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Narcisi

Narcisi

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» » Three « «



Zach was awakened by one of the crew members.

“Hey pal, ride’s over. Cap’n said he wanted to see you in the control room.”

Zach groggily nodded, and managed to stumble out of his cot. Grabbing his gun bag, he blearily made his way to the control room and found the captain standing in front of the piloting control panel. The skipper had a strange look on his face as he directed Zach’s attention to the screen of the outside camera feed.

“Would you mind telling me,” he asked, “what the heck that is?”

By the camera feed Zach could tell they had reached the bottom of the ocean. The grainy picture on the screen displayed a murky ocean floor. There was one other thing on the screen, which was the main object of Zach’s attention.

It seemed to be a glass dome, with a heavy-duty door extending from it. Inside of the see-through dome he could see, of all things, a massive tree. Grass covered the rest of the ground, and a picnic table decorated the landscape.

“It’s…ah….” Honestly, Zach had absolutely no idea what it was. “It appears to be a pressurized chamber of sorts…it seems to be filled with air. That door probably has a de-pressurizing chamber behind it.”

The captain turned, a strange grin on his face. “What the heck are you getting us into?” He chuckled and shook his head, motioning over a crew member “Anyway, we’d better get you suited up and out there. Follow Morton here; he’ll get you in order.”

Zach followed Morton into the depths of the submarine, until they finally reached a room filled with underwater gear and one large, high-tech looking door.

“Here’s the suit you’ll be using,” Morton said from behind Zach. Zach turned around to see Morton standing in front of a strange-looking outfit. It looked similar to a wetsuit, except with numerous gadgets branching off. The helmet was small and compact, and had a wide piece of plastic as a visor.

10-Jul-2007 23:15:39 - Last edited on 10-Jul-2007 23:19:45 by Narcisi

Narcisi

Narcisi

Posts: 3,054 Adamant Posts by user Forum Profile RuneMetrics Profile
“Completely fog-proof,” Morton informed him, ‘and strong enough to resist about 3,500 pounds of pressure.’
Looking at the flimsy piece of plastic, Zach found that extremely hard to believe. The body of the outfit looked, as Zach had before noticed, much like a wetsuit. Morton told him that it was exceptionally comfortable and flexible, but at the same time was sturdy enough to withstand extreme pressure. Coming up off of the shoulders were two small flashlights. Strapped across the waist was a belt, which Zach planned to use to hold his many weapons. Two massive tanks were strapped to the back of it, and a tube joined both of them and the helmet together. Finally, on the wrist of the suit was a small, bracelet-like device with two buttons, one larger than the other.

Morton pointed it out. “That would control your Heads Up Display, or your HUD. Press the large button once to activate it, and press it again to turn it off. When it is on, you will see from the inside of your helmet numerous bits of information. Here, put this on,” he said, handing Zach the helmet. Zach complied. Morton pressed the button, and all of the sudden, the visor of the helmet sprang to life. Numbers and images were spread out along the edge, still leaving Zach enough room to see. “If you look in the bottom left corner of your visor,” Morton instructed, “you will see a basic image of your suit. Currently it should be colored green, which signifies that everything is OK. Yellow means a possible danger, orange means an imminent danger, and red….well, if the suit is red, then you’re pretty much dead.” He laughed, but the humor was lost on Zach.

10-Jul-2007 23:16:05 - Last edited on 10-Jul-2007 23:18:49 by Narcisi

Narcisi

Narcisi

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“Anyway, everything you see means something. To the left of your vision are your vital signs. Top left is the remaining power in your two flashlights, across the top should be the levels of oxygen in the two tanks, top right is a simple timer that shows how long you have until your oxygen runs out, right should display the structure strength of the suit, the bottom right is a simplistic radar, and along the bottom is the current status of your radio connections. You will be connected to this submarine as well as Mr. Jones’ mansions, one of which you were at earlier, and another in Great Britain. There’s also a connection to Mr. Jones, through which he may call you whenever and from wherever he chooses. The name of each station should be colored. Green means that the connection is open and ready to transmit. Red means that the station is unavailable. When you wish to activate your radio, simply press the smaller button on the controller and speak. The helmet is soundproof and our lines are secure, so you needn’t worry about being overheard.
“And that should be about it. Call me when you’ve changed into it,” Morton said, and exited the room. Zach undressed and slipped into the suit, expecting the two tanks to be weighty, but instead finding that they were surprisingly light. Reaching into his gun bag, he took the two pistols and attached them to his belt, as well as the knife. Finally, he took out the harpoon gun and slung it across his back. After he had completely dressed, he called Morton back into the room.
“Alrighty then, let’s get you out there!” Morton said, slapping a large button on the wall. Hydraulics hissed and groaned as the large door in the wall slowly began to open. “Welcome,” Morton said with a grin, “to the flood room.” They walked through the door and into a smaller room. It had large drain-like things lining the farthest wall, which resembled the door they had just come through.

10-Jul-2007 23:16:25

Narcisi

Narcisi

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“The flood room,” Morton went on to explain, “is the one and only safe way to exit this submarine while it is underwater. Let me explain. Very soon, I will exit this room, and close the massive door we just entered. Then, those drains will slowly bring in water from the outside of the submarine, until this room is completely filled with water. Don’t worry, though. Those tanks on your back will sustain you for about 2 hours each. Anyway, once the chamber is completely filled with water, that wall over there,” at this he motioned towards the wall covered with the drains, “will open up, and you will be able to just float out of the submarine without being crushed by the water pressure or anything.” He grinned, and thumped Zach on the shoulder. “Good luck, champ.” He turned and left the chamber, and soon Zach heard the door closing behind him. It sealed shut, and water began to spill through the drains on the outer wall. It quickly rose to his knees, then his waist, then his chest. In a matter of a few short seconds, he was completely submerged in water. Just then, a voice spoke to Zach.

“Hey Mister Telmar, this is Morton. I’m in the control center of the submarine right now, talking to you through the radio channel. Remember, to talk on the radio, just press the smaller button on the device attached to your wrist. Anyway, I just wanted to let you know that the outer door will be opening in about 40 seconds. The chamber just needs to finish pressurizing. Once the door is open, just walk out. The drop to the ocean floor should be no more than two or three feet. And don’t worry about floating to the surface; that suit you’re wearing is heavy enough to keep you grounded. The environment out there is a lot different than up-top…just remember that."

10-Jul-2007 23:16:55 - Last edited on 10-Jul-2007 23:18:07 by Narcisi

Narcisi

Narcisi

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"If anything goes wrong, come directly back to the submarine. Let us know you’re coming ahead of time, so we can have the chamber ready for you. Ok, the door should be opening just a few seconds. Have fun."

A muffled hiss reached Zach’s ears, and the wall in front of him began to swing outward. Behind it lay a stunning sight. Much to Zach’s surprise, the water was almost crystal clear. Light from far above danced beautiful reflections across the ocean floor. Coral reefs abounded, as well as many other marine plants. Zach walked forward, but stopped at the edge of the chamber. Something was out of the ordinary. As Zach continued to examine his surroundings, he realized that in fact many things were out of the ordinary. To start, there was the large transparent igloo-like enclosure that Zach had seen previously in the submarine’s control room.

Additionally, the ocean floor which at first had appeared to be the closest thing to perfect was visibly less than that. Something was marring its surface. Zach bent his knees to get a closer look, and then drew back in shock. Footprints! At the bottom of the ocean? He shook his head in wonderment. Something else drew his attention. Something that looked not unlike a paved road ran past the submarine about twenty yards off. Suddenly, a noise rang out, disrupting the tranquility. It sounded…like a propeller! Could it be another submarine? Zach decided it would be best to stay put. Whatever it was, it would reveal itself in due time. And reveal itself it did.

10-Jul-2007 23:17:24 - Last edited on 10-Jul-2007 23:17:56 by Narcisi

Narcisi

Narcisi

Posts: 3,054 Adamant Posts by user Forum Profile RuneMetrics Profile
The noise appeared to be coming from a small object in the distance, and it seemed to be following the general path of the paved road Zach had noticed just moments ago. A few minutes passed, and the object grew closer. Time drew on, and finally Zach could see what it was. It took him a few seconds for his mind to register what he was seeing. It appeared to be a boat, but much smaller. It had four wheels positioned on its underside as if it were a car. As it went past, Zach could see a small propeller twirling viciously behind it, obviously the source of the noise he was hearing. But the thing that most shocked Zach was who was driving this strange vehicle; or what, rather.

It was not unlike a fish, though it had human-like characteristics. It had two eyes and a mouth, as well as two holes for ears, all arranged in a fashion similar to that which you would see on a normal human being. On its head was, of all things, a fedora. Zach had been so much in shock that he hadn’t realized the vehicle had stopped. The creature turned and looked intently at Zach for a fleeting second, tipped its hat, and sped off, leaving Zach completely speechless.

After a few seconds, Zach managed to recover. He took a moment to psych himself, and then took his first step into the most insane experience of his entire life.



» » End of Chapter Three « «

10-Jul-2007 23:19:07 - Last edited on 10-Jul-2007 23:19:59 by Narcisi

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