Trifariam, The Lost Codex (2012)

by Diego Rodriguez

  “We’ve arrived,” said the woman.

  In record time, they had carefully selected the fewest number of qualified professionals required to carry out the mission successfully. It was imperative that the operation be kept secret.

  The Marine, Alexandra Jordan, was in charge of steering the boat to the indicated coordinates; she would control all the computer equipment onboard and follow the operation from outside. She seemed to be a very cold and calculating person. Her face did not show any trace of emotion and she had barely exchanged a word with the crew during the whole journey. She was an excellent telecommunications engineer, the best of her peers and an absolute authority in her field. However, her skills were not limited to intellectual ability; she was considered to be a thrill seeker and total speed freak, having recently broken the AUTEC water speed record.

  The other two people who were present were the Marines Will Farragan and Scott Marcus. They were without a doubt the two best submariners with the most experience in the U.S. Marines. Will was famous among his colleagues for being the only survivor in a disastrous project which claimed the lives of ten Marines on an area near the base, at a depth of one hundred and sixty feet. He was the only one able to go without breathing for the six minutes it took for them to be rescued. Meanwhile, Scott held the Marines record for no-limits freediving to almost seven hundred feet. He went down with the aid of a weighted sled and used an inflatable bag to come back up again.

  Although the outside temperature was warm and there was barely any wind, Richard was extremely worried.

  The young woman turned off the engines and activated all the radars, sonars, communication and positioning systems among many others, as well as the highly advanced computer systems which were installed on the boat. Some of them started to take readings of the water temperature, sea currents, depth…

  “Over here!” shouted Will.

  How do they intend to go down to the seabed and look for the source? Richard thought.

  He just followed them to the rear part of the vessel. One of them pressed a button and an automatic trapdoor opened on the ground, revealing a second floor which Richard hadn’t even realized existed. A staircase led down to a rectangular space around forty feet long and twenty wide, in the middle of which was a kind of mini-submarine designed with the most sophisticated technology. It was small in size, around twenty-five feet long and ten wide, gray and with a huge logo along one of its sides which read “DSV AUTEC”. It was chained to a mechanical crane which was keeping it suspended in the air.

  “Is it a mini-submarine?” asked Richard, astonished.

  This time it was Scott who replied. “Yes, you are looking at the most fascinating mini-submarine you will ever see. It will be over thirty years before companies will be able to build something similar. There are currently two which have managed to win public admiration more than the rest; the Nautile is property of the French Research Institute for Exploitation of the Sea and was able to achieve a depth of almost 20000 feet to film the remains of the Titanic. The DSV Shinkai belongs to the Japan Agency for Marine-Earth Science and Technology and could reach a depth of over 21000 feet. However, neither of them offers the maneuverability and safety which comes with the DSV AUTEC. It reproduces the same feeling of speed as when a car is traveling on a freeway.”

  “What does DSV mean?”

  “Deep Submergence Vehicle. It was originally created to rescue possible survivors from shipwrecks in deep zones, but we have put our own spin on it. We created a submarine vessel which is able to move like a fish in water. If anybody saw it, they would think it was a USO.”

  Richard knew only too well that those initials stood for “Unidentified Submerged Object”. It was something like a UFO but in the sea. “Is this vessel able to withstand the high pressure of the ocean?”

  The question seemed to offend Scott slightly, who simply answered him with a serious expression on his face. “Of course! The shell is made with a titanium alloy which is able to travel to the deepest part of the ocean and operate with unimaginable ease. It can withstand over eight atmospheres. It has two telescopic arms which are operated by hydraulics and allow us to manipulate them and take marine samples.”

  Will interrupted his colleague in order to relay some more data he had omitted. “It also has several latest generation camera systems with a hard disk which allows us to film the whole operation, and inspection ports of over twenty inches in diameter which enable those inside to have a wider and more direct view of their surroundings thanks to the outer lighting which is supplied by the nine headlights. Anyway, there is no need to worry. According to the data from the sonar, this area is almost two thousand feet deep. Besides, with the computer equipment it has, the sensors, sonars and object detectors… the descent will be child’s play.”

  The Marines praised the twenty-ton creature as a parent does when they speak of their newborn child. Even so, Richard didn’t take it all onboard. Like many people, he had heard the terrible stories about the Bermuda Triangle. Boats that disappeared without a trace and others which reappeared completely empty and without crew; aircrafts which had stopped working in the air, triggering their fatal descent to the depths of the Atlantic Ocean. Richard had extensive knowledge of the stories because it was a subject that fascinated him. One possible explanation pointed to the presence of large fields of methane hydrates on the continental shelves. These periodic eruptions of gas in the form of huge bubbles, whose diameter is similar to the size of a boat, could produce areas of frothy water which would not provide adequate buoyancy for boats to float correctly, making any vessel sink in the blink of an eye. The same explanation is cited for aircraft disappearances. Besides, their altimeters rely on air density readings to function and methane, which is less dense, could cause the altimeter to become confused and indicate that the airplane is ascending when it is in fact level. Whenever Richard read such information, he visualized a pilot traveling at night or in muggy conditions who, after checking the readings on the airplane’s altimeter, decides to descend to the correct altitude. Many of these situations ended in a brutal impact with the ocean, the craft vanishing beneath the waves in a split-second.

  Contrary to what many people think, however, the frequency of accidents in the area is very low in comparison with other areas of the planet.

  Scott walked over to one of the cupboards and set about choosing all the necessary instruments for the operation, then he got inside the mini-submarine.

  Richard took advantage of his absence to ask Will question, give that he seemed to be a much friendlier person. “From what I understand, there are lots of huge creatures in these waters, from sharks to… Well, you know what I mean. What would happen if one of them was in the mood to play with this vessel at a depth of 1000 feet?”

  Will smiled. He could sense Richard’s fear from a mile off. “It is equipped with a sophisticated protection system. If one of those animals gets too close for comfort, a million volts would shoot through its body. I don’t think it would feel too much like - “

  He was suddenly interrupted by the sound of the hydraulic arms as they started to move agilely and pick up the polyurethane box that he had seen in the pit. They immediately placed it in the basket at the side of the vessel which was used to store all those objects that the mini-submarine found on the seabed.

  “Let’s go! It’s time!” shouted Scott.

  The inside was full of monitors, buttons and levers. Manipulating that vessel would undoubtedly be as complicated as maneuvering a combat plane. The seats were in a line from front to back, so that Richard was traveling at the very back and Scott was in charge of the descent. The young paleographer noticed that the woman hadn’t been in the room to say goodbye and he couldn’t help but wonder if the lack of communication among the team would become a burden when it came to completing the mission, but his fears were placated when he heard her voice through the speaker system of the vessel.

  “This is control. Do you read me?”
>
  “Loud and clear,” said Will. “Open up.”

  Although Richard couldn’t hear or see it, he assumed that the hatch below them was opening. His suspicions were confirmed when he noticed how the crane was lowering the mini-submarine and dropping it into the middle of darkness in the ocean.

  “Control, I am proceeding to detach the submarine.” Nothing could be heard on the other end, but on one of the screens Will was controlling, it read: PROCESS COMPLETED SATISFACTORILY. “That’s it, close them.”

  They had begun their immersion.

  Richard had never been inside a submarine, but in spite of the praises sung by his companions, he felt a pang of disappointment when he noticed that the submarine was descending slightly slower than he had imagined.

  “What’s this?” he asked, pointing to one of the suits which were in a closet behind him.

  Will turned around, Scott didn’t say a word.

  “They’re special diving suits. They’re similar to the neoprene ones but these are made from a much lighter material which is more resistant and slows for greater mobility. They keep water away from the body much more effectively, and they have an internal circuit which is connected to a battery which supplies constant heat for six hours, which makes diving in icy waters much easier.”

  “And that backpack you’ve got down there… does it have an oxygen cylinder inside?”

  Will smiled again. “We don’t use compressed air tanks anymore. Our scientists improved upon a discovery made by an Israeli inventor, Alon Bodner, who used the water itself to obtain oxygen. The extraction takes place thanks to a centrifugal force system which spins the liquid around quickly, generating less pressure within it and expelling the air. In order for it to work, it uses a small battery which has also been improved by AUTEC, and allows the system to be used for over twelve hours.”

  “So that’s how we’ll get the air we’re going to be breathing down there?”

  “No. When this system was discovered, the design of the vessel and its manufacture were virtually complete. It would involve huge costs to readapt it. Today we’re going to be using a system which obtains oxygen from the water through electrolysis, a process by which electricity is applied in order to separate the elements in a compound. In this case, we’re separating oxygen from hydrogen, the two elements which make up the H2O molecule, or water if you prefer. Anyway, we have several containers full of oxygen, just to be on the safe side.”

  “160 feet,” interrupted Scott. “The system checks have been carried out successfully, everything is in working order.”

  “Can we use all the submarine’s features now?”

  “Affirmative.”

  Richard seemed confused. “You weren’t using the submarine at its full potential?”

  “The submarine was carrying out an internal performance test, and to do so it needs to operate at one percent of its maneuverability capacity.”

  “Shit!”

  “Calm down, it isn’t deep enough for messing about. We will descend slowly.”

  Through the inspection doors, the only thing visible was darkness and more darkness. Although his two companions were calm, the idea of being over three hundred feet under the sea and going even further down did not make him happy in the slightest. He was starting to feel claustrophobic and the craziest ideas popped into his head over and over.

  What if the machine explodes? Shit, we’re going down to the bottom of the sea! And what if we run out of oxygen? God! Why did I agree to come down here?!

  He tried to keep a clear head, breathing slowly, inhaling and exhaling deeply so as to avoid hyperventilating. The last thing he needed was to have a panic attack at the bottom of the sea.

  “This is control. Do you read me?”

  “Yes,” hurriedly replied back Scott.

  “The ocean floor is 2000 feet below sea level. According to our equipment, you will come up against several sea currents which will make it difficult for you to follow the initial course. For the time being, you mustn’t take the submarine lower than a depth of 1300 feet.”

  Will didn’t understand what she was saying and Richard began to shake even more. “Why?”

  “According to our scanners, there are mountainous remains in the area which come up from the seabed to a height of over three hundred feet. If you keep going down, you’ll crash into them.”

  Despite the sea giving them a clear view and not being at all murky, Scott switched on all the headlights on the submarine and deviated slightly from the established route. He wanted to avoid any last minute surprises.

  DEPTH: 980 FEET

  SPEED OF DESCENT: 12 MPH

  OXYGEN LEVELS: STABLE

  MINI-SUBMARINE FUNCTIONING AT: 100%

  “The marine instruments aren’t picking up anything abnormal on the seabed,” replied Will. “We’re 1150 feet down.”

  Suddenly, something violently pushed them forwards. If it hadn’t been for the harness keeping Richard pinned to his seat, he would have been thrown against Will. Scott was manning the controls but the submarine was vibrating too much. Something was attacking them.”

  The woman’s voice came over the speakers again. “You’re caught in an ocean current. Activate SC2 mode. You’re free to move to the left.”

  Scott pressed it immediately and the submarine automatically activated its propellers; one in the front section which drove the vessel forwards and regulated its speed so that the current couldn’t make it move, and another on the right side which moved the craft to the left. With unexpected ease, it managed to free itself from the current.

  Richard wasn’t even aware that he had stopped breathing for around thirty seconds. The ocean current had exerted immense pressure on the submarine, causing an enormous vibration and yet the vessel had stoically withstood it and emerged victorious from the battle.

  Much has been written about the strong currents which are present in the Bermuda Triangle. That was one of the reasons why the remains of disappeared boats and airplanes couldn’t be salvaged; partly because the currents would have scattered them for hundreds of miles, and partly because man did not have sufficient means to investigate the seabed and emerge unscathed.

  Richard didn’t even want to think about what a bad time he would have and how dangerous it would be if they had to descend to depths of over 19500 feet below sea level, regardless of how much his companions assured him otherwise.

  “1300 feet! I can see the bottom.”

  Will got closer to the nearest inspection door to get a better view. The headlights revealed a circle around a thousand feet in diameter. The submarine stopped six hundred and fifty feet from the seabed and then pushed forwards. It wasn’t long before they realized that as they advanced along the horizontal, the seabed was getting nearer.

  “Perform a depth check for a 1650 foot radius. I don’t think the area is level.”

  Will got to work, while on the surface Alexandra, who had heard her colleague’s observations, had already realized what was going on and started sweep the area five minutes ago.

  “It isn’t an oceanic plateau,” she said through the speakers. “You’re in a kind of mountain range which ends in a flat area around 1300 feet below sea level, less than 650 feet from the current course. I have noticed an average unevenness of twenty percent, down to a maximum depth of 23000 feet, around eleven miles from where you are right now.”

  The data filtered into Richard’s brain, making him tremble slightly.

  “According to the bathymetric study that I’ve just made in this area via the dual frequency side-scan sonar system, the findings show that the seabed consists of rocky formations with well-defined and somewhat strange natural formations.”

  Richard couldn’t hide his surprise. “What?! That’s impossible!”

  The woman didn’t respond, which irritated him considerably. He felt like they were hiding things from him and he was involved in this mission just as much or more than them, whether they liked it or not. He had a right to
know everything.

  Will did answer. “Sonar works by simultaneously sending out dozens of sound waves to the seabed. The time it takes for the sound to travel through the water, rebound and come back to the surface tells us the true depth. The computers then use that to create a plan which illustrates topographic and morphologic features of the seabed, giving us precise information about the different materials which make up the layer and what is down there. The information is completely reliable.”

  “But… that would mean that they are - “

  “Remains of a civilization,” replied the woman eventually.

  “Look!” shouted Scott.

  With all the excitement, they had forgotten that the submarine was continuing on its course. They walked over to the inspection ports. The headlights had rotated and were illuminating everything that was in front of them. Richard was surprised when in the distance he could see the remains of stones which looked like walls, houses, buildings with steps and something which took his breath away for a few seconds. In the middle of the site was a huge pyramid of over three hundred feet in height.

  Chapter 74

  “Shit! If James knew what I was looking at down here, he would die of envy!”

  The mini-submarine softly glided over the ruins without touching them, sixteen feet above the ocean floor. At first glance, the colony appeared to be a platform measuring around two square miles with a series of building surrounding it. In the middle was a gigantic pyramid, more similar to those of the Mayans than the Egyptians.

  With great precision, Scott brought the submarine down to the seabed. Alexandra supervised the whole process through the cameras installed in the vessel which relayed images back to one of the computers on the boat. For the first time in ages, her facial expression went from serious and indifferent to confused and surprised.

  Despite finding himself in a totally incredible situation, given that one doesn’t find an oceanic pyramid every day, Richard knew that it wasn’t the only one in the world. A group of investigators had recently explored the depths off the Cuban coast and on the far east of the island, just off the Guanahacabibes Peninsula, they had found some stone structures which dated back over six thousand years. The area was studied with sophisticated sonar equipment and it confirmed the existence of a huge platform with a series of stones organized into some kind of urban construction, with several pyramids of considerable height. Everything was at a depth of two thousand feet and occupied an area of eight square miles. Much more famous are the ruins of Yonaguni, considered to be the most ancient ruins known to man and whose creation dates back over ten thousand years. Some of these structures are eighty-two feet in height in the form of pyramids with perfect right angles, and they even have steps carved into the rock itself. It is thought that the structures were built when the sea level was much lower, due to the fact that most of that additional water was frozen in the northern hemisphere.