Chapter 59: “This Door Leads To The Vanished”
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The lower section of the Vanished had been completely dismantled, its parts strewn about, and the area beyond the destroyed cabin was consumed by an abyss of deep darkness, shimmering with random lights.
Could this possibly be the true ‘bilge structure’ of the Vanished? If so, what might lie beyond these broken pieces of the cabin? Could there be such a strange sight deep beneath the Boundless Sea?
Moving cautiously, Duncan took two steps forward on the sturdiest piece of floating wood, making sure to keep the exit he had just used within his line of sight, ensuring it didn’t mysteriously disappear.
“Captain…” Alice’s voice, filled with worry, echoed again. Showing more emotion than usual, the doll cautiously peeked out from the doorway, her eyes filled with fear. “This is expected, right?”
Duncan felt a deeper turmoil than the doll. Alice had her unwavering trust in her captain, but he had no one to rely on. Despite this, seeing Alice’s clear anxiety and recalling the strange “crew rules” mentioned by the eerie goat head, Duncan managed to quell his own fears, maintaining his usual calm and composed presence.
“Rest easy,” he comforted her gently, “the Vanished is a ship beyond your wildest dreams.”
“It’s truly incomprehensible…” Alice said softly, seeming slightly calmer as she looked around at the shattered remains of the ship’s lowest level. “Captain, it looks like there’s no water outside.”
Duncan considered her words, then raised an eyebrow curiously. “Are you implying that this could be a submerged part of the Vanished?”
Alice looked surprised: “Why are you asking me that?”
Duncan remained neutral: “Because you’ve experienced it firsthand.”
“Isn’t that because you pushed me overboard…?” Alice began to retort, but then caught herself. “This doesn’t seem right… There should be water if we’re under the sea. Even if the Boundless Sea isn’t accurate, there should still be water below the ocean. But this looks more like…”
“An abyss filled with chaotic streams of light,” Duncan finished for her, his disbelief clear. He moved closer to the edge of the floating plank he was on, peering down at the glowing ribbons below. “The lower parts of the Vanished… they’re not in the Boundless Sea.”
Alice looked shocked by this realization: “What? So where are we?”
Duncan didn’t answer. He was just as puzzled. But a theory was forming in his mind.
Could it be that the ship was navigating multiple dimensions simultaneously? While it appeared to travel through the Boundless Sea in the physical world, different sections of the Vanished might actually exist in various dimensions at the same time. This theory could explain why the deeper parts of the ship seemed increasingly eerie and desolate. Perhaps the gloom wasn’t coming from the cabins themselves.
If so, what was this discordant space if not the Boundless Sea? It didn’t resemble the spirit world, nor did it look like the shadowy tunnel from the spirit walk… Could it be a representation of a ‘deeper’, more hidden dimension?
Filled with various theories, Duncan cautiously reached for the pirate sword at his side. Rather than risking himself, he decided to use the sword to test the surroundings, wary of any malevolent presence that might be lurking, ready to ambush.
Yet, he was taken aback the next moment as he watched the tip of his sword disappear, only to reappear amidst another cluster of debris further ahead.
Duncan furrowed his brow in confusion as he repeated his action in a different direction, only to see the same thing happen again.
It dawned on him then.
The seemingly disconnected areas were actually interconnected in space, and the bilge structure that appeared broken was, in fact, whole!
Standing upright with renewed confidence, he glanced around cautiously to make sure there were no other irregularities before letting out a long, deep sigh.
The ‘cracks’ were merely optical illusions. While the cause behind them was different, the effect they had on their perception was the same.
But what was the underlying cause of this vision? Was it an overlap of different spaces? Or perhaps a distorted projection from a higher dimension to a lower one?
Duncan went over all the information he had gathered, whether reliable or not, trying to make sense of the bizarre occurrences unfolding before him.
Meanwhile, Alice looked on, confused, as the captain made odd gestures at the edge of the wooden platform. Eventually, she asked, “Captain, are you performing some sort of special ritual to soothe the ship?”
Caught by surprise, he quickly put away his sword and answered, “Yes, that’s right…”
“That’s incredible!” Alice’s eyes sparkled. “Are you going to do this ceremony for all the sections here?”
This Translation is hosted on bcatranslation.com
“Just one is sufficient,” Duncan replied, maintaining his composure as he continued his act. He quickly diverted her attention to avoid further questions from the inquisitive doll, “Let’s move on.”
He checked the lantern to make sure it was working properly and held it close. Despite this being a point of no return, nothing unusual occurred…
Just as he had earlier tested with his sword, Duncan found he could ‘skip’ the crossing of what seemed to be a dangerous gap.
Alice watched in amazement as the captain crossed effortlessly. Although she saw him do it safely, she still felt nervous. In a moment of courage, she ran forward and jumped with her eyes closed. As expected, she crashed right into Duncan, knocking the wind out of him.
After picking himself up from the fall, Duncan gave a stern, unamused look to the headless doll scrambling behind him—Alice’s head had come off again in the chaos, rolling about ten meters away from her body.
“I’m… I’m so sorry…”
“Just stay there. I’ll come get you after I’m finished,” Duncan sighed deeply, questioning his decision to bring such a troublesome doll along. “Have you ever thought about securing your head with a screw to prevent this?”
Alice’s head, apparently missing Duncan’s sarcastic comment, stammered in shock, “Th-Ther-There… There’s a d…”
Confused, Duncan looked in the direction her eyes were pointing.
A dark, foreboding wooden door stood at the end of the debris.
“A door… There’s actually one here!”
Duncan had thought about the possibility of encountering a cliché from old horror movies. But seeing it in person still made his heart skip a beat.
By then, Alice’s headless body had also clumsily approached. No longer able to stand the absurdity, Duncan quickly picked up the doll’s head and handed it back to her, “Did you see that door there before?”
With a “pop,” Alice reattached her head and replied, “I don’t remember seeing it. It must have appeared after we crossed.”
Duncan scoffed and cautiously moved towards the enigmatic door, lantern in hand.
He didn’t really need the lantern for light anymore; the erratic glow from the cracks provided enough illumination to see by. Yet, he kept the lantern on for another reason—his own safety.
The door that had just appeared looked ordinary, made of the usual materials found in ship cabins aboard the Vanished.
“This door leads to the Vanished,” Duncan read the words etched into the copper doorframe aloud.
Yeah, no, it doesn’t.