Gem of the Deep

Chapter 10

Aftermath of a Disaster

DISCLAIMER: Mummies Alive! is the property and trademark of Dic Inc. and the producers of that show. This page is intended for entertainment purposes only, and no copyright infringement is intended.

Disclaimer: TITANIC is a Paramount, 20th Century Fox, and Lightstorm Production. Basically, anything that's in the movie isn't mine, and a copyright infringement is not intended.

Thanx again to Mia, who's allowing me to use her character Lyris, in this story, and to Sekhmet who let me use her character Joari.

The room was in complete shambles. Everywhere inside the inclosing stone walls and small skylight ceiling, dozens of broken planks, thousands of papers, bookshelves, chairs and remains of the small bed cluttered up at the far end of the room. The old wooden desk was scattered over the cobble flooring in many pieces, having been ripped apart and smashed in the Goddess's storm.
Kahti lay motionless on the fallen bookcase, simply watching the room. She had been certain of her masters absences, yet didn't know where they had gone. What she had witnessed wasn't an everyday occurence for the feline, and had felt that staying put until the others returned would be best, and keep her out of trouble in the process. She placed her head on her crossed paws, gently mewing for her masters to return.
Suddenly, the ground beneath her began to shake rapidly, jittering the cat. With a loud hiss, Kahti quickly got up from her resting place and bounded off of the bookcase onto the hard stone floor. She turned her head this way and that, watching as the entire room seemed to come alive once again, without the shear power of the fierce winds. The desk pieces started to jumble and slide along the floor and the hundreds of torn, scraped and mashed books began to glow rapidly, humming at a low frequency.
And, like something out of Fantasia, the inatimate object began to shift and bend to their liking, a slight shimmer coming off of each and every one as they moved. Kahti pawed at a small scroll as it slowly slid across the floor, but had to duck as a large history book came flying at her through the air. She jumped around falling debris and soaring books before finding refuge in the doorway of the library.
A creaking echoed through the room as the gigantic bookshelf started to go upright. Chairs and countless other texts began to slid off of it as the angle of depression decreased drastically. With a loud thud, the wooden shelf stood upright and in the position that it had been in before Maat had appeared, nearly shaking the room from it's immense size. Seconds later, the room was filled with a flying frenzy as the hundreds of books began to flitter about mimiking hell-crazed birds. The sky was filled with white papers and colorful backs as they seemed to cover everything besides the floor. The cat pushed herself into the wall and swated at them as a few came by, but it did no good. The remains of the small bed began to head in the other direction as if being pulled by a string along the cobble floor. Still, the chaos continued.
Chairs backing against the wall clanged together as they began to hurdle at the far end of the room. The desktop, legs and other accessories went in the opposite direction, right in front of the now standing bookshelf. The creaking and the sound of breaking wood passed over the area, but could not be very well seen because of the fluttering books.
Then, just like that, everything came to order. The chairs seemed to rebuild themselves, replacing borken legs and seats and positioning exactly where they had only previously been. The large wooden desk stood up as wooden legs of it's own practically materializing out of nothing, and the snapped shelves of the bookcase fitted together and remained as one. The hundreds of books flying around began to zoom in towards the ground, making Kahti jump and rush out of the way of oncoming traffic. Most of them found their way to the bookcase, while most of them remained in piles stationed around the room where they had been left for further study. The tall torches suddenly lit up in a bright frenzy of fire reaching all the way to the great ceiling and burying the entire room in bright red light.
The cat hid behind one of the piles of books, knowing that she couldn't stop fire, transforming wouldn't help. The heat inside the room increased, but slowly died down as a huge gust of mist broke in through the doorway and flooded all over the floor. The entire area became one of a thick white blanket, making seeing and recognition impossible to all. The mist clung there for a moments time, just wafting through the room like a ghost.
The skylight began to glow a rich white light which was visible even through the deep fog. Gently, a shaft of it began to fall down upon the floor, small sparkles entwining through it as it did so. Carefully, the mist began to retreat, and Kahti sneezed as the fog depleated and looked up to the ceiling as the great light began to shine down on the stone flooring.
The light reached the floor, and created a small circle there as the cobble reflected the luminescence back upwards to the sky. The shimmering never seemed to stop in the shaft, as dots, almost like twinkling stars shone all over the place, wafting through the light such as the mist before, and throbbing slowly. The light at the top of the room gradually increased, until finally, the light was so bright that it unbearable to look at. Kahti ducked back behind the stack of books to keep from going blind.
The mist was not completely gone, there was nothing more in the room besides what had been there in the first place, and the great light transending from the heavens. Slowly, the light looked like it was about to vanish as well, slowly growing dimmer and dimmer, but with one last ounce of strength, the glow exploded into the room, turning it into a bulb of white light. A crack of thunder sounded behind as it did so, possibly shattering glass or dinner plates on the other side of the city. There was the sound of violent winds and what could have been recalled as waves of water crashing together.
The light vanished without a trace, leaving the room in perfect order.
In the center of the room, where the light had been the most rich, stood now six solitary figures, not one of them moving for a time. Each one was in a straight-back position, arms at their sides, feet together, eyes closed. The torches began to lose their mighty flames, and returned to their normal sizes, just the ways that they had been lit. An extra book flew through the air, possibly being missed in the confusion, and rested itself on one of the many piles surrounding the room.
Instantly, all eyes shot open from the group, finally able to see where they now were, and perhaps seek out an explaination for it.

***

They all looked around the room, surprise and shock showing on all of their faces. It was a very confusing time all of a sudden, all of their recent moments were almost a complete blank, and only small figments of imagination and memory could still be recalled. Not one of them could remember clearly what happened.
Nefer-tina put a hand on her head, which was once again dawned with with straight, white hair. " What's our problem?" She asked as her head slowly began to throb for a reason that she couldn't explain.
" I have no idea." Armon replied, looking around the large room like all the others. One minute they had been here, right here in the Sphinx, and the next... something happened, and then, they were back where they once had been.
Presley closed his eyes tightly for a moment, trying to concentrate. He had to re-open them quickly afterwards as something rubbed up against his leg. The boy looked down at his feet, and saw a very eager and appreciative black bandaged cat rubbing around them with a deep purr. " Hey Kahti." Presley said, reaching down to pick up the feline as it didn't bother to squirm.
Lyris looked around at everything in the room, perplexed and dazed. Everything was the same, nothing had changed. They had borrowed all of these books from the library for... something. It was as if nothing more had befallen them, but she knew different. The muse turned to the rest of the group with an uneasy feeling welling inside of her. " What happened?" She asked, the general question that they all wanted the answer for.
Ja-kal had the same confused yet determined look as her, and looked at everyone trying to find an answer. Presley looked down at the floor and gently scratched Kahti's chin with one of his fingers. Nefer-tina and Armon looked to be about as clueless as the rest of them.
Rath sighed ignorantly and put a hand on his head, trying to remember things that the others could not. There were jumbled images, all of them fuzzy at best, but there was a feeling that was always there, a different one that couldn't have happened here at the Sphinx. It told of insecurity and approaching dangers, yet of a place similar to heaven with bright lights and galliant bands playing oldtime music night after night... light pooling on a dark sea as ferns and hanging plants sway in the cool breeze, a great ship... a blinding light.
" ... something about Titanic..." He muttered incoherently, not thinking that that was of any use to anyone.
At the mension of the great liner's name, Nefer-tina's eyes snapped open, and a dam of memories came flooding back to her. Memories of boarding the ship, meeting Joari, Johnathan, wearing expensive dresses, dancing in the ballroom, clinging to the guard rails and being sucked under as the ship went down... the cold afterwards.
" That's right!" The charioteer exclaimed loudly, throwing her hands up. " Don't you all remember? We went to Titanic, we were alive, and we all went to this big party, and met new friends!..."
" And we were suppose to leave for the lifeboats but we couldn't..." Lyris pointed out, her mind starting to unfog and small memories started to come back to her as well. " And then we met Armon, and you threw the Jewel of the Nile..."
" But then the boat sank." Armon told them all with a twang of regret in his voice. " And we all fell into that cold water..." His voice trailed off, and his expression of recognition became one of a pleasant experience. " Boy, could those chefs cook, I can still taste that court-en... whatever stuff that they made."
Ja-kal crossed his arms in front of him and let the various images of their experience pass through his mind. They were difficult to remember, like a mid-summer dream that you wake up in halfway through - the endings are never clear yet the adventure has been fofilled. " Yes..." He began turning away from the group to look at the back wall, where now the bookcase was set behind the old wooden desk... the same way that it had been before they left. " But why don't we remember it clearly."
" Maybe we weren't suppose to remember it." Nefer-tina thought out loud. " Maat said that time travel was, what?... difficult, we can't change the past. Maybe we weren't suppose to remember."
" That wouldn't make any sense." Rath contradicted. " If we weren't suppose to remember what happened then why not just get rid of the entire experience altogether? If Anubis is able to make people forget about short-term memories, then surely Maat could..."
" That isn't what I'm saying..." The charioteer interrupted, putting her hands on her hips in an annoyed manner.
Ja-kal turned away from the group, and began to head over towards the far wall, where the bookcase and the old wooden desk. The desktop was covered over with old scrolls and big hard-cover books, but this wasn't what he was interested in. He look up, high above them, to a small hanging clock on the tall stone wall. He looked at the time. " We have been returned to the exact time of the day that when we left." He announced, slightly amazed at their timing.
Presley bent down and gently dropped Kahti to the floor. The prince wasn't feeling comfortable talking about things like this, he didn't know why, but the longer that he stood there listening to them all talk about this, the more that he just wanted to place his head in a vice and crank. It was a feeling unlike anything he had ever felt before, and it really began to freak him out. The boy lifted up one of his sleeves to reveal a digital watch, silently ticking away. He watched the minutes, hours, and days on the small screen, and was taken aback.
" This... this doesn't make any sense." The prince told everyone, just as confused as the rest. " We... we never went anywhere! It's just about the same time than when we left four days ago. Well, almost, when were were gone for four days, we only left for about four minutes, or something."
Rath raised an accusing eyebrow and walked over to where Ja-kal was standing, only he was more interested in the big books than the hanging clock. " Maat was playing around with time in the present as well then." He stated flatly, starting to sift through the pages of the book with less than equal enthusiasm than the others. " She must have found some way to bring the feeling of passing time to us while in reality it never moved at all."
" Feeling? What feeling?..." Lyris began, stepping foreward at the statement.
" Whoa!" Presley suddenly exclaimed, finally letting the time sink in for him. He had forgotten that he had only stopped by for a quick hello, he had planned to get a quick bite to eat, and then it was time to head off to the movies with Walter... maybe this would cool his nerves along with it. " I've gotta book it guys, if I'm not at home in twenty minutes, I'll miss my ride!" He started off for the door.
" But my prince," Armon said with an unbelieving voice. " What about everything that just happened? Aren't you the least bit curious to know?" It wasn't like Presley to want to leave something unfinished and things unsaid, it wasn't his style, and everyone knew it.
" Yes, please my prince, stay longer so that we can sort this out." Lyris asked in a pleading voice The muse knew that they had to work this out, otherwise things would never be the same again.
The prince stopped halfway there and slowly turned around. He wanted to stay, he kept telling himself, but there was a feeling deep deep inside himself that was nearly terrified at the thought of continuing the conversasion of Titanic. All he wanted to do was forget. " Well, come on guys, I mean... we can't really do anything until you find out this and that, about what happened, time 'n stuff... besides, I can't remember most of it anyway so I'd just get in your way." Presley tried to explain in the best white lie that he could, and only hoped that it would be enough.
The leader watched the boy as he started to head out the door again. He didn't want any secrets betoween them, and he knew more than anyone that Presley was hiding something. In a way, they all were... hiding facts about the ship, the sinking and whatnot. " My prince, please stay.." He began, taking a step foreward to make him reconsider.
Rath looked up from the old book with an annoyed look. " Ja-kal, if he wants to go so bad, let him, what good will it do staying here when he's suppose to be somewhere else anyway?"
Nefer-tina gave the two of them ignorant looks of discontent. Instead, she glanced over to the doorway, where the boy was just about ready to leave during the scuffle. " Presley," She called to him, raising her hand up to get his attension. The charioteer seemed to have a type of calm over her now, even though she was talking over everyone else.
Presley turned to face her, knowing that she was going to insist that he stay as well. It must have been a shock to the boy when instead of Nefer-tina trying to persuade him to remain there, all she said was. " We'll talk later, alright?"
He smiled at the last question. He raised his hand up as well, waving to all of them as he left the room. " Sure guys, catch ya later!"
" Alright, be careful young prince." Lyris called after him as he ran through the doorway and into the long hallway towards the exit to the Sphinx, his footsteps echoeing through the rock structure even after he was long gone from their sight.

***

With another loud huff, Ja-kal placed another worn book down on the large stack that was beginning to form beside him. Seeing as how their quest was over, they had all decided to return the books that they had borrowed from the library. Inbetween stacking, the five guardians were quickly leafing through them for little tidbits of extra info, though it wouldn't do them alot of good now.
" Problems?" Nefer-tina asked in a slightly sarcastic tone, still looking over a book about Edwardian shipbuilding in the corner of the room.
The leader gave her an unhappy look and the charioteer couldn't help but get suddenly curious at what he was so ticked off about. Ja-kal pointed to the page that he had been reading over. " I have been searching these books for over an hour, and still I cannot find any traces of information concerning the Jewel of the Nile, even though I know for a fact that it was in this perticular book."
" Maybe you lost the page." Lyris piped up from her seat on the small bed as she placed a fifth book beside her on the white sheet. " Maybe you're missing it, or forgot what page it was..."
" It was bookmarked." Ja-kal told her seriously, closing the book with a loud thud. With an uneventful sigh, he placed that book on top of all the others, all of which had something to do with famous gems or mythical tales. All of which, contained nothing having to do with the Jewel of the Nile.
The exact same thing was happening throughout the room. After scanning a chapter in a large hardcover book, Rath closed it up in an irritated manner. This had been the same book that had told of the jewel's history through the centuries and had given them the clue to it's whereabouts. Now, as much as anyone could look, there was nothing there to tell that there was ever such a crystal.
" We've been going through these books cover to cover, yet there is still no trace of a Jewel of the Nile ever existing." He exclaimed, irritated, and picked up another book from the pile to scan through, though not very hopeful in the results.
The muse frowned as she too saw nothing in her book about the Jewel of the Nile, even though she had read about it even before they had gotten the idea about Titanic. She had been leafing through that exact same book days earlier when the myth about the crystal had appeared, and opened up all of their memories about the idea of it. After a little more research, then had become keen of the gem and had saught after it... how could her memory be so wrong?
" But we know that it's real." Armon told them all, not bothering to read through all of these books. Instead, he was doing something that he had been waiting over four days to do- chowing down on an extra large Beefy Burger, all the trimmings.
" But there's nothing here." Nefer-tina realized, after she opened up a book, and all that the chapter on Egyptian charms had was a few pages on the artifacts found in King Tut's tomb. She looked up to Ja-kal, who was now standing to get another book off the desk. " How could 3500 years of records just vanish into thin air?" He didn't answer, he just took another book, and began to read through it.
Lyris glanced up from her book, a small smile starting to form on her face. As much as she tried, she couldn't get the images of Titanic out of her mind, they were all much too precious- well, everything up to the sinking at least. " Remember that first day when we all kept trying to find our way around the ship, but ended up getting lost every now and then?"
Nefer-tina giggled. " Oh, right, and when Ja-kal spazed when I told him about Joari and the dinner party. That was great."
" It didn't look like you were having much fun then. " Rath told her flatly as an afterthought to watching the small letters on the large old pages. " As a matter of fact, I remember that you were just about ready to scream when you didn't get your way."
The charioteer smirked, setting her book down on her lap and crossing her arms in front of her . " Oh ya? Well at least I didn't almost miss the boat as it was leaving the harbor."
" We didn't almost miss the ship!..."
Lyris laughed at the statement. " We came close. Oh, but wasn't it delightful at the Dining Saloon, that was the best part of the entire journey. The dome over the Grand Staircase, all those people so finely dressed..."
" Those little puffy things that they made after dinner!" Armon exclaimed, finally finishing up the Beefy Burger, and settling down on one of the wooden chairs to join in the rest of the conversasion.
Nefer-tina looked up at Ja-kal. " And we were able to realize things about some people that we didn't know... the dancehall was packed and the music was so boring." She rested back against the stone wall and sighed happily. " It was the most perfect evening."
" Oh yes, getting jabbed in the back by a table corner and pushed around a hot stuffy room is exactly my idea of a good time." The scribe huffed igorantly as yet another page in the text contained nothing as to the history of the famous crystal.
Lyris made a discontented face. " The only thing that I didn't like was that mother of Joari's, what was her name? Anyway, have you ever seen anyone so uptight and snobbish?..."
Ja-kal through all of this remained practically silent. He didn't want to be a brandisher of gossip about a very serious experience that they had all been through, and in a way, he didn't want to remember what happened. Coming from something as wonderful as the Titanic and returning to this time once more, without the dignified titles and returning to their usual, dead forms was practically a step down from life. Being on Titanic made them feel normal, not having to hide away from society, a society that had only accepted them on a lie...
Perhaps this was what Presley had been thinking when he left the room. The leader was suddenly very worried for him, and hoped beyond hope that this was not so.

***

The hours had flown by as if they were seconds. The clock above their heads told them that it was well past five by the time all of the books had been read through and packed away so that they could be taken up to the library the next day. Nefer-tina was still sitting on the floor, reading through interesting books about the liner and the people on her. She had never been so enthrauled by a book before. For the time being, she was the only one in the room.
Her mind wasn't on the pages, words or even the context of the story. She was more enthrauled with the characters of the novel, even if it was a true story it read out like an adventure tale told by some famous author in Hollywood. She passed through the pages trying to find some hint of what she was searching for, but it never came.
The charioteer sighed greatly, and let the book fall onto her lap. She closed her eyes and leaned her head up against the wall, her mind spinning around and around in a flurry of happy memories and regret. She was, of course, thinking of her new friends.
She would never find out what happened to them, how things turned out. If Joari ever found her path and followed it, achieving her goal and leaving her mother's terrifying gaze. How much she wanted to be there with her, back in the past trying to make everything right again, but this could never be. She must have thought now that Nefer-tina had betrayed her, and they had left on a bad note for all eternity.
She hoped beyond hope that Johnathan would be alright. Last thing she remembered of him was the young man leaving her on the boat deck and going off to another part of the ship... after the lifeboats had all been launched. She had been looking through passenger lists and such trying to find out if he had made it, but the pages had been worn and she couldn't read the writing. She would never fully know...
Nefer-tina closed her eyes even tighter, and wished that everything had gone alright. Was fate so tragic that two of the most important people in that span of her life must live out unhappy and tragic lives? She had seen destiny do some wicked things, but this was unimaginable.
She opened her eyes up and looked down at all the books around her. Each one was jam-packed with information on building techniques, and even the tonnage of the Titanic, but they couldn't tell her what she wanted to know. Nefer-tina sighed and started to get up from her place, her knees starting to cramp and she realized she couldn't feel her behind. What was the point of staying there the rest of the night reading for no purpose. She might as well just leave the room and join everyone else watching television...
Suddenly, a small hardcover book met her eye on the cobble floor, she had overlooked it as she was trying to find bigger books with larger covers and more information in them. The charioteer leaned over, and after shoving a few others out of the way, found a small novel with a worn dark blue cover, and silver scripted writing on it
Nefer-tina looked the book over, noticing how it looked very old. The letters on the front of it were practically all completely worn off, save for a few shards of writing here and there. It was a thinner book than the rest, housing perhaps one hundred pages give or take. Giving it a second glance, she wondered why they had borrowed this book, it certainly didn't look like it was any value to their cause. Standing up against other, more impressive books, the small novel almost looked lame.
Carefully, as not to accidentally break the cover of the book and loosen it from the story, she opened the front cover and gazed in at what it had to hold. On the back of the cover, there was a small message written in black ink. It was scribbled and messy, but she thought that it said, " To Jeremy, let the world inspire you, nothing will stop you from reaching your goal..." Below it, there was a long signature that she definitly couldn't make out.
" Hmmm, wonder who this Jeremy guy is." Nefer-tina thought out loud, turning the page to reveal the table of contents, publishing date etc. The book was called " Poems of the Sea : Seen through the Eyes of a Titanic Survivor, Published 1921." Well, that solved the mystery of why the book had been taken out with all the rest. It may have been a book of poetry, but it was by a survivor of that horrid disaster... Interested, she continued to read.
There were over two hundred poems in the table of contents, which impressed her quite a bit. Nefer-tina hadn't always been the greatest at words, especially not this amount of word. They all had titles like, " Sunset's Everglade," or " While the Seagull flys...", deep titles that caught her and made her want to read through the entire story, never once thinking about putting it down.
She turned the page, and was about to read more, when she stopped short on the second page. Her eyes widened in disbelief and her face started to show utter confusion. On the page was the name of the author, and a small dedication directly below that.
" How could this..." Nefer-tina trailed off, reading the words over and over again. The confused look started to fade and a small smile started to creep up onto her face. She leaned back against the wall and slowly sunk to the floor once more. She was going to be there awhile.
" Poems of the Sea : Seen through the Eyes of a Titanic Survivor..." She re-read the same words that had been on the previous page, her small grin broadening greatly as if she didn't believe her own words. " Written by J. Kemps..."

***

April 15, 1912, Carpathia...

The man walked up the extra few steps of the ladder and found his way onto the boat deck. He was met by another, an Officer of the Carpathia who had been assigned to get the rest of the survivors out of the lifeboats and inside to get warmed up. It was well past morning, the sun was up shooting it's rays down upon everyone walking along the decks, but most of them didn't care much about that at the moment.
All over, silent crying and panicing searches for lost loved ones consumed them all as women, children and even some men wandered around, stopping everyone and asking them if they had seen someone that they were looking for. The third class passengers had had the most loss, and they all stood by the back of the ship as the truth kicked in, and they were left in the utter shadow of shock.
The man passed by with the Officer, saying over their conversasion. " That was the last, Lifeboat number six. There will be no more coming by this way..." There was barely anyone else on the deck, just a crewmember here, another there... then there was the silent figure standing by the rail and staring out into the deep and endless sea.
Joscerine leaned on the rail with her elbow and placed her chin on her hand. She was feeling quite terrible then, even worse after she had hear that men's conversasion and she knew that there would be no more boats left to rescue. She had been in one of the first lifeboats to seek rescue on the Carpathia, and she had been waiting around for hours awaiting news on other survivors. After getting warmed up and escaping the confines of the First-class dining room, she had gone down to the lower decks where a small clothing store had been opened, and purchased an elaborate blue and white suit with a big, white feathered hat. She knew that she couldn't spend the rest of the trip in her nightgown and coat, and with all of her possessions underneath them now...
A tear rolled down her cheek as she remembered the moment that there was no going back, no chance for them to survive. The girl had kept trying to tell herself that they were still alive, trying to believe Margaret's words about them being " Different." Yet there she was, standing there now... alone and lost in a sea of regret.
Her father was gone, yet in those four days that they were at sea, she had learned more about the members of the Rapses Party than she had known about her father. She realized that she never really knew him, she knew that he had loved her. He had been away on oh so many trips her entire life that she probably hasn't spent one solid year with him, getting to know him. That was why she had loved the friendship between herself, Lyris and Nefer-tina. They had time, and they cared.
Footsteps from behind her sounded over her head, but Joari didn't bother to turn around to see who it was. It was probably just another person, alone, looking for their lost souls that would never come. Maybe she should have turned around and told them that there were no other boats left... but then she remembered how much that had broken her heart when she had heard it as well, and the thought quickly left her mind.
" Looking for someone?" A voice asked from behind. Joscerine was definitly taken aback by this, knowing that it had been the person that had just walked up behind her. The girl didn't remember anything about knowing any other people on Titanic, at least, not too well. Hesitantly, she turned around.
It was a young man, around her age. He wore what looked to be crewmens clothed from the Carpathia, and he looked both pale and tired. He too leaned against the rail and gazed out to sea with a glassy-eyes look. Probably shock, along with all the others.
" Um, I was." She replied, gripping the railing with her two gloved hands in an attempt to keep all of her heartfelt cries inside instead of screaming as hard as she could. " But... they're not coming." Her voice was unusually flat and emotionless.
The man turned away from the ocean and crossed his arms infront of him, now leaning his back against the rail and glancing over the objects on deck. They were loading up the lifeboats now and off in the distance the tips of them could be seen piled high one on top of the other. " I'm sorry." He told her with a twinge in his voice. " It must be very difficult for you."
She forced a weak smile and nodded at him, silently letting go of the rail and getting the idea to return inside. " It's... it's even more difficult to think about them now. All alone out there in the water, hoping for someone to come and rescue them, trying to get warm, but it being so cold..." She suddenly stopped, realizing that she was rambling on to a perfect stranger about her ordeal. " Oh! I'm sorry, you probably don't want to hear about that."
He looked at her and he too gave a small grin and chuckle to the statement. " No harm done at all. As a matter of fact, I can relate to that... I, went down with the ship as well, but was saved when the rescue boat came along and picked me up. If not for them, than I wouldn't be here today..." He suddenly laughed, but it seemed painful for him. " Now, how's that for rambling?"
It was pure irony. If it hadn't been for her, than that boat wouldn't have gone back that early to search for anyone, and if it hadn't gone back for anyone, than he would have been dead. Joscerine laughed, catching a small tear falling from her eye- partially from the loss that she had suffered, but also because of the bright humor going on in this dreary time. She gave him a curious look. " You... were in the water? That must have been awful!"
" It was, it was truely hell." The young man told her, uncrossing his arms and standing up. He almost seemed to waver slightly as he got his footing, but then regained control and stood upright and perfectly still. " But it isn't anything too exciting..."
" Oh! But it is!" She exclaimed with more enthusiasm than she thought. " Why, it was a miracle that anyone was able to... I mean, that... that you're here now." She stammered, mentally kicking herself that she couldn't find the right words to express her interest of the story. " I'd, I'd like to hear about it, if you'd tell it to me."
He smiled. " Sure, that would be wonderful, though, please not out here. Though it is daylight time, it's still quite chilly."
" Oh, of course!" Joari exclaimed,believing well that if this person was who he had said that he was, then he probably wouldn't want to think about catching a chill this early after the ordeal. " Um, how about the dining room? I just came from there, it's quite... cozy." Cozy, for her, was small with alot of people in it.
He nodded. " Alright, that would be a better change than the tight hallways along the infirmary." He held a hand out for her to continue before him, walking along the deck towards the main doorway and the first-class area.
Joscerine smiled back sweetly. " Thank you. My name is Joscerine. Joscerine Tamara Andalusscia, but my friends..." And she now used the term loosely, much to her dismay. " ... call me Joari for short."
He chuckled. " It's best that they do. Someone could get whiplash trying to pronounce it over and over again." The young man watched as the girl laughed once more, and they began to head into the large white structure of Carpathia.
" And you are?" She asked anxiously.
" Oh, excuse my manners." He apologized, coming up from behind her to walking baside her. " My name is Kemps. Johnathan Kemps."
She smiled. " Nice to meet you." They got to the large iron door, already pulled back to allow easy access to both the inside and the outside of the ship. Not many of the first-class passengers wanted to venture outdoors, they all stayed inside, away from society's others and all cooped up in the diningroom talking of their problems and gently sipping warm tea and soup.
Joscerine raised her foot, and stepped on the worn carpet on the inside of the ship. It might have been older than Titanic, but it seemed far better than that. This was their rescue vessel, and nothing in the world could change that.
Johnathan held the doorway as he stepped in after her, intrigued by the new face that he had met, and still trying to forget the last few moments on the Titanic when he had had to say good-bye to Nefer-tina. He knew now that he would never see her again...
" Just one question," He asked just as the two walked through the doorway and headed towards the dining room. " What is it with you ladies and big hats?..."

***

Nefer-tina's eyes trailed over the dedication of the book, still incredibly unbelieving of what she had just read. She had known that John was very good with words, and she had actually thought of him as a poet of some sort, but never would she in her wildest dreams thought that luck would smile upon here and she would find a book that he himself had written. At least now the charioteer knew that he had survived, and a huge relief seemed to lift from her shoulders.
She realized that he had done with his life what he had wanted. She had never really considered him the business type after all, and knowing that he was going to be part of one didn't sit well with herself, or Johnathan for that matter. Now she didn't have to spend her time worrying about him and what happened. Now, all she was concerned about was Joari's future.
" Dedicated," She began, feeling the extremely old pages under her fingers. " ...to everyone that helped me create this book, especially..." Nefer-tina trailed off and nearly coughed at what she saw next. " ... to my wife Joscerine, who's caring nature truely saved my life, bringing us closer together, and a good friend that made us what we are today."
She couldn't help but laugh at the thought. She remembered that she had never actually introduced them while on Titanic, so that meant that they must have met after the sinking. She looked over the last portion of the paragraph, "... and a good friend that made us what we are today..." The charioteer didn't know what to expect, but she had a feeling, one deep inside of her that perhaps he had been referring to herself.
Smiling, Nefer-tina closed the book up and held it in her arms. Everything would be alright now, she knew. John was alive and alright, and Joscerine was able to leave her mother for someone who could treat her the way she should have been treated.
" She'll be OK." She told herself, closing her eyes tightly so that a small portion of a tear could start it's way down her cheek. Nefer-tina didn't know what time it was when she sat back down and began to read again, and she didn't care anymore. She was fofilled now, complete with the crusial information that she had recieved.
" You'll both be OK."

***

Laughter and murmurs filled the air outside the Cinuplex as the large mob that had been watching the scenes from one of it's many theatres cleared out of the six tall glass doors and out into the cooling night air. It had been the early show, so only now was the sun starting to set down behind the Golden Gate bridge. It had already gone below the tall buildings and skyscrapers of the city, casting orange shades all over the area.
Pushing the door open, Walter rushed out into the crowd, and turned around so that he could watch as Presley came out directly afterward. The movie that they had gone to see, Deep Six, had been much more than the commercials had portrayed it. Not only was it packed with action and adventure, but secrets and fist-fights. And, most importantly to the young boys, there had been little to no romance.
Presley walked out of the door behind his friend with a big smile on his face. That was beyond a doubt the best movie that he had ever seen.
" Did you see that when the explosion destroyed the entire secret base, and all of those people just flew through the air into that immerged submarine?!" Walter asked excitedly. The two of them began to walk over to the curb, where Mr. Lu had told them that he would be picking them up.
" Oh ya! I loved the part when that guy thought that he had the secret computer codes, but then they turned out to be the keys played in the song Mary had a Little lamb." Presley snickered, putting his hands in his pockets and looking out into the heavy street.
" Or the part when that huge boat sank when the government spys burst a hole in it." Walter announced along with the little show-and-tell game that they were playing. " Have you ever seen anything so freaky?!"
At the mension of that perticular scene, Presley's bright face went blank and the pleasant memories of the action-adventure film vanished, transforming into bitter memories of screaming passengers as the lifeboats were being lowered, or the sound that the ground beneath them made as it split down to the keel and sent them all towards the biting sea. The terror of witnessing those hundreds of people in the water, and the even worse feeling when he had woken up and found that his guardians were no longer among the living. The sounds and feelings of that night echoed through his mind, louder then even the laughter and talk of those behind them waiting for taxis or rides home.
" Hello?!" Walter exclaimed, motioning a hand up and down from the prince's face to make sure that he was still there. " Earth to Presley! Are you there?"
The boy snapped out of the little trance that he had started to fall into, and found that he was no longer in the freezing Atlantic. Instead, he was in front of the Cinuplex Theatre, with Walter standing beside him with a confused expression. " Huh?"
His friend laughed. " What? It's Friday so you decide to zone out until Moday? Of is all the excitement of that movie going to your head?"
Presley gave his friend an unusual glance. " Hey layoff, OK?"
Walter back off a bit, still looking confused, and a little concerned. " Hey, sorry man. I was just saying that ever since we got here you've been acting pretty weird, even for you." He dismissed that last part of the statement, knowing that for some reason or another, his friend was somewhat vulnerable. " I mean, what happened to you? Even a movie as cool as that didn't lighten you up?"
" It was OK," Presley told him truthfully. " The explosions and stuff were alright, but everything seemed so fake, especially that explosion on the boat. I mean, ship's don't make that sounds when they sink..." The boy caught himself for saying that, trying to find out the best way of how to cover such information up.
Fortunately, Walter didn't bother to ask him how he knew. " So, what are you saying, that you didn't like the movie?" His voice sounded almost hurt - it had been his idea to come there that night.
Presle shook his head quickly. " Oh no! I liked the movie. It's just that, things just turned out a little bit differently than I thought. The only believable part seemed to be the actors. Now they were cool." An approaching car took the prince's attension away from the conversasion and to his right, where a green Toyota was slowing down to pull up along side them.
" Well, I loved it." Walter defended, waving down the car with his hand. " I don't care what a ship sounds like when it sinks or how unrealistically large the explosions were, it was still cool, and it was still scary." The car slowed down, and then eventually stopped right beside them next to the curb, waiting for them to get in.
Presley gripped the door handle to the back seat, twisted and pulled the door open, revealing the back seats. " Trust me Walter," He began, putting one leg into the car, and about to follow with the other one. " Watching it on a movie screen is a whole lot different than being there." He closed the door as quickly as possible, the handle clicking into place once more.
Walter still stood on the sidewalk, perplexed by what his friend had just told him. Finally, he just shrugged, opened up the passenger side door and got in as well, buckling the seatbelt and then traveling back towards their neighborhood as the car drove them both home.

***

The sunlight blazed over the surface of the water, the dark shadows of the Golden Gate Bridge falling down into the bright waves, and giving an inkling of the soon-to-be prominent Western Gate that wound be showing up to them in due time. Boats passed underneath it and traveled slowly across the bay, delivering their cargo to the shipyards lining the waterfront.
The black scroll was in utter ruin. It's sides had been torn practically to shreds, and the writing on it was indistinguishable, gold and silver mixed together, broken off, scattered around in the many small pieces of papyrus that were there now. It didn't look anything like it once had, and now it was absolutely useless in anything that they dare tried to do.
Rath looked down at the black papyrus, still in shambles, and then back out to the ocean water crashing against the stone structure holding up the Sphinx from the back. There were so many things now that didn't make sense to him, this being one of the most prominent. The destruction of the black scroll. Kahti hadn't done this because the sides were singed, it had to have been by someone else. Maat couldn't have done it because the Goddess's powers hadn't been brought with her when she had passed through the Western Gate... or, that was what the scroll had told them...
The experience that they had all gone through had been a difficult one. It wasn't as if getting the Jewel of the Nile had been the purpose of it. Jumbled images of Titanic still surrounded them all, but there were no plain images of the crystal, even though he himself had seen it on a number of occassions... all there was was Titanic, and the people that had been on her.
With a defeated sigh, the scribe let the pieces of the papyrus go, and they slowly took updrafts from the small pedestal beside the water, and floated gently to their resting place. They slid into the water, remained there for a moment's time, only to be pulled under by the current, and were lost from view. They were just another piece of the puzzle that they would never find out about, there wasn't any point to keeping them.
He just stood there for a time, thinking about the pros and the cons, the harsh realities that they had all had to face. They all had memories about the liner, mental proof that something had happened to them, yet... they had been gone barely five minutes in this time, plus there was no Jewel of the Nile. The scroll had been destroyed, everything had been just as they had made it that very morning, before Maat came and destroyed everything... there were so many unanswered questions.
There were two conclusions that he had come to in the few hours that they had been back. Either they did actually travel back in time, get on Titanic, meet everyone, get the Jewel of the Nile, miraculously get back home, without the crystal and everything was back to normal, including time and place. Or, the second and most practical one... they never went anywhere in the first place. Either way, the scribe just decided that he'd rather not think about it and leave it be for a time.
With a push, Lyris opened up the back door to the Sphinx, her lyre caught tightly under her arm as she quietly closed it. She wasn't sneaking around by any means, Armon was off making dinner, probably a large one considering him; Ja-kal was in the television room the last time she had seen him, just sitting and thinking things out. Nefer-tina might have still been in the library, but without the luxury of being able to drive for four days, she might have been out with the HotRa by now. At any rate, she needed some air, as well as some time to herself.
The muse's mind was going a mile a minute. Even now, when she had promised herself at least a few minutes of relaxation, she was still thinking about Titanic, and how glorious a ship it was... before it sank at least. The fine ballroom, their suites... her favourite, The Grand Staircase, which stretched all the way down to first-class D-deck.
Rolling her eyes and placing a hand on her forehead for a time, she began to walk away from the back of the Sphinx, and out towards the waterfront where she had been use to going by herself, just to play her lyre and be alone with her thoughts.
As she walked, she looked down at her lyre under her harm, pushing it side to side to keep it in place as she fumbled with a small bag that she carried on her opposite wrist, reaching in, fiddling with what was in it, and then did the bag up again. She was about to walk further when she looked back up, and stopped.
" Oh!" Lyris exclaimed, staying in her tracks for a few moments before continuing on at a much slower pace. " I didn't know that anyone else was up here."
Rath turned around as the muse approached, looking away from the dimming sunset over the calm bay. She had on a kind of uneasy/curious expression that showed that perhaps she had wanted to be alone with her thoughts.
" I was just leaving." He told her in his usual flat tone, and turned around to return back inside the Sphinx. The last thing that they needed was to be spotted out behind the old Egyptian exibit and then have a dozen reporters banging at the door the next day. The six of them had had enough excitement to last them a good few months, it was time to rest.
Lyris sat down on a long block of stone that was used for a make-shift bench, and gently set her lyre down beside her, along with the small pouch that she had carried out in the first place. She could tell, even from a quick glance that something was on the scribe's mind, or, more than usual. And she knew exactly what it was.
" It's Titanic, isn't it." The muse stated, looking out towards the bay with a glint of disappointment in her eye. At the mension of the giant ship's name, Rath looked around and stopped walking back inside, glancing out in the same direction as she was.
" It was... it was so beautiful." She stated as truthfully as possible, folding her hands in her lap. Lyris smiled to herself about everything that she had learned in the past few days. " Even the name gives me goosebumps."
" The ship sank Lyris." He told her, turning around and crossing his arms in front of him. " Of course it would."
She gave a little laugh. " Oh no, I don't mean like that. I mean, well... I don't know exactly what I mean, but I do know that it was possibly one of the best experiences that we could have all been through as a group." The muse looked away from the enclosed sea, and then back towards him and the Sphinx. " It changed us, it changed us all."
The scribe nearly rolled his eyes at the thought, but didn't. What she was saying had truth to it, more truth then even she could possibly know, but he had to object to it. There couldn't have been any way that they could have traveled back in time,it was illogical, unscientific... everything that he stood for was against the entire generation-travel, time missing crystal hunt. It just couldn't have happened.
" It was a dream Lyris." Rath announced, more to the right side of the small stone porch then to her. " An illusion, something to take our minds off of the idea of the Jewel of the Nile so that we wouldn't again try and find out what happened to it."
The muse suddenly shot out a perplexed look, cornered with a twinge of fear. She couldn't believe her ears, or understand what she was being spoke to about. " What? Didn't happen? Of course it happened, how can you say that it didn't..."
" There's no proof..."
" There's us!" She suddenly shouted, perhaps a little too loudly then she should have. Lyris quickly stood up, her hands clenched at her sides. " We all know what happened, we all realize it and we've all accepted it as fact! The walks on deck, the ballroom, the sinking and that icy water... it's harsh but we all know it as reality."
" You all know it as reality because you want to fall upon something to give you closure! Something that isn't there." He snapped back at her, starting to get a little agitated himself. They were grabbing at small inklings of truth that would never come again. They had to be...
The muse's eyes went sharper, and her jaw tightened. After everything that they had been through, he dared not just dismiss it. " It isn't false hope. There's evidence..."
" Where? Lyris, memories can be decieving. Have you read of anything on the Jewel of the Nile since we got back? Have you read any of our names in the books that showed those lost after the sinking? How about even the mensioning of any Rapses Party on the ship in the first place..." The scribe waited for a moment to see if she could come up with any of those to back up her story. After a few moments, he sighed. " Of course not. Because it never happened."
The muse's angry expression changed to that of more of a pleading one. She began to speak as if she were doing so to save someone's soul, direct and from the heart. " Please don't block this part out of your life Rath. We have been given a gift here, we have to use it to our advantage. There may not be any material proof that we traveled back in time and did all those things we did, but we all have our memories, and those won't fail us." She clasped her hands together in front of her, gripping them both as tightly as she could. " You told me once that we'd make it, we'd get back home, but I didn't listen and I've learned from that. You learn from it too, and just trust me on this."
Silence followed this, only the sound of a calm dusk breeze made any movement around the entire area. The bright orange sun began to disappear and left behind in it's place a light pink/purple color that traveled over the sky like paint from an artist's brush. Way above everyone's heads and the tallest buildings, small specks of stars could be seen through the mauve clouds, gently throbbing in a dark blue sky.
He looked at her pleading expression, full of concern and inner anger, and then back out at the harbour. It was a rock and a hard place- on the one hand, he knew that such a thing could never happen, and on the other side... the salty sea air, the immaculate champagne and the creaking sound that the ballroom ceiling made as it split in two and nearly drown both him and Ja-kal... it was all so real.
" Goodnight." He told her, never even bothering to look back. Without hurrying or trying to leave because of default, the scribe turned right around and continuted to head back towards the Sphinx for the night.
Lyris, instead of trying to persuade him differently, simply turned her sympathies to work at an advantage. " You can't escape it." She called after him, crossing her arms. " Titanic is a part of us now, and no amount of denile or reasoning will change that."
He stopped for only an instant, about to come out with a rebuddle to the fact that she was playing on denile as to why he didn't follow her perspective. Rath reached the door and opened it up to go inside the building, still not turning around to meet the muse's watchful gaze. It was only after closing the door behind him that he actually got to reasonable thinking about their experience.
What had that dance been called that everyone was doing on the dancefloor?...

***

Overhead, a shooting star soared with a long glistening tail as it sped through the heavens and past the tall buildings of San Fransisco. The dusky colored sky was now a dark blue with the Milky Way snaking it's way along through it, and the small stars now glistened with a brilliance that could not be matched by anything, anywhere. To the right, a shimmering full moon began to travel around it's course over top them all, transending it's light upon the world below.
Carefully, Lyris reached into the small pouch that she had brought out with her and removed it's contents, clasping them firmly in her hand so as to not drop them. She left the bag with her lyre sitting peacefully on the stone bench, and slowly started to walks towards the water's edge with a gripped hand.
With every step that she took and image came back from her mind and passed out into the night sky like a movie projector. Nearly missing the departed ship, walking into the Midday Cafe for the first time, her talk with Joari and Nefer-tina, the vague attempt at trying to explain the basics of the Waltz, even the arguements with Ja-kal.
She shook her head and knew that they couldn't have been a lie. She wouldn't live a lie, and the muse knew that the rest of them wouldn't either. Things would go on, battles would be fought and enemies thwarted, but never such as this. When they had been on Titanic, they had been fighting against themselves, all the injustices in the world and the impossible odds. They had worked as a team, and in the end, had claimed what they had sought out to accomplish.
Lyris didn't know where the Jewel of the Nile was now, and didn't care anymore. That small star was just like the millions of others shining down upon them now, beautiful but insignificant in itself. If they had claimed the crystal without a fight then it would have been an empty victory for them. At least this way they had gotten something out of it, even if it wasn't the gem.
The muse approached the very edge of the short stone balcony, and looked down at the black water gently swaying back and forth below her. So many atime she had wished to see something other than black waves churning around her, but those memories she had nearly forgotten about. Only the good things remained, the things about Titanic that no one ever seemed to think about.
She rose up her right hand, still clenched in a fist and carrying the contents of the small pouch. Carefully and almost hesitantly, she began to pull back her fingers and reveal what was there, as if only showing it to herself meant that it was there. First, a hint of white, then a shiny edge, a black hand, a long chain...
Lyris smiled at the object, a small, new gold watch and chain.
The surfaces were buffed to perfection and the white face of it glistened in the birght light of the moon. The long gold chain swayed back and forth, circling around her wrist and twisting to it's will. The two black hands on it, handcrafted to tell the exact time, were absolutely still, resting silently on the exact time that Titanic had fallen out from under them. 2:20 am.
" Here, this way you won't be late..." the voice told her as yet another past image appeared on the night sky, a small watch and chain flying through the air towards her, and her catching it just as it hit the ground. It had been after the Dining Saloon and dancehall, after she had thought that she had seen the crystal on the ash tray... and it was here, now. How could anyone call that a dream?
Still, she knew the truth now, and a small trinket couldn't save anyone from it. With a sigh, she held the watch over the black water, gazing at it through knowing eyes as it slowly turned around in the slight breeze. And, almost as quickly as it had appeared, it was gone. Lyris let go of the small chain holding the timepiece up, and watched as it fell away from the know world and plummeted into the dark ocean beyond.
It wouldn't have changed anything anyway. It might have once, but not now, not when everyone was already set into their ways about their journey. Ja-kal realizing that it did happen, yet not letting it interfere with their lives, or Armon holding no grudges against the past. Nefer-tina hoping and wishing for another lifetime such as that on the magical ship, and Rath ... he didn't believe it at all.
And she didn't need it anymore than the rest of them. What did it hold inside of it? An antique from the past that would explain all memories and give insight into Titanic. Lyris knew of these already, she didn't need reminding, she would forever be grateful to the luxury Ship, which although never made it to it's destination, helped them all reach theirs.
The watch slid through the blackness, bubbles coming up along the edges of it as it sank down, down to the bottom of the harbour. It hit the soft sand with a gently plunk as small smoke and mist surrounded it, easing the fall. The timepiece stayed put for a moment, never moving as the chain wound it's way around the object, and then there was nothing. Faintly, a tiny glow began to overcome the watch, and from the bottom up, the shiny, sleek gold that everyone had knew of for so long began to tarnish, the black consuming the shiny back, all the way to the white face and long chain. Pretty soon, the entire object was looking old, worn and rusted, such as it might have if it had been under the water for a very long period of time. As it was meant to look so long ago...
" Everything happens in Time." The muse recalled, creating a small pun out of the disappearance of the watch and getting a funny feeling that this wasn't the end of this. The Jewel of the Nile might have been gone, lost forever in a deep and timeless sea and destined to remain consumed by the black waters, a Gem of the Deep in an ocean of memories. But the value of it would always be there for them in whatever they did.
And if there was one thing that Titanic had taught her, it was that everything happened in time, and that was a testiment of truth that would be treasured for the rest of eternity.

Epilogue

" Closing in on twelve-thousand meters!" A voice echoed through the small interior of the machine, small buttons blinking and levers being pushed this way and that for the rest of the descent. Outside, there was nothing but blackness unless illuminated by the steady flood lights passing around the bottom of the ocean floor. Just a twinkle of light in a deep sea of blackness.
The submersible continued to go down past the twelve-thousand mark, and still kept falling down past the tiny particles and lifeforms floating around in the ocean water. The pressure outside was immaginable, and it was incredible to discover that there were animals and life out there that could survive.
Flicking his brown hair back, Tony Vermillion, a scientist and historian looked through a tiny window in the right side of the submarine. " Prepare for uplift." He told everyone, turning around and starting to go to the other side of the small interior, pushing through small wires and such hanging down from the ceiling.
Another man gave him a curious expression. " So, hoping to claim your pot of gold this trip Lucky?" He chuckled at the leader's sarcastic replying look.
" ... as a matter of fact, I do." Tony replied dryly, picking up a clipboard and starting to click through the information on the page, never bothing to look up. " Titanic might be old and secretive, but not that secretive, we'll find it."
The second man rolled his eyes. This was the third time that they had ventured down to the wreck in search for the answers that they were seeking. It didn't make it any easier having to wait two hours in a small sub going down to the ocean's floor, and then having to come up the same way. " What type of point are you trying to prove anyway? You know that you're not going to find anything..."
" You don't know that." He replied sourly, finally glancing up from the paper. " The last Suite, the large one for millionaires, it was suppose to have been rented out for J.P. Morgan, Director of the White Starline. But, at the last minute, he cancelled." He placed down the pen and pad, and then started to go back to his original position that he had been in for nearly an hour. " Now, someone must have been in that suite, but there's no record of them."
" What's the point? This small detail in just one of thousands with the Titanic. Why not use this grant money on trying to find out where Madame Aubert's jewels went or something like that?"
" This isn't a treasure hunt MaCall," Tony told him. " This is for research, and I am not leaving here until I find out something, anything to lead to the truth about Millionaire Suite number four."
Suddenly, the floor beneath them shifted upwards at a great speed, rendering them all speechless and still for a few moments until it leveled out. The large propellers on the bottom of the sub's hull pressed against the water outside, leaving the drop that the machine had been in for over two hours and heading upward instead of downward.
" Alright, there should be an image of it any second now." The same announcer told everyone from the submersibles control panel. He flicked a lever to the right, and slowly, they started to turn that way, headed off into even more black space.
Tony looked through the small window again, eager to get his third glance at the sunken ship as she sat low in the mud. At first, there was nothing to be seen, just hundreds of thousands of small white particles floating in the water, and then... a large outline passed through the murky water, followed by finer details- a railing, windows...
The submersible passed alongside the port of the Titanic, barely five feet away from the open promenade windows which revealed various new sites, including beautiful ironites snaking their ways from the tops of the frames and sliding down like a sheet over the pains. Stalagnites pushed their ways from the ship's hull, covered with tiny organisms and old rust. The colors of Titanic could not be seen anymore, it was all just one large vessel with a pastey gray/reddish look to it.
He looked away from the window and back inside, where a team of three people were getting one of them ready to start their search, equipping him with an unusual-looking headset and small handpad for controlling the small robot that they would be propelling into the briney water.
" Ok, let's go." Vermillion ordered.
The small machine, dubbed the Retrospect Action and Life Photographer, or R.A.L.P.H., gently glided through the hallways of Titanic, gently bumping the crumbling walls as it went around corridor to corridor from the large cut in the hull which occured when the ship split down to the keel. Inside there, debris from the sinking could still be found in the sand and mud on the floor... a boot, hardcover leather book, a woman's glove...
The small machine scooted through the pressured water, controled by the men inside the small submersible, and transmitting video back to the sub in the process. It slid through a pair of open wooden doors, blown off of their hinges, and scraped one of them slightly as it went by, creating a small uproar of sand from the ground as it's propellers created a current.
Finally, after a little while of wandering the deserted hall, R.A.L.P.H. turned suddenly to the left, and down a short hallway. On the second left, there was an old wooden door with only the framing of it left, so there was a clear view of what was inside there. Not much, all there was was a huge mess of broken wood and a few walls sprouted up here and there...
" Ok, that's it, just ease him through there." Tony told MaCall as the man wearing the head reciever pushed and pulled the small levers that he held in his hand. The robot cruised right into the room without difficult, and after leaving the tight confines of the doorway, was able to wander freely in the supposid sitting room of the Millionaire's Suite.
Through a slightly blurred screen, everyone was able to see what R.A.L.P.H.'s recordings were picking up. The small machine coasted past the old fireplace, now covered over and through with broken pieces of the couch and chairs that use to be there, now strewn about the entire suite.
" Let the shoot open." He told the controller, tapping him on the shoulder before leaving his place right in front of the mini television set and working his way back to the end of the sub where the pen and clipboard were. He had to copy in a few notes before they returned to the surface.
With a flick of MaCall's wrist, a tiny contraption on the bottom of R.A.L.P.H. began to open up, nearly resembling a trap door and an ice cream scoop. Carefully, the machine started to head down towards the floor, and stopped when the tip of the opened door touched the watered carpet under the sand and couldn't go down anymore.
" Alrighty, let's pick up the garbage." He announced in a somewhat uncaring tone, and pressed a small button, leading the machine across the suite floor dragging the tip of the door along it to pick up debris and along with it, information.
After combing the entire area, MaCall released the button, and then lifted up the lever to close the trap door on the bottom of R.A.L.P.H. The hydrolics of the machine worked quickly, and without spilling any of it's contents, closed up with a water-tight seal. They had done what they had come to accomplish.
He glanced over to Tony, still writing things down. " Why can't they make a carrying device that can be used from up above the water?" He asked sarcastically.
Vermillion just looked up from the pad with a raised eyebrow. " If they did that, that would take away all the fun that we get from hearing you bitch about your problems all day." He replied, once more looking out a small window as he could see R.A.L.P.H. returning to the submersible, glad that they could go back up after all this.
The door opened up, and a huge amount of sand, wood, broken glass and whatnot fell into the long metal tray located on the second deck of their rescue vessel Garrocay. Everywhere you looked, scientists were walking this way and that, loads of papres, computer disks and assorted artifacts brought up from the second submersible to be catalogued and sorted through.
Tony kept an eye on the heap as a man wearing a white labcoat and long white gloves pushed his hands into the muck, and carefully pulled it apart like a mud pie. This way if there was anything in there, than it would have been easier to spot. Vermillion watched as the other pulled out broken pieces of wood, and even small fragments of glass and placed them aside on an evaporation tray to his left.
After a few minutes of not finding anything, they both looked like they were about to give up- the second man even removed his gloves and set them next to the remaining wood and glass, shrugging his shoulders at Tony in his way of saying, " Sorry, maybe tomorrow." And then left the work station to trying and find somewhere to put what was left in the tray.
Tony sighed and looked down at the mass of mud and splinters, defeated once again. His superiors had put him on this job because he was always so good at things like this. Trying to solve who was in what room couldn't have been that difficult, especially with all the floor debris. Heck, they might have possibly even pulled off DNA testing and still he couldn't find what he was searching for.
He squinted a little at the tray, thinking that he had just seen something, but it must have been his imagination. He looked a little harder, and then as quickly as he could reached into the tray, and gripped something inbetween the shards of wood paneling. He pulled out something small, something metallic.
" Hey! Come over here for a sec." He called to everyone on his team. Most of them were on lunch break, but there were still some walking around here and there. He was rejoined by the second man in the white labcoat, as well as another from the sub, and MaCall, who came walking over with a BLT in his hand.
Vermillion gave them all a curious look, and then opened up his hand, revealing what he had found. It was small and very old-looking, the water must have rotted away most of the finish and gloss. The chain was just as worn as the rest of it, and was even ripped off in the back where the clasp should have been, rotted away from the years. He brought it up a little higher, revealing a tarnished and weathered necklace with a beautiful pendant, in the shape of an Egyptian Ankh.
" Nice. Yours?" MaCall asked as he bit into the sandwich again.
" Here, let me see that." The labcoat asked him, carefully taking the pendant in his fingers, and quickly walking towards a microscope at the other end of the room. The others followed right behind him, Tony the fastest of all.
The man glanced into the microscope, coming up with a larger image of the ankh. It was definitly old, and had faired badly in the sinking. Unlike most jewelry recovered, which could be redone over an placed in a museum, this was just too small and soo fargone. The slightest motion could snap it apart or desintigrate it.
He spied a small carving on the stake of the ankh. " I think I've got something here." He told them all, reading the inscription, and then slowly pulling away from the telescope.
" Well?!" Vermillion asked impatiently, crossing his arms in front of him.
He took a small tapping tool from the tray next to him, and pointed to a small spot on the ankh, excitement in his voice. " There's an inscription, right there. It says R. Party on it."
Tony looked through the microscope, adjusting it for his eyes, and reading the scripture that the other was pointing at. Sure enough, in fancy, yet tiny script writing the words R. Party were clear to him through the black rust and tarnished finish.
" R. Party... could it hav been a person?" He asked still looking through the microscope with great intrigue for the first piece of hard evidence they had found that entire ordeal. " No... it must have been a group of some sort. But, what's the R. stand for?"
MaCal finished his sandwich, stuffing it into his mouth as quickly as possible so that he could respond to that before anyone else. " Well," He started, still finishing chewing. " That's why we're here on this damn boat, isn't it? To find out who was there, to finish the permanent records..." He pointed to the small pendant under the telescope. " You think you'll find the answer on that small thing?"
Tony looked at him, then at the second man in the labcoat, and then at the other two members of his team, waiting. Would they return into the freezing ocean to search moreso, or would they drop the idea of finding out the truth?
He rolled his eyes, turned away from the new evidence and then raised an arm up, walking inbetween people as he did so. " Come on, if we want to get in another trip we should get to reloading the subs for tonight." He ordered, glancing back only once to spy the remains of the black jewelry that they had recovered. If only everyone else knew of what they had found, but the necklace would have to be placed in a file for the remainder of it's existance. Though the treasures of Titanic were wonderful and unique, none of them seemed to be as unique as this, a small Egyptian symbol written out in gold, laying at the bottomof the Atlantic Ocean. " We still have to figure out who was in that Suite, right?"
To this day, the inhabitants of the last and final Millionaire's Suite is still unknown.

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Afterthougths

The time has come, for some a little too slow, and for others like myself, a little too fast. After months and months of painstaking work, endless writing and dramatic storytelling, the Gem of the Deep has come to an end. And now, here are a few thoughts that have been on my mind ever since the beguinning. A story such as this (about the same size as a long novel) requires a little inside details, so here they are. Not that you're going to read all of it, because most of it is just me rambling ^_^
Was it worth it? You say. To spend all of your free time working on a story that has practically already been told? We have all seen Titanic, and we could easily picture the MA characters in the same situations. And to that I respond with mixed feelings. Writing this story has been the pinacle of my writing career, and through it, can only get better. Safe to say, that this is the longest and most extensive piece of MA fanfiction out there to date, and even the parts and Chapters are the same size of a good piece of work. It not only shows you what you can accomplish when you try, but it pushes you beyond your boundaries to give others a story that you already know is great in your mind.
Which brings me to the downside. If anyone of you wishes to write a story this long and this extensive in the future, I have one word for you. Don't. Yes it commits you and yes it brings joy to others, but unless you're 100% dedicated to it, writing large amounts everyday, you will quickly bore of the idea and go on to something else. Safe to say, more than once a chapter I had thought about dropping the whole thing, and if exprience is a good teacher, you would have as well. Doesn't matter how great the story is, human nature sets in before long.
To beguin a story such as this, when fiction meets history, it is always a good idea to research your work. Another thought to ponder during the developemental stages. For GOTD, there were many books and articles that I had to surf through to get the correct detail down. Titanic: The Long Night, which tells the story of those on deck as the ship went down. A Night to Remember, which gives minute to minute ideas on all of the passengers, both on and off the vessel. That, and memorizing the Official James Cameron's Titanic movie and movie book, which told of many things that were going to be in the story as well.
Basically, Gem of the Deep has become an enormous triumph for me, and as Sekhmet so graciously put it, it is/was " The Most Popular piece of MA fanfiction out there." Surely, some things will come and go, others will pass before their times, but I'm sure that the large, dramatic story will live on through our minds, and continue to thrill us and terror us all at one. All telling the story of the Titanic's tragic Maden voyage to destiny.
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Special Thanks

A story this big and this dramatic wouldn't be the same without thanking those who took the time and patience to help it on it's way. Some may think that it was my tale and mine alone, but in reality everyone had something to do with it. And so, here is the slightly long list of people that I would like to thank for making Gem of the Deep the success that it was, and the prize in my heart.
First and foremost, I'd really like to thank my friend Mia, who's expert pen was able to give you art from the story, as well as save some of the scenes in it. Safe to say, I'm not a very emotional writer sometimes, and when I asked her to- " Write some of the sad and romantic parts" she was more than happy to lend a hand. From the happy times on the dance floor, to the sad good-byes in the icy waters of the Atlantic, she was there for me, and I'm truely grateful.
Second, I'd like to thank everyone that helped in developement of the story through fan art and suggestions. Sekhmet, for allowing me to use her characters Joari as the lost soul that Nef and Lyris befriend and for her encouragement and support. Anubis for putting up my stories on his page, for all of his encouragement, and for all the great suggestions that he had to lend. Raps for all her encouragement and the great fan art that she graciously lent and made for GOTD, and all those who helped out on the message board with their commentary.
And last, but not least, I'd like to thank everyone who took the time to read the long parts chapter after chapter. Those who have been with the story ever since the beguinning, or those who have just joined us recently have only given positive comments and suggestions, and although some of your ideas lay "at the bottom of the cutting room floor", some have made a huge difference in the telling of this reality's tale of life and death.
Without you, none of this would have been possible. Thank you all for the good times and the bad, the funny and the sad and in remembering an 86-year old disaster that will never be lived down or forgotten.
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" Ladies and Gentleman, Welcome to Titanic. On your right you'll see the Grand Staircase and to your left your staterooms with full Oak Desks and Lifebelts on the Wardrobe... Just in Case."

- Jena McWaithe

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