I’m the best scuba diver in the world, which is saying a lot, because I was
afraid of it when I was a kid, and I come from a family of masters. I’ve
since surpassed all others in skills and experience. I can venture to the
deepest parts of the ocean that are humanly possible to survive. I can use
any kind of tank, and complete any task. Today, I’m about to set the record
for the deepest dive ever, and cement myself as one of the absolute best in
history. I’ve already passed the last record, but I’m not satisfied with
that. I have to get to 600 meters. No one will try that depth after me
without a submarine. I check my watch. I had to have it specially made to
survive these pressures too, and so far, it’s done me well. I’m at 570
meters, and so pleased with myself. No one has ever seen what I’m seeing
right now. Of course, like I said, submarines can descend this far, but they
haven’t, not around here. My cousins are going to be so jealous, I can’t
wait to run it in their faces. None of them thought that I would make it,
and I’ve yet to prove them wrong. It’s not really the deepest dive if I die
down here, is it? Maybe they’ll still count it, and sing songs of my brave
and tragic end. I keep going: 580, 590, and...600 meters! I reached my goal.
If I stay too long, I really will die, though, so I immediately
prepare to ascend. Then something catches my eye. It’s a fish. No, it’s two
fish. Wow, it’s an entire school. There’s something strange about this
species, but I can’t put my finger on it. Oh, yeah, they’re swimming in
pairs.
These fish are exhibiting behavior that I’ve never heard of. I’m no
ichthyologist, but I know what species live around here, and this ain’t one
of them. Every single fish is paired up with another, face to tail. They’re
swimming in circles around each other, or more appropriately, around some
mutual barycenter between them. Since they’re not going straight, the only
reason they go anywhere is because the spin isn’t constant. They nudge
themselves in one direction, like propellers. Why the heck are they doing
that? Is there some sort of evolutionary advantage to spinning? Perhaps it
has more to do with the pairs, and less to do with the way that they swim. I
obviously have to take photographs and video of this phenomenon. If I’ve
discovered a new species, it will only make me more famous, which is kind of
what I’m going for here. I don’t even have to survive. The footage is being
automatically beamed back up to the boat. There’s no way for me to
communicate with them directly, but I can.imagine my mother urging me to
begin the ascension process. It’s going to take an extremely long time, and
the extra tanks they left hanging for me at my stop intervals won’t be
enough if I don’t maintain my schedule, not to mention the risk of getting
bent. I’m about to let it go, and save myself when the fish change
behaviors. They stay in their paired circles, but also begin to circle me.
They’re aware of me, but probably aren’t sure if I’m a predator. I’m amazed
but frightened, but the latter grows faster once they start biting at my
equipment. They tear off the straps, and cut the breathing tubes. Welp, I
guess I really am gonna die. Except I don’t. I suddenly stop feeling the
intense pressure, the freezing cold, and the need to breathe. They’ve
somehow transformed me into one of them, and once I realize what an amazing
gift this is, I all but forget about my past life as a human, and
together...we dive deeper.
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