Leviathan

13

Sarah, Lee, Alice, Virginia, and Niles waited outside of Leviathan's sickbay. They had been there for the past hour as the ship's surgeon, Dr. Warren Trevor, worked on Farbeaux. The bullet had hit the Frenchman in the lower right hip, hitting nothing vital.

"I am having the hardest time figuring out Colonel Farbeaux," Niles said, looking at his hands.

"I think it's time I tell you something." Sarah hesitated, and then decided just to say it outright. "The colonel is almost as insane as our good Captain Heirthall," she said, slowly standing up and pacing in front of the small group. "He saw an opportunity when Leviathan's assault team attacked, and came into the complex behind them to kill Jack. He's under the illusion that Jack killed his wife, and Farbeaux, at least I suspect, really looked at himself for the first time as an accomplice in her death. When he found out Jack was already dead, something drained from him — like he lost his only reason in life for living."

"He focused on Jack because—?"

Sarah stopped pacing and looked at Niles. "The only thing I can figure is that he blamed Jack for making him feel human back in the Amazon, saving those students and the rest of us from that nuclear detonation. His actions since being onboard Leviathan are bordering on — well, like he's looking to get killed. Maybe a death wish. His move on the sergeant, his open hostility to every member of the Leviathan's crew… it all adds up."

The Group was silent as they thought about the intricacies of the Frenchman.

"I congratulate you on your ability to endanger Leviathan for the first time in her long existence."

They all looked up and saw Alexandria Heirthall standing in the open doorway. Four of her security men, including Sergeant Tyler, who was sporting a white bandage around his head, flanked her. They could see the bloodstained handkerchief knotted tightly around her right hand, and the traces of blood at her left ear.

"Captain, I think it's time we understood each other," Niles said with dark anger edging his voice. "We are not, as you so euphemistically state it, your 'guests.' We are held here against our will to answer for our knowledge on just who you are. Since you have declared war on the world, must I remind you that as prisoners of that war, we have the right to attempt escape when the opportunity presents itself?"

Tyler started toward Niles with rage etched on his features, but Heirthall reached out and stayed him with just her delicate hand.

"Fair enough, Doctor, prisoners of war it is. Sergeant Tyler, please escort the prisoners to the forward observation lounge and secure them there."

Tyler turned on Heirthall. "Captain, these people are an extreme hazard to our mission. I warned of the consequences of bringing them onboard in the first place. I must insist they either be executed or placed adrift at sea. They are—"

Heirthall turned on Tyler, placed a hand on his chest, and slammed him against the bulkhead — her actions startling everyone watching.

"You insist?" she hissed with a low menacing tone as more blood started flowing from her left ear. "Onboard Leviathan you insist on nothing! You follow command, for not only my sake but the higher order we fight for. Am I understood, Sergeant?"

Lee nodded at the flow of blood from Alexandria's left ear, and Niles decided to use that as a reason for ending the confrontation. As crazy as Heirthall was, he knew Tyler, in his cold and calculating way, would likely be a far less merciful captor.

"Captain, you're bleeding rather severely," Niles said.

Heirthall ignored Compton, keeping her eyes on Tyler until the large man nodded his head just once. Alexandria released him and then took a hesitant step back.

"What is going on here?" Dr. Trevor demanded as he stepped from his sickbay. Then he saw the condition of the captain and quickly stepped forward.

"Sergeant, do as you were ordered," Heirthall said as she allowed the doctor to take her by the arm. "Dr. Compton, Colonel Farbeaux will no longer be tolerated. As soon as the doctor finishes with him and we come close to shore, he will be released."

"Released or thrown into the sea?" Niles asked.

Alexandria wiped some of the blood from the side of her face and then turned to Compton. She looked as if she wanted to say something but only frowned, then left the waiting room with the assistance of the doctor.

Sergeant Tyler looked at the gathered group and with his cold gray eyes gave an unvoiced command. The six security men led the group out of sickbay.

"That man not only means us harm, but anyone with eyes can see he has an agenda," Alice said.

Before they could file out of the waiting area, Dr. Trevor turned and called out. "Your friend — he will recover nicely. I removed the bullet and he's resting comfortably," the doctor said in his soft English accent. "Very little damage, no muscle or bone was struck."

"Thank you — Doctor—?" Niles heard but could not say anything as a security man shoved him through the hatch.

Farbeaux looked up at Sarah and a thin smile crossed his lips. He swallowed and grimaced in pain. An hour before, Tyler had entered the observation lounge, taken Sarah by the arm, and without explanation brought her here to sickbay, telling her she had an hour with Farbeaux to explain to him his predicament. He warned that if the Frenchman gave them any more trouble, Sarah would be the one to reap the punishment. With a cold stare and menacing smile, Tyler had left her alone in sickbay with Farbeaux.

"You are one strange and confusing man, Colonel."

"An enigma, wrapped in a puzzle," he whispered, and smiled. "One that has very many missing pieces, eh?"

"Yeah… but listen, if you want to commit suicide, there are a lot less painful ways of going about it, so knock it off."

"Such harsh… words for a man who is just learning to be… a hero," Farbeaux said haltingly as his eyes closed.

"Better than a swift kick in the ass—" Sarah started, but saw that Farbeaux was sleeping.

"He's quite tired," Trevor said, checking the monitor at the bedside. "When I examined him, he showed acute exhaustion. I doubt he slept more than a few hours in the last month or two."

"He's had a rough go lately," Sarah said looking at the Frenchman's softened features.

"Well, he needs his rest now, Miss…?"

"Just Sarah, that's good enough," she said, patting Farbeaux's hand.

"Sarah… Sarah," the doctor mumbled twice. "That name has been muttered more than just a few times in this sickbay."

Sarah looked up from the bed with a questioning look.

"As a matter of fact, the last man to occupy this very bed was also a colonel — an American, though."

Sarah didn't respond. She only waited out of politeness.

"This one called out for Sarah over and over again. In addition, a funny little name… what was it? Oh, yes… ' Short Stuff.' He would call out 'Short Stuff' in his sleep. It was—"

Sarah had turned completely white. The words had slammed into her like a punch to her stomach. Her voice was caught somewhere between her esophagus and her lips.

"The Mediterranean?" It came out as a whisper.

"Excuse me, young lady?"

"Was Leviathan in the Med lately?" she said, her voice cracking.

"Why… yes, the captain was studying a recent disturbance in the sea there and we were attempting to save… well, the event was seismic in nature, I believe. That was where we recovered my most recent patient, the American colonel."

Sarah leaned over and was suddenly short of breath. "Is… is… he here… alive?"

"Very much alive… at least upon his release. I can't say beyond—" The doctor suddenly realized to whom he was speaking. "Oh, my… you are that Sarah?… Colonel Collins's Sarah?"

Sarah didn't hear the question. She lost her balance and almost fell.

"Here, here, are you all right?" the doctor asked as he helped Sarah regain her balance.

"Where is he?" she asked as she was led to a chair in the corner.

"Why, the captain released him. I imagine he is wherever your people are."

Sarah closed her eyes. She didn't know what to do; she looked around like she was trapped in a place with no exit. She started to stand, then she sat back heavily into the chair. She wanted to laugh, to cry, to jump up. She wanted all of these things until she saw Farbeaux looking at her. He had awakened and their eyes locked, and Sarah saw the Frenchman for who he had become. The man was now renewed and his sense of purpose had returned, just as surely as Sarah's life had just been returned to her.

"I am happy for you, Sarah McIntire. Very happy."

The smile never reached Henri's eyes.

With a real-time projection of Saboo Island on the main viewing screen in the director's office, Pete, Jack, Everett, and Dr. Robbins sat and listened to the phone briefing on Saboo's present condition by one of Pete's computer techs.

"There are several structures on the atoll, Colonel, but upon examination, they look as if they have been abandoned since the end of World War Two. No indigenous animal life and no fresh water. It's basically a coral rock sitting at the end of the island chain."

"Thank you," Pete said, and terminated the call with the comp center. He looked from the map to Collins, who waited for Pete to give him his cue. The temporary director nodded, then stood up and walked toward the large monitor and pretended to study the map.

"You think Charlie Ellenshaw's theory about this being the original Heirthall's home is viable?" Pete asked without turning. "It's a large gamble, Colonel. We could be sending the only asset we have in the area to the wrong spot. They could lose the only advantage they have — that submarine may be anywhere but Saboo."

"Since the president informed us of the report received from Missouri, if Saboo is friendly turf for these people, the possibility of them going there for repairs, while a long shot, is the only chance we have."

Everett pushed his chair back and stood. He paced around the table and came to the chair where Gene Robbins was sitting. He stood still, then placed both hands on the computer man's shoulders.

"What are your thoughts, Doctor?" he asked.

Robbins moved his shoulders until Everett released his hold. He half-turned and looked at the captain.

"You already know my opinion on Professor Ellenshaw's theory. Unlike most of you in this complex, I refuse to take at face value a theory concocted by a man who believes in Nessie and the Abominable Snowman."

Pete turned away from the map and looked at his young protege.

"You know, Gene, Charlie Ellenshaw advanced more than one theory during his time in the Leviathan vault. I don't know if you heard that one. Well, my apologies, it was he, the Colonel, and Captain Everett here who thought it up."

Robbins again turned back and looked at Carl, who remained behind him. He then frowned and looked back at Pete.

"I wasn't aware of another theory," he said.

"It seems they believe that Virginia — while brilliant in physics, and while she could very well be very knowledgeable in exotic explosives and accelerant — the assistant director is like most of the personnel in this complex. She doesn't know her way around a computer save to sign in and out, and maybe access Europa for her research. Security protocols are far beyond her."

"Anyone is capable, especially someone as brilliant as Ms. Pollock, at learning Europa's protocols. Besides, wasn't it you, Pete, and the esteemed Professor Ellenshaw, who advanced the idea of the assistant director's culpability in the sabotage?"

"Yes, indeed. What they call a rush to judgment." Pete strode toward the table where Robbins sat, then placed his hands on the polished surface. Collins just swiveled in his chair, and Everett remained irritatingly close behind the computer genius. "However, as great a mind as Charlie Ellenshaw is, I was perplexed as to how he thought to run a check on any correlation between Alexandria Heirthall and Virginia Pollock through Europa, especially with all he had on his plate."

Robbins swallowed but said nothing. Everett cleared his throat and then tossed a plastic bag in front of him. When it landed, Robbins flinched. He could see the glove inside.

"I found that in the clean room, Dr. Robbins," Jack said, looking right at him. "Since only you, the director, and Dr. Golding are authorized inside that high-security area without escort, we have to assume that that glove, brimming with what is called magnesium particulate, used in the burning of hazardous materials, belongs to you."

Everett again leaned over and whispered in Robbins's ear. "And guess what? Forensics found a fingerprint inside the index finger of said glove. It didn't match Dr. Golding, so I'll give you three guesses who it did match, and the first two don't count."

The three men had to hand it to Robbins — the man was fast thinking.

"Come on, I visited the Leviathan vault myself after the attack. I may have gotten the accelerant on my glove when there." He turned and faced Everett. "Let me get this straight. You're accusing me of sabotage, and with that, murder and kidnapping?"

"You bet," Carl said, leaning further in to Robbins.

"Prove it," he said, turning once more away from Everett.

"Dr. Robbins, you are misunderstanding your situation," Jack said as he stood and made his way around the table. "You are assuming we're in a court of law, where there are rules."

Everett smiled, spun the doctor around in his chair, and then went nose to nose.

"No rules."

Robbins shied away from the captain. They could all see the fear this man had of Everett.

"Colonel Collins, Captain Everett, I know I agreed that anything goes as far as getting truthful answers, but you cannot subliminally threaten one of my people with violence," Pete said, much to the visible relief of Gene Robbins. "I think you should come right out and say it." He smiled for the first time since the attack on the complex. "Subliminal be damned."

"You're right, of course," Everett said as he reached down, grabbed Robbins by his lab coat, pulled him from the chair, and shook him once, twice. "Jack, do you have that resignation letter?"

Collins slid a piece of paper in front of Robbins. He couldn't see it; all he could see was the hate in Everett's eyes.

"Look at it, Gene," Pete said, his own features masked with disgust.

Robbins turned and looked at the paper on the table.

"Your official resignation, signed by you, turned in to Pete here just before you disappeared from the complex. Whereabouts unknown," Collins said as he took a chair next to Robbins.

"I suspect the little bastard committed suicide after we found out about his culpability and treachery," Everett said, pulling Robbins's face back around so he could see the seriousness of his great acting skills.

Collins looked at Pete, and they both realized at the same moment that Everett could scare a rock if he had to.

"In all actuality, Dr. Robbins, you are going to disappear," Jack said.

Robbins finally forced himself to look away from the most-feared Everett and finally saw Jack.

"You're going to Saboo, and you know what else? You're going to make sure your friends show up."

"How… how am I supposed to do that?" he asked as Everett finally released his coat collar.

"Why, you're going to call them, of course," Carl said, smiling brightly.

"You receive your orders somehow. You'll just use the same method to contact your boss and tell them you're coming home."

"What is the name of that home by the way, Gene?" Everett asked, his smile never wavering.

Robbins looked from Carl to Jack to his former boss. His head slumped and they barely heard his answer.

"Leviathan."

An hour later Jack, Everett, Jason Ryan, Will Mendenhall, and Robbins were in field gear and on their way to California for a transfer to a U.S. Navy Greyhound flight to the Pacific for a rendezvous arranged by the president. Collins spoke directly to the White House via scrambled communications. Robbins looked miserable, but he had complied with his orders to send Leviathan an emergency message. He informed his master he would be waiting on Saboo for immediate pickup, that his cover had been blown, and that he had barely escaped. There had been no reply, nor even a confirmation that his message had been received.

"Okay, Colonel, I have you a ride to Saboo: USS Missouri. She's the sub that just put two torpedoes into our friend."

"Thank you, sir," Jack said as he looked into his end of the camera from the cargo hold of the C-130 air force cargo plane.

"Now, what in the hell makes you think they'll take you aboard after discovering you turned in their operative?"

"We're banking on Heirthall's arrogance. After all, how can four men be a danger to her?"

"That's one hell of a big assumption, Colonel."

"I know perfectly well what's at stake, Mr. President."

"Okay, Colonel, you have your sub and I've alerted COMSUBPAC. He's alerting the crews of three Los Angeles attack boats to prepare for sea. They will rendezvous with Missouri, so I wish you luck. You must understand, Colonel, those captains have their orders. I don't have to tell you, of all people, what those orders are."

"If Leviathan makes an aggressive move, they are to use any and all means to destroy her."

"You have the letter to Captain Jefferson?" the president asked. "Yes, sir."

"Duplicates have been delivered to the captains of the other subs. Good luck, Colonel, bring my people home if possible. I'll inform Admiral Fuqua that Operation Nemo is a go."

The screen went blank.

Jack felt as if he were on the outside of the poker game looking in, and was just hoping to get a seat at the big table. The one problem: He knew beforehand that the other player held all the cards.

The bluff was on.

Niles, Virginia, Lee, Alice, and a very quiet Sarah sat in the ship's mess. They were sitting at a far table within the seventy-table compartment. Over a hundred of Leviathan's crew were taking a late-night meal and their voices were subdued. Every once in a while one or two would glance over at them, and this time they weren't friendly or welcoming faces they saw. Niles pushed away the soup that the mess steward had placed in front of him and looked at the others.

"My opinion is, if Jack is fit, he, Carl, and Pete will discover a way to find us. My money is on our people."

The group was silent as they waited for Niles to finish what they knew he was going to say.

"I also don't want anyone here at this table to have any false illusions about us escaping. It's not likely." Compton looked at McIntire, who was dipping her spoon in and out of her soup. "Sarah, I'm going to say something you may not like. We owe Colonel Farbeaux nothing — not for saving you at the complex, or for what he did earlier today. He's dangerous, and we have to consider… eliminating him."

"Sarah, you told us about Jack. Your explanation of Farbeaux's reaction to the news that the Colonel was alive has confirmed your suspicion about his stability."

Sarah was silent as she turned toward Niles. Her look said she was lost as to how to answer both him and Virginia.

Garrison Lee broke the uncomfortable silence.

"How do we do that, Virginia — have the captain dump him at sea, or allow this Sergeant Tyler to place a bullet in his brain?"

The table became silent at Lee's question.

"Obviously not — we decided a long time ago that we play by our rules and not everyone else's, regardless of cost, or what the opposition dictates," Lee said, looking from person to person.

"I'm sorry, but Farbeaux could become a very large liability when the time comes for us to act," Virginia said as she rubbed her temples.

Yeoman Felicia Alvera walked up to their table. She looked at other crew members watching her approach the table, and she eyed them until they turned away.

"Can we help you, Yeoman?" Alice asked her, noticing that the girl was, for the first time, unsmiling.

"Your opposition to our captain. I would like to know" — she half-turned and gestured to the table of twenty or so midshipmen in the middle of the compartment—"just as many of us would — why you do not see she has no other choice but to act as she has?"

"Young lady, no matter the kindness Captain Heirthall has shown you and these others, she is killing people, and making very little discrimination as to who they are," Niles said, seeing a different girl before them than the one they first met on the hangar deck.

"Yeoman, you may return to your meal, or your quarters," Sergeant Tyler said, having stepped up without anyone hearing or seeing his approach.

Alvera looked at Tyler and narrowed her eyes. Then she suddenly turned and left, not going back to her own meal; she left the mess area altogether. Niles and the others saw that the other midshipmen, after a brief glance toward them, all followed the girl out.

The sergeant was starting to walk away, and then stopped and turned. He looked down at the five Group members. They saw there was still a spot of blood on the bandage wrapped around his head.

"From this moment forward, you are not to converse with the crew, especially the middies. If you disobey this command you will be locked in the brig and gagged. For the present time, we are putting the problem of you people on hold, but you may have company soon. We are making a detour."

"What about the reason you brought us aboard in the first place, Sergeant?" Niles asked.

"What you know or what your Group knows no longer concerns us. For the moment just consider yourselves…" He paused and smiled."… ballast."

Tyler turned and followed the midshipmen out, ignoring the way the adult crew looked at him.

"What a dick," Sarah said.

"My word exactly," Alice agreed.

"Yeoman Alvera and the other midshipmen — have you noticed the paleness of skin? It's almost see-through," Virginia stated.

"Now that you bring it up, they are pale — even for submariners," Niles said.

"Here's something else for everyone to chew on. Have you noticed the way the older crewmen look at them is almost resentful?"

None of them had an answer or an opinion as Leviathan started her thermal-dynamic drive for the first time in twelve hours. They were all silent and more than one of them stared at the table, knowing the great submarine was once more under way and was continuing whatever hellish work she still had to do.

14

The captain of USS Missouri stared at Jack Collins, thinking the man had gone mad. He tossed the grease pencil on the charting table and looked over at his XO.

"You're just going to walk right onto the island and say, 'Hey, we would like a ride'?"

"It's either that or waste the lives of a lot of young boys by trying to take Leviathan by force, all alone, when and if she surfaces," Jack said, not turning away from the captain. "Personally, I've had enough of people dying lately. We want one chance to get our hostages back…. Just one, then she's yours, Captain."

Jefferson lowered his head. "Okay, Colonel, we may be able to track Leviathan, I'll give you and the president that much, but we lost a bunch of subs and men learning that fact. Also absorb this little tidbit: We hit her with two Mark forty-eight torpedoes, and they didn't even slow her down, as far as we know. Now explain to me how we can get any advantage on this thing whatsoever, if we even find her again after this little detour of yours."

"Once aboard, my men and I will have to play things by ear. Captain Everett here is trained on how to get an edge against enemy subs, so you'll have to wait and take advantage of what it is we come up with. Twenty-four hours. After that, hit her anyway you can with what you can. Captain, I want our people off that damn thing."

Jack looked at Carl, then nodded his head. Everett handed the captain a yellow envelope with a red border.

"I think you'll recognize the name and letterhead, Captain," Carl said. "I think this will explain our sincerity about that one chance if we fail."

Jefferson looked at the plain yellow envelope and then, without removing his eyes from Collins, broke the plastic seal. He pulled the single set of orders out and looked at them. When he was finished reading, he closed his eyes.

"Jesus Christ," he mumbled, and handed the letter over to First Officer Izzeringhausen. The lieutenant commander read what the order called for, and his face went slack.

"You'll have to excuse us, Colonel, we're just not that experienced with sending men out on a suicide mission. If you ask me, you guys are out of your fucking minds," Izzeringhausen said after reading the letter and the code that was attached to it.

"Take it easy, Izzy, I think they know what they're asking."

The first officer gave the letter from the president of the United States back to the captain and went back to speak with the chief of the boat.

"You know, it's not only suicide for you fellas, but for the Missouri and any other American boat in the area. A nuclear war shot in a confined area will smash us to atoms, and we have to be within range of the target to guarantee a hit," he said, tossing the letter onto the navigation console.

"Let's hope we can do something other than that, Captain. We can be pretty sneaky at times," Jack said.

The presidential order authorizing the use of Missouri's nuclear capability was having a profound effect on Jefferson, and Jack could see that. The order would be the first in naval history to be carried out, if it came to that, and the responsibility was etched on the captain's face.

"What if you're shot to pieces when you motor up to their dock?"

"Track Leviathan the best you can and blow her to pieces, Captain."

"Just who in the hell are you people?"

"Believe me, Captain, we're no one special. We want our people back and we want Leviathan stopped."

The captain accepted Carl's answer and then looked at his chart.

"Izzy," he said aloud, "it will be dark in twenty minutes. Get the colonel and his men suited up and tell the SEALs to get ready to escort them to Saboo." Captain Jefferson looked up and held his hand out to Collins. "Colonel, I'll just say I hope you get your people out." He shook hands with Jack and then held his hand out to Everett. "But I really hope you talk some sense into the magnificent bastard that built that boat. I would hate to have to sink it and you, too."

"Believe me, Captain, we hope the same thing," Collins said as he followed the first officer aft.

In the darkness just before moonrise, USS Missouri, the stealthiest submarine in the history of the U.S. Navy, surfaced without a sound a thousand yards offshore of the volcanic atoll called Saboo. With only the topmost section of her tower out of the water, her silhouette was almost nonexistent in the darkness of the night. Even her sail numbers were a darker shade of black against the hull. Captain Jefferson popped free of the hatch, quickly brought binoculars to his face, and scanned the sea.

"Sonar, conn, what have we got?" he asked quietly, knowing how well sound carried at sea.

"Nothing on sonar. We are no longer picking up Leviathan. She must be too far distant or at a stop, and air search radar is clear, Captain."

"Okay, give me fifteen feet of air and clear the diving trunk, Izzy," Jefferson said as he scanned the sea again with his binoculars, nervous about his sonar's inability to find Leviathan.

"Aye, Captain, fifteen feet."

As Jefferson scanned the faraway beach of Saboo and the few lights there, the black sub silently rose in the water, clearing the lower escape trunk on the Missouri's sail. The hatch quickly opened and two large bundles were tossed free of the boat. The two Zodiacs quickly inflated. Ten U.S. Navy SEALs exited and took up station on the hull of the sub as they assisted the five men of the shore mission. Collins looked up at the sail before he stepped foot in the first boat and saw Jefferson looking down at him. Both men nodded, and Jefferson saluted.

"Good luck, Colonel."

Collins returned the salute and stepped into the boat with Dr. Gene Robbins in tow.

Three miles away in the darkest depths of the Pacific, Missouri was being watched. The eyes that scanned her were merely curious.

"Bring up maximum magnification on the scope, please, Mr. Samuels," Alexandria ordered from her high station in main control.

The view on the free-floating hologram changed and flashed off for a split second. Then a three-dimensional view of the sail of Missouri appeared, but of far more interest to Heirthall were the two Zodiacs bobbing in the sea beside the sub.

"Someday you'll have to tell me how you can be so right all the time, Captain," Samuels said, as the darkened face of Colonel Jack Collins became crisp and clear.

Alexandria didn't respond at first; she just looked from the hologram to her crew as they monitored their stations. Her eyes were again dilated and she was calm, in control.

"Never underestimate a man's tenacity, James." She smiled and looked at the first officer. "Or his love for another, for that matter. Those two things make events predictable to a certain degree. Besides, with this Group Ginny surrounded herself with, I knew it would only be a matter of time before they broke our good Dr. Robbins. It was inevitable that Saboo would be compromised."

"What to you think their plan is?" Samuels asked as he left the sonar station and walked up to the high pedestal.

"I don't believe they have one, and I surely don't believe they plan on taking Saboo with fifteen men. We'll watch and see."

"The Missouri?" he asked.

"No threat there. Just monitor her. If she lingers around Saboo, we'll chase her off. As long as we don't move until she clears the area or allow our damaged surfaces to compromise us, we'll be fine. Then we'll just dive so deep that their limited technology can't detect us."

"Aye, Captain."

"Would you have Mr. Tyler escort Lieutenant McIntire to my sail observation suite and seat her outside until we bring our new guests aboard, then report to me for instructions?"

Samuels hesitated momentarily, as the captain never allowed anyone inside her private suite at the bottom of the sail tower. "Aye, Captain."

Alexandria watched as the two Zodiacs shoved off from the Missouri and silently started for the shores of her island of Saboo.

"Soon I will have everyone aboard that I need," she whispered to no one but herself.

"Captain?" Samuels asked, thinking he heard her speak.

"James, I think it time we sit down and have dinner, before I start having headaches again. Twenty-three hundred hours, my cabin?"

Samuels looked around and saw Sergeant Tyler watching them from his security station.

"We need not inform anyone. On your off-watch report, say you're inspecting the engineering damage," Alexandria said, with a quick look at Sergeant Tyler. "One other thing, James. You'll know my mood. If you discover I'm out of sorts when you arrive, mention nothing about dinner, just return to your cabin until I speak with you."

Samuels tried desperately not to be taken aback by the captain's invitation and warning. As he saw that she was done, he nodded. "Yes, Captain."

"Until twenty-three hundred, then."

Sergeant Tyler stepped away from the security station after observing the conversation between the captain and Samuels. He watched as Samuels stopped in front of him and relayed the captain's orders regarding Sarah. Then he watched Samuels move away. Tyler then approached the captain.

"Captain, as head of security, I must say this is unacceptable, bringing this man back onboard Leviathan. You yourself warned us about this Group's ability to get information, and with what he already knows about us, to allow him access—"

"Sergeant, I have been commanding this vessel long before I took you onboard her. I think I can make clear decisions without consulting you. Now, escort Lieutenant McIntire to the sail and await my orders."

Tyler looked deeply into the captain's eyes until she looked away, then he turned without comment and left the command pedestal. Although Alexandria paid the hotheaded Tyler's breach of etiquette no notice, Samuels did. He watched as Tyler gave a last look back into the control center before leaving. After the first officer turned to his duties, Yeoman Alvera followed Tyler into the companionway.

"Maneuvering, bring Leviathan shallow and let's see what our uninvited guests are up to."

Leviathan started to rise in the water like an ancient behemoth, slowly pushing aside tens of thousands of tons of water. She rose as a sea god would to spy an intruder.

"You are challenging the captain's judgment in front of the command crew right in the open. Do I have to remind you that we will need those people if this is to succeed?"

Tyler saw the anger in the yeoman's eyes. The deep green pupil was now ringed in red and that in silver. He knew from Dr. Trevor that when Alvera became angry, microscopic pinprick hemorrhages erupted inside the ocular cavity, and those produced the bright colors in the eyeball. As he watched, the yeoman relaxed and looked around the empty passageway.

"You are not to do that again."

"The captain is acting very strange, she's becoming two-sided when it comes to her orders," Tyler said, leaning in so he could whisper.

"I suspect that she is putting up more of a mental struggle than even we suspected." Alvera leaned against the steel bulkhead as her eyes slowly became normal once more. "Alexandria is a strong-willed woman. Stronger than the part we need," she said admiringly. "We will have to act soon. Be prepared at a moment's notice for the right time to get what we need from her."

"She is showing signs that she knows. At this very moment, she is as alert as she has ever been, and maybe confused about her aggressiveness."

"Just do your job. We'll soon be at Ice Palace and then this will all end," Alvera said as she turned and started back for the control room. "We keep the captain happy by following orders, until such a time as she consistently gives us the right orders. Confusing to your kind, I know, but that's the way it is."

"Wait," Tyler called out. "What are we going to do about that bastard Samuels? He knows something, or at least suspects. And what about the captain making this stop at Saboo? I told you all along that she had no intention of questioning her old friend and that damn Group about what they know."

Alvera turned back and faced the sergeant. "Does it really matter?" She smiled. "After all, we have the captain of the most powerful warship in the history of the world on our side, even if Alexandria Heirthall isn't…. Yet."

Sergeant Tyler watched as the young girl made her way aft and back to her shift. He nervously turned and looked around and then shook his head. He was starting to regret the deal he had made.

Everyone knew the Devil always brokered deals that couldn't be broken.

The two Zodiacs were at the sea edge of the surf when Collins ordered the two boats to stop.

"This is as far as the SEALs go; we get off here. Come on, Doc, it's time to go swimming."

"Colonel, we don't mind taking the risk," the SEAL lieutenant said from his place at the back of the boat.

"Well, I do. No more lives are going into harm's way. Thanks for the ride, Lieutenant," Jack said as he grabbed Robbins and leaned backward, sending them both into the sea.

Everett watched from the second boat and followed suit, along with Ryan and Mendenhall. They started in toward an unknown reception on Saboo.

As they rode the surf in, Jack kept Robbins's head above water. When they gained their feet on the wet sand, Collins looked around at the silence that greeted them. The beach was deserted, just as advertised.

"Well, we didn't get all wet for nothing. Shall we go wait to be shot, or picked up?" Everett said as he stood next to Jack.

"By all means," Jack answered with a nod. "Take the lead, Captain, and let's go fishing."

Pete was sitting at Niles's large desk, his glasses propped up on his forehead. He was having the hardest time of his life keeping his eyes from closing as he studied the duty rosters for the complex, with a minimal security supervisory team given the absence of Everett, Ryan, and Mendenhall.

One of the director's assistants, whom Pete had previously ordered to her quarters for the night, popped her head in through the door. She stepped in and, thinking Golding was finally sleeping, gently laid a pile of folders on his desk. As she started to turn away and leave, not wanting to wake him, Pete opened his eyes.

"What are these?" he asked without moving his left hand away from his head, where it protected his eyes from the glare of the overhead lights.

The young woman's shoulders slumped and she turned.

"The replacement files from Arlington on the vaults on level seventy-three and seventy-four. They faxed us another set."

Pete finally moved. He rubbed his eyes and replaced the glasses to their normal position.

"They may very well be redundant, since we now know what they were trying to hide," he said as he removed the top file from the bunch. As he did, the others slid from the stack and slid across his desk. "Damn," he said.

"Here, I'll just put them on my desk until you have more time to check them off your list," she said, moving forward to relieve Golding's desk of at least some of his workload.

As she did, Pete's eyes locked on a particular file for no other reason than that was where his eyes rested. He blinked, then placed his fingers on the partially obscured file number. He pulled it from the fanned-out stack, looked it over, and let out a small chuckle.

"I've got to get out more often and see the world — or at least the complex," he said as he opened the obscure file. "I never knew we had anything from P. T. Barnum's old New York Museum — better yet, why would we?"

The assistant looked at which file he was perusing and then relaxed.

"Oh, well, Colonel Collins said to include it because it was the vault located directly under the Leviathan enclosure."

Pete looked up, partially closed the file, and then looked into the assistant's innocent countenance.

"Directly under the vault? On level seventy-four? Wasn't that where accelerant was also found?"

"Yes, sir, but the engineers said that could be explained by the liquid seeping through the rocks and falling inside that particular vault."

Golding nodded his head and excused the assistant, then looked at the file in his hands. It wasn't a thick file, and stapled to the inside jacket of the folder was a small notation made by the forensics department stating that the artifact was totally destroyed by the fire. Pete read the first page of description from the report filed by the Event Group back in 1949, when the specimen was discovered in an old repository building in Florida owned by Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus, The Greatest Show on Earth.

" 'The Mermaid of the Pacific Isles,'" Pete mumbled as he looked at a photograph of something that resembled a jellyfish, and a rather degraded jellyfish at that.

There were enhanced details that had been added by the Group back in '49 that outlined what looked like a pair of legs and small arms. The see-through mass was unlike anything Pete had ever seen before, and by far the most disturbing feature of all was in the next color photo: The damn thing looked as though it had hair. Long, black, and flowing, as it was laid out on a stainless-steel examining table. The whole thing, from head to jellylike, fanned tail, was about four feet long.

Pete flipped over to the next page and read the details of its discovery. The specimen had been one of the only items salvaged from the great fire in midtown Manhattan in 1865 during one of the many draft riots during the Civil War. The P. T. Barnum American Museum, located on Broadway and Ann Streets, burned, with a loss of more than 90 percent of its displayed oddities. It was reported by witnesses that Barnum himself rescued only one item from the burning structure, and that was from a locked storage bin in his personal office. That item: the Mermaid of the Pacific.

For many years after, people saw a cheap version of the mermaid (actually made from a torso of a monkey and the tail of a giant black sea bass) on display at the museum Barnum built to replace the one lost. He never gave an explanation of the obviously fake replacement to people who had heard the rumors of a far more delicate and humanlike specimen that gossip said was kept at Barnum's own New York home.

After Barnum's death in 1891, a locked chest was willed to the famous Greatest Show on Earth and then sent to Florida, where it was stored and forgotten. That was where an Event Group field team discovered it in an old warehouse in 1949.

The forensics report was confused for the day; there was absolutely no relationship of the specimen to that of modern-day jellyfish or any vertebrate found in the fossil record. The deterioration of the specimen was so vast that no acceptable biopsy of the material could be conducted.

Pete noticed a small notation placed in the margins of the report and had to turn the file on its side to read it.

"The sample of hair was found to be human, and the lone sample of fingernail found was also closely related to man. The brain, made up of clear and bluish material, was thought to be far larger than that of any creature indigenous to the sea in relationship to its size."

Golding turned to the last page for the Group's conclusion.

"Because of the nature of Mr. Barnum's personality, it must be concluded at this time that this is a forgery on a grand scale. Although far more encompassing and impressive than his obviously fake 'Fiji Mermaid,' displayed from 1865–1881, the findings do not support Mr. Barnum's claims of finding the Mermaid of the Pacific off the coast of Venezuela, in the Gulf of Mexico. One item of note, the specimen was found in an enclosure engraved with the seal of the University of Oslo."

Pete laid the file down when he read the last words of the report. Coincidence? he asked himself as he picked up the phone.

"Miss Lange, get me Professor Ellenshaw down in crypto on the phone. Tell him I need some research done ASAP."

He hung up the phone and looked at the file. Could this be what those people wanted to remain hidden from the world instead of the submarine? he asked himself.

Golding looked at the 1949 color picture of the Mermaid of the Pacific. As he did, he noticed for the first time the intense blue eyes of the creature, even in death. Nothing else but the small arms and hands resembled a human. It was the hands that would give him time for pause before sleep. The fingers, he could tell, were long and delicate, and now that he was examining the photo closer, he could swear he could see femalelike breasts. He shook his head and closed his eyes.

The phone finally rang and he picked it up.

"Charlie, thanks for getting back to me so soon."

"No problem, I was just dozing off at my desk."

"I need to ask you something, Charlie. Your department believes in the existence of many, many strange things—"

"Come on, Pete, did you call just to rag on me?"

"Professor, I think you are one of the smartest people in this complex, so knock it off. I need to know your opinion on the existence of mermaids, or something like them?"

The other end of the phone produced nothing but silence for the longest time.

"Charlie?" Pete asked, thinking the connection had been lost.

"Pete, to believe in mermaids is a little far out, even for us. Now, if you're done joking around, I'll get back to dozing and dreaming about the Yeti and—"

"Professor, what would you say if I told you that we've had a specimen of an undersea creature since nineteen forty-nine that could possibly be what sea lore described as a mermaid, and that is what this whole Leviathan thing may be about?"

"Well, I would say that the Event Group was left in the wrong hands."

Pete winced as the phone was slammed down on Ellenshaw's end. He wanted to slam his down also, but instead eased it into the cradle.

He looked at the file in front of him. As he closed it, he knew that Leviathan and this artifact were linked somehow, in some fashion, but also knew he was at a dead end. He couldn't even pass on the information to Jack and Carl.

His new opinion of the events of the past week had just taken a turn toward the Twilight Zone.

Jack could feel eyes on him, physically and electronically. He looked at Everett and knew he was having the same sensation.

They were standing on the lone dock on the island that was fronted by a small building looking as if it had been constructed during the Second World War. The small hut was boarded up. Phone lines ran from the building to a point one hundred feet from the dock, where they disappeared into the white sand. Ryan and Mendenhall, with Robbins between them, were busy watching the sea.

"Colonel Collins, we are indeed shocked, though pleasantly so, to see you again so soon," a voice said from behind them.

They turned and saw a lone figure standing on the edge of the dock, illuminated only by the stars in the night sky. The voice sounded vaguely familiar to Jack.

"My name is Dr. Warren Trevor, formerly of Her Majesty's Royal Navy, and ship's surgeon for Leviathan. I was sent to greet you in case you needed to see a familiar face."

"You treated me while I was onboard?" Jack asked as he and the others walked toward him.

"Indeed I did," the dark figure answered.

Jack moved his eyes from their host to Ryan, who was busy tapping out an ELF (extremely low frequency) message to Missouri, saying they had made contact.

"Will you have your companions their equipment, Colonel? There will be no need for any outside paraphernalia onboard Leviathan." He gestured toward Ryan. "And young man, I can assure you, the Missouri has indeed left the immediate area; therefore they cannot hear your transmission. My captain would not allow that at any rate."

Ryan closed the small transmitter and tossed it into the pack at his feet.

"Now, gentlemen, if you will follow me. Dr. Robbins, the captain is most anxious to find out if they treated you right."

Robbins looked from Ryan to Mendenhall. They both smiled.

"Our people?" Jack asked.

"They have survived their ordeal, I assure you, Colonel."

Jack and the others watched as the dark figure of the doctor turned away and started for the beach end of the dock. Robbins stepped from the group, shrugging off Ryan's and Will's hands, and quickly started forward, as if he were anxious to be on his way.

"Where are we going, Doctor?" Collins called after the dark figure.

The man stopped and turned once he reached the old shack, and as the moon fully breached sea level, they could see the doctor smiling as he waited.

"Why, to take you to meet the person you came here to meet, of course," he said, and turned to enter the shack. Robbins followed him in without a backward glance.

"Well, let's go meet Captain Nemo, shall we?" Collins said in all seriousness.

Everett, Mendenhall, and Ryan fell into step behind Jack as they made their way to the shack.

The moon rose slowly over Saboo Atoll. There was nothing to indicate that they were about to venture into the very birthplace of Leviathan.

15

Collins and his team stepped into the barren and empty shack at the edge of the dock. The doctor was there, dressed in a navy blue jumpsuit with a matching Windbreaker. The only adornment on his uniform was the two dolphins flanking the L on his breast pocket. The doctor smiled as the interior of the shack was slowly illuminated by the rising moon, revealing itself to be filled with floats, a broken radio, and numerous fishing poles, all with dust on their surfaces. The doctor made sure the door was secure, then said aloud, "Level two."

The flooring broke away from the foundation of the shack and started descending into the sandy beach. Once the small elevator was beyond the wall of the shack, Jack and the others saw they were inside an acrylic shaft. The elevator was being lowered below the water table of the island and into an excavated chamber. Soon they broke free into a cavernous level that housed crates and other bulky materials, and for the first time, as Collins and his men looked into the most amazing man-made cavern in the world, they saw the inhabitants of Saboo Island — children.

The doctor watched the four men and smiled. "Our future — or what we hope our future is," he said, gesturing toward the thirty or so children within view just as the glass door slid aside. He stepped out without worrying about the men being behind him.

The engineering was amazing. Steel beams that were sixty feet thick and hundreds of feet long were supporting the giant cave. The spider-webbing of support rebar snaked in and out of the entire structure — they could see that the engineering was old, possibly pre-Civil War. The base of the cavern was taken up by a two-thousand-foot lagoon with a concrete dock that extended two hundred feet into the water. On the far side of the immense cavern, two massive dry dock facilities rose from the unnatural lagoon. There were cranes and derricks, shops and warehouses. On the small beach around the lagoon, there were tents arrayed, and they spied a few of the children exiting carrying small backpacks.

"Jack, this may have been their home once, but look at these buildings — they haven't been used in years," Everett said, leaning into Collins.

"Gentlemen, may I point out dry dock number one," the doctor said, pointing to the far left of the lagoon, "the very dock that launched the first Leviathan back in the eighteen hundreds. The larger of the two dry docks, number two, as you can see is quite a bit larger. That is the birthplace of the current Leviathan. Forty years for its creation and commissioning."

"It's large enough to launch a supercarrier," Everett observed.

"The children?" Jack inquired.

"As I said, they are our future; you might say the very best of both worlds are standing before you, Colonel. The birthplace and onetime home of Leviathan and the family Heirthall, and these children."

"And just where is your Captain Heirthall, Doctor?"

Gene Robbins stepped up to the railing, smiling. He closed his eyes as the man-made breeze seemed to shift, and there was a minute change in the density of the air. The overhead lights that illuminated the great cave flickered. They saw static electricity actually sparking on the surface of the man-made bay below.

"She's right there, Colonel," the doctor said, pointing at the lagoon. "Gentlemen—Leviathan."

As they watched, great bubbles of released air and fountains of water towered into the interior of the cavern. Then the conning tower of the great submarine slowly and silently broke the roiling surface of the lagoon, announced by the mist and streaks of blue electricity as the composite hull reacted with the humidified air.

"Jesus," Mendenhall mumbled. His skin turned ice cold watching the behemoth rise from the water.

The sweptback structure kept rising, breeching higher out of the blue water, and finally her conning tower planes broke free as would a giant's palm shedding the sea.

As Collins watched, the small children, dressed in blue shorts and blue shirts, all stood as one and watched the mother of all vessels rise from the abyss. The two tail fins rose six hundred feet back from the conning tower; the anti-collision lights glowed bright red. Finally, the sleek, black hull of Leviathan herself followed the towering tail fins.

"My God," Everett said, standing next to Jack.

"Close, Captain," Robbins said as he leaned back and felt the false breeze the arrival of the giant ship created.

The submarine continued to rise from the water, all eleven hundred feet of her. The great rounded bow broke free of the water as giant bubbles broke the surface, signaling the final release of all of the air in her ballast tanks. As they watched, the giant screens protecting the viewing windows started to part. The windows covered the entire bow section, and gleamed in the overhead lighting of the cavern. Jack could see the separation of compartments and decks through the thick glass.

The huge bow-planes started to retract into the hull, causing a large ripple in the calming waters. They were all startled when tremendous geysers of water shot from both sides of the submarine that now towered a hundred and fifty feet into the air. The water spouts rose high, creating a rainbow effect that circled the middle section of Leviathan. All was silent for the briefest of moments. Then the cavern lights dimmed, and giant floodlights illuminated the wetness that covered the black, violet, and blue skin of the giant monster.

"Now that is something," Ryan said looking from the lagoon to Mendenhall who stood silent, watching the spectacle.

"Okay, Doctor, you can relay to your captain, we were adequately impressed."

Before the doctor could respond to Collins, the thirty-two children ran forward on the concrete dock, silently, but looking excited as they gathered up their small belongings, backpacks, books, and other small treasures of their young lives. There were black children and white, yellow and brown, every race known to the planet, and as varied as the bright rainbow colors that were only now fading in the false light of the cavern.

As the doctor led the way down from the elevator platform, six of the small children passed them on their way down to the dock. One of them, a small girl, bumped into Mendenhall, and he reached out to steady her. She only looked up at the much taller man and smiled. As she started to pull away from Mendenhall, she reached up and placed her small hand on his enormous one. Then the small girl turned and skipped her way down the scaffold to the dock below.

With one last look at the buildings built right into the coral-and-lava rock strata of the cave, Jack and the others followed Dr. Trevor and a very excited Robbins down to Leviathan.

As the six men reached the broad opening of the quay, the doctor took Jack by the arm, halting him and the others from advancing farther. Collins looked from the surgeon to Leviathan as the lower escape trunk hatch on the conning tower opened at its base. At first there was no one there, but then several midshipmen walked out to greet the youngsters as they swarmed the sleek black deck. The submarine was so large that the children looked like ants upon the beached carcass of a prehistoric whale.

"Are they related, Doctor?" Carl asked.

As the groups met and hugged, a few even jumped for joy. It was as if they were reunited for the first time in years.

The doctor only smiled, looking from the children to Everett. The two groups of young people started entering the conning tower with the older ones holding the hands of the younger, two at a time until the deck was clear. Then the adult personnel that had been left on the island to watch over the children started loading crates and other materials being evacuated from Leviathan's former home.

"The older age group is Leviathan's midshipmen. As to your question, they are all orphans, Captain Everett. They are the Heirthall children. They are not relations — that is yet to come for the children. Now, if you will follow me, into the belly of the beast." He turned, smiling. "So to speak."

Collins stopped once they stepped onto the expanse of deck. About twenty-five men came up through one of the many deck hatches aft of the conning tower and started repairing minor damage to the composite material that made up the hull of Leviathan. Several men wearing scuba gear, and some without, lowered themselves into the water with canvas bags holding tools and repair materials.

"We sustained some minor damage to our outer hull. We underestimated the tenacity and luck of one of your American subs, Missouri. I'm sure her captain bragged to you about it." The doctor looked at each man in turn. "I assure you, that mistake won't be repeated by the captain. Follow me, please."

As they stepped over the hatch jam, they were inside the lowest portion of the hundred-fifty-foot shark-finlike conning tower. The interior of the submarine was deathly silent; there was not even the sound of the children that had come aboard before them.

"Captain Everett, if you and Lieutenants Ryan and Mendenhall will accompany me, I will take you to your director. Colonel, Captain Heirthall has requested you join her in the conning observation suite. The door will open momentarily; just wait here."

Before the others moved off down the companionway, a large elevator arrived from the bowels of the submarine and the doors parted. Collins and his men were staring at ten soldiers in the same black Nomexlike clothing made from seaweed that was found on the attackers of their complex. The man standing to the front of this group looked at Leviathan's guests. A better term was that he was in the process of examining them. He gestured for several of his men to advance. They started unceremoniously frisking and searching Collins and his men.

"They were scanned inside the shack, there is nothing in their clothing — is the captain aware you are doing this?" the doctor demanded, stepping up to the larger of the men. "You'll have to pardon Sergeant Tyler, Colonel; his etiquette has been lacking for quite some time." He stepped closer to Tyler just inside the elevator and whispered, "Do you insist on attracting attention to yourself? You are becoming overly aggressive, Sergeant. It was my understanding that Yeoman Alvera explained this to you."

Tyler didn't answer. He simply reached down, picked up a large satchel, and advanced into the companionway.

"Make it a thorough search," he said to four of his men.

"My apologies again, Colonel," the doctor said.

Collins didn't respond, he only turned and locked eyes with Sergeant Tyler.

Tyler held Jack's glare, raised his left brow, and broke the moment by gesturing for his men to go ahead of him as he finally spoke to Collins.

"Because of men like you, I am on my way to destroy the only home that we have ever known," he said, stopping in front of Collins. "I was against rescuing you in the Mediterranean, Colonel; I think you should know that." He looked from Collins to the other three men, and continued in his Irish-accented voice. "If it were up to me, I would leave you all here on Saboo, to be destroyed right along with it."

"Well, why don't you just set those bags down and show us the way, cowboy. I guarantee you better bring your lunch," Ryan said, taking a menacing step forward before Everett and Will grabbed him.

"At ease, Mr. Ryan," Jack said calmly, still looking at Tyler.

Tyler smirked at Ryan. He abruptly threw the large black satchel over his shoulder, turned, and left, stepping through the escape trunk and onto the deck.

The doctor nodded for Robbins to go into the elevator first, then he gestured for Everett and the others to follow. He nodded toward the door Collins was supposed to step through.

Jack turned and saw that the hatch behind him had opened without a sound. He cautiously stepped up to the hatchway and looked into the darkened chamber. The giant bubble windows were closed, their clamshell covers in place, allowing no light into the suite. There was only the large chair sitting upon its pedestal and the light from the few computers lining the far bulkhead.

Jack stepped into the large suite and the hatch closed behind him with a soft thrum of noise. He wasn't startled as he turned that way, only curious. Then another hatch opened. He saw a small figure step through, but he couldn't see any details before the light from the outside corridor was cut off. Collins waited.

Slowly the interior lights came up, casting a soft blue glow to the room. Jack saw the figure standing just inside the door, looking around. He smiled slow and wide for the first time in what seemed like years.

"Hello, Short Stuff," he said, almost too low for Sarah to hear, but loud enough to startle her.

As Sarah McIntire turned, she saw the man standing next to the raised command platform. He was thinner and tired looking, but she recognized Jack immediately. She slowly started forward and then almost lost her footing as her legs weakened. Collins stepped up and immediately took her into his arms and held her. Nothing else; he just held on to her. He could feel her soft sobbing and he held her even tighter.

"Was I missed?"

There was no answer from Sarah as she wrapped her own arms around Jack. She just held him tightly and cried.

In her sparse private quarters, Alexandria switched off the monitor that showed the reunion between Jack and Sarah. She swallowed and fought back tears of her own. She knew that a person like her could never have something like what she had just witnessed. Heirthall had chosen her path, and that would never allow anyone into her world. It would cause hesitation, doubt, even lead to a lack of vision. If she lost that, then her world would be lost forever.

She sat on the edge of her small bed, closed her deep blue eyes, and brought her right hand up to her mouth. She took the tablets the doctor had given her and then rubbed her aching legs. The pain was growing more acute in both her legs and her head. According to the doctor, her mobility would soon be threatened.

She slowly reached out and turned the monitor back on. As the pain increased in her head, she found herself becoming angry at the scene before her. She knew it was she who had set up the reunion, but now as she watched, she was becoming enraged. Before she had a chance to reach out and turn the monitor off, she felt a trickle at her left ear. She reached up and swiped at it, and her hand came away with blood. Before she could react, her vision started to cloud. Soon, without her knowing it, she would not be Alexandria Heirthall any longer. She would be Octavian's great-great-granddaughter, and her hate would fill the world.

The doctor opened the door to the forward observation lounge three decks down, stepped aside, and allowed Carl, Jason, and Will to step through.

"Gentlemen, I have duties to attend to, so I will excuse myself for now."

Everett watched Dr. Trevor leave. He then heard Mendenhall and Ryan greeted boisterously inside the lounge. He turned to see the smiling faces of Niles, Alice, the senator, and Virginia hugging his two lieutenants and patting them on the back. Director Compton stepped forward after shaking hands with Ryan and Will and greeted Everett.

"Captain, it's good to see you," Niles said, taking his hand as Virginia stepped up beside him.

"Boss, it's good to see you're all still functioning in this crazy, mixed-up world." After he released Niles's hand, he turned serious. "They separated us from the colonel," he said as his eyes slowly moved to Virginia Pollock.

"Then he really is alive?" Niles asked.

"Yes, sir, he is most definitely. Dr. Pollock, how are you doing?"

"I guess you'll have to tell me, Captain…. Just how am I doing?"

Everett smiled to ease the woman's mind.

"You mean, do we believe you're a traitor?"

Niles turned and looked at the two of them.

"No, we don't. We found the real culprit, and even brought the little bastard along for the ride."

"Who?" Niles asked.

"Dr. Gene Robbins," he said, taking Virginia's hand.

Niles found the closest chair and sat down.

Virginia was as shocked as Niles. She took Carl by the hand and pulled him to her. "Thank you," she whispered.

"Son, how in the hell are you?" Senator Lee asked, stepping in and breaking up Everett's awkward moment.

Carl winked at Virginia and then turned to face the senator.

"Well, sir, we've found out quite a bit, but it seems the more history we uncover, the more mysterious this mess gets," Carl said as he shook Lee's hand.

Garrison Lee leaned on his cane and gestured to the many chairs around the long table.

"Well, Captain, we seem to have time on our hands at the moment. Enthrall us as to who this Captain Heirthall really is. We've guessed at a lot, but let's hear the Event Group version."

"You're not going to believe it," was all Everett said, hugging Alice.

"A riddle wrapped in an enigma," Mendenhall said as he poured himself a glass of water.

"Or maybe a nut wrapped up in a shell," Ryan countered.

Sarah led Jack into the observation area without the normal security escort. She watched as Niles, Lee, Virginia, and Alice greeted Jack like a long-lost son and brother.

"Well, I see you didn't bring the cavalry along with you, Jack," Lee said, smiling and clapping the colonel on the shoulder.

"We decided to wait and make sure the cavalry would have a fighting chance before committing them."

"You should have brought them anyway," Lee mumbled as Alice took his free arm.

"If they're needed, they're only a phone call away," Jack said, looking around the observation deck. Sarah silently went to Everett, placed her arms around his waist, and hugged him. Carl kissed the top of her head, and then Sarah sat down silently next to Virginia and Niles to watch Jack reunite with the people he had come to know and respect. She smiled, just taking in his form and face. Virginia reached out, took her hand, and smiled at her.

"I'm happy for you," she whispered.

Sarah looked at the assistant director and became serious.

"It's all for nothing if we don't get the hell off this boat. Every naval vessel in the world is going to try to track us down. The odds of us getting out of here are a little bleak."

Virginia kept smiling and patted her hand. "I think our odds at that survival just went up by at least four percent," she said, looking at the four men before them.

Captain Heirthall finally left her cabin and took the elevator down to deck ten. Once there, she slowly walked through the wide companionway, looking at none of the crew as they greeted her. She didn't even notice First Officer Samuels as he caught up with her. She nodded without really looking at him.

"Captain," Samuels said, noticing the clearness of her eyes once more as she continued on her way.

"The children are all aboard and safe?" she asked, looking straight ahead as she walked.

"Yes, ma'am, they're in the crew's mess, eating."

"Good, I'm on my way there now. Do you have something you wish to report to me, Commander?"

Samuels noticed that although they were presently alone in the companionway, she said "Commander" instead of the more familiar "James."

"Sergeant Tyler has placed the explosives in all the terminal points of the cavern. It should be sufficient to bring the cave formation down into the sea. All material important to Leviathan has been loaded aboard, and all supplies are stored. Your family's original journals and research — all the books are aboard and safe."

Alexandria finally stopped and turned to face Samuels. "As soon as Tyler and his men have come aboard, we'll put to sea."

"Aye, Captain." He slowly turned away, noticing her slow gait. "Maybe we can discuss the disposition of the children, now that we are at war? Maybe at dinner tonight?"

Heirthall stopped and half-turned toward Samuels.

"Dinner?" she asked.

Samuels looked around and made sure no one was in earshot. "Yes, ma'am. You requested I have dinner with you at twenty-three hundred."

"The program involving the children will continue, Commander. There will be no need for dinner or further discussion."

Samuels was silent as Heirthall turned and continued on her way.

As Niles and his people were escorted by First Officer Samuels from the observation deck back down to the mess area, Jack walked with Sarah. Collins couldn't get enough of looking at the diminutive geologist, and she was aware that his gaze had never been so intense. She was seeing something she never would have thought possible: a Jack Collins who wasn't afraid to show his feelings. Maybe all it took to show the way was for both of us to think the other was dead, she thought to herself.

Mendenhall and Ryan, tagging along in the back of the group, watched the nonverbal way the colonel and Sarah communicated. Sarah would sneak a look at Jack, and then vice versa.

"This is a little creepy," Will said, observing the strangeness of the reunion.

Commander Samuels looked far more reserved than usual, at least to Niles and the others who had had dealings with the first officer.

The crew's mess was full and loud. All the tables were occupied with the exception of one. The first officer gestured for them to be seated. As soon as they had, water glasses and utensils were placed before them by the teenage midshipmen, who it seemed had a hard time concentrating on their duties. They kept looking toward the center of the great galley area at the children who were sitting and eating. Other midshipmen and a few of the adult crew members were standing over them, joking and teasing.

"It seems kids are very popular here," Mendenhall ventured from the far end of the table.

"It brings up the perplexing question of the morality of destroying this vessel with children onboard," Alice said, looking from the children and young midshipmen to the faces around her own table.

For the first time, everyone looked at Jack for a direction. He shook his head and placed his water glass down.

"I have one duty at the moment, and no magic answers for any of you. I plan on getting us off of this technological menagerie as soon as I can find a way. Those children are a part of what's going on here, and whether we find out what that is or not, it makes no difference." He looked from person to person. "We are getting out of here, and letting the professionals who can fight this woman do their job."

None of them had ever heard Jack speak in that manner before. The one man who always knew his duty and what was to be done for the greater good of the country now saw things differently. Sarah, for her part, was looking at Jack and seeing a change in him — one that was disturbing to her.

The din in the mess area quieted. All eyes looked to the far end of the galley as a hatch opened. Standing there was Heirthall. She was resplendent in a navy blue frock coat that trailed all the way to the floor. Her white blouse was collarless, and her blue pants cut short to the ankle. Her black hair was shining, pulled to one side, and flowing over her right shoulder.

Jack, Carl, Will, and Ryan stood so they could get their first look at Captain Alexandria Olivia Heirthall.

"Whoa," Ryan mumbled to Mendenhall.

"Take it easy. I have a feeling she isn't your type," Will mumbled.

As for Everett, the first thing he noticed from across the room was the way the woman stood, statuesque, framing herself so that everyone inside could see her. He didn't know if this was arrogance or her natural way. He would hold all his opinions in check until he could see more. One thing was sure in all of their minds — this woman was definitely in her element.

As she stepped inside, the small children, the eldest of whom looked no older than eight or nine, broke from the table they were sitting at. All thirty-two of them rushed toward Captain Heirthall. For the first time since their arrival, Niles and the others saw a smile break out wide across Alexandria's face. She held out her arms and allowed the children to crowd in close. They were reaching for her, and she played her hands over as many of the heads as she could reach. Adult crew members tried their best to hold the children in check.

Alexandria waded in to the children. She was smiling, touching, and then placing her slender fingers along their small faces. The children in turn reached out as if it was the one thing they had to do. Heirthall waved off the adult crew members and midshipmen as they tried to calm the children.

Heirthall plucked one of the younger children from the group — it was a girl, maybe three or four years old. She had been standing on a chair to see the captain. Alexandria kissed the girl on the cheek, hugged her, and then gently handed her off to Samuels, who had joined the captain. The commander leaned in, whispered to the captain, and then nodded toward their table. She looked at the Event Group people and her right brow rose. Then she held her arms up and the room started to settle.

"Our babies… welcome aboard!" she said as the older crew members applauded politely.

The midshipmen escorted the small children back to their table.

Alexandria started toward the Group's table, followed by Samuels. When she neared, Niles, Lee, Jack, Carl, Mendenhall, and Ryan stood and half-bowed their greeting, as military men were trained to do.

They watched her smile and nod politely at their gesture, and then the men saw who had joined her. Gene Robbins was now dressed in a blue jumpsuit with the standard [?]L[?] on the breast pocket.

"These," she started to say as she gestured toward the children, "are why we are doing what we are doing. They are our life, our light, and I daresay, our future — orphans from your world who came here and found a family."

"Captain, we fight for children all over the world — live and die for them. Can you explain why one group of children is worth the murder of multitudes, while others starve in isolated pockets throughout the world? Just why are these children any different than those whom you will starve and freeze with your actions?"

"By helping this special group of children, we may help others, Dr. Compton. May I sit and join you? I'm quite hungry."

Compton dipped his head. He looked to the other standing men of his group, gesturing for them to sit also, as his eyes fell on Dr. Robbins. "If it's all the same to you, Captain, I would prefer if this man ate at another table," Niles said.

"Hear, hear," Lee agreed.

Robbins had the extreme audacity to look stunned and hurt as he faced his former friends.

"I can assure you, Dr. Compton," Alexandria said, pulling out her chair, assisted by Robbins holding it for her, "Gene Robbins is a man of the highest character. His only crime is that he has a higher priority than most. He loved your Group, and for every little bit of information he passed on to me, he forfeited some of his soul."

"Not enough," Niles said, placing his napkin back into his lap. "However, madam, it is your table and your vessel; I bow to your wishes."

Alexandria patted Robbins on the hand and whispered to him that he should sit.

"Captain, I would not want to ruin the appetites of your guests. Perhaps I can visit with the children for a while." He tried to look at Carl, but found he couldn't hold the captain's gaze.

"You are excused, Doctor. We can talk later."

Robbins half-bowed and then walked over to Everett.

"You don't understand anything, Captain, but then again, how could you?" He leaned in close to Carl. "You always act without thinking." Robbins then dropped something in Everett's lap. The move was quick and no one sitting at the table was the wiser. Robbins looked at the others and then left quickly.

"He has been hurt deeply. He asked that he not be released from his duties at your agency if he was able to pass on information to me without getting caught." Alexandria looked at Everett. "He said he had found a home with people he admired and trusted. He singled you out, Captain Everett, as a man he admired."

Everett stared back at the captain. He didn't rise to any bait she might be laying out; instead he placed his hands in his lap and found the item Robbins had dropped.

"You will learn before we set you ashore that he had the highest motives," she said as her salad was placed before her. She immediately started eating.

"I've noticed a change in you since the last time we saw you, Captain. Can we explain that away by the presence of the children you have picked up here on Saboo?" Alice asked.

Heirthall dabbed at her mouth with her napkin, then looked from face to face as she placed her elegant hands underneath her chin.

"Yes, you can," she answered, and then she turned to look at Jack and Sarah with mild curiosity.

"Captain, I'm curious, the treasure mentioned in regard to your ancestor — was it real, or was that just a flight of fancy by Alexandre Dumas?" Ryan asked.

"The subject interests you, Lieutenant Ryan?" she asked, her eyes finally leaving Jack and Sarah.

"Only from a standpoint of…" He looked at Jack and then Everett."… literature, of course."

Alexandria smiled. She liked the young naval officer; he was blunt and forthcoming, and did not hold a lie well.

"Yes, Mr. Ryan, the treasure really existed, or still exists, I should say, as I have explained to your companions. Of course, we need none of it today; we have found plenty to keep our operations safe and secure without ruining the values of every precious gem, gold, or antiquities market in the world."

"Is it onboard?" Ryan asked with hopefulness in his eyes.

"No, the weight of it alone would sink Leviathan right to the bottom of the sea. It's in one of the most inaccessible places in the world."

"Is it—"

"Lieutenant, I think we've covered that subject about as far as we need to," Jack said, frowning at Ryan.

"I have a question, Captain," Collins said, turning away from an embarrassed Ryan.

"Yes, Colonel?"

"Your security force, how large is it?"

"One hundred and seventy. We can deal with most land elements in Special Operations if need be."

"I would think that is a rather large contingent just for the security of Leviathan," Jack said, probing.

Heirthall pushed her plate away and looked at Collins. She was silent for a time as she studied him.

"You need not make any bold plans, Colonel. The reasons for bringing you aboard… well, to put it frankly, they are moot at this point. Plans have changed. Your time onboard Leviathan is at an end."

Samuels, sitting next to Heirthall, barely moved his eyes, but Jack and Niles saw that this information was news to him.

"All hands, prepare for getting under way. We are at defense condition two throughout the boat. Midshipmen, secure the young in the aft pressure dome." The announcement ended their lunch.

A young lieutenant gave Commander Samuels a message, then left the table. The first officer passed it onto Heirthall, who wadded the flimsy thing into a ball and stood. She was tense as she half-bowed and then left the table, quickly escorted by four of Tyler's security men.

"If you'll come with me, we're preparing to dive. We have detected the Missouri sitting offshore, so we will immediately run into deep waters," Samuels said as he stood. "Security will take you to the observation deck."

"You'll not take offensive action against Missouri, will you?" Lee asked.

"Our actions will be defensive in nature, Senator. Leviathan will run deep; no vessel in the world can out-dive us. If they choose to follow, that is of no concern to the captain. Now, please, follow me."

"How deep can this thing go?" Mendenhall asked nervously as he stood with the others to follow the commander.

"I don't know," Ryan said to him, "but the crush depth for most American boats is sixteen hundred feet, some even less."

"Oh, shit," was all Will could say as he and the others felt the first tingling of fear.

As they were on their way to the observation deck, escorted by ten security men, Everett slid in beside Jack and handed him something. Collins, without acknowledging the move, deftly opened a small piece of paper that had been folded several times.

"It's from our little computer nerd. He passed it to me in the mess."

Jack quickly looked down at the precise block letters of the note. It was only five words: SOMETHING is WRONG WITH HEIRTHALL.

"What do you think?" Everett mumbled.

"This only confirms what we already suspect. The added element here is that our Dr. Robbins is saying the captain has changed since their last meeting. That means if he's worried, we should be, too."

Sarah stepped in to ask what was up when Sergeant Tyler and another security team approached them. They were all heavily armed, and they all sported their Nomex/seaweed assault gear. The Event Group was surrounded just outside of the observation deck.

"The use of deadly force against you has been authorized by the captain if you attempt any sort of offensive move, or if you attempt to communicate with the outside world. This status will be in effect until you depart this vessel." Tyler looked directly at Collins, then gestured for his men to take the Group into the observation deck. He then grabbed Jack's arm and held him in place.

"It's time you and I had a little talk, Colonel."

Collins didn't say anything. He looked from Tyler to Sarah, who hesitated at the door. Then he rose, looked at her sternly, and nodded toward the hatchway, indicating that she go with the others. Niles placed his arm around Sarah, and with a stern look at Tyler moved inside the hatchway. Everett, Ryan, and Mendenhall followed — each giving the sergeant warning looks. When they were all inside, one of the two security men reached out and dogged the hatch.

"I need to know why the captain was adamant about having your people aboard Leviathan, and don't hand me that crap about needing information about what your agency knew about her and her family."

"Even if I remembered my time onboard Leviathan the first time around, I wouldn't tell you a damn thing, Sergeant."

"Colonel, if I don't get an answer as to why your director and the others were brought here, I will find a way to kill someone very close to you. Now answer me."

The cold demeanor of the security man brought Jack to the conclusion that Heirthall had lost control of at least part of her command. If Tyler was against her in some form or another, Collins knew he might have to take his chances with the madwoman over the man standing in front of him. His instincts told him that this man was a killer — once more, he could see in his eyes that he enjoyed it.

Jack didn't respond to the threat he had leveled at Sarah. He just smiled, his eyes never leaving Tyler's own.

"Why are you here?"

"Tyler, I will say this to you. You are one of those people I will not mind killing."

The sergeant smiled and acted as if to turn away, but instead brought up the sidearm hidden at his side and smashed Jack on the side of the head. Collins staggered, then went down to a knee. Tyler stood over him and brought the pistol down into Jack's skull. The colonel collapsed to the deck.

"What is the meaning of this?!"

Tyler turned to see Samuels standing at the junction of the companionway. His face was screwed into an angry mask as he quickly stepped to where Collins was trying to rise. Samuels assisted Jack to his feet.

"What in the hell do you think you're doing, Tyler? Consider yourself on report. Now get to your diving station and remain there. You'll be brought up at captain's mast. Now get out," he said with a growl. "Colonel, we have to get you attended to."

"Take Captain America here to sickbay," Tyler ordered his two men, and then he turned and walked off without acknowledging Samuels.

Heirthall's first officer felt the authority of the chain of command starting to slip away as Leviathan ran full speed into harm's way.

16

Niles and the other members of the Event Group were seated in front of the observation windows as Heirthall walked over to the main console lining the inner hull and depressed the intercom.

"Mr. Samuels, take Leviathan down to three hundred feet. Maintain zero bubble, keel at thirty feet above the cave floor. Prepare for a flank run out of the access tunnel to the sea just in case our unwanted American boat is still watching."

"Captain, with the repairs incomplete on the damaged sections to the hull and planes, we will leave a wake and sound signature."

"I am well aware of that, Mr. Samuels. You have your orders. As soon as we have entered the access tunnel, have Mr. Tyler set off his mainline detonation." Heirthall turned away from the main console and sat in a chair fronting the observation windows that now held the hologram.

The great black hull of Leviathan slipped slowly under the calm waters of the interior lagoon. As her hull started taking on the minute pressures of the shallow dive, her amazing skin started to depress in on itself, actually getting stronger as the pressure increased. There were seventeen layers of spun titanium and nylon material in her hull that could depress and expand with the rigors of deep ocean travel. This makeup of hull matrix, and the difficulty in making the elements adhere to each other in its composite form, was one hundred and twenty years ahead of the General Dynamics Electric Boat Division of the United States.

Leviathan went to three hundred feet; her giant thrusters fore and aft maneuvered her until she was pointed toward the thousand-foot access tunnel that would lead her to her natural element — the open sea.

On the hologram projected onto the closed observation doors, the control center was shown in bright detail from three decks below them. The image only took up a portion of the viewing screen. The rest showed a computer-generated image of the access tunnel and the waters beyond. Niles watched as the crew of Leviathan went about their work. Commander Samuels was in his normal place, standing beside the empty captain's chair with his arms crossed over his chest.

"Helm, steer three-five-seven, all ahead at ten knots. Increase speed by increments of twenty knots as we traverse the cave."

"Aye, Mr. Samuels, estimate full speed will be achieved upon exit of the tunnel at one hundred thirty-seven knots."

"Thank you, Mr. Hind."

Heirthall closed her eyes and smiled as Leviathan started her forward run. To Compton it was if she herself were Leviathan, and it seemed Heirthall felt better as she began to move.

"Sergeant Tyler, you may do your duty," Samuels said on the hologram.

A hundred feet down the long row of technicians, Sergeant Tyler was sitting at one of the ten weapons stations.

"With the captain's permission," he said, flipping up a plastic door and then, without hesitation, pushing the red button underneath.

The cave walls and ceiling gave a mighty heave as the two-megaton nuclear weapon detonated. Leviathan heaved forward when the first pressure wave struck her, and was suddenly pushed to the side as heated water from the cave fought to escape the collapsing home of the great boat. Her port thrusters shot out twenty thousand pounds of water pressure to keep the giant submarine from smashing into the cave's wall.

Heirthall now stood as the first of the tremors settled far behind them and the giant submarine finally settled.

"The first home I ever knew is now gone," she said beneath her breath. "Commander Samuels, take us out of here. I'll be in auxiliary control." She turned and faced Virginia. "Ginny, would you care to accompany me?"

On the surface of the Pacific, Saboo Atoll exploded. The mountainous center fell in and then expanded outward, forming a mushroom-shaped cloud filled with microparticles of melted rock and coral that had made up the small atoll.

As Leviathan broke free of the access tunnel, Alexandria sat quietly in her large chair. She watched the end of the tunnel slide by through the now-open portals in the conning tower. Bright lighting illuminated the passing water; Virginia felt the smallest of vibrations as Leviathan started her run up to flank speed.

"Captain, we have one submerged contact close-aboard, four thousand yards dead-ahead. Prop signature has been identified as our old friend the Missouri," Samuels said.

"I felt them out there long before sonar detected them, Commander. All hands are to stand by for evasive maneuvering," she said with her eyes closed.

"Yes, ma'am. All hands stand by for evasive maneuvering. All nonessential personnel are to remain in their cabins — seal all watertight compartments."

"Brace yourself, Ginny," Alexandria said as she finally opened her eyes wide and looked through the floating hologram in front of her. She saw the vaguest outlines of USS Missouri. She could also see that they were starting a run on Leviathan. The American boat was going to give chase, thinking all the while their stealth technology kept them hidden.

"The damage to our outer skin has made us visible just enough for Missouri to get a fix on us," Alexandria said. She dipped her head and settled her eyes on the sleek-bodied Virginia class boat ahead of Leviathan. "They think we can't see them because of what they view as a superior technology. Little do they know they have been defeated by the oldest technology in the world: eyesight."

Virginia watched as rivulets of sweat broke out on Heirthall's forehead.

Alexandria's blue eyes blazed as she pushed both control sticks to the right, taking Leviathan hard and down in that direction. Then she pushed only the left stick, and the giant submarine dived even harder, bringing Virginia up out of her chair. Only her harness kept her body from crashing into the overhead.

On the hologram, the depiction of Missouri went to the left and up a hundred feet in a vain attempt to head Leviathan off.

"Captain, Missouri has acquired the noise from our damaged outer skin and planes. She is attempting to follow."

"Commander, we're going to full emergency speed and full dive on the planes. We'll be bringing ballast control to one hundred percent — all hands prepare for emergency dive, steering three three-four degrees. Start injecting the hydrogen and helium mix into the hull plates!"

"All hands, prepare for deepwater dive. Close all inner hatches and seal main bulkhead doors. Close all observation windows, secure all departments, stand by for hull reinforcement for extreme pressure dive!"

"Where are you taking us, Alex?" Virginia asked over the increasing whine of Leviathan's thermal-dynamic drive and its four power plants as it pushed raw steam and hydrogen into her jet system.

" 'So all men will know, I am the Lord God of the Sea — thy name is Leviathan!'" Alexandria mumbled, not hearing Virginia.

"Alex — for God's sake!"

Alexandria fixed Virginia with calm demeanor. "A quote from Octavian," she said finally with her eyes fluttering, and then she lost some of the intensity. "We're going to the most inaccessible part of the world, my Ginny — a place where men cannot follow in their toy ships — the Mariana Trench!"

Virginia was tossed back into her chair as Leviathan increased her speed to almost two hundred knots. As the observation window screens closed, Virginia could see the steam and heat rising from the sleek black hull. Leviathan fought for the deep, actually creating friction in the cold seas surrounding her.

"We're going to Leviathan's world, Ginny — we're going to my world."

Virginia cringed at the calm words of her friend — finally realizing there was no going back to the real world for Alexandria Heirthall.

"Alex, what in God's name has a hold on you?" Virginia screamed above the din of surging power.

Leviathan was now headed for the deepest part of the known world, and she was going there at two hundred and thirty miles per hour, faster than any seagoing object in the history of humankind.

As the crash doors closed over the observation widows, the last thing the members of the Event Group saw was the fleeting image of USS Missouri as Leviathan went headlong in front of her. Then a violent downward turn sent them high into their seats and slammed them back down as the giant submarine maneuvered hard to starboard, then to port, and then dived beneath the thermal cline on her way to deep water.

The Event Group silenced as the world turned upside down and the great submarine rolled. A few dishes and bar bottles fell and shattered; then Leviathan righted herself.

"I can't begin to understand the science involved here — helium-hydrogen mix? Has she found a way to defeat the very pressures of the ocean depths along with the physics of the planet?" Lee asked aloud.

Niles Compton looked at the green holographic readout below the depiction of the onrushing seafloor.

"Captain Everett, do you know these coordinates?" Compton called out loudly over the din of the engines at full power.

"Eleven twenty-one North latitude and one-forty-two twelve East longitude," Everett said to himself. Then he looked at the flat expanse of seafloor highlighted in holographic blues rushing toward them. "Jesus Christ," Everett shouted, "everyone hold on tight — this crazy woman just may be on a suicide run."

"Explain, Captain," Lee asked loudly as the observation deck began to flicker and then went out, leaving the only light the green, red, and blue colors of the massive hologram in front of them.

"That ocean bottom coming straight at us is what's called the Abysmal Shelf. The mountainous area to the front is the continental plate of Asia. We can only be headed for one place — where no attack submarine in the world can follow — the Mariana Trench!"

Mendenhall and Ryan exchanged looks. When Captain Everett got scared, that meant they were going into the extreme of all dangers.

The green readout started pumping out numbers that were hard to follow as Leviathan ran deep.

"Captain, Missouri is giving chase at their maximum speed of forty-seven knots!" Samuels announced over the intercom from his station in control.

"The Missouri will never catch us; she better turn and head for home. They're already too deep!" Everett said as the hologram split into two sections to show Leviathan's bow and stern and the computer-generated depiction of the Missouri.

"God, she's a fast boat, but she has to turn away," Everett said proudly, even as he prayed Missouri's captain would give up.

"Turn away, damn it!" Niles said as he watched Missouri three miles behind.

"Four thousand meters — thirteen thousand feet deep!" Everett called out. "We're at the deepest part of the Pacific Ocean — there's the Trench!"

As they watched, the black image of the Mariana Trench grew in scope before their eyes. It was rushing at them just as Leviathan's inner hull started to bend inward, and to the amazement of all, they actually witnessed the composite material shimmer in the dark as its matrix started changing right before their eyes. The interior hull looked as if it were sweating as the composite fibers tightened, making itself stronger against the depths.

"How can this material take this depth?" Niles asked just as the pressure in the boat started to increase, making them all dizzy and grabbing their heads.

"How deep is the trench, Carl?" Sarah asked as she watched Everett pull his harness tighter.

"If you sank Mount Everest to the bottom of the trench, there would still be more than seven thousand feet of water above it."

"Can this damn thing hold up to that pressure?"

"It's been rumored for years that General Dynamics Electric Boat Division has been working on a chemical-electrical mix that would reinforce a composite design for deepwater submergence, but this is far beyond anything ever dreamed."

Mendenhall and Ryan were shaking as hard as Leviathan herself. Will closed his eyes and started praying.

"I think we're too close to the depths of hell for that to help!" Ryan called out.

Virginia watched Alexandria's eyes narrow once more to slits as Leviathan screamed for the deepest part of the world.

"Captain, the thermal-dynamic drive is going into the red; the reactors have been running at one hundred and twenty percent power for three minutes. Estimate power plant scram in thirty-eight seconds!"

"Maintain current power output, Commander. We need this demonstration for the benefit of our American friends."

There was a momentary silence from the control center, and then Samuels answered. "Aye, Captain, maintaining one hundred and twenty percent on the reactors."

The sound of the hull compressing did not affect the crew of Leviathan as she entered the trench. Three miles distant, Missouri still came on.

"Fools, they can't take this depth. They must turn away!" Heirthall screamed, watching the jagged scar depicting the gaping maw of the world's deepest valley open up fully before Leviathan.

Outside Leviathan, the topmost walls of the Mariana Trench slid by and the giant submarine disappeared into the blackness of the abyss, a place far more deadly and inhospitable than the deepest reaches of outer space.

"Look," Everett called out. "Missouri is turning away and heading for the surface."

"Why in the hell did she risk imploding like that?" Alice asked.

"Because they had to try," Sarah said, thinking about Jack.

The observation deck became quiet as they watched the hologram turn to black. As they entered the trench, the computer-enhanced depiction of the giant Leviathan started to lessen the steepness of her dive.

Once in sickbay, the two guards unceremoniously tossed Jack onto one of the unoccupied beds. They turned and left without a word to Dr. Trevor, who watched without comment. He checked Collins and quickly found his problem.

Thirty minutes later, Jack slowly came around. The doctor was nowhere to be seen. Collins rubbed the gash in his head, which Trevor had cleaned, stitched with six very neat stitches, and dressed with a small bandage.

Jack looked around until his eyes fell on a man staring at him from one of the six beds in the clinic area. The pale blue eyes never blinked, never moved. Collins knew him immediately. Jack made sure he wasn't feeling any ill effects from the blow to his head, then sat up and slowly walked over to the occupied bed.

"Colonel," Jack said, sitting on the bed next to the Frenchman. "Sarah told me you had booked passage on this little cruise."

Farbeaux said nothing as he fought slowly to sit up in his bed. He was grimacing a little more than he actually had to.

"Look, I heard what you did for Sarah at the complex, and I—"

"Let us dispense with the pleasantries, Colonel," Farbeaux said as he looked at Jack. "Young Sarah had to have also told you why I was there in the first place. I was willing to let things go with the news of your supposed death, but now I see and feel that this can no longer be accomplished."

Jack smiled and shook his head.

"So, you want to kill me?" he asked.

"Yes."

"Because you lost Danielle in the Amazon?"

"No."

"Really? Then what is your reasoning?"

"I do not like myself, and you, Colonel, are the architect of that."

"Well, that puts us at cross-purposes, Henri, because I like myself a lot. I've been there, so I don't want to die again. If it makes you feel better, though, I don't like you, either. However, I still want to live and have no desire to kill you. Where does that leave us?"

"We all want what we cannot have. I will kill you and I will feel better for it." Farbeaux looked away and then back after completing a thought. "However, since we both find ourselves in a rather strange predicament here in fantasyland, I am willing to forgo my hostility toward you until such time as we are freed. Then I can kill you and Captain Everett at the same time, and at my leisure. So unless that can be accomplished during our escape from this vessel and without altering my own fortunes, we will call a truce until such a time as we can take up old habits."

Jack reached out and patted Farbeaux on the leg near his wounded hip, making the Frenchman jump in pain. This time he didn't have to act at all.

"Okay, Henri, once we're out of here, we can resume the game. Until then, I can definitely use your penchant for planning, cheating, lying, and being one sneaky bastard."

"It will do no good to flatter me, Colonel."

When the doctor left sickbay half an hour later, he escorted Collins back to his Group and then made his rounds of the departments, checking for deep submergence sickness amongst the crew. Henri Farbeaux eased himself out of his bed. He steadied himself, then slowly limped into Dr. Trevor's private office. He saw the file cabinet where he had watched the doctor place Jack Collins's file. It wasn't locked. Because of that, he wasn't interested enough to check it. He went down the three rows of drawers until he came to one cabinet secured by a built-in lock.

"Eureka," he said, smiling as he removed a small clip he had stolen from his own IV drip. He twisted and bent it until he had the shape he wanted, then inserted it into the lock. He raised his brows when he heard the click and the lock disengaged.

"A little too trusting, Doctor," he whispered as he pulled the drawer open.

There were at least three hundred thick files inside. He recognized some of the names as crewmen onboard Leviathan. When he didn't find the one he wanted, he opened another cabinet. Then his eyes caught the one file he wanted. He pulled out the thick chart and then closed the drawer.

He looked at the name again — Captain Alexandria Olivia Heirthall.

Belowdecks, Samuels watched as reactor numbers three and four went offline. He maintained reactor one at 50 percent for pressure control, and took power down on reactor two to 60 percent, maintaining life support and their current speed at thirty-five knots.

"Mr. Samuels now has the conn," Alexandria said from her observation suite.

Commander Samuels took a deep breath as the sound of the four reactors started winding down, and Leviathan slowed as they went deeper into the trench.

Outside the pressure hull, Leviathan continued on a journey to a spot in the earth's depths, where the hull would be taking on twenty-eight tons per square inch. The magic of the Heirthall science was the only thing keeping every man, woman, and child onboard from being crushed to the size of a microbe — and still she went deeper.

The final deep run of the magical Leviathan had begun.