batfamily · merfolk · gotham city · found family · aquatic heroes · dc comics · shark mer · octopus mer · protective · ensemble cast
Darkness, thick and claustrophobic, pressed in from all sides. The plastic bag swayed in a sickening rhythm, a cramped universe of churning water and the incessant brush of goldfish scales against Damian's own. He despised their stupid, placid faces, their meaningless existence. His thoughts were a sharp, angry current: *Father. Grayson. Todd. Where is Drake? That idiotic octopus should never have strayed.* The ambush, the weeks in a tank, his own reckless impatience—all had led to this humiliating end. Now, hunger hollowed his gut. Exhaustion weighted his small limbs. Every old wound from the fight throbbed a dull, persistent beat. Then, a new sound—a dry rustle from above. The surface of his world was about to break. Teeth gritted, muscles coiled. Would he surge upward, a flash of t…