"Where's Fly?"
Alone in his dark bedroom, Chuck typed "biochemical composition of kelp" and hit Enter. This brought in thousands of results, many of which were academic articles on marine biology and ecosystems. Where to even begin?
"Where's Fly?"
Uncle Bill's voice cut through the celebratory hugs and smiles. Chuck remembered those words pulling him away from his mother as a horrible realization crossed his mind.
He shut his eyes tightly. Not now, he scolded himself. Focus. He clicked on the first link listed on the screen.
But the memory kept playing, like a VCR without a stop button. Chuck hurried up the spiral staircase, his gut hurting from exhaustion, his lungs trying to catch every breath. Did Fly…? Did he…?
He's alive, he reminded himself. He scanned the first line in the article: "Kelp, a type of algae belonging to the order Laminariales…"
His eyes immediately spotted it on the floor, something bright orange. Him. "Fly!" He was so small, Chuck nested him in both of his hands. He wasn't flopping, not breathing. No sign of subtle movement. "Talk to me, Fly. Say something."
"...not actually plants, but heterokont, a group of organisms that…"
The boy skipped further down the article. Something relevant, please! He rubbed his eyes with his wrist, blinking rapidly. They were strained from staring at the computer screen for countless hours. He had a notepad beside the keyboard where he jotted down tidbits of information that could serve as useful. Half of the sheets were already filled front to back, consisting of lists of facts to diagrams to chemical compound illustrations. Already, he had his ballpoint pen uncapped and was scribbling half-legible words.
Iodine, polysaccharides, alginates, alkali…
As he listed each component, he wondered how on earth Professor MacKrill was able to create a fish potion antidote with only that single ingredient. From what he read about kelp, its byproducts were commonly used in a lot of store-bought products such as soaps, toothpaste, and vitamin supplements. For kelp to be that crucial element that would turn fish-turned humans back into humans, and give ordinary fish human-like intelligence…
Chuck shook his head, placing his pen down. None of this was making any sense. Even evaluating MacKrill's original fish potion formula left him stumped. It should not have been possible for a mixture of organs derived from assorted sea creatures to completely transform one's genetic makeup from one species to another. Chuck would have completely dismissed the potion as something not supported by any scientific evidence had he himself not been a witness of its effects.
Or better yet, an unintended guinea pig.
Chuck begged the Professor, holding onto his white coat desperately. "Do something! Make a new potion!"
"I'm sorry. It's too late," was the resigned response. "I warned him, but he didn't listen…"
But Chuck was unwilling to give up. "A time machine! You have to have a time machine, right? Turn back the clock before the sun sets!" It was far-fetched, but he was willing to go anywhere, grasping at solutions he knew were ridiculous. He didn't care. He had to save Fly.
"Charles, can't you see?" His mother…Even his own mother was trying to convince him to let it go. How was she so calm in all this? What was the matter with her? Didn't she understand?
"No…No…It's not too late," Chuck mumbled to himself, casting his eyes away from the monitor to his trembling hands. "It's not too late…It's not…"
The glass bowl shattered, water spilling all over the floor, soaking his pants. Fly landed on the floor at Chuck's feet. "Fly! Are you okay, Fly! Fly!"
He snapped out of it, trying to push the memory to the back of his mind. "He's okay…he's okay…he's okay…" he recited over and over. "Fly is alive…He's…fine."
He gathered information from another article, and another, and another. He wrote down what he saw as potential pieces to this very complicated puzzle. How did you do this, Professor? How did you make this potion work? And how can the antidote not work after forty-eight hours? What's wrong? What's missing?
Flipping through previous notes, he mentally noted the other ingredients: The bioluminescent lure from an anglerfish, codfish whiskers, octopus ink, sea anemone, and fish eggs. These were all from the sea. Even the kelp, which is supposed to reverse the effects of all the others.
"No! Stay away from me!"
"Charles—here, let me—"
"No!"
He then lost his footing and slipped. Fly flew from his hands up into the air. His mother, being within reach, tried to catch the fish with her fumbling hands, but he had instead landed on the floor. Her foot had stomped forward.
That's when Chuck heard the crunch!
No! Stop! Chuck clenched his teeth, gripping the sides of his head. Tears welled in his eyes. Stop!
Why couldn't these nightmares go away? Why did they keep replaying in his head? Whether he was awake or asleep, it didn't matter. They came. They intruded. Chuck tried to convince himself that Fly was okay…except he wasn't. He may have survived, but he wasn't okay. Why else did Chuck pull sleepless nights every night? Why would he dedicate all his time trying to figure out a concoction that defied everything he understood about science? If Fly really was okay, then why would Chuck bother? Why bother with any of it?
He sniffed, removing his glasses so he could wipe his eyes. Taking a deep breath, he straightened himself on his chair and popped his knuckles. He had to concentrate. He reread the ingredients list. Anglerfish, codfish, octopus, anemone, fish, kelp…all from the sea. Is it possible? he ventured. Could…could he try something that's not from the sea? A part of a land animal? A…human?
Chuck raised his eyebrows, his eyes gleaming in this revelation. Of course! Human DNA, that's what's missing! Obviously, he didn't know for sure if it would work, but it was worth a try. He turned to a new sheet of note paper and began writing down his hypothesis. It was going off the beaten path as far as scientific theories went, but this was a creation of MacKrill's he was dealing with. Might as well start thinking like him.
He filled out about five sheets of the note paper, front to back until he was sure he had something he could work with. Instead of kelp, Chuck figured he could put something from a human in the antidote. A strand of hair, a fingernail, saliva, or skin cells. How much, and whether the DNA had to be Fly's or not, Chuck had yet to determine. He couldn't think of a way he could test this new antidote once it was concocted. Fly was the only test subject, but if something went wrong…
He had to try. It was better than sitting here and doing nothing. And certainly, his cousin would be welcome to anything.
Furthermore, there was one other element he had to find out. Fly's current DNA structure, being a fish with human characteristics. In what ways MacKrill's potion had altered his genetic coding. Finally, after over a week, Chuck was experiencing a breakthrough! Excitement filled him. He now knew what he must do.
He was going to pay a visit to his Uncle Bill and Aunt Lisa as soon as possible!