A tall Japanese man entered from the watertight doors. Crouching to
avoid the low ceiling, he walked over to the tactical command station
and asked, "What's the status of the submarine?"
"The Senoy is approaching the North Pole at 4.3 knots. ETA in 10.58
hours!" Responded an officer manning the navigation console.
"Distance?"
"45.65 nautical miles!"
"Can't we go any faster?"
"Negative. The cargo is too heavy."
The Japanese man straightened as much as he could in the crammed
compartment of the submarine, thinking, Damn this thing. Even three
Los Angeles class submarines can only herd it along slowly.
He did a visual sweep of the room, noting the professionalism of the
officers and men, some in military uniform and others dressed in the
white civilian attire that befitted a research center more than a
submarine.
His eyes catch the gaze of a Navy officer, the commanding officer of
the submarine wolfpack, sitting in the control chair. The two lock
gazes. The Japanese man caught a hint of hostility in those blue
Caucasian eyes, thinking, This man... is a difficult one.
"Dr. Katsuragi?" The officer began.
"Yes, Admiral?"
"I don't appreciate the idea of your organization using MY submarines
on this... 'research' mission."
Dr. Katsuragi sighed, sure that the admiral had been told dozens of
times before during the briefing what he was about to say.
"I assure you, Admiral McKay, this is merely a temporary reassignment
from the UN."
The admiral half growled, "I am aware of that... though i don't have
to like it."
"As long as we get to finish this run I will be grateful to you...
Admiral."
The old sea dog huffed and lapsed into silence, eyes still trained on
Dr. Katsuragi's. This isn't the first time the US Navy has been
coerced into becoming scientific babysitters... They did that on my
first cruise... His eyes drifted across the room. And they had to
send Japs. Don't they know Japs make my skin crawl?
Then he stiffened slightly after making out on Katsuragi's shirt,
below the tag titled 'Dr. Katsuragi Kenji', a symbol. It was something
he thought had seen before. He made out the light outline of an
inverted triangle, but the rest of it was not clear to his eyes.
Instantaneously, McKay's thoughts ranged back twenty years to an
incident when he was a midshipman. It was at the Red Sea... He
shuddered at the memory and turned his eyes from Katsuragi Kenji.
Seeing that the Admiral wasn't going to continue their conversation,
Kenji looked around the room. His men were occupying the main
positions, but if things turned violent...
...It could be worse than the Red Sea debacle...
Kenji shook the thought from his head and sighed. He leaned over the
console of one of his operators and asked, "Are the other two
submarines in tandem with the Senoy?"
The operator looked up at Kenji, his right hand placed over the
headphones of the sonar device. Before him lay the sonar display. Two
blips of equal size blinked intermittently, marking the positions of
the other two submarines. Between them was a long, unidentified series
of blips.
"Yes, Dr Katsuragi. The Sansenoy and the Semangeloph are matching our
speed perfectly."
"Good. We don't want to jeopardize the cargo."
**********************************************************************
*Early 1999*
*Beneath the rolling waves*
Water. Icy cold water. It filled the blue ocean, turning darker and
darker as it slid deeper into the depths. Submerged beneath the
rolling waves of the Greenland Sea, under the thick layer of frozen
ice which spreads over the North Pole, the montrous bulk of the USS
Senoy inched its way. On the foremast was painted the American flag
and the UN logo. Its surface was a dull metallic gray, smooth except
for four red extrusions on the bow and stern.
Not too far away to the Senoy's left was the USS Sansenoy, beneath
them was the USS Semangeloph. Being sister ships, both were the same
as the Senoy, also outfitted with the four queer appendages on their
sides.
The red extensions were made of reinforced steel, late 20th century's
finest metallurgy. Doubly coated with antifreeze paint to prevent them
from becoming brittle in the chilling water, they played out of the
three submarines intersecting each other at the absolute middle
between the three crafts. Together they held a long pole, its
thickness nearly outspanning its three guardians. Red in color, it
looked like it was made of two interwined cables. Double blades
protruded from its front quarter.
The Lance of Longinius.
**********************************************************************
Kenji looked up as an operator cried out, "The... the sensors are
going haywire. The water samples... it's red!"
Red. Like blood. Just as was foretold. Thought Katsuragi.
Just then, warning bells sounded on the Senoy, signaling an
unidentified object drawing near.
"There's an object in the distance... 5.4 nautical miles... on top of
the North Pole..."
"What is it?" Asked the Admiral.
"Unfamiliar sir. The sonar signature is unlike any we've seen...
Wait..."
The operator shouted as he saw a few more blips appear... then a whole
avalanche of blips. He stopped, eyes growing wide, shocked by the
intensity and coverage of the dots bursting out on his sonar screen.
They were spread over a one-mile radius, in an oddly humanoid-shaped
distribution. "Dr. Katsuragi!" He turned towards Kenji as Kenji
stepped up to look.
Katsuragi wore a pensive expression when he saw what was flashing on
the sonar display. Behind him, Admiral McKay shouted, "Take evasive
action! Don't collide with it!"
"No. Target the object and proceed." Kenji intoned softly.
McKay turned on him, his face red with fury and disbelief.
"What? Are you crazy? Are you going to waste my precious submarines in
a headlong charge at... at... at that thing??" Hollered the Admiral.
"Yes."
"You're nuts! Turn this thing around!" McKay ordered.
"I'm so sorry, but that's my decision."
McKay blinked at Kenji, anger begining to boil, his voice to
escalating, "I'm the commander of this task force and I'll decide..."
Just then, Kenji interjected, "You forget, Admiral McKay, on THIS
mission, by order of the UN, my authority outranks yours..."
Caught by the truth in that statement, McKay fell silent but his eyes
still defiantly stared at Kenji who couldn't help noticing McKay's
unusually white knuckles gripping the seat.
**********************************************************************
The three submarines bore down on a white humanoid shape lying on the
bottom of the ocean, churning up the red liquid as they approached.
The liquid snaked and quivered as its natural current was disturbed.
Spreading for miles around the creature were numerous formations of
white rock that looked like uncountable gravestones. Some of these
had already collapsed and the monster's arms and legs were trapped by
these fallen rocks, making it appear... dormant.
Suddenly, on what may be called its head, two dull lights like
lanterns glowed, as if sensing... intruders...
**********************************************************************
"An energy reading!"
"Where is it?!" Asked Kenji, concerned.
The operator responded, "At... its very middle!"
Kenji hesitated for a minute. The power source? Is that it?
Kenji bent down and whispered to an operator manning a unique console,
a type never usually seen on a submarine. "Prepare the containment
apparatus, Tatsuta."
Tatsuta nodded as he replied, "Yes..."
Satisfied, Kenji straightened then announced loudly to the rest of the
room, "Set a course... ram the cargo into the energy reading!"
Just a few steps behind him, McKay bit his lip hard.
**********************************************************************
The submarines altered their course slightly, aiming the Lance of
Longinius straight at the glowing red orb that just grew out of the
monster's abdomen. Their's engines' straining as fast as they could,
the submarines raced towards the hellish globe.
**********************************************************************
After pressing the required controls, the navigation operator
reported, "Course adjustments made!"
The communications officer also reported, "The Sansenoy and the
Semangeloph confirm course adjus- "
Before she could finish her sentence a dull click interrupted her. The
officer looked up from her console and gasped, dropping her
underwater telephone microphone with a clunk on the floor.
"I'm sorry, I can't allow you to do this..."
Kenji turned towards the sound of the voice, only to find McKay's
standard issue pistol pointed at him.
"Admiral..."
"We're not going to do this madness... Turn the submarines back."
McKay said to the civilian navigation officer, who stood dumbfounded
by the unraveling turn of events. The officer looked questioningly
from the muzzle of the gun to Kenji, who merely said, "You know your
duty, Mikasuki..."
McKay's gun hand trembled slightly, then he steeled himself and shot
a warning shot, then trained the pistol back on Kenji in a lightning
fast reflex action. the bullet bored itself through the wooden writing
pad on Mikasuki's console, splintering it.
"I said turn them around!" McKay's voice, at first calm and cold
began to grow brittle and break.
Kenji breathed in deeply then said, "I'm sorry... no. You don't
understand the importance of this mission."
"Importance? Important enough to risk five hundred seamen in your
kamikaze charge?"
Kenji ground his teeth then replied, "Yes."
McKay looked at him in disbelief, voice trailling away.
"Why is this mission so important?"
"That... is classified."
"Classified? Do you mean you expect me to sit back and enjoy the
ride?" McKay asked sarcastically.
"Yes. I expect you to trust my judgement."
At that, McKay chuckled coldly, "Trust? That's a mighty fine word you
throw at me. I? Trust a Jap? I haven't forgotten my father's death at
Pearl Harbot..."
McKay's voice dropped into a steely whisper, "I'll be damned if I'm
going to sacrifice my men, my boats and my LIFE to your crazy
kamikaze manuveurs!"
Kenji fell silent, watching the muzzle of the pistol waver in front of
him, his hands twitching slightly, inching towards a fold beneath his
shirt. McKay was panting from his outburst, but he gathered his
strength and once again he turned and yelled at the frightened
Mikasuki.
"Now... turn the subs around!!!"
**********************************************************************
The standoff on board the Senoy still unresolved, the submarines were
merely minutes away from the creature.
As the spear drew nearer, the orb began to pulsate. Its locked forces
began to quiver as they sensed the nearing threat. The spear that
would destroy them.
The double tip of the Lance of Longinius crept closer and closer...
and then stopped as if it hit a solid wall. An octagonal shaped field
had formed right in front of it, barring its advance...
**********************************************************************
Everyone in the control room was thrown forward when the submarine
jolted as if it had hit something. Red lights filled the room as
sensors indicated a collision. Kenji nearly lost his balance but
gripped a nearby console for support. Admiral McKay was caught on the
wrong footing. He stumbled and fell, index finger inadverdantly
depressing the trigger.
The shot misfired, ricocheting off the walls, only to wound Mikasuki
in the shoulder. The officer grunted as he banged his wound against
the console, right hand coming up to clutch his left shoulder, fresh
blood oozing from the wound. Before McKay could recover, as he was
still bringing himself to his feet, he heard another dull click.
McKay turned his head and saw Kenji, a part of his shirt undone
revealing an empty holster, pointing a mini-pistol at him.
"I'm sorry Admiral Johnation McKay, but you will not jeopardize this
mission."
McKay stared at the muzzle of the gun as another tremor shuddered the
submarine and laughed bitterly.
"Mission? Feels more like a suicide..."
Kenji disregarded the comment and nodded at two white clad men,
saying, "You two... restrain him."
The two men stepped forward and grab McKay's arms. McKay struggled
but they forced him to his knees.
"You... you won't get away with this, Katsuragi!" McKay yelled, face
flushed with anger. Just then a greater tremble ran through the sub,
making everyone brace themselves against something once again.
Recovering his balance, Kenji yelled, "Whats going on?!?"
"We... We've stopped moving! Something is blocking the path of the
cargo!" Mikasuki says as he clawed his way back up to his console.
"Damn it! Get the engines to give everything they've got!"
As Katsuragi Kenji said that, the submarine shuddered again... and
again.
**********************************************************************
The field strained against the sharp tips of the spear. Even with the
engines going at full power, the submarines were unable to push the
spear any closer. A few of the red extensions began to bend, the force
growing too strong for them.
Suddenly the spear glowed with a queer dull, red light. Its two tips
twisted and wrapped together forming a single lance and started to
push slowly through the field. The field's coherency began to collapse
as its center was being torn apart by the spear.
Just then, a scream resounded through the water. An uneartly female
scream. Its sonic front a visible white wave in the dark red water. It
rippled out from the creature. The wave crashed into the submarines...
flowing around them, over them, past them and through them.
**********************************************************************
*Magnetic Resonance Monitering Station*
*Iceland*
"Sir! Come take a look at this!"
A grumpy looking man sighed as he got up from his comfortable seat
and stumbled to his subordinate who was waving so excitedly that it
looked like his pants were on fire. Grumpy gulped down the lukewarm
coffee before taking his feet off the table and walking over.
"What is it this time, Lewis? Mistook radio inteference for another
Earth-shaking event?"
"No sir! This time its for real!"
"Yea yea and I'm Einstein... Holy Jehosaphat!"
The coffee mug shattered on the floor, its pieces scattering over the
now coffee stained tiles. Grumpy was no longer amused, voice quivering
he asked, "Did you tune the measuring apparatus properly?"
"Yes, Mr Clark, sir..." A voice which slowly pattered out answered
him. The two of them watched with foreboding as the needle scribbled
thick, dense and long lines on the graph paper.
**********************************************************************