Spawn Of The Deep

by Michael Bray

  Rainwater shook his head. “No, they’re not.”

  “Come again?”

  “You can’t blame those creatures for this. Believe me, I tried.I realized during those long nights spent drunk and feeling sorry for myself that they didn’t ask for this. They didn’t want man to interfere. All they do is act. It’s instinct to them. People like Decker, they see it as an opportunity, something to exploit. Those animals are victims too.”

  “Interesting point,” Greg said as he finished his cigarette and crushed it out on the floor. “Not that it matters. All of us are done for anyway, them included as soon as that dome breaks.”

  “Yeah, I’m trying not to think too much about that.”

  “Is it working?”

  Rainwater grinned and shook his head. “Not really.”

  “Me either.”

  “Why did you come out here? You don’t seem like the mercenary type,” Rainwater asked.

  “I’m not. Believe me, I didn’t come out here by choice. It’s a long story, but let’s just say that a nasty piece of shit threatened to harm my wife and daughter unless I stole the eggs of these fucking monsters for him. Trust me, if I could have avoided it, I would have. The last place I want to be right now is here.”

  “I’m sorry. I didn’t know you had a family.”

  Greg nodded, staring at the floor. “Well, I just hope he decides to leave them alone when he finds out what happened here. I hope he knows I tried my best to do what he wanted.”

  Their conversation was halted by the blast doors sliding open. Rainwater and Greg stared, confused and relieved as Jade and Mackay entered.

  “Ross, I think I love you,” Rainwater said as Mackay helped him to his feet.

  “Aye, ye owe me lad, that much is for sure.” He turned to Greg. “What de ye want me to do wi’ this piece o’ shite?”

  “Nothing. He’s alright,” Rainwater said, looking past Ross to Greg. The two men nodded to each other.

  “Alright, I’ve seen enough, let’s get the hell out of here,” Jade said.

  II

  Decker stood by the controls to the door, fingers hovering over the mechanism. The conflict in his head about morals over survival had been raging on since they descended, but fear always won out, and made his next decision, as harsh as it was, seem like the most natural thing in the world. He could see the others and knew there were too many. Too many of them who could ruin him or take legal action against him. He couldn’t afford that, not now that the venture which he had invested everything in was about to go belly up.

  This is about survival of the fittest, the voice in his head said.

  You deserve better than to die down here.

  He couldn’t argue. He had a strong desire to survive.

  You can say it was a tragic accident. Nobody will ever know the difference.

  He looked at the controls, then at the people in the training pool. Mostly, he looked at the cracked dome beyond.

  Remember what your father told you. Only the strong survive.

  He knew he would regret his next actions for as long as he lived, but sleepless nights were a valid price to pay, and certainly better than death. He thought it would be hard, but keying in the emergency lockdown sequence came easily.

  Good. You’re the alpha male. You’re the survivor. Top of the food chain.

  He watched as the door slid closed. Those on the other side of the door were running now, but they would never make it. He looked at them through the small porthole window, Rainwater’s face pressed against the glass, the brief taste of hope taken away from them.

  Decker wondered if he should tell them he was sorry, but couldn’t do it. Since he was being honest with himself, he saw no reason to change now, and the truth was, he had no regrets.

  He turned to Styles who stood beside him open-mouthed. “Come on, let’s go.”

  Styles took a last look at the small window and those trapped inside, then followed Decker through the structure, which was being increasingly weakened by the attacks of the creatures.

  CHAPTER TWENTY-SEVEN

  Decker and Styles hurried through the facility, which was groaning and creaking with increasing regularity as the creatures outside continued to attack the structure. Styles had said nothing to Decker since they had abandoned the others in the dome, and had decided that as far as his own self-preservation went, it was wise if he kept it that way. Decker led them through the empty corridors, past labs with work half completed. He stopped at the end of the hall, a door with a red painted RESTRICTED sign penned on it. He punched in his personal access code on the keypad at its side, tapping his foot with impatience as the door slid aside. Within was the incubation room, a white-walled, low-lit laboratory where the eggs of the creatures were stored. Decker paused inside the threshold, staring at the thirty eggs at various stages of development.

  “You know, this was supposed to be my future, Styles. The future of this industry. My legacy.”

  Styles winced as the structure groaned once more. “Sir, I think we ought to get moving.”

  Decker ignored him, casting his eyes over the eggs. “Thirty eggs at five hundred million apiece. You know what that means? Fifteen billion dollars in revenue that is all going to go up in smoke.”

  “Sir, we have to go. It’s not safe down here anymore.”

  “Nowhere is safe now, Styles. Not after this is over. The life we both knew is done.”

  “Sir…”

  Decker snapped out of it, turning away from the eggs. “Of course. Come on.”

  Decker led the way through the lab and through another door. Here the floors were covered with plush carpet, the walls painted in eggshell, for the most part hiding the otherwise metallic, clinical nature of the facility.Decker’s office sat at the end of the hall. It was large and spacious, his oak desk dominating the space. Another door was discreetly recessed into an alcove by the large bookcase. Decker went to it, pushing it open and moving into the room beyond. They came to a metallic chamber containing several circular pods, each containing a single seat.

  “What are these?” Styles said, standing in the threshold of the chamber as Decker opened two of the sleek units.

  “Escape pods. Designed for emergency escape if there was ever an incident like this.”

  “Sir, I’m not a pilot. I have no idea how to even control one of these things.”

  “Come here,” Decker snapped.

  Styles complied, crossing the chamber and standing beside Decker. From his closer vantage point, he could see more clearly into the pods. Each was fitted with a singular bucket style seat and a vast array of controls which Styles had no possible way of comprehending.

  “Get in, quickly,” Decker said again, regaining some of his composure.

  Styles complied, pushing his frame into the cramped seat and strapping in the harness, his eyes darting over the control console.

  “Don’t worry about any of that. You don’t need to know it. These spheres are naturally buoyant. They will just drift us to the surface. All you need to do is sit and enjoy the ride.”

  “How do I launch it?”

  “I could spend the time to explain the launch procedure to you, or you can shut up, let me seal you in and launch you from out here.”

  “Oh, yes, thank you, Mr. Decker.”

  Decker nodded. “Push that green button there on the console. It will close the door and seal you in. I’ll launch you from here.

  “Yes. Thank you, sir,” Styles said, then pressed the button as instructed. Decker stood back as the door slid down into the place, the pneumatic hiss as the air tight seal clicked into place filling the chamber. Decker opened the plastic lid at the side of the console. Inside was a red handle with the word LAUNCH stenciled above it. He pulled the handle and watched as Style’s pod moved back, a watertight door sliding down to cover the void it had left. When it was in position, the chamber would flood and then the pod would be ejected, its natural buoyancy enabling it to take a leisurely journey ba
ck to the surface. Decker didn’t wait until it was gone. The creaking and hissing from the structure was growing increasingly frequent and intense. He climbed into another of the pods, strapping himself in then activating the lock sequence. Unlike Styles, he was fully trained in the operation of the units. His fingers danced over the controls, setting the launch sequence. The door slid closed, and he felt the pod starting to move. The Lexan viewport was designed to give a panoramic view of the ocean, but now only showed the steel structure of the pod chamber. As Decker watched, the chamber started to flood, covering the pod in sea water filtered in from the outside. As the pressure between ocean and structure was equalized, the pod was ejected from the structure, spat out and away from the mortally wounded Triton Spire. The pod hovered there for a moment, still against the black waters, then as the natural buoyancy started to take over, it started to ascend. Decker watched the spire as it he drifted past it. He looked at his control console, the green hue of the screen giving him comfort in the inky depths. Ahead and slightly above, he could see the underside of Style’s pod as it too drifted towards the surface some twenty feet away. He started to think about Rainwater and the others, about how he would live with what he had done. He had already convinced himself that he had no choice, and that no matter what it cost, he would get the best treatment, the best psychological help in order to get through it and get back to his best. He was still contemplating this and staring at Styles’ pod when the creature came, racing out of the dark. Decker drew breath as the creature clamped its massive jaws down on Styles’ escape pod, imploding it with ease, the expulsion of blood and bone as Styles imploded sending the creature into a frenzy as it snapped at the fragments of crushed and floating titanium. Decker immediately realized what had happened. He glanced at the console in front of him. Lights. Sensors. All giving off electromagnetic frequencies. The pods must have seemed like prey for the creatures, and with Styles already dead, Decker knew he would be next. Instinct took over, and he let his hands do the work. Disabling switches, deactivating all but life support systems. Seconds later, Decker floated in the dark, the dim glow from the Triton Spire the only light source that gave him a sense of direction.

  Terror, more pure than anything he had experienced to date, consumed him. He clung to the armrests of his seat as his pod drifted closer to the surface. He reached the debris field of the other pod, unable to help himself from staring at how little was left. A twisted strip of steel. A coil of cable. And blood. So much blood. The creature which had crushed the pod was just ten feet away from Decker still snapping at the remains and trying to find something edible to feast on. Decker pushed himself back in his seat, willing the pod to drift away from the hellish thing outside his viewport. He could see it now in detail, the mottled, grayish skin, covered with scars from its life in the wild. Its grapefruit-sized eye, black and emotionless, razor sharp teeth almost close enough to touch. The creature shifted position, the wake sending Decker’s pod tumbling, rolling end over end and giving Decker a dizzying alternating view of the creature, the Triton Spire and the black ocean above him. He held his breath, waiting for the attack to come, but the creature was preoccupied with the bloody remains of the other pod. Decker exhaled, even managing a grin as he drifted away from the creatures and the Triton Spire. He knew now that against all the odds, he was going to be alright. He closed his eyes and relaxed as his pod continued to make its slow ascent towards the surface.

  CHAPTER TWENTY-EIGHT

  Within the dome, the captive creatures continued their incessant slamming against the side of their enclosure, in turn agitating their larger kin who continued to attack the facility, retreating after each lunge to circle and re-evaluate the inedible structure. At the edge of the lagoon, Rainwater winced as the three retreated across the water ready to launch another attack. He glanced at the dome, which still creaked and groaned under the pressure. On the upper portion, a thin mist of water rolled down the inner perimeter, pooling on the floor. They all knew that it wouldn’t be long before the hairline crack expanded and the dome gave way, subjecting them all to the crushing pressures and certain death. Jade joined him at the water’s edge, watching as another trio of impacts reverberated around the vast space.

  “We have to get them to stop,” Rainwater said, unable to take his eyes from the dome. “If they carry on, it’s only a matter of time before one of those things hit the dome again and kills us all.”

  “I don’t see what we can do,” Greg said, joining them at the water’s edge. “We have no power here.”

  “Not exactly.”

  They looked at Rainwater, curious as to what he was talking about. He nodded past them to the small control room. “When we were searching for a way out, we looked in there. It seems like the lagoon has tunnel leading out into the water. My best guess is so that the creatures could be transported to the buyers.”

  “Is it safe to do that, lad?” Mackay said, wincing as the three creatures impacted the dome. “If you do anything that might compromise this dome… we’re all screwed.”

  “We can’t go on like this. As it is, we’re riding our luck.”

  “It could work,” Jade said. “As long as the integrity of the structure holds, I don’t see any reason why we can’t safely open the outer doors and set them free.”

  “Ah don’t really like to go with maybes and buts, lassie.”

  “No, I get that, but right now I don’t see what kind of choice we have.”

  “And if the dome breaks?” Greg interjected, unable to hide the fear anymore. “What then?”

  “If it breaks then we’re dead,” Rainwater’s tone was flat. Emotionless. “I think we might at least buy us some time if we get these things out there.”

  “Isn’t it bad enough that there are already three of those things out there?” Greg snapped, keeping a wary eye on the water. “I’m not sure sending more out into the ocean is a good idea.”

  “Normally, I’d agree. But we don’t have much choice here. If they continue to hit the wall, we won’t last much longer. That much I do know.”

  “So it’s a gamble?” Greg said.

  “Yeah, pretty much. It will either work, or opening the lagoon to the ocean will damage the integrity of the structure and break the dome.”

  Greg nodded. There was nothing else to say. Rainwater looked at each of them in turn, seeing the desperation the fear. He could understand it well. He felt the same way. The trio of impacts on the wall of the lagoon spurred him into action. He moved into the short control room, the window in the wall giving an unobstructed view of the lagoon and dome beyond. He let his eyes skim over the controls.

  Jade joined him, standing by his side. “Is it easy to operate?”

  “I’m not too sure. It looks simple enough.” He rescanned the console, looking for something he might have missed. “It looks like these controls open the inner door, and these the outer once it’s been pressurized.”

  “Is that it?” she asked, looking over his shoulder.

  “I don’t know. I’m guessing here.”

  “Only one way to find out I suppose.”

  He touched the controls, then hesitated. “What if I’m wrong?”

  “At this point, I don’t think it matters. Like you said, we have to do something. Go ahead. Do it.”

  The others joined him in the control room and they were all looking out at the lagoon, the water a thrashing, churning mass as the agitated creatures continued their relentless assault. Rainwater took a last look at the controls, then pulled the lever to activate the inner lagoon door.

  CHAPTER TWENTY-NINE

  On the surface, the storm has whipped the ocean into a violent landscape of waves. Wind howled and rain drove down hard. Decker’s pod broke the surface of the water, the red beacon on its topside flashing red. He had ascended close to the dock of the Triton Spire, which was both fortunate and dangerous as the waves threatened to smash the drifting, powerless pod into the structure. Decker peered out of the rain splattered
Lexan, watching as they came to retrieve him. He could see his staff members, loyal men and women who he had paid well for their services. Also present were his investors, Mahamatom, Aquil and Anderson. He wondered if any of them were still interested in doing business with him, and if he might yet be able to salvage something from the entire mess. The naturally buoyant sphere bobbed in the water. Decker was grateful that he had surfaced close to the structure. Further out, the waves were more than twenty feet high, and would have surely carried the pod out into the mercy of the ocean. Decker activated the roof hatch, pushing it open and poking his head out into the storm, the relative peace of the pod immediately lost in the fury and bluster of Mother Nature. Standing in his seat, he waited for a line to be thrown to him so he and his pod could be pulled in towards the dock. The first two throws were off, the elements making accuracy difficult. The third however landed true, Decker able to catch the wet rope and attach it to the outer bodywork of the pod. He waited as he was pulled in, triumphant and relieved.He was a survivor, and had twice defied the odds when he should, by rights, have been killed already. The pod was tied to the dock, and two men help Decker out of the pod. The feeling of feet on dry land is welcome and one he never expected to feel again. A blanket is thrown over his shoulder and he is ushered inside to the recreation area, the storm finally closed out. Decker immediately noticed that the entire structure is at an angle, listing slightly, the outer edge of the structure closer to the ocean than it should be. It’s then that he remembers what is out there, and what they must do.

  “We need to evacuate the facility, the structure has been compromised. It’s not safe here.”

  “Mr. Decker, we demand an explanation,” Mahamatom said, folding his arms. “This situation is getting out of hand. Then there is the matter of the money you were paid….”

  “You’ll get your money back, Your Highness, every last dollar. Right now, we need to go.”