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Sheldon claimed that he had a theory of what was going on with Ocean Park. He came back from his filing cabinet and placed something heavy in my hands.

"The Final Dungeon wasn't the only place where I was snooping around," Sheldon said with a smug glance at Rex.

I looked down at the wooden plaque to try to make sense of it. There was a picture mounted on it with some information engraved directly under.

Gossamer Employee of the Month

~ July 2000 ~

Cisco Gervais

This was roughly two years ago. A shadow spread over the image as Rex craned his neck to read. He drew in a sharp intake of breath. I wasn't sure what the problem was until Sheldon spoke.

"Problem with this little memento is that the Goss department store was shut down in February of 2000. Six months before this award was given. There's also no mention of a Cisco Gervais in the Ocean Park records. It's like he never existed."

Suddenly the plaque in my hands felt like a ghost itself. Rex and I looked up at Sheldon, hoping for more, but fearful at the same time.

Sheldon crossed his arms around his back and casually walked towards the digital fish tank.

"I've talked to some of Ocean Park's veteran tenants..."

"Jellyfish," Rex whispered into my ear as a reminder.

"And they all confirmed the timeline for the closing of Goss. I asked if they knew Cisco Gervais and they said no. In fact, they could not recall anyone that had been employed at the old Gossamer department store. No friends or even mild acquaintances. There's only two other people that I wanted to talk to."

Sheldon held up two fingers without looking back at us.

"A Delilah Handley of the Three of Cups. But she's been so elusive, I'm starting to wonder if she can smell me coming. Then there's Sean Mori." He lowered his hand. "He was working the arcade the summer that plaque was issued."

Rex stepped forward. "You could have asked my old man. Or me. I was here too."

Sheldon cast a doubtful look over his shoulder.

"I certainly could have, but I'm not convinced that I would have gotten any honest answers from you or your father. On that note." Sheldon finally turned to face us, the wall of bait fish living out their lives in grainy detail behind him. "Is your father even around at the moment?"

Rex cast his eyes down. "No. I close up the Dungeon most nights on my own. He... he wasn't here during the lockdown."

"Hm."

Now I was curious. Did Rex know why there was this huge inconsistency with the employee of the month plaque and the date of Goss's shutdown? I needed to ask him as soon as we were out from under this tent.

When nothing more came from Rex, Sheldon approached us to take back the plaque.

"Listen, Rex, Aqua. If you want to help me, it's not going to be gathering supplies for this camp. What I want is an audience with Sean. And, if you're willing to go this far, I need help obtaining the late London Graham's body."

It was my turn to breathe sharply. I must have looked at Sheldon like he was crazy because he quickly explained, "It's very important for me to obtain London's body. For research and also sanitation purposes."

He took the plaque out of my hands and stepped back. While he rambled under his breath about how to make the security guards understand, my mind raced. I had to keep London away from Sheldon. Trouble was, I had no concrete plan on how to move her or how to get around security. I didn't even know how I was going to ask Rex to help me yet!

"Wait. Wait." I said, feeling my heart rate pick up and sweat break out along my spine. Sheldon shot me a curious look.

I wrung my hands together, fighting the urge to pull my pager out of my pocket.

"Did the Mall say something to you.. about London?"

Sheldon's eyebrows furrowed. "Say something? What do you mean?"

I had no idea if I was supposed to be asking these questions. "Did the Mall say it was okay for you to... move the body?" I had to swallow a lump in my throat.

Sheldon was quiet for a moment before replying, "Aqua, are you asking me if the mall gave me permission to conduct my own investigation?"

He said the mall. No recognition in his voice. No sudden knife sharp clarity of another presence listening in on this conversation.

"You were there when London didn't listen, weren't you? You saw what happened to her."

Sheldon offhandedly pulled out his cell and looked down at it. "I was. But I haven't had any reception or strange messages since then." He closed his phone with a snap and slipped it back into his pocket.

He has no idea. No connection to the Mall. He doesn't get it.

Pressure came from somewhere. Ghosts? Not mine. They had to be Rex's.

Sheldon had turned his back to us to walk the plaque back to his cabinet.

Rex's shadow pushed forward. His plesiosaurs increased in number fast. They squeezed desperately inside the narrow corridor. They swarmed, ballooned, and twisted their long necks about one another.

Dark purple mist jetted out from invisible cracks in the floor, eclipsing Sheldon up to his waist.

He didn't notice any of it.

I blinked. The plaque Sheldon was holding hit the floor. He was bent over. On his knees. He threw his body into ugly angles.

A small knife came out of his back. Went in. Came out again. Because Rex was on him now. Through the black of his shirt, I saw sinewy muscle come to life as Rex plunged and gutted his victim into a heap.

The mist quickly seeped back as if someone hit the rewind button. Back into a floor that was no longer a floor. We stood on a glass ceiling paned over an abyssal sinkhole. Flat shelves of rock fanned out below us, breaking up pockets of deep teal, neon violet.

What sea was this?

Rex was still holding his switchblade when it was over. He stood up, heaving breaths that looked like they weighed a ton. His ghosts settled along the top of the wall, no longer entangled, overlooking us with their long necks. Their prehistoric eyes were calm and sleepy.

Rex dragged his feet away from the body before collapsing in the folding chair.

"It's over."

His voice was dry, as if he hadn't had anything to drink all day.

Sheldon's blood pooled away from the cabinets and towards Rex's feet. The floor was still glass – a window into the sinkhole that still pulsed with dark, neon beauty.

I tried to say his name, but my throat wasn't cooperating.

Rex went for something in his pocket. The sight made me flinch, but it was only the purple bandana that he had gotten earlier from the campers. Rex flicked his switchblade closed and set it upon his knee. Then he wiped his hands on his pants before taking the bandana up to his face.

"Rex? Why did you... Sheldon is..."

He wiped the sweat from his forehead, smearing leftover blood that still clung to his hands.

I spoke louder. "Rex. He's dead. Why did you do that!"

Something stirred behind me. Campers, I realized.

They inched from around the corner, staring wide-eyed and open mouthed at the pooling blood and the window to the abyssal sea. More tiles fell away from under our feet, revealing another piece of the sinkhole.

By now, Rex had tied the bandana above his eyebrows. He pushed it back enough to move his hair out of his eyes. For the first time I saw what color they were.

Blue.

"Aqua."

A stone cold blue.

"You're not the only one who gets told what to do."

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Coco