Page 51 of Lover from the Waves

Her brow furrowed; she hadn’t noticed any sort of hood on the suit before. But sure enough, when she reached over her shoulders, there was a hood gathered behind her neck; it must’ve formed somehow when the suit sealed. She gathered her hair and swept it back before grasping the hood and drawing it over her head. Like the rest of the suit, it fit snugly without feeling restrictive.

Shifting the glass mask into one hand, Ector closed the remaining distance between himself and Kathryn. She stared up at him as he lifted his free hand to delicately sweep a few loose strands of her hair back from her face and tuck them beneath the hood. The tenderness of the gesture, the care and consideration, stoked the gentle warmth in her heart.

“Once you hold this up to your face, it will connect to the suit,” he said, raising the curved piece of glass with its thin black frame.

“Okay.” Kathryn lifted her hands and took hold of the mask on either side, meaning to move it closer to her face, but Ector held it in place. She arched a brow.

“We will not be able to speak to one another once we are under water.”

“We won’t?”

Ector shook his head. “We will keep very close to each other, and I will signal you should anything go wrong. But these coastal waters are relatively safe.”

Kat shifted one of her hands to cover his, which was still holding the mask. “I trust you, Ector.”

“And your trust means the world to me.” He smiled, but the smile faded after a second. “Also…when the mask seals, a voice will speak to you. Do not be alarmed.”

“What do you mean? What voice?”

“I think…” Ector frowned for a moment as though deep in thought. “I thinkcomputeris the right word. There are computers in those suits, and they talk like the computer in the Facility. I am not as knowledgeable concerning this old human technology as others like Arkon, Vasil, or Theodora.”

Kathryn glanced down at the mask. There really wasn’t much to it—it looked like a curved piece of glass with a frame around it, as simple in appearance as the rest of the suit. She’d never know how any of it functioned; the only person who likely understood such matters was Theodora, a trained mechanic and engineer who’d crash landed on Halora a little over a year ago. For the residents of Halora who’d descended from the original colonists, such knowledge was all but lost—and wasn’t very practical these days, anyway, considering they had no means of manufacturing the complex components necessary to maintain such advanced technology.

She lifted her gaze to Ector and smiled; she wouldn’t let a bit of trepidation diminish her enthusiasm. A lot of people back in town used these diving suits all the time without issue. “At least I’ll have someone to talk to down there, right?”

He chuckled and nodded. “And I will be nearby regardless.”

That meant more to Kathryn than she could express. She’d always had friends and neighbors to depend on, but she’d never felt right leaning too heavily on anyone no matter her situation. It was already different with Ector, even though they’d only spent several days together. She knew he’d support her no matter what, and she would support him just the same—an equal partnership built upon a freshly-bloomed love the likes of which she never would’ve thought possible at this point in her life.

If the situation were different, she knew she’d be a bundle of nerves, knew she’d be second guessing the idea of going into the water. It wasn’t all that long ago that several young men and women had been attacked by a razorback just of the dock in The Watch, leaving several dead and one—that sweet girl from Emmiton, Eva—maimed.

But even remembering that tragedy, which had rocked The Watch to its core, couldn’t deter Kathryn now. Humans had traveled to and from the kraken’s underwater home dozens of times without incident. Besides, Ector was experienced, and she trusted his judgment—especially when it came to matters involving the sea. She wouldn’t let the fear of what could happen prevent her from seizing this opportunity for a once-in-a-lifetime experience.

She brushed her thumb over the back of his hand. “Well, shall I, then?”

The warmth remained in his expression as he released his hold on the mask. He turned his hand beneath hers, taking it gently, and brought it to his mouth to place a gentle kiss over her knuckles. She found herself wishing her skin wasn’t covered; even that brief brush of his lips against it would’ve been sublime.

He released her hand and eased back. Kathryn returned her attention to the mask. The excitement that had been thrumming in her intensified again, swelling in her chest. It was an eagerness she’d not felt in decades, a giddiness she’d not known since childhood, and she wouldn’t allow herself another moment’s hesitation. She lifted the mask to her face.

She felt a hint of movement around the mask’s frame and the hem of the hood. The quality of the sounds around her—the singing sea and sighing breeze—altered subtly, seeming somehow both more immediate and more distant than an instant before. A faint hum flared across the surface of her skin, encompassing her entire body. It wasn’t an uncomfortable sensation, but it was an unfamiliar one, and she wasn’t sure what caused it.

“Good evening,” said a voice in her ears.

Even after Ector’s warning, Kathryn started, raising a hand to her chest as her heart quickened a little more.

“My apologies,” the voice continued. “I don’t recall cradling your naked body before, so I should have assumed you were a first-timer and adjusted the volume of my voice.”

“I…um… What?” Kathryn asked with a nervous chuckle. She glanced at Ector, who was watching her with his brow knitted and a slight frown tugging down his lips.

“My name is Kane,” the voice replied. “I’m here to assist you with the operation of your diving suit and provide you with riveting conversation. I do hope you’ll provide me with a bit of the latter, as well—it gets rather dull lying dormant in these suit computers waiting for someone to use them.”

Kathryn’s brows fell low, and she pressed her lips together.Kane. The name sounded familiar, but she couldn’t quite place it, couldn’t quite remember why it’d be familiar. Maybe it was…

She sucked in a sharp breath. “The Kane that’s inside Theo?”

“The very same. Though technically I am a copy of that Kane created when he interfaced with these diving suits.” Kane lowered his voice to a conspiratorial whisper. “I would say I’m the more pleasant version, but we’d best keep that between the two of us. I doubt his ego could handle it.”

Kathryn laughed and shook her head. “I just…didn’t expect this. Not that I knew what to expect to begin with.”

---