Forgotten

Chapter 1: The Aquarium

The water contaminated everything; from his gils to his fins. The uncirculated salt clung to his scales like leaches, and the filth of fish carcasses littered the tanks floor. Algae clung to the boulders flung around the semi-circle, shamefully passing as a coral reef and half of the plastic seaweed stalks floated uselessly above the clumped sand. Keith felt like a child's forgotten goldfish. Except, he was no goldfish, nor was he something to gawk at. He was a living breathing creature with feelings just like the rest of them.

Keith had been stolen from his home almost a year ago. He'd been close to the surface, enjoying a late night swim, when he'd heard a dolphin's cry for help. Naturally, he ventured over to the call only to find the noise a fraud and a fish net encircle him. The net hauled him to the surface, the land-dwellers dumped him on the deck and knocked him out. He didn't go down without a fight though. Keith woke up to find himself in this very cell and he quickly learned to despise every land-dweller he encountered.

Over the course of the months, Keith lost his appetite, weight, and energy. He rarely moved anymore; most of the time he didn't even make it to the other side of his tank. His ribs were prominent, his cheeks sunk in, and his well toned body slowly disappeared. His skin went from pale, to sickly. The land-dwellers here didn't care. They made a profit from him as long as he was present; so. . .they didn't care.

Keith flicked his scarlet tail and hid behind a single boulder near the back of his tank. Flashes from camera's shown through the glass, each trying to get a capture of him. He forced himself to rest on the slimy sand. Grimacing, he placed his clawed hands on either side of him. He closed his eyes trying to imagine himself back home with his pod, swimming with the whales, and playing hide 'n seek with his friends. He sat there for a few moments lost in his visions, when a rope wrapped itself around his neck and yanked.

Keith choked as he was forced to the front of his cell. He thrashed and clawed at the terrorizing object, but it did no good. Eventually, he was showcased to the spectators. Again, flashes shown through the glass blinding Keith. Each of the ignorant land-dwellers caught Keith in all his malnourished glory, but each and every one of them thought it was normal for a merman to be this thin, this weak. Each land-dweller caught his scaled crimson tail, frayed near the waist, scaled shoulders, and his tribal markings crawling up his spine. And each viewer captured his scars, his many wicked scars.

But. . .none of them inquired where they came from. They just assumed it was from living the rough life of the ocean. Not from this torture house. Neither did they acknowledge the cruel way the curator's way of transporting him. The land-dweller's ignored that keeping the oceans creatures was cruel, so it was no surprise to Keith when they ignored this. The rope held him close to the glass for a few more agonizing minutes, before releasing his neck.

Keith swam as quickly as he could back to his boulder. He heard quite a few groans from the land-dwellers as he swam, but he gave them no thought. He had every right to disregard them. Whether they had the arrogance to think so or not. The hours past and many land lovers came and went. The curators dragged him out of his hiding place a few more times, and each time Keiths humiliation increased. But, when he was in his haven, he slowly scrubbed the clinging salt off his scales.

Eventually, the aquarium closed its doors to new customers and the day was over. Keith raced to a small square door to the left side of his tank and waited. He didn't move until the square slowly opened to reveal a small tunnel. It was covered in grime as well, but it was accustomed to Keith. The small tunnel was barely large enough for him to fit through and there were several nails ready to scratch him, but that didn't stop him from rushing all the way to the other side.

What awaited him was his ruffly put together bed, as well as a disgusting meal. But what Keith really enjoyed was being completely alone. No one could wrap a rope around his neck here or prod him with a spear. Here was the safest he could get. His bedroom was cramped. Only large enough for his seaweed bed and a small dog bowl filled with disgusting dead fish. But it was the closest thing Keith had to a home.

He sank onto his bed curled in on himself. Tail covering his face and hands clutched to his heart. Keith didn't bother trying to hide his tears that night. They were only carried away by the water after all.

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Keith woke up to the usual screeching of the metal square shutting. No matter how much Keith wanted to stay hidden in his room, he just couldn't. Keith always became claustrophobic in tight spaces. . . but only when there was no escape route. It was an odd quirk, and one that the curator's found out rather quickly. Keith was unable to escape his room before the square shut and he turned into full panic mode. Keith began to hyperventilate and slam every surface with his tail, arms, you name it. The square door opened only minutes later, but it felt like hours to Keith. And now this tactic was used everyday to get him out in the open tank.

Keith made it through the tunnel just before it slammed shut, his tail there just seconds before. He chirped in relief and then in surprise when he turned to find one of the land-dwellers swimming towards him with one of the strange tanks on his back. Keith retreated until his back was pressed against the algae covered wall on his tank. The land-dweller advanced on him until they were nearly face to face.

Keith whimpered in fear as the dweller pulled out a stick with a hoop attached to the end. The land-dweller carefully looped the hoop around Keith's neck. A whine escaped Keiths throat as the land-dweller pulled him from the wall. The tanked being guided the merman to the surface of the tank where two other sets of hands grabbed him underneath the arms and yanked him out of the water.

"Checkup time." said one of the land-dwellers.

Keith couldn't understand what they were saying, but when ever he heard those words he learned that he would get an hour of poking, prodding, as well as things shoved down his throat. He defiantly did not what that discomfort, so he immediately began to thrash.

"Hold it down!" one voice screeched

"Trying!" another answered

The merman felt hands grip his tail, arms and wrap around his stomach, then as face appeared in his vision. He'd never seen this one before. The land-dwellers face was tan and freckled. He had short brown hair, as well as ocean blue eyes. They reminded Keith of his home as his violet ones stared into the others. The merman noticed the strangers eyes held morose in them. Something Keith hadn't seen in almost a year. Immediately, Keith realized there was something different about this land-dweller.

It didn't mean he trusted him.

Keith's eyes glowed violet as he finally gathered the courage to hiss at them. "Aww shut it!" one of his captors laughed. The stranger glared at the other land-dweller for a split second, before his face morphed back into boredom. He then knelt next to Keith's thrashing body and gently stroked his abdomen. "When was the last time the merman ate?" he demanded as his fingers grazed over his protruding ribs. The man's fingers trailed to his scales, Keith noticed he flinched every time he touched a grain of salt fused to him.

Another shrug his shoulders, "Don't know. Jacob's been gone for a week."

Pure rage rippled across the strangers face and he turned towards the other man. "You're telling me he hasn't eaten in a week?"

Another shrug. "Yes?"

The stranger turned back towards the merman with sadness, pity, regrets, and . . . determination in his eyes as he said, "My examination is finished." then he shoved Keith back back into his disgusting water.

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Well this is the first chapter! Can you guess who the stranger is? ;)

Word Count: 1444