Standing in front of a large bathroom mirror, Carissa observed the still healing scar tissue on her chest below her breasts. She kept the white dressing gown on. In spite of being alone in her own space for months, she had kept herself to some self-imposed boundaries. ‘Ah, I turned off the water here. Time…

‘Liam. Welcome to Last Refuge. A place where I have been reborn. Don’t you love me now? I have taken a new form. I’m doing it. I’m realising my dream. I’ll become a true mermaid.’ said Carissa. A young man standing in a doorway paused as a mixture of bile and disgust rose and his…