The First Shard: Atlantis
As the sun set over the horizon, I had my eyes set on the falling sky.
“There’s only one way to fix this.” I told myself, “And It’s at the bottom of the sea.” “Hey, Jack!” I whip my head around. “You ready?” Cherie repeats. I nod, and we jump off the deck into the cold, murky sea. The water hits me like a freezing bullet. I watch the bubbles float up to the retreating surface. As Cherie and I plunge into the depths of the frozen unknown, all I can think of is what lies at the bottom of the ocean. “Hey, Jack?” My radio crackles to life. “Yeah,” I respond. “Alright, folks.” It’s the captain. “You’ve reached your maximum depth. Any more and the suits would implode. We’re sending down a pod.” “Affirmative.” I hear Cherie’s voice break the silence. Several minutes later, in the lifeless sea, some lights pierce the darkness. The pod emerges from the murky brine above us. I pull the hatch and enter the airlock. Once we get seated in the pod-submarine, I hear the engine start, and the pod lurches forward. Further, further, furthest. I watch anticipatingly for what seems like years as the ship’s depth counter slowly rises. At 3000 feet, the whole ship rumbles. “We’ve hit bottom,” Cherie announces, with a blank look on her face. “Alright,” I reply, pressing the throttle forward. We travel along the dark ocean floor, only the occasional shipwreck and small bits of debris floating through the water. I look at our radar, and it shows a massive spherical object in our path. I shake my head and rub my eyes. All so suddenly, we hit a dust cloud. “I can’t see a thing in this," I hear Cherie mutter. The dust begins to disperse. “Looks like it’s dissipating,” I say. The ship exits the could, and suddenly, we find ourselves heading at maximum speed towards a wall. “Pull Up!” I shout. Cherie doesn’t miss a moment. She jams the control upwards, and I feel the ship rise. “What the-,” Cherie says, looking out her window. I look out of mine and feel the air leave my lungs. Outside is a giant pristine blue dome, lighting up the darkness. It gleams with such light that I must turn on the U.V. filters for the windows to be able to see at all. I end up making the call: “Unit 2094 to Base? I think we’ve found something...”
