Return of the Ogopogo 1/2 [Story Commission]

(Description/story by ErintheKobold)

Commission for Tasvyn, with a short story to accompany it.

Clear cerulean skies heralded fair weather as a small vessel drifted across azure waters. Here was a peaceful place, a lake cradled between two snow capped mountains far from both civilization and the tourist traps which usually blighted such locals. From the boat, a small anchor was tossed overboard, mooring the ship near the center of the lake.

For a moment, nothing happened as the sole human aboard simply relaxed. He enjoyed the cool breeze and the gentle lapping of water against the hull of his boat. If only he could stay out here forever. Dismissing the thought, Caleb lowered a ladder into the water. There was much to see out here, and he would not tarry a moment longer.

Donning his usual gear, Caleb prepared himself to dive deep into the clear waters. There was a hiss as he took his first breath from his air canister. He was ready. With a splash he entered the water, slipping beneath the ebbing waves.

For some time, he continued deeper and deeper. The light above began to fade, yet the lake bottom still wasn’t in view. Still, the unexplored depths beaconed him forward. This lake, so strangely deep, had likely been carved out by a glacier centuries ago. Yet that wasn’t all that made this lake special. Though the sources could not be confirmed, Caleb had heard whispers that there were several underwater caves in the region as well. Though the lakebed remained unmapped, Caleb held onto a glimmer of hope that he might encounter at least one.

Despite his wetsuit warding off the worst of the darkening lake’s chill, a shiver ran down Caleb’s body. The water was nearly completely black at the depths he found himself in. Reaching to his head, Caleb flicked on his head lamp. A stream of bubbles escaped his mask as he gasped. He had been beneath the surface for only long enough to descend, yet he had already found something unprecedented. Before him was a skull half embedded into a rocky ridge. The shape of the fossil he could not place, yet it had a mouth full of curved, pointed teeth and jaws large enough to swallow his boat whole. This find was big, in more than the literal sense.

Once again Caleb wished he had invested in an underwater camera. Instead, he spent a few minutes studying the blanched bones, trying to memorize the shape of the skull and fangs, hoping he’d be able to find the location for future dives. Strangely, no other signs of life were around. It was as if the other lake life avoided this site.

His brow furrowed as his light illuminated something else. An opening into the mound, just through the jaws of whatever beast this used to be. Had this creature perished trapped in a cave? Or had it’s decaying body left behind a void in the lakebed? Caleb checked his air pressure. He had plenty of time to figure it out.

Through the jaws he swam, never coming close to so much grazing the fangs despite his full range of motions. Past the skull, any further bones vanished. Were they simply hidden by silt? Caleb reached out, wiping at the muddy walls of the tunnel. His eyes widened. No bones, yet something stranger still. Masonry. Ancient by the looks of it, though Caleb lacked any sort of training to back this up. Still, the presence of the purposeful stonework only raised more questions.

Caleb continued on as the tunnel dipped before curving back on itself. Then, the unexpected happened once more. He breached the water’s surface, floundering from the sudden change of environment. His headlamp was not ideal to illuminate the cave he now found himself in. Instead, he pulled a chemical lamp from his belt. With a snap, the plastic stick began to fluores, banishing the darkness with its blue glow.

Pulling himself up on the rocky floor, Caleb removed his dive mask and found the air inside to be breathable, if stale. With the new source of light, he looked about. Perhaps it was just from the sheer amount of time it spent forgotten underwater, but the cave seemed to be natural, its rocky walls smoothed by time as if it were clay in a potter’s hands. Caleb’s eyes quickly fell on the only thing of interest, an altar carved from stone along the far wall. Shedding his excess gear, he stepped closer for a better look. Stone, he realized, was not the best description of the altar’s material. Instead, it was composed of something smooth and glossy, certainly having the heft of stone but appearing more like a plastic or resin. The strange material was inset with symbols and carvings the like had not been seen by humans since this cave had been forgotten. It was not the altar itself which held his attention, however, but the singular object which lay atop it.

It appeared at first to be the hide of some aquatic reptile, somehow preserved from the ages. Lacking bones and flesh, it lay flatted on the face of the altar arranged as if it slumbered. Then Caleb noticed the opening running from the base of the creature’s neck, all the way to the bottom of its stomach. It’s almost like… no, it was not a skin at all, but some kind of costume!

The skull opening, the stone tunnel, and now this altar and artifact. Could this have been some kind of temple at some point, perhaps to whatever creature that skull used to belong to? Caleb could certainly see ancient humans worshipping such a creature. In which case, the costume must have had some kind of religious importance.

Yes, somehow Caleb knew this was a place of power which he had intruded upon. Was his presence in this sacred place some kind of heresy? He knew no one who could answer, yet he did not feel like he was defiling this place. He had taken no action out of malice, but how could he be so certain? All that was left of the people who had once gathered here, in this tiny cave at the bottom of the region’s deepest lake, lay before him. A carved stone and a ceremonial costume. Caleb’s brow furrowed as he lost himself in thought.

Wear it.

His chem lamp flicked. The diver drug out of his train of thoughts. Had he heard something? No, there had been nothing. There could not have been anything, for he was alone without so much as a breeze for company. In spite of this, the urge lingered with him all the same.

Gingerly, Caleb picked the costume up. He hoped he was not damaging it, but quickly found it to be in remarkable condition. He took a minute to admire the bright colors, varying hues of blue and green with crimson fins along the beast’s back. Its finned tail seemed like it would be quite powerful in life, while the whale-like flippers announced clearly the creature’s underwater prowess. He could not place the material the suit was crafted from, though. It was stretchy and smooth, with a thickness similar to his wetsuit. Could it have actually been the hide of some forgotten creature? No, anything organic would have decayed ages ago and this suit was clearly still wearable. When a drip of water from his still wet hair fell on the material, it immediately beaded up and ran off.

“So it sheds water too…” Caleb noted. The material seemed purpose built to aid in swimming, even putting his own suit to shame. Still, it seemed like the fins would only restrict his moments, and the hollow tail could only serve to create more drag. How could he even bring his oxygen tanks with the dorsal ridge?

Wear me. His lamp pulsed.

Caleb gulped. Was he really going to do this? He had been so concerned just a moment ago that he was intruding upon this place. Forgetting that, this place had obvious archaeological significance as well. Who was he to start playing with the artifacts?

Wear me. The glowing lamp pulsed violently.

He wanted this. He really did, so why was he hesitating? The diver shed the rest of his gear, his damp skin soon exposed to the still air in the cave. Putting on a wetsuit could sometimes be a pain, yet he slipped into the costume with barely any resistance. His foot was soon in the bottom of the whale-like flipper, with the material perfectly formed around his leg. Though it would make walking difficult, he supposed it would aid in swimming, even if it was unconventional.

His second leg followed, leaving the man without the ability to stand. Caleb looked over his lower body, content with the second skin. He even smiled at the thick tail, despite knowing how silly it looked. Good thing there was no one to see him.

He draped the upper section of the suit over his shoulders, preparing for the next stage. The mask of the suit now hung besides Caleb’s head, giving him a good view of the reptile’s feral visage. He smiled, knowing it would soon be his eyes looking through those empty holes.

Leave your weaknesses behind.

No more needed tons of gear for his dives. No need to watch oxygen levels. CalebFitting his arms into the sleeves of the suit hampered his dexterity, binding up all his fingers besides his thumbs, which luckily had small clawed ‘fingers’ they fit into. They were like the only reason he was able to finish suiting himself up.

Pulling the hood over his face, his world went dark. He spent a few moments adjusting it, a tricky task with his limited dexterity. Soon, though, he was able to admire his new skin. A vivid blue-green even without the blue light of his lamp, Caleb could not wait to see what it was like to swim in such an animalistic suit.

Reclaim your home.

Wasting not a moment more, he crawled to the water’s edge. Eagerly he lowered his body, so heavy and cumbersome on land, into the depths. Gills flared as his sleek body slipped into the flooded tunnel. Out from the jaws, not of some unknown creature, but his ancient ancestor, Caleb darted. How long he had dreamed of being this swift in the depths. Now he was unhindered by the cumbersome gear which used to be necessary for his survival.

Swim.

He covered distances along the lake floor that would have taken him full tanks of oxygen before in minutes, enjoying every moment as he pushed his body to its limits. As he swam, his body shifted. The seam at his chest faded, then vanished. The feeling from his fingers, stuffed as they were inside his flippers, faded leaving behind limbs much more suited to the aquatic environment. He clenched his eyes shut, a grin spreading across his reptilian snout showing off curved, pointed teeth. When they opened again, they were more than holes revealing human flesh but orbs of gold bearing a predatory slit pupil.

Hunt.

The fish here had become fat and lazy with the absence of their predator. Snatching one up and swallowing it whole was a simple task. Still there was an intruder in his domain. Something almost as large as he was, bobbing on the surface of his lake. Mustering all his strength, he propelled himself at the object. He struck with such force and ferocity that whatever it was could not even defend itself. As the broken shards of a small white boat slipped to the depths, he let out a bellowing roar that echoed through the waves. Let it be known that this is the home of the Ogopogo, those who would trespass be warned.