Mermaid Blues: Beasts, Giants and Spirits

The Waves Getting High

In the hospital...

Wendel is admitted inside a room. It had been fifteen hours passed. He is lying unconscious on his bed. An oxygen mask is equipped on his face. He has lost so much blood in his body. The vital signs monitor on the nightstand is beeping. His respiration rate is stable. He just needs to recover. Hopefully, for the next three days, he will wake up.

Benjie is sitting on the chair beside the bed. He is staring blankly at the unconscious body. He is thinking deeply as he gets further stressed and worried. He interlaced his fingers together and he put them on his lips as he was kissing them while he thought. He fidgets his left leg.

Meanwhile, someone opens the door. The door squeaked as it got opened slightly. Ana peeked. She found a guy sitting on a chair next to Wendel. At first, she didn't recognize Benjie because Benjie was facing away from the door and Ana could only see his back. Only when Benjie turns his head to glance at the person at the back.

Ana smiled. She slips through the door as she enters. She slowly closed the door. Benjie stands up. He turned around to face her. He could see that she was holding a bouquet of flowers in her hands. Ana suddenly got nervous. She looks down as if she feels embarrassed about her presence there. She takes a deep breath, looks at Benjie, then she speaks.

"I brought flowers...," she said with a slight smile on her face.

Benjie nods, indicating that she can put them on top of the table opposite the nightstand. And so, Ana walks around the bed to get to the small table. She placed it down when she got there. After that, she looks toward Benjie.

"Grace and Seline are not here yet. They said that they got caught up in the traffic," Ana told him.

"It's not a problem at all," Benjie replied.

Ana took another deep breath and she smiled.

"I'm so sorry," she told him.

"For what?" he wonders.

"For what has happened to him," she replies. "If only I am aware of the things that have happened. Maybe I have helped him. Maybe I can also save those four people that were murdered."

Benjie sits down on the chair next to the bed. He looked at her anxiously. "Do not blame yourself," he said. "No one is aware that this is going to happen. You have nothing to do with what happened to the others as well."

Ana is about to insist. "But--"

"You too have no idea what is happening. You are trying to act as ordinary as you can despite the voices you hear in your head. It is not your fault that you didn't understand why we ring inside your mind."

Ana bit her lips as she reflected on what he told her. "But still..."

"I told you. This is not on you," Benjie protests. "If you think you are the only one to be blamed for this, because we didn't understand what is happening, then, you are not alone. I too feel bad for them. Even if I had never met them, I felt like I should have been there at the time they were being murdered. If I wanted to turn back the time, I would save them."

Ana starts tearing up. She holds her head down. "I can still remember their voices in my head..."

Benjie nods with sympathy on his face. "Me too..." he replies. He slouches. "However, I keep on telling myself: 'In order not to make their sacrifices in vain. I must have to live another day to protect the people I love.' Kendrick, for example. Also, now that I know this guy over here (he refers to Wendel), I will try my best to help him."

Ana smiled slightly. She held her head up and panned at Benjie. She nods with admiration. "You're right."

Benjie looks at her. He gently smiles with optimism. He felt good that somehow he comforted the young girl. "My name is Benjie Romero, a Rosales, the owner of Pines Corner and a big brother to Kendrick."

"Ana Camilo," she smiled. "You are very popular around Benguet."

"Yeah," Benjie responded. "It is nice to meet a daughter of Lumawig." His dimples were showing up. He's getting more attractive. Like his little brother, he looks like a kid when he does that. Ana looks away to avoid seeing his charm any further. However, the tattoo caught the attention of her eyes. She noticed the lizard tattoo shining up on Benjie's wrist.

Ana smiled. "Woah. I felt uncomfortable being called that," she commeanted. She panned at Wendel. "How is the big brother?" she asked.

"Still not waking up," he replied. "Gordon said that he lost too much blood."

"That's bad," she comments in horror. "Is he gonna die? I'll call Seline right away," she panics.

"No. He's fine," he told.

"I hope he'll be healed soon." Then, she looks at Benjie's wrist again. The lizard tattoo is still shinning. She asked, "What does it feel like when your tattoo shines like that?"

Benjie lifts his arm to check the tattoo. He could see it shining. He looks at Ana with confusion painted on his face. "I don't know...usually when it shines, there is a ringing sound inside my head and it always gives me a headache. Right now, there is a ringing sound but it doesn't hurt at all."

"When did this ringing start? I mean the ringing you hear right now?" she asked with curiosity.

"When you came in," he answered.

Ana began to think. She gulped heavily as she began to suspect something. "Can I check it?" she asked. Then she walked toward him. Benjie stretched forth his arm.

Ana gently grabs his hand and she pans at the tattoo. She gently touches it with the tips of her fingers. She gasped in horror. She could see Benjie's memories bursting in her mind. It is not a pleasant memory though.

She can see a dark room during a stormy night. There was a man kneeling before her. He is facing away. Below the man is a woman lying breathless on the floor. She can tell that the man is crying in sorrow even though he is facing away. She noticed a knife lying next to him. It has got blood on it.

She is terrified. Then, she heard the voice of Benjie echoing around the room. What did you do? What did you do? he shouted in anger, pain, and sorrow. He shouts at the man kneeling down before her.

She immediately moved her fingers away from the tattoo. She removes her hand from his arms. She moves back. Her tears began to flow down her face. Benjie looks at her with concern while wondering what happened to her. Ana turns away and heads towards the door. Just when she is about to reach out for the doorknob, someone from the outside opens it. Ana was surprised when she sees Sir Gordon standing in front of her. Gordon looked at her with concern just when he noticed her tears. Before he could speak, Ana passed him by to get out.

***Deep Secret***

Seline and Grace are walking through the hallway of the hospital. They are heading towards the room where Wendel is admitted. They were already getting near since they can see two guards standing at the door of a distant room. However, they noticed Ana sitting on a bench at the side of the hallway. They can see her crying. And so, they approached her.

They sat beside her. Seline rubs Ana's back gently. "Are you okay?" Grace asks her. "Why are you sad?"

Ana shook her head. "I feel the pain," she said.

"What?"

"The moment I touched their tattoos, I can see their pasts flashing at me. I can't bear seeing them. It's so sad and scary," she said.

"It's okay. It's fine," Seline comforts her.

"Maybe the reason why they can't remove their curse is because of me," Ana added.

"Don't say that," Grace protested. "We are aware that our powers can't help remove their marks."

"I can," she admitted. "I know I can. But... every time I use my power on them, I can barely do it. It's because their painful memories are blocking me. It's too painful, I can't bear them. I don't want to feel them. I am so scared."

Seline and Grace looked at each other. They sympathize with Ana since they understand where she's coming from. They will feel the same if they also have Ana's situation. They couldn't say anything to her so they just hugged her.

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

Sherdel opens the door to Ms. Donna's office. He went inside. He found that Mrs. Donna is talking with a businessman. Donna is behind her desk while the businessman is sitting across from her.

"That is a great idea, Mr. Paez. Helping the students in our own little ways is a huge step for them," Donna praised.

"That's right!" the enthusiastic guy replied. "I want the audition to be Friday this week. That's when I am available," he suggests.

Donna nodded. "Okay. If that's what you want, then I'll call the staff to spread this good news to the students of the Horizon Reached."

Then, the businessman got up from the chair. "Thank you so much." He stretched out his hand to shake hands with her. Donna shook his hand. "It is a pleasure meeting you, Mrs. Santiago."

"You too," she replied.

The businessman turned toward the door. He spotted Sherdel standing next to it. He turned to look at Donna. "Is he your son?" he asked.

"No. He's my nephew," she answered.

"Such a nice-looking guy," he compliments. "God bless your family." Then, he walks toward the door. Sherdel moved aside so that he wouldn't stand in his way. The man opened the door and he went out. Right after the man is out, Sherdel walks over to the seat next to Donna's seat.

"Who is he?" Sherdel asked.

"Manyo Paez, a newly committed businessman. He is the son of your grandfather's friend, Ferrero Paez. Right now, he has just started his new coffee shop and it is surprisingly successful."

"What does he want?"

"He is willing to provide salaries to the students who are willing to be singers for his newly built establishments in Mines View and somewhere in Session Road."

"And so, is he going to conduct an audition?"

"Yes. Isn't it great?"

He shrugged.

"Why are you here anyway?" she asked. "Shouldn't you be in class?"

"I can't," he said.

Donna sighed with frustration. "Oh, God. Again? Why? What happened?"

"Nothing," he said.

"If you keep doing this, you can't graduate. I am telling you," Donna protested. "Tell me what happened. If you don't, I will force myself to drop you out of this school."

Sherdel sighed with frustration. He is hesitating to tell her what happened. He looked her in the eyes. Donna could tell in his eyes that he was scared. He might be glaring at her right now, but he can't hide it. Then, Donna begins to understand.

"It's because your father is here, isn't it?" she asked to confirm.

Sherdel looks away. Donna is right.

"Sherdel, how long are you going to be mad at your Dad?"

"Until he dies," he replied.

Donna sighed with dismay. "Okay. I know that your father is too stubborn to listen to you, but you can't run away from him forever. Look, use that stubbornness of yours to fight him back."

"I am tired. I don't want to see his face anymore," he said.

Donna nods. She crossed her arms together and she stood up. She looks at him."Okay. I will let you skip your class, but only for this class only. You must attend the following class, okay?"

Sherdel nodded. He agrees.

"Oh my God. I do not know what to do with you once your grandfather finds out I let you skip your class," she complains as she got worried. "I'll go get some water..." then she walks towards the door. She left Sherdel inside the room alone.

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

Japeth is inside a cell much like a cell for a bear. He is squatting at the corner with his back leaning against the railings. His body is scarred with wounds. Not even his face is safe from injuries. He is staring at the floor while he thinks deeply. He can barely open his left eye because of the hard blow that he took. Then, he suddenly heard a voice from a girl.

"Hey! Hey!" she gently calls.

Japeth woke up from thinking. He looks around to find who is calling.

"Who's there?" he responds.

"Over here!" the girl calls.

Japeth looks to his right. He was surprised to see a girl locked up in a cell beside the cell he was in. He stood up and immediately approached her.

"What are you doing here?" he asked her.

"I got kidn*pped by them," she answers. "Are you okay?" she said. "Here, take my jacket. You can tear it to make bandages for your wounds."

"I am fine," he insisted.

But the girl ripped the sweater apart. "Here. Take it. Don't be stubborn. You are bleeding. You need to cover those up," she gently threw the shreds of clothes into the other cell.

"Thank you."He slowly lowers himself to sit down on the floor. Then, he immediately wraps one of the strips of cloth to his foot.

While she watches him dress the wounds. She introduces herself. "I am Salome."

"Japeth," he told her. He begins to dress the other foot. "How come you ended up here?" he wonders.

"I got caught so that they could use me to force my boyfriend to do their bidding," she answered.

"What an unlucky guy," he muttered.

"How about you? Did they kidnap you for the same purpose as me?" she asked.

"Oh hell no!" he answered. "I got here because they just hate me." Then, he began to groan as he felt the pain coming from the deep wound in his right leg just when he moved the foot to stretch it out. He stretched out his feet across the floor to let them rest. He leaned towards the railings.

"You look badly injured. You are not supposed to be conscious after all," she said with wonder.

"It doesn't bother me a bit," he chuckles gently. "I am used to being tortured. If you are raised by a family of criminals, you get used to the stabbings and tasers."

The girl bit her lips. She suddenly got nervous after he said that. "Wow... you are pretty scary."

"By the way, what do they need from your boyfriend anyway?" he asked.

"My boyfriend...he...he can transform into something that I cannot explain. He's been keeping it a secret from his family for most of his life."

"He can transform into an ancient wolf? Boar? A deer? If he is, tell him he doesn't need to hide it from his parents because he doesn't know one or both of his parents are keeping their were-animal status a secret from him too," he said.

"What?" she reacts in surprise. "Those exist?"

"What? I thought any of those were what you were saying about," he replied. He got confused.

"He transforms into something else. I can't explain it. It seems like the creature he transforms into is not a creature at all. It seems it came from another universe, something like that."

"Describe it, his transformation," he said.

"It is shining. It seems he's made up of light. It looks like the moon sculpted like a bear. It can disappear and teleport."

"Wait...your boyfriend is Mark?" he reacted in surprise.

"You know him?" The girl also reacted in surprise.

"That guy is a pain in the ass. You know that?" he told her. "Because of him, those hunters killed some innocent people."

The girl covers her mouth. She shakes her head as she tries not to believe what he said. She's tearing up. "No...No...he won't do that! He can't kill a person."

"Maybe he can't...but those hunters can," he replied. "Your boyfriend is one of our top wanted people."

The girl continues to sob. She is shocked and worried about Mark. She can't believe they are doing those things to her beloved.

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

It was getting dark. The sun was almost disappearing in the west.

Ceres was at Loakan Airport Runway. He was walking there aimlessly. He doesn't know where to go. Every person who's passing through can't help but focus their eyes on his face. They were wondering where he got a black eye on the left. His cheeks were burning red. Even his upper lip had a small wound.

Every time somebody looked, he looked away so that they couldn't see the entire injury. He wished his white shirt, stained by dirt and a few drops of blood and tears, had a hood at that time to hide the hideous scarrs from the eyes of people.

He tried to call his friend on the phone again. It was already his third attempt to call him.

"Come on, Edward! Come on. You're my only hope right now..." he muttered.

The phone on the other line kept on ringing. The ring stopped.

"Oh come on, pick up."

He tried to call him again. Edward's phone rang for a few seconds. Then, he finally responded.

"Hello?"

"Hello? Edward, hey," he was confirming.

"Yeah," he responded."Is there a problem?"

"I am sorry, but can I sleep at your place?" he apologized.

Edward sighed in frustration.

"Let me guess...You had a fight with your father?"

"It's an abuse. I hate this, Edward. I am scared. I just want to stay away from him," his eyes were about to shed tears again.

Edward couldn't help himself but sympathize with his dear friend.

"Did you tell this to your sister and Auntie Naomi? You should tell them what your son of a b***h dad did to you."

Ceres sobbed. He wiped his tears away.

"No, I don't want them to get involved in this," he replied. "So, please. Can I stay at your home?"

Edward nodded.

"Okay. My room is always wide enough for two people anyway."

"Thank you," he was relieved. Somehow, the weight on his chest was lessened.

"Tell me what happened when you got here, okay?"

Ceres chuckled faintly while he wiped his tears with his hand.

"Thanks so much."

Si ma-awni ka et ay men pasalamat ken sak en. Umali ka kitdi ed sina tasay adi kan kalabi-an(Thank me later. Just hurry up and come here before it gets dark).

"Okay. I am going to the jeep terminal now," he immediately turned back, to get back to the entrance.

Unbeknownst to him, there was a person staring at him at the back. It was Mark standing still, just watching Ceres walking away from him. All that time, Ceres never noticed that he was being watched.

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

Seth is in the conference room. He is reviewing the papers compiled in a folder. He can't read properly, so he always wears eyeglasses in order to enhance his vision.

Cielo went inside the room. Seth got his attention so he moved his eyes away from the folder. He can see Cielo pacing.

"What's wrong?" he asked.

Then, Ceilo put down something on the table. It is a paper bag containing something inside. Cielo looks at him while he wonders what's in the bag.

"See what's inside," Cielo instructs. And so, Seth immediately grabs it. He took out what was inside. It is a USB stick with a piece of paper wrapped around it. "Check what's on the paper!" Cielo said. And so, Seth uncrumples the paper. He realized it contained a letter. He began to read it.

To the old man who tortured me,

I hope you are still alive and well. If you want your comrade back, here's a treat. Please watch and enjoy!