Pain lanced through Katie’s head and she moaned. Her eyes cracked open only to squint at the harsh, blinding white light that was beaming down on her from directly overhead. There was a shadowy figure leaning over her. It blocked out part of the light, but she could not define any features as the brilliant gleam haloing the form darkened it to a shadow. Katie squinted and tried to sit up, but found herself tied down firmly to the lumpy bed she was stretched out on.

There was an oxygen mask pressed over her mouth and nose, and her breath fogged it as she began to pant as fear rose like a pressure bubble in her chest. A whimper clogged her throat and she pulled at the restraints again. Where was she? What was going on?

There was a sharp hissing noise and then the air pumping in through the mask began to taste cloyingly sweet. Katie winced as it dried her mouth immediately. The gas was fast acting, and almost immediately, Katie’s limbs began to feel heavy once more. Her headache spiked again and she winced, grinding her teeth. She wanted to demand answers from the person with her, but her jaw fell slack and her mind began to grow fuzzy. A high-pitched whistling sound began to drone in her ears and suddenly none of her previous concerns felt important anymore.

“Hush now,” a vaguely masculine voice pierced the whining in her eardrums. “We’re almost done.”

Almost done with what? Katie tried to ask, but only a soft croak left her throat. She watched the shadowy figure raise what looked like a needle before the world spun and her vision faded out.

***

There was a heavy, yet weightless sensation hanging over Katie. It was as if she were drifting through a thick pool of molasses. She stretched until some joints popped and then rolled over onto her side. It felt like she had slept for ages, and she could not help but wonder why Luna hadn’t woken her. Luna always woke her. The young Mer rose with the dawn most mornings and got bored if left to her thoughts for too long. She would often slither from the water and haul herself up onto Katie’s bed to flop on her, soaking Katie and the mattress with her long waterfall of dripping hair. Katie wished she could be convinced to cut the overlong mop, but Luna liked it that way.

Katie scrunched her eyelids closed more tightly. She was not quite ready to rise, but the light shining down on her from overhead was obnoxiously bright. Had she left her bedroom light on? She didn’t normally turn it on at all, preferring to let the natural sunlight that filtered through her window light up the room. But she must have turned it on and forgotten to turn it off, because it was bothering her now.

She sighed in annoyance and smacked her dry, gummy lips before slowly fluttering her eyes open while scratching absently at an itch on her collarbone. She had to flutter her eyelids a few times to help her vision come into focus, but once it did, she froze. Her entire body seized up and her heart began to race. This was not her bedroom. She was lying on a hard, lumpy mattress with only a thin sheet to stave off the chill of the heavily air conditioned room. The bed had a long metal rail running half the length of the bed in front of her face, and beyond was simply a gray concrete floor and sterile white tiled walls. A large vent in the corner where the wall met the ceiling was the culprit for the cold air making her shiver.

Beside the bed was a narrow trolley of equipment, topped with a heart monitor screen. There was a long bundle of wires trailing down the side of the cart, and Katie became instantly aware of the low, steady beeping the device made. That was going to get annoying fast.

She pushed herself slowly upright and glanced down. She was wearing a thin, tie up hospital gown. It was gray and too big for her, sagging almost scandalously in the collar. Blushing, Katie tugged the thin sheet up against her body for more modesty. There were wires dipping into the loose collar and she could feel more brushing her leg. Numerous nodes had been stuck to her skin all along her back, chest, and belly. One was placed on the side of her chest, and her arm rubbed the patch irritatingly every time she moved.

Katie’s heart was still drumming, but confusion was overcoming some of the rampant fear. It felt like a hospital setup, but this was certainly no hospital room. She supposed that emergency trauma centers didn’t look like hospital rooms either, but if she had been caught in some sort of calamity, like a quake or tsunami, she both expected obvious injury to herself, and to see the room crammed full with other survivors. Space was not a luxury one got in those situations. And if she had been brought to hospital, where was her mother? Sophie never would have allowed for her to wake up alone and confused.

Though part of her longed to tear the wires free, she figured she’d best leave them be until she knew why they were there, why her heart needed to be monitored at all. The internal debate settled, Katie gazed further around the room hoping for clues for her unanswered questions. The wall the head of her bed was pressed up to was bare, and the opposite held a metal sink and some lonely looking cupboards under a slightly yellowed white ceramic countertop. A few shelves held jars and vials and some other medical equipment. None of it really helped her figure anything out. The far wall, however, deepened her concern. There was a single door in and out of the room, and it stood to the side, beside a massive stretch of mirror. One way glass. Katie was no fool and the only other point to a mirror that large was in a dance or gymnast studio, and this was certainly neither. Why was she being watched?

That thought kept her from noticing the obvious, but once she did, Katie was stricken and her confusion died out as rampant horror took priority. The reflection gazing back at her in the mirror was not her own. Though it was on the far side of the room, the space was tiny and Katie’s vision decent enough she could see every detail. Her hair - normally a light brown and lined with sun-kissed natural highlights of blonde - was now a deep shade of brown Katie might equate to coconut shells or seal pelt. Originally, Katie had kept her hair just past shoulder length. Long enough to get up into a decent tail or braid as necessary, but short enough that it wasn’t a nuisance to deal with, especially with how much time she spent in the water. Her hair now brushed down past her ribs. It was much too long and Katie instantly hated it.

Instead of her slightly-more-green-than-brown hazel eyes, a pair of dark brown irises widened with the surprise she felt, and her tanned face was now peppered with numerous freckles that swept under her eyes, over her cheeks, and across the bridge of her nose. Katie had never had any freckles before, and now it looks as though someone had blown a handful of dull glitter into her face. She felt stinging tears well up in her eyes, a consequence of her panic and dismay. What had they done to her? She raised a shaky hand to her face, not quite believing it was real despite how the foriegn reflection responded to her movements.

The moment her fingers brushed the flesh of her cheek, pain fired through her nerve endings and she yanked her hand away with an audible wince.

A short chuckle caused her to yelp as her head whipped towards the source of the sound. “I would not try that again in your position,” the voice piped up. It belonged to a woman leaning back in a simple, plastic backed chair that looked like it was plucked from a classroom. She had short black hair pushed off her face with a simple black headband, and she wore a long white coat. It was open, so Katie could see the simple black shirt and jeans that the woman wore beneath. Her skin was relatively pale, and her storm gray eyes stared back with calm amusement at Katie. “Everything’s going to be rather tender for a while until it heals. Don’t touch.”

“Who are you?” Katie croaked. Her voice cracked as she tried to speak, but her throat felt dry and tight. She desperately wanted some water. She coughed weakly, trying to clear her throat a little to speak better. “What’s going on?”

Both questions were ignored as the woman - doctor? Scientist? Katie didn’t know - rose from her chair and walked over. She held a portable recording device in her hand and Katie watched her press a button on top as she began to speak. “Six days since the subject’s arrival and the facial appearance modifications have been completed. The healing rate is as predicted, though the subject shows signs of pain and tenderness for the moment.” she paused as she reached Katie. The hand holding the device raised and using two fingers, the woman lifted Katie’s chin. Katie scowled back as she wrestled with the inner urge to begin shaking and sobbing. Subject? What was going on? What twisted up nightmare had she fallen into?

The woman raised a thin flashlight and clicked it on, shining the light in Katie’s eyes and darting it back and forth. Katie squinted against the bright light and jerked her head away. “Pupil response is normal. The subject seems to have retained full vision after the repigmentation surgery. Modifications seem to contain no lasting or harmful side effects. The process will be labelled successful.”

Katie opened her mouth, fully prepared to demand actual answers from the woman. She was not some science project, she was a person. This woman couldn’t just treat her like she didn’t actually exist. Before she got the chance to utter a word, the door to the room swung open with a loud ‘bang’ as it thunked against the wall behind it. Katie jumped and her attention focused on the doorway as a man strode eagerly into the space.

He was a tall, broad man - heavy set - with a thick head of dark brown hair slicked back with too much gel. He wore a light gray suit and leather loafers that clacked obnoxiously on the cement flooring as he approached. His large, brown eyes were fixated on her and his mouth twisted into a delighted grin. “Beautiful work, Hanna-er, I mean, Dr. Manson,” he corrected as the woman shot him a stern glare. The fumble didn’t deter him long. “And how is my lovely new pet?” he purred as he reached out to pinch one of Katie’s cheeks. Agony erupted in her face and she pulled away with a cry. Her hand came up to hover near where he’d grabbed her, not quite touching the inflamed site. She just wanted to guard it from further onslaught as tears burned in her gaze.

“She’s still very tender from the alteration, Mr. Winston. I recommend leaving her be for now or you’ll upset the healing process,” Dr. Manson responded, a bitter edge to her tone. “I was about to proceed with the rest of the procedure before the interruption. What is it that you need?”

“I just wanted a look,” the man responded with a dismissive wave of his hand. “She’s going to be perfect when this is finished, I’m sure. You’re positive this will work?”

“There’s no reason it shouldn’t,” the woman agreed. “Our previous tests are a strong indicator to the potential success.”

“Who are you?” Katie managed through teeth gritted against the throbbing pain in her cheek. “What do you want with me?”

The man’s grin only widened as he fixated on her once more. “I don’t want anything with you, Paisley. I just want you. Or at least, what you’re going to be.”

A shudder ran down Katie’s spine. The words were eerie, even if the man seemed too jolly to be saying them in a sinister way. “My name is Ka-”

Her protests were cut off as the man began to speak again. “Paisley,” he said, his head bobbing as if he was agreeing with her. He reached out and grabbed her firmly by the face, squeezing until it stole an agonized scream from Katie’s throat and tears burned in her eyes. “Remind me again what your name is, sweetie?” he cooed, his grip tightening further.

Katie choked and gasped, but trying to tug out of his grip only made it hurt more.

“Sir, I really must insist that you not-” Dr. Manson tried to protest but he held up a free hand to stop her while staring at Katie.

Katie grit her teeth against the pain. “My name is...Katie,” she finally forced out. “Katherine Waters. My father was Michael Waters and I live with my adoptive mother, Sophie Brooks. I’m a person, not some doll or pet, and you cannot keep me here like this,” she growled defiantly. What sort of psychopaths had she been abducted by?

Her efforts earned her nothing as the man’s grip continued to tighten. Soon his nails were digging into her flesh and threatening to break the skin. His smile and bright eyes never faltered, but Katie’s willpower did. “Paisley,” she finally whimpered.

Just as easily, he released her and she pulled away, sniffling and cradling her head as best she could.

“That’s a good girl,” he purred. “See, Dr. Manson? She’s fine, just a little sore. It’s important to teach them their place early.”

“You’ve not had much luck taming the other one,” Dr. Manson retorted. “I don’t care what you do with her afterwards, but at least leave me an intact specimen for the procedure.”

Katie shuddered at the conversation going on around her. She was the source of the discussion, but clearly was not welcome to participate. Not that she wanted to at the moment. She hung her head as shame prickled under her skin. She hated how quickly she’d given in, had always considered she had a relatively high pain tolerance, but this had quickly proved her wrong. More tears pooled in her eyes and she bit her lip in an effort not to shed them. She was concerned about what they meant by a procedure. “What are you going to do?” she begged in a wavering, watery voice as she continued to fight back more tears.

Both pairs of eyes were on her again, and she instinctively shrunk back even though neither of them looked angry. “Dr. Manson is going to make you into something wonderful,” the man said finally.

Katie’s brows furrowed and she opened her mouth to protest. That didn’t actually answer her question. Clearly the woman was inclined to agree, because she spoke up next. “A few years ago now, we made the discovery of a lifetime. Something to put the scientific world on its ear. Mr. Winston is the owner and benefactor of that discovery, and has been funding my research in pursuit of a way to recreate the...magic, for lack of a better word, that initial finding brought to the world. We discovered an aquatic humanoid specimen.”

“You mean like a mermaid?” Katie impressed herself at the sarcastic disbelief that managed to drip from her tone as she raised a brow and regarded them evenly. Internally, she fought to keep her heart rate down, as the monitor would pick it up if she started to panic. But they couldn’t know about Luna, right? It would make sense why they had abducted her if so, to get to her little sister, but Sophie had been meticulous in keeping Luna a secret. There was no way.

“Exactly that,” Mr. Winston agreed. “And she truly is magnificent, I’m sure that you two will get along fantastically once we get you sorted out. Can’t have you going in a tank without your gills, now can we? Wouldn’t do to let you drown.”

Katie frowned as her confusion doubled. “Umm…”

“What Mr. Winston is trying to say; is that my research and work with his specimen has allowed me to progress by leaps and bounds. These creatures are special in an extraordinary way. With the right conditions and chemicals, their DNA becomes infectious. It’s been through a few trial phases, but I firmly believe that I can successfully graft the genetics onto an alternate host.”

Katie’s breath caught in her throat for a minute. Of course, she’d always wondered what it must be like to have a tail and breathe underwater. She’d sometimes fantasized about joining Luna in the water, but she had never actually imagined it was possible, and she certainly did not want to find out as the guinea pig for a deranged man and his pet scientist. “That’s not possible,” she protested, though she could not keep the hint of doubt and worry out of her tone.

The woman grinned and shrugged. “I suppose we’ll find out shortly,” she stated.

Katie shook her head. “But you can’t,” she whimpered. “You can’t just abduct someone and do something like this.”

Again, the scientist shrugged. “I know you’re frightened, honey, but you shouldn’t cling to false hope. You say we can’t and yet, isn’t that exactly what we’ve done? No one is coming for you, and even if they were, they wouldn’t recognize you. Not now, and certainly not when I’m finished.”

“Speaking of which,” Mr. Winston spoke up as he clapped his hands together and rubbed them eagerly. “We shouldn’t delay any longer. Hannah, if you would; let’s get started.”

Once again, the scientist frowned at the use of her first name, but she didn’t correct the man. There was an eager gleam in her eyes that spoke volumes. Her looming test was far more interesting and important to her than the rude informality. “Very well,” she agreed. “But you’ll have to leave. It’s better to keep the subject’s stress levels down, and I need room and privacy to work. You may watch from the other room if you like, but the first several hours are anticipated to be relatively uneventful,” she reported. Her words confirmed Katie’s initial suspicions that the long mirror was in fact one way glass. She was going to be observed through this...trial Dr. Manson wanted to run.

She hesitated. She doubted her ability to barrel through both of them or to get out when she had no idea where she was, but Katie knew she could not simply lie back and allow them to run experiments on her. She was pretty confident they didn’t know about Luna, and while she had sympathy for whatever other Mer they seemed to have found, she wanted no part in this game they wanted to play. She just wanted to go back home to her family.

Deciding that the element of surprise was perhaps her only chance, Katie jerked forward in an effort to throw herself off the bed and hit the ground running. A faint cry of surprise left her lips as she was yanked back and fell flat on her back with the two others staring down at her with little more than mild amusement. Katie frowned and pushed herself back up. It was only then that she noticed the restraints tethering her to the bed. She frowned, not sure how she could have missed them up until now. There were leather cuffs around her wrists and ankles, secured to small leashes of sorts. It gave her a little leeway to move her hands and feet, and shift into more comfortable positions, but she could not get off the bed.

“Well now that that’s out of the way,” Dr. Manson announced as she grinned down at Katie. “I’d like to get started.”

“Very well,” Mr. Winston agreed. “I’ll see you soon, Paisley,” he cooed at Katie with a wink. She was glad to see him disappear back out the door, even if it slammed shut with the force of him tugging on it.

“Please don’t do this,” Katie begged as Dr. Manson approached her. She tugged uselessly on one of the restraints and finally noticed the IV spit embedded in her hand. They must have inserted it when she was out, and simply capped it off to be hooked up to an IV tube and bag later. There was only a few centimeters of tube taped to her arm and capped off so air couldn’t get into her bloodstream. It would take the woman seconds to get her hooked up to the bulging bag of murky yellow-pink fluid she was currently dragging over on an IV stand. “You don’t have to,” she pleaded.

Dr. Hannah Manson paused and gently brushed some hair off Katie’s face. “I know,” she agreed. “But I want to. I know it’s probably intimidating for you, but this is going to be an amazing development for scientific endeavors if we can pull it off. You’re going to be part of something wonderful.”

“I just want to go home,” Katie whimpered. “I have a family and a life, please don’t do this.”

Dr. Manson didn’t respond immediately. Instead, she lifted a syringe from a trolley of tools and squirted out a bit of liquid to rid it of any air bubbles. “I am sorry about that. I didn’t select you personally for this. But you are an exceptional specimen genetically. There is no reason the graft shouldn’t take. Don’t worry, I’m going to put you under for now; there’s no reason for you to endure any unnecessary pain.”

“No, wait. Please!” Katie protested as the woman reached for the bit of tubing poking out from her hand. She yanked her arm back as far as the tether would allow and reached with her other hand to tear the IV out.

Dr. Manson caught her wrist and shook her head. “Heed my warning, because I’ll only give it once; if you touch that IV again, I’ll tighten your restraints until you can’t move at all, are we clear?” she warned, her voice barely above a growl. “You will not be asleep the entire time, and I’m sure you’ll appreciate the limited freedoms you’ve been granted. Do not tempt me to remove them.”

Katie chewed her lip and nodded. She didn’t want to give in, but the restraints had proven effective and at least she had a little leeway right now. There was no point in resisting if it wasn’t going to give her an opening for escape. It would only cause them to tighten their grip on her. She looked away, however, with tears burning in her gaze as the woman guided the needle down. She didn’t feel the prick of the needle and knew the woman likely just shot it through the IV because almost instantly, Katie began to feel heavy once more. Her thoughts muddled and her head lolled. She watched the woman hook her IV up to the bag of putrid looking fluid seconds before a swarm of angry black dots stole her vision away to darkness.