Ocean Storms

Angel had finally began to calm down after the fifth day. The scientists were still awaiting confirmation to start the experiments, and Damien was still locked up in his room.

What the scientists could do, however, is figure out what the creature ate. They tried numerous things, but it wouldn’t even touch whatever they put in.

Not that they could put in much, because whenever they opened the top, Angel would swim up quickly, and try to get out.

He’d almost taken a finger off.

His teeth, John noticed, had the ability to grow, into razor sharp fangs, that reminded him much like a shark. Of course, it was something else to take note of, like the amazing healing capability. He really wanted to know what the extent the merman could heal.

It didn’t matter if it was humane or not, it’s not like Angel was human, right? So what did it matter?

Angel seemed to know what the man was thinking, as he stood in front of the tank, contemplating on how he could make the merman spill his secrets.

Angel was growing hungry, though he didn’t touch whatever they gave him. It was all junk, anyway. It was idiotic, what they thought he might eat. Yes, the fish did look good, but it was poisonous to him, ironically enough.

At least the kinds they were giving him. How did they manage to catch all the kinds he couldn’t eat?

He was pissed, too. He couldn’t believe how stupid he was. He actually got himself caught! Those scientists were going to get it…

When John read the letter that came earlier that evening, a few weeks after he sent the last one.

He just about screamed in rage after he read the contents.

All the scientists met up in front of the tanks, to listen to what John had to say. Even Damien was there, leaning on the glass of the tank.

“Barlows’ wife is coming up to verify if we actually have a mermaid. And she’s bringing her kid.” Barlows was the man in charge. He whirled around, and stuck a finger out at Damien, “Aren’t you the representative? Isn’t it your job to make sure about that?” He all but yelled.

“Barlows doesn’t trust just my word. He was going to do this from the start,” Damien shrugged, smirking at the look on John’s face, “Don’t bust a vein.”

“Get out, just get…” John was at first yelling, but trailed off, staring at something behind Damien. The other’s looked too, eyes widening at what they saw.

Damien, at first, didn’t know what they were staring at, and turned around himself, to come face to face with Angel.

No one had ever seen Angel come this close to the glass with someone standing on the other side.

Damien raised an eyebrow, staring at the merman, who put his face against the glass, as if trying to get a better look. The look on his face, sort of looked as if he was confused.

“What?” Damien asked, though remembered that the merman probably couldn’t understand or reply to him.

Angel pounded on the glass twice, and began to look angry, before swimming away, and then coming back to were Damien was.

They couldn’t figure out what he wanted.

“What a beautiful creature!” A voice said, and everyone turned to look at the woman who’d just called out. “So it’s true, you really did catch a mermaid!” The woman looked to be around her late thirties, and was dressed in an expensive looking red dress, along with piles of jewelry.

“He trusts her?!” John mumbled out of the corner of his mouth, not loud enough to be heard to the woman he was talking about.

“It seems so,” Vic said, before walking forward to greet the woman.

“You must by Mrs. Barlows,” He said, offering a hand, which she shook daintily.

“Yes. Kevin is still in the boat. Poor dear fell asleep on the way here.” She told him, explaining where her kid was. “Could you be dears, and go fetch him?” Vic nodded, and signaled for a few helping hands to follow him.

“You’re here earlier than expected, we just got your letter,” Hector came out and said, walking forward to shake the small woman’s hand. He towered over her.

“Yes, well, we sent that a while back. Too bad there aren’t any telephones or something of the sort,” She said offhandedly. In truth, there were phones, but it was learned very early on that they didn’t work in the Bermuda Triangle, same as compasses.

How they were still able to navigate the waters was still a mystery to some.

“Yes, well, it’ll be a moment before we get a room ready for you, I hope you don’t mind waiting for a moment.” The woman thought for a moment, crossing her arms, and looked up.

“I guess it’ll be fine.” she finally said, “Besides, I think I want to stretch my legs a little, I’ve been on that boat for such a long time,” Mrs. Barlows said, stretching her arms, and showing off a bit of thigh.

“Leah will show you around, if you’d like,” Hector said, throwing an arm back, and gesturing to Leah, another one of the scientists sent up.

“Would you be so kind?” She asked, and Leah nodded, not saying a word, and motioned for her to follow. Before they left they room, however, Mrs. Barlows turned around.

“Kevin would like to see the mermaid, but if he gets in your way, just send him out, okay?” She called back, and left the room before she could get an answer.

“Great, now we’re going to be stuck babysitting,” John muttered, rubbing a hand over his face and sighing in defeat.

“I’ll watch over him,” Hector said, thinking back on times of when he took care of his own son.

Damien himself didn’t hear any of the conversation. He was still staring at the merman, who was staring back.

“How the hell can we call ourselves scientists,” Hector growled out, catching Damien’s attention. “We forgot to ask if we could start the experiments.”

John closed his eyes, holding in his anger.

“We’ll get to it eventually.” John looked up at Angel, who had backed away from Damien, and was swimming around lazy, before getting onto of the rock.

They were going to have to change the water soon, John thought offhandedly. They drained it about every other week, with a tube hooked up to the tank. They very well couldn’t take Angel out, since he still bit at the fingers that fed him.

“I wanna see the fishy!” A kid yelled out, running into the lab, and straight up to the glass, pressing his face up against it, Vic following behind, his face red and out of breath.

“He’s too fast…” Vic panted out, leaning against the wall and clutching at his chest, trying to regain his breath.

“Here fishy fishy fishy!” The boy, Kevin called out, tapping on the glass. Angel looked over the edge of the rock he was on, watching the boy calling out to him.

John was about to reprimand the boy, to stop tabbing the glass, when Angel slipped back into the water, and swam in front of the kid.