A shadow fell from the surface, engulfed in a shroud of bubbles that swirled and lingered in the water. As they dissolved, Cass raised his pale hand to his face. It made him feel acknowledged to act out his dreams, to be someone. Below, the stony reef was silent, stretching out chaotically in the small expanse. Having no desire to return, Cass swam out further into the vast ocean. As he swam, moonlight painted his bare skin with a rippling pattern that made him feel ethereal. He closed his eyes, letting the water ruffle his hair and flow though his fingers. It was a good feeling.
The reef disappeared, the stone dropping off to reveal nothing. It was an absolute nothing, devoid of light that simmered far in the depths, recoiling at the touch of illumination.
It made Cass shiver. The reef was built on top of a giant ledge that dropped off sharply, revealing a massive stone wall engraved with elliptical patterns that spiraled, forming a large circle. It reached far, far down, plunging into the darkness and dwarfing the sea as it rooted into something. It was completely silent.
Tentatively, he descended, signs of the stone’s ongoing battle with the water becoming more apparent as he approached. Here, it was cracked, eroded deeply to form a jagged surface that scraped against his skin as he touched down. A giant crevice ran further down the wall, darkness peeking out through its small window. Cass slowly approached its opening.
He felt unsafe in the open… it made him feel like he was being watched, the darkness fixing its gaze upon him, patiently watching, waiting for him to look away so it could bare its teeth. Compared to that, the inside of the stone was almost comfortable. Foreboding as it was, it couldn’t hold a candle to the might of the depths. He entered cautiously, pondering its scale. It was wide enough for him to float through it without much issue—although its rough edges still threatened to sand down his skin. It nestled deep into the stone, far deeper and far larger than the water could have eaten it.
From the darkness a white glint suddenly appeared, a solitary eye flashing, fixing on Cass. Its pincer lashed out, narrowly missing Cass’s arm. He fumbled, arms and legs scraping against the stone as he hastily retreated. A second pincer lunged forwards, this time impaling shallowly into his calf. Cass winced in pain, writhing as he reached out his hands to grab it, pull it out. It was still in the very opening, so pale moonlight was able to illuminate the red chitin of his assailant. The crab was small, matching only the size of his torso.
He panicked. Beneath his fingers, the red began to slowly blacken, decaying and starting to crumble. The crab only tightened its grip, making Cass flinch further and clamp a second hand onto its other pincer. It only had one eye that it glared at him with, the other was missing, only a pile of scarred tissue remaining. In his hands Cass could feel it starting to crumble, slowly giving way to his fingers.
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The crab continued to stare. Its gaze was blank, full of rage, devoid of emotion. Its pincers were nearly gone, withered beyond recognition and threatening to snap off its brittle limbs. Even as Cass grabbed its carapace its eye was unwavering. Even as its body was ravaged, destroyed by decay it never stopped.
Cass looked down at his hands. They were trembling violently. Black chunks floated in the water around him, forming a halo around the single eye that stared at him. Delicately, he reached out a hand and caressed it. Only as its edges warped and turned hazy did he relax, slumping against the stony walls. He felt… accomplished.
Cass wasn’t sure if the darkened flesh was edible, it certainly wasn’t appetizing, and so he simply pushed the floating chunks out into the open water. They sank down, becoming tiny specks that were consumed by the depths. Now that Cass was hidden, stashed away from the gaze, he could feel relief seeping into his bones.
The moonlight was tainted with slivers of sun that crept into the sky. As the sun rose, light refracted against the water, scattering and blossoming in the darkness the moon couldn’t extinguish. Cass rested his head against his arm. It wasn’t comfortable, but it was comforting.
He sat there, content in his bliss. The water swayed gently, and eventually the sun reached its apex, shining its beams directly into the water, into the depths. Suddenly, the rock began reverberating with a low, overbearing grumble, causing Cass to flinch and slink further into the cave. A large shadow arose from the depths, a giant serpent vaulting from below, flashes of brilliant green and blue filling his vision. It didn’t see Cass, or rather, it didn’t even look, because its head was already shooting out above the water, ascending and snapping its jaw at a large bird.
The bird hissed at the serpent, but its sounds quickly became strangled as the serpent slammed its massive jaws down on its wing. It struggled, but the struggle was fruitless, as it was quickly pulled from the sky with the weight of the serpent. The serpent’s head plummeted back into the water, holding the bird tightly. It gurgled and squawked as its head was submerged.
The serpent dragged its flailing body down, down into the depths where darkness overtook it. Cass knew it was stupid, but he stuck his head out of the cave, peering down into the vast, empty water. With the sun at its peak, the darkness had receded significantly, revealing new, large portions of the weathered stone wall that stretched far to his left and right. The serpent was far gone by now, the water leaving no traces of the conflict that had just transpired.
Cass nestled himself further into the cave, feeling waves of fatigue wash over him. Snuggling himself against the cold rock, he closed his eyes and let sleep overtake him.