【 𝑫𝑰𝑽𝑬 】 ✦❆ 𝙖 𝙁𝙧𝙚𝙢𝙞𝙣𝙚𝙩 𝙛𝙖𝙣𝙛𝙞𝙘𝙩𝙞𝙤𝙣 ❆✦

2: The Sea Floor

For a moment, it was only light blue air bubbles around me, both big and small. They disappeared soon enough, quickly fading away and becoming one with the water again. The area I went into was relatively shallow. From what I was able to see, there was nothing here but seaweed, small fish and a whole lot of sand. If I swam out more, I'd be able to see more of the shells and corals and sea creatures. Is this excitement that I'm suddenly feeling? It's an awkward tingling sensation in my stomach. My body yearned to go onward into the deeper waters. Slowly, I pushed forward, using both my arms and legs to swim around with ease. The farther I went, the more clear and blue the water was. I was starting to see the sea creatures in the distance. Not wanting to disturb them, I went closer to the floor to find some of the underwater floral that could grow here. They looked much more majestic than ones on land. Fontaine's underwater fauna, gems and shells are valued among a lot of people all around Teyvat. Since a great many don't have the skill to go diving into the water like I do, they can't obtain these precious things. While yes, I get asked sometimes to grab a few items here and there, I don't like taking a whole lot of things that belong in the water. After all, the sea animals have use for them too. We humans can't be too greedy.

Pers gave me a heads up that I was low on oxygen and that I needed to resurface soon. It wasn't that long I've been down here, right? I wanted to stay longer. Looking up to the surface, I could see the light of the orange setting sun reflecting into the water. It was blurry, but still beautiful. If my helmet wasn't on, maybe I could slightly, just slightly, feel the sun on my face. I started to swim upward when my path was abruptly stopped by a blubberbeast doing back flips. The pale blue and yellow creature seemed to be waving as it squeaked in happiness at the sight of me. I gave it a thumbs up, then wondered if such animals even understood human gestures. It squeaked again, then swam away. The brief interaction put a small smile on my face.

True to their name, leisurely otters were found lounging lazily on the rock that I used to rest on once I broke the surface for air. Tapping my helmet twice on the side made it disappear so that it was somewhat easier to breathe. The blue and white bodied animals purred and some of them had waddled over to me to see what I was all about. The fur on their heads looked so soft. Reaching out my hand, I managed to scare most of them away, but one of them stayed, allowing me to touch its fur. As expected, it was soft as silk. The animal flopped onto its belly and closed its eyes. From my back, Pers wriggled around and made strange noises. Somehow he had managed to spin himself around and was watching me pet the otters.

"Don't worry Pers. You'll always be my number one."

Satisfied, the mechanical penguin rested back into his pouch on my back. My diving helmet returned onto my head and I said good bye to the otters. Back into the sea I went, this time in search for romaritime flowers. Invasive species like to try and hog these flowers for themselves. For what purpose, I have no idea, but it bothers the other sea life. Thankfully, these flowers are common and the intruders shouldn't be hard to find at all. Because of the xenochromatic abilities granted by some of the animals by the sandy ocean floor, I can hunt them easily. Oh, look. There's one nearby.

Touching the back of one of the xenochromatic creatures, it created a light blue bubble around me and I suddenly felt energized. The effects don't last long, so I would have to do this quickly. Over by the romaritime flowers, two rather large crabs had their claws extended and they looked angry. These guys aren't like the usual armored crabs found around here. The ones trying to claim the flowers for themselves are much more aggressive. The invasive crabs have a yellow body and dark brown shells that sometimes carry barnacles. They don't have a name. Perhaps I should name them bully crabs... you know, because they're mean.

I held out my hand an a bubble came from it, growing until it was about the size of my fist. Then, it flew towards one of the crabs at an incredible speed. Just from a single attack, the varmint was taken aback and stunned. Firing again after a moment made its shell crack and break. The crab went down and fragments of its shell scattered around its body. Something pinched my leg. Flinching away, I looked down at it. The other crab had taken a hit on me. There was a bit of blood coming from my wound, but it didn't hurt very much. Well, not yet. I figured when the shield came down that it would sting quite a bit. Regardless, I was still determined to get rid of this thing. Its presence alone was ruining the aesthetic of the ocean. I fired another one of those strong bubbles towards it. While I shot at the crab, I wondered how such a small bubble attack can be so effective when it comes to fighting these monsters. Not that I'm complaining, of course. I'm glad that I'm able to do something to help clean the waters from invasive species like bully crabs. Another attack, and the animal was dead just like it's buddy next to him. I swam closer to pick up the broken pieces of their shells to bury them. Just in case something swims too close and gets cut. It was always good to be extra careful.

After burying the shells scraps, I went closer to the romaritime flowers. Not only were there those bubbly blue and purple flowers laying around, but there was so much more. Colorful coral nearby, as well as starfish and crystals and shells with pearls bound to be inside. Maybe I should collect pearls for a necklace to give to Lynette. No reason, just my appreciation. It's hard for me to express myself through words. Giving gifts are a better way to show my gratitude. I swam towards the clam shells, wondering which color of pearl would be inside; if there would be one, two or maybe even three. Yeah, three would be nice. How many will I need for her necklace? They're kind of small, so maybe...

Something hit me on the head. Hard. Really hard. It caused my vision to go all fuzzy and I lost my ability to see straight for a good couple of seconds. Water started to fill my helmet. Pers was alarmed, squirming all over the place behind me which wasn't helping. I didn't know what hit me. Looking right at it, and I had no clue what it was. The penguin was now freaking out completely. He must have seen it too, now. There was no time to be figuring out what it was. What was important right now was to get to the surface before my helmet filled up completely. The water was already at my chin. Craning my neck upward to get my nose and mouth that much higher up I pushed myself up off the bottom of the ocean and towards the surface. I felt a weight being lifted off of my back. Pers had fallen and was starting to sink. I couldn't leave him. Turning around, I extended my hand to reach out for him. The creature was swimming towards us again. Now I know why I got hit so hard. It's head was solid as a rock. It was after Pers. Did it think that he was food? He isn't food. Pers is my friend and I can't lose him. He was now within reach. Swiftly, I grabbed him and held him close to me. It was too late for me to swim away from the creature racing in our direction. Squeezing my eyes shut and holding Pers in my arms, I accepted my fate. How it ended up like this, I'm not entirely sure. A moment ago I was searching for pearls, and the next I was attacked and fighting for my life. Now, my helmet had filled up to my nose. I took in one final breath and then, a direct hit to my back. And then, nothing.