The ship had seemed to have crashed months ago, days, hours—anything other than the 5 minutes I have been sitting here. The thought still horrifies me, thousands lost at sea, all for what? A few days on a cruise ship that was destined to sink?

I feel my stomach twist and turn like an amusement park inside of me.

Kevin.

He was gone with the others, I couldn’t save him—I tried.

But I failed.

I grip the sides of the debris I had somehow managed to grab in the fight to stay above the dragging current. The night is growing cold, and I have made my way far too north for my liking.

Ice floats in the ocean around me, and my fingers go numb.

I watch my breath make ghostly figures into the night, as I look to the changing currents below me. It must be thousands of fathoms deep—I gulp down the bile forming in my throat; I was never that good at swimming.

I was good enough to survive, I repeat in my head.

I might have been the only one.

I try to forget about the deep waters beneath me, and make myself comfortable on the wood below me. Well, as comfortable as someone could get on 6-foot piece of wood in the middle of the cold ocean.

I am nearly about to close my eyes and pray I’ll still be alive by morning when I see a flash in my vision. At first I think it must be the moon or something, but then I see it again.

And again.

And again.

I adjust my position on the debris to get a better look at what might be there; a ginormous shadow of a ship lays before me—but it isn’t a ship.

I take a closer look.

It must be some structure of ice. Something strong enough to hold something—or someone. I can just barely see the faint shadow of a figure standing on the ice—holding a light pointed right at me.

And that’s when I notice that they are coming closer, closing in on my small little makeshift boat. Are they coming to save me? Or something else?

I have never been someone to trust strangers, but help is something you probably shouldn’t turn down while you are barely floating above the deep ocean in the dead of the night.

I watch them patiently as they make their way closer, they are nearly here now. An odd feeling forms in my stomach, sending shivers down my spine. Some sort of Deja vu comes over me, almost like I have seen that ship made of ice before.

And the man standing on it—even more peculiar than an ice ship floating in the ocean. His dark eyes peer into mine like I have seen him a million times before, and that’s is when I notice I have.

“Kevin?” I ask, something building in my heart, “I thought you were dead.”

“I am.” He says, his voice bittersweet as if he no longer feels the need to live. “We both are.”

I gulp as a pained realization runs through my bones. “What do you mean?” I say slowly, trying to keep my words from shaking as they come out of my trembling body.

“We are dead.” Kevin repeats again. “They have come to bring us both to hell.”