Neria’s legs took everyone by surprise, especially Neria herself.
Never in her nineteen years of life had she seen a Calypso with legs. If this hadn’t happened to her, she would have dismissed it as another ridiculous tale the landwalkers told one another.
The limbs looked strange. Honey-brown and smooth, ending in ten tiny toes that looked almost too delicate to belong to her.
She tried to lift one, but nothing happened.
It wasn’t like moving a tail — there was no instinct behind it. Her body simply refused to obey. Frowning, she rubbed a hand over one of her legs. The skin was warm beneath her palm, softer than she expected.
Beside the bed, the Grand Duke stood rubbing his temples while the palace physician nervously wrung his hands together. Beads of sweat had gathered along the poor man’s forehead as he did his best to avoid both Darian’s impatient stare and the Emperor’s amused one.
"I don’t know anything about mermaids, Your Grace," the physician admitted, his eyes flickering toward Neria before quickly dropping again. "I have never treated one."
Darian let out a slow breath, still massaging his temples as though fighting off a headache.
"Not even texts on their anatomy?"
"There are very few," the physician replied apologetically. "And the ones that do exist were written by hunters."
He hesitated. "Hunters aren’t the best scholars."
Of course there weren’t. Hunters were all brawn, no brains.
A low, amused chuckle escaped Erik, drawing Neria’s attention.
The Emperor sat comfortably upon a divan not far from the bed, one ankle resting over his opposite knee, his arms folded lazily across his chest. He looked perfectly at ease, as though he hadn’t electrocuted her only moments ago.
"A Calypso with legs..." he mused, a smile tugging at the corner of his lips. "Now this is exciting."
Something about the way he said it made Neria’s stomach churn.
She watched him rise with unhurried elegance, his eyes never leaving her. They swept over her new legs with open fascination, lingering just long enough to make her want to hide them beneath the blanket.
"This raises so many questions," he murmured as he strolled toward the bed. "Questions that no scholar has ever had the opportunity to answer."
Before he could get any closer, Darian shifted.
It wasn’t much — a single step, just enough to place himself between Erik and the bed.
The Emperor’s brow arched.
"Now, now, nephew," he said with a light laugh. "There’s no need to look so tense."
His smile widened.
"Your pet has suddenly become one of the most valuable academic discoveries in the empire."
His gaze drifted around Darian’s shoulder, settling on Neria once more.
"I wonder..." he said thoughtfully. "If I were to remove one of those legs... would the tail return?"
Neria paled for a moment at his words.
Then he laughed.
The sound was light, almost cheerful, echoing off the walls of the room in a way that made Neria’s skin crawl.
"Relax," he said, waving a hand dismissively. "Why so serious?"
No one answered.
Erik looked between their expressions before shaking his head in mock disappointment.
"It was merely a thought."
His smile never faltered.
"I wasn’t actually going to cut her leg off." He paused, tilting his head ever so slightly. "At least... not today."
The physician’s face drained of what little color it had left.
Darian’s expression remained unreadable, but the muscles along his jaw tightened until they ached.
Erik noticed, and it amused him further.
His smile widened.
"Oh, don’t look at me like that, nephew. You should be thanking me."
He gestured lazily toward Neria.
"If this little accident hadn’t happened, neither of us would have discovered your pet possessed such a fascinating ability."
He stepped towards her, leaning closer until their eyes met, then grabbed her chin, his fingers pressing deep into her skin to keep her from pulling away. Erik’s eyes trailed down to her neck where the shell necklace lay.
"Pretty thing." Her hand shot up to her chest, earning a chuckle from the Emperor. "It’s important to you... great."
Darian stepped forward, his movements measured but deliberate.
"That’s enough." The quiet command cut through the room.
Erik didn’t immediately look away from Neria. His fingers lingered beneath her chin for another heartbeat before he finally released her. Red marks bloomed where his grip had been.
"Oh?" Erik turned to his nephew, amusement dancing in his ember eyes. "You object?"
"I think you’ve had enough fun for today."
"Enough?" Erik echoed with a soft laugh. "This is hardly enough."
He glanced back at Neria, who had instinctively retreated until her back met the headboard. One hand remained clutched around the shell pendant while the other pulled the blanket over her unfamiliar legs.
"I’m merely observing my newest discovery."
"She isn’t a discovery." The words left Darian before he could stop them.
Silence settled over the room.
Erik’s smile thinned. "No?" he asked quietly.
His gaze lingered on Darian for a long moment before it drifted back to Neria. "Then tell me, nephew..." His voice was almost pleasant. "If she isn’t a discovery... what is she?"
Darian didn’t answer. He couldn’t.
To call her a person in front of Erik would only make the Emperor more interested in torturing her until she forgot her identity. To call her a pet would betray everything his father had taught him.
Erik seemed to read the conflict on his face.
"That’s what I thought." He smoothed an imaginary crease from his sleeve before turning toward the door.
"Do try to keep her alive, Darian. I’d hate to lose such an interesting specimen before I’ve learned all her secrets."
As he reached the doorway, he paused without looking back.
"And keep that necklace safe."
A faint smile tugged at his lips. "It would be a shame if it were to go missing."
Once the Emperor was gone, the physician followed shortly after, leaving only silence behind.
With no one watching them, Darian turned toward her.
Neria immediately looked away.
Her arms wrapped around her legs, pulling them closer to her chest as if she could hide the unfamiliar limbs from him. Her fingers remained curled tightly around the shell necklace hanging against her chest.
"I hate them," she whispered. The words were barely audible, but Darian heard them.
He understood her emotions.
How could he not?
She had lost her home, her people, and everything familiar to her. Now even her own body had changed without her consent. She was a creature forced into a world that wasn’t hers.
A fish out of water, in every sense of the word.
Darian studied her quietly.
The sunlight filtering through the window caught against her brown skin, making the exhaustion written across her face impossible to ignore. Her long braids had fallen over her shoulders, reaching nearly to her waist. She looked nothing like the specimen Erik had presented her as.
She looked young and lost.
Everything a person would be after experiencing what she had.
Darian took a slow step forward.
Then stopped. The last thing he wanted to do was scare her.
"Are you still in pain?" he asked.
Neria didn’t answer immediately. Her eyes remained fixed somewhere past the window. Darian didn’t push it. Without a word, he quietly left the room.