Ah Friday, no matter how much I want to stay in bed Friday always has such promise. Is it because it is the end of the work week? Possibly. Mostly I think it is because I finally figured out a way to arrange my schedule so that I can just take off and write on Friday and I have a story scratching in my brain all week. So let’s get this morning started. Timers away!
An interesting start. Makes me think of writing a tale of piracy. I will need to do a little more research on ships and shipwrecks, but I don’t really mind that. especially if I get a good story out of it.
Friday, December 15th: Gold glimmered.
Gold glimmered. There was a moment of instant elation. After all who didn’t dream of finding sunken treasure? However the gold also complicated things. They were here to map the wreckage. They were to note down the details and possibly take back a few bits of pottery if found in an attempt to date the wreckage. This was, all things considered, a ship graveyard.
There were so many overlapping wrecks that it was difficult to tell where one left off and another began. This one was separated from the others, apart, distinct. It was also a strange ship, the design unlike the others. The find was unique and they had only a limited amount of time where they could study this wreck safely. When the seasons changed the weather would make the sea too unpredictable and if they remained there was a risk that they could join the lost ships below the water.
But gold changed everything. He liked the idea of possibly having a coin to date, but he knew others would have treasures sparkling in their eyes and there was always the possibility that others might loot and pillage, destroying the site in their quest for riches. John finished his section of survey and left the gold where it was, even wafting more sand over the newly cleared site to obscure it.
While his camera recorded his actions, he knew that once all of the gridding and mapping was in place the large scale recorder would go over the site so they could piece the images together and come up with a 3D image of the wreckage without lifting a single beam. He would need to speak to the senior staff before then.
‘At least limit the number of people in the cabin during the scan.’
Plans formed in his head, but as John was ultimately not in charge, he would have limited input in whatever plan was chosen. He made sure nothing was left behind and then began the slow rise to the surface of the water. The slow rise helped his body decompress so he wouldn’t get the bedns, but it also gave him time to think.
‘Maybe it is just bronze,’ he thought. The further away from the wreckage the more that possibility seemed valid. These weren’t treasure ships. They didn’t carry gold. They might have carried bronze. That was a likelier possibility.
‘But the ship isn’t like the others.’ He reminded himself. ‘And bronze doesn’t age like that in water.’
He had been on enough dives to recognize bronze after centuries in salt water. By the time his head resurfaced, John was back to worrying about gold again. He kept his mouth shut as he was helped back aboard the vessel. This ship was their office and their home for the duration of the survey. The shore was too far to let them comfortably journey back and forth to land. So, on the ship they stayed.
As Always Calvine greeted him with a wide smile. This was the opportunity of a lifetime for him, the culmination of a careers worth of study. He was always delighted when those he sent down to ocean’s floor came back safely. A previous accident and health conditions prevented him from going down himself. He always insisted on greeting the returning divers personally.
He caught the look of concern in John’s eyes and frowned. “We need to talk.” John said softly.
Ten til Midnight 