Prompt: A weekend in Atlantis

Frank was reviewing quarterly financials when Shannon flopped on the couch and pushed her feet into his lap, knocking spreadsheet pages to the floor. He sighed and grabbed her feet before they could wreak any more havoc.

“Oh, that’s heavenly,” she sighed as he rubbed her toes. “How about a weekend in Atlantis?” Frank’s eyebrows rose, and she laughed. “I’ve been assigned to review the filtration system,” she said casually.

“Hey, that’s great,” Frank exclaimed. Shannon was one of the best engineers – and one of the few women – at her firm, fighting decades of male-dominated bias. This was a plum assignment, and the first real recognition of her ability since they had hired her five months ago. “Congrats!”

She grinned and leaned forward. “So, how soon can you pack?” she asked with a mischievous glint in her eye.

#

They caught the morning flight from JFK to Bermuda, and then boarded an aquaplane for the five hour flight straight out into the Atlantic. Frank never liked flying, but Shannon was bouncing in her seat like a kid in front of a Christmas tree. “Look! There’s the dock!” She pointed down, and he humored her with a glance.

“There’s nothing there,” he grumbled, and she squeezed his arm.

“Look again, silly,” she nudged him. He looked out the window again, and saw the elegant Atlantis seal spread across a floating dock, clustered with yachts and a few small seaplanes. Surrounded by ocean, sunlight glinting off whitecaps, it looked too small to be their destination. There was no sign of Atlantis of course.

Their pilot was good. They landed with barely a splash and cruised into the harbor, gliding up to a dock. Frank climbed down, reaching up for Shannon’s hand, fighting his unease at the feeling of standing in the middle of the ocean.

“Welcome, Ms. Bristol,” a deep voice said, and Frank turned to see an expensive suit and a flashing white smile against blue-black skin. “And Mr. Washmore, you are welcome as our guest,” the hotel manager bowed briefly. Frank nodded and stepped back. This was Shannon’s show.

Their host led them across the dock to an open stairwell that descended straight into the water. Looking down, Frank could see Atlantis spread out beneath them. They headed down the stairs, and he was surprised to see the walls were transparent. He stepped closer to the center, and their host looked over his shoulder. “Most guests find the external walls strange at first. Do not be concerned, Mr. Washmore…Ms. Bristol,” he added as an afterthought. “Atlantis is perfectly safe. You’re going to enjoy a wonderful weekend here…”

Dogs in House	Houdini, Malachi
Time writing	~30 minutes
March word count	3,850