Something was whipping the ocean around him into a tempest, pummeling him mercilessly with froth and water. He could hear a mechanized voice mumbling in the shadows, just beyond what he could see of the undulating surf. Without warning, heavy objects then fell around him in deep swallows, causing him to bob helplessly in place. But before he could react, hands and arms grasped him from all sides, their owners begging for him to stay still and calm. Preston couldn’t help but stare at his rescuers, frog-men in scuba suits he had never seen before. A floatation device was quickly strapped around him, and he was spirited off into a water craft waiting just beyond the light. He breathed a sigh of relief when he was laid down on the solid floor, bundled in thick blankets and made to breathe into a respirator. In the open, he could feel the sharp sting of the night air upon his face, the only part of his body exposed to the elements. But just as he lost consciousness, he glanced at his rescuers’ vessels hovering above him.
