PART II: Opening Gambit
IV
(The following excerpt was taken from a Tailex communiqué between the headquarters of the Equestrian Royal Navy and the Naval Division (codenamed DWRDIV) of the Equestrian Secret Service. After the requisite five-year waiting period mandated by Equestrian law, the document was declassified in 2071 CSE with the express permission of former Fleet Admiral Blue Aegis, acting commander at the time of the carrier SSR (Ship of the Sisters Royal) Dream Valley.
All information herein has been preserved in its original state for posterity.)
TOP SECRET
094935Z ****2064
ESS DWRDIV SITREP
ERN HQ MARELINGTON
MESSAGE FOLLOWS
AT 083145Z TECTONIC MONITOR STATIONS [REDACTED] [REDACTED] AND [REDACTED] RECORDED ANOMALOUS HYDRODYNAMIC ACTIVITY FROM BUOY DELTA ONE SEVEN SITUATED IN AQUASTRIAN OCEAN 97 NM W OF BORDER OF AQUASTRIAN EMPIRE XX DATA CONSISTENT WITH COMPRESSION WAVE OF EARTHQUAKE POSSIBLE MAGNITUDE 5
AT 083500Z AN “ALL SHIPS” BROADCAST WAS MADE BY ERN HQ IN RESPONSE TO ANOMALY XX MESSAGE DURATION 46 SECONDS WITH 2 REPEATS
AT 083738Z ESS FOREIGN AFFAIRS REPORTED ALL CONTACT WITH AQUASTRIAN EMPIRE HAD CEASED XX ERN HQ DISPATCHED SSR DEIMOS XANTHOS LAMPON AND PODAGROS OF DIOMEDES SQUADRON AHEAD OF FLEET TO INVESTIGATE
AT 093034Z DIOMEDES SQUADRON ENTERED AQUASTRIAN WATERS 22 NM WSW OF AQUASTRIAN CITY OF NEIGHTILUS
AT 094233Z SSR LAMPON REPORTED UNIDENTIFIED SONAR CONTACT 6 NM ENE OF POSITION XX DIOMEDES SQUADRON MOVED TO INTERCEPT
AT 094423Z HOSTILE CONTACT INITIATED BETWEEN DIOMEDES SQUADRON AND UNIDENTIFIED SUBMERGED OBJECT
AT 094544Z LAST RECORDED TRANSMISSION FROM DIOMEDES SQUADRON XX TECTONIC MONITOR STATIONS [REDACTED] [REDACTED] AND [REDACTED] RECORDED HYDRODYNAMIC ACTIVITY FROM BUOY ZETA TWO THREE SITUATED IN AQUASTRIAN OCEAN 6 NM NW OF POINT OF TRANSMISSION XX DATA CONSISTENT WITH COMPRESSION WAVE OF EARTHQUAKE POSSIBLE MAGNITUDE 6
EVALUATION: INSUFFICIENT EVIDENCE TO CONFIRM AQUASTRIAN MILITARY IS ARMING FOR WAR XX TECTONIC ANOMALIES ATTRIBUTED TO NATURAL GEOTHERMIC ACTIVITY XX CONCLUDE DIOMEDES SQUADRON DESTROYED BY MACROFAUNA OF UNKNOWN ORIGIN
END SITREP
ESS SENDS
095011Z
BREAKBREAK
SSR Dream Valley
2066 CSE
The Aquastrian Ocean was relatively quiet today. There was not a cloud in the sky to discourage Celestia’s sun from shining its rays on the sea, though the brisk wind blowing from the east did not make for a pleasure cruise.
Not that newly minted Fleet Admiral Blue Aegis paid it a lot of mind. For one thing, he had seen very little action as the commander-in-chief of the Equestrian Royal Navy. The incident at the Aquastrian Empire’s western border was practically the one exception.
It had been almost two years since contact had been lost with the three hundred sixty-two ponies that made up the Diomedes Squadron, and still it weighed heavily on Aegis’ heart. That assignment had been the one stain of dirt on his otherwise commendable record; he’d come within inches of a general court-martial, as DWRDIV believed he had not only acted rashly and against his better judgment, but had also circumvented authority in the process. Only by insisting that his intentions were for the sole purpose of reconnaissance was he able to escape that fate—it had helped that a formal investigation had revealed that all four of the Diomedes submarines had only taken on sufficient arms to merely defend themselves, not to effectively start a war.
Ultimately, Aegis had been issued a reprimand, and relegated to clumsily pushing around a pencil with his teeth in a Marelington office for a long while. What he had done between then and now to not only see himself back on the ocean again, but also in command of the naval forces of the Royal Princesses, was genuinely a mystery to him. But he had not questioned anypony when he had been given this honor; Aegis saw this as his second chance. He sensed he wouldn’t be with the Navy much longer, as he was getting on in years, so it was his hope that he made the most of it as best he could.
He took a deep breath through his nostrils, savoring the salty air while he listened on his earpiece to the second reason his mind wasn’t on a slice of future real estate in Miamare Beach today.
“Zero-three-eight, zero-three-five, zero-three-three, no contact,” a voice crackled forth from the tiny crystal that linked Aegis with the response teams.
“Roger,” came a second voice, deeper and calmer. Aegis recognized him, and fought the urge to smile.
“Zero-two-niner, zero-two-two, zero-two-one. Red four, Red two, White three, White one—all clear.”
“Roger, Stable Two. Aura group, prepare seismic buoy, deploy at grid 330.”
“Primed.”
“Drop, drop, drop.”
“Drop, over.”
A beat. “Stable One, this is Aura Leader,” said the calm voice. “Grid 330 has been marked. Proceeding along bearing three-one-seven mark six-five to grid 341, over.”
“Roger, Aura Leader,” Aegis replied, failing to keep his grin from splitting his face.
A bark of laughter burst forth from the earpiece. “Tell me that ain’t Ol’ Blue!”
“I won’t tell you, then,” retorted the aging admiral to the son of one of his old friends, who had retired as captain of the Baltimare only three years ago. “Been a while, greenhorn.”
“That’s Major Greenhorn to you, sir!” Another jovial laugh.
“I bet old General Beeline a whole paycheck you wouldn’t make it out of latrine duty. That was five years ago—may he rest in peace. And the first I hear of you since then is that you’ve got the reins of your own wing?”
“Yes, sir!”
“Sounds like your father and I are due for another chat,” said Aegis. “Your CO and I go a ways back; I’ll have a word with him, see if I can’t get him to give you some leave sometime soon. You and your dad and I can get dinner in Canterlot—I’ve been wanting to see how much you’ve grown.”
“You’ll be seeing me sooner than you think, sir!” chortled Greenhorn. “Over and out!”
And indeed, no sooner had he said the words than half a dozen pegasi—four of them towing a special cloud modified for both high-speed aerodynamics and storage of sensitive equipment—streaked over the port side of the Dream Valley at cruising altitude. Aegis’ eyes could briefly see the formation of an arrowhead before the ponies of Aura Wing shrank into pinpricks as they headed south-southeast to their next objective.
Aegis had been hoof-picked to coordinate the testing of the Equestrian Geological Survey’s new seismic buoys—the “sensitive equipment” currently in the care of Aura Wing and all the other squadrons in the ERN. Tectonic activity in the Aquastrian Ocean had been increasing at a constant rate of nine percent over the last four years, which was making the higher-ups uneasy, as the Aquastrians were still not answering any attempts at communication. Aegis had to admit their stubbornness was legendary; they had survived without the guidance of the Sisters Royal for a long time, and—unless they were willing to risk a war—they preferred to keep it that way. Which was why none of the Equestrian armed forces had even dared to attempt so much as a flyover of Aquastria.
But this operation—while not ostensibly aggressive—was far more than a simple flyover, Aegis reflected.
A unicorn ensign approached him suddenly, and saluted him. “Dispatch from the Everfree, sir.”
Aegis stretched his sore hooves, grunting dramatically. The Everfree was one of the submarines operating concurrently with the field test. He had personally opted for its deployment; the Everfree was still a relatively new craft, but if those rock farmers on the Survey had managed to make something better than the ERN’s cutting-edge sonar, he wanted to know about it. “Let’s hear it,” he said.
The ensign levitated a manila envelope to Aegis. “It’s an eyes-only, sir.”
Aegis frowned at the telltale red tape that sealed the package, wondering what the Everfree might have found to warrant something with this level of security. “Dismissed,” he nodded to the ensign, who gave one last salute before trotting away.
After he was satisfied that he was alone, Aegis broke the seal, and opened the folder.
The first thing he noticed about the Tailex message was the large red A preceding the time and date. An “A” prefix on these communiqués constituted a very high-priority message—definitely enough to warrant an eyes-only, as the ensign had said:
A 110405Z 09182066
E Y E S O N L Y
FM: SSR EVERFREE
TO: COMAQUA
INFO: CINC ERN FLT
//NOOOOO//
EQUGEO COLLAB OPS
1. APPROX 1100Z MONITOR STATION NEIGHSAU REPORTED ANOMALOUS HYDRODYNAMIC ACTIVITY XX SPECIFICS UNKNOWN BUT CONFIRM CITY OF DELFIN IS EPICENTER OF ANOMALY
2. ALSO REPORT UNIDENTIFIED SONAR CONTACT WITHIN ANOMALY XX PATTERN FAINT BUT EVIDENCE OF UNKNOWN ACOUSTICAL CHARACTERISTICS XX SIGNATURE DOES NOT REPEAT DOES NOT CONFORM TO ANY KNOWN PARAMETERS OF AQUASTRIAN DESIGN
3. REQUEST PERMISSION TO INVESTIGATE XX SUSPECT DELFIN UNDER ATTACK BY MACROFAUNA OF UNKNOWN ORIGIN XX BELIEVE HIGH CHANCE TO LOCATE AND IDENTIFY AT CLOSER RANGE
Aegis replaced the Tailex in the yellow folder, eyes suddenly out of focus. It was tough at his age, having to slog through so many capital letters in one place. But trouble reading wasn’t the cause for the sudden chill rising up his spine, or the sinking feeling in his stomach.
Hydrodynamic activity … unidentified sonar contact … macrofauna of unknown origin …
No.
Updates from the squadrons suddenly forgotten, Aegis galloped for the bridge.
Five minutes later, after hurriedly calling for a meeting of the Dream Valley’s senior staff in front of her bemused captain, he and a dozen other ponies were seated in the ship’s “war room”, looking just as confused. Some were quick to note the tension in the air; nopony had ever seen the admiral looking so scared.
Aegis was the only pony standing. For his part, he’d managed to calm himself down since he’d stumbled onto the bridge. All things considered, that was a remarkable feat. Now, though, something far more difficult was looming in front of him, because this time, he knew what he’d have to do, and what it could very well cost him.
He exhaled, looking at everypony seated at the table once, before he spoke. “I apologize for calling you all here on such short notice,” he began. “Frankly, I’d have liked some more time to properly prepare—as it stands, I don’t think DWRDIV would be happy that this conference is even taking place. Therefore, what I’m about to tell you should be considered highly classified information. As such, it is not to go beyond the bulkheads of this room. Am I clear?”
Everypony nodded.
“Good. Two years ago, Foreign Affairs out of Canterlot reported that regular contact with the Aquastrian Empire had simply stopped—not so much as a trickle. That much you already know. But what you don’t know is that six minutes before the breakdown in communication, three separate monitor stations for the ERN received reports of unusual hydrodynamics well within the territory of the empire. Per standard procedure, an “all ships” alert was put into effect.
“It was determined that the anomaly was the result of an undersea earthquake, presumably from the active tectonic rift that divides the empire down the middle. Director Pie of the Geological Survey confirmed the data gathered was synonymous with that of a magnitude five. That’s nothing especially severe, to be sure. But it was the strongest earthquake in that region in almost two hundred years. And I thought it smelled wrong.”
Silence.
“I was a commodore back then,” continued Aegis, “And long story short, I believed the earthquake was a result of testing seismic weapons—and that the loss in communications was a prelude to war.”
“Seismic weapons?” piped up a pegasus stallion, a lieutenant commander that Aegis recalled served as the Dream Valley’s tactical officer, bearing the rather unfortunate name of Itchy Hoof. “With respect, sir, weapons of that nature certainly have potential for destruction, but they’re not illegal—at least, not under Geneighva, sir.”
The Geneighva Convention, as anypony who called himself a part of Equestria’s armed forces knew, was the final authority on war and peace—and Aegis knew its many sections and subsections inside and out. “They’re regulated nonetheless,” he told Itchy. “Even though they’re not so much weapons of war—these days you mostly see them with shady Diamond Dog mining magnates, looking to get rich quick. But as you said, Lieutenant, there’s a massive chance of collateral with such an indiscriminate tool. And if a foreign power was making them without any properly explained intent … well, I suspect you would be feeling just as uneasy.”
“Permission to speak freely, sir?” Another lieutenant commander, this one a unicorn mare with a slight Stalliongradi accent, raised a hoof.
“Granted.”
“I only want to be clear on something. You were assuming the Aquastrians were arming for war … under a hunch?”
All the air went out of the room. Itchy Hoof was looking at the mare as if she’d gone mad.
Aegis’ pained expression at that old ghost didn’t last long. “I wasn’t ruling anything out, Ms. Mareze,” he explained to the Dream Valley’s communications officer after briefly clearing his throat. “War was certainly a possibility, but the top priority was that the Aquastrian Empire might be in danger, and however their stance toward us, we were obligated to offer our assistance.” Here, Aegis paused; he wasn’t sure how everypony here would react to what he was about to reveal to them, he would have to choose his words carefully. After clearing his throat a second time, he began. “I chose to deploy the Clover and the Hurricane to Aquastria for the aid mission; I also chose for the Diomedes Squadron to escort them.”
Many of the ponies exchanged looks of surprise; the four submarines that made up Diomedes—Lampon, Deimos, Xanthos, and Podagros—were almost to the ERN what the Wonderbolts were to most pegasi. Their mysterious disappearance from the public eye some years ago had only served to fuel the tales of their exploits under the sea. The story went that they were on an extended tour of duty in the northern ice fields, but Aegis knew full well that was all it was: a story—one that he’d had a hand in putting out himself, no less.
“Diomedes was given additional orders,” he went on, “to scout out ahead of the convoy, and to investigate and confirm that the Aquastrians were indeed testing seismic-based weapons. If not, to continue with their escort mission as usual, and if so, to order a nonviolent cease-and-desist.”
Nopony dared speak. Finally, Mareze tentatively ventured a question.
“And?”
Aegis heaved a sigh. “We never found out. The squadron picked up an unidentified sonar pattern twelve minutes after they entered Aquastrian territory. Whatever it belonged to was hostile—according to their transmission logs, they were attacked less than two minutes after it showed up on sonar. Eighty-one seconds after that … ” Aegis had to stifle a gulp. “They were never heard from since.”
The ponies were stunned. Aegis couldn’t blame them, really; he had reacted much the same way when he’d first heard the grim news for himself. He could already see Itchy and Mareze preparing to ask about Diomedes’ supposed “tour of duty,” and something told him that he’d have to face that particular music eventually. But however much he hated to admit it, there was a time and a place for grievances, and this was neither one. “That brings me to today,” he said before anypony else could speak up, the bluster back in his voice.
“Ten minutes ago, the submarine Everfree received a message from our monitor station in Neighsau; they confirmed a massive hydrodynamic anomaly centered on the Aquastrian capital of Delfin. Everfree also reported a sonar pattern near the outskirts of the city, unlike anything the Aquastrians have ever produced. They want to risk a closer look to be sure, but they suspect the city is being attacked by some kind of creature—as we speak.” He paused to let the effect of his words, and the sense of déjà vu contained therein, sink into his audience.
“I’m prepared to grant their request. But I don’t want history to repeat itself—I want to be ready for anything out there, and I mean anything. So,” he rested his forelegs on the table, “I need options.”
Itchy tapped his hoof impulsively. “We could remotely detonate some depth charges, modify them to carry a slightly lower yield than usual. The compression waves might be enough to destabilize these anomalies, and possibly even slow down whatever this creature is.”
An earth mare next to him shook her head. “Depth charges in Aquastrian territory? They’d be well within reason to consider that an act of war!”
“Add to it, there’s too many variables involved,” Aegis said. “We don’t know if the anomalies or the creature are causing more damage—or whether the depth charges would be more destructive than both. I’d much rather this be as clean as possible.”
“Then we go for precision,” Mareze offered. “Send an armed escort with the Everfree, we can use that to lure this creature out of Aquastrian territory. Safer waters if possible, into the fleet if absolutely necessary.”
“And if this creature decides to attack our fleet instead?” Itchy’s query was not intended as a challenge, but he still wilted under the look Mareze was giving him.
“Absolutely. Necessary.” The lieutenant’s face was an expressionless mask as she repeated those two words. “Or do you doubt the most potent naval power in the world?”
Itchy tried to stutter a reply, but Aegis quickly intervened before the mood turned sour. They were both good ideas, to be sure, but nothing would be gained today by slinging cutting remarks at everypony within range. “Perhaps we could work out a compromise?” offered the admiral.
Nopony said anything. This bothered Aegis a little bit, though he was wise enough to not let it show. Having his orders questioned by somepony of lesser rank was oddly more fulfilling to him than when the pony actually outranked him. It was one of the things he’d missed since the grand old days of when he used to command the Marebourne; back then, he’d taken every available opportunity to turn his war room into a forum for ideas and creative solutions that ended up being beneficial to all parties involved in the long run. Aegis considered it his way of “fostering the future of the Royal Navy,” as the blowhards who went out recruiting for the ERN always liked to say.
But since nopony appeared to want to contribute, “We’ll send out two Hurricane-class submarines to join the Everfree,” he explained. “Their combined power should provide enough of a target for this creature to chase. In the meantime,”—he fished out a map that he’d procured earlier—“I want to deploy the fleet along here.” He tapped his hoof to a point situated about ten nautical miles outside the western border of Aquastria, then swept it several inches in either direction.
Itchy got the point almost immediately. “Like a giant net.”
“Actually,” Mareze piped up, “I think that’s enough distance to where the Aquastrians wouldn’t sanction us for hostile intent. Not easily, anyway.”
She looked at Itchy Hoof. Itchy looked at her.
“Depth charges?” the lieutenant commander said. Aegis swore his eyes almost looked hopeful, like a colt pleading with his mother to buy a Royal Guard action figure. He consequently had to fight a nostalgic grin.
Mareze gave a thin little smile. “Absolutely necessary,” she said for the third time in as many minutes.
Aegis silently cheered. There’s that creativity I was looking for.
“Right,” he said, taking this truce as his golden opportunity, “Itchy, set about getting your charges ready. Make sure they can be remotely activated and deactivated, so that any that we don’t end up expending can be easily retrieved after all’s said and done. Removal will take precedence; I don’t want any collateral at all out of this.
“Mareze, work with him. Get the word out to the rest of the fleet so they can prepare their own armaments accordingly. I’ll be expecting your final report within the hour. Also,” Aegis paused for emphasis, “I want you to share this plan with the Aquastrians. Advise them of our situation in full—don’t spare any details.”
Mareze blinked. “But the Aquastrians aren’t even—”
Aegis cut her off. “Doesn’t matter,” he said bluntly. “Send them regular messages on all possible frequencies. Every five minutes if you have to. They’ll have to answer eventually, and even if they don’t, we’ll be keeping a full log of those transmissions. So on the off chance they do try to sanction us, we’ll already have an ironclad reason.”
“Understood.”
Aegis looked around at everypony, and sighed. “I don’t need to tell you all what could be at stake here,” he said heavily. “Whatever we’re dealing with has the capacity to take down an entire empire in a matter of minutes. And if we don’t stop it, then all of Equestria could be in danger. We’ve all got our work cut out for us. Dismissed.”
All but one of the ponies stood up and left; this last stayed in her seat at the opposite end of the table. She was an old gray mare in many senses of the word, but her drab coat and iron-colored mane did nothing to dull the cheerful, attentive look on her face even after hearing today’s grim revelations.
“Director Pie,” Aegis said to her, “I’d advise you and the rest of your team to head back to the mainland.”
“You sure about that?” The infectious, helium-fueled voice of Inkie Pie’s famous sister was apparently genetic; it was so incongruous with the usual mood of the war room that Aegis couldn’t resist breaking out into a smile.
The admiral composed himself. “With respect, Inkie, this is no place for civilians. And I’ve got enough innocent blood on my hooves already—if I lost any more lives because of another bad decision I made, I wouldn’t be able to live with myself.”
“My old dad used to say ‘One pony can move a rock, but a herd can move a mountain,’” Inkie chirped.
Aegis frowned. “Meaning?”
Inkie laughed, and smiled knowingly at him. “Meaning I’ve got a plan.”
“What kind of plan?” Aegis asked.
Inkie told him.
SSR Everfree
900 ft below sea level
A 111835Z 09182066
E Y E S O N L Y
FM: COMAQUA
TO: SSR EVERFREE
A: SSR EVERFREE A 110405Z 09182066
B: COMAQUA INST 1679.3
EQUGEO COLLAB OPS ASSIGN //NO3229//
1. REQUEST REF A GRANTED
2. AREAS PAPA SIERRA TANGO REF B ASSIGNED FOR OPS RECON ALPHA 112000Z TO 150001Z
3. SSR WINSOME SSR AETHON TO ESCORT FOR DURATION
4. SILENT RUNNING ONLY XX MAINTAIN LINK TO SSR DREAM VALLEY AT ALL TIMES
FADM AEGIS SENDS
BREAKBREAK
Captain Deep Six had read this Tailex nearly ten times already, but the more his eyes lingered on the page, the bigger his grin was becoming. He’d been critical of the Fleet Admiral more than a few times, but one thing about Blue Aegis that Deep Six had always admired was that if you asked him a question, then by sun, moon and crown, he’d give you an answer. And when it came to naval emergencies that could potentially jeopardize the future of Equestria, Hurricane-class attack submarines proved to be the best answer to just about all of them.
“Conn, Sonar.” The submarine’s PA system blared harshly in the cramped space of the submarine interior.
“Conn, aye, this is Six,” answered the captain.
“Aft array just picked up two Hurricanes. Closing thirty-five knots either side.”
“That’ll be our escort, then,” Six said. He pocketed the Tailex, and made his way to the bridge. “Anything new on our tango?”
“Negative.” There was a pause. “Network complete. All three submarines are now linked up with each other—along with the Dream Valley. They could hear a pin drop over here now, sir.”
Sonar could be so incredibly awesome sometimes, Six thought. He, like almost everypony who worked a … well, sonar station in the ERN these days, was a chiropony, a rare species of equine that, up until Princess Luna’s reappearance more than fifty years ago, had carried the kind of social stigma that went hoof-in-hoof with their association with the darkness—specifically, their role as the royal guard of Nightmare Moon. Their unique appearance in relation to the average pony—large triangular ears, dark purple coat, flat leathery muzzle and tail, yellow cat’s eyes that were nearly blind, and most unsettlingly, their gleaming white fangs—didn’t help much, either.
But Sonar and the other chiroponies—whether by the machinations of the thing that had once possessed the Princess of the Night, or by the winds of change that accompanied the passage of time—possessed an aptitude for magic that exceeded most unicorns’ abilities. Most of the time, this magic was sound-based, and allowed them to hear things that most ponies could not. Much of this magic was used to help them see more clearly, especially during the night or in the dark, or to communicate with other chiroponies. But a select few were particularly gifted even among their race; they could broadcast these sounds throughout a large area, or to a totally different species of equine—an experience almost like telepathy, Six had recalled saying on the day he’d first met a chiropony. Sonar was one of those few—which made him a perfect candidate for the ERN as a navigation officer.
The Everfree’s sonar station was standard-issue: a perfectly spherical chamber whose outer layer was laced with acoustite, a type of crystal that could literally absorb incoming sound waves like a kitchen sponge. However, a properly calibrated magical field, such as the one Sonar maintained near-constantly as per his job description, could agitate the microfractures in the acoustite layer, and transmit those sounds through his magic to his ears, allowing him to pinpoint the shape, size, and exact direction of anything that made the tiniest peep in the ocean.
Sonar was the crucial part in this cutting-edge technology, though Six hated having to think of a fellow equine that way, and he had instructed the rest of his crew to treat him as they would one of their own. They’d risen to the occasion quite well, he thought; though his job didn’t allow him to get out much, Sonar was more than their eyes and ears, he was almost the heart and soul of the Everfree. In fact, Six was secretly hoping the Geological Survey’s new equipment wouldn’t be up to par with Sonar’s magic. He’d been one of the many jobless during the recession of the 2050s before signing on with the ERN; many of his friends had been in the same position as well. That had hurt Six, and it would hurt him to see Sonar potentially replaced by a few simple little crystals.
Which was why he was secretly glad for the Fleet Admiral’s change of plans today.
Taking his seat on the dimly lit bridge of the Everfree—dimmer than usual, owing to their current status as "running silent"—Six lifted the communicator to his mouth, making sure to press a button that would ensure his conversation could be broadcast along Sonar’s entire private network. “Stable One, this is Echo Leader. Escort is counted for; all systems go. Permission to commence Recon Alpha, over?”
Lieutenant Mareze’s tinny voice filtered through the speaker after the minimum transmission gap of five seconds.
“Granted, Echo Leader. You are clear to proceed, over.”
“Acknowledged, out.” After switching off the communicator, Six cleared his throat—it was time to go to work now. “Helm, take us to twelve hundred. Ten degrees down-angle.”
“Aye, sir. Twelve hundred feet,” responded the diving officer, turning a bulky-looking wheel with his free hoof. He clasped an equally large lever with a free hoof, and shifted it toward him several notches. “Ten degrees down-angle.”
“All ahead full,” ordered Six.
“All ahead full, sir.”
The low, barely audible rumble of the Everfree’s massive primary screw beginning to turn soon filled the cabin, and the submarine slowly began the first leg of her charted course to Delfin.