They gathered their fishing equipment - which consisted of a gigantic net and oars.
Dawn.
They were simple folk with simple troubles, simple ambitions, simple beliefs. Simple living. As was the custom, they prayed to the goddess of the sea. The goddess protected them from storms & sea monsters; and she provided them with an excellent catch if they worked hard enough and treated each other justly.
A good day. Calm sea, not a bad catch so far. And no casualties. Yet. They began to sing their folk songs to appease the goddess to get more fish. It worked, so they sang more vigorously than usual. When the sun broke over the horizon, they began to collect their net, and row back to the shore. With this haul, the village would not remain hungry for weeks. They were content.
Then it happened.
As their little boat started to creak and groan, they waited calmly and prayed it wasn't a storm. Or worse, a monster from the depths. But... in a little while, it was evident something was wrong. They were aware of something immense closing in on them from the sea. As they waited in terrified silence, an immense gray behemoth rose from the depths right under them. It was both horrific and beautiful at the same time. The little boat was heaved over the tip of the monster, and crashed into a separate pool of swirling water gushing from within the monster - obliterating the boat, and drowning the peasants.
The village would starve now. But they would assume what happened when the men didn't return by noon. They knew they had sinned, and this was the goddess's way of punishing them.
"Private Carlos, what is the meaning of this?"
"Pardon me, sir..."
"What in the hell was that tiny little thing which caught up on our sensors when we resurfaced?"
"A fishing boat, sir..."
"You mean to tell me that you've possibly killed a boat of peasants with your incompetence..."
"I could say that, sir..."
"What do you mean by I COULD... Explain yourself, Private..."
"Well... I had advised you about resurfacing without sensors, but you saw no imminent danger in that particular action... Apparently not, Sir..."
"At ease, Private... Do you mean to say I had something to do with this?"
"In the circumstances, I have reason to believe so, Sir."
"Private Carlos, you are hereby stripped of your rank and duties..."
"Sir?"
"And since you have a problem in dealing with leadership, you may abandon ship."
"Sir?!?!??!"
"Abandon ship, Private."
"With respect, Sir... This is fucking insane... What do you mean abandon ship? Do you honestly expect me to swim to the nearest destination?"
"I suppose you must, Private."
"Have you completely lost it?"
"That's it. Get out..."
2 WEEKS LATER
Private Carlos Espinosa was saved from a remote island off the coast of Indonesia by tourists who found him rambling about killing a Superior Officer. He was taken back to his home in Phoenix, Arizona and arranged a press conference. The Superior Officer blamed for his condition told reporters that the Private had lost his mind while at work on the submarine, and thought it was a miracle when he heard the Private was still alive. The comment on the Private being a "loony Spic" was erased from the eventual broadcast, since it was deemed racist and perhaps biased.
Carlos Espinosa was relocated to a job in the Naval Postal Service, where, every once in a while, his co-workers insist he stares into space at times and mutters vague homicidal monologues to himself.
END
Dawn.
They were simple folk with simple troubles, simple ambitions, simple beliefs. Simple living. As was the custom, they prayed to the goddess of the sea. The goddess protected them from storms & sea monsters; and she provided them with an excellent catch if they worked hard enough and treated each other justly.
A good day. Calm sea, not a bad catch so far. And no casualties. Yet. They began to sing their folk songs to appease the goddess to get more fish. It worked, so they sang more vigorously than usual. When the sun broke over the horizon, they began to collect their net, and row back to the shore. With this haul, the village would not remain hungry for weeks. They were content.
Then it happened.
As their little boat started to creak and groan, they waited calmly and prayed it wasn't a storm. Or worse, a monster from the depths. But... in a little while, it was evident something was wrong. They were aware of something immense closing in on them from the sea. As they waited in terrified silence, an immense gray behemoth rose from the depths right under them. It was both horrific and beautiful at the same time. The little boat was heaved over the tip of the monster, and crashed into a separate pool of swirling water gushing from within the monster - obliterating the boat, and drowning the peasants.
The village would starve now. But they would assume what happened when the men didn't return by noon. They knew they had sinned, and this was the goddess's way of punishing them.
****************************************************************
"Private Carlos, what is the meaning of this?"
"Pardon me, sir..."
"What in the hell was that tiny little thing which caught up on our sensors when we resurfaced?"
"A fishing boat, sir..."
"You mean to tell me that you've possibly killed a boat of peasants with your incompetence..."
"I could say that, sir..."
"What do you mean by I COULD... Explain yourself, Private..."
"Well... I had advised you about resurfacing without sensors, but you saw no imminent danger in that particular action... Apparently not, Sir..."
"At ease, Private... Do you mean to say I had something to do with this?"
"In the circumstances, I have reason to believe so, Sir."
"Private Carlos, you are hereby stripped of your rank and duties..."
"Sir?"
"And since you have a problem in dealing with leadership, you may abandon ship."
"Sir?!?!??!"
"Abandon ship, Private."
"With respect, Sir... This is fucking insane... What do you mean abandon ship? Do you honestly expect me to swim to the nearest destination?"
"I suppose you must, Private."
"Have you completely lost it?"
"That's it. Get out..."
2 WEEKS LATER
Private Carlos Espinosa was saved from a remote island off the coast of Indonesia by tourists who found him rambling about killing a Superior Officer. He was taken back to his home in Phoenix, Arizona and arranged a press conference. The Superior Officer blamed for his condition told reporters that the Private had lost his mind while at work on the submarine, and thought it was a miracle when he heard the Private was still alive. The comment on the Private being a "loony Spic" was erased from the eventual broadcast, since it was deemed racist and perhaps biased.
Carlos Espinosa was relocated to a job in the Naval Postal Service, where, every once in a while, his co-workers insist he stares into space at times and mutters vague homicidal monologues to himself.
END
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