by Greig Beck
“Perhaps it’s the trophy room,” Loche said softly.
“Monsters,” Mike grimaced.
“Just different to us,” Matt replied.
“No, Mike is right, they are monsters,” Jane replied.
Loche swiveled the tiny craft in the air.
“Over there, what’s that?” Matt sat forward.
There was a block of stone that was acting like a bench with objects upon it. But as the drone approached, they saw it was dried food scraps and the makings of a stone knife.
“There’s nothing. No writing, no cuneiform, no pictures, nothing. A very primitive culture. And yet they built these structures.” Matt snorted softly. “Maybe it’s simply hive learning.”
“Let’s try another building,” Mike suggested.
Loche pulled the drone out, and they checked several more of the small houses, but they held little clue as to what happened to the crustacean race of beings.
“It all looks abandoned now,” Matt observed.
“Maybe only the surface dwellings. The creatures were at home above and below the water—after all, they were crustaceans,” Mike replied.
“Okay, if they might be in the structures below the surface, then we need to keep an eye on them as well,” Loche said.
“I suggest we don’t dock at the city, and perhaps find somewhere up or down the coast from it,” Jane added.
“That’s the plan,” Janus said and turned to Loche. “Right?”
The captain nodded, and then took the drone controls and maneuvered it higher for a few moments to turn slowly, surveying the coastline. About two miles on the southern coast, there was a river whose mouth opened in a wide estuary.
“There,” he said. “Water looks deep enough for the DSVs to enter.”
Albie checked the instruments. “Sure is. Deep trough, around a hundred feet, more like a harbor mouth.” He half turned. “Take her in?”
“Yeah, nice and slow, mid-water.” Loche leaned forward, staring out at the red-tinged water as the pilot kept the submersible at around fifty feet and relayed the instructions to Abyss-2.
Above them, the drone lifted and from a height of about five hundred feet, it looked down at the water and could just make out the two seventy-foot-long crafts moving into the estuary mouth like a pair of killer whales gliding in formation.
Jane licked her dry lips. “Careful, estuary mouths are where predators lie in wait for things to try and cross from salt to fresh or vice versa. Especially if there are any sort of migrating species.”
“Got it,” Loche replied. “Keep all sensors focused on that river. You too, Abyss-2.”
Albie nodded. “All clear so far.”
As the team watched, they saw several new species of sea creature—it was hard to call them fish—swim up closer to the craft. There were a few things that might have been like lampreys or other species of parasitic fish, eight feet long and like long, grey bags with a round sucker shape on their heads that looked like they wanted to latch onto them, but a brief shock pulse repelled them from getting too close.
Another creature that looked like a ragged bird but was probably a giant form of water beetle flapped its chitinous wings toward them as it seemed to fly under the water. It was around twenty feet in length and stayed close to them for several moments, checking them out, before peeling away into the red gloom.
Albie pulled back a little from his screen. “Sir, got something, I think, on sonar. Like a shadow and can’t quite get a hard fix on it. It seems to be ghosting us. It’s big though.”
Loche leaned in closer to the images on the sonar screen. “Could it be debris?”
“Maybe.” Albie shrugged. “Might be a malfunction, but I don’t want to call it a bug, not in this place…” he chuckled, “…but whatever it is, it’s there but not there—most of our sensors are passing right through it. Weird.”
“It’s moving,” Loche observed.
“Yeah, maybe getting out of our way,” Albie said.
“Okay, keep an eye on it. Proceed,” Loche replied.
They continued mid-water and Loche took the drone over the stretch where the strange object had appeared, but there was nothing visible below the surface, not even a shadow.
The two craft were about fifty feet apart, gliding silently through the red water and observing the variety of arthropod creatures mixed with near normal-looking species of aquatic life.
“We ate many species of local fish,” Mike said. “Tasty, and no ill effects.”
“What about the bugs?” Matt asked.
“Yes, we did, when we had to. And we’re pretty sure that the indigenous red people cooked some of the arthropod people for us to eat.” Mike raised his eyebrows. “Delicious.”
“Right, so who’re the monsters now?” Janus chuckled.
Albie exhaled and shook his head. “Captain, that thing ghosting us…”
“It’s back?” Loche asked.
“It never left. It’s closing on Abyss-2. Seems it moved aside, but only so it could come at us from behind.” Albie shook his head. “Increasing speed.”
“Typical ambush behavior. Strap yourself in, people.” Loche opened the comms to their sister craft. “Abyss-2…”
“Yeah, we see it,” Nina replied. “Or rather we can sense it, but still see nothing yet.”
“Hold your position, we’re coming around.” Loche nodded to their pilot who turned the sleek submersible in the water.
“I can see it now.” Matt rose from his chair. “Holy crap, it’s enormous.”
Everyone stared. Though the electronic sensors still couldn’t make out the mass in the water, they could see the thing now as it bore down on their twin submersibles.
“A freaking jellyfish. A giant freaking jellyfish,” Jane said. “Why not?”
The massive bell-shaped creature must have been a hundred feet across and thirty thick. It trailed long electric-looking streamers beneath it, and by the look of the fluorescent colors of them, Jane bet they were packed with stinging nemocytes.
As if in a current, one of the thicker tentacle-like streamers almost lovingly reached out to caress Abyss-2.
“Better back up a little, A2,” Loche said.
Nina acknowledged and the submersible began to ease backward in the blood-red water. But invisible to them was that some of the enormously long tentacles had already wrapped around the craft and began to pull the huge bell of its head toward them. Abyss-2 was reeled in, and the bell bloomed open to envelop them.
Nina’s voice came over the speaker. “Not much solid mass to this thing, but going to give it a little shock, just three seconds at half power, as I don’t want those tentacles fouling our propulsion exhaust.”
Loche frowned as he watched. Jane could tell the man was worried. And if he was, she was as well.
The image of the submersible distorted for a moment as the electric pulse emanated from the craft. But afterward, there was no pain response from the monstrous jellyfish and instead the entire bell continued to enfold the submarine. Then the tentacles started to fluoresce.
“I doubt those stinging nemocytes will cause the vessel a problem. However, all jellyfish digest their food with an enzyme in their multiple stomachs.” Jane grimaced. “I don’t know for sure, but something that size might just have enough gut acid to do some serious damage to the hull.”
Loche engaged the mic. “Try again, Nina,” Loche said. “Give it a ten-second blast this time—seventy-five percent.”
“Roger that,” Nina replied.
The image distorted once again, for longer this time, but when it returned to clarity, the massive thing was still there.
“Damnit,” Loche whispered. He turned. “I’m betting if I tried to use a standard torpedo, it’d probably pass right through.”
Jane nodded. “And then it’d simply regenerate.”
Loche thought for a split second. “Okay.” He turned back. “Nina, full power pulse. Keep it going for as long as you can.”
/> “Josh, ah, sir, respectively, that’ll drain our batteries pretty quick,” Nina said.
“No choice.” Loche sat forward. “If that thing damages your hull or fouls you, you might not have a craft. Or crew. Do it, now.”
“Yes, sir. Going full pulse,” she responded.
The entire image on their screens whited out for a second or two and when it returned it was still jagged with interference. But they could see the bell of the jellyfish begin to glow and then there seemed a milkiness surrounding the massive creature.
“I think some of it is being boiled away,” Jane observed.
“Good,” Janus responded.
Then, as if being spat out, the submersible was freed, and the jellyfish began to unwrap its tentacles and pull away. There were cheers from inside Abyss-2, and Loche exhaled.
“That did it,” he said.
“Sure did. But we’re down to 10 percent power,” Nina replied.
“Yeah, we’ll need to take to the land and allow you to recharge. We’ll find a place soon.” He turned to Albie. “Ahead, three knots.”
“And, sir?” Nina asked.
“Yes, Nina?” Loche replied.
“Next time, it’s you guys’ turn.”
Loche laughed softly and half turned to Albie. “I just want you to know that everyone onboard Abyss-1 appreciates you guys being the guinea pigs for us, okay?”
Nina chuckled. “You’re welcome.”
“Give me a few minutes to do a little more drone investigation, and we’ll find somewhere to pull in, over and out.” Loche then took control of the drone and sped down along the shoreline.
As the small drone headed into the estuary mouth, Loche dropped it down below a few large, leafed trees that hung their branches over the red-tinged water. He hovered there, looking along the waterway. The dense tree canopy trees made it like a cave inside. He took the drone in and switched on the small craft’s lights. As he did, there was movement in the branches above him, and something he only just glanced snaked away from the lights.
“Got movement,” he said. “Checking it out.”
The drone lifted and he pivoted the light beam into the foliage above. The branches shivered a little more, but nothing appeared.
“I’m not seeing anything in there,” Janus remarked.
The dense growth hid everything, and just as Loche began to pull back, the entire branch moved.
The revealed creature was a miracle of camouflage evolution in that it was a long, stiff body, with its armor plating the color of bark and a few gnarled segments mimicking branches. But even beyond that, on the fake branch tips there were some smaller scales or scutes that were a deep green to mimic leaves.
“Whoa.” Loche tried to pull the flying craft back, but a long sticky tongue darted out from the creature’s now open mouth parts and shot toward the small drone… that was, until it hit the rotors.
It knocked the drone off balance, but the sharp, spinning propellors seemed more than a match for a soft tongue and blood flicked away, and the tongue was rapidly reeled back in.
“Ouch.” Matt grinned.
The fake branch shuffled off, and without trying to hide anymore, they could now see the twelve-foot-long, log-like body, and flat face with compound eyes.
“Like some sort of cross between a chameleon and stick insect,” Maxine Archer commented.
“Except a hundred times bigger,” Matt added.
“Nothing down here follows the rules of evolution as we know on the surface,” Jane said. “We must be prepared for that when we set foot out there. Every step we take, every inch we cover, we must be on guard, because a stick might not be a stick, or a rock might not be a rock.”
“Yeah, I think that’s the plan, Jane.” Janus shared a condescending smile with her.
“Okay.” Loche turned back around in his seat. “Let’s take her in, slowly.”
The drone still hovered over the estuary mouth and the captain swiveled it to look at the landmass once again.
“Beachhead coming up with enough water for us to get close to the bank for disembarking. We’ll bring the drone in for recharging, as I want it as our eyes in the sky for as long as possible.”
The two craft slowly and silently headed in toward the estuary mouth, rising from deeper water as it followed the contours of the river mouth into the shallows.
“Surfacing,” Albie announced as the craft breached and then sailed the last fifty feet in toward the bank. Right behind it, Abyss-2 came up and also pulled in.
The drone came down and a small hatch opened on the nose of the craft for it to drop into, with the hatch quietly closing behind it.
Loche used the external cameras plus the front view screen to examine their surroundings.
“Movement or heat signatures?” he asked.
Albie bobbed his head. “Lots, but nothing significant. Just like any normal forest.” He turned and grinned. “But not.”
“Good enough for me.” The captain spoke over his shoulder. “Kit up, people. This is where the fun starts.”
“We’re here.” Janus leaped up and rubbed his hands. He spun to the group. “We did it.”
“Jane, Mike,” Loche called. “From what I gleaned from your report, you traveled the equivalent of two full days before you arrived at the desert zone where the red people had their hidden city. Think you can find it again?”
“We can find where it was. As long as it’s still there,” Mike replied.
“And as long as they’re still welcoming us,” Jane added.
Janus thumbed toward Matt. “And that’s where Professor Matthew Kearns will be using his magical linguistic powers for us.” He grinned at Matt. “Right?”
Matt scoffed. “The magic will be if we can find them. And then they want to communicate.”
Loche stood and looked down at Jane and Mike. “You guys ready?”
Jane nodded. “Just butterflies.” She looked at Mike. “You?”
“Pelicans.” He smiled back.
Loche stood in a crouch in the cramped vessel. “Okay, people, line ‘em up, and let’s pop the hatch. Albie, while you have the drone in range, you’ll be our eyes and ears so stay on comms. Understood?”
Albie saluted. “You got it, sir. I’ll take good care of you and our fish.” He saluted. “We’ll be here waiting for you.”
“Good. All efforts on defense.” Loche saluted back. “Don’t want to have to walk home.”
Mike popped the hatch and immediately a gush of warm and humid air rushed in that smelled of plant sap, scented flowers, and brackish water from the estuary.
Loche went up the ladder, paused with his shoulders out for a moment, and then kept going. The others quickly followed.
Jane felt her heart beating rapidly, and Mike put his hand on her shoulder and squeezed. “We’ll be fine.”
“Of course we will.” She took a deep breath and then climbed the ladder.
The crew wore foreign legion-style hats that covered their ears and necks, but the heat still hit her hard as she climbed out and leaped to the bank from the top of the craft.
Jane squinted up at the boiling ceiling above them. “And at last before me, I behold the hot red hell from my nightmares.”
“Appropriate,” Loche remarked. “Is that from Dante?”
“No.” She shook her head. “From Captain Raymond Harris who led our last expedition.”
Jane could tell Loche wanted to ask her what happened to him but didn’t. Instead, he nodded and turned to the group.
“Okay, people, weapons, comms check, and supplies. Double-time.” He then lifted his chin and saluted the approaching tall, black woman leading the crew of the second DSV.
“First Lieutenant Nina Masters, how was your voyage?”
Nina saluted and then broke into a grin. “Walk in the park, sir. A little rocky right at the start, and a few locals tried to get a little too cozy, but I can announce the submersible armaments checked out.”
“That they di
d.” Loche turned. “Well, according to Mike and Jane’s notes, we have around two days trekking ahead of us, and at a standard three miles per hour, taking into account rest and heavy jungle, we’ll call it around sixty miles to cover.” He looked up at the sky and pulled his dark glasses over his eyes. “And we sure don’t have to worry about losing daylight down here.”
“Is this real?” Janus had his arms wide, and his face turned to the red sky. “I mean, I read about it, and I sort of expected it, but this is beyond amazing.” He lowered his head to look at several of their team members. “Are you not knocked out by all this?”
“And all been hiding beneath our feet for billions of years. And we never knew,” Matt added.
“Exactly.” Janus pointed at Matt’s chest. “And if it wasn’t for that old mad Russian, Arkady Saknussov, we might still not know.”
“I wish we didn’t,” Mike said.
Janus spun to him. “Why? This is the biggest scientific discovery, like since forever.” He grinned. “And it’s all ours.”
“That’s why,” Jane said. “Because it’ll either kill us, or guys like you will kill it.”
Janus shook his head slowly. “No, Jane, exactly the opposite; we’ll preserve it.”
“I’ll believe it when I see it,” Mike replied.
“Let’s leave those questions to the politicians. We’ve got a job to do. Let’s form up, people.” Loche organized the team with Janus, Matt, Mike, and Jane at the center, Chris Angel, one of their heavy weapons guys, leading them in, followed by Rick Croft, their resident marksman, and then his second-in-command, Nina Masters.
Then came Loche, and bringing up the rear was their comms guy, Joe Edison, Lawrie Williams with their explosives, and their other heavy weapon’s guy, Chuck Watts.
Albie Miles and Joni Baker would stay with the DSVs, and Albie would work the recharged airborne drone overhead as their scout and continually feed the info back to him for as long as he could.
Loche felt he had assembled a good team with the best skill sets available. He also felt he would have been happy taking it into any hot zone anywhere in the world. He looked again at Mike and Jane, Matt, and then Janus. The physicality and brains of the team wasn’t in question, but the mental state of several might become an issue. Places like this tested even the strongest of them. And a “below Earth” mission was something he and his soldiers had never experienced.
