Mermaid Reef

At four o'clock in the afternoon, the sky was as dark as night.

The sulfur smell in the air is fading.

The strange sound that had been coming from the cracks in the ground also disappeared.

People can't tell whether this is the quiet before the disaster begins, or the disaster is over.

"Maybe this volcano...doesn't have an eruption date yet," Dr. Abel stammered.

Then he really thought of a reasonable scientific explanation, and he became confident again.

"Yes, before the volcano erupts completely, there will be some abnormalities. The pressure of the formation will find some weak openings, and then there will be cracks, fumaroles and other things. This process will last for about three days to a week, I think Saw it in a scientific journal."

These scientific journals are interesting, John thought, but can they be delivered to such a remote post office as Black Lagoon in Iceland after subscribing?

But this is not the time to discuss science, John pressed, "Is this the only way out of Black Lagoon?"

Dr. Abel's confidence disappeared in an instant, and he said with a pale face, "This is a cape, surrounded by sea on three sides, and this is the only way to go except by sea."

John thought for a while, found a relatively large stone, and threw it directly into the deep ditch in front of him.

"and many more!"

Doctor Abel was so frightened that he stretched out his hand to stop him, but was only a step slower.

His expression was frightened, as if he was worried that John would wake up the monster sleeping underground.

"There is a buffer." John reminded that when the deep ditch was formed just now, the nearby mountains collapsed, and the mudslide rushed into the deep ditch with the shorter trees.

These muds should be very viscous, and they will flow in the mud with stones.

At this time, there was a dull sound from the deep ditch below.

John grabbed the branch, drew a few strokes on the mud, wiped it off with the sole of his shoe, and said with a sigh: "The depth is at least 46 feet. If it is very risky to build a bridge now, this ditch may become wider and deeper. We can only do it." See you tomorrow."

Dr. Abel said angrily: "You are too reckless. The force of the falling stone may destroy the fragile balance and cause magma to erupt."

"You just said that there is no other way." John reminded, "We are trapped here."

Does it matter when a volcano erupts?I can't run anyway.

Moreover, this is not a crater, and the eruption is not high enough, so it may relieve the formation pressure.

Dr. Abel insisted: "There must be a way. If it doesn't work, let's build a hot air balloon."

John: "..."

It was he who underestimated the doctor.

Hot air balloons are indeed a good way, but the production requires technology and time, and the number of people on board is limited.

Just as John was about to raise this point, he suddenly saw indistinct tree shadows and standing people in the distance.

Jason.

This guy didn't go away!

Reason told John not to get close to this dangerous person.

But the puzzle is right in front of you, like delicious food under the nose of a homeless man—it's really hard to pretend you didn't see it.

Pastor Conor, Jason, the ghost ship... What is the connection here?

Why did Jason show up to rescue those townspeople who were confused by the singing, and then disappear in the chaos? Didn't Jason know that his clothes standing here are as conspicuous as pearls mixed into stones?

Before John could come up with an answer, Dr. Abel had already moved over there.

"Hello, sir, I'm Abel, the doctor in the town. Are you from outside?"

Good question!

The bridges and roads have been washed away by the flood for several days. If Jason is an outsider, how did he get here?

John crept closer, intending to eavesdrop on their conversation.

Jensen reached out and raised the brim of his hat, then lowered his head slightly (Dr. Abel was too short compared to him), and said in a calm voice, "I came here by boat a few days ago."

"Really?" Doctor Abel showed doubts, and he asked tentatively, "It must be a very big and nice boat!"

"No, it's a very, very old ship."

Jason answered calmly, but John broke out in a cold sweat.

If Jansen was referring to the ghost ship, it was indeed old, like a Spanish ship from 200 years ago.

"Ah, let me just say! If there is such a boat docking, how could I not have heard of it!" Dr. Abel still did not give up the temptation, "It's hard to imagine that a gentleman like your Excellency would take a dilapidated fishing boat. It smells bad."

"Only small fishing boats can dock near Black Lagoon, can't they?" Jason asked.

He raised his eyebrows slightly, and when his face, which was like a quartz sculpture, turned his head sideways, there was a kind of crystal clear coldness.

John finally realizes the biggest problem with Jason.

—he doesn't look like a living person!

Pale complexion, no matter the tone of speech or eyes, there is no warmth.

Especially now that the temperature has dropped sharply, when Dr. Abel speaks, there will be heat, that is, a wisp of white mist, but Jason does not!

John couldn't help wrapping his arms, he was even colder.

Over there, Dr. Abel hadn't noticed the problem yet, so he continued to ask, "Did you come to Black Lagoon—"

"Visit Reverend Conor."

"what?"

The doctor wondered why it was Reverend Conor again.

First a detective, and then a man who seems to have a lot of status.

Could this have something to do with the pastor's past?

Because Dr. Abel didn't believe in ghost ships and demons invading the church, he didn't expect that Jason had "seen" the old pastor. Dr. Abel regretted that Pastor Conor was old and suddenly If you get sick, you may not be able to receive guests.

John: "..."

The old pastor broke free from his restraints and ran off to nowhere.

Whether he is still alive or not is hard to say.

Dr. Abel must have thought that Jensen was a titled nobleman or a powerful businessman when he struck up a conversation so actively. Seeing that such a person was also trapped in Black Lagoon Town, it was like seeing a life-saving straw, thinking that the other party There will be servants to meet them, and there may be a way to leave Black Lagoon.

Good idea, wrong object.

That ghost ship can't be used as a means of escape.

John gritted his teeth and covered his head, no, he couldn't recall that ship at all, otherwise his head would hurt like it would split open.

"...There is no hotel in Black Lagoon Town, are you staying at the mayor's house these days?" Dr. Abel was still asking persistently.

"No."

This time Jason only gave one word, stopped talking, and walked towards John.

John's scalp was numb, and he subconsciously wanted to avoid it, but he knew in his head that if the mysterious and unknown guy in front of him wanted to find someone, it was useless to run.

Jason raised the brim of his hat as a courtesy, and then he read John's name written on the suitcase of the Zephyr without any mistakes:

"We met, John Doe."

"what?"

When Dr. Abel heard John's full name for the first time, he looked as if he had misheard something.

Jason looked at him sharply.

The doctor felt cold all over and shivered involuntarily, then his eyes fell on Jason's clothes, and found that the rain did not leave any traces.

"As I said, just call me John, Dr. Johnson." John smirked, deliberately emphasizing the pronunciation of his name.

Dr. Abel was wondering why the fabric was so waterproof, and when he heard what John said, he raised his head subconsciously and said pleasantly, "So you are also a doctor... Ah!"

The surprise expression suddenly froze, and Abel remembered where he had heard the name "Jason".

Names may be repeated, but a Jason visiting Reverend Conor... this...

Doctor Abel's exclamation caught the attention of the people next to him.

The tavern owner asked suspiciously: "What's wrong with you? You have been saying strange things since just now, and Dr. Abel ran to the woods and talked to a pine tree?"

John's pupils shrank, he stared at the expressionless Jason, and then at the tavern owner beside him.

— Can't the others see Jason?

wrong!When Jensen saved the townspeople before, he urged everyone to leave as soon as possible. Police officer Arson asked who Jensen was.

John immediately looked for Officer Arson in the crowd.

Dr. Abel was completely frightened. He stretched out his trembling hand and pointed at Jason.

"what happened?"

Officer Arson strode over, and he really ignored Jason's existence.

Jason was clearly standing there, and Officer Arson walked around him, but he had an expression on his face that he thought he was walking in a straight line.

Doctor Abel looked terrified.

"Officer, we saw a stranger," John said dryly.

"You are the only stranger here!"

Police Officer Arson was very upset. The disaster happened so suddenly. Although no one died, everyone was trapped here. Some people have proposed to return to the town, but the mayor disagreed. Some people insisted that Poseidon woke up.

They were all arguing, and suddenly there was a scream from Dr. Abel, which startled everyone, almost thinking that some monster had appeared.

The tavern owner came over to smooth things over: "The doctor may be over-stressed, everyone is exhausted, and the rain is getting heavier, so let's come up with an idea!"

Inspector Arson gave John a savage look.

John asked unwillingly: "When the singing sounded just now, someone rescued everyone. Can Officer Arson really not remember?"

The police officer frowned, then seemed troubled, and quickly returned to his indifferent expression: "Okay, I know that you and old Jack saved everyone, so don't remind me again."

Officer Arson left after speaking, leaving behind the shivering doctor and John, who was feeling cold all over.

— Jason is here, but the others can't see him and forget him.

John turned his neck stiffly, looking at the mysterious visitor who stood there silently.

Dr. Abel suddenly muttered to himself: "... being able to see unusual things is a kind of talent. Not everyone has the talent, but everyone has the opportunity to peek into the secrets of this world. When you come into contact with the mystery, Mystery will open the door to you."

"Doctor, what are you talking about?" Old Jack, the tavern owner, was very confused as he carried a bag of cabbages.

"It's Pastor Conor's note, he wrote it in it." Doctor Abel's eyes were dull.

John suddenly woke up, right!He encounters a ghost ship at sea, and Dr. Abel sees hoarfrost in the church, and contacts Pastor Conor, so they can always see Jason?

When running for their lives just now, the townspeople heard a beautiful singing voice, which was also problematic, so they saw Jason briefly and heard his voice.Once out of the influence of singing, will it be forgotten?

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The author has something to say:

The more exposure, the greater the impact

When it reaches a certain level, the memory cannot be erased.

Welcome to the world of unscientific

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PS, in the Cthulhu novel, there is a painter who has a high fever and babbled for a week, and then woke up with nothing to do, and he didn’t remember what he said.

Considering that if the timeline enters the Internet age, it will be quite difficult to completely conceal the mysterious events, so it is better to give passers-by who do not have deep contact a way to survive [Hello] amnesia

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small theater

Jason stood on the side of the road as usual, thinking that the cautious detective would not initiate the conversation

Suddenly Dr. Abel came over and asked a series of questions

Jason: ...

Jason doesn't even want to talk to you anymore, if you ask again, you really won't be able to return to the world of science, doctor