Centuries ago, there lived a ten-year-old boy in Rome called Augustus. He wasn't an emperor, just named after one. He loved to experiment, locking himself for days at a time in a simple wooden shed near the aqueducts. His parents wanted him to be a barber, and tried to teach him during his free time. But the more they tried, the more Augustus experimented, hiding from the world. When neither experimenting nor hiding, he loved to visit the ocean. He secretly developed all sorts of ingenious tools to aid a man's path to the deepest trenches of the world. At 17 years old, he took time off for a fishing trip, but never returned. The crew he traveled with said he had drunk from a small vial, and leapt overboard. Upon entering Augustus's shed for clues, they found all notes, contraptions, and concoctions had been burned.

245 years latero ¦

Captain Steve skillfully manipulated the wooden handles of his ship's wheel. Had you gazed from his eyes, you would have beheld quite a scene. On the humble fishing ship Tackle, men were doing various jobs across the wide deck, from washing the filthy deck, to cooking some good beef stew for lunch, to repairing the damaged canvas sails. There was the vast Mediterranean Sea, sparkling turquoise, topaz, aquamarine, peacock, and many more shades of blue. There was the occasional whale's tale breaking the calm surface, but only long enough to show that beautiful life was under the surface. The sun heated a warm breeze, which blew the sails into a gentle curve.

Captain Steve cared for none of these, except for the dark line on the horizon. He studied it carefully, because if it was what he thought it was, they were heading into a world of trouble. A dead bird came flying onto the deck next to him, and he jerked his foot back in surprise. Steve thundered to his crew, "Prepare yourselves, for we shall be in the mother of storms any minute now!" They prepared hastily, but not quickly enough.

The storm hit them like a hammer, slamming them to the floor with its mighty force. It cracked the hull with a huge SNAP! The rain hit them in bucketfuls, each one seemingly more suffocating then the last. The mast flew over Captain Steve's head, the netting caught men and flung them overboard. The first mate lay unmoving on deck near the bow. The last thing Steve knew before losing consciousness was that Davy Jones was probably about to collect yet another ship in his locker.

He regained consciousness on a hard wood floor, which surprised him. His ship had surely sunk. The deck wasn't moving. Had they beached? Steve cracked open an eyelid but couldn't see right away, for it was quite dark. As his eyes adjusted, and he felt rested enough, he tried to get up. No such luck. It seemed he was bound to the deck somehow. His eyes adjusted more and soon he could make out the deck, which was actually a table, surrounded with an assortment of knives. Steve panicked and tried to get up even more fiercely than before, but the ropes- no, not ropes, chains -were bound tightly. Suddenly a door opened. What Steve saw nearly made him lose consciousness again. Standing before him was a blue monster with gaping jaws that formed a wicked smile. The beast selected one of the many knives and cackled. Steve screamed so loud he could have cut glass. The creature grinned at him ando ¦



o ¦sprayed Steve's face with some sort of foam. Moments later he felt the foam being taken off, along with the stubble he had been meaning to shave. His face felt so fresh that he couldn't stop himself from smiling. This hadn't been the close shave he'd expected. The creature released the chains and whipped out a platter full of seafood. Steve hesitated, then dug in, as he realized he was starved. After satisfying his stomach, he looked at the creature, who had been watching patiently as he ate. "What- who are you?" he asked. "I am the Sea Phantom," replied the creature as it scratched itself with red claws. Steve looked up, and saw that they were many miles underwater. "How did you get me down here?" he said. The Phantom chuckled."In my youth, I experimented with many aquatic substances. I used one that gave oxygen to your lungs to get you down here. You will use it to get back up. It also will protect you from the bends, and the pressure down here. When you get to the surface, head east. There is a town close by. The substance will give you strength for the travel, but act quickly before it wears off. Do not speak of me to others." The Sea Phantom gave him a pill. He then lead him to a door, which he opened. "Go," he said. Steve swallowed the pill and began the long journey home.