The Gyre

The man-made lake spread out before them, the sun glistening off its glassy surface. The day was so calm that the water didn't ripple. The trees didn't stir, and the clouds stood still in the sky above.

Located just a few hundred feet off the side of the road, the reservoir was a refuge for animals and people alike in the hot summer months. Though you couldn't swim there, the shores were usually filled with people picnicking, fishing, or just taking in the cool breeze. A breeze that was strangely absent today.

Lila put down her backpack and checked her watch; it was ten in the morning. They had about thirty minutes until the park officially opened, and the crowds would grow. For now, they were alone on the quiet shore.

Matt came up behind her and started snapping pictures. She knew exactly what he was focused on. The old stone church stood like a silent sentinel on a small island in the center of the lake. It's vacant windows like eyes watching over the shoreline before it.

"You really think there's a whole town under here? The water can't be that deep." She squinted with her hand over her eyes as she scanned across the lake.

"Absolutely! Lila, you've seen the plans with your own eyes. This whole area was a vibrant town, and where there are towns, there are banks."

"That's where you lose me, Matt. You really don't think they would have cleared out the bank before they flooded the town? If they were greedy and diabolical enough to punish a whole village, there's no way they would leave money to be lost to the depths of a reservoir."

"You give the humans too much credit, my friend." Matt put down his camera and looked at her with that sly smile he used when he was trying to convince her he knew more than he did. "This planet is full of people with no common sense and no conscience. Not only would they leave money in the bank, they would leave children sleeping in their beds if they thought it would benefit their cause."

Lila shuddered at the vision of flood waters overtaking children peacefully sleeping in their beds. Matt had a point. Lately, humanity was on a collision course with its own destruction. "Remind me again why we came here?"

He took her by the shoulders and kissed her forehead. "To get that money that is rightfully ours. The money that has slept silently under the water for seventy-five years. My grandfather left detailed notes in his journal. The bank wasn't far from his church or the parsonage. Two hundred feet due north should put it parallel to the opposite shore."

Lila checked her watch. "It's ten fifteen, that means you have five minutes till the gyre opens." She crouched and took the battered notebook from her pack. "He wrote that it will open a passage to the bottom, that the streets will be clearly visible, and that the gyre will only be open for fifteen minutes. After that, you'll be drowned." She looked up and met his eyes, "Promise me that if you don't find it in ten minutes, you'll give up. Promise me!"

"I promise, Lila. But, promise me if something does happen, you won't come after me."

She didn't have time to respond. Suddenly, the sky darkened, and the water started to ripple in the unseen wind. In disbelief, they stared as the gyre formed, and the water became so clear that they could see the whole village spread out before them. Under the water, it sat, like time had stood still in some perverse dream. And there, on the opposite shore, was the bank. Right where the journal had said.

Matt threw off his pack and walked toward the spinning vortex. Lila grabbed his arm. "You're absolutely sure you want to do this?"

He brushed her off. Yes, and I need to hurry; we're losing precious time."

He jumped, and Lila held her breath as she watched him dive into the water. She marveled that she could see him so clearly, that he walked like he was on land. Suddenly, the transmitter in her ear buzzed to life.

"Oh my Gods! Lila, this is amazing! It's like walking on land. I can breathe, and the village is in immaculate condition. It's a time capsule."

"That's great, Matt, but remember the goal. You only have twelve minutes left, and I have an uneasy feeling."

Suddenly, she heard him gasp in her ear. "There are people down here." His voice shook. "They look dead, but their eyes are following me. I think they're frozen."

"I don't like this, Matt! I think you need to turn around and get back up here." Panic was rising in her stomach like bile. "You have ten minutes."

"It's okay, the bank is right in front of me, I'm entering it now."

Lila strained to make him out far on the other shore. She could barely see him enter the building, and the sky was starting to lighten as the gyre seemed to get smaller.

"Matt, you better hurry. Matt??"

There was no response in her earpiece. "Matt, what the hell is going on down there? You have seven minutes."

His voice, in return, sounded far away and garbled. She couldn't make out what he was saying, but she thought she saw him run from the bank building. The sky was getting lighter, and the gyre even smaller.

"There's something down here, Lila." His voice was out of breath. "I'm trying to get back, forget the money."

"Hurry, Matt, you have four minutes!" She watched in stunned disbelief as Matt ran toward the opening in the gyre, as the water thickened and closed around him. She heard voices behind her on the shore; people were coming. The clock showed two minutes until the gyre closed for another seventy years.

"Matt, hurry!" She begged him. Even though she knew he wouldn't hear her.

She suddenly saw his hand reach up through the churning water. She grabbed it and pulled with all her might. Matt's voice choked with water as he struggled for air. "Something has me!"

She pulled on his hand with all her might until his fingers slipped from hers, and he disappeared into the still water.

She sat, looking at her empty hand, the still water, and no trace of Matt.

Suddenly, she heard a voice right behind her. "You tried to brave the gyre?" She turned to see an old man, flanked by two younger men, all of whom had concerned looks on their faces.

"My friend did. He's lost." She choked back tears.

"Lost to us, but now belongs to the village. I wish they would close off this godforsaken place. Seventy years from now, someone will try again."

She wiped at the tears streaming down her face. "What should I do?"

"Run, pray for his soul. There's not much you can do. The village takes what it wants. That's why they flooded it in the first place."

Lila took the battered notebook and threw it in the water. No one else would find out about the legend if she had her way. No one would believe her if she tried to tell them anyway.