“Just what the doctor ordered.” The admiral smiled, but it came out sickly.led the way down to the main deck and to his stateroom. He held the door open for the old man.both were inside, Houston nodded back at the door. “Lock it.”did as ordered. He pointed toward a pair of leather chairs in front of his shelves of nautical memorabilia. Houston crossed to the shelves, touching an ancient sextant. “Is this the one I gave you?”
“After I was accepted to the shuttle mission, yep.”turned and sank into one of the chairs with a long sigh. For the first time, Jack saw the man’s age. He looked sunken, defeated. The admiral pointed back at the sextant. “So you haven’t completely tossed away your past.”moved to a cabinet and pulled out a bottle of scotch and two glasses. “Not the important things.”nodded. He was silent for several moments. “Jack, have you made a decision yet on helping us retrieve sections of Air Force One?”sighed. He poured a couple fingers worth of his private stash into each glass. He knew Houston liked his scotch neat. “No, sir…we’re still doing some diagnostics on the sub.”
“Hmm…” the admiral mumbled, accepting the glass. He sipped thoughtfully, clearly thinking something through. Finally, he settled the glass on a teak captain’s table. Reaching inside his flight jacket, he pulled out a folded sheaf. “Maybe this will help you decide.” He held out the papers.gripped the proffered sheets, but the admiral did not release them. “This is confidential information. But if you’re going to help us, you should be kept informed.” Houston let go of the report.moved to his chair. “This is from the cockpit voice recorder?”
“Yes, the last minutes between the cockpit crew.”sat down and slowly unfolded the papers. As much as he didn’t want to be drawn further into this operation, his curiosity couldn’t be ignored. He read the report.27-200B
(DESIGNATION: VC-25 A): 18:56: Honolulu, this is Victor Charlie Alpha. Can you update our weather? We’re hitting some heavy pockets out here.OFFICER: Why aren’t they answering?: Honolulu, this is Victor Charlie Alpha. Please answer. We’re having trouble with our radar and compasses. Can you…Hang on!
[ loud rumble and rattle]: What the hell was that?: Another pocket. Try climbing higher.OFFICER: Climbing to thirty-five thousand.: I’m still getting conflicting readings here from the INS units. The Omega, the radar, the celestial sextant…it’s making no sense. I’m going on dead reckoning.: Everyone keep your heads in the game here.OFFICER: She’s heavy, sir. Not able to climb.: What?: This doesn’t make sense. I’m picking up land ahead.: Must be Wake Island. I’ll try to pick up something local on the radio.
[ pause]Island, this is Victor Charlie Alpha, we need assistance.
[ silence for thirty seconds]: It’s too big, sir. This can’t be right. I’m going to check the manual sextant.OFFICER: What are those lights?: Just glare off the windshield. Keep climbing.: Where the hell are we?
[ deep rumble]: What is that? What is that?OFFICER: Losing altitude. Controls aren’t responding!: My God!: We’re over land!OFFICER: I can’t see! The light!
[ screech of metal, rush of wind]OFFICER: Engine number one is on fire!: Shut it down! Now!OFFICER: Yes, sir.: What the hell is going on!: Honolulu, this is Victor—OFFICER: Something ahead of us! Something ahead of us!: I’m not reading anything. Nothing on radar…nothing on anything!: Honolulu, this is Victor Charlie Alpha. Mayday, mayday!OFFICER: The sky! The sky is opening up!
[ roaring noise, then silence]OF COCKPIT VOICE RECORDING: 19:08lowered the sheets. “My God. What happened up there?”shifted in his seat and reached for the fax sheets. “A chopper is on its way to collect me. I want to listen to the recording myself. But as to the true answer, there’s only one way to find out…. The answer lies down below.”reached a trembling hand to his glass of scotch. He swallowed its contents in one gulp. The expensive liquor burned all the way to his belly.
“Jack…?”filled his glass one more time. He leaned back into his seat, sipping more gently at the smooth scotch, appreciating it this time. He met the admiral’s gaze. “I’ll go,” he said simply.nodded and raised his scotch. Jack reached over and tapped his old friend’s glass with his own. “To absent friends,” Jack said.
of the Puzzlehurried across the staff parking lot, late for her lunch meeting with Miyuki. Her friend’s office and lab were on the fourth floor of the old Yagasaki Building, once a government office complex. Ryukyu University had originally been founded by the United States Civil Administration in 1950, built upon the site of the ancient Castle of Shuri, but in 1972 the Japanese took over the administration. Since then the university had spread from its original site into the surrounding countryside and local buildings.up the steps and through the double doors, Karen crossed to the stationed guard and flashed her identification card.nodded from behind his desk and waved her past, checking her name off his list. The president of Ryukyu University was taking no chances. Although the island of Okinawa was climbing out of the devastation, looting remained sporadic. The added security measures were the university’s attempt to protect its assets.strode to the stairwell, passing a bank of elevators cordoned off with yellow tape declaring them “Out of Service.” She imagined the companies that produced those rolls of ribbon were making a fortune. The same yellow tape was strewn like party streamers throughout the island.her watch, she picked up her pace on the stairs. Since returning from their harrowing journey to the ruins of Chatan, this was the first chance the two women had to consult one another. Miyuki had called this morning and urged Karen to join her at her lab. She had news about the crystal star but would say no more over the phone.wondered what her friend had learned. Over the past three days, Karen had been doing her own research — investigating the cryptic language, trying to trace its origin. But progress had been slow. The island was continually plagued by power failures that interfered with communication. For a while, she’d been sure the glyphs were similar to a script found in the Indus Valley ruins of Pakistan, but on closer inspection she realized the similarity was only superficial. This line of study, however, was not a total waste. It did send her down another path, to another similar language, one even more exciting. Still, she needed further study before she was willing to voice her theory aloud.the top of the stairs, Karen found Miyuki waiting, dressed in her usual crisp lab coat. “The guard buzzed me that you were on the way up,” her friend said. “C’mon.”they walked, Karen asked, “What have you found?”shook her head. “You have to see this for yourself.” She led the way down the hall past other teachers’ offices. “What about the hieroglyphics?”hesitated. “I may have a lead.”glanced at her with surprise. “Really? I’ve been having Gabriel try to decode it, but he’s had little success.”
“He can do that? Decipher it?”
“One of his base algorithms is a decoding program. Ciphering is a useful model for building an artificial intelligence construct, and if you correlate—”held up a hand, surrendering. “Okay, I believe you. Has Gabriel learned anything?”
“Only one thing…it’s part of the reason I called you. But he’d have more success with additional examples of the language. More data from which to correlate, cross-check, and build a language base.”bit her lip, then confessed her own secret. “I may be able to supply that.”looked over again, frowning. “How?”
“I wanted to confirm my idea before bringing it up. But the library was of no use, and I keep getting booted off the Internet by these hourly brownouts. I couldn’t get an outside line all day yesterday.”
“What were you looking for?”
“Examples of a written language found on the island of Rapa Nui.”
“Rapa Nui? Isn’t that Easter Island, the place with the big stone heads?”
“Exactly.”
“But that island’s on the other side of the Pacific.”nodded. “That’s why I need further information. It’s not my area of expertise. I’ve been concentrating my studies on Polynesia and Micronesia.”pair reached Miyuki’s laboratories. Miyuki unlocked the door with a key card and held it open for Karen. They entered a tiny anteroom. Starched white “clean suits” hung on the wall. Beyond the glass doors ahead was Miyuki’s lab, all stainless steel and linoleum. Under the fluorescent bulbs, every surface gleamed, dust-free and spotless.took off her sweater and slipped out of her Reebok sneakers. She took a clean cloth suit from a peg. It was stiff after being freshly dry-cleaned and pressed. She wriggled into the white one-piece jumpsuit, then sat down on a tiny bench to slip on paper booties.did the same. She insisted that her lab maintain a sterile environment. She wanted no contaminants interfering with the large banks of computers lining the center of the room, the birthplace of Gabriel. “What’s this connection to Rapa Nui?”fixed her short blond hair under a disposable paper bonnet. “Back in 1864, a French missionary reported the discovery of hundreds of wooden tablets, staffs, even skulls carved with an unknown hieroglyphic script. The natives called this language rongorongo, but they couldn’t read the script. Some claimed the language came from the time before the natives arrived on the island in 400 A.D. Unfortunately, most of the artifacts were destroyed before they could be recovered. Only about twenty-five examples of the writing exist today in museums and universities.”
“And you think this language is the same one we discovered?”
“I can’t be sure. Rongorongois the only known indigenous written language among all the peoples of Oceania. But its origin remains a mystery, and the text unreadable. Many epigraphers and cryptologists have attempted to decipher the language, but all of them have failed.” Karen could not keep the excitement from her voice. “If we’ve discovered a new vein of this language, for the first time in centuries, we might have a chance not only to unlock the mysteries of rongorongo, but also to discover the lost history of Polynesia.”stood. “So what’s the next step?”
“I need to get on-line and hunt down the other examples of the language. Confirm my hypothesis.”began to catch Karen’s excitement. “And if you’re right, we can add these other examples to Gabriel’s database. With more information, he might be able to decipher it!”
“If so, it would be the archaeological discovery of the century.”
“Then let’s get to work. Gabriel can get you a line to the outside by hooking into the U.S. military’s phone lines. They’re the most stable.” Miyuki crossed to the glass door to her lab.
“He can do that?”nodded. “Of course. Who do you think is the main backer for my research? The U.S. military is very intrigued by artificial intelligence and its practical application. I have a Level 3 clearance.” Using her key card again, she unlocked the inner door. There was a whooshas the door seal broke. The next room was under a slight positive pressure, extra insurance against contaminants entering the lab.followed her into the clean room. “You go through a lot of trouble to avoid a bit of dusting,” she mumbled with a smirk.ignored her and crossed to a half-arc bank of computer monitors. Two wheeled chairs rested nearby. Miyuki took a seat and waved Karen to the other. “Let me show you what Gabriel has been able to decode so far.” She began tapping a keyboard while speaking aloud. “Gabriel, could you please bring up the images of the hieroglyphs?”
“Certainly, Professor Nakano. And good morning, Karen Grace.”The artificial voice came from stereo speakers behind the two women.
“Good morning, Gabriel,” Karen answered, still feeling awkward. She glanced over her shoulder at the speakers. It was as if someone stood behind her. “Th-Thank you for your help.”
“It has been a pleasure, Dr. Grace. You have presented an intriguing conundrum.”Across the long curved bank of monitors, the glyphs of the unknown language ran along the multiple screens in a continuous line: Birds, fishes, human shapes, geometric figures, and strange squiggles.
“What has he learned?” Karen asked.
“He was able to decipher a small section at the beginning.”
“You’re kidding!” Karen sat up straighter.line of script ran across the screen until a section appeared highlighted in red. Then the scrolling images stopped, centering on the highlighted section. It contained six symbols.
“Gabriel believes it’s a lunar calendar designation. A date, so to speak.”
“Hmm…those central symbols do look like the sickle shapes of a waning or waxing moon.” Karen shifted back. “But if it is a date, what does it mean? The date when the inscription was written or some historical notation?”
“I’d guess the latter,” Miyuki said. “Some ancient historical event being described.”
“Why do you think that?”remained silent.glanced at her friend. “What?”sighed. “Gabriel came to his calendar conclusion by cross-referencing with the starscape etched on the ceiling of the inner chamber.”recalled the quartz star map on the room’s domed ceiling. “So?”
“He compared the chamber’s starscape with an astronomical program, then tied it to the lunar calendar.” Miyuki looked at Karen. “He’s calculated the rough date noted in the inscription.”
“Amazing…When? What’s the date?”
“Gabriel?”program answered: “The icons denote the fourth month of a lunar year.”noted the four moon sickles. “Early spring.”
“Correct…and from the relative position of the depicted constellations, I can extrapolate the approximate year.”
“Within a statistical error of fifty years,” Miyuki elaborated.
“Of course, I could not be more precise.”
“That’s close enough!” Karen’s mind spun. If Gabriel’s calculations were correct, this might be a clue to when the ancient ruins had been constructed. “What year? How long ago?”
“According to the astronomical map — twelve thousand years ago.”the Nautilussubmersible, Jack drifted over the debris field. From his position several yards away, he watched the tail fin of the Boeing 747 rise from the silt, drawn up by two four-inch-thick steel cables. Disturbed clouds of silt wafted up as the fin was pulled like a bad tooth from where it was embedded. Six hundred meters overhead, the motorized winch aboard the USS Gibraltarhauled on the cables, slowly but efficiently drawing its catch to the surface.
“Going for the next fish,” Jack called into his throat microphone. He worked the foot pedals and swung his sub around. He checked the Nautilus’s clock. He had been working for almost three hours, targeting the specific pieces of the plane the NTSB had picked out from the video feed of his first dive.now the salvage of Air Force One was becoming almost routine. Over the past three days they had hauled up almost forty sections of the plane. The recovered wreckage was now spread and numbered in the lower hangar deck of the USS Gibraltarlike a macabre jigsaw puzzle.the recovery of the plane was well under way, so far only four bodies had been recovered: two floaters discovered in the tricky currents, identified as two men from the press pool, and the pilot and copilot, found strapped to their seats. Jack drove away that memory. The plane’s crumpled nose cone had been one of the first pieces to be hauled to the surface. He had diverted his eyes from the shattered window as he attached the cables, but had caught a brief look. The pressures at this depth had crushed their bodies to a pulp. They looked like flesh-colored clay molded into a vague approximation of the human form. The only way to identify them were by their uniforms and their seats in the cockpit.then, as Jack sifted through the wreckage, he had held his breath, fearing what else he might chance upon, but no other bodies were found. The impact and currents had thoroughly scattered the plane’s human cargo.
“We’re ready with the second winch,” the NTSB radioman announced.
“Aye. Ready on the second winch. Going for the next target.”swung the sub around and edged to the opposite side of the debris field. Ahead, another cable appeared, seeming to hang on its own, its end disappearing into the gloom above. It connected to a second surface winch aboard the Gibraltar. Jack dove the Nautilusdown to the electromagnet hook attached to its end.the sub’s external manipulator arms, he grabbed the hook and dragged it to one of the plane’s engine sections. Then he lowered the cable’s end and placed it against the metal nacelle.
“Okay,” he called up. “Energize!”his signal, he watched the cable’s electromagnetic terminal flip and attach to the engine’s side.
“Fish is hooked. Haul away!”backed his sub with a whine of thrusters. He watched the slack in the cable tighten; then the engine cowling slid from the silt.swung around. The graveyard was now almost half cleared. Only smaller pieces and sections of fuselage and wing remained. Under his sub, he passed over a large chunk of landing gear, its tires collapsed under the pressure. Another day or two and nothing would be down here.he spun the sub in a slow circle he noted movement off to his left. A school of hatchet fish flashed past the bubble of his submersible. He had been noting more and more denizens of the deep attracted to the light and noise of the salvage operation: long pinkish eels, scuttling crabs, and one six-foot-long dogfish. Off to the left, he watched a vampire squid shoot out of a crumpled nest of debris and snatch a passing hatchet fish. In a flick of tentacles, it vanished away.were his only companions. Swiveling his sub’s twin lamps, Jack observed the tall, flat-topped seamounts towering just at the edge of his light’s reach, giants looming over the wreckage. Closer, a forest of twisted lava pillars enclosed the space. From his sub’s hydrophones, the subsonic whistles and high-pitched clicks of the living sea called to him, a lonely sound.he waited, a twinge of isolation struck him. Down at these sunless depths, it was as if he had traveled to another world., Jack swung back around. He had a duty to perform and could not be distracted with stray thoughts. In another twenty minutes the pair of winch cables would drape back down once again, awaiting his help to snatch more wreckage. Until then, he turned his attention back to his own investigation.edged his sub toward the center of the debris field. Out of the silty gloom the crystal pillar appeared, glowing with the warmth of his reflected xenon lamps. The clear crystal shone with veins of azure and rose hues. Over the past days, he had recorded the spire from every possible angle, again saving it all to a secret DVD disk for review by his team. By now George had compiled a complete copy of the strange etchings on the crystalline surface.brought his sub near the pillar. Since the first exploratory dive, he had experienced no further radio interference or difficulties with his sub. The strange emanations had never returned. Jack was almost ready to admit that the odd sensation may have been due to something mundane, like a glitch in the Nautilus’s systems.before the pillar, he reached out with his manipulator arm. Charlie had been hammering at him to try and clip a sample of the crystal. Jack reached with his titanium pincer and touched the pillar. From his hydrophones he heard a slight tinkle as metal struck crystal.the sound struck his ear, Jack felt every hair stand on end, as if his body had become a living tuning fork. His skin tingled, his sight wavered, and the world began to spin. He felt as if he were going to pass out. He suddenly could not tell which way was up. It was as if he were weightless, in space again. His ears rang, and distantly he heard voices calling to him, as if down a long tunnel — garbled, in some strange language., he slammed his foot hard on the right pedal, driving his submersible away from the crystal. As he broke contact, Jack snapped back into his own seat, back into his own body. The tingling sensation vanished.
“—hear me? Jack!” Lisa yelled in his ear. “Answer me!”touched his throat mike, needing some physical contact with the world above. “I’m here, Lisa.”
“What are you doing?”
“Wh-What do you mean?”
“You’ve been off-line for forty minutes! The Navy was about to launch one of their ROV robots to search for you.”drifted away from the pillars. He widened the focus of his lights and saw the salvage cables hanging ahead. How had the Navy hauled up the two plane sections so fast?glanced at his clock. Only two minutes had passed since he’d hooked the tail fin and engine section to the cables. How was that possible? Frowning, Jack remembered the glitch Lisa had noted after his first dive.
“Lisa, what time do you have topside?”
“Three-fourteen.”stared at the sub’s computer screen. The digital clock was thirty-eight minutes slow.
“Jack?”
“I…I’m fine. Just another communication glitch.” He glided toward the cables. Had he blacked out?’s voice came back tentative, full of suspicion. “Are you sure?”
“Yes, Lisa, nothing to worry about. I’m going for the next pieces.”
“I don’t like this. You should head up now.”
“I can handle it. I’ve got green lights across the board. How are you reading now?”’s voice returned reluctantly. “Receiving you fine now.”new voice interrupted. It was Admiral Houston. “Your doctor is correct, Mr. Kirkland. You had everyone in a panic topside.”
“It’s just a glitch, sir.”
“I don’t care. This mission is over for today.”’s grip grew hard on his controls. He glanced back at the crystal spire. His initial panic at the strange event had burned down to a deep-seated anger. He was determined to find out what had happened. “At least let me hook up these last cables. They’re already down here.”pause. “Okay, Mr. Kirkland. But be careful.”nodded, though no one could see him. “Aye, sir.”swept his submersible up to the first cable and checked the computer screen for his next two targets — a cracked section of fuselage and a chunk of landing gear. Grabbing the cable’s end, he dragged it over to the curved section of fuselage wall. He noted a portion of the plane’s lavatory was still attached to the inside surface. Working rapidly, he attached the magnetic hook and called topside. “Ready on cable one.”technician acknowledged, “Hauling away.”swung toward the second winch line. As he turned the radio buzzed in his ear. It was Robert on the Deep Fathom. Jack was surprised to hear from the marine biologist. “Jack, I’ve got movement down there.”
“What do you mean?”
“Something large just cleared the trough between two seamounts northwest of your position and is coming your way.”frowned. For something to show up on sonar at this depth, it must be huge. “How big?”
“Sixty feet.”
“Jesus…what is it? A submarine?”
“No, I don’t think so. Its outline is too fluctuant, its movement too sinuous. Not artificial.”
“So, in other words, a sea monster.” Jack remembered the serpent that had startled him in the hold of the Kochi Maru. “Is it another orefish?”
“No, too thick.”
“Great,” he mumbled. “How far off now?”
“A quarter klick. But it’s picking up speed. Damn, it’s fast! It must be attracted to your lights.”
“Can I outrun it?”
“No. Not without a larger head start.”
“Any suggestions?”
“Play dead.”
“Say again.”
“Settle to the seabed, turn off lights and motors. Abysmal sea life is attracted to sound, light, even bioelectric signatures. Turn everything off and you should be blind to whatever is coming.”was not comfortable with this choice. As a former SEAL, he was trained for action, for a more proactive means of defense. But without an assault rifle and grenade launcher, he would have to listen to the expert here. Jack settled the Nautilus’s skids to the silty seabed.a short pause he flicked off the battery switch. The xenon lamps winked off. The constant whine of the thrusters went silent. Darkness swamped over the tiny sub. Even the internal lights dimmed and died.own breathing seemed so loud in the tiny space. His eyes strained for something to see. Distantly, he thought he could pick up flickers of winking lights. Was it just his eyes playing tricks? Bioluminescence? Ghost lights?whispered in his ear, “Don’t communicate. It might be able to focus on you. We’ll try pinging from above to scare it off.”
“Where—”
“Quiet! It’s just clearing the last ridgeline. It’s huge! Here it comes!”held his breath, afraid even that would be heard. He craned his neck, searching the darkness around him. His eyelids were stretched wide.
“He’s circling the area. Damn, what is it?”felt a trickle of sweat roll off his nose. The sub’s cabin had grown humid. Without the carbon dioxide scrubbers working, he knew he had maybe thirty minutes of air before it became stale. He could not play possum forever., he sensed something large move over him. He saw nothing, but something primal in his brain set off alarms. Jack’s heart hammered. Fresh sweat broke out on his forehead, and he fought to see anything around him. What was out there?
“He’s on top of you,” Robert whispered.sub shoved a few inches across the silt. But Jack knew nothing had touched the tiny craft. The dragging movement was from the wake of something large sweeping past, close, the dead sub buffeted by its passage. Nautilusrolled onto one skid, twisting around slightly, caught in the wash of another wake. Jack froze, lifting both palms to brace against the acrylic dome. How big was this thing? The sub spun for two heartbeats more, then crashed again to the seabed with a screech of metal on metal, the left skid landing on a chunk of wreckage.sub now rested at a tilt, teetering slightly on the uneven perch.
“It’s sticking near you, Jack. Our sonar pinging is not scaring it off.”saw nothing beyond his own nose, but sensed something circling out there, stalking him. He breathed silently through clenched teeth.he felt the sub move, tip forward. He heard something rasp across the acrylic dome, wet leather drawn over glass. The sub fell onto its side, and Jack sprawled, hanging in his straps. Before he could shift into a better position, something struck the sub, hard this time.was jarred into the seat harness, choked by the straps. The sub flipped and ground across the seabed. He heard something tear free from the framework., the sub settled back upright on its skids. Jack straightened. The damn thing out there was playing with him. Like a cat toying with a mouse.grabbed his controls. Before he was torn apart by whatever was out there, he meant to fight. With his thumb, he flicked on the power. Spears of light lanced out. The darkness was driven backward. Closer, the whine of the battery-powered thrusters filled the space.
“Jack, what are you doing?”
“Where is it?”
“It’s right nextto you!”sensed the movement before seeing it. He twisted to his left. A huge black eye, the size of a garbage can lid, opened in a wall of flesh. Jack bit back a gasp. The eye blinked against the glare of the sub’s lights.monster was lying beside the tiny sub, dwarfing it. Jack caught more movement. He craned his neck farther. Behind the sub’s stern, a tangle of tentacles rose, twisting and churning as the behemoth awoke from its initial shock at its prey’s brilliant display. Jack remembered the vampire squid snatching a hatchet fish, and now sympathized with the tiny fish.both pedals, he shot his sub forward and away.
“Don’t run!” Robert yelled in his ear.
“Who’s running?” Jack hissed tightly. He spun the sub around, nose pointed at the gigantic beast. Grabbing the manipulator controls, he raised the sub’s titanium arms and flexed the pincers. They could crush stone.creature rolled, tentacles scrabbling and twisting around toward Jack.
“What is it?”
“Video feed is fuzzy, but I think it’s an Architeuthis,” Robert said. “A giant squid of the cephalopod family. Only a few have ever been found. And those were dead, dragged up in the nets of deep trawlers. Nothing this big has ever been seen.”beast shied slightly from the direct lances of the sub’s xenon lamps. One tentacle, thick as a sewer pipe, came probing low along the seabed.backed away, all thrusters on full — but he wasn’t fast enough.snaking limb shot toward him, slapping a wide blow.sub bounced, its nose driven up. Jack’s forehead struck the acrylic dome. With stars dancing across his vision, he fought the control pedals but found the submersible unresponsive.first he feared he was out of power. Then he noticed a platter-sized sucker clamped onto the acrylic dome. He was caught, trapped in its grip. The tentacle wound around the sub, drawing him toward the mass of the beast. The seals around him groaned with the strain., the creature was fully revealed in his lights. Eight muscular arms and two longer tentacles coiled out from its pale body. Its skin was almost translucent, its flattened head flanked by lateral fins. Its two longer tentacles probed the sub, dragging toothed suckers across its titanium frame.vessel suddenly jolted. His lights swung. Jack spotted the beaked mouth of the monster opening and closing — only a yard away. Through the hydrophones, he could hear the grind of its maw.under his breath, Jack shifted the manipulator arms. He maneuvered the pincers and snatched at the nearest tentacle. The titanium grips tore into the leathery tissue. Black blood bloomed out.Jack could savor his attack, the Nautiluswas flung away, tumbling end over end. He released the manipulator controls and braced himself, tried to slow his tumble with his thrusters’ foot pedals, but it was no use. The Nautilusstruck the seabed, gouging a trough in the silt. Jack’s shoulder bore the brunt of the impact. The sub lay on its side.
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