Chapter 20: Submarine

When the hour before Ozera's expected arrival came around, everyone gathered at the underwater dock.

The air around them was tense for the rest of that time. The submarine had already checked in for the last time and the men from the base were safely stowed away upstairs, out of sight and asleep. Crispin had ordered them to wake up on their own in a few hours, so they didn't have to worry about them if they didn't make it back.

Joe and Ilia were holed up in their hotel room, both of them waiting for some sign as to the success or failure of the others mission.

Tina had never tried to storm a submarine before, she had never heard of anyone who had. She wasn't even all that sure how to do it. Their best plan at the moment was to wait for the sub to surface then charge.

After that, they were in the wind. It was take things as they came. It was the best plan Tina could come up with and, since the others were saying nothing about it, she figured it was the best plan they could come up with as well.

They were as prepared as they could be. Warren had his knuckles on and ready, Dallas had confiscated one of the small handguns from their captives. He might not feel safe shooting inside the dock but he was pretty sure that the steel walls of the submarine would be better able to take any missed bullets. Kai had undressed down to just his pants. It left him half naked but better able to discard his clothing if he needed to go into the water.

Tina, who wasn't all that fond of guns and wasn't lucky enough to have brass knuckles, had found herself a dagger in town. It had either been that or a machete that Crispin had talked her out of. Beside her, smiling like he didn't have a care in the world, Crispin had no weapons. His weapons were his voice and his hands. He needed nothing else.

The large windows on each of the four walls made it was easy to keep an eye out through the vast ocean. It seemed to extend into forever, a deep blue that only changed as the sun traveled across it. There were no fishes she could see and the kraken was ignoring them. Everything was quiet.

And in this hour before the submarine appeared, Tina could finally begin to feel the anxiety of the wait. It hummed through her body, thrilling her. She would not fail in this. She would get her revenge for herself but, more importantly, for her father. Being so close, knowing her enemy was almost in her hands, it was exciting

The air was quiet between the five of them. All the good lucks and come back soons had been been exchanged. There was nothing left to say.

The rumble was quiet at first. Tina had almost managed to convince herself that it was just in her imagination when she realized it was getting louder.

Her eyes narrowed on the far window and, in the depths of the infinite blue, she could just make out a black dot. And she smirked.

It moved slowly. The engine power had been turned down so that the pilot could accurately steer the sail of the great vessel into the opening of the underwater dock. As it pulled in closer and Tina was able to make out the sail height, she could tell that it was just low enough, just wide enough, to fit into the hole.

It was long, about a football field in length. But it was narrow and only about two stories high. It would easily fit into the space under the dock.

And it was loud. Kai hadn't been kidding when he told her that submarines weren't quiet. The engine of

it rumbled through the water shaking the glass in the windows. It agitated the kraken who began swimming in faster circles. Hearing it, Tina couldn't believe that it was considered a stealth machine.

The closer it got to the dock, the slower it moved, like it was deliberately teasing Tina. They on the dock needed to do nothing more than wait and that was surprisingly difficult.

She watched, her muscles tensing in anticipation, as the submarine maneuvered with expert skill into the space under the dock. It was pitch black, like something from a nightmare.

It floated there for a moment, unmoving. Tina was suddenly struck with an irrational fear that they had somehow found out that they had taken over the dock. They were going to turn and run, she would lose her shot at Ozera.

Even as the panic of that thought set in, the submarine began slowly rising. It was a carefully measured ascent to prevent the sub from crashing right through the dock. It needed to go that slow just for caution's sake.

Tina took in a deep breath as the sail broke the surface of the water. She could see the hatch on the side, like a rounded door that would allow those inside out. Or allow them in.

The submarine halted just as the hatch completely left the water. The body of the submarine remained just less than a foot under the water. They would have to cross the water to reach the hatch.

Kai took the first step forward. He jumped off of the dock and splashed down onto the body of the sub.

He halted there for a moment, waiting to make sure he had his balance on the hull, then stood up straight and began crossing the long body to the hatch.

The others watched him without comment. He was the best for testing the path as him falling into the water wouldn't effect him negatively at all.

Halfway across the hull, they all heard the strain of metal as the hatch began opening.

Kai picked up the pace and began jogging across the water.

By the time man opening the door stuck his head out, it was too late. Kai was on him. He grabbed the man by the neck and tossed him unceremoniously into the water. He grabbed the door and opened it as far as it could go.

He was tackled by the second man from the sub and both of them crashed into the water. The man held Kai's head under the water hoping to drown him. Kai merely started his transformation and his gills came into existence. He flipped himself and the man over and they rolled off of the side of the sub and into the water. Neither of them came back up but Kai's pants did.

The others weren't paying attention, the first man was trying to climb up from the water and onto the hull.

Warren jumped off of the dock, landed easily on the submarine, and charged him down.

Tina jumped after him, Crispin just a step behind her and Dallas following last.

Warren lifted the first man from the water and punched him across the face with his knuckled free hand. Blood spurted from his nose at the force and the saltwater from the ocean burned the open wound making him cry out. Warren threw him away and turned to face a third man who was grabbing for the hatch door in an attempt to seal it closed.

He jumped on the door and began pulled against him to keep it open. So long as the hatch was open, the submarine could not submerge and it was stuck at the dock.

Tina reached them in the middle of their struggle. She grabbed the man inside the sub and threw him out towards Dallas and Crispin who had him unconscious in a moment.

“Stay here and guard the door.” Tina ordered Warren.

He nodded.

Tina ran inside, Crispin and Dallas following her.

She had to descend a ladder and looked down to see a man snarling up at her from below.

She released the ladder and dropped down onto him without mercy. Her legs protested at the shock of her fall but she shook it off. She stood up and moved so that Crispin and Dallas could follow her.

She looked around quickly, taking note of her surroundings. She was in the middle of a long, narrow hallway lined on either side by pimps and filled with stale smelling air. One end led to a closed door that had the word 'cockpit' painted on it. The other led off to another ladder and, beyond that, a room that had an open door. Behind it was an empty room that Tina imagined was used for food storage. In that room, looking surprised at her, were three men in blue coveralls. The submarine uniform she guessed easily.

Their startlement had given her the moment she needed to get a grip on her surroundings. She could deal with the cockpit in a moment, first she needed to take out these guys.

She was already running towards them with a cry by the time Crispin had descended the ladder.

XXXXXXXXXX

Kai left the lifeless body of the man who had attacked him on the ocean floor and turned to swim back up to the dock. He would be food for the fishes, he was not Kai's concern.

Just as he reached the surface, there was a splash and a body started sinking into the water, a dark red trail of blood following it down. He surfaced a few feet from the blood and looked over the see Warren standing on the hull of the sub, holding up his bloodied brass knuckles.

“Tina's having fun.” Warren said lamely. He could hear her fighting below. The metal tube of the submarine echoed loudly. Their presence wasn't going unnoticed. The man Warren had just put down was the third to try and climb up to close the hatch so that the sub could dive.

“Give me a minute and I'll join them.” Kai said.

Before he could began the transformation on his tail, buttons on the control panel across the room began flashing.

“Well, that can't be good.” Warren sighed.

Kai heard the kraken's already erratic swimming begin picking up in pace. He looked upwards and saw the lights on the cage door blinking in warning. He cursed. They were letting the kraken out of its cage.

Without its trainer around, it might go wild. It wouldn't attack the sub, the sub had done nothing to it. It's anger would be at the dock and the people inside it.

If the beast got its tentacles inside, it could knock Warren out and give the men in the sub time to close the hatch. Kai had to do something about the kraken.

He dove quickly under the surface and out from under the dock. The cage door was already partially open and the kraken's seeking arms were coming out of it.

Kai needed its attention.

He had already tried to attack the creature once, it would have no trouble identifying him as a threat now.

He swam around the cage, making sure he grabbed the beast's eye. He could see the indecision in it as it tried to decide whether or not to take Kai's bait.

The cage door finished opening and the kraken used its arms to pull itself out.

It hovered there in the water for a moment, unsure of what it wanted to do. It had received no commands but it didn't want to try running away without being sure it could do it and get away.

Kai swam around its body, trailing his hand along its skin.

He could feel it ripple in response to his touch. It had never been caressed before, it didn't know how to respond.

She didn't know how to respond, Kai forced himself to think. It was a female and he would recognize her as such. She was a beautiful creature and now that she was out he would see her free.

He swam in front of her, trying to make himself look as non threatening as possible. He tried to stay away from her eyes, he didn't want to spook her again.

She watched him cautiously. She already knew he would hurt her, she knew that anyone might hurt her. She didn't want to risk anyone's ire.

Kai was suddenly struck with an idea.

He turned tail and swam down to the sea floor where the dead body of the man who attacked him still sat. Kraken's were decomposers, they feasted on dead flesh. He would get her to follow him the old fashioned way. With bait.

He grabbed the dead man by the arm and swam with his heavy body, dragging it across the sand. He pulled it in front of the kraken and made sure she could see it. He saw her eyes sharpen on the body. He didn't know how long it had been since she had eaten. He knew that she hadn't eaten since they had taken over the dock. A creature that big required a lot of food, she had to be hungry.

He began pulling the clothing quickly off of the dead man so that she would better be able to see the meal he offered her.

Her tentacles crept closer, still being slow and cautious. She wasn't used to eating men but the smell of the dead was already in the water and it had been over a day since she had eaten.

Kai began pulling the body away from the sub, away from the dock, and out into the ocean. It was where she belonged. She followed slowly, unsure of herself. Part of her didn't want to leave the dock for fear of punishment even though she must surely be starving.

Kai looked around for a rock or something else sharp so that he could put the scent of blood into the water. That would attract her as well.

He spotted the a discarded shell that had been broken in half and he grabbed for it eagerly.

XXXXXXXXXX

Inside the sub, Tina slammed a wrench across the temple of the man who, just a moment before, had landed his fist into her side.

She considered it just revenge and he fell, motionless, to the ground.

“How many people are on this damn thing?” she asked, looking around at the five men she, Dallas, and Crispin had already put down. She could hear more of them running around on the deck below. She knew they were going to start climbing the ladder soon.

“Intruders are on the top deck, in the store room.” that damn annoying voice from the intercom repeated again. It was really getting on Tina's nerves.

She pointed the wrench at Dallas. “Go take over the cockpit. I'll finish up here.”

Dallas blinked then looked over at Crispin. “Did she just tell me to commandeer a submarine?”

Crispin nodded with a smile.

Dallas grinned widely. “Best order I've ever had.”

Tina rolled her eyes and mumbled “Boys...” under her breath as she looked at the final man in the store room. He was looking between her, the wrench, and Crispin cautiously.

“Crispin, go help Dallas. I got this.” Tina told him, tossing the wrench between her hands happily.

Her side ached from the earlier blow and she was already sweating from the effort of fighting but it had been a long time since she had had this much fun.

She heard Crispin's footsteps retreating behind her as he followed her order without question. Tina could handle one man, Crispin knew that.

As soon as Crispin's footsteps had faded into the distance, the man took a swing at her.

She ducked and dodged out of his way.

Down the hall, Crispin ran into the cockpit after Dallas.

He was already struggling against the two pilots who controlled the ship. The man who commanded those two was standing back against the wall. He didn't want to get involved with the fight so Crispin ignored him.

Instead he stepped forward and took over the fight with one of the pilots.

Being in such close quarters with Dallas, he couldn't speak. He barely dared whisper for fear the acoustics of the submarine would echo his voice to effect even his allies. So he had to fight the old fashioned way which suited him just fine. There was more honor in hand to hand combat than just putting his opponents to sleep.

The pilots were hardly worthy foes though. They were trained to steer the submarine not get into fights. Dallas and Crispin easily brought both men down then turned their attention to the third man. A submarine this size required two pilots to work in tandem to steer it, this third man coordinated their movements.

And he looked ready to wet himself. He was shaking and terrified.

“Hey, man, I just follow orders.” he said with a slight Romanian accent, holding up his hands in surrender. “I was about to retire anyway.”

“Tell us where Ozera is.” Dallas ordered, his face harsh.

“The bottom deck.” came the immediate answer. “Go down a deck, cross over, go down again, and he's in the last room. I just want to go home.”

Crispin and Dallas exchanged a look then turned back to the crewman.

“Fine.” Dallas said. “Go up. Tell the man there that we said you can leave but you're our prisoner now. His name is Warren, that should be enough to get him to let you pass. Got it?”

“Deal. Fine. Sure. Thanks.” he bowed his head gratefully many times and skirted around them, keeping as close to the walls as he could, before rushing out into the hall.

Crispin and Dallas stood in the doorway of the cockpit and watched him ascend the ladder, calling out his surrender to Warren before he even got close to the hatch.

As soon as his feet were out of sight, Tina came out of the storage room, tossing the slightly bloody wrench to the ground as she came forward. They could still hear the men on the deck below calling out to each other. None of them dared climb the ladder though.

“The submarine is yours.” Dallas said, indicating to the empty cockpit behind him as he and Crispin walked towards her. “And we've got good news.”

She raised an eyebrow curiously as they met in the middle of the claustrophobia inducing hall.

“Ozera is here.” Crispin told her. “Bottom deck.”

Tina smiled. “Excellent. It's a good day, boys.”

She walked around to the ladder that led up to the hatch and called up, “How is everything up there, Warren?”

“Pretty quiet now!” was his response.

Warren looked over at the man who had come up. He was sitting on the edge of the pool doing his best to not move and look innocent. His eyes were wide and afraid. There was no fight in him at all. He really did just want to live through this.

Warren turned his attention out the windows of the dock and into the water.

Out in the distance, he could make out the kraken as it swam in circles. Every now and then, he saw a flash of scales that he knew to be Kai but they were too far away for him to actually see the merman. The giant squid wasn't bothering to swim back to the dock but Kai wasn't yet able to convince it to swim out to sea. It wouldn't take much longer, Warren supposed, before the kraken would get the idea on its own.

“We're going down further!” he heard Tina call up. “Stay there!”

“No problem!” Warren called back.

He looked over to the man who was looking around at the dock curiously like he hadn't ever been inside before. He was pale like he hadn't seen the sun in months and he was thin like he hadn't had a good meal in nearly as long. Warren kind of felt bad for him.

“You want some food?” he asked, surprising him.

XXXXXXXXXX

“Ladies first?” Tina smiled at the boys as she stood at the top of the ladder.

The movements from below had stilled as the crew waited for them to descend. They certainly weren't going to come up and give them an easy target.

“Age before beauty, sweetheart.” Dallas winked at her and grabbed the first rung of the ladder.

Instead of climbing down, he slid the distance and turned around quickly.

Even as Crispin was grabbing the ladder to follow him, Tina could hear the sounds of a fight breaking out.

The instant Crispin was clear, Tina was sliding down after them.

The second deck resembled the first very little. This was the deck where the crew slept and ate and kept active. There were rooms here, smells from the kitchen at the end of the hall, and a great deal more people.

The narrow hallway saved the three of them from being completely surrounded and Tina joined Crispin's side of the fight. Being so contained left him little room to maneuver in the ways he usually did which was a slight disadvantage to him.

It took a lot of people to maintain and crew a submarine this large, seeing them all was almost disheartening.