Aquamarine

Prologue - Jason

I stretched my arms towards the sky, and tiny rivulets of sweat dripped down my body under the boiling heat of the sun. For my sixteenth birthday, my parents had decided to take a vacation - and bring me with them - to the beautiful, luscious beaches of Hawaii. My heart had practically jumped out of my chest with the euphoria of intense excitement. It would be great to take a break from my two twin brothers, because at eight years old each, they could be a gigantic nuisance. When our plane had arrived in Hawaii, I could barely believe my eyes as tall, elegant, coconut-laden palm trees loomed before my face. Quietly nestled between the two trees was a hardwood sign, painstakingly painted eggshell white, with an aquamarine statement pasted onto it. The sign staring back at me exclaimed, "Welcome to the Hawaiian Vista Hotel: We hope you have a wonderful time!" I had a feeling this weekend was going to be AWESOME.

Two quick hours later, here I was, about to take my first dip into the ocean. My arms stretched in front of me as I prepared for a perfect swan dive, and... "JASON!" My mom's voice reverberated across the fifteen-foot outcrop I was standing on. "SUPPER'S IN TWENTY MINUTES!"

"Ughhh..." I groaned. I may have been a seafood lover, but the prospect of having dinner at an early 3:00 in the afternoon just didn't apply to me. I wasn't used to the Hawaiian timescale yet.

"BE RIGHT THERE!" I yelled back to my mom. " I"M JUST TAKING A SWIM!"

"OK! JUST MAKE SURE YOU HAVE DRY CLOTHES!"

"YEAH, MOM, I"M COMING."

The ocean just looked so inviting. I couldn't help but grin as I stared down at the blue, rippling surface. My back slowly arched, and my hands formed a wedge before me. The wind tousled my sun-bleached, blond hair as I fell into the ocean.

The skin of the shining, clear liquid ruptured beneath my fingers. I was instantly calmed. The waters of the earth had always entranced me; the ocean, brimming with life, always had a special meaning to me. The sea rushed around my body like a bolt of silk as I paddled toward the shimmering ripples of the ocean's surface. A final stroke brought me above the waves, and as my lips started to stretch open and accept the life-giving oxygen around me, a white-capped wave slammed down on my face with the force of a bullet train. My chest gave way and all of the pent-up air in my lungs escaped. My vision blurred; my lungs felt like they were going to violently explode and splatter the sea with bloody gore. Water flooded through my nose, burning with salt. When my head slammed against a multicolored coral reef, the coppery tang of blood puckered my lips. A final THUMP... on the reef made darkness intrude on the sides of my vision. I relaxed into the black slumber of unconsciousness.

The colorful fish and marine life of the reef swarmed around him, as if asking the question, "What is it? What is it? What is it?" The aquatic animals suddenly scattered, swimming away as fast as they approached. Jason's limp body floated to the surface of the Hawaiian sea, luckily face-up. That luck soon changed, as brilliant, silver-gray dorsal fins sliced trough the ocean around the body, circling Jason and encroaching ever so slowly...