Whew! Okay, so yeah, this took a lot longer to get pushed out than I intended it to and I apologize for that, but life does get in the way sometimes whether we like it or not. BUT! That time you all have been waiting has been spent wisely, as I've been working on developing more on the background and lore behind this AU…as well as trying to figure out which characters I'll eventually bring in of course. Do you guys know just how hard it is to figure out which generation to pull characters from when they're all so awesome?! DX
Anyway, this chapter was actually kinda difficult to write (so far) mainly because 1) I had no idea how I wanted to go about this scenario (seeing as I've never been on a boat before and I had to research some things), and 2) I am completely and utterly terrified of the ocean and the thought of being underwater there, so this was not exactly easy for me to write either. =3= But I am working my way through it all, and hopefully with the new writing program I bought (it's called ZenWriter. It costs $17.50 for the non-trial version, but I swear it is well worth it if you find yourself stuck trying to get past a certain point in your story!), I'll be able to continue this story and get us to the good parts!
Transformers belongs to Hasbro, original merformer concept belongs to UniformShark, this story idea belongs to me. On with the show!
"We are tied to the ocean. And when we go back to the sea, whether it is to sail or to watch—we are going back from whence we came." –John F. Kennedy
Fwoooosh!
"Woo-hoo-hooo! Didja see that, Lauren? I toldja they'd come to us!"
FWOOOOOSH!
"Ack!" A laugh escaped as Lauren shielded her face from the resulting sea-spray, the cool mist chilling her sun-warmed skin. Peering out at the breaching black and white forms of the orcas, she watched the geysers of water erupt one by one from each spout before she turned to ask, "Do they always get this close to the boat?"
"Sometimes, though it wasn't always been like this when I first started coming to the area," Derek replied around a mouthful of cord, the unmistakable gleam of excitement in his eyes as she watched him work on the camera's waterproof case. "This particular pod pretty much kept their distance at first; close enough for me to see them, but far enough that I couldn't get a decent underwater shot. But thanks to ol' Betty here—" he pat the side of his pocket, where she knew he always kept his harmonica, "—I was able to draw them close enough to trust me! Now I think they recognize the sound of my engine and come greet me whenever I'm in the area. They're like giant puppies!" He paused for a moment before he gave her a wry grin. "You know, if you're lucky enough, one of them just might get close enough for you to pet."
Glancing over the railing and judging the distance to the water, she quickly ducked below the safety rail and uttered, "Nope! I'm good sitting right here, thank-you-very-much."
"Well if you change your mind, you know where they are," came the amused response as he closed the lid over the camera, sitting back to examine his work. "All right, it looks like we're about ready to...awww, dammit!"
"What? What's wrong?"
"I'm missing a piece here," he grumbled in annoyance, tapping an area on the flexi-glass that she couldn't see from her angle. "It must've broken off or something while we were loading the boat. Would you mind going below deck and getting the box of parts off my bed? I think I've got something in there that should patch it up."
"Oh, sure!" As quick as she could she hurried to fetch the box, eager to get the camera up and running. Right as she entered their shared quarters, she noticed something...odd. There was a box, but instead of parts and tools sticking out like she'd imagined, it was wrapped in a bright gold paper tied together with a silver ribbon and topped off with a white bow. It took a moment for her to realize just what she was seeing, and when it finally clicked...she grinned. "Derek, you big sneak! How in the world did you keep this hidden from me for so long? We've been out here for a week now!"
"Ah-ah-ah! A magician never reveals his secrets~!" he crowed, and she swore she heard the smug grin in his voice. "I know I'm a bit overdue, but I hope this makes up for it. Go ahead, open it and let me know what'cha think, okay?"
With an excited squeak she dove for the package, unwrapping it with great care and savoring the moment. As often as he was out at sea she knew there would be times where he'd miss out on certain things like birthdays, but he never forgot and always made up for it later with something spectacular! Upon opening the box, she was greeted by a small yet familiar-looking object: an ocarina. The smooth glazed surface of the ceramic instrument was painted with soft blue and green hues with curved grooves sculpted to resemble rolling waves, and for a brief moment as she held it in her hands she almost believed that she was staring at a solid piece of the ocean itself. Hearing movement behind her, she turned and said, "Derek...it's so beautiful. I love it!"
His smile was warm and his eyes sparkled with pride as he said, "I knew you would. I know I'm about a month late...but I wanted to get you something special. The guy just got it finished the day before we left port, and I just had to find the right time to give it to you. So for what it's worth: happy belated birthday, kiddo!"
She smiled and embraced him in a tight hug, which he returned in kind. When they pulled away, he said, "Now, how about we go and get that ol' camera in the water? I'll bet the orcas are doin' something awesome without us!"
"Right. Last one there is rotten chum!" she cried out as she bolted for the stairs.
"Hey, no fair!"
The hours ticked by as they worked, recording the orcas and their reactions to some of the audio clips and the live music Derek and Lauren would provide (the former getting a cold blast in the face after accidentally hitting a sour note on the trumpet he'd brought along). Now as the sun began to sink below the horizon Lauren found herself sitting alone on the deck, admiring the gentle flickering of the light over the rippling waves. Her brother had disappeared below deck to review their collective footage, only her thoughts keeping her company. The orca pod had left an hour ago, leaving only the natural sounds of the ocean and the dull thrum of the idle engine to lull her into a gentle sense of peace. Her tired eyes shifted down to the ocarina on her lap, realizing that—in all the excitement from earlier—she had yet to actually play it. With a warm smile she picked it up, once again marveling at the craftsmanship before bringing the mouthpiece to her lips.
A breathy keen emerged from the hollow chamber, the sound light yet simple to her ears. On reflex her fingers instinctively moved to each hole and transformed the single breath into a chorus of notes of an unknown tune, the wind carrying each tone and pitch through the air. Soon what began as a simple sound test became a song, the melody enveloping her like an old friend—a friend she'd long thought lost to sands of time. As the song drew to a close and she sat back in her seat, a strange sense of...calm seemed to wash over her. Like a weight she hadn't realized she'd been carrying had been lifted from her shoulders.
"Hadn't heard that tune in a long time." Derek's voice broke through her thoughts as she turned to see him leaning against the doorway leading below deck, a thoughtful look on his face. "You used to hum that thing all the time when you were a kid before you stopped for some reason. Surprised you still remembered it at all!"
"I thought I'd forgotten it, honestly," she admitted, looking down at the instrument. "It was just a silly little random tune anyway."
He gave a quiet hum before he said, "Well come on then. It's getting late, and tomorrow we'll be one step closer to finding that spot I was telling you about." She nodded and stood from her seat, ready to call it a night—
THUMP!
A sharp cry escaped them both as the boat lurched to the side, the sound of unsecured equipment scattering below deck while they scrambled to grab hold of something. Derek braced himself against the door frame while Lauren managed to cling to the railing, but the boat itself seemed to continue tipping up—threatening to capsize entirely! "Hang on!" Derek called out. Just as fast as it happened, however, the boat went back down until it once again righted itself, the sheer momentum causing Lauren to slam into the metal railing with a winded grunt and her hand to slip on the ocarina. "No!" she gasped. In what little light remained she could see the faint outline of the instrument as it slowly sank beneath the water. She slumped in the seat and groaned, watching as vanished from sight ...when movement caught her eye. A large shadowy form swam just beneath the boat to the spot the ocarina had been moments before. Just as fast as it had appeared it was gone in a flash, her mind struggling to decipher what she had just seen.
"...what...was that?"
"Must've been a pretty strong wave," he responded, running a hand through his hair. Even though he was smiling she could see he was just as shaken as she was. "You get them sometimes out here, but for the most part the swells are harmless on bigger boats like this. This boat's designed to be able to handle such things...or it may have been a large whale trying to breach too. Whatever it was though, it seems to have passed...which means I have a mess to clean up downstairs. Again." His amused expression grew remorseful as he peered over the edge. "I'm so sorry, I should've known better and waited until we got back home to give you the present...but hey, at least we're okay, and I can always get you a new one, right?"
Glancing between him and the water, she opened her mouth—then decided against it and nodded in agreement. Later that night, however, as she lay in bed listening to the sound of the waves splashing against the hull and her brother's snores, she couldn't shake the what happened earlier. The shadow she'd seen had looked like a dolphin—had even moved like a dolphin!—and yet...the shape was wrong. The way it shifted and turned...the length of the body itself didn't even match any dolphin she'd seen in the past! It had to of been her imagination. They'd been working in the sun all day and she was just hallucinating—her mind was playing tricks on her, that's all. She didn't really see anything but a large fish!
'It was just my imagination,' she told herself, her mind finally catching up with her weary body as the gentle rocking of the ship lulled her into a light doze. 'Just some random fish or dolphin passing by. Nothing more, nothing less...right?'
Just as she drifted off to sleep, images flashed in her mind—creatures that were half human and half fish—and then nothing...
BWE-OOOOOOOP! BWE-OOOOOOOP! BWE-OOOOOOOP!
The sound of the wailing sirens jolted her awake, her tired mind struggling to make sense of what was happening before a sharp lurch sent her flying out of bed on to the hard floor. Dazed and confused, she scrabbled to find some sort of grip before pulling herself up against her brother's bed. Through the blaring alarms she could hear the familiar rumble of thunder and the roar of churning waves. "Derek?" she wheezed, only to see his bed was empty. Was he outside? "Derek!" With the floor shifting beneath her feet, she threw on what clothes she could and jammed her boots over her feet before she made her way up the stairs.
Pure chaos greeted her the moment she emerged, a splash of sea water nearly toppling her backwards before she caught hold of the banister and braced herself against the doorframe. Lightning illuminated the sky in a brilliant flash of white before plunging her world into near darkness, the pouring rain stinging her face like icy needles as she struggled to see. The lights along the floor and the flashing beacons were the only things that gave her any sense of where she was between each flash, the inky black of the sea and the dark storm clouds making it impossible to distinguish one from the other. "Derek!" she cried out, the howling winds drowning out her voice. "Derek, where are you?"
"Lauren!" His voice pierced through the raging torrent, and it took only seconds for her to realize he was already in the bridge.
"Derek! Where'd this storm come from!?"
"I don't know!" came his response, his voice sounding strained from effort. "It just appeared out of nowhere and our anchor's gone! Stay inside while I get us out of here!"
She yelped as another surge struck the boat, threatening to capsize them while gallons of water sloshed on the deck and sheets of rain pelted the hull like bullets. It was then that a familiar sound erupted into the air and filled her heart with dread: the engine backfiring. Moments later the lights began to flicker, the shrieks of the sirens warping into mangled wails as the power struggled to stay on. "Son of a—! Lauren! I need your help!" he called out. "Something's wrong with the engine and I can't leave the wheel!"
"I'm coming!" Bracing herself against the railing, she made her way out into the open and—ignoring the stinging cold rain and the slippery deck—climbed inside the sheltered bridge, where she saw him struggling to keep the steering wheel from spinning out of control. Thinking quickly, she dove for the nearest compartment and pulled out the heavy chain Derek used to lock the wheel into place on shore and set to work. Soon the chain was tied around the steering column and the wheel itself, loose enough to allow some movement yet tight enough to maintain control. "I got it! Let go of the wheel!"
He did so, gasping for air as his body shook—whether from exhaustion or cold she couldn't tell—and though the chain creaked and groaned from the strain it held strong. "Good thinking," he said with a sigh of relief, allowing her to take his place as he went to fetch a toolbox from another sealed compartment. Tugging on a ring built into the floor he yanked open a hidden trapdoor, where she could hear the sounds of the engine even over the raging storm outside. "Keep us as straight as possible. I'll do what I can to fix the engine—just keep your eye on the horizon!" Another surge rocked the boat, and when it had settled long enough for them to stand again he looked her in the eyes and said with a smile, "Don't worry, kiddo, we're gonna make it through this together! I promise!"
With that he vanished below deck, leaving her to face the storm alone. "O-Okay, you've got this, Lauren," she uttered, fighting the panic threatening to rear its ugly head. "Just remember what he taught you before. Watch the horizon, and keep the wheel...straight."
It was a task far easier said than done, the rudder refusing to budge even as she pulled and pushed with all her might on the wheel to get it to level out. Each second that ticked by seemed to stretch an eternity as the boat rode the waves, her stomach disappearing with each lurch that took them up and over each crest. Her arms ached and her legs trembled from the effort and the cold, but sheer terror and her brother's words kept her from letting go of the wheel. This looked nothing like the storms she'd heard stories about. It was as if the ocean were trying to…turn them around?
Before she knew it, however…the waves stopped churning. The rain and thunder stopped and the sea grew still, the complete silence near deafening against her ears. It was still dark and lightning still flickered above them, but all was calm now. Had they reached the eye of the storm? Relief began to flood her aching limbs as she all but collapsed against the wheel, and for a moment she thought the worst of the storm had passed and allowed herself a small smile. "H...Hey. Hey, Derek? I-I did it! I got us through the storm! We made i—!"
Her words died in her mouth, fear and dread gripping her chest like icy talons when a flash of lightning illuminated the night and a new horror. A massive wall of water was rushing towards them, the crest rising higher and higher until she could see nothing but the black wall before her. To her shock and terror, the water…began to change. It twisted and warped, rising higher than she thought possible and forming what looked like a vaguely humanoid shape. "Oh...my...god," she breathed, hardly believing what she was seeing. The ship, caught up in the surge, began to rise up along the massive creature's body, giving her a clear view of the piercing white eyes leering at the boat…at her…before it released a deafening bellow that echoed through the air. "Derek!" she shrieked just before the creature crashed over them.
Pressure surrounded her on all sides as the water swept her away from the boat, her body tumbling from the suction as the ship sank and she struggled to right herself. Her skin stung as the salt water washed over fresh cuts, the glass of the view port having shattered under the brutal tidal wave. Powerful currents battered her weary body like a rag doll, and it took every ounce of strength she had just to hold on to the little precious air she'd managed to grab. Her eyes burned when she opened them, but try as she may she couldn't pierce the inky darkness. Lungs burning, instinct drove her to try and kick against the current until her limbs began to burn from the effort. Which way was up? Was she even anywhere near the surface or was she swimming deeper into the darkness?
Air...I need air!
She clawed at the water, struggling to find some form of purchase to pull herself forward—I can't breathe!—but the current was too strong. Exhaustion weighed her down, the cold water sapping her strength and each movement she made grew sluggish—like lead weights had been tied to her limbs. Unable to hold her breath any longer, her body forced her to exhale—only to panic when salt water filled her mouth and lungs and renewed her previous struggles.
No! No please! I...I don't...want to...die...
The seconds ticked by before she found her body slowing down, the cold seeping deep into her bones until she could no longer feel her arms or legs. The current died out, leaving her to drift deeper into the dark abyss as her consciousness faded in and out from lack of air... Her eyes made out a faint silver light shimmering high above her...was that...the moon? And that faint wisp in the water...it was faint, but she knew deep down that it was blood...her blood. How much had she lost already? How long before it began to attract sharks? Or were they already around her...and she just couldn't see them?
Please...I don't want to die...
...was that...movement she felt in the water behind her?
Someone...anyone...please...
Something large appeared in her vision—a sleek yet powerful looking form that easily dwarfed her in size. It swung around to face her, but instead of the empty black of a shark's eyes...a gentle blue hue peered at her from an oddly shaped head. She couldn't make out anything in the near darkness, but she heard a soft whining/clicking sound come from its mouth. Was it a dolphin...or an orca...coming to save her? Her lips, though frozen from the chill, parted as she fought to remain conscious and mustered the last of her strength to move her arm and reach towards this strange animal.
Please...
'Help' she managed to mouth, her vision growing dark as her body began to shut down. Just as she was slipping into darkness...something grabbed hold of her arm...and she knew no more.
Whoof! Jeez louise that was a bit intense! But if you thought that was a wild ride, I'm afraid to say that it has only begun!...besides, this story would be moot if I killed her off that quickly! XDDD I honestly can't wait to get the ball rolling with this story, and I've already got some awesome ideas for some future chapters/scenes! 0v0
As always, please leave a review and tell me what you think or if you noticed anything that could be improved on!
