Adapted from the screenplay:
'Into the Mystic and Into the Mystic II'
by Garry Hicks
INTO THE MYSTIC
by
Garry Hicks
Copyright 2016
Approximately 67,700 words
Garry Hicks
WGAw registered
TABLE OF CONTENTS
PROLOGUE
CHAPTER ONE
CHAPTER TWO
CHAPTER THREE
CHAPTER FOUR
CHAPTER FIVE
CHAPTER SIX
CHAPTER SEVEN
CHAPTER EIGHT
CHAPTER NINE
CHAPTER TEN
CHAPTER TWELVE
CHAPTER THIRTEEN
CHAPTER FOURTEEN
CHAPTER FIFTEEN
CHAPTER SIXTEEN
CHAPTER SEVENTEEN
CHAPTER EIGHTEEN
CHAPTER NINETEEN
CHAPTER TWENTY
CHAPTER TWENTY ONE
CHAPTER TWENTY TWO
CHAPTER TWENTY THREE
PART II
CHAPTER TWENTY FOUR
CHAPTER TWENTY FIVE
CHAPTER TWENTY SIX
CHAPTER TWENTY SEVEN
CHAPTER TWENTY EIGHT
CHAPTER TWENTY NINE
CHAPTER THIRTY
CHAPTER THIRTY ONE
CHAPTER THIRTY TWO
CHAPTER THIRTY THREE
CHAPTER THIRTY FOUR
CHAPTER THIRTY FIVE
CHAPTER THIRTY SIX
CHAPTER THIRTY SEVEN
CHAPTER THIRTY EIGHT
CHAPTER THIRTY NINE
CHAPTER FORTY
PROLOGUE
What if there were a story that had the magic of E.T., the action of ‘Pirates of the Caribbean’, the tension of ‘JAWS’, the humor of ‘The Hangover’ plus romance, twists, a man coming of age and a jolting end?
Do you believe in Mermaids? People may laugh if you say yes but, deep down, you either do, or want, to believe. You may have even seen one in your past. You weren't sure what it was but you know it had a tail and a woman's face. Mermaids sightings have been reported for centuries and why not?
Many famous people, including Christopher Columbus and Henry Hudson, have reported mermaid sightings. Further, if you consider three quarters of the Earth is covered by water and ninety five percent of our oceans remain unexplored, it's not that difficult to believe there could be mermaids hiding in the deep.
Further consider this: The most-watched telecast in Animal Planet’s history is: Mermaids: The New Evidence. It delivered 3.6 million viewers, shattering the network’s ratings record. Yes, it turned out to be a hoax but the point was made with the huge rating.
So, open your mind and let your imagination 'imagine'. People have reported seeing spaceships, aliens, Big Foot, aka 'Sasquatch', Nessie, the Loch Ness monster, ghosts, demons and ghouls. Add mermaids to that list and you're going to love this book.
It's been planned for two years by four old high school buddies, now in their late thirties. A two-week trip on a 40 foot boat for relaxing, exploring, fishing and general adventure.
But when they enter a fog bank and one of them is washed overboard, their journey abruptly changes.
Come and join the guys as they as they deal with mermaids, sirens and the beauty of an exotic island that holds more surprises, twists and turns than even they ever imagined.
PART 1
CHAPTER ONE
1988 GULF COAST OF FLORIDA
An empty thirty foot boat rolls on the waves of the open sea. Underwater, Brandon, a semi-chubby, short hair, nerdy looking twelve year old, scuba dives with his father in a clouded sea, his dad swims only three feet away. The murky sea clouds their vision from anything more than fifteen feet in front of them. His father taps him on the shoulder and points to the surface. Brandon nods his head as his father swims upward. Brandon starts to swim but jerks as a large fish shoots toward him from the side. Brandon stops as the fish quickly disappears.
Brandon tires and slows down to rest. Suddenly, the hazy, murky type water starts to clear, somewhat like a fog lifting to expose a city. As he watches, he sees the tail gently sway with the current.
Slow, as the water clears more, he sees a pair of hands, then flowing blond hair, and, as the water completely clears, it reveals a horrendous looking merman. His lower torso from his waist down is a dirty green, scaly covered fish tail. From the waist up he's a man, not quite a normal man, but with a man's features. From his forehead to near the back of his head, he is bald but that area is covered with round, shell like spots scattered around his scalp to his ears. His thick, blond hair starts near the back of his head and is shoulder length. His ears are large and pointed, his nose wide and flat. His webbed hands have long, thin fingers with razor sharp claws.
As they stare at each other, the merman, with no movement, appears instantly, floating in front of Brandon.
He yanks Brandon's mask and breathing device off his face, throws it through the water. Brandon just stares at him, doesn't move. He has no trouble holding his breath or seeing clearly. He inspects the sea around him, shoots a slight grin as he realizes he can see and hold his breath so well.
The merman snaps his full mouth of razor sharp teeth at Brandon in a threatening manner. Brandon remains motionless, unafraid. The merman roars and shoots waves of water which toss and jerk Brandon around but he regains his composure instead of being gripped by fear. He again stays in one spot, eye to eye with the merman.
The merman inspects Brandon, head to toe, with his coal black eyes.
He moves his head close to Brandon, sniffs his chest area, swims to his back, sniffs more. He swims around to the front of Brandon, stops, curls his lips so his teeth are exposed. He snarls, then shoots through the water like a torpedo and disappears.
Brandon, slow, swims to the surface. His head emerges from the water, scans the area.
"Brandon, over here." He sees his father on the boat, about twenty yards away, and swims toward it. Once he reaches the back, his father extends his hand and helps pull him onto the back landing area.
"What happened to you son, I was ready to come down and hunt for you. Where's your mask and mouthpiece?" he says as he inspects Brandon's equipment.
Brandon, short of breath, blurts out, "A mermaid dad, I saw a mermaid, only it was a man. He had long blond hair and teeth, a mouth full of razor sharp teeth...he scared the crap out of..."
His father cuts him off. "Easy son, it was murky down there, a lot of weird looking fish could have looked..."
"No dad, the water cleared, it was all fish tail below the waist. He was a man from the waist up, only ten feet in front of me. He tore my mask and mouthpiece off."
"Then I'm curious, how did you breathe...and see?"
"I, I don't know dad, it was weird. I held my breath and could see fine, like...like, I didn't need any of that gear."
"Son, look at the water, it's still cloudy. How can you say it cleared?"
Brandon glances into a still murky sea, nods his head sideways. "I, I don't know, it was clear down there. But I sensed something. I sensed he waited for me, almost like he was hunting me."
"I think you're letting your imagination get the better of your common sense. Let's get you changed and get some food into that empty belly."
"Whatever dad, I know what I saw."
CHAPTER TWO