Part 59 (2/2)
with his own thoughts.
”I-I . . . confusing. I don't know . . .”
”Never mind. I don't need your confirmation now.”
”No-wait,” Hwos.h.i.+en burst out. ”It's true. I think , . . yes, it is true,” he added more a.s.suredly. ”I do remember you now. Colonel Merced.” He looked at
his companions.
”Remember when you first arrived I explained that you would explore the biological possibilities and others would work on the chance that humans might be involved?” He nodded toward the still wary Merced. The muzzle of the gun had not dropped. ”He is one of those 'others.'”
”Why make us remain down here, though?” a very confused Mataroreva wondered. Suddenly life had grown complicated, thinking an effort. His thoughts were slow and heavy, much like those of the fins.
Uncontrollable opposing ma.s.ses warred inside his head. ”Why stay anyway? Why not go up and start over again? At least this time we'll know exactly what everyone's here for.” Again his hand moved for the
controls.
Merced gestured convulsively with the gun. ”Touch
that and I'll shoot, Captain. And these darts will pUt you out permanently. I like you. I'd rather not have to do that.”
Slowly the big Polynesian's palm moved away from the board. ”But why? What's wrong with beginning again?”
”In the first place, I'm not sure that's necessary,”
Merced said carefully. ”In the second-you really think you're going to send us up, don't you?”
”What else?”
”You were going to send us to the surface?”
”Of course. I-”
”Take another look, Captain. A close one. But don't move your hands.” Mataroreva hesitated, and wasn't sure why he did so. ”Go on, look,” Merced insisted. ”Are you afraid?”
That challenge appeared to break the lethargy that had come over the submersible's pilot. Like a man in slow motion, he turned back toward the console, keeping his hands from the controls.
The switch his hand had almost flicked was not the one to drop the ballast-That switch was close by, but not close enough to explain the near error. Instead, his fingers had drifted above a double red switch pro- tected by a snap cover. This was the emergency re- lease used to disengage the gas cylinders in the event of a potentially explosive leak.
Had he followed through and thrown the double switch, they would have had no way to return to the surface and would in fact have immediately plunged to the ooze flooring the canyon, eight thousand meters below normal air and pressure. Nothing could raise them against that gigantic force save another, similar submersible. None waited aboard the suprafoil above.
By the time a second diving craft could be prepared and airs.h.i.+pped out from Mou'anui, the occupants of the submersible would be dead from lack of air. Arti-
252.
CACHALOT.
CACHALOT.
253.
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