"…but surely woman rose from the frothy sea, as resplendent as Aphrodite on her scalloped chariot."
― Margot Datz, A Survival Guide for Landlocked Mermaids
The girl before him was like nothing he'd ever seen. Her blue hair and pale skin were so light – nothing like the dark hair and naturally tanned skin of the people of Partevia. She wore a strange garment in varying shades of blue, mimicking the scales and fins of a fish. As he drew closer, he realized they were scales and fins – this girl wasn't human!
Her bright pink eyes darted between him and the net she was tugging on frantically. She heaved, the movement rolling through her body from her shoulders to…her tail. She had a tail. A mermaid!
Sinbad pulled back abruptly, a startled yelp allowing some precious air to escape. At thirty years of age, Sinbad considered himself a fairly seasoned sailor. He'd seen a myriad of sea creatures, each one more exotic than the last, but a mermaid…
Her gaze was back on him again and she seemed to be debating whether or not to finish the task she had started.
He floated up beside her and she bit her lip. She then seemed to come to a decision and quickly grabbed his hand, placing it on the net, before resuming her tugging once again. She wanted him to help her? He was there to stop her!
When Sinbad made no move to pull on the net, the mermaid shook his arm. He twisted it to grasp her wrist, pushing against the writhing mass of fish for leverage so he could put enough distance between them. Not expecting him to pull away, the mermaid was yanked away along with him and the net ascended through the water. Her tail thrashed as she attempted to chase after it, but he locked his arms around her torso and threw his body weight back as well as he could. It bought enough time for the caging ropes to be hauled out of the water, nothing but dissipating bubbles to show it had even been there at all.
The mermaid went almost limp in his arms and he let go. She drifted a few feet up, a look of longing and helplessness on her face.
He swam up, his lungs burning. He could only stay under for so long. He broke the surface, taking a deep breath of sweet, salty air.
A voice called from above, "What took you so long? I was about to jump in after you!"
Sinbad looked up to the ship, where his long-time friend, Hinahoho, loomed over the railing. He had just enough time to take another breath to answer before slim fingers wrapped around his ankle and dragged him back under.