“Hello!” Donald called after cupping his hands around his mouth. He waited. A slight echo seemed to come from the direction of the Oceanus’s bow. Donald yelled again; a distinct echo came back in what he estimated to be around three or four seconds.
Donald climbed back down into the submersible after lowering the hatch. The others looked at him expectantly.
“This is the damnedest thing I’ve ever seen,” he said.
“We’re in some kind of cavern that apparently was recently filled with water.”
“But now it’s filled with air,” Suzanne said.
“It’s definitely air,” Donald said. “Beyond that, I don’t know what to think. Maybe Mr. Bergman is right. Maybe we’ve somehow been pulled inside the seamount.”
“The name is Perry, for chrissake,” Perry said. “Give me the light! I’m going to take a look.” He took the flashlight from Donald and clumsily climbed the ladder up through the sub’s sail. He had to hook one elbow around the top rung and jam the flashlight into his pocket to raise the heavy, wedged-shaped hatch.
“My god!” Perry exclaimed after he had imitated Donald’s actions, including testing for echoes. He climbed back down but left the hatch ajar. He handed the flashlight to Suzanne, who took her turn.
When Suzanne returned the three looked at each other and shook their heads. None of them had an explanation although each hoped one of the others might.
“I suppose it goes without saying,” Donald began, breaking an uncomfortable silence, “we’re in a difficult situation to say the least. We cannot expect any help from the Benthic Explorer. With the series of earthquakes, they’ll naturally assume we suffered some kind of disaster. They might send down one of the camera sleds, but it’s not going to find us in here, wherever the hell we are. In short, we’re on our own with no communication and little food and water. So . . .” Donald paused as if thinking.
“So, what do you suggest?” Suzanne asked.
“I suggest we go out and reconnoiter,” Donald said.
“What if this cavern, or whatever it is, floods again?” Perry questioned.
“It seems to me we have to take the chance,” Donald said. “I’ll be willing to go on my own. It’s up to you if you want to join me.”
“I’ll go,” Suzanne said. “It’s better than just sitting here and doing nothing.”
“I’m not staying here by myself,” Perry announced.
“Okay,” Donald said. “We have two more flashlights. Let’s take them but only use one to conserve the batteries.”
“I’ll get them,” Suzanne said.
Donald was the first one out. He used the ladder rungs mounted on the side of the sail and the hull to climb down. The rungs were there to provide access to the submersible when it was in its chocks on the afterdeck of the Benthic Explorer.
Standing on the final rung, Donald shined the light down at the ground. Gauging how deep the Oceanus had sunk, he estimated the mud was twenty to twenty-four inches deep.
“Is something the matter?” Suzanne asked. She was the second one out and could see that Donald was hesitating.
“I’m trying to guess how deep the muck is,” he said. Still holding on to a rung, he lowered his right foot. It disappeared into the ooze. It wasn’t until the mud reached the lower edge of his kneecap that he felt solid ground.
“This is not going to be pleasant,” he reported. “The mud is knee-deep.”
“Let’s hope that’s our only problem,” Suzanne said.
A few minutes later the three were standing in the mud. Save for a slight glow emanating from the open submersible hatch, the only light came from Donald’s flashlight. It cast a meager cone of light in the utter blackness. Suzanne and Perry carried flashlights, too, but as Donald had suggested, they were not turned on. There was no sound in the vast dark space. To conserve the submersible’s batteries, Donald had turned off most everything in the sub, even the ventilation fan. He’d left on one light to serve as a beacon to help them find the sub again if they wandered too far afield.
“This is intimidating,” Suzanne said with a shudder.
“I think I’d use a stronger word,” Perry said. “What’s our game plan?”
“That’s open to discussion,” Donald said. “My suggestion is we head in the direction the Oceanus is pointing. That seems to be the closest wall, at least according to my echo.” He looked at his compass. “It’s pretty much due west.”
“Seems like a reasonable plan to me,” Suzanne said.
“Let’s go,” Perry said.
The group set out with Donald in the lead followed by Suzanne. Perry brought up the rear. It was difficult walking in the deep mud and the smell was mildly offensive.
There was no talk. Each was acutely aware of the precariousness of the situation, especially the farther they got from the submersible. After ten minutes Perry insisted they pause. They had not come to any wall, and his courage had waned.
“Walking in this muck is not easy,” Perry said, avoiding the real issue. “And it also stinks.”
“How far do you think we’ve gone?” Suzanne asked. Like the others she was out of breath from exertion.
Donald turned and looked back at the submersible, which was no more than a smudge of light in the inky blackness. “Not that far,” he said. “Maybe a hundred yards.”
“I would have said a mile, the way my legs feel,” Suzanne remarked.
“How much farther to this supposed wall?” Perry asked.
Donald yelled again in the direction they were going. The echo came back in a couple of seconds. “I’d guess somewhere in the neighborhood of three hundred yards.”
Sudden movement and a series of slapping sounds in the darkness to their immediate left made them all jump. Donald whipped the light around and shined it in the direction of the noise. A stranded fish made a few more agonal flip-flops against the wet mud.
“Oh, my gosh, that scared the bejesus out of me,” Suzanne admitted. Her hand was pressed against her chest. Her heart was racing.
“You and me both,” Perry confessed.
“We’re all understandably on edge,” Donald said. “If you two want to go back, I’ll continue the reconnoiter myself.”
“No, I’ll stick it out,” Suzanne said.
“Me, too,” Perry said. The idea of returning to the submersible by himself was worse than forging ahead through the mire.
“Then, let’s move out,” Donald said. He started off again and the others fell in behind him.
The group slogged ahead in silence. Each step into the unknown blackness ratcheted up their fears and anxiety. The submersible behind them was being swallowed up in the darkness. After another ten minutes they were all as tense as a piano wire about to snap, and that was when the alarm sounded.
The short burst of sound crashed out of the stillness like cannon fire. At first the group froze in their tracks, frantically attempting to determine from which direction the alarm had come. But with the multiple echoes it was impossible to tell. In the next instant they were all slogging their way back toward the submersible.
It was flight in full panic; a mad dash for supposed safety. Unfortunately, the mud did not cooperate. All three tripped almost immediately and fell headfirst into the odious ooze. Regaining their feet, they tried to run again, with the same result.
Without a word to establish consensus, they resigned themselves to a slower gait. After a few minutes, their lack of significant headway made the futility of their flight apparent. Since there had been no surge of water refilling the cavern, all three stopped within steps of each other, their chests heaving.
The multiple echoes from the horrendous alarm died out and in their wake the preternatural stillness returned. Once again it settled back over the inky darkness like the smothering blanket in Perry’s nightmare.
Suzanne raised her hands. The muck, which she knew was a combination of planktonic carcasses and feces of innumerable worms, dripped from her fingers. She wanted
desperately to wipe her eyes, but she didn’t dare. Donald, who was slightly ahead, turned to face Suzanne and Perry. Mud was streaked across the glass of his flashlight, reducing its effect so that he was lost in shadow to the others. They could just make out the whites of his eyes.
“What in God’s name was that alarm?” Suzanne managed. She spit some grainy debris from her mouth. She didn’t want to think of what it might have been.
“I was afraid it meant the water was returning,” Perry admitted.
“Regardless of what its actual meaning is,” Donald said, “for us it has an overarching significance.”
“What are you talking about?” Perry questioned.
“I know what he means,” Suzanne said. “He means that this is no natural geological formation.”
“Exactly!” Donald said. “It’s got to be a remnant of the Cold War. And since I had top-secret clearance in the United States submarine service, I can tell you it’s not our installation. It has to be Russian!”
“You mean like some kind of secret base?” Perry asked. He glanced around the black void, now more awestruck than frightened.
“That’s the only thing I can imagine,” Donald said. “Some kind of nuclear submarine facility.”
“I suppose it’s possible,” Suzanne said. “And if it is, our future is suddenly significantly brighter.”
“Maybe yes, maybe no,” Donald said. “First, it’s going to make a difference only if somebody is still manning the facility. If there is, then our next worry has to be how much they want to keep it a secret.”
“I hadn’t thought of that,” Suzanne admitted.
“But the Cold War is over,” Perry said. “Surely we don’t have to worry about that old cloak-and-dagger stuff.”
“There are people in the Russian military who feel differently,” Donald said. “I know because I have met them.”
“So what do you think we should do at this point?” Suzanne asked.
“I think that question has just been answered for us,” Donald said. He raised his free hand and pointed over the shoulders of the others. “Look over there, in the direction we were going before the alarm sounded!”
Suzanne and Perry spun around. About a quarter of a mile away a single door was slowly opening inward into the blackness. Bright artificial light spilled from the room beyond into the dark cavern, forming a line of reflection that extended to their feet. The trio was too far away to see any interior details, but they could tell the light was intense.
“So much for the question whether the facility is manned or not,” Donald said. “Obviously, we are not alone. Now the question becomes how happy they are to see us.”
“Do you think we should walk over there?” Perry asked.
“We don’t have much choice,” Donald said. “We’ll have to go at some point.”
“Why didn’t they just come in here and meet us in person?” Suzanne asked.
“A good question,” Donald said. “Maybe it has something to do with the welcome they are planning for us.”
“I’m getting scared again,” Suzanne said. “This is very bizarre.”
“I’ve never stopped being scared,” Perry admitted.
“Let’s go meet our captors,” Donald said. “And let’s hope they don’t consider us spies—and that they are familiar with the terms of the Geneva Convention.”
Straightening himself, Donald started forward, seemingly oblivious to the mud sucking at his feet. He passed his two companions, who had to admire his courage and leadership.
Perry and Suzanne hesitated for a moment before falling in behind the retired naval commander. Neither spoke as they resignedly trudged in his footsteps toward the beckoning door. They had no idea whether it would provide deliverance or further trials, but as Donald had said, they did not have any choice.
CHAPTER SEVEN
It was slow going. At one point, Perry slipped and fell back into the mire. He was covered with the ooze.
“The first thing I’m going to do is demand a shower,” Perry sputtered trying to lighten the mood. He was not successful. No one responded.
As they approached the open door, they hoped that their misgivings would be allayed. But no welcoming figures appeared at the threshold, and the light spilling out into the darkness was so bright they were unable to see inside. It was even difficult to look at the opening without shielding their eyes.
When they got close enough, they could appreciate that the door was almost two feet thick with a ring of huge throw bolts countersunk into its periphery. It looked like a door to a vault. The edges of the massive portal were angled in. It was obviously constructed to withstand the enormous pressure of seawater flooding the cavern.
At about twenty-five feet from the wall Suzanne and Perry stopped. They were reluctant to proceed without a clearer idea of what they were getting into. They studied the door for clues. From what they could tell, it appeared as if the walls, floor, and ceiling within were constructed of stainless steel that gleamed like mirrors.
Donald had continued ahead on his own, and although he did not step over the threshold, he leaned in. With his forearm acting as a shield against the reflected light, he surveyed the room.
“Well?” Suzanne called. “What do you see?”
“It’s a large, square room made out of metal,” Donald yelled back over his shoulder. “There’s a couple of huge shiny balls in it but nothing else. There also doesn’t appear to be any door except this entrance. And I can’t tell where the light is coming from.”
“Any sign of people?” Perry asked.
“That’s a negative,” Donald said. “Hey, I think the balls are made of glass. And they must be four to five feet in diameter. Come and take a look!”
Perry glanced at Suzanne. He shrugged. “Why put off the inevitable?”
Suzanne was gripping her arms. She shuddered. “I was hoping by the time we got over here I’d have a better feeling about all this, but I don’t. This can’t be a submarine base. We’re talking about an engineering feat that would make building the Great Pyramid seem like a walk in the park.”
“Then what do you think it is?” Perry questioned.
Suzanne turned to look back toward the submersible. The light from the open door was illuminating it despite the distance. Beyond it was blackness. “I truly have no clue.”
When Donald saw that Suzanne and Perry were looking back at the submersible, he went ahead and stepped over the threshold into the room. Immediately he put his hands out to balance himself to keep from falling. A combination of the wet mud on his shoes and the polished metal made the floor as slippery as ice.
Once he had his equilibrium Donald again scanned the room. Now that his eyes had partially adjusted he could see much better, including hundreds of reflections of himself in all directions. The walls, floor, and ceiling were seamless. The only apparent door was the one he’d entered through. He specifically searched for a source of the dazzling light but mysteriously could not find any. When his line of sight took in the huge glass balls, he did a double take. He was now able to appreciate that the glass was not entirely opaque. They were clear enough to just make out what was inside.
“Suzanne, Perry!” Donald yelled. “There are a couple of people in here after all. But they’re sealed inside glass spheres. Get in here!”
A moment later Suzanne and Perry appeared at the door.
“Careful about the floor!” Donald warned. “It’s as slick as ice.”
Sliding their feet in short movements as if skating without skates, Suzanne and Perry staggered over to Donald’s side, eager for a better look at the glass spheres.
“My word!” Suzanne exclaimed. “They’re floating around in some kind of fluid.”
“Do you recognize them?” Donald asked.
“Should I?” Suzanne responded.
“I think I do,” Donald said. “I think it’s two of our divers.”
Suzanne stared at Donald in disbelief. Then, to get a better look, s
he cupped her hands around her eyes and leaned against one of the spheres, the surface so opalescent it reflected the room’s bright illumination.
“I think you’re right,” Suzanne said. “I can just make out the Benthic Explorer logo on the neoprene suit and the side of the helmet.”
Perry mimicked Suzanne by shielding his eyes with his hands and pressing them against the same sphere Suzanne was gazing into. Donald did likewise from another angle.
“He’s breathing!” Perry said. “He must be alive.”
“There’s something like an umbilical cord coming from some kind of device pressed up against his abdomen,” Suzanne said. “Can anybody see where it goes?”
“It goes under him,” Donald said. “To the base of the container.”
Suzanne moved away enough to allow her to bend down. The sphere had a flat area on which it sat. She did not see any penetrations, and if there were any they would have come directly through the floor.
“This is as astounding as the cavern,” Suzanne said while regaining her feet. She reached out and touched the sphere with the tip of her index finger. The material looked like glass but she was not sure what it was.
The others straightened up.
“How on earth did they get here?” Perry asked.
“A lot of questions,” Donald said, “and very few answers.”
“Are you still thinking this is some kind of military installation?” Suzanne asked Donald.
“What else could it be?” Donald demanded defensively.
“If these divers are alive in these spheres, I can’t even guess what the technology is,” Suzanne said. “They look like a couple of giant embryos. Not that I can explain the cavern either. Even this room is a step beyond.”
“Beyond what?” Donald asked.
“The door!” Perry cried.
All eyes shot to the entrance. The massive door was silently closing.
Frantically the three tried to rush back to it to keep it from sealing them in, but the slippery floor hindered their progress. By the time they arrived the door was almost closed. Collectively they leaned against it to force it back open, but with its mass and the slick floor it was a useless endeavor. With a resounding thud the door closed. Then they heard the muffled mechanical sound of the numerous throw bolts sliding into place.