William Stevens III's Journal
February 23, 2010
"Daddy," I was saying to my father the other day, "you know, I've been going diving lately. It's been fun, but I just can't get anyone to show me what I want to see." (What I want to see is a shark, like Steve saw. I want to tame one just like Steve did. But I'm not telling Daddy that, because the old man's blood pressure is high enough already.)
"Hmm," he said, reclining a bit in the big chair in his study. "I think I know just the man you need to talk to. Friend of your mother's."
And that's how I met Marco.
Daddy had this map he got had his hands on from an old drinking buddy of his, one that he said would really wow me with the sights I'd see. I showed it to Marco; he stared out on the horizon for a few as if to gather his thoughts, slung a mammoth bag over his shoulder, and grinned. "Let's go."
We flew south, headed for some wrecks in Australia. Marco mentioned something about lots of shark sightings in the area, which I had to grin about... just what I was looking for. I must have been grinning a little too widely, because I caught Marco giving me a really long look. I blinked a few times in response and he looked away again.
As the flight wore on, I peeked out the window. That's not right... icebergs? Was Al Gore right? Oh dear. Well, it turned out to not be so much global catastrophe as just a little misdirection... to Antarctica. I had a few choice words with our pilot, but Marco said, hey, we're here, we're equipped, let's check it out anyway. Well, equipped in the loosest sense of the word, in any event.
I'm still not really sure how he managed to avoid freezing to death, even with the insulating gel I found in my bags. He must be made of some hardy stuff. We went down and I started looking around. It was really kind of amazing how thinly populated the waters actually were compared to the atoll. Lots of seals, in any event.
The icebergs were huge. I wanted to see just how deep they went. What made Marco's eyes light up were the presence of a few little caves in the side. Not quite sure how things like that are even formed, but we did spent some time checking them out. One thing about Marco: he loves to find treasure. Now I know what that bag he had was about; he hauled a lot back with him. As for me, I was content just to check out the scenery, and try to stay as warm as possible.
We did spend some time up atop the 'bergs as well. Lots of penguins waddling around. This was where I truly started to appreciate Marco's bag; not only did it have plenty of space for whatever huge treasure he unearthed, but he had a near-limitless supply of fish to feed the penguins with as well.
Our air—and, likely, body temps—were running low, so we decided to head back up again. Here, I did see one thing that made me gasp a little: a killer whale! Sure, I'd seen Shamu at Sea World, but here was one up close and personal right before my eyes. Pretty sweet!
So, no, it didn't work out quite as well as I'd hoped, but it was a pretty cool (get it?) experience anyway. Maybe I'll get my chance another time to see what I really want.
Marco's Log
February 23, 2010
Mr. Journal! Today was incredible! It finally happened! I got myself a large bag! You know what that means, right? More treasure!
So much happened today I don't even know where to begin... I mean, I got new gear, I went on a few quick dives and gathered some of the treasure I couldn't get before, and when I returned to Nineball Island, there was an all-too-familliar face waiting for me that I hadn't seen in quite some time.
Today, I met William Stevens III. I was a... friend of his mother's, many years ago. A sad memory that was... when she married her husband out of haste due to her pregnancy with young Will, she cut off all contact with me and I haven't heard from her since. It was an interesting turn of events that led him to Nineball Island, but in a way, I'm glad he was around.
We had decided to embark on a new adventure together, as he had the cash and I wanted to explore somewhere new and exciting. We had heard of a series of wrecks in the waters south of Australia, but it was rumored that the area was extremely dangerous due to a large number of sharks that lived in the area.
This fact didn't seem to bother William; if I wasn't crazy I'd say that maybe it made him more eager to begin the voyage. It was perhaps his eagerness that led to the chain of events that landed us very, very far from Australia.
William said he had brought a map from our mutual friend Klaus with the location of this apparently secret stretch of water with the aforementioned shipwrecks, but instead of Australia, we ended up in Antarctica. I mean, I guess I can see how you'd get those two mixed up, they both start and end with the letter A...
It was too late in the day to head back, and we both decided it would be beneficial to at least explore the areas around us. Will's eagerness to just dive in the water reminded myself how I acted when I was his age, a trait not too many other divers share around these parts.
Now, before we go any further, I have to admit that I came a little under-prepared for cold water diving. Since I thought we were going to Australia, I only ended up packing my army trunks and my scuba gear. It was supposed to be a day trip and I wanted to pack as lightly as possible so I could bring back any treasure I found without having to leave it in the hands of international baggage handlers; 20/20 hindsight, I guess.
Luckily Will had some of his cold-water gel with him, so I was able to at least endure the frigid temperatures as we explored the icebergs that loomed all around us.
As we went deeper underwater, we found a mysterious opening within one of the larger icebergs... Being an avid treasure hunter, I decided to bring out the multisensor just to see if there was even the slightest chance of any form of treasure being in this mysterious cave.
Imagine my surprise, Mr. Journal, when I found a large crate hidden just beyond the entrance to the ice cave! I later found out it was an ancient crate of silver ingots... Some pirates must have hidden it there hoping no one would find it, but didn't realize back then that icebergs tend to move with the currents. I wonder how long it had been there?
As we ventured deeper into the ice-cave, we couldn't believe our eyes! An entire pocket was carved out of the interior of this iceberg, with its own little ecosystem of fish and other marine life. I'm really glad I picked up that bigger bag today, Mr. Journal, because I found another crate of treasure! This time, it was filled with gold doubloons! Those silly pirates!
All in all, it was a pretty fantastic dive; I didn't expect to find anything of significant value, but ended up walking away with a small fortune from the hidden gems in the iceberg. After we explored the ocean, we took to the surface and decided to venture onto the ice floes, where we found every variety of penguin imaginable! It was pretty intense, some of those suckers were huge!
When we finally ended our series of dives, a blizzard had broken out and we knew it was time to get back somewhere warm. If you're reading this, that means I got back safe and sound and I live to dive another day! Night night, Mr. Journal.
February 23, 2010
"Daddy," I was saying to my father the other day, "you know, I've been going diving lately. It's been fun, but I just can't get anyone to show me what I want to see." (What I want to see is a shark, like Steve saw. I want to tame one just like Steve did. But I'm not telling Daddy that, because the old man's blood pressure is high enough already.)
"Hmm," he said, reclining a bit in the big chair in his study. "I think I know just the man you need to talk to. Friend of your mother's."
And that's how I met Marco.
Daddy had this map he got had his hands on from an old drinking buddy of his, one that he said would really wow me with the sights I'd see. I showed it to Marco; he stared out on the horizon for a few as if to gather his thoughts, slung a mammoth bag over his shoulder, and grinned. "Let's go."
We flew south, headed for some wrecks in Australia. Marco mentioned something about lots of shark sightings in the area, which I had to grin about... just what I was looking for. I must have been grinning a little too widely, because I caught Marco giving me a really long look. I blinked a few times in response and he looked away again.
As the flight wore on, I peeked out the window. That's not right... icebergs? Was Al Gore right? Oh dear. Well, it turned out to not be so much global catastrophe as just a little misdirection... to Antarctica. I had a few choice words with our pilot, but Marco said, hey, we're here, we're equipped, let's check it out anyway. Well, equipped in the loosest sense of the word, in any event.
I'm still not really sure how he managed to avoid freezing to death, even with the insulating gel I found in my bags. He must be made of some hardy stuff. We went down and I started looking around. It was really kind of amazing how thinly populated the waters actually were compared to the atoll. Lots of seals, in any event.
The icebergs were huge. I wanted to see just how deep they went. What made Marco's eyes light up were the presence of a few little caves in the side. Not quite sure how things like that are even formed, but we did spent some time checking them out. One thing about Marco: he loves to find treasure. Now I know what that bag he had was about; he hauled a lot back with him. As for me, I was content just to check out the scenery, and try to stay as warm as possible.
We did spend some time up atop the 'bergs as well. Lots of penguins waddling around. This was where I truly started to appreciate Marco's bag; not only did it have plenty of space for whatever huge treasure he unearthed, but he had a near-limitless supply of fish to feed the penguins with as well.
Our air—and, likely, body temps—were running low, so we decided to head back up again. Here, I did see one thing that made me gasp a little: a killer whale! Sure, I'd seen Shamu at Sea World, but here was one up close and personal right before my eyes. Pretty sweet!
So, no, it didn't work out quite as well as I'd hoped, but it was a pretty cool (get it?) experience anyway. Maybe I'll get my chance another time to see what I really want.
Marco's Log
February 23, 2010
Mr. Journal! Today was incredible! It finally happened! I got myself a large bag! You know what that means, right? More treasure!
So much happened today I don't even know where to begin... I mean, I got new gear, I went on a few quick dives and gathered some of the treasure I couldn't get before, and when I returned to Nineball Island, there was an all-too-familliar face waiting for me that I hadn't seen in quite some time.
Today, I met William Stevens III. I was a... friend of his mother's, many years ago. A sad memory that was... when she married her husband out of haste due to her pregnancy with young Will, she cut off all contact with me and I haven't heard from her since. It was an interesting turn of events that led him to Nineball Island, but in a way, I'm glad he was around.
We had decided to embark on a new adventure together, as he had the cash and I wanted to explore somewhere new and exciting. We had heard of a series of wrecks in the waters south of Australia, but it was rumored that the area was extremely dangerous due to a large number of sharks that lived in the area.
This fact didn't seem to bother William; if I wasn't crazy I'd say that maybe it made him more eager to begin the voyage. It was perhaps his eagerness that led to the chain of events that landed us very, very far from Australia.
William said he had brought a map from our mutual friend Klaus with the location of this apparently secret stretch of water with the aforementioned shipwrecks, but instead of Australia, we ended up in Antarctica. I mean, I guess I can see how you'd get those two mixed up, they both start and end with the letter A...
It was too late in the day to head back, and we both decided it would be beneficial to at least explore the areas around us. Will's eagerness to just dive in the water reminded myself how I acted when I was his age, a trait not too many other divers share around these parts.
Now, before we go any further, I have to admit that I came a little under-prepared for cold water diving. Since I thought we were going to Australia, I only ended up packing my army trunks and my scuba gear. It was supposed to be a day trip and I wanted to pack as lightly as possible so I could bring back any treasure I found without having to leave it in the hands of international baggage handlers; 20/20 hindsight, I guess.
Luckily Will had some of his cold-water gel with him, so I was able to at least endure the frigid temperatures as we explored the icebergs that loomed all around us.
As we went deeper underwater, we found a mysterious opening within one of the larger icebergs... Being an avid treasure hunter, I decided to bring out the multisensor just to see if there was even the slightest chance of any form of treasure being in this mysterious cave.
Imagine my surprise, Mr. Journal, when I found a large crate hidden just beyond the entrance to the ice cave! I later found out it was an ancient crate of silver ingots... Some pirates must have hidden it there hoping no one would find it, but didn't realize back then that icebergs tend to move with the currents. I wonder how long it had been there?
As we ventured deeper into the ice-cave, we couldn't believe our eyes! An entire pocket was carved out of the interior of this iceberg, with its own little ecosystem of fish and other marine life. I'm really glad I picked up that bigger bag today, Mr. Journal, because I found another crate of treasure! This time, it was filled with gold doubloons! Those silly pirates!
All in all, it was a pretty fantastic dive; I didn't expect to find anything of significant value, but ended up walking away with a small fortune from the hidden gems in the iceberg. After we explored the ocean, we took to the surface and decided to venture onto the ice floes, where we found every variety of penguin imaginable! It was pretty intense, some of those suckers were huge!
When we finally ended our series of dives, a blizzard had broken out and we knew it was time to get back somewhere warm. If you're reading this, that means I got back safe and sound and I live to dive another day! Night night, Mr. Journal.