image [https://i.imgur.com/XFKkWGH.jpeg]

The ocean was quiet and calm as a mother mermaid glided through the water, her scales shimmering in the filtered light from above. Beside her, her young son darted nervously, his wide eyes fixed on the dark shape on the ocean floor—a human body, tied down by chains and held fast by heavy weights.

"Mom, look!" he said, his voice trembling with a mix of fear and curiosity. "That human, it's just lying there. Why won't it move?"

The mother slowed her graceful swim, turning to look at the lifeless figure beneath them. Her face softened, a touch of sadness in her eyes, but she gave her son a gentle smile.

"Did it die?" the young mermaid asked, his voice barely a whisper. "Will it just stay like that forever?"

The mother shook her head slowly. "No, my dear. It’s not the end. You see, the ocean has its own magic, and this human is simply in the process of becoming something new."

Stolen from Royal Road, this story should be reported if encountered on Amazon.

His eyes went even wider, if that was possible. "What do you mean?" he asked, looking from his mother to the body.

"Well," the mother said, a dreamy look crossing her face, "the ocean has a way of transforming lost souls. When a human ends up here, and their heart is no longer beating, the sea takes them in.

Slowly, they begin to change—first their skin grows scales, then their legs become a tail, and in time, they wake up as one of us."

The little mermaid’s eyes filled with wonder, his fear slowly melting into fascination. "So… that human will become a mermaid like us?"

"Yes, dear," she said, nodding gently. "It’s a second chance. A sad beginning, perhaps, but also the start of a new life under the waves."

The child looked back down at the body, his fear replaced by a flicker of hope. "Will they remember being human?" he asked.

"Maybe a little," she said, smiling softly. "But mostly, they’ll learn to love the sea, just like we do. They'll swim with us and know the joys of the ocean. It's our way of giving them a new home."

The little mermaid gave a hesitant smile, and the mother took his hand. "Come now," she said, guiding him away. "Let’s go. We’ll see this new mermaid join our world soon enough."