Ark Found

Chapter 8

The throaty roar of a small boat starting up should have been something to instill confidence into the two wayward submariners. Instead, it brought only dread and uncertainty.

“Looks like the support ship of our friends down there launched a little welcoming party for us,” Carter said flatly. He eyed the dead radio wistfully. “I’m not sure Deep Pioneer can see us, since the Transoceanic is blocking their line of sight.”

Jayden stared through the dome as the small boat whipped into a turn and began racing toward them, creating a white wake as it moved. He started to feel a little lightheaded and reached up to open the hatch. “Let’s pop this sucker and then we can send up a flare. They’ll definitely see that.”

Jayden undid the latches and then Carter helped him to push the hatch open, tilt it back and secure it in place. In spite of the oncoming threat, the cool, fresh air that washed over them was invigorating and refreshing beyond words after hours in the stale, systems-deprived submersible cabin. But there was no time to revel in the sensation. “Flares, flares, flares…” Jayden was well aware that all seagoing vessels, including submersibles, were required by the Coast Guard to carry distress flares on board. Jayden rummaged underneath the pilot seat and found what he was looking for: an orange plastic case. He hauled it out, unsnapped it and grinned as he eyed the contents.

“Well lookey here: one flare gun and, count ‘em… one, two, three, four flares!”

Carter plucked the gun and a flare from the case and loaded one of the red cylinders into the pistol. Standing in his seat, bracing with one hand against the open hatch, he held his firing arm up at an angle toward their support ship and fired. With a soft crack and a loud hiss, the bright orange flare traced a line of fire visible even in the broad daylight.

“No way they can miss that,” Jayden said, as the incendiary projectile arced high over both ships, lingered in the sky and then trailed back down toward the sea.

The sound of the oncoming boat’s motors was much louder now, racing toward their incapacitated craft. Jayden started to close the flare box but Carter put a hand on it. “Maybe we shouldn’t put these things away just yet.” He reached down, grabbed another flare and loaded it into the gun. Then he tucked the flare gun into the waistband of his pants, pulling his shirt down over it. “Put the case away,” he told Jayden, who snapped the empty container back together and stowed back beneath the seat.

The small boat arced into a turn, pulling up to them without slowing until they were oriented parallel to the sub. The action cause a high wake to nearly turn the sub over, drenching the open cabin and its occupants with icy cold seawater. It was the barest taste of what the Titanic survivors experienced, and yet both ex-military men found it to be excruciatingly uncomfortable.

“Don’t act adversarial yet,” Carter said. “We’re just two seamen who need to be rescued. As far as we know, that’s all this is.”

“Just two seamen in a floating nut?”

“Not the time for jokes, Jayden. Just act like you’re grateful for the rescue.”

One of the boat’s crew, a swarthy-complected man in his late thirties, called out to them. “Your sub lose power?”

“That’s right,” Carter answered.

“You’re lucky to be alive! The man said. Carter thought him to possibly be of Greek heritage, which put him on edge, making him recall a past adversary. Neither Carter nor Jayden said anything beyond nodding, so the crewman continued.

“Hop in and we’ll take you the ship.”

“What about our sub?” Carter asked.

One of the other crewman held up a bundle of rope. “We can tow it behind us. We’ll take it slow.”

Jayden couldn’t help but look at Carter even though it might seem odd. Who wouldn’t want to be towed and rescued from such a situation? But in this case, they were giving up control of their sub — with a safe from the Titanic that might contain a map to a priceless artifact — to an unknown group who had already demonstrated blatant disregard for their safety underwater. Did the boat crew even know what had transpired down below? Chances are they did, Carter mused, since the sub would have a comm system similar to their own in order to stay in touch with their support ship. Carter looked away hastily from Jayden at the boat crew. Everyone here was pretending, yet no one wanted to be the one to start the inevitable confrontation that would likely end badly once the reality of the situation was asserted.

“Sure. Thanks, we really appreciate it.”

One of the boat men nodded and held up a coil of rope. “Tie this line off onto your cleat, there.” He tossed the coil of rope at Carter, who did as requested. Another line was tossed and fastened to the opposite side, and then Carter stepped off of the sub onto the small boat, where one of the crew grabbed him by the hand and pulled him aboard. Jayden closed and secured the sub’s hatch, and then he too climbed aboard the transfer vessel.

Carter shook hands with the man who had helped him aboard. “Thanks a lot for your help, we really appreciate it. As you know, our radio’s dead, and I don’t think our ship can see us from where we popped up so, many thanks for your help.”

The man waved a hand. “Think nothing of it. It’s the least we can do.”

The boat driver increased their speed, the noise of the motor making normal conversation difficult as they sped toward the Transoceanic. At one point the R/V Deep Pioneer was visible, but the boat driver quickly corrected course to keep the Transoceanic in between them, blocking the line of sight. Carter suspected the maneuvering was purposeful, but didn’t want to call attention to it since they would find out shortly.

In another couple of minutes the small boat was pulling up alongside the fantail of the combative sub’s support ship. Carter could see the boat driver talking into a handheld marine radio. The noise of the engine prevented Carter from hearing what was said. He tried to read the man’s lips, but he kept the radio positioned over his mouth. As one of the ship’s crewman stepped down onto the fantail to catch a line thrown from the small boat crew, Carter made eye contact with the driver. “Excuse me, but can you please take us over to our ship first? They’re going to be worried since we’re without radio contact.”

The driver held up the radio. “Do not worry, I took the liberty of hailing them for you to inform them that you are all right, and that we took you and your submersible aboard our ship for a quick tour and some hospitality such as a warm meal and some wine. We are all neighbors here on the Titanic site, after all. Please relax and join us!”

Carter and Jayden eyed each other and shrugged. “What the heck, then!” Jayden said. But he and Carter both knew that they had no choice. As they were led single file up the steps to the ship’s main deck, Carter glanced down at his waistband to make sure the loaded flare gun was still covered by his shirt. He said under his breath to Jayden, “Dollars to donuts they never notified our ship.” Jayden turned around briefly and nodded before stepping up onto the aft deck.

The ship was not unlike their own, but a little smaller. Glancing around without trying to appear overly curious, Carter saw no signs of manned submersible operation, but figured they must have a moon pool. Jayden turned around to look at his sub, paying particular attention to the starboard grab arm and the safe that was still gripped in its clutches. If it were knocked against the ship in the wrong way, it could be jarred loose and sink the miles back down underwater, most likely never to be seen by human eyes again.

As he watched, the boom arm of a stout crane began to swing over toward the Deep Voyager. “Don’t worry,” the small boat pilot said. “We’ll take good care of your sub. Forecast indicates the seas are picking up, so it’s best if we get her out of the water so she can’t bang around.”

“Mind the payload in the starboard grab arm,” Carter said, his tone not quite icy, but very firm.

“Do not worry, we have the same reverence for the Titanic and her artifacts as do you,” the boat pilot and crew leader said. “For now, follow me, please, and we’ll get you something to eat while your crew comes over to pick you up.”

As they walked, Carter felt in his pockets for his cell-phone, hoping he had forgotten to remove it as he usually did before a long submersible dive. No such luck, his pockets were empty of all objects, comfort being the main objective. He deliberately stepped on Jayden’s foot as he walked ahead of him, and the sub pilot whirled around.

“Trying to flat tire me, are you?”

Everyone turned to look and Carter rolled his eyes. “We’re not in middle school anymore, Jayden.” There were a couple of half-hearted laughs and then everyone started walking again. Carter whispered to Jayden, “You got anything in your pockets?” He wasn’t sure if he heard and was about to risk repeating the question a little louder when, to his relief, he saw Jayden’s hands move to pat down his pants. But then Carter’s hopes were dashed he saw him shake his head without turning around. He, too, had brought nothing on his person into the sub. That meant he had the flare gun, loaded with one flare. One shot.

They passed along a series of catwalks and short metal stairwells until they entered a contained portion of the ship, exposed to the air, yet sheltered overhead and partially on each side. A shimmering circle of water occupied the center of this space.

A moon pool.

Carter felt a chill rise along his spine as he eyed it. He suspected they had one, since they had launched a sub without being seen, but now that he knew beyond a shadow of a doubt this was the operation responsible for endangering them underwater, he had all the more reason to fear for his own safety, as well as Jayden’s.

“Lunch at the moon pool?” Jayden inquired.

“The boat pilot laughed. “Sure, why not? We thought you’d like to see a little bit about our operations, since we are both in the same line of work.”

Jayden shrugged. “Eh, seen one moon pool you seen ‘em all. I’d rather have a tour of a ham and cheese sandwich right about now.”

The crew leader turned toward Jayden, but before he could reply, his radio blared. He turned away from the moon pool and spoke into the unit, too softly for Carter and Jayden to hear. Carter sidled up to Jayden, aware that they were now loosely surrounded by half a dozen Transoceanic crew members. He was about to suggest they ask to visit the bridge, from where they could try to hail their own ship, when the water in the moon pool began to roil.

The pair of treasure seekers couldn’t help but walk a little closer to the pool, where water began to slosh over the work deck. As they watched, a shape materialized in the water, blurry, dim and indistinct at first, but becoming clearer and more tangible with each passing second. Of course they knew what it was. But even so they stared at the moon pool, eyes riveted on the spectacle, until the object broke the surface. Sheets of seawater cascaded off the gleaming dome of the submersible that had so callously harassed them inside the wreck of the Titanic.

Tanner’s gaze went to the two men inside it, but for the moment there was still too much water on the dome for their faces to be recognizable. A crane operator lowered a boom arm and several crewman assisted in positioning the steel cables and hook onto the submersible. The sub was lifted out of the moon pool and transferred laterally until it was over a cradle berth on deck. It was lowered onto that, and then a crewman unlatched the hatch and pulled it open. The co-pilot was the first to step out onto the deck. Carter didn’t recognize him. But when the pilot’s face became visible, a shiver danced up his spine.

Daedalus. The classic Greek face, thick black stubble for a beard, the cocksure way he carried himself. No way it couldn’t be him.

Carter shook his head slowly as he watched the sub-pilot shake hands with a couple of crewmen before locking eyes with first Jayden, and then Carter. The stare was hardnosed at first, but after a couple of seconds it morphed into a smile.

“I must say, Carter Hunt, Jayden Tanaka, while it is… scintillating to meet your illustrious acquaintances once again, I was rather hoping we would not cross paths on this particular day.”

“I was hoping we’d never cross paths again, period,” Carter said.

Jayden gave him a kick in the foot. They were in the lion’s den now, and antagonizing their adversaries wouldn’t improve their situation. “I don’t mind crossing paths as long as there’s beer involved,” he said.

The crewman hopped into the sub and used the controls to raise the grab arm that held the other safe into a more accessible position. The pilot of this sub looked on and smiled before turning his attention back to Carter and Jayden.

“Perhaps champagne will be more in order. We shall see soon enough. The lost city of Atlantis proved to be a real feather in your caps, did it not?”

Defiance burned in Carter’s eyes. “Good will always win out over evil, Daedalus. When your intentions are selfish, you have no hope against those who represent the greater good.”

Daedalus exchanged glances with one of his crew and erupted briefly into peals of uproarious laughter. “Greater… good, oh my. Well, ‘tis a new day on the Titanic and we shall put your little theory to the test. Solomon, release the safe and set it up here.” But then he held up a hand. “Actually no, wait. Are you feeling lucky, Carter Hunt?”

Carter said nothing, only stared back at the man.

“I am,” Jayden answered.

“I can tell you are already,” Daedalus glared. “But you two are part of a team, are you not? And a team must work together. So I ask you again, Carter Hunt: are you feeling lucky?”

“He must have a thing for Clint Eastwood movies,” Jayden answered. A look of annoyance crossed Daedalus’ face, and then Carter responded.

“I’m feeling like we’re owed an explanation. You could have killed us down there. And for what? Some old trinkets on a shipwreck? That’s how little you value human life?”

Daedalus gave Carter a hard stare before replying. “Old trinkets, eh? Well, let’s find out, shall we?” He nodded to the crewmen who had just removed the safe from the grab arm of Daedalus’ sub.

“Open it.”