There it was again – that feeling. Tara froze, debating whether or not to turn. She knew what she would see if she turned around. Nothing. It had been nothing the first time, nothing the second time, the third time it had been a pod of dolphins but she was sure that when she turned this time there would be nothing there. The hydrokinetic tried to calm herself by taking a deep breath of… well, water. She was being paranoid again. She was always paranoid when it came to traveling in murky waters. Whenever she did scenes of Jaws, Lake Placid, Beast and countless other aquatic horror movies immediately came to mind.

Tara kicked forward a few more feet, the current rippling across her clothes and crimson streaked hair as she progressed. She was determined not to look back. She was determined to keep striving forward until she reached her destination. She was so close. After a few moments she calmed entirely and allowed herself to take in the beauty of underwater surroundings. Every so often she saw a few vibrant fish plodding along, no specific goal in mind. Jellyfish floated limp in the current, their tentacles reaching lazily for whatever may foolishly swim into its merciless clutches. A smaller shark had even crossed her path, curiously inspecting the intruder in his domain. Apparently he hadn't found her too appetizing and had continued on his way without disturbing her. She rolled over in the water, back-stroking unnecessarily as she propelled herself along in the water with her powers. The effect the sun had on the ocean was magnificent – the light rippled and cascaded on the waves, casting odd and perpetually changing shadows and shimmers of light in the water and its denizens. It was much more peaceful under the sea than at home. Tara allowed herself to close her eyes as she continued on her course, basking in the underwater luminance.

A ripple in the water, a shadow casting briefly overhead; Tara's eyes bolted open and she righted herself in the water. The feeling was back. Her eyes roved the dark and foggy water but found nothing immediately threatening. No, there was something. No matter how well disguised it may have been, no matter how agile it was, there was something there. Knowing she'd be safe as soon as she reached her destination, Tara began to swim faster. She knew it knew she was onto it, whatever it was. She dove deeper, hoping to elude her attacker in the darker water. As she neared the ocean floor she realized that many a fishing boat had gone down here, possibly due to the bad weather that frequented the area. Perfect, an obstacle course with plenty of places to hide.

She ducked into the shattered hull of a boat and peered around, searching. Nothing. Tara bit her lip nervously and pulled her hair back – the longer she remained still the more her hair wafted around her and prohibited sight, making this endeavor even more dangerous. A glint of metal stood out from the rusted steel and rotted wood to her left and she finally laid eyes on her attacker. Her heart bolted and she gasped, kicking back. The attacker must have sensed it was found out and it sprang from its hiding spot, its intentions clear.

Tara swam deeper into her hiding spot, the very thing she'd hoped to save her had unintentionally become her prison. It was nearing and she was trapped, doomed. No, wait, a porthole had gone unnoticed. She squeezed out at the last moment just as it came ripping through the hull, grabbing at where she'd been only moments before. The hydrokinetic swam for her life; over, under and through obstacles she'd hoped would slow it down and disorient it. The chase went on for what seemed forever and by the time Tara thought she'd lost it she was so far off course she was hopelessly lost. She was safe, though, and that's all that concerned her at the moment.

To be sure she scanned the surrounding water intently, searching for any signs of movement. Finding none she exhaled deeply in relief and leaned against a rusted steel crate that lay a little ways from the ship that probably transported it. Tara let herself calm down and began to chuckle a bit, finding laughter the only appropriate way to express her relief. With her guard down she didn't notice claws sneaking around the edge of her perch…

"Excuse me, Tara?"

Tara's eyes opened and she jerked up in her chair, nearly losing her balance as she surveyed the area. "Whoa there, miss." The voice called again and she glanced down at the rather attractive boy below her. "I'd just noticed you'd fallen asleep again. Another lifeguard will be here in a few moments to take over shift…" He explained.

"Oh, thanks, yeah." She smiled weakly, rubbing her eyes. She glanced out over the pool she was guarding and thankfully noted that none of the kids had drowned during her nap. She hated early shifts; she was always so tired and tended to not be as alert as she should have been.

"I'm Amos, the new snack bar guy." He explained as he extended his hand to help her down from her lifeguard tower. She took his hand gratefully and flashed a smile, although something uneasy stirred within her. Amos… the name reminded her of something but of what she wasn't sure. Oh well… she was probably still shaking off the remnants of whatever nightmare she'd had. Yeah… that was it…

…Meanwhile, in another dimension, government officials celebrated as their Aquatic Mutant Obliteration System exterminated another nuisance.

Tara's mouth opened and closed soundlessly as spear-tipped metal tentacles ripped clean through her abdomen as if it were tissue. In her final seconds of life she watched blurrily as the water turned crimson and her attacker turned to leave, displaying its initials brazenly on its side. Her eyes glazed over, the last thing she saw was the shark that had disregarded her earlier was swimming towards her… and he'd brought friends this time…