“Just try. We have to—”
“Good afternoon, Professor Nakano.”Gabriel’s voice seemed explosively loud.froze, sprawled in the stream of kerosene. “Gabriel?”
“I am continuing to collect and correlate your data. May I be of additional assistance?”singsong chanting continued uninterrupted from beyond the tunnel. Their conversation had not been heard.
“Can you pick up our location?”
“Of course, my GPS is working perfectly, Professor Nakano.”
“Then please contact the Chatan authorities. Tell them we are under assault by looters at this location.”Gabriel could acknowledge this command, the chanting outside abruptly ended. Karen clutched Miyuki’s arm, warning her to silence. Miyuki yanked back her computer, and the two women rolled to the side. Karen saw the first man’s face appear again at the tunnel’s mouth. This time it was not a flashlight he held in his free hand, but a matchstick.had run out.struck the match on the stone. A tiny flame sprouted. Holding the match aloft, the man again called toward them. His words almost sounded laced with regret. Then he tossed the flaming match down the tunnel.
“You’re running out of air, Jack,” Lisa warned through the radio. Her voice had remained edgy since the glitch in communications. She had been calling him every other minute.
“I know,” he snapped back at her. “I can see my oxygen gauge.” Jack worked the pedals of his submersible while simultaneously manipulating the controls to the remote exterior arms. He dragged a large chunk of fuselage out of the way. Silt billowed up from his motion, clouding his view. He had been working now close to an hour, shifting through the debris, following the pingof the wreck’s black boxes. Jack released the chunk of twisted metal and shifted the sub into reverse, using the thrusters to blow the silt clear. He didn’t have time to wait for it to settle on its own. Nautilusglided backward, but he watched the water clear ahead of him. Once satisfied, he slowed the submersible and edged back to the work site. Tilting the sub, Jack examined the sandy seabed. A thick sea cucumber rolled across the empty space, disturbed by his passage.’mon, you bastard, where are you?he spotted it. A squarish object half buried in the muddy silt. He swung his lights to focus on it and sighed in relief. Thank God!He wiped sweat from his eyes. The small space had grown humid from his labors. “Found it!” he called hoarsely into his microphone.
“Say again?”
“I found the second black box.”inched the sub forward and settled it to the seabed. The characteristic orange and red box lay near the sub’s nose. The term “black” box was a misnomer. The data recorders had never been black. Jack reached out with his titanium arms. Using the right pincer, he gripped the rectangular box and carefully pulled it from the mud. He lifted it into view and grinned in relief, suddenly giddy. He had done it! It was Air Force One’s cockpit recorder.
“Got it!”
“Then get your ass up here, Jack. You’re damn near the point of no return. Your CO 2levels are already rising.”
“I hear you, Mother,” he said, checking his gauges. He had just enough oxygen to reach the surface — at least, he hoped so. Swinging around in a tight arc, he returned to where he had left the first box — the flight’s data recorder — and collected it up in his left pincer.
“Got both prizes. Coming up!”had reached for the key to blow his ballast when a glint from the seafloor caught his eye. Frowning, he swung his lamps. A gasp escaped his throat. “Oh, God!”
“Jack, what is it?”the lamp’s glare a facestared back at him from the seabed floor. It took Jack a couple heartbeats to realize the visage was not that of a dead body — instead, the face shone bright green under his light. It was hard, crystalline. Jade. As he adjusted the light, he recognized the distinct Asian features and ancient war crown. He’d been told about the gift given to President Bishop by the Chinese Premier — a full-sized replica of a terra-cotta warrior, done in jade. Jack nudged the Nautiluscloser and bumped the bust with one of the sub’s arms. The head rolled across the silty bottom. It was all that was left of the ten-foot statue.
“Jack, what is it?” Lisa repeated.swallowed hard. “Nothing. I’m okay. Coming up.”before he could leave, his eyes returned to the green gaze of the jade bust. The features were so lifelike — the sole survivor of the tragedy. Switching both black boxes to one pincer, Jack used the freed-up arm to grab the piece of jade sculpture. It had been the last gift to a dead President. He would not leave it behind.his treasures in hand, Jack tapped a key and blew his ballast. The sub burst upward from the seabed with a goose of his thrusters., he watched the debris field fade away. Near its center, the strange spear of crystalline rock came into view again, jabbing up from the seabed. His gaze was drawn to it. He knew Charlie would sell his eyeteeth to catch a glimpse of the amazing structure. Jack hoped the video footage he had recorded to disk would come out.he climbed, the sight vanished beyond the reach of the sub’s searchlights. Jack settled back to his seat. Every muscle ached. He had not realized how the effort had worn on him: the tension, the cramped quarters, the meticulous work. While sifting through the debris, he had kept himself tight as a fist. Periodically as he’d worked, the strange tingling sensation had washed over him, quivering the tiny hairs all over his body. It was as if the eyes of the dead were studying him. Occasionally he would swear he caught movement at the corners of his eyes. But when he’d looked, all he found was wreckage and debris.
“Jack, there’s someone here who wants to speak to you.”
“Who?”new voice came over the radio. “How are you doing, Jack?”
“Admiral?” What was Mark Houston doing aboard the Fathom?if reading his mind, the admiral answered, “I was flown to your boat about ten minutes ago. I heard the good news en route. So you’ve recovered bothdata recorders?”
“Yes, sir. I should be up with them in about fifteen minutes.”
“I knew you could do it, Jack.”remained silent. As much as he wanted to distance himself from his naval past, praise from his old commander still affected him.Houston continued, “How did your submersible handle?”
“Except for that glitch in communications, she handled like a dream.”
“Good, because the NTSB team has been monitoring your video feed of the wreckage. The team has already targeted a few key pieces of the plane that they’d like to see brought to the surface.”
“Sir?”
“Would you be willing to haul cable from the winches?”bit his lower lip, holding back a curse. He had hoped the retrieval of the flight’s data recorders would end his obligation here. “I’d have to check with the rest of my team.”
“Of course, you have the night to sleep on it. The NTSB will have enough on its hands just analyzing the black boxes.”grimaced. He did not want to return to the deep-sea graveyard. Though he had been searching wrecks for the past decade, this one was different. It reminded him too acutely of his own accident.
“I’ll consider it, Admiral. That’s all I’ll say for now.”
“That’s all I’m asking.”, Jack leaned back and watched the depth gauge wind toward the two hundred meter mark. The seas around him began to lighten. It was as if dawn were approaching after a long moonless night. He had never wanted to see the sky so desperately.more familiar voice returned to the radio. “We have your GPS picked up,” Lisa said. “Charlie already has the dinghy in the water.”
“Thanks, Lisa. The sooner I get out of this titanium coffin and into a cold shower, the better.”
“What about what the admiral wants us to do?”screwed up his face. He did not want this conversation. “What do you think? Should we do it?”could almost hear Lisa shrug. “It’s up to you, Jack, but I don’t like that communication glitch. The sub is still experimental. It was not meant to be tested so vigorously. I’d really like to see the sub dry-docked and inspected to make sure the seals are undamaged. You don’t take chances at these depths.”
“You’re probably right, Lisa. This wreckage isn’t going anywhere.” Jack warmed to the idea. It would buy him time to sort through his feelings. “Could you have Robert prepare the A-frame? We’ll haul the Nautilusout and give her a thorough going over before we consider the Navy’s request.”
“Good.” Lisa sounded relieved.depth gauge crossed the hundred meter level. Jack craned his neck back. He could see the distant sun as a watery glow in the dim water. “I should be up in less than a minute.”
“We’re ready for you. Charlie is on his way.”closed his eyes, allowing himself a few private moments. If the admiral was aboard the Fathom, he suspected this would be his last moment of peace for the remainder of the day. He knew he faced a long debriefing.sunlight suddenly burst around him, Jack peeked open his eyes. He fished into a side compartment and retrieved his sunglasses. After being submerged for so long, the light stung. As he snapped the side compartment closed his hand settled on the video DVD recorder.a good reason, but unable to resist, he popped out the tiny disk, slipped it into a pocket of his wet suit, and zippered it closed. The video of the crystal spire had nothing to do with the crash, and Charlie would want to see it. If the investigators knew of it, they would just confiscate it and lose it among the thousands of other details — or so he rationalized to himself.truth, the bit of subterfuge was his way of exerting some control over the situation. He meant to keep something for himself from this adventure.sound of an outboard motor sounded, buzzing through the gentle slosh of waves against his acrylic bubble. Jack turned and spotted the Fathom’s Zodiac dinghy, its green pontoons bouncing through the small swells., he slipped on his sunglasses. He spotted Charlie at the wheel. The tall Jamaican waved a long arm in his direction. Here comes the cavalry!Then Jack saw someone standing beside the geologist. Someone in a black wet suit. He frowned. Who’s that?pulled alongside the bobbing sub and hopped over. As he secured the mooring lines, the dinghy’s other occupant dumped over the side before Jack could get a better look at him.clambered over and unscrewed the acrylic dome. Jack pushed from the inside and shoved the dome back. Fresh air swept into the cabin and he breathed deeply, not realizing until this moment how dead the air in the sub had become. He hadshaved this dive a little close.with his arms, Jack yanked himself from the compartment. “Who’s with you?”
“One of those NTSB investigator boys. He’s here to make sure the black boxes are secure.”stretched, joints popping, then clambered over toward the nose of the sub. “I could have brought them in myself.”
“They’re not taking any chances. National security and all that. Someone had to be present.”knelt and saw the man, in snorkel and mask, working at the grips of the submerged arms. He worked fast and efficiently. At least they sent someone who knew something about submersibles. The man loosened the first pincer and collected both data recorders into a bulky float bag. It bobbed to the surface, tied by a tether to the man’s belt. The man did not even come up for air as he turned his attention to the second pincer. He freed the jade bust and collected it into another float bag.felt a twinge of respect. The man knew his stuff.the second float bag broke the surface, Charlie called to Jack, “Help me turn the dinghy!”left his observation point and assisted Charlie with the final preparations to haul the submersible back to the Fathom. Not that they would have far to go; the Fathomwas already motoring toward their position. Jack squinted at his ship, a welcome sight.dinghy suddenly rocked under Jack’s feet. He grabbed the back of the pilot’s seat to keep his footing. Glancing over his shoulder, he saw the NTSB man haul himself over the leeward pontoon. Jack stumbled over to assist the man into the dinghy, but by the time he got there the man had rolled aboard and was hauling one of the float bags inside.
“Let me help you,” Jack said, leaning over the side and grabbing the edge of the other float bag.found himself hip-checked and knocked onto his rear. “Leave it!” the man ordered. His words were harsh and carried a tone of command.pushed to his feet, his cheeks red, his blood up. No one shoved him around his own boat. He stepped nearer. “Who the hell do you think—”big man turned, ripped away his mask and pulled back the hood of his wet suit.gasped as he recognized the diver. It could not be. He had not seen his former teammate in over a decade. “David?”tall blond man’s face was twisted with hatred. Before Jack could move, a fist flew toward his face. Hard knuckles struck his lower jaw and threw him backward. Sparks of light danced across his vision as he hit the floor.was instantly there, stepping between the attacker and his captain. “What the hell do you think you’re doing, mon?”sat up. “Stay out of it, Charlie.” He pushed himself to his feet, tasted blood on his tongue. The tall Jamaican moved back a half step, ready to defend his friend if necessary.Spangler’s thin lips sneered at Jack. “That was for Jen!” he spat.rubbed his jaw. He had no answer for that. In fact, he couldn’t blame David for his reaction. “What are you doing here?” he simply asked, leaning back against a chair.
“I’ve been assigned to the investigation by the new President.”
“What’s the CIA have to do with this?”’s right eye twitched.
“Yeah, I heard about your transfer,” Jack said, tired. “It seems you’ve moved up in the world.”
“And you should have stayed gone from it,” David said. He turned and hauled the second float bag into the dinghy.
“It wasn’t my idea to come here.”
“Let me guess,” David said harshly. “Admiral Houston called you in.”shrugged.dumped the second black box into the boat, none too gently. “Houston always had a hard-on for you, Kirkland.”’s voice grew gruff. “He was a friend of Jennifer’s, too.”
“Yeah, and look what it got her.”nudged Charlie toward the wheel. “Get us out of here.” Jack stared David down. In the other man’s blue eyes, Jack saw all the blame he felt in his own heart. “I’m sorry about Jennifer—” he started.
“Fuck your apology,” David spat back. “I have my job, you have yours. Just stay out of my way.”knew no words would ever settle this old score. David would never forgive him for his sister’s death. The chasm between them was unbridgeable. Giving up, Jack crossed to the stern to make sure the mooring lines remained clear of the motor. As he moved past the former SEAL, the man leaned close to him, his breath hot on Jack’s face.’s eyes shone with rancor and malice. It was like looking into the eyes of a rabid animal. He whispered so his words were heard only by Jack: “This isn’t over, Kirkland.”
“Get back!” Karen pulled Miyuki to her knees. Flames filled the narrow crawlway and spread rapidly along the trail of kerosene. On hands and knees the two fled behind the altar.the crawlway, flames swept into their hiding place, accompanied by a blast of searing heat and stinging smoke. Miyuki cupped her arm across her mouth, her eyes tearing.joined her, suppressing a choking cough, afraid to alert the looters outside. What were they to do? In the brightness of the flames, Karen’s watery eyes were drawn to the sharp glint from the snake sculpture wrapped around the altar. Its twin eyes glowed at her, reflecting the fire. Rubies.
“Karen…?” Miyuki reached out a hand to her.took it, and the women clung to one another. The wall of flames blocked escape, and the air grew smokier with each breath.
“I’m sorry,” Karen mumbled.
“Could there be another way out?” Miyuki asked. “A secret passage.”bit her lower lip, straining to think past her panic. “I don’t know. If there was, it would probably be near the altar.” Her eyes were again drawn to the altar’s snake carving. Something had been bothering her about it, nagging for her attention. Her gaze caught again on the snake’s ruby eyes. With her free hand, Karen touched the stone carving. Then she saw it, reflected in the firelight — a defect. One of the ruby eyes shone much brighter than the other. It was almost as if a hollow space lay behind it. Using a finger, she pressed against the faceted eye.
“What are you doing?” Miyuki asked.jewel pushed back into the snake’s skull, she heard a sharp click, then felt the snake’s head loosen in her grip. “It’s a lock release!” She could now swing the figure’s head back and forth. But nothing happened. What was its purpose?smoke, meanwhile, settled thicker in the chamber. Near the tunnel, the flames receded, the kerosene almost spent. Karen rubbed her sore eyes. Outside, she heard the attackers stir. Since their initial volley had failed to smoke them out, what might they do next?answer came quickly. A flaming glass bottle flew into the room and exploded against the front of the altar. A wave of fire burst up.fell backward, and Miyuki ducked farther behind the altar with a startled squawk.
“Goddamn them!” Karen swore. Ignoring the flames, she moved back to the altar. The secret release suggested the carving was more than decoration. Could there be a hidden passage?The heat burned Karen’s cheeks as she studied the stone snake. The serpent curled fully around the edge of the altar, its tail not far from its raised head. A thought occurred to her. The worm Ourbourus. The snake biting its own tail. A symbol of the infinite. Many cultures had similar mythic images. It was even in Mayan astrology.the tunnel, Karen heard the men’s voices grow heated, argumentative, impatient. Then a bullet blasted into the chamber, ricocheting in a shower of stone shards. Ducking, Karen shoved the sculpture’s head all the way around until the tip of the serpent’s snout touched its own tail.loud grinding sounded under her toes, and Karen tensed.
“What’s happening?” Miyuki whispered, waving the smoke away.backed up as the altar stone lowered, dropping into the slab floor. “C’mon!” Karen took the penlight from a pocket and flashed a long beam into the inky darkness. The altar had fallen down about two meters.sensed that a larger chamber lay below, and leaned closer, trying to get a better look. A bullet whizzed past her left ear. She felt the heat of its passage as she dropped to her belly. “There’s no other way out of here,” she said, glancing at her friend.’s eyes were huge, but she gave a quick nod.popped the penlight in her mouth. “I’ll go first,” she mumbled. Swinging her legs into the pit, she probed with her toes. No footholds. With a glance below, she aimed for the top of the lowered altar and pushed off. Her feet hit hard, dropping her to one hand.flashed her light around the chamber. Pools of dank water dotted the floor. Pale ropes of algae hung from the roof. On the far side, a dark tunnel led away. She stood and shifted her light for a better look. No, not a tunnel — a stairway. It descended at a steep angle. Wherever it led, it was better than here.second shot blasted overhead, quickly followed by another.squeaked, laying flat., Karen called up. “Toss my gun and holster.”’s face disappeared for a moment. “Here!” She dropped the leather holster strap. The gun followed a second later. Karen caught it in one hand.
“Now you!” Karen urged.
“Not yet.” Miyuki disappeared again.was she doing?’s legs reappeared. Karen reached up and guided her friend’s ankles. “Okay. You’re clear.”let go, landing almost on top of Karen, who held her friend steady. “Good job.”
“Yeah, thanks,” Miyuki muttered, clutching her satchel of equipment tight to her chest. She caught Karen’s glance. “I wasn’t leaving Gabriel behind.”grinned, despite the situation. She bent and collected her pistol. It seemed each of them had their own security blanket. Holstering the gun, she tossed the strap over her shoulder. “C’mon.”hopped off the altar, and Miyuki followed. As soon as the petite woman left the stone table, they heard gears grinding overhead. The altar stone and its platform thrust back up, rose on a basalt pillar and jammed back into place.
“Pressure sensitive,” Karen said with awe at the keen counterbalance system. It astounded her that the mechanism functioned after being immersed for centuries in the salty sea.settled over them. Distantly, the drip of water echoed up from the neighboring stairwell. Miyuki took a flashlight from her bag, clicked it on and shone it forward. She wore a determined expression. “You go first.”nodded, and led the way. The stair was narrow, but the ceiling high enough to walk upright. Within the passage, the echoing drip of water grew louder. Karen splayed out her light, ran a finger along the damp wall. “The stone blocks are fitted perfectly. I can barely feel the seams.”made a noncommittal noise. She kept glancing back over her shoulder as they moved slowly down the stairs. “Do you think they’ll follow?”directed her light forward again. “I…I don’t know. But if they do, let’s be as far away from here as possible.”was silent for several steps. Her breathing, though, was strained and tight. She finally asked the question uppermost in Karen’s mind. “Where do you think this leads?”
“I’d guess some royal burial chamber. But I’m not sure. This passage is pretty steep. We must be close to the base of the pyramid by now.”her theory true, the stairs ended at a tunnel. The next passage led in a straight line away from there. A long way. Karen’s light failed to find an end. She assumed the tunnel led beyond the pyramid itself., she moved down to the last step. Ahead, the tunnel lay partially flooded. At least a foot of water covered the floor. Within the beam of her light, Karen watched trickles of water drip and flow from cracks in the ceiling. “We must be underneath the pyramid…underneath the sea itself,” she muttered. “Look at the walls here. They’re not carved stone blocks, but solid rock. It must have taken decades to tunnel out this passage.”leaned beside her. “Maybe not. It might just be a lava tube. Japan is riddled with them.”
“Hmm…maybe.”stared over at the dripping water. “I don’t know about this. Can’t we just wait—”ringing sound cut her off, echoing down the stairs to them. Metal on rock. The two women’s eyes met.
“They’re trying to dig themselves inside,” Karen said.pushed Karen toward the watery passage. “Get going!”splashed into the water and gasped as the cold clamped around her ankles. The tang of salt was sharp in the stagnant air. Miyuki followed, holding her equipment bag tight. They continued down the long tunnel, their splashes echoing up and down the passage. The noise made them both edgy.ran her fingers along the wall here, too. It was still smooth, almost glassy. Too smooth to have been carved by crude tools. It seemed a natural passage, as Miyuki had suggested. She tapped the wall with a knuckle.
“Don’t do that!” Miyuki yelled at her.shout startled Karen. She dropped her hand.
“Do you want to drown us?” Miyuki said.
“This passage has been down here for ages.”
“Still, don’t knock on the walls. After the quakes and uplift, you don’t know how fragile it might be.”
“All right,” Karen said, “I’ll leave it alone.” She turned her attention to the passage ahead, which seemed to widen. She increased her pace. Could it be the end? She prayed for another exit. The ringing strike of metal on stone still echoed periodically behind them. Their pursuers were not giving up.in water up to her knees now, Karen hurried forward, then stopped. She looked around, mouth gaping open. The passage continued, but here the tunnel ballooned out. The ceiling became a dome overhead, as glassy and smooth as the passage itself. If this was a lava tube, a bubble must have formed at this spot.wagged her flashlight around. Overhead, embedded bits of glittering quartz dotted the roof. At first she thought it was a random pattern, then she turned in a circle, neck craned back. “It’s a starscape. See, there’s the Orion constellation.”looked less impressed. She glanced over her shoulder as another echoing strike sounded behind them. “We should keep going.”lowered her light. She knew Miyuki was right, but her legs would not move. Nothing like this had ever been discovered among the islands of the South Pacific. Who had built this? Her light, now pointing forward, settled on a waist-high section of the wall. A sharp glint attracted her attention. She narrowed her eyes. A small niche had been dug out of the smooth wall. A cubbyhole. Something inside reflected back her light. Karen approached it.started to speak, but Karen stopped her with an upraised hand. She bent to peer into the tiny alcove. Resting inside was a palm-size crystal star. Five points glittered brightly under her penlight. It was as if a rainbow had exploded inside. As she shifted her light, she noticed deep scratches on the nearby wall and took a step back. She had almost missed it at first. She cast her light along the curved wall.
“My God!”carved into the stone were lines of small symbols. Three rows of them. Clearly some form of archaic language.closer, she touched the first symbol with a finger. The wall etchings were precise, carved deep, as if written with a diamond-pointed tool. But for all the precision, the symbols themselves were crude. Rough hieroglyphics. Pictures of animals and men in distorted shapes and postures. Strange icons and repeated symbols.tilted her head, moving the light. The rows continued, waist-high around the bubble in the tunnel.turned to Miyuki, her breath rushed. “I need a picture of this.”
“What?” Her friend looked at her as if she were crazy.straightened, reaching for Miyuki’s bag. “Video record it. Save it. I can’t risk this being lost.”scowled. “What are you thinking? We need to get out here.”
“The looters might destroy this. Or the whole area might sink again.”
“I’m more worried about it sinking with us in it.”pleaded with her eyes., Miyuki sighed and passed the satchel to Karen, who held it as Miyuki shuffled through it for her tiny digital camera. Freeing it, she passed Karen her own larger flashlight. “I’ll need plenty of light. Follow as I record.” Miyuki returned to the wall, camera raised. She slowly edged around the chamber, tracing the wrap of ancient writing until she made a complete circuit.realized something as they worked. “It’s not three rows,” she mumbled. “It’s one continuous line — starting at the crystal star and wrapping around and around the room, like the groove in a vinyl record.”
“Or a curled snake,” Miyuki said, lowering the camera as she finished recording. She started to put it away. “Satisfied?”passed Miyuki the large flashlight. “Could you get a couple shots of the star map on the ceiling?”frowned but took the flashlight.the equipment satchel over her shoulder, Karen turned away. “I’m going to take the crystal artifact with me. We can’t let the looters get it.” She crossed to the cubbyhole and reached inside, grabbed the star and tried to pick it up, but failed. She gave it a cautious tug, but it didn’t budge. “Goddamn. It’s cemented in place.”with the recording, Miyuki joined Karen. “Then leave it.” She peered down the tunnel. The sound of digging had stopped a few minutes ago. “I don’t like this quiet. Maybe they got through.”scrunched up her brow. She didn’t want to leave the crystal star behind. “Shine your light in here so I can see what I’m doing.”moved closer and shone her light into the cubby. Again the rainbow brilliance sparked sharply. “It’s beautiful,” she conceded in a hushed voice.Karen palmed the star and tugged hard. This time it popped free easily. Caught off guard, she stumbled back, bumping into Miyuki. Her friend’s flashlight went flying and splashed into the water.bent to retrieve it. “I hope you’re done,” she said, fishing through the seawater. “Lucky the flashlight’s waterproof.”held the star against her belly. It was like cradling a bowling ball. She had to hold it with both hands. The star hadn’t been cemented into the niche, she simply hadn’t expected it to be so heavy. “This thing weighs a ton,” she said. She lifted the star and dropped it into a side pocket of the equipment bag. The bag now pulled hard on her shoulder. “Okay. Let’s keep going.”
“We should hurry. I don’t like how quiet—”explosion caught them by surprise. The two women were thrown to their knees as the tunnel shook. The ringing blast deafened them.twisted around, keeping her bag above the water. She fumbled for her pistol. Miyuki pointed her light back down the tunnel. Smoke billowed toward them from the far end.
“Dynamite,” Karen said. “They must have lost their patience with a pickax.”the ringing faded, a low groan filled the tunnel. The drip of water became a deep gurgle. A few meters away a spout of water erupted, spraying a thick stream of seawater. Closer, a crack opened overhead, weeping water over them.
“It’s breaking apart!” Miyuki yelled in terror.and down the passage, more and more spouts opened. Falling rocks splashed.
“Run!” Karen shouted. Already the water rose from knees to thighs.led the way down the next tunnel, Miyuki struggling behind her, fighting through the deepening water. “Where are we going?”had no answer. First fire — now water. If not for her numbing fear, she would have appreciated the irony. But not now. Ahead, the dark passage stretched beyond the reach of their lights…quickly filling with frigid seawater.
his usual red trunks and white cotton robe, Jack relaxed in a lounge chair on the bow deck of his ship. His hair was still wet from the long shower, but the late afternoon remained warm. It felt good to soak in the last rays of the setting sun. His dog, Elvis, lay sprawled beside the lounge.the deck, the sleek contours of the Nautilus 2000reflected the light off its titanium surface. Robert worked under the dry-docked submersible, inspecting every square inch, while Lisa sat inside, doing the same. So far the sub seemed to have withstood the extreme pressures without a problem. The only concern: the radio glitch. Lisa had been troubleshooting the computer and com systems, trying to trace the gremlin in the works, but so far without success.
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