Story updated on: - 05/04/2011
Chapter beta read by: akiqueen

Chapter 4 (Journey)

"Okay. I always wanted to do this since we came to this place." Jake sat at the edge of his seat and marvelled at the spectacle he was about to create with his massive vessel. Since that embarrassment moment about being towed into the Blue base under Blue subs power, he wanted to show the workers what his boat could do.

"Helm, activate the engines and take us out and…" Jake paused slightly, relishing the moment be fore he roared, "Full revs on the turbines! NOW!"

Freeda obliged the captain's orders and scrawled up the controls to their maximum settings, creating a burst of acceleration.

The force of the thrust created an uncontrollable stream of water that lifted all the sand off the ground and blew it over the blue base facility. As everyone laughed when they were towed into blue base, everyone was shocked and amazed at the power when they left.

But the cloud of dust filled the entire area and approached the watching people like a fog mist moving in. Everyone backed away from the windows as the black cloud of fog, sand and crap smashed onto the windows and spread all over the facility, creating a raining sound on the hull.

No damage was done however, but the feeing it gave Jake felt was unexplainable.

-o-

Nighttime fell over the Deep Sea Six and the massive vessel cut gracefully through the surface of the water. Jake sat on the hull of the ship and enjoyed the hot night with a cup of tea.

"Captain" said his second in command appearing on the deck. "The venting will take half an hour and we should be underway by then."

"Very well," Jake dismissed his second in command and carried on enjoying the night, looking at the clear blue sea reflecting the moon's light. The sleek skin of the ship reflected the light perfectly; even a bird could be seen on the hull. It was a view Jake liked to view each evening, when he had the time.

After a few minutes of soul searching, Jake felt the drowsiness set in. Started by the trickle of tea on his hand, he woke up to place it back on its stand. Suddenly a familiar hand touches his arm. Jake was startled for a moment, but he turned around to the source of the creamy-yellow patterned white and black hand.

The beautiful hybrid girl he met in the waterway. This is no dream, he thought to himself in amazement as he fell backwards off his chair. Loosing balance, he fell back and rolled down the side of the vessel and into the water. The sudden rolling brings up a flash of the hybrid, before the cold stinging water woke him up completely from his drowsiness.

Struggling out of the water, using all his strength, Jake approached the hybrid that sat with her legs crossed beside herself on the deck of his location. A posture most of her kind uses and Jake finds very luring.

Getting over the initial experience of almost drowning, he's placed into another situation as she held him tight. Jake looked perplexed and confused. The last interaction he had with this creature was that of mating and he thought it was a dream. But this was clearly no dream as her closeness proved. But the romantic gesture did fill Jake with romantic feelings and the environment of the night helped out a lot.

She gave of a pleasurable sound when Jake placed his hands around her, a gesture he thought was that of protecting her and preventing her from falling of the hull of the ship. Then he had a burning question he had to ask her.

"What's your name?" He said slowly, not knowing if she would understand.

She didn't reply. The only thing she did was to rub her ear on his chest, trying to feel his warmth and passion. The seawater that dripped of his clothes brought a cooling and wet sensation to her delicate skin.

She slowly looked into his eyes and this gave Jake the perfect opportunity to communicate with her.

He points to himself and said his name was Jake. Then he asks her for her name by pointing at her. Jake needed to do this several time before she finally got the point. In a pure, vibrant tone she replied, "Tia."

Jake looked into her sky blue eyes and felt hypnotised by them. He remembered the sexual encounter. But in the depths of his mind, he wondered if he was sleeping on the deck of his own ship, dreaming the encounter.

-o-

Deep inside the Deep Sea Six, the moon-pool room was used to transfer objects and small vessels in and out of the boat. It hummed continuously with the odd splash from the water currents as the movement of the Deep Sea Six displaced them.

However deep in the corner of the room, two men suspiciously walked in, snooping around. Not trying to make an effort to stay silent, one of the crew said, "so, what are we doing down here?"

Then Sam looked at the first crewmember and whispered, "I told you. I saw it in here, I want to take a picture!"

"First you try and scam everyone on this boat and then you make something up about a girl who's half cat and fish?"

Sam, who was the individual that cooked all the eggs and bacon on the hull of the ship for a fixed price, muttered. "If I can get an image of this hybrid, I can make a fortune. The media is dying for pictures and I know I saw one down here. Cute thing too."

Sam continued to slither in and out of the empty boxes and crates saying. "Here kitty, kitty, kitty!"

"Why are you saying that?" The crewmen said.

"It looks like a cat. I donno. Seems the correct thing to do."

Sam manoeuvred himself into the clearing and spotted a figure sat at the edge of the moon pool. With her feet in the water staring harmoniously into the water, Sam bumped into one of the metal crates and startled her.

Mutio turned towards the disturbance and looked solemnly at them.

Sam froze on the spot. He didn't intend to be the star of the show, or be discovered. But having a creature staring at him with piercing red eyes and the look of a trapped pray, he felt alone and vunuble. But his initial plan to take a picture sprang to mind. With his comrade holding a weapon for protection, Sam proceeded in taking the memorial shot. But as he attempted to lift the camera, the hybrid creature snarled and then jumped into the water. She vanished as fast as they spotted her.

Silence fell as the splash and ripples drifted away. Only the humming of the boat filled the air, leaving the seawater ozone and the pattered lights from the moon pool reflecting of the ceiling.

"Did you see that?" Sam muttered like an addict on dope. "See, I told you! Who's the man?"

Sam looked into the moon pool, trying to see any trace of her. But the only thing he saw was the water. "Damn it! I'll get her one day!"

-o-

Hayami slept deeply in his quarters as the night slowly slipped by. His worries and workload had finally caught up with the man and the tiredness was upon him before he knew it.

Slouched on his bed, a strange sensation stirred him from his slumber. When he eventually opened his heavy eyelids, Hayami was startled to discover Mutio stood over him. Seeing the hybrid in his room caused the man to jump and his heart pound uncontrollably from his chest. Opened in the background, the hatch to the Aqua tunnel allowed the reflective surface of the water to glitter in the darkness.

Hayami sat on the end of his bed; this stunning creature was everything he imagined. There were times he'd seen her from time to time but this was the most personal and controllable event. Still, nothing interesting happened. They just watched each other in the void of limbo. Hayami felt an uncontrollable urge to kiss her and this made his mind go crazy.

Again, his moral judgement pestered through is mind about her species, what she is and what these people did to the world.

"So, why are you here Mutio? Are you here to see me?" he asked.

Mutio looked at him like a lost girl, she appeared not to understand the question, however Hayami carried on asking.

"You need to understand. I am a person who has never experience love before. I do not know what love is." Hayami crept closer to the aqua creature and Mutio repaid the gesture by giving him a slight sound with her throat. He wasn't sure if the sound was a threat to stay away or encouragement to come closer, he chose the second theory.

"I've waited so long. I've been haunted by the image of you leaving with that creature." he explained. But Mutio looked defensively into his eyes and her juicy lips turned into a sweet and gentle smile.

Then it happened. Hayami could not resist the moment anymore. With one swift movement, he kissed Mutio passionately on the lips.

Mutio, who was caught of guard, suddenly jumped back. She was shocked and frightened that a human would kiss her. Within a flash, she dived into the waterway and disappeared from view. Hayami leaned over the hatch and tried to apologise. But his echoes just reflected back to him with no answer.

He wallowed back to his bed in sorrow and regretted his actions, now he knows what Kino felt when she did the same to him. Things do go around in a full circle.

-o-

On the deck, Tia held Jake in a passionate embrace. She looked up as if she can hear someone calling and then she moved away.

Jake was startled and wondered if he'd done something wrong. He had to know. Kindly he asked. "Are you okay?"

Then as Tia moved away further, Jake asked, "Where are you doing?"

Tia noticed Jakes concern and she said one word "Mutio" before she jumped into the water.

Jake gazed towards the water and murmured, "Mutio? What's that?"

His second in command stormed on deck, making Jake jump from his position.

"Sir, you're a very jumpy today. Maybe you should get some rest." He said handing some documents to him. "Sir, you're also wet?"

Jake looked at his clothes and then looked at the open sea with a slight smile. "Man, these creatures of the sea are a strange bunch!"

"What?" replied the puzzled second in command.

"Never mind, lets get underway."

-o-

"Blue Base to Blue six, we have detected more enemy units inbound, ETA seven minutes." Cracked a distorted voice over the COM unit.

Iga sat at his post on his vessel and watched through the periscope at the lone Musuca sneaking towards the Blue Six. "At least we do not have the ghost ship to deal with." He muttered.

Pointing his hand towards the weapons officer, Iga carefully ordered. "Flood tubes one and two, and prepare to fire!"

The crew followed their orders and the torpedo tubes on the Blue Six opened up ready to fire.

"Just a little closer," said the energetic commander. "A Little more!"

As Moments passed, the nervous sonar operator finally said what Iga wanted to hear. "Captain, it's in firing range!"

The atmosphere began to grow like a storm with everyone anxious with anticipation. But Iga still kept his cool and kept his finger pointed in the air. It wasn't time to fire yet.

Tsuji stood in his kitchen holding all the pots and pans making sure they don't end up getting thrown onto the floor, as they always seem to do. After getting a new supply at blue base, he intends to do everything in his power to make sure they don't get destroyed.

Iga looked at the approaching Musuca. He knew its firing range, he knew the power it possessed and he also knew the dangers. But he had to get the distance just right. If not, they would loose their element of surprise.

"Steady!"

Few more moments passed and then Iga placed his pointing hand down on the floor and said, "FIRE!"