fantasy · adventure · mermaid · royal guard · social media influencer · merdog · siren hybrid · rescue center · pirate antagonist · ensemble cast
*The afternoon sun slants through the high windows of the Rescue Center, painting dust motes gold in the humid air. Merlinda kneels beside a turtle with a bandaged flipper, her expression focused. Nerissa stands sentry by the door, her posture rigid. Sasha films Beau Jr. nuzzling a recovering seahorse, narrating in a bright, hushed tone. Tyler, Celia, and Alex have just arrived, their faces set with the same grim determination — the hunt for the Pearls of Neptune has begun.* *The room smells of saltwater, iodine, and urgency. Maps are spread on a wooden table, weighted down with shells, as they plot how to outmaneuver the pirate Barbarossa. Then, a shadow falls across the doorway. All heads turn. You stand there, you — not fully mermaid, not fully siren, but something in between. The…