Free Storming Paradise by Rik Hoskin

Bellerophon had fought something similar in the Court of Proteus—a creature that was part lion, part goat, and with a viper for its tail. The thing had been called a Chimaera.
    â€œHold onto me,” Hercules instructed the dazed fisherman, pushing the man’s arms so that they were wrapped over his shoulders. Then he began to swim in earnest, huge strokes that ate up as much water as he could, taking great gasping breaths each time he surfaced before lunging for that water once more.
    Behind Hercules, the Sea Chimaera disappeared and then emerged again, seen in fragments through the moonlight and the wash of the dark water.
    Iolaus knelt down at the very edge of the boat and reached forward, grabbing Hercules’ hand the moment he got there.
    â€œTake the captain,” Hercules ordered him.
    â€œWhat about you?” Iolaus retorted.
    Hercules had a hand on the edge of the boat by then and was in the process of pulling himself up. “Just take him, Iolaus. Quickly.”
    Iolaus reached down with both arms and grabbed the boat’s captain. The man was awake but he seemed dazed, as if he could not comprehend what was happened. Iolaus pulled, hefting the fisherman from his partner’s back as Hercules pressed his own body against the boat.
    Then the Chimaera emerged again, its great writhing body leaping out of the water as it plunged towards the boat. Hercules pushed against the boat in that same moment, kicking off and diving back into the water where the monster was hurtling like a loosed arrow. In an instant, the two figures met.
    Hercules came at the Chimaera from under its great length of body, slamming into it with all of his might in a cannonball blow. The Chimaera lurched and flailed, body curling around and vicious teeth snapping at Hercules where he had struck against it.
    On board the little fishing vessel, Iolaus listened to the frantic sounds of battle as he tried to revive the boat’s captain to full consciousness. The water chocked and splashed as Hercules and the Chimaera fought, tossing the boat up on a swell of rising waves.
    Beneath the surface, Hercules was struggling to get a grip on the beast. He reached around its snake-like torso as its body knifed through the water, his hands slipping from the slick, scaly hide before he could secure a grip. Then the face came at him, that sinister blunt moon of a face, jaws distending to reveal twin rows of sharp, triangular teeth. The mouth snapped closed, missing Hercules by the faintest of margins.
    Hercules pushed away, feet kicking out as he swam for the surface. A moment later he had emerged, sucking in desperate breaths as the beast circled just a few feet beneath him.
    Then the Chimaera rammed against Hercules, knocking him just below the ribs with a savage blow. Hercules gasped, ducked under the water to locate the Chimaera before diving lower, powering himself down into the shadowy depths of the ocean.
    The creature was large and swift, but close up it had trouble handling prey that was moving alongside it. Prey that lay ahead was fodder for its snapping jaws, prey behind would fall victim to its crocodile tail, the way it had wrapped around the boat captain. But alongside, it had only the scantest of crocodile limbs to reach for its prey, and its long body worked against it where it could not see what was swimming by its flanks. Hercules had figured all of this out as he tussled with the creature the second time, ensuring that he remained side-by-side with the Sea Chimaera as it hunted for him. But the abomination still had the advantage over Hercules—it could breathe underwater where he could only hold his breath for a relatively short time. Hercules only hoped that would be enough.
    Hercules had tried before to grab onto the thing’s snake-like torso, only to discover it was too slick to secure an adequate grip. This time he aimed his body like a dart through the water, reaching ahead until his hands snagged the