Chapter Eleven
Lee brought the last of the equipment on shore, stopping to set up the radio. It was a rather bulky unit, but would ensure contact with Seaview, at least out here in the outer cavern where the radiation levels were minimal and interference would be the least. Harry and Dr. Land were already peeling off their dive suits and spreading them on the nearby rocks as Lee turned on the unit and began transmitting.
"Crane to Seaview, Come in Seaview."
"Morton here, we hear you loud and clear."
Lee had expected to hear Sparks' voice, but wasn't surprised to hear that Chip was monitoring the transmissions from the Control Room; despite Harry's and Land's excitement about the new discovery, he still considered the retrieval mission a dangerous venture, and was pleased to note that Chip was taking it seriously as well.
"We're at the landing site; so far Dr. Land's research has been spot on. The cavern is just like he mapped it out," he complimented as he reported. "We'll get settled here, and then begin tracking down the Zycron 143."
"Aye Sir. We'll be expecting your call," Chip replied efficiently, noting the time and when to expect his next contact.
Lee secured the radio then started peeling out of his own suit. He was the last to don the silver protective radiation gear and was strapping the utility belt around his hips when he caught a strange look in the Admiral's eyes; almost disgust if he were reading him correctly.
"I take it you're anxious to go ore hunting," Lee offered a bit drolly, getting tired of Harry's attitude, despite his stars.
"Well that's why we're here now, isn't it?" Harry droned back.
Lee ignored the response and reached down to pick up his yellow battery powered torch. "Is there something wrong, Admiral?" he asked instead, reaching out to his friend and hoping Harry would lay-off the not-so-veiled criticism.
"No, just ready to go, Lee," the auburn-haired admiral replied, in a sing-song voice that reeked of disdain.
"Aye Sir," Seaview's captain replied, returning to Navy protocol and deciding to give Harry what space he could.
"Are we ready?" Dr. Land inquired excitedly, his eyes twinkling and completely missing the exchange between the two.
"Yes, Dr. Land, let's go find us some Zycron 143," Harry replied with the tight-lipped smile that Lee expected from the impending discovery, only… the familiar twinkle, akin to a child's delight was missing, even with the fantastic new element they were about to verify.
Lee didn't have time to ponder it long as Dr. Land led the way, following the map his research had detailed out and monitoring the Geiger counter along the way.
# # # # #
They made their way through the cave, marking their path on the cavern walls and following the increase in radiation.
"We're getting very close, Admiral," an excited Dr. Land said, his eyes gleaming in anticipation.
"How much higher can the radiation go, Dr. Land," Harry asked, looking over the readings on the Geiger counter hanging from the scientist's neck.
"We're almost at peak load now," he answered without much worry, his excitement for the discovery overshadowing his concern. "But no one's really had enough experience with Zycron 143 to really judge."
"Oh, well that's a comforting thought," Harry replied, chuckling in light sarcasm; Lee however, found nothing funny about the situation.
"Well, there nothing comforting to me about it," he interjected. "Here we are 1,500 feet under the surface of the ocean, and I've got a feeling we're on a fool's errand that can only lead to disaster," he added candidly.
Harry's eyes burned with the passion of his next words. "If we don't get the Zycron and it falls into the hands of some unfriendly power, they'll have a weapon that could ultimately control the earth."
"Yes, but as far as we know, Dr. Land is the only one who knows that the Zycron's down here," Lee countered, his own patience wearing thin after dealing with Harry's attitude since he boarded Seaview.
"We've been through all this before," Harry said, losing his patience for Lee's continual lack of vision in the matter, but coming up with an argument fitting his role as a patriot admiral. "We do know that attacks have been made on Dr. Land and myself and attempts to subvert and brainwash the crew," he added heatedly.
"We're only wasting time talking gentlemen, there's the element we've been looking for," Land interrupted, his excitement never waning despite the heated exchange between Seaview's two officers.
Harry and Lee followed Land's lead, as he made his way into a dead-end chamber, finding the element he had been looking for. His excitement escalated as he marveled at the amount of power available in just the deposit in front of them.
"If you're right, we're looking at enough raw energy to wipe mankind off the face of the earth," Lee noted, still not convinced that man could be trusted with such power.
"Well, that's why we have to control it," Harry countered, just as a quake rumbled the cave, sending showers of pebbles from the ceiling.
"We'd better not waste time getting our samples," Lee suggested as Dr. Land inspected the rock face looking for the best place to obtain a sample, while the Admiral attempted to raise Seaview without success.
"The Zycron must be having some effect on the communications," Harry noted. "I'll head back and make the call and bring back the sonic cutting tool, which he had conveniently left behind.
Lee nodded, as Dr. Land agreed jovially, still basking in the success of his work and the new element encased in the wall before him.
Harry exited the small cavern and pulled a tape grenade from his utility belt. His path was set and harboring no misgivings or concern for what he was about to do. He unwrapped the tape, arming the device just as Lee turned to see him toss the grenade, a mere foot from their present position. The result was devastating, the concussion knocking the unsuspecting men off their feet as they fell unconscious, while small rocks showered from above in the unstable cave made more precarious by the blast.
Harry pushed off the wall, protected from the blast and smiled at his handiwork. Now all he needed was the sonic cutting tool. He returned moments later and began securing his sample; the only sounds in the cavern, the laser and the sound of the Geiger counter warning of the peak radiation levels. He worked quickly, not concerned by the fact that both Lee's and Dr. Land's head gear had fallen off and was offering no protection at present.
He cut his sample away, securing it in his utility belt then noticed Crane stirring. There was no compunction or sense of wrong-doing in his brainwashed state as he pulled a second tape grenade from his belt and lodged it in the wall, calculating where best to place the explosive to seal the two in an irradiated tomb. Even Lee's moans as he tried to regain consciousness didn't reach the compassion that the real Harriman Nelson would have shown as he activated the device, then scurried to safety as heavy rock and debris rained down.
He returned when the dust settled to a solid wall of rocks blocking the cave entrance and smiled. Crane was dead; the blast from the explosion, the radiation, the second blast burying him and Land under tons of rock… no one could survive that.
He left not knowing that the inner cave hadn't collapsed completely and that the two men inside were still very much alive.
Harry arrived back at the cavern's entrance to the sound of Chip's hail. He feigned a shaken man barely escaping a cave-in, and informed Seaview's executive officer that Lee and Land were both dead; buried under tons of rock. After sounding adequately shaken up about the matter, he quickly staved off Chip's offer to send help, and informed the XO that he was on his way up.
# # # # #
On board Seaview, a distraught Chip Morton ordered a rescue dive, even though the Admiral had been adamant that Lee couldn't have survived. He leaned against the periscope island; the pain of just losing his best friend was too great to bear up under his normally unreadable command face. As the quick steps of Chief Sharkey headed aft, a single tear fell from his face and landed on his hand grasping the island rail; he couldn't do this… mourn Lee. This wasn't the place. It wasn't the time. Chip pushed off the rail, ignoring several crewmen who were too shocked to look away; everyone had heard the Admiral's report over the boat com system. Life wasn't making too much sense right now, but if there was one thing he knew, Lee would be counting on him to take care of Seaview and complete the mission… but he also knew that he couldn't believe Lee was dead until the body was recovered. Maybe it was foolish… perhaps it was, but he held onto the smallest glimmer of hope that the Admiral had been too shaken to know for sure.
He pulled himself together and turned to face the Control Room, his unreadable command face plastered back on.
"As you were men, we have a Boat to run," he admonished, leading by example and pulling the men from their doldrums before heading aft to meet the Admiral and send off what he hoped was a rescue party and not a recovery operation to bring back bodies.
Each man turned to their stations, determined to do their job and knowing that if Mr. Morton could do it, they could too. No one there could discount the Exec's pain, he and the Skipper were close, brothers even; and so they put their best attention into their work, seeking to make Captain Crane proud and Mr. Morton's job a little easier.
# # # # #
The last of the water pumped from the diver's hatch as Harry put on a grief-stricken face. He feigned weak steps forward as waiting hands sought to help him over the knee knocker hatch, and noticed immediately that Sharkey and Patterson were suited up to dive. He would have preferred them to stay on board, but he'd have to deal with them later; right now, he needed to report. After staving off Morton's attempt to take him to Sickbay, he shrugged off the helping hands to move off by himself. His ploy worked, as Morton and the crew assumed he was mourning Crane's death and needed space. He unzipped his suit and watched as the Chief and Patterson entered the dive chamber, all the while having to suppress the smile of his contentment. Crane was buried under tons of rocks; even if by chance he managed to survive in a hollow space between rocks, the thinning air would finish the job; and he had the added insurance of Zycron 143's radiation to give him the assurance he needed to report his success to his superiors.
Harry left the somber missile room without the least bit of remorse for his deed; his subconscious buried too far underneath the over-powering mind-control technique. The fact that he had killed his "best friend" meant nothing to the Harriman Nelson shaped by Karina. His subconscious had no place to battle from during his waking hours, leaving a warped man to occupy and control the body of his true self.
He arrived in his cabin, quickly changing and anxious to report to his superiors, his need to satisfy them deeply reinforced through the brainwashing, as deeply in fact, as the selfish sense of self-preservation they had placed within him to return and complete his "training" for Gamma's service. Somehow, it all made sense to Harry as he opened his briefcase and powered on the sophisticated communication's device found inside.
He reported with pride and confidence that both Crane and Land were dead, sealed under a load of rocks and no longer of any concern. Crane would never interfere with the Vision again, and Dr. Land's knowledge and research would be lost to all but Dr. Gamma's organization.
"Did you obtain samples?" his superior inquired.
"Yes, I have a sample with me aboard Seaview," Harry responded.
"What about Crane and Land?"
"They're dead," Harry replied flatly.
"You are certain?" his superior pressed.
"I'm certain."
His superior was pleased as Harry continued to report on the location of the cave's entrance, Seaview's position, and his scientific observations regarding the ore deposit, which he estimated as a concentrated mass of 100 tons. He was in the middle of a sentence when a light indicated that the frequency had been intercepted and hastily signed off. He closed the briefcase and deposited it on his bunk, making sure to reset the booby trap, just as he heard a knock at his door.
"Admiral Nelson, are you in there?"
Harry unlocked the door and opened it, pasting on a friendly smile.
"What is it, Kowalski?"
Ski entered the cabin terribly embarrassed, but fulfilling his duty to investigate the reading on his signal analyzer nonetheless.
"I traced a radio transmission from your cabin, Sir," he said apologetically. "Sparks has been tracking some sort of weird signal and Mr. Morton asked me to track it down."
"Oh, and your signal analyzer led you here," Harry stated sardonically.
"Yes Sir, I know it sounds screwy, but that's what happened."
Harry urged him to try again, leaving Ski feeling more than a bit awkward, but he ran the device through the cabin only to verify that no such signal was found. Ski shook his head perplexed and embarrassed. He apologized and started to leave when the Admiral stopped him.
"No wait, if there's a signal we have to find it," Harry urged, realizing that he had to stay above suspicion until he could carry out his plans to neutralize the crew; he couldn't risk Kowalski reporting the matter and urged him to try and locate the signal, suggesting that perhaps his cabin had been bugged with a listening device. He coached the rating along to the briefcase and stepped back as the unsuspecting seaman received a shot of nerve gas, stumbling and falling to the deck, completely immobilized and instantly unconscious.
Harry waited for the gas to subside using a gas mask to protect himself, then reestablished communications with his superior.
"That was a crewman; they're picking up our transmission. I stopped him from reporting. Look, I've got to get off this submarine," Harry declared, his need for self-preservation kicking in just as his conditioning dictated.
"Not before you complete your mission. You do remember what your mission is?"
"Of course, I remember," Harry replied in a huff. "Destroy Seaview," he finished, refocused and ready to follow orders.
# # # # #
Sharkey and Patterson made their way into the underwater cave, divesting themselves of their tanks and flippers and noting the two sets of wet suits belonging to the Skipper and Dr. Land. They exchanged concerned glances, but neither one commented as they shed out of the dive gear and donned their protective anti-radiation suits. They collected their digging equipment and headed into the cave system following the markings the Skipper had left previously, reaching the cave-in just in time for another earthquake to shake loose more rocks.
"That wasn't too bad," Sharkey commented optimistically after the tremor passed.
"Yeah, we're still alive," Patterson replied sarcastically, the two exchanging concerned glances before getting busy with the digging. Their digging produced anticipation, as they cleared a small hole to the connecting cave.
"It looks like there's some sort of open space back there," Sharkey noted with guarded hope, as he leaned in close.
"Skipper! Skipper, can you hear me?" he called, knowing that the chances for survival had increased dramatically since it wasn't a complete cave-in. "Skipper, if you can hear me, we're digging our way through to you."
Sharkey stopped to listen, and was rewarded with the captain's voice; raspy and weak, but alive!
# # # # #
Lee had tried to rouse himself several times, each time he had come close his mind replayed the incredible scene of Harry standing in the cave opening and tossing in a grenade at their feet. He had thus far, lost the battle to awaken completely until he heard someone calling him. The voice was enough to bring him around this time, as he shakily raised himself to his knees.
"Skipper, if you can hear me, we're digging our way through to you."
The voice sounded as if it were coming from the far end of a tunnel as Lee worked through his pained confusion. He moved shakily to the cave wall closest to the voice he now recognized as Chief Sharkey's. His body was barely cooperating, having suffered from the explosion's concussion, followed by falling rock and debris, not to mention the effects of the buildup of radiation from the sealed cave. He wasn't able to gather his voice to speak until he had settled in against the cave wall, trying to shake the cobwebs from his brain as Sharkey continued to call to him.
"Chief," he replied, reaching up to rub his pounding head.
Patterson whooped his elation at the realization that Captain Crane was alive, but his celebration was squashed as Sharkey got down to the business of the rescue.
"What's the setup in there, Skipper?" he asked, needing to know what they were up against.
"I'm alright," Lee stammered, his voice giving away his physical condition at present. "I'm just shaken up a little, but I… I can move all right."
Sharkey exchanged a worried glance mixed with elation that the Skipper was alive, but both men knew that his admission of being "shaken up" had been validated in his weak voice.
"Keep talking, Skipper," Sharkey urged.
"Dr. Land's in a bad way, the explosion nearly killed him," Lee reported, his voice growing stronger as he spoke. "The Admiral set it off," he added sadly, an unexpected tear falling down his cheek as he spoke aloud what he had witnessed with his own eyes. It made no sense, but something had been off with Harry ever since he came aboard. Though he couldn't understand it, he knew he only had one recourse left.
"The Admiral?" Sharkey repeated incredulously.
"That's right. Now get to the radio and tell Mr. Morton that I want the Admiral confined to his quarters till I get back on board."
"Sir… the Admiral?" Sharkey repeated, hardly able to contemplate what Captain Crane was telling him.
"Tell him," Lee ordered. "Now move!"
"Aye Sir," Sharkey acknowledged, obeying his orders with a heavy heart. He made his way back to the outer cave to make contact with Seaview, reporting that Captain Crane and Dr. Land were both alive. The news brought instant relief to Seaview's crew as the mood in the Control Room instantly rose with the new information, though they managed to keep their elation in check while Sharkey reported.
"Is he badly hurt?" Chip inquired, his relief only equaled by his concern for Lee's condition.
"Well enough, he'll be okay once we get him out; but that's not why I'm calling," Sharkey reported, his strange answer demanding a response from the XO as Sharkey informed him of the Skipper's orders.
"Arrest the Admiral?" Chip repeated incredulously and enunciating each word in disbelief; not quite able to believe it, even reprimanding Sharkey for the timing of his bad joke.
Sharkey repeated his orders then explained. "He's dangerous, Sir. He blew up the tunnel and tried to kill the Skipper and Dr. Land. The Skipper wants him kept harmless till he gets back aboard."
Chip blew a breath out, acknowledging his duty and ordering Sharkey back to rescue Lee. He shipped the mic and sighed; with the strange transmission on board, then Kowalski going AWOL and not responding to hails… well, it looked like things were falling into place, however incredulous it might seem. His duty was clear, as he formed a detail and headed to Harry's cabin, armed and ready to take Admiral Nelson into custody.
Unfortunately, by the time they got to Harry's cabin he was gone, but their question of why Kowalski hadn't answered the hails had been answered as the detail hurried the unconscious seaman to Sickbay. There was no longer any reservation on Chip's part as he leaned over Harry's desk, issuing a boat-wide call to seize Admiral Nelson, straight from his own intercom; his relief that Lee was alive was now taking a backseat to the manhunt aboard Seaview, as he ordered all available hands to search for the renegade admiral.
# # # # #
Harry heard the boat-wide announcement, but wasn't concerned as he headed straight for Air Revitalization with his briefcase in hand. He dispatched two crewmen handily then proceeded to open the case, initiating the gas through the ventilation system. He quickly donned his oxygen mask and waited for Seaview's crew to succumb to the gas. It wouldn't take long he knew, and waited till he was sure the entire boat had been affected before leaving the compartment.
Seaview was eerily quiet as clouds of gas poured through the vent system, reaching every part of the Boat. Harry walked Seaview's corridors passing crewmen all along the way; unconscious and unaware of the impending danger the Admiral was about to bring upon them. By the time he reached the Control Room the gas was nearly dissipated, and as he expected, the entire crew was neutralized by the nerve gas.
He walked the deck, looking for one man in particular. He wanted to know specifically that Morton was immobilized, to make sure that his last obstacle had been dealt with. He found Seaview's first officer collapsed at the periscope island, the mic still held in his hand, no doubt trying to issues orders until he finally succumbed. He wasn't impressed by Chip's devotion to duty, pulling him back by the collar, and watching his head roll unresponsively on his shoulders. He deposited him back against the island without a hint of remorse, before callously shipping the mic on the periscope island.
Harry was driven by the programming of his portfolio with absolutely no sense of warring going on inside of him. Nor was he concerned about the young man who had narrowly survived a roll-over car accident less than a week ago, or the fact that he had just killed Seaview's captain, as far as he knew. Thus, he acted completely within the will of his "superiors" and reached for his radio to report that Seaview's crew had been completely immobilized, but that two crewmen were still unaffected. His superior was displeased with the revelation, but informed him that a landing party would take care of Sharkey and Patterson at the cave.
"What is your next step?" his superior inquired.
"The destruction of Seaview," Harry replied without emotion or regret for the hands on board, or the vessel he had created for the dual purpose of the betterment of mankind through the exploration of the seas and national security.
"Your plan?" his superior pursued, his voice flat and his tone condescending as he conversed with the puppet that Nelson had become.
"Wait… wait, your submarine will be standing by?" he asked, seeking reassurance that his getaway was ensured before continuing, his need to survive demanding encouragement.
"It will."
"Then I'll just let the Reactor run wild; there'll be nothing left of Seaview but nuclear dust," he answered, completely lost in the role of traitor and murderer, and without an ounce of moral fiber left available to him to even question his actions.
# # # # #
By the time Sharkey returned, Patterson had made enough headway to get a good view inside the cave. Captain Crane had lost consciousness once again, having taken most of the force of the explosion being nearest to the blast.
Sharkey peered inside the hole; he could see the damage the falling rocks had left, with several bruises on the Captain's face. His radiation suit was well-soiled and he could see a fair amount of debris on the cave floor, deducing with a shake of the head that Crane and Land had barely escaped a major disaster. Another tremor rained more rock down as the unstable cave system showed signs of its imminent collapse, and igniting their need for quick action.
"We'd better work fast!" Sharkey urged as he and Patterson labored to reach the stricken men.
# # # # #
Lee came-to in the outer cavern slightly disoriented, but quickly assessing the situation. He'd been given an anti-radiation shot by his rescue party, and felt better for it. He raised his head, noting Dr. Land unconscious beside him, then searched his surroundings expecting to see Sharkey and Patterson reporting in, but instead saw a diver he didn't recognize holding a weapon he'd never seen before. Even in his compromised physical state, he was able to put two and two together, sizing up the hostile as he walked his sentry duty.
With no other weapon at his disposal, Lee grabbed a nearby rock as the black-clad diver turned his back, and issued a blow to the back of his head. It should have sent the diver into unconsciousness, but the resilient man fought back. Lee grabbed the guard's discarded weapon, but his movements were still sluggish. The enemy guard wasted no time, lunging at Crane to disarm him, but Lee used the laser gun to push off the attack before issuing a blast, rendering the enemy diver harmless.
Lee took a deep breath in, quickly assessing the situation before moving to the medical field kit first. He checked Land's pulse first, satisfying himself that the doctor was stable before reaching for the smelling salts to revive his downed men. The salts had little effect, so he moved to the radio issuing a distress call to Seaview, but received no reply. He blew a breath out, feeling weakness he couldn't succumb to with an apparent attack on his crew and Seaview out of contact. Now wasn't the time for gentleness, he needed to get to Seaview and find out why she wasn't responding, so he patted Sharkey's face in a desperate move to wake Seaview's COB.
"Come on, Chief," he urged and was rewarded with the moans of a man returning from a not-so-pleasant trip to a forced nap.
Sharkey was somewhat dazed, but was able to explain that they had been ambushed by enemy divers. Lee didn't miss a beat despite his pounding head, as he realized that he had only taken out one hostile and that two more remained unaccounted for.
"They must have gone into the tunnel. We'd better be ready for them," Lee urged, reaching for a discarded utility belt and finding what he needed inside.
"What about Patterson and Land?" Sharkey asked.
"Patterson's alright; as far as Dr. Land, his only hope is to get him to Seaview."
"Still no word, huh?" Sharkey asked, concerned for his shipmates.
"Nothing. I tried to get them while you were out, nothing," Lee answered worriedly, readying a tape grenade for immediate use.
"I'll wake Patterson," Sharkey said, but before he could say anything more, the enemy divers appeared at the tunnel's entrance with their weapons drawn.
Lee pulled the tape to activate the grenade and tossed it deftly at their feet; the subsequent explosion brought a wall of rock and debris down on the men, silencing their threat forever.
Their next step was clear, if Seaview couldn't launch a rescue party, then they would have to save themselves. Dr. Land's anti-radiation shot had kicked in enough for him to be revived, though he was noticeably shaken and ill. Still, they had no choice but to make the swim back to Seaview, despite the doctor's weakened condition.