Ivan stared wide-eyed at the enormous, upside-down pyramids and their reflections in the water. Even after years of sailing the seas and weathering the most turbulent storms, he had never seen such a spectacle.
What the hell is that thing?
Boris was equally shocked, and the cigar in his hand finally fell onto the deck, but he no longer cared about the regret.
"Return to the cabin," Stone said.
Ivan immediately realized this was bad news, and as captain, he shouted, "Back to the cabin, quick!"
Although reluctant to look away from the awe-inspiring sight, the well-trained veterans obeyed orders and quickly left the deck one by one, entering the submarine's cabin.
Ivan waited until Stone got off the boat before disembarking and closing the hatch.
Boris couldn't help but ask, " Mr. Stone, what the hell is that? Could it be an alien star destroyer attacking Earth?"
His question was also the question of all the crew members.
Stone didn't return to his lounge; instead, he went into the command center with the others. He smiled and said to Boris, "What if you guessed right?"
"Oh, then let's fucking kill it! Shoot its ass with torpedoes!"
"Hey Boris, how do you know aliens have butts? Have you ever done it?"
Everyone in the cabin burst into laughter.
Boris was amused and laughed, saying, "If they don't have butts, they should do something else. They should at least have a hole or something!"
Stone was quite pleased with their joking manner, thinking to himself that they were indeed seasoned veterans of the sea, able to remain optimistic even in such a situation. Of course, the money he had just transferred to them via satellite network at sea also played a crucial role. These people risked their lives to go out to sea, just to earn some money so their families could have a better life.
But jokes aside, no one was really laughing like that with the book. Everyone was at their posts, doing their jobs. Some were watching the instruments, some were watching the periscope, and some were testing the submarine's power. They just looked relaxed and didn't seem to be on high alert.
Ivan meticulously inspected the work at each post, listening to their reports. He was a rigorous man; others could joke around freely, but he couldn't. He had called all these people here, and although he knew they weren't afraid of death, he felt responsible for protecting them and hoping they would all return alive—something he prayed for every mission.
Soon, a crew member who had been observing the periscope reported, " Ivan, it seems we're surrounded by those monstrous things."
Ivan looked at Stone: "Sir..."
Stone waved his hand at him and said, "The mission is over. The rest is about how to get back. Now you're the commander, so everything is up to you."
Ivan nodded and immediately ordered the other crew members, "Activate all active sonar and magnetic detection equipment."
"Report: Sonar equipment is functioning normally; unable to detect the presence of those objects."
"Report: Magnetic detection in progress; magnetic interference detected."
"Identify the location and slip through the gap between them."
"Report: Magnetic interference is everywhere; magnetic detection cannot pinpoint the location accurately."
Ivan shoved aside the crew member who was looking through the periscope, brought his own eyes close to the observation port, and ordered, "Port 25, forward 3."
"Yes, left rudder 25, forward 3."
The submarine rocked slightly and turned on the surface of the sea. Ivan could see through the periscope that the submarine was heading towards the gap between the two inverted pyramids.
However, as the submarine moved, those things that looked like inverted icebergs also began to swirl and change in an ethereal way.
"Fuck! "Ivan cursed inwardly.
"Slow down, right rudder five, forward one."
"Yes, slow down, right rudder five, forward one."
"Maintain course, proceed two."
"Yes, maintain course, proceed two steps."
Ivan guided the submarine's movement entirely by visual observation, which required extensive maritime experience; otherwise, they might have collided with whatever was in front of them. He had no idea what would happen if they did.
Although those objects are undetectable by sonar and only cause magnetic interference, theoretically they are not physical objects, and at most, a collision with them would only cause the submarine's electronic equipment to malfunction. However, he did not want to take the risk. In case something unpredictable happened, or even if it was just an electronic equipment malfunction, if it could not be repaired, the chances of the submarine returning to the vast Pacific Ocean would be very slim.
However, things didn't go so smoothly. Not only were these inverted pyramids moving, making them difficult to pinpoint, but more importantly, their number was also hard to determine. Ivan couldn't see them from a distance before, but now that he was closer, he discovered that even when passing between two pyramids, there were still countless shadowy figures behind them.
He adjusted the periscope's angle and looked at the very tops of the towers, which were about four or five hundred feet high. Because they were upside down, the flat upper parts looked like they were connected in a line.
"Prepare to descend," he commanded.
"Yes, prepare to descend."
"Six hundred feet deep."
"Yes, it's descending."
"One hundred feet."
Two hundred feet.
Six hundred feet.
Ivan left the periscope; at this depth, nothing could be seen through it. Submarines underwater rely solely on electronic equipment.
How are the sonar and magnetic detection capabilities?
"Report: Sonar is working perfectly."
"Report: The magnetic interference persists; those things are still there."
"Continue descending."
"Yes, continue descending, 650 feet... 700 feet..."
"How about it?"
"Report: No changes."
"Continue descending."
"Yes, continue descending, 750 feet... 800 feet..."
Ivan asked again, and the magnetic field test showed that those things were still around them.
"Continue descending."
"We're reaching our maximum depth if we descend any further," a veteran warned. "The guy we're in is about the same age as my father; he might not be able to handle it."
How could Ivan not know? But he had inspected the submarine; it was very well maintained and could withstand its maximum depth without much trouble. What worried him was that diving down would lead to the same result. What difference was there between nine hundred feet and eight hundred feet? He even suspected that even if they could dive to the bottom of the Pacific Ocean, those things would still be there.
He steeled his resolve and commanded, "Dive!"
"Yes, dive."
The submarine quickly reached its maximum depth, but as expected, judging from the magnetic interference, those things had not disappeared.
Ivan remained silent, lost in thought. Everyone looked at him; the pressure of the deep sea at nine hundred feet seemed to penetrate through the bulkhead, making the command room feel oppressive and stifling.
"Screw it, just run it over there, maybe there'll be nothing there!" Boris couldn't help but say, then yelled at Ivan, who was still thinking, "Hey Ivan, when the hell did you become such a coward?"
Ivan ignored him and instead looked at Arthur Stone, saying, " Mr. Stone, don't you have anything to say to us?"