66.6 Feet

"There was only one rule: don’t open the door …"

When the NEMO-5 submersible vessel discovered what to all eyes seemed to be a seal on the ocean floor. The scientific world went crazy, as did the religious world. The vessel had been made to withstand the pressure of diving to the bottom of the mariana trench, the lowest point on the planet. The crew were stunned and shocked, hoping to find undiscovered sea life, no one expected to find a large circular seal, covered in markings that no one could translate. Whatever the language, it was older than recorded writing, and felt like a warning.

The pilot of the NEMO-5 moved around the seal, its circumference being 66.6 feet.

‘We should go back, just leave this alone,’ said Grant, the crew’s marine biologist. She was clutching her bible.

‘Never mind your fairy stories, we’ve got a job to do.’

The captain was sternly against leaving before the job was done. He took the vessel all the way around again.

‘There!’ said Pearce, crew navigator loudly.

They were pointing towards the edge of the great seal, a rounded dial on the side, similar to a tap handle. Using the NEMO-5’s system of extendable arms, the captain took hold of the dial, and turned anti-clockwise. A great hiss and crack as the seal flung open, and water rushed into a dark and empty void …

The cabin darkened, lights flickered. Grant sat down, opened her bible, and began to read, open to Revelation 13.

A terrible shadow rose from the abyss, engulfing the NEMO-5. The pressure became too much, the vessel was slowly crushed into dust.

A sinister and ancient voice echoed around the entire earth, all at once …

‘WHO IS LIKE THE BEAST? WHO CAN WAGE WAR AGAINST IT?’