Chapter Text
submarine creek and moaned while Simon kept his eyes on the dial. Sweat dripped down from his face while he leans back on the chair and shoved his hands over his eyes.
The speaker turns on, that familiar feminine voice returns to taunt him. "Convict, keep moving."
"I know! Just…give me a second." He's been down there for so long, taking countless radiation photos. He's only been sent up once and by miracle given another oxygen tank before being submerged again. His descent was havoc, it felt like he bruised a rib by the time he gotten himself up to hear a male voice.
Now, it's just a repetitive cycle of taking pictures and moving till he finds the bones again.
"There…" Simon mutters while getting up to tap the button to take a photo, waiting for the image to show. His face contorts to bewilderment, the bones…they're not there anymore.
"Convict! D- have the s-am-le?" The radio cracks.
"No- it's gone."
"What do -ou mean 'on?"
"I mean it's gone! It's not there!"
Simon quickly went back to his seat, looking at the coordinates. He's exactly where he needs to be, so where the hell did the bones go?
"Must've dropped d-n the hill. Go find i-."
Of course, getting back up, getting to be free wasn't going to be easy. When was life ever easy? Not since the rapture, not since Eden, not since…Filament Station.
Reluctantly, after assuring himself he will be freed afterwards, goes down the hill to find the bones. He went further till he saw it again, the bones were…different- no not the bones themselves but what is also seen in the image.
Who cares. That's not his problem right now, he needs to get the hell out of there, even with more oxygen it means nothing when blood still finds it's way in. Simon hops back into his chair, with the woman's instructing him to just ram into the skull for the sample.
With full force he does, the tank groans and squeals. Simon breathes heavily for a moment, was that it? Did he do it?
Quickly he stride to the back and pressed the button, the bones much closer now but so is something else.
"Convict-"
The tank was hit, it send Simon off his feet, causing him to latch on the the chair's leg that was welled down. He screams as the submarine twists and turns in the current of the blood ocean. His hands slipped causing him to fall back and hit the varies of pipes, he could hear the cut off voice from the speaker calling to him. Simone tried to reach back to the chair but was sent to the wall on the right, for a moment he was stuck there with immense pressure before he fell back to the ground.
"Ruagh!" Simon gasped, crawling to the chair and lifting himself up. "What- what the fuck! Hey! I did it! Now get me the hell out of here!"
Nothing. There wasn't even static from the radio, Simon pants, no they must be joking- he- what the hell happened!
"Hey! Hello! Hey- I think something is down here!" Still nothing.
Simon stands up and shuffles to the camera, pressing the button again, he's in a cave. "Fuck. Fuck me!" He shifts back, touching the wall behind him before putting his right hand in a fist and punching a near pipe.
Silent, only heavy breathing was heard till…
"Hey- so uhm- I have no clue where I am or who I am"
Simon looks back up the speaker, someone just spoke. It was soft- almost a whisper. "Hello? Can you hear me!" Simon moved closer to the speaker.
"Yeah so- I do know that I'm in space, uh—oh and my name is Ryland Grace, on the Hail Mary. Heh, I guess I did know who I was- sort of."
"what? Who—Yeah I know you're in space! And I'm in the fucking blood ocean! Get me out of here the other girl— your boss said I can go free I have the—"
"and now I am just here. There are others, well were others. They're dead though, they didn't survive the-"
The submarine shifted again, harsher sending Simon against the photograph machine, hitting the button to show a new image. "Fuck!" It looks like he was sent a few meters away from where he was just at.
"Hey! What do you mean by others? I- you said I was the first one down!…Hey!" Simon couldn't hear anything again. He gets up to the speaker, the wires aren't even connected.
"What?" Simon stumbles back, that's not right he swore he just heard someone. Has he gone crazy already? Blood dripped down on his shoulder, reminding him where he is, still stuck in a cave and has to find a way out.
Quickly he started preparing a map, going back to the control panel to find the bones again. There, that's his starting point, now he's gotta, find a way out.
It took hours, more than he would have liked it be, he continued practically blind especially after the tape he had kept falling off, he ran out soon after. With no other choice he had to trust the dial, it was tedious, having to get up and down to make each wall, each turn to map the cave.
He stopped, another wall he expected as the small yellow light flashed. He gets up, pressing the button once more just to see the fucking bones again.
"Fuck- I've been going in circles!" With how the map was looking and the many right turns he took, he should've guessed.
"Hey so I'm starting remember more"
There it is again, the voice, same one, a whisper. Simon quickly went back the speaker, it's still disconnected. The voice so much more quiet though. Simon looks at the map finding an idea where he was when he first heard the voice.
"Hang on" he said, though he isn't sure if the other man can hear him. He moved the submarine, hearing the voice get louder till he met the exact coordinates.
"I remember not being this muscular, I had an apartment, it was always foggy where I lived I think, that or I just seemed to always be out when it was."
"What?" An apartment? Foggy? That's not something the C.O.I has.
Simon huffs, it was still hard to hear the man, he looks back at the map and decided he'll take a new route. He moves again, till the audio got louder, more coherent.
"I think, I'm smart. Like I know I am I have all these equations and it's how I knew I was in space. But, I don't think I'm an astronaut. I don't know what I am, Mary says I am a doctor, I know nothing about med. I guess I have a doctrine then."
A doctrine? That's not right, anyone with a doctrine are either dead or no where near the C.O.I they are highly regarded. So why is someone like himself is listening to one right now?
"Oh and I know I looked weird right now but I haven't done laundry okay! The place does look bad too, but at least I got to shave that awful beard."
Who is this guy taking to? "Hey! I can't see you- why the hell am I even saying anything." Simon knows this Dr. Grace can't hear him, he must be tapped to another station that clearly has more resources. Hell the one person he's heard so far has a second name!
"Would you want to see?"A new voice, feminine.
"What? Wait you can hear me?"
"Yes, for a while now."
"Why the hell didn't you— sorry— I just… can you get me out of here?"
"I can do much more. I can show you what happened to the stars."
"What?"
"Do you want to know what happened? Simon."
"How do you know my name? Who are you!"
"Don't be afraid, I know a lot of things. I know you, what you done, what they call you."
Simon shakes his head, "I— please, I didn't want them to die, I didn't know! They—"
"Betrayed you. Your own brothers. Simon, I'm here to give you what the C.O.I promised. Freedom. Do you trust me?"
"I— why would you help me?"
"Because I want to leave this forsaken ocean. I can't live in blood forever. I know a way out but it's not big enough, not for me. I need you to go through, you will find someone. A saving GRACE, not just for me but for you too. Simon, do you trust me?"
Simon shakes his head, "this is all in my head. There is no escape! I'm trapped here and I've lost my mind—" suddenly the submarine is shoved again, he falls down and scrambles to the camera to see a creature. Massive and horrifying.
"Do I look fake to you? I am real! Simon, I need your help and you need my help. Do you trust me?"