Deep Ark 6 - Chapter 7

Chapter 7     

                               pg 73

The Hub is finally clear of snakes and spiders. It's taken more than six hours of hard, dangerous work, but it's now safe.

Dad and I are slumped on the white-tiled floor, exhausted. In the far corner, Old Joe is fiddling with a gas cooker of some sort.

"I'll have us a feed in no time, lads!" he says, slapping some bacon into a greasy frying pan. The hiss and snap of the fat fills the room.

"Smells good, Joe:' Dad says. "It feels like I haven't eaten for weeks:'

For the first time that day, I feel hunger pangs as well.

What a day! I look over at Dad and can still hardly believe he is right there, alive.

                                                     pg 74

After he came to my rescue in tunnel seven and blasted those brown brutes off me, we sped away in his jeep, b_lack to the Hub. I was full of a thousand questions. Where had he been? Was he all right? Had he felt the earthquake? Did he know about Basin-City? Was it him who turned the power off?

But all I got was silence.

Back at the Hub, he sat in the parked jeep, staring through the ruined door at the snake pit inside. The place was teeming with reptiles. When we arrived, he drove over dozens of them in the car park. There was no other way, but I could see it hurt him to harm them.

"We can't stay here, Dad, not now," I said, watching a snake with red, black and white stripes crawl over the hood of the jeep.

Dad expertly grabbed it behind its bright-red head and tossed it out of harm's way. "That's a scarlet snake, Rom. Not venomous, but it'd still give you a nasty bite."

I watched it slither away. "This isn't the time

                                    pg 75

for a science lesson, Dad. We need to get back to the docking bay. There's a sub there waiting for us."

He turned to look at me. I suppose it was the first time I realised that he wasn't wearing a protective suit. My own mask and gloves were still back in tunnel seven, probably filled with spider eggs.

"There's a sub? At the dock?"

"Sure! How'd you think I got here?"

I told him all about the Sea Slug and the escape from Basin City. When I got to the part about Old Joe and the boomslang bite, Dad got really worked up.

"The old man got bitten by a Dispholidus typus? Is he dead?"

"No. I found the antivenom — your antivenom."

He grabbed me by the shoulders and stared into my eyes.

"You found my antivenom? The whole case?"

I told him how I'd discovered it in the jeep, hidden under the back seat. "I thought you must've left it there:'

                                          pg 76

His eyes were blazing by then. I'd never seen him so angry.

"Not me, Rom! Someone stole the antivenom. Whacked me good and hard to get it, too." He rubbed the back of.his head. I could see dried blood matted in his hair. It must've been Dad's blood Old Joe found on the lab floor.

"Who would've done that?" I asked.

Dad's eyes burned."The same person who has been switching the power off, opening security gates and letting loose all these!" He waved at the teeming mass of creatures in the Hub.

"But who?" I repeated, sounding like some kind of barn owl.

He glared at the smashed Hub and his ruined lab. "Octo Serp, that's who!"

Octo Serp? It couldn't be. I knew he was a creepy dude, but he wasn't the violent type —was he? And even if he was, why turn on my dad? What was he up to?

I had a thousand more questions to ask, but Dad cut me short.

"Sorry, son, there'll be time to figure things out later. Right now, I've got to get this place

                                 pg 77

sorted — and I can only do that with your help:'

"Sorted?" I asked weakly. "What exactly do you mean by that? Shouldn't we just leave it and get out of here real quick?"

"Rom, you said yourself that Basin City is destroyed. So where are we going to go?"

I didn't have an answer, so he continued. "I can't just leave DA6. These specimens are all that's left from the Surface. If they're lost, it will be forever. I've got to get these creatures back in their cages and secure the facility. Then we'll figure out what to do next. So, I'm asking you, Rom, will you help me?"

I looked at the snakes everywhere, the spiders crawling up the walls, then back at Dad.

"Of course!" I hoped my voice sounded braver than I felt.

"But first, I need to get back to the Sea Slug and let Old Joe and Hammerhead know I've found you."

The only problem was the flooded tunnel.

                                    pg 78

Dad  and I stood before the security gate - the one I'd closed' manually — while I told him about the leaking tunnel.

"I had to close it," I said, "or risk the water flooding DA6. I ',didn't have time to figure out how I'd get back through it."

"No problem, Rom," said Dad, stepping into the guardhouse at the side of the tunnel. "There's a special emergency drainage system we installed for just such a situation. You did the right thing sealing the tunnel though:'

He opened a steel box above the guard's desk and pushed a large red button. The sound of a massive motor erupted below our feet.

"It'll suck away the floodwater!" Dad shouted over the noise. "It'll take about ten minutes!"

We waited until a siren sounded. "The tunnel's clear," he told me, punching another button. The security door swung open. The tunnel was bone dry.

I showed him the cracks in the ceiling, the ones I'd seen with my torch.

"Is it earthquake damage?" I asked.

"More like Octo damage!" Dad snarled.

                             pg 79

"But why is he trying to destroy this place? I thought he loved DA6 as much as you do."

"He loves DA6 much more than I do, son:'

"Exactly! So what's he up to then? Has he gone crazy? Been bitten by one too many snakes?"

"The only thing Octo's crazy about is snakes. He loves them more than humans:'

"That doesn't, explain why he let them all loose and then tried to flood them. It just doesn't add up."

We'd reached the docking bay by then and the Sea Slug was still moored to the steel dock. Hammerhead's head appeared through the hatchway, his eyes bulging.

"That you, boy?" he shouted. He came to join us, blinking in the harsh glare of the lighting. "Any more vorms following you?"

There weren't. I'd made sure we closed the gates securely behind us.

Now Old Joe appeared beside him. "Well, I'll be a cod's liver! If it ain't young Rom, and with Dr Buller, if I'm not mistaken!"

I made the introductions.

"You're lucky to be alive, Joe" said Dad.  "That

                                

                                           pg 80

boomslang has a nasty bite. I should know, it's got me more than once!"

As they began swapping snake-bite stories, Hammerhead sidled up to me. "You and your dad ready to sail* bliy? Sooner I'm out of here, the better!"

I explained what Dad wanted to do. Old Joe overheard and sbon we were all in a huddle.

"So you two are going to stay and wrangle the snakes back into their cages?" said Hammerhead in amazement. "You're as crazy as a box of eels. Come on, Joe, let's get going. I've spent about as much time as I care to in this place."

Old Joe hesitated. "No, Skipper," he said at last, with a steely edge to his voice. "I'm stayin' put. I reckon I owe young Rom and his dad."

Hammerhead looked like he'd just been harpooned. "You crazy old fool! One snake bite not enough for you? Next time, you von't be so lucky!"

Old Joe just laughed. "I reckon I'm in good hands if that happens!"

We watched as Hammerhead turned away, still shaking his head in disgust. "Vell, good luck

                                     pg 81

to all of you," he shouted back, "but I'm taking my sub and getting as far away as possible!"

He was disappearing through the hatch when Dad shouted after him. "And where exactly will you go, Skipper?"

Hammerhead stopped and looked back,. uncertainty in his big eyes.

Dad continued. "Basin City's gone and the next nearest city is Coralville, more than six thousand kilometres to the north. A sub-liner with a full load of fuel would make it in two days, but not a little sub-trawler like the

Sea Slug."

Hammerhead stared at Dad like a cornered

dog. "You suggesting something? Offering something maybe?"

"I've got enough fuel stored here in DA6 to take you and your sub round the globe — twice. But it comes at a price."

"How much?" asked Hammerhead.

"I don't want your money, Skipper. What I need is another pair of hands. Help us get DA6 secure, get the snakes and arachnids caged, and then you can fill your tanks. Deal?"

                                  pg 82

Hammerhead rubbed his ribs. The near-death tangle with the boa was still fresh in his mind, but the lure of free fuel was too tempting.

"Okay, you got yourself a deal, Herr Doctor. But I'm not herding airy spiders or vorms vith my bare hands, that's for sure!"

Dad laughed out loud at that. "I think you'll find we have a much more effective way of herding our creatures here at DA6!"

We crowded into the jeep and headed back to the Hub. But, instead of stopping in the snake-filled car park, Dad swung the vehicle down a tunnel I hadn't seen before. It was signposted Strictly DA6 Personnel Only! Up ahead, a double steel gate blocked our path. Dad leapt out and flipped the lid on a concealed keypad. The gate swung open and we carried on down the dim tunnel.

"Still got that flare gun on you, boy?" asked Hammerhead, gripping the seat in front till his knuckles glowed white.

                                                pg 83

"It's not snakes you should be worried about," said Dad over his shoulder. "We've got a much trickier problem to deal with."

Dad and I explained about Octo Serp. "What's his game?" snarled Old Joe.

"I don't know, but I'm going to find out!" replied Dad fiercely.

The jeep's headlights soon hit another sign ahead: Danger! Poisonous Chemicals and Explosives!

"Where are we?" I asked. "I haven't seen this place before:'

Dad gave me a "well-if-you-spent-more-time­out-here-you-would" look. He jumped out of the jeep and keyed in another entry code. As the huge steel doors slid open, he bounded inside. "This is where we store all of DA6's supplies," he said.

I followed him in and found myself inside a cavernous warehouse. The aisles were piled high with crates and containers.

"Aladdin's cave!" said Old Joe behind me. "There's my diesel!" Hammerhead pointed to a large pallet stacked with red drums.

                                        pg 84

But Dad was heading off down a far aisle. "You'll get your fuel,'Skipper. After you fulfil your end of the bargain. Follow me."

We stopped in front of a large steel door and Dad produced a key  and unlocked it. Inside was a small room. On one side stood a rack of bright red protective suits, each with what looked like a small scuba tank fitted on the back. On the wall opposite was a row of fire extinguishers like the one I saw Dad use on the brown recluse spiders. Some shotgun-style weapons hung on the back wall. Looking closer, I could see that their barrels were flared like funnels. Other shelves carried an assortment of gadgets that looked to me like TV remotes.

"First things first," said Dad, tossing each of us a suit in our size. "Make sure you attach the face mask firmly. Then connect the respirator to your tank. Believe me, you'll need all the fresh air you can get once we get started?'

Soon we were suited and connected. Despite everything, it was all I could do not to burst out laughing when I saw Old Joe. In that red suit, with his snowy whiskers stuffed behind his

                                           pg 85

mask, he looked just like Santa Claus.

Dad pointed to his own mask. "There's an internal radio attached to your mouthpiece. Check it out?'

I pushed a button on my mask and heard everyone's voices come through loud and clear in the earpiece under my hood.

"Now we'll each need one of these little beauties." Dad lifted a weapon from the rack.

"Looks like an elephant gun gone wrong," said Old Joe, laughing.

Dad weighed the weapon in his hands. "We call it the Snazer."

"What does it do?" I asked.

Dad reached for a shelf above the rack and produced a green snake. Hammerhead and Old Joe leapt back as if they'd been stung.

"Easy, guys!" said Dad, grinning. "It's made of rubber!"

He dropped the dummy snake on the ground and ordered us to stand back. Then he aimed the Snazer and fired. The small room reverberated with the blast.

A large projectile erupted from the  flared

                      pg 86

barrel, but it wasn't a bullet. Instead, a net of micro-mesh had completely enveloped the rubber snake.

Calmly, Dad walitecl over to it and scooped up one end. "This is how we retrieve escaped snakes," he said with a smile. "Or, should I say, this is how you will retrieve them."

"Vat about spiders?" asked Hammerhead, his bulging eyes almost popping out of his head. "They'll crawl right through the netting!"

Dad reached for the fire extinguishers and threw one to the skipper. "Give that a squirt!" he said.

"Ve're putting out fires now as yell?" grumbled Hammerhead, pulling the trigger. A blast of white, foamy smoke shot out.

"It's not a fire extinguisher," said Dad. "It contains a chemical that stupefies arachnids. Like smoking bees. They'll drop in their tracks long enough for us to collect them safely."

"Collect them?" repeated Old Joe. "How? With our hands?"

Once again Dad laughed. "You guys are like a bunch of old ladies!" He took down a small box

                              pg 87 


with a kind of vacuum nozzle on the end. "We suck them up with this Then flick the reverse switch and blow them back out into their cages. Any questions?"

We all mumbled "no" and soon we were heading back to the jeep. As we left the warehouse, I took a look back. The doors were closing behind us automatically. For an instant, I thought I saw something — just a blur. It looked like a figure running into the shadows.

Then the door slammed shut.

Should I tell Dad? He was concentrating on the road ahead. The others hadn't seen it. Maybe I was just imagining things.

It had been that kind of day.

Hammerhead nearly wet his pants when we caught sight of the boas coiled in the corner of the lab.

"These pop guns are not big enough for those beasts!" he cried.

"You're absolutley right," answered Dad

                                     Pg 86

We'll use these instead?' He produced one of the TV remotes I had seen back at the warehouse.

"Oh, perfect!" Hammerhead shouted. "Now you vill let them vatch some TV?"

Dad ignored in and pulled out a small object from his pocket. It looked like a computer chip of some sort. "All the big reptiles are implanted with one of these, including the one that attacked you, Skipper?'

"What is it?" I asked. "Some kind of tracking device?"

"Better than that, Rom," he said, his eyes gleaming. "Watch!"

He approached the big green boas, holding out the remote and pressing a button with his thumb. Suddenly, the snakes began to uncoil themselves Hammerhead, Old Joe and I leapt back in alarm.

Still holding the remote in front of him, Dad cautioned us to stay still.

To our amazement, the huge snakes slithered past us and out through the door of the lab. Dad followed them, with us tagging cautiously behind.

                                pg 89

Slowly, the boas wound their way back across the car park. We all watched, stunned, as their massive tails disappeared down tunnel five.

"What is that thing?" gasped Old Joe, pointing to the remote in Dad's hand.

"I won't bore you with the science but, put simply, there's a homing device in each of the big reptiles' holding pens. When the chips implanted in the snakes are activated by my remote, they tell the snakes to return home to the device. They will coil around it when they get back to the pen, just as if it were their mother?'

"I could've used one of those ven I vas wrestling vith that beast in the engine room!" said Hammerhead.

Dad shook his head. "It's a shame Joe had to shoot her," he said. "She was an emerald tree boa. Beautiful."

"Beautiful?" sneered Hammerhead. "It vas a monster!"

I said nothing, but I had to agree with the skipper. For the umpteenth time, I wondered how my father could find anything beautiful in these ugly creatures.

                         pg 90

So here we sit, in the Hub. There's not a snake or a spider in sight. The four of us have blasted and sprayed and netted those critters back to their cages.

"Food's up!" cries Old Joe.

Removing our red hoods, we dig in to steaming-hot plates of bacon and eggs.

"Tell me more about this Octo Serp character," says Old Joe between mouthfuls of food.

Dad wipes his mouth. "Octo helped me set up DA6. He knows the place like the back of his hand. He loves snakes more than human _company:^,

"So what happened? Did he go berserk or something?"

Dad shrugs. "All I know is the day started like any other. I was in the lab, working on venom extraction. I hadn't seen Octo all morning, which wasn't unusual. He spends a lot of time with the snakes in their cages.

"We'd had a furious argument the night before about the way the snakes were kept. Octo

                           pg 91

wanted a more open, natural environment. I argued that it's just not possible here underwater. Anyway, he'd stormed off, muttering about taking the snakes back to the Surface one day."

"The Surface?" interrupts Hammerhead. "He must be crazy. There is no life up on top. Just poisonous gases and storms!"

"I agree," says Dad. "Anyway, just after^- Octo stormed off, one of my team got an emergency signal from Basin City. There were huge underwater tremors, possible tectonic plate movement, it said. The whole city was in evacuation mode. My first thoughts were with you, Rom. I tried to call you, but there was no answer?'

"I was down at Neptune's, at Underwater Joe's, when the earthquake hit," I explain. "Did you feel the tremor out here at DA6?"

"Not a thing. My team gathered for an emergency brief in the Hub. All except Octo —he wasn't there. I tried to calm everyone down. I reminded everyone that we still had a job to do here. We needed to keep our heads and stay put. Suddenly, the emergency evacuation signal

                                    pg 92

roared into life. That means imminent danger —get out now! It's the 'highest alert we have here at DA6 and I'm the only one who can authorise it, so someone had to have set it off illegally:'

"Octo Serp!" I say.

"It must have been," continues Dad. "Well, if he was trying to cause absolute panic, then he succeeded. The whole team — one hundred or so technicians and security guards — piled down the exit tunnel to the evac-sub. There was nothing I could do to stop them. The lab was trashed in the stampede. That's when the power suddenly went out. More of Octo's handiwork. He wanted to ensure maximum havoc — and he got it.

"I was determined to stop him. But, first, I had to secure the antivenom case. I groped around the blacked-out office till I found it. Suddenly, a shape emerged from the shadows and Octo hit me from behind with a broken stool. It was lights out for me. He must've dragged me to a jeep and taken me to the power station. When I awoke, I was tied up like a Christmas turkey. He'd gagged me as well. I knew DA6 was

                                 pg 93

empty, the whole team had evacuated. I couldn't see any sign of Octo, but I knew he must have the antivenom case:'

"I was in the power station!" I cry. "I was calling out for you:'

"I could hear you. And, believe me, it was the best thing I've ever heard. It meant you were okay. But I couldn't respond. All I could manage was to kick a spanner off the bench I was tied to:'

"I heard it! That's when I saw someone running for the door."

"That must have been Octo. He was still in the power station after all:' Dad's eyes narrow. "I heard you leave and I was frantically trying to get free. At last I managed to break out of the ropes and go looking for you. And it wasn't long before I found you — covered with brown recluse spiders:'

Old Joe stands up. "Well, what are we waitin' for? If this Octo Serp character is still on the loose here in DA6, let's go find him!"

Hammerhead gets to his feet and shakes his big head. "Not me. I never agreed to go looking for some crazy snake man. I have done my part,

                                 pg 94

Herr Doctor.I helped you put your vorms away.

Now I vill be taking' my fuel and heading off.

And, if the rest of you have any sense, you vill

all come vith me."

I'm about to say, something and I can see

that Old Joe is about to erupt as well, but Dad shocks us both.

"You're right, Skipper. You must go. Go get help. Coralville is a couple of days away by sub. I can't reach them on the radio. Octo has disabled the transmitter. So you've got to alert them for me."

I'm stunned. "You're staying here?" "Someone has to keep an eye on the animals?'

"Then I'm staying with you," I say, hands on hips.

Dad puts his hand gently on my shoulder. "You're a brave kid, Rom. Just like your mum. But I need you to go with the skipper. I need someone I can trust:'

"Trust?" I say. "You can trust the skipper to carry the message to Coralville."

Dad looks deep into my eyes. "Sure I can.

                              pg 95

But it's you I trust to carry the antivenom case to safety?'

He sees the confusion in my eyes.

"Rom, I can't leave that case here. Who knows what Octo's got planned next. Old Joe will stay behind with me. So that leaves you to get the antivenom to Coralville. Do you understand, son?".

I understand. But I don't like it.

We load the old Sea Slug with provisions and fuel from the warehouse until she groans with the weight. Hammerhead is like a kid in a candy store, but I'm not so happy. I hate leaving Dad and Old Joe behind. Especially with Octo Serp still roaming DA6.

We say our goodbyes and I try to hold back the tears.

"You okay, Rom?" Dad asks.

"Sure. No problems," I lie.

Dad hugs me one last time and I scramble down the ladder with the antivenom case

                            pg 96

clutched tight. As the Sea Slug dives in a torrent

of bubbles, I peer back through the grimy porthole till I can see DA6 no more.

Before us lies the great Pacific Ocean. But all I can see is cold blackness.

I have never felt so alone in my life.