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Rep listened to the thing demand something else, this time Melvin and found himself bitterly pulling away from the situation. Melvin had been a friend once but these days he seemed to throw himself at almost anything, from psychos to Atlantis. He was struck with the sad and bitter feeling he didn't know the man any longer and that he would do whatever he wanted.

It seemed at least that things would quieten again back on the island, which was what he wanted, given that Mask was out and about and he didn't want him to get hurt.

It was a grim state of affairs, but it wasn't his to control any longer. Melvin would do what he had to do, whatever that was.

"Enjoy your ******** mermaids." he said.

Luka didn't know what to do and in the wake of everything she had remained silent, standing there sopping wet next to her twin as they tried to figure out a way to appease Atlantis without fighting and then-

Melvin was being told to stay.

What did that mean.

Amber eyes blinked and she stepped forward, towards the seasoned hunter. "Can we...come back, bring you supplies?" They hadn't brought much with them on the mission. How was Melvin going to survive down here with so little? "Isn't there more we can do?

She didn't like this, but she did her best to keep the negative thoughts from bubbling up. Atlantis said that they could travel safely, to and from, hadn't it? As long as Melvin stayed behind.

Maybe...Maybe they could come back later and leave stuff at the entrance for him.

Biting down on her bottom lip she wrinkled her nose, toying with the edges of her coat. "Okay." She sounded more sure than she felt. "I'll make sure no one touches your stuff and everything gets taken back."

The girl didn't know him very well, but she wanted to see him come back some time, surely he had more to offer to them than just Atlantis, but he said he would be okay and she chose to believe him.

"Don't make us wait too long, okay?"

A shoulder pat wasn't going to cut it. Al swooped his arms around Melvin to hug him tightly. "Damn it man, what if you.... what if you don't ever get to leave? What if it's ******** years? These robots have no concept of ******** time man." He buried is face against Melvin's neck. Such a child. Such a dumb child. Men don't cry. Grown men never cry.

"I won't let them," he promised with a burble in his voice. "I won't let them touch any of your s**t, no even your room. They'll have to ******** go through me man." He meant it too with every fiber of his being. Letting them ******** with any of Melvin's s**t would be like saying he wasn't coming back and that - wasn't okay. He refused to accept that possible outcome. Be strong. You can be strong. Stop crying. He'll be back and okay... and maybe only a ******** yeeeeeeeaaaaaaaaaarrrrrrrrr.

He was ******** crying.

Auburn brows arched in obvious shock as the judge seemed to more or less relent. The storm was over, the island was safe, and they'd all be allowed to leave. Well, not all. Zeke glanced at Melvin as the other man agreed to the terms, lips pressing into a thin line before h shook his head and blew out a breath, one had coming up to push fingers through wet hair.

This didn't seem like the best idea, though holding onto the best case scenario, it was better than he'd been expecting. If this was the alliance Atlantis was making it out to sound, Melvin wouldn't remain there longer than was safe for him.

He'd wait for everyone else to say their bit before walking over to lay a hand on Melvin's shoulder, leaning in and speaking lowly. "You're absolutely sure about this?" Zeke did't want Atlantis closed to them anymore than Melvin did, but it also wasn't his own neck on the line here.

"Do you have your phone? Does it work down here?" At the very least, maybe they can keep in contact.

To say Oliver was unsettled by this turn of events was an understatement. There were too many unknowns in the situation, and the reassurance of safe passage was not enough to put his mind at rest. Melvin's own desire to do research with a willing and friendly Atlantis was not enough.

He approached next to Zeke.

"If you are going to stay here for an unspecified amount of time, can we at least ask Atlantis about supplying you with the necessities before we leave? I-in case the phone doesn't work... a-and you can't give us updates..." Oliver nervously brushed an imaginary strand of hair out of his face. "We can accept that you want to stay, but we can't up and abandon you."

As Melvin pushed Al gently away, Jordan moved over to take hold of the younger man's shoulder and steer him back. "Get it together, man," he said quietly, not unsympathetic. "This is Melvin's choice. He wants to keep this alliance, and these are the terms. It wouldn't be demanding he stay if it couldn't keep him safe while he's here, not if it's offering this as a compromise."

He hoped he was right. The reasoning made sense to him, and the only alternative would be to drag Melvin out against his will, and that might bring the anger of Atlantis's guards back down on them. That would be throwing away all the progress they'd made since they entered the city and taking away the choice of a peaceful agreement.