Mermaid Blues: Beasts, Giants and Spirits

The Bubble Sky

Grace is getting in line for an audition for Glee Club. Everyone in the corridor is getting nervous. They are waiting impatiently for the announcer to come out of the door to call them by their tag numbers. Some hold guitars. Some vocalize to prepare themselves to sing. Grace is quietly watching the auditionees prepare. She is just breathing heavily due to her nervousness. She is tagged number fifty-seven. Auditionee number fifty-six is next to perform inside. She is just waiting for the announcer to come out and inform her.

Five minutes later, the announcer came out of the door. Auditionee number fifty-five also came out. "Number fifty-six. It's your turn," the announcer told her. And so, auditionee number fifty-six went in.

Grace is now leading the line. She got more nervous. Any minute now, she will be called to perform. She's getting worried her voice might c***k up on stage, causing her not to be accepted into the club she is interested in joining.

***Blue Water****

Grace came up on the stage. She stood in the middle. She is facing the mic stand. She took a deep breath. She scanned around the room. Down the stage is a rectangular table. Sitting behind it are four judges. Behind the judges are rows of seats where the members of the club are sitting down. There is a huge window on the right side.

"Your name, daughter?"Mrs. Maginoo, the adviser of the club asked.

"My name is Grace Joy de la Rochaz, Ma'am," she replied.

"And you are singing?" Mrs. Maginoo follows up.

"Yes, Ma'am. And I am going to sing "Your Song" by Parokya ni Edgar," Grace replied.

"Okay. Good luck, ading (little sister)," the president of the club, Eliza, said.

The crowd got quiet. They are now waiting for Grace to sing. Without any minus one or instruments to back her up, it would be more difficult for her to raise her confidence. However, she's still determined.

It took one look

And forever layout in front of me

One smile, then I died

Only to be revived by you

The stanza has already made everyone mesmerized by Grace's voice. Her voice is sweet and smooth. She resumes singing the rest of the song. She switches to falsetto when she reaches the chorus. It made everyone's heart melt.

I take one step away

Then I find myself coming back to you

My one and only

One and only you

"Aww..." everyone reacts.

I take one step away

Then I find myself coming back to you

My one and only

One and only take one step away

Then I find myself coming back to you

My one and only

One and only you

Everyone clapped for her. They liked her. It is clear from their reactions that she's guaranteed to pass the audition.

"Thank you. Thank you," she bowed her head.

::::::::::

Gaddo entered a room where they locked up his daughter Daya. He found her sitting on the edge of the bed next to a window. Daya immediately stood up. Daya is a fourteen-year-old bedridden girl. Her illness is undetermined. Doctors say she has flesh-eating bacteria slowly consuming her. She is pale and skinny. Almost her bones are recognized, traced by her skin.

"Where have you been? I am so worried," she asked as she approached her father.

"I went hunting, my daughter," he answered.

"Your face. Don't tell me you got into trouble while hunting?" she said while examining her father's bruises.

"No, my child," he replied.

"Are you killing people again, Papa?" she suspiciously asked.

"No. No, my child," he replied.

"Don't lie to me. I know what you have been doing," Daya said with disappointment. "I thought I told you not to do anything."

"I am doing this to keep you alive."

"Papa. I am fine. I accept what is happening to me," she argues.

"No. No one has the right to take you away from me!" he refuses. "Not even a spirit. As a leader of this community, I must have to protect everyone. You, especially," Gaddo said.

"But you are killing innocent people," Daya argues.

"We're gonna die, Daya!" he argues. "I can't think of a way to defeat the spirit but to kill it. I'll sacrifice everything to keep our clan from extinction."

Daya lowered her head. She knows her father has a point. She can't argue with him. "Can you find him?"

"He must be found. He must be," his father said. "That freaking creature can't be defeated by any power here on this side. That's the reason why I wanted to get to the other side of the world to summon our only hope. I need to summon the creature that our ancestors once recognized as a god. An anito that is capable of killing hundreds of people, including an army and civilians during the Spanish Era. "

"Isn't that dangerous? It kills people," she protests.

"If it is for us to survive. I won't mind sacrificing millions of people," Gaddo responded.

Daya felt fear. She gulped deeply. She is against it. But she knows that her father has got no choice. It has to be done.

"You should rest, my daughter," he advised.

Her daughter nodded. She gave her an optimistic smirk, then she turned away. She slowly walks toward her bed.

::::::::::

Sherdel and Alexa are in a comfort room, the same comfort room where Grace accidentally caught them together.

Alexa slapped Sherdel's cheek. She is so angry. She looks at him with tears running down her eyes.

"Is it true...? Is it true that you are seeing someone?" she said.

Sherdel feels ashamed of himself. He keeps his eyes away from Alexa. He is standing in front of her without any reaction. However, his eyes cannot deny his guilt.

"How could you do this to me!" She swats him like a fly. Sherdel flinches. "Is it true what your father said, huh? Huh! Tell me!"

"Enough," he finally reacted as he grabbed Alexa's arms to stop her from hurting him further. "Yes, I am! I am seeing someone," he answered, even though he really was not seeing anyone.

"Who is she? Is she prettier? Is she rich like you? Does your Dad like her?"

"Yes. She's prettier and better than you!" he said.

"So, you love her more because she's better?"

"I am sick of fighting for us," Sherdel argues. "I am tired of hiding our relationship from my father. I am tired of defending you for a cause that will never happen. I am tired...that each and every day I keep on denying that I still have feelings for you."

Alexa sheds more tears. She didn't want to believe what he said. She is shaking her head. "That's not true. You promised me...you promised that you would fight for us."

"You know what this only means? The world is against us," he said. "I am so sorry. I don't love you anymore..."

Alexa slaps him again. "You son of a b***h!"

"You should have known that," he replied.

"They were right. I always thought I could change you. That I can see the good in you. I always hope that. But they were right. You Alhibings are robots. You have never thought of anyone. You and your brother are savages. It's just right that everyone in this school wants to kill you."

She turned away and rushed towards the door to exit. Sherdel just let her leave. He watches her open the door. Without looking back, Alexa went out.

If you only knew how hard it was for me to let you go, then you might understand. However, if you know, you will get hurt. This way is better. The more you hate me, the more you won't get hurt. I am setting you free for your sake. You will never be happy when you're with me.

:::::::::::

It's already quarter to one o'clock. It's twenty minutes before the class resumes. One o'clock to two o'clock is the set schedule for the General Mathematics class. That class is the only class when Grace and Sherdel are in the same room.

Sherdel went inside. He found that there were only six of his classmates there. Those six classmates immediately noticed that he is in a bad mood just when they saw him step into the doorway. They stopped talking for a while as they got nervous about his behavior. They are watching him moving the chair that blocks his way to his seat with anger, groaning as he moves and staring at everyone with a piercing glare. Everyone in the room began to wonder.

Then, Grace and three other girls came inside.

"Hi!" they greeted. But none of the six replied. They realized that something was wrong. The atmosphere seems quiet and awkward.

"What happened?" Grace asked.

John Dee, the most talented when it comes to guitar in the class, secretly points at Sherdel behind him. He is hugging his guitar while he sits on the writing surface of his armchair.

And so, Grace looks in the direction he is pointing at. She realized it was Sherdel he was referring to. It is Sherdel who is sitting next to her armchair. She can see that he is in a bad mood, again. However, this time, he is more stressed. Sherdel is quietly sitting there. He is not in himself. He is staring at the floor, thinking deeply.

"What happened to him?" Flora whispered.

"We have no clue," John Dee replied. "He came here like that. I can't bring myself to play my guitar because of him."

"Maybe he's hungry or something," Henry suggested.

"For one second, don't think about food," Flora nudged him.

"What? People get angry sometimes because they are hungry, you know?" he defends.

Flora slapped his back gently. "Do you think he needs food right now? Look at him! Do you think that's the face of a person who needs food?"

"Maybe his grandfather scolded him?" Janet suggested.

"I doubt that," John Dee replied.

Grace was just staring at him. She was wondering what caused him to have such a very bad mood. The only thing that comes to her mind is that maybe Sherdel and his secret girlfriend got in a fight. Her classmates are whispering to each other. She's the only one who's not listening. She's just looking at him.

Suddenly, she got startled when his eyes looked away from the floor and got focused on her. He is glaring with a threat. Immediately, Grace looked away. He got up from his seat, still looking at Grace. He walks toward the group.

"Let's talk," he told Grace.

"Huh?" She suddenly got nervous.

He grabbed her arm and pulled her away from the group. She had no choice but to follow him. They went out of the classroom. He leads her toward the men's room.

:::::::::::

Sherdel released her arm just as they entered the room. He raised his fist and showed it before Grace's eyes. Grace got frightened while looking at his fist.

"Why did you bring me here?" she asked.

"Are you the one who told my Dad about me and Alexa?" he angrily asked. "Tell me the truth or else you will get it!" He held his fist closer to her face.

"What? What! No. I did not!" she answers while she moves her face away from his threatening fist. "I have no idea what you're talking about."

"Someone told my father about me and Alexa. And I know you are the one who reported it to him."

"I have never met your father in my life!" she defended. "Is it my fault that you are obviously hiding something from everyone?"

"What did you say?" He brought his face close to her face. Grace gasped as she turned her head to the side to avoid seeing his scary face. She moves back a little. She turned her face to the front. She glares back at him.

"I am just saying that there might be others besides me who found out about you and your girlfriend. I promise, I never told anyone your secret. Besides, I am not a gossiper, you know?"

"If ever I find out that what you are saying is false, prepare yourself. And tell everyone who knows about me and Alexa to get their faces ready because I'll c***k them like a punching bag. "

Grace didn't respond. She just glares at him. Then, a guy came inside to pee. It happened to be John Dee. Grace and Sherdel looked at him anxiously. The guy was surprised when he saw Grace inside.

"What the..." he reacts in surprise.

Grace looked at Sherdel again for a second. She walked away and headed to the door.

::::::::::::::

It's already deep into the night.

Seyhan is on a small veranda connected to his room. He wears no shirt to cover up his upper body. He is only wearing shorts. He is standing near the railing. Looking up at the bright full moon. He's staring at it as he absorbs the energy emitted from it. It felt so good and so powerful. The energy is so strong that he was encouraged to stimulate his Lignodon instincts. His hair slowly turned brown and grew longer, his eyes were blue, and his canines were getting sharper and longer. He just let the change be despite the fact he was in a house with a dozen people.

But then, on the veranda just beside the veranda where he was, he sensed a strong presence of a person who had just arrived there. He immediately halts his mutation. He looked to see who it could be.

It is Seline. She's getting closer to the barricade. She hadn't noticed that there was someone on the other side. Her eyes were looking up to the bright moon. She placed her hands on its railings just when she got close to it.

His heart got frightened. Afraid that she might discover his secret. And so, he froze and made sure that he avoided any motion so that she wouldn't notice.

He closed his eyes. Then he tried to bring himself back to normal. To his surprise, his form refuses to bring him back to his normal human form. He slowly and carefully looked down to check his arms - it's still hairy.

"Oh, for the love of God!" he mouthed.

He checked the girl on the other side. She isn't moving. He sighed in relief.

Meanwhile, she got her eyes off the moon. She looked down to look at the view of the backyard down below while being stricken by the moonbeam.

Seyhan immediately ducked just when he saw her move her head.

Seline turned her head and looked over the veranda of Seyhan's room. She noticed that there was something moving. She began to wonder what it was.

Seyhan, hiding behind the huge vase next to the railing, is trying to bring himself back to normal. Yet, the energy he was trying to release refuses to get out of his body.

"Why doesn't it work..." he shook his arms. "What the hell is she doing here?" he wondered.

Seline ignored what she had noticed. Instead, she looks up to the moon again.

"The moon is so pretty," she smiled.

She raised up her right arm. She faced her palms up into the moon, at the same time, it covered the moon from her view. She closed her eyes, then she began to concentrate. Suddenly, the sky turned from black to swirling colors of red, violet, and blue. They are swirling across the night sky like Van Goh's 'Stary Night' painting. Seline is not aware of the power she is unleashing.

Seyhan looked up and was astonished. He slowly stands up. He is looking at a Jupiter-like sky. He's getting out of control over his mutation. And so, while he looks at the moon at the center of the abnormal color of the sky, he lets himself transform. His hair is growing furry. His eyes turned into a cat's eyes. His upper canines are growing into fangs. In the midst of the mutation, he held his head down and looked at Seline on the other veranda. He sees Seline closing her eyes and her hand raised towards the sky. She is just calm and didn't move an inch. She is standing there, smiling as the moonlight drops on her.

Seyhan squinted his eyes as he got suspicious. He suspects that she might be doing the phenomenon in the sky. While being suspicious, his eyes got mesmerized. He watched her skin reflect the moonlight, her hair flowing as the wind blew. She had gotten prettier. Because of her, Seyhan begins to not mind what's happening around him. He doesn't mind about the sky, he doesn't bother with his mutation, and he forgets his suspicion of her. Instead, he appreciates her beauty. His heart raced faster, he couldn't explain it. It's not like the feeling he felt when he first met her. It wasn't a feeling of anxiety and suspicion, instead, it felt so good. He subconsciously smiled as he gazed at her. He didn't even know his body was already in the form of a large sabertooth cat.

That moment stopped when...Seline put her hand down, then she held her head down. The sky turned back into its original color. The dogs in the neighborhood stopped barking.

She immediately scanned her surroundings. She looked to the other veranda in Seyhan's room. She noticed a strange-looking animal that had just entered the young master's room. She got shocked and frightened. She couldn't explain what was going on. Maybe it was just a trick of her eyes or maybe she was just exaggerating about a dog entering Seyhan's room.

"Yup, Seline. You need to sleep," she said to herself. "Don't exaggerate the dog for something else."

:::::::::::

Grace Joy and her brother, Janus, were in the kitchen. They were both having their breakfast then.

"Ate Grace Joy," Janus called.

"Hmm?" she responded. She was chewing her food.

"There are a lot of rich students in your school, right?" he asked.

"Yeah," she answered. "Why do you ask?"

She grabbed a glass of water standing beside her plate, then she took a drink.

"I am thinking of a rich future big brother-in-law."

Without a warning, Grace Joy spewed out the water. Janus immediately stood up after the water went to his face and his t-shirt.

"Ate!" he yelled.

After she was coughing to relieve herself from choking, she spoke.

"You rude kid!" she yelled. "Of all the words you are going to say, you ask me that?"

"Just kidding."

"That's not funny," she said. "Don't ever tell me that...at least for now. Study first."

"What's wrong with what I said?"Then he apologized.

"I am still eating, January. Just shut up," she pointed down at her plate.

"Sorry." He made puppy eyes.

"Che!" She rolled her eyes. "Just get your shirt outside and let it dry."

Janus took off his t-shirt, then he went towards the back door located twelve feet away, on the west side of the table.

While Janus was out, Grace resumed her meal. Meanwhile, loud footsteps were heard coming from the stairs. Grace Joy knew that it was her mother walking down to the living room. She was wondering what made her footsteps louder than usual. Later, she came in. Grace Joy widened her eyes with surprise.

Her mother wore a red 'above the knee' dress. Her face is painted with makeup. Her lips are painted with very thick red lipstick. Her hair was fixed in a ponytail. She had seen her mother like that before. She only wears simple dresses and light makeup every time she goes to work. Other than that, she doesn't need make-up or formal wear when she goes to town for a stroll.

"What's happening?" Grace Joy wondered.

"Why? Doesn't it fit?" she asked.

"You look stunning," she complimented. Then she asked.

"Why are you wearing those?"

"There's a party to attend," she answered. "I have a birthday party to attend to. It's my boss's wife so I have to get formal for the occasion."

Grace Joy nodded. "Oh, is that so? I thought you were going on a date."

"Ha! You wish," her mother suddenly blushed. A little. Grace Joy hadn't noticed the reaction.

Her mother then noticed that Janus was nowhere seen in the kitchen.

"Where's my baby boy?" she asked.

"He's outside."

"Okay," she responded. "Just tell him that I just went out."

"Yeah," she responded immediately.

She went to the living room, then she exited through the main door. Grace Joy sighed. A couple of seconds later, she shrugged, then she continued eating.