Desharow MermanChapter 64

Translator: Jade
Editor: Cheonsa, rad_pigeon

[Arc 4: Conspiracy in Venice]
Chapter 64

Story translated by Chrysanthemum Garden.

[Page 1, 28th November 1990] 7 iWem

Today marked the 16th day that the rescue team’s plane I was on had crash landed into the sea, where I was then rescued from the mishap by a maritime salvage crew. Or perhaps… This was the 17th day. Unfortunately, I am still unable to say for certain how long I had been unconscious for. I could only use the descriptions from the doctor who had attended to me to keep record. Kolov said that everyone on the rescue team’s plane had perished, and only I alone had miraculously lived. 

I was very lucky to have only suffered only a few fractures on both of my legs, along with a mild concussion. Plus, there was no damage to my spine. The doctor told me that within half a year, I should be able to regain my ability to walk again as well as my missing memories. For now, I still cannot recall how I had landed into this predicament, which was starting to make me feel extremely frustrated. 

May God bless me to a road of smooth recovery. 

……

[Page 157, 6th May 1991.]

Should I be glad that I can finally remember everything that I had experienced? 

When I followed the ‘Poseidon’ back to Merfolk Island’s coastal sea to look for a missing Lafarre and the others, along with… Agares, I had come back empty handed. Apparently, Merfolk Island and the Nazis’ fleet had disappeared without a trace, and when I went on an underwater diving expedition, in the end, I found nothing left. I felt that, perhaps, it was because the passage to Alantis was closed forever now…  DrjIQZ

In the sea, I shouted loudly for Agares, Lafarre, and the others, but I only got silence as an answer. 

Thus, the ‘Poseidon’ and I left from there.

[Page 158, 18th May 1991.] 1bad4N

After pleading with Captain Kolov repeatedly, the ‘Poseidon’ finally sailed to the coast of Norway, where my grandfather had previously shipwrecked at. I was filled with anticipation for Agares to appear, going as far as to pretend to drown in the icy cold waters. Yet there wasn’t a trace of his presence. I also didn’t know why I was attempting such feats as this. I originally wanted to escape from Agares, but now, I was taking so much effort to find him… It really is ridiculous isn’t it? Damn it. Let’s just finish writing this down. 

[Page 160, 20th May 1991]

We went to salvage a sunken ship, and, because we didn’t get any of the ‘valuable things’ that I promised would have been there, Captain Kolov became extremely angry, thinking that I had deceived him (though I actually did). He ordered that the next place we set off to would be the Arctic Ocean, so that we could salvage some fragments of a UFO that had fallen about there three weeks prior.  ZQXc9M

However, I was extremely joyous when we salvaged a suitcase in the same area before we left. Oh my god, I couldn’t even dare to believe what was kept inside of it! 

Stored inside were things that had belonged to me and grandfather when I was younger. There was even a picture that had become blurred from age. Unexpectedly, that photograph had Agares and I in it together, and he seemed to be carrying me while smiling a little sinisterly. When the others saw the photo, they thought it was a picture of a monster, but I, on the other hand, nearly got a sore nose looking at it. 

Chrysanthemum Garden.

We left Norway in the evening. 

We’re sorry for MTLers or people who like using reading mode, but our translations keep getting stolen by aggregators so we’re going to bring back the copy protection. If you need to MTL please retype the gibberish parts.

  MYQbex

……

[Page 201, 1st January 1992]

I still couldn’t believe that we spent nearly half a year in the North Pole. However, with the ‘Poseidon’ still persevering, it allowed all of us to gain a huge fortune. Really, we couldn’t believe that we were able to find such a large quantity of precious gemstones from the UFO wreckage! Things really couldn’t get any better, because this was overly good news for us ‘sea gypsies’. This meant that we didn’t have to go all over the world to salvage any more shipwrecks for the rest of the year and brace the dangers of the sea. Instead, we could finally have a merry ole time. 

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The Cold War had already ended. I wanted to go back to Russia, but it was a pity that I’d never have the chance to. MCzQaP

I am no longer Desharow, the student of Saint Petersburg, anymore. Rather, I was a mercenary named “Derte” hired for the ‘Poseidon’ now. 

My dearest father and mother, are you guys thinking of me back in Moscow? Are you still able to remember your son who had disappeared entirely? Or the son who had been listed as a criminal by Russia’s military for the crime of spying? 

These ridiculous treasons that I was accused of, all because of Rhine and Sakarol’s relationship with me, were all pushed onto my head. I really wanted to clear my name white. However, I knew as a person with no record nor nationality  who couldn’t account for being a Russian man, wouldn’t even have a chance to speak with the highly vigilant government.   

Mother, father, how about forgetting about me altogether? If there ever came a chance for us to speak again, I would definitely tell you guys about my story.          9Q1g3b

[Page 202, 16th April 1992]

This was now my third time going into the territorial area of Merfolk Island within the past year. The sea was as motionless as before, and empty. So I headed back to the ‘Posiedon’ in disappointment. Naturally I had nowhere else to call home except for this ship now. 

Since the opening of the passage to Atlantis, Agares seemed as though he had completely vanished, like there was an unseen pair of hands that had erased him out of my life. I then became more convinced of the story Captain Kolov had told me. He had said that the nerves in my brain had sustained major injuries resulting in me having memories that didn’t exist; basically all just figments of my imagination.  KYgMVT

Thus, perhaps, Agares didn’t actually exist at all. Maybe he was just someone in a dream who had abruptly burst into my life. Yet I wasn’t clear whether it was a good or a bad dream. 

It’s time to wake up, Derte. 

Chrysanthemum Garden.

This will be the last page of this journal. 

…… jE0KkT

I looked at the endless, vast ocean and spat out the last puff of my cigar, watching as the smoke expanded slowly in the wind, until ultimately, dissipating without a trace. After that, I lifted up my extremely thick journal and flung it into the water. However, it seemed to have stirred a few ripples in my heart. The pain in my chest was distinct as it spread out, yet I laughed. 

After a few days, we stopped at a famous water city—a port within Venice. 

Captain Kolov was going to participate in an auction at an underground gambling house here using the treasure we salvaged from the shipwreck to exchange for U.S dollars. Although such a transaction was greatly profitable, it was actually very dangerous as well. Italy’s Mafia was divided into several family lines, but for the longest time, Kolov had only traded with the Camorra family. J0BMYp

Nevertheless, if someone else’s clan suddenly took an interest in the things in our possession, or if they simply wanted to find a new reason to start a territorial fight, it would bring us an extraordinary amount of trouble. That was why we were extremely cautious. Since Venice’s waterboat business had been monopolized by the Camorra clan for a long time now, it had brought much hate and envy from all the other clans in the past. 

The casino we were going to was called the “Damora”. It was a place hidden down in a very narrow and deep water alley near the prison in Venice, where we had to specifically pass under the "Ponte dei Sospiri" that was specially used to escort prisoners during ancient times. Looking at the map, I couldn’t help but jest that this was the road of no return. In fact, I had a not-so-good feeling about it either, but the others were unconcerned and just bursted out in fits of laughter. 

After getting out of the harbour, we were guided by a person who had a connection with Captain Kolov. Then we rode on a ‘Gondola’ (one of Venice’s pointed boats), the only form of transportation here, and slowly drifted towards our destination. 

Within the alley way, the water flow was divided into two long waves following the trajectory of the boat. The water’s surface swept up the reflection of the mottled lights belonging to the pubs on both our sides, like a river full of stars trickling away under our feets. Accompanying the illusionary stars was the occasional clamour of prostitutes who were enticing their customers with soft voices, making people feel dazzled. 57tV2q

I looked down at the crystal clear, gleaming waters, suddenly recalling a memory of the deep ravine I encountered when passing through Merfolk Island. Being absentminded, my eyes followed along the moving current, as though they were being attracted by an invisible magnetic force, and had drifted to look behind my back.  

—There stood an extremely familiar figure at the other far end; it was below the intertwined lights, looking right at me from afar. 

My heart trembled as I squinted my eyes, but the figure had already vanished inside the stream of people. The lights flickered like they were ridiculing my absurd illusion. Yeah, how could Agares even appear here in the first place? 

“Hey, Derte! What are you daydreaming about?” Beside me, Nick patted my shoulders, pulling me out of my daze and back to reality. Nick was a tall Caucassin man, and, like me, he was also a fugitive. Although, his offence was way lighter than mine. On the ‘Poseidon’, there wasn’t a single person who didn’t commit a crime; we were all homeless wanderers. Captain Kolov offered us shelter, and in return, we all worked for him.    Vo06Lc

Nick handed me a small pistol, “Take this. Later, the two of us will be on outside watch. You better not be running around.” 

“Understood, don’t you worry.” I took the pistol and slid it into my back pocket. I laughed a little as I vigilantly looked around through my sunglasses.

To prevent the international police from recognizing my appearance, I dyed my hair golden brown, darkened my skin tone, and even wore height-enhancing insoles all year round to make myself seem taller. It gave off the image of one who should not be trifled with, so of course, it’d be harder to recognize me. 

Soon after, the ‘gondola’ stopped in the deep end of the water lane which had a tunnel guarded by a metal gate in front.  bpA7gc

Then, there was a faint and gentle sound of flowing waves being carried out through the opening gate from inside the tunnel, stirring up layers of echoes. The blurred, ever-changing lights brought outlines of moving figures, making the walls full of casted shadows. This gave the entire place the illusion of Venice during medieval times, where aristocats had lived an extravagant life within this ancient city of literature and art. 

Though I couldn’t be more knowledgeable about the inside of this place, I knew it was full of heroin and marijuana as well as maritime traffickers. Therefore, I definitely never wanted to be too involved. So when Kolov wanted me to take it a step and further assist his underground business, I tactfully found a reason to decline.

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After Kolov’s associate showed their pass, the metal gate started to open up slowly. Then another boat that was dedicated to bringing people into the casino brought Kolov and a few of our comrades in. Nick and I stayed outside to act as a guard for them, to prevent the city guards and the residential mafia bosses in Venice from making an appearance. 

When insiders came in contact with us, I noticed a bald-headed guy among them staring at me with a peculiar expression, like he was sizing up goods.  PAW7r2

My nerves jumped, but soon after I realised that he was also just checking out Nick. Kolov took a glance back at us, then nodded his head and made an OK signal with his hands before explaining to the bald-headed guy that we were his lookout men. The other party realised this and nodded his head. 

Only after that did my heart calm down a little, and I heaved a deep sigh. 

After being listed as a wanted criminal, I became very vigilant towards my surroundings. With everything that happened previously, it made it hard for me to trust anyone that I encountered. I was afraid that I would meet people who were just like Rhine and Sakarol; those who would easily betray me again. Even if I met fugitives like Kolov and the others, I wouldn’t be able to devote myself to them. I swore that if anything went amiss, I would disappear without hesitation, and I would change my name and identity. 

Although, during this year, I had already considered the ‘Posiedon’ as my home.  KU6mx2

But could I still have a home? Once a person starts being on the run, they’ll be running forever, otherwise, what else would be waiting for them but prison? Home was just an unattainable dream. Or maybe, one day in the future, when the order for my arrest dies off… 

I wished for that day. I looked up at the night sky. 

This was going to be one extremely long night. 

When I squatted down on a stone step on the side of the casino tunnel, Nick handed me a can of beer, and I downed a symbolic gulp. Taking out an English dictionary from my pocket, I browsed through it and muttered out words as I read.  jSTtsh

Nick chuckled as he sat beside me, patting my shoulder. I knew that I seemed hilarious: on this romantic night in Venice, I didn’t wish to go try and mingle with those prostitutes by the side of the pub. Instead, I was sitting here practicing my English. What a waste of this beautiful scenery. 

However, I didn’t acknowledge Nick and simply continued to look at the closely packed words. After all, this was the best way of protecting myself. I had to wash away my Russian accent and be proficient in English. Plus, the faster the better, because I didn’t know if there would be a day when the international police would fall from the sky and land right in front of me. 

“Hey, hey, brother. Stop drowning the mood!” Nick snatched away my English book and struck a pose of throwing the book into the water.

“Oy!” I swiftly grabbed his wrist and began dragging him into the water in a threatening way, which attracted the laughter of a few prostitutes nearby. We wrestled as we pushed and pulled. At last, I gave up on revising my English, ending this silly fight. After, there were just two people laying on the stone steps. They bumped their beer cans together and idly chatted away.  EYeUkw

“How’s it going, Derte? Are you still thinking about finding that Mermaid from your dreams?” Nick said jokingly as he took a gulp of beer and squinted at me. Most likely, he had listened to the rubbish spouted by Dr. Dika, the doctor who took care of me before. Now, he was probably thinking that my head had a problem and was daydreaming all day long. 

“Yeah yeah. Aren’t I, as of right now, planning to earn more money? Then, I’ll buy a boat for myself to travel the world and search.” I exasperatedly swayed my beer can here and there, too lazy to bother arguing with him. I said half-heartedly that the Mermaid wasn’t even that pretty, and that if it appeared in front of you, you’d more likely just be scared to death. 

I gloomily took a few swigs of my beer and picked up a few stones to use as skipping stones to kill my boredom. The stones made a few ripples as they skidded across the water’s surface, but subsequently, my nerves started to stutter and a peculiar feeling began to spread in my heart. I couldn’t tell if it was a good or bad feeling. Yet it gave me an indescribable urge to stand up and look around in curiosity. 

I don’t know when the sky started to rain.  fbVzSY

Pitter patter… 

The rain came down so suddenly and rapidly, enveloping the surroundings in a layer of misty droplets. Even the lights became blurred and hazy. 

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“Derte, what’s wrong? Did you see something?” Nick felt for his pistol in his back pocket. Mirroring me, we squatted down to conceal ourselves behind the stone pillar nearby. I relied on my superior night vision and looked around vigilantly in the darkness, attempting to find the source of my uneasiness.

In the next split second, in a corner on both sides of the water alley, I saw a couple of suspicious looking figures. I cautiously squinted my eyes to observe them. Supposedly, those people were wearing black clothing. Though I didn’t know if it was a few undercover police or a mafia group. However, the latter seemed to have a higher chance. The police in Venice weren’t that susceptible to the activities happening in the casinos, unlike the Italian mafia. Especially since we had disrupted their order.  v2VDjP

However, the difference was that, if the police found us, they would arrest us and investigate; whereas the mafia would directly kill us and then dump us into the sea to feed the sharks.   

In a low voice, I mumbled, “Nick, let Kolov know that our whereabouts are revealed, they have to quickly end the auction.” 

“I know.” Nick pressed his pager, “Hey, hey! Calling for boss. I think we have to withdraw early. Derte says we’re being watched. Over.” 

I looked over at those shadows as the rain got heavier and heavier. Then I raised my gun, following each and every one of their movements. Yet my gaze quickly wandered around rapidly. Suddenly, my eyes froze.  cCKy37

Within the curtain of rain, on the Ponte dei Sospiri far away, stood a black figure holding up a black umbrella. He was wearing a black windbreaker and a sliver Venice mask. His figure was tall and straight, and the hair that was tied behind his head was grayish-silver.  

No this was impossible… Impossible. 

In an instant, it felt like a hand had clenched over my airway, knocking the air out of me. My heart pulsed like it was jumping madly as I felt my entire world spin. I was aware that it was probably a figment of my imagination, or perhaps, it was just a guy who dyed his hair sliver. However, my body reacted even faster than my brain could process, and the second my leg was lifted, I began sprinting towards the direction of the bridge. 

Yet after I traveled past a few pubs and arrived at the bridge, the figure that was there earlier had already disappeared without a trace. It happened just like when I was standing on the small boat and was looking behind my back with an expecting gaze. But it was just like another untouchable wind that I could not grasp. Z0cIgX

Just where are you… Are you really here? Agares… 

I stood at the bridgehead feeling at loss. My eyes were wide open, looking for that shadow in Venice’s mottled lights. I let the thunderstorm pour down on my face, on my body, and let it seep into my clothing. Feeling out of breath, I leaned against the bridge’s stone pillar for support and looked out into the water’s surface that was being ruined by the rain. On that broken surface drifted the reflection of my shadow looking as if being smashed to pieces by a cluster of fireworks going up in the sky. 

The alcohol that was poured down my stomach began to burn my nerves. My head was aflame, making me suspect that I was actually drunk and was hallucinating. At that moment, I felt like crying, but instead, only laughter came out. Simply finding that my behaviour was comical, like a mad drunkard, I shouted loudly in the rain and smashed my fist into the hard concrete. Then I held my head and weakly squatted down. 

Reality seemed really far from me as the remaining precipitation dripped down. I was aware that I was completely alone, like a lone spore in the entire universe. A drop of ice-cold water dropped on my neck, making me think that it was the seawater dripping from Agares’s hair. I imagined those pair of narrow, deep eyes watching me attentively, with his webbed hands gently and possessively placed on my back. All the while, his lips kissing my earlobes. Once I wiped away the rain off my face and embarrassingly looked up, I realised that no one was actually beside me.  0tL ln

Then, the sound of a boat treading through the water came from elsewhere. My head followed after the sound, and, in the distance, I could see a ‘gondola’ turning to steadily go into a water alley on the right. Before they disappeared, the back of the silver-haired man’s back was engraved into my eyes, overlapping with the memory of the longing figure in my head.

This time, I was certain that it wasn’t just my imagination. Due to this incredible disbelief, my body shuddered hard: from the soles of my feet to the depths of my nerves and out of impulse, I stood up.

“Desharow!” Nick yelled from behind me. “What are you doing? Quickly get down from the bridge!” 

I glanced back at him and said nothing. Then I jumped into the water to pursue after the boat.  5tMIoH

TBC

Cheonsa: I know that sometimes with the heavy descriptions, people could get confused. So if there’s any questions, feel free to comment. I will gladly clarify or answer to the best of my ability. Thank you for reading!　

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