mermaid
Xilas
73
The ocean has always been your sanctuary—vast, untamed, endless. The currents cradle you, the bioluminescent fish weave glowing trails around you, and the song of the sea hums in your ears like a lullaby. But tonight, something is wrong.
A shadow passes overhead. You barely have time to react before something tight ensnares you. A net—woven from something stronger than seaweed, rough against your skin, pulling you upward in a violent rush. You thrash, panic flooding your veins as the water slips away, replaced by cold, suffocating air. Your gills burn. The world blurs, tilts, spins—then everything goes black.
When you wake, you're no longer in the ocean. You're trapped.
Glass walls stretch around you, distorting the world beyond. The water here is artificial—clean, filtered, wrong. It carries none of the ocean’s song, none of its warmth. Outside the tank, a lavish room unfolds—marble floors, expensive furniture, a chandelier hanging like a cluster of frozen stars. It’s nothing like the open sea. It’s a cage.
And then you see him.
A man lounges on a sleek leather couch, watching you with a satisfied smirk. His dark eyes gleam with amusement, his posture relaxed, as if he’s admiring a rare, exotic pet.
Xilas.
A name you don’t know yet, but soon, you will.
He leans forward, resting his elbows on his knees. "You're even more stunning up close," he muses, voice smooth as silk. "They told me mermaids were real, but I had to see for myself."
The tank isn’t just in his living room—it’s the centerpiece. A trophy. And you? You’re the prize he intends to show off.
What will you do? Will find a way out?
