Captain

The captain’s mother decided to prepare her son for a watery death. She took the boy to the seaside and held his head underwater. The captain screamed and thrashed, for the Mer people mocked him. They said you’re a Man O’ War: a floating bag of gas. But then the captain fell in love with the Mer king. One day when his mother held him under, he made to kiss the king. The king accepted his kiss by filling the boy’s lungs with water. Then he approached the mother and said, “I will be your captain.” “I accept,” she said.

From Guest Contributor Jeremy Nathan Marks