—Evelyn
"Hhhh—Kshhhhh Hhhh—Kshhhhh Hhhh—Kshhhhh Hhhh—Kshhhhh" I was breathing heavily, my thoughts still uneven, adrenaline still rushing, helmet still fogging, every single one of my joints and muscles were screaming.
Breathe. "Hhhh—Kshhhhh" slower "Hhhh—Kshhhhh" slower
The crevice was narrow—barely enough for the 3 of us, narrow enough that the stone pressed against my back and my front, I had to angle our bodies in weird ways, it was cold, extremely cold—and outside something was circling us.
Not a sound, more like water changing its direction, the subtle pressure shift that travelled through the crevice and into my spine, the creature was definitely there, waiting, like an ambush predator slowly constricting the airflow of its prey
"Hhhh—Kshhhhh Hhhh—Kshhhhh" My breath started to slow down, my lungs still burning, not oxygen deprivation, but the exhaustion of a body pushed far beyond its limits. My eyes shifted to the HUD of the helmet, it was glowing yellow
[Current Depth : 10680 metres / 35039.37 feet, approximate pressure : 1000± of the surface, Suit & Helmet integrity [52.8%] microfractures spread increasing (Currently dropping at 0.0130% per second) Remaining oxygen : 40%]
"Hhhh—Kshhhhh How long Hhhh—Kshhhhh until Hhhh—Kshhhhh you guys Hhhh—Kshhhhh swap back?"
[39 minutes 20 seconds counting down.] Kiana? answered still in an emotionless tone, on the other hand Gaby? was—
[Hhhh—Kshhhhh this burning feeling Hhhh—Kshhhhh the adrenaline Hhhh—Kshhhhh the biological Hhhh—Kshhhhh processes. Interesting ]
39 minutes. Equipment integrity 52.8% and going down, oxygen 40% and going down,I looked at my helmet, I could barely see hairline cracks appearing at the edges of my helmet, near the seal where it meets the neck ring
On my suit, I could see faint stress lines, on the parts where I moved the most, the joints, the shoulders, the knees, the elbows, when I ran my gloved finger over them, they still felt smooth but I could definitely see it.
if I calculate at this current rate, I'd last for another—No I didn't want to know I'll do it later, but first.
"Hhhh—Kshhhhh. Hhhh—Kshhhhh. Hhhh—Kshhhhh.. Hhhh—Kshhhhh…"
I need to slow down my breath.
—
[Current Depth : 10680 metres / 35039.37 feet, approximate pressure : 1000± of the surface, Suit & Helmet integrity [40.4%] microfractures spread increasing (Currently dropping at 0.0148% per second) Remaining oxygen : 31%]
I glanced at the HUD, it was glowing red now, it was going down far faster than I thought, my breathing still quite ragged, like it couldn't go down any faster, I—I don't.
"Hhhh—Kshhhhh Kiana? Hhhh—Kshhhhh"
[24 minutes 20 seconds counting down]
It no longer felt comfortable, everytime I moved, everytime I breathed, there's a creaking noise, my helmet was giving occasional soft ticks, the suit that once felt like a second skin now had pressure points.
It wasn't painful, but I could definitely feel it, the hairline cracks no longer subtle, I could see it spreading in a distinct spiderweb like pattern starting from where my helmet slammed against the crevice
"So? How Hhhh—Kshhhhh does it Hhhh—Kshhhhh feel? For the both of you? Hhhh—Kshhhhh" I started a conversation, hoping to forget the current situation and calm my breathing.
[I can feel it Hhhh—Kshhhhh my body screaming my muscles aching the hormones Hhhh—Kshhhhh the adrenaline rush, the fear, the relief, the biological processes that Hhhh—Kshhhhh I had to manually simulate if I want to feel it by memory] Gaby? answered, her breathing had calmed down 10 minutes ago
[Emptiness, complete emptiness, I feel restricted, not in the usual sense, every emotion I feel dulled, logically I should be feeling fear, I should be feeling worried, yet before it could come out it disappeared like devoured by a black hole]
[I can see every microfracture, every time you move, every time you breathe, the helmet slightly deforming, the cracks, those stresslines that turned to visible splits that open and close every move, every breath you do]
She wasn't lying, I know, I could feel it and see it myself, my gloves felt stiffer, every movement required more effort than it used to, the suit groaned every single breath I took, every movement I made.
The hiss the regulator made was now different, the demand valve working against marginally more resistance, the air was thinning out extremely fast and there were still 24 more minutes.
"HHhhH—Kshhhhh… HHhhH—Kshhhhh… HHhhH—Kshhhhh"
—
[Current Depth : 10680 metres / 35039.37 feet, approximate pressure : 1000± of the surface, Suit & Helmet integrity [35.9%] microfractures spread increasing (Currently dropping at 0.0154% per second) Remaining oxygen : 28%]
"HHhhH—Kshhhhh… HHhhH—Kshhhhh… HHhhH—Kshhhhh" Breathing was starting to get difficult, it was never a good sign, the sides of my helmets were pressing against my temple, I could now feel it in my hips and other parts of my body.
"HHhhH—Kshhhhh Kiana? HHhhH—Kshhhhh"
[19 minutes and 30 seconds counting down.]
[Other me, if you always feel this constant void of emotions, does that mean every emotion you showed was manufactured artificially to ensure no one else would notice?] Kiana? asked a rather unexpected question.
[It's more of Hhhh—Kshhhhh I can still feel it just its extremely muddled down but Hhhh—Kshhhhh whenever I hear Kanade's music it helps me Hhhh—Kshhhhh Klein also does the same]
[What about the rest of us?] Another question coming from Kiana?
[Hhhh—Kshhhhh For those like mom, dad, grandma and the brot, I can still feel emotions Hhhh—Kshhhhh with the other members however Hhhh—Kshhhhh it takes a little effort.]
[What do you feel about me?]
[You're me but not me Hhhh—Kshhhhh a different version of me, we came from the same beginning but grew up Hhhh—Kshhhhh differently No other words can describe it, It's as simple as that.]
[When you were adventuring, There was an incident Hhhh—Kshhhhh where they took Kanade when me and Klein were asleep, we almost lost control Hhhh—Kshhhhh right there. If I were to describe it in a way that made sense We needed Anchors Hhhh—Kshhhhh]
[Anchors?]
[You know how Deities need Anchors? Hhhh—Kshhhhh in LOTM? Anchors remind us of Hhhh—Kshhhhh our human emotions, Me and Klein's are our family Hhhh—Kshhhhh Ray has it in us and his wife Hhhh—Kshhhhh]
[I see.]
"Hey Gaby HHhhH—Kshhhhh you said you HHhhH—Kshhhhh could feel fear HHhhH—Kshhhhh but you acted HHhhH—Kshhhhh so calm"
[Experience does not fade. Especially mine]
"I see, by the way Gaby HHhhH—Kshhhhh how much HHhhH—Kshhhhh more oxygen HHhhH—Kshhhhh do yo HHhhH—Kshhhhh have left?"
[40.9%] Gaby? Answered before going completely silent.
—
[Current Depth : 10680 metres / 35039.37 feet, approximate pressure : 1000± of the surface, Suit & Helmet integrity [21.2%] microfractures spread increasing Structural integrity compromised (Currently dropping at 0.0172% per second) Remaining oxygen : 19%]
The HUD was now red, the noise was now constant every time I moved ever so slightly, my fingers now feel compressed. Like wearing a glove one size too small, my temples hurt, my shoulders, my joints and hips now feel a painful discomfort.
The seal at my neck is producing a sensation—not leaking, but I can sort of feel the pressure difference. The fractures have widened and light had started to refract slightly differently through the fractured area's, but worse of all was the regulator.
"HHHhH—Kshhhhh… HHHhH—Kshhhhh .. Ki—HHHhH—Kshhhhh—ana?" Each breath felt progressively worse, the suits materials were starting to separate forming layers, and even the inner ones starting to look stressed.
[3 minutes and 50 seconds counting down]
Gaby? had stopped moving almost completely like she was conserving oxygen only her chest slowly rose up and down—Kiana? was completely still the entire time, and only I was moving every so slightly
—
[Current Depth : 10680 metres / 35039.37 feet, approximate pressure : 1000± of the surface, Suit & Helmet integrity [17%] microfractures spread increasing Failure Imminent (Currently dropping at 0.0178% per second) Remaining oxygen : 15%]
The HUD was now flashing red, the groaning from the suit had become constant even when I stayed completely still, my entire body hurted, the areas where the inner layers could be seen had started becoming translucent.
The area of the suit at my torso felt so tight across my ribcage regardless of breath, it no longer followed me whenever I inhale and exhale, I had to inhale against the suit rather than with it
"HHHhKkHH—Kshhhhh—HHHhKkHH—Kshhh—HHHhKkHH—Kshhhhh"
The regulator now produces a new sound after every breath, a slight hesitation a half second where the mechanism stops before cycling, it was struggling, and my helmet was now fogging again my time was running low.
[3, 2, 1—] Kiana? said and than
Complete Silence, only my own breathing could be heard, both Gaby and Kiana were completely silent for 3 seconds and than—
[HAAAAH—KSHHHHHH] Gaby folded instantly, her hands shot to her helmet at a speed I couldn't comprehend
[HAAAAH—KSHHHHHH—HHHHKKK]
SLAMMMMM CRKKKKKKK
The sound made my blood run cold, it wasn't her bones, it was her suit, the inner membrane at Gaby's shoulder stretched violently against the rock before snapping back in place.
"HHHhKkHH—Kshhhhh—GA—HHHhKkHH—Kshhhhh—BY?!" She didn't respond—No She was responding too much
[HAAH—KSHHHHHH—HHHHKKK HAAH—KSHHHHHH—HHHHKKK]
Her breathing exploded, through the comms, not oxygen deprivation, Panic—Pure Sensory overload
She staggered sideways in the cramped space, twitching uncontrollably, jerking everywhere, her hands clawing at her own chest, her throat, her helmet then onto the walls
[HAAAAH—KSHHHHHH—HHHHKKK IT HURTS IT HURTS IT HURTS HAAAAH—KSHHHHHH—HHHHKKK] Her scream echoed through the comms, my head suddenly felt clear.
Emptiness, complete emptiness, I feel restricted, not in the usual sense, every emotion I feel dulled, logically I should be feeling fear, I should be feeling worried, yet before it could come out it disappeared like devoured by a black hole
BOOOOOMMMM Gaby's hand slammed into the wall again
Other me, if you always feel this constant void of emotions, does that mean every emotion you showed was manufactured artificially to ensure no one else would notice?
The entire crevice shook, and outside—SHRIEEEEEEKKKKK—The Leviathan answered instantly, the abyss moved, the pressure shifted, and my suit screamed with an unpleasant sound—SKREEEEEEEE
It's more of Hhhh—Kshhhhh I can still feel it just its extremely muddled down but Hhhh—Kshhhhh whenever I hear Kanade's music it helps Hhhh—Kshhhhh Klein also does the same
The groan coming from my torso no longer sounded mechanical, it sounded alive, the HUD was now flashing with a big red screen
[Current Depth : 10680 metres / 35039.37 feet, approximate pressure : 1000± of the surface WARNING—STRUCTURAL FAILURE SUIT & HELMET INTEGRITY 13.8% OXYGEN 14.9% EXTREMELY LOW ]
CRCKKKKK
A black seam spread from the upper left corner of her helmet down towards her jawline. Not a fracture anymore. A real gap
"HHHhKkHH—Kshhhhh—HHHhKkHH—Kshhhhh—"
BOOOOOOMMMMM
The Leviathan rammed the crevice entrance again. Stone dust exploded through the water, the entire trench vibrated
[HAAAAH—KSHHHHHH—HHHHKKK IT HURTS] Gaby screamed, not verbally, instinctively as she lashed out blindly
THUDDDDD
"COUGH COUGH HHKHKHK COUGH COUGH" Her elbow struck me directly in the ribs, I could feel them crack, I could feel blood pooling in my airway, the impact nearly folding me in half.
[Current Depth : 10680 metres / 35039.37 feet, approximate pressure : 1000± of the surface WARNING—CHEST LAYER DELAMINATION DETECTED, SUIT & HELMET INTEGRITY 12.1% OXYGEN EXTREMELY LOW 13.9% ]
The inner membrane across my ribs stretched visibly translucent, for a moment In felt the ocean itself touching my skin [IT HURTS—] Gaby slam into the wall, trying to curl into herself
***CRKKKK—***Then I heard something worse, The sound of Kiana's helmet struck stone Hard—yet she didn't react. Didn't even blink,
"HHHhKkHH—Kshhhhh—GA—HHHhKkHH—Kshhhhh—BY?!" I tried to grab her shoulder—Immediately regretted it,
THUD CRACKKKK
"COUGH—"
My back slammed hard against the wall, I couldn't feel my lower body anymore, another crack formed against my helmet—Water didn't enter—Yet
[Current Depth : 10680 metres / 35039.37 feet, approximate pressure : 1000± of the surface WARNING—SUIT & HELMET INTEGRITY 11.8% IMMINENT OXYGEN EXTREMELY LOW 9% ]
But the helmet bowed inwardly, the abyss was no longer outside the suit, it was pressing directly against my entire body, I could feel the extreme pressure crushing me from the inside and another sound that was never a good sign
Blblblblblblblblblblbl
[Current Depth : 10680 metres / 35039.37 feet, approximate pressure : 1000± of the surface, WARNING OXYGEN TANK BREACHED—REMAINING OXYGEN : 0% SUIT & HELMET INTEGRITY 9%]
There was no more sound coming from the regulator, was it broken or was there no more fresh air for me to inhale I didn't know, I could no longer think.
BOOOOOOMMMMM
Another slam coming from the outside, it no longer wanted to wait, it was trying to break in and Kiana—Still floated motionlessly—Silent—Unmoving—Like a corpse suspended in the Mariana Trench
Note: Why didn't they just change their tanks? First it's cramped as hell, 2 if they did they'd probably die due to the overwhelming pressure of the Mariana Trench before they could change the tank