Chapter 53 - The Ocean Monster
A deafening noise erupted, causing the seagulls to panic and Luke to fall to the ground, covering his ears. It sounded like a ship's horn amplified a hundred times. As he fell, Luke realized the world was actually trembling. The sands beneath him were shifting, and where the whale lay, it began to sink. Luke found himself rolling involuntarily towards the gigantic hole forming, the sands descending as he scrambled to his feet.
"Shit!"
He was running but kept feeling the pull of a whirlpool, as if everything was sinking where the whale had been. Luke tried to plant his hammer into the ground to stabilize himself, but it didn't work.
"Hell!"
The sand wouldn't hold the hammer in place. Quickly, he struggled to stand, glancing back to see the center of the large sand crater, the whale already being swallowed by the water and disappearing. An infernal roar, like a thousand voices, emanated from the crater's center, and all Luke saw was a massive jaw tearing through the sand, pulling the whale down. As the monstrous being submerged, a tremendous suction dragged everything towards the center, following its downward motion.
Desperate, Luke tried to climb as he was increasingly drawn into the deadly sinking trap. He was no longer just trying to climb out of a sand crater; he was now completely underwater, desperately swimming upwards. He kept sinking, feeling the crater turning into a giant abyss. More sand and water buried him as he struggled to ascend. Despite taking a deep breath earlier, his panic was quickly depleting his oxygen. Luke found himself in an enormous, descending crater, heading towards where the whale had been snatched by the giant jaw. A tsunami of sand swept him deeper into the waters, which were not shallow but profoundly deep. Luke was somehow below what seemed to be the shallow sea.
What he saw shocked him. In that darkness, a massive green light revealed an entire world below him, like a gigantic illuminated cavern. Luke saw the ocean beneath the shallow sea, teeming with fish-like creatures, but these were at least 5 meters long. The ocean floor appeared to be an extensive network of subterranean tunnels. Giant luminous corals emitted colorful lights, and in the depths, he could see the head of something, a colossal creature with 16 eyes. Its head resembled a spider, and Luke realized that although the creature was far away, its gigantic size was unmistakable.
In a panic, he noticed the sand ceiling above him was closing. Desperately, he started swimming upwards as the dark sand began to seal, threatening to entomb him. He swam as hard as he could, internally screaming, the pressure from the creature's descent still pulling him down, dragging him further into that frightening place filled with monstrous beings. Luke swam against the downward current created by the giant jaw's plunge, watching his escape route close, ready to lock him in his watery grave.
Noooooooooo!
He stretched out his arms, trying to somehow reach the sand cover but couldn't. The downward pressure from the water was too strong, like hitting a wall.
A wall!
That's it, damn it! Why didn't I think of this sooner!?
Activating his intangibility, he felt the weight of the current pulling him down completely disappear. Luke swam with all his might towards the rapidly closing hole. His stomach began to burn, signaling he was on the brink of death. Even with death looming, he continued swimming upward, but the sand hole closed.
No!
Ignoring his despair, he pushed upward and swam. Everything turned dark, but he continued, his consciousness fading. Swimming intangibly, all he saw was darkness. Luke was swimming through the sand, and as he felt like he had passed through, he deactivated his intangibility, seeing a familiar light in the sky.
The moon!
This sight invigorated him, proving his theory right. Luke had swum through the sand wall using his intangibility. Struggling to breathe, he realized he was still underwater. Looking around, he saw he was in the middle of the crater, which was starting to close up again.
He yelled out as his head broke the surface, a mix of profanity and triumph. Gulping air through his mouth and nose, he nearly cried with relief. He swam frantically to the edge of the crater, fearing the giant creature's return. Reaching the edge, he collapsed onto the sand, laughing and coughing up water.
"Screw you! What was that thing?" he laughed incredulously.
Pulling out his card, he saw he had managed to save his hammer and lay back down. Water splashed over his face, prompting him to sit up.
"No one's going to believe me..." he muttered, reflecting on the bizarre creatures he had seen—creatures of pure imagination.
What I just passed through… that was the Veil of this place.
Luke realized he was right above a Veil. Staring down at the sand, he rose to move away from that spot. As he stood, he collapsed, utterly spent.
"Okay… I get it. I'm exhausted," he conceded.
As he sat down, something flew and landed with a thud, bouncing across the sand.
"What was that?"
Startled, Luke tried to run towards whatever had fallen but collapsed again. Whether from adrenaline, stress, or exhaustion, he couldn't tell. Deciding to listen to his body, he lay down. Crawling, he approached the object. When he was a few meters away, he identified it.
"A seagull! A damned seagull!"
Forcing himself to stand, he used his hammer as a crutch and hobbled towards the monstrous seagull.
The seagull was in terrible shape, broken and unconscious. Raising his hammer, Luke prepared to strike. In mid-air, he stopped just before hitting its face, then backed away, sitting on the ground and staring at the unconscious bird.
You're going to be useful for something, you damned creature.
In the darkness of the night, Lucan kept his eyes on the monstrous seagull. Afraid of falling asleep, he remained standing. Suddenly, he rushed to the bird and pushed its head into the water.
This thing can't die by drowning while unconscious…
Backing away, Luke maintained his stance, keeping a close watch on the seagull. Nearby, the enormous sand crater was gradually leveling out, resembling a vast pool the size of a stadium. As he gazed into the now-flat expanse, he recalled the harrowing experience of nearly dying within its depths.
The creatures he had seen beneath the shallow sea had been staggering—giant monsters and fish larger than vehicles. Focusing intently to avoid falling asleep, Luke stood watching the horizon where the sun was rising. The sunlight hit the water, illuminating the area just as a rasping groan signaled the seagull waking up.
With a grin, Luke saw the injured seagull take flight and disappear into the distance.
"At least you'll be useful…"
Returning to his old routine, he began walking in the direction the seagull had flown. Sighing, he decided to keep a positive outlook.
Taking a sip of water from his canteen, he admired the beautiful sunrise and continued walking.
I just hope I'm not the only one from the group still alive...