"Rikki!" Cleo and Annabeth scolded Rikki from the ground after the explosion. The explosion had all three girls fall on top of one another awkwardly.

"What?"

Cleo and Annabeth each gave her a look before helping each other to their feet. The boat was rocking to one side, making it difficult for them to retain their balance. Quickly, the three girls left the control room. They eventually found themselves on the main deck, a large and open space towards the bow.

"How are we going to find Percy and Emma?" Cleo asked worriedly. "I feel like we're going in circles."

"This is the main deck. If Percy and Emma are going anywhere, there going to come here," Annabeth reminded. Cleo sighed and crossed her arms impatiently.

"Maybe we should go back and look for them. They might be in trouble," Rikki suggested. As if on cue, they heard the familiar roar of a manticore. All three girls released groans. The manticore burst through one of the doors, sending it flying off its hinges. Annabeth, Rikki, and Cleo immediately started backing away as the manticore dropped down to all four legs and made his way towards them.

"Didn't we just deal with you?" Rikki complained.

"I'm afraid you're thinking of my colleague," the manticore answered in a raspy voice. "I, on the other hand, am very much alive and well."

"Wait, wait, wait, Percy!" Emma suddenly skidded to a halt from a jog, pulling Percy back with her. Percy frowned at her.

"What's wrong? We gotta hurry, Em," Percy urged, trying to pull Emma back into the direction they were heading.

"Look!" Emma pointed two decks below them. Making their way to the front of the yacht were three distinguishable teenagers Percy instantly recognized.

"It's Annabeth!"

"And she's got Cleo and Rikki too!"

A wave of relief came over the cousins at the sight of their loved ones. They were all together and soon, this will all be over. All Percy and Emma had to do was make it down there to them and they were out of there.

Percy was about to yell to them, but Emma cut in, "wait. What's that?"

The mermaid then pointed to a fourth figure creeping towards them on four legs. Percy's heart stopped upon his recognition of it-the manticore. He wanted to get out of there so badly. He wanted to yell at Annabeth and the girls to just make a jump for it and he'll be right behind them. But it was also more evident than ever than the yacht was sinking. While it was tilted to one side, the bow was gradually slipping under the waves. He had to get them out of there-all of them-before someone got hurt.

As Percy tried to think of the best course of action, the manticore started firing thorns from its tail at the trio. Instantly, Emma raised a hand and a wall of ice appeared on the deck below, between the girls and the monster, where the thorns were driven into. Emma was startled by her own powers-she never truly knew what the fullest extent of her powers was, but she also didn't try to get this creative until today.

Annabeth, Cleo, and Rikki were even more startled when the ice suddenly appeared before them. Rikki's sigh of relief came out as a laugh. She and Cleo instantly knew that Emma was nearby.

"Look! It's Emma! And Percy!" Cleo pointed to the deck above them. They could see over the ice wall Emma and Percy waving at them.

The unfortunate thing about Emma's ice wall was that it blocked the girls' vision of the manticore on the other side. They were protected, but blind if they didn't get around it. However, the manticore was still on the move. He broke out into a run, charging at the three girls.

Suddenly, Percy stuck his hand out. He willed the ice Emma had created to obey him-and it did. The wall morphed itself into dozens of honed icicles, all pointed at the manticore. In the next instant, they all went flying at the beast. The manticore was forced to a stop and turned away to shield his face from the rapid assault. But once the last icicle hit the floor, the manticore roared angrily.

"All I need is just one bite!"

The manticore crouched down and then sprung forward-jaws wide and claws out-aiming to sink his teeth precisely into Cleo. As Rikki and Annabeth cried out for her, the mermaid fell backwards and squeezed her eyes shut, preparing herself for the pain to come.

But nothing happened.

Cleo dared to open her eyes and was met face to face with water. Hovering before her collapsed form was a large column of water. Suspended in the middle of it was none other than the manticore, trapped and unable to move or breathe.

Rikki rushed to Cleo's side and pulled her away from the water while Annabeth looked up at where Emma and Percy stood. Percy's face was deep in concentration, using his hands to control the saltwater and restrain the manticore. And for a brief moment, nothing happened. No one was sure what to do next. It was consuming a great deal of energy within Percy to keep the manticore within the water, waiting for it to drown.

The moment ended suddenly when Annabeth charged at the manticore. She stuck her arm in the water and plunged her bronze dagger into his chest. The monster instantly turned to powder. Percy finally let the water go, spilling all over the deck, which Rikki and Cleo carefully avoided.

Just as everyone's shoulders slumped, so did the boat. It rocked deeper into its side and that was when everyone could smell the smoke. Percy and Emma rushed to the stairs, with Percy ushering Emma down first. When they pushed open the doors to the main level, Annabeth, Rikki, and Cleo were already there to greet them.

Percy wanted to run into the arms of Annabeth, just as Emma had with Rikki and Cleo, but they knew they had only minutes. Smoke began to rise from below and the tip of the bow was submerged.

"C'mon, let's get out of here!" Percy beckoned, taking Annabeth by the hand. The five dashed to the side of the boat. They climbed the railing and together, they dove into the water, just as a final explosion ripped the yacht apart.

As Emma, Rikki, and Cleo transformed into mermaids, Percy created the bubble for Annabeth to breathe in. The demigods couldn't help but stare wide-eyed at the mermaids who turned their heads to look at them expectantly. Percy knew what they were asking, and he pointed in the direction to land.

In an instant, the mermaids were gone, with nothing but bubbles left behind as they sped through the water. The act startled Percy and Annabeth, but they couldn't blame them for wanting to get the hell away from this place. Behind them, the remains of the destroyed ship sunk to the bottom of the ocean. After watching the last pieces sink, Percy and Annabeth made their way across the ocean. They knew they'd catch up with Emma at home, for it was the only place she needed to be now.

It didn't take long for Emma, Rikki, and Cleo to reach the shores of their home. When they surfaced for air, they were breathless. Rikki and Cleo started to make their way to the shore but Emma stayed behind.

"You two go on ahead," she encouraged. "I'm going to swim around for a bit."

"Why?"

There was a certain look on Emma's face. They couldn't tell what it was precisely-anger, hatred, pain. There was something dark in her eyes that made even Rikki uncomfortable.

"I'm going to go find those scientists. Before they get away," Emma announced.

"Not by yourself you aren't," Rikki protested

"You don't have to-"

"We're coming with you. Now, c'mon. We're wasting time!" Cleo insisted before slipping her head beneath the waves. Rikki and Emma followed. They checked the beaches before they made their way to the various docks scattered about the Gold Coast. They would check there before venturing deeper through the canals.

Dr. Finley and Dr. Swanson's motorized boat was in one of the canals, one of the more obscure ones. It was best for all the crew members of the Siren's Song to scatter and regroup later when they hear from Dr. Swanson.

Dr. Swanson and several colleagues all climbed out of the boat onto the dock, intending to abandon it among the other boats floating in the canal. But as the group made their way up the dock, three young men blocked their path.

"What happened to your other boat, Cecelia?" Zane asked tauntingly with crossed arms. She narrowed her eyes at him.

"I'm sorry-have we met before?" Dr. Swanson questioned with an innocent face but a tone of ice.

"Seriously? You kidnap three girls and now you're going to pull this?" Ash snapped with raised eyebrows. "Unbelievable."

"You seem to have us mistaken. We'd never kidnap innocent girls," Dr. Finley countered.

"Cut the crap. We know everything. You're the illegal L.A.I.U.S. Project. You kidnapped Cleo, Emma, and Rikki. Now where are they?" Lewis demanded.

"We have no idea." The boys rolled their eyes at the scientists. "We're telling the truth now. They've probably been devoured by now."

"Devoured? Devoured by what?"

"Now that you know everything that we know, we'll be on our way," Dr. Finley said as the group tried to continue forward, but Zane, Ash, and Lewis didn't budge. The boys were outnumbered three to five, but they were not going to move from that spot until they got justice.

"You're so full of shit," Zane scoffed. "It's so obvious you're lying! Tell us what you've done with them!"

"You know what I think?" Ash chimed. "I think they lost them. Yeah, I think the girls got away. There's no way you would have been able to restrain them. They're too powerful. Especially the likes of you-you never stood a chance with them."

"Your taunts are meaningless. We're tired of wasting our time on a bunch of children," Dr. Finley snarled and pushed his way through the boys. The other scientists were going to follow, but Dr. Swanson did not. She narrowed her eyes at Zane. She knew exactly what they were doing-they were purposefully wasting her time. They were stalling.

Emma, Cleo, and Rikki surfaced in the canal. They first spotted the boat from the Siren's Song tied to the dock before noticing their boyfriends standing down the professionals.

And not a second later, the sound of sirens entered their ears. The realization finally struck Dr. Finley and the other three scientists. Dr. Finley's face fell as the boys' expressions turned smug.

"You called the police?" Dr. Finley sputtered.

"Why, I think I did," Ash returned delightfully. Dr. Swanson, however was calm. In fact, she looked almost amused. Unlike the others, she didn't fear the police. She knew what she was doing was illegal. But she also knew that what she was doing was revolutionary. Once the police arrest her, they're going to search her. And they're going to find the hard drive in the pocket of her lab coat. They're going to look at it for evidence of her crimes and what they will find is evidence of the greatest scientific discovery in human history. If Dr. Swanson was going down, she's going to take those mermaids down with her.

"I think I'll meet them halfway," Dr. Swanson said casually. Her unusually calm behavior did not go unnoticed by the boys. They knew something was up. She wanted to get arrested. She wanted the world to know that she had mermaids.

"Fine. Be our guest," Lewis finally said. He met the gazes of Zane and Ash, who silently agreed with him. They let her pass.

"We'll be on our way too." Zane brushed past Dr. Swanson and he attempted to stealthily steal the hard drive in her pocket. While Zane was usually able to get away with pickpocketing (not that he does it on a regular basis), Dr. Swanson saw his move coming, and blocked his hand and his path.

"Clever, but your tricks are childish." Dr. Swanson pulled the hard drive from her pocket and revealed it to the boys. "There is nothing you boys can do to stop this from getting out."

Zane, Ash, and Lewis all glared at Dr. Swanson as hatred built within them. Zane was about to just take it and run, but Lewis put a hand on his shoulder. They wanted to do this as cleanly as possible. If they got in a fight with them, they'd be just as guilty to the police, who weren't getting there fast enough. They felt defeated and tried to come up with something-anything-they could do to stop this dreadful organization once and for all.

All of a sudden, the hard drive started sparking in Dr. Swanson's hand. The sparks intensified and became so violent that Dr. Swanson was forced to drop the device. Everyone watched the source of all information gathered on the mermaids fizzle and fry itself out on the asphalt. The electricity forced everyone to take a step back, as smoke began to curl around it. Zane, Ash, and Lewis looked behind the scientists and saw the mermaids in the water; Rikki with her hand outstretched.

The boys could hardly contain their grins any longer. Dr. Swanson and Dr. Finley watched in horror all of their research char itself.

"Maybe we oughta run for it," one of the other scientists squeaked from behind. It wasn't a bad idea. At this point, they would get arrested and their scientific revolution would never be brought to light.

But just as Dr. Swanson started to move, a force stopped her feet. It felt as though her feet wouldn't lift, as if they were glued to the ground. When she looked at them, she saw ice spreading from the ground up around her feet, and gradually up to her ankles. While it only encased her feet, the ice was so cold against her skin it stung. And it wouldn't stop growing, spreading up her ankles, to her shins, eventually to her knees-

"Okay, Emma," Rikki placed a hand over Emma's raised one. "That's enough."

"No, it's not."

The police arrived.

"It is, Emma. You got them. You can stop now," Cleo pleaded. The look on Emma's face scared her. Emma's expression matched that of Rikki's once, when Rikki attempted to boil Barry Rollins for tricking her. At the time, Cleo and Emma knew Rikki was crossing over into a dark place. And now, Emma was doing the same.

"They deserve to freeze to death. All of them," Emma said quietly. But she had stopped her ice from spreading. The police were arresting them. Zane, Ash, and Lewis sent them looks before taking off.

"Emma, that's enough! This isn't you!" Rikki snapped. "Yeah, they deserve to freeze to death. They deserve to get sliced up by Percy or Annabeth. They deserve a lot of bad things. And they're going to get it. They're going to rot in jail and they'll never bother us again. Now we gotta get outta here before somebody sees us, okay?"

"Yeah, let's go home, Emma," Cleo urged.

Emma finally relaxed. She cast her gaze downward, at the water, before submerging her head underneath it and swimming away, with Cleo and Rikki joining her at her sides.