Chapter 2 Part 1 Isla Santa Maria

The flight from Australia to Santa Maria is only once a week, and if you miss it, you will spend a week in a hotel in Cairns.Still, the week isn't so rough if you can lay back on the local paradise's Gold Coast. Billy Hampson spent three days in Cairns awaiting his flight to Santa Maria.He was coming from New York, where he was supposed to change flights that day, but the small propeller plane with a capacity of forty people broke down and he was stranded for three days.This kind of thing is so common that Billy was able to lie down on the beach in the Southland and enjoy a short vacation.

It takes about two hours to fly to the destination, Santa Maria Island.The propeller plane finally took off, maybe the fault was still unresolved, and the engine made strange noises like being blocked from time to time.Billy listened, unable to calm down.Apart from him, there were no other passengers in the plane.The fat stewardess looks like a Melanesian, leisurely chewing walnuts for passengers.The plane will be fine while she eats the walnuts, Billy reassured himself, looking away from the paperback on his lap. Suddenly the chair moved, and Billy couldn't help screaming.Before I knew it, I had already dozed off.Looking up, the stewardess was returning his seat to its original position.

"Please fasten your seat belt." "This plane vibrates badly," Billy told her as he buckled up his seatbelt. "Don't worry, I won't fall. I'll be at the airport in fifteen minutes." The stewardess spoke and returned to the flight attendant's seat, wrapping the seat belt around her stomach. "Are you here for a trip?" "No, it's an interview." "Interview?" "Hmm. Know "Natural Paradise?" The stewardess shook her head when Billy showed her his own magazine that had been laid out on the seat next to him.

"Mermaid?" "Uh?" "Are you here to interview the mermaid?" "It's a dolphin. Interview a dolphin. Isn't there a scholar here named Ryan Norris?" "what." "You know him?" "Just the name. He's a celebrity on the island, the most famous man on the island." The plane tilted up suddenly, and the morning sun came in through the window and turned around inside the plane.The stewardess roughly pulled down the partition of the porthole. "What? Are there any mermaids on this island?" "What did you say?"

The strange sound of the engine suddenly became more intense, and the two could no longer talk to each other.Closing the book and gripping the handle of the chair, Billy looked out the window with apprehension. Small islands float dotted across the stunning emerald green sea.The largest pear-shaped island in the ocean is his destination. Santa Maria Island.Nankai Paradise is rarely visited by tourists. Parallel to the Solomon Islands in northeastern Australia, there is a small archipelago.It is located at 13 degrees 7' south latitude and 156 degrees east longitude, and consists of nine small islands.The archipelago does not have a formal title like the Solomon Islands, and the islands have names such as Santa Maria, San Eleanor, and St. Vatican.Compared with the largest island in the archipelago, the pear-shaped Santa Maria, the other islands are too small, so some people refer to this archipelago as Santa Maria Island, but this is not accurate.At least, not universally "locally".

As shown by the word "Holy" on each island, this place has been baptized by Christianity in the past, and now the residents are also devout believers, and Sunday worship is indispensable.Most of the islanders were fishermen in their ancestors. It was not until recently that the modern pelagic fishing industry has become more and more developed, and the number of traditional small fishing boats has decreased significantly. Most of the population is concentrated in the small town of Boucher on Santa Maria Island.The coast of Boucher is a natural harbor suitable for fishing boats, so the island can only prosper here.The street composition of Boucher is influenced by Catholicism and is very similar to port towns in South America and Portugal.

South of Boucher, near the cove of Kelena, is the Oceanographic Institute of Ryan Norris.Ryan Knowles was the first person to conduct ecological research on dolphins, especially in the study of dolphin "language", and achieved state-of-the-art results. Walking out of the small airport, a bearded man was waiting for him holding a sign saying "Welcome Billy Hampson".The two smiled and shook hands. "Gordon Baker. Ryan's assistant." "Billy Hampson." "Huh? The teacher was still here just now... Ah, here we come." Turning his head following Gordon's words, he saw a man who had just come out of the toilet running over while wiping his hands with a T-shirt.This short, middle-aged man with a baby face was Ryan Knowles.He stood side by side with Gordon, unable to tell which was the assistant.

"Yeah, Billy Hampson?" "Hello, Mr. Ryan, nice to meet you." "It's been a long time since I've been here. Is the journey tiring? Is the Gold Coast enjoyable?" "Yeah. Well tanned." "For someone who lives in the city, the UV rays are a bit strong here, so you're just prepared." Ryan's beloved van was rusted and mottled by the sea breeze, and there were traces of paint on the body several times. "It's too salty. Here, New Year's is over in two years." Ryan stroked the hood of the car and smiled wryly.

The seaside road has a wide view, and the car is speeding on it, raising a cloud of dust.The afternoon sun reflected off the sea, and the hot and humid sea breeze blew in through the window, hitting Billy's face lightly.The wind in Santa Maria portends a pleasant trip. "...seems like a good report," Billy muttered unconsciously. "That's great." Gordon, with his hands on the steering wheel, echoed his soliloquies.Billy smiled wryly. "What a nice little island. It's really enviable to live in such a place." "What? Haha, the island is boring."

Looking out the window, the inhabitants of the island walk with fruit on their heads. "Actually, I'm not good at interviews, especially live interviews." "Really. Then we are the same." "We are determined to stay here for a long time. You can relax, and I will write some reports for you later." Ryan said. "Good idea. Then the report must be natural and vivid." Billy had heard that Ryan Knowles was a man who hated interviews, and it seemed to be just a rumor.Billy felt a little relieved. Suddenly, Gordon slammed on the brakes, and Ryan, who was sitting backward, almost fell over.

A young girl came running on a bicycle with buckets hanging from the handlebars. "It's Jessie. My daughter." Ryan straightened up. The girl picked up the bicycle and threw it rudely into the car, then opened the door and sat down next to Billy.She stuffed the bucket full of sardines at Billy's feet.Gordon in the driver's seat looked at the bucket. "What? Is the refrigerator empty?" Jessie nodded unhappily. "They are hungry and keep barking." "Aren't these enough?" "Deal with it first, maybe you can't even support it for two hours." "Jessie, this is Billy Hampson from Natural Paradise." "Oh." Jessie shook Billy's hand in a nonchalant manner. "My hands are dirty, sorry." Billy peeked at his own when her hand was gone.It was firmly stuck to the slime of the sardines.Gordon started the car and said: "OK. After delivering Billy, I'll go buy a batch later." "Please." Jessie glanced at Billy, then turned her head away.The wind blowing from the window messed up her hair, and Jessie brushed it back with her slimy hands.Her indifference made Billy feel strangely fond of him.She was very dark, not only because of her tanned skin, but also because of her jet-black hair and jet-black eyes. No matter what she looked like, she didn't look like Ryan's blood.It's like her mother. Billy's eyes drifted to Jessie's breasts inadvertently, startled by the fullness of the breasts.The line of sight slides down the curve of the exquisite calf, and finally lands on the bucket full of sardines. "Is it the dish for tonight?" "It's dolphin feed." Jessie glanced at Billy and answered casually. "It's the dolphins that are reared in our institute's swimming pool," Ryan added. "Oh, I'd love to see those dolphins." "They can't act." Ryan could only smile wryly at his daughter's indifferent attitude.An embarrassed Billy pretended to be nonchalant and looked out the window.The car happened to come to the bustling street of Port Boucher, and the number of buildings gradually increased.At the same time, the stench of the fish market wafted in the wind.Not bad if one thinks of the bad smell as exotic.Melanesians who work in the market come and go, and cars are often blocked and cannot move forward smoothly.Gordon calmly greeted his acquaintances in the local dialect, and drove forward slowly.Billy took his camera out of his bag and captured the vibrant market scene in the mirror.The residents of the tropical island were very enthusiastic. When they found someone taking pictures, they waved to him, and some of them danced. After walking for about 20 minutes from Boucher, Cape Kelina came into view, and a small white lighthouse stood alone there.The car turned down the slope under the lighthouse, and on the slope facing the sea, there were countless seabirds flying and landing. "awesome!" Billy pressed the shutter desperately. Looking down ahead, there is a white building that looks like a matchbox in the distance.In the swimming pool next to the matchbox, there are black dots jumping. "dolphin!" Billy couldn't help shouting out loud. "The dolphin is jumping! In the pool!" "You saw our car. It's saying 'Welcome'." When Billy looked for the pool again, his view was blocked by the grove and he lost his sight again.Soon, the car arrived at the institute.It looked like an elegant villa on the outside, and no one would have thought that it was a research institute if there was no small sign of "Carina Cape Sound Research Institute" hanging at the door. Unloading Billy at the entrance, Gordon turned the car around and went back the way he had come to buy feed.Jessie picked up the bucket and quickly disappeared into the backyard. The one who came out to greet him was a young Japanese named Hajiri Hiroshi.Billy had always thought that the Japanese were short, but the young man in front of him was tall and tall, standing shoulder to shoulder with Gordon was no less impressive.His long hair was tied back in a ponytail, and a bright kerchief was wrapped around his head.If he were not said to be Japanese, he might be mistaken for an American Indian. He didn't introduce himself either, and asked in English with an accent: "Japanese characters have independent meanings, do you know that?" "Like Chinese characters?" "Chinese and Japanese characters are originally the same." "yes." "Strictly speaking, there are many differences. Japanese characters were originally introduced from China, but after the Chinese character revolution, they were greatly simplified, and we don't recognize them now. Japan also added different characters later, making it a bit complicated. We are used to it, so it is not difficult, but it is quite difficult for people who learn Japanese. The so-called different characters are like Roman characters in English. Just as Roman characters have uppercase and lowercase letters, Japanese has hiragana , Katakana, this kind of characters, like ABC, has no independent meaning. But the characters themselves from China have various meanings. For example, JAPAN (Japan) is composed of two characters, which are 'the sun and Originally' means." "What about USA (written as '美国' in Japanese Kanji)?" "Hmmm, it's the 'Country of Rice'." "Isn't the country of rice Japan?" "That's not a good answer." "Then please teach me next time." Just as Billy was about to cut off the conversation, Hanuri hurriedly resumed the conversation.What he has to say follows: "My name is composed of three characters. One is feather, one is land, and the other is sea. In English, it becomes OCEAN WING LOBE." "Like an army. Sea, air, army." "Haha, people always say that. But I'm against war." "Me too. Both of us." It was then that Haruku finally reached out and shook hands with Billy. "My name is HIROSHI·HAOKA, and I will be the teacher's assistant with Gordon. Please take care of me." His lengthy self-introduction came to an end, and Billy was finally allowed in. The guest room assigned to Billy looked very comfortable, and the desk had been moved and placed in advance to take care of his writing. "It's a nice room." "It's the best room. Usually there are very few guests, so it may smell a bit musty, don't mind." Ryan said and patted the bed. You can see the swimming pool in the backyard from the window.Jessie is feeding the dolphins.I used the sardines in the car just now. "Can you see a garage next to the pool?" "Ok." "It's actually an indoor swimming pool." Looking back, Ryan had a naive and happy expression.At the door of the room, Haruku also pursed his lips and smiled. "It was only built last year. I'll take you to see it later." "That's great." Despite what he said, Billy was not interested in swimming pools. "Take you to the studio first." "Wait a moment." Billy stopped Ryan and Haruku who were about to walk out of the room, opened the bag, and took out the pocket camera that he bought at his own expense. "What? Are you going to work now?" "It's been so laid back in Cairns that my reflexes are sluggish, so I can't wait to get to work." Billy held up his camera and followed Ryan to his introduction. "This is the main place of work." It was more like a recording studio than a research room.Huge loudspeakers are mounted on two walls, and in the center of the room stands a table with a volume adjustment device, and there is a small room for recording through the glass.At first glance, this is an ordinary recording studio. From the loudspeakers, the calls that seem to be made by dolphins are repeated. "Hi Jack!" Hearing Ryan calling him, a short black man turned his head. "This is Technician Jack Morgan." Listening to Ryan's introduction, Jack showed an approachable smile.He was dressed in a sleek soul musician's fashion, with holes in his face and a ring. No matter how you looked at him, he didn't look like a scientist who studied dolphins. Billy looked around the studio. "It's almost like a recording studio." "It's not like, this is a real recording studio. Real musicians often come here to record." "Oh!" "The so-called musicians, they are very good." Jack said.He talks fast and mean like a rapper. "They're talking bullshit that if you harmonize in this environment, the sound is different. There's really no change at all. They plan to take a vacation and then work. Those musicians are filthy. Put down the record and run to the beach Smoking weed. One guy even overdosed and jumped in the pool to have sex with our dolphins." Ryan frowned. "That's Neil." "Yes, that guy has been banned from coming again." "Neil? Is it Neil Simon?" "It's another Neil. But Neil Simon has also been here, and he is simply here for vacation. Generally speaking, our studio only accepts some second-rate musicians, receive them properly, and then send them away. For the music Add some dolphin calls to the intro, and they go home happily. It's funny to write something in a rock magazine after returning home that 'nature has changed our music'." Jack finished speaking aloud, then giggled. "Jack used to work as a sound engineer in New York, and he is one of the few people in New York." People who moved to the countryside after retirement often add details when talking about their own experiences.Billy understood that. "Yeah. Is that because you're tired of the hustle and bustle of New York?" "I don't hate New York, but it's enough to be in the studio and listen to shitty music every day. It's a pain in the ass to listen to the same music these days." "Aren't you tired of hearing the singing of dolphins?" "The only ones I can't get enough of are Bob Marley and the Dolphins. Huh? Ain't it a bit contrived?" Jack looked at the camera and smiled, showing his white teeth. Next, Ryan kindly invited Billy to a room that looked like a research laboratory.There are neat bookshelves and a rich collection of shellfish specimens.Billy scanned the room, his eyes sparkling. "I love this environment so much, I can stay there for a long time. I like this the most since I was a child." "Haha, then you can stay here as long as you want, it's open to you." While obsessed with the bookshelf, Billy accidentally stepped on something.Just as he felt his feet go soft, the loud bark already shook the old window frame.In front of the startled Billy, an old dog who was taking a nap in the crevice of the bookshelf appeared. "Our elder - Jeff. He was a puppy when he came to this island, and he has become the oldest without knowing it." Then Ryan took Billy to the corner of the backyard.There are many fish tanks lined up with various aquatic creatures swimming in them.The most conspicuous of these are jellyfish. "It's hateful to meet it in the sea, but it's beautiful to see it in the fish tank, right?" Before Ryan said this, Billy had already stuck to the side of the fish tank, watching those huge jellyfish dancing incredible dances, fascinated by them. "Lian, do you study jellyfish too?" "It's just a hobby. Look at this again." There are strangely shaped fish swimming in the fish tank.A fish like a black snake. "Wide-throated fish!" Billy couldn't help crying out. "you know?" "It's the first time I've seen it." The wide-pharynx is a kind of deep-sea fish, and it is a rare fish that lives in the deep sea hundreds of meters below.Because of work, Billy has dived many times, but he knows that the possibility of encountering this kind of fish in the sea is zero. "Recently, deep-sea fish often come up. These are brought by local fishermen." Ryan pointed to the adjacent fish tank.Billy was momentarily speechless.The inhabitants of the deep sea, whom he would never see in his life, were wriggling inside.Among them are lantern fish and other luminescent fish. These precious fish can emit light with their bodies, and they are so beautiful that they don’t belong to this world. "Could it be an earthquake?" "We are also very worried. It may also be an eruption of a submarine volcano. The people on the island are very scared. It is unfortunate that you came at this time." "Where is the word, so it is nothing to regret to see such a thing." Billy refused to leave by the fish tank, Ryan urged him: "Okay, okay. If you want to see it, you can come and watch it anytime." "Ok." Billy reluctantly leaves Ryan's secret aquarium. "And finally the indoor pool." Ryan led Billy down to the ground.Why go underground if the garage next to the pool is an indoor pool.Although it was a bit unbelievable, Billy understood as soon as he walked down.And he also understood why Ryan showed a smug look. "It's our favorite product." Yuriku said. "very impressive." Billy could not help but sigh. "The swimming pool here is directly connected to the swimming pool outside. As long as the rolling iron gate is opened, the dolphins can come here directly." Ryan explained, but it wasn't that that caught Billy's attention but—the swimming pool suspended in the air!The transparent cylindrical pool was filled with water, and it was fixed in the air like that, almost looking up from the ground.The crane stands on both sides, sit on it, no matter from any position, you can observe the dolphins. Hanuri turned on the switchboard in the room and flipped the switch.The lights in the swimming pool came on, and the outline of the pool emerged brightly. Billy shouted 'amazing' and 'amazing', anyway, he wanted to see how the dolphins swam in this pool.Ryan sensed his thoughts. "Want to see dolphins swim?" "Hey." "But no. Those guys hate it and won't come in." "?" "I tried several times, but it doesn't work at all. If this continues, the facilities that I have worked so hard to make will become useless, and I am also worried." "Have you never used it once?" "yes." "How about I swim for you?" Yuriku said. "Thanks, no need." After the general visit, the three of them rested on the sofa in the living room. "I have a collection of Japanese tea." After saying that, Hanuri happily entered the kitchen. There are large photographs on the walls of the living room.The duo, in wedding gowns and evening gowns, are opening champagne in the water with oxygen bottles on their backs. "This is you?" "Ah, it's a photo of the wedding ceremony." Billy couldn't help laughing in surprise. "My wife died three years ago." "Huh? Why?" Ryan hesitated to speak, but said briefly: "in the sea." Silence flowed between the two.At this time Hariku brought tea. "It's iced. But the Japanese don't drink iced tea very often." Billy put the tea to his lips, looking a little listless.Haluku misunderstood him after watching it. "Is it bitter?" "Eh?...No, it's delicious." "yes?" "I'm tired. It's better to rest in the room." "Maybe. I'll take a break then." "I'll call you when dinner is ready. Today is a welcome banquet!" The young Hajiri looked elated at the few visitors. Once back in the room and sitting on the bed, sleepiness swept over.Lie down and close your eyes, but your body is strangely excited, refusing to fall asleep.It's always like this on the first day when you arrive somewhere, if you barely fall asleep, you will wake up at night.So Billy got up and packed his bags. The room assigned to him faced west, and the sunlight filtered in through the leaves, depicting the coconut palms on the white walls.While she was arranging her clothes, there was the sound of splashing water from the pool.From Billy's window, Jessie was swimming with the dolphins.Jessie grew up with dolphins and learned to swim from dolphins. Her swimming style is very beautiful. After swimming for a while, Jessie climbed ashore and heard someone whistle.Looking back, Billy was waving at her by the window. "Great swim. Any thoughts on going to the Olympics?" Jessie still had a cold expression on her face, and picked up the bath towel. "Hello, Jessie." "what?" Billy threw something shiny.Jessie missed and landed on the lawn.At first glance, it is a necklace of dolphins. "A friend specially made it for me, here it is for you." Staring at the necklace, Jessie said: "It's a white dolphin." "Yes. As expected of Ryan's daughter." "The dorsal fin is in the wrong position." After speaking, Jessie put the necklace around her neck. "Natural Paradise . . . read it sometimes." "yes." "It's been boring lately." Billy's expression reined in.He quickly changed the subject. "Are those dolphins also white dolphins?" "It's a bottlenose dolphin." "I know their nicknames. Well... Jo, Meg, Beth, Amy." "You really understand." "The name is from "Little Women"? I previewed it beforehand." "Well, which one is Joe?" "Uh?" Jessie whistled sharply, and the four dolphins lined up neatly and raised their heads. "Can you tell the difference?" "certainly." From Billy's point of view, they looked the same. "You don't know which one is? These children already remember your appearance." As if to say: "This is the end of the greetings to the guests", Jessie jumped into the water nimbly.Billy watched her swim with the dolphins for a while longer. Even at night, after the welcome banquet started, Jessie's cold face did not change.After eating, she packed up the tableware and quickly withdrew to the room.Seeing her walk up to the second floor, Ryan sighed. "My daughter is very disobedient, don't mind." "I don't……" Billy smiled wryly and continued eating. "My wife was killed by a shark. When Jessie was twelve years old." "Uh?" "She's swimming with Jessie . . . not far from here." Billy looked back at the picture of the living room. "There are frequent accidents in this area. Jessie is still afraid of the sea because of the stimulation at that time." "I saw her swimming in the pool in the evening...she was a good swimmer." "Not in the sea." "Lyan cared too much." Jack said, "all girls of this age are like that, especially cold to their father." "I know that." Ryan noticed the wine was gone and went to the kitchen to get a new one.Jack then strikes up a conversation with Billy. "It's age. Everyone is that age. I was more bad-tempered when I was younger." After Jack finished speaking, he lifted his shirt to reveal his stomach.There is a green spot on the flank. "Old wounds from before. Beaten by the police with batons." "Because of what?" "Because of what? How can I remember so clearly." This time Gordon suddenly put his left leg on the table.On the sole of his big foot, there was a round scar. "It's the bullet mark." "?" Billy was dumbfounded.Looking at him, Jack suppressed a laugh.At this time, there was a crazy laugh from behind. Looking back, Ryan was holding a wine bottle, and his face was flushed with laughter. "how?" "Gordon, that guy was on the shooting range and shot himself in the foot by mistake. Moreover, he pulled the trigger all of a sudden because he sneezed. This guy is a pure idiot!" Billy couldn't help laughing this time too.Gordon pulled his foot off angrily. After eating almost all the food on the dinner table, Ryan and the others drove to the port town of Boucher.Going to Boucher's bar for a drink after dinner is their daily homework.The restaurant I went to that day was called "Oysmon Sheru", and it was a restaurant specializing in oysters.There, Ryan introduced Billy to familiar guests. Ryan and the others mingled with the local fishermen, drank several glasses of strong liqueur, and gulped down the specialty oyster dishes in the shop.They ate the food as if they hadn't had dinner just now.Hajiku says he doesn't drink at all, so he competes with Gordon for oysters.Ryan said to the stunned Billy: "Gordon was originally an American football player, and Haruku was a judo player." Gordon and Lu Yu humbly said in unison: "It's no longer possible." Billy could eat two pieces of raw oysters as much as he could. When the store was a little empty, the owner Tao came to their table. Tao welcomed Billy with a wrinkled smile and offered him a glass of good strong rum.Before Billy could bring the cup to his lips, he was choking. "He's a reporter from a magazine," Ryan said. "Really. What are you here to interview?...A mermaid?" Billy remembered that the stewardess had asked the same question. "A mermaid... what is it?" Tao exhaled cigar smoke from his nose in surprise. "Don't you know mermaids?" "No, I know. But there can't be mermaids on this island, right?" "Of course not." jack laughed at it "The legend of the mermaid is a famous product of this island. There is nothing unusual about it. You can often hear such stories in port towns like this." Ryan seemed to lack interest, but Billy's curiosity was aroused, and he leaned forward and asked: "What kind of legend is it?" "The so-called mermaid legend is the same everywhere. It is a common method to attract tourists." So Tao, smoking a cigar, began to tell the story of the mermaid. "On the night of the full moon, the mermaids will float up from the bottom of the sea. Just the full moon is not enough, there must be no wind, and there must be no waves on the sea. I don't know why the mermaids choose such a night. In short, such a night seems to suit their wishes. Such a night is a disaster for fishermen who go out to sea to fish. The mermaids sing to lure them, and all the fishermen who hear the singing go crazy, and jump into the sea by themselves, and become food for the mermaids." "It's also in Homer's Odyssey. At that time, beeswax was stuffed into the ears, and the body was bound to the mast." Ryan joked.Tao got angry and refuted him: "It has nothing to do with that! Our legend has been passed down from generation to generation, much earlier than that." "It should have been created after the introduction of Catholicism. Efati has Christmas and Easter. If you trace the origin of mermaids, you will always find them in European books." Ryan Billy said so. "Alfati's mermaid is unique to Alfati." Tao was enraged. "White people always think they bring everything." "The Anglo-Saxons do have that," said Jack. "I'm for Tao." Jack touched Tao's glass to toast him, and drank the rum. "In Japanese legend, the mermaid is an immortal animal, and it is said that eating its meat can live a long life." Then Hajiri began his lengthy explanation.His words extend to the unexpected similarities between Greek mythology and "Kojiki", and he compares the story of 'Izanagi' who wants to lead 'Izanami' to escape from the kingdom of hell with the story of Orpheus . Although interested in what he had to say, Billy somehow remained obsessed with the subject of mermaids. When Hajiri paused for a moment, Billy asked Tao: "Then have you seen it?" "See what?" "Mermaid." Tao was taken aback by Billy's question, and took another puff of cigarette from his nose. "How could there be such a thing. It's just a legend." Ryan and the others burst into laughter when they heard the conversation between the two.