BY Chloe J（AGE 11）
Chloe got the idea of creating this story in her playing time. Chloe is the sole owner of this piece of writing. It was written entirely by herself and has not been edited or revised by anyone else.
INTRODUCTION
Isabel Carper was a girl that showed extraordinary swimming skills, she can swim freely without any equipment in the pool from an early age of five when the other children were struggling with the help of their parents or using swimming rings that float above the water. At the age of ten, she was able to swim with her eyes open and snorkel in a few shallow seas. And when she was a teenager, she could snorkel in deep seas and explore the caves in them. She also had a favor of going out to the sea and talk to the water floating past her as her family lived near the coast. But apart from that, she was not any different from a normal kid—at least, until that day.
Chapter One
‘Everyone, I want you to welcome a new kid that just transferred to our class. Her name is Katie, I wish you all to be friendly to her and allow her to blend in us quickly.’ All the things happened this day, as the new kid came.
Katie is the completely cool kind of kid. She wore the kind of clothes that was really hot and popular recently with high heeled shoes, her hair is dyed in complete fashion, and she had pierced ears at this age, even her bag is designed with photos of popular pop bands. Everyone in the class were absolutely awed by this new kid that they all forgot to clap to greet her.
‘Well, what’s the matter? Why don’t we all clap to welcome her,’ the teacher said disapprovingly, clicking her tongue.
‘It’s okay, Miss,’ Katie said while tossing her hair in a way that the popular girls in high school did, ‘I’ll just go sit down.’ And without further instructions, she walked down gracefully and plopped her bag upon an empty seat and sat down on it, folding her hands on the desk.
After class, it was recess time. All the other students filed out of the classroom chattering, except Isabel’s best friend Maria, and the new kid Katie, who sat there putting on make-up and checking herself in a small mirror.
‘Maria, should we go,’ Isabel poked her head through the door.
‘Nah, you go, I want to speak to Katie,’ Maria replied.
‘All right,’ Isabel shrugged and backed out.
From outside the classroom, Isabel heard the voices of Maria and Katie talking together and giggling sounds that she had never ever heard Maria make out before. Isabel’s stomach squirmed and tightened, and she felt really uncomfortable somehow. She thought she might be jealous, and she told herself, how can you be like this, Maria is your best friend after all, you have been with her for seven years, she’s just interested in Katie, that’s all. But she just had a bad feeling.
At lunch time, Maria again ignored Isabel and instead sat with Katie and Isabel again heard girlish voices never heard before, and all of a sudden, she felt never as distressed as now because she knew that Maria was now not her best friend ever again but Katie’s. Isabel wanted to cry out, to shout out, but no words came out from her mouth, her lips were dry as the hot dessert, and she had difficulty in moving them as though she had not spoken for a long time. Isabel ran away from the canteen and back to the classroom.
After school, Isabel went straight to the bay and sank her feet into the cool water, she kneeled down on the sand and shook uncontrollably for a long time with her eyes full of tears. Finally, it was either because she couldn’t control herself any longer or she simply just wanted to express her feelings and not hide it any more, she cried out aloud, her voice echoed in the distance, and the water that was under her feet bubbled up, a fish jumped out of the water and landed in front of Isabel.
Isabel, sad as she was, stroked the fish’s slippery surface and held it up in her palm. Then, the fish slipped off and landed in the water again. Isabel whispered softly after seeing this, and said, ‘You’re also going to go away from me? Even you won’t be my friend, little fish?’ The fish shook its tail quite rapidly for a moment then jumped out toward the sea, after a while, it bubbled up once more by her side.
Isabel understood at once. ‘You want me to go out to the sea with you, is that right,’ she said. The fish made nodding movements with its head. Isabel stepped forward toward the cool sea water without rolling up her dress. She took another step, and then another. She didn’t stop until only the upper part of her body can be seen. The fish began to dance and swim around her, tickling her feet with its tongue. Isabel laughed as the fish continued to do this.
As time tickled on, more fish presented themselves and crowded Isabel in the middle. They were doing everything they could to make Isabel feel better, and it turned out to be very efficient—Isabel forgot the sorrow of losing her best friend for seven years to go, and enjoyed the fun romping with the fish. This was happiness as she had never experienced. How could she never noticed them every time when she was playing in the sea? Ignored the fish swimming so free, so gracefully, unlike any human being?
‘Isabel! Are you at the sea again,’ her mother, Mrs. Carper, was calling for her, ‘Quickly! It’s time for dinner!’
Hearing this, the whole of Isabel’s body was unwilling to go along. She just wanted to play with the fish for ever and ever, and will never have to do anything, don’t have to go to school, don’t have to see her classmates, and especially Katie. But she couldn’t. She was a person, after all. She was a lively person, she would have to do all those things.
‘All right, coming, mom,’ Isabel called back, and she stood up, not taking notice of her dress, which was damp because of the water, and the fish acted all at once.
Chapter Two
The fish acted as they had never done before. They started shaking their tails rapidly and formed a fence around her.
‘What…… what are you doing,’ Isabel gasped, her voice trembling.
The fish blew some bubbles and made sounds. Isabel took another step, the fish blew more bubbles and shook their tails more rapidly and there was tension in the air as they did this.
‘You don’t want me to go back,’ Isabel asked curiously.
The fish all moved their heads up and down at once, and some even wagged their tail for a bit too.
‘But…… I can’t…… I have to go back,’ Isabel cried, ‘I can’t stay here for ever! I have to receive education.’
By then, her mother had arrived at the shore. ‘Isabel, quickly,’ Mrs. Carper said, ‘Dinner’s ready, get on shore quickly, and look at your dress! You should quickly go change it. What are you waiting for, by the way?’
‘Mom, I can’t get up. Those fish won’t let me, by some reason,’ Isabel said.
‘Ridiculous!’ Mrs. Carper snapped, ‘Just shove them away!’ She then raised her hands and made movements to do so.
‘No! Don’t!’ Isabel cried, ‘Don’t hurt them! After a while, they will be tired of stopping me and will let me up. You can go have dinner first.’
Mrs. Carper sighed, she turned back and headed toward their little hut with a glance at her daughter. She knew that her daughter had liked to play with the water since a very small age, and cared about the marine life exceptionally, the habit of caring for them couldn’t be changed no matter how you try. This may be because of the fact that Mr. Carper was her father. He also loved marine life very much, he was an oceanologist himself, he had been studying the ocean even before they got married, and he would often stay in the office through night.
Isabel, despite the panic she should have felt now, was really grateful to have the chance to spend a few more moments to play with the fish. ‘You really know what I want,’ she said to the fish in a kind voice. They wagged their tail happily and swam around Isabel.
Chapter Three
Isabel, it turned out, was wrong after all. After a while, when her mother had came out again to pull Isabel out of the water, the fish did as they had done before to keep Isabel with them. Even though Mrs. Carper did try to separate the fish (ignoring Isabel’s protests and screams) it was no use at all. Every time they were dragged off, there would be other fish which would quickly take their place. Exasperated, Mrs. Carper went and fetched her husband, Mr. Carper.
‘What’s the matter, dear?’ Mr. Carper asked breathlessly, running behind his wife, who was looking furious.
‘This is what the matter is!’ Mrs. Carper snapped, pointing at her daughter and the group of fish crowding her, and Isabel’s unsuccessful attempts to get up.
‘What the… What’s going on here?’ Mr. Carper spluttered.
‘I haven’t got a clue,’ Mrs. Carper scowled, ‘But when I went to call Isabel home for dinner, the fish all crowded around her and I can’t get her back on shore! And I had to call you and ask if you know what this is all about!’
‘Hmm…’ Mr. Carper walked toward the group of fish, and as he made to reach for Isabel, the fish began circling her frantically again as though afraid that he might take her away, ‘Strange… I have never seen such acts in fish ever before… Would it be okay if I tell my colleagues tomorrow? Then maybe we could work it out together.’
‘No! Absolutely not!’ Mrs. Carper cried angrily, ‘Are you going to let everybody in your office know that our daughter is having some unknown problem with a couple of fish? I’d rather find the solution by ourselves!’
‘No, dear, listen to me, please!’ Mr. Carper now was possibly shouting over the disapproving glare that Mrs. Carper threw at him, ‘I don’t know why those fish are acting like this, but maybe some of the other scientists in my office do! And with their help, maybe we can figure out the whole thing together! And maybe this discovery might serve an important part in the scientific world!’
Mrs. Carper still stood firmly at the spot with her hands on her hips, but after a long moment, she sighed and said, ‘Well, I suppose it’s okay for you to tell them, but I want you to promise that they won’t come filing over here to investigate, maybe only a few at a time—our house isn’t a scenic spot.’
‘Okay, dear, I promise,’ Mr. Carper said, shaking with excitement at the approval of his wife.
The next day, Mr. Carper went to the science lab he and his colleagues work in. It’s a big place with eight rooms, one for each person, and in each room there are many equipments including microscopes and test tubes and other stuff.
‘Hi , Professor Carper!’ It was Mr. Smith, a colleague of Mr. Carper’s.
‘Hello, Professor Smith, ah, and Professor Zach too,’ Mr. Carper replied. Standing beside Mr. Smith was Mr. Zach, the perhaps most learned scientist in the lab, and he had had loads of experience with marine life in his early days, not to mention having read a large number of books about the deep ocean.
‘Ah, Professor Carper, have you got the report on ocean volcanoes I gave you yesterday? I put it on your desk,’ Mr. Zach said.
‘I must have missed it, I went home early yesterday,’ Mr. Carper said cheerfully, ‘I’ll go and check upon it afterwards.’
‘I’ll help,’ Mr. Smith said brightly while he almost knocked over a table sitting in the corner.
‘Mr. Zach, may I ask you something?’ Mr. Carper said, supporting the table just in time and ignoring what Mr. Smith had said.
‘If it is related to the ocean, fire away,’ Mr. Zach said swiftly.
‘Well, actually it’s about my family,’ Mr. Carper said uneasily, still remembering his wife’s words.
‘I’m no good at solving family problems, as you know very well,’ Mr. Zach snapped, ‘You may go ask Professor Smith, he’s really a professor on that sort of things.’
‘All right, my daughter is trapped in the sea by a bunch of fish, and she can’t get out now. I just want to know why those fish are behaving so strangely, I’ve never heard of such things.’
‘Isabel is trapped in the sea by a bunch of fish?’ Mr. Zach repeated sharply.
‘Wow, that sure is amazing! Never heard of such things like this before!’ Mr. Smith laughed, though his face turned a bit pale.
‘Well, Professor Carper, I suppose that your daughter has been chosen to be the unique one, there’s no one in even a million people, yet your daughter has been chosen,’ Mr. Zach started.
‘What do you mean, Professor Zach?’ Mr. Carper said sharply.
‘I mean, your daughter is a Sea Person,’ said Mr. Zach.
No one made a sound in the room, and Mr. Smith did knock over the table in the corner. No one bothered to pick it up.
Chapter Four
‘My daughter’s a what?’ Mr. Carper yelled.
‘A Sea Person,’ Mr. Zach said calmly.
‘And what on earth is a Sea Person?’ Mr. Carper exclaimed, although his voice did lower a bit than before, because as Mr. Zach’s colleague and cooperator, he knew perfectly well that when Mr. Zach was calm, it meant that the situation wasn’t bad, in his mind. And Mr. Carper really trusted—and still does—Mr. Zach.
‘A long time ago, there were many people who have an uncommon love for the oceans, so they were accepted by the marine life, and became their ruler. Of course, to choose a ruler wasn’t easy. The fish will swim around one person and feel their minds to check if it’s pure enough to be their leader. It became a sort of tradition that took place every time a leader had died. Of course, when a leader was chosen, he or she will have some special powers, like being able to swim in the water as long as they like without having air to breath, and can be able to understand the language of marine life.
‘Years passed, and they lived in harmony. Until one day, a group invaded—you see, they think that those Sea People are weirdos, and at that period, magic was greatly feared by the people. The burning of people they thought to be witches and wizards were seen very often. So they decided to get rid of them. When they have built up into a really strong organization, they thought it was finally time to act. So they went for them.
‘The Sea People, of course, didn’t expect it at all. Although they still fought bravely, they were outnumbered. When the leader was down, the war had ended, they had lost, though they fought bravely, but the ending could not be changed. The dismay of the Sea People was in minutes, probably even seconds.
‘But, according to the book, the leader, though his death was approaching, his brain was still as clear and as brilliant as ever. He used his remaining strength and power to split his soul apart so it became two pieces, the one which escaped his body was stronger than the one remaining. He died shortly afterwards, but the piece of soul remains, ready to latch itself upon the person trustworthy of the Sea Palace and the secret of the Sea People, in which the book says, but exactly what, only the descendant, which is Isabel, will know.’
Silence followed his story. Mr. Carper soon recovered from the shock, and said, ‘But why should it be Isabel? Why can’t it be some other child?’
‘Alas, nobody knows. The book only says that the soul will latch itself upon any child that is worthy of the Sea Palace, and will make sure the many marine life in the Sea Palace will be safe,’ said Mr. Zach.
‘But, my daughter, she hasn’t shown any sign of good leader-ship, she is just really talented in swimming, just that! She can’t be a Sea Person, she just can’t be—’ Mr. Caper shouted through his shock and exasperation.
‘You said yourself that your daughter showed exceptional talent in swimming. I personally remember that she can swim freely at the age of five. Have you ever wondered how this little girl can do it when most of us can’t?’ Mr. Zach interrupted.
‘Yeah, I have,’ said Mr. Carper, his voice dying and his whole body shaking.
‘That must mean your daughter is a Sea Person, because they show extraordinary swimming skills though they never display it to the public.’ Mr. Zach consumed.
Mr. Carper opened his mouth to say something, but didn’t get it out. Finally, he said, ‘She just can’t be!’
Mr. Zach turned and walked away, leaving Mr. Carper rooted to the spot.
Chapter Five
Mr. Carper wasn’t having a good day. He was hardly concentrating on Mr. Zach’s report on ocean volcanoes, and spilled water all over his shirt as he was talking to Mr. Alford when he was taking a break.After work, all he did was to hurry home as quickly as he can and didn’t even bother saying sorry when he accidentally knocked Mr. Smith to the ground.
As he arrived home, he found Mrs. Carper standing at the door of the house waiting for him anxiously.
‘Well?’ Mrs. Carper said very quickly.
In a breathless voice, Mr. Carper told her everything that Mr. Zach had told him.
‘But Isabel, she just can’t be!’ Mrs. Carper cried, ‘She’s only a little girl! And even if she really is one, the fish would have to wait until she’s a few years older than she’s now! And there were so many times that Isabel had gone out to the sea before, why do they have to pick this moment? I think it’s utter none sense.’
‘I don’t think it is true either, but I trust Mr. Zach to know what he is talking about, unlike Mr. Smith,’ Mr. Carper said, frowning. They just stood there for a long while, trying to figure out the story Mr. Zach had just told them, when suddenly there was a scream from over the sea.
‘Isabel!’ Both of them cried and sprinted towards the beach.
They reached the beach just in time to see Isabel being dragged away from the bay towards the sea by the group of fish that used to prevent her from getting back on shore. Mrs. Carper shrieked and grasped widely for her daughter, but she was within reach. ‘Isabel!’ Mrs. Carper cried, Mr. Carper grabbed his wife’s arm and said softly, ‘Let her go, we can’t stop it, she’ll be all right.’ And with that, Isabel sank into the sea and disappeared.
When the fish had finally dragged Isabel down to the bottom of the ocean,
（To be continued.）
Chloe got the idea of creating this story in her playing time. Chloe is the sole owner of this piece of writing. It was written entirely by herself and has not been edited or revised by anyone else.
