The Caves of Etretat: Part One of Four

by Matt Chatelain

  The murderous acts of the Maquis incensed me, challenging me to my core. They felt safe in the covertness of their actions, believing their power lay in invisibility. They were wrong. I could turn invisibility into their Achilles' Heel. I would also carry out torture and murder. I did not even need to choose specific victims, so long as the blame fell directly upon the Maquis and, subsequently, the Net.

  I would retaliate personally, with every death, every act of sabotage. My acts would bring fear and horror into the Maquis' heart and leave the blame on the Net.

  I began going out during the night, alone, draped in the shadows I so loved. I chose a victim at random, performing experiments reminiscent of the tortures wrought upon my men by the Maquis. I would always leave a small propaganda leaflet, bearing the 'Croix de Lorraine', the French Resistance symbol.

  Over time, rumors spread and locals began viewing the Maquis with disfavor, attributing the horrible deaths to them. This fear eventually extended into their ranks, distrust spreading deep into the Net. They did not know who was doing the killing, thus were powerless to fight against it, foisting upon them the very feelings of helplessness they wished to force upon me.

  With every tactical experiment, the intensity of my cravings diminished and my inner calm returned. I reveled in my dual role for many months, released from the Maquis' manipulations, confident my approach was sufficient to reduce their attacks.

  Carrying out these nocturnal activities was satisfying but they were also draining. As a solution, I scheduled a batch of experiments once a week, leaving six full days for the continuing expansion of the cave complex.

  One of the rooms fascinated me in particular. My research indicated Francis the First was likely to have been the architect of this chamber, converted into a fabulously wealthy throne room. I knew Hitler would be equally impressed by it.

  ***

  I was also frustrated by the disappearance of Leblanc and Lindon. They had both vanished well before I neared their small town. They were still acting against us, despite their distant positions. Unfortunately, I had priorities to attend to and could not look for them, no matter their strategic importance. There was nothing they could do against us now, in any case. The stronghold was ours.

  As the war progressed, I formulated secondary plans to further destabilize the local Resistance movement, by striking directly at key personnel. A few collaborators, blended into the local army, worked the locals and returned with specific results. The name Vallin surfaced, a name I remembered from stories Hitler had told me. However, this Vallin was careful and we got no chances to trap him. During a covert observation of his activities, I uncovered the familiar name of Leblanc.

  I had found Maurice Leblanc's son. He had joined the Resistance movement and was involved in planning many missions. I prepared a very special experiment, one that would send a message directly into his scheming father's heart. Maurice Leblanc would learn the error of his ways. I would be his teacher and the lesson would be difficult.

  During the period of Maquis-inspired experiments, I experienced a different excitement. When I carried out dual-purposed experiments, my satisfaction with the process literally doubled.

  When I first performed experiments under Hitler's new guidelines, I had felt a similar increase in satisfaction. Recently, with my tactical approach to the Maquis situation, increasing the level of purpose enhanced the experiments in a way I could hardly explain.

  When I combined my basic desire for experiments with both military purpose and revenge on Leblanc's son, my attention and eagerness nearly tripled in intensity. I became infused with energy, my planning reaching heights of complexity I had never previously imagined possible. It was as if I were floating above everyone, my control absolute.

  This was the exact reason I had begun my experiments in the first place. Now I knew that I had been looking in the wrong place. The crescendo of my experiment was not its culmination. Rather, my approach mattered. It was all about method and purpose!

  I had finally found the path I was looking for, and I embraced it without reserve. Safe in the caves, I planned and planned. Maurice Leblanc's son would pay for his father's sins. Retribution would be at hand. I would carry out Hitler's orders. I would build my fortress.

  I would establish my true superiority over all others.

  I had found Purpose!

  CHAPTER 15

  The Secret in the Depths

  Captain Languenoc had provided a cabin, away from wind and spray, which could damage the electronic equipment. Calvin had been lowered over the side, the portable antenna erected, and we had retreated to the relative comfort of the small room. Our eyes were glued to the monitor as Calvin's cameras revealed the depths of the channel waters. "Don't forget it's more than sixty years since anyone's been down there, if anyone was ever down there, of course."

  "There's something there, Coulter. I'm sure of it."

  "I'm with Mr O'Flanahan. I think this is terribly exciting, don't you, Maman?" asked Raymonde.

  Had she just addressed her mother? The answer came when Mrs Leblanc's voice emanated from a tiny speaker, located on Coulter's laptop. "Yes Raymonde, this is wonderful. It is just as if I were there with you. These glasses are fantastic. Thank Mr Coulter for arranging this."

  Although Raymonde was wearing her techno-glasses, I realised mine were nowhere to be seen.

  "I re-routed the signal from Raymonde's glasses, through my laptop, to Mrs Leblanc," Coulter explained.

  "Look, there's the bottom now," Briar said.

  Our eyes returned to the monitor. Coulter went on, as he manipulated Calvin's controls, "These cameras are so advanced, they don't need any light. We are using a combination of sophisticated sonar waves emitted by Calvin. We're coming to the edge of the trench now. If we continue along this path we should reach its end within a few minutes. We should soon see a slight bend on our right."

  The screen indeed revealed a slow bend in the trench wall, leading into a side canyon of some depth. Remembering my dream, I suggested, "Go into there."

  Calvin headed down the side canyon. It was about twenty metres wide and formed a deep cut into the trench walls. Suddenly the cameras grew confused in the centre of the screen, becoming blurry. "Let me switch to regular lights for this area. There's something reflective in the centre," said Coulter.

  The monitor image flipped, displaying the end of the side canyon in a stark white light. The steep side walls of the trench closed in rapidly to a sharp line about twenty-five metres in front of Calvin.

  "Why is the sonar having so much trouble?" asked Briar.

  "Over there, see those nodules? They could be natural magnetite. The compass is flying all over the place. If the magnetic fields surrounding those natural deposits were strong enough, they would probably cause disruptions to most equipment. Sound waves could be similarly affected by odd compositions of the bedrock, or by certain reflective shapes. There's nothing here. This is a dead end. Let's go back and continue on the original route," Coulter suggested.

  Calvin turned around and travelled at a steady speed until it returned to the main trench. Heading down to its end, the cameras revealed something in the depths. The view-screen displayed an increasing quantity of rubble. Rock falls were apparent. The trench walls had suffered explosive damage at some point in the past.

  I kept looking for a giant underwater owl.

  Calvin floated upward, following the wall of rubble. It reached an area definitely cleared and flattened.

  "Look at that," exclaimed Briar.

  Partially obscured by rubble, at the back of the artificial plateau, was a faint, slightly curved line traversing the cliff wall. Below the line, the stone looked greyer than normal and far smoother.

  "What is it?" wondered Coulter.

  "It looks like the edge of a circular entrance, don't you think?" suggested Briar.

  "Is it big enough for a submarine?"

  "It's possible, Raymonde. Very good eyes, Br
iar!" I said. "Unfortunately, if there had ever been an opening there, it has been sealed, either by the forces of man or nature. No matter the cause, we will have to accept there is no way into the caves to be found here."

  Our common disappointment left a palpable atmosphere in the cabin. Coulter guided Calvin carefully along the natural cleft created by the massive trench walls but found nothing else. The rock-fall covering the ancient opening had eclipsed our best chance.

  I could not let go. My second dream had to be right! The first one had been prophetic about the bunker and about Raymonde. I had to keep trying. "Coulter, why don't we go back to that side canyon? All those strange readings have left me a bit curious."

  "Yeah, why not? Since we're here and all," added O'Flanahan.

  "I was thinking about going back there anyway," Coulter agreed. "I didn't like that weird stuff with the cameras and the compass either. We have about another hour of onboard power for Calvin. There's no umbilical with this baby. It's all wireless, can you believe that? We're back at the bottom now. I'll turn around and go back the way we came."

  The side canyon was about thirty metres wide and slowly curved to our left, revealing the odd clump of magnetite on the jagged canyon walls.

  "Why is this side canyon so clean while the other one is full of debris? You would expect it to be... Well, isn't that strange," said Coulter.

  "What is it?" asked Briar.

  "Sorry, it's just that... Wait a second, let me do something."

  He directed Calvin sideways, while keeping the cameras centered on the cleft at the end of the side canyon. "Look at the cleft. There is something very strange about it. It seems to be following us."

  "Not following us, my boy, it's changing perspective! Will you look at that," exclaimed Briar.

  The cleft did indeed seem to be constantly re-adjusting to remain in the exact centre of our field of vision. There could only be one explanation. "Make Calvin head directly into the cleft. Aim it right at the centre."

  Coulter complained about crashing expensive equipment but did as I asked. We watched the monitors intently as Calvin inched forward, closer and closer to the rock wall. As we neared, the cleft stretched out and the image distorted. "Uhm, I'm losing Calvin's signal, something's going on down there."

  "Keep going, push the motors to the max and power up all the sensors on that thing."

  "But it'll crash."

  "I don't care. Just ram it. Do it."

  Coulter unwillingly aimed it for the wavering cleft. At the exact point when it should have smashed into the stone cleft, everything went crazy on the monitor. The image warped bizarrely on both sides, stressing the centre point until it completely split apart. Calvin's cameras were wobbling as they flashed on giant silvery disks, one on the left and the other on the right.

  "I'm losing Calvin. I can't hold it," screamed Coulter, in a fit of panic.

  Calvin entered an uncontrolled spiralling descent. Just before Calvin's signal failed completely, the cameras whirled around one last time, giving us a single view of a long tunnel heading into the cliff.

  ***

  Calvin's command centre had been turned off, useless now, with the loss of the deep-sea camera. Coffees had been refilled and Coulter was preparing an analysis of the amazing footage we had obtained. "Everybody gather round. I'm going to replay the last moments at half speed."

  The screen brightened for a moment and the image coalesced into a view of the seabed floor, as we approached the side canyon 'end', which we now knew to be a disguised passage.

  "Did you see those strange owl eyes? What do you think those were?" asked Raymonde, her words giving me a start.

  My dream.

  "Hold on, we're getting there, the weird stuff's about to start. Let me slow it down to frame by frame. Here we go." Coulter ran his fingers over the keyboard, presenting a still image of the two canyon walls forming the cleft. "Now, Calvin is about to start moving sideways. That was when we noticed the bizarre 'change of perspective'."

  "Look, there it goes," stated Briar, "the perspective jumps with each frame. It's as if the meeting point of the two canyon walls is re-adjusting to our changing point of view."

  "Each wall seems to be stretching or compressing, depending on where we are. The end result is the cleft is always right in front," O'Flanahan added.

  "It's got to be an illusion of some sort," affirmed Coulter. A voice spoke up from his speaker. I had forgotten Mrs Leblanc was still looking at everything through Raymonde's glasses.

  "I've seen something like that before. That strange effect of always having the same point exactly in your centre of vision. I'm not sure if that information can be helpful."

  "Anything could be useful at this point, Mrs Leblanc," I replied.

  "It's just a small area downstairs, in a corner, near the front desk of the Villa Leblanc. I had mirrors installed in the corner and placed some plants in front of it. It made the corner look so much bigger. Whenever you looked in the corner, you couldn't see your face. It was always hidden by the joining point of the two mirrors, the cleft. You could bend your head this way or that and the corner seemed to shift with you, matching your every move."

  "Maybe those disks are mirrors," theorized Coulter.

  O'Flanahan made a desultory gesture. "Mirrors? You can't be serious. Look in front of you. We are seeing a three dimensional image."

  "Hold on, O'Flanahan," I objected. "Coulter, fast-forward the video a bit."

  Once again, we witnessed a strange flattening of the cleft, during the underwater camera's final, calamitous approach toward the canyon wall. "Freeze it for a second, would you Coulter? Now, O'Flanahan, look at what is happening here: all cleft details are grainier and stretched out. This supports Mrs Leblanc's comparison to a mirror. However, I don't think these are regular mirrors. Move ahead a bit more, Coulter."

  A line appeared in the centre of the screen.

  "This is where I lost control of Calvin," remembered Coulter.

  "It's also when we saw those huge owl eyes," added Raymonde.

  "I don't think they were eyes." I predicted. "Move the images forward until we see them again."

  Coulter complied quickly, just as curious to see them revealed. The line grew wider and wider, until the canyon walls were completely gone. By then, Calvin was rotating uncontrollably in a wide circle, falling to the seabed. The images swirled slowly until the first eye came into view. Coulter froze the image.

  "Will you look at that," exclaimed Raymonde "It does look like a giant owl eye but it is a mirror, isn't it?"

  I nodded. "Yes. I believe we are looking at a concave mirror, built on an inconceivable scale, able to project a very large image. When I was younger, a friend showed me a magic trick. It was a small, black conical pyramid with an open top where a penny floated. Try as you might, you could not touch that penny. Your fingers would just float through it because, in fact, the penny wasn't there. It was sitting below, in the bottom of a bowl-shaped mirror. Because of its concave shape, you saw the penny's reflection floating in front of the mirror surface, not behind it."

  "Look, Calvin's rotated around and there's the second mirror, exactly opposite the first one. This one is a bit clearer. We can see more details. Gosh, it's huge. What's that shape in the middle?" wondered Coulter.

  "I think it's a miniature side canyon wall. The mirrors reflect the image, hugely magnified. The two mirrors act in concert projecting an illusion of rock walls in the center. That's why the centre kept shifting. We were looking at two projected images," I added.

  "Hey, check that out," Coulter exclaimed, freezing the image again and jabbing his finger at a corner of the monitor. "The whole wall is covered with small pocks. That explains everything."

  "What are you talking about, Coulter," badgered O'Flanahan.

  "Calvin's deep sea camera worked with sound waves. When we went into the side canyon and looked at the end, the signals got all messed up."

  "I remember that. You had to switch
to regular lights," remarked Briar.

  "That's right. Whoever built this place covered the walls with small concave indentations. Any sound wave hitting those pocks would be sent careening in some side direction and the signal would be lost. It's brilliant. That magnetite was probably planted too!"

  "It explains how this place stayed hidden for so long," mentioned Briar, "They certainly planned well."

  "Look at tunnel," pointed Raymonde.

  There it was, the tunnel I had known we would find. There had been no doubt in my mind; it simply had to be there. A large arch stretched over the entrance to the tunnel, shaped somewhat like an owl's beak. The dream was complete!

  We had found the way in.

  Now, all we needed was some convenient transportation to get us physically down there.

  "Coulter, we need to talk to Captain Languenoc."

  ***

  The Captain was heading to a point off Etretat's beach. We would use his ship as a base of operations. He had assured me the second item Coulter had ordered could be docked easily on the left pontoon. Coulter informed me he had been successful in its rental. Given the amount of money he had thrown at the owners, the item should be here within a few days! Languenoc would contact us when it arrived. We decided to head back to shore. Jacques Vallin made a quick phone call, using O'Flanahan's cell phone. "The fishing boat is on its way. Should be here soon."

  "I can't wait," said O'Flanahan, his voice laced with sarcasm.

  As we approached the beach, it seemed to be much busier than when we left. I didn't like it. I looked at the Vallin Brothers. "Keep a sharp eye out."

  "Yes Sir, Mr Paul."

  The fishing boat hit the bottom gently, carried in by the fading crest of a wave. The Vallins jumped out first, Ives holding the boat steady, while Jacques looked around like a hawk. I helped Raymonde out. There was tension in the air, as if an electrical storm was about to break. Both Briar and O'Flanahan stayed close as Coulter jumped out, obviously feeling the same apprehension.