The Haris Burdick Chronicles - MIssing In Venice

Missing In Venice

Even with her mighty engines in reverse, the ocean liner was pulled further into the canal.

Most of Venice had already left after the third time it had happened, but a few remained. Those who had stayed knew the whole story.

The first time it happened everyone though it was just an engine malfunction or a drunk captain. But then it happened again. And again. That's when everyone realized it wasn't engine problems, something was wrong and that something was pulling ocean liners into the center of Venice. That's when everyone started leaving. Slowly Venice became a ghost city.

Eventually, the news stopped talking about it. I mean you can only carry the same story so many times.

After about 15 ocean liners had been pulled into the center of Venice, Venice was cut off from the rest of the world by an enormous wall, but every once in a while, one would come to close and be pulled through the wall. Because of the danger, whenever this happened no one wanted to go in and fix it, not one country, one city, one place. The wall began to crumble and fall into the depths of Venice's canals. 

But despite all this happening, everyone was afraid to go see what was pulling ships into Venice. It remained a mystery to the outside world. In fact it was even a mystery to to those who had stayed in Venice. They were afraid too, afraid and alone. Because even if they wanted to leave, to get away from Venice's buildings and streets falling into the canals, they could not, because there was no one left brave enough to save them. The whole world was in fear of what lay beneath the waters of Venice. 

Ships never went near Venice anymore, the never strayed from where was 'safe', except for that one ship. It had strayed to far, and now, even with it's engines in reverse it was being pulled further and further into the center of Venice.

It was a might ship and therefore mere buildings could not stop it from being pulled down, instead they were pulled down with it. Some of those buildings with people in them. And as what was left of the people of Venice watched their friends, their neighbors, the people stuck with them in fear of what lay beneath their city, they realized they could no longer live in fear. But it was not only their people dying that made them realize, it was seeing that mighty ship pulled down. Helpless. 

So right then and there, with no weapons, no plan, the people of Venice marched towards the center of their city, and when they got there, they all saw what had pulled all those ships down, but only as they were dragged down into the murky deep.