Friends
By Thomas Mc


Chapter 8 : Subterranean Sea

Summer 2028 (Day 1)

After a six day trek, Tonya, Terry, Linda and Jacob stared out across the great subterranean sea. Tonya unconsciously fondled the purple crystal that hung around her neck as she contemplated their destination. Where did those waves come from? They were only a few inches high at the most but they were coming in from 'out there' not from the waterfall that filled the air with its continual roar and mist. There was no breeze, no cause that she could see for those waves.

Madison, Desmond, Devin, Michael and Sharon were busy pumping up the two inflatable boats that they planed to attempt crossing this body of water in. Caroline was away at a summer camp in Washington D.C. She had recently developed an interest in American government. Once the boats were ready the kids began loading their equipment into them. The four other tunnel denizens, that had helped carry their equipment and supplies, had already started back toward the home tunnels. Both boats had small hybrid electric motors as well as two sets of folding oars. Either one could easily have carried the entire party but, as usual, Terry insisted on the extra margin of safety. They had enough fuel to last both boats for fifteen days (twice what they expected to need for this trip).

Terry and the girls were also wearing special thermal wetsuits and flotation vests in case they fell in. Jacob and his sons had their fur and their stronger constitutions to rely on.

This was not the first major spelunking expedition Madison and Desmond had been on with their parents, but it was the deepest and longest duration. Once their participation was known, it was inevitable that Devin, Michael and Sharon would also want to come along. They too had plenty of practical cave exploring experience, and so the great expedition to cross the subterranean sea had become a family affair.

Soon the two boats were on the water, as the explorers began to make their way across, in their search of the other side of this enigmatic sea. Terry, Tonya, Devin, Desmond and Sharon rode in the first boat. Terry was currently taking readings with a laser rangefinder and noting the data in his mapper device. Jacob, Linda, Michael and Madison were in the second boat.

Linda smiled to her self at what had become a common association. Whenever the children were together, Madison would inevitably be hanging with Michael and Desmond would be right beside Sharon. Devin seemed to be indifferent in his association. Madison, Michael and Desmond were all passing through puberty and Sharon was hot on their heels. Linda wondered just how serious these pairings might become. She looked across at the other boat and noticed Tonya also gazing speculatively at the four children in question.

~ o ~

As they approached the first of the great columns that supported that massive expanse of ceiling above them, everyone gazed in wonder at the combination of massive strength and incredibly delicate beauty. Terry took several readings of that column with his laser range finder and his mapper sounder. The ceiling at this point was twenty-three hundred feet above them. The column was over two hundred feet across and made of solid sedimentary stone. The surface of the column was fluted and folded with some of the folds forming paper thin curtains that practically glowed with hundreds of pastel colors made up of streaks and veins of every possible mineral. The whole column glittered with myriads of tiny crystals embedded in its surface. There were also a few veins of gold, silver, and copper embed in the surface of that column. They spent over an hour, circling, examining, and photographing that incredible column.

Terry took several readings of their current position. They were almost half a mile from the waterfall where they set out, the shoreline was almost lost in the intervening haze. To the left, the cavern wall was a quarter mile away; to the right it was now almost a mile away and receding. Terry still couldn't get a reading on the far side. The range finder had a limit of three miles, yet, except for the intermittent readings from intervening columns, it could not get a reading on the far side of the subterranean sea. A sample of the water showed that it was about half as salty as sea water and had a relatively high mineral content. He took a sample for later study. It was a good thing that they started with full flasks of water because he didn't think this water was suitable to drink. Health spas however would charge big bucks for the privilege of bathing in water like this.

Finally it was time to move on. They had a lot more ground (water) to cover on this expedition. Long after they had passed it they all continued to gaze back at that amazing column. Finally the view became blurred by the ever present mist.

~ o ~

Madison was the first to notice that several large silvery white fish were shadowing their boats and pointed them out. Closer inspection revealed that they were about six to eight feet long and appeared to be kin to the porpoise family. They looked like albino dolphins. Their skin was a pure silvery white and looked like frosted glass. Their eyes were a pale sky blue.

Linda noticed the way Jacob was frowning at the under-sized albino dolphins and asked. "What is it Jake?"

He glanced at her, the puzzled look still on his face. "I don't know. I'm . . . I'm sensing something unusual from them." He shook his head. "It feels like emotions but . . . They're so alien. I'm not even sure I can truly identify them correctly." Again he seemed to be concentrating. "I aaaa . . . I think what I'm sensing may be a form of curiosity or . . . puzzlement but it's hard to tell for sure." He looked at her. "I have felt emotions from animals before but they were always very primitive, very simplistic. This is much more complex, more like us, yet so alien in nature." He glanced over at Devin in the other boat. "I think Devin is sensing it too."

They kept close watch on the albino dolphins for a while but they never came closer than about ten feet to the boats and, after a while, everyone just became used to seeing them out there.

They stopped once to examine a small sandy island they encountered. It was about a thousand feet across and there was a fifty foot diameter, two hundred foot high stalagmite sticking up out of its center. A half mile above their heads was the thousand foot long stalactite that was feeding it. Terry noted the island on his mapper, which showed that they were four and a half miles from the waterfalls that was their starting point. The cavern wall to their left was four-thousand-five-hundred feet away. The wall to their right was too far away to register. He still couldn't get a reading on their destination. After a half hour on the island they continued their journey.

Another couple of hours later, they became aware of a faint roaring sound ahead and off to their left. As they continued the direction of the sound slowly swung further to the left as it also got louder. They came to another of those great columns. This one was twice the size of the last one they had passed close to. The ceiling was over four thousand feet up at this point and the water appeared to be almost two hundred feet deep. The roaring was directly left of their current direction of travel. After a short conference, the explorers decided to investigate and turned the boats in that direction.

After a few minutes, they were able to see the cavern wall through the mist. There was a fair size opening in the wall about three hundred feet up. A ten foot wide stream of water flowed from that opening and fell the three hundred feet to the surface of the underground sea, throwing up great clouds of mist. The vista was beautiful.

Jacob heard Tonya cry out from the other boat at about the same time that he was nearly thrown out when something hit the bow of his boat knocking it violently to the right. Again something struck the front of the boat knocking it further to the right. At the same time he became aware of several of the albino dolphins thrashing around in the water between them and the falls. The kids were upset and Terry was cursing as his boat again lurched to the right.

Jacob also was sensing a new emotion from the dolphins now. He couldn't be sure but he thought it might be similar to fear or anger. He called out. "Steer to the right. Run parallel to the wall."

The bumping stopped when they turned the boats, but the group of thrashing dolphins continued to stay between them and the cavern wall. After they had gone about six hundred feet, the dolphins to the left disappeared. Jacob again called out. "Let's try turning towards the wall again. See if they will let us this time."

They turned back towards the shore and this time encountered no interference. There was, however, a group of the dolphins that maintained position between them and the waterfall. Terry called out. "Apparently we're just not allowed near the waterfall."

Soon they came up onto a small stretch of sandy beach. They pulled the boats up onto the beach and began unpacking them. It was getting late, though there really was no true night or day here, and they were all tired and hungry. They quickly set up camp and were soon eating around the camp heater and discussing the behavior of the albino dolphins.

"Why do you think they did that?" Tonya asked.

"Maybe it's a sacred waterfall of the gods." Linda threw out.

Terry chuckled but Jacob seemed to take the suggestion seriously. "Whatever the reason, they were determined to keep us away from it and there were some very strong emotions coming from them." Jacob remarked as he continued to contemplate the possible meanings of this evenings actions.

Devin chimed in. "I couldn't tell if they were angry or afraid . . . or some strange combination. There seemed to be elements of both yet it didn't feel like anything that I'm familiar with."

"I know what you mean." Added Michael. "Their emotions are so . . . odd. Most of the time I'm not sure what they're feeling. Even the animals in Central Park are easier to read than they are."

"But there is definitely some form of intelligence there." Jacob nodded. "It's very alien to us but it's there all the same. Those creatures think, and I believe that they are sensing our emotions as well."

Tonya shook her head. "Jacob, do you realize that you have just solved a mystery that has plagued marine biologists for decades?" Jacob looked at her in surprise. "Two questions that they still haven't been able to answer are: Are dolphins intelligent and if so why can't we communicate with them? And the other question is; why are dolphins so incredibly protective of humans even though they are meat eating predators?"

Everyone looked at Tonya curiously as she continued. "You said that their emotions definitely indicate intelligence but it is so alien that you are having difficulty understanding what they are feeling." Everyone was nodding at the sense of her words. "You also said that they seem to be sensing our emotions. If they are empathic then they would be able to identify us as fellow intelligent creatures though very hard to understand."

For a while only the roar of the waterfall was heard as everyone contemplated what she had just said. After a while they were all relating stories, they had heard, about encounters with dolphins, which seemed to support her conclusions.

~ o ~

A little while later Tonya spotted Madison and Michael sitting together out by the water's edge. They were holding hands. It looked to her like her speculations about them weren't so far off. Madison leaned into Michael and laid her head on his shoulder.

Linda came up and stood beside Tonya. "Looks like we may have to keep an eye on those two during this trip." Linda commented. "Though I don't think it's gotten much beyond simple puppy love yet." She smiled. "I remember when Jacob and I were that age we were already totally committed to each other. With us it was never a question of if we would one day marry. The only question was when we would get around to doing it." She turned and grinned at Tonya. "At least they don't have the bond complicating the situation . . . though with Jake and me it was part of what made us inevitable."

Tonya looked at Linda quizzically and with a hint of worry. "The bond? I've heard about it but I don't really understand it."

Linda smiled at her. "It's like a permanent radio link between our minds on the emotional level. We can always feel each other's emotions and like a radio it can be turned up or down at either end. But unlike a radio it can never be completely turned off. Occasionally it can be a nuisance, but, mainly, it is part of what makes our life together so beautiful. I wouldn't give up our bond for anything that this world could offer. Even the freedom to go openly in public with Jacob and my family would not be worth the loss of our bond."

Tonya gazed at Linda dazed by the intensity of the gleam in her eyes as she talked about her bond with Jacob. Finally she shook off the effects of that declaration and quietly asked. "Do you think such a bond could form between Michael and Madison?" She was both intrigued and worried by the possibility.

After a moment Linda answered. "We don't really understand what makes the bond work the way it does. It seems to be an extension of their empathic ability. But . . . if those two ever really truly fall in love, then there is a distinct possibility that they will become linked, how or when is anybody's guess. Charles and Elizabeth practically grew up together yet their bond didn't form until their late teens after they were already a couple and it grew very slowly. My bond with Jacob formed full strength less than a day after we met as ten year olds. We actually became a 'couple' when we were fourteen and became lovers at sixteen." She shrugged, paused a moment, then continued softly. "If you had ever experienced what Catherine, Elizabeth and I have experienced, you would know what a beautiful thing it really is."

Jacob came up behind them. "You must be thinking about me?" He put is arms around Linda.

"About you and the kids." Linda responded. Then to Tonya. "Like I said he always knows what I'm feeling."

Terry came up behind Tonya and put his arms around her as Jacob responded. "They're still young. They aren't serious enough about each other yet to worry about . . . though I will admit that the potential is definitely there." He chuckled. "For now they're much like you and I were at that age but without the bond."

Terry kissed Tonya's ear. "Well it's getting late and we should all be getting some rest."

Soon everyone was snuggly tucked away in their sleeping bags except Devin. He had pulled first watch. Because of their heightened empathic awareness, as well as their tendency to operate on less sleep, Jacob had insisted that he and his sons should handle night guard duty. The roaring of the waterfalls gently lulled the rest of them to sleep.

~ x x x x x ~

(Day 2)

Terry gazed out at the perpetual twilight of the subterranean sea. It was morning, according to Terry's watch, and he wanted to see if he could get a closer look at that waterfall. After getting the boats packed and ready to go, the explorers took a walk along the sandy beach towards it. About a hundred feet from the falls, the sandy beach completely disappeared and the water came right up to the cavern wall.

"This looks to be about as close to it as we're going to be able to get." Jacob commented as he noticed several white dolphin heads poking up out of the water, watching them.

Tonya was gazing up at the face of the cavern wall when she spoke. "Maybe not." She had noticed several deep ridges along the wall which she pointed out. "See those ridges? Those would make it fairly easy to climb up and over to that opening where the falls originates. We have all the necessary equipment." She faced the others. "What do you say? Want to attempt it?" There was a definite hint of eagerness to her voice.

Jacob studied the wall for a moment, then nodded once. "Devin, Michael, go fetch the climbing equipment from the boats."

~ o ~

Terry faced the rest of the party, now outfitted in their climbing equipment. "Jacob, with your superior strength and those claws, you should take the anchor position in the center of the string. Devin can take the end point and Michael will be behind me. The rest of you spread out evenly along the line. Remember. Never disconnect from the line once we start climbing. That rope is your lifeline in case of an accident." Once everyone had hooked themselves onto the safety line Terry ran a final check then began leading them up the sheer rock face at a diagonal towards the source of the falls.

They were about a hundred feet up when Sharon, who was between Desmond and Devin, lost her footing and with a shrill scream, fell away from the rock face. Five feet down, she reached the end of her safety line and came to as sudden stop knocking the wind out of her. Devin's grip on a stone ridge kept him anchored to the wall. Desmond had hold of one of the pitons Terry had been driving into the wall at intervals and was able to hold his position.

While Devin and Jacob acted as anchor points, Desmond helped Sharon back up. After a few minutes to calm down and get their wind back, the party continued up the wall.

Finally they reached a five foot wide shelf at the source of the falls. They looked down into the crystal clear water below. They saw hundreds of razor sharp formations very close to the surface in the area the dolphins had been herding them away from yesterday. The silvery dolphins were flashing in and out among those formations like they were playing a game of tag.

Jacob remarked. "If they had not stopped us we would have ripped the bottom of our boats to shreds on those formations before we even realized what was happening."

"They probably saved our lives." Tonya added.

Continued in Part 9


'Beauty and the Beast' and its characters are owned by Witt-Thomas Productions and Republic Pictures. No infringement on copyrights is intended. This story is presented merely for the enjoyment of fans. Original concepts and story elements may be used by other authors as long as appropriate credit is given.