth of kelp near the shore. He seemed so happy and accepting with the transformation, Cora had great hope for Sea Trident to stay with her. She knew that once she told him of the side affect, he might not want to stay all of the time but since he was born land pony, he had to retain some of that despite her magic.