Chapter 51: Welcome to the Mermaid World Part 2
The rest of the swim to Isla Delfin went by in silence through the telepathetic connection between Sara and Farley. She had nothing to say, and she needed her thoughts to herself most importantly. Instead, she focused on the trails of the three girls in front of her, staying on course to the island. It somehow felt like a longer swim than she was used to. The swim from the mainland Australia to Mako Island barely took ten minutes. But this seemed longer than twenty, and Sara eventually lost track of how long she'd been swimming.
Soon, in front of her she noticed an upsloping of land, signally the existence of an island. Anna, Luisa, and Fallon cut right, encircling the landmass, with Sara and Farley following close behind. They continued following as Anna, Luisa, and Fallon turned into a large cavern under the water, bizarrely similar to the underwater cave leading to the Moon Pool on Mako. Fifty yards down the cavern and it began to slant upward. They all followed upward to an area of light above them. Sara burst upward and above the water, gasping at what she saw.
They were in a small lagoon, just as the others had said. It was built into the rocks, with high walls on each side, plants growing in a ring around the pool. A small waterfall hung in front of her, almost like a fountain, dumping water into the pool. The lagoon's water was unnecessarily colored a light blue, with an almost unnatural glow to it. Farley joined her and he stared as well, caught up with the beauty of the hidden lagoon.
"What do you think?" Anna called to her. She, alongside Fallon and Luisa were sitting against a small ledge under the water, just to the side of the waterfall. Farley and Sara swam calmly over toward them, pulling themselves onto the same ledge next to them.
"This place… It's so beautiful…" Sara spoke softly. "And this is where you became mermaids?"
"That's right," Fallon affirmed. "Not bad huh?"
"I want to say this first. But, we brought you here and wanted to be open about everything," Anna interrupted. "How you said you got your tail, both of you… All of that was bullshit? Because what we've experienced is nothing like what you said."
Sara chuckled. "Yeah. It was completely a lie. If people knew exactly how I became a mermaid, they would want to replicate it. And, some might've succeeded. Then, it wouldn't be so special being a mermaid anymore. I became a mermaid in the exact same way you all did on Mako Island, in the ocean outside of Gold Coast, Australia. Although it wasn't an a beautiful lagoon like this. We actually changed in a pool that was inside a dormant volcano."
"Imposible!" Luisa exclaimed. "I'm sorry, but that is really cool."
"How did it happen? Like what's the story? I don't want to press you, but you always say we need to trust each other as mermaids.," Anna asked.
"And we trusted you with our story," Fallon added.
"You're all bold. But… You are right. You trusted me with your secret, and I should tell you about mine," Sara spoke. She exchanged an apologetic glance with Farley. Am I really going to tell them about Mia and Katy… Is this the right thing? She sent to him telepathically.
I say do it. Anna, Fallon, and Luisa told you everything. And, we need to stick together as merpeople.. Farley encouraged. But you do as you have to. I'm only here to support you in everything. This is your choice.
Sara turned to the three others. "Ok, you want to hear my story? The true story? Here goes," Sara began. "Six months ago, I went on a boat trip with my two best friends Mia and Katy, which ironically is the truest part of the fake story I gave. But, we went to Mako Island like I said. We got lost on the island and found this cave that wound its way under the volcano. There was this pool there, much smaller than this lagoon. We fell into it just as the full moon was above the cone of the volcano. And just like what happened to you, the bubbling of the water, the lights, that happened to us. Eventually we did escape and the next morning, we all woke up with tails. So, not too dissimilar to what happened to you."
Anna, Fallon, and Luisa looked among each other. "So…. You're not the only other one…." Fallon trailed off. "Your friends… they…"
"...they're mermaids as well," Sara interrupted. "We all changed at the same time. Obviously they haven't gone public with it yet, so it's important that we remain as discreet as possible with this, with all mermaid activity in general most importantly."
"Our lips are sealed," Anna assured. "One other thing… What's this worry about the full moon? You keep mentioning it…"
Sara accidentally let out a scoff, bringing scowls from Anna, Fallon, and Luisa. "Do you… not know?" Sara asked. "Did you notice the full moon above you when you were in this lagoon that night?"
"I might have seen it… What's so important about it?" Anna questioned.
"Everything. The full moon is behind it all. I… We… have no idea why it happens like this, or what it is for. But, being in both this lagoon and the pool on Mako when the full moon is directly above, it will turn whoever is in it into a mermaid, or a merman in Farley's case," Sara explained.
"That's it? That's the secret to becoming a mermaid?" Luisa asked. Sara shrugged and nodded. "Well, it's a dangerous secret if the public knew exactly how to do it…"
"Exactly why I made up a lot of my story! So, never ever EVER tell the truth about how you became a mermaid. Make something up. They have no way of proving you are lying anyway…" Sara warned. "One more thing… Crucial. This may sound odd, but I promise it is the truth. Every month, the full moon comes around once again. When that happens, stay indoors and away from windows. You cannot look at the moon. If you do, you'll become hypnotized by it. We call it being moonstruck."
"Bullshit," Fallon spat. "You're just yanking our chains."
"Fallon!" Anna exclaimed. "Why would Sara lie? She's here to help us."
"Fallon, if this is true what Sara says, we can't risk it," Luisa added.
"Can I continue?" Sara probed. The three of them turned to her and nodded. Oh the irony… It's just like how we acted when Bella, Cleo, and Rikki were around. And now I have to deal with the other side. She sent quickly to Farley. "Anyway when you are Moonstruck, your behavior is erratic, unpredictable, and it can be dangerous. You always want to go swimming, and most likely come swimming here. And, if you're with other people, that's a problem without a doubt. It ends when the sun comes up, but you won't remember anything you did while moonstruck."
"That sounds really serious," Anna spoke.
"It is," Sara confirmed. "Luckily, it only happens once a month. But still, even then it might take you by surprise. So, you have to be ready. I would suggest, and I can't believe that I'm suggesting this, but you need to find a non-mermaid person you can trust with your secret. They'll be able to at least help do damage control, especially if all three of you are moonstruck at the same time. That… may have happened a few different times for me and my friends."
"How did you get through it?" Luisa asked.
"Like I said, having non-mermaids around are really helpful. Farley was there before he had his tail. But we also had Mia and Katy's boyfriends, and Zane, my manager, was extremely helpful as well."
Fallon rubbed her temples. "Ugh…. This mermaid thing is a lot more complicated than I ever thought possible," she complained.
Sara chuckled. "Yeah. I understand your annoyance. But still, after everything that's happened, I wouldn't give up my tail no matter what. It has become a part of me, integral to who I am."
"As well, the sheer joy of swimming in the ocean makes you realize the gift we have," Farley added. "I've had my tail barely as long as the three of you, so I'm in the same boat. But, knowing Sara and learning to enjoy swimming, despite being revealed, I wouldn't take anything back either."
"You two are just the worst," Anna teased.
Sara and Farley smiled at each other. "Well, we are the mermaid couple," Sara fired back. "We love each other, and we're working together to make the world love mermaids."
"As much as I would love to talk about your relationship," Luisa interrupted sarcastically, "You said earlier that we have powers? How do we do that?"
"Right," Sara continued. "So, each one of you will have a different power." Sara floated a ball of water the size of a basketball upward in front of all of them. "As you can see, I have the ability to move water with my mind. Aquakinesis if you wanted to be technical about it."
Farley moved forward. "As far as we know, there are three powers you can possibly have," he spoke. "Each of you will most likely have one of them. The first one, obviously is Sara's ability to move water with her mind." Farley thrust his hand out and clenched it. Slowly, the ball of water floating in the air began to boil, to the shocked expressions of Anna, Luisa, and Fallon. "The second being able to heat and boil water, and…" Farley thrust his hand out again, and the ball of water froze in mid air after a couple seconds. "The last one is being able to freeze water."
"Any questions?" Sara asked, tossing the now frozen ball of water to the other side of the lake, landing in a giant splash.
"I got one," Fallon blurted. "Like… how the fuck is this possible?"
"Fallon!" Anna snapped. "We're mermaids, don't ask how anything can be possible. We're way beyond what is considered possible."
"We had that thought as well," Sara put forth. "What you think is actually possible is completely thrown out the window."
"So… Another question," Luisa interrupted. "How does Farley have all three powers if we're only supposed to have one each?"
"We don't really know," Farley shrugged. "But, my boil and freeze powers act much slower and less powerful than the mermaids that actually have those powers."
"Don't worry about Farley's powers. Our job is to figure out what your powers are," Sara spoke, changing the subject. She raised another ball of water from the lagoon. "Ok, who wants to try first?"
"I'll do it," Luisa spoke first. "I've always wanted to be a superhero."
"Now, Luisa, focus on the ball of water I'm holding up," Sara explained. "Feel the power within you, and when you're ready, put your hand out and focus the power into the ball of water."
"Ok. I can do this," Luisa spoke.
"Vaya con dios!" Anna joked.
Luisa just groaned and rolled her eyes before shutting them, calming her breathing. When she was ready, she opened her eyes and thrust her hand out toward the ball of water. Immediately it froze over. Unfortunately, the momentum tipped Luisa forward, and she fell flat on her face in the water. The ball of ice now flew backwards as Sara was surprised at Luisa's clumsiness, barely missing Farley as it slammed into the rock wall behind them.
Luisa pushed her face up and cleared her eyes. "Did I do it?" She questioned.
Sara chuckled. "Yeah… You did it. Congratulations Luisa, you have the ice powers."
"That's so cool!" Luisa exclaimed. "So, I have the ice powers. Who's next?"
"I'm not gonna wait around anymore," Fallon stepped up. "I'm dying to see what my power is."
Sara floated another ball of water upward. "Ok Fallon. Same thing as Luisa. Focus on the ball of water."
"Yeah yeah yeah. I got it," Fallon rolled her eyes. "I'll be fine."
Sara raised an eyebrow, but she said nothing. Fallon closed her eyes shut tight, focusing on the ball of water, and then she thrust out her hand. But nothing happened. Frustrated, Fallon thrust it out again. But again, nothing. "Try clenching your fist," Sara encouraged, "You may have the boil powers."
"Fine!" Fallon raged, and clenched hard. In a split second, the ball of water burst into a rolling boil. Sara yelped and jumped backward, flinging the ball of scalding water toward the center of the lagoon and out of harm's way. It slowly sunk beneath the surface, sputtering and hissing before it mixed evenly with the rest of the lagoon water.
Everyone was silent, breathing back to normal. Fallon stared at her hand in disbelief. "Well, congratulations Fallon," Farley interrupted the silence. "You have the ability to boil water. Just… keep your anger under control. You might boil the entire lagoon, cooking us all immediately."
"I… That was so weird… I felt the powers activate when I became angrier." Fallon trailed off, raising her eyes upward. "But, that is so cool."
"Your ability to be angry might be slightly increased as well," Sara spoke. "So, keep note of that. Our friend Mia has the boil powers, and she definitely got a lower fuse after that. It wasn't much, yet still when your powers are directly connected to emotion, it's important to keep tabs on it."
Anna pushed her way forward. "Ok. Now it's my turn!" She announced. "So I guess I have the power to move water with my mind?"
Sara shrugged. "I would assume maybe. There is a fourth power that's very rare. That is the ability to gelatinize water. But, I doubt you would have it."
"How do you know that?" Anna asked.
"Long story," Sara spoke. "And, we need to figure out your powers anyway."
"I'm all in," Anna spoke, rubbing her hands together, a huge grin on her face. "Let's do this."
"Ok Anna… Make sure…"
"Yeah yeah yeah," Anna interrupted. "Focus on the water, reach out with my hand, and since my powers are mostly aquakinesis, I should be able to lift the water no problem."
"I… that's fair," Sara responded, almost proud of Anna's tenacity. It reminded Sara of her own self. Sara floated a ball of water into the air again. "We'll start on a small scale. Try and move water from this ball."
"Ok. I'll get it done." Anna affirmed, stretching out her hand slowly. For a moment, nothing happened. But, after a few tense seconds a small thin stream of water slowly rose out of the ball floating in the air. Joy ripped across Anna's face. "I'm… I'm doing it!" Anna beamed. "I can't believe it!"
"Great job Anna!" Fallon exclaimed, patting her on the back. The contact broke Anna's concentration, and the thin stream fell forward, splashing harmlessly into the lagoon.
"Hey now," Anna joked to Fallon, "You messed up my focus!" Anna sighed, turning back to Sara. "So… What happens now?"
"You all live your lives. I don't know how long I will be in California. I want to help you the best I can. But again, with me being revealed, being close to you will only put you all at risk, which I can't do," Sara explained.
"We aren't afraid!" Luisa spoke up.
"I admire your tenacity. It reminds me of myself," Sara responded. "But again, this is some serious stuff. I wish it wasn't so. But, I want to give you the tools to be the best mermaids you can possibly. Believe me, the sheer joy of being a mermaid is worth any risk of being revealed. But, this life is not easy. You must be ready for anything. But, I know you will be amazing. Once again, Welcome to the Mermaid World."
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Sara collapsed on her bed back in her hotel room some hours later. Farley sat in a chair across from her, feeling equally as exhausted as she was. "You did a good job today with those girls," Farley spoke.
"Are you sure? I just tried to do my best…" Sara trailed off. "I hope it was enough."
"I think you did the best anyone could hope to do. So much pressure is put onto you. And it isn't fair. But I believe you did good. Those girls seem very suited to be mermaids. I'm proud of them," Farley replied. "And of you."
Sara smiled. "Thank you. That means so much to me."
"Hey, I'm your boyfriend. I would be an arsehole if I didn't support you," Farley teased.
"Whatever you say," Sara joked back.
"Aren't there some people who should know about the other mermaids?" Farley asked rhetorically.
"What? No! Of course not. Why would… Oh… You mean Mia and Katy," Sara realized. Farley chuckled and nodded. "Right ok. Mermaid form telepathy time."
Sara walked over the the bathroom and closed the door behind her. She situated herself in the bathtub, in order to get as comfortable as possible before turning on the water, letting her tail come out, and her body relax. She still needed the bath, despite the need to contact Mia and Katy. Sara stretched out with her mind. Mia? Katy? Can you hear me? This is urgent. So, I hope you're close to a bathroom so you can contact me.
It didn't take long. Well looks like you're lucky then! I'm laying in the bathtub right now actually. Katy quipped.
What a coincidence! So am I. Sara joked back. Although I'm five thousand miles away… Or more. I don't know how far away Gold Coast is from LA.
So what's the scoop! Katy exclaimed.
Hold up! We gotta wait for Mia. Sara quickly replied.
Do you realize I can hear your entire conversation? Mia finally spoke, annoyed.
Well… that's fair… Sara admitted.
Ok Sara. We're all here, what's this urgent news bulletin that you're trying to get to us? Katy added.
This is fucking big… Sara began. I found out who AMK is… The girl that sent the letter.
Silence came over the other two girls. They were too stunned to talk for a second before Mia slowly began. Are you sure? Who is this? Or they? Or whatever! What do you know?
So… to start. The man who came to convince me to come to California, Ben Mckay? Well his daughter Anna is AMK. She's a mermaid, changed in a moon pool on the island of Isla Delfin just off the coast of California with her two friends Luisa and Fallon two weeks ago. There are three new mermaids now… Sara explained.
Three new mermaids… Katy trailed off.
This is crazy! Mia exclaimed. The entire world is mermaid crazy, and we gotta deal with three new mermaids who haven't a clue in the world! They're gonna get exposed!
I know this isn't ideal. But, I spent the afternoon with them. I'm here for a while too. I can definitely set them on the right path. Just as Rikki, Bella, and Cleo did for us. They understand the risks. But, they also understand the benefits. They love being mermaids. Sara added confidently. I believe they are good girls to be mermaids.
I trust you to do well with them Sara. Katy spoked. But, we need to be careful. The mermaid world just got a little bigger, and I'm not sure if we are able to keep up with it.
Sara was about to talk again, but she was interrupted by her phone ringing. Suspicious, Sara looked at her phone but she didn't recognize the number. Hey guys, I'm getting a call… But we need to talk later! I'll tell you all a lot more about the new mermaids and what has happened here. She severed the connection before Mia and Katy could respond. Sara quickly put the phone up to her ear. "Hello?" She answered.
"Hello Sara Meyer. It's a pleasure to meet your acquaintance for the first time! Even though we should've talked a long time ago. That's my fault, but now I can actually talk to you for the first time." a girl spoke cheerfully on the other end. Her accent was clearly Australian, and she had an air of familiarity to her. But, Sara couldn't place how she knew her.
"Can I ask you who you are?" Sara asked, a scowl forming in her face.
"Of course. My name is Emma Gilbert. And, I'm sure you've heard about me before from Cleo, Rikki, Bella, Elliot, and Denman. They've certainly told me a lot about you."
The color drained from Sara's face as a realization came across her face. "Y-you're Emma? The Emma? I…. Wow, I never expected to hear from you. Well I mean… I did… But, like… I didn't know now."
"It's ok. Relax," Emma suggested warmly, "Yeah, people have been really wanting me to finally reach out and be a part of this thing you're doing. So, how would you like to meet me? I'm in California right now visiting Cleo, Rikki, and Bella, and I would love it if you could come out to San Diego to meet with us. I'm sure the three of them would love to see you again."
"I… I… I don't know. I would love to. But this is just, wow. Completely unexpected." Sara stammered, unsure what to think.
"Well let me know soon. I would love to get a chance to meet you for the first time," Emma said. "I'll talk to you later!"
And in a moment, the phone call ended, leaving Sara in a state of confusion. She pulled herself out of the tub in a daze and dried herself, still thinking about what Emma said. She walked outside to see Farley sitting on the couch. He stood immediately when he saw her. "What did they say?" Farley asked.
"They wish us good luck in dealing with the new mermaids… But there's something else…"
"What?" Farley questioned.
"I was called by Emma Gilbert…" Sara trailed off. "She's Elliot's sister, and the one who befriended Denman. She wants to actually meet me. She's spending time with Cleo, Rikki, and Bella in San Diego."
"You have to do it then!" Farley added. "I know we're really busy. But Emma is one of the original mermaids. It would be really good to hang out with her. As well, it'll be good to see the three others as well once again."
"I suppose so…" Sara pondered for a second. And, an idea popped into her head. It seemed stupid and crazy, but it was necessary. She needed to meet with all of them. But there was something else that needed to happen as well. Sara smiled as she made a plan. She was going to do something bold.
Ah ha! I did say Emma was going to be in the story! Granted…. It did take 51 chapters, but still. I'm thankful to my loyal readers who have been with me all 51 chapters. Here's to many more! Send in a cool review if you want to say something about the story.
