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“All vents shut,” the chief called out, glancing to his captain. “Ready to surface.”
“Surface,” Mikovksy ordered. “Keep her trim and steady.”
Switches were engaged. Pumps chugged, and the Drakon rose, surfacing quickly and smoothly. Reports echoed up from the sub. All clear.
“Open the hatch,” he called out.
Gregor relayed the order with a wave to the sailor stationed by the locking dogs. As the crewman set to work, the XO strode up to Mikovsky. “The shore team is ready to debark.” The man’s words were stilted, stiffly spoken, forced professionalism because of the grim task before them. “Orders?”
Mikovsky checked his watch. “Secure the prisoners. Double-check that the incendiaries are deployed as instructed. Then I want all men back aboard in fifteen minutes. Once the last man is aboard, we’ll flood immediately and take her deep.”
Gregor still stood, eyes no longer looking at Mikovsky, but off toward some imagined distance where what they were about to do could be fathomed and forgiven. But no one had eyesight that stretched that far.
Mikovsky gave the final order. “As soon as the deck is awash, blow the V-class series. There must be no trace of the drift station.”
As Je
With a gasp that was more of a moan, she pulled herself up to the lip of the ridge.
Already straddling the ridgeline, Kowalski helped her over, and together they slid on their butts and hands down the far side. “You okay?” he asked, pulling her to her feet.
She nodded, taking deep breaths of the frigid air, and turned as Bane and Ensign Pomautuk cleared the ridge next. The young man had to push the wolf’s rear to get him over the edge. Then they both slid and trotted down the far side.
“How much farther?” Je
Tom checked his watch with a built-in compass. He pointed an arm. “Another hundred yards.”
Je
But they had no choice.
They trudged onward. Winds crashed overhead, sounding like waves breaking against a stony shore. Snow frothed and foamed in billows and currents.
Je
Then Kowalski suddenly tilted, tumbling down to a knee, arms flying out as he fell. “Fuck!”
His boot had shattered through a pocket of thin ice, revealing a small pool, no larger than a manhole cover. He sank to his thigh before catching himself on the edge. He rolled away, swearing a litany as he hauled his soaked leg from the freezing depths. “Fucking great! I can’t seem to stop falling in the goddamn water.”
Despite his bravado, Je
He shook free of their arms. “Where is this goddamn ventilation shaft?”
“Not far!” Tom led the way from here, Bane trotting at his side. Kowalski followed, grumbling under his breath.
Je
She continued after the others.
After another five minutes of hiking, Ensign Pomautuk’s assessment proved true. They rounded a pi
“We’ve reached the outer edge of the submerged ice island,” Tom said.
Je
“Where’s this ventilation shaft?” Kowalski asked, teeth chattering.
“Over there,” Tom said, pointing to a black tu
Polar bears, Je
Tom crossed without fear and dropped to his hands and knees. “We have to be careful. It’s fairly steep. Forty-five degrees. We should rope up for safety.”
Je
“It looks like it makes an abrupt right turn about ten yards down,” Tom said, pointing the flashlight. He slipped the coil of rope from around his shoulder. “Like one of the entrances to our snow houses.”
Je
“Fuck it! Let’s just get the hell inside.” Kowalski shivered beside Je
As Je
“What—?” he began, turning with her.
From around the pi
Je
Bane jammed forward, barking a warning. His shoulders bunched, hackles bristled, head bent low.
The creature crouched at the threat. Blubbery lips rippled back to reveal the jaws of a great white.
That was enough for Je
“Get inside!” she yelled, and grabbed Bane by his scruff. “Go!”
Tom didn’t have to be told twice. He knew how to jump at orders and demonstrated his skill now. He dove down the shaft, belly first, sliding on the slick ice.
Je
Kowalski waved her inside. She lost her hold on Bane as she turned. The wolf trotted a few steps away and began to bark again. She reached for him, but she was blocked.
“Leave the dog!” Kowalski growled, manhandling her inside. He followed at her heels, leaving her no choice.
She slid down the steep ice chute.
“Bane,” she shouted sharply back. “Heel!”
She glanced over her shoulder, but her view was blocked by Kowalski’s bulk. The momentum of their slide slowed as they neared the sharp turn in the tu
“Crawl! Move it!” he urged her.
The shaft suddenly darkened behind them.
“Shit! It’s following us!”
Je
Bane raced only a few steps ahead of it, bounding down the shaft.
“Move!” Kowalski yelled, and tried to shove her around the corner.
But this time she held her spot, struggling with her parka. She ripped the emergency flare gun free from her pocket. “Get down!” She pointed it up the shaft.
The seaman flattened himself.
Je