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BUFORD SEA:
Bett is on the bridge, staring through the binoculars and sees a strange anomaly floating on the surface. “I see something!” she hollers at Josh. “It’s a clear iceberg, just like in the satellite image. It has to be the device.”
Josh turns to look and can barely see the translucent ice. “Any sign of the submarine?”
“Oh my God! It looks like it’s trapped inside. We have to go help them.”
Josh grabs the radio microphone and calls the destroyer to let them know what’s going on, then swings the Mystic around, and heads over to the location.
***
Alex notices the dull glow of sunlight filtering through the ice, getting brighter by the second just before they are on the surface. A few moments later, he recognizes the outline of the Mystic, floating a short distance away.
Okana presses the button on his microphone. “Mystic, this is Okana. Can you hear me?”
Bett snatches the microphone from the bracket. “I hear you. Is that you I see down inside the iceberg?”
Okana looks up at the mirror and grins at Alex. “That’s us, Bett. There should be another submarine trapped in here with us. Do you see them?”
“I see something inside, but it looks like it was crushed.”
Okana kisses the tips of his fingers and holds them against the hull of the sub. “Thank you,” he whispers.
Alex notices. “Shouldn’t we be crushed too?”
“Mike spared no expense. This is the latest thing in deep submersible craft. Our hull is ceramic.”
“I’ll send him a bottle of champagne. If the spaceship turns off the SV1, this device is going to sink again with us still attached.”
Okana flips a switch on the dashboard. “I’m increasing the buoyancy of the sub to compensate.”
“Is the Mystic’s hoist powerful enough to lift both us and the device?”
“Not if we’re both out of the water at the same time. Once the sub is stored, I’ll use the hoist to drag the device onto the deck.”
“I have a better idea. We’ll leave it in the water and add another cable, and tow it to Adak Island. If it freezes again, nothing will be affected.”
“Okay, but if we get it out of the water, it won’t freeze into ice and we can move much faster.”
“True, but don’t forget that it can also change the molecular structure of steel. The water should dampen the effect and the Mystic won’t melt.”
“All right. It’s your device, so whatever you think is best.”
Bett’s voice comes through the speaker. “Whatever you’re going to do, make it fast. The ice is starting to melt. One more thing. That mystery ship just arrived to watch the proceedings. They’re about three-hundred-yards from us.”
Alex watches the ice quickly disappear from the front window and feels a shift in the angle of the sub as the device drops down beneath the stern.
“Hey, guys. That other sub just sank, but the ship is still here. I can see them staring back at me. Should we ask the destroyer to make them go away?”
“No, there is nothing he can do about it unless they’re attacked, and that ship is no match against the destroyer. His hands are tied.”
Alex reaches forward to tap Okana on the shoulder. “Have her attach another tow cable to the deck cleat on the stern. Put an eyebolt in the other end, and coil it up on one of the connection points for the sub’s harness.”
“What have you got in mind?”
“I’ll drop into the water and attach it to the nylon rope. When I’m back on board, I’ll go inside and release the magnetic latch. Once the sub is on board, we’ll leave with the device in tow.”
“Hey, Bett. Alex has another idea.” He explains the plan.
“Understood.”
Okana looks up at the mirror. “You know, even wearing that wetsuit you’re going to freeze your butt off.”
“Don’t worry. It only takes a few seconds to screw in the pin.”
“Hey, guys. The destroyer is standing by, and I’m ready up here. The harness is directly above you.”
Alex opens the hatch, crawls out on top of the sub, and slides over the side into the water. Okana climbs out and drops the end of the cable down to him, and he quickly attaches the harness connectors from the hoist to the sub so he’s ready to go.
Alex flinches from the sudden drop in temperature. Without a facemask, he will have to feel his way along the side of the sub to the nylon rope. He drags the new cable to the stern, takes a deep breath, and drops below the surface. He follows the curved side to the bottom and slides one hand along the surface, searching for the magnetic latch. He runs out of breath and swims up to the surface.
Okana is looking over the side and sees Alex burst through the water, gasping in deep breaths of air. “Grab my hand.”
Alex holds up the end of the cable. “Not yet.” He moves further along the sub. “I should have paid more attention to where it’s located.”
He takes a deep breath and drops back down, then repeats the routine as before. This time he finds it immediately, but his fingers are numb, making it difficult to unscrew the eyebolt. When it finally comes free, he nearly drops it. He’s running out of breath, but it is too late to stop and risk losing the end of the cable.
It seems to take forever to align it with the rope and slide the metal connector through both eyelets. His lungs burn, and doing it by feel alone is taking too long. He opens his eyes when he can’t feel the opening in the eyebolt, and it takes both hands to screw the pin in place.
His lungs are on fire as he strokes furiously to the surface. He burst through the water and takes in several deep breaths, then reaches up for Okana’s hand. “Get me out of here. I’m freezing.”
Okana hauls his friend up onto the sub and leans him against the hatch collar. “I told you so. I’ll go down and release the latch.”
Alex stares out across the water at the other ship trying to outmaneuver the destroyer, who is acting as a blockade between them and the mystery vessel. He feels the sub lurch beneath him as the device drops away, then Okana is kneeling beside him.
The sub rises out of the ocean and water dribbles across the deck as Josh guides the little submersible onto its storage bracket. Once Okana releases the hoist cable, he slides the short metal ladder alongside so his friends can climb down.
Alex cannot stop shivering, and Okana helps him down the steps and across the deck into the ship. He tries unzipping the wetsuit to take advantage of the warmer temperature inside, but his fingers don’t want to work. “Could you give me a hand?”
“Let’s get you downstairs into a hot shower before I see you naked.”
The muscles in Alex’s jaw ache when he grins and walks down the steps. “It’s not the first time.”
Okana leaves Alex standing in steaming water and hurries back up to the bridge. Josh is standing at the controls, and Bett is standing outside so she can look down at the cable. He can see the other ship racing away toward the Northern Canadian shoreline, and the destroyer standing station off their port bow. He grabs the radio microphone. “USS Barkley, this is Mystic. Come in.”
“Commander Mosley here, Mystic. Go ahead.”
Okana wonders if the other ship is monitoring the radio. “We’re through here, Commander. Our submarine is damaged and we’re calling off our search. We’re leaving for NAS Adak for repairs before we can try again, and would appreciate an escort.”
“I’ve heard about how fast your ship is, so I’ll try to keep up.”
“Lead the way and I’ll match your speed.”
“Copy that, Mystic.”
***
SPACE:
Realizing they are going to die, Essex decides to tell Rita about the new visitors. When he finishes, she appears speechless, with her mouth hanging open.
It takes a moment for her mind to comprehend the enormity of what is going on. She closes her mouth and stares out the window. “Wow. So, we’re not alone after all, and they’re not very friendly. Oh yeah, and if you have brown eyes, you’re as good as dead. This is great. I’m one of the chosen ones and I’m going to die in outer space.”
Essex lets the moment hang. “You’re a chosen one? That’s great. The spaceship is probably not too far away from us right now. I’ll try to contact Pandora and see if we can get a ride back to Earth.”
Rita turns and grins at Essex. “Did you bring your phone?” She stops grinning when she notices he has brown eyes. “Oh, John. I’m sorry.” When he just smiles at her, she slowly leans in to give him a kiss, but before their lips touch, the instruments come on. “How’s that for timing.” She leans back. “Are the thrusters working?”
Essex tries twice. “No, it must be something we did when we isolated the rocket motors.” He turns on the microphone. “SV1 control, are you still listening?”
“Yes, we lost you for a while. How’s it going?”
“We are attached, but we can’t maneuver. I’ll keep you apprised of our progress.”
Rita leans closer to Essex. “So now what should we do?”
Essex turns to stare out at the open cargo area, notices the torn hydraulic line for the door, and has an idea. He turns to Rita. “All I need to do is re-orient the nose of the SV1 so it’s facing Earth and I could fire the rockets.” He releases the latches on the control console and flips it over.
Rita watches Essex switching wires around on the circuit board. “What are you doing?”
“I’m bypassing the master valve on the oxygen tank to give us some thrust.”
“Which one? The one for the rocket motors?”
“No, I can’t afford to waste the fuel. I’m bleeding it from our life support system.”
“Hold on a second. Don’t we need that?”
Essex stops working and looks over at her. “We already know this is a one way trip, so what difference does it make?”
Rita leans back and crosses her arms. “You don’t know Alex Cave. He never abandons his friends.”
Essex continues working. “I only have faith in me. Anything more is welcomed. There, that should do it.”
Essex presses a button, and a plume of ice crystals bursts from the cargo hold. He grins when the ship starts moving and lets go of the button. His grin slips away as he jabs it several times, but the crystals continue to spew from the nose. He flips the circuit board over and yanks out a wire, then looks at the compartment. The crystals have stopped, but the momentum continues, and they are slowly spinning above the SV1.
Rita feels nauseated and looks away from the window. “Yes, this is much better.” She looks at the gauges. “We have twenty percent of our oxygen remaining.”
Essex replaces the panel and slams his fist against the dashboard. The lights in the panel go dark, and he is suddenly thrown back in his seat. He stares opened-mouthed at Rita, then turns back to the window. Wisps of gas are shooting out from the thrusters of the SV1. “It’s being taken to a new location.”
Rita places her hands on the control console. “Yes, and it’s dragging us with it. Release the tow rope.”
“No, not while there’s the slightest chance I can drag it into orbit when it stops.” He stares through the front window, concentrating on the intermittent burst of gas from the SV1’s thrusters. “This time I’ll be ready to fire the rockets the instant I’m pointed toward Earth.”
Rita crosses her arms and turns in her seat to stare at him. “You know, everything you try just makes matters worse. I’m amazed you managed to build this ship.”
Essex doesn’t take his eyes off the SV1. “A ship moves through water. I have built a space craft.” He notices small bursts shooting in the opposite direction and his finger hovers over the control button. “If you’d rather walk home, be my guest. Just watch the first step. Make it fast, because I’m about to fire the engines.”
Rita turns back to the window and looks down on the planet. She is thrown back in her chair when the rockets fire, and the ship shakes violently under the strain of dragging the SV1 down toward the atmosphere.
Essex thinks the ship will shake apart at any moment and stares at the gauges on the instrument panel. His speed is dropping fast, and he realizes the SV1’s thrusters are pulling in the opposite direction. He watches the fuel consumption emptying the tanks. The roar of the engines abruptly stops and the shaking ceases. At the same instant, he watches the Earth disappear from view as the SV1 drags him into a higher orbit.
Rita glares at him. “Cut the rope, damnit!” When he doesn’t reply, she undoes her upper harness and reaches across to throw the switch.
Essex grabs her wrist. “Please don’t do that right now. We’ll drift off into outer space.”
Rita doesn’t resist and stares at him. “What? We’re already there.”
“No, this is just space.” He waves his hand at the star speckled background. “That, my dear Rita, is outer space.”
She plops back down in her seat. “So what do you have in mind for your next failure?”
“I’m getting tired of you cutting me down, Rita. Keep pushing it and I’ll kick you out myself. I liked you better when you weren’t so snarky. What happened to your positive attitude?”
“It’s hard to keep one when I run out of options.”
“Not too long ago you were counting on Alex to come to the rescue if we failed.”
“I guess deep down I really don’t think he can, but I need something to believe in. Now I’ve reached the acceptance part of the four-step program for dealing with imminent death.”
“Not me. I’m in the denial part and I plan to stay there.”
“Give it up, John. There is nothing anyone can do for us.”
Essex doesn’t reply, and stares out at the universe. It’s not over until I’m dead.
“This is SV1 control. I guess you didn’t realize your microphones are still on. We’ve been listening, and I’ll let Alex know about your situation.”
Essex looks over at Rita, who is grinning and shaking her head with embarrassment. “Thanks, control.”