Cal looked out of his capsule. Today was his day. The day everyone would know how different he was.
One of his older brothers swam by the window, knocking.
"Hurry up", he blubbered. "We are swimming soon." Cal nodded and grabbed his survival backpack. It contained a stolen gas tank from a lone diver his father had eaten. Cal could not breathe well through his gills. He was a halfbreed.
His father, the lord of a part of the Atlantic Ocean at the coast of brazil, was a Great White Fish Man. His mother had been human. Cal's five brothers were normal, "full" Fish Men. They were older than him, stronger, more beautiful, more educated. They were better at everything. They did not need an airfilled capsule to survive in the depths of the sea. Cal also had one little sister, Opheia, and she was a full one, too. She sometimes visited him. But it was always difficult, as she had no lungs.
A loud knock startled Cal. Opheia waved at him and grinned. Cal strapped his backpack and slid into the water. He shivered and cringed as his body changed from lungs to gills and he gulped air and water. He moved his jaw and swam to his sister.
"Come on! Everyone's waitin' for you!", she said in her wavy voice.
"Why, though?", he muttered. "I won't get a partner anyway." He swam closer to Opheia and grabbed her hand. She pulled him fast trough the water, her fins moving quickly and strong. Cal envied them. He only had long, webbed toes, but no fins. His sister had started pulling him when she was three. It was humiliating. But he was too slow and they needed to be at the Ceremony of Tides in time. His brothers were too proud to pull him.
"Cal. Good. Let's swim. We are on a tight schedule", his father said. "Opheia, help him."
"Yes, father."
The other five lords were already waiting at the Ceremony. Their offsprings were with them, lined up. Cal felt uneasy. They were clearly way more of a Fish Man he would ever be. His gills filled with seaweed and he choked. He quickly pulled out his gas tank and took a deep breath. It felt like admitting being different.
"We have gathered here at the Place of Tides to fulfill our duty as Guardians and Protectors of the Seas", said the oldest member of the Inner Ring. "We have looked after the Seas for as long as we can remember, and the Ceremony of Tides was born with us. Our descendants shall now continue the tradition and bring forth new generations of Soldiers." The young Fish Men straightened and looked around importantly. "Five Lords. Five Sons. Twentyfive petals of the Goddess of Tides. We shall now begin." The leader swam back and revealed a strange, turquise flower which was glowing mysteriously. It's light pulsated. It bore twentyfive petals, for each descendant one.
They lined up, and the flower was picked up by the elderly leader. He swam to the first Fish Man. He hesistated, then picked a huge deep blue one and placed it carefully in his palm.
"I want to conquer the human world! I want to reclaim what is rightfully ours! I want to make the Kingdom strong again!", he said loudly. Then he dropped the petal. It swayed to the ground. As it touched it, it glowed brightly and a beautiful Fish Woman emerged from the light. She swam to her caller and bowed.
"Calrya, at your service", she said with a tingling voice.
Each of the Fish Men summoned an offspring of the Goddess. Cal swam at the end of the row, treading water and sometimes taking a deep breath from his tank. His brothers each called out a beautiful, strong partner, nothing else had he expected. Now it was Cal's turn. He picked the last remaining petal; it was tiny, light blue but molding at the tip. He took it carefully and opened his hand. It wiggled a little in the current.
"I want to find someone who truly loves me. I want to be of use, to help the Fish Men and the humans. I am both. I want the world to understand that." He dropped the petal. It took some time for it flowing to the ground. His brothers looked amused at him. What could he, the cripple, get? They would not be surprised if nothing happened.
The petal hit the ground. It glowed feebly, then died. Cal's oldest brothet started laughing. But Cal did not hear him. He saw someting and swam to the petal. It had changed. A small, fragile mermaid laid there; she was nothing but bones. Cal picked her up. He heard the murmuring behind him. He had called forth a mermaid. Not a Fish Woman, a mermaid. It was said to be impossible to summon the portrait of the Goddess, who was a mermaid. Yet he had done it.
The mermaid regained consciousness. Cal smiled.
"Hey. Are you all right?", he asked. She nodded weakly. "What's your name?"
"Walahe", she said. "Did it work? Have you summoned me?" Cal nodded. "Good. I knew I had to go... Mother did not want me to leave. She would have sent no one. I forced myself to the Ceremony. You can see the result..." she waved feebly at her bony tail. "But I came. You called me, and I came." Cal hugged her and picked her up.
"You are here." He saw Opheia looking curiously at his spouse, then turned around and smiled at Walahe.