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Li loved working at the aquarium. Even more, he loved the night shift. There were no visitors and Li could wander through the tunnels and watch the sea-life while he cleaned.
And he could also check out the new exhibits before they opened.
Li scanned his ID and the door slid soundlessly open, letting Li through the staff entrance. This exhibit was highly anticipated and Li could not pass up the opportunity to get a sneak peek. If the hype was to be believed, this exhibit was one of a kind.
The dim blue light gave the room an eerie, quiet atmosphere. Li crept close to the glass wall of the tank and peered in. All he could see was dark shadows.
Li sighed and pressed his hands against the cool glass. These new inhabitants were shy. It was quite common.
Suddenly, a flash of pink caught Li’s eye, a flicker of fin. Li opened his eyes wide, following the flash of colour.
A long tail came into view, emerging from behind a rock. Li’s pulse quickened in excitement.
A shimmering pink tail. Long golden hair. A round, pretty face with human features.
A merman.
Li’s lips stretched into a smile. Incredible. A creature of myth—real. And the aquarium Li worked at was the first in the world to exhibit them.
The pink-tailed merman swam past, followed by a green-tailed, and a blue-tailed merman, who appeared to be chasing the pink-tailed merman. Li laughed as he watched them, pleased to see them settling in to their new home so well. He’d heard from his colleagues who had been directly involved in the transfer from the research facility that it had been stressful for the mermen.
But where was the fourth one, the red-tail? Li peered around the tank, trying to spot a ruby glow, but there was nothing. Only the three chasing each other around, trying to touch each other’s fins. Li had heard that this game of ‘tag’ was one of the ways the researchers had bonded with the mermen. The mermen had other games, of course, but those were beyond the understanding of the researchers.
The mermen used a combination of sign and sound to communicate, and the researchers were still learning the language. The sounds the mermen made were difficult for human throats to replicate, but the sign was more easily accomplished as the mermen had five-fingered hands similar to those of a human.
Li was about to leave, resigned to having to wait until the official unveiling to see the fourth merman, when he caught a flash of movement that couldn’t belong to one of the other three, who were still frolicking on the other side of the tank.
Slowly, gracefully, the last merman emerged, swimming down from the surface of the tank. He must have been above the water, on one of the platforms. His tail was longer than those of the others, indicating that he was older than they were. His hair was long and red-blond, fanning out in the water behind him.
He swam toward Li, and Li saw the intent focus in his green eyes. He stopped in front of Li and stared him right in the face. Li swallowed nervously, his pulse rapid. His colleagues had said that it was imperative to stand his ground, to not back off. This merman was the leader of the group, and the protector. It was common for him to assess strangers for threat.
He was the reason why the researchers had been reluctant to expose the mermen to the public. No one had been sure how this merman would react to hordes of strangers gawking at the group. At first glance, the merman did not appear dangerous, but mermen had sharp teeth and nails that could rip through flesh. They were also capable of making high-pitched noises that could damage the human ear.
After a lot of awkward communication between the mermen and the researchers, as well as several test runs with small groups of journalists, it had been established that this merman would not harm a human unless the human tried to harm one of the younger mermen under his protection. Everyone had agreed that was a reasonable stance. Since the public wouldn’t be allowed to come close enough to touch the mermen for the time being, the threat level was low.
Still, Li could not show weakness. He hoped to be allowed into the mermen’s enclosure to have direct contact with them one day, so it was important to establish with this merman that he wasn’t weak. If he backed off today, the merman would remember that the next time they met.
The merman held Li’s eyes for more than a minute before he blinked, breaking the contact. He didn’t move back, but Li sensed that he’d relaxed.
Li smiled and lifted his hand to rest it against the glass. Now that he’d established he wasn’t a coward, he could offer friendship.
The merman hesitated, hands drifting lightly through the water for a moment before he lifted one to place it against the opposite side of the glass, palm-to-palm with Li’s.
“Huh. That’s interesting. He’s given the rest of us the merman equivalent of the middle finger,” a voice commented from behind Li.
Li jumped and turned to see his boss, John, standing nearby. “What are you doing here?” Li asked, confused as John never came in for a night shift unless there was an emergency.
“I wanted to make sure they were settling in all right. We can’t have them disturbed or distressed on their first night here,” John said.
“I guess I shouldn’t be in here,” Li admitted sheepishly. “Sorry. I don’t want to bother them.”
“You’re not. It’s fine for employees to approach them. We haven’t decided who’s going to be looking after them yet as we want to see who they take to—and who they don’t, which, with this one—” John gestured at the red-tailed merman, who was watching him warily—“is everybody,” John finished.
“I’m sure he’s just out of sorts from the move,” Li guessed.
“I certainly hope so.”
“And, um, what is the merman equivalent of the middle finger?” Li nervously inquired. “For future reference.”
John made a quick gesture with his hand, index and middle finger outstretched with the others curled. “Something like that, according to the researchers,” he said. “If you see that, back off quickly. Next, it’ll be the teeth or nails.”
Li winced and nodded. When he turned back to the tank, he saw that the red-tailed merman was being dragged into the tag game by the pink-tailed merman.
“You’ll be back tomorrow, won’t you?” John asked Li. “I know you’re not rostered on, but you won’t want to miss the first show.”
“I’ll be here,” Li confirmed. Employees would be granted reserve seats for the first show, and Li did not want to miss it.
“Good. The public won’t be allowed to interact directly with the mermen, but we’re hoping to have some employees do so. We don’t want the public to fear them.”
John left, and Li remained, entertained by the game of tag that was still going on inside the tank. Tails were now being employed to hinder others, and Li grinned as he noticed how the red-tail’s longer tail gave him an advantage over the others. The four were surprisingly nimble in the water, far more graceful than any human could ever be.
This was their world, and humans were finally being granted a glimpse of it. Li hoped the public appreciated the unprecedented privilege.