Chapter One: The End

Nobody wants to die. If we knew how close death was to us, we would have firstly turned around and ran away, ran away from death. The chasing death would have been hard to bluff, but we would have tried to save our-self somehow. Ryan had jumped in five hundred meter deep water all alone, words of Diana still ringing in his head, ‘Your dad and your life is in danger’. How close was he to his own death? Was he about to die? He could not think about it now, now that he is on this mission, air bubbling out of his mask as he exhaled on Diana’s bad intensions. The water was chilled and each hair on his body was standing. Over his head he could see a small spec of black of his boat. It’s usually good to have company when you venture in such deep dark waters for if you would die, at least there would be someone beside you when you take your last breath. He swam farther deep; he knew the spot as well as a child remembers the garden where he played all his childhood. The plants of the garden, the color of the soil, the sense of the place, and his favorite ride; every child has his favorite ride. The light of Ryan’s head lamp felt over something. She was huge, elegant, dark and old but as beautiful as she looked on her first day. Still there with pride though rusted and worn-out, for once she used to be the best ship in the harbor. What was once a home for several mariners was now a place for several fauna to hide. Her brown splendid body was now covered with green algae. Ryan knew each part of his favourite ride so well; he had felt it so many times before. She wasn't just a shipwreck; she was a part of his family heritage. She was his and his dad’s, so was the ruby he carried. ‘The ruby, Diana must have noticed the ruby was gone so she must have called him to scare him and bring him back home’ concluded Ryan. Ryan looked up at the sea’s surface. He could not spot his boat anywhere as he was covered in darkness, ‘darkness is just the absence of light’; he reminded himself. Back there in the boat are his friends, especially his best friend Maddy, whose heart would be gulping out with the fear of losing him forever. He remembered how he looked at him from the corner of his eye, when he jumped in the water against his will, against his insecurities with water. But Ryan had no fear of water, he was a Zurzatey, water and ships were in his blood.

He slowly swam towards the mermaid effigy, he was interested in. As the light of his head lamp felt over her, Ryan took a breath of relief. He held her with his arm and shook her, still so firmly attached to the nose of the ship, still so beautiful. Her color had faded over the years no doubt, the end of her fish tail was missing too but she still looked graceful and seductive. Her eyes were so real as if she was looking at him, as if wondering how he found time to visit the old and abandon lady fish today. Her hands crossed over her chest as if covering her-self out of shyness. There was a hint of shyness on her face. What Ryan was interested was her finger ring, empty of its gem. ‘Come, let me make you a little more beautiful today’ Ryan thought and opened his glue on pouch and removed a filer. Very gracefully he cleaned the green growth in and around the prong. Then he removed an underwater adhesive that he had hoped would work as it said on it and if not the glue then he had underwater tapes too. Slowly he removed the box that contained the ruby, it had become wet and water had filled in the box. ‘One last important step, do not lose the ruby, do not lose the ruby’ he alerted himself and also prayed. He picked up the adhesive to apply over the prong and felt a hit on behind of his head. Dropping the glue bottle he touched the part that sore. The water in the light of his head lamp was no more dark and transparent; it was turning slowly into red. It was a bitter pain as salt of the sea rubbed on his wounds. Ryan quickly inserted the box back into his pouch, with another swift moment removed his knife while he turned behind to find the source of attack and at the very moment knew that he had to get out of the water as quickly as possible now. To his surprise it wasn’t an alien sea creature or any floating object, it was one of his kind. ‘What was this scuba diver doing here?’ The attacker threw the stone with which he had hit Ryan’s head to the floor. A bulky about six feet tall attacker removed a knife, bigger and sharper then Ryan’s. Ryan’s knife was a part of his scuba gear for he didn't go in the water to butcher other scuba swimmers. Ryan moved his knife to attack on the attacker’s non weapon arm, the closest in his proximity, which the attacker stopped with no affords and pierced his knife into Ryan’s guts while pressing Ryan’s wrist which held the knife with all his might. But Ryan didn't let go of the knife. Removing the knife from Ryan stomach he pushed his head on the mermaid in one clean and powerful move. The wound on Ryan’s head cracked open even further, he yelled in pain but the voice was mere bubbles of air. ‘Your dad and your life are in danger’ he recollected Diana’s words rotating in his head. She wasn’t lying after all. His dad’s life was in danger too. Gaining all the strength he could, he rotated the knife in his hand and jabbed the attacker’s hand that was holding him. Lot of blood was already lost. He knew it was nearly impossible for him to swim back even if he killed the assassin. The cut on the attackers hand was minor. He twisted Ryan’s hand making the knife fall. Ryan tried to kick him which made the pain in his guts even worse and the second attack came in his chest. With the ultimate attack received over his pumping heart Ryan gave up all counter attacks wishing the pain to ease, wishing he could see his dad for one last time, wishing he had given one last hug to Maddy, wishing Diana would had never came in his life, and wishing this was not his end. For the icing on the top, the butcher cut open the cord of Ryan’s air supply. Ryan felt on the ground as the assassin released his wrist. Air bubbles ascending through the water cut the water of red blood making Ryan screech in pain with his voice quickly fading inside him before it could escape his mouth. Ryan gave a last look at his assassin and then the shipwreck and closed his eyes as he could not tolerate any more pain. He took his last breath as he felt his soul being removed and taken away by someone he could not see and the next moment all his pain was gone as he slept in peace forever.