Deep Sea Embers

“There’s nothing to see anymore. It’s the end of the bilge.” Duncan said casually.

But just then, a slight tapping sound had caused him to stop.

Duncan shot his head to meet Alice’s, who had fallen over and frantically looking around for the source of that noise. Eventually, her frightened gaze locked onto the dark wooden door: “The sound seems to be coming from behind this door…”

Duncan froze on the spot, glaring fiercely at the door as well when the knocking came again. It sounded faint, but it was no illusion, that much was certain. Jerking backward to gain a little distance, he didn’t want to be a victim of whatever was behind that door either.

However, after a brief but fierce struggle inside, the ghost captain decides to return to the door after the noise died down.

Holding the ghost fire lantern up to his face, while also drawing his sword out, Duncan carefully examined for any clues as to the cause. Then that’s when he realized the door hadn’t been completely shut. On the right corner of his view, there’s about a centimeter of a crack that would allow him to peek through the opening.

From the way things look, it’s as if someone had hastily closed it behind themselves and not a deliberate act.

Knowing he wouldn’t be able to ignore this opportunity, Duncan leaned in and peered through the slit while making sure his blade was ready to stab at whatever that might snap at him.

However, what he saw was beyond anything he could’ve imagined.

It’s a small room, which looked as if it had been some years since someone renovated it based on the wrinkly wallpapers. The furnishings were also messy, and the single bed in the corner with the computer table were all too familiar….

But more importantly, there’s a certain tall, thin figure currently writing something at the desk. The man wore a white shirt with unkept hair, which showed how ragged the person had been due to the circumstances.

Duncan stared heavily at everything behind the door, the familiar bed, the familiar desk, and the familiar books, and most importantly, the familiar “him” who was scribbling something onto the old diary he usually kept in the drawers. But then, as if sensing his own presence, the other him known as Zhou Ming jerked up and ran over to the door to stare right back at Duncan.

This freaky and silent staring contest continued like this for several seconds until the other him began shoving hard at the door. The way he behaved was of someone trying to come out, yet the door was remained unfazed like a brick wall. So, the other him began to break the lock with a tool, trying hard to pry the slit further apart to no avail.

Eventually, the man inside the door finally gave up and slumped down like a deflated balloon. Duncan couldn’t hear what the other “him” was saying at that moment, only vague garbled noises. Nevertheless, he knew all too well what the other man was trying to do because he had experienced everything firsthand.

Gradually, Duncan’s gaze slowly fell upon the doorknob over on this side of the Vanished. All he had to do was twist and push, and surely, perhaps, it would open….

However, instinct kicked in and stopped Duncan from taking this last step.

Somehow, this decision frustrated the man trapped inside the room and begun shouting and pounding at the door again. The voice couldn’t reach of course, but then the other him had suddenly bent down and started scribbling something on a piece of paper to show Duncan.

Through the slit in the door, Duncan saw a string of scrawled words: “Save me!” I’m stuck in this room! Windows and doors can’t be opened!”

Duncan instantly burst out laughing. Not anger, not sadness, not even an urge to save “himself”, but humor at the Zhou Ming that’s trapped inside the room.

The next second, the pirate sword in Duncan’s hand suddenly stabbed forward and into “Zhou Ming’s” body.

The latter got pierced by the blade without surprise. As it opened its mouth and screamed, Duncan neither flinched nor backed away, but shoved harder with his pirate sword to make sure it goes through.

“If you can’t write earth words then don’t use this trick.”

Ai, the dove who had been silent until now, suddenly flapped her wings and made a hoarse chirp: “This is an illusion. What are you hiding?”

The next second, the figure across the door rapidly melted away like a wax figure until it completely dissipated into a series of light and shadow. Likewise, the familiar room also faded away, revealing its true nature to Duncan’s eyes: a dark and old cabin with an air of dust and decay.

As for the sword in his hand, it’s giving no feedback since it’s hitting air instead.

This “extra door” is just another cabin behind it?

Duncan continued to observe the situation some more, but this time, no matter how it looked, it seemed to be just an ordinary cabin.

But…… is that cabin really “real”?

Duncan unhurriedly withdrew the sword that had probed through the slit, then breathed a sigh of relief before taking half a step back.

The strange thing he had just encountered was still deeply imprinted in his mind, and he didn’t know if it was a simple illusion or something else entirely. Nevertheless, one thing was certain… This door definitely has something strange and dangerous behind it.

If the illusion reflected on the opposite side of the door was based on his own memory and cognition, then that meant the danger it posed was greater than his own “Captain Duncan”. That would be a nightmare if true.

No one in this world should know what that room looks like, and no one should know the existence of the individual known as “Zhou Ming”.

But the “thing” across the door knows….

Forcing his anxiety to calm down through a long series of breathing.

The caution I chose to take is correct. In any case, I mustn’t open this door.

“Captain…” Alice’s voice suddenly came and woke Duncan from his contemplation. As the man looked up at the doll, the man quickly noticed the doll’s concerned and frightened expression, “Captain, are you all right? What’s behind that door? Why is your expression so serious…”

Duncan shook his head, “Nothing, behind this door is not where you should look. We’ve reached the bottom of the bilge and can go back now.”

As he spoke, the man made sure to try to tug at the door to see him he could close it for good. Yet, he couldn’t the wooden construct didn’t budge at all like some unsettling slumbering beast.

“Huh? Ah…… Okay!” Alice did not care about the captain’s attempt to close the door. She was too stunned at first but quickly changed her mood with a happy expression, “Then let’s hurry back. This place is still quite weird to be honest. It’s giving me the creeps…”

Duncan snorted nonchalantly and led Alice towards the “last door” connecting to the stairs.

In reality, this place was so spooky that even he didn’t want to stay long.

Afterward, nothing unusual happened: they made it through the crumbling bilge, through the lighted cargo compartment, through the dark staircase and corridors to the cabin above the waterline.

Duncan didn’t think much of their trip back up, but Alice on the other hand found her whole body relaxing the second she came above deck. It’s as if an imperceptible shadow had been dispelled from over her shoulders.

“Captain, are you tired?” Alice asked cautiously after noticing the concern in the man’s eye, “Do you want me to make you something to eat? You didn’t have a good dinner…”

Duncan stopped his thoughts and turned to face the concerned-looking doll – just like Nina’s face when she’s worried.

Knowing he’s making the atmosphere bad, the man quickly relaxed his face and forced the haze that was shrouding over his heart to recede.

“Don’t drop something weird into the pot this time.”

“My head is not a strange thing!”

“Especially your head.”

“…… Woohoo.”