The waves had brought him back to the shore. Hanging to a piece of wood, with the throat slashed because of the harpoon, Ahab had drifted for days. The rage and the need for revenge were equal. The thirst and the sun only managed to amplify his hate. He was diving furiously, swimming until he found at least a gudgeon to rip open with his bare teeth. His fury was spreading thtough the water, the blood dripping from his wounds was calling the sharks, but once they got near him, they swam away in fear. Washed ashore, he fainted and woke up in the hut. Call me Ishmael, he heard once again.
Yuka Brevi
Why is it called the Black Sea? Don't tell me about the salinity, or you'll ruin my drama. A long, long time ago, when Baba Cloanța[1] was flying over the beach on her broom, she saw Cotoronț[2] walking hand in hand on the shore with the oldest daughter of Old Man Cotor[3]. At first, that wasn't a problem, because his rank allowed him to have a vast and varied collection of the species. But the witch was jealous and having the necessary know-how, she cast such a strong curse that the sky turned black, causing her to die and fall in the sea. Then tears, divorce and bye.
[1] Baba Cloanța (or Cotoroanța) is a character from Romanian folklore, often associated with popular stories and legends.
[2] Cotoronț is pictured to be Cloanța's husband.
[3] Old Man Cotor can be the grandfather of Cotoronț (n.tr)
and the rest took shape naturally. The voice, the flight, the abyss. I could hear the waves hitting the tall, limestone walls. The wind was cutting their foamy crest as if to try stopping them to reach the shore. The smell was of dead fish in old water, of wet alga on the seashore. I could feel the taste of salty hair on my tongue which brought memories from under the sea. I could hear its whisper. The breeze made my skin flicker. Deeper and deeper. Then I woke up, not between the rocks, but back to that place and knew that the escape is not giving up.
(Translated by Andreea Sorana Oltean / University of Bucharest, Faculty of Foreign Languages and Literatures, MTTLC, year I / Corrected by Silvia Petrescu, coordinator of the translations)
Versiunea în română a acestui text se poate citi aici, în rubrica Ficțiuni Reale.