Nick tugged on the rope, pulling the sail all the way in. His small boat was not suited for deep-sea journeys, but he had years of experience sailing and knew how to handle the sea. And for today, he was lucky that the sea was calm, he didn’t want to have his boat drift around too much today.
 
 
Today was a special day, after all. Nick finished tucking the sail away and rubbed his hands together. It was a warm day, but where he was going wasn’t going to be as warm and he made sure that he was prepared for it. His bag contained a waterproof blanket, a waterproof 4000 watt flashlight, and a small oxygen tank, as well as a few other things. Clapping his chest and taking a few steadying breaths, he twisted a lantern to light it up and dropped it in the water, the flashing light drifting lower and lower.
 
 
Nick sat down on the edge and dangled his feet in the water, sipping at a can of pop and reflecting on the last few months. His ship had been caught up in a storm and he had been lost for several days on the high sea before he was rescued by a very unlikely savior. Nalvinsuar didn’t even introduce herself before opening her mouth and sucking in his boat, the top of her mouth snapping the mast with ease. Nick thought he was done, consumed by a monstrous mermaid without the energy to even scream. However, after a few hours of being held in her mouth, Nick saw light pierce through her lips and with the assistance of gravity, Nick’s boat was deposited back on the open ocean, the shore visible on the horizon.
 
 
Nalvinsuar introduced herself then, apologizing for breaking his boat and saying that she couldn’t just leave him there. Nick, after wrapping his mind around the fact that his savior was a huge translucent mermaid that was able to casually gulp his boat, was thankful regardless and used the emergency oar to paddle his way back to civilization.
 
 
Nick saw her a few more times, this time on purpose, by sailing into open water and getting her attention with flashing lights. In a more relaxed state, Nick and Nal were able to talk and learn about each other, developing a bond over time. Today, Nick was going to see if he could travel down to her home and see how she lived. Maybe she would think him crazy for asking again, but he never knew.
 
 
There was a swelling of the water off of his starboard bow, rocking his boat violently as the light underwater vanished. Nalvinsuar broke the surface of the water, the softly flashing light in her cheek. She swished for a second, then lolled out her tongue, the lantern on the tip of her tongue and still flashing. Chuckling to himself, Nick took it and twisted it off, putting it back in the boat.
 
 
Nalvinsuar kept her hands under the surface in order to tread water, but her chin brushed up to the edge of the boat, bumping at Nick's legs. “Heyo, Nick. Nice to see you again on such a beautiful day.”
 
 
“I agree,” he responded, standing up and resting his hands on Nalvindar’s bottom lip. “Listen, do you remember what I asked last time?”
 
 
“Nick, you told me that your species can go to space easier than you can go beneath the ocean. I don’t want to put you in harm's way, even if you think you have prepared enough.” Nalvinsuar backed up, Nick falling forward into the water without the support, and looked over the ship. “I don’t even see a tank for you, you would be crushed before I even got out of sight of your boat.”
 
 
Nick stayed underwater for a moment, looking at the rest of Nalvinsuar’s body. As per a mermaid, the upper part of her frame was humanoid in shape and make. Her breasts were small and added to her sleek nature, which went from her shoulders to her large tail which was also flexing to tread water. Each hand that passed under his boat was larger than him, webbed and fingered in order to assist swimming, she explained.
 
 
Nick came back to the surface and took a new breath, treading water in front of Nalvinsuar. “That is a problem, but I think I found a solution, as long as you consent.”
 
 
“What do you mean?”
 
 
“You’re transparent, which means that we can see what is inside you. That also means, in theory, that things within you can look out.”
 
 
Nalvinsuar paused, backing away so that she could look down at Nick. “If, and this is a big assumption, if I am picking up what you are implying, you still won’t be able to breath or even be safe.”
 
 
“Don’t worry, I planned for that, at least.” Nick lifted up his pack. “As long as you will be able to let me out in, say, a few hours, we should be fine.”
 
 
“Are you sure about this? You are taking a big risk and, put bluntly, a stupid one. I hope you didn’t forget the moment we met, I could feel you struggling like a dolphin.”
 
 
“Okay, first off, you eat dolphins? Second, I have thought about this and think that as long as you consent, I have covered all of the bases. I don’t think I can talk back to you, but you should be able to communicate with me.”
 
 
Nalvinsuar’s face scrunched up, her hair wiggling around and trying to feel the area around her. Nick felt one brush against him, starting to wrap around him before loosening and drifting away. After a moment of consideration, Nalvinsuar popped her lips, head crashing down on the surface of the water so that she was eye level with Nick.
 
 
“Alright, let’s see what happens.” Nick heard the voice bubble from under the water before a vortex appeared, pulling Nick under. Nick, unprepared, gulped water and struggled to get his breath back in control as a soft pad hit him and lifted him up. He sputtered as the flow reversed, Nalvinsuar spitting the water out of her mouth like a fountain.
 
 
She opened it again, letting Nick regain his breath. “‘Ou ‘kay?”
 
 
“Yeah! Yeah, just caught me off guard.” Nick said, propping himself up and looking at his surroundings. Because Nalvinsuar has transparent flesh, it was trippy to see her through her tongue and to the ocean below, the water kicking up on her chin and cheeks. “Okay, I think I’m ready,” Nick said, clutching his bag tight.
 
 
Nalvinsuar closed her mouth, Nick feeling the sheer strength of her size bearing down on him. Her tongue bulged and Nick felt himself slipping back, watching the mouth disappearing above him as he was welcomed in the food tunnel.
 
 
Nick looked out in the ocean as Nalvinsuar began to swim deeper, the light quickly vanishing as she did. Nick felt his feet break free in a new space, the stomach welcoming their new occupant. As he settled in, Nalvinsuar lit up, bioluminescent cells in certain parts of her body sparking in blue light. Following the cue, Nick pulled out the flashlight he had in his pack and clicked it onto the brightest setting, trying to penetrate the darkness around them.
 
 
“Yeah, that’s not going to work, I don’t use those wavelengths to see when I swim. I use my bioluminescence mostly as a warning for predators.” Nalvinsuar’s voice was muffled due to speaking in water, but Nick felt the vibration through her body. He turned off the flashlight and pulled out his blanket, wrapping himself up and looking out at the depths. There wasn’t much he could see, but he enjoyed the journey.
 
 
“Wait, you have predators?” Nick was suddenly terrified, seeing shapes in the darkness. If something could hunt Nalvinsuar, who was large enough to swallow a car with ease, he could only imagine what they looked like. Nick buried himself deeper in his blanket, loosening the oxygen bottle for a moment to relieve his gradually increasing breath.
 
 
“Wow, I could feel that. It was so interesting, feeling my stomach expand with air.”
 
 
For the next few hours, Nalvinsuar swam deeper and deeper, eventually reaching the place she called home. She tried to show Nick around, but with no possible way for light to work this far below the surface, she moved on. A few times, Nalvinsuar would let out a burp, the large bubble of air being sent to the surface. Nick would be vacuumed sealed in her stomach every time this happened, cranking his oxygen tank until he had breathing room again. Which meant that he ran out really quickly, prompting Nal to head to the surface.
 
 
With a casual burp, Nick was brought back up to Nalvinsuar’s mouth, Nalvinsuar casually paddling with Nick resting on her tongue looking for his boat. This time Nick was the talker, relaying his experience with the journey and what he saw. He wasn’t able to get his blanket back because Nal’s stomach acid had eaten through most of it, but better for the stomach to eat that than him, after all.
 
 
Back on his boat, Nick sailed back to the shore, thinking to himself. The sea really was unknown, even for the residents that live there.