I woke with a jolt, gasping franticly for air that couldn’t be grasped. The nightmares were gone, just visions in my imagination. I was safe. I caught my breath and glanced around my room. My dragons and other mythical being statues gazed back, glowing from the sunlight filtering in through my window. My walls glowed a lighter blue than usual and I knew today would be great.

I rolled out of my comfortable bed and gazed in the mirror. I toyed with the ends of my straight brown, waist length hair and reached for my brush. Brushing through my knotty hair, I headed for the sun kissed stairs. The sunlight flooded in through the windows, illuminating the foyer with a heavenly glow. Immediately I smelled pancakes and bacon from the wide kitchen. I descended the stairs and followed the sweet smell of breakfast.
I saw mom first; still in her pajamas, like the rest of us, she flipped the pancakes gracefully. Her auburn hair was draped across her shoulders. She was dressed in the purple robe and moose slippers I had given her for Christmas seven months ago.
When I walked into the room Cato saw me first.
“Hey sis,” he said.
His dark hair wasn’t brushed it stood up at weird angles,  making me laugh. He was wearing his Yankee t- shirt and shorts. His deep blue eyes watching me laugh.
Even though Cato was four years older than me, he was still my best friend.
He laughed attempting to smooth down his hair.
“Your hands won’t make the slightest dent on that mess,” I teased even though it was now smooth.
In response, Cato glided over and lifted me up. He carried me out to the dark oak porch above the pool in our backyard. I laughed as he held me over the edge of the deck.
“CATO! NO! STOP!” I yelled laughing as hard as ever.
“Cato, put your sister down and come eat your breakfast,” called mom from the doorway.
Cato put me down and hurried inside. On the way in I gave mom a hug and she kissed me lightly on the top of my head.
Dad, sitting at the table, was dressed in a green shirt and jeans with his favorite tennis shoes. His hair was brushed and he smiled when we walked in.
“Hey Dad,” we said as we sat down.
“Hey kiddos,” he smiled.
Cato and I made goofy faces at each other across the table until he won by making me laugh so hard I spilled my milk.
“Ok, Ok you win!” I said cleaning up my mess. I dug into my pancakes and marveled at how good they were.
“These are so good, Mom!” I cried.
“Thanks, love!”
Just then the doorbell rang and my tan little c***er spaniel puppy, Marl, raced out of the living room. He ran under the table dodging our legs with extreme agility. Marl was running so fast he couldn’t stop and slammed into the wall.
Dad, being dressed, opened the door with a friendly smile. His smile drooped faintly when he saw who was on our doorstep.
“We are looking for Kara Charson,” said the tallest government official with her robotic voice. Three government officials stood at our door. The woman’s bleach blonde hair was pulled up in a bun and the two men’s were left cropped and short. The officers, dressed in pristine white, frowned at the vibrant blue of my t-shirt and shorts.
“Are you Kara?”
“Yes,” I replied.
“You have been selected by the new government to take an educational trip to Cosira or the ruins of California. You will be exploring underwater caves with five other girls and ending your month trip with a tour around the canyon Relcc.”
I inhaled sharply, “When do I leave?”
“Tomorrow at noon; we will be here at exactly at noon.”
Five months ago a new government had taken over the democracy of the United States and changed everything. The states were changed, children went on trips instead of school, and there wasn’t freedom anymore. The new government controlled everything; you rarely got a day where the government didn’t send you a message or a letter asking you to do something. Pretty much everyone in my little town, Warsaw, hated the new society.
The officials left and I hiked upstairs to my room. Marl jumped on my bed and sniffed at the large suitcase I yanked out of my closet.
I had never traveled to California so I had no clue how to dress. I grabbed my warmest clothes and my coolest clothes plus a bathing suit, towels, and essentials.
After three hours I was still in my pajamas, but packed and ready, physically, for my trip. Marl had left an hour ago for a walk with dad and had yet to return. I looked around my ransacked room. It was a mess! I ran around picking up things I chose not to pack and put them away.
“Hey sis,” Cato stood in the doorway.
“Hi.”
“You got a break?  I want to show you something.-”
“Sure” I replied, “Just let me get dressed.”
“Alright,” he strutted out of the room as I swung the door shut.
I skipped into Cato’s open room and gazed at the mess. There is everything, everywhere not including his science stuff.
Cato was major scientist. He knew everything there is to know about science. His room is filled to the brim with microscopes, chemicals, beakers, rocks, gems, everything.
When I walked in there is a glass looking rock on the table and a beaker full of water. Picking up the stone I heard rustling and looked. Cato was digging through a basket of fruit on his bed.
“Don’t touch that or the clear liquid.” He said glancing up from a big basket of fruit he was digging through.
“What are you doing?” I asked, putting the rock down.
“Ah ha, here we go. Follow me.” Cato led me to the bathroom and handed me a tiny piece of the green glob in his jar.
“Eat it.”
“What! No! I don’t even know what it is!” I exclaimed.
“Just do it, please. I will too.”
“No.” I crossed my arms.
“I promise it won’t hurt you, most likely.” He mumbled.
“Most likely?”
“It won’t, promise.”
“Ok, fine,” I said as I plopped the green glob into my mouth.
Instantly my legs grew tight and melted together. I had a shortage of breath and couldn’t breathe. Then I was falling, I fell into Cato and he sat me on the bathtub. My legs were gone; in place of my jeans was a tail. It was blue and slightly sparkled in the sunlight, enough to make the scaly thing gorgeous.
I gasped and realized, again, I couldn’t breathe. I thrashed around for a minute and gaped at Cato. He was staring at me like the sky had fallen or something.
Then I could breathe. My legs came back and I was just sitting there. Neither of us could speak. I didn’t know what happened, and was too afraid to ask. I glanced up and Cato was falling. I hauled him to where I had been sitting.
He had a green tail and he looked so fish like with it I laughed. I could tell he was going through what happened to me: gape at tail, realize you can’t breathe, and then come back to normal self.
Wow. I heard. I leaped up with a start.
That was weird! I heard again.
“Cato! I hear something, like a voice or something.” I yelled.
I thought he would look at me like I was crazy, but instead he shrugged.
“I know. It’s part of the experiment I am doing. It worked apparently. Now we can communicate without a phone.”
“Why were we mer-people?” I inquired.
“I enhanced different foods to make people different mythological creatures. If two people are the same thing for a least a minute, like we were then boom, telepathy.” Cato explained.
Ok, I have no words.
Me either. I heard in response.
This is weird, Cato.
No, it’s awesome. I heard the government takes your phone, now you don’t need it to stay in touch.
Ok, that’s cool.
“Kara! Cato! Dinner!” called Mom.
Cato and I scurried down the steps to the smell of meatballs. We took our places at the table and said grace.
Don’t tell mom and dad about the fruit. They’d freak out, you know. I heard.
Yeah, totally.
Dinner was solemn and after dinner I went straight to bed. I was too nervous for the next day to talk about it.
The next morning I woke up at about seven o’clock. 
Getting dressed I noticed Cato’s light was on. I grasped for the hum of his mind.
Are you up?
Yeah.
How come?
I couldn’t sleep.
Me either.
I brushed my hair and lightly knocked on his door. I heard Marl sniffing at the door as Cato opened it.
“Do you want to swim? It might take our minds off of this.”
“Sure,” Cato said. He walked over and pulled me into a tight embrace. I held him for a long time. Finally he let go and pushed me out of the room without a word.
Meeting downstairs we leaped into the pool, laughing. We splashed and even Marl hopped in.
After a couple hours mom came out and called us to breakfast. We climbed out of the pool with the sun hot on our burned backs. My shoulders were beet red and Cato’s looked worst.
“Go get dressed and then, Kara, get ready to go.’’ said mom as she put our breakfast on the table.
Well, wasn’t that delightful?
Why are you talking so weird?
I don’t know. I am nervous, for you, thought Cato.
I ran downstairs and gobbled up breakfast. My bags were by the door and everything was ready.
After breakfast, I went downstairs and played with Marl. He could tell I was leaving and refused to get the ball. Marl sat in my lap and wouldn’t move, at all. Finally, the doorbell rang and the officials stood outside. Marl jumped up and ran to the door allowing me to rise and get my things collected.
“Hello, Kara,” the same officials as yesterday stood at the door.
“Hi,” I said solemnly.
I ran to mom and hugged her really tight and for a long time. Her eyes filled with tears and she told me to have fun and be good. She held me until the visitor cleared her throat and glanced at her watch.
I am going to miss you, Cato.
Hey, I’ll never be far. We spoke only to each other.
I hugged Cato wordlessly and we knew every word the other meant to say. He lifted me off the floor into a bear hug.
I love you.
Cato didn’t answer; he just pushed me out the door. I glanced back at my crying family, in the doorway of my little brick home, and Marl trying to wiggle out the door as it closed.
“In here, Miss Charson,” the official said as I climbed in the car with five other girls my age.
A car behind us carried four fourteen- year- old boys. It followed us exactly until the train station. The building was huge with lines up and down the platform. The train was long and had ten cars alongside it. The ticket building was brick and the line was around the building.
“My name is Marylyn, if you need anything,” said the woman official, “You girls get to see all sorts of things in Cosira, while the boys study rocks. I am thrilled I’m on this trip, aren’t you?”
“Yes,” we said in unison. We glanced at each other and smiled. I recognized some faces. A girl who I was in first school with was on my left. She had blonde hair and wore it in a ponytail. Her name was Cassie.  Another girl was my friend in second grade and we looked almost the same except her eyes were green and her hair was short. Her name was Alexa.  She was also very short, while I was tall. The others were all strangers to me.
We arrived at the station and crawled out of the cramped white car. Marylyn handed us our bags and we climbed up the big steps on to the unfamiliar, vast, vacant, train. The inside smelled like candy, like when you walk into a chocolate shop and are overcome by the wonderful smell. The seats were big and cushiony, and there was a huge fridge in each car filled with drinks and food. The cars were connected by doors and a platform, with railing so you couldn’t fall, or jump. The train started and we couldn’t tell it was so easy going.
“Get comfortable. It will be a long ride,” called Marylyn.  She opened a door and sat inside a large car with another official.
Hey. How’s the ride? I heard trains are awesome.
It smells like chocolate, and everything is so luxurious.
Cool, wish you were here though.
I’ve only been gone an hour.
I know but it seems like more when I know you’ll be gone for a month.
Ugh, I know right.
“Hey Kara,” called Alexa, yanking me out of contact with Cato.
“Hi,” I replied. I approached a seating area and invited her in.
“Thanks.”
“No problem, how have you been?” I asked.
“Good, I am so happy we are going to Califor-Cosira.”
“Me too! I love underwater caves!”
“I am going to sleep. Is that ok?”
“Sure thing, Alexa,” I said.
Alexa closed her eyes and drifted off to sleep. She rolled around and eventually I stopped watching her.
I didn’t even realize I had fallen asleep until Alexa was shaking me viciously.
“Wake up! Wake up! Wake up! We’re here!” yelled Alexa. She jumped on top of me and shook me until I pushed her off playfully.
“Ok, ok, I’m up.” I gazed out the window at the beautiful green hills up to the white gold sand. The sun glinted off the sand and reflected off the blue water splashing against the rocks. The water sent up spray and the setting sun made everything look pink. The whole town was bathed in a pink glow. In the distance a Ferris Wheel glowed with neon lights as people set off fireworks in the park. 
“Come on girls we need to get to our hotel,” called Marylyn.
We climbed down the steps onto the grass. The air smelled of salt and flowers. There was a slight breeze that cooled away the hot air.
We followed Marylyn down the rickety, old, wooden steps toward the ocean. The waves splashed around our feet soaking my tennis shoes. The air threw salt and sand into my hair and I shivered in the cold breeze.
Marylyn led us to the ocean shore and waded in. We all hesitated at the water’s edge and gazed at Marylyn with question.
Marylyn glanced back toward us and waved us in franticly. She kept wading then disappeared below the waves. A few meters to the left, she surfaced and waved us in.
We wearily stepped toward the water and waded in the ocean. We waded until we were barely above the water. Following Marylyn’s example, we dove and swam toward the left.  
The water was freezing and burned your eyes strongly when you swam. We surfaced a few meters to the left and saw we could stand. Water dripped from every part of me, I was shivering just like the other girls.
“Come on, right through here,” Marylyn chattered, ushering us through the opening in the rocks in front of us. A huge mountain of rocks was laid out before us and she pushed us in from behind. Amazed at the light flooding through the tunnel, we didn’t even notice when the rocks closed behind us.
We kept walking, believing that our official was right behind us. We took in every little detail of the cavern, the way the rocks were jagged and rough, how some were smooth,  and the way the light filtered in through the walls. We walked and walked until it felt as if we couldn’t walk anymore. Then as we were about to collapse, the tunnel opened up into a dark, rock, vast room filled with crying girls. Some were huddled together in a corner, some were alone, some were fifteen and some were five.
We gasped and realized that Marylyn hadn’t spoken to us, just as we had only whispered little things to each other. I felt tears spring into my eyes and I leaned on Alexa.
“We are trapped? Aren’t we?” I asked to no one in particular.
“Yes,” said a girl to my right, who was frail and skinny. She had a sullen look and was too tiny for the clothes she was in. She had a lost look and sat all by herself. Her body looked ruined and had scars on her arms as if she had fought to get out of here, this place, that was hiding all these starving children and their memories.
“What is your name?” I asked sitting next to her.
“The girls here call me Daily,” She told me quietly.
“I’m Kara. How did you get here?”
“Same as you, tricked. Told we would be able to go home. I’ve been here for three months.” She started to cry.
I wrapped her frail body in my arms and the other girls gathered around us squishing Daily until she gave in and cried harder and leaned into me.
Cato! Cato!
Hey, sis.
Something bad is going on, something really bad.
What? Are you hurt? Are you in trouble?
The government is taking the kids to leave them stranded. I am in a huge cave filled with kids and they are starving and dying. I need your help.
What can I do?
Get here as fast as you can with your inventions. Get taken or something. They took the boys somewhere else. The boys are being held like this too! Help us!
I don’t know if I can get there for three days. The next train leaves tomorrow and takes the slow route with many stops.
Anything will work, we need you.
I will try to get on the train to Nalea and the adjoin train to Cosira.
Ok, I whispered.
I sat with Daily and she explained how she got here. I heard nothing. I was in shock, would the government really do this?
I’m on a train.  I heard.
What?
You “forgot” something and I needed to bring it to you.
Mom and Dad let you go?
Yeah! I am pretty much an adult now you know.
Ok, just tell me when you’re here.
I will do.
I love you!
Love you too.
When I was done with my conversation I tuned back into Daily and she had stopped crying but we still held her tightly. She pulled back and rose. We got up and she pointed toward the crowd in front of us.
“I will show you around and where to sleep.”
“Okay, thanks,” said Alexa.
Daily led us down the slope toward the crowd. People with teak streaks in their dirt covered faces gazed at us and some just shrugged as if it happened every day.
“Here is where we sleep.” She said stopping in the middle of the cave and gesturing around the room.
“You sleep on the floor?” asked one of the other girls.
“Yup, it is actually not that bad,” answered Daily.
She continued and she led us up a different slope and down a short tunnel to another room, a lot smaller and it smelled worse than the other room.
Daily pointed at a hole in the floor near the corner of the room. The ocean water was consuming the hole and I realized what it was before she said it.
“Bathroom,” she stated.
One of the girls groaned and she looked away. She walked back down the slope and found and empty spot on the cave floor.
“Is that all Daily?”
“Yup, You should get some rest and mind preparing before you get stuck here in boredom town.”
I walked down and joined the many girls along the floor. I lay down and realized we had left our bags on the beach. I groaned inwardly. No snacks I had stuffed in there. No pillow. No clothes. No phone.
Soon I fell asleep on the hard floor and hoped when I woke up this would be gone.
When I woke, everything was the same as when I fell asleep. I sat in my little corner and watched people mill around the cave.
I’m here!
Really!
Cool
Cool. Okay do as I tell you.
Ok.
Are you near an old wooden staircase leading to the beach?
Yeah.
Follow it to the water and then swim to the big mountain. There will be an opening in the rock that’s we are.
Ok I am in the water.
I found the opening.
Is it open?
Yes.
Ok. I’m coming.
Slowly I rose and tiptoed around the sleeping girls. I ran up the slope and entered the long tunnel. Not two steps in I was thrown back by an unseen force, flew a few feet crashed to the ground. I sat up wearily, catching my breath, and saw nothing in front of me. I picked up a large stone and threw it down the tunnel. The rock hit an unseen object and ricocheted back to me. I ducked and watched the rock hit the ground.
Cato! I understand why they can’t leave. There’s a force field.
Just then Cato appeared in the tunnel. He ran to my side and helped me off the floor.
“Are you okay?”
“Yeah, I think so.” I pulled him close and we held each other tightly. We stayed together until he picked me up and carried me down the rest of the tunnel. We went down the slope and Cato put me down as Daily ran toward us.
“Who is he?” she whispered to me hugging my side.
“Daily this is Cato, my brother. Cato this is Daily, she helped us when we first got here.” I explained.
“We’ve never had a boy before. They always go to the canyon caves.”
“Come on we have to get you guys out of here.” Cato ran back toward the tunnel.
“Wait! Cato! There’s a force field!” I yelled. I ran after him and got to him just in time to see him fly backward and slam into the wall.
“Cato!” I rushed to his side and he was unconscious. Daily was at my side in seconds helping me wake him up. I shook him and jumped on him, he wasn’t waking up. I started to cry. I was scared, what if he didn’t wake up. Everything started to blur around me, and the people waking up were blurry and sounded far away. Daily got up and walked away, she returned a few minutes later with a bucket of water. I dumped it on Cato. Suddenly everything turned back into focus. People were staring, and Cato jolted awake. He gasped and gaped at the people around him.
“You’re okay!” I laughed.
“What happened?”
“I told you there was a force field, remember?”
“No, I think I was too focused on finding you.” He answered.
I laughed and pulled him to his feet. He laughed and stuck his hand in his pocket. A confused look passed over his face.
“What? What’s wrong?”
“Nothing, I just forgot I had this.” Cato pulled out a huge jar of the green stuff from his jacket. It had enough glob to make everyone a mermaid!
“Cato! You’re a genius!” I yelled. I grabbed the jar from Cato and ran toward the bathroom. Cato followed in pursuit.
“What? There is no way to the ocean though!” he called after me.
“Yes there is,” I stood at the top of the slope leading toward the bathroom.
“What are you doing?”
“HEY! I WANT EVERYONE LISTENING!” I yelled at the top of my lungs. The cave fell silent and all eyes were on me.
“Make a line from the toilet out and I will tell you what to do then.”
“Everyone hustled to make a line while I spoke with Cato.
“Does this make you able to swim if you don’t know how?”
“Yea, I think so.”
“Ok because there are a lot of little kids.” I replied.
Everyone was in a straight line filing out of the bathroom. I pushed my way to the front and handed the first person a glob of, what Cato says is, seaweed.
“Eat it then jump in the water.” I directed her. She gave me a skeptical look then popped the seaweed in her mouth and jumped. Immediately I felt the hum of a new brain in my mind. I reached out toward it.
Find an exit. Swim to the beach before the effects wear off.
I handed each persona glob and gave them directions. Before long all the girls except Cato and I were outside.
I ate a glob and jumped in the brackish water. I hit the water with my tail and swam toward the clump of girls. I reached them and surfaced, with Cato beside me. My legs returned as did mostly all the girls a couple stayed longer due to bigger globs.
“We did it Cato!” We got them out!”
“We need to find the boys.” Cato answered with worry in his voice.
Daily swam up beside us and pointed toward the tall mountain a mile away or so, “The boys are kept in the tunnel up there. There is no force field to keep them in. Just the height, a boy tried to jump once I heard and died instantly.”
“I have something for that. Kara, come on, we have to save them.”
Cato and I climbed out of the water onto the beach and he pulled a large fruit from his boot. He bit a little bit of it and handed it to me quickly. Instantaneously he grew into a large dragon. I took a bite and tossed the fruit up to him. I grew in size and felt really tingly as I grew wings, talons and a long snout. H nodded and we flew the mile quickly up to the mountain.
Just as I began to feel really strange we alighted on the ledge of the cave. I shrunk back to normal size and collapsed while the tingling subsided.
Cato was walking into the cave at a very fast pace. I followed him into the dark of the caves. He started to run when he heard voices. A few boys were standing at the edge of the tunnel leading into a huge room.
Cato ran to them and he told them he was here to get them out. I stood in the background. And watched boys run around telling others that we were her to help them.
Cato stood at the opening of the tunnel.
“HEY! I CAN GET YOU OUT OF HERE IF YOU JUST DO AS I SAY!” he yelled getting everyone’s attention, “go to the opening of this place and I will help you get safely down.” The boys filed past us and grouped at the opening of the tunnel.
I ran past the boys and emerged in the open. Cato handed each boy a piece of the fruit and all the boys flew to the ground as dragons.
Soon it was only us left. I ate a piece of fruit and flew to the ground. Cato followed and the fruit was left on the cliff. Cato sent out a message to all of us.
Follow me. By the way, I’m Cato.
We followed Cato back to where the girls were in a huddled group on the beach. About a hundred boys were behind me and about a hundred more in front. The colors of their scales ranged from black to pink and every color in between.
We alighted on the ground next to the girls and the scales faded away. I stood next to Daily, Cassie and Alexa, when Cato stood next to the boy he had spoken with earlier, Ace.
“We did it!” I exclaimed.
Just then an airplane dropped in front of us and officials climbed out. They gaped at us and pulled out weapons.
Marylyn leveled her gun with my chest and pulled the trigger.
I shot up with a gasp! I leaped out of bed and ran to Cato’s room. He was sitting in his bed and pulled me close when I ran to him.
It was all a dream; there was no trip, no missing kids, and no crazy food. I cried with relief into Cato! I was safe! It was all a dream.
We went down the stairs when we smelled breakfast. Halfway through the doorbell rang and three officials stood at the door.
“We are looking for Kara Charson?” she said.