Free Unearthly Power by R. K. Page B

disappeared from the surface. Sean had a miniaturized radio in his mask and this allowed contact between him and Alex while he was underwater. One by one, the others returned to attend to other diversions.
    Sean initially followed the anchor line. Once he attained a depth where he could barely make out the bottom with his high powered flashlight, he leveled off and started a search pattern. In the depths he would be working, he decided to stay as far from the bottom as he could for his general search. This allowed him more time underwater, and better coverage of the bottom itself. Sean decided to work with the current. He quartered it as a ship would quarter a stiff wind; this kept him from being swept along too far in one direction and interfering with the effectiveness of his search pattern. He looked at the GPS device attached to his wrist and started the program.
    It was slow going as he fought the current and the low visibility. While his GPS helped him keep his sense of direction, he also had a GPD tracking device installed in his diving suit which was monitored by Alex. This was the main tool they used to ensure proper coverage of an area. Alex annotated time and location at three minute intervals. Normally they would go as long as five or ten, but the conditions and depths they were working required finer measurements to ensure nothing was missed.
    When Alex saw his tracking device was reversing course, he knew Sean was returning. He was standing by when Sean surfaced. He lifted his face mask and held it for Alex to take. He used his hands to lift himself onto the platform at the rear of the boat and twisted his body at the same time so that he could sit down.
    “Anything?” Alex asked.
    “No. It’s still a little too strong to cover it effectively.” He said while removing his gear.
    “Maybe tomorrow.” Alex replied.
    “Yeah, maybe. We could be out here for a month in these conditions and never find it . . . Did you chart the readings?” he asked his partner.
    “Yep. You didn’t do too bad, actually.”
    “Well,” he said as he was finally able to slip out of his suit. “I’ll compare what we got today with what I have from the last time we were here. Maybe I can get us dialed in a little closer for the next dive.”
    Alex nodded his head in agreement. 
    At dinner that evening, talk centered on the next dive. While the five members of their charter were sure of success, Sean had a more ‘wait and see’ attitude. He didn’t want to put a damper on their enthusiasm. If they were excited, they were easier to manage. When people are dispirited, it tends to infect others quickly, making time on board more difficult with each successive day.
    He didn’t get any time to spend alone with Tori that evening. Nobody, it seemed, was willing to leave the galley; even Marcel and his men remained and he could find no plausible excuse for calling her away. The casual glances they gave each other were playful, but not very gratifying. He excused himself, having decided on a good night’s sleep while praying for favorable conditions in the morning. He knew he could not keep the others out of the water for long. Eventually, they would insist on going, despite concerns for their safety, and he would have more to deal with than he would by going alone. If they proved to be less than competent underwater, he would be lucky to cover half as much area as he did today.
     
     
     
     
     
     

~ Six ~
     
    I t was still dark outside when he opened his eyes. His dreams had disturbed him all through the night. Deciding it was a waste of time to lie in bed any longer, he pulled on his wrinkled shorts and a button down shirt over his T-shirt before quietly leaving the room so as not to disturb Alex. As he made his way to the wheelhouse, he tried to recall the dreams. They seemed so real and vivid just minutes ago, but he only remembered scattered fragments of them now. Thinking it over, he recalled now that his sleep had