There is a saying that we know more about about the depths of space than we do the depths of the ocean. Even with science and technology progressing as much as it has, there was still a lot about the oceans that was still unknown. Even with Animalia Aquatica creating Animalians that can stay underwater indefinitely, there was still a lot left to explore. A large part of it was the abyssal zone, the dark world where sunlight never reaches and the water pressure is too high for even Animalians to go.
Though there were fish that live down in the darkness, uplifting them was not so simple. Their bodies were adapted to living in crushing pressure, with gas-filled vacuoles for their buoyancy. If they were taken up to the surface, the decrease in pressure on the vacuoles would cause them to explode. As such, the task of finding a way to create Animalians from these species has proven a daunting task.
Harold had been going over this problem for quite some time. He was, understandably, quite invested in Animalia Aquatica and was wanting to push the limits of it. But he couldn't think of a way for deep sea fish Animalians to come up to the surface without popping.
Kirana looked over at the problem her mate was working on. "So, if the deep sea fish were uplifted with what we have now, they'd explode if they leave the abyssal zone?" she asked.
"That's what I'm trying to work around," said Harold.
"But aren't there species that can go from the surface to the abyssal zone?" asked Kirana.
"Well, there are sperm whales, they dive down deep to hunt for squid, but we can't uplift a sperm whale," said Harold. While the size limits of what extant species the Animalia virus can uplift hadn't ever been tested, it was very impractical to try and uplift any of the large whales. Even if they could be uplifted, there would be no place on land for these behemoths.
Kirana looked up the sperm whale online and said, "Huh, did you know that there's a species of whale that can dive even deeper?"
"Really?" asked Harold.
"The Cuvier's beaked whale has been documented to dive down to nearly 10,000 feet below the surface and is capable of holding its breath for over two hours. It manages that by compressing its ribs and reducing its buoyancy. That gives it the deepest and longest dive of any mammal," said Kirana.
Harold looked over other facts about the beaked whale, "It's smaller than the orca, it lives in every ocean and non-landlocked sea, and it's one of the most common species of whale. It's perfect! Kirana, you're a genius!"
"Oh, you flatterer," said Kirana.
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Though the Cuvier's beaked whale has a global habitat range, finding one wasn't so simple. The beaked whale only spends a few minutes at the surface before diving down to hunt for squid. Though because it has such large numbers, it's one of the most frequent whales to end beached. It took some hunting before a suitable specimen was found. A male Cuvier's beaked whale had washed up on a beach on one of French Polynesia's numerous islands. Thankfully, the whale was still alive and Horizon Labs was able to get it transported to Mieni Atoll.
The uplifted whale, who was named Cousteau, resembled a large dolphin Animalian. Though he was considerably taller and more muscular than a dolphin and his snout was very differently-shaped. While Cousteau acclimated to Animalia, a thorough analysis was run over his altered DNA. Eventually, the genes that were responsible for the Cuvier's beaked whale ability to dive and resurface were isolated. The idea was to overwrite the vacuole system found in deep sea fish to allow them to visit the surface and leave the water.
Once the modified Aquatica formula was prepared, Cousteau was sent down with a vial of it down to find a fish to uplift. After a long wait, Cousteau resurfaced with a former denizen of the deep, a barreleye fish whose brain and eyes were visible inside a transparent dome on his head. That soon gave him the name Bubblehead. The new formula certainly worked in allowing Bubblehead to come to the surface and leave the water. He also became a lot larger and more muscular than would have been expected from a barreleye fish. Though considering he was spliced with whale DNA, even from a small species of whale, it wasn't that much of a surprise.
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After the success with Bubblehead, Harold was excited to get started on the new Animalia Abyssus project. There were so many different kinds of deep sea fish to uplift: lanternfish, flashlight fish, viper fish, gulper eels. His computer was currently displaying the various species. "So many fish to work with," said Harold, "I'm not sure where to start."
Kirana looked at them and said, "Some of those fish are really ugly, aren't they?"
"Well, considering the only light down there is from bio-luminescence, there's not much point in looking pretty," said Harold jokingly.
"Must be a regular house of horrors down there," said Kirana.
Harold though about that comment for a few moments before saying, "Well, one of the species we'll have to uplift is an anglerfish. Apparently, Project Hermaphroditus has been wanting one for a while."
"Why's that?" asked Kirana.
"I assume it's because of the extreme sexual dimorphism found in deep sea anglerfish. The females are the large predators with the glowing angler people are familiar. The males are little more than a set of gonads with fins and gills. With most species, the male will seek out a female and latch onto her with its mouth. Then it'll merge with her body and basically become a set of gonads for her to readily use. I suppose the fact that they're essentially hermaphrodites appeal to some people," said Harold.
Kirana looked online and said, "The anglerfish isn't the only hermaphroditic fish. The mangrove killifish are mostly hermaphrodites with a few males."
Harold pondered that and said, "Let's try to find an appropriate angler fish before we tackle the killifish."
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Kirana's comment about the deep sea being a 'house of horrors' soon sparked an idea for the Halloween event. An exhibit was being planned to showcase the various species of abyssal zone fish. The bio-luminescence and the terrifying visages would fit well with the general spooky motif of Halloween.