The Celestial Gate by Avital Dicker (red white royal blue txt) 📗

in a room, you idiot,” Anise answered him angrily; she had awakened just minutes before. “And if you hadn’t gone nuts and kicked the water, none of this would have happened and we wouldn’t be tied up underwater right now.”

“Ah,” Mor sighed, looking around. They were in a cabin that looked like a submarine control room. Through the porthole, they could see fish of every shape and size darting in and out of the coral reefs. “How did we get here? I don’t understand…” he muttered.

“I have no idea how we got here, but we’re deep in the sea inside this thing. And at least I know whose fault it is,” Anise was furious. “Apparently, somebody found us, or we’d have drowned.”

“How was I supposed to know what would happen because of a few kicks? Tell me, how could I have known there’d be a storm at sea?” Now it was Mor’s turn to get angry. “Leave me alone. I’m so done with your outbursts.”

“Both of you – stop it!” Yam interjected, examining the space they were in. The equipment looked outdated. The dials on the control board had hands, like in the olden days; the steering wheel was made of wood, and the periscope in the center looked as if it had borrowed from some science museum. “Listen,” he whispered, flabbergasted, “you see the plaque above the dials? It reads Dakar. Whoa. This is way too nutty. Like, I can’t believe it… Could it really be the submarine Dakar? That would be the weirdest thing ever.”

“What submarine?” asked Mor.

“The Dakar,” Yam repeated. “It disappeared in 1968. Nobody knows what really happened to it or why. I did a school project on it. I even went to Jerusalem, to Mt. Herzl, to see the monument honoring the submarine and the men who were lost.”

“Wait a minute… Are you saying that this submarine is about to suffer another catastrophe?” Anise asked.

“I have no idea,” said Yam. “I don’t know where we are or even if this is the submarine, but I do know that the Dakar went down near Crete. In any case, I think it’s a good idea to get out of here on the double because I can’t wrap my head around what’s happening.”

Rae nodded in agreement and continued to chew away at the rope binding her hands.

Suddenly, the door to the cabin opened, and all of them fell silent. A man in a black wetsuit entered. He removed his mask and went over to fiddle with the controls. They could hear the squeaks and blips of the communications device. “This is the captain speaking. Over. We’re deep. We’ve encountered a hostile force of three intruders and an unidentified marine creature; we’ve taken them in and have secured them,” the man spoke in Hebrew.

“Hey, he’s speaking Hebrew,” Yam whispered. “Now I know it’s the Dakar.”

“Excuse me!” Anise politely tried to draw the man’s attention, but he ignored her.

“Hello?” Anise tried again, this time louder. “We’re not a hostile force.”

“Look,” now it was Mor’s turn to try, “I really think the ropes are unnecessary. We can explain everything. We’re here by mistake. Would you mind untying us?”

The man looked at him for an intense minute and then burst out laughing. Three more frogmen walked in, unloading their oxygen tanks and wiggling out of their wetsuits. “Did you hear that, Ra’anan?” he asked one of them.

“Pay no attention, Roy, We found them a hundred meters under the water without oxygen. They’ve probably suffered brain damage,” answered Ra’anan, taking off his mask. “C’mon, I’m starving,” he said, tossing his wetsuit into a corner of the cabin.

“You’re right. Let’s eat. They’re going nowhere,” answered Roy.

“Thanks, commander,” Ra’anan grinned, showing off his white teeth, and threw him a salute. The four men left, locking the door behind them.

“Whoever said that everything in paradise is paradise?” Anise cried out in frustration. “And where the hell are we? It’s starting to remind me of planet Earth.”

“I don’t have a clue. But, based on what I remember, the Dakar sank at two hundred meters and collided with a reef,” said Yam, “and that’s how they all drowned.” His eyes were checking the control panel for the fathometer. “I can’t tell from here, but how deep are we now?”

Mor, who was closest to the control panel, stretched the rope to its full length to get a look. “According to the panel, we’re at a hundred and eighty meters down,” he said, worried. The three looked at one another.

“This is really bad news,” said Yam. “We’re at one-eighty, and if we’re actually near Crete, the submarine is about to sink. And we’re tied up. This is turning nasty.”

Anise, surprised, was looking at Rae who gleefully rubbed her unbound wrists. “How did you do that?” she asked.

“With my teeth,” she answered nonchalantly, not understanding why Anise was so worked up. “I’d love to go for a swim,” she added.

“I love you, Rae!” Anise laughed with relief.

“Uh… what’s love?” Rae asked, suddenly looking puzzled.

“We’ll explain later,” said Yam impatiently. “Untie us first. They’ll be back soon.”

Rae gave Yam an insulted look but went over to Anise and untied her first. Within a few moments, all four moved freely about the cabin, looking for a way out.

Mor tried to open the porthole. “What’s wrong with you?!” Yam yelled, grabbing his arm. “We’re deep underwater; if water comes in, we’re dead.” He then checked the oxygen tanks. “There are four wetsuits here,” he said with relief.

But now the key again turned in the lock. All hurried back to their seats, making sure to wrap the ropes around their wrists. Except Rae.

“Rae,” Yam mouthed, furiously signaling her to sit. Too late. The door opened.

“Grab her!” Roy commanded the three soldiers, but Rae was quicker.

“Grab me! Grab me!” Rae was having a good time mimicking him as she flitted through the air on her beautiful wings.

Yam’s eyes were glued to the open door. Right away, Anise saw what he was thinking. “There’s no point leaving