The boat swayed on the vast body of water, which stretched endlessly as far as the eye could see. A man in his mid-thirties was moving his diving gear, preparing to go underwater.
"Hey, Nier, get ready; we'll be going down in five minutes," he said while packing what looked like a fishing net.
"Let me get ready; I'll be right there," came a young voice, likely from a boy aged 16 to 17.
Two minutes later, a boy with black hair and eyes emerged from below deck, wearing a diving suit. "Hey, Dad, how much deeper will we go this time?"
"Until we reach the bottom. We've trained for this, so I think you'll be alright." The boy nodded, determination evident in his eyes.
He and his father were scavengers—people who dove underwater for relics. By "relic," they meant materials buried underwater from a long-fallen civilization.
Nier had been taught about them since he was little; they didn't know the exact timeframe, but history said there was once an advanced civilization now buried beneath the waves.
It was crazy how, with all their advanced technology, they still could not survive. But Nier didn't care; if they hadn't died out, he couldn't be a scavenger, and that was just about the most useful skill he had.
"Are you ready?"
"Yes, I am all geared up." They both donned their diving helmets and took small bags to carry back the relics. Just before they could dive, a loud shout came from below deck.
"Nier!"
Nier turned his head, annoyance clear on his face. "What do you want now?" A feminine figure emerged on the boat, almost identical to Nier but beautiful in a way only young girls can be.
"How many times do I have to tell you not to leave your clothes disordered?"
"Annie, I don't have time for this! Can you just hold off until we get back...?"
"Hold off!" she exclaimed, her shock and annoyance palpable in those two words. "Fine then! Guess you'll be doing your laundry!"
"Wha… hey! Don't be mean! I said I'd arrange them when we get back!" Looking at them, their dad laughed.
"You two stop bickering! Annie, forgive him this once, alright?"
"Fine," she replied reluctantly. "As for you, Nier, stop making it hard for your sister! First thing when we get back, you do that laundry."
"Fine," he also replied reluctantly.
After calming down, they put on their helmets and dove deep underwater. They quickly made their descent through the underwater landscape seamlessly; no fish were in sight, but that was normal.
In the history books Nier had read, it said that before the great disaster that annihilated the ancient civilization arrived, fish could be seen in almost every large water body. However, Nier found it hard to believe since fresh fish could only be found in special water bodies.
The rest were filled with sea monsters and ferocious beasts; that's why only those who had nothing better to do or were tired of living became scavengers.
As they continued to descend, they could now see the tops of buildings commonly known as sea towers. These structures were built in the era of the fallen civilization but still stood tall; they and the relics were the only remnants of their existence. They soon reached one of the sea towers. Standing on it for the first time surprised Nier.
Feeling a tap on his shoulder, he turned to see his dad signaling him to focus. Just like that, they continued exploring.
…
It was normal for Annie to stay on the boat while her brother and dad dove; she would take care of chores on deck.
Her body was well-suited for intensive work like diving, but she did what she could. The only problem was that irritating Nier... Ugh! Was it so hard for him to organize his things?
Passing Nier's room, she saw his scattered pile of clothes... Sighing, she entered and started organizing it. Although she tried acting tough in front of him, she had a soft spot for him; after all, he had raised her since she was a kid.
Their mother died when Annie was born, which resulted in her having a frail body. Their dad had to deal with multiple financial problems after their mom's death—those were hard times.
So Nier was the only one there to take care of her; although he was only three years older than her sometimes she couldn't help but hate him—seriously! Was it that hard to arrange your clothes?
…
Nier and his dad finally returned, first throwing bags full of relics onto the deck before climbing up themselves. Nier was in a good mood until he saw Annie and remembered the laundry—this directly put him in a bad mood.
Looking at him, Annie felt like laughing. "Why the long face, big bro?" Being sarcastic wasn't one of her strong suits but she could manage.
"Ugh," he had an annoyed look on his face.
"Oh just stop! I did it for you but never do that..."
"Really?" Nier's face painfully looked hopeful; never in her life had Annie seen anyone change their facial expression faster than her brother's.
"You doubting me?"
"No no no! Thanks sis!" He said this as he moved past her before she could even take her words back.
"Hey numbskull! Remember to remove your gear! If you dirty your room I swear I'll feed you to the sea monsters!" Turning her head toward their father, she saw him smiling and she blushed.
"Food's ready! You can come eat after you remove your gear." With that, she turned and left quickly. Watching her leave made their dad think about what good kids he had.
It was already almost nighttime; he quickly removed his gear and placed it inside a safe box next to Nier's before going below deck. Locking the door with two bolts, he headed to the dining area where Annie and Nier were already seated. He sat with them and made a small prayer to their God before they started eating.
They exchanged pleasantries while eating; after finishing up they all went to their respective rooms—the dad first checking on all of them before heading to his own room and sleeping.
As night fell, nocturnal sea creatures stirred by nature awakened; a fierce storm began rising that tossed the boat from side to side as thunder rumbled ominously overhead.
….
"How bad is it?" Nier shouted over the noise.
"We'll have to stop by one of the sea towers to get it repaired." His father had gone into the water to check how much damage last night's storm had caused; by his tone of voice Nier knew he was about to face one of his worst days at work—tough luck!
Although their boat was damaged, it had been designed with storms in mind so it could still operate—though not for very long. They moved cautiously for fear of sinking completely; after traveling about three kilometers they finally came upon one of the sea towers—a long structure that reached up to the surface of the water.
They were fortunate to still be near this location; it was popular among people who suffered shipwrecks and such. Of course it was standard practice not to stray too far from such towers but given how fierce the storm had been they might have been carried away from this location—luckily they hadn't!
After disembarking from the boat onto the sea tower, Nier and his dad quickly began setting up materials needed for repairs while Nier assessed how extensive the damage was. The entire side of their ship seemed missing—Nier found it hard to believe this damage resulted solely from a storm; it seemed more likely caused by one of those sea creatures or something similar.
But that wasn't what mattered right now—he needed to start repairs! The thought of how much work lay ahead made him dizzy so he pushed those thoughts aside as work commenced; Nier and his dad worked tirelessly taking breaks only when necessary because if night fell while they were here they'd be as good as dead—even though Annie didn't participate directly she helped however she could.
Suddenly halfway through putting on a hinge their dad turned his head as if hearing something.
"Hey Nier,"
"Yes?" Nier looked at his dad puzzled.
"Get away from the boat and keep Annie safe; I'll be right back."
"What…?" Before Nier could say anything else his dad jumped into the water without a suit.
"He jumped in without a suit!" Nier heard Annie scream behind him.
Moving quickly... he pulled her away from the boat. "Let's first get away from here!"
But before Nier could leave he noticed something blocking out sunlight above them—it cast an enormous shadow over them—and judging by its size it appeared at least 100 times larger than them!
Cautiously turning his head upward revealed a massive blue tentacle protruding from underwater—it swayed ominously as if readying itself to strike down upon them.
"Shit! We're done!"
"You said it—we're totally done!"