Disclaimer: I do not own "Flipper" or "Aquaman." This story is a work of fanfiction. No profit is being made from it.
It was a beautiful summer day in Bal Harbour. As they did most days, Mike Blondell and Maya Graham had taken a boat out to sea. Today they had decided to go scuba diving.
They swam down through a bright expanse of sunlit blue water until they reached the seabed. Brilliantly coloured fish swam all around, flitting between marine plants and algae-covered rock. A green moray eel poked its head out from between two rocks as they approached.
Clad in a blue and purple wetsuit, Mike paddled over to the eel with a small bag. He took out a piece of squid and dangled it just over the eel's head. It lunged forwards and eagerly snatched the food from his hand.
Wearing her pink and purple wetsuit, Maya watched in fascination. They had been visiting the eel for some time now and she was sure it considered them to be its friends.
Of course, nothing could ever replace Flipper she thought. I wonder where he is.
Their dolphin friend had come with them when they took the boat out from dock and dived down but then he'd seemed to notice something and swam off. Maya wasn't worried. Flipper hadn't appeared to be afraid, just curious. She knew he'd return soon.
As if he'd sensed her thoughts Flipper came zooming through the blue water towards them. To her surprise he wasn't alone. She tapped Mike on the shoulder and he turned to see what it was. His eyes went from curiosity to amazement as he saw that Flipper was accompanied by none other than the superhero Aquaman.
He smiled and pointed upwards. They nodded in understanding and they all swam to the surface.
"Hello my friends" Aquaman said with a broad smile once their heads were above water. He wore his usual outfit of orange scale mail, green leggings, gloves and boots. His long blonde hair and beard shone in the sunlight. "It's good to see you again."
"Same to you" said Maya brightly.
"This is a surprise," said Mike. "What brings you back to Bal Harbour?"
"I was tracking down some smugglers. As I was wrapping things up a pod of dolphins told me you were nearby so I thought I'd pay a visit" he replied. "I'm afraid I can't stay and chat for too long but there's something I'd like to show you both. I think you'll find it very interesting."
"Absolutely" said Mike eagerly.
"I'll come too" Maya agreed.
"Excellent. I'd better check with your mother first though Mike. The last thing I want is an angry mother after me."
"Yeah, especially my mom," said Mike.
Once they had gotten permission from Dr Blondell (who was pleasantly surprised that they had bothered to do so), Mike and Maya got on board their boat and followed Aquaman across the sea surface with Flipper alongside them.
After a few moments they saw that they were approaching what looked like a large ship. As they got closer, they realized it was in fact a floating building made of light grey metal with a distinctly organic look, all flowing lines and sleek curves. They stared at it in amazement.
"That's so cool," said Maya.
Flipper whistled in agreement.
"What is this thing?" Mike asked.
"This is my new Aqua-Base. It's a mobile fortress that can travel anywhere in the oceans" Aquaman explained. "I can use it to transport equipment and supplies to disaster areas, secure enemy vessels, rescue people from sinking ships, all kinds of things I can't do by myself. I brought you all here to give you the grand tour."
"We get to see inside? That's great," said Mike.
"Right this way" said Aquaman.
They followed him into a hanger. As Mike and Maya were mooring their boat, three figures strode over to greet them. The first was a beautiful woman with long red hair wearing a green-scaled bodysuit. The second was a large man clad in bronze armour and with a curved blade in place of his right hand. Finally, there was an older man with a short grey-black beard dressed in a blue outfit. The woman smiled as she hugged Aquaman.
"Arthur" she said.
"Hello Mera" he said warmly. He turned to Mike and Maya. "Allow me to introduce my lovely wife, Mera and two old friends of mine, Murk and Vulko."
The armoured man, Murk, bowed but his face was expressionless. The other man, Vulko, bowed and smiled.
"These fine young people are the ones that saved my life the last time I was in this area" Aquaman went on. "These are Mike, Maya and their friend Flipper."
"I am honoured to meet you all. I thank you for saving the man I love," said Mera.
"No sweat. We were glad to help" replied Mike. Flipper chattered enthusiastically.
"Ah so this is Flipper" said Vulko. "We've heard quite a bit about him."
"Flipper's the best," said Maya.
Vulko sighed. "It does my soul good to see that there are surface-dwellers who care about the sea. Especially young people like yourselves."
"You bet. We're all about protecting the sea life," said Mike.
Suddenly the air was filled with the blaring of an alarm. An Atlantean soldier came running up.
"Unidentified vessel approaching fast. It's not responding to hailing frequencies."
Aquaman frowned. "Quickly, everyone to the main deck."
They arrived at the main deck in time to see a large black fishing vessel come to a halt in front of the Aqua-Base. On deck was a man wearing a purple wetsuit with dark blue hip-length boots and a metal shoulder harness and belt. Attached to the belt were multiple fishing lures. His head was covered by a yellow cowl with black spots that kept his face hidden in shadow. In his hand was a fishing rod made of silvery metal. There were also several other men, all wearing greenish-yellow wetsuits and orange fish masks.
"Who are these guys?" Maya asked.
"The Fisherman, an old enemy of mine" Aquaman replied.
Mike laughed. "You're kidding!"
"I'm afraid not" he said, unperturbed by Mike's amusement. "Don't be fooled by his name or outfit. He's a dangerous criminal."
"Greetings Aquaman, my old nemesis" the Fisherman called. "I've come for your Aqua-Base. It will be my biggest catch to date."
"Forget it Fisherman" Aquaman called back. "You're not getting your hands on this base."
"We'll see about that." The Fisherman held up a remote control. He pressed a button and a hatch slid open on the deck. A device resembling a loudspeaker rose up into view. He pressed another button and the device emitted a low humming sound.
Mike and Maya were unaffected, as was Aquaman. Mera, Murk and Vulko by contrast all collapsed.
"Mera!" Aquaman exclaimed as he caught her and lowered her gently to the floor. He checked her pulse and sighed in relief as he felt that it was fine. "Mera, Mera, wake up" he said. He gripped her arms and shook her but she remained out cold. Mike and Maya tried to wake up Murk and Vulko but they fared no better.
The Fisherman laughed. "My sonic weapon emits a frequency that affects the Atlantean nervous system, rendering them completely unconscious. Every Atlantean in that base is now out cold."
"But boss, how come it didn't work on Aquaman?" one of his henchmen asked.
"Because he's half-human. I knew there was a chance of that" he explained. "But no matter. The base will be mine! Boys, get him!"
"Sure thing boss."
A boarding ramp deployed from the ship and the Fisherman's goons charged down it. Aquaman turned to face them
"Keep Mera and the others safe. I'll handle this" he said.
With that he leaped forwards and knocked out one of the henchmen with a haymaker. Two more came at him but he easily took them out with powerful punches.
Mike frowned as he watched the battle. Aquaman was more than holding his own but he was seriously outnumbered. Several of the henchmen were aiming various weapons at him.
"I've got to help Aquaman" he said.
"Mike wait!" Maya called futilely as he charged in recklessly.
A henchman saw Mike coming, aimed a net launcher at him and fired. With a whoosh of compressed gas, a weighted net was fired through the air. Before he could react, the net had wrapped tightly around him. Entangled in the net he cried out in alarm as he fell into the water with a splash! Unable to swim with his arms and legs pinned he sank beneath the surface, dragged down by the weights attached to the net.
"Mike!" Maya cried. Without hesitation she dived into the water and swam down after him.
Three henchmen armed with spear guns fired at Aquaman. He easily evaded the spears and knocked them all sprawling.
That's the last of the minions, but where's the Fisherman? I don't see him…
With a high whirring sound, a polymer line tipped with a steel hook came whizzing towards him. It coiled tightly around Aquaman, binding his arms at his sides. He looked over his shoulder to see the Fisherman brandishing his trademark weapon.
"Right where you belong Aquaman. On the end of my hook" he gloated.
Aquaman tried to telepathically summon sea creatures to help him but to his astonishment nothing happened.
"You look surprised" the Fisherman taunted. "Is it because you can't contact your fishy friends for backup? Did I forget to mention that my sonic device is also driving away all marine life from this area? This time you're sunk. I've won."
Aquaman strained against his bonds but couldn't get free. There must be a way out of this mess he thought. But how?
Mike strained with growing desperation to free himself as he sank deeper into the depths of the sea but the net remained tangled firmly around him. Already his lungs were starting to burn in his chest. His eyes darted around desperately looking for Flipper, but there was no sign of him.
Come on Flipper, where are you? he thought.
Maya swam down as fast as she could and caught hold of the trailing bits of netting. Feeling his descent cease Mike looked up at her. She smiled reassuringly, put her arms around him and began swimming for the surface. Just as his vision was turning black Maya raised him up so that his head was above water. He gasped and inhaled deeply, drawing fresh sea air into his lungs.
"Are you okay?" she asked as she supported him while treading water.
"I'm okay. Thanks Maya, I owe you one" he replied once he'd gotten his breath back.
"Forget it. You'd do the same for me" she said.
Mike started to answer but stopped as he spotted something out of the corner of his eye, as did Maya. They both looked over and their eyes widened as they saw a henchman aiming a spear gun at them.
Before he could fire, Flipper shot through the water like a torpedo and rammed the henchman with his beak. He dropped his weapon and floundered away, gripping his chest in pain.
"Nice one Flipper" Mike called.
Flipper chattered a reply. Unknown to either of them the Fisherman's sonic weapon was causing him severe pain. But he willed himself to ignore it. His friends needed him.
He helped support Mike as Maya dragged him around the back of the main deck, out of the Fisherman's sight, and then hauled him out of the water. She quickly untangled him from the net.
"Thanks again" he said. "Now I know how a fish feels." He frowned as he looked over and saw the trouble Aquaman was in. "We have to help him."
"I have an idea," said Maya. She held up one end of the net with a grin. "Let's give that creep a taste of his own medicine."
Mike grinned too as he realized what she had in mind. They dived back into the water and swam around to the front of the deck, carrying the net between them. Mike checked to make sure that the Fisherman had his back to them and nodded to Maya. They both climbed onto the deck, taking care to be as quiet as they could. The Fisherman was so engrossed in his moment of seeming victory he didn't notice them.
"This time you're sunk. I've won AAGGGH!"
The Fisherman's boast became a yell of surprise as Mike and Maya flung the net over his head. Before he could recover Mike seized the fishing rod and managed to yank it out of his grip. The Fisherman struggled to free himself but couldn't get the net off.
"No, I don't believe this" he ranted. "I lost to a pair of kids!"
"Well done" said Aquaman as they freed him from the line. "Now let's shut off that machine."
Soon afterwards Mera and the Atlanteans had regained consciousness while the Fisherman and his goons were led away by the Coast guard.
"Thank you again my friends" said Aquaman to Mike, Maya and Flipper. "Atlantis owes you."
"We were happy to help" Mike replied.
"Are you sure Flipper's okay?" Maya asked. Aquaman had told them what their dolphin friend had endured to aid them.
"I'm certain. He told me as soon as the sonic device was turned off the pain went away" he assured her.
"You're awesome Flipper," said Mike.
Flipper whistled happily and nodded his head up and down.
"Now let's get on with that tour I promised you" said Aquaman. "And after that you're both invited to a celebration feast."
Mike grinned. "Cool."
The tour was an amazing experience. Aqaman showed them all around the base and they were in awe of the remarkable sights. Much to Mike and Maya's delight the base was fully sea-accessible so Flipper was able to join them, swimming through various tubes and chambers.
Afterwards, in the main hall a table had been set with a variety of exotic sea food dishes. Everyone was seated around the table enjoying the food and talking casually. Flipper watched from an adjacent pool.
"So Maya, you say your grandmother was a mystic," said Mera.
"That's right. She was a witch doctor" she replied. "So am I."
"Fascinating. Atlantis has had a somewhat… strained relationship with the mystic arts, but we have since learned our understanding was deeply flawed. My friend Garth and I would be interested if you could tell us something of what your grandmother taught you."
"I'd be honoured" Maya said with a delighted smile.
"This is really good," said Mike. He held up a green roll that he'd just taken a bite of. "What is it?"
"That is elokway" Vulko explained. "I believe your people call it a sea slug."
Upon hearing that Mike's face immediately turned green. "W, where's the bathroom?"
"Just through there on the left" Aquaman replied, pointing to a nearby archway. Mike stood and ran through the archway.
"I'm sorry about that," said Maya.
"It's quite all right" said Aquaman.
Flipper got everyone's attention with a loud whistle. They all looked over to him. "You want to try the elokway Flipper? Okay."
He tossed the sea slug through the air. Flipper leaped up and caught it in his beak as Mike stumbled back in still looking very queasy.
"Looks like Flipper likes it," said Maya.
"Great, he can have mine," said Mike.
The others all laughed at that.
Author's Note: The final scene is a homage to Aquaman Volume 8 #1 in which a disguised Black Manta pretends to be sick after eating a piece of sea slug (a ruse so he can plant bombs).