The Descent

"To whomever might read this letter,
This is what my life has come to.
No accomplishment I've ever made,
Will ever even come close to this.
With honor I accepted this task,
Even if it certainly spells my end.
I lived in fear, but times have changed.
For Frostvale, for Equestria,
For my friend.

I'm sorry."

She didn't bother to write down her name. If she wouldn't live to tell the tale, she wouldn't live to know it either. Others' praise means nothing if you aren't around to hear it. After she finished writing, she laid down in her bed. Tomorrow was go time. She had to be well rested for it. Surprisingly, she fell asleep rather quickly, despite the stress of the situation. She had no dreams that night, nor nightmares. Only void.

She was woken up the next morning by Tidal Surge. He shook her lightly until she came to her senses, before just looking at her until she sat up and rubbed her eyes.

"Whenever you're ready." He said, as he stepped outside.

There wasn't really any way to prepare or anything to get ready for, so she took her playing card and followed after only a couple minutes. The crew had gathered around something near the center of the upper deck. As she stepped closer, she realized what it was. Three heavy-duty diving suits, covered in so much steel they stood up on their own. Some equipment was also lay on the floor beside them, but she couldn't tell the objects apart from each other as they were all the same steel-grey and in a pile.

"You're here." Eswyn said. "I saw your note. You seem pretty confident about this, so let's just cut to the chase. You're going down in one of these. We are currently anchored directly over the trench. The suits are simple to use. Please, step inside and I'll teach you. I think you'll fit in the smallest one."

With that, Eswyn pressed a switch on the smallest of the three suits, causing the left half to fall straight off. Ametrine walked closer to the still-standing half. Getting inside the suit was finnicky, as the legs were solid steel, but she eventually managed to get inside. With one half in the suit, she watched as Tidal Surge and Nightmare Fuel picked up the other half, and helped her get inside.

Locking mechanisms could be heard throughout the suit as the two halves connected. She was now encased within a glorified metal sarcophagus, with the card now laying on the inside, near her rightmost front hoof. In front of her face was a large glass visor with different scales and meters on it.

"Alright, let me give you the short version." Eswyn continued. "The meter on the left is depth. Pretty self explanatory. The right meter is the air pressure. Look up and you'll see the oxygen meter. Right in front of your mouth is the microphone. We won't be able to hear you due to the depth, but the suits are interlinked. You won't have any use for it as you're going alone. Ne-"

"I'll go with her." Abhor Sanguis interrupted, to everyone's surprise. "Whatever's down there is better than staying here. My life's a mess, anyways."

"Are you sure? It's a one-way ticket straight to Tartarus, by the looks of it." Foulplay added.

"Yes."

"Your funeral." Eswyn said. "You look like you'll fit in the mid-sizer. It controls exactly the same, so listen up."

Eswyn and Ametrine waited while they watched as Sanguis got into her suit, with some help from the other crew members. Once she was inside, Eswyn continued.

"On your right shoulder is a valve. Adjusting it will control whether you're sinking, stagnant, or floating. Don't ask me how it works, because I don't know. If you need to return to the surface, press the switch on your left shoulder. It will act like a single-use escape rope. Only use it if you are in a dire emergency. On the back of the helmet is the release. Pressing it underwater is a death sentence. Last but not least, your headlights will activate automatically when you're underwater. As for your roles, Ametrine's suit is equipped with gear that will record different conditions underwater. I have no idea what that means, it's just what the engineers told me. As for you, Sanguis, you are responsible for keeping her safe. You will be given a prototype harpoon gun to do this with." Eswyn said, while giving Sanguis a cannon-like device. "No need to reload. It does that automatically. Did you two get all that?"

Both the armoured mares nodded in response. Eswyn gestured for them to move over to the side of the ship, and both followed command. Ametrine was surprised at how agile she remained while within the suit. Agile might've been a stretch, but this thing looked like a glorified statue.

"We were supposed to get you down with winches, but they broke during the storm so you're gonna have to jump in." Eswyn said. "Sanguis, it has been an honour serving with you. And Ametrine? Don't go dying on me now."

Neither of the two responded, instead just giving each other a confirmation nod, and leaping into the abyss below.