A/N: Thanks so much to those who reviewed (Squizzlemaster, Acidicbreeze) and those who followed and favorited! Here is the next chapter.
Disclaimer: (I think I forgot to add this in the previous chapter but) I don't own Soul Eater.
Disclaimer #2: All the scientific lingo in this I made up. I know nothing about marine biology or research so please ignore my awful attempts at sounding professional : )
Ten Years Later
"Dude, we could like, totally find Atlantis with this."
Soul sighed and turned to the boy next to him. "Black Star, even if we did have the time and money to do that, Death City is literally on the other side of the world from where Atlantis supposedly went down. Besides, you're the only one here that actually thinks it's real- Are you even listening to me?"
The blue-haired monkey was already staring off into space, muttering to himself. "Yeah... I could get Tsubaki to take a boat a few miles off shore and we could chuck this thing in the water, scan around until we pick something up, and boom badaboom, we're rich!" He shook his head like a dog and grinned at Soul. "Of course, I would give you guys a cut of the share. I think 80-10-10 is fair- after all, what kind of a god doesn't look after his followers?"
Soul groaned and dropped his face into his hands. "Black Star, I think you're forgetting that even if it was real, all the people that lived in the Drowned City are, well, drowned. You know the Soul Perception software can only pick up on the areas with a lot of life, dorkwad."
"Damn," the boy next to him muttered. "Are you sure about that? Who knows, maybe there's still someone living down there."
Soul only shook his head and leaned back down over the lab table where he was examining the new Soul Perception 500 Marine Life Detection Software. Normally, with the sparse funding they were given, the center had to make do with outdated equipment that didn't do jack shit but break down all the time. So naturally the entire staff was more than surprised when a philanthropist named Mrs. Maaba from two cities over had donated the latest model in biological detection technology for them to use for their numerous marine research programs.
After seeing his mother disappear into the ocean that fateful night, Soul had become obsessed with finding out all he could about what lay in the mysterious waters that surrounded Death City. He knew that mermaids weren't supposed to be real, but he had read somewhere that scientists knew more about the surface of the moon than the bottom of the ocean. Didn't that mean that, no matter how ridiculous it sounded, Mom could still be somewhere out there?
He had started checking out every book on marine life he could find from the library, and even convinced his dad to buy him a computer so he could surf online. However, no matter how much he searched, he always found the exact same story: mermaids were creatures of myth. There was no possible way that what he had seen that night could be true.
Dad and Wes never talked about Mom anywhere. It was like she hadn't even existed. Whenever he tried to bring her up, a dark look passed over his father or older brother's eyes as they quickly changed the subject. And as Soul grew up, he started to realize just how stupid he was for believing in a fairy tale. He had probably hallucinated on that night so long ago; after all, he had been close to death by drowning. Mom wasn't a mermaid- she was just a shitty parent who had skipped town for some reason or other. Nothing new or uncommon.
So when his high school had started organizing a program where any senior who wanted to could sign up to do a summer internship program at the nearby oceanography and marine research center, Shibusen. The work would involve, Mr. Barrett explained in class, taking care of equipment, helping monitor the tides and weather patterns, exploring the ocean floor, and- searching for new, undiscovered life in the deeper seas.
Soul had been at the front of the room and asking for an application before he knew what hit him.
It had turned out that he hadn't been the only one from his class that had applied. Two more students from Death City High had signed up for the program: a Japanese exchange student named Tsubaki and her friend Black Star, a blue-haired whirlwind with a hell of a god complex.
At least, that's what he had claimed everyone should call him. Soul was about ninety-eight percent sure that it wasn't his real name, but whenever he questioned Tsubaki about it, she only smiled and told him it didn't matter. He may have been a weird guy, but the two had become friends quickly.
Soul hadn't expected much when he showed up for the first day, Black Star yammering in his ear about how he would the one to surpass God, but the center had surpassed his worst expectations by far. It was falling apart in every possible way: the labs were dirty, the equipment was damaged, and the rec rooms hadn't been set foot in since 1952 (apparently the owners lived somewhere else).
The administration was even worse. The owner of the complex was some psycho called Dr. Stein whose sole purpose in life seemed to be to dissect every rare sea creature living in these waters, and his wife, Marie, treated the three seventeen-year-olds as if they were in preschool. Hell, she had given them a fish-themed coloring sheet on the first day before walking in on Soul in the bathroom, asking if he needed any help using the sink.
He had always remembered to lock the door after that.
But after a weeklong cleaning session from the depths of hell, the research center looked almost presentable. And after a month working there, Stein and Marie had almost started to grow on Soul. Black Star may have been a danger to the safety of his eardrums, and Stein was still someone to avoid whenever he was carrying a scalpel, but the center quickly grew into the one place where he could relax.
Soul's thoughts were interrupted by the cold weight of a hand on his shoulder, making him jump a foot in the air.
"Well, well, well, what do we have here?"
The boy cringed at the cloud of tobacco-scented breath that was blown right into his face.
"Soul, you know you're not supposed to touch the new lab equipment until Marie or I take a full look at it."
Soul turned around in his swivel chair to come face-to-face with Professor Stein's specs.
"Uh, sorry Prof, but when I heard that we were finally getting some equipment that was actually made in this decade, I wanted to come and check it out," he deadpanned. "No biggie."
The professor raised an eyebrow, but instead of reaching for a scalpel, he ran his hand over the chrome plating of the Soul Perception detection device on the counter next to Soul.
"Mhmm, that's true," he mused. "Mrs. Maaba was very generous to buy this. Not many private benefactors donate to us, you know."
Soul fought back a snort. "Yeah, I got all that, but what are we going to use it for now?"
Stein ignored Black Star's shout of "ATLANTIS!" and turned to the white-haired boy.
"Well, you know that this software works by scanning the ocean in a certain area for depleted levels of oxygen and higher levels of carbon dioxide, indicating the presence of a large group of marine life," the scientist said. "Marie suggested we take it for a simple test run this afternoon in the boat to see how well it works. If we get positive results, we can then incorporate it into a number of our research programs."
He paused and turned his head to the door as Tsubaki walked in, carrying a tray of cookies. She rapped gently on the door frame.
"Um, excuse me Professor, but Marie wanted me to bring these to Soul and Black Star. We had just finished analyzing those algae samples when she remembered she had put them in the oven," she continued, walking in and setting the plate next to Black Star, who immediately crammed three into his mouth at once. Tsubaki only paused to whack him on the back when he started choking, striding over to Stein and Soul with a rare grace.
"Is this the new Soul Perception?" she breathed, fingers reaching hesitantly towards the dully gleaming detection probe, connected to the data screen by a long black wire. "I heard this costs half a million dollars from any reputable supplier."
Soul raised his eyebrows. He knew it had been expensive, but damn.
Suddenly Marie sashayed into the room, hands full with a number of glass beakers.
"Sorry I took so long to get those cookies out of the oven, but the way these sea snails react to the shore algae is just fascinating! Some of these data sets are-"
She was interrupted by the crash of several glass tubes as she lost her grip on them, crashing down to the floor of the lab.
There was a momentary silence as everyone stared at the mess of wet algae and glass that littered the floor. Marie broke it as she stuck her hand behind her head and laughed weakly.
"Sorry, I guess I'm just a bit clumsy today… I'll get those cleaned up later. Ooh, is that the new detection system, Franken?" she rambled, walking over to her husband and placing a hand on his shoulder, peering over it.
The five workers in the lab all took it in in a reverent silence. There was something almost sacred about the gleam of the chrome surface, promising to reveal secrets about the depths of the ocean that no one knew about. Soul's fingers itched to touch it, to lower it into the black sea and finally find answers to what he had been searching for his whole life…
Stein suddenly stood up and stretched, ruffling his hair as he grinned at the staff.
"Well, sitting here all day staring at it isn't going to get anything done. What do you say we take it for a test run?"
Soul narrowed his eyes against the salt spray in the wind, leaning over the railing of Stein and Marie's little clipper and staring at the ocean as it passed beneath him. Stein had agreed to take the five to a new portion of the sea, much farther out that they had ever gone before, in the hopes of finding some new populations of sea life.
Even though he would have never told anyone, his heart climbed further up his throat ever mile they covered, moving farther out into the open sea. What if this was the key he needed to find his mother? What if…
He shook his head, clearing out the stupid thoughts. No, he told himself. Thinking Mom is a mermaid isn't only uncool, it's downright pathetic. You need to move on with your sad excuse for a life and forget about her. This isn't healthy.
His thought were interrupted by Black Star's shout, alerting the ship that they had reached their destination and needed to anchor now. Soul rushed to the side of the ship to help Tsubaki with the heavy piece of metal, but she only smiled at him.
"I've got it, Soul. Why don't you help Stein and Marie set up the Soul Perception? I think they're going to be casting it off the port side of the ship."
He nodded and moved over to the front left of the vessel, where Marie was busy unraveling the black wire that connected to probe to the computer. She looked up as he came near.
"Ah, Soul, just the person I needed. Hold this for me, will you?" She plopped the detection device down into his arms before turning to back to unwind the rest of the cord.
It was heavier than he would have thought for something of its size. He could see his face reflected back at him in the polished surface of the small silver box's side.
"Cool," he murmured to himself, then turned back around. "Oi, Marie, how deep are we going to let this thing down?
"Well, this wire is pretty long… Let's see how far down it can go! Okay, all done. Now, carefully- carefully- lower the probe down into the water. There- just like that!"
Soul stuck out his tongue in concentration as he watched the device disappear farther down into dark sea, deeper and deeper until he couldn't see it anymore. He kept lowering for what seemed like forever, until he came to the end of the black wire.
"Okay, now what?"
Stein had come over while the Soul Perception was being placed, and was now fiddling with the computer.
"Now we wait, Soul. It'll take a few minutes until we get any data- no matter how advanced the technology is."
Black Star and Tsubaki walked over from where they had been helping anchor the ship. Star leaned over Stein's shoulder, squinting his eyes at the screen.
"Uh… Hate to break it to you, Prof, but we've already got something. Look, the numbers are-" He abruptly fell silent.
"What? What's going on?" Soul looked around at the four people around him. They were all staring at the data screen with wide eyes, but he was blocked from it by Stein. "What's everyone looking at?"
Suddenly, Marie dropped the clipboard she had been holding with a crash. Soul winced, but nobody else seemed to notice, as all their attention was directed towards the computer.
"Black Star, what the hell are you doing?"
The boy shook his head, like someone coming out of a dream, and turned the screen over to Soul. He sucked in a breath, taking in the screen of rapidly scrolling numbers.
No- this couldn't be possible. No ocean animal population should have CO2 readings that high. These kinds of figures, it was almost like… like…
"Dude," Black Star breathed reverently. "I think we just found Atlantis."
"So, as you all know, we've experienced some very… unusual readings with the Soul Perception," Stein said, reaching into the hatch of the ship to pull out a large black net. "These kinds of CO2 emissions are the kind that are only present in human cities, and rather large ones at that. It certainly isn't something we would see in a school of fish."
He finished with untangling the net and turned back the members of the boat, glare from his glasses obscuring his eyes.
"Now, this could be a fluke on the part of the equipment, or even us, but we're going to investigate with a quick trawling just in case."
Soul could feel his heart pounding in his chest. This was it, what he had been waiting his entire life to find. An almost city-like gathering of life, deep under the surface of the water? It could only point to one thing.
Idiot, he tried to chastise himself. You need to calm the fuck down. There's probably just something wrong with the equipment. The idea that there's some sort of mermaid colony off the coast of Death City is stupid.
But no matter how much the logical side of his brain tried to explain it, he couldn't help but think, What if? What if this was exactly what he had been looking for his whole life?
He tried to shoo these thoughts away as he helped Stein and Black Star lower the trawling net into the water. In order to try to explain the abnormal readings, they were going to lower a large net into the water and steer back and forth with the boat to collect some samples and sea creatures that may be in the area. It wasn't anything they hadn't done before, and the net was quickly set into position and ready to go.
Stein gave Marie, who was manning the boat, a thumbs-up, and she started the engine. Slowly, without a lot of motor action, she started to maneuver the little vessel over the area where they had had the readings. Nobody said a word, the atmosphere so tense it could be cut with a knife as they trawled back and forth for maybe a half mile around the area.
They had almost completed the second loop when a sudden quake rocked the boat. Everyone was thrown back, Tsubaki letting out a soft oof as she toppled into Black Star.
"Marie! Stop the boat!" yelled Stein. "We may have gotten something big caught in the trawling net!"
If it was even possible, Soul's heart rate increased. Those kinds of thumps only happened when they caught something in the trawling net that was too big for it. Usually it was a dolphin or a stray sunfish that swam into it, but he had the sinking feeling that that wouldn't be the case this time.
He helped Stein and Star haul the net up from the bottom of the ocean, Tsubaki watching fearfully. Pull. Pull. They worked in tense silence, hands scrabbling over each other to reach the end of the net.
Suddenly, a shout from Black Star broke the silence.
"Stein! Stein! There's something in the net!"
Even as Soul watched him drag the rest of it up, he could see Black Star was right. Tangled in the black ropes was a large bundle that was somewhat human shaped, but not at the same time. He could only make out bits of it as Stein helped Star pull it on board- a patch of hair, a flash of skin, the shine of fucking scales- and it terrified him. Because no matter how much he tried to push it away, bury it deep inside his mind, ignore the very thing that had been staring him in the face all these years, he knew exactly what was in the net.
Yelling all around him. He felt like he was in a daze as he mindlessly grappled at the ropes and helped Tsubaki and Stein cut them away. Heavy, wet black cords fell apart beneath his hands as he kept sawing and pulling them away.
Eventually, when most of the net was in tatters, they reached the unmoving object trapped in it.
"Wait," Stein suddenly said, holding up a hand to stop Black Star's frantic movements. Slowly, too slowly, he crept over to the creature, gently lifting the gobs of slimy rope piled over it.
Upon first glance, all Soul could see was a smooth green tail that upon first glance looked like it could belong to any kind of deep-sea fish. But he spent most of his day around fish, he could immediately tell that this wasn't what they looked like. The tail was too long, the scales too bright and large, with strange fin-like contraptions on the sides that he hadn't seen in any species of marine creature before. No, this was no fish.
His stomach dropped out from under him as the creature moved, shaking off the last bits of netting, and lifted itself up.
It was then that the entire boat could see what he had known was coming. Attached to the base of the long green tail wasn't a fish's head, but a young girl's torso, smooth and pale and very much human.
The mermaid slowly raised her head up, pushing a mop of wet dark blond hair aside to reveal wide, terrified eyes that were greener than anything he had ever seen. Dimly he tried to place the color- deep lake water? the glint of an emerald? - but none came close. She glanced wildly around the boat before landing on him, gaze staring directly into his own crimson eyes.
The entire boat was holding its breath, but all Soul wanted to do at that moment was scream his lungs out.