Chapter 20: Clues

I was sitting in front of the computer screen, staring at it intensely. I scrolled past a plethora of pictures but didn’t find what I was looking for. I sighed and leaned back, wiping my forehead with my hand. It was well over eighty degrees Fahrenheit in this cavern, and I had no idea why. I had been looking up instructions on how to fix thermostats, but nothing seemed to be what I was looking for. Through the course of my research, my mind had drifted to the strange creature I had seen the last time I was out in the water. I had begun looking for pictures of the creature online, but I had found nothing that even vaguely resembled it.

It was then that an idea hit me. I’d go out once more to see if the monster would appear again. I quickly donned my diving gear and made my way to the metal tunnel, waving goodbye to my angelfish as I went. I was outside my cavern in a matter of minutes, drifting quietly in the water.

I swam around for a few minutes, keeping my eyes peeled for the strange beast. A bit of coral caught my eye and I peered down at it, thinking it was damaged. It looked as though someone had broken part of it off…

Just then, a shadow loomed over me. I spun around in the water, just to see the creature’s large eyes staring down at me. I opened my mouth in shock and blew out bubbles. We stayed there for a moment, staring at each other, before the creature darted past me, floating a few feet away. I swam upwards a bit and stared at it, a little afraid of what it would do next. I swallowed hard and waved.

Hello, I said softly. The creature stared at me, not blinking. I…I don’t want to hurt you. I continued, trying to make myself sound fearless. Again, the monster just stared. I sighed as much as one can sigh while breathing through an oxygen tank, wishing it would communicate with me.

Suddenly, the creature darted towards me, ramming me in the stomach with its hard head. I shot backwards with it, letting out a bubbled “oof” as I went. I managed to swim up above the beast and I looked down at it. I could see no expression in its eyes or on its face, but it was obviously mad. The creature shot upwards at me and I narrowly escaped a collision with it. I didn’t want to fight this thing, but it looked like I wasn’t going to have a choice. So, I took a fighting stance and got ready to dodge or punch anything that came near me.

The monster flashed forward, swimming faster than most things I had seen in the water. I shot up towards the surface of the water and the creature missed me again. We carried on like this for a few minutes and I realized I was growing more and more tired, while the beast didn’t seem to loose any energy at all. I was sure that with all of the heavy breathing I was doing my oxygen tank would run out at any minute…

Just then, I got an idea. All I had to do was get back into my lair and the creature would go away. I glanced down towards the entrance of the cavern and realized it was directly beneath the creature. Apparently my plan was more easily said than done… I had to try, though. I didn’t know how much oxygen was left in my tank, and once it was gone, I was gone, too.

I scowled at the creature and shot forward through the water, angling myself downwards a little. I swam as fast as I could, but the monster was faster. He bolted downwards and grabbed my shoulders just as I went past him. I kicked and chopped with my arms, but the creature didn’t let go. Just then, I felt a weight lift off of my back. The mouthpiece to my oxygen tank slipped out of my mouth. My eyes went wide as I glanced down and saw the tank floating to the bottom of the sea. It wasn’t far down; I could still get to it. But the creature was holding me tightly, refusing to let go. I held my breath, but I didn’t even have a lungful of air in my body. I had become very good at holding my breath for extended periods of time, but that meant, at most, two minutes with a deep breath of air. I didn’t have a deep breath; I didn’t have two minutes.

I kicked, but with my flippers it didn’t do much. I tried to punch, or just move my arms, but the creature was holding them tight to my sides. It was as if this thing wanted me to die… But why? What was it and why was it after me? Was it just a nighttime predator? Was it just its instinct to kill?

I pondered these questions and so many more as my vision began to go black. I saw spots and knew that as soon as I opened my mouth I would swallow water and die. However, even with this knowledge, I could not fight against what my body wanted. I opened my mouth and sucked in water, wishing it was air. I felt the water rush through my body, and I gulped in more. I knew that in a matter of moments my life would be gone… There was so much I had yet to do, so many things I had wanted to accomplish! I gasped when I realized that I would never be able to get the blanket octopus out of that zoo… I would never see her in her natural habitat again…

Just then, I realized I wasn’t dead. I looked around and found that I was, indeed, still under the water. My brow creased in confusion. I realized at that moment that I had gasped just a few seconds before. How had that not killed me? Humans can’t inhale water…

Suddenly, a light bulb went on in my head. I took a deep breath through my nose and was stung by the salt water, but I felt like I had just taken a deep breath of air. I began taking in water through my mouth and realized that it, too, felt like deep breaths of air. I smiled as I realized the most amazing thing I had ever discovered.

I could breathe under water.

Chapter 16: Distractions

Time seemed to be moving slower for Tristan today than it had any other day of his life. He had gotten to work on time (a little early, actually), but Nora had not been impressed. She had hardly even noticed him, so it seemed. She told him to get everything ready then meet her out in front of the zoo. From there, they had given their tours as usual, but Nora hadn’t let Tristan say a word. In fact, she had ignored Tristan for most of the tour. Each time he had tried to open his mouth, Nora had cut him off or sent him a sharp glare. Needless to say, Tristan had not liked that one bit.

“Is there any particular reason you’re being so rude to me today?” Tristan asked as he and Nora grabbed their lunchboxes out of their lockers.

“What do you think?” Nora asked icily. She slammed the locker door closed and turned towards the door of the employee’s lounge.

“Wait! Don’t just walk away from me! Communication is key to a relationship!” Tristan blurted out, not realizing what he was saying. Nora glanced back at him, a confused expression on her face.

“We’re not in a relationship.” Nora said quickly, a glare on her face. Tristan stared at her for a moment, a little puzzled by what he had said as well.

“Um…I didn’t mean, like…a relationship in that sense… More like a friendship…” Tristan said slowly. Nora sighed, her shoulders dropping.

“We can’t be friends if you keep bashing something I’m passionate about.” she said softly. Her eyes had suddenly changed. She didn’t look furious anymore; she just looked hurt. Tristan swallowed hard. He wasn’t sure what to say next.

“Well, it’s just that… I think that sea-life belongs in the sea…” he said, trying to choose his words carefully.

“But sometimes these animals are taken out of the sea for a reason.” Nora replied gently. Tristan looked at her with a questioning expression on his face. Nora sighed and began explaining.

“A lot of the animals here have actually been saved because of this park. We have a program that rescues animals whose habitats have been endangered by oil spills or pollution, and most of the animals are kept here instead of put back into those dangerous habitats. We also take in animals that have been injured in fishing accidents. Sometimes, when fishermen put down nets, they catch swordfish, turtles, dolphins, and we actually have a whale that was trapped in a net as a baby. Instead of the fishermen putting the injured animals back into the water or just killing them outright, we’ll send a team out to pick up the animal and bring it back here until it heals. We’ve had scuba divers bring in animals from the reefs nearby, and most of the animals that have been brought to us would have died without our help. The blanket octopus is a great example of that.” Nora finished softly, but her eyes were alight with a fire Tristan hadn’t seen before. It wasn’t anger, but it wasn’t some sort of happiness, either… It was more like passion. Nora really was passionate about her job.

“Really? The blanket octopus was brought in by someone?” Tristan asked, walking towards Nora. Nora nodded.

“Yep. A few years ago someone brought in this tiny little octopus that was missing a leg. We kept the octopus in a tank, discovered what it needed to live happily, and took care of it here. It’s been thriving ever since.” A small smile came to Nora’s lips as she spoke. Tristan couldn’t help but smile a little as well.

“So, you don’t just take animals out of their natural habitats without good reason?” he asked, just for clarification.

“Nope. If the animals aren’t brought in because they’re injured, then they’ve been born and raised here.” Nora replied quickly.

“Oh…so, they’re not all animals that have been injured…” Tristan said softly.

“No, but would you really want them to be?” Nora asked, giving Tristan a pointed look.

“Well, no, but I just thought, after that speech, that all of the animals had been brought in because they were injured.”

“You’d be surprised as to the number of eggs one fish can lay. Usually there are too many baby fish to keep here, so we release some of them back into the wild once they’re old enough.” Nora said quickly.

“But the ones that were brought in because they were injured stay here for the rest of their lives?” Tristan asked. Nora nodded.

“Yes, but sometimes they have to stay here, or else they’ll die.” Nora replied. Tristan thought for a moment.

“What about the blanket octopus? Does it need to stay here to survive?” Tristan asked quickly.

“The blanket octopus is healthy enough to, in theory, survive in the wild. However, because it’s been raised here since it was a baby, just dropping it into the sea would be quite a shock to it. It would have to be introduced to life in the sea very slowly to make a good transition.” Nora explained. Tristan was silent for a minute, thinking about everything Nora had said.

“Hm… Interesting…” he murmured.

“Do you understand a little more where I’m coming from now?” Nora asked hesitantly. Tristan glanced down at her.

“Yeah, a little bit.” he replied softly. Nora smiled slightly.

“Good. Now, let’s go have lunch.” she said, turning and walking away. Tristan followed after her, everything she had said playing through his mind.

After hearing all of that, it was going to be incredibly difficult to protest the park…

Chapter 8: Plans

I paced around the large room, thinking to myself. A frown caused my eyebrows to crease inwards as I hummed a bit. I stopped abruptly, not because I had an idea, but just because I didn’t want to pace anymore. I looked around the cavern suspiciously. I couldn’t shake the feeling that I was being watched.

“That’s preposterous…” I muttered to myself. No one would be able to find my lair, and even if they did, they wouldn’t be able to enter. At least, not without some diving gear. Besides, it was the dead of night. At least, it was the dead of night when I had entered…

I glanced up at the clock on the wall and saw that it was one o’clock in the morning. I clasped my gloved hands behind my back as I looked around again. My lair was roughly hewn from a coral reef by nature itself. I had made slight modifications to improve living space, but it was almost exactly how nature had left it. Well…it was mostly the same as how nature had left it…

I had added lights and a few computers, all of which were powered by the water outside my lair. The current was not always moving very quickly, hence the dim lighting. I didn’t mind it, though. It added an air of mystery to my hideout.

There was also a large window along one of the walls that looked out to the sea. I could easily cover it with a push of a button, concealing the window to look like the coral around it. However, at this time of night, the window remained open so that I could see the night life that happened along the ocean floor.

I walked towards the window and my boots clicked against the smooth rock floor. I sat down in the chair in front of the window and watched the water move for a few minutes. My gaze slowly drifted to the passage to my right. It was almost completely dark down that corridor, because none of the lights led that way. It was the only entrance to my lair, but there was an emergency exit, just in case…

Just then, I heard something fall to the floor behind me. I gasped and spun around in the chair, clutching the armrests while peering around me carefully. I looked up at the high ceiling and saw nothing but the jagged coral that made up the roof. I stayed in this tense position for a good three minutes without hearing another sound. Finally, I turned around again.

I looked back up at the window and let out a frightened yelp at the sight that met me. A large shark was swimming sleepily by the window. I sat perfectly still, petrified by it. Normally, I wasn’t this jumpy, but something about today had left me on edge. I watched the shark swim past the window, but it didn’t watch me. It wasn’t out hunting tonight…

Once the shark was gone, I let out a heavy sigh. I ran my hand through my hair and closed my eyes. I thought about going to bed, but I really wasn’t tired. I was just feeling…scared.

I decided to think about something else, so I turned my mind to my little sister in the zoo. I looked up at the window again and saw nothing but the dark water. Soon, however, I would look out that window and see her swimming by, free and happy. She might be scared of the idea now, but once she was here--once she tasted the natural, salty water!--she would know that this is where she was meant to be. She would realize that the people at the zoo were just keeping her there to make a profit; that they no longer wanted to help her; that they just wanted to use her.

I had decided long ago, though, that I wouldn’t let them decide when she was well enough to leave the zoo. I had brought her in, so I could take her out.

A few years ago, I had been diving a short distance from this reef. As I was swimming, I noticed a miniscule dot making its way slowly through the water. I swam closer to observe it and saw that it was a tiny little octopus. However, it had been injured and was missing a tentacle. I took pity on the baby octopus and knew it would not survive in the wild, so I scooped it up and gave it to one of the park’s employees.

I checked up on the octopus regularly and was pleased to see that it was growing well and appeared to be healthy. I learned a great deal about that octopus, but not all of it was from the employees.

I made a habit of sneaking into the zoo after hours to check up on the octopus. Somehow, through all of our time together, we learned to speak the same language, and we have many conversations today. Whether the language we speak is an octopus language or English, I don’t think either of us will ever know. However, we both know one thing:

She’s my little sister, and everything I do is to protect her.

Chapter 4: The Blanket Octopus

I looked down at the water below me. It was clear and blue and poorly lit. I sighed and tapped my flippers against the cement I was standing on. I was feeling a bit nervous this evening, which really wasn’t like me…

It was night and the zoo was closed, but there was still a guard lurking around. He didn’t usually come down this way, but I was still feeling on edge. Once I jumped into that water, I was out in the open with no hiding place. I took a deep breath, said a short prayer, then dove in.
I swam down through the tank, being sure to keep my breathing steady. I had a full tank of oxygen on my back, but I didn’t want to use it all up right away because I was breathing poorly. I glided along slowly, glancing out of the tank as I passed. The only lights on in the room outside were small wall lights. None of them were shining on the tank, but a light from above shone down and illuminated the water with an eerie glow. I swam farther down, my muscles tensing.

I peered through the water and shivered. I wasn’t a fan of the dark, and the water just kept getting darker and darker the farther down I went. Where are you, my pet? I wondered as I took another breath.

As if to answer me, a dark shadow suddenly shot up through the water. I flapped my arms and legs madly, completely surprised by the creature’s appearance. My heart beat loud enough for me to hear it, and I put a hand on my chest to try to calm it down. I realized I was inhaling quickly and began to slow down my breathing. Once I had calmed down again, I closed my eyes and sighed. I opened my eyes again when I felt something touch my arm. The giant creature had come down to ask if I was all right.

You scared me. I said, turning to face the beast. She just swam past me, as if to say that she knew that all ready. She came back quickly and rubbed her head against my abdomen. I reached my hand out and pet her as she went past me.

Why were you so on edge? She asked, floating a few feet away from me. I shrugged.

I had an…interesting day… I replied. I tried to seem nonchalant, but I knew she wouldn’t buy it.

Riiight… Well, I scared the living daylights out of at least forty people today. She beamed, twirling through the water.

I’m glad that makes you happy. I said dryly, rolling my eyes. She giggled and I realized again how much of a child she was. I have some really good news, though. I continued as I swam towards her. She stopped spinning and looked at me.

What is it?

I’ve found someone who might help us. I replied with a smile. She stared at me quizzically for a moment. I might finally be able to get you out of here!

I dunno… I kind of like it here… She said softly. I stared at her, shocked.

You only like it here because you can scare people. Think beyond that! I can take you back to your home, back to where you came from. I said, swimming around her. Think about it--open spaces, more food, maybe you’d meet a nice guy… I continued, smiling. She sighed.

I just… I don’t know how I would do out there…

You’d do fine. I’d be there to help you. You know I wouldn’t just leave you to fend for yourself.

Yeah, I know… I just…

You’re just what?

I’m scared.

I stared at her, taken off guard. My eyes filled with pity as I swam towards her again. You’re completely healed now, I said. There’s no reason why they should be keeping you here, and you don’t have any reason to be scared. She looked down at her long tentacles.

I know… But I’m still scared… Just like you were scared when you dove into the water. You didn’t have any reason to be scared, you just were. She said, looking up at me again. My eyes met hers and I felt my heart breaking for her. She didn’t deserve to be in this box… She deserved to be in the ocean, off the coast of New Zealand… And she didn’t even realize it.

We’re going to help you, and it’s going to be okay. I promise. I assured her, placing my forehead against hers. She sighed and looked up at my pitifully.

Okay… She said softly. I smiled. Just then, the beam of a flashlight caught my eye. I gasped and she turned to look. The guard was coming.

I’ve got to go! I said, swimming upwards hastily. She spread out her tentacles to try to hide me from view as she swam along with me.

Okay, don’t get caught! She called when I reached the top of the tank. I poked my head out of the water and began crawling onto the cement outside the tank. Once I was out, I turned around and waved to my friend.

I’ll talk to you later, but I’m not sure when… My schedule just got a little busier. I said with a sigh.

That’s all right. Just don’t get caught! She called, turning up to look at me. I smiled then jumped up. I removed my flippers then dashed off to put my diving gear away. I was feeling much better after a talk with my little sister, even though I had almost been caught…

Chapter 2: Nora

Nora stormed forward, clenching her fists at her sides. Her day had been going very well, but everything was suddenly going very wrong.

The day had started normally. She woke up, had a bowl of cereal, got ready for work, and was out the door in an hour. The drive to work had been fairly easy, considering it was summer and the tourists were never very collected when they were behind the wheel. Today, however, Nora had not swerved for anyone, nor did she have to stomp hard on the breaks because a careless driver pulled out in front of her.

Once Nora had gotten to work, all of her coworkers had been very cordial and nice. She smiled and greeted all of the people she passed, and her smiles and greetings were returned. She had noticed that not all of her coworkers were “morning people,” so it was nice to see them opening up at an earlier hour.

She couldn’t blame them for being in a good mood, though. The sun was out, the breeze was cool, and the air smelled of freshly cut grass and saltwater (a strange combination, but one that Nora liked very much). It was the perfect day… Until about eight o’clock.

The gates to the park opened at eight each morning and closed at eight each night. It was a popular attraction year round, but in the summer, people flocked in. Today had been no different. As soon as the gates swung open, people swarmed in. They were organized into lines then let into the park once they had shown (or, in some cases, bought) their ticket. Then, they spread out in little packs, traveling this way and that through the park, looking at all of the attractions and animals. At that time in the morning, the most popular attraction was the zoo. And that was exactly where Nora’s problems began.

Nora’s job at the park was to give tours through the zoo. Her first tour started at 8:15 in the morning, and she always started exactly on time. She looked down at her watch and saw that there were minutes remaining before she had to begin her tour. She glanced up at the people waiting at the zoo entrance and noticed that there weren’t many people there. She had a list that contained almost twenty names… Nora frowned but shrugged the matter aside. If the others didn’t show up, that was their loss.

She walked forward towards the group of tourists and smiled. She had been giving tours for a year and she was well informed about all of the different creatures in the zoo. There had been only a handful of questions that she couldn’t answer, and those had all been in her first few weeks of giving tours. She was confident and outgoing by this point, but something seemed off today… She glanced down at her watch again and took a deep breath. Time to begin.

“Good morning, everyone!” Nora said over the noise. She had a headset with a microphone on it, but she never turned it on until the entire group was inside the zoo. “My name is Nora and I’ll be your tour guide this morning.” She smiled and began counting heads. “Is this all that we have for the tour today?” Nora asked, not expecting a response. The tourists looked around, trying to figure out how many of them were there for the tour. “Hm…” Nora mused to herself. She only had about half of the people that were on her list… “Well, I guess we’d better get started.” Nora said with a shrug. It was 8:15, and Nora was never late.

She began leading the group through the zoo, showing them the fish first. She loved to look at the fish in the aquariums and watch them dart around, looking for another fish to chase. After the fish came the aquatic mammals. There were manittees, dolphins, and a few small whales, as well as seals. The dolphins were a favorite among the crowds, and people especially liked it when divers went into the dolphin tank and swam around with the animals. Next, Nora led the group through a glass tunnel that was surrounded by water. There were sharks and stingrays on all sides. Nora always had a smirk on her face as she led people through this hallway, because someone always screamed. Sometimes, it was because a shark would pound against the glass, thinking it could get to a small child’s colorful hat. There were other instances where a stingray or two would follow the group all the way down the tunnel and watch them for a moment before swimming back in the other direction, and that always seemed to intrigue tourists. Nora then led the group through the section of the zoo that housed the penguins and two polar bears. Nora knew that the penguins were a crowd favorite because of their cuteness. She always had to stop for a couple of extra minutes so that the group could just watch the penguins swim and play. Finally, Nora would lead the group to the last exhibit…

“Ladies and gentlemen,” Nora said, her voice carrying through the large chamber. “The blanket octopus.” Nora beamed as she stared at a sheet of glass that spanned the entire wall. There was water on the other side of the glass, but it was clear and blue and empty. The tourists stared at it, puzzled.

“Must be a pretty tiny octopus…” One man muttered, walking closer to the glass. The tourists walked forward, peering into the water-filled chamber. Nora’s smile became more and more mischievous. They were all in for a surprise, just like any other group Nora had ever led.

Suddenly, the crowd gasped and recoiled. A brick red mass, looking much like a sheet being pulled through the water, shot up in front of the glass. The creature swam gracefully about, its long coattails rippling behind it.

“That’s an octopus?” one child asked incredulously. Nora walked forward and bent down next to him.

“Yep. It has tentacles like an octopus, but some of them are connected together by that red skin. That skin looks like a blanket being dragged through the water, so it’s called a blanket octopus.” Nora explained, trying to keep it simple enough for the child to understand.

“Oooh…” The boy said, nodding his head. He stared at the creature in silence for a moment. “It’s really pretty…” he breathed. Nora smiled.

“Yeah, it is…” Nora watched the octopus for a moment then straightened up. “Believe it or not, this is a female blanket octopus.”

“Whoa! The males must be huge!” a teenager exclaimed. Nora laughed.

“Actually, the male blanket octopi are much smaller than the females. They’re usually only a few centimeters in length, whereas the females can grow to be over two meters in length. Because this female was raised in captivity, she’s larger than most blanket octopi in the wild would become.” Nora explained. The teenager stared at her with his mouth hanging open.

“I thought that the guys were always bigger…” he said softly. Nora smiled kindly.

“That’s what most people think. The blanket octopus is an exception to that belief, though.” the teenager turned back to the glass and stared at the octopus. Nora let the entire group watch in awe as the octopus showed off its beautiful coat. Finally, though, it was time to move on. Nora led the group out to the gift shop, ending her first tour of the day.

And that’s where things went horribly wrong.