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Story 5: What if the girls lost their powers in the season 2 finale instead of Charlotte?
(Suggestion by Marril96)
Emma POVI can't cry. I won't.
"Who wants to be the first to lose their tail?" Charlotte asked with a wicked smiled and crazed eyes that said she meant business. It upset me how much she thought she was better than us, more powerful than us. It might actually be true, which upset me even more. "How about I choose? Cleo," she said cruelly, singling out the person that was dating her ex boyfriend. My stomach clenched in knots as I shot Cleo a desperate look of pity.
We were weakening by the second. It looked as if the moon pool had been too generous to her last month when she got her powers, and made them so strong that we couldn't conquer Charlotte. But it had to be done. Charlotte had to be stopped. She was uncontrollable, overpowering, and all together quite obnoxious. She wouldn't stop for just a second to realize the consequences of everything that she was doing. I didn't even think she realized with so much power, comes so much more responsibility.
I can't cry. I won't.
Charlotte sent a smirk my way, in which I didn't respond. If I did, those hot tears that I had been holding back might overflow to create a sparkling mini river on my cheeks. I just turned my full attention and focus to the moon pool, where all the action—and not to mention water—was coming from.
Charlotte pulled her water snakes back into the moon pool, where I couldn't have helped but felt relieved. Those huge water snakes that Charlotte brutally made really frightened me, even though they were just water. Then again, even water could be more deadly than one of the most poisonous snakes ever.
But Charlotte wasn't through with us yet. She knew that she had found a gap in our powers, as if she even needed one. She was still mega powerful, with or without our power flaws. She took a step forward and raised her two hands, and created even bigger snakes that looked even powerful than before.
I can't cry. I won't.
Heads up. It's coming towards you. It's only water. Just don't touch it, an imaginary voice in my head coached me, as if instructing me how to defeat Charlotte. If that's what it took, then, I would do it. Shoulders square. Act like you aren't afraid of her. I kept my back straight and I pretended what I wasn't, just as a huge snake glided over to me.
I stuck out my hand in a stop position, freezing the head of the huge snake. I smiled in victory. But that small victory didn't last. The water snake viciously shook off the ice, leading it to fly in all directions.
I can't cry. I won't.
I glanced over briefly to what Cleo and Rikki were doing, but tried not to lose my concentration on the huge beast. Cleo was moving her hand in different directions, trying to twiddle and twist the snake to her to her pleasure and will. Rikki was balling her hand into a fist, boiling the head of the water snake, creating the head to move inward. But neither of their plans seemed to be working that well.
I turned back to my own snake I was dealing with, only to see that it was steadily creeping behind me. I slowly turned around to where the snake now was, leaving the moon pool behind me, and my friends facing the right way.
I held out my hand, an attempt to freeze the snake. It seemingly hissed at me, and then zoomed toward me.
I can't cry. I won't.
It plunged into my stomach, knocking me out of breath. I took the blow graciously and fell to my back, just inches away from the moon pool.
Was Charlotte really trying to hurt us? Was there—deep down—a feeling of hatred so hot that she would attempt to kill us? It seemed like it. Then again, Charlotte was crazy. And I didn't mean that she was crazy on a normal day (though sometimes I had my doubts on that statement.) This was her first full moon, and she hadn't had any time to prepare or anything, so it was easy to let your emotions get swept away into an empty vat, where you were no longer you, until those feelings and rich emotions got placed back in you, where you realize what you did was wrong, and wondered why on earth you did that. But I bet Charlotte wouldn't think that. She hated us. And she was Charlotte.
"Emma!" I heard two female and one male voice call out. Cleo, Rikki and Lewis. Rikki and Cleo left behind their snakes, not caring at all about them. That made me smile. They really were great friends, and they would risk anything to help me.
I looked up at my friends, who were at my sides and helping me sit up. I turned my weak gaze over to the three snakes. They hissed venomously at me, as if I did something to them, other than vice versa. I wondered if those snakes had any bad emotions towards me at all, or if Charlotte just influenced them. I bet if Cleo had them under her control—if she would even create giant water snakes—they wouldn't hurt anyone, not even if she was moonstruck. She had better control than that brat Charlotte.
The snakes vigorously shot towards us. I raised a shaky finger and pointed at them. "Look out!" I shouted with the last breath I had, and ended up coughing.
I can't cry. I won't.
Cleo was the first to plunge in first. The snake hit her in the side, which was facing them, because she was comforting me. She slid into the moon pool, and it really looked as if it hurt. When she surfaced, she was coughing and sputtering, spinning around, and trying to grab hold of something to keep her upright. She swished her now grown tail, trying to gain some balance. I looked up to the top of the volcano—the full moon had almost taken its place of honor, at the top of the volcano, where it would strip away any unlucky mermaid's powers for some other person to come waltz in and take over her powers.
I looked up to Charlotte. She was smiling—why wouldn't she? She had finally gained enough control to conquer Cleo Sertori—even if Rikki and I didn't fall into the moon pool in time for the full moon to take away her powers, it was still a victory for Charlotte.
I glanced at the now remaining water snakes. The one that knocked Cleo over was now ordinary water, untouched as if nothing had ever happened and was part of the moon pool. Cleo had finally been able to gain enough energy back from the blow to keep above water for a short period of time. She grasped the side of the moon pool, eyes shut. She took a few deep breaths as she tried to hoist herself out of the moon pool. All Charlotte did was smirk. She knew that Cleo couldn't get out of the moon pool when she had just been knocked over and out of breath, not to mention her powers weakened from the endless brawl with Charlotte. All she could really do right now is wait for the endless waiting to end.
One snake lunged towards Rikki. She could easily see it coming, so she rolled to the right, getting a few feet closer to Charlotte and a few feet away from me, which made me uneasy. Rikki looked at the snakes, smiled, and gloated in her head that she was too smart for water shaped like a snake.
But it wasn't done yet. It flew back into Rikki, and this time she didn't expect it. It shot into her stomach, and threw her into the moon pool, where it soon joined her to become a bunch of water nothingness.
I can't cry. I won't.
Rikki surfaced, taking deep, shaky breaths. She wiped the water out of her eyes so that she could see what was happening. Rikki looked up to the top of the volcano, and saw the full moon about thirty seconds away from being at the very middle—the beginning of the end.
I looked at Charlotte. Her brown eyes glowed with triumphant, as if she had just done something unimaginable and impossible. Her eyes then shot towards me, and she frowned—I was the only mermaid left. She wasn't done yet.
I gulped shakily as she moved swiftly over to me. I looked up at the top of the volcano—it was just about time. Only about twenty seconds away.
I can't cry. I won't.
She crouched down next to me, her jeans rubbing together and creating a sickening sound that made me flinch. She grinned, obviously happy that she had made me uncomfortable. She glared at me with that hatred look in her evil eyes and said, "You can go in the easy way, or the hard way."
I glanced back at the moon pool, now very close to being under magical influence that would change our lives forever. I saw Cleo, out of breath, clinging to the side of the moon pool, looking at me with fearful eyes that a puppy might look at someone as if they were lost. I looked at Rikki, who was on the verge of tears, and staring at me. Her eyes were almost saying, Don't do it, Emma. Stall. You can overpower her for a few seconds. You could keep your powers, and we'll side by you.
I looked back at Charlotte quickly, at her smirking face, and at the last snake, hissing and rearing to go. Charlotte looked as if she wanted me to go in the hard way. But I wouldn't give her that satisfaction. I wouldn't give her the satisfaction of breaking down into tears and begging her for mercy.
I got up to my feet, and faced the moon pool. The full moon was only seven seconds away from totality, and it had even started to illuminate the moon pool, giving it an eerie, mystical glow.
I took a step forward, and tried not to look at the sad faces of Cleo and Rikki. It would make me bawl. Instead, I looked down at the awaiting moon pool.
So this is it, I thought. All those adventures, the powers, the freedom...all just a vivid memory now. All gone. I took a small step to the moon pool, and then, building confidence, took an even bigger one.
Just one more step. I took a deep breath, and jumped.
I broke the surface of the water with a splash. I felt the cool water against my flustered cheeks, showing off the hard work I put in towards the battle with Charlotte. But it was all useless to me now. I kind of wish now that we hadn't even fought here, considering it was all a waste now.
When my tail appeared, I rubbed its scaly, bumpy surface, telling it my last goodbyes. Somewhere deep in my mind I was trying to find negative things about being a mermaid, so I would actually look forward to losing my powers. The only things that popped up were the usual, having to watch out for water everywhere, the lying, sneaking...but none added up to the thrill of really being a mermaid.
I surfaced, and saw that the show was just starting. The full moon started to cover the top of the volcano, fully illuminating the moon pool. I gulped as I watched tiny, magical bubbles fly up towards the moon. I imagined a little part of our powers or tail going up with each bubble. It was exactly like when we had first gotten our powers, except this time it didn't seem so magical.
I glanced fearfully at Lewis. He was still wedged in the moon pool wall, looking frightened with worry. I bit my lip at his sorrow. He really did care for us.
I saw the last bubbles fly up towards the moon, just as the moon pool stopped bubbling. I looked at Cleo, who had gained her strength back. I looked down at my legs, in hope that the effects didn't work. But all I saw were my stupid little legs, which were drenched in water, a sight I was not used to seeing. My clothes were soaked and sticking to me. I looked up at Charlotte, who had a big smile on her stupid little face. She won. We lost.
"Nice legs," she said, looking into the moon pool. Rikki gulped in attempt to keep back her burning tears. Charlotte waltzed over to Lewis, and smiled brightly at him, showing all teeth. "See, Lewis? I told you the girls weren't worthy of their powers. If they were, they would have won. But I'm worthy." I guess Charlotte felt brave then, and felt in control, because she stepped up to him, and kissed him on the lips, much to Cleo's horror. She then said, "If you ever dump that fool Cleo, you know my number."
She came over to us and dived into the moon pool. We all swam to the sides of the moon pool as she surfaced, tail and all. She smiled mockingly at us, and looked at her tail. Without saying a word, she dived under.
I can't cry. I won't.
The tears fell anyway.
A/N: I was waiting for someone to suggest this, and I had fun writing it! Tell me if you like it!