Mermaid Princess Sister

A song echoes from deep in the lake. "A mermaid princess living in the deep sea..." "Even losing her voice, she never gave up on love..."

A 12-meter stone statue sleeps at the bottom of the lake. A massive face. Mouth open. As if singing. Two small statues on top of its head. Twin children. Embracing each other. Water flows endlessly from their eyes.

Looks like a statue of a kid who wet themselves. But in reality, they're crying children. Someone speaks by the lake.

--- 4 months ago. Sera would have done anything for her younger siblings. She just didn't know it would be her undoing.

A leaky ceiling. Cold wind blows through the broken windows. Three children huddle in the corner.

Sera (16 years old). Thin frame. Hollow eyes. Prominent cheekbones. Yet her gaze still glimmers with life. Twins nestled in her arms. Kay (7 years old). Ruu (7 years old). Two identical children. Embracing each other.

Sera covers the twins with her clothes. She stands in thin undergarments. Once again, the three siblings go hungry.

Ryu takes Kay's hand.

Sera's chest tears apart. But she hides her expression.

Sera rises to her feet. Her legs tremble. The world spins before her eyes. The last thing she ate was three days ago. The twins grab the hem of Sera's clothes.

Sera strokes the twins' heads.

Sera leaves. The door closes. The twins embrace each other.

Kay grips Ryu's hand tightly.

The twins close their eyes. Relying on each other's warmth, they wait for their sister.

Neon signs flicker. People come and go. The smell of food vibrates. Sera sits on the curb. One empty can in front of her.

People pass by. No one pays attention.

A man looks at Sera. His eyes scan up and down.

Sera lowers her head.

The man walks past. Sera clenches her teeth. Her nails dig into her palm.

My siblings are waiting. I need to bring something back. Sera looks up again.

Two hours had passed. Two coins in the can. Not enough to buy even half a loaf of bread.

Sera rises to her feet. Her legs give way. She's about to collapse. Then.

A man's voice. Sera looks up.

A man in a white coat stands there. Clean appearance. Gentle smile. NAVII logo on his chest.

Sera's eyes sharpen. She instinctively becomes alert.

The researcher kneels down to meet Sera's eye level.

Sera's heart races. It's too good to be true. But nothing in this world is free.

The researcher smiles.

Sera hesitates.

The twins' face flashes before Sera's eyes. "Sister... I'm hungry..."

Sera's fists tremble.

A long silence.

The researcher's lips curve upward.

Sera returns. NAVII staff behind her. The twins come running.

Sera kneels and embraces the twins. Tight. Too tight.

Sera looks at the twins' faces. Takes them in her eyes. As if to remember them forever.

Sera's throat closes up.

Sera kisses the twins' foreheads.

NAVII Employee holds the twins' hands.

Sera turns around. Her feet won't move. If she could just turn back one step. Just one step.

Sera's nails dig into her palms. Blood flows. But she doesn't turn her head.

Looking back...

Sera never finishes that sentence. She just walks. Her bleeding hand clenched tight. The twins' voices fade away.

Sera: (whispering) "...I'll be right back. Wait for me."

Sera opens her eyes. White room. Strapped to an experiment table. Body won't move.

The door opens. Researchers enter.

The researcher sighs.

The researcher gestures. A monitor on the wall turns on. Twins appear on the screen.

But. Sera's expression hardens.

The twins are in a different laboratory. The children are also strapped to the experiment table. Injection marks on their arms. They are crying.

Sera's body trembles.

Sera thrashes wildly. The restraints creak. Blood seeps from her wrists.

Kai screams from within the screen.

Sera's movements stop. Like a puppet with its strings cut.

Emotion drains from the voice.

The researcher smiles.

The researcher turns around.

Data appears on the monitor. - Role: Core Unit (Vocal Modification) - Compatibility: 94.2%

- Role: Synchronization Amplifier (utilizing twin brainwaves) - Compatibility: 97.8% (exceptionally high twin synchronization rate) Fused the brainwaves of three subjects into a single entity. Perfect sonic weapon completed.

Dr. Han (50s male, project lead) examines the data.

Laboratory. Sera lies on the experiment table. A mechanical device is connected to her neck.

Nanomachines are injected. The vocal cords are modified.

A burning sensation in the throat. But enduring it. Twins appear on the monitor. Children are crying.

I have to endure. For my younger siblings.

The experiment continues. Week 1: Vocal cord nanomachine injection Week 2: Neural rewiring Week 3: Brainwave synchronization test

It hurt more each time. But what's more painful is my siblings in the monitor.

Sera grinds her teeth. Tears flow.

The experiment continues. Sera's body changes. Her skin hardens gradually. Like limestone. Like stone.

Abnormal sound waves emit from the vocal cords. High frequency. Low frequency. Sounds beyond the human range.

A massive laboratory. Three experiment tables in the center. Sera, Kay, and Ryu. Three siblings lie side by side.

We met for the first time again.

Sera reaches out her hand. But the restraints prevent her from touching them. The twins are crying. The children's condition is serious.

Her legs are stiff. Petrify is in progress.

Dr. Han comes forward.

Sera's face goes pale.

Dr. Han smiles.

Dr. Han looks at the monitor. The three siblings are suffering.

Dr. Han: (inner thoughts) '...And if this project succeeds, the executive position will be mine.'

The machine activates. The three siblings' brainwaves connect.

The pain of her siblings flows into Sera's mind. Sera's pain flows into her siblings' minds. The pain is shared. Tripled.

The experiment is halted. The order comes down: "Proceed with final fusion tomorrow." The researchers leave for the day.

Sera opens her eyes. Sera: (thinking) "...Tonight is my last chance."

Perhaps it was the brainwave synchronization experiment. Sera gained a strange ability. Ultrasonic waves emit from her throat. High frequency.

Beeeep!! The security system malfunctions. The restraints unlock.

Sera stands up. Her body feels heavy. Her skin is half petrified.

We proceed with the twins' experiment. The children are asleep. Sedatives have been administered. Sera undoes the restraints.

Sera lifts the twins into her arms. The children's legs are completely stiff. They cannot walk.

Sera carries the twins on her back. Kai on the left. Liu on the right.

Sera begins to run. An alarm blares.

Sera runs. The twins on her back. The corridor twists like a maze. She doesn't know where the exit is.

Footsteps from behind. The security team is chasing.

Sera runs. She doesn't stop. Bang! Bang!

Gunshot. A bullet lodges in Sera's back.

Blood flows. But it doesn't stop.

Sera keeps running. Blood drips down. Vision blurs. End of the hallway. Dead end.

A massive window. Darkness visible beyond it. Sera stops.

The security team approaches from behind. Gun barrels are trained on them.

Sera looks toward the window.

Sera smiles. A smile mixed with blood.

Sera runs toward the window.

Bang! Bang! Bang! Bullets pierce Sera's body. But she doesn't stop.

Crash!! The window shatters.

Sera jumps down while holding the twins.

They fall. Sera. Kay. Ryu.

The three siblings together.

Sera holds the twins tightly.

The wind blows fiercely. Downward, downward. Light emanates from Sera's body. The nanomachines injected during the experiment go haywire.

The transformation begins. Sera's body swells. Her skin hardens completely. Like stone. Like a statue.

The face grows enormous. The mouth opens wide. It solidifies into a singing form.

The twins aren't being absorbed into Sera's body. Sera instinctively pushes her siblings away.

The twins are pushed up above Sera's head. The children's bodies complete Petrification. But separated. Sera's massive stone face. The stone twins standing upon it.

Two children embrace each other. Tears flow from their eyes. Their final tears. Those tears harden and take on a form that flows eternally. Water endlessly streams down from the eyes of the stone statues.

At first glance, it looks like a statue of a child who wet themselves. But in truth, they are children weeping. Kwaaaaaah!!

The massive stone statue falls into the lake. Water spray shoots up to the sky. Siren is born.

Deep. Dark. Cold. Siren sinks to the bottom of the lake.

A massive stone statue face. Its mouth is open wide, as if singing. Above its head are twin stone statues. Standing upright. Embracing each other. Water flows endlessly from their eyes.

Sera's consciousness remains.

A faint response. Kai: (weakly conscious) "...sis...?" Ryu: (weakly conscious) "...it's dark..."

Kay: (faint consciousness) "...I'm scared..." Ryu: (faint consciousness) "...It's cold... and scary..."

A faint song echoes from deep in the lake. "A mermaid princess living in the deep sea..." "Even losing her voice, she never gave up on love..."

My siblings' consciousness stabilizes slightly. K: (Faint consciousness) "...sister's song..." Ryu: (Faint consciousness) "...good..."

Sera sings lullabies to her siblings forever. At the bottom of the lake. In the darkness. The three siblings are together.

A few days later. A fisherman sits by the lake. Casting his line.

A peaceful afternoon. Then.

Sleep trembles.

Something rises from the water. A massive shadow. The fisherman's face goes pale.

A giant stone face emerges through the Sleep.

The fisherman flees. Siren floats on the water. Motionless. Not attacking.

Just... basking in the sunlight. Twin stone statues overhead. Sunlight reaches the children.

Kay: (faint consciousness) "...It's warm..." Ryu: (faint consciousness) "...It's sunlight..."

Kay: (faint consciousness) "...Yes..." Ryu: (faint consciousness) "...It's nice..." Sera shows her siblings the sunlight. Sera herself cannot feel it. Because she's a statue.

But if my siblings are warm, that's enough. Moments later. Siren subsides again.

Sleep grows quiet. As if nothing ever happened.

Night. The research team arrives at the lakeside. Equipment bearing the NAVII logo.

Equipment is deployed into the lake. An underwater drone. A mechanical claw.

The drone descends to the lake bottom. Siren is asleep. The drone's gripper arm reaches toward the twin stone statues above her head.

The crab claw grasps Kay's statue. At that moment.

Siren's eyes snap open. A crimson glow.

Roooaaarrr!!! The Siren's mouth opens. Sound waves pour out.

The lake explodes. A column of water shoots into the sky. Researchers go flying. Equipment is destroyed.

Siren rises above the water. A 12-meter stone statue. Eyes filled with rage.

Sound waves spread in all directions. The buildings by the lake vibrate. Windows shatter. Researchers flee. One of them looks back.

A massive stone statue stands. Twin statues perch above its head. Water flows from its eyes. Researcher: (voice trembling in fear) "That's... not a monster..."

Siren is raging. Destroying everything. Searching for those who touched her sisters.

Boom!! Crash!! Crash!! The building crumbles. People flee.

Then. A girl stands by the lake. She looks about ten years old. She's holding a doll in her hand.

He doesn't run. He looks up at the monster.

The girl shakes her head.

The girl begins to sing. "In the depths of the sea lives a mermaid princess..."

Siren stops. "Even without my voice, I won't abandon my love..."

Siren turns her head.

Kay: (faint consciousness) "...Sister's song..." Ryu: (faint consciousness) "...Our song..." The light fades from Siren's eyes. The anger subsides.

"Even if I disappear into bubbles..." "That love will be eternal..." Siren slowly returns to the lake. Sinking into the water.

The Sleep grows quiet. The girl's mother comes running.

The girl gazes at the lake.

The mother takes the girl and leaves. The lake is quiet once more.

- Recovery team: 3 KIA, 7 wounded - Equipment loss approximately 1.2 billion Packets "The SIREN Project is terminated as a failure. Subject S-01's protective instinct exceeded expectations."

"It is estimated that S-01 separated and preserved S-02 and S-03 during the fusion process. We underestimated the impact of family relationships on the experiment."

"For the next experiment, we strongly recommend selecting subjects with no family ties or orphans. Family bonds are the greatest variable in the experiment."

A photo of the three siblings. Sera is smiling while holding the twins. The last photo before entering the research facility. A drawing made by Kay before the experiment. A clumsy drawing made with crayons.

Three people. One large person in the middle. Two smaller people on either side. All holding hands. Below, crooked handwriting:

[Mermaid Sister, Kay, and Ru] [Let's be together forever] That wish came true.

In the cruelest way. ---

An executive is reading the report.

An executive looks out the window. The blue sky of Air Ground.

He takes a sip of coffee.

An executive tilts his head in confusion.

Director Han doesn't remember the children he ruined. To him, they're merely "failed data." Sunlight streams through the window. Light falls across Director Han's face.

Sera cannot feel that sunlight. She can only show it to her siblings. Han Isa drinks coffee in that sunlight every day.