The Unchipped

Chapter 23

The darkness was immediate and all consuming. Sara had expected it and yet it invaded so deeply that panic attempted to override her mental preparations. The weight of the ocean pressed the blackness inward, insisting upon an ascent to establish a return to the predawn grayness so suddenly erased the instant before.

A hand wrapped around her wrist, ending her instinctive rise to the surface. A glowing sliver of light from the gauge on Phillip's arm lessened the sense of blindness. Sara was reminded that she wasn't as alone as she imagined.

"Wait for the ship, Sara," Phillip said in an electric gravelly voice. His breathing was transmitted with the words, though it was muted by a filter.

Sara smiled despite her fears. "You called me Sara."

"As you requested, my lady." Phillip spoke with feigned respect, as if he were addressing some queen in her castle.

"Ahh, now you've gone and ruined it," Sara chided.

"Sara, Sara, Sara. There, I've redeemed myself."

Sara laughed. The blackness didn't seem so dark while there was conversation. She hoped the comms would hold out against the sea. "It's darker than I imagined."

"The sun will take care of that soon enough. At least we'll know which way is up."

"This is insane," Sara said, keeping the words light. "I mean, it was insane when I agreed, but now that we're in the middle of the ocean, blind to everything around, well, it's worse than insane."

"Peaceful, though," Phillip said, "It's like we've turned off the world and all the problems that come with it." He chuckled. "People pay good money to spend time in deprivation tanks when all they have to do is dive at night."

"What is a deprivation tank?"

"You mean you don't have those in Aragonia?"

"Not that I know of," Sara replied. What followed was Phillip's description of the spa treatment available to those with means. It seemed a silly purchase to her. His words meandered into other strange treatments that never caught on in Aragonia, or were rightly thwarted at the border. When Traci's Whim started her engines again, Phillip's descriptions ceased. It didn't take a university graduate to realize he had been distracting her. Sara appreciated the effort, because it worked.

"Let's give them a moment," Phillip said as the heavy whine of the engines moved the ship away. The sound gradually weakened into the blackness far to the left. "Fancy a swim, Sara?" His voice was full of humor.

"What a wonderful idea," Sara said, allowing the humor to soothe how dark the world had become. "It's fortunate we've dressed for the occasion."

Phillip did not release her hand as he looked at the glowing compass on his wrist. Sara was thankful for that. The darkness was complete and losing him would be a nightmare. A few feet apart might as well be a mile to the newly blind. He established the correct bearing and used their joined hands to point the way.

"Slow and steady, no need to tire ourselves out," Phillip said as they began to move their flippers, creating a comfortable pace. It was an odd sensation moving through the viscous gloom, knowing that they were progressing but without even the tiniest visual verification of the trek. Sara trusted Phillip's courage, letting it fuel her own.

"So, how did you know Lydia was the one?" Sara asked. The silence was too oppressive so she filled the void. It was curiosity that chose the subject. Phillip was obviously in love, far beyond the infatuation phase Sara had experienced. Perhaps he could provide guidance as to when the now turns into forever..