Beautiful Curse

Chapter 24

        Land is growing closer by the moment. Only a few minutes now and this ship will be a splintered wreck. After Dr. Eggman had fled, Sonic, Tails, Shadow, and I went down into the cargo hold to help the crew and passengers inflate the last of the life rafts. Many had made it out into open water, but there were still about 50 people left waiting in hysteric fear of the impending crash. Luckily, with Sonic and Shadow's speed and strength, the giant rafts are pumped full of air and released from the ship with the last of the people on board. The last of the people besides us, that is.

        "Hurry, hurry!" Sonic jumps from foot to foot while his fingers fiddle with his lifejacket, urging Shadow on as the black hedgehog pumps up the last raft for us. It's partway inflated, one side larger than the other, the larger part filled enough to only barely keep the raft afloat if it was to be launched at this moment.

        "Guys, we have to go now!" a young voice screeches from the end of the cargo hold, where the stairwell to the rest of the cruise ship is. "There's no time to fill up the life raft!" Tails shoots forward with his twirling tails, diving feet-first into the partially inflated boat.

        Acting on instinct Shadow closes the stopper and pushes the raft down the plank, jumping in at the last second before it can be swept away by the current. For a stunned moment, Sonic and I gape in shock, our eyes meeting. Then we are both running for our lives, chasing after the life raft that is stuck to the edge of the plank by its last few inches of rubber. "Shit!" Shadow curses, rolling to the end of the raft and trying to hold it in place. His grip on the wet rubber and metal floorboard isn't strong enough against the thrashing waves and stream of water that jets out from the ship's propellers. As Sonic and I leap for the raft, it disappears through the spray and into the ocean.

        We are swept out to sea as well, however, only having lifejackets to support us within the rough current. Instantly I lose sight of the hedgehog as I'm pulled underwater, seeing black, almost pitch black due to the ocean being so deep and the sky outside darkened with the night.

        I didn't even have time to take in a breath.

        The water stings my eyes and I have to close them. My arms spread wide and I push down with all my might to reach the surface. I break out of the ocean with a gasp, sucking in a lungful of salty air along with countless drops of water. I cough and sputter as the liquid flows down the wrong tubes, looking around for any sign of Sonic or the bright orange raft.

        "Sonic! Tails? Shadow!" I cry, suddenly feeling very alone as I drift here in my life-saving jacket. Even with my heightened sense of hearing, I cannot make out any sounds other than the laps and slaps of water. The waves are too tall to see over, so somebody may be very close and I wouldn't even know it. But then, thundering across the entire ocean and drowning out all other sounds; the unmistakable crack of steel against stone.

        A wave, the largest, most gigantic wave I have ever seen in my life, goes right over my head. That time I was able to take in a breath. It's lucky I did so, for the force of the upsurge knocks hundreds of bubbles from my mouth, all of them zipping toward the surface as if frightened of staying underwater for too long. I really need them, however. Although this life vest is doing its duty to float upward, the constant, giant waves are keeping me deep down beneath sea level.

        My nose pokes into the air, giving me half a second to breathe, just before another wave has me trapped again. I start to thrash against the movement, yearning to survive through this horrible event. There's no time to think, no time to beg God for my life, or to even wonder what Mom and Dad will do without me...I just fight, and I will fight until every ounce of strength has been entirely sapped from my body.