When his aide strode in, interrupting his weekly summation report to the president, he was downright sure it must be extremely important, or he’d have the kid’s stripes before he left the oval office. The young lieutenant saluted both men, then handed the admiral a sealed letter labeled “utmost urgency.” When he ripped it open and read the message, he roared at the young officer, “Are you out of your mind? Is this some stupid joke?”
“No sir! Admiral, sir!”
Before the admiral could say another word, the secretary of state burst into the office and crossed to the TV as he spoke. “Sorry, Mr. President, but you need to see this right away.” They all sat and stared at the TV as the transformation of Pearl was shown again—over and over on every channel.
“This has got to be a hoax!” the president scoffed.
“It doesn’t appear to be, Mr. President,” said the secretary of state. “But it’s your call. Do we go after her, or let another country catch her first?” He shrugged.
“Damn it!” snapped the President. “If anybody is going to get her, it’s the United States of America! George, I want all available ships and submarines after this thing at once. And train some of those satellites you have on the South Pacific and see if we can’t get a jump on everybody else from the air.”
“You’ve got it, Mr. President. I’m sure this will turn out to be just some wild hoax, but if it isn’t, we could genetically reverse engineer soldiers using her DNA. You won’t believe what the boys at the lab are cooking up already.”
“I wouldn’t believe it, and I probably wouldn’t sleep too well at night if I knew about it either, George,” the president said softly. “Let’s just nab this thing and then we’ll figure out what to do with her.”
Magic Changes
Pearl was deep underwater. She didn’t know how deep. The depth gauge on her watch had redlined at five hundred feet, long before they reached the bottom.
“Princess,” she heard a humpback whale sing as it swam down toward her.
They had taken her so deep that no ships or divers could find her, and even most fish couldn’t follow. They called this area of the ocean “the abyssal plains.” Now that she actually took a look around, it seemed more like “the abysmal plains” to her—dark and murky with some creepy-looking fish that glowed and plant-like things that crawled around.
It was a good place to be alone and collect your thoughts, though. It was quiet compared to the waters above.
As soon as she had turned into a mermaid…Gosh that’s weird to admit! Pearl thought…voices had started calling to her from every fish, shrimp, eel, dolphin, tuna, whale, and sardine. There had been thousands of voices. She had always wanted to be popular, but this was overwhelming.
“Hello! There is a limit!” she’d called out in vain.
That’s why she’d finally had the whales take her someplace quiet. She needed to be alone for a few moments to think without all the voices in her head.
Pearl was sitting under a giant, coral, sea fan that which was humming to her, and she could have sworn it was singing in harmony with the whales. She was surprised that she could breathe without the use of her nose or mouth. She had a tail—not like a dog, or cat’s tail … more, in fact, like a catfish tail, and she was deep in the ocean, sitting under a humming plant, breathing water and swishing her long fishy tail.
She hoped the murky water wasn’t going to mess her hair up. And speaking of a mess, her hair was twice as long as it had been before, and constantly in the way now. It was fine when she was swimming forward or sitting still, but the minute she turned her head or moved in any way, it started floating up around her in every direction. She felt like an English sheep dog.
Just then, a floating lock got hooked on the humming sea fan, and as she turned to untangle it, she noticed a clump of starfish on the rocks nearby. Pearl suddenly realized that the harmony she was hearing was not coming from the sea fan, but was actually coming from the starfish. They were all humming the whale songs, sounding like little echoes.
One of the starfish was a lovely shade of purple that was the exact same color as her swimsuit. As Pearl twisted her hair free from the fan, she had a sudden inspiration. She reached over and touched the purple starfish and told it to come with her. It shivered with pleasure and released itself from the rock instantly, folding itself backward to wrap onto her hand. The moment its hundreds of tiny suction-cupped “fingers” came in contact with Pearl’s skin, the humming sound it was making tripled in volume. Pearl could swear it literally purred in cat-like bliss, telling Pearl in its own simple language how honored it was to meet the princess.
Pearl laughed in delight. “Well, thank you, little starfish. I was hoping you could help me keep this floating mess of hair a little neater.” She pictured her idea in her mind to the starfish as she swept the right side of her hair back with a wide arc of her arm and set the little starfish above her right ear. Instinctively, like a large hair clasp, the starfish held the side of Pearl’s hair up and away from her face.
“Well, that helps a lot!” Pearl sighed and looked at her reflection in her watch crystal. It wasn’t as good as a mirror, but she could see that the starfish looked almost like an old thirties-style cloche hat. “That looks pretty cool, actually. Hmmmm … fashion for mermaids. I may have just discovered a new career.” She laughed again and it helped relieve some of her tension.
The soothing melody the starfish was humming in her ear helped too. It was like listening to her iPod. The little starfish seemed to sense Pearl’s mood and did her little purring thing again. “Thank you, little starfish,” said Pearl with a sigh, almost content in that moment, “but if you’re going to stay with me for a while, I’d better know your name.”
She sensed the starfish’s confusion at the concept of what a name was. It seemed to think of itself as just, “I” and nothing more as it began to echo the songs of the whales again.
“Echo. That’s what I’ll call you!” Pearl smiled. “You are now my personal hairdresser, Echo. Do you like that as your name?”
The little starfish gave another purr, and Pearl decided that was a yes.
She leaned back against the sea fan and relaxed for a moment as she looked around. Then she began thinking again about all that had happened to her. Pearl knew most girls changed after their thirteenth birthday, but this was ridiculous! Besides… she’d acquired instant boobs!
She suddenly remembered her haughty, stuck-up classmate, the so-call “popular” Jenna Ambers. Jenna was always strutting around school, showing off her chest as she smiled teasingly at all the boys. She was a giant flirt, and she always made sure every girl noticed her superiority as she commented condescendingly to all the late bloomers like Pearl, “Someday you little girls will have these too.” Jenna considered herself to be the prettiest girl in school.
“Well who’s gorgeous now? Kiss my butt, Jenna!” Pearl giggled, because now she had a pop star’s breasts, and hips to go with them! Well, partial hips anyway. They started out really nice and curvy, but stopped a couple inches later, where they morphed into her tail. Actually, she no longer had a butt for Jenna to kiss, and her mother would faint over such an unladylike thought anyway. Then she noticed that the bottom of her swimsuit was looped around the end of her tail, so she pulled it off, folded it neatly, and placed it into her sample kit, which was still belted around her waist.
“Princess,” the whale sang again, “we are ready to help you continue.” The whales had taken charge of her as soon as she was swept out into the open waters, and they had been singing back and forth to each other across the vast distances.
“Before we go, I need to know a few things. And believe you me,” Pearl muttered her father’s favorite phrase to the whales, “I have a lot of questions.” She thought only briefly before blurting them out. “Who am I? How did this happen? Will I be like this forever? Where are my parents? Are they safe? Who are my birth parents? Are there other mermaids? If there are, how many? Are there
mermen, or merkids? Where do they live? Do they know about humans? Do they have high-speed internet or MTV?”
The whales couldn’t handle all of her questions. First of all, they spoke very slowly. Not as slowly as the Ents, the giant talking trees that were like whales of the forests in “The Lord of the Rings,” but they took a while to think about things. They avoided giving her answers by saying, “You must go now and talk with the Turtle King. He is the oldest living creature in the sea. He can tell you all you need to know.”
Well that would be okay, except there isn’t exactly a yellow brick road for me to follow to find him, thought Pearl. Besides, if he is hundreds of years older than the whales are, and a turtle of all things, an animal that isn’t exactly known for being quick to do things, I’m going to have to wait a long time to do anything! Pearl was disappointed.
There were a million things she didn’t understand. What can I eat? I’m starving! Pearl thought peevishly. And I don’t know how to find food in the ocean. It’s not like we’re in a cafeteria or a restaurant where someone brings you a menu! She started tugging on her tail in frustration.
All at once her mind was filled with sounds of clicking, gnashing, slurping, and gulping. “Princess,” the whale sang, “please calm your thoughts.”
“Did you hear all that?” Pearl gasped in surprise.
“Every creature and plant in the ocean for a hundred leagues hears your thoughts, Princess,” the whale sang softly to her. “You must clam yourself and let us guide you.”
“All right.” Pearl blushed, and with a swish of her tail, she soared up from the bottom of the ocean toward the whale.
“It’s like flying,” Pearl said, smiling to herself and suppressing a joyous giggle. “Living in the ocean is like being able to fly. You can go anywhere. I’ve dreamed of doing this every night of my life, and now I really am … flying through the sea!”
As she rose upward, a ring of dolphins awaited her. They carried fresh clumps of lush, green kelp, full of ripe round pods in their mouths, and small yellow striped fish they had caught for her. They held them out to her like parents feeding their pups.
“Thank you!” she cried as she greedily chewed and munched the kelp. The small pods were incredibly fresh and crunchy, with almost a nutty flavor. The fish were even more delicious, better than any sushi she had ever tasted.
“We have assembled a few companions, Princess,” the whale sang. “They will guide you on your way and may be able to answer some of your questions.”
“Aren’t you coming with me?” Pearl asked. The thought of not having his strength and wisdom beside her made her feel small and insecure.
“We will follow at a distance wherever you go,” the whale sang kindly. “Men can find us too easily with their ships. You must travel with a variety of companions so you will not attract attention. Sandy and her kits shall go with you now.”
At that, the largest manta ray Pearl had ever seen floated up to her, followed by two hubcap-sized miniature versions of their mother. The giant manta seemed to arch and bow to her with an eloquent grace. “Princess, we are honored to be your guides and companions,” the giant manta’s voice rumbled in her mind, warm and soothing.
“Honored, so honored!” squealed the two little ones who then darted around and chased each other.
“Coral! Prickle! Stop that at once!” Sandy rumbled.
“Oh, but they’re adorable!” Pearl cried as she scooped one up in each hand and gave them each a kiss between the eyes.
“She kissed me!” squeaked Prickle.
“She kissed me first!” Coral squealed back.
“Did not!”
“Did so!”
They swooped up and around Pearl’s head darting at each other all over again.
“Forgive them, Princess,” Sandy said with a sigh of long-suffering. “They are only a few moons old.”
“That’s okay, Sandy. I babysit two little kids on my block who act just the same way.”
“Kids? Block?” Sandy rumbled confused. “What do these words mean?”
Pearl sighed back, “It means mothers and children are the same everywhere, no matter who or what they are.” Wow, she thought, I got boobs, a tail, and wisdom all in one day! I’m totally exhausted!
“Lie on me, sweet princess,” Sandy cooed as she dipped beneath Pearl and rose up gently as if catching her in giant arms. The curve of her wing-like fins and the ripple beneath her invited Pearl to stretch out and relax against the giant frame.
“Oh,” Pearl said with a sigh, “this feels so nice.”
“Well?” sang the whale that had waited patiently to introduce Pearl’s next companion.
“Oh yes,” Pearl whispered as she rolled to one side and gazed back up at the humpback.
“This is Slammer,” informed the whale. A familiar-looking young bottlenose dolphin swam up to her, dancing and nodding. Pearl suddenly recognized all sorts of details and differences in the appearance of fish and sea mammals that she’d never noticed before. Most people think all penguins or sheep look alike, which of course they don’t to a trained eye. But now, she could tell he was a particularly dashing young dolphin.
“Slammer was with you when you transformed and guided you to us after leading your escape,” the whale sang with a touch of respect to his song.
“Well, thank you, Slammer.” Pearl beamed as she swung herself up into a sitting position on Sandy, like a queen on a floating throne.
“We love you, Princess!” announced the dolphin. “Slammer is proud and happy to serve and protect you.”
“Well, thank you!” Pearl smiled as she raised her hand up to him. She felt like Anne Hathaway in the “Princess Diaries,” and decided she should try to behave like her too. But she had Julie Andrews for a grandmother and weeks of lessons, Pearl thought as she flicked her tail back and forth in annoyance.
“What’s a Julie?” Slammer asked in alarm. “Is a grandmother hunting you? Slammer will stop the grandmother and evil Julie from hurting the Princess!”
“No, no, Slammer!” Pearl realized she was broadcasting her own apprehension and confusion again. “I was just remembering old things from above. There’s nothing to worry about.” She really had to get the hang of this communication stuff.
“Princess needn’t worry. Slammer will keep bad Julies and grandmothers away from you.”
“Thank you, Slammer,” said Pearl with a giggle.
“This is Jumper,” Slammer squealed with pride as a lovely female dolphin swam up next to him. “She was with me when you became, and she will travel with us.”
“Thank you, too, Jumper.” Pearl reached up and stroked the soft under part of Jumper’s maw.
“We live to serve you, Princess,” Jumper cackled back.
“For now, these few shall guide you,” boomed the whale’s song. “You must hurry on your way. The light will go down soon, and Sandy shall carry you swiftly and safely through the dark cycle, masking you from all who may seek to find you.”
Without another hum, squeal, or ripple of sound, the circling whales dispersed. Pearl and her small group of companions rose upward as they swam in a southeasterly direction. How Pearl knew they were headed southeast she hadn’t a clue. She glanced at her watch to check the compass, and sure enough, they were headed due southeast. Something inside her always seemed to know now where she was in relationship to the ocean surface, the moon, and the sun. It was as if she had a living compass in her mind that she could consult at any time.
It’s all too much to think about, Pearl thought with a sigh that reflected a weariness she felt deep in her soul.
“Relax, Princess,” Sandy rumbled. “Sleep in peace and safety through the dark time.”
“Sleep, Princess,” Coral and Prickle squealed in unison.
Their comforting entreaties made Pearl yawn and giggle at the same time, which is much more difficult to do underwater than it sounds. The kits’ childish exuberance lessened as they slipped beneath their mother to swim
in her protective shadow. Their excited minds were still chittering in her head as the warm, undulating rhythm of Sandy’s body gently rocked Pearl to sleep.
Evil Rising
Not all in the sea rejoiced at the news of the return of Princess Adara. Not all were filled with wonder at the gift of Gaia. The old hag roused herself from her dark dreams and cursed with rage at the news. She had once been beautiful. She had once been a royal, lived in a palace, and borne children.
Over the centuries she’d had many names. Medea was the first. It had not been her fault that she had killed her brother, the crown prince, to help Jason steal the Golden Fleece, and scattered his body parts out into the sea behind the Argo to slow her father down. Neither did she feel responsible for the death of her children, whom she had slaughtered, cooked, and fed to Jason for dinner years later when she discovered he was leaving her for a younger woman. After that, she had found another king to marry and had borne him an heir, hidden her hatred of men, and waited.
The Sun God, Helios, had been her great-grandfather. She had sought out Cronos and submitted herself to his will to gain power for wicked and immoral purposes. And he had betrayed her.
Medea had been given immortality in return for joining his mad scheme of revenge. Gladly she had taken his offer to bear a new race of sea gods to destroy Poseidon. But Cronos had given her only immortality, not eternal youth.
So as each century passed, she grew older and more cadaverous. Her body bloated, and her skin sagged. She looked her age, and she was thousands of years old. For the last thousand years, she had simply been known as the Sea Hag.
The Hag could not bear to see her own reflection. She stayed deep in the ocean’s waters, hidden in a cave at the edge of the Sacred Grotto of Poseidon where the nine Mirrors of Atargatis stood, at the bottom of the Aegean Sea. They had been placed there one by one by Poseidon himself to reflect the glory of each of the daughters Queen Amphitrite bore him. It was the very spot where Poseidon had assumed dominion over the oceans as his brother Zeus took dominion of the earth and sky and brooding Hades assumed the rule of the underworld.
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