Below the Deep Waters

The world swayed back and forth, ferried by playful waves. A faint light glistened behind his heavy eyelids. Muffled sounds fluttered above, melting into ambient noise. A crushing weight bore down on him. It hurt. Everything hurt.

"It has been three days. We're taking him to a doctor."

"To get cut up? Only dolts trust doctors."

"I don't know about dolts, but it is surely not recommended for criminals. He'll be reported right away."

"Ray's not a criminal! He's always been a good kid."

"That is completely irrelevant information, not sufficient to convince the guards."

What were they talking about? The voices sounded concerned, the first one was especially sad. Even without understanding its meaning, just hearing the sound alone tore at his heart. And he thought it couldn't hurt any worse. All went black.

"...and as I was about to get up and bash them with a proper payback, you appeared. I would've totally beaten their asses, but no — you had to meddle, a cocky worrywart..."

That story was so familiar. Had he heard it somewhere before? He needed to learn more. It almost felt like he was forgetting something. Was it important? The darkness shrouded him again.

"...you shouldn't have come for me. I should have killed myself before they took me prisoner. I hate you, Ray. Don't you dare leave me too."

No, please — he only wanted to see her smile again. If she wasn't smiling now, it had all been for naught. He didn't know what to do when she was crying. He hadn't seen her cry — not since that one day, the worst day of their childhood.

Ray willed his eyes to open. His fingers twitched instead. He bid his lungs to take in more oxygen. A shiver ran through his spine. He blinked. He opened his mouth to console her, but only a weak hiss escaped.

"I'm older. It's me who's supposed to protect you. Not the other way around," she sobbed, dragging the backs of her hands across her eyes and nose.

"Co-Coral, I also want to protect you."

"Don't talk back to me. I won't go easy on you just because you're dead."

Ray wheezed, his throat parched, the saliva wasn't coming. His voice was all spent with one short line. No matter how many angry retorts were buzzing in his head, he couldn't utter a single one.

"I wish you were that compliant when you were still alive. What a waste," she clenched her hands into fists and punched the wall.

"Oh, you're finally awake," Koi popped into the room and stared into Ray's swollen eyes with a disinterested expression.

Dumbfounded, Coral couldn't look away from her brother, waiting for the illusion to be dispelled, but he remained conscious, glaring at her for some reason.

"You idiot, say something when you come back to life," she got up from her chair and squeezed Ray in a tight hug.

"Not that I care, but it seems like you're putting too much pressure on his respiratory system. He turned a deeper shade of blue," Koi headed out the door. "I'll go get Marlin before it's too late. He'd want to say his goodbyes too."

Unable to protest against anything said or done to him, Ray had to content himself with exasperated grunting and fierce eyebrow twitching.

***

Warm and cozy, the kitchen was filled with a sweet aroma of pancake batter and ticklish smells of various spices. A rhythmic clanking of a spoon scraping against a bowl, a soothing sizzle of a hot skillet, an all-encompassing hum of life.

"It might still be a bit too early for you to be standing up for so long. I feel obliged to warn you that this choice of yours is foolish," her elbows resting on the table and her eyes focused on the job, Koi tinkered with some faulty mechanical part from the exhaust system.

"Nope, he stays here and goes on with the punishment," Coral sat sprawled on a chair, tilting it back and balancing on its hind legs. "He should've made better choices before. Like, not throwing away his life in the first place, or not waking up after he did so."

"On with the punishment! Get me my pancakes," Marlin grinned and rocked from side to side on top of a kitchen counter. "I say we do this every day."

"I'm not particular about food, so I don't mind eating the same thing. You, on the other hand, I'm sure will be the first to cry about getting sick of the taste," Koi disassembled the device and laid down its parts, arranging them from large to small.

"Don't put your junk here! You don't own the whole table. I do! That's my space."

"Alright, the first batch is ready. Stuff them in your mouths and stop the ruckus. My head is splitting even without your help," after brushing aside some of the cogs and springs, Ray placed the dish. Marlin immediately snatched the top three pancakes and gobbled them down.

"You ruined it," Koi complained softly and busied herself reorganizing her possessions more compactly.

"Thanks, I really missed those," Coral picked one of the salmon pancakes up and, staring at it wistfully, twirled it in circles atop her fingers.

Ray smiled. "And I missed making them for you."

Blushing, she slapped her brother on the shoulder. "Enough with the sobby stuff. You're spoiling my appetite."

"He-he, I smell an opportunity! My appetite is invincible. The less you eat, the more yummies there are for me!" Marlin grabbed another fistful of food. "So, boss, what's the plan? Except for pancakes every day."

"First, I wanted to ask," Ray joined them at the table and bit into his lower lip. "Koi, Marlin, I'm sorry for getting you on wanted lists of both corporations. Going forward... would you rather not be stuck with me anymore?"

"As long as you feed me, I'm okay," their genius thief sputtered with a full mouth.

"You still owe me," their mechanic shrugged.

"What's wrong with those two?" Coral turned to her brother.

"It's part of their charm," Ray squeezed out a shaky smile. "Returning to the topic of our future. Don't worry, if Vulcan or Neptune ever catches up to us, I'll do what I do best. Talk. I'll bluff and blackmail my way through those murky waters and pit them against each other. The bio corp wouldn't want its involvement in the sabotage to be exposed. And the tech corp would jump at the opportunity to hit its rival with the evidence of unfair play."

"We don't have any though," his sister pursed her lips.

"There should be a trail between Ripley and Neptune. If Marlin can't hack into their communication channels, we raid their base again. Plus, we don't need legit proof to play the game. And after all they did to you, Coral, I'm going to play mercilessly," a fiery ambition gleamed in his eyes. "We'll bleed them dry — enough for a new arm for Koi. How about an ID chip for you, Marlin? You've cut yours out, right?"

"Useless baggage. Don't need it," the boy stared grimly at the empty plate. "No seconds?"

"Right away!" Ray stood up with a cheerful laugh. "We need to celebrate our happy reunion and future adventures properly."

And no matter how unpredictable those new adventures might turn out to be, Ray was certain: having this crew by his side, he'll be fine even without a plan.