Out Of The Blue

by Allegra

The seaQuest crew are sent to investigate research on an underwater oceanography station, but a routine check turns out to be more dangerous than they ever imagined.

4. Out Of The Blue - Part 4

OUT OF THE BLUE (PART 4)

By Allegra

See Part One for disclaimers etc.

"Cleo." Lucas pushed the door to her room open quietly and peered inside. She was sitting at her desk, staring out through the heavily reinforced glass into the ocean depths, its dreary blackness highlighted by the station's lights which shone, weakly trying to illuminate the dangers of the sea. Her chin rested on her hands and she made no attempt to get up or turn when she heard him enter. "Cleo, the captain wants to speak to us all." Still, she did nothing, neither moving nor speaking. She didn't trust her voice to say anything but all her tears had dried up inside her long ago. Now, she only felt numb to everything going on around her. Part of her could rationalize how insignificant her leaving the MEDS station was in the grander scheme but another part of her kept replaying the scene in her head. She was being dropped off outside the UEO headquarters, her final pay cheque in her pocket, a taxi ready to take her wherever she needed to go. Yet, every time she saw herself climbing into the taxi, it was as if she disappeared. It was impossible for her to imagine anything beyond that...because there was nothing beyond that. It was void of non-sensation, of emptiness.

"Lucas..." He came over to where she was sitting and settled himself on the bed opposite her and put one hand out to her. "What is it?" He followed her gaze towards the window and realized that she hadn't been looking out to sea at all but at the distorted, half reflection of herself in the glass. "Sometimes I sit here for hours and I wonder if this is all I am. I wonder if this is all people see of me, a shadow, an unfinished person."
Lucas rubbed her arm, reassuringly. "No, you're never that."
"Aren't I? We were trapped on that depot for three years and nobody missed us, nobody looked for us. It was like we didn't exist...and then I went back into the world and it didn't want me, it still didn't notice me. The only place I feel safe is when I'm tucked away from everything, just an anonymous face who keeps the menial work done, labelling test tubes, clearing up experiments. I don't mean anything to anyone unless the coffee supply runs low, but you...you're the genius kid. Everyone wants you, needs your help. "
"That's not true. You aren't worthless, Cleo. You're important to me, you're everything to me." At this, she turned to him and, at that moment, Lucas couldn't believe how much he meant every word. "You're somebody and we're going to get out there and find out together. There's so much you haven't tried, there's a whole world for the taking, for our taking. We'll go to Europe, visit Buckingham Palace, climb the Eiffel Tower, see the Great Wall of China. In a year's time, we'll look back on this place and wonder how it ever came to be such a big deal."
Cleo smiled, "You promise?"
"I promise." Lucas gathered her in his arms and squeezed her tight. "Come on, let's get this over with."

Back on seaQuest, everything had been running smoothly and Commander Ford was thoroughly enjoying the rare pleasure of having the boat entirely to himself. Bridger frequently handed the reins over to him when there was little else to do or to give his young companion a chance to learn for himself, but it was almost unheard of for the captain to be absent from seaQuest for longer than a day. Admittedly, this wasn't exactly a reason to be jumping for joy - there was not much to be done onboard and Bridger's lengthy silence might well be a forbidding one. However, this peaceful atmosphere gave Jonathan all the time in the world to daydream about taking the helm for himself once and for all. One day, he would command a boat, maybe not one as large and advanced as seaQuest, but a substantial one nonetheless. It fired excitement in his heart and sent it into palpitations just envisaging the looks of his subjects as he stepped onto the bridge. He only hoped that he might receive the same respect and praise which Nathan Bridger had garnered over his long and illustrious career.

He was in the middle of receiving a commendation for saving the world from sudden disaster when Ford was pulled roughly from his reverie by O'Neill's ever-anxious voice. "Commander, we've got an incoming call from a shuttle on course from Anchorage, requesting to board." Ford glanced over at his companion's monitor and barked, "Put it on forward screens."
"Aye, aye, sir." A second later, a middle-aged man's face came abruptly into focus, his expression somewhat urgent as sweat beaded across his forehead. In an abrupt and faintly Scandinavian accent, he stated, "My name is Emory Olafsson, I was on my way to the MEDS station when I heard that your captain is positioned there. I have some information I think the UEO would like to hear." He paused, waiting for the gravitas of his words to sink in. "Requesting permission to board seaQuest, commander."
"Permission granted." The link cut out and the commander instructed the docking bay to be opened. Ford felt uneasy about this and he had to admit that the crew's abnormally long sojourn on the base gave him cause for concern. Whatever this Mr. Olafsson had to say had better be worth it. "O'Neill, you'd better get Captain Bridger on-line. If this guy has anything to say for himself, I'd say he's going to want to talk to him." O'Neill nodded and began trying to get a line. A moment later, he looked up.
"I'm not getting any signal, commander. We can't get through, only static." Ford looked at the monitor, sceptically. "Try another connection."
"I have, sir. All lines to the station are down." Sighing, Ford paused to think. Given the situation up at Anchorage, such electrical disruptions were not cause for concern at this point, but he also knew that Bridger would want to know what was going on. "Fine. Keep trying. Maybe there's still some residual electrical disturbances from the northern lights."
"Yes, sir." Tim turned back to his console and continued trying various connections while, with modest apprehension, Ford made his way to greet seaQuest's new visitor.

Within a few minutes, a rather dishevelled, unimposing man, looking more in his late fifties at closer inspection was standing in front of the young commander. He seemed anxious and his eyes darted around the smart interior like a cornered animal. "Mr. Olafsson..."
"Doctor Olafsson." The man corrected. "I am one of the supervisors sent to the MEDS station." Introducing himself, Commander Ford held out his arm, gesturing to one of the corridors leading away from the docking bay. "If you'd like to step this way, I'll take us somewhere private where we can talk about this." The doctor nodded, emphatically, hurrying along the corridor like a mole returning to his underground burrow for the night. In fact, everything about the man somehow reminded Jonathan of a wild, woodland animal, even his dark brown corduroy jacket which fitted tightly around his ample belly. Once inside the security and quiet of the ward room, Ford tried to make his guest feel comfortable. As acting captain of the seaQuest, he was thoroughly enjoying the sensation of being host for a while, no matter what harbinger of news the person might be. "Can I get you anything to drink, doctor?"
"Uh, yes, a cup of coffee would be much appreciated." Ford nodded and quickly switched on the PAL. "O'Neill, can the doctor and I have two coffees in the ward room?" There was an icy silence at the other end for a moment before O'Neill's voice came over. "Sir, that isn't really my job."
Jonathan didn't need to be able to see the man's face to know the expression which went with that voice. He felt his face grow hot with the embarrassment of being answered back to by one of his inferiors. "Just do it," he barked and turned the PAL off before O'Neill could say anything else. Dr. Olafsson appeared to be unperturbed by this exchange, he was too busy looking around the room and taking in the various state of the art items adorning nearly every flat surface. "This certainly is an impressive boat, commander. I've heard so much about it but I never dared to hope I might one day set foot aboard."
Ford smiled; perhaps O'Neill hadn't ruined his chances to show off after all. "Yes, she is."
"It must be quite a handful to deal with alone."
The doctor turned quizzical eyes on the commander, who wasn't exactly sure how he should respond. He wouldn't want to belittle Bridger's job nor declare himself capable of dealing adeptly with the seaQuest in times of trouble. However, right now, he was having the time of his life and he felt fully in control...except for the small matter of where room service came from. Why had he never figured that out before? "I do my best." The doctor paused as if digesting all the information before abruptly producing the old-fashioned leather briefcase he had been carrying around with him. He slung it onto the table top with a thud and fiddled with the awkward fastenings. "Well, to business!"
With that simple gesture, Ford was already starting to feel inadequate again. His claim to superiority was short-lived and the general manner of Dr. Olafsson reminded him that he had been left more or less in the dark on this case. Bridger himself had been provided with only sketchy details as to the purpose of this mission and the commander had been unable to contact the MEDS station.
"You said you had some information we might need."
The doctor nodded, rummaging around in his case for some sheets of paper. Producing a few official documents which proved his legitimacy, he cast them across the table to Ford. "As you can see from my credentials and dossier, I have been overseeing a particular project on the MEDS outpost for quite some time." Jonathan scanned the pages quickly but he had learned from experience that the men who handed over this kind of information without having to be asked usually had no need to prove themselves. "So why did you come to us and not to the MEDS station straight away? Why give us information concerning a project you are directly involved with?" The doctor sat back in his chair and pushed the small spectacles he wore further up his nose.
"Well, after we launched from Anchorage, our communications scrambled every time we tried to make contact with the base. When I realized that seaQuest was in the water, I assumed you must have something to do with it. I put two and two together and came up with four. If I am not mistaken, Commander Ford, you have been sent here to investigate the root of the disputes between the MEDS team and the NOSO people based at Anchorage. I thought you must have isolated communications with the base as a containment security precaution. Now, I would be the first to admit that I fully endorsed this project when it first began, but more recently, I have had cause for concern but there was no one in a position to receive my complaints. Since the UEO is here and already suspicious, I decided to take the opportunity to voice my fears." Olafsson ended his speech in a torrent of words but Ford absorbed every word. "I see. What exactly is the project underway?"

The doctor was about to reply when there was a knock at the door and a second later O'Neill entered with a tray of coffee and rather cheap looking biscuits. He cast a sour glance in his superior's direction and the sarcasm was dripping from his lips as he said, "Your coffee, sir. I hope everything is to your satisfaction." Once again, Olafsson seemed oblivious to the tension in the room and he reached greedily for the tray and began pouring himself a cup with one hand while stuffing a biscuit into his mouth with the other.
Ford caught Tim's arm as he headed to the door and muttered under his breath, "Why didn't you send someone from the mess canteen?"
Tim's eyes were icy. "I didn't know who to ask and no one would come. Next time, you can get it yourself." Ignoring the disapproving look from Jonathan, Tim barely restrained his hand from slamming the door. He may be Ford's inferior, but they both knew that it was not the communications officer's job to play waiter to anyone, not even acting captain.

Ford turned back to his guest. "I'm sorry about that." Olafsson looked up in half surprise, his mouth full of half chewed biscuit and crumbs circling his mouth. "You were about to tell me about the MEDS project." The doctor waved his hands in the air ahead of him, trying to chew and swallow his mouthful as quickly as his body would allow. Finally, he wiped absently at the last few crumbs, took a sip of coffee, and began. "Ah, yes. Well, it began as an experiment on the seabed. My colleague, Dr. Eric Wagner used samples of a tourmaline derivative, calling it polychromatite, which he processed and injected into the porous rock of the sea bed. The rocks there began to have beneficial properties for the sea life, improving the ecosystem." Olafsson waited, watching Ford to make sure he had taken in and understood everything. The commander was mildly impressed by this manipulation and vivification of totally inanimate rock, but he didn't think it was really cause for such secrecy.
"I assume something went wrong," was all he could manage to sum up his feelings.
Olafsson raised his eyebrows in a gesture of indifference. "Well, Wagner and I consulted for quite some time which direction the project should take next. He believed that we should push further, mutate the rock so that it could be used for better underwater farming. He had already seen how positive and productive his experiment had been already. The fish were growing bigger, the whole ecosystem became more efficient. He wanted to alter the components of his polychromatite in order to create sea life with more agility, more effective hunting skills, brighter colours, perhaps even some electrical properties like the electric eel."
"You mean like the genetically modified foods of the late twentieth century?"
"Exactly...and we all know the problems that caused. He didn't only want to tamper with the rock, he wanted to mess with the delicate balance of life in the ocean. I may be a scientist, Mr. Ford, but believe it or not, I am also a man of God, and there are some research programs which I cannot condone. I appreciate that some must be performed in the name of scientific progression, but I have to admit that I had suspicions that Wagner might go ahead without me. You must understand, commander, that none of these experiments have been conducted in isolated conditions. Should Dr. Wagner succeed in his endeavours, the entire ocean is at risk. Do you understand?"
Ford nodded but Olafsson was already on a crusade. "If the predatory fish become more effective in their hunting skills, the supplies of food will quickly run low and they will move on to larger prey. Before long, the sea will be devoid of life but for the largest, most dangerous species." Ford contemplated this problem for a moment. He knew that Bridger would be thorough in his search and that Lucas or Kristin would most likely pick up on anything untoward, but he also knew that the captain had been unenthusiastic about the trip. In light of this, and without any disrespect, there was a higher possibility that something might be missed in an effort to get the mission over and done with. "I'll try to make contact with the base again then send a shuttle. I'll have someone show you to a room and I'll inform you when we leave." Dr. Olafsson nodded, gratefully as Ford shook his hand, heartily. "Thank you for coming forward, Dr. Olafsson."
"It is for the good of all mankind, Mr. Ford."

When the pair of teenagers arrived back at Captain Bridger's quarters, the rest of the crew had assembled and he was just reaching the end of filling the group in on what Lucas had told him. Their faces were grim and the boy was tempted to backtrack and get out of there; even Ben's face was a mask of disapproval. "Ah, Lucas, Cleo. Sit down." The pair sat as far away from the rest of the crew as possible, their faces giving them the air of condemned prisoners rather than love sick teenagers.

Bridger softened his tone when he noticed how pale Cleo had become since their arrival. "Cleo, I need you to tell us everything, anything you can remember which might be of use to us. What is this rock and what has it been used for?"
"It's some kind of tourmaline variety which Dr. Wagner experimented on. He noticed it had some electromagnetic qualities and wanted to exploit them further for industrial purposes. At first, we only noticed its effects in the sea life. He threw unsuccessful modified samples into the water where it started having a strange impact." Dr. Westphalen sat forward in her chair, putting aside the notepad she had been furiously scribbling in. "What was the reaction?" Cleo glanced at Lucas and he tried to give her an encouraging look. "Well, it began when the science team noticed variations in the plant and fish specimens collected from the water near the station. It all started not long after the mining began. The fish began to act strangely, then they grew stronger and larger, even began to take on magnetic or luminescent properties. Wagner waited a few weeks to see if there were any adverse effects before he decided to grind parts of the rock into powder for human consumption, in effect, to make us stronger and in better physical shape. At least that's what I think he did."
Krieg had been listening quietly to all this, but he was starting to suspect the innocence of this girl. Cleo might well be in on all this, a decoy sent out to seduce Lucas and make them think she was on their side. She could be lying to them all right now and they wouldn't know it. "You don't know for sure?" Cleo almost jumped at the bark issuing from Lieutenant Krieg and shook her head. "No." Ben raised his eyebrows in surprise, prompting Lucas to say, "What are you implying, Ben? That she's lying to us?" The ferocity in his eyes was disconcerting even to the older crew member, but he wasn't going to back down on this. "Well, it just seems kind of a coincidence that she was here at all and then she comes up with this story but with a few strategic blank spots."
Dr. Westphalen could see the fury on Lucas' face as clear as day and, while she had her reservations about this whole situation, she would stand up for the boy until someone had solid proof. "Cleo did show Lucas where the mine was in the first place."
Krieg shook his head, emphatically. "Oh, come on, Kristin! That's the oldest trick in the book. My bet is that MEDS found out why we were coming here and knew they couldn't keep it covered for long. So, they bring her in and use her to manipulate Lucas and keep us off the real scent." At this, Lucas stood up and was about to march down to the end of the table and deck his so-called 'friend' but the strong arm of his captain restrained him. "Lucas, sit down."
"I can't believe he thinks Cleo is part of this! She had nothing to do with it!" Krieg sat back in his chair, an equally defiant expression on his face. "Oh really?!" Lucas gritted his teeth, tightening his jaw and balling his fists, "Well, not everyone has what it takes to sink to your miraculous depths, Ben." The blow found its mark and Krieg visibly recoiled somewhat. The tension in the room was tangible and Katie would almost have given her right arm to get out of there. Cleo tried to calm her jangling nerves. "All I know is that Wagner wanted to take his experiments further but he was opposed by his superiors in Canada and work at the mine stopped for a while."
Westphalen made a few notes and frowned, "A while? So it started up again?"
Cleo nodded. "Only with Dr. Wagner and a few of the level five clearance authorities."
Krieg interposed, "So how did you get involved?"
Cleo swallowed, her eyes darting anxiously at the rapt faces. She wanted so much for them to believe her, that she was telling them the truth. Still, it wasn't enough that she was putting her entire life on the line. "It was about four months after I joined the staff. Dr. Wagner called me into his office and told me he had been watching my work and felt I was ready for promotion. He said he considered me trustworthy for the job, that it would be a learning experience and teach me about confidentiality." She hesitated; that lesson had already been destroyed. "I had no idea what I'd be doing and, until funding was withdrawn, I honestly believed the project was above board." Cleo hurriedly finished, praying for the seaQuest crew to believe her. She didn't have anything else to offer them. Nobody spoke at first but she felt Lucas squeeze her hand under the table.

Finally, Bridger nodded and looked around the table at the grim faces before him then smiled wanly at Cleo. "Thank you, Cleo. You've helped us a lot." He appreciated the risks she was taking by offering all this information and the quicker it was all resolved the better off she'd be. He turned his attention back to his waning crew. As if it wasn't bad enough that they would not be going back to the seaQuest tomorrow, now he was going to deprive them all of well-earned sleep. "I want to get to work on this right now. I want every one of you to find out as much information on this mine as possible. Lucas, you and Dr. Westphalen should run some tests, find out what possible side effects or toxins might be involved here. Report back to me with any news. I want an update every two hours. Try not to attract any attention to yourselves. I want this dealt with as smoothly as possible; the last thing we need is Wagner threatening to sue or forcing us to wait for weeks on end before we get further authorisation to explore the station. I want solid evidence before we accuse him of anything. Are we clear?"
There were mumbles of agreement and the crew filed out in a disorderly rabble, muttering and cursing under their breath. This was quite possibly the worst detail Nathan could ever remember being assigned to.

Kristin moved to where Lucas was getting up and rubbed one hand up and down his back. "Come on, let's see what we can dig up in there." He gave her a small smile, one which he usually reserved for when he was feeling especially isolated. She turned to Cleo, "Why don't you come and give us a hand? I expect we could use some advice and an extra pair of hands."

Lucas was eternally grateful to Dr. Westphalen for sparing him both the lecture and the understanding talk which she usually tried. She had been born with an innate sense of the right thing to do at any given time and, once more, she had excelled. All the reasons behind his actions were embodied in Cleo and there was no point in trying to explain it to anyone. As they reached the mine entrance, Lucas was starting to feel a bit better about the whole situation. The worst of it was over; he had told Bridger and now he could immerse himself in the science part of the job. Besides, if anything hazardous was found on site, Cleo would have to leave with them anyway for her own safety. Planting himself behind one of the trolleys laden with testing equipment, Lucas picked up a reflectance meter and eyed it thoughtfully. "I guess we should start with the basic properties, find out what this stuff is before we do anything else."

Kristin sidled up with a clipboard which listed all the relevant information Cleo had provided. "Yes, that's the best we can do until the others dig up any more records of the tests. Who knows how deeply Wagner has buried it?" Cleo had been making herself as physically small as possible, standing far away from the others in a corner. Plucking up the courage, she asked, "What can I do?" Kristin offered her a beaming smile in an attempt to make her feel less of an outsider. "Well, we could do with some more rock samples, if you could collect some for me." Nodding gratefully, Cleo was eager to oblige and quickly set about finding the hatchets used for mining.

The tension which had prevailed in Bridger's quarters earlier had begun to dissipate within the hour, no doubt attributable to Kristin's adept handling of the situation between her two charges. The combination of disappointment, fear and apprehension was barely disguised on their youthful faces and the doctor's heart went out to them. She could well remember how all-encompassing love could be, especially at their age, and she only wished there was more she could do to reassure them that there was nothing to worry about. However, it was not her place to intervene in this matter, that was Nathan's domain. No matter how equal he might consider their footing when it came to Lucas Wolenczak, the seaQuest was still his boat and it was clear from their earlier conversation that he was fully aware of how things stood between the teenagers. Whichever decision he made about Cleo's boarding seaQuest would be done so in view of all the facts and Kristin had to respect that, whether she agreed with him or not.

The group worked in silence for the better part of two hours, Cleo carrying out any task Westphalen sent her way with speed and enthusiasm while Lucas barely looked up from the workbench he had adopted for himself. A frown creased his forehead, only broken by the occasional half smile in his companions' direction or a hand rubbed tiredly across his eyes.

Finishing up with the electron microscope she had been using, Kristin noticed Lucas' eyes drooping heavily and his head drop forward before he pulled himself up again, trying his hardest to concentrate on the task when his body was simply telling him to sleep. Whispering to Cleo, the doctor asked, "Cleo, do you think you could get us all some tea and something eat? I think Lucas could do with some sustenance." The girl's eyes wandered over to where her boyfriend had been struggling with some equations on a piece of crumpled paper in front of him, except now his head was resting on his arm, eyes closed. She slipped from the cavernous room without him noticing and Kristin moved over to the boy, gently placing a hand on his shoulder. "Lucas." Her tone was gentle but he jumped, muscles tensing beneath her touch and he turned startled eyes on her. "Hmmm? What? Oh, sorry." He quickly began rifling through the papers in front of him again, trying to get his mind focused back on the job in hand but Kristin laid a hand over his before sitting down beside him. "Lucas, I think you need a break. You've been at this for hours." Lucas shook his head, vehemently, running one hand through his blonde hair. "No, the captain needs this information as soon as possible. I can't let him down, I've already done it once, he doesn't need me messing up again..."
"Lucas, calm down. If Captain Bridger saw you like this, he wouldn't want you working either." Lucas glanced at her from the corners of his eyes, while still keeping his attention firmly on the rock sample in front of him. He wasn't really looking at it but it made a good defence for not having to meet the sympathetic gaze of Dr. Westphalen. Finding an empathetic party was the last thing he needed; Lucas knew that he deserved all the disapproving looks sent in his direction, the blame which he was willing to shoulder. After all, he had discovered exactly what the captain had asked the crew to look out for and had then deliberately withheld the information on account of his feelings for Cleo, ultimately endangering not only the lives of everyone down here but those of the thousands of people living on the shores of Alaska around Anchorage if an earthquake had occurred. Quietly he interjected, "You don't understand. I, I thought that..." Somehow he didn't know how to continue. It sounded stupid even in his own head that one girl could be reason enough to justify everything he had done since his arrival at the MEDS station.

Kristin watched the boy with growing concern. She was used to some kind of rebuff whenever she tried to offer a sympathetic ear or a shoulder to lean on, but it was rare for him to be so despondent. Even when he was firmly in the wrong, Lucas stood his ground like a typical teenager, fuming silently or not so silently, depending on his mood, and then starting the next day afresh. "Lucas, listen to me. Not for one minute would I try to tell you what you're feeling or embarrass you, but love makes us do strange things sometimes. We can't even explain them to ourselves, let alone anyone else. You followed your heart before your head, but you saw its consequences and you did the right thing. You did the hardest part of all, putting the needs of others before your own." Lucas' jaw was set in a hard line, his eyes staring vacantly ahead of him. His voice was barely audible when he spoke. "That's just it. I didn't. I used my head, I thought about the consequences, but I went with my heart anyway." He turned to Westphalen, his eyes fierce and shining with defiance, asking her to hate him. They dared her to find a rational explanation for his callous behaviour or try to turn him back into the blameless martyr in all this, but Kristin knew him too well to give in. "Lucas, we all do. Nobody disputes that when it comes to science, you are cleverer than anyone else aboard seaQuest, probably more skilled than anyone on this station, but when it comes to matters of the heart, you're still learning. There will be all sorts of things you'll discover about yourself on the way and Cleo is just the first step."
"But nobody else puts lives in danger by following their heart. I could have been responsible for thousands of deaths." Lucas' voice had grown smaller again and Kristin could tell that she was starting to have an impact on the boy. "Maybe, but it is your actions which are being judged, not a hypothetical outcome. You did the right thing in the end and that is all that matters. Everybody can see that." Lucas looked at her, his eyes darkening. "Didn't you see their faces back there? Even Ben hates me."
Kristin chuckled, "Oh, don't be silly. The only reason they were crotchety was because now they have to stay longer and get less sleep. You'll be back in their good books before you know it." Lucas tried to return her smile, but it failed and died on his lips. Westphalen knew that she had done all the good she was going to do at this point and peered over at the diagrams and equations the teenager had been compiling. "So, what have you got here?"

Rubbing his eyes again and surveying the sheet once again, Lucas cleared his throat. "Well, none of this data adds up. Cleo was right that it is some kind of tourmaline derivative - its colour, formation and SG (1) all correspond but its molecules match those of an organic gem. They are arranged randomly throughout the material with no specific alignment."
Kristin brought the sample into sharp focus on the microscope at hand, then back at Lucas' studies. "So, how does that explain the regular cleavage? Surely it should break haphazardly if there is no structure?"
Lucas nodded. "Exactly. It doesn't make any sense."
"Either we've discovered a whole new section of gemmology or Dr. Wagner is truly a talented man." The doctor's eyes were shining with the prospect of such a find but Lucas wasn't as enthusiastic. He had a bad feeling about all this. "Cleo said the rock can provide some kind of electricity, but yet there's nothing in its structure which would make that feasible. None of this makes sense." Leaning over the sample again, he took a deep breath and sighed, wishing this was all over and he could get back to seaQuest with Cleo. How had everything become so complicated in such a short space of time? Glancing down at the rock, he drew back suddenly. "Doctor, look at this." Kristin followed his gaze and gasped. The rock was no longer a vitreous green colour as it had been moments before, now it was a rainbow of undulating hues before settling for a dark onyx black. "Good Lord!" she exclaimed. "What did you do?"
"Nothing, I just..." The boy paused and thought for a moment. "I just kind of breathed on it."
Taking another breath, he sighed purposefully over the rock and watched its colour shift again before taking on a slightly browner tinge. "It's responding to the carbon dioxide levels in the air." The two scientists exchanged excited looks; the MEDS team had every reason to keep this covered up. Who knew what else this rock was capable of? It had already proven that it could generate electricity, change its coloration according to different gas levels in any given space and that the sea life had been thriving on it for some time, getting stronger in the process. Kristin made a few more notes on the clipboard she had been hugging to her chest since their arrival, "We'll have to run some more tests. From what we've seen, the rock seems to be mutating all the time, altering its properties. I really think Captain Bridger should speak to Wagner. Whatever he has done here is seamless...brilliant."

Lucas leaned back in his chair, suddenly feeling a bit better about this project; maybe Westphalen was right about getting back into everyone's good books. Okay, so he hadn't been the one who had invented this rock mutation, but if he came back with some pleasing, perhaps even revolutionary results, nobody would remember the small incident before it.

A moment later, Cleo returned with a tray full of food and drinks, placing it on the edge of the table between the two scientists. Lucas smiled up at her and Kristin took a steaming cup of tea before retreating to her own corner of the cave, tactfully leaving the pair alone. Cleo smiled shyly, suddenly finding herself wondering if she and Lucas were still together. It was strange how quickly a crisis like this could alter so much between two people. They hadn't known each other very long and there was still so much they had yet to discover; a problem like this could part them more easily than in a long relationship. She wanted to be close to him more than anything else but she also knew that Lucas was completely torn between her and the seaQuest crew. If push came to shove, there was a big part of her which had no idea whether he would choose her over Captain Bridger and the others. It was understandable. Bridger had been like a father to him ever since he was pushed onto the boat, but it was more than that. All those people were his friends and he couldn't turn his back on them anymore than she could leave Zach on that depot. Opting for the more professional route, Cleo casually inquired, "How's it going?" Lucas pulled a face and held his hands out to her. "Well, it's going pretty well, actually, but I'd rather be doing this." Pulling her towards him, he planted a kiss on her lips. Cleo felt a wave of relief flow through her. He did still feel the same way about her. Self-consciousness got the better of her when she remembered that Dr. Westphalen was just across the room. Clearing her throat unsteadily, she slung one arm lightly around Lucas' neck and ran a finger across her lips as if trying to hide any evidence of their kiss.
"What have you found?"
She fingered through the papers and picked up one rock sample in her hand as Lucas entwined his arms around her waist.
"I'm not entirely sure. This rock seems to be adapting to different environments and stimuli. The list of possible tests is endless."
He took a sip of Coke and began unwrapping one of the chocolate bars. "I guess I should report back to Bridger, let him know what we've found, see if he'll bring Wagner in yet."

Meanwhile, on the other side of the station, Lieutenant Benjamin Krieg was not having the same luck. He had been rifling through piles of paperwork and practically anything he could get his hands on in an attempt to discover something useful. It had been going fairly well, if not a little boring in comparison to pretty much anything else he could be doing, and it gave him a chance to revise some of his newly acquired Danish skills. Ben had uncovered a few receipts for mining equipment which seemed to have dodgy suppliers; he remembered using Dan Meyers once to get a new home gym. The guy clearly thought he was Andy Kaufman or something because what turned up clearly resembled a personal dungeon, complete with kinky handcuffs. Krieg had been unimpressed, not to mention very embarrassed, but even he had to admit the guy could get hold of pretty much anything you wanted, no matter how illegal it might be.

He had just pocketed the receipts when he heard footsteps in the corridor outside the room and paused, waiting with bated breath, to see if they passed. Ben was convinced they had moved on and was taken by surprise when the door burst open and one of Dr. Wagner's cohorts, Dr. Rowe, entered. Ben's heart sank. Of all the people to catch him in here, this was the last guy on his list. The scientist was positively psychotic when it came to his work and when he spoke, you could almost see the capillaries popping in his forehead like over-fried eggs. It was not a pretty sight, although somewhat fascinating for the first few minutes.
"Mr. Krieg! What are you doing in here?"
The question was almost rhetorical as the man cast his beady eyes around the room, taking in the open file drawers and open dossier resting on top of a cabinet. Ben counted his lucky stars that he had already managed to filch some kind of proof of underhand trade; now he could get the hell out of there before Rowe needed a horse sedative to calm him down. "Uh, I was just..." He felt himself floundering in a sea of nonsensical words, none of which seemed to fit into the English language or sound convincing enough for this freak. Straightening his back and pulling himself up to full height, Ben decided to adopt the 'Don't query UEO orders' expression. He wasn't answerable to this squeak and he sure as hell wasn't going to make it a habit now.
"Forgive the intrusion, Dr. Rowe, but I have my orders. The UEO have instructed a full search of this station, no holes barred."
The doctor stared at him, malevolently, suspicion and doubt pasted firmly across his sallow face.
"Am I to understand that this is a covert operation, Mr. Krieg?"
Ben stared back at him, blankly. "Why are you sneaking around at this time of night?"
"Oh, well, I forgot that this room had not been checked and, since Captain Bridger wants to leave tomorrow morning, I thought I'd better carry out a thorough search now. Everything seems to be in order though, so I'll get out of your hair...metaphorically, of course," he added, glancing up at the man's balding pate. Despite the insult, this explanation seemed to satisfy Rowe, and as Krieg gestured towards the door, he stood aside to let him pass. Ben breathed a sharp sigh of relief before directing his course to the captain's quarters.

As soon as Lucas and Kristin had relayed all the information to Nathan, he called the rest of the team back. They all needed to hear the potential risks and benefits of this rock and, at this point, everyone required all the information. Hitchcock, looking like a thunder cloud, no doubt a product of lack of sleep, asked coldly, "So you're telling me that you know this rock does something but you don't really know what." Kristin saw Lucas' face fall; he had been so excited about passing on what they had discovered, about restoring some of the crew's faith in him. Instead, it had all been thrown back in his face, by those whose opinions he valued the most. The doctor quickly stepped in to argue on his behalf. "I think you're missing the point here, lieutenant. What we've found appears to be a completely new hybrid of organic and non-organic gem. We've just stumbled upon a new manufactured mineral species, thanks to Dr. Wagner, so you'll forgive us if it takes a little longer than four hours to come up with a full assessment."
Katie huffed, "Then why don't we haul him in here and get some real answers?" Lucas shrank back as the words hit his ears, their impact weighing heavily on his dwindling confidence. Nathan could sense the tension rising in the group and tried to diffuse it. "Scientific interest aside, the most important question is: do we have a high risk problem here? Do we need to evacuate the station and is there a risk to the inhabitants on shore?" Kristin exchanged dubious glances with Lucas and the boy tried his hardest to muster up some degree of confidence to his voice. "At this stage, there doesn't seem to be any risk from the rock itself and the mining itself is fairly minimal..."
Katie cut in, bluntly. "Lucas? Is it a problem?" Lucas paused. It was unusual for Katie to be so short with him and so impatient when it came to work. This kind of conference environment was her element, something which the crew had come to respect and she had a commanding presence in the room. To hear her suddenly bullying Lucas about the matter was both uncharacteristic and off-putting to the rest of the group. Even Nathan, who had seen his crew under almost every kind of trying circumstance, was taken aback.
"I think Lucas was about to tell us that, commander."
Kristin turned to the teenager, willing him to continue, but his voice was already growing unsteady. He felt as if he had just stepped into a minefield of his own creation, uncertain of what might trigger the next explosion or outburst from one of his friends. Inwardly, he knew that this was nothing more than confirmation of how much they all hated him now. "Um, I think that we should refine access to the mine - scientific research only, working with small samples. I don't think it would be wise to extract any more rock until we have more information...and I do think we should question Wagner as soon as possible."
Ben had been sitting unusually quietly, considering his usual buoyant nature, and as he saw his young friend floundering under the attack of Katie's piercing eyes, he jumped in. "I went back to their supply records, sir, and ran over the incoming materials over the past six months. There was some excavation equipment delivered less than a month ago. That would make it after Cleo said the mine had been closed. At first, I didn't think anything of it because we had already been shown what we thought was the whole mining area. The items were received from Mr. Daniel Meyers, an independent trader. There are few records on him, but he is renowned as a trustworthy guy in a criminal's game. Anything illegal or underhand can go through him and you're guaranteed satisfaction with minimum fuss. Consider this a personal recommendation."
He smiled but was met with a table of serious expressions; once again his joke was completely inappropriate. Damn, why couldn't he get his timing right? Clearing his throat, he retrieved the supply demands from his back pocket and sheepishly uncrumpled the pages with deliberate care before handing them across the Bridger. The captain perused them for a moment, then looked up. "Commander Hitchcock, contact seaQuest and explain the situation."
Katie stood up and headed into an adjacent room which housed the communications equipment. "Lucas, Kristin, you continue your research into this rock. Crocker, I'd like you to accompany me to speak to Dr. Wagner. Now that we have a good reason to search the base, he'll have to co-operate."
"Co-operate with what?"
The group turned at the unexpected booming voice, to be confronted with Dr. Wagner standing firmly in the doorway, his stance showing no sign of moving until he had squeezed every word from the seaQuest crew. At first, no one responded.
"As chief oceanographer on this station, I think I have a right to know your plans, why you are conspiring against us."
His voice was bordering on uncontrollable anger, every muscle in his body visibly tensed as he gazed defiantly from one surprised face to the next. Only Ben seemed more or less unperturbed by this outburst. For some reason, nearly every scientist he had come into contact with on the base had responded to him in this way - an unwelcome fusion of paranoia and stubbornness. Captain Bridger stood up, determined not to let this man intimidate his team any further.
"Dr. Wagner, we are doing no such thing. As you well know, the UEO was sent here to ensure that there was no danger to the people up-world." The doctor's face contorted into a vicious mask of contempt. "Yes, yes, so you keep saying. You just keep hiding behind your corporate shield, it doesn't matter how much you might be disrupting my people and my work!"
At this, a snort of disgust emanated from Chief Crocker's end of the room, and the scientist turned a steely glare on him, prompting Bridger to say, "Well, perhaps if your work and your people were undertaking legal operations, our presence here wouldn't be such a problem for you." The group waited in pin-dropping silence for Wagner's response, for the tirade or flying furniture; they were rewarded with neither. Instead, the doctor calmly inquired, "And which illegal operations would these be?"
Krieg held up the supply demand slip which he had salvaged from the mess in the filing cabinets. "The ones which required mining equipment from a shady dealer after your project was closed down." The proof dangled from his fingertips, yet Wagner still made no reply.
"Our project was never shut down. Funding was restricted. I know nothing about any orders. That is Dr. Rowe's jurisdiction." Lucas sat forward in his chair. He might not be able to make his friends like him again, but he could certainly try to bring the enemy down a notch or two.
"And I expect you know nothing about the mine either, right?" Wagner looked at him as if he were some bug which had just crawled up from the ground. He resented the Wolenczak name, especially some kid genius who thought he had the right to waltz onto his research station and ask the questions. "Well, I'd hardly call it a mine, more like a few indentations on the cliff face, as I'm sure Dr. Westphalen will vouch."
She returned him an icy stare, "We mean the other mine." To the untrained eye, the alteration in Wagner's visage would be imperceptible, but to the members of seaQuest who knew better, that sudden bunching of muscles spoke volumes.
Bridger asked, "Why didn't you tell us about it when we arrived? You knew the purpose of our visit. None of your work would have been disrupted and we could have been out of the area within a few hours...although our finds now make that an impossibility." Wagner frowned slightly, "What do you mean? What finds?" Lucas exchanged despairing looks with Kristin and he couldn't contain himself a moment longer. "Come on, Wagner! How long are you going to keep this up? We know that you have been testing quantities of rock on the ocean bed, that you've been using it to somehow power areas of the station. The preliminary tests Dr. Westphalen and I have done already show that it's neither organic nor inorganic..."
Dr. Wagner interrupted, "Oh, it's organic. I've run copious tests on the rock personally. The fluctuations in properties can only be organic. An inorganic gem couldn't respond as this one has been doing."
He paused for a moment, taking in the incredulous faces around the table. It was almost comical, their thoughts like an open book; they couldn't believe that he would offer information when he had kept the mine from them for so long. Well, he could mess with their heads just long enough to get them out of here and then he could get back to masterminding a revolution in human existence. Somehow, he had to dupe them into believing that what they had stumbled upon was not some exciting new species of rock, but a mutation created artificially by expensive and dangerous means. It would take a little longer with Dr. Westphalen and that genius kid around, but he could do it.
Katie Hitchcock leaned forward slowly, "Does this mean you will co-operate with us in this investigation?"
Wagner smirked at his bemused audience. "I think you are all missing the point here. That rock is not naturally occurring. It was generated in my lab."
Lucas shook his head in disbelief. "I don't believe that!" Even though Cleo had told them as much, Lucas still found it difficult to accept and he was certainly not going to take Wagner's word for it. "You can't just alter entire sheets of rock in a laboratory and I don't care how advanced your equipment might be. The level and intensity of heat required to perform such a change are a physical impossibility. Besides, the qualities in the rock must have some kind of organic factors in order to change as much as they do. You don't engineer that kind of thing! Only nature can do that."
Wagner raised his eyebrows in mock surprise and eyed the teenager with an air of benevolent surprise. "Is this the same Lucas Wolenczak I've been hearing about all this time, listening to his latest theories and having his new productions rammed down my throat at every available opportunity? The mastermind of science who can make dolphins speak and created perfect laminar flow to imitate a fish, is now admitting that science has its limits?! Someone call the press. I'm sure the papers would love this scoop. I could probably go into early retirement on a statement like that."
Lucas felt his temper rising. He really hated this guy. Trying to steady his voice, he explained, "I'm not saying it isn't possible, but science moves forward in steps not leaps. We simply don't have the technology to perform such experiments yet. Twenty years from now, maybe, but not now. Besides, I've seen nothing on this station with the capacity to do what you're saying."

Wagner felt his self-assurance waver momentarily. He had anticipated that this would be a challenge, but he couldn't afford to let the UEO figure out what they had stumbled into and steal his prize. His mind was racing with possible explanations with which to back up his statement, partly controlled by desperation to prevent them discovering his true motives and partly by adrenaline fired by the thrill of trying to keep them off the scent.
"Despite your prowess in this field, Mr. Wolenczak, I wouldn't expect you to understand the complexities of this project. I have been working on it for over three years now and it is borne out of plenty of hard work with much trial by error. Such a simplification as I have offered you here is only the tip of what I have been doing...and it has a name, you know." Kristin saw Lucas open his mouth, about to blurt out something wholly inappropriate, no doubt, and decided to put a stop to the battling of the two's egos. She nudged his leg under the table and he glanced in her direction in time to catch the warning look and shut his mouth, sulkily. Instead, Ben cut in, "Oh, and what's that? Wagnavite? Egotite?"
Wagner sent him a withering look, "Polychromatite, actually."
Krieg decided it was better to call it a truce now, especially considering the warning expressions he was also receiving from his comrades.

Bridger, meanwhile, had been watching the rising tension with a degree of interest, aware that his knowledge in this area was limited and Lucas was a more adequate spokesperson for the UEO in this capacity than he could ever be. Now, however, was clearly the time to step in. "That's as maybe but we will need full details of your work if we are to give the okay to Admiral Noyce." Wagner said nothing, nodding silently. Considering the matter settled, Nathan gestured to Lucas, "You and Dr. Westphalen can examine the data when Dr. Wagner has compiled it." At this, the scientist raised his hands in protest. "Wait a minute. I can't possibly gather all my material that fast. I mean, it's scattered all over the place. This is three years worth of work you're asking me to collect."
"You constructed a revolution in science and you didn't think to keep your notes in one place?" Krieg asked, incredulous. He may not be the most reliable member of the crew when it came to personal propriety of his paperwork, but the kind of paperwork he dealt with could be easily reproduced by simply sending off for another form. "What if it fell into the wrong hands and you only have one copy?" Wagner was fuming silently beneath his casual veneer. These people were grating on his nerves more than he had expected. "Look, I don't need to explain my actions to you. The best I can do is try to find everything I have. It's all around here somewhere."
He hesitated before adding, "At the risk of implicating myself in something more sinister, which I think you've already decided anyway, I might suggest you return to your boat until I've got everything on hand."
Nathan considered this for a moment. The man was right, there was very little he or any of his naval staff could do in an official capacity on the station at this stage. Only Lucas and Kristin were of any use and he couldn't abandon seaQuest for much longer, no matter how solid Commander Ford's skills might be.
"Thank you for your input, Dr. Wagner, but I shall assess the most useful course of action. Before you go, I have a few more questions which need answering."
Wagner raised his eyebrows in indignant expectation. "Yes?"
Nathan braced himself. He didn't want to force Cleo into the open as their informer on this case but he had to find out how the project had begun from the horse's mouth.
"An employee of yours has mentioned that you have been farming this polychromatite and using it on the sea bed. Is this true?"
Wagner fidgeted with the glasses he had just taken off. "Everything which was deposited into the ocean was nothing more than normal rock."
"What about these apparent changes in the sea life?"
"They were all carried out within a controlled undersea environment." Wagner's eyes took on a dead, cruel expression as he looked across towards Lucas. "Young Miss Walker was wrong about some things."
Nathan ignored his comment and continued, "What about human testing?"
Wagner chuckled in surprise. "Human testing? How would I do that?"
"That's what I'm asking you."
"Well, I may be good but I've yet to turn rocks into bread and feed the multitudes, Captain Bridger." Nathan could see that this was going to be a dead loss. He was going to have to rely on Lucas and Kristin's assessments on that front or some more firm evidence. "Thank you, doctor. Why don't you get onto finding some of that information?"
He waited for the man to take the hint, watching as he withdrew from the room with all the slinkiness of a deadly snake, his venom barely masked beneath his stony face.

Once outside the door, Dr. Wagner paused, weighing up whether he should bother listening in on the rest of seaQuest's discussion, but he thought better of it. He knew what they were doing and he didn't need to resort to spying in order to keep one step ahead of them. If he could just get them off the station and back to their wretched whale of a boat, everything would be fine. Turning on his heel, he headed back towards his own quarters, grateful that Bridger had spared him the indignity of having it searched like he was some kind of criminal. Damn the UEO! You are driven hundreds of feet under the ocean's surface in one of the least desirable areas in the world in order to carry out research for the benefit of the rest of the world. They don't give a damn about you until they begin to suspect that your finds might be of use to them, a way to make them more money for nuclear warheads or components to send junk metal into space. Now, just as he was close to the breakthrough of a lifetime, a discovery to outdo even man's first expedition into space, the government were already well on their way to messing it up for him.

Locking the door firmly behind him, Wagner sat behind his desk and ran one hand under the table top before producing a small plastic packet. He tipped the contents, a fine green-tinged powder, into the palm of his hand. Reaching for a glass of water, he sprinkled it into the bottom before downing the liquid in one huge mouthful. Standing up, the scientist paced around the room impatiently, wracking his brains to think of an effective way to rid himself of these supposedly peaceable people for good. Bridger and his kind were like an itch he couldn't scratch, like a knife blade tipped with salt. He felt the throbbing in his joints, his body surging with excess adrenaline fighting to find a release. Unable to control himself any longer, his fist flew at the heavy metal door. Withdrawing it, Wagner stared at the dented mark left there, a row of visible holes where each knuckle had imprinted itself. He looked down at the offending hand, proudly. Oh yes, he would get the credit for his find, even if it meant that lives had to be sacrificed in the process.