Phase 13

David's Perspective

I was startled awake by a creaking sound, and as I opened my eyes, I saw a strange hand right in front of my face. At first, I thought I was hallucinating, but as the hand moved to pry open the capsule from the outside, panic surged through me.

"What the- Are you trying to kill me?" I exclaimed, though I doubted the person could hear me.

I knocked on the capsule, desperately trying to get the person's attention, but they continued their efforts to open it. I knocked again, my panic growing as the capsule's alarm started blaring. Despite my repeated attempts to warn the person, they swam away, seemingly unfazed by the commotion they caused.

With my heart racing, I reviewed the recorded video, hoping to identify the mysterious intruder. After repeatedly watching the footage, I managed to pause it just before the person swam away. What I saw sent chills down my spine. I compared the creature to the images the company was investigating, and the resemblance was uncanny.

As a child, I never believed in the existence of mermaids or mermen, but now I had to reconsider my stance. Observing the creature in the image, I noted its pale, glowing skin, long elf-like ears, a tail reminiscent of mythical merfolk, and most disturbingly, sharp, vampire-like teeth. I realized that my description seemed fantastical and impossible, but that's exactly how it appeared.

I promptly sent all the raw evidence to my personal account, knowing that the company's systems would automatically save and analyze the data. However, I deleted the evidence from the capsule's system, intending to use it as leverage in negotiations regarding my contract. As I scanned my surroundings for any signs of the creature's presence, I realized I was not far from the laboratory. But why was no one from the lab present? The explosion must have alerted them, and the rescue team should have informed them as well.

"-rrkrkk-rrrkkrr," the sound crackled through the capsule's communication system, and I immediately connected to the call.

"Hello, can anyone hear me?" I urgently called out.

"What is your current location? We've been searching for a day, but you're nowhere to be found."

"Have you accessed my location? My capsule didn't reach the surface. I'm stranded in the depths," I explained.

"The rescue team searched the location we received from this call, but you weren't there. We've exhausted all our efforts to locate you, and it seems something is..." The connection abruptly cut off.

"Hello? Somebody- damn it!" Frustration and confusion overwhelmed me.

A day had passed since I became trapped in this location, and my air supply was dwindling, now at 30%. Why couldn't they find me if they had my location? I was so close to the lab, yet it seemed they didn't care. If they couldn't find me in the designated location, where could I possibly be?

San's Perspective

"If he's not there, where could he be? We must have missed something during our search," Mandryx hissed.

"We thoroughly scanned the entire location and even dived deeper into his collection, but he wasn't there. We couldn't go deeper due to the strong currents, as it would risk another accident," I defended my team.

"What if he's trapped under or between something, hindering our efforts to find him?" Dianna suggested, pointing to David's designated location. Brianna followed up with another hypothesis, "Or what if he's on the other side of the location, causing confusion in the system's access to him?"

Countless possibilities and theories swirled through our minds, but we didn't know where to begin. A full day had passed since the search commenced, and David's air supply was rapidly depleting. All other survivors of the explosion had been found as their capsules reached the surface, but David's situation remained unresolved, with his capsule trapped in an unknown obstruction.

"We must continue the search before his air runs out. For now, let's draw conclusions from these theories," I commanded.

We resumed our efforts to rescue David, knowing that he remained in a comatose state and that his oxygen supply would soon be depleted. Old Hex and Lady Étienne joined us outside, assisting the divers in the search. I was surprised to learn that Thunder was Lady Étienne's son and Old Hex's adopted son the only information I know is that he's Mandryx's husband which explained Mandryx's heightened emotions.

David's Perspective

With only 20% of my air remaining, I still couldn't establish contact with anyone. Anxiety gripped me tightly as the currents around me grew stronger, and the aggressive creature outside intensified my unease. What if it had left to call its companions, planning to attack my capsule? Just the thought sent shivers down my spine, and I struggled to breathe properly, fearing it would attract the creature's attention.

As I prepared to close my eyes, exhausted from my position, I noticed two moving lights. Immediately, I flickered the alarm light on my capsule, hoping to catch their attention. But to my dismay, the lights moved farther away from my location. Losing hope, I turned off the alarm light, only to realize that something had collided with my capsule, causing it to jolt. Afraid that the creature had returned, I remained motionless, struggling to suppress my breath so as not to draw its attention.