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Chapter 14: Water Corridor
In between the Broadway corridor, two blockades cover their path to escape through. The bow way is blocked and so as their current one they are facing when heading aft. The group of twenty-three are boundless and relying on the highest-ranking crewmen alive in this upturned bucket.
“Let’s try another way.” Sylvester said. “Any way out.”
“Let’s try going back to that ventilation shaft; we haven’t tried going to Deck 1.” Gwen Kershaw the lioness said.
Red the lion-man followed along. “Gwen’s right! We could go climb down one deck below and cross it to the other side.”
“I’m sorry, but I’m not going back to that cramped tunnel!” Priscilla the beagle protested.
“It’s our only option.” Sylvester said and turned to the bear-man. “We should go back, Snowdon.”
“W-wait!” Everyone turned at Sidney Jennings the steward. “I think we don’t need to go back.”
“What do you mean?” Lani hopefully said. He must have recomposed himself to help.
The Afro-American pointed the now starboard side alleyway. “I think there’s a staircase to one deck down. If I recall… Must be the medical sick bay and the tender service.”
Snowdon agreed his suggestion. “Better than going back through that tunnel.”
Jennings marches ahead through the alleyway first, recollecting the memories of the countless directions of corridors he could muster. Foxley was their map but is now Jennings’ turn to remember any possibilities to get through deck zero under. The group follows him behind in almost an ordinary fashion. It was a little narrowed the corridor.
Jennings stops and looks where he would go to find the onboard Sick Bay or Medical Clinic. He knows it’s on deck one, so to get there from deck zero is to simply take upstairs or, technically, down stairs. He looks for the green signs inverted on his feet with directions and turns to the right and then another to the right at meeting a doorless entrance, he watched his feet from getting tripped on the former upper door frame which the threshold is above.
“Watch your step!” He warned.
In there, he saw the upside-down stairs above him. Deck Zero is the very bottom end of the never-ending stairs to the upper decks to deck 14. The stairs don’t show any luxuries like the previous stairs they have climbed on, no red carpets, and no shiny railings, just bare metal stairs. Jennings knows these are crew only and emergency stairs for full vertical access, the previous time he had opened one were collapsed and black smoke tried to suffocate him.
Looking down as Sylvester walked up behind him. “Oh, shit.”
“Damn it! The deck’s flooded.”
The semi-clear water by the reflecting lights on the submerged deck is murky all the way close to the edge on the ceiling-floor lapping quietly at ease. Snowdon came along with Sylvester and reacted the same. They are all on a tight spot.
“Down there.” Jennings said. “The medical bay leads to this stair; a corridor covers almost the whole way through here and there’s another stair at the opposite side.”
“But is underwater!” Killian Maxwell said. “Listen, don’t get me into any ideas, but this has gotten too bad for us. We’re getting more at risk than going to the original way out to the bow.”
“What choices we got, Maxwell.” Sylvester said. “We’ve got to swim if we want to reach the other side.”
“Swim…?” The tuxedo cat-man asked.
Jennings filled in, “I can guarantee that is not too far the other side.”
“You’re kidding me?” Portia interrupted. “If it’s flooded, what about the other side?”
Snowdon declared. “Alright, we’re going to swim and that’s official!” He then muttered, “I hope everyone can swim.”
Kershaw said. “We need some rope as a guard line. That way, we don’t get lost underwater as we swim through.”
“Where are we going to find a rope in this mess?” Sylvester asked.
Ryder replied it, “Hey! There’s a fire hose we’d passed by, is it useful?”
“I’ll go and get it!” Rico said. He parted from the group and find the red-cased box on the wall. He came back soon with the group with a bundle of balled up hose on his arms. He handed to Kershaw. “Is it long enough?” He asked.
“Long enough to make a zip-line across the atrium.” The lion-man said. “Listen, everyone, one of us is going to swim down the corridor and reach the other side and tie it on so we can use it as an underwater guard line.”
“Wait, Dad! Don’t this!” Gwen said. “Let someone younger to handle.” She knows he had said “one of us”, but he has shown a lot of potential to dare take the underwater swimming challenge. She knows he’s always been in good health, but he’s probably had spent a lot of his energy from the start of this unplanned late-night survival party.
Red Westwood said. “Yeah, let me do it! I used to be a lifeguard; I’m a great swimmer.”
“But what about your leg, Red? Does it still hurt?”
“I’ll be fine, really.”
“Not on my watch, Russell.” Kershaw said.
Then Lani share her skills, “Well, I’m a surfer and do some snorkeling. I can hold my breath long enough. I could do this.”
“Thank you, miss,” Sylvester said, “but I’ve been trained in the navy, and water is one of them. Give me the hose.” Kershaw gave the first end of the hose and ties it around the waist.
But then his wife Carolyn stopped him. “Sylvester, please, don’t do it alone.”
He looks at his worried wife. “Don’t stop me, love. I’m doing this for everybody. I can hold my breath for two minutes, you see.”
“Don’t worry, Mrs. Rycroft.” Officer Snowdon said. “Might as well tag along with him behind in case something happens, two people the merrier. Plus, I can swim equally as Rycroft.”
“Thank you.” Carolyn was relief. Their two children, though, they were more confident he could do it.
“Hey, somebody take a timer.” Kershaw said.
“I’ll do it.” Rico quickly responded; he fetched his smartphone with a cracked screen. He tapped the clock application that includes a recreational timer. “All set.”
“When we get to the other side,” Snowdon said, “we’ll signal the rope by pulling twice, is that clear, Kershaw?” The older lion nodded.
With Kershaw holding the hose as rope with a pile behind him, Sylvester readily tied up, he descends the inverted stairs, it did not have a slope on the underside of the stairs as was bared metal; still felt as if the stairs aren’t inverted at all. The tiger loosens up a bit of his clothes by taking off the button shirt of his tuxedo with just his white undershirt and same goes for Snowdon. His body sinks and takes deep breaths before fully submerging underwater with his still working flashlight. The hose as rope swims up and down with the pulling flow and infinity sinks in a rhythm. Kershaw steady holding it and he doesn’t show any signs of stopping. Then the polar bear takes a plunge afterwards, disappearing into the dirty water. Rico pressed start the time.
“Who’s counting the time?” Kale asked.
“Me.” Rico replied with his cellphone’s timer. “Ten seconds…”
“So much for our devices…” Stephanie said. Their signal-less phones aren’t made water-proof.
“Fifteen seconds…”
The hose as rope keep sliding Kershaw’s hands. The tigers watch attentively, they know Sylvester is a good natural swimmer.
“How long we have to hold our breath?” Megan the cheetah asked.
Ryder responded, “We can hold it for a minute-long.”
“Thirty seconds…”
For a moment the hose went slack. “It stopped.” The lion-man said.
“Thirty-five second…”
Another second later, it went back on course. “We’re good. Time?”
“Forty seconds.”
The group intensify as time is reaching a minute, if more than that, they could not make it in one go. Kershaw wonders if they found the other side, Jennings knows is literally directly straight ahead to find the other stair as this one.
“Come on, Dad. You can do it.” Jett muttered.
The rope stopped sudden on Kershaw’s hands, a few more seconds a sharp yank slips through the palms and quickly grasped it and yanked back. “That’s it!”
“Time!” Carolyn said.
Rico stopped the timer and resulted. “Fifty-five seconds!”
“Can me make it?” Miss Blake the rabbit asked.
“Surely.” Kershaw assured. “Remember: take three deep breaths. Pull yourself with the rope and there’s no need effort to swim full body.”
“Oh, is that all?” Portia quipped.
“Better take off some of our clothes to get comfortable underwater.” The lion stated. Some of the men are still wearing fully dressed in either loosen tie or the white shirt a little unbuttoned. The women had torn their long gowns up their knees to walk well. Killian had already removed his black jacket and button shirt to Zoey after shredding her dress at the ballroom. She still wearing them, but the jacket has to go, she isn’t that ashamed.
The men started to remove the heavy clothes. Kale removed the white jacket and the gray vest that came it it. Ryder went a little further to just his white tank-top undershirt. Jett to his button shirt and untucked it out from his pants and rolled up the sleeves to his upper arms. Rico was the most intactly dressed that didn’t bother or take the rest of it out, only the tie was slightly loosen; he stripped to his white undershirt. Joshua to his button shirt and off the loose tie for once and same for Sasha and the black-blue vest. Red had taken the jacket off he wore long ago sometimes after he was free from the girder he was pinned on; he remained the same just his turtle-neck shirt and jeans.
And Jennings is still the same, he gave his jacket to Lani who was half naked when her custom she wore for the party fell apart after the capsizing. Jennings had loosened up his button halfway. The group is getting more uncomfortable as their clothing wasn’t made for anything but walking and looking elegant for one night.
After taking their time to prepare, Rico saw the water breaking through and revealed the face of the polar bear-man all soaked. Taking lungful of air. He must have swum without pulling the hose. “Hey, Snowdon’s back!” He pointed.
Kershaw, who was close on the stair, “Snowdon, everything all right?”
“Yes, all is well.”
Carolyn asked, “How’s Sylvester?”
Snowdon gently smiled, “He’s fine, securing the other end.” He looks at Jennings. “Jennings, you have done it well. The corridor does leads to the other side.”
“Is it clear the other side?” Jennings asked.
“Yes, the Broadway is clear once we swim under the blockade it left. Now, who wants to go first?”
A bit quiet the fellows, but Lani takes the stand. “I’ll go. I’ll be a good example.”
“Alright, miss. Oh! Before we start this, there’s something busted through in the way in the middle, so be careful and swim it through the wider space it leaves.” Snowdon informed.
Lani nodded and descends the stairs, takes deeps breaths, and dives into the water.
Snowdon said, “Who’s next?”
Carolyn order her children. “Come kids, your father is waiting.” She turned at the other three young girls, the beagles and the cheetah. “You three, too.”
Out of quietness, Pricilla timidly spoke. “But…I can’t swim…”
“What?” Clover turned at her by her statement. “You’re kidding now?”
The young cheetah-girl followed. “Pricilla…you can’t?”
“I’m sorry. I’ve never liked it. You know I’ve told you I didn’t wanted to go snorkeling.” The beagle-girl said. During the early days of the cruise, Pricilla had turned down any of the on-shore excursions suggested by Spencer that relates anything with water activities.
“It isn’t as difficult as you might think, young lady.” Zoey said. “You have to pull yourself with the rope.”
Pricilla shook her head, “I can’t…”
“That’s it! I’m going in.” Portia snapped. She shoved Rico and Kale between her and made to the pit of water. “See you all the other side.” She took deep breaths and dived into the water.
Kershaw said, “We cannot hold up everyone because one can’t swim.” He then points at the tigers. “Jett, Stephanie, go ahead. Then Mrs. Rycroft…” Jennings raised his hand. “Then, Jennings, Sasha and Parkinson…”
The young tigers sink in, Jett and Stephanie first before Carolyn. Jennings took his assigned turn and the following goes on; Miss Blake, Aubrey, Zoey, Killian, Kale, Ryder and Rico…
The group shrinks little by little, Pricilla, Clover, and Megan watches everyone submerging the pit of water.
Snowdon is not going to wait for them if the young beagle-girl makes up her mind to swim under.
Megan tries to speak to her, “Pricilla, you better be ready.”
“I don’t want to!” She shivers in fear.
“But can you at least hold your breath?” Snowdon asked.
“M-maybe…”
“Pricilla, that’s all you need to do!” Megan said. “You just hold your breath and hold on to somebody’s back.”
She shook her head. “N-no!”
Kershaw ordered Gwen and Red to swim next, Gwen was worried the swim-less beagle-girl if she could make it. She was resisting too much. Snowdon made toward the two and with little of consent, he made Megan to go next after Clover who was now standing half-submerged, ready to swim.
The cheetah-girl begged both men, “Please, help her.”
Clover sunk into the water with Megan behind her. Now three left, and twenty soon waiting for then on the other side.
“Misses, you’re holding up the tail to everyone else. You got to face it sooner or later.” Snowdon said.
Kershaw stood aside, “Let me handle this.” Clearly, Snowdon isn’t that much of a father figure than he is. He kneels at her and gave a smoothing tone. “Pricilla, I know this must be difficult to you, but let us help you. I remembered what your friend told you about to stick together with your sister no matter what.”
Pricilla remembers clearly: the angry face of Isaac Coats scolding the two estranging beagles and ordering them to remain together… She’s dragging behind, and Clover without saying anything before swimming under was like a warning on the back of her head. She is soon noticing the damage of a forgotten childhood… She cannot break what was the last thing Isaac ordered them to do, but why now…
“Pricilla?” Kershaw interrupted her mind. “Think you can do as I say?”
“I-I… I just hold my breath… Just that?” Her hands gently fidget for a slight warmth.
“Yes, you’ll hold onto my back and I’ll do the rest.” Kershaw turns to Snowdon. “I’ll take it from here, Snowdon. Go!”
The polar bear nodded, no hesitation and sunk in first. He met the cold Pacific water again. As an ursine beastman that is adapted to cold conditions where he was raised in Canada, this isn’t a concern for him, except for the others, especially the humans. With the gifted ability to see better underwater and nocturnal vision, but inside in a darken ship with dimmed lighting on the flooded corridor, makes things look very murky. Recalling when swimming with Rycroft on the first try looks the same as before. Inverted doors with letters indicating to such specific room and the clear Red Cross door on the right, the medical bay where mostly Dr. Daxner is found to help the needy passengers.
As he had remembered and warmed the rest, an unknown object has busted through in the way of the corridor and clearly told the group to make it through the wider part. The object is hard to identify as anything but destroyed debris…
Then another one ahead...
It was dark but as he pulls himself closer, he stopped. He almost gasped, his instinct shook him to gasp mentally at the sight. The orange cocktail dress of the cheetah-girl with gave up limbs spread on zero gravity, her eyes close and mouth agape with wasted air bubbles escaping out upwards. Her brown hair moves gently as a red substance appears covering her face.
In action, he quickly examines her with both hands holding her unconscious face, blood is spreading more, reddening his vision. He grabs her with one arm locking her torso and the other holding the hose, but then the cheetah slips out of his grip. She went back exactly where she was, Snowdon swims back to her and she was horribly entangled with cables on the back of her dress and hair. He pulls it out and the dress shreds in the process. Grabbing her again and free, Snowdon swims faster as he can and hopes to resuscitate her. Time underwater is limited.
Pulling and kicking his feet to the other staircase directly and meets the under-surface from a light being shone directly at it. Breaks it with an explosive gasp inhaling his lungs, he shouted for help.
“Help!”
The light was Sylvester’s flashlight placed on an overhanging rail of the inverted staircase. The tiger-man reacts the unexpected distress of Snowdon, bringing out the surface the young cheetah-girl. Clover was close to the stairs as she was recently the last to swim out of the water. She noticed that Megan was taking a long while but… She screamed in horror.
“Megan!”
Sylvester picks her up from Snowdon’s arms and shouted to make way and rest her on the ground. Everyone present were sitting by the same alleyway and reacted either confused or scared but mostly alarmed of what just sudden happened. They all looked, but Clover kept screaming in panic.
“What happened to her?”
Snowdon ordered her, “Stand back!”
Jett holds her shoulders from getting near the unconscious. She was trembling and shocked. Sylvester performs CPR, mouth-to-mouth, and both hands pressing on her chest. Blood was leaking somewhere near her head. Sylvester leans on her chest to hear any pulse, he resumes back pulsating her chest…
But Carolyn made close to Sylvester, she was trembling of fear. “Sylvester…”
He ignores her and kept on going. “Sylvester, she’s gone… Stop!” She grabs his arms and stop him, looking directly at him, shaking her head as for no use.
Snowdon, Sylvester, and Carolyn looked down her quiet body; eyes closed with slight opened mouth. One hand brushed the top of her head and blood stained the whole palm. A lethal blunt wound on her head had ended her…
Clover saw how Sylvester had stopped and quiet. Sasha was whimpering close with his father, trying not see the sight. “No…she can’t be…” The young beagle girl was at the brim of a meltdown. Jett tried to hold her from getting too close… Until… “Where’s Pricilla?”
Gwen knew the answer and so as Clover but forgot she was supposed to be assisted by Kershaw. “Where is she?” Clover panics. The rest of the group were starting to worry, but two gasp of air burst through the surface. Pricilla holding her arms on the lion-man’s shoulders. It took a rather bit longer for Pricilla to get her courage to confront the water element with the help of Kershaw, nothing wrong occurred. She lets go off from him almost automatically as Snowdon helps her out of the water. Kershaw slowly climbs out but halfway when he saw the lying body.
Pricilla first sees Clover’s horrible state. Like commonly stating of seeing a ghost. Pricilla took a moment to adjust her orientation after being underwater until she finally saw her best friend on the floor…
No one said anything. She falls to her knees and she erupted after holding on too much in her since the ship capsized and the death of Isaac and all her friends. Every. Single. One. Of. Them…
She wailed like a broken dying animal with so much pain. She made towards her body with little to todo but sob her feelings. Clover came closer to her and share her sorrow-ness and mourns. Kershaw, Sylvester, Carolyn and Snowdon stands back from the beagles and give them some space. But Stephanie and Jett walked up to them and sat down close to them.
“Leave them some space.” Kershaw whispered the three. “She’s in a better place…”
Snowdon ordered the group to move away from the alleyway and gather to the Broadway corridor. Where they soon meet the other side of the blockade earlier.
As they march, Sasha Parkinson asked his father. “Dad? Where do you think they go after death?”
“Heaven, son…” He replied quietly.
Nothing more was said. Only the mourns of Pricilla and Clover with Megan Swift’s remains. It was so much to bear, but they have a moment for themselves alone in the dark. Nothing else to worry about. Much less the sinking ship.
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Chapter 14: Water Corridor
In between the Broadway corridor, two blockades cover their path to escape through. The bow way is blocked and so as their current one they are facing when heading aft. The group of twenty-three are boundless and relying on the highest-ranking crewmen alive in this upturned bucket.
“Let’s try another way.” Sylvester said. “Any way out.”
“Let’s try going back to that ventilation shaft; we haven’t tried going to Deck 1.” Gwen Kershaw the lioness said.
Red the lion-man followed along. “Gwen’s right! We could go climb down one deck below and cross it to the other side.”
“I’m sorry, but I’m not going back to that cramped tunnel!” Priscilla the beagle protested.
“It’s our only option.” Sylvester said and turned to the bear-man. “We should go back, Snowdon.”
“W-wait!” Everyone turned at Sidney Jennings the steward. “I think we don’t need to go back.”
“What do you mean?” Lani hopefully said. He must have recomposed himself to help.
The Afro-American pointed the now starboard side alleyway. “I think there’s a staircase to one deck down. If I recall… Must be the medical sick bay and the tender service.”
Snowdon agreed his suggestion. “Better than going back through that tunnel.”
Jennings marches ahead through the alleyway first, recollecting the memories of the countless directions of corridors he could muster. Foxley was their map but is now Jennings’ turn to remember any possibilities to get through deck zero under. The group follows him behind in almost an ordinary fashion. It was a little narrowed the corridor.
Jennings stops and looks where he would go to find the onboard Sick Bay or Medical Clinic. He knows it’s on deck one, so to get there from deck zero is to simply take upstairs or, technically, down stairs. He looks for the green signs inverted on his feet with directions and turns to the right and then another to the right at meeting a doorless entrance, he watched his feet from getting tripped on the former upper door frame which the threshold is above.
“Watch your step!” He warned.
In there, he saw the upside-down stairs above him. Deck Zero is the very bottom end of the never-ending stairs to the upper decks to deck 14. The stairs don’t show any luxuries like the previous stairs they have climbed on, no red carpets, and no shiny railings, just bare metal stairs. Jennings knows these are crew only and emergency stairs for full vertical access, the previous time he had opened one were collapsed and black smoke tried to suffocate him.
Looking down as Sylvester walked up behind him. “Oh, shit.”
“Damn it! The deck’s flooded.”
The semi-clear water by the reflecting lights on the submerged deck is murky all the way close to the edge on the ceiling-floor lapping quietly at ease. Snowdon came along with Sylvester and reacted the same. They are all on a tight spot.
“Down there.” Jennings said. “The medical bay leads to this stair; a corridor covers almost the whole way through here and there’s another stair at the opposite side.”
“But is underwater!” Killian Maxwell said. “Listen, don’t get me into any ideas, but this has gotten too bad for us. We’re getting more at risk than going to the original way out to the bow.”
“What choices we got, Maxwell.” Sylvester said. “We’ve got to swim if we want to reach the other side.”
“Swim…?” The tuxedo cat-man asked.
Jennings filled in, “I can guarantee that is not too far the other side.”
“You’re kidding me?” Portia interrupted. “If it’s flooded, what about the other side?”
Snowdon declared. “Alright, we’re going to swim and that’s official!” He then muttered, “I hope everyone can swim.”
Kershaw said. “We need some rope as a guard line. That way, we don’t get lost underwater as we swim through.”
“Where are we going to find a rope in this mess?” Sylvester asked.
Ryder replied it, “Hey! There’s a fire hose we’d passed by, is it useful?”
“I’ll go and get it!” Rico said. He parted from the group and find the red-cased box on the wall. He came back soon with the group with a bundle of balled up hose on his arms. He handed to Kershaw. “Is it long enough?” He asked.
“Long enough to make a zip-line across the atrium.” The lion-man said. “Listen, everyone, one of us is going to swim down the corridor and reach the other side and tie it on so we can use it as an underwater guard line.”
“Wait, Dad! Don’t this!” Gwen said. “Let someone younger to handle.” She knows he had said “one of us”, but he has shown a lot of potential to dare take the underwater swimming challenge. She knows he’s always been in good health, but he’s probably had spent a lot of his energy from the start of this unplanned late-night survival party.
Red Westwood said. “Yeah, let me do it! I used to be a lifeguard; I’m a great swimmer.”
“But what about your leg, Red? Does it still hurt?”
“I’ll be fine, really.”
“Not on my watch, Russell.” Kershaw said.
Then Lani share her skills, “Well, I’m a surfer and do some snorkeling. I can hold my breath long enough. I could do this.”
“Thank you, miss,” Sylvester said, “but I’ve been trained in the navy, and water is one of them. Give me the hose.” Kershaw gave the first end of the hose and ties it around the waist.
But then his wife Carolyn stopped him. “Sylvester, please, don’t do it alone.”
He looks at his worried wife. “Don’t stop me, love. I’m doing this for everybody. I can hold my breath for two minutes, you see.”
“Don’t worry, Mrs. Rycroft.” Officer Snowdon said. “Might as well tag along with him behind in case something happens, two people the merrier. Plus, I can swim equally as Rycroft.”
“Thank you.” Carolyn was relief. Their two children, though, they were more confident he could do it.
“Hey, somebody take a timer.” Kershaw said.
“I’ll do it.” Rico quickly responded; he fetched his smartphone with a cracked screen. He tapped the clock application that includes a recreational timer. “All set.”
“When we get to the other side,” Snowdon said, “we’ll signal the rope by pulling twice, is that clear, Kershaw?” The older lion nodded.
With Kershaw holding the hose as rope with a pile behind him, Sylvester readily tied up, he descends the inverted stairs, it did not have a slope on the underside of the stairs as was bared metal; still felt as if the stairs aren’t inverted at all. The tiger loosens up a bit of his clothes by taking off the button shirt of his tuxedo with just his white undershirt and same goes for Snowdon. His body sinks and takes deep breaths before fully submerging underwater with his still working flashlight. The hose as rope swims up and down with the pulling flow and infinity sinks in a rhythm. Kershaw steady holding it and he doesn’t show any signs of stopping. Then the polar bear takes a plunge afterwards, disappearing into the dirty water. Rico pressed start the time.
“Who’s counting the time?” Kale asked.
“Me.” Rico replied with his cellphone’s timer. “Ten seconds…”
“So much for our devices…” Stephanie said. Their signal-less phones aren’t made water-proof.
“Fifteen seconds…”
The hose as rope keep sliding Kershaw’s hands. The tigers watch attentively, they know Sylvester is a good natural swimmer.
“How long we have to hold our breath?” Megan the cheetah asked.
Ryder responded, “We can hold it for a minute-long.”
“Thirty seconds…”
For a moment the hose went slack. “It stopped.” The lion-man said.
“Thirty-five second…”
Another second later, it went back on course. “We’re good. Time?”
“Forty seconds.”
The group intensify as time is reaching a minute, if more than that, they could not make it in one go. Kershaw wonders if they found the other side, Jennings knows is literally directly straight ahead to find the other stair as this one.
“Come on, Dad. You can do it.” Jett muttered.
The rope stopped sudden on Kershaw’s hands, a few more seconds a sharp yank slips through the palms and quickly grasped it and yanked back. “That’s it!”
“Time!” Carolyn said.
Rico stopped the timer and resulted. “Fifty-five seconds!”
“Can me make it?” Miss Blake the rabbit asked.
“Surely.” Kershaw assured. “Remember: take three deep breaths. Pull yourself with the rope and there’s no need effort to swim full body.”
“Oh, is that all?” Portia quipped.
“Better take off some of our clothes to get comfortable underwater.” The lion stated. Some of the men are still wearing fully dressed in either loosen tie or the white shirt a little unbuttoned. The women had torn their long gowns up their knees to walk well. Killian had already removed his black jacket and button shirt to Zoey after shredding her dress at the ballroom. She still wearing them, but the jacket has to go, she isn’t that ashamed.
The men started to remove the heavy clothes. Kale removed the white jacket and the gray vest that came it it. Ryder went a little further to just his white tank-top undershirt. Jett to his button shirt and untucked it out from his pants and rolled up the sleeves to his upper arms. Rico was the most intactly dressed that didn’t bother or take the rest of it out, only the tie was slightly loosen; he stripped to his white undershirt. Joshua to his button shirt and off the loose tie for once and same for Sasha and the black-blue vest. Red had taken the jacket off he wore long ago sometimes after he was free from the girder he was pinned on; he remained the same just his turtle-neck shirt and jeans.
And Jennings is still the same, he gave his jacket to Lani who was half naked when her custom she wore for the party fell apart after the capsizing. Jennings had loosened up his button halfway. The group is getting more uncomfortable as their clothing wasn’t made for anything but walking and looking elegant for one night.
After taking their time to prepare, Rico saw the water breaking through and revealed the face of the polar bear-man all soaked. Taking lungful of air. He must have swum without pulling the hose. “Hey, Snowdon’s back!” He pointed.
Kershaw, who was close on the stair, “Snowdon, everything all right?”
“Yes, all is well.”
Carolyn asked, “How’s Sylvester?”
Snowdon gently smiled, “He’s fine, securing the other end.” He looks at Jennings. “Jennings, you have done it well. The corridor does leads to the other side.”
“Is it clear the other side?” Jennings asked.
“Yes, the Broadway is clear once we swim under the blockade it left. Now, who wants to go first?”
A bit quiet the fellows, but Lani takes the stand. “I’ll go. I’ll be a good example.”
“Alright, miss. Oh! Before we start this, there’s something busted through in the way in the middle, so be careful and swim it through the wider space it leaves.” Snowdon informed.
Lani nodded and descends the stairs, takes deeps breaths, and dives into the water.
Snowdon said, “Who’s next?”
Carolyn order her children. “Come kids, your father is waiting.” She turned at the other three young girls, the beagles and the cheetah. “You three, too.”
Out of quietness, Pricilla timidly spoke. “But…I can’t swim…”
“What?” Clover turned at her by her statement. “You’re kidding now?”
The young cheetah-girl followed. “Pricilla…you can’t?”
“I’m sorry. I’ve never liked it. You know I’ve told you I didn’t wanted to go snorkeling.” The beagle-girl said. During the early days of the cruise, Pricilla had turned down any of the on-shore excursions suggested by Spencer that relates anything with water activities.
“It isn’t as difficult as you might think, young lady.” Zoey said. “You have to pull yourself with the rope.”
Pricilla shook her head, “I can’t…”
“That’s it! I’m going in.” Portia snapped. She shoved Rico and Kale between her and made to the pit of water. “See you all the other side.” She took deep breaths and dived into the water.
Kershaw said, “We cannot hold up everyone because one can’t swim.” He then points at the tigers. “Jett, Stephanie, go ahead. Then Mrs. Rycroft…” Jennings raised his hand. “Then, Jennings, Sasha and Parkinson…”
The young tigers sink in, Jett and Stephanie first before Carolyn. Jennings took his assigned turn and the following goes on; Miss Blake, Aubrey, Zoey, Killian, Kale, Ryder and Rico…
The group shrinks little by little, Pricilla, Clover, and Megan watches everyone submerging the pit of water.
Snowdon is not going to wait for them if the young beagle-girl makes up her mind to swim under.
Megan tries to speak to her, “Pricilla, you better be ready.”
“I don’t want to!” She shivers in fear.
“But can you at least hold your breath?” Snowdon asked.
“M-maybe…”
“Pricilla, that’s all you need to do!” Megan said. “You just hold your breath and hold on to somebody’s back.”
She shook her head. “N-no!”
Kershaw ordered Gwen and Red to swim next, Gwen was worried the swim-less beagle-girl if she could make it. She was resisting too much. Snowdon made toward the two and with little of consent, he made Megan to go next after Clover who was now standing half-submerged, ready to swim.
The cheetah-girl begged both men, “Please, help her.”
Clover sunk into the water with Megan behind her. Now three left, and twenty soon waiting for then on the other side.
“Misses, you’re holding up the tail to everyone else. You got to face it sooner or later.” Snowdon said.
Kershaw stood aside, “Let me handle this.” Clearly, Snowdon isn’t that much of a father figure than he is. He kneels at her and gave a smoothing tone. “Pricilla, I know this must be difficult to you, but let us help you. I remembered what your friend told you about to stick together with your sister no matter what.”
Pricilla remembers clearly: the angry face of Isaac Coats scolding the two estranging beagles and ordering them to remain together… She’s dragging behind, and Clover without saying anything before swimming under was like a warning on the back of her head. She is soon noticing the damage of a forgotten childhood… She cannot break what was the last thing Isaac ordered them to do, but why now…
“Pricilla?” Kershaw interrupted her mind. “Think you can do as I say?”
“I-I… I just hold my breath… Just that?” Her hands gently fidget for a slight warmth.
“Yes, you’ll hold onto my back and I’ll do the rest.” Kershaw turns to Snowdon. “I’ll take it from here, Snowdon. Go!”
The polar bear nodded, no hesitation and sunk in first. He met the cold Pacific water again. As an ursine beastman that is adapted to cold conditions where he was raised in Canada, this isn’t a concern for him, except for the others, especially the humans. With the gifted ability to see better underwater and nocturnal vision, but inside in a darken ship with dimmed lighting on the flooded corridor, makes things look very murky. Recalling when swimming with Rycroft on the first try looks the same as before. Inverted doors with letters indicating to such specific room and the clear Red Cross door on the right, the medical bay where mostly Dr. Daxner is found to help the needy passengers.
As he had remembered and warmed the rest, an unknown object has busted through in the way of the corridor and clearly told the group to make it through the wider part. The object is hard to identify as anything but destroyed debris…
Then another one ahead...
It was dark but as he pulls himself closer, he stopped. He almost gasped, his instinct shook him to gasp mentally at the sight. The orange cocktail dress of the cheetah-girl with gave up limbs spread on zero gravity, her eyes close and mouth agape with wasted air bubbles escaping out upwards. Her brown hair moves gently as a red substance appears covering her face.
In action, he quickly examines her with both hands holding her unconscious face, blood is spreading more, reddening his vision. He grabs her with one arm locking her torso and the other holding the hose, but then the cheetah slips out of his grip. She went back exactly where she was, Snowdon swims back to her and she was horribly entangled with cables on the back of her dress and hair. He pulls it out and the dress shreds in the process. Grabbing her again and free, Snowdon swims faster as he can and hopes to resuscitate her. Time underwater is limited.
Pulling and kicking his feet to the other staircase directly and meets the under-surface from a light being shone directly at it. Breaks it with an explosive gasp inhaling his lungs, he shouted for help.
“Help!”
The light was Sylvester’s flashlight placed on an overhanging rail of the inverted staircase. The tiger-man reacts the unexpected distress of Snowdon, bringing out the surface the young cheetah-girl. Clover was close to the stairs as she was recently the last to swim out of the water. She noticed that Megan was taking a long while but… She screamed in horror.
“Megan!”
Sylvester picks her up from Snowdon’s arms and shouted to make way and rest her on the ground. Everyone present were sitting by the same alleyway and reacted either confused or scared but mostly alarmed of what just sudden happened. They all looked, but Clover kept screaming in panic.
“What happened to her?”
Snowdon ordered her, “Stand back!”
Jett holds her shoulders from getting near the unconscious. She was trembling and shocked. Sylvester performs CPR, mouth-to-mouth, and both hands pressing on her chest. Blood was leaking somewhere near her head. Sylvester leans on her chest to hear any pulse, he resumes back pulsating her chest…
But Carolyn made close to Sylvester, she was trembling of fear. “Sylvester…”
He ignores her and kept on going. “Sylvester, she’s gone… Stop!” She grabs his arms and stop him, looking directly at him, shaking her head as for no use.
Snowdon, Sylvester, and Carolyn looked down her quiet body; eyes closed with slight opened mouth. One hand brushed the top of her head and blood stained the whole palm. A lethal blunt wound on her head had ended her…
Clover saw how Sylvester had stopped and quiet. Sasha was whimpering close with his father, trying not see the sight. “No…she can’t be…” The young beagle girl was at the brim of a meltdown. Jett tried to hold her from getting too close… Until… “Where’s Pricilla?”
Gwen knew the answer and so as Clover but forgot she was supposed to be assisted by Kershaw. “Where is she?” Clover panics. The rest of the group were starting to worry, but two gasp of air burst through the surface. Pricilla holding her arms on the lion-man’s shoulders. It took a rather bit longer for Pricilla to get her courage to confront the water element with the help of Kershaw, nothing wrong occurred. She lets go off from him almost automatically as Snowdon helps her out of the water. Kershaw slowly climbs out but halfway when he saw the lying body.
Pricilla first sees Clover’s horrible state. Like commonly stating of seeing a ghost. Pricilla took a moment to adjust her orientation after being underwater until she finally saw her best friend on the floor…
No one said anything. She falls to her knees and she erupted after holding on too much in her since the ship capsized and the death of Isaac and all her friends. Every. Single. One. Of. Them…
She wailed like a broken dying animal with so much pain. She made towards her body with little to todo but sob her feelings. Clover came closer to her and share her sorrow-ness and mourns. Kershaw, Sylvester, Carolyn and Snowdon stands back from the beagles and give them some space. But Stephanie and Jett walked up to them and sat down close to them.
“Leave them some space.” Kershaw whispered the three. “She’s in a better place…”
Snowdon ordered the group to move away from the alleyway and gather to the Broadway corridor. Where they soon meet the other side of the blockade earlier.
As they march, Sasha Parkinson asked his father. “Dad? Where do you think they go after death?”
“Heaven, son…” He replied quietly.
Nothing more was said. Only the mourns of Pricilla and Clover with Megan Swift’s remains. It was so much to bear, but they have a moment for themselves alone in the dark. Nothing else to worry about. Much less the sinking ship.
Chapter 14 of Ship Wave fanfiction.
Category Story / All
Species Unspecified / Any
Gender Any
Size 120 x 90px
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