Poseidonia - The Underwater City - II Hikayeyi takip edin

We decided to look for the Liveaboard, walking through the dark hallways. Juan stopped, looking right and left, bothered about something.

— Wait a minute! I need a moment to think straight. I know what we saw when we fell in the sea and i hope everybody is on the same page. There was a city down there, right?

— Yes — i said, trying to see where he was going with that.

— If the ship’s crew disappeared and all those long sunken boats are now up there, then where are we? What is this place? — he asked.

— You’re right, Juan — said Jesus, staring at us — There’s something very wrong about this.

— Let’s calm down, ok? — i asked, feeling nervous. With all that’s happened, i wasn’t able to think straight. That simply couldn’t be happening to us.

— Guys, look at the rooms — said Lia, putting her hands on her mouth, scared.

— What about them? I don’t see anything different. — said Jesus.

— Look the red stripe on the door. It said ‘’MSC Divina’’. Now, what does it say?

— ‘’Anivid CSM’’. What the hell? — i said, terrified.

— It’s inverted! — said Juan, stunned — And so are the numbers.

— Calm down, guys. Let’s just relax for a bit — i asked, trying to think.

— Nothing is making sense, Miguel — insisted Lia, holding my arm.

— I know. I don’t understand it either.

— We fell in the sea — said Jesus — Someone wants us here, but why? It was really weird that rope ladder was set out like it was already waiting for us.

— I’m scared, Miguel — cried Lia, her hands shaking.

— We can’t go back, Lia. I don’t even know if we can. We should just go foward. Let’s check the rooms and see if we can find something useful. Once we find the Liveaboard we can swim to the city. I...

— What is it, Miguel? — asked Juan, quickly.

— I’m sure i saw someone watching us when we fell. Or rather, i saw a temple looking building. Everything happened so fast.

— Someone? At the bottom of the sea? I don’t know, Miguel. Could have been just a big fish.

— Yeah, you’re probably right, but... i don’t know. I think it hid itself on purpose.

— Forget it, man! — said Jesus — There’s only fish there.

— I would agree, if this was a mundane situation, but it’s not, Jesus — i said, frustrated.

— Are you guys really going to keep on scaring me? — said Lia, looking very pale.

— She’s right. Let’s resume our search for the Liveaboard and try to get out of here.

We walked paired up, in silence. Me and Lia at the front and Juan and Jesus at the back, searching carefully every room. They looked really pristine. Like a scenery set up to distract us, and not looking abandoned at all. Everything was in place. Even the sky looked like a paiting. There was no sounds, at least, not sounds we knew.

I didn’t want to say anything, to avoid further suffering. I felt like my fascination for ships disappearead suddenly. We walked through iluminated hallways taking us closer and closer to the bottom. It didn’t feel at all like the MSC Divina. I realized at that moment that place was there to receive us. And i felt scared trying to figure out who wanted to see us.

— Look there — pointed Lia, snapping me out of it.

We looked to where she pointed. Something shone in the walls, reminding me of the sun reflecting on the pool.

— How is this happening down here? — said Juan, perplexed.

— There’s maybe light shining through a hatch. — said Jesus, shrugging.

— But aren’t we going down? Why would they put one here? — said Lia, thinking about it.

— Let’s continue. We may find something to help us solve this mystery — i said, grabbing Lia’s hand.

We turned to the left, and what we saw made us stunned. The source of light was getting stronger in that hallway. We were surprised, admiring the seemingly endless tunnel. The sea was visible and filled with a lot of local life.

We felt like we were visiting an aquarium, forgetting for one moment everything happening.

— It’s beautiful — said Lia, reaching her neck in order to look closely.

Tiny blue fishes kissed the dome, perhaps looking for food. A pink turtle spun backwards like it was greeting us. We kept watching the fishes and plants, slowing our footsteps.

— Where does it lead? — said Juan, gulping.

— I have no idea — i said, still looking at the tunnel.

We kept on exploring it, looking everywhere, when suddenly Lia screamed and started grabbing my arm.

— What is it? — we asked in unisound, scared.

— Something big just went by. On our right. — she said, looking terrified

— Didn’t you see what it was? — i asked, stading before her.

— No... It looked like a shadow. I felt like it was watching us.

— Must’ve been just a fish, Lia.

— I don’t wanna continue. Who knows what’s at the end of this tunnel? I’ll go back and try to find help. — said Lia, turning back and running.

I noticed Juan going after her. Jesus and i stared at each other, stunned, and then something way weirder happened. Lia hit something hard, like she was thrown on the ground. Same with Juan. We ran to them noticing their eyes looking to where they fell.

— What happened? — i said, feeling truly scared for the first time.

— I don’t know. There’s something there. — she pointed at the dark hallway.

I walked there and touched it. There’s was something trapping us there.

— We’re stuck — said Juan scared, making us stare at each other.

— This makes no sense — screamed Jesus, holding his head.

— Nothing about this situation makes sense. Let’s keep going. Maybe we’ll find an exit. — i said, trying to keep them from panicking even more.

Lia was crying quietly. I took the lead, watching the wild life travel with us. We took a left, just to get stuck again. We couldn’t see the end of the tunnel. If there was a door to that city, we couldn’t open it. Then what was that all about? For us to die down there? I got desperate, but i didn’t say anything, since everyone was already panicking and i didn’t want to make everything worse.

That shadow went by us again. I felt Lia screaming into my arm. It took the lead, like it wanted us to follow it to a pathway.

— What if that thing eats us? — cried Lia, softly.

— It would’ve done that by now, if it wanted, right? Maybe there’s really an exit. — i said, trying to make her feel better.

We were nearing the city, being able to see the shiny streets, dolphin statues and winged horses. At the center was a round fountain spilling rainbow colored water through a trident being held by the statue of a humanoid figure.

— Is that Poseidon? — asked Juan in awe.

— What is this place? — asked Jesus still looking at it.

The city was akin to an ancient greek city, with big arches, pillars and big staircases, but underwater, with fishes coming in and out.

We kept on walking and the shadow approached quickly. It went by the dome bringing foward a mermaid.

She was staring very intensely at us, poiting somewhere, like she wanted us to go there. We followed her and we couldn’t believe our eyes. We arrived at a round hall. There was nothing there. The mermaid invited us in.

At the center of the hall, a hollow sound, like water running down a pipe, was heard, and to our surprise, the hall started filling with water.

— We’re gonna drown! — screamed Juan in desperation.

I started running, being slowed by the water, and began to hit the glass, while the mermaid watched us. A faint light came from her, and four little balls went through the glass and were thrown at us. She was telling us to place the balls in our mouthes.

I quickly grabbed the balls while Lia was screaming, then i looked at the mermaid and she was reasuring us to put on the balls. I place one in my mouth, giving them the remaining ones.

I felt like i was suffocating, and i started grabbing my neck. My lungs and nostrils were on fire. The same happening to them. I closed my eyes, thinking we were going to die, but then, my body got light when feeling the cold water. Once again, i shook with pain. When touching my neck, i felt holes forming. When i looked at them i saw gills appearing on their necks as well. We were then swallowed by the water and the mermaid came in. The glass was gone before our eyes, and, not knowing how, we started breathing underwater.

The mermaid stared at us, finding this whole thing amusing, when we tried to walk, swim and float all at the same time.

— Just relax — she said inside our heads — We can talk like this. Think, and i’ll understand.

For a moment, i felt a lot of thoughts crossing my mind at once.

— One at a time, please. — she screamed, silencing them.

— I’m Alina, the keeper of Poseidonia, the Mirror of the Sea city. I need your help.

— Mirror of the sea? — said Juan looking around watching mermaids coming from their hiding spots. — Holy crap, Miguel. That’s why the words on the ship were inverted. We’re inside a water mirror.

— Yes. This town mirrors the form of the lost cities inside the sea, and it was where Poseidon lived. We need help turning it back the way it was.

— What was it like? What do you mean? — Jesus asked quickly, staring at the other mermaids approaching us.

— We were once a prosperous city. Now, we just guard it.

— What happened? Poseidon really lived here? — Lia asked, suddenly filled with bravery.

— Yes. But men forgot about him, turning him into nothing more than a myth. He needs to return since you’re in danger. No one else can defeat the evil about to come and it will also affect the magic world.

— What do you mean, Alina? — I asked while surrounded by two of her sisters.

— What you heard. This place, as well as the one you came from, is in Danger. I felt on you, once you fell from the ship, your love for the sea and the wild life. Poseidonia is a magical world that resides beyond the bottom of the sea, where no one ever went. That’s why i brought you here and showed you those sunken ships. There’s much to be said, but time is short. We need to act fast.

— What do you wish from us, Alina? — asked Lia, unable to look away from her.

— We need to bring Poseidon back. He’s the only one who can stop the evil.

— Where is he? — i asked.

— He’s been on a deep sleep for ages. We need his trident back.

— Do you know where it’s hidden? — i asked, hoping she could give us a lead or a place to start searching.

— Yes. On top of a tower at Terpesícore Island. Only you guys can get it back. Once you do, i’ll bring you back to your world.

My friends and i looked at each other, while she waited for our awnser.

— Will it be dangerous? — i asked, worried.

— Yes, perils and dangerous situations happens everytime, everywhere with everyone but, fear not, i’m confident you’ll succeed. Our winged brothers will protect you.

She took us to Poseidon’s temple and gave us the necessary instructions for our trip, while telling us more about the situation. She then took us to a cave where we could see the tower. Once we got out of the water, our gills had disappeared.

She gave us another four little balls and a pearl looking sphere the size of my hand. I knew what i had to do with it and about the perils of our quest. I wouldn’t rest until i had brought Poseidon’s trident back.