Mermaid

"He should not be here," said the fish in the pot.

"He should not be here when your mother is not."

Dr. Seuss,

The Cat in the Hat

It is a strange feeling, drowning. You can read stories or listen to descriptions, but they almost all miss a key part. What surprised me about dying in this way was that it didn't feel completely unnatural. Perhaps there is buried somewhere in the deep recesses of our minds a memory of our brief time in the womb. Floating in the fluid of life beneath the beating heart of our mother, it is the one place where thought did not intrude and regret did not interrupt. Unlike now.

I was thinking, a lot, about the kind of idiot a person has to be to get themselves tangled up, literally, with a sinking cyborg. The chances that this job, this calling if you will, would be the end of me were always pretty high. Very few things or people go missing accidentally. Most of the time someone is very interested in ensuring that what is lost stays lost.

I wondered when I would be found. Who, other than Darwin, would hire a Finder to locate me? Mr. Jones wouldn't, I thought. I was pretty sure that she regretted bringing me on to this case. But I have my methods. No one else came to mind. I had lost touch with all of the other students of Gregson's academy since... since Joanie died. There, I did it. I completed the thought. I guess we would both be dead now. I began to see the stars, floating around me. Is that what happens when we die, we go to the stars?

Since my mind would find the more inopportune times to start solving problems, the visions of stars made me think of 3P's mysterious shuttle program.

It was a question of speed. The distances between stations and planets and other places that people wanted to visit in space were far larger than most people thought. Early in human spaceflight, speeds of only one ten-thousandth of light were considered impressive. However, this still meant a journey of days to the Earth's moon and of months to Mars or Venus.

It was only with the Kobayashi incident that the ability to create antimatter became cost effective enough to become a commercially viable way to power our ships. This incident created a virtually inexhaustible fuel supply due to a runaway process on a space research station.

The moon was now within easy reach for commercial prospects and tourism, and the other two planets were essentially just a luxury cruise away. Mercury was still a commitment, but since it was only miners than went there, the time spent was all part of the job.

Improvements to design and efficiency continued to inch our speed forward, which made the accessibility of the inner planets more convenient for general travel. From the bottom of this manufactured lake though I was in no position to be planning for a vacation, or my next breath, for that matter.

My readings regarding drowning had never mentioned visions though, as in visions that came to you while you drowned. Mermaids, perhaps? But no, that wasn't right, she had legs. Long ones. And she wasn't wearing much either. I watched her swim about, curious as to her meaning. She didn't look much like Joanie, so maybe she represented the regret of lost relationships?

The vision in question might have been in her early twenties, a child really in many respects. She would have none of the bitter memories which drove an older man like me. Perhaps she represented my regrets, my loss of innocence?

Then her eyes met mine, and she smiled and signaled that she would be a minute or two. She swam to the surface and disappeared.

Strange vision, I thought. Perhaps it meant that...

But I had no time to finish that thought, because there she was, right in front of me again. She smiled at me, then reached both her hands forward and grasped each side of my head being careful to avoid the diamond wire. Then she kissed me.

No, that wasn't right. She locked her lips on mine and forced air into my lungs. The stars in my eyes cleared a little, going out one by one. She disappeared, coming back again a few seconds later, once again breathing for me. This time, however she brought friends.

Two young men, obviously younger than my savior, were swimming with her. One of them had brought a pair of clippers, the other some garden shears. They were arguing silently with each other over which of the tools ought to be used.

Finally the woman rolled her eyes at me and spun in the water. She pointed to the one with the clippers and sent him back to the surface, then she stretched out her hand to receive the garden shears.

He indicated that he wanted to be the one to use them, which made her thrust out her hand again. One scowl later, he handed her the shears, then they both swam to the surface. They were definitely related. My savior had definitely been giving off a big sister vibe.

She came back again, shears in hand and breathed for me again. I was starting to feel a little better. She was examining the tangle of diamond wire, and making a few snips with the shears created a safe path for me to swim up and out of the arms of the cyborg.

Rough hands grabbed at me and pulled me up out of the water, dragging me onto the grass, and laying me on my back. I was coughing and spluttering, trying to clear the water out of my lungs but too weak to turn over.

"Flip him over, you idiots. Fine lot of good saving him will do if you daft lot let him drown on shore!" It was the young woman, and she was definitely the boys' older sister. No one else gets away with talking to others like that.

"I didn't know!" protested one of the young men as he took hold of my left arm.

"Add that to the list," she said.

"What list?" said the other young man as he grabbed my right arm.

"The list of things you don't know, you morons. What are you going to do with both his arms like that, take him dancin'? Jeremy, you let go and get over to Jordan, then both of you roll him over together. I can see why Mother gets frustrated! I need to get him a towel or... oh, would you look at that cat! Come here you beautiful creature!"

Darwin had that effect. Everywhere, and on almost everyone. Apparently the young woman's call wasn't enough to distract him though, because the next thing I felt was his nose nudging my face.

"Hey, buddy." I said quietly, my face now resting on the soft turf, the fresh smell of grass and dirt filling my nostrils. "Just catching my breath. I will be ok."

Apparently he wasn't convinced, as he installed himself next to me. He wasn't purring, he was guarding.

"Cor!" one of boys exclaimed. "He is big!"

"Well spotted, Jer. Now get aways from him, he looks hungry." The boys scrambled to what sounded like a safe distance.

"Why don't you get some clothes on 'afore Mum sees ya! She have your hide for showing so much skin to a stranger."

"He's no stranger. He's Mum's friend."

"Julianne!" Speaking of 'mum,' a new voice introduced itself into the conversation. There was something familiar about that voice.

"What in the name of all that's good are you doing running around in your underthings? You'll catch your death and I am sure your brothers do not require the anatomy lesson."

A shocked cry of "MOTHER!" was accompanied by a couple of "Eww!"s. Quite the family gathering I had gotten myself into.

"I didn't want to get my clothes wet," Julianne was explaining.

"Well get something on, at least, child."

"I have a shirt in my bag," I offered quietly, still trying to catch my breath.

"That's awfully kind of you Mr. Friedman. You heard the Finder child, go and get some clothes on."

"Yes, Mum."

"Now, boys," Mrs. McTavish instructed her children, "Gently help Mr. Friedman sit up. We have some important things to discuss."