Shrouded Seascape

The crew of the Narwhale had already gathered at the cemetery on Hope Island. All of them were dressed in somber dark clothes as they stood quietly before the open grave. A coffin lay within; another comrade had left them.

The coffin belonged to Tobba, though his body wasn't in there. His remains, alongside SITE 2, had been swallowed by the inky black sea.

Inside the coffin was a set of Tobba's old clothes and an assortment of odd trinkets—that seemed like trash to everyone else—he had collected.

A faint sound caught Dipp's attention. He turned toward the entrance and called out, "Captain, you're here!"

The other crew members turned their heads toward the entrance. Charles, dressed completely in black and supported by Anna, slowly approached them.

Charles' gaze swept over each familiar face before settling on the expressionless face of his first mate.

"Let me preside over the ceremony," Charles said.

Bandages, also dressed in black, nodded in silence before handing the prayer scroll in his hands to Charles.

Charles gently pushed Anna's hand away and limped toward the coffin.

He positioned himself at the head of the grave and was just about to speak when a sharp, furious, female voice interrupted.

"Scram! You're the one who got 177 killed! You have no right to preside over his funeral!"

The voice belonged to 134. Tears were streaming down her young face as she entered the cemetery while clutching a small stone box to her chest. Following behind her was the portly "King" in a wheelchair and the green centipede with a long tail.

Charles didn't want to cause a scene, not here, not now. Holding the prayer scroll between two fingers, he sent it twirling through the air toward 134.

The next moment, "King's" skin cracked open and a deformed insect burst forth and leaped onto the prayer scroll in the air, tearing it into shreds. Bits of paper fluttered down like broken leaves in the wind.

"This is Tobba's funeral," Charles said in a low voice. "If you want to throw a tantrum, pick a more appropriate time and place!"

Even though Charles hadn't raised his volume, 134 didn't dare to not listen and heed his words. Charles was no longer the same Charles who had infiltrated Sottom to steal maps a couple of years ago. Now, their roles had long been reversed with Charles wielding more strength than her.

134's lips parted, but eventually, she closed them again without saying a word. She silently walked toward the coffin, stood on tiptoes, and placed the stone box gently atop the coffin.

She then opened the box and placed a hand in to press a button. The item within emitted a green glow—it was an old tablet that belonged to the previous generation of the Foundation.

134 tapped a few more times on the surface and to Charles’ surprise, an all-too-familiar face appeared on the screen.

"Hey, folks! How's everyone doing? It's been several days now. Do you miss me already?" A younger version of Tobba appeared on the screen. His wild, brown curls bounced as he animatedly waved at the screen and made silly faces.

"Come on, Lil' Mithila, don't cry! Everyone, show me your smiles!"

Astonished, Lily flew toward the screen, wanting to check if it was actually Tobba. But just as she neared, Tobba pulled out a terrifying mask in a swift motion and plastered it on his face.

Lily screeched and retreated in terror as Tobba's laughter echoed from the tablet. He pulled his mask off and waved his hands wildly in delight that his prank had succeeded.

Charles stepped forward. A tentacle reached out to pick up the squarish tablet and pulled it closer toward himself. His gaze lingered on Tobba's face as he hesitantly asked, "This is…"

"I told you previously, didn't I? I want to preside over my own funeral! Eh! Come on, what kind of wedding—or rather, funeral—doesn't have music? Go find some lively and cheerful music for me! I don't want anything else! Get Red Romance from the dockside bar!"

"Which year are you in?" Charles asked. Judging from Tobba's young and vibrant appearance, he guessed that this recording had been prepared a long time ago.

"Don't rush me. Hold on, let me show you something cool!" Tobba said with a cheeky grin.

The camera jostled as Tuba quickened his pace. He then pointed the camera at the back of a man smoking and playfully tapped him on the shoulder.

"Weister! Come say hi to my friends!"

Weister turned around and the moment he recognized Tobba, fear clouded his face.

"Command center! 177 has broken containment again!" Weister shouted into his walkie-talkie.

Tobba looked into the camera and let out a peal of loud and carefree laughter before the captured scene started shaking violently. Tobba seemed to be running from the Foundation's containment.

Charles' eyes widened upon seeing the man. He was certain that it was Weister, a younger version of his first mate who got lost in time and space. After all, the recording that Tobba was taking was from the early days of the first generation Foundation which existed a thousand years before. 𝗳𝚛𝚎𝚎𝘄𝕖𝕓𝕟𝕠𝚟𝚎𝕝.𝗰𝕠𝐦

As the camera finally steadied, Charles was about to ask more questions when a breathless Tobba interrupted. "Hurry! Go now!"

"Huh? Where? And for?" Charles' brows knitted together as a tense expression painted his countenance.

Clap! Clap! Clap!

The camera jolted again as Tobba enthusiastically clapped his hands.

"Captain, do you have dementia? Did you forget what I just told you earlier? Go get Red Romance here!"

Charles was speechless. But as per the deceased's own request for his funeral, Charles eventually agreed to Tobba's series of demands.

Soon, a plush red carpet was laid out on the obsidian floor of the cemetery. Tables were brought in and piled high with food, wine, and cigarettes that anyone could take at their discretion.

Charles grabbed a bottle of wine and took a heart swig as he glanced over to look at the so-called Red Romance.

Red Romance was a group that comprised four voluptuous women. Scantily clad, they stood atop Tobba's coffin as they sang risque tunes with sexually explicit lyrics while swaying their bodies seductively to the beat.

Charles wasn't shocked in the slightest. After all, he had spent plenty of time in the dockside bars during his earlier days in the Subterranean Sea. Singers there were usually this brazen. In fact, there would even be those who were willing to pay extra for "private concerts" after they were done with their performance slot.

Tobba's demands had dramatically shifted the once somber and serious mood of the funeral to becoming downright festive. The grief in everyone was almost completely washed away and by the end, the atmosphere seemed to have grown a little too lively for a funeral.

"Oh yeah, Kasha! Shake those hips a little more! Yeah! That's it! That's what I'm talking about!" Tobba's face on the screen was flushed with excitement as he danced along with Red Romance.

"Honestly, this isn't too bad," Dipp remarked as he sidled up to Charles with a square glass of whiskey in his hand. "If I die, I want to do this for my funeral too."

Charles raised the bottle in his hand and filled Dipp's glass to the brim. "Deep Dwellers are immortal. I'm afraid that day will never come."

Dipp shrugged. "It's okay; I have it all thought out. Once my wife dies, I will just kill myself too. No way am I sticking around like the first mate." Clearly, Dipp was rather calm about death, even if he was talking about his own.

Charles clinked his bottle against the rim of Dipp's glass before turning to look at Tobba on the screen. Tobba was still partying and in high spirits.

"Sure. When that time comes, pick a spot here too. The more, the merrier," Charles remarked.

Just then, Tobba's voice boomed from the tablet once more. However, he wasn't talking to Charles; his instructions were directed at the live band.

"Louder! I need louder music! Give me the wildest music ever!"

The conductor instinctively glanced toward Charles as a gesture of seeking approval. Upon seeing Charles nod slightly, he immediately signaled his fellow musicians before he took a deep breath. Then, he pressed his trumpet to his lips, and a high-energy, fast-paced tune exploded into the air and reverberated through the cemetery.

Cosyjuhye's Thoughts

Tobba??