Several weeks later, the Twilight gracefully glided across the waters of the Kasanaan River. The waters of the endless river seemed to conceal a world that exists only between life and death. The lively parties and cheers of the passengers filled the air, and vibrant lights illuminated the passengers as they celebrated. The ship's captain, Chris, is a young and fierce man, or so his exterior shows. The cool winds blew on the spectral ship, tussling his hair as he ascended the stairs leading to his favorite spot on the ship.
He stopped at the last step when he saw the human Cecilia leaning on the silver rails. She was smiling as she felt the cool breeze on her face. Chris turned around, ready to leave since the place he covets the most was already occupied. "Captain?"
Chris spun around when he heard his name being called out. "What is it, Pink? Do you need anything?"
"Why don't you stay? You know, we can share this place, right?" Cecilia told the captain, her voice soft and inviting.
"I don't feel like sharing." Chris turned around, descended the stairs to leave. But something she said stopped him.
"Thank you, and Sorry," she said. Chris looked over his shoulder. "I heard that, should anyone alive or even the soul of the dead fall to the waters, they are erased from existence. I guess what I am saying is… Sorry for shouting at you, and thank you for saving me from being erased." She sheepishly approached Chris, stopping just two or three steps away from him.
Somebody thanked him, and somebody apologized to him. He felt something warm and fuzzy inside, all because somebody thanked him. The notion of being appreciated was a sensation that he had long since forgotten. "Forget about it and you…you're welcome," he fumbled his words, unsure of how to proceed
Without warning, the ship shuddered violently, a sudden, terrifying jolt that threw Cecilia off balance. She stumbled backward, nearly tumbling down the stairs, but Chris caught her just in time. Their eyes locked in a moment of stunned silence—until the ship convulsed again, this time with even greater force.
"What the hell is happening?" Chris shouted over the roar, his voice tight with alarm. He rushed to the observation deck railing, desperate to find the source of the chaos.
Below deck, panic erupted like a wildfire. The Twilight lurched sharply to port, tilting dangerously as if ready to capsize. Then, mercilessly, it swung back to starboard, the ship's groans echoing through the hull. Crystal chandeliers, once elegant and serene, have now become deadly pendulums, crashing onto the floor in a shower of deadly shards. Statues, glassware, and anything unfastened were hurled from their places, smashing into the deck with bone-jarring force.
Screams filled the air as passengers and crew were thrown off their feet, struggling to stay upright on the violently pitching deck. Chief Murillo and her crew desperately helped the passengers to their feet and ushered them back to their quarters. "Guide the guests back to their rooms," she instructed one of the female crew. "You take a team with you and secure the gray deck and tell someone to check on the passengers inside the engine room!" The relentless, unpredictable rocking made every step a battle against gravity itself. The ship was fighting for its existence—and so were they.
The roar of the ship's engines stopped, and the Twilight glided over the waters before coming to a complete halt. "Captain, what is going on?" Cecilia asked, her voice breaking from the tension.
A deafening explosion was heard from the ship's stern, a couple of hundred meters away. Chris's head whipped to see what it was. The underwater explosion propelled water from the Kasanaan tens of meters into the air. "Underwater volcano! We must have been hit by a shockwave as we passed over it!"
He turned to the human and gave his instructions: "Return to your quarters and don't leave until I tell you so!" But his eyes widened when he saw Cecilia curled like a ball in a corner, flinching and crying from the stress of the moment.
Cecilia shook her head. "I can't…I can't move, I'm too scared," she cried
"We can't be here, it's too dangerous! The shockwave is sending water into the air. If it goes back down and we are hit by it, we will be erased!" Chris reminded Cecilia of how deadly the waters of the Kasanaan River could be.
"I…don't want to move! I'm too scared to move!" Cecilia just cried out.
The captain knew he could not leave the human exposed, so he did what he thought was the only logical solution. "Climb on my back!" Cecilia was left speechless by what the captain said. "Come on, Pink, we don't have all day!" Biting her lower lip, she climbed on the captain's back and held on tightly. Chris stood up and ran towards the bridge.
On the bridge, chaos ensues as alarms blare continuously. The ship's sensors malfunction, and observation monitors show only static. Lights and controls flicker on and off due to an unstable power supply. "Martinez, why are we stopping?"
"The engines shut down automatically, sir! The helm won't respond—no input is registering!" Martinez's frustration was clear, his fingers flying over unresponsive controls.
The first officer barked orders to restore order amid the mounting panic. "Get those sensors back online—now!" He grabbed the intercom. "Chief Engineer, I need power to the controls and propulsion restored immediately!"
"There is nothing wrong with the engines," A voice crackled back, calm but urgent. "It is functioning at full capacity! The power to the propellers has been cut off automatically!" The chief Engineer theorized, explaining why the ship automatically shuts off.
The captain arrived on the bridge, and the crew was all dumbfounded to see him carrying the human on her back. Chris gently sets Cecilia down and immediately asks the Chief Officer for his report. "Bustamante, what is our status?"
"Sir, Engineering reports no problems or damages, but we could not figure out why the ship is automatically cutting off power to the propellers." The chief officer reported, his voice was a beacon of calm.
"Then there must be something wrong with one or more of the propellers," Chris concluded. "Call engineering, tell them to drop one of the underwater drones; we need to see if there is a problem with the rudder and the propellers."