Something Supernatural - Lost & Found!

A casual Monday!

Cotton clouds gently flowed on the silky surface of the water. An old rusty bow, the front part of a rescue boat, pierced the reflection and moved ahead with a rumbling noise. The motor on the stern, back side of the boat coughed out black smoke disrupting the silence of the sea. Maaran gradually slowed down the momentum of the boat and stopped the engines. Parthi, a crew member, continued lying down on the deck with could envy. Innocently he stretched his hands towards the sky and tried to envelop a cloud. He remained still for a few seconds. Maaran observed him from a distance with a subtle smile on his face. He sliced the sea with his palm, took some salt water, and splashed it on Parthi’s face. Parthi, shook by the cold sensation of seawater, got up and gazed at the location around him. Maaran flashed his watch and reminded Parthi that it was time to work. Parthi quickly opened up his waterproof bag and took out a rolled-up cloth. As he unwrapped the roll, the bright and bold text revealed its name, Lost & Found. Parthi tied the flag to a pole and raised it to the top. The winds picked up the flag, up and down, making it flutter in rhythm. 

Within a few seconds, both Maaran and Parthi suited up with their diving suits and got ready to go deep. Both signaled each other with a thumbs up and flipped upside down to enter the sea. While Parthi deflated his suit and went underwater, Maaran stayed on the top for a few seconds. He took a 1-rupee coin from his pocket and tossed it into the water. Maaran quickly descended down and moved in tandem with the coin. The coin and Maaran raced with each other. Parthi, at the bottom of the ocean, at 30 meters, started his stopwatch and looked up. He saw both the coin and his friend sinking down at the same speed. After 20 seconds, Maaran reached the ground first, and the wobbling coin tumbled into a heap of one-rupee coins after Maaran. Parthi pressed a series of buttons on his monitor and showed it to Maran. It said, a new record. Maaran first bumped with Pathi and swam ahead into the partial green waters. 

One year ago!

The simmering sun spread its warm reds behind a small penthouse creating a picturesque setup. It looked like a dream house for all the bystanders on the road. But the interiors were the opposite of warmth. The entire house was dark and empty. The door creaked slowly, and a tall figure entered the living room. It was Maaran. He dragged his feet, sat on the couch, and leaned back for some rest. Time flew, and even the reds in the sky turned pitch black. Maaran did not move a muscle. He kept on staring at the wall for hours. Everything was still like a painting. A gust of wind forced itself inside the room from the window and flipped the pages of the calendar. 

Maaran’s sleep-deprived eye fell on the numbers on the sheet. He focused his eyes and saw the number 17 on the calendar. Maaran, with his trembling hands, opened the shelf and picked up a letter from a case. It had the date 17 and a lot of government stamps on it. Maaran frowned his eyes, gripped the corner of the letter, and opened it. It had a list of names who died in the recent Aasha cyclone. Maaran’s eyes scrolled through the numbers starting from one and stopping on the number 17. The name was Maithili Maaran. A tear trickled down Maaran’s left eye and fell on the letter. The bottom part of the letter had many concentric circles created by tear and ink stains. Maaran placed the letter back on the shelf and sat on his couch again. When he started scanning some old pics of Maithili on his phone, one pic of her caught his attention. Maaran zoomed the pic and saw a ring on Maithili’s finger. It had the word MM engraved on it. 

Present-day!

Inside a vast shipwreck, Maaran stalked his bag with many important items like phones and a few wearables lost by tourists. Suddenly the monitor on his hand alarmed with continuous beeps. The oxygen interval on his timer showed 20 minutes. It was time to ascend. Maaran looked around for Parthi. He was nowhere near the sight. Maaran panicked and continued to look for Parthi outside the shipwreck. Parthi was nowhere to be found. Maaran immediately ascended, changed his tank quickly, and dived again to find Parthi. There was not even a single trace of him. Maaran held his head in confusion and spun around in tension. Suddenly a flash of light appeared from a hollow space of the shipwreck. Parthi signaled Maaran to join him. Maaran froze with fear. 

How can he still be fine with less oxygen? 

How can his body manage the pressure? 

Hundreds of questions pooped up in Maaran’s head. Parthi flashed his light again thrice. It was a unique code to assemble. Maaran took a deep breath and went inside the hollow space. There was no one there except a shiny ring stuck in a corner. It had the words MM engraved on it. 

Maaran picked it up, swam up to the boat, and sat down in a confused state. While comprehending the complex situation, he laid back and witnessed the moving clouds. A single cloud stood out in the sky. Maaran stretched out his hands innocently and tried to envelop the cloud with his palm. A subtle smile appeared on his lips. He stood up, wore the ring, and took out a coin from his pocket. As he flung the coin into the sea, he said to himself – Thank you.