Swimsuit

Instead of answering, Jere opened a locker on the side of the sled. She pulled out a small package and handed it to Josh. “I have one of these for each of you.” She touched her own plastic-looking uniform. “This diving suit, as you might call it, will protect you. Put them on at once.”

“Over our clothes?” Abigail demanded.

“No, they are swimsuits that fit all sizes. One for men and one for women. If you girls will go to the front of the boat, the young men will turn the other way while you change. Then you'll do the same for them.”

And that was the way it went. When Sarah opened her package she found a sea-green one-piece bathing suit, much like the one she had worn to the beach. But this suit was both flexible and hard and seemed to be made of overlapping green scales. Quickly she slipped into it, and Jere said, “Now, put on your diving suits.”

Sarah stepped into the plastic uniform, pulled it up, and found that it closed around her neck tightly. She pulled out the belt and was surprised to find how heavy it was.

When all had on their swimsuits and uniforms, they gathered about Jere.

“The belt is your life-support system,” she said. “It is what will let you live under the sea. It contains compressed air in three of these pockets. It has a tiny radio, so that you will be able to communicate, even under water, not only with those close to you, but even with those who're far off.”

Then Jere taught them how to attach the tubes and wires. “Slip the hood over your head, and you'll find it will tighten with this fastening.”

The young people awkwardly did as she told them.

As soon as she had hers on, Sarah had a moment's fright. “I'm going to smother,” she cried out.

“No, simply turn that button on the front of your belt.”

Sarah did so, and immediately a gust of fresh oxygen poured into her suit. It inflated the suit slightly, and she was amazed to find that now she could not feel the warm wind.

“It's insulated so you won't feel the cold of the ocean,” Jere said.