Waterworld: Houseboats

When the world realized that the continents would soon vanish forever beneath the rising seas, a desperate race ensued to create ships capable of holding as many people as possible: cargo ships were ideal, as their large size and tough construction meant that they could hold hundreds of people, as well as have buildings constructed on their decks to serve as dormitories, greenhouses, hospitals, and the like.

After the Great Deluge ensued, there were tens of thousands of these ships sailing the seas, holding millions of survivors. But their relief at having survived was short lived, for it wasn't long before cabin fever settled in, and fights soon began to break out. Despite all attempts at keeping people together, civil wars broke out on most of the ships, and the resulting carnage reduced the number of survivors from the millions to only a few thousand.

Now, a few centuries later, only a dozen of these floating communities remain. Being large and slow makes them easy prey for Smokers and bandits, as well as storms and rough seas, but still they sail on. One ship, in particular, was home to a young boy who had gills behind his ears and webbed feet, a secret his mother desperately kept hidden from their neighbors...

Made with perchance.org's AI art generator.

Prompt: A rusted cargo ship sailing through the sea. There are improvised houses on the decks, with chains and cables dangling off the hull. Post apocalyptic.