Minutes later, you and Pearl emerged into her realm. You were finally able to rip the gag out of your mouth as you gasped for air and coughed up water. You were soaking wet and shivering from the cold, but Pearl was perfectly fine. "Home sweet home," she said.
Pearl's home looked like a two-story penthouse apartment built inside of an aquarium. The walls, floor and ceiling were made out of a light purple coral, and the huge windows outside gave view to the vastness of the ocean. Colorful fish and other forms of aquatic life you never knew existed swam by. The lamps gave off sea-green light. The place was decorated with sea shells and maritime equipment, it even had some clams and anemones. A luxurious hot tub was in her living room, bubbling away before a large, flatscreen tv.
"Not bad, eh, my little sacrifice?" she asked.
"It--It's really quite lovely," you choked out, not wanting to offend the behemoth who held you between her two fingers. "You have impeccable taste... ma'am?" you said, not quite sure how to address a literal goddess.
Pearl smiled at that all the same. She walked over to her hot tub and suspended you over a pink anemone. She dropped you into it, and immediately the wiggling tentacle bits wrapped around you, leaving only your head free. They tingled uncomfortably. Pearl winked at you then disrobed, revealing the black bikini she wore underneath her toga. She lowered herself into the bubbling water. She reached over to a nearby bottle of red wine and poured herself a glass.
She sipped at her glass and let out a contented sigh afterwards. "This is the life," she said. "Did you know this hot tub is heated by an underwater volcano?"
"Fascinating," you said. "Um, listen... ma'am," you said, not quite knowing how to address a literal goddess, "there's been a big misunderstanding. I never agreed to be sacrificed. So if you could just let me go, I'd be really grateful! You can even enslave my old village for lying to you, if you'd like!"
Pearl chuckled, "Oh, aren't you precious? No one chooses to be sacrificed, my scrumptious friend. At least, most don't. And I won't lie. If any of the volunteers knew what some of us goddesses did to them, they'd probably withdraw that offer instantly."
You gulped. "Um... Wh--What do you do to them?"
"Me?" Pearl said. "Oh nothing yet! I just got promoted to this gig, wasn't authorized to have a sacrifice bequeathed to me before. You're my first. Aren't you the lucky one?" she said, wiggling her eyebrows suggestively.
You laughed, more in fear than amusement. "YEP!" you choked out. "Lucky, lucky! Honestly though, I feel like I'm not... um--worthy! Of the honor! If you'd like to put me back I'd completely understand!"
Pearl rolled her eyes and snapped her fingers. You yelped as the anemone gave you an unpleasant shock.
"Please give up thoughts of escape, dear. That will grow tiring quickly, and I'm afraid I'll have to punish you if you annoy me. Don't worry though, in my realm you're unable to die unless I allow it. So you'll be able to survive even the most excruciating of torments." She said this last part like it was seriously a great comfort to you. "Which is lucky, because I have big plans for you."
"What?!" you blurted out. "What plans?!"
She eyed you, smiling.
"Well, my little sacrifice, it was very important that I retrieved a mortal soul. I need you for a very important purpose. I need you as a...