Prologue: 8 Years Ago
The boat came to a stop in the lower New York Bay. A man blew a whistle to get the attention of the criminals in orange jumpsuits.
"Listen up," he shouted. "You'll be using these nets to scoop up the trash that fell into the water on the way to the dump. Separate any recyclables into the blue bins. If you-" he glared at the two troublemakers horsing around and ignoring his instructions. "Zeck! Rocksteed!"
Anton Zeck and Owen Rocksteed laughed as they straightened up at attention. They still acted like middle school boys instead of men in their late twenties. They'd been friends for years and had been in and out of jail together since they were eighteen. They had no idea of the trouble the future would hold for them. They would be recruited by the Foot Clan and transfigured into a mutant warthog and rhinoceros, but that was years away. The two men joined the other inmates, collected their nets, and scooped out the garbage. They followed instructions for a solid half hour before they got bored and started sword fighting with their nets. A whistle blew again.
"Zeck! Rocksteed!"
The men ignored the shouts as they stood on two bins and continued their battle. Suddenly a larger wave rocked the boat, and the two men fell overboard. Neither could swim, and - to make matters worse - they hadn't heard the instructions about life vests when they were horsing around earlier.
"Man overboard!" Life preservers were thrown to them, but the men struggled to stay afloat long enough to grab them. Another few waves smacked their faces causing them to gasp for air. The struggle to stay afloat failed, and the men disappeared beneath the waves. They sank lower and lower, falling in and out of consciousness. They heard distant, ethereal singing. Surely these were angels coming to escort them to the afterlife.
Suddenly, they felt a tug on each arm. They opened their eyes and saw four 7-year-old girls pulling them toward the surface. This wasn't possible! Mermaids weren't real! Yet the surface was getting closer and closer as these green, finned little girls pulled them upwards. Anton and Owen kicked their feet to assist in the ascent. Inches below the surface, the girls gave one final push, and the men launched above the waves and in arm's reach of the life preservers. The above-water rescue would be a blur. Although they never spoke of it again, they would remember the little girls beneath the waves - pondering if any of it were real.
(Author's Note: I looked it up and was surprised to learn our favorite bumbling mutants had human names!)