Текст книги "Leviathan"

Автор книги: David Lynn Golemon

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Текущая страница: 14 (всего у книги 28 страниц)

LEVIATHAN , 100 MILES OFF

THE COAST OF NEWFOUNDLAND

Niles, Sarah, Alice, Lee, Farbeaux, and Virginia were shown into the dining salon shortly after noon. They had taken an elevator and an escalator to get there, and still had not seen one quarter of the giant vessel.

As they stepped into the captain's dining salon, they were amazed at the artwork once again. There were originals from Picasso, Rembrandt, and even Remington was represented with an unknown original–not about the Old West, but of sailing men in the 1800s.

The long table was set with china that was embossed with the ship's logo, the now-familiar [?]L[?], and the silverware at each setting was sixteenth-century. It was Farbeaux who went directly to the heart of things. He picked up one of the four wine bottles sitting at the end of the table where he assumed the captain would normally sit, as this was the only high-backed chair at the white linen covered table. He examined the old and peeling white label on the bottle.

"Sauternes from Chateau d'Yquem, seventeen eighty-seven," he said, almost turning white. He placed the bottle down most gently.

"What is it, Colonel?" Sarah asked as she looked from Henri to the four bottles of wine.

"Sarah, my young dear, these bottles of wine, well ... to put it mildly, they should be in one of your Event vaults. Sauternes from Chateau d'Yquem seventeen eighty-seven–in two thousand six, a single bottle of this wine was auctioned for ninety-seven thousand of your American dollars. There was thought to be no more than two in existence, and here we are staring at four of them, to be a beverage served at lunch."

"Never cared for wine all that much," Lee said as he used his cane to limp toward the table.

"Dear Senator Lee, let me put this in a perspective you may be able to appreciate. The grapes in these bottles were picked the same year that George Washington became your first president."

"Well, give it to him;don't care for wine."

The salon door opened at the far end, and the same blond-haired man they had seen in the operation center entered and then gently closed the two large hatches. He was dressed in a navy blue jacket and tie. The first officer of Leviathansmiled and stepped up to the Event staff.

"Good afternoon," he said, reaching Farbeaux first. "I am First Officer James Grady Samuels, formerly of Her Majesty's Royal Navy."

Farbeaux looked at the man with the soft English accent, and then down at his outstretched hand. The Frenchman finally shook hands.

"Colonel Henri Farbeaux, I believe, formerly of the French Army?" Samuels asked.

"Yes," the Frenchman answered. "This is Lieutenant Sarah McIntire," he said, placing a hand at the small of Sarah's back and allowing her to shake the officer's hand.

"I am well aware of Ms. McIntire and her credentials. Your efforts with the incident in Arizona two years ago, and then again last year in Okinawa, were well noted by our captain."

Sarah said nothing as she stepped out of the way.

The well-mannered officer stepped forward and smiled at Alice.

"Leviathanis indeed graced by your presence, Mrs. Hamilton. I have heard and read so much about you, it feels as though I know you," he said, taking her hand and kissing it. Then he smiled again and moved to Lee. "Senator Garrison Lee, I won't even begin to flatter a man of such deeds as yourself, for then we may never eat our lunch. Senator, war hero, OSS general, Event Group director, it is an honor–"

"Don't bother, son. I was a witness to your orders in your operations room. You'll excuse me if I refrain from shaking the hand of a murderer." Lee looked from the first officer's outstretched hand to his eyes, and then stepped away.

Samuels closed his hand and looked away for a moment, but he didn't answer Lee's accusation. He did, however, approach Virginia with renewed enthusiasm.

"Dr. Virginia Pollock, inventor of the saltwater conversion module during your time at General Dynamics Electric Boat Division. It is an honor, ma'am."

"Excuse me–Mr. Samuels, is it? But I think I'm of the same opinion as the senator. I find you and what you're doing very distasteful. You have taken the cause of ecology to an all-time low."

The man truly looked taken back as he turned and found Niles Compton.

"Director Compton, although you must be of the same opinion as your assistant director and former mentor, I would still like to thank you for being aboard. To answer the seriousness of the charges leveled against my captain and her crew, you must understand we consider ourselves at war, and believe we have conducted ourselves accordingly. All declarations have been made in advance. There is no murder here, other than that already perpetrated by the countries of the world against the very planet on which they live."

Niles pursed his lips and then nodded, but said nothing. He saw a slight hesitation in the first officer's words–it was as if he had to fight to get the speech out of his mouth.

"Then you're now going to enlighten us as to why my people were killed and we ourselves kidnapped from our complex?" Niles asked.

"The captain will answer your questions. For now, please, would you all take a seat; your host will join us shortly. The captain decided it would have shown a lack of naval etiquette to have you eat lunch in your staterooms," he said, just as a hidden speaker in the room sounded.

"Attention to orders from the office of the captain. We have received confirmation that the corrective measures taken in the southern Gulf of Mexico and the North Sea have been confirmed as successful. However, there has been significant loss of life. The captain has ordered a prayer service for the lives lost at twenty hundred hours in the chapel. A representative of each of the boat's divisions is mandatory. Thank you."

The room was quiet as the first officer silently gestured the group to their seats.

Lee was about to say something when Alice shook her head slowly, telling him to stay the insult or accusation brimming to get out.

The door opened and stewards entered, starting to pouring wine and fill glasses of water. Samuels nodded his head as he placed a napkin in his lap at the opposite end of the table from the empty captain's chair. He waited.

Before the Event personnel knew what was happening, two men entered the room, looked them over and then opened the double compartment hatches wide. As they watched, a dark figure, dressed in shiny navy blue pants and navy blue long-sleeved turtleneck blouse covered in the same color jacket with gold braid, stepped into the salon.

Niles stood as he saw the captain of Leviathanfor the first time, and needless to say, he was speechless.

The woman was tall and stunning. Her jet-black hair flowed over her left ear. Her eyes were a brilliant deep blue, and they looked at each guest before she continued into the room, stopping just to the left of her high-backed chair at the head of the long table.

"Ladies and gentlemen of the Event Group, may I present Captain Alexandria Olivia Heirthall."

The tall woman half-bowed, her blue clothing shimmering in the lighting of the salon as she looked once more at each of her guests in turn. Then for the first time, she smiled.

"I would like to welcome you aboard my vessel Leviathan,"she said softly as she nodded her head. As she straightened, one of the large men that had accompanied her pulled out her chair, and she sat slowly and deliberately, taking the embossed linen napkin and placing it in her lap as she did.

"I must say, your vessel is a marvel to behold, at least the sections we have seen of her," Niles said as he sipped from a glass of water.

The captain closed her eyes and nodded once in Niles's direction.

She raised her glass of white wine. "Ladies and gentlemen–to the earth, and its many varying and wonderful species."

Niles looked from Captain Heirthall to his own people, then shook his head. Only Farbeaux took his glass and toasted.

"By all means–I am not passing up the chance to drink this marvelous wine."

Alexandria Heirthall took a small sip of her wine as her mesmerizing blue eyes looked at Henri Farbeaux.

"Colonel, you are impressed with the wine?" she asked, setting her glass down and avoiding any indication she took offense at the slight from Compton and the others.

"Yes, but I am more surprised it has not turned to vinegar."

"Ah, but it was found in an environment that would not allow that to occur."

"Where would that be, Captain?" Sarah asked, smelling her own glass of wine.

"Two and a half miles down in the Atlantic ocean, Lieutenant McIntire; in the master chef's wine vault onboard the RMS Titanic. It wasn't in use, and we were in the area a few years ago, so to speak, so we rescued them from the depths. I normally do not grave rob, but it would have been almost criminal to leave such a splendid wine."

The doors opened once more and the stewards brought in salads, placing them in front of each person.

"I think you'll enjoy the vegetables. They are grown onboard Leviathanin our hydroponics greenhouse, which you'll see later on your tour. They were actually grown in a twenty-four-hour time frame."

"Genetics?" Niles asked, looking at his plate.

"No, Dr. Compton, small-voltage electricity and fertilizer made from coral, all from the sea–simple, really."

They all began to eat their salads. Niles watched the captain, who made no move to touch her own. She did, however, accept something from the head steward, and then swallowed it with a sip of her water.

"Captain, I have noticed that when your vessel accelerates, there is very little vibration and absolutely no sound from your power plant. May I ask what power source you utilize?" Farbeaux asked.

"Of course; we wish to be as transparent as possible, Colonel." She was now looking directly at Virginia as she answered the question. She held the gaze for the longest time, and Virginia never once looked away. "We want you all to know whatever it is you wish to know. Leviathanuses nuclear power, the same as any submarine in service to the major powers of the world. Our system of propulsion is thermal-dynamic drive, or TDD. We utilize superheated water from our reactor core and run it through a series of pumps, mixing it with hydrogen and a substance not unlike baking soda, thus creating steam drive that is environmentally friendly and is quite substantial in providing propulsion for Leviathan."

"Captain, may I ask a question?" Niles said, placing his salad fork on his plate and looking at Farbeaux.

Only a small dip of her elegant chin was the answer.

"How many did you kill in cold blood this morning? I must tell you, at least before my friend and mentor Senator Lee does, that your actions seem quite insane."

To his left, Niles felt the eyes of the first officer on him. The man touched at the corners of his mouth with his napkin and then slapped it into his lap.

The captain smiled and shook her head lightly at Samuels.

" 'Cold blood.' To me that has always been an interesting catchphrase, Dr. Compton, one used by men who have no idea what justice sometimes truly is. Yes, when you plan to kill for no other reason than the want of killing, indeed, that is in cold blood. However, this morning's bloodshed was an act of hot blood, justified in all respects to even the basest laws of civilized man. I sincerely wish that is the last of it that is spilled in this cause, but I fear it will be not be."

"The demands that you are asking of the world, while justified in many ways, are impossible to meet. Nations will collapse and people will starve," Lee said, pushing his salad away as if stating he would have nothing from this woman.

"To you, this very vessel is an impossibility of science–is it not? To you, many things seem that way, but it just isn't so."

"Without alternative fuels in place, it is. Without more research, it is," Niles said, staring straight at the woman.

The captain flinched as if she wanted to react with harshness, but instead she slowly dipped her head and calmed herself. She then looked up, opened her eyes, and smiled, but all could see she was straining to argue.

"My family has tried in vain to get the benefits of our research and experiments to those that would use them wisely, only to see our go-betweens ridiculed, even murdered, and some, I'm sorry to say, bought off by the commercial corporations representing the oil concerns of the world. The world today is capable of running totally without the need of petroleum. I can supply the world with wind power, solar power, nitrogen, clean-coal technology, and clean nuclear power. It's all there for the asking."

"Then why–" Niles started to ask, but Heirthall continued as if he weren't there.

"But alas, I am sorry to say I have nothing magical that I can provide to stop the death of many magnificent species in the sea. Mankind has never realized that the oceans and humanity are symbiotic entities." She placed her fingertips together, and then intertwined them. "The only solution is time, Doctor, time. The sea needs time to heal itself, and my research has shown it can indeedheal itself. However, petroleum-based products are not only ruining life upon the land and air, they are destroying life in my seas. Acid rain, oil spills, and the deliberate dumping of chemical waste have joined together to do untold damage to the earth and its oceans."

Niles started to ask a question, but was interrupted by the stewards as they brought in the main course.

"I hope you enjoy your entree. It's black sea bass stuffed with red artichoke hearts–again, from our own gardens."

Niles looked at the fabulously designed dish, and then looked at the captain as if she were avoiding his questioning, which he knew she was not doing. She was actually inviting them.

Heirthall waved the attending steward to remove her lunch. Then she placed her elegant hands just under her chin and looked at Sarah, seemingly for study. Sarah returned the look as she took a forkful of sea bass.

"Lieutenant McIntire, I am told you were most resourceful in defense of your complex. You have garnered one fan among my crew. Sergeant Tyler tells me you acted in a far more aggressive nature than your geological education would have indicated you were capable."

Sarah lowered her fork to her plate and dabbed her mouth with her napkin. Then she fixed the captain with her own stare. "I'm a trained soldier first, Captain. Why would that surprise you? However, even the untrained will fight back when attacked."

Heirthall smiled and continued to study Sarah. "I suspect that you have had special training, perhaps from someone close to you?"

Sarah did not care for the line of questioning. Had she heard about Jack–his death? Was this her way of getting to her, perhaps mocking what she felt for him? She was about to respond when she was stopped by the intercom.

"Captain, this is the conn–ma'am, this is the officer of the deck. We have reached the coordinates for Mark Antony and picked up his transponder."

Heirthall continued to hold Sarah with her eyes for a moment longer, and then reached out and pushed something under the tabletop hidden to her guests.

"Thank you, Mr. Abercrombie. Order all stop if you please, and order the crew to quiet conditions for the next ten minutes."

"Aye, Captain. All stop."

Around the table, they felt the deceleration of the giant submarine as the propulsion system went to low power.

"Commander Samuels, if you'll do the honors, please," she said, once more looking toward Virginia.

The first officer nodded, stood from his chair, and approached the far section of hull, which held deeply embedded three-dimensional studies of sea life of every major category. The captain sat silently and watched her guests.

The first officer stood next to a small keypad and entered a code. Suddenly the composite inner hull separated into two pieces, slid apart, and then slipped down, sinking away into the hull. Then everyone saw another protective layer fall away, and then finally another. Triple layers of material separated them from the pressures of the sea. What remained was an illuminated view of the blue ocean. The water was crystal clear, and it seemed you could see forever with the help of the powerful lights outside the hull. Niles and the others stood, walked over to the forty-five-foot by thirty-foot window, and stared at the vastness before them. The captain remained seated as they took in the spectacular view.

"My God," Alice said as she took Garrison's hand and squeezed. "It is beautiful."

Heirthall pushed back her chair and joined them at the window. She placed her hands behind her back and watched the sea beyond the reinforced acrylic.

"We have just moments ago entered the Arctic Circle. Soon we will dive for deep water and make our passing under the ice. I thought first you might like to see just what it is we are protecting in thisarea of the sea."

They turned and watched as she flipped a small switch in the same panel that opened the viewing window.

Sarah felt it first, and leaned into Farbeaux as her ears started to ring. The others felt it a moment later. It wasn't an uncomfortable sound, just penetrating. Strangest of all, it almost felt and sounded familiar, as if an old song remembered.

"The sound you hear has been ingrained in your subconscious. From the dawn of life on this earth you have carried this sound with you. It's the sound of the very first mammals, the very sound of life and of the sea. The only difference is the fact our cousins here went back to the sea, while we stayed. We are one with them." She took a step back and looked down the line of Event personnel. "You see, Senator Lee, life can be coldblooded as you stated, but in the sea is found 'the hottest blood of all.'"

As she spoke the words from the D. H. Lawrence poem, "Whales Weep Not!," a giant humpback whale swam into view. It swam slowly up to the glass, making everyone but the captain and first officer step back. The huge mouth rubbed up against the acrylic window, and the whale flipped over on its back.

"Excuse me, Colonel Farbeaux," the captain said as she moved to the center of the window and then slowly raised her elegant hand to the glass. This movement caught the whale's attention. It moved to the center of the window and started singing its whale song. The elongated flipper seemed to reach out and touch the glass right where Heirthall's hand was placed. The captain smiled, then closed her eyes.

"Amazing," Farbeaux said.

As they watched, another humpback came swimming casually through the blue waters and into the illumination of Leviathan'slights. The captain placed her other hand upon the glass, and the second whale rubbed its giant mouth against the very spot hers was placed.

"I would like to introduce you to Antony and Cleopatra. They and their pod are friends of ours."

Sarah smiled as she saw twenty whales come forth out of the waters surrounding Leviathan. She heard them singing, almost as if they were happy.

"It's as if they are saying hello," she said.

"They are, Lieutenant, they are saying exactly that. You see, once you have the fundamental mathematics down, you get the gist of what they are trying to vocalize–maybe one word in three."

"Are you telling me that you can understand what they are singing?" Niles asked as he looked from the whales to the captain.

She had her eyes closed and was leaning into the glass, allowing the whales to get as close as possible. They seemed hesitant at first; Heirthall had to open her eyes and coax them, almost looking concerned for the briefest of moments, but then Antony rubbed his snout against the glass in a gesture that made clear his nature toward the captain.

"The series of songs and clicks, like that of dolphins, is a mathematical form of communication, Doctor. It took my great-great-grandfather years to decipher their meaning, and we still haven't learned but a fraction of their language. Perhaps five percent–basically hello, good-bye, and"–she opened her eyes and looked at Antony, who was singing sadly– "dead."

The mood was solemn, and the captain attempted to lighten it somewhat.

"There are other words also, for instance, baby, or newborn, happy, sad, man, and woman. We still have many years ahead of us," she said, stepping away from the window, and as she did, the whales moved back into the abyss.

At that moment, Yeoman Alvera stepped into the lounge and handed the captain a piece of paper.

"The damage assessment for the strike, Captain," she said as she looked toward the glass.

"Thank you, Yeoman, you are excused," the captain said, seeming to wince. She folded the report and it crumpled in her hand as she again was hit with pain.

Yeoman Alvera looked concerned for the captain. She looked from her to the Event Group, then half-bowed and left the compartment.

The captain pulled down at the edges of her coat and swallowed, looking at the men and women around her. That was when they noticed that the captain's facial features seemed to droop. Gone was the fresh face of a beautiful woman; in its place was a new one that looked tired, and the eyes actually drooped down at the corners.

At that moment Sergeant Tyler opened one of the hatchways and entered. He didn't approach the group standing at the large viewing window, but stood just inside the compartment looking at Heirthall, who only glanced his way.

"I will not lie to you. The time is past for the options I have given the world. Far past. You are here to answer questions about what your Group knows about Leviathanand her origins. That will be the duty of Sergeant Tyler; he will get the answers I need."

The complete turnaround from hospitable host to captor caught even the suspicious Lee off guard. They looked from the captain to her first mate. He momentarily looked as confused as they at the suddenness of the change, but recovered far more quickly.

"You will still have freedom of Leviathanuntil such time when security will have need of you. Answer the sergeant's questions truthfully, and you may survive your visit. Lie, and you'll find Leviathancan be a very cold place to be."

They watched the captain as she rubbed her temples and then lowered her head. She paced to the large double hatchways, and the two guards opened them.

"Until you are needed you will not be interfered with, as you have the run of my home."

Niles stepped away from the window.

"Captain, we know nothing about you or any part of your existence other than the relic we had stored in our vaults."

Sergeant Tyler smiled as he held the hatchway for Heirthall. His look told the group he was looking forward to confirming what Niles had stated.

The captain paused at the hatch and half-turned. Instead of commenting on Niles's denial of knowledge, she said, "If any of you were wondering, whales usually do not travel in pods this large. You see, they are sick, frightened, and without hope. They don't understand what is happening to them; their birth rate is down to near zero. In addition, I honestly don't know how to tell them that it's my own kind that is doing this evil thing to them. There is even greater, more brilliant, and far more ancient life that it may be too late to save." After making this mysterious comment she walked out with her guards.

Tyler again turned to the Group, smiled, and then followed the captain out of the compartment.

"The captain is ill, Mr. Samuels. I don't know if you noticed or not," Alice said, looking at the man and waiting for a reaction.

Samuels looked as if he were going to answer, but instead turned and left.

"I don't know if all of you noticed or not," Lee said as he picked a roll off the table and placed it in his coat pocket, then followed that with another. "But that little lady is mad as a hatter."

They all looked at him.

"As insane as Lizzie Borden." The senator looked around the interior of the salon. "And she has one hell of a little hatchet to play with–it's called Leviathan. And now she wants to ask a few questions after showing us that ax."

"Captain?" Samuels said, nodding for the security element to step aside. They looked at Alexandria, and when she nodded it was all right, they moved away, all with the exception of Tyler.

Heirthall leaned against the composite hull and lowered her head. Samuels reached out and took the captain's arm.

"Please, Commander, I am all right, just tired," she said as she shrugged off his support.

"Ma'am, I have studied the files on these people. You can ask them anything you want, but if they don't wish it, they won't tell you a thing." He looked at Tyler, who watched Samuels with steely eyes. "Unless you plan to torture them."

"If I have to, I will. The captain wants to know what these people know about her and ... her family, I will get the answers she wants."

"For what? What possible harm can this Group, or anyone for that matter, cause us or Leviathan?We are invulnerable. Once the world knows of the plight of the endangered species in the gulf, I believe they can actually assist in its survival. Bringing them aboard was a mistake, but a mistake they don't have to pay for with their lives."

"Commander, for the second time in a twenty-four-hour period you have questioned my orders. This can never happen again. Am I clear on that point?" Heirthall didn't wait for the answer. She turned and made her way down the companionway.

Tyler stepped up to Samuels and looked the smaller man over.

"Listen to the captain, Mr. Samuels; don't make me have to question your loyalty."

The first officer of Leviathanwatched the head of security turn away and follow Heirthall. He slumped against the bulkhead and closed his eyes. He knew something was happening that he knew nothing about, and if Tyler knew, that something couldn't be good. And what was worse, his captain was changing right before his eyes.