Chapter Six

The sky was still dark when we reached the boat, and the stars were barely visible. As the first hints of dawn blurred the horizon, my breath came in clouds, the cold slicing through every layer.

Our dive gear sat waiting near the edge of the boat, and I couldn't stop staring at it. I wasn’t sure what came next, but a pit of dread settled in my stomach. I had to push past the fear. Logic and science had to come before superstition.

Jonathan held the algae jar tight in his hand. The deeper we went, the more the algae started to glow. What looked dead on land came alive down here, brighter and brighter.

I took a deep breath, trying to steady my nerves. Kim peeled off her jacket in the center of the boat, moving without a care in the world. She put on her wetsuit with such grace she made it look like a ball gown. She was perfect.

I wasn’t.

I sighed, resigning myself to the task at hand. It was my turn now. Unzipping my jacket and yanking it off, followed by my thermal shirt and leggings, I shivered as I grabbed my wetsuit. The neoprene felt stiff and uncooperative, like I was wrestling a stubborn animal to get it on.

That's when I felt it, their eyes on me. Not just quick glances now, but full-on stares. Jonathan didn’t bother pretending. Jaime’s awkward attempt to look casual only made it worse.

“Looking good, Professor,” Jaime hesitated and looked away quickly.

I froze, the wetsuit zipper halfway up. My face burned, and not just from the cold. “Are you serious right now?” I snapped, glaring at him. “You're gonna be that guy?”

Kim looked up, stifling a laugh, and walked over to smack Jaime on the back of the head. “Seriously, grow up.”

“What?” Jaime mumbled, rubbing the spot like she'd actually hurt him. “I was just complimenting her.”

“And you,” I snapped, turning to Jonathan. “If you're gonna stare, at least try not to make it so obvious. It’s embarrassing, for you.”

His smirk didn’t waver. “What can I say? I’m a hot-blooded man. And I like what I see.”

My stomach twisted, disgust coiling tight. The man didn’t know the meaning of subtlety, or decency.

Across the deck, Trevor’s jaw clenched, his eyes burning with quiet fury. His hands gripped the wheel tighter than necessary. He looked ready to snap Jonathan in half, but he stayed glued to the helm, the boat’s steady drift keeping him anchored.

I met his gaze, one brow lifting in silent challenge. Control your man.

He swallowed hard, his jaw working, but didn’t say a word.

Kim rolled her eyes and stepped closer. Her voice dropped, meant only for me. “Don’t let them crawl under your skin. Boys are idiots. It’s in their DNA.”

“Clearly,” I muttered, tugging the wetsuit’s zipper up and yanking the gear into place.

Once all four of us were ready, Jonathan gave the signal to dive. He went first, stepping off the edge and disappearing into the water with a practiced, effortless motion. Kim followed.

Jaime lingered for a moment, giving me another one of his infuriating half-smiles before he stepped off the boat and vanished into the depths.

I stood at the edge, staring down at the black water below. It looked endless, like it could swallow me whole. My pulse roared in my ears. I forced the dread down. There was no turning back now.

“Just do it,” Trevor yelled from behind me.

I took a deep breath and jumped.

The ice cold water stabbed through me. It took a second to get my bearings. It was freaking cold. My chest felt tight, and the hiss of my regulator cut through my ears, sharp and metallic. I tried to get my breathing steady, but every inhale felt too quick, too shallow.

It wasn’t just the cold. Something about this place pressed in on me. Like the water itself was alive, coiling around me, trying to sink into my skin. Turning on the flashlight attached to my mask, a narrow beam cut through the inky darkness, illuminating the swirling particles drifting with the current. Ahead, I could make out the faint bobbing of the others' lights.

Kicking hard, I pushed myself to catch up. The heavy tank on my back pressed into my shoulders with every stroke. As I descended, a beautiful glow started to appear. It looked otherworldly. Like stars glowing on the bottom of the ocean. That was algae! The deeper I went, the stronger the glow became.

“Do you see that?” Jaime's voice crackled through the radio, his tone just as awestruck as I felt.

“It's incredible,” Kim replied, her light sweeping over the glowing algae. She moved closer, reaching out carefully with her gloved hand. When her fingers brushed against the pulsing organisms, the glow seemed to respond, brightening as if recognizing her touch.

Once I caught up with the others, I carefully brushed my fingers against one of the glowing patches. The glow intensified, pulsing brighter for a moment before settling back down. It was almost as if the algae was reacting to my touch, as if it could sense my presence.

“It's responding,” I said into the radio. “The algae, it's reacting when I touch it.”

Kim's voice crackled back, her tone filled with intrigue. “Incredible. It's almost like the algae can sense us, or our proximity to it. I wonder what that could mean.”

The idea that the algae might be aware of us was hard to wrap my head around. If they could sense and react to our presence, even in a basic way, it meant they were more complex than we thought. They weren’t just lifeless plants. There was something else going on, maybe even a kind of intelligence, that didn’t fit with what we usually understood about marine life.

I brushed my fingers over the glowing patches, watching the light flare and fade. The rhythm felt like a heartbeat, almost hypnotic. Just as I started to lose myself in it, a sharp voice snapped me back to reality.

“Stop admiring it and focus,” Jonathan snapped, his beam of light cut through the water like a blade. “We need more samples. Keep moving.”

Right, grab the samples and get out. That was the plan. But Jonathan’s brush-off of the algae’s strange glow bugged me. Couldn’t he see something unusual was happening here?

I kept going, following the trail of glowing algae. The deeper we went, the glow thickened, brighter and more intense. Then, out of nowhere, it hit me, a wave of dread. The water felt tighter, pressing in like a vice. My chest clenched, and a chill prickled along my spine.

Something was wrong.

I tore my eyes away from the algae and looked around. Darkness. Nothing moved.

Then I heard it. A faint sound, almost lost in the hiss of my breath. A whisper, just beyond reach.

My heart pounded. I wasn’t losing it, Kim had heard it too.

“I heard it,” Jaime said, his voice edged with tension.

Jonathan’s voice cut in, sharp and impatient. “It’s nothing. Focus. Keep moving.”

Easy for him to say. But I couldn’t shake the feeling that something more sinister was at play. The sound wasn’t coming through the radio anymore, it was in my head, pressing against my thoughts, sending a chill racing through me.

Out of the corner of my eye, I caught a glimpse of movement and swung my flashlight toward it. Nothing. Just more swirling particles drifting in the current. My chest tightened, my mind filling the empty spaces with shapes that may or may not have been real.

“Stay close,” Kim's voice cut in, firm but laced with worry. “Don’t lose sight of each other.”

I tried to focus on Kim’s words, to stay grounded. But my flashlight caught it, a massive shape shifting just beyond the beam. It twisted, bending the light in ways that made my stomach knot.

Teeth. Rows of thin, needle-sharp points glinted faintly in the algae’s glow.

“Vurrax,” I whispered, the name escaping before I knew it.

Jonathan’s forced laugh crackled through the radio. “Vurrax? What’s that, Pearl?”

Kim’s voice came strained. “It’s the pressure. The depth can make you see things that aren’t there.”

I wanted to believe her. My hands shook too hard to pretend I wasn’t scared.

And just like that, it happened. Darkness exploded around us. A cloud of black ink swallowed Jonathan’s light in an instant. His scream tore through the radio, raw and guttural.

“Jonathan!” Jaime’s flashlight swept wildly through the water.

Bubbles surged. Shadows twisted. Jonathan thrashed, a flash of his dive knife slashing at nothing. The scene spun out of focus, a whirl of ink and confusion.

“Something’s grabbed me!” Jonathan’s voice crackled through the radio, sharp with panic. “I can’t see it, but I’m not going down without a fight!”

“What the hell is happening?!” Kim screamed over the radio.

As the ink cleared, I braced myself for... I didn’t even know what. But Jonathan was just there, floating, his breathing ragged. His leg showed no marks, no blood, he seemed physically unharmed. Yet the look in his eyes unsettled me to the core. I’d never seen Jonathan rattled before. But now? He looked spooked, like something had reached inside him and shaken the foundation of who he was.

“We need to leave,” I said, my voice cracking with urgency. “This isn’t safe. We’ve got a sample, let’s go.”

But Jonathan shook his head, his expression hardening. “Not yet,” he snapped. “We’re not leaving with just one sample. That was nothing, just an octopus or something.”

I wanted to believe him. God, I really did. But my gut knew better. Still, we needed more algae samples. We couldn’t leave empty-handed.

“I’ll grab another sample,” I muttered, more to myself than anyone else. Kicking hard, I pushed away from the group, heading toward the glowing algae bed.

The algae pulsed, its glow hypnotic as I reached out. My own breathing filled my ears, loud and uneven. The water around me shifted, alive with something unseen. My pulse raced, hands trembling as I reached for the algae.

Suddenly I saw a familiar face.

My mother.

Her face floated in the distance, pale and distorted. Dark streams of water leaked from her hollow eyes. Her lips moved, but the voice that came through sounded wet and broken.

“Pearl… darling… come to me.”

My chest seized. My breath stuttered. This wasn’t real. It couldn’t be. But the longer I stared, the more doubt clawed at me. Her face swam into focus, too familiar, too close. Behind her, more figures emerged, my father’s lifeless eyes. And then… him.

“No,” I whispered, shaking my head. My lungs felt tight, panic gnawing at the edges of my mind. I couldn’t move. I couldn’t tear my eyes away.

Her hand lifted, fingers outstretched. “Come, Pearl… it’s safe here.”

My pulse pounded, each beat loud and frantic. My father’s eyes locked onto me, empty, accusing. The algae’s glow smeared their faces in sickly green. They looked wrong, like shadows wearing familiar skin.

“Come back, Pearl. It’s warm here…”

Cold dread spread through me. My throat closed, the taste of metal flooding my mouth. I gasped into the regulator, each breath thin and shaky.

Then he appeared.

The man from every nightmare.

“My little Pearl,” he cooed, his voice a singsong mockery.

Terror clawed up my spine. I nearly lost it.

“No! You’re not real. None of you are real!” The scream tore out of me, desperate and raw.

But they kept drifting closer. The water thickened, darkness closing in like invisible hands squeezing my throat.

My mother’s lips moved again. Her hollow eyes pleaded. “We miss you, darling. We’re waiting.”

Panic snapped. I kicked back, but my legs felt heavy, tangled in the water. I couldn’t get away.

Jaime’s voice crackled through the radio. “Pearl, get it together!”

Reality slammed back into me. The figures vanished.

I needed to get out. My flashlight shook, the beam flickering wildly as I pushed toward the surface.

And I finally found her!

Kim’s body hung ahead, limp, suspended in a creature’s grasp.

My stomach clenched with realization. The Drowner’s Hand. Its long, jointed fingers wrapped around her arms and torso. Webbed membranes stretched between its fingers, glowing faintly with that same eerie blue light. Its mottled, dark skin rippled as if it was breathing. The way it held her sent cold dread through me.

Kim’s eyes snapped to mine, wide and frantic. She jerked, her body fighting even as the creature’s grip tightened. It wanted her to struggle.

“Kim!” I lunged forward, water dragging at me. Panic surged. I had to reach her.

The creature turned. Not a face, just two dark hollows where eyes should be. The algae in my bag pulsed brighter, painting it in sickly green light.

No time to think. I yanked out my dive knife. The blade glinted, then plunged into its wrist joint. The knife slipped against its rubbery skin. Dark ooze leaked out, curling like smoke.

Kim sagged. Her oxygen was running out.

No. Not now.

I tightened my grip, drove the blade deeper, and twisted hard. The creature jolted. Its fingers loosened just enough for Kim to drop free. I caught her waist and kicked upward, my lungs burning, muscles shaking. The creature stayed below, watching.

The surface felt miles away. My legs screamed, but I didn’t stop. Kim’s tank dragged at us, but I clung to the faint shimmer of light.

We broke through. I tore the regulator out and gasped, air slicing into my lungs. Kim’s head lolled against my shoulder, her body limp and unresponsive.

“Trevor!” My voice cracked. “Help!”

He was already there. Strong hands yanked Kim out of the water while I hauled myself onto the deck, my fingers trembling too hard to pull her mask off. Trevor did it, his face twisted with fear. Kim coughed, a thin, broken sound.

“She’s breathing,” he murmured, like he needed to believe it.

Relief flared, then sputtered out. My mind couldn’t shake the image of those fingers, slick with dark ooze. The way she went limp.

Jonathan hunched by the rail, his eyes fixed on the water. His shoulders curled inward, like he was trying to disappear.

The wetsuit clung to me, suffocating. I yanked the zipper down to my waist, cold air biting through my bikini top. I didn’t care. At least I wasn’t in the water anymore.

Just as my heart started to slow, Kim stirred. Her eyes darted around, wild with panic. “Where’s Jaime?”

The words punched the air from my lungs. My gut twisted. I turned to the water. Endless black stretched out.

“He’s still down there,” I rasped.

The words barely left my throat before I was moving. I ran to the edge of the boat.

“Pearl, no!” Trevor’s hand clamped around my arm. “You can’t, “

I ripped my arm free. “I’m not leaving him.”

I didn’t wait. I dove.

The water hit like ice, stabbing where my wetsuit hung loose. It didn’t matter. Nothing mattered but finding Jaime.

My heart pounded as I kicked deeper. The beam of my flashlight sliced through the dark, searching. A faint glimmer caught my eye.

Jaime.

He was tangled in dark tendrils, curling like smoke. They weren’t solid, but they clung to him, wrapping tight around his limbs and torso. My stomach knotted. They weren’t suffocating him, they were keeping him. Holding him in place.

A cloud of red spread through the water. My eyes darted to his leg. Blood spiraled in thin ribbons from a gash. My lungs seized at the sight.

I reached for him, my fingers trembling. He was only inches away. Before I could touch him, the tendrils unraveled, slipping away like shadows in the current. Jaime’s body floated upward, free.

Relief surged, then evaporated.

The water thickened around me. A sense of dread curled tight. I felt it before I saw it, the creature’s attention shifting, zeroing in on me.

A shimmer of silver caught my eye. The tail emerged first, massive, sleek, slicing through the water with slow, deadly grace. Then his chest came into view, broad and sculpted, bioluminescent skin rippling like living metal. Clawed, webbed hands glided through the water as he swam toward me.

Then I met his eyes.

Pitch black. Bottomless.

They locked onto me, swallowing everything. The world faded, leaving only the pull of his gaze. I couldn’t move. Couldn’t breathe. He wasn’t just looking at me, he was inside me, prying into my thoughts, holding me in place, unraveling me piece by piece.

His claws slid over my exposed waist, cold seeping through my skin. His other hand cupped my face, the touch firm but careful, like he was deciding whether to break me or hold me together.

My lungs burned, the need for air turning desperate. His eyes never let go. He leaned in, his cool lips brushing against my neck. Not a kiss. A claim. Then his teeth sank in.

Pain flared white-hot, a shock that jolted through my body. Heat chased it, spreading like fire through my veins. My back arched into him, the scream in my mind swallowed by the way my body gave in, wanting more.

My vision blurred. My limbs trembled. I started to slip away. Then his mouth found mine. His lips sealed over me, and he breathed into me. Salt and something raw filled my lungs, electric and alive. My chest expanded, the rush of it rewiring something deep and primal.

His claws traced my sides, glided to the back of my neck. He tangled his fingers in my hair, tilting my head. His lips brushed the other side of my throat. The second bite went deeper, pain blurring into something sharper, almost unbearable. The water thrummed around us, vibrating with whatever he was doing.

I gasped weakly. His mouth crashed onto mine again, the breath he gave searing through me. My hands pressed against his chest, useless, trembling. He didn’t let go. He held me there, his grip unrelenting.

When he finally pulled back, his eyes met mine. Dark. Possessive. Endless.

Shadows moved behind him, something massive shifting just out of reach. He loosened his hold, letting me float away. Not because I escaped, but because he allowed it.

I broke the surface, gasping. Hands grabbed me, Trevor, Kim, hauling me onto the deck. Their voices blurred, far away and muffled. My fingers found the marks on my neck, warm with my own blood.

But the pain wasn’t what stayed with me.

It was his eyes. Those black, endless eyes. Eyes I knew too well. Eyes that had haunted my dreams. My nightmares.