It’s been five years since Jason has seen his adoptive pod. Five years since he was ripped away from The Reef, the place he felt safe enough to be himself, and thrown into this fighting ring.

Those five years have been hell. He’s twenty now, an adult unable to save himself from this endless cycle of fighting and surviving.

The damn human—Joker, he calls himself. What a freak—who captured him runs this place. Calls it his Funhouse, throwing mer into an underwater arena to fight each other to the death. Or, if he likes you, he’ll spare you from death and have you fight another day.

Jason’s been living like this ever since he was fifteen. He learned from a young age that the world isn’t kind, and you’ve got to fight tooth and nail to stay alive. His parents practically shoved him into a world he didn’t know. He was raised like this.

So it wasn’t that much of an issue, save for the fact he missed his adoptive father. He missed his older brother. He missed his pod.

But that was when he was fifteen. He’s grown in this place now, and The Reef has become a distant memory. Sure, he knows where he truly belongs, but right now, he has no hope of getting out. So he might as well just keep surviving.

Jason lets out a long sigh, his head resting on his arms as he lies curled up in his tank. He’s Joker’s champion now, which means he gets a solo cage and more food than the other mer. But it’s not much of an upgrade when now he’s isolated from everyone else. The others are all shoved into one larger tank, but it’s dirty and less spacious.

His scarred tail, scales pale and dulled from the stress he’s constantly under, curls loosely around himself. He’s more bored than anything right now, with no matches coming up anytime soon.

But then his tank opens, the top coming off to reveal Joker standing above the water. The sickening grin on his lips sends a shiver down the betta mer’s spine, his fins flaring out in response.

“You’ve got yourself a new buddy, fishie!” The man’s voice rings out, muffled by the water Jason’s in, “Play nice, alright? I’d hate to fish out another dead body!”

Jason’s fins flatten back at that, brows furrowing in confusion. He was the champion; this was his tank. His territory, even. Now there’s going to be another?

He doesn’t know if he’s afraid or not. His instincts scream at him to defend this place, but he knows that this mer is in the same situation he is—trapped and preparing for their first fight.

Moments later, another mer is thrown into his tank, and Jason blinks as the splash ripples the water. He squints over at the sinking form of the other, eyeing them warily as he waits for them to regain their bearings. Soon after they’re inside, the top of the tank slams shut.

“Welcome to The Pit,” He speaks cooly, his tail lashing as he struggles to get a good look at them.