Villagers by the sea are astounded when fishermen start disappearing without a trace
A team of scientists working on the coral reefs not sure what they are about to discover
A kingdom of merfolk is threatened by the commotion on the surface
This sto...
Zaid was lucky to be alive. But during the entire trip back, he had to endure a two hour lecture from everyone on the boat. "How could you be so careless?", yelled the professor and the instructor. "You could have died and we wouldn't even have found your body. Do you have any idea how dangerous that was?" This went on for some time. After the professor cooled down, Shehzad and Nadia began. "If you want to die, just say so. We'll just push out the running boat next time", Nadia said sarcastically. Shehzad smacked him again at the back of his head. "Idiot!", he said fuming. And to make matters worse, a seagull pooped on his head when were about to get off the boat.
Zaid apologized again and again to everyone on the boat and promised to never wander off again. Professor accepted his apology and agreed to let him on the next dive. Shehzad and Nadia were not convinced though. Zaid had to make a deal to buy them dinner the next week. They forgave him then too.
They got back to the substation where he had to endure a 30 minute lecture from Nadir Bhai as well regarding his dangerous adventure. After which, they sat down to work. Unfortunately Zaid's camera got caught in the current and was badly damaged so it was kept to send for repairs when they get back to Karachi. The tanks with the coral specimens were thriving well and were growing at a steady rate. The reason to collect and study the coral specimens was to repopulate the coral reefs in the areas where they were damaged by water pollution. Rising water temperatures causes bleaching in the northern and eastern ends of the island and they were keen to start the reefs there again. Once these specimens have reached a certain height, they will be planted in the eastern reef.
"Hmm, the specimens look mature enough to be planted back. What do you think?", asked Nadia. "The Menella and Favites species looks ready to go and Echinogorgia looks like it could take a while. If we wait a week or two, we might be able to plant them by the end of this month", Nadia said hopefully. "That's great!", Shehzad yawned from behind. "Get up Shehzad, you're always dozing off", Nadia said irritated. "Fine I am up", pouted Shehzad "And Zaid!", she said glaring at him. "If you do that stunt again, I'll cut off the oxygen supply myself" and then stormed off. Zaid looked puzzled. "What's wrong with her?" Shehzad got up and smacked him on the back of his head. "That's from Nadia". "Ow! Fine, I am sorry. I won't wander off." Zaid massaged the back of his neck. "Good!", said Shehzad. "I'll go talk to her" and then he left. "What's with everyone today?", Zaid thought. It was suppose to be a normal dive but sadly nothing normal ever comes his way. He looked at the other tanks and monitored their growth. Even Nino didn't greet him and stayed away. "Come on, you too?"
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His mind was fixated on the fact that he got back after being stuck in a water current that could have potentially killed him. It was indeed a miracle that he is alive now. How did he got of it was another mystery on its own. Zaid looked up strong water currents and came across some horrific imagery. No wonder everyone was angry. Those things could rip you apart in seconds. It send shivers down his spine just thinking about it. But then a question came. How did he survive this? What really happened back then? All he remembered was that he was following the purple shoals of fish who suddenly vanished and then the water current swept him away. And by some miracle, he was pulled out from the current and back to the sea floor and the current dissipated. I better be careful next time.
He later went down for lunch. He apologized to Nadia again which she accepted. Professor and Nadir Bhai had forgiven him but Shehzad was still waiting for Zaid to buy them dinner. After lunch, they discussed with the professor regarding repopulating the east end of the island. Professor was very happy regarding the progress of the work and was hopeful that it will work out great. He said that he'll discuss it with the dean regarding the fundings and the proper equipment after which they can start working. When they were done, Nadir Bhai came up with his famous cardamom tea. They enjoyed it immensely after which he said, "Sir, my cousin is having his daughter's wedding next week in the village. It would be a great honor for us if you all could join us" Everyone graciously accepted the invite and were keen to attend it, especially Zaid who always wanted to go to the fisherman's village.
They packed their stuff and goodbye to Nadir Bhai and head off back to Karachi via the coastal highway. Zaid looked out the window and gazed into the open sea and wondered. This could have been his last dive ever but he miraculously survived.
He remembered his mother's saying: "If you ever survive a near fatal attack then there must be something very important that you have to do in the future". Zaid smiled to himself. Well there's the replanting of the coral reefs, that's pretty important. Well, we'll see how that goes.
