You're up early, Dad.
Even for you.
You know what they say about the early bird.
He spends the rest of the day yawning and cranky.
So, what's all this? Hmm?
Well, I've been taking tourists to the same patch of seaweed for years.
It's getting old.
These days the punters expect a lot more bang for their buck.
So?
So I've decided to shake things up.
Again?
I've got it nailed this time, Evie. Trust me.
Mako Island dive tours.
Mako?
Coral reefs, beautiful marine life. Tourists will lap it up.
Mako's one of a kind, sweetheart.
I'm going to make sure the whole world knows about it.
You're a hard man to track down.
Want to hang out?
Above or underwater?
I'm sorry I didn't tell you.
I wanted to, but what was I supposed to say?
"Hey, everyone. I'm Erik, from an ancient line of mermen.
Who's up for a frozen yogurt?"
You went out of your way to keep it a secret.
Of course I did. I've spent my whole life keeping it a secret.
So why didn't you say something when you knew what I was?
I have to be as cautious as you guys.
It's like a reflex.
Ondina told me how you got your tail.
A land boy with merman powers.
Awesome.
And you're the real deal.
- Bet you're pretty fast in the water.
How about a race to Mako?
I've got to catch up with Evie in the café soon.
And I've got a shift. We won't be long.
Come on.
It'll give me a chance to check out the competition.
Unless you're not up for it?
You're on.
Great day for a dive, Evie.
Are you sure you thought of everything?
I mean, Mako's a marine reserve, Dad.
You need a permit to dive there.
Yeah, I got it online. It was a breeze.
Well, you could end up losing your old customers.
I need new customers, Evie. That's the point.
It's still a really big risk.
Look, I put ads in the paper.
I've got a website with stunning underwater pictures,
and bookings are up from last year.
The risk is already paying off. See?
Change isn't always a good thing, Dad.
What's up with you?
I'm just concerned.
Your plans haven't always gone so well in the past.
Well, that's very sweet, but you don't need to worry.
This time your old man knows exactly what he's doing.
Okay?
Good morning, folks. I'm Doug McLaren.
Welcome to Mako Dive Tours' inaugural cruise.
Zac, Dad's taking his dive boat to Mako. Call me as soon as you get this.
I thought I was fast.
I've been doing this a little bit longer than you.
I had you at the first trench, though,
and then you hit the gas, and I was like, "Where'd he go?"
Well, for a rookie, you got real speed.
Thanks.
You want to keep going?
There's a deep trench around here with a radical drop off.
Unless you're too tired?
You wish.
Hi, Sirena, girls.
What can I get for you? We've got fresh blueberry muffins...
Is Erik here?
Um, no. We've also got apple and cinnamon...
When will he be here?
His shift doesn't start for another hour.
I'll wait.
So, what'll it be?
Hi, Evie.
There's something I need to tell you... Now!
Excuse me.
- How's that for a wicked drop off? - That was pretty cool.
Stick with me.
I've got a whole lot more to show you about being a merman.
We got company. Down.
That was way too close.
That's Evie's dad.
You sure?
I'm certain. I wonder why he's here.
He's never run a dive tour to Mako before.
This is not cool.
We better get out of here.
I tried to talk Dad out of it, but he wouldn't listen.
Mako is so beautiful,
I mean, you can understand why people would want to go there.
Mako is our home, not a place for gawking tourists.
Did you get my message?
Yeah, after your dad's boat almost ran us down.
The two of you were at Mako?
Just in the water. Don't worry, he didn't see us.
We have to stop your father taking people out there.
Why? If we stay away, there's nothing to see.
If you need to go out there, you can always cloak yourselves.
Making ourselves invisible is not the solution.
He's your father. Keep him away.
Ondina, wait!
I can't believe you didn't back me up.
You were doing fine without me.
Why am I the only one that can see how dangerous this is?
Stopping Evie's dad could draw attention to us.
Do you want to blow our secret?
I have to protect Mako.
There are other islands.
Find some away from the tourists.
Swim up the coast with me.
I'll show you islands you won't believe.
You don't get it.
Mako can't just be swapped for another island.
Our pod has one home. We live there and we're not leaving.
It matters that much?
Yes, it matters that much.
Are you going to help?
Right, I get it.
You're a merman. Why should you?
You're right, this isn't my fight.
I waited for you this morning.
I'm not waiting anymore.
Mermen are different, Ondina. You can't expect him to understand.
Why?
This isn't about mermaids versus mermen.
It's about merpeople versus land people.
Why doesn't he see that it is his fight?
He's really gotten under your scales, hasn't he?
Of course not. I'm just...
I'm angry for wasting time talking to him.
I should have known it was pointless.
So, what are we going to do about Evie's dad?
What mermaids have always done, look after ourselves.
What were you doing with Erik on Mako?
Not you, too.
We were just going for a swim, okay? Nothing else.
Okay. Sorry.
It's just that we don't know what he's doing here.
Well, now that we're buds, I'll ask him.
Dinner won't be long.
I hear you've got a new location for your dive tours, Mr. McLaren.
News spreads fast.
Mako's great, but do you really think that's the best place?
What is it with you kids and Mako? It's just an island.
It's not just an island, Mr. McLaren.
We have sudden underwater currents,
rogue waves, storms that blow up out of nowhere.
Mako's like the...
Bermuda Triangle of the Gold Coast.
Well, it was perfect out there today.
Today, yes. But tomorrow, who knows?
I could show you some terrific dive spots further up the coast.
Thanks, Zac, but I've got a full boat tomorrow and the rest of the week.
Things couldn't be better.
We caught this fellow off Mako this morning.
Who wants the tail?
Wish we could go for a swim.
I hope she's got good news.
The divers are still out there, all over the reef.
They can't stay down there forever.
There's a machine in the boat that pushes air into their breathing tanks.
They can stay underwater all day.
So we're prisoners in our own moon pool?
This is not acceptable.
Grab the extinguisher!
No!
- I got your message. What's up? - I don't know.
Got a call from Dad saying to meet him here.
I'm so sorry, folks.
You'll all get a full refund, of course.
What happened?
Oh, the compressor cooked itself.
I don't know what happened. It was working fine, then just... stopped.
No air for the tanks, so we had to stop diving.
Can you fix it?
I've got no choice.
I can't afford to be off the water even for a day.
A little bit of elbow grease, a few dollars for parts,
I'll have it fixed...
I hope.
So much for your dad's big plan.
Better make a start.
- You'll have to make your own dinner. - Sure.
I'll bring you something.
You thinking what I'm thinking?
- I can't believe you did that! - Did what?
You sabotaged Evie's dad's boat!
I have no idea what you're talking about.
This morning, you wrecked his air compressor.
As I have no idea what an air compressor is,
I don't see how you can accuse me.
You can't just destroy a man's business because you think Mako belongs to you.
A land boy with an accidental tail doesn't get to lecture me about my home.
You're not just hurting Evie's dad, you're hurting Evie,
and I can't let you do that.
Can he fix it?
He's still stripping it down. Then he'll know how much damage there is.
It could have been an accident.
Our friends from the sea don't want anyone near Mako...
and then your dad's compressor dies.
Do you really think that that was an accident?
Better get this food to Dad.
He could be there all night.
See you later.
Hey, feel like hitting the water?
Beating me twice wasn't enough?
I could give you a head start.
Have you forgotten the little problem we had on the reef yesterday?
David said the boat was out of action, so we're good.
For now, yeah.
Except Evie's dad's at the marina working on it.
- Really? - Might even have it fixed by tomorrow.
So we'll go somewhere else. There's plenty of ocean, so don't stress.
Hey, you know what you need?
I'm sure you're going to tell me.
Pineapple juice with a hint of ginger. On the house. Peps you up.
Might even give you an edge in the race.
Ondina didn't do it.
Of course you'd say that.
We were trapped in the moon pool all morning by divers.
Ondina was with us the whole time.
I know Ondina can be frustrating, but she wouldn't damage anything.
Where's Ondina?
She went swimming.
It's impossible during the day with all the divers.
Ondina didn't do anything to your dad's boat.
She was with us.
I know. Zac told me.
I just thought we could come up with a way to keep my dad away from Mako
without him losing his business.
It's like Mimmi said, it's easy to see why the land people would want to come here.
The fish, the reef. What's not to love?
True. Land people can't get enough of marine life.
If it's not scuba diving, it's snorkeling or whale watching.
Whales are such show-offs. They love the attention.
And they love to gossip, especially humpbacks.
How do you know that?
I speak whale.
Blue whale is pretty difficult, but humpback is easy.
Forget something?
You gave me a fright.
Didn't do a good enough job wrecking the compressor?
When did you know it was me?
I suspected at the café.
Then Mimmi and Sirena told me Ondina was with them when it happened.
It had to be you.
Smart man.
We're not ordinary people, Zac.
We're special.
We need to protect our secret.
It doesn't mean we can go around doing whatever we want.
You're not a real merman.
You got your tail by accident.
But you're still one of us.
You have to decide where your loyalties lie.
I already have.
Well, what are you gonna do?
Nothing for now.
But you're going to pay Evie's dad back.
You're going to do more hours at the café
and you're going to make an anonymous donation on his website
and make up for the damages that you've done.
It was you.
What? No small talk?
You sabotaged the boat. Why did you do it?
I wanted to help.
I thought you didn't care.
I'm unpredictable. It's part of my charm.
You said it wasn't your fight.
I want to know why you tried to help when you were so obviously not interested.
If you don't want to tell me, fine.
I did it for you.
Humpbacks! There's heaps of them.
They're beautiful.
Amazing, isn't it?
Only filmed this this morning and already I'm booked up for the next two weeks.
I might have to hire another boat.
That's fantastic, Dad.
So, the dive tours to Mako...
Well, Mako's lovely, but... this is the opportunity of a lifetime.
You know the really amazing thing?
No one has ever seen whales so close to this part of the coast.
You know, sometimes you just get lucky.
Honey, I know you must think I'm a flake,
flip-flopping from one venture to another...
No, Dad. I think you've really hit the target with this one.
Really?
Really.
- Oh.
I've got to take this. Probably another booking.
Doug's Whale Watching Tours, Doug speaking.
I still can't believe you pulled this off.
Whales love to put on a show.
When I told one that there'd be some people who were keen to see them,
she told a few friends and then they told a few friends...
News travels fast in whale world.
Mimmi speaks fluent humpback.
No way!
- What did she say?
"I'm hungry. Does anyone have food?"
How do I say...
"Ondina, I'm really sorry I blamed you"?
What?
You said, "Ondina, you have cute feet."
Uh...
Let me try again.
Don't. My ears can't take anymore.
Apology accepted.
But I can do it properly.