Beacon of Light in the Dark Sea

“I’m new here, where should I start? Can you recommend a place, including the dental clinic that was mentioned downstairs?”

“The macarons at the 3rd Undersea Base are really delicious,” she said. “If you like sweet things, you’ll enjoy it.”

I nodded absentmindedly, though in truth, I had little interest in macarons or anything else sugary. Although I didn’t get cavities, I didn’t lose weight either. Surprisingly, giving up sweets doesn’t make life unbearable or cause you to want to give up on living. You just end up consuming more bitter things. In my case, that would be coffee.

“Where can I find good coffee?”

“There are two cafes at the 4th Undersea Base, and both have different coffee beans. I personally found ‘Red Coral,’ which uses Arabica beans, to be more delicious.”

Red Coral must be the name of the cafe. It sounds like the kind of place where they might grind up actual coral in their coffee. As long as it tastes like coffee, either way, is fine.

“Thank you. I’ll buy you a cup of coffee later.”

“Also, make sure to visit the beach, the aquarium at the 2nd Undersea Base, and take a ride on the cable car. The beach was created around the island and is quite well-made. It’s even more beautiful at night. The 1st and 2nd Undersea Bases will open for tourists to visit starting early next year. It’s better if you see it before then.”

“Thank you. Do you know where I can board the central elevator?”

◈◈◈

I found myself deep in thought, my eyes fixed on the inscription etched into the elevator’s interior.

[Ecce extendit circum se lumen suum et fundamenta maris texit]

What does this mean? It’s not English. Is it a message about a safe operation? Or maybe it takes more than 20 minutes to descend? Is it Spanish? Latin? Probably Latin.

The latest translation device can translate 36 languages and all documents written in those languages. It consists of a set that includes a device that fits over your teeth, another device installed next to both eardrums and a lens placed over the pupils.

My mother’s old translation device, over 10 years old, required piercing the ear like an earring, had no ability to read text, and could only translate 10 languages in a limited way. It was also old-fashioned and conspicuous due to its reddish color. I didn’t have enough money to buy a new translation device. A single cheap translation device that translates all languages of the world costs as much as a new car.

After paying my sibling’s college tuition, I had no other choice. The old translation devices not only occupied the ears but also required the user to attach them to the lower teeth or lips to have a conversation. Rather than attaching it to my lips, I asked a classmate to embed the old translation device, as small as half of my pinky finger, into my lower teeth. My translation device was too large to install in my eardrum, so I had to wear it like an earring. As I fiddled with the translation device dangling from my ear, I suddenly turned my head at the sound of a voice.

“Behold, he spreads his light upon it, covering the bottom of the sea.”

Fortunately, it seemed like one of the ten languages my translator supported. Seeing that it was translating, I recalled my mother reassuring me not to worry, as the translator would work. I was relieved just by the fact that Priya Kumari’s conversation was perfectly translated, but I couldn’t help feeling tense when meeting a foreigner like this.

It’s Latin.

“·····Is it a phrase from the Bible?”

I asked, guessing since I had no knowledge. I only remembered a few verses that I learned while attending church with my friend to get snacks. Love thy neighbor. Cast the stone. Something like that.

Is it something like God’s divinity spreading even into the depths of the ocean? Wouldn’t that kill all the deep-sea creatures?

“It’s from the Book of Job[1]. His love illuminates even the bottom of the ocean floor, where there is no darkness.”

I wish some of that great love was bestowed upon me….No, if I follow his interpretation, that love has been poured upon me, so that’s why I am here.

Suppressing my disbelief and aversion to religion, I extended my hand to my counterpart first, “I’m Park Muhyun, a dentist who joined the underwater base this time.”

A man with strong bones shook my hand. The Caucasian man in a suit spoke while looking at me, “I’m Michael Loaker, chief of deep-sea engineering. Are you on your way to the dental clinic?”

“Yes, I’m curious about my workplace-.”

I lost my words because the elevator that was on the ground had suddenly plunged into the sea. I was captivated by the view reflected on the transparent walls of the elevator. It was only later that I came to my senses and barely managed to look at Michael’s face, who seemed to understand my behavior.

“Amazing, right? Most people who come here for the first-time act like that.”

“I’m sorry,” I said, my voice still trembling with awe. “I’ve hardly been to an aquarium, so witnessing the ocean in this way is a first for me.”

As the transparent elevator descended, the variety of marine life swelled before my eyes. A canvas of sapphire blue water stretched out in every direction, teeming with schools of dazzling fish.

Isn’t that a shark?

A few people who were riding the elevator with me chuckled and laughed as they watched me gazing out at the sea.

‘We’re in the ocean! You must have been like this before, too,’ Michael, a man who seemed all too familiar with this scene, spoke up, addressing the group with a smile. “You’ll get tired of this view in just three months,” he quipped. “Then I’ll see you later at the dental clinic.

I didn’t realize we had arrived, but the elevator door opened. He got off at the second underwater base and left. Most people followed him, and I was the only one left in the elevator. A silver sticker on the wall of the elevator at the second underwater base indicated a depth: ~2000m.

As we descended to the second underwater base, I saw numerous fish and shades of green and blue sea colors, but as we went further down, I saw nothing. At first, I was excited and enjoyed looking at the underwater world, but my expression vanished as the elevator continued to descend.

Is this what the deep sea always looks like?

The view outside the elevator going down to the third underwater base had turned pitch-black. I could see nothing but dense darkness. In an attempt to alleviate the unease of the passengers, the elevator walls were adorned with holographic fish stickers that emitted a soft glow. Looking at the images on the stickers, it was written that creatures like giant squids lived at this depth, so I began trying not to look at the elevator walls. I wasn’t afraid of marine life, but seeing these images in the darkness made me feel like I was on the verge of developing a fear of the deep sea.

The elevator was brightly lit, as if it were daytime, and the darkness outside failed to penetrate its walls. At first, I was taken aback by the lingering darkness, but I soon regained my composure. The journey seemed interminable. Normally, when you ride an elevator, time seems to pass by in a flash, but being all by myself in the murky depths of this elevator, time felt like it had come to a standstill.

I found myself in a massive elevator that could easily accommodate a hundred people. After pondering countless times on when I would finally reach the third underwater base, I heard the announcement signaling my arrival.

As the door opened, a woman entered the elevator along with a blinding light and an overpowering smell of bread. The woman, who appeared to be around 167cm tall with black hair, looked at my face while holding a bunch of bread in her arms.

“Oh, nice to meet you for the first time! Hello!”

Hearing her greeting, I quickly greeted her back, “Hello. I’m Park Muhyun, the new dentist.”

“Nice to meet you. My name is Yoo Geum-yi. I work at the research center. I heard the dental clinic opens tomorrow?”

“I haven’t heard anything about that.”

“You’re the only dentist who’s going to work there, and you haven’t heard anything?” Yoo Geum-yi laughed, amused by my disbelief. “Then you might need to block reservations or update the notice. You’ll need to access the underwater base program on your tablet to change the information. Is this your first time coming to the underwater base today?”

“Yes. Unfortunately, I still don’t know where the dental clinic is.”

“Really? That’s a problem.”

Yoo Geum-yi said, seemingly unfazed, as she took a piece of bread from a paper bag, bit into it, and handed me a palm-sized piece, urging me to eat. The paper bag was filled with bread as if she had swept up an entire bakery. I held the bread she had given me and, upon hearing it was a red bean paste bun, broke it in half to find it filled with bean paste. The bread was also very warm.

“The third underwater base is built in the central sea layer, so sunlight doesn’t reach it. You must have been surprised.”

“Yes.”

“Below 2000 meters is already considered deep sea. It’s deep sea all the way down from the second underwater base. You won’t see anything.”

From a human’s perspective, that is. Yoo Geum-yi spoke without any difficulty, even with a piece of bread in her mouth. As I looked at her light brown hair, close to a chestnut shade, I bit into the bread I was holding at her urging. I chewed on the warm bread, filling my mouth. The elevator filled with the aroma of bread.

“Quickly eat it while it’s warm. It’s freshly baked.”

“Thank you.”

It had been such a long time since I had this kind of sweet bean bread. I was captivated as I devoured the whole steaming hot bread. It was utterly sweet, soft, and delicious. It felt like my brain was screaming that this was what it needed after not having something sweet for a long time. By the time I finished eating the bread, we had already arrived at the 4th underwater base.

I asked, my hand covering my mouth as I spoke with a full mouth, “Is this where we get off?”

“Yes. This is the 4th underwater base. We just took the central elevator. It operates throughout the entire underwater base, so you’ll need to ride it to travel to almost all the places.”

As soon as the elevator door opened, people surged in as if they had been waiting. Seeing that, I suddenly thought of something and asked, “I guess there’s a long wait for the elevator?”

“We’re 3,000 meters below the surface. It takes about 10 minutes for the elevator to arrive. Press the button, and you’ll meet all sorts of people waiting to ride the elevator.”

The central elevator was located in the central district, where the accommodations, research center and most other facilities were concentrated, except for mining-related ones. As we walked together around the central district, Yoo Geum-yi told me she was heading to the research center and that I would find the dental clinic if I kept going to the right.

She waved, “See you later, doctor,” and left.

“See you next time.”

I started to worry as the dental appointment was tomorrow. It wasn’t just that I didn’t know where the dental clinic was, but I also had doubts about whether they even had the basic medical equipment.

‘Are they really going to open the dental clinic tomorrow? What if I went there and they have nothing and handed me a flat-head screwdriver for treatment?’

Footnote

[1] An ancient Hebrew scripture, depicting biblical themes.