Manfred was standing in his gray swim trunks, staring at the large swimming pool. It was quite large, with a high dive at one end, and a shallow wading area. Next to the wading area was a small square and net, where the inmates could play volleyball in the water. Manfred looked at the water, still pondering as to why he accepted Gant's absurd offer. "Last one in is the rotten cabbage!" Damon Gant said to Karma, as he dashed passed him, and did a running jump into the middle of the pool. Gant returned to the surface, smiling ridiculously and looking right at Manfred through his purple shaded goggles. "The water is fine, Manny!" shouted Gant. It really didn't matter what volume Gant's voice was, for the other men in the pool were too occupied with volleyball and the guards were only concerned about their duty. Gant was like a younger sibling, pestering the older one to play.
Manfred took a deep sigh, and whispered under his breath, "Just one hour…" as he descended the ladder into the 7-foot water. The water was initially cold, but after Manfred dipped his head into the pool, his entire body got used to the relatively lukewarm water. Gant clapped, and announced, "Let us have a race, Manny! I've always wanted to see if anyone can best me in a 50-Meter Freestyle." Manfred closed his eyes in bitter annoyance due to his request, but did not allow Gant to see it. Karma simply replied, "Fine. One lap, Gant." Gant then replied heartily, "Good! Always nice to see some sport in you, Manny!" The two went to the closest end of the pool, the side with the high dive. They both took their positions. Across the room was a large clock. Gant turned to Karma, and suggested, "When the second hand hits the top, we'll go." Manfred acknowledged this with a nod, and both men were staring at the large clock. 15 seconds. They tensed up their knees. 10 seconds. Karma narrowed his vision to the opposite wall. 5 seconds. Both men took in some air. Four. Three. Two. One.
Go.
With great speed, Manfred and Damon kicked off the concrete wall. Gant had begun the Butterfly technique, a particularly hard stroke that required both great arm and leg strength to pull off effectively. Damon had been swimming since he was merely 10 years old, and despite being in his sixties, he was in excellent shape, and perfectly capable of pulling off such an advanced technique. Manfred used the simple forward crawl. Simple, yet highly effective. Like Gant, Manfred was in excellent shape for his age, and it is likely he could out perform any well-fit man in their mid-twenties. Both men were equally matched in terms of speed and body strength. They sped in the water neck and neck, with neither of them gaining a significant advantage.
The men met the opposite wall at about the same time. Both Gant and Karma flipped in the water, and prepared to bounce off the wall. Manfred's one advantage was in this moment. Karma rarely ever spent his time sitting down, ever. His leg strength was remarkable. The boost he got from kicking off the wall was just enough to let his pull ahead from Damon. Damon kicked off a second later, and saw Manfred had gotten a small, yet considerable lead. Despite Gant's best efforts, Manfred made it back to the starting wall a full 4 seconds ahead of Gant. Manfred was leaning on the poll's edge for support. He was pretty exhausted. After Gant caught his breath, he boisterously laughed, saying "Amazing, Manny! There are not many people who can best me! Bravo!" Gant started clapping for Manfred, who was still catching his breath. Not waiting for any response, Damon announced, "I will now go off the high dive! Care to join me, Manny?" with a large grin on his face. Manfred concentrated, took one big breath, and replied, "In a moment."
"Splendid!" With a clap, a very wet Gant exited the pool with out the aide of the nearby ladder, and started climbing the ladder to jump off the 20-foot high dive. Gant reached the top, having the time of his life. Manfred had not moved from his spot, and averted his attention to Gant, who looked absolutely ridiculous readying himself. "Bombs Away!!!" shouted Gant as he leaped from the board, and formed a cannonball. The large splash that resulted covered Manfred's face with water. "You call that a dive, Gant?" Karma said as Damon popped his head out of the water. Gant furrowed his eyebrows and plainly asked, "I don't suppose you can do better, hmm, Manny?" Manfred sharply but flatly responded with, "Watch me."
Manfred was at the top of the board in no time. Gant was on the side, awaiting Manfred's dive. Karma closed his eyes, and concentrated on only the board and water below. After a moment, he dashed from the board, and took a leap. The first leap let his feet land right on the front of the board itself, allowing maximum displacement. He bent his knees, and right at the middle of the board's returning momentum, Manfred leaped once more, with perfect timing. Arching his back, Manfred nearly touched his toes. At the height of his jump, and when he felt gravity's effect pulling him towards the earth, Manfred leaned forward in the air, and began a perfect dive formation. Manfred had extended his arms completely forward, and was heading towards the water as straight as he could. His hands impacted the water, and his whole body when under. There was little splash, the mark of a true diver. Gant was positively stunned at Manfred's excellent dive.
Karma rose above the water, to catch his breath. It was quite a rush, one he hadn't felt in some time. Damon was laughing and clapping with glee. "Fantastic, Manny my boy! I say, where did you learn that?" Manfred replied, "Oh… no where. Just practice." Gant noticed something odd about his response. But, Damon, having too much fun, decided not to press the issue. Gant smiled once more, and playfully said, "I'll bet you cannot do THAT again." Karma started at Gant with his sharp eyes. "Please. I can do it one hundred times perfectly if I felt like it." Damon, deciding in his head that he really did want to see the dive again, offered, "I won't bother you for the rest of the week if you do it one more time." Karma smirked. "With that offer, I'd do it a thousand times!"
Manfred was at the top of the board once more. Concentrating again, Karma began his running leap. He jumped on to the exact front of the board again, and started his spectacular leap into the empty air. But, something happened. Something that wasn't supposed to happen. At the top of his leap, Manfred's right shoulder, the shoulder he was shot in on that fateful day, stung. It stung as if a red-hot rapier was being stabbed and twisted into his shoulder. Karma screamed in agony. He started his decent to the water below, free falling. Karma fell headfirst. His world was spinning around him. Or, in reality, he was twisting in mid-air. As Karma's world spun, sound started to die out, and his vision became foggy, with his eyelids dragging closed, even though he was upside down in the air. Time no longer was the steady flow like sands in an hourglass, but more like a vicious jelly slowly pouring out of its container. The last thing Karma saw was Damon, pushing his way forward in the water, mouthing words that Manfred could not understand. He felt that everything vanished the moment he felt his head contact with the water.