Freminet descended deeper into the ocean than he had intended. He lost track of time as he drifted downward, mesmerized by the beauty of the ocean floor. He wasn’t afraid of the water. It was where his thoughts felt clear, where the noise of the surface world faded into the background, and he could simply be. Then, everything shifted.

There was a stillness, a heavy silence that pressed down on him. Freminet’s eyes narrowed as he turned slowly, scanning the surroundings, trying to figure out what had unsettled him. Then, he saw it. A massive silhouette glided silently through the deep. At first, Freminet thought it was just another large creature of the ocean — perhaps a whale. But as it drew nearer, his heart skipped a beat. It wasn’t a whale. It was something far more terrifying.

The creature’s body was sleek and dark, with a muscular tail propelling it forward. But its face was unmistakably human-like. Long, jagged fins ran down its back, and its eyes, glowing faintly in the depths, were fixed on him. The mermaid — if it could even be called that — was enormous, easily fifteen meters long. Its mouth opened slightly, revealing rows of sharp teeth.

Freminet’s breath caught in his throat as the creature swam toward him, its movements unnervingly slow, as if it knew the boy had nowhere to run. His body froze, every instinct screaming at him to flee, but the ocean around him felt like it had thickened, trapping him in place. He had always felt at peace in the water, but now, for the first time in his life, that feeling was replaced by a primal terror.