(A/N: Did I say that it wouldn't take me forever to get to this chapter? I'm sorry, I meant to say it would take a year. XD
Seriously though, guys, I'm really sorry about this. I got caught up in some other stuff and this got pushed to the back of my mind. In my defense, it's not exactly easy to keep track of forty stories. Lol (Just kidding, I'm not even working on half of them.)
Anyway, I think you've waited enough, so let's get on with this chapter. There will be some biology mentioned in this, but nothing too graphic, so don't worry. Now, let's get on with it!)
I*Y*I-v-o-X-o-v-I*Y*I
It was a couple of weeks since Abaia overheard the conversation the Titans were having about him. He did have some doubts that it was a "misunderstanding", as Robin called it, he knew what he heard.
Since then, he had been reading about the things they were talking about that day. Specifically, he wanted to learn about DNA, he had no idea what it was, but knew it must be information, it was discussed quite a bit.
Unfortunately, reading about DNA was proving to be harder than he thought. Many of the words used in its description were too big and complicated for him. The most complicated word he understood was 'encyclopedia', a book that gave information.
He didn't want the Titans to know what he was doing, in case they became suspicious. He needed help, though, he wasn't smart enough to figure it out on his own.
He decided to ask the one he thought he could trust the most, Robin. Robin was incredibly smart, which made him nervous that he might be able to piece together why he wanted to learn about DNA.
He was the only one he felt comfortable enough to ask, however. Cyborg slightly scared him with his temper and foul language, Starfire would ask questions that he was unable to answer if she found a word she didn't understand, Beast Boy was simply not smart enough, and Raven spent her entire day meditating and he had seen what happens when she was interrupted.
His writing had gotten better and his vocabulary had expanded to a couple of new words, so Abaia was able to ask him to give him some help. Without giving specific details about what he wanted to learn about, he asked him to help him with biology.
Although he was undoubtedly at least a little suspicious about why he would have wanted to learn about a subject that he had almost no interest in before, he agreed to help him. He helped him by simplifying the words he didn't understand in a way that was easier for him.
Other than Robin's assistance with the new vocabulary words, Abaia needed little help with learning about biology subjects that he was the most interested in. He had been practicing his reading by spending an hour a day deciphering paragraphs and looking in between the lines of texts, mostly short stories. He found out that he strangely enjoyed reading folktales and popular culture, such as Robin Hood and Treasure Island.
With his help, he was able to learn more about DNA. He discovered that it was essentially the pieces that constructed the puzzle of life. When organisms bred, half of the DNA of each parent was passed down to their offspring. It was useful in law enforcement in order to identify bodies and capture criminals. Oftentimes, it could be used by scientists to determine species, including those that were extinct.
He also learned that due to the complexity of DNA, it was prone to many issues and had a fair amount of weaknesses. The genetic code is supposed to produce a perfect clone of the species when two parents breed, but there were occasional irregularities that resulted in mutations and disabilities. The main thing that could permanently damage it was a large dosage of radiation, which he discovered often caused illness and death.
As he looked through a section of a textbook that gave a description of the discovery of DNA, he saw an image of an unusual shape. Robin was sitting some distance from him as he read books that interested him while he waited for Abaia to request his help. That wait was over when he felt a pen hit the side of his head, Abaia's way of getting his attention.
He set the open book upside down on the table and went over to him, "What is it?"
On his notepad, he wrote, "What is this?" He tapped on the image he saw with the eraser of his pencil.
He looked at it and recognized it immediately, "Oh, that's a double helix. It's kind of like two interlocking spirals. This is a model of the shape of DNA."
"DNA has a shape?" he asked, tilting his head curiously.
"Well, you know what an X-ray is, right? Or at least heard of it?" he inquired. He nodded. "Two scientists used an X-ray to see what they believed to be what DNA looks like to the human eye."
It was actually much more complicated than that, but he simplified it so that he didn't become confused. It seemed to work, he was drawing a picture of the double helix, including the rungs, and writing notes underneath it.
When he was done with his notes, he wrote another question, "Is DNA in everything? Everything that lives?"
"Well, there are a few exceptions, but, yeah, all living beings have a DNA profile that is unique to them," he answered. "Identical twins will have the same DNA, the only way to tell them apart would be through something more physical, such a fingerprint or even their personality."
"Does DNA affect fingerprints or personalities?" he asked him again.
"No, no. That's a pretty common misunderstanding, but DNA has nothing to do with them at all," he responded. "DNA is like a computer code, it creates what a being should look like, but nothing more. Just like a computer code, it can be damaged to the point of endangering life."
His words caught Abaia's attention and he hastily wrote, "What can? What can put life in danger?"
"Well, I would have to say the most common and dangerous thing that can affect DNA is radiation," he replied. "Long-term exposure to high levels of radiation is known to cause mutations, cancer, radiation sickness, and even death. It affects DNA in such a way that the damage it causes is often irreversible. Ironically, radiation is a common treatment for cancer patients, even though it causes it to happen in the first place."
"What kind of effect would this cause on nature?" he questioned.
His response was immediate, "It would be an environmental disaster. The result would cause almost all of the wildlife to drop like flies. Not to mention the economic problems and controversies that it'll probably cause."
He never expected him to know so much about radiation and its effects on not just DNA. Hearing everything he was telling him not only clarified what the books told him, but also made him suspect that he could be the result of radiation. He was a mutated eel, he just didn't know how or why.
"Is there anything else you want me to help with?" Robin asked.
Abaia shook his head and closed the book, writing on his notepad, "No. I think this is enough learning for one eel."
He chuckled, "Okay, just put the book on the shelf. You know your way back to your room, right?"
"Yes," he wrote. "I can find my own room."
He smiled at his obliviousness to his joke, "Okay."
He put the book back where he found it on the shelf and let himself out of the room with his notes. He headed for the elevator, since his room was on a different floor.
He pressed the button to the elevator and when it opened, Raven was standing inside. He walked in and wrote a quick message on his notepad.
"Hi, Raven. What floor are you going to?" he asked.
"Main floor," she replied.
"I am going down," he told her. "My room."
"Okay," she pressed the button for the floor his room was on.
"Why are we going down? I thought you wanted to go up?" he questioned.
"I'm not in a rush," she responded. "My cup of tea can wait."
"Was that a joke?" he asked again.
She smiled slightly, "Maybe it is, maybe not."
She was nice to him, but sometimes he wondered if she would be if he was Beast Boy or someone else who annoyed her. He had seen her be friendly to him at times, but such instances were very rare. Most of the time, they seemed to constantly be mocking each other.
The doors closed and the elevator moved down, a feeling that he could never get used to. It took him a little while to get used to his legs and using them to walk, sit, and swim, but he learned to like them. When he felt a force pull them down or push them up while he was standing, it felt strange. He didn't dislike the elevator, he just had difficulty getting used to the movement.
It came to a stop in less than a minute and the doors opened, he was on his floor. He stepped out as she pressed the button for the main floor. He waved to her as the doors closed once again.
He went to his room, opening it by pressing a button on the panel next to it with his claw. He stepped inside, the door closing automatically a moment later.
He dropped his blanket on the floor, put his notes, pen and notepad on his bed, and walked into the bathroom. He stepped into the shower after using the toilet, not flushing it because it made the water too hot for him. The warmest temperature he could bear was slightly cooler than lukewarm.
He stood in place as the cool water flowed down his body like the veins of a river. He stayed in the shower until he was content with the amount of moisturization he received. In the meantime, he thought about everything he learned about that day.
Learning about DNA was a little more difficult than he expected it to be, but he felt he had enough information. He also now thought he understood why the Titans were anxious to study his DNA, they wanted to figure out how he became what he was.
He knew something happened to him, he was not smart, but he understood enough to know that he was unnatural. He was, as he had heard on television and from Beast Boy on one occasion, a freak of nature.
It made him curious about himself, but also afraid. He was unsure if he wanted to know what occurred when his life as a normal eel had changed forever.
What if they discovered he had an illness, like the kind radiation caused? If he did, what if it was contagious? He would have to be isolated for the rest of his life, not to mention what would happen to them. He didn't know if he could live with himself if that was the case.
However, it was equally possible that there was nothing unusual about him, other than the obvious. He had two arms and legs, he was as big as a normal human, and he had the ability to control water. It was strange - to say the least - and perhaps it was all that had changed about him from the time he was an unremarkable eel. He hoped that was the case, he just wanted everyone, including himself, to be safe.
He decided he was moisturized enough and stepped out of the shower. Instead of getting a towel, he closed his eyes and concentrated, his fins began to glow with the blue color. He held his hands above his chest and moved them downwards, along the front of his body, without touching any skin.
Water drops rose from his body and onto his hands and fingers. Soon, his hands were completely encased in water, as though he was wearing gloves. He rested his wrists on the basin of the sink and released his hold on the water as the glow faded.
The water dropped into the sink with a splash, some of it spilling on the floor. A little bit of it, however, returned to his body, like what usually happened when he used his powers.
He was disappointed but not surprised, if anything, he expected it. He became annoyed with how towels absorbed some of the moisture and started to practice how to rid his body of the excess. The technique was not perfect, but he would continue to practice until he got it right.
He cleaned up the water and left the bathroom, wrapping his blanket around himself. He looked at his bed, at the notes he wrote, contemplating what to do now that he had the information he wanted.
After several moments, he grabbed his notepad and pen and left his room. He knew that the Titans wanted to know what his response to testing his DNA would be once he understood what it meant, he was going to give it to them.
Robin decided to go to the living room on the main floor after helping Abaia and spend time with his teammates. Cyborg and Beast Boy were playing a video game, Raven was reading a book she bought the other day, Starfire was feeding Silkie in the kitchen, and he was sitting at the counter, watching the video game sequence.
He heard the door slide open, which turned his attention to see who was coming in or leaving. He saw Abaia in front of the doorway, he looked like he was slightly anxious.
"Hey, I thought you were in your room? What's up?" he asked.
He walked up to him with a prewritten note that said, "I have something to say." It appeared to have been hastily written, there were thick spots in between the letters in a couple of words, as though he wrote the wrong letters by accident and got slightly overzealous when he corrected the mistakes.
"Okay," he replied. "What is it?"
He showed him another prewritten note that made his eyes as wide as his mask, "I want you to test my DNA."
I*Y*I-v-o-X-o-v-I*Y*I
(A/N: Oh, man, I really am sorry that I wasn't able to update this sooner. I'm sorry I couldn't make this longer, I tried to make this as long as I could. I will try my absolute best to update sooner next time (if I can get a break from my "Ben 10" story; I'm so stressed).
Anyway, I can't think of anything else that needs to be said (mainly because I'm tired). So, with that in mind, I'll see you whenever I get the chance!)