In The Deep Sea

IN THE DEEP SEA (short story)

               The day has turned to nighttime. The sun was sinking and replaced with the moon, accompanied by countless stars. The sky that was bright and blue, had changed to black and dark. The sound of the wind and ocean waves were the only noises that I could hear from my house. I was lying in my bed. My brother, Luke Zennore, was also lying in his bed right next to mine. Before we sleep, our father, Lucas Zennore, always told us tales of underwater lives that I did not know the truth. Lucas always made those tales sounded real.

               One day at the bottom of the deep and wide ocean, the Mer remained living in the Lost City, or often referred to as Atlantis. Then, there lived a mermaid, who is a member of the Mer. His name is Lucas.

               Lucas? That’s weird. Maybe it’s just a coincidence.

               Lucas is a gallant and brave mermaid. He knows no fear. He has often explored the sea with the other Merpeople forces. The Merpeople have super powers, which they can identify if there is an approaching enemy. They use their super abilities to do a lot of things, for example to fight against sea monsters who come to try to hunt down and exterminate the Mer.

               One night, there came a Leviathan who wanted to destroy the Mer. A Leviathan is a sea monster that has the nature of jealousy and envy. That creature envies the Mer, who live so peaceful and prosperous, while the monster never live in peace. Although a Leviathan is a strong and powerful creature, Lucas and his army defeated the Leviathan with their strength and solidarity. In the end, they live in peace and prosperity forever. The End!

               “Wow! What an incredible story, dad! Was that real? Did it really happen?” Luke asked.

               “It was just a tale, Luke.” Lucas answered Luke with confident.

               “Dad, is a Leviathan a scary animal?” I asked him.

               “Is Leviathan more sinister and ferocious than a tiger?” Luke asked again.

               Then Lucas said, “Luke and Annabelle, a Leviathan is a creature more evil, and black-hearted, of all that you think. And Lucas and his army could defeat it pretty easily? They were great, weren’t they?”

               “They were amazing, dad!” Luke answered, half screaming.

               Suddenly, I remembered the question that popped into my head when Lucas was telling that story.

               “But dad, why does the mermaid have a name like yours?” I asked, my mind was filled with curiosity.

               “Oh… that. M-maybe it’s just a coincidence, Anna. Hehe…” Lucas replied nervously and haltingly.

               Then I just nodded. My brother was also silent and we didn’t say another word. Eventually, I fell asleep with my huge curiosity. That night became colder and lonelier than ever, covering the sound of wind and ocean waves pounding outside.

               My family and I have lived on the coast since I was born. Now I'm 11 years old. Luke and I were twins. My age gap with Luke was just 24 seconds. Even when my age and Luke’s were almost the same, I still think Luke as my little brother that I had to protect every time. My mother’s name is Isabella. She’s a very patient and understanding housewife. My father worked as a fisherman. Actually, he hated the job, because he didn’t fancy killing animals. Especially if that animal is a fish. I never knew why.

               As usual, that morning Lucas went to the sea to catch fish with a fairly large boat. To catch a lots of fish, Lucas usually had to go down to the sea surface using a smaller boat. The canoe could only fit one person and a large net.

               Then, when Lucas was on the canoe ready to catch some fish, something pulled the fishing net he was holding. Lucas was immediately swallowed up by the ocean beneath and disappear instantly.

               Luke and I never knew what happened to our father. We've been trying to search for information from the other fishermen, but to no avail. Most of the fishermen said that Lucas had died due to drowning. Others said Lucas sailed too far out the sea and never found his way home. Of course I did not believe it. Lucas was able to swim very well and he knew the ocean like the palm of his hand. However, we never saw him again for a long time.

               Now, Luke and I are 12 years old. Since the absence of Lucas for approximately one year, the three of us had to work even harder. Isabelle toiled harder to get money and a job, so she could support both of us. Luke and I also helped mom to search for fishes in the sea for our daily food. Every moment was filled with hard and sustained work.

               I also helped Isabelle wash dishes and clothes every day. But after a while I washed dishes and clothes, my hands were beginning to show odd scales. This has never happened before.

               “Mom, why are my hands full of scales right after I washed the dishes and clothes?” I asked Isabelle.

               Then Isabelle answered, “oh, maybe it’s because your hands are exposed to water for too long, that’s why your hands are full of scales. Well then, just take a rest now, okay?” So finally I took some rest and had a power nap for a moment.

               I woke up after a 2 hour nap. The clock told me that it was 3 pm, but the sun was still shining on the beach and blazing this vast ocean. I heard faint noises from the kitchen. I sat on my bed and started to hear the conversation going on in the kitchen. After some time, Luke approached.

               “Annabelle! I have no idea what’s happening to me. When I was catching some fish, suddenly my hands started to show these weird scales! But minutes later, they were gone! Right after I finished catching fishes!” Luke told me with a panic tone.

               I was stunned. How could the same thing happen to Luke? Is this a disease that suddenly attacks the two of us? I looked at my hands. The scales were also gone, and they only appear when I was washing and Luke were catching fish in the sea. Suddenly, this all make sense.

               “Luke! Your hands were inside the sea water right?” I asked him.

               “Well yeah, of course. Why?”

               “The scales appeared on my hands when I was washing dishes!”

               “And what does that got to do with the weird scales?” Luke asked with curiosity.

               “Are you still not realizing it? These scales only appear when we put our hands inside water! Strange, huh?” I replied enthusiastically.

               “Oh yeah, you’re right. But why does it have to be water? Why doesn’t it appear right now, when we are dry? And why isn’t mom experiencing the same thing?”

               “I don’t know. I guess this only happen once.”

               “I hope so.”

               Sunday is the perfect day for a swim in the sea. Swimming was the only activity that’s able to relieve stress and fatigue from working. The weather was not so cloudy, and also not stinging hot. Just perfect.

               When we swam, we tried to dive into the sea, to see the beauty that was found there. The sea proven itself to be a very beautiful place. The water was so blue, as blue as the sky who accompanied us this morning. There was no slightest stain present to pollute it. Inside it there were many, countless, fishes with variety of colors, shapes, and sizes. The fish swam happily as if they live without any load, and had no concern in their lives. They circled hundreds of beautiful corals, unique and colorful, agile and nimble. The corals were like strong and living gigantic fans, providing safe and sturdy shelters for the fishes that needed protection. The reef were like decorations to the vast and plain ocean. I admired the beauty in front of my eyes. I instantly felt guilty for sailing and killing fishes every day. Suddenly, my head was haunted by the sense of regret. This sea also reminded me of Lucas, who disappeared without leaving a trace, on this exact same spot. The memory of Lucas’s disappearance never left my mind, even for a second. I never lived a normal life after the loss of Lucas. Then I wondered, where could he possibly be? How could he leave me without saying a word?

               I swam into my own thoughts too deep, that wasn’t aware of one thing. Luke and I had not taken a breath since we wet ourselves with sea water. Then I immediately swam to the surface and took a huge gulp of breath. Strangely, I didn’t feel the lack of oxygen. I didn’t even gasp while breathing the air. Finally, Luke also emerged onto the surface.

               “Annabelle, what’s wrong? Are you okay?” He asked anxiously.

               “I’m fine. I just forgot to take a breath. It’s so bizarre, Luke. I didn’t feel anything. I didn’t feel like I need oxygen down there. Are you feeling this, too?”

               “You’re right, Anna. I didn’t take any breaths too down there. I felt nothing but peace. This is getting odder. Look Anna, your scales are starting to show. Look at this!” Luke showed his palms and arms, now covered with scales. I was shocked and immediately looked at my own hands and legs. In fact, my whole body was covered with scales. Like a fish.

               “Luke! Look at my hands and my legs�"and my face! It’s all covered in scales. Now your legs are scaly, too!” I spoke to Luke with panic while I pointed to his legs. Luke directly looked into the water, and saw his own legs. The look on his face suddenly turned happy.

               “Why are you smiling?! This isn’t some joke, Luke!” I asked, still confused by all this weird phenomena.

               “Do you know what this means?!” Luke asked energetically.

               “What are you talking about?”

               “We are mermaids! Just like in the stories dad told us!”

               “Are you crazy?! That’s impossible, Luke! This is definitely just our skin, adjusting to the sea water. You do know that mermaids are just tales. IT’S FAKE!” I replied to Luke, half screaming.

               “What if it’s not, Anna? We never know. What if all this time Lucas was telling the truth and he was covering it to give us a chance to find out by ourselves?! Or maybe, Lucas IS a mermaid all along!” Luke looked really confident with his statement.

               “Luke, stop talking nonsense. You know that it will never happen, right?” I asked Luke back, still not believing anything he said.

               “Just think about it for a second. The name of the mermaid inside his stories has the exact same name as Lucas. Second, everybody thought that he’s dead while he was fishing. But I always feel like he’s still alive, Anna.” In my mind, I also felt that Lucas is still alive. But I kept telling myself that he died from a tragic accident. I couldn’t accept all this in one day.

               “But how is that possible? He was reported dead a year ago. He drowned, Luke.”

               “What if he never drowned? Maybe he just transformed into a mermaid! I am very sure that he is not dead, Anna. We need to prove that it’s right, down there inside the ocean. We need to find Lucas!” Luke screamed happily and with enthusiasm.

               “We can’t just leave mom. She would be very worried and lonely. Who will help her later? And what if you’re wrong, Luke? What if Lucas and us are not mermaids?” I didn’t feel sure at all about this idea. But a small part of my heart kept screaming, telling me to search dad and to find out what has happened to him.

               “Mom is a strong, independent woman. She won’t feel sorry for our loss and she will not be lonely. Besides, we won’t be gone for long. After we find Lucas, we’ll go back here. Easy, right? So let’s find the answer to all these questions�"YOUR questions.” Luke held out his hand to me, showing that he wanted me to go with him, to dive to the open sea, to look for Lucas. I gathered all my courage to dive. Finally, I welcomed Luke's hand, and go.

               Luke and I continued to swim deeper inside the sea. Luke looked very happy and excited to venture into the depths of this everlasting ocean, stretching in front of our eyes. Actually I was still not convinced that this is a good idea. I was worried about Isabelle. Maybe now she’s panicking, after learning that her two children were gone, just like their father did. However, I felt that leaving Isabelle to find Lucas was the right thing to do.

               We've been swimming for about an hour, and not took a breath once. Suddenly, an even stranger thing happened. I felt the presence of heat on both sides of my face. It grew hotter, and I finally felt like my cheeks were torn and split into two. I panicked and immediately touched my cheeks. Gills. The gills felt like regular skin, but much more subtle. I looked at Luke. Apparently there were also the same gills on his face, just like mine. Then Luke looked at me and held up a thumbs-up, a sign that he was okay. I thought, if now I have gills like a fish, then I could breathe underwater. Then I started trying to draw breath. At first I was afraid that I’ll choke and faint because I couldn’t breathe underwater. But I tried to eliminate that thought and breathe. It felt so fresh and ... salty. Perhaps this is always felt by all fishes and mermaids that live in the sea. Finally I could breathe as well as like I was on land. I started to feel excited, because I realized that my brother and I are real mermaids!

               I swam over to Luke, “Luke, you’re right. We ARE mermaids!” I was surprised that I could talk underwater clearly. It was a miracle.

               “See? We don’t need to worry about anything! Now we just have to find Atlantis.” Luke said with confidence.

               “Atlantis? You mean the Lost City?”

               “That’s right. Maybe Lucas and the other mermaids live there! Until this time we, especially I, were right about the existence of mermaids. Maybe we’re also correct about the existence of Atlantis, just like what Lucas told us in his stories!”

               “Maybe you’re right once again, Luke. Well then, what are we waiting for? Let’s go find Atlantis!” Suddenly I felt so enthusiastic, as enthusiastic as Luke.

               Luke and I tried to search for Atlantis as far as we could, but we still couldn’t find it. The sea had turn from light blue to dark blue, almost black. From that, we knew that daylight was almost over, and night was about to come. I glanced at Luke. He didn’t look tired at all. I didn’t feel like I need rest, too.

               “Luke, do you feel tired?”

               “No, not at all. Are you?”

               “Neither do I. I don’t feel sleepy at all, too. I know it’s past my bedtime by now, but I don’t feel the need to sleep.”

               “I don’t feel sleepy also. I guess mermaids don’t need sleep.”

               Finally we spent the entire night to search for Atlantis, the city where the Merpeople live, hopefully we would find it anytime now.

               Morning has arrived. The sun had got enough light to penetrate the sea water, so that the color became light blue once more. The sea water was not as blue and bright as yesterday. This showed that Luke and I have been swimming deeper into the ocean. But even so, our passion to find the location of Atlantis still has not faded. In fact, we felt more enthusiastic.

               I swam while looking forward. Luke was in front of me, because he usually swim faster than me. Then suddenly, I saw a beam of light from my left. At first, I thought that it was just my imagination, but after I saw it longer, it was not my imagination or hallucinations. The light beam was not reflected light from a coral or fish. I swam to the left to see clearer.

               “Luke! Look to your left! Did you see a trace of light from over there?” I asked Luke, pointing to the left.

               Luke gasped, “where?! Oh yeah! I see it! Let’s swim towards the ray of light.”

               I followed Luke and we dived together towards the light. We’re getting closer.

               I could not believe what I was seeing that time. A truly great palace, towering over the sea and the top was out of sight, stretching wide, as far as the eye can see. The gold-colored palace did not rust or moss. The fishes were more diverse than that Luke and I have seen at sea level up there. The reefs were also much more varied and way larger, perhaps as big as a car on the land. Thousands of mermaids were busy passing to and fro, performing their activities. Some swam using their fins, wide and elegant. Others were riding Hippocamps, an animal of half-horse and half-fish that had bright colors and shiny skin. It was beautiful. Some of them were dancing, singing, practicing swords, archery, and others. All mermaids looked happy, excited, and enjoying all the activities that were being done without showing the slightest worried expression. We've found Atlantis!

               Then out of nowhere, came two mermaids.

               “Hello! My name is Scarlett.” The female mermaid said.

               “And my name is Matthew.” They both held out their hands for a handshake and we welcomed their hands with pleasure. Their hands were rough because of the scales, and in between their fingers were white fins that connect their fingers.

               “Welcome to the city of Atlantis! You must be Annabelle and Luke.” Scarlett said with a smile on her face.

               Luke and I looked at each other. We both knew what we were thinking. How can these mermaids know our names? It was getting weirder.

               “Yes, that’s right…” I said suspiciously.

               Then Matthew said, “come with us, there’s someone waiting for you.” Without thinking, we followed the two mermaids that we just met deeper into Atlantis.

               During the trip, Luke and I enjoyed the beautiful and unique scenery around us. For the first time, I saw a city this big with so many residents who actively conduct their activities with great excitement. The passing mermaids were definitely stealing glances at us with a confused look on their faces. Perhaps they were wondering in their minds, what are two half-mermaids doing in the City of Atlantis. I felt uncomfortable and asked Scarlett.

               “Scarlett, where are we going now? How much longer?” I asked nervously.

               Then Scarlett answered, “we’ll be there in a minute, you’ll see later.”

               After about fifteen minutes we swam while enjoying this rare sight, we finally arrived in front of a building--magnificent, luxurious, and gold colored. On it, there was a statue of a Merman who was "standing" in a giant clam, holding a large trident. The mermaid looked extremely familiar. Seemed like I've known his face.

               “Annabelle, Luke, please enter. Lucas is waiting for you inside.” What? Lucas?

               Luke and I entered the room. Scarlett and Matthew closed the door and waited outside. My eyes shot directly to the middle of the room, where a mermaid was standing. I was so shocked that I thought I might faint instantly. It was our father. It was Lucas Zennore.

               “Dad?!” Luke and I shouted in unison and immediately swam over and hugged him. It felt very comfortable to hug my father after what it feels like forever. The feeling of worry, anxiety, and sadness disappeared instantly. He also looked a little odd with a fish tail and scales existing in his body.

               “I miss you so much! We thought you drowned in the sea! Well actually, she thought.” Luke said to Lucas, pointing at me.

               “Yeah, dad. Why didn’t you tell us that you’re still alive? How could you fall into the sea accidentally? And why you never told us that you’re a mermaid all this time?” I finally could toss all those questions that I’ve been keeping for so long.

               “I’m so glad to see you in a great condition, Anna and Luke. I miss you, too! The reason why I never told you is because you’re not ready to handle the truth. I wanted you to see Atlantis with your own eyes and feel what it’s like to be a mermaid.”

               “Being a mermaid is so fun, dad! During our trip to find Atlantis, we saw a lot of beautiful and amazing sceneries. This city is more magnificent and awesome than I ever imagined!” Luke said with enthusiasm.

               “Dad, are we going to return to land? Mom will be so worried about us. She must be searching for us by now.” I asked anxiously.

               “You don’t have to worry about anything, Anna. I can handle that. You can write a letter to her, and tell her that you guys are okay down here!” Then Lucas gave us a piece of paper and an empty bottle. I was bewildered, why didn’t the paper torn in water? Maybe this paper is made of seaweed.

               “Then what’s the bottle for?” Luke asked, with a confused face.

               “Don’t you know about the message in a bottle, Luke? Hahaha, I’m sure you’ve heard of it.”

               “Oh yeah you’re right. Well then let’s write the letter now, so mom doesn’t have to be worrying about us again, Anna!”

               We wrote the letter together. This is what we said:

               Dear Isabelle,

               Hello mom, how are you up there on land? I hope everything’s fine. We’re in the city of Atlantis with dad. We’re so glad to be here! Atlantis is so wide, magnificent, crowded, and filled with kind mermaids. Sorry we left without your permission, because if we told you where we’re going, you will not let us go, and we’ll never be able to meet dad.

              

 

Actually, the stories that dad told us were all true! Everything about mermaids, the City of Atlantis, Hippocamps, and other things. It feels like heaven under the sea here. We promise that we’re going to be alright down here with Lucas. And we will always send you letters as often as possible about how we’re doing in Atlantis!

                                       Warm regards,

 

          Annabelle and Luke

Then we put this letter into the bottle. We got out of the room, and let go of the bottle until it reached the sea surface. Scarlett and Matthew was there, too. The bottle containing the letter will be floated by the current and arrived to her hands quickly.

“After she read your letter, she will immediately know that you both are safe and sound here in Atlantis. There’s nothing you should worry about.” Lucas told us.

I felt safe and comfortable here and at this time also. Being with Luke and Lucas just made me happy. But I thought too soon. The sense of safety that was once there vanished after I heard a really loud and high-pitched trumpet noise from out there. I saw Scarlett and Matthew got startled too by the noise. I grew scared and looked at Luke, then at Lucas.

“What was that?” I asked Lucas, with panic in my voice.

Lucas looked pretty surprised too. Then he answered me, “that means we’re under attack.”

We moved right away from that room. I heard the frantic cries of mermaids which made ​​me even more scared. There were lots of mermaids who swam quickly and left the activities they were doing before. Luke and I did not know what to do. What is going on?

“You need to hide now. Scarlett! Matthew! Take them to somewhere safe and make sure they don’t leave that place!” Lucas shouted at the two mermaids who’ve been watching this incident, too. They both looked nervous.

“What’s going on, dad? What’s coming? Who’s attacking us?” I asked Lucas.

“I’m not sure. But you need to go somewhere safe with Luke now. Scarlett and Matthew are going to take you there. Be careful and stay safe.” Before I could say anything else, Lucas already left and swam away quickly. Then, we were escorted by Scarlett and Matthew immediately.

“Annabelle, Luke, please come with us right now.” Without saying a word, we followed the two mermaids to this safe place that we not yet knew.

Luke and I saw all these mermaids screaming loudly, a sign of their fear. I was getting more confused, what could possibly cause a bold creature to tremble like this? Mermaids are not easily scared. So if they were afraid and scattered like this, then this thing�"or possibly creature-- must be something very powerful, strong, and fierce.

They quickly swam into their homes, hiding places, or large buildings. Some of them were already wearing armors while carrying shields, swords, arrows, spears, and other war equipment. It seemed like we really were being attacked by something strong and powerful.

Finally I saw a tower, much higher than the other buildings. The top of the tower was tapered, and at the top there was a large, glass window. Maybe the window’s function was to see the entire City of Atlantis. Like vision from above.

We got into the tower. We climbed the high-speed elevator inside the tower. The elevator was made of strong glass, so that the elevator will not break easily. The contents of the tower was very diverse. There were hundreds of gold and silver-colored rooms circling up to the top. There was no ladder. Besides, they don’t need any stairs. They can just swim to the top of the tower. Maybe they just need an elevator to go up to the top floor quickly. Especially in an emergency.

Luke, Scarlett, Matthew and I had reached the top floor, the floor that had the large glass window. I immediately went into the room and saw a lot of buttons on a table surrounding the room. I wondered what were the functions of these buttons. Some of them were big, some were small, some were triangular and square in shape, and they were also colorful. At the top of the room, there was a sign that said “Shark Eye”. Maybe they call it “Shark Eye” because sharks have very sharp eyesight in water and they are capable to see in long distances, like eagles in the air.

“You guys wait here and don’t come out of this room until we got back. Oh yeah, and DON’T touch anything.” Matthew said to us firmly and went back down with the same elevator.

I could see the city of Atlantis just by standing in the middle of this circular room. Then I swam to the front and looked out. There were about 600 mermaid troops "standing" in front of the giant gates of Atlantis, forming a blockade. They all rode Hippocamps and were equipped with their war gears. The mermaids looked absolutely ready to face whatever it was that will attack them. There was a very large figure, swimming very quickly towards Atlantis. That figure, or possibly animal, came closer and closer until it was close enough for me to see it. That creature was dark gray, and its eyes lighted up like white headlights lit up at night. Its fins were lit blue and red, much like the glow-in-the-dark lights and it emitted light similar to lightning, as if those fins contained electricity. Its body was long and scaly like a snake, and had dark red lines which made the creature look more ferocious. At that time I realized that it was not an animal at all, but it was more like a sea monster. And I knew exactly what monster was brave enough to attack Atlantis and its solid mermaids. A Leviathan.

               I saw the Leviathan destroyed the main gates of Atlantis�"that Luke and I passed this morning-- with ease, as if the gates were made ​​of cardboard. The Leviathan’s roar was so loud it made the whole glass in this room vibrate. Then the mermaid troops began attacking. I saw all of them swam toward the Leviathan with incredible speed. They all plugged their swords and spears toward the Leviathan. The archers also started to shoot from a distance. The Leviathan roared once again.

               The mermaid forces were still attacking. I saw there were some mermaids bounced off after being "slapped" by the Leviathan’s strong and wide fin. But they didn’t give up. They continued to attack the Leviathan until it looked tired. Then suddenly, there was a mermaid who swam to the top of the Leviathan’s head and stabbed it with his sword. The Leviathan thrashed in pain. I was amazed by the courage of that mermaid. I looked more closely and the mermaid turned out to be Lucas! It was true that he was a bold and unyielding mermaid.

               But after a while, I noticed that nearly half of the troops were injured, and they couldn’t get up and fight back. Some had been electrocuted by the Leviathan's tail. Luke, who was also observing this war, began to open up the cloth that covered the buttons and started looking for something.

               “Luke, what are you doing? Matthew said we can’t touch anything!” I warned Luke.

               “We have to help them, Anna! They have fought and sacrificed themselves, and we’re just sitting here doing nothing?! I don’t think so.”

               “But how are we supposed to help them?”

               “Among these buttons, there’s got to be one to unleash some sort of weapon or something.”

               “Are you out of your mind?! You can’t just push any of them? We’ll both get in trouble because of you!” I started screaming at Luke.

               Then Luke and I saw a big red button that had an “ATK” on top of it. Without thinking, Luke started to swim towards that red button and intended to push it.

               “This button has the letters “ATK” on it. Maybe it stands for ‘Attack’!” Luke said with confidence.

               “No, Luke. DON’T PU�"“

               Too late.

               Luke pressed the red button and suddenly there were three cannons appeared on the front of the glass window. Then there was a loud boom, like the sound of bombs exploding, from the direction of the three cannons. Then, three missiles blasted off from each cannon and sped toward the Leviathan, and exploded.

               I couldn’t believe it, Luke and I just shot three missiles toward the Leviathan! But unfortunately, that monster was still alive and thrashing in pain.

               “The Leviathan is not dead yet! Press that button again!” I screamed at Luke.

               Once again Luke pushed the red button and the same cannons shot another three missiles toward the Leviathan with high speed. The Leviathan bounced off and collapsed.

               Luke and I paused in place. We just killed the mightiest monster who was feared by all living things in the world! Accidentally!! We looked at each other for a glimpse with opened mouth and gaping face. Then we looked at Lucas who was standing in the front row. He looked up at us and held up two thumbs. Luke and I immediately responded with a beaming face.

               I still couldn’t believe that we just killed a Leviathan. I felt a little guilty for taking a life of a living creature, even though that creature was an evil monster that had taken more creatures’ lives. But at the same time, I felt proud and satisfied because Luke and I could actually do a cool and meaningful action to so many people.

               “We all should be proud of these brave and stubborn kids. Without them, we would never defeat the Leviathan in a short period of time. Thanks to them, none of us has to fall. Without their naughtiness, that monster will never be destroyed. They deserve our greatest applause for the services they have given to us.” Lucas clapped his hands after he gave his marvelous speech. Not long after that, every mermaid there began clapping their hands and cheering for us. I couldn’t hold back my smile and pride inside me. That was the coolest day of my entire life.

               “Give an even more merry applause for my brother, Luke!” All mermaids immediately cheered and screamed even louder.

               After that event, Luke, Lucas, and I returned to the first room that we visited the first time we got here. Back to the room where Luke and I met Lucas after his disappearance for a long time.

               “I am so proud of you guys!” Lucas hugged both of us. It felt so comfortable being in his arms. I hope mom was here right now.

               “Actually it was Luke who shot the cannons for the first time, dad. At first I forbid him to touch anything. But of course, I was the one who shot the missiles for the second time, hahaha.” I explained to Lucas.

               “Oh so that’s the story behind it. But both of you are still meritorious to all of us, and to Atlantis. We will all remember what you’ve done to the Lost City. If Isabelle was here, she must have been very proud of you, too.”

               “Yeah, dad. We missed mom terribly. We really wish that she was here. Too bad mom is not a mermaid like us.” Luke said to Lucas.

               “Can we stay here forever?” I asked, hopefully Lucas will say “yes”.

               “Of course, Anna! You guys are so permitted to stay here. The other mermaids are going to welcome you gladly. But never forget, always send letters to mom. So that she won’t be anxious about you two.” Lucas explained.

               “Oh, no doubt of that. We’ll send letters to mom every day, and I think we’re going to write it again now and tell what we just did here in Atlantis!” Luke said happily.

               “Alright, as you wish!” Lucas then gave us the same paper and bottle as before.

               “Oh yeah, dad. I need to ask you something. Something that I’ve been keeping since the first time I found out I was a mermaid.” I said to Lucas.

               “What is it, Anna?”

               “When are we going to have fish tails like yours?”

THE END

 

Author's Note

it's my school homework haha