The group pulled up to the docks later that evening, Jay dropping them off. He rolled down the window and explained to them; "Now my friend is going to be down at the end. He has a large green pontoon boat. Can't miss it."

"Thank you dear," Zianna smiled, kissing him on the cheek goodbye. "Call me if you see anything suspicious."

"Will do!" He saluted to them, turning to Garroth a moment to say; "It was nice meeting you. Good luck getting home. Hope to see you again sometime."

Garroth smiled at him and nodded his head. "Thank you for everything."

Jay then drove off, letting the group walk down the dock. They all remained quiet, not wanting to draw too much attention. Eventually, they made it to the boat, a large man coming up to them.

"Are you Jay's group?"

Zianna nodded her head, handing him a small envelope of what the others assumed was money. "Don't tell anyone. Please."

He nodded his head, motioning for everyone to come aboard. Everyone got on one by one while the man started undocking. Aphmau and Vylad showed Garroth where to sit and sat on either side of him. Everyone took their seats and got settled right when the engine started and they were off. The blonde watched as the shoreline became smaller and smaller in the distance, wishing slightly that he could stay a bit longer to explore it. But, he knew that he was making the right choice.

"Okay Gar," Zianna started, handing him the potion. "Once you drink this potion, jump into the water. You only have a limited amount of time for the transformation to occur."

"Sounds easy enough," The blonde said, nervously trying to be positive. Aphmau just rubbed his shoulder as a way to assure him it would turn out fine.

The crew just went out further into sea, the dark night making the usual bright blue sea look gray and ominous instead. The man eventually stopped and anchored, the only movement coming from the waves hitting the boat itself. He came up to the group and explained; "You have ten minutes. I don't want to be out here too long."

With that, he decided to keep his distance, looking uninterested. Garroth was the first to stand, holding the potion in his hand. "Before I go...I just want to thank you all from the bottom of my heart for helping me. I don't know where I'd be if it wasn't for you all."

"Don't mention it," Aaron got up, clasping his shoulder. "You're worth saving Garroth. Just don't get yourself tangled in something like that again."

"Yeah," Katelyn sighed. "As much as I enjoyed getting to know you, this was exhausting."

The blonde chuckled as he gave the two a quick hug. Zianna came up next, not saying a word as she embrace her son another time. When she parted, she looked into those deep blue eyes that she remembered so dearly and said; "I'm always here for you. I might've not been before but I am now."

Garroth smiled brightly as he gave his mother another hug. He then looked to Vylad, letting his arm out to join. The brunette didn't hesitate as he joined in the small family cuddle. He jokingly passed to his brother after; "I better not see you next time because I have to break you out somewhere."

"Don't worry. You won't," Garroth gave him a gentle smile. He glanced back at Aphmau who was shyly waiting her turn to say goodbye, whispering to Vylad after; "Take care of her, for me? I know we just met and all but-"

"I will. I promise," Vylad interrupted him, assuring him he had nothing to worry about. "Just make sure you get home safe."

The two brothers shared another hug before Garroth turned his full attention to Aphmau, who bravely put on a smile as he went up to her. The other group members tried to give them their privacy but, it was admittedly difficult since it was a pontoon boat. But, there wasn't much to be said. The two had already made the decision that saying goodbye was too hard.
Garroth took her hand with his free one, kissing the top of it. "Thank you Aph...for everything."

"No...thank you," She said as she tried to hold back some tears. At this point, Zianna had already broken while Vylad was on the brim of it as well. He was just staying strong for his friends and brother. But, seeing Aphmau made it hard. "Just please...get home safely."

"I promise," The blonde assured her, taking a deep breath. "Promise me to not let Ein back into your home?"

"Yes I will," The short woman giggled. "Just as long as you promise me to share your stress with your father. You deserve happiness Garroth. Just as much as me. So please, tell him how you feel."

"I will." He kissed her in a fleeting moment, not wanting it to last long since it'd be harder to break. He then, moved on. He felt his heart tremble a bit doing it. Not just because of Aphmau herself but, because this was it.

He was leaving behind his family and new found friends as well. To return to the ones he already has. It just didn't seem fair to the prince. He didn't want to choose but, the danger lurking made him. It hurt...a lot but, he took the small potion bottle and uncorked it, raising it up slightly. He looked back once again to see everyone, just smiling back at him. As if to tell him it was okay.
He smiled back as he raised it a bit higher...

But it never touched his lips. He felt a sharp pain graze his skin as he gasped out in shock and agony. From reflex, he dropped the vile and let the bright liquid fall into the ocean blue.

"Garroth!" The others shouted, Aphmau and Vylad quickly rushing to his side. The space between his thumb and the rest of his fingers was gushing blood. They couldn't figure it out from staring at the wound so, looked up if they saw anything. In the distance they saw the light of another boat and as it came closer it became clearer who was aboard.

Dr. Vick's charming smirk greeted them as he got close enough to call out to them. "It's nice to see you all again. Now, if you're done playing mermaids, I'd like mine back please."

"He's not your's!" Aphmau snapped aggressively.

"How did you-" Aaron began to question but, was interrupted by his answer. "Find you? Well, a little birdie told us that we could find our prized creature if we'd follow his guidance."

Just then, Ein appeared from out of the small research crew behind Dr. Vick. He looked pleased with himself as he looked at the small group slightly cowering at the bigger boat full with more people. Even the tall muscular man who was the captain of his ship looked frightened by the scale of the situation. Ein was holding a gun, Vylad and Aphmau immediately connecting the dots. There was nothing they could do for Garroth without that potion so, all they could do was stare and hope a miracle would happen.

"It's interesting really," Dr. Vick went on, holding his hands together. "A career-driven woman and a merman developing feelings for one another is something that...well, only exist in stories. So, really Miss Aphmau, you should be proud. Proud that you were able to prove that these creatures have emotion and can form a bond with not just with their species. But, unfortunately, I must ask for the game of little mermaid be over."

"You'll never have him," Zianna then spat.

"And who are you to say?"

Garroth gave his mother a wary stare. He didn't want her to reveal the vital information that could prove her origins. It could just put her in danger as well. He needed to do this himself.

"That doesn't matter. What do you want?" He demanded, clutching his hand that was still flooded with blood. Aphmau gave him a startled look as she clutched at his arm but, he ignored her for a moment.

"It's staining your hands right now. You see, your abilities could not only save human kind, but maybe all kind. You could stop extinctions, diseases, and even missing limbs with the advancement of our tech," Dr. Vick explained, openly. "All we need is enough to multiply your red blood cells. That's it."

Garroth glanced at his friends, debating on what to do. He had no idea if what Vick said was true but, looking at him and his followers, they didn't look like they would be understanding if he denied their request. Seeing a weapon in Ein's hand only made it worse. Aphmau still looked up at him with fear, silently begging him not to go but, it seemed like they had choice. They were in the middle of the ocean with no escape plan. The potion was gone and even if it wasn't, what could happen to them if he did leap into the ocean. "Fine...only if you promise me you let them safely return home." 

"What? Garroth no!" Vylad shouted but, Garroth gave back only a stern look. Dr. Vick chuckled as he said; "Of course. It was never my intention to harm them." 

Their boat pulled up a little closer, Zianna taking this moment to pull her son aside once more by the arm. Her look displaced on her face didn't make Garroth feel any better about his decision. "Gar, this is crazy. You can't trust them." 

"But what other choice do we have? If I don't go, who knows what they'll do to you all." 

"We'll be fine. It's your safety that matters to us," She urged him to which he replied; "What about what matters to me? Mom, I want to go home but, I can't live with myself if anything happened to you guys. If that means I have to go with them, then that's what I'll do." 

"Are you coming Blondie?" Ein shouted, grabbing Garroth's attention. He gave another reassuring gaze back to his mother and friends, even though he felt his heart pounding against his chest. Aphmau looked into his eyes once more, mouthing the words; "Don't." 

He just turned and stepped onto the other boat, the researchers making room for him. The others watched as he safely was guided to a seat. Dr. Vick gave them as smile as he said; "Thank you all for your cooperation. With your help, we'll be able to make amazing discoveries." He then gaze back at the doctor who was closest to Garroth and gave him a nod. He quickly pulled out a needle injecting some substance into the blonde. He gasped from the sharp pain on his shoulder but, soon, the world went fuzzy before turning pitch back. He fell forward, his body hitting the boat's floor loudly. That sparked something in Aphmau again, her also screaming at them; "How dare you! He did what you asked!"

 Aaron held her back from jumping onto their boat herself, knowing they wouldn't be so nice to her either. Dr. Vick smirked as he looked back, almost proud of himself as he then looked at how they reacted. "We wanted to make sure he didn't try to make a quick getaway." 

It pained Aphmau seeing Garroth just laying their unconscious, still bleeding from his hand, no one rushing to help him "Don't you have any morals? That is a living being that you are hurting! Doesn't that bother you?" 

"It's for the greater good, of humanity," Dr. Vick replied, holding his hands together. "That's what pushing me." 

"Who hurt you?" Vylad grumbled, crossing his arms. He hated seeing his brother like that and seeing his mother almost in tears just made it worse. 

Dr. Vick didn't reply to that and just went on, saying; "Well, I wish you all luck in your discoveries in the future. Especially you Mr. Lycan and Miss Aphmau. Your brilliant minds shouldn't go to waste just because of this unfortunate incident."

Aphmau was able to get out of Aaron's grasp and charge towards the boat. The driver saw this and started the engine, pulling it away just before she got to the edge. Unfortunately, she wasn't able to quickly slow herself down before reaching the edge and fell into the water between the two ships. She heard her friends shout her name before she went under the water. It was cold and dark, the sound of bubbles surrounding her from her splash. She didn't know which was was up or down, the salt water burning her eyes as she looked around. Partially, her panic made her not be able to think straight. She didn't even realize that she was getting closer to the unstart engine from their boat getting closer to the back of her head. As she scrambled to figure out where she was, she it hard, her feeling a sudden pain before losing consciousness herself. Her limps froze and she slowly floated down deeper into the ocean blue. Her friends who were still on the surface tried their best to get to her aid but, due to the darkness of it all, it was too difficult to spot her. Aaron swung off his jacket and quickly dove in once Vick's boat drove away. The others saw a smile on Ein's face as they did so. It wasn't long before Aaron came back up, empty handed. He panted out as he said; "I can't see her! I can't see-" 

"It's okay Aaron! She can do it!", Katelyn tried to calm him but, he only responded by saying; "She can't swim...barely In should say. She can't handle the ocean's current." 

That's when the whole group went somber as it hit them the reality of the situation. Garroth was gone and now Aphmau. There was nothing they could do besides just hope...

"I'll call the coast guard. Hoepfully they'll be able to do something," The man who brought them here said. "But, it's not safe to be searching when it's this late." 

They all hated that they had to leave her but, hopefully she would be able to reach the surface and keep herself above water for the coast guard to find her. That's what they told themselves as they drove off. 

"What am I going to tell Sylvanna...?", Zianna muttered to herself as she began to see the city again. Her son rubbed her shoulder, not knowing how to help. 

"She'll be fine...I know she will..."

Word Count: 2451

A/N: So...it's been a hot minute since I've updated this story...sorry about that. I promise though that I will be focusing on this book entirely for the next couple of weeks to make sure I'll finish it before hopefully October...hopefully.