Mind Games

By Chris B.

“Well this ought to interesting,” said Admiral Harriman Nelson founder of the Nelson Institute for Marine Research to no one in particular as he read through his mail.

“And what might that be,” answered Lee Crane, captain of Nelson’s research submarine Seaview, as he ambled into his bosses office bearing hot coffee and Danish. He quickly set the box down on the conference table and carried the coffee over to the desk.

Harri smiled at both his friend and the goodies he brought with him. “Ah good morning Lee,” Harri answered. “We received an invitation from Dorian Shinera to visit his island off the coast of China in the Coral Sea next month to view the ocean preserve he is establishing to protect extremely rare and endangered species of coral indigenous to the area. He apparently is hosting an open house so to speak for a number of scientists to examine his marine preserve.” As he accepted the cup of coffee he passed the invitation over to Lee for his inspection.

“I don’t recall hearing his name before, sir. I take it he’s an expert in corals,” Lee replied after scanning the note. “Interesting that he should invite me, instead of other more knowledgeable members of the NIMR marine biology staff to take a look at his refuge.”

“He’s not a scientist per se; more along the lines of a VERY wealthy industrialist who managed to keep his wealth and make it grow after China took over sovereignty of Hong Kong. He’s got his fingers in a lot of different pots and has pretty much done as he pleases with little interference from the Chinese government. He apparently purchased a large block of the offshore from China with the understanding that he we would work to restore and preserve the vanishing eco systems.” Nelson replied.

“So you’ve dealt with him before?”

“No, not directly; he made some inquiries regarding the coral species in the area and asked for recommendations on improving the environment to enhance their growth and recovery. Eric Davies down in the marine biology department has been his main point of contact and I think that only accounted for a couple of exchanges .” Harri answered as he sipped on his coffee and walked over to the conference table to scrutinize the pastries before him.

“Then I’m definitely surprised that he didn’t invite Eric to see how his advice was incorporated into the refuge plan. Are you planning to take him up on his invitation?” Lee asked. He smiled as Harri grabbed the large cheese Danish and moved back to his desk. Jamie was out of town for the week and it was the perfect opportunity to indulge while the cat was away.

“Mmmm, oh god Lee this is good! Where did you get it?” Harri said as the flakey crumbs of Danish dropped from his lips onto his shirt front and sprayed across his desk.

Lee couldn’t contain himself and laughed at the sheer little boy look of delight on his friend’s face as he indulged in the forbidden treat. “There’s a new bakery and coffee house on the way into work, I was running early this morning so figured I’d stop by and check it out. I thought I’d check in with you first before the bottomless pit gets here and inhales them all.” Lee replied referring to his best friend and XO Chip Morton.

“You can be late any morning you want if you bring these in with you,” Harri chuckled as he wiped the rest of the crumbs off his face and shirt front. “Back to your question, yes I’m giving serious thought to us accepting his invite to check things out. I’ve not had much opportunity to investigate those waters so to have the Chinese government’s blessing to do so is a chance I can’t pass up. Plus our next mission will take us in the general area as we will be conducting an ocean survey for the Philippines government.”

“Well I’m up for it. I haven’t really had an opportunity to dive those waters casually either,” Lee answered with a wink. He had made a number of clandestine dives that took him to shore but that’s not something he could really admit to doing.

Harri rolled his eyes at Lee’s oblique reference to his ONI duties and scowled a bit as he took another bite of his Danish. “The area he’s set the refuge up in is quite remote so it is unlikely you’ve been there.”

Lee laughed again at Harri’s rapt expression as he noshed on the buttery pastry and decadent filling. “Yes sir, that’s probably true. - So would you like another pastry sir? If not I’ll troll by Chip’s office and watch the human vacuum inhale them.”

“By all means take them. No doubt Jamie will immediately recognize I’ve strayed badly from my diet thanks to you and come after me with a vengeance. If he comes after me I’m fingering you as the culprit for my fall from grace.” Harri replied smiling at his captain and surrogate son as he picked up his treats and headed out the door.

“Oh thanks a lot sir. I’ll keep that in mind next time I get the urge to splurge and treat you to something nice.” Lee replied with a laugh as he sauntered down the hall towards Chip’s office.

QQQQQQ

Seaview had been on-station for over two weeks off the northern coast of the Philippines conducting the fish and general ocean survey for the government. It was early morning and Lee and Chip were positioned at the chart table reviewing the chart of the area updating which transects had been completed and deciding which direction to head for the day’s survey. As they focused on the map their attention was drawn towards the staircase as they heard the clatter of footsteps descending rapidly. Looking up they both smiled as they spied the admiral coming down to join them. He smiled back and waved the sheet of paper he held in his hand at them as he walked over to the table.

“Good morning sir,” Lee said. “What have you got there?”

“Morning Lee, Chip. It’s an email from Shinera with all the details and arrangements for our visit to his island preserve.” Harri replied, a twinkle of excitement lighting his eyes.

“So you’re still intent on us going out and seeing his setup, huh sir?” Lee answered.

“Why wouldn’t we Lee?” Harri responded somewhat surprised by Lee’s question and tone.

“I’ve been doing a little more research on Mr. Shinera and in addition to being one of the favored few in China; he has very strong ties with the People’s Republic. Based on what I’ve been able to uncover his activities are a little more involved than just common trade, sir.”

“What have you uncovered, Lee?” Harri asked.

“His companies have been providing high end surveillance systems, targeting systems, large quantities of chemicals and a host of metals that tend to be used in weapons research and computer software used in advanced military game simulations. Not just the innocuous trade goods you see him providing to his other customers around the globe. That alone makes me more than a little wary of him sir.”

“My, you have been busy,” Harri answered with a chuckle. “What’s ONI’s read on him? Is he viewed as a major threat?”

“He’s a person of interest.” Lee replied noncommittally.

“I’m surprised ONI didn’t jump on the opportunity for you to get on his island and into his compound to do a little surreptitious snooping.”

“Who says they haven’t? I still have my concerns about going out to his facility. At least we can use FS-1 so we can leave when we are ready.” Lee responded.

“Oh come on now Lee, he’s invited a number of well-known and respected marine biologists to view his preserve. I seriously doubt he would allow the PR to do anything that would draw negative attention to his operation, especially with those he’s asked to come out to the island. As to using FS-1, that’s out. He’s made arrangements for everyone to meet in Manila and board his private jet for a flight out to his island,” Nelson rebutted. Harri could easily read the disquiet in his captain’s expression. He didn’t like losing control of their ability to come and go as they pleased, especially in this situation.

“How many people has he invited sir?” Chip asked.

“Based on the routing list it looks like there are at least twelve including us, invited to tour his preserve. I don’t know how many have accepted or who else may be coming along with the invited guests,” Harri answered. “I suppose we’ll find that out when we get to the airport in Manila.”

“Aye sir,” Lee replied rather nonplussed at the fact the decision had already been made. “Do we need to bring our own dive gear?”

“His email indicates that he’ll provide the gear, but other than the tanks, I’m inclined to bring my own. I just feel more comfortable using my own gear and knowing that it is in operational order and well maintained,” Harri said recognizing Lee would feel very much the same way.

“I heartily concur with that sir. When does this grand tour occur, Admiral?” Lee inquired.

“We’re to all meet at the Manila international airport in two days to catch a 0900 flight out to his island on his personal jet. According to the email it’s about a three hour flight to his facility. We’ll get a briefing on what they’ve done and what their future plans are then spend the rest of the day diving the reefs, come in for dinner and return for a night dive to see the other denizens. The following morning we can snorkel the near shore if we wish then we’ll depart the island at 1500 for Manila,” Harri replied.

Lee quickly perused the chart lying on the table and pointed to a small group of islands about 30 miles offshore mainland China. “Wow that is remote sir. No doubt keeps the tourist crowd down,” he chuckled.

“That it is,” Harri answered looking down at the location Lee indicated. “Well gentlemen, I don’t want to delay us any longer conducting our current survey so I’ll get out of your hair and head on down to the lab so you can get us moving on to the next survey location.”

“Aye sir,” Lee answered. “We were just about to select a heading before you came down. Do you have any preferences for today?”

“Surprise me,” Harri replied with a smile and clapped Lee on the back as he headed towards the aft hatch and down to his lab. “Just let me know when we’ve arrived.”

“Yes sir,” Lee responded and turned his attention back to the map laid out before him. Chip likewise moved to the table and began perusing the chart.

“Got a funny feeling about this visit Lee?” Chip inquired after the admiral had left the conn.

“I just don’t trust the guy Chip. Anybody that is that well connected with the upper echelons of both the Chinese and PR governments makes me nervous.”

“I can understand that. I’m surprised the admiral isn’t a little more suspect of the man, unless I’m reading him wrong.”

“Oh I’m sure he’s researched him as much or more than I have and apparently feels that the invitation to check out his preserve is safe enough with all the other people he’s invited. I’m sure it’s just the spook in me but I’ve got a feeling he has some ulterior motives.” Lee replied.

“I take it then you will be taking precautions?” Chip asked.

“That’s a given Chip. I do that regardless of where the admiral goes. Let’s just say I’m very happy he’s decided to let us bring our own dive gear.” Lee answered with a smile.

QQQQQQ

The ensuing two days passed quickly as the Seaview crew concentrated on conducting their surveys, fish counts and collecting a variety of samples for analysis. During that time Lee fitted his gear with various secreted devices to hopefully ensure they could contact Seaview if something really was amiss at the preserve. He did the same thing with the admiral’s equipment to make sure there was redundancy should something break or be discovered by their host. Once finished he had everything loaded on FS-1 for their trip into Manila.

Having completed an early morning walk-a-boat to touch base with his crew before he departed, Lee poured a cup of coffee and settled into a chair on the admiral’s porch to await his traveling companion. As usual the boat was in prime condition so all Lee had to concentrate on was the upcoming trip and tour of Shinera’s coral preserve. Finding the weather topside warm and calm he ordered Seaview to the surface so the crew would be able to get some fresh air and relax on deck before the day’s scheduled surveys began. Sipping on his coffee he was drawn from his reverie by the sound of footsteps descending the staircase. Upon seeing the admiral he immediately began to rise.

“Sit Lee, relax for a bit,” Nelson said as he entered the nose and moved to the sideboard to grab a cup of coffee himself. “Is everything ready for our trip?”

“Yes sir,” he answered. “All our dive gear along with our personal bags have been loaded, we can depart any time you’re ready.”

“Fine, fine. The flight to Manila shouldn’t take much more than an hour so we have a few minutes to sit and enjoy the view,” Nelson replied as he watched the first rays of sunlight begin to illuminate the horizon.

They both sat there silently watching the sunrise, sipping on their coffee, enjoying each other’s company and a moment of peace before it was time climb aboard FS-1 to head to Manila. As the sun seemed to float lightly on the ocean surface Chip descended the stairs and smiled as he took in his commanding officers relaxing as only could be done on Seaview.

“Morning sirs,” Chip said as he walked to the sideboard for a cup of coffee.

“Morning Chip,” Lee answered.

“Are you already to head out to Manila?”

“Yep. My boat is in good shape and will be in excellent hands while I’m gone so I’m ready to go have fun.” Lee replied with slight smile.

Despite Lee’s upbeat words Chip easily detected the hint of concern lurking in his eyes. “Well I’ll make sure your Gray Lady is well taken care of in your absence.” Lee nodded knowing Chip was every bit as protective of the Seaview as he was.

They continued to watch the sun’s ascent as they sipped quietly on their coffee. Having finished his cup, Harri rose from his chair and stretched, “Well what say we get this show on the road?”

“I’m ready to ride,” Lee responded with a smile as he also stood. He moved over to the chart table and picked up the mic. “Kowalski, this is the captain, report to the nose.”

“Kowalski here, on my way Skipper,” Ski replied almost immediately. He’d drawn duty to fly FS-1 back from Manila so he grabbed his flight jacket and headed up to the nose. As soon as he arrived they quickly climbed down into FS-1 and were away.

QQQQQQ

The flight to Manila was quick taking just under an hour. Lee deftly landed FS-1 on the private landing strip they were directed to and taxied over to the parking area. Once the craft came to a halt, Lee and Ski powered down the sub while Harri began opening the storage compartments and pulling their bags out. Ski quickly unbuckled his harness and moved to the aft hatch, opened it and stepped outside ready to take the bags being passed to him. As they completed unloading their gear they spied a man dressed in a pilot’s uniform heading their way.

“Good morning,” the man hailed. “Admiral Nelson and Commander Crane I believe.”

“Yes, that’s us,” responded Nelson.

“Welcome to Manila sir,” he said extending his hand to the admiral. “I’m Thomas Aquino, your pilot for the next segment of your journey.”

“Nice to meet you Captain, as you surmised I am Harriman Nelson and this is my captain Lee Crane.” Harri answered shaking the man’s hand. Lee smiled and nodded.

“Gentlemen if you would follow me into the departure lounge, you can wait there with the other passengers until we’re ready to depart. Just leave your bags here and the ground crew will ensure they are loaded on the plane,” Aquino said as he motioned to a large corporate jet parked off to their right.

“Wow, some ride,” muttered Kowalski.

“You got that right,” replied Lee. “Ski head on back to Seaview and remind Mr. Morton not to scratch the paint while we’re away.”

“Aye sir,” Ski answered with a chuckle. “I’ll see you tomorrow evening sir.”

As Ski returned to FS-1 and started taxiing to the active runway Lee and Harri picked up their carryon bags containing their regulators and dive gauges and followed the pilot into the building. They entered a large comfortable lounge area outfitted with plush chairs, computer terminals, large screen TVs, and a full bar. Across the room was a long sideboard filled with fresh fruits, pastries and other breakfast items for the waiting passengers.

There were already 5 other people in the lounge scattered across the room. Harri immediately recognized one of those assembled, an older man with long white hair seated in one of the wingback chairs. Upon spying Nelson the man rose and called out his name.

“Harriman Nelson, you old seadog good to see you’ve been paroled.”

“Zach Lindstrom, I thought you were dead,” Harri replied in jest and eagerly moved across the room to greet his old friend. “My god Zach how long has it been?”

They shook hands enthusiastically as they renewed their friendship. “Good to see you Harri. I think the last time we were together was that conference in Frankfurt in 2000 as we were trying to evade the Polizei after the bar fight,” he answered.

Harri immediately blushed recalling their misadventures following a rather ribald time on the town after the presentations had finished for the day. Lee looked on with a very amused smirk taking in the admiral’s sheepish grin.

“No one should follow up that many beers with that many shots of Jägermeister,” Nelson said with a shudder.

“Bar fight?” inquired Lee his eyebrows arched high.

Harri glared at him for a moment then chuckled. “Dr. Zach Lindstrom, noted marine biologist and bad influence, I’d like to introduce the captain of the Seaview Commander Lee Crane.”

Lee and Lindstrom shook hands. “It’s a pleasure to meet you Dr. Lindstrom.”

“Please call me Zach and the pleasure is mine Commander.”

“Please make it Lee. I think we’ll have to spend quite a bit of time together Zach, I want to hear all about this bar fight and evading the law,” Lee replied with a chuckle. Harri just rolled his eyes and sighed.

“Ah the indiscretions of middle age,” laughed Lindstrom.

They chatted about what had been happening since they had last seen each other as additional people filtered into the room bringing the total number of passengers to 10. At precisely 0900 Dorian Shinera entered the room to greet his guests.

QQQQQQ

Shinera walked to the sideboard, picked up a champagne flute and a knife and tapped it drawing the attention of those assembled. “Honored guests, I am your host Dorian Shinera. I would like to thank you all for taking time out of your busy schedules to travel here to visit our little preserve project. I have been in contact with many of you or members of your staff soliciting advice and information regarding the rescue and restoration of the coral reefs in this region and I think it only fair that I now show you how all your kind input has been put to use. We will be boarding the plane shortly for our trip out to my private island so I would ask you to gather your belongings. Once we’re airborne I’ll be giving you a brief on what we can expect for the next day and a half and we can all make our introductions.”

Following his announcement, one of the flight crew opened the door leading out to the tarmac and requested that they prepare to board. Everyone began to queue up at the door and provided the steward their name for the flight manifest. Once names had been verified they were escorted out the door, over to the waiting jet and climbed aboard.

They all moved quickly to claim a seat and buckled their seatbelts in preparation for take-off. The crew conducted a quick safety briefing and the jet began taxiing onto the runway. When the jet was aloft and the seatbelt sign turned off, Shinera got up and beckoned his guests to join him in the lounge area in the aft portion of the plane. The flight stewards quickly got drink orders from the group and served them along with light snacks.

“As I said earlier, welcome and I hope you enjoy your tour and find our efforts to conserve and preserve the diminishing corals in these waters a good step in the right direction. I am your host Dorian Shinera. I’m sure you’re all quite aware that I’m not particularly versed in these animals and their eco-system but my contribution is to establish the preserve and protect it to the best of my abilities. I’m a businessman with the assets to make that happen and have relied on you all for your expertise and advice.”

“So now that you know a bit about me, why don’t we go around and have everyone introduce themselves and tell us all about your areas of expertise and interest. Would you care to start Dr. Lindstrom?”

The group provided quick biographies about themselves. In addition to Nelson and Crane, there was Lindstrom from the University of Life Sciences in Oslo, two researchers from the University of Queensland in Brisbane, Australia; two from the Polytechnic University of the Philippines in Manila, two from the University of Science and Technology in Beijing, and one from Chulalongkorn University in Thailand.

After introductions the group mingled and chatted with their host and each other learning more about their colleague’s experience and expertise. As the scientists were busily discussing Shinera’s project, Lee excused himself from the group and moved back to his seat to collect something from his carryon. The more he was around their host the less convinced he was of the man’s altruistic intents, at least as far as he and Nelson were concerned. Wanting to know exactly where they were Lee, pulled out his GPS unit disguised as an MP3 player and turned it on. So intent on establishing their location he missed the approach of his host and was slightly startled when he spoke to him.

“Coral not your cup of tea, Captain?” Shinera asked.

Lee blushed somewhat and smiled apologetically. “Once they start delving beyond the exoskeleton and into the biology of the organism I soon find myself over my head, so to speak,” Lee responded with a slight chuckle.

Shinera smiled and motioned to the seat next to Lee. “May I?”

“By all means,” replied Lee. Shinera moved into the vacant seat.

“I have to admit I feel much the same way you do,” he said with a small laugh. “I find the coral beautiful and can appreciate its place in the ecosystem of a healthy sea but much beyond the basics of the critters I find myself awash as well.”

Lee nodded his head in agreement. “I have to tell you I was surprised when you included me in your invitation to tour your preserve. I would have thought you’d want the specialists you consulted with at NIMR as opposed to just a sub jockey.”

“You sell yourself short Captain; if through no other process than osmosis given your close working relationship with Admiral Nelson, I’m certain you’re far more versed in these animals and ecosystems than most specialists. You impress me as a curious man who strives to educate himself to deal effectively in whatever situation or environment he finds himself. I also must admit that having photos of you and Admiral Nelson touring our project will add a certain degree of credibility and PR value a pure academic researcher could never garner. Face it Lindstrom is one of the rock stars in this scientific niche but I’d wager you’d be hard pressed to find anyone outside the community that knows Zach. Nelson on the other hand is larger than life as are you Captain and draw attention wherever you go. The goal here ultimately is to turn this into a tourist destination to help fund improvements and maintenance and having world famous personalities such as Harriman Nelson and you approving of our efforts can only help.” Shinera replied.

Lee laughed. “I’m not so certain about myself, but I do agree with your assessment regarding the admiral. I can relate to your desire for marketing. I’ve found myself being much more of a spokesman and pitchman for NIMR than I ever expected. In the Navy my job never entailed drawing attention to what I was doing; actually quite the contrary, my superiors tended to get upset if that occurred.”

“Well Captain relax and enjoy the ride, you’re going to have a busy couple of days with all I have planned for you,” Shinera said as he rose from the seat and moved to rejoin his other guests. Lee found himself somewhat unsettled by the verbal inflection Shinera used on the words ‘planned for you’ and the enigmatic smile that went along with his host’s words.

Once Shinera had walked back to the lounge area, Lee quickly checked the readout on his equipment. Thus far all was as it should be and they were on course for the island. He slipped the device in the outer pocket of his bag, sat back in his seat and closed his eyes to grab a quick nap before they arrived.

QQQQQQ

Twenty minutes out from the island, the pilots alerted the crew to prepare the cabin for landing. Lee returned his seat to the upright position and tightened his seatbelt as the passengers still in the lounge area returned to their seats.

Harri walked back and sat down next to Lee. “Have a nice nap?” he asked with a smile.

“Yes sir I did,” Lee replied smiling as well. “I’m sorry sir, but I was having a tough time getting into the mating habits of hermatypic corals as exciting as synchronous broadcast spawning is.”

Harri laughed loudly at Lee and clapped him on the arm. “I suppose we do get a little caught up in the intricacies of the animal.”

Lee reached down and removed his MP3 player from his bag and checked on their headings. All seemed to be in order when suddenly the screen began to waiver and eventually went blank when the signal from the GPS satellite was lost.

“What the hell?” Lee said under his breath as he cycled the device on and off trying to reestablish contact.

“What?” inquired Harri quietly.

“I just lost contact with the GPS satellite. My unit is working fine, it’s as though the signal is being jammed somehow.”

As he said that they felt the doors for the landing gear open and the wheels lowered into position for landing. Seconds later the aircraft touched lightly down on the tarmac, the pilots applied the brakes then taxied over to a large hangar located at the far end of the runway.

Nelson looked at Lee. “Anything yet?”

“No sir, the signal is definitely being jammed by something here on the island. Once we are shown our rooms, I’ll check out my sat phone, but I’m not optimistic about getting a signal now.”

As the plane pulled to a stop the seatbelt sign was turned off and the passengers and crew prepared to disembark. They filed down the steps, got aboard a van and were driven to a large house near the beach. It was an impressive three story structure with large white columns lining the front, massive double teak front doors, huge windows, a wraparound covered porch and a pitched roof covered with terra cotta tiles. The van pulled up to the front steps and the passengers disembarked.

“Dorian,” Lindstrom called out. “I’m not getting a signal on my cell phone. I need to check with my associates regarding an experiment we’re working on; do you have a means for me to contact them?”

“Yes, I have a satellite communications system set up and you should be able to contact your associates from the phones in your rooms. There are dialing instructions provided in the folio next to the phones.” Shinera replied as he indicated they should enter the house. “You’ll all be shown to your rooms now and we will assemble in the dining room in an hour for lunch. Once we’re done eating we’ll get back aboard the van and be driven to the dock where we’ll get on the dive boat and head out for our dives.”

Staff members stepped forward introducing themselves to the guests and escorted them to their rooms. As they followed their guide Harri and Lee noticed they seemed to be the only ones on the third floor. They were led to an opulent suite with two massive bedrooms and a common sitting room in between on the far end of the third floor. Once their guide had left Lee opened his carryon bag pulled out his satellite phone and turned it on. He was less than thrilled to discover it too could not receive a signal. He looked at Harri and shook his head letting him know that their only means of communication for the moment was Shinera’s system.

Lee felt the kernel of concern he had about this whole trip start growing at an alarming rate. He moved over to the phone and quickly perused the dialing instructions in the folio lying next to it. He picked up the receiver and placed a call to Seaview.

QQQQQQ

“Mr. Morton, I have the skipper on the line for your sir,” Sparks called out.

“I’ll be right there,” Chip replied and walked across the conn to the radio shack. “This is Morton.”

“Chip, it’s Lee. I thought I’d let you know we made it safe and sound to the island.”

“Good to hear Skipper,” Chip answered. “How’s it look?”

“Well the accommodations are amazing. We’ll be heading out for our dives in a couple hours. If you should need to contact us while we’re here you’ll need to call the following number… There’s no other service available.”

Chip grabbed a piece of paper and wrote down the number. It was clear from Lee’s message that they were pretty much incommunicado other than the service provided by Shinera. That fact immediately put Chip on alert. “That’s good to know Lee. Everything is smooth sailing here so I doubt that we’ll have much need to get in touch. We’ve just completed our current survey and are planning to move on to grid number 69 this evening. Just kick back and enjoy the break.”

“Good to hear Chip. If everything holds to schedule we should be back in Manila tomorrow by 1800 hours,” Lee replied.

“I’ll have Ski there waiting for you. Have fun.”

“We will, be talking to you later. Bye.” Lee answered then hung up the phone.

“How are things going?” asked Harri.

“Chip says all’s well and to have fun. He said they completed their survey for the day and will be moving on to grid 69 later today.”

Harri nodded recognizing that there was no grid 69 and Lee had just placed Seaview on alert. He had to smile in appreciation of Lee’s constant vigilance. “That’s good to hear. Well how about we get changed and head on down for lunch?”

“Sounds like a plan sir,” Lee said as he picked up his bag and moved into his room. Once inside he pulled his regulator and dive computer out of his bag and turned it on. He surreptitiously strolled about the room fiddling with the device as though he were calibrating it. He stared intently at the display and frowned slightly as the various indicators illuminated; they were being monitored.

Lee put the gear back in his bag then opened his suitcase and pulled out his swimming suit and a pair of shorts, a tee shirt and deck shoes. He quickly stripped off his clothes and donned his suit then pulled on the shorts, tee and shoes. Now dressed, he grabbed his bag and returned to the sitting room to await the admiral.

Harri joined him shortly attired much the same way. Lee made eye contact with him as he entered the room and casually rubbed his right ear and eye letting Harri know that someone was monitoring their activities. He nodded his acknowledgement and moved to the other end of the sofa and sat down as well.

“All ready Lee?”

“Yes sir,” Lee replied. “I’m really getting excited about diving the reefs around here. It looked great from the air; it will be interesting to see how things are offshore and up close. ”

“I totally agree. We’re a tad early but what say we head on downstairs and look things over before lunch.” Harri offered.

“Definitely, sir. If the rest of the house is anything like these rooms it should be something to see.” With that they grabbed their bags, exited their room and headed down the stairs to scope out the house.

Harri and Lee strolled casually throughout the open areas of the house cataloging everything around them. They made a show of stopping from time to time to admire the paintings and sculptures that adorned the house. They also made note of cameras and motion detectors positioned in the various rooms along with alarms positioned on the windows and doors; most odd for a house in the middle of nowhere.

As they completed their “tour” of the house they heard the voices of the other guests as they made their way down the stairway to the dining room. Lee and Harri moved to the dining room to join the group for lunch.

QQQQQQ

Once everyone was assembled and seated, the wait staff entered the room with trays of sandwiches, salads, and fresh fruit. Since they were going to be diving shortly the lighter fare was appreciated by all. They filled their plates as the various items were passed around and chatted amiably as they ate their meal.

When everyone had finished, their host rose to address the group. “It looks as though we’ve all had enough to eat, so let’s adjourn, get aboard the van for our trip to the boat and get this dive party started.” Shinera said with a smile.

The group nodded enthusiastically as they got up from the table, picked up their bags and quickly headed out the front door to the waiting van. The trip to the dock took about 10 minutes as the van drove the two miles to the dock through dense jungle. Harri and Lee once again cataloged the surrounding area spotting a number of cameras positioned in the trees as they drove by. The van pulled to a stop in front of the dock and everyone filed out and moved immediately to the waiting boat.

The boat was a fully functional dive boat set up with scuba tanks and refill station, individual gear stations for each passenger, freshwater showers, holding tanks for any specimens brought aboard and lounge area on the top deck where people could relax between dives. Once the last person was aboard they shoved off for the 45 minute trip out to their first dive location.

As they motored out everyone set to assembling and checking their equipment for the dive. When the boat arrived a briefing on the dive protocols and duration of the dive was given by the boat’s captain and then everyone immediately hit the water anxious to inspect the area around them.

The dive went well and the scientists were especially impressed by the obvious recent growth of coral in the area and the presence of fish that rely on the corals for food and shelter. They were all busily taking pictures and recording video. As the specialists focused on the sea life Lee moved out of sight of the main group and toggled on his GPS. Much to his relief it immediately acquired a signal giving him a location. Lee also toggled on his locator transponder letting Chip know he had found an area where he could get a signal out. He transmitted a brief message then shut the device off and eased his way back amongst the other divers.

The ninety minutes allotted for the dive passed quickly and at the sound of the recall siren everyone stopped what they were doing and returned to the boat. The divers were quickly helped aboard and when everyone was accounted for the captain hauled anchor and headed for the next spot closer to shore.

“I was most impressed Dorian,” Nelson commented to his host. “The amount of re-colonization and growth you’ve been able to foster in such a short amount of time is truly amazing.”

“Thank you Harri, I’m glad to hear you like what we’ve been able to accomplish. Some of the key recommendations for accelerating the colonization came from your man Davies. He has been a real help in getting things moving,” Shinera replied.

“Eric is one of the best in his field. I’ll pass on your kind words and the pictures of this dramatic change in the coral colonies; he’ll be green with envy.” Harri said. “I look forward to our next stop.”

“We should be there shortly, so just kick back and relax for a few moments.”

Harri nodded and moved over to where Lee was moving their gear from the spent tanks to the new ones placed at their stations. “Well Lee what did you think?”

“The comparison between the before and after is quite striking,” Lee answered. “I think I was most impressed by the diversity of corals they’ve reestablished. Everything was so clear,” he added knowing Harri would understand his meaning.

“I’m glad to hear you enjoyed yourself. I’m anxious to check out the next site and then the night dive later this evening.”

“Me too,” replied Lee as he continued to manipulate his dive computer. He was still getting signals until they arrived at the second dive site a little less than a mile offshore. He suddenly found the signal to be intermittent making it difficult to accurately establish a position.

As the captain dropped anchor, the divers once again donned their gear and dropped over the side to inspect reef below. The regeneration in this area was even more pronounced than the first site and the biologist busily investigated the area from top to bottom capturing photos and video of the entire area. Lee meanwhile spent his time trying to delineate where the jamming of the signals from the satellites began and ended.

The diver recall siren was set off two hours later and the divers quickly returned to the boat and clambered aboard chatting excitedly about the corals and fish they had observed on their dive. Once all were aboard the captain hauled anchor and returned to the dock. When the boat was secured the passengers disembarked and boarded the van to return to the mansion to rinse off, relax and have dinner before the night dive scheduled for later that evening. As Lee prepared to leave the boat he picked up his and the admiral’s regulators and made for the dock.

“Lee you may leave your gear on the boat, we’ll be coming back for the night dive later this evening,” Shinera said as he spotted Crane with the regs tossed over his shoulder.

“Oh thanks but I had a bit of a problem with my regulator and think I may have either a cracked O-ring or one that’s just not seated securely. I’m going to check the admiral’s as well just to be on the safe side,” Lee answered as he stepped of the boat.

“Of course, one can never be too careful with your breathing equipment. If you need any tools or parts just let one of my staff know what you need and they’ll get it for you.”

“Thank you Dorian I appreciate that very much,” Lee said with a smile as he walked to the van.

QQQQQQ

As the van pulled to a stop in front of the house Shinera rose from his seat and faced his guests. “Everyone we will be serving dinner at 7 p.m. and then we’ll be loading up again for our last dive of the day. We will be heading off to the other side of the island for your diving pleasure this evening and if all goes according to plan we should hit the water around 10 just in time for the night life to be in full action. Please go dry off and relax for a bit. There will be light hors d’oeuvres and beverages starting at 6 in the parlor if you are so inclined.”

With that Shinera got off the van and was quickly followed by the other passengers. They made their way up to their rooms to clean up for dinner, download their video and pictures and just kick back for a bit before the next activities began. Harri and Lee likewise made their way back to their rooms and freshened up.

When Harri entered the sitting room between their suites, Lee was already seated on one of the couches working on his dive computer trying to get a signal. He looked up at Harri and shook his head no indicating that nothing was coming in or going out. Nelson frowned and sat on sofa across from Lee.

“So did you get your reg fixed Lee,” Harri asked.

“Yes sir, it was a cracked O ring and I’ve replaced it. I checked your unit out as well and everything is operational.”

“That’s good to hear so we’re all set for tonight.”

Lee nodded. He also shot a telling glance at the large painting above the mantel on the far wall letting Nelson know that he had located monitoring devices in the room. This was becoming more and more unsettling and Lee definitely needed to discuss the implications with the admiral someplace where they would not be overheard.

“I was thinking about taking a walk around the island a bit before the “cocktail hour” sir, would you like to join me?” Lee asked innocently.

“Yes I’d like that. I was quite intrigued by some of the vegetation we saw on our way to the dock and was hoping to get a chance to investigate it further. Let me go put on my shoes and we can head out,” Harri replied. He got up and went into his room.

As he returned to the sitting room he saw Lee putting their regs in his backpack and zipping it shut. Lee smiled then slung the pack on his shoulder, picked up a camera and moved to the door. “Shall we sir?”

They exited the room and descended the stairs to the foyer. As they moved towards the front door one of Shinera’s people moved forward to greet them. “Is there something I can help you with gentlemen?” the man asked.

“No we’re fine,” replied Harri. “The captain and I are just going to stroll around the grounds a bit and check out the local flora and fauna, if that’s all right.”

“Of course, sir. I must warn you to stay alert as there are a number of poisonous snakes in the underbrush, so I would stick to the main roads or the beach.”

“Thank you for the advice. We should be back by six.” Nelson responded as he turned to follow Lee out the door. They walked quickly away from the house chatting about what they had observed on the dive and other aspects of their visit until they were well away from the house.

Odds were that they were still being observed but they hoped it would be more difficult for them to be overheard. “Well sir as best as I can tell all types of signals inbound or out are being jammed out to about three quarters of a mile offshore. That’s got to take some serious power to accomplish that. The question is to what purpose.” Lee said softly.

“That is the question. There’s no doubt that Shinera is actively engaged in restoring the reefs in the area but I wonder what his activities hide if he’s limiting signal access to and from the island. There’s nothing above ground as far as I can tell so the only other option is subterranean,” Harri posited his voice also kept low.

“I did manage to activate my personal location transponder on our first dive and I sent Chip a quick message letting him know our coordinates. They’re on alert and trying to track down satellite imagery to see if they can spot anything from space.”

“That’s good to hear. What did you find in our room? I assumed your glance at the picture and the suggestion to head out on a walk was to give us a chance to talk without being overheard. I also assume you brought our regulators to prevent anyone from tampering with our devices.”

“Yes, I want to be damn sure our gear remains operational. As to the other, there are multiple listening devices in my room and the sitting room. I can only assume there are bugs in your room as well. There also appears to be a camera secreted in the frame of the picture above the fireplace. We’re being watched. I wonder if it’s all the guests or just us and why.” Lee added.

“Another good question lad. I think it best we just stroll along here and catalog these lovely plants and animals and monitoring equipment should we need to beat a hasty retreat. I can’t say I’m thrilled with all of this but with this many people here I find it unlikely he would try anything.” Harry replied. Lee nodded his agreement and snapped a quick picture of Harri and a gecko.

They continued their walk around the island snapping pictures of “interesting” plants, insects and animals along with the cameras next to them. Having covered a big portion of the surrounding jungle they turned and headed back to the house. They returned just as the other guests were assembling for the light hors d’oeuvres. Lee and Harri greeted their companions and made a quick run through the food line taking a few items. At the bar they limited themselves to club soda with a twist; neither man liked to drink and dive.

Everyone chatted amicably regarding all they had seen on their two dives and what they expected to find on the upcoming night dive. The dinner chime was sounded promptly at 7 and everyone moved to the dining room. They were served a light meal of mixed greens salad, wild rice, seared sea bass, and fruit compote for dessert. It was nearly 9 p.m. by the time dinner ended and the guests returned to their room to ready themselves for the night dive.

QQQQQQ

The process was once more repeated as the guests climbed aboard the van to be ferried to the boat and then out to the dive site on the back side of the island. The evening was warm and the winds light with a nearly full moon making it a good evening for a dive. The captain dropped anchor about a half mile offshore and then provided the safety brief for the divers.

Once the brief was completed the divers quickly donned their gear, checked out their flashlights then disappeared into the water. The sea life that had emerged once the sun had set was amazing and from the surface of the water it looked as though an underwater lightning storm was occurring with all the flashes from the diver’s cameras.

Lee and Harri worked their way out along one of the walls of coral snapping pictures as they went along trying to get a signal with their communications equipment. Again just short of three quarters of a mile out from shore Lee was able to lock onto a satellite and transmit data to Chip. Once that was achieved they slowly made their way back in taking the time to better enjoy the multitude of sea creatures around them.

At the sound of the recall siren everyone returned to the boat and climbed aboard. The deck hands quickly helped the returning divers and they were soon on their way back to the dock.

“That was incredible,” exclaimed Lindstrom. “I haven’t seen such a diverse collection of fishes outside the Great Barrier Reef. You’ve really managed to turn things around Dorian.”

“Thank you Zach,” Shinera replied. “As you can tell we’ve worked hard at getting the corals healthy and have reintroduced indigenous fish to help repopulate the area.”

“What was it you were chasing Harri? You and Lee seemed to bolt off down the reef as soon as we hit,” inquired Lindstrom.

“We were hot on the trail of a couple of rays,” Harri replied. “I hadn’t seen that variety before and was hoping to get a picture before they scuttled out of sight. I think I got a couple of very good pictures and some video.” Harri turned on his camera and began flipping through the shots until he came to the fish he was looking for. “Here, take a look. It looks like a Torpedo sinuspersici, or variable electric ray.” The scientists made their way over to check out the picture on Harri’s camera and watched the video of the elusive fish.

All the scientists then began reviewing their snaps and shared the most spectacular ones with each other on the ride back to the dock. Reaching the dock they collected their gear and wearily made their way back onto the van for the short ride to the house. It had been a long and exciting day and they all were more than a little tired. As they entered the house they bid each other a good night and headed straight for their rooms to cleanup and collapse for the night.

QQQQQQ

“Mr. Morton, there’s a call coming through to you sir from Kowalski,” Sparks called out to Chip. “He said he needed to speak with you privately.”

“Be right there Sparks,” Chip replied as he walked back to the radio shack. “Morton.”

“Mr. Morton, it’s me Kowalski.”

“Yes Ski, have you picked up the admiral and captain already?” Chip answered as he looked down at his watch.

“Uh no sir, that’s why I’m calling. Sir the plane the admiral and the skipper were on crashed on the way back from the island. According to the representatives here they got a report from the pilots that they were having engine trouble and then 30 minutes after that they lost contact with the plane. The military here and from China dispatched jets immediately to the last coordinates and spotted debris consistent with a plane crash on the water. They said there’s no chance of anyone surviving the crash.”

Chip sagged against the bulkhead as his knees threatened to give out and all color leached from his face. “Are you sure it was their plane, Ski?”

“Yes sir. They are sending vessels out to recover debris and any bodies they can right now.”

“All right Ski, you hang tight there for now until we get some definitive proof. Call me immediately should anything come up.” Chip ordered.

“Aye sir. I’m sorry sir; I know how close you were to the admiral and especially the skipper.”

“We all were Ski. I’ll talk to you later.”

“Something wrong sir,” Sparks asked taking in the XO’s shaken appearance.

“Kowalski said that the plane the admiral and skipper were flying back to Manila on has crashed and at the present time they don’t think there can be any survivors.” Morton replied.

A stunned silence descended on the control room; the only sounds were the pings and hums of the equipment monitoring their operations. The men stared back at the XO in disbelief hoping he would break out laughing as if it were some bad practical joke.

Chip met their gaze and after a moment gently redirected their attention back to their stations. “All right everyone, mind your monitors. This was the preliminary report and nothing has as yet been recovered from the crash site. Kowalski will be staying there in Manila until more definitive information is provided.”

“What happened sir,” Patterson inquired.

“Ski said they were told the pilots reported engine trouble and then 30 minutes later they lost contact with the plane. The military from both the Philippines and China dispatched jets to the site and have spotted debris consistent with an airplane crash. They have vessels underway to assist in recovering any material or bodies.”

“Sparks get me COMSUBPAC, Admiral Starke.”

“Yes sir,”

QQQQQQ

Lee woke up slowly, his head pounding so badly he could have played lead percussionist in the anvil chorus. He couldn’t for the life of him recall why he should feel so bad. His stomach gurgled uncomfortably as well and he had to concentrate very hard to keep things in place. Taking a quick survey of his body he found no broken bones, tender spots or wounds. The source of his discomfort could only be one thing, drugs.

Focusing all his attention and resolve, he pushed slowly up from the bed finding himself in an 8’ x 4’ concrete cell. There was a single solid metal door at one end of the room, a lone recessed light above his head, a small TV monitor across from the cot and a pane of mirrored glass on the wall opposite him; no doubt allowing his captors to observe his reactions. The only furniture was the small cot he was now sitting upon. As nondescript as the room was something about it was oddly familiar.

With a practiced eye Lee quickly inventoried everything in the room evaluating it for use as either a weapon or a means to escape all the while schooling his expression so as not to give away his intent. Much to his chagrin there was nothing he could use.

He regarded himself in the mirror and noticed that he was now wearing jeans, a black turtle neck t-shirt, a chambray shirt over that and a pair of black lace up boots. Last thing he remembered he had just gotten out of the shower after returning from the night dive had pulled on his skivvies and t-shirt and was headed for bed.

Having evaluated his surroundings, the next thing that hit him was that he was alone. Where the hell was the admiral? Surely Shinera didn’t think he could get away with holding them as prisoners given all the people who had seen them on the island along with the crew of Seaview knowing their destination. He paced anxiously back and forth in the small cell like a caged wolf then finally lay back down on the cot as whatever drug they had given him made his head pound more.

After a moment the light in the room suddenly flared to that of the brilliance of the sun making Lee snap his eyes shut and place his hand over them as well to block out light. The intense light spiked the pain in his head and he slung his arm quickly over his eyes to blot out the light. A minute later the light snapped off leaving him in total darkness. Lee sighed somewhat in resignation, he could tell now it was going to be an ordeal of mind games and conditioning to what end he hadn’t a clue. As he laid there on the cot he began organizing his thoughts and erecting his mental barriers to whatever challenges his captors had in mind.

QQQQQQ

Harri groaned loudly as he made the mistake of moving his head on the pillow. Pain and a sweeping wave of nausea greeted that action and he immediately stilled. He slowly pried open his eyes finding himself in a small room lying on a cot. There was a small wooden table with a lamp, a bowl of fruit, and a pitcher of water and a glass sitting on top. At one end there was a small TV screen mounted on the wall, a pane of reflective glass on the opposite wall and curtains next to the single metal door in the room. As he stared at his surroundings he had a vague feeling of déjà vu; he’d been in this room before though couldn’t for the life of him remember when.

He racked his mind trying to recall how he came to be in this place. The last he remembered was sitting on the sofa in the suite he shared with Lee, reviewing some of the pictures he had taken during his dive. He too came to the conclusion that he had been drugged at some point after they had returned from the night dive.

Looking at himself in the glass he noticed that he had been redressed. He now had on a khaki safari shirt, khaki trousers and light brown boots. Even his attire seemed familiar which played more on his mind. He also wondered where his captain was and hoped that he was safe and unharmed.

As he surveyed the room for any clues as to why he was here and if there were any items that could aid his escape the single light in the ceiling flared brightly making him close his eyes and shield them with his hand. Moments later the light was extinguished leaving him in absolute dark. His head screamed at him and he sat carefully down on the cot wondering what kind of horrors and mind games he and his captain were going to be subject to and why.

QQQQQQ

“Starke here,” a gruff voice answered over the phone.

“Admiral, this is Lt. Commander Morton on board Seaview. Sir we have just received news that both Admiral Nelson and Captain Crane may have been killed in a plane crash in the North China Sea.”

“Say again,” Starke replied. The break in his voice relayed his shock and concern for his longtime friend Harriman Nelson.

“Admiral Nelson and Captain Crane were reported as passengers on a private jet traveling from a private island off the southern coast of China back to Manila after having spent the last day and a half visiting a coral preserve. They had gone to an island owned by Dorian Shinera who is creating a coral preserve to reestablish the coral colonies destroyed by commercial fishing and chemical runoff from the farms on the main land. According to the information we have received their plane developed engine trouble and then all contact was lost. Overflights of the plane’s last reported location turned up debris consistent with a plane crash.”

“Why do I get the impression you don’t necessarily believe Harriman and Crane were on board that plane Mr. Morton?” Starke inquired.

“Sir, Captain Crane had misgivings about visiting the island since the admiral received the invitation; he said there was no reason for him to be invited when the coral expert from NIMR had been Shinera’s point of contact. The captain used his um… resources and contacts to investigate the man and all he came up with was the man is incredibly wealthy with some strong ties with the PR and China. There were no specifics that showed him to be anything other than a not very astute businessman.”

“My guess is Crane didn’t buy it, am I correct in that assumption?” Starke asked.

“Yes sir. He shared his findings with Admiral Nelson and I think the admiral was similarly suspect of their host. Also once they got within three quarters of a mile of the island they found all electronic signals, incoming and outgoing, jammed by something on the island. The captain took extreme measures to ensure they had multiple means of contacting us but hadn’t counted on such a powerful jamming capability by Shinera. Until I personally see physical evidence, by that I mean a body, I am not inclined to believe that they were on the plane. To that end sir, I would like to make Seaview available to help recover any debris or remains from the crash site. I was wondering if you could please extend our offer to the Chinese to assist in recovery operations.” Chip asked.

The line remained silent for a few moments making Chip almost wonder if Starke was still there. After a bit Starke addressed his request. “That sounds like an excellent idea Mr. Morton, I’ll contact State and have them formally extend the offer. Until such time that we get an answer you are ordered to remain in your current location. If they decline your offer to assist we’ll look at other options. Is that satisfactory Morton?”

“Yes sir, more than satisfactory.”

“Very well, keep me apprised of any new developments.” With that Starke ended the call.

QQQQQQ

Uncertain how long he had been in the cell, Lee had lost all track of time not knowing what time of day, or for that matter which day it was. He guessed it had been at least twelve hours given the rumble of his stomach and his growing thirst. As he laid there staring up at the ceiling suddenly the light blazed back on stabbing his eyes like daggers. He clamped them shut and rolled over to shield them from the unforgiving brightness.

He slowly eased his hands back around to the sides of his eyes trying to acclimate them to the extreme light. After a couple of minutes the light intensity was reduced and he was able to once more fully open his eyes and look around. He pushed himself up to a seated position and stared dispassionately at the mirrored glass.

The next thing he noticed was the TV monitor on the wall lighting up and a picture coming into focus. He pushed up to his feet and stood before the monitor to see what was there. Much to his surprise he saw Harriman Nelson sitting in a room not much larger than his but appointed far more comfortably. In that moment he knew exactly where he had seen this cell before and his mind raced back to that nameless island and his uncontrolled and hysterical attempt to murder his boss and friend thanks to the psychotropic drug he had been exposed to when he ate some tainted fruit on the island.* He tried as best he could to hide his recognition and recollection of that event but the shudder still rippled through his body as he remembered how close he had come to bashing his friend’s head in with his stick. He recalled the unreasonable and unrestrained hate and rage he felt towards the man and only because of the timely arrival of his men was he kept from killing Nelson.

After a moment the picture winked off and was quickly joined by the lights leaving Lee once more in the dark to wrestle with the feelings of guilt and shame that had just been reawakened. He hated the loss of control and the bastards that had done that to him and to his friends on the Navy submarine Angler.

QQQQQQ

Harri lay quietly on his cot staring at the ceiling counting the holes in the individual tiles. His mind raced trying to come up with a reason for why Shinera would go to such extreme measures to capture him and he hoped his captain. His attention was caught by the flare of the TV monitor as it came to life and a picture began to resolve itself on the screen. He got up and moved across the cell to look at what was there.

He was both surprised and relieved to see Lee in the stark cell and like his captain all the pieces came together as he too flashed to that island and their capture by the PR. His mind flashed back to the blind rage that had consumed Lee as he tried to kill him thanks to the drug he had ingested.

Finally having had enough he called out. “What the hell do you want Shinera?!”

Shinera laughed at Nelson’s question. “Justice Nelson, justice.”

“Justice, for what?”

“I take it you recall your surroundings now. You killed my brother on that island.”

“Tau? General Tau was your brother?”

“No. That was his superior, Adrian Shinera was my brother. He was the one who developed the drug and the conditioning used on you, your captain and the other men that trespassed on the island.”

“What about the justice for the 110 men on the Angler? What about their families and loved ones? Your sense of loss and need for justice is quite a bit out of skew. He and the rest of those on the island got exactly what they deserved.” Nelson fired back.

“You have no idea about my loss Nelson!” Shinera screamed back.

“Do you honestly think the US Government is not going to come looking for me and Lee? What cock and bull story did you feed them about why we didn’t return from your island?”

A very unsettling and evil laugh answered Nelson’s questions. Harri felt something dark and oily skitter down his back at what Shinera possibly could have done.

“I don’t think we’ll be disturbed Admiral. You see unfortunately the airplane carrying you and all the other visitors experienced a catastrophic engine failure and crashed into the sea two hours out of Manila killing all aboard. My Chinese hosts are not generally inclined to allow US military vessels or aircraft to enter their space so I think it highly unlikely anyone will come calling.”

“You son of a bitch,” Harri growled lowly at Shinera then sat down heavily on the cot as he thought of his friend and new acquaintances that had been murdered by this lunatic. “I hope you rot in hell.”

Shinera laughed again. “Oh this is a minor sin on my part Nelson; just twenty five lives this time.”

Harri swallowed convulsively as he realized what an amoral animal had managed to capture him and Lee. Twenty five people just erased because Shinera wanted them. There weren’t that many on the flight out, he must have sent most if not all of his staff back on the plane to leave him free to carry out his warped plan. When would he learn to heed Lee’s hunches and warnings? In more instances than not, they had proved to be correct and in most cases Lee wound up paying the price for Harri’s dismissal on his read of the person or situation. What had Harri gotten them into this time?

“So Nelson, are you ready to discover my sinister plot?” Shinera taunted.

Harri remained motionless and did not respond. He was still stunned at the callous waste of lives Shinera had caused just to satisfy his need for perceived ‘justice’ for the death of his brother.

“My brother seemed to think that you and Crane were true friends. I myself find that a bit of a reach, but Adrian was the behavioral scientist not me. He liked his games and experiments to determine such things. In that regard we are the same; I too enjoy a good game. So Nelson we are going to test just how close you and the good captain are. To what lengths would you go to save his life and vice versa?”

Harri’s head shot up at those words and he glared into the mirrored glass. He knew that personally he would take every step he could to protect Lee but if need be he would sacrifice him if the situation demanded it, just as he had done with Krueger. He knew Lee felt very much the same way.

“Shall we begin Admiral?” Shinera queried. With that the TV monitor turned back on and Harri could see Lee in his cell and the cell suddenly began to fill with water. As he stared at the scene unfolding on the screen, a small flap at the bottom of his cell door slid open and a laptop computer was pushed in. Harri regarded it momentarily then resumed staring at the monitor as the water level rose quickly in Lee’s cell. Lee stood there on his cot looking very much like a trapped animal with no route of escape. He rubbed his hands up and down his arms and wrapped them tightly around his chest. It was obvious the water was extremely cold as shivers began to rip through his body as he tried to find somewhere to go.

“All right Nelson here’s your task. There is a puzzle loaded on that computer, if you manage to solve the puzzle the water will drain from the captain’s cell. If you fail your task, he will drown. It’s really very simple; you best start now the water’s climbing fast. As you no doubt have also noticed the water is cold sapping his energy and his ability stay afloat until the room is completely filled. Hurry Nelson, time’s a wasting.” Shinera ended with a taunting laugh and snapped the microphone off.

QQQQQQ

Lee had been pacing as best he could in the little cell to burn off his excess energy. He had yet to hear from his captors but was quite familiar with this particular means of captivity. Keep the person isolated and cut off from anyone or any hint as to where they may be; make them antsy, agitated and wondering about their comrade’s location and condition. Suddenly without notice frigid water began pouring into his cell. Lee quickly climbed atop of his cot as the only means to avoid the water but that soon proved inadequate as the water level grew higher.

He quickly began to chill as the water began wrapping him in its all-inclusive grasp and he immediately began to shiver. He rubbed his hands up and down his arms trying to generate some heat but that proved to be of little value as the icy water climbed higher up his cell. There was nowhere he could go and he began to feel his feet and hands cramping as the chill became intolerable. The water was above his chest now and he would soon have to begin treading water if he wanted to have any chance of survival.

The water had to be damn near freezing and he could feel it leach the warmth from his body and the strength from his limbs. As it neared his chin he finally kicked off the cot and began trying his best to stay afloat. ‘So cold’ was all he could think as he found himself breathing in quick, sharps breaths unable to fill his lungs as his body shivered uncontrollably.

He was at the ceiling now, there was nowhere else to go. Lee pressed his cheek against the ceiling trying desperately to draw in the last bit of air remaining in the room. His body felt as though it weighed a thousand pounds; it was getting too difficult to move his arms and legs as he struggled to stay up. As his mind and body began to shut down he thought it an odd way to go to be drowned in a cell with no hint as to why. Shinera didn’t ask for anything, didn’t want anything from him; why go to all this trouble? Then he slipped below the surface and sank slowly towards the floor.

QQQQQQ

Harri snapped up the computer and flipped it open. He quickly scrutinized the game before him trying hard to focus on it and not the picture of Lee struggling to survive in the next cell. The object of the game was quite simple; complete a pipeline from the tap to the drain by selecting the correct pieces of pipe in the grid. The challenge lay in finding the only route from spigot to drain amongst 100 choices.

He quickly began selecting segments of pipes and joints to complete the pipe. Time and again he would get so close to the end only to find that there was one joint or segment that wouldn’t line up and he had to return to the beginning and start again. He would occasionally steal a glimpse at the TV monitor and watched as Lee was slowly losing his ability to function in the frigid water and quickly running out of breathing room.

As the last centimeter of clear air space was consumed and Lee lost his struggle to remain afloat Harri found the correct combination and hit the button. He watched with great relief as the water level immediately began to drop. He stared intently at the figure lying at the bottom of the cell willing him to breathe and move. The seconds ticked by and Harri was beginning to feel that he had not succeeded in time and Lee had drowned when suddenly he coughed and wretch harshly expelling the water he had aspirated and ingested. He lay there eyes closed, motionless except for the slight shivering as the last of the water receded from his cell. It was obvious to Harri’s eyes Lee as all but spent.

When the last of the water drained from Lee’s cell, a horrific piercing screech sounded in Harri’s cell and he dropped to his knees, hands shoved over his ears trying to block the sound out. It continued until Harri thought his eardrums would rupture and his brain would explode. As suddenly as it started it just as suddenly stopped the only sound being Harri’s labored breathing as he writhed on the floor. He lost consciousness as the lights went out.

QQQQQQ

“Mr. Morton, I have Admiral Starke on the line for you, sir,” Sparks called out.

“I’ll take it in the nose, Sparks.”

“Aye, sir, patching the admiral through now,” Sparks replied.

“Morton, here.”

“Commander, State forwarded your offer of assistance to the Chinese and they have graciously declined,” Starke started.

“Where does that leave us sir? I still have a very strong feeling that the admiral and Captain Crane were not on that plane,” Chip answered.

“My recommendation to you Morton is to stay put for the time being. Let the Chinese authorities collect what debris they can and let’s see how forthcoming they are with their findings. How much longer were you scheduled to remain in the area?”

“We have another two weeks of surveys to conduct, sir. Though without the admiral’s guidance we would just be guessing at what locations he wanted sampled.”

“Hang tight until we start getting information from the Chinese. I have a feeling that your inclination is correct; at least that’s what I’m praying for as of right now,” Starke finished.

“Aye sir. We will continue to monitor the situation and will forward any developments as we get them,” Chip confirmed.

“Good, Starke out.”

Chip pushed his hand through his hair in frustration, a motion very reminiscent of his CO and best friend. He didn’t like not having access to the area to help look for clues as to whether the admiral and Lee were aboard the plane but at least Starke seemed to be in their corner and of a similar mind. They would continue to haunt the waters off the Philippines and ease their way north in hopes of getting an opportunity to join in the hunt.

“What’s the deal Mr. Morton,” Chief Sharkey inquired after he knew the XO was off the phone.

“We’re going to hang out here for a while Chief, until we get a few answers. Keep the teams on the remaining sample locations and let’s see about adding a few more in a northwesterly direction.” Chip replied as he moved his finger across the chart up towards Shinera’s island.

QQQQQQ

The light blazed brightly shattering the darkness in Lee’s cell. Still weak and tired from his forced swim he barely had the strength to pull his hands to his eyes to block out the glare. His body ached and as he moved he began coughing hard as his lungs tried to clear out the last vestiges of the water he had aspirated when his cell filled with water.

He noticed that his clothes were now dry and he was lying on his cot meaning someone had checked him out after the ordeal and made sure he was ready for the next round. After a moment Lee pushed himself up and sat on the cot holding his head in his hands.

“Nice of you to join us Captain Crane, have a nice nap?” Shinera said after a few moments.

“What the hell do you want Shinera?” Lee snapped out.

“As I explained to Admiral Nelson, justice; justice for my brother on that small island you and the admiral visited. Thanks to your efforts he and virtually everyone else killed each other because you changed the source of their fresh water intake. They tore each other apart!”

“I can’t say I’m at all sorry,” Lee replied recalling his own experience with the drug. “Turnabout is fair play, wouldn’t you say?”

“Oh yes Captain, I am going to have my turnabout and play is a very appropriate word for what is going to happen next.” With that the TV monitor came to life showing Harri in his cell staring intently at the floor. Lee was somewhat gratified to see that the admiral had not apparently been injured but the longer he watched he noticed a seam in the floor of Harri’s cell and the floor began to retract. To his horror Lee noticed the area below the parting floor was covered with spikes and the furniture in the room began tumbling in as the gap widened. As Lee stared helplessly at the admiral and the widening gap in his cell floor a small door at the base of his cell door slid open and a small laptop was pushed through.

“What’s your game Shinera?” Lee inquired.

“Nelson’s survival is entirely up to you Captain. Loaded on that computer is a game. You must successfully complete the task to stop the floor from opening wider causing your admiral to plummet to his death. Time’s wasting Captain.”

Lee grabbed the computer and quickly opened it. He scanned the screen trying to determine the requirements of the task. He was provided a grid covered with numerous squares set out in a larger rectangle. He clicked on one of the squares and it revealed a number, he clicked on the square next to it and was rewarded with a picture of a bomb then the grid froze, game over. Damn, minesweeper thought Lee.

Minesweeper was a basic logic game in which the player can deduce the correct move based on the numbers shown on the grid, however there were times when there were no conclusive clues to the correct move and to complete the game he would have to just guess and hope his choice was correct. Lee restarted the game and began clearing squares. He was doing well having cleared nearly the entire grid then guessed wrong and it all reset. “Shit!” he exclaimed as he looked up at the monitor and the widening gap in Harri’s floor. He hit restart and started playing again. “Come on Crane, no pressure. You can do this.”

Time was drawing short as Harri was down to less than a foot of floor before he was thrust into the pit. This was Lee’s fifth time through and was now down to two squares and one choice. He hesitated a moment looking up at Harri on the monitor and saw him wobble. Lee closed his eyes, took a deep breath then arbitrarily clicked on one of the squares. He held his breath, his eyes screwed tightly shut afraid to see the results of his choice. As he was forced to release his breath he opened his eyes and was relieved to see Nelson still standing and the floor sliding shut.

Lee let out a huge sigh and slouched back on his cot as he said a silent prayer. He sat back up and watched the panels in the floor seal shut and just as they did he was hit with an electric shock as it surged through the frame of his cot. He’d been hit by Tasers before and quickly recognized the effects. The agony was indescribable as the current surged through his body paralyzing him. He curled up into a fetal ball then jerked and twitched uncontrollably until he fell onto the floor. He had one fleeting glance of Nelson standing in front of the monitor, a concerned look on his face, just before he passed out.

QQQQQQ

As the plates of his cell floor finally clanged shut Harri released the breath he was not aware he’d been holding. He assumed that Lee had been presented with some puzzle to solve just like he had to save the other man’s life. He wondered if Lee also had been subject to some unpleasant reward for saving his life. Harri paced across his small cell running his hand through his hair trying to come up with a way to get out.

His attention was drawn to the screen as it flared to life and he was able to see Lee jerking and writhing on his cell floor, then suddenly he was still. “You bastard!” screamed Harri. “You best pray to god I never get out of here Shinera because what happened to your brother will look like a picnic when I get through with you!”

Harri immediately realized his game. This truly could test any common friendship, if for every time one of them saved the other they were tortured in return, how long before one of them let the other die? It was a cruel test and with probably anyone but Lee, Harri could see it ending very quickly. They had long ago surpassed friendship and though had not spoken of it aloud had more or less adopted each other as family. Lee had time and again offered his life up for him and Harri had taken similar actions to save the man he thought of as a son.

He also guessed that given Lee ended up unconscious at the end of each ordeal he had no idea that Harri had been tortured in return for saving his life. Harri had to rely on Lee’s loyalty and steadfast belief that he was responsible for Harri’s safety to get them through this. He knew he would never let his son down and he knew equally well that Lee would never give up on him regardless of the price.

Shinera’s assessment of their relationship was the only weakness in his plan as far as Harri could see. Neither of them would willingly turn on the other and forego the punishment by letting the other man die. That would be his downfall, his overconfidence in his read of their relationship. There had to be a way out and the moment he was given the opportunity all hell would break loose.

QQQQQQ

Consciousness returned slowly to Lee as he lay on the floor mentally reliving the agony of the shock. He’d been subject to Tasers and cattle prods on a couple of occasions and knew what to expect as the effects wore off. His body still involuntarily twitched as the effects of the shock waned causing him to ache all over. With each twitch and shudder he subtly added a voluntary movement of his own as he reclaimed control over his body.

As feeling and control returned Lee became aware of the fact that his hands were now bound behind his back and that there was a thin rope extending from the ceiling looped around his neck. His legs and feet were free but at the moment that meant little as he had yet to regain the strength to try and stand.

He tried to remain as motionless as possible to buy time before whatever was planned began but apparently had somehow given away the fact that he had wakened. The light flared to life and Lee screwed his eyes shut to try and block out the searing pain the bright light brought. He bit back a groan as he slowly extended his legs as he no longer could feign unconsciousness.

“Ah, nice of you to join us Captain,” Shinera taunted over the loud speaker. “Are you ready to play again?”

Lee remained silent not acknowledging the return of his tormentor. He stared studiously ahead and steeled himself mentally for the torture to come.

“Well since you’re not inclined to respond I’ll take that as a yes,” Shinera continued and laughed. “Same basic rules as before, Nelson will control whether you live or die based on how quickly he can solve my puzzle. You have no doubt noticed the rope around your neck. It is attached to a reel and the rope will be rewound on the reel as time passes. If your admiral is capable of completing the task before you strangle then you will live and get to play the next round. If not, oh well. Alright Captain let’s begin.”

With that Lee felt a slow pull on the rope around his neck as the slack began to collect on the spool. Lee worked furiously against the bonds on his wrists and tried to return control over his still rubbery feeling legs.

QQQQQQ

Nelson looked on in horror as he saw Lee curled up on the floor with the noose around his neck. He watched as the slack in the line was being slowly taken up and realized at some point it would be up to him to solve some puzzle or complete some task to keep Lee alive. As expected the small flap on his door slid open and the laptop was shoved through.

“You know the drill Nelson. You have until he chokes to death to solve the conundrum on the computer. I’d guess you have about 10 minutes before the captain’s feet leave the floor.”

Harri snapped up the computer and tore it open. He regarded the computer screen and found he was given another maze and had to first reach the center and then the exit to stop the reel from collecting more rope. As he started working through the puzzle he noticed that as he made certain selections portions of the maze would shift to a new position changing how he needed to proceed.

He worked diligently moving his way through the maze and trying to determine what triggered a change in the layout. As he neared the five minute point he looked up from his work to the screen and noticed Lee was now standing having been pulled up by the neck. He was desperately trying to pull his cot over to him with his foot to gain a little more time as the rope rubbed against his neck. Lee had great difficulty maintaining his balance as a result of his diminished physical condition courtesy of his near drowning and electric shock.

Harri knew Lee could see him as well as he focused on the monitor in front of him. He immediately refocused his efforts back on the task at hand trying to find the exit to the maze. He rapidly worked through the various options and then finally divined what triggered the changes in the maze layout. Having done that, he easily made headway towards the exit having already made it through the middle. At the 9:30 point he spared a quick glance back at the monitor and saw Lee weaving unsteadily on the tips of his toes as he desperately fought to maintain his balance on the cot, then suddenly his feet lost contact and he began to kick and thrash as he was now suspended entirely by the noose around his neck.

“Lee!” Harri called out involuntarily and ducked his head back down to the computer screen typing furiously to complete the puzzle. As he finally made the last choice and exited the maze he looked at the timer on the screen finding it flashing at 11 minutes. He forced himself to look up at the monitor afraid of what he would find.

Lee swung slowly back and forth across the cell. His eyes were closed, his throat raw and bleeding from his struggle against the rope and no apparent movement on his part. The rope suddenly went slack and he fell limply to the floor. Harri stared in horrified disbelief at the still figure on the floor and began cursing himself for being too slow. As he continued to gaze at Lee’s body he suddenly shuddered and gasped as he fought to draw in a breath of air. His eyes barely cracked open and he stared at the TV screen and saw Harri staring back at him looking unharmed. Lee smiled weakly trying to convey his thanks to his friend then passed out.

As Lee lost consciousness a sonic blast once again erupted in Harri’s cell dropping him to his knees. Harri tried as best he could to block out the sound but there was no relief to be had. After a minute the sound cut off along with the lights leaving Nelson in total darkness.

QQQQQQ

Lee once again found himself crawling out of the pit of unconsciousness after his latest bout with Shinera. As he laid there on the floor he became aware that his hands were no longer bound and the rope around his neck had been removed. He swallowed reflexively and immediately regretted that course of action as it felt as though he had been forced to swallow broken glass. The pain radiated both inside and out. He reached up ever so slowly and gingerly placed his fingers on his throat. He felt the torn skin and clotted blood all around his neck and the nerves shrieked in pain at his light touch. He swallowed convulsively again unable to prevent it and closed his eyes silently enduring the agony.

His hands tingled and ached from being tied so tightly for so long. His attempts to free his hands during his struggles had likewise ripped the flesh around his wrists. He lightly touched each wrist and found them raw and blood encrusted much like his throat. He gently tried to make a fist but found it difficult to get his fingers to respond.

His cell was still locked in darkness but he preferred that to the light that assaulted him each time he awoke. Tired of lying on the hard floor Lee slowly pushed himself into a sitting position and leaned against the cot he found behind him. That small effort left him feeling spent and he sat there panting for a moment until he felt recovered enough to try and push up and onto the cot. It was a near Herculean effort but he eventually made it up and collapsed on the cot breathing hard.

As he lay there panting the lights once again blazed bright. He didn’t even try to block it out; it took too much effort to raise his arm to lay it over his eyes. Lee waited patiently for Shinera to begin his rant while he recouped his strength and tried desperately to focus his mind for the coming challenge.

“Looks like Nelson is cutting it closer each time doesn’t it?” Shinera began. “Almost didn’t make it out of that one alive, Captain. You seem to be much better able to solve the puzzle at hand than he. I don’t think you can take too many more of my games at the rate your admiral is getting you out of them.”

Lee let Shinera’s words bounce off of him, not letting anything he said gain a foothold in his mind. He knew Harri was doing his best to complete the tasks given him as quickly as he could and he knew the true devil was the voice nattering at him now.

“Nothing to say Crane? Hmmm. Well as you have guessed it’s your turn again to solve the puzzle and save your admiral’s life. How quickly are you going to do that I wonder?”

The panel at the bottom of his door slipped open and the laptop was once more shoved through. Lee turned his head and squinting against the light spotted it. Using the last of his reserves he pushed up off the cot and staggered over to the door to collect the device. As he did the TV monitor sparked to light showing him the admiral in his cell apparently still none the worse for wear. ‘That’s good’ thought Crane, ‘at least someone can go after this bastard.’

As he continued to stare at Harri he began to notice that he seemed to be getting taller. As befuddled as his mind was, he was having a tough time resolving this incongruity. The longer he stared the taller he seemed to get, then it finally dawned on him that ceiling was lower on the wall. Shinera was going to press him to death if Lee couldn’t find the key to the puzzle.

He lowered himself back down on the cot and opened the laptop. This time the screen was covered with a series of rectangles. As he watched three of the rectangles illuminated at various points on the screen then went out. Lee stared for a moment trying to deduce the appropriate response. He finally clicked on those rectangles in the same order they were illuminated and was rewarded with a repeat of the sequence with one more tile added.

Lee groaned to himself. He was in no condition to be carrying out any complex memory exercises at the moment. Hell he counted himself lucky to know him name and remember where he was. He quickly discovered that if he did not respond within a certain amount of time the game ended and a new sequence began.

He looked up from the computer to gauge how rapidly the ceiling was descending in Harri’s cell and much to his chagrin he noticed that the admiral had started to crouch. ‘Alright Crane keep your focus, you can do this. You can’t let Harri down,’ he thought to himself.

He refocused on the computer screen and waited for the sequence to start again. He had no idea how many tiles he needed to correctly recall to win the game, but knowing Shinera it wasn’t going to be four.

The game started again and Lee quickly responded. He would get up to about 12 tiles and then miss causing him to go back to square one. After his last failure he looked up at the screen to find the admiral lying on the floor under the cot and the ceiling a few inches above that. ‘Once more with feeling, Lee,’ Crane urged to himself.

Once more the squares illuminated and Lee focused all his attention on the learning the pattern and repeating it. As best he could figure he was up to 20 tiles in the sequence now and he just prayed there weren’t many more. He completed the series successfully and the program once more started. ‘This has to be it,’ hoped Lee as he clicked on each tile in sequence. Coming to the last tile he hesitated for a moment wondering if he had it right, then drew in a deep breath and made his final selection. The screen went dark then suddenly began flashing WINNER.

Lee’s head shot up to the monitor to see if he had completed his task in time. Much to his relief he saw the ceiling begin to retract and the admiral shoved the crumpled cot off him and pushed to his feet once clearance allowed. He smiled weakly happy to see he had managed his task in the allotted time. As he felt relief over the admiral having survived this latest test, Lee began steeling himself for the coming punishment for achieving his task.

He didn’t have long to wait as he was immediately blasted by a shrill sonic tone that left him curled up in pain shoving his hands over his ears trying to block out the sound. He gasped in agony which caused him to begin coughing making his entire body spasm as he writhed on the floor.

Harri knew exactly what was happening as Lee clasped his hands over his ears, he was fully aware of what he must be experiencing having gone through it himself. The sound continued far longer than anything Harri had received and when it finally stopped Lee lay unconscious on the floor as blood pooled in his ears and dribbled down the side of his face. Tears of frustration welled up in his eyes at the inability to provide any aide to his captain and surrogate son. As Lee grew still on the floor the same sound blared to life in Harri’s cell and he too covered his ears and fell heavily to the ground until there was nothing.

QQQQQQ

“Mr. Morton, I have Captain Fa Zhu of the Chinese Navy on the radio for you sir.” Sparks called to the XO.

“I’ll take it in the nose Sparks,” Chip replied as he moved forward from the chart table. “This is Lt. Commander Morton, how can I help you Captain Fa?”

“Commander Morton, I have been asked by Admiral Zhang to provide you with any updates regarding our recovery efforts at the crash site. We have retrieved a great deal of the aircraft fuselage and a number of pieces of luggage from the crash site. Commander we have recovered two bags, one tagged as belonging to Admiral Nelson and one belonging to Commander Crane. If you would like Commander we can have those items returned to you immediately.”

Chip sighed heavily at the news. “Thank you Captain Fa, we would appreciate that very much. Have you been able to recover any human remains from the crash site?”

“Yes we have thus far recovered 11 women and six men. We have yet to have our medical examiner establish IDs. From what I have seen Commander the remains of the men recovered appeared to be of Asian or Philippine descent.”

“Thank you Captain. Where can we pick up the items belonging to Admiral Nelson and Captain Crane?” Chip inquired.

“We will have them flown to Manila for your pick up there in a few hours, Commander. Please accept my sincerest condolences on your loss.” Fa replied.

“Thank you again Captain Fa. We all appreciate the information you’ve provided us and your efforts to recover those killed in the crash. Please keep us apprised of any developments.”

“Of course Commander, Fa out.”

Chip sighed and rubbed his hand over his face in frustration. Well at least they knew their bags had been on the plane but that doesn’t necessarily mean they had joined them. Once he was able to get a look at the contents of their luggage he should have a better idea as to whether they were on the plane or not.

Chip walked back to the radio shack. “Sparks put me through to Kowalski.”

“Aye sir, hold one please.”

Within a minute Chip was speaking with Ski at his hotel in Manila. “Ski its Morton, we’ve been contacted by the Chinese Navy and informed that they have recovered the admiral’s and Skipper’s bags. They will be flying them directly to Manila. Once they arrive I want you to pick them up then hightail it back here so we can get a look at what’s inside. Got it?”

“Aye sir. I’ll head on down to the airport now so I can get them as soon as they land.”

“Great Ski. We’ll see you in a few, Morton out.”

QQQQQQ

Harri slowly stirred to consciousness after having been blasted with Shinera’s sonic weapon. He was becoming exceedingly tired of this whole game and almost wished he’d just end it. As he peeled open his eyes he was intrigued to find that his cell door now stood wide open. He regarded the door for a moment waiting to see if Shinera or any of his staff would soon appear and afford him the opportunity to overpower them and escape.

Waiting a few minutes as he continued to recover Harri decided that the open door was an invitation on Shinera’s part to start the next round of whatever his game was. He finally rolled over, pushed up to his feet and moved cautiously towards the door. Walking warily through the open door he found himself in a short hallway with closed door at the other end. He continued down the hall and pushed the door open and found himself in the closet of the room he was assigned when they arrived.

He scanned the room and immediately noticed that all of his luggage had been removed, no doubt placed on the plane to demonstrate that he and Lee had boarded the craft and were now casualties of the crash. He walked through the bedroom to the sitting room and then into the bedroom Lee had used. He moved to the closet and found a door similar to the one in his closet and quickly opened it. At the end of the short hallway was another door that stood ajar.

Harri walked quickly down the hall and peered in where he found Lee still passed out on the floor from his exposure to Shinera’s weapon. He moved over cautiously and knelt down by his captain. Lee’s neck was red and raw from his dance on the end of Shinera’s rope and Harri reached forward gently trying to find a place to feel for his pulse. After a moment of fumbling over the scabbed and torn skin he found a relatively strong heart beat and he let loose a relieved sigh.

He gently rolled the man on his back and tried to rouse him. “Lee, Lee. Can you hear me son?” Harri asked quietly. Lee remained still and did not respond to Nelson’s light prodding on his shoulder. Nelson did a quick exam of Lee’s body trying to identify any more injuries than were already obvious. Deciding that there probably weren’t any neck or back injuries he lifted Lee carefully and carried him into the bedroom and laid he gently on the bed. He moved to the bathroom and grabbed a washcloth and wet it then returned to Lee’s side. He gently bathed his face then began wiping the blood from his neck and wrists, a parting gift after participating in Shinera’s games.

As Harri returned for the second time from the bathroom having rinsed and rewet the cloth he saw Lee begin to claw his way back. He wiped his face and spoke quietly to him trying to draw him to consciousness.

“Lee, Lee, come on lad wake up for me. Come on you can do it.”

A low groan followed by a ragged and painful cough brought Lee awake. He scanned the room trying to determine where he was. As he laid eyes on Harri’s worried face he gave him a weak smile which immediately morphed into a grimace as he swallowed. He tried desperately to roll over but Harri kept him flat on the bed.

“How do you feel son?”

“Hurts,” Lee replied in a raspy voice as his hand moved slowly to his throat. “You…okay?”

“I’m in fine fettle compared to you. Damn Lee I’m so sorry I got you into this.”

“Not your fault, sir. You…take care of Shinera?”

“No, not yet. When I came to after being hit by that sonic weapon of his I found the door to my cell open and nothing standing in my way to freedom. Both cells are located just off our bedrooms so he didn’t have far to move us once he knocked us out. Looks like he took all of our luggage and must have loaded it on the plane so it would appear we were on board when it crashed.” Harri replied.

“Crashed? He crashed a plane just to hide the fact he grabbed us?” Lee asked as he was stunned at the arrogance and callousness of Shinera.

“He told me there were 25 aboard which would mean he shipped off most if not all of the staff he kept on the island so he could play his little games with us.”

“Damn,” was all that Lee could say as he lay his head back on the pillow and closed his eyes shocked to by the total disregard the man had for human life. After a moment Lee tried to rise but Harri kept a hand on his shoulder. “We need to get out of here sir.”

“Just relax for a moment son, rest and regain your strength. I get the feeling Shinera has a few more games in his bag he intends to play with us and we’ll need every bit of endurance we can muster.”

“Aye sir,” Lee said as he relaxed. There was nothing he would love to do more than lay there and fall asleep but that wouldn’t get them off the island. As Harri walked back to the bathroom Lee finally succeeded in sitting up.

Harri sighed in resignation as he spotted his captain upright as he returned with a clean washcloth. Lee shot him a weak smile and sighed as well.

“How long have we been here, sir?” Lee asked.

“I haven’t the slightest idea. I know I’m starving and could drink a gallon of water so my guess is that we’ve been here at least 24 hours. Given that Shinera is after vengeance for ‘our’ killing his brother I’m rather hesitant to eat or drink anything on the island now.” Harri replied.

“Who was his brother sir? The only one I could remember was General Tau from our time there.”

“Apparently his brother was a behavioral scientist working for Tau and had been the one to develop that drug you ingested. He didn’t take kindly to the fact that the island residents eliminated each other because I changed their water intake.”

“Ahh. Well sir, I think I’ve rested quite enough. I think it’s time we take the game to Shinera,” Lee said as he struggled to stand up. Harri was immediately at his side and helped him to his feet. He could feel the muscle tremors run through Lee’s body and knew he had to be damn near ready to collapse from exhaustion. However he knew Lee was right that they needed to get moving before Shinera became tired of waiting and came after them before they could make their plans.

Harri pulled Lee’s arm across his shoulder and helped him across the room and out the door. They made their way slowly down the stairs to the foyer. They stood there momentarily looking around the room and Harri figured his guess that Shinera didn’t want his staff causing problems was probably right since no one came out to greet them.

“Where to now Lee?” Harri asked.

“Kitchen sir, I need a bottle of water,” Lee answered softly then started coughing.

“Do you think that’s safe?”

“Probably not, but I still need a bottle of water.”

Detecting Lee was now steadier on his feet he released his hold on him and followed him into the kitchen. Lee quickly grabbed a bottle of water along with a large kitchen knife and anything else he thought would be of value and could carry, as did Harri. Harri was somewhat confused when Lee made no move to open the bottle and drink from it.

“Come on sir, I think we should get outside where we stand a fighting chance against him, and hopefully can talk without being overheard.”

Once outside they moved quickly across the lawn to the jungle hopefully out of Shinera’s earshot for a few moments. They had seen all the monitoring equipment when they had made their tour of the island so they knew they were no doubt being closely watched. After they had walked several hundred yards into the dense growth Lee came to a halt.

“Think this is safe for the moment?” Lee asked in a very low voice.

Harri shrugged. “It’s got to be better than the house. There’s more opportunity to cover our conversation with all the ambient noise from the wildlife.”

“We need to get to the ocean sir.” Lee stated emphatically.

“Why?”

“I have another location transponder on me and if we can get to the shoreline I can activate it, toss it into the water and hopefully it will be carried out to sea with the outgoing tide.”

“Really? And where pray tell did you secret that little toy Captain?” Harri inquired knowing they had both been stripped of their original clothing and redressed.

Lee just grinned. “I have my secrets, sir, or did you forget who I moonlight for occasionally?”

Harri scowled momentarily at Lee and his reference to ONI but then returned his smile. “I suppose they do have their occasional uses. All right let’s get moving and check out the water.”

QQQQQQ

Kowalski had picked up the admiral and skipper’s waterlogged effects as soon as he was able. He quickly stowed them on board FS-1 and beat feet back to the Seaview. He sat in the pilot’s seat impatiently as the docking operations were completed. Once he heard the final click, he unstowed the bags and was poised at the bottom of the ladder waiting for the hatch to be opened.

He rapidly passed the bags up to the waiting hands then climbed up the ladder and entered the nose. Chip Morton already had Crane’s bag laid out on top of the table and unzipped it anxious to inspect the contents. After a cursory inspection, he grabbed the admiral’s bag and conducted a similar search. What he found in both bags confirmed for Chip, at least in his mind, that neither Lee nor the admiral was onboard that flight. As he zipped the admiral’s bag shut he released a sigh and a hint of a smile touched the corner of his lips.

“Good news, sir?” Kowalski inquired seeing the slight relief in his XO’s eyes.

“I think so Ski. Their carryon bags with their regs and dive gauges are in those bags; there’s no way if they were on that flight that they would have packed them in their checked bags. I know for a fact Lee wouldn’t have because that’s where he hid his monitoring devices and personal transponders. After he found out they were being jammed on the island when he finally got clear air during their first dive he told me he would signal us once they had cleared the island on their return trip. The crash was over an hour out from the island and there was no signal before the plane went down. We should have been contacted no later than 20 minutes after their take off letting us know they were on their way.”

There were a few relieved smiles across the control room as the men heard the XO explain what was going on, but that only meant they weren’t on the plane. That probably meant that they were being held captive on the island or they had been spirited away by either the Chinese or the PR. Either way it still meant their shipmates were in danger.

Chip sighed and ran his hand through his hair. He somehow knew the admiral and Lee were still on the island but how was he going to sell that to Admiral Starke and get permission to mount a rescue mission to save his friends. After a few minutes pacing across the nose he moved to the radio shack.

“Sparks, get me Admiral Starke. I’ll take this in the admiral’s cabin.”

“Aye sir,” Sparks replied and began trying to reach Starke.

QQQQQQ

Harri and Lee laid quietly at the edge of the jungle atop a high cliff, scanning the beach and watching the action of the water below. It was clearly evident it was slack tide given the waves neither edged forward on the beach nor dropped back. It was dark and sunrise still hours away which they hoped played to their advantage.

As the tide began to turn and the waves began to relinquish their hold on the beach, Lee finally cracked the seal on his bottle of water and looked at the admiral. “Should we chance it or just pour it out?”

Harri regarded his bottle closely. It was labeled as a commercial product and the cap and seal were still intact. “I’m willing to chance it lad, if you are. If we don’t drink something soon it will be a moot point anyway.”

Lee smiled and then grudgingly sipped at the contents of the bottle. Lee grimaced as he drank his throat still feeling raw and torn from his last go-round with Shinera. His body desperately needed the fluid but the pain was nearly intolerable and he could only take a few sips. He then coughed harshly at the irritation in his throat. The pain he endured was more than obvious to Harri as he saw the tears form in the corners of his eyes. As the coughing fit passed Lee handed the bottle to Harri to finish it up.

“I’ve got my own lad; you need it more than I.”

“I need the bottle more than the water. I can’t drink any more the way my throat feels,” Lee answered his voice still hoarse and raspy. “Please sir, finish it up or I’ll have to pour it out.”

Harri took the bottle and emptied it hoping to hell Shinera had not tainted the contents with his brother’s poison. Once finished he handed it back to Lee to do with as he wanted. Lee picked up a few small rocks and placed them in the empty bottle then reached into his mouth and worked at something in the back. A minute later Lee let out a grunt and pulled out what looked like a tooth. Harri stared at him questioningly.

“Molar cap with a homing transmitter built into the enamel. All I have to do now is activate it, put it in the bottle and let the tide carry it out where its signal can be received by the Seaview.” Lee explained.

“And the rocks?”

“Ballast sir. We don’t necessarily want Shinera spotting the bottle on the surface of the water and blowing it to bits before it can get out past his jamming radius.” Lee responded. Harri smiled and patted Lee lightly on the shoulder. It never ceased to amaze him how prepared Lee was for seemingly every situation.

They watched as the waves broke further and further off the beach as the tide receded. As the churn of the water increased Lee struggled to rise only to feel Harri’s hand on his arm. He looked questioningly at him. “Let me do it son, it’s obvious you’re still feeling the effects of your sessions with Shinera.”

Lee was about to protest but as he felt the tremor in his legs he acquiesced to Harri’s request. Harri pushed to his feet and moved cautiously towards the edge of the cliff. He scanned the area as best he could and looked for any indication that Shinera was watching them or was near. Seeing nothing obvious Harri eased his way forward then hurled the bottle over the cliff and into the sea below. As he turned to return to the jungle he heard the report of a rifle then felt the sting of the bullet as it tore through his thigh.

Harri dropped immediately to the ground clutching his leg in pain. As best as he could tell the shot had come from the left along the tree line. He immediately locked his eyes on Lee as he struggled to his feet to rush to Harri’s aid. “Lee stay put that’s an order. You know he’s just waiting for you to come out so he can pick you off.” Just then another shot rang out and the dirt near Harri’s head sprayed up as the bullet impacted.

“That’s most likely true given his pattern back at the house but I can’t let him take you out sir.” Lee said now fully on his feet. He quickly scanned the area to the left looking for the most likely point from where Shinera was shooting. Based on his mental calculations he had to be below them and shooting up.

“A message in a bottle, Nelson?” Shinera said with a laugh as his voice boomed through a loudspeaker somewhere down the hillside. “That’s exceedingly optimistic or incredibly desperate and pathetic, I’m not sure which. As you can see we are playing a new game now gentlemen, one of my favorites, tag. Why don’t you come out and play Captain, or have you finally caught on that Nelson will sacrifice you to save himself just as he did back in the cells.”

Neither Harri nor Lee responded to Shinera’s taunt. Harri looked back at the jungle trying to spot Lee and to figure out a way to get out of their current situation.

“Sir, can you begin inching your way over this way? I have a plan that may at least get us out of the line of fire for the moment,” Lee whispered.

“Yeah, I think I can do that,” Harri replied as he sucked a breath through his teeth at the jolt of pain that radiated up and down his leg.

“Great. Give me about five minutes then move towards me as covertly as you can.” With that Lee disappeared into the jungle. All Harri could hear was occasional rustling in the thick undergrowth. As he writhed in pain, Harri began to worm his way, as surreptitiously as possible, closer to the tree line.

QQQQQQ

“Alright Morton what have you got for me?” inquired Starke.

“Sir we finally got their luggage from the Chinese recovery team and what I found leads me to believe that both Admiral Nelson and Captain Crane are probably still on the island. The captain had hidden a number of locating and communication devices in their dive gear packages and they intended to carry that gear with them at all times. When we got their luggage back from the Chinese those bags had been packed inside their checked bag; there’s no way the Skipper would have done that especially since he had made arrangements to contact us once they had left the island. According to the authorities their flight had been airborne for over an hour when it crashed, Lee would have made contact once they cleared the jamming device.”

“Do you think they’re still alive?”

“I have nothing concrete to base it on, but yes I do feel they’re both still alive.”

Starke regarded Morton on the video screen for a few moments trying to read his expression. There had always been something between him and Crane, an almost telepathic ability that unsettled him somewhat as they seemed to have a constant awareness of the other whether physically present in the room or not. They seemed to know what the other was thinking and what he wanted without a single exchange of words. In a crisis situation as Crane issued orders, Morton was passing them on almost before Crane was finished. The longer Harriman was exposed to his ‘boys’ that awareness and ability seemed to include his friend as well.

“So what is it you want to do Mr. Morton?”

Before he could answer there was an urgent knock at the door. Chip looked at the door somewhat irked by the interruption but by the same token the crew knew he was talking with Starke so it would have to be important to risk breaking into that conversation. “Come,” Chip called out tersely. “Excuse me a moment Admiral.”

Chief Sharkey quickly entered the room and moved over to the XO and whispered something into his ear. “You’re sure?”

“Aye sir,” Sharkey said louder. “We’ve verified the source and the location.”

A large smile spread across Chip’s face. “Thank you Chief, that will be all,” he said dismissing Sharkey. He returned his focus to the video monitor and the conversation he was having with Starke. “Sir, we’ve just picked up Captain Crane’s personal location transponder approximately one mile off of Shinera’s island. That particular transponder was hidden in a false tooth and had to be purposely activated by the Captain. I think we just got our proof he and the admiral were not on that plane and are probably still alive somewhere on the island.”

Starke nodded as he took in the new information. “I ask you again Commander, what is it you want to do and what do you expect of me?”

“I would like to lead a small team onto the island and look for Admiral Nelson and Captain Crane. Based on the number of people reported to have been on the plane Admiral, I think that Shinera released most if not all of his staff to keep them out of his plans for the admiral and captain. We accessed a couple of satellites when they went to the island and we have maintained constant surveillance. Sir, the amount of detectable activity there has ceased since the plane departed.”

“Seaview is not under a Navy charter Mr. Morton, you are aware of that aren’t you? You are operating as a private vessel and free to travel as you wish. You stray into Chinese territorial waters, it is unlikely that the US Government would intervene should you be discovered and detained,” Starke replied.

“Aye sir,” Chip answered, a small smile of relief touching the corners of his mouth. “Understood completely, we will endeavor to keep our presence undetected.”

“Very well Commander. Happy hunting,” Starke responded and broke the connection.

Chip immediately picked up the phone and tied into the intercom. “This is Commander Morton. Kowalski, Patterson, Marks, James, Sharkey and O’Brien report to the admiral’s cabin, ASAP.”

QQQQQQ

As the five minutes passed, Harri spotted Lee at the edge of the jungle with a basketball sized bundle of dried leaves, moss and other bits of organic matter. He had to do a double take to make sure of what he’d seen. “What’s that for?” Harri whispered back.

“Just wait and see. Are you ready to move? Once I throw this out there, we’ll only have a few seconds before he can sight back in on us and take a shot.” Lee answered, not wanting to spoil the surprise if Shinera was by any chance listening.

Lee pulled the lighter he had grabbed in the kitchen out of his pants pocket and began trying to get a light. He was having a difficult time making his fingers move correctly after his wrists had been savaged by Shinera’s rope. After the fourth try he finally got a flame, and then held it beneath the ball of dead leaves he had made. The dried material immediately ignited and flamed to life creating a large fireball. Lee quickly threw the flaming ball out onto the open ground in front of the admiral. As it sparked and shot flames into the night sky, Lee bolted out grabbed Harri’s wrists and dragged him back into the jungle, a single shot kicked up the dirt just behind Harri’s feet as they disappeared.

Once Harri was safely out of the line of fire, Lee released his wrists and collapsed to the ground breathing heavily and trying to control the deep coughs wracking his body. The water he had aspirated in his near drowning experience was beginning to cause problems as his lungs began to congest and have trouble drawing enough air.

Harri pulled himself into a sitting position and looked on in concern at his captain’s distress. “Are you okay, Lee?”

As the coughing finally subsided Lee nodded his head in the affirmative. “I’m fine, just picked up a bit of a cough. How are you sir; how is your leg?”

“Hurts like a son of a gun,” Harri ground out as he cradled his thigh.

“Most inventive Captain,” Shinera boomed over the speaker. “It looks as though you’re not as quick on the uptake as I thought, Crane. Do you honestly believe Nelson would have come back after you? The game is on gentlemen and I’m it.”

“He’s definitely something,” Harri remarked.

Lee gave the admiral a small smile in response and moved over to the admiral’s side. He pulled out his knife and cut away the pant leg so he could get a better look at the wound. He grimaced at the raw gash in Harri’s leg but was pleased to see the bullet had only grazed him and not gone through his leg but it was still bleeding profusely. He quickly pulled off his chambray shirt and tore it into strips. He took one length and folded it over making a compress for Harri’s wound and placed it gently on his leg then tied it in place with another strip of shirt.

“That should help for the moment, sir,” Lee said as he sat back.

Harri nodded and flexed his toes to make sure it wasn’t too tight. “Thanks Lee and thanks for getting me out of there. That was quite an effective diversion.”

Lee smiled. “I figured Shinera was watching through night vision goggles. The bright flare of the fireball would startle and blind him just enough to give me the time to pull you to safety.”

“Well that was quite a bright idea and it worked well.”

Lee groaned and smiled at the admiral’s pun. He pulled the bottle of water from the admiral’s shirt and handed to him. “Here sir, you need to replace some of the fluids you lost. Quite obviously the water hasn’t been tampered with or I would have done you in long ago.”

Harri took the bottle and took a few sips then handed it back to Lee. “Here, your turn.” As Lee tried to wave the bottle off Harri glared at him. “Take it and take a drink. You’re in as much need of replacement fluids as me; you’ve been through a hell of a lot more than I have.”

“Aye sir,” Lee replied as he accepted the bottle and took a swig. It still felt as though he was swallowing razor blades and between the water and the coughing his throat was raw. He handed the bottle back but Nelson indicated he needed to drink more. “No sir, not right now,” he croaked out, “My throat can only handle so much.”

Harri nodded and accepted the bottle. He took one more sip then replaced the cap and stowed it back in his pocket.

“What now sir,” Lee asked.

“I think we need to get out of sight for a bit, recoup our strength and plan our response. I want to have more on the ball when we go after Shinera.”

Lee nodded and began surveying the jungle behind them. After a moment he slowly pushed up to his feet and extended his hand down to Harri. Harri grabbed it and let Lee pull him back up to his feet. Lee ducked under Harri’s arm and pulled it over his shoulder and they began walking slowly back into the jungle to find a place to hole up and rest.

QQQQQQ

When the last man arrived in the admiral’s cabin, Chip indicated he should shut the door. “Gentlemen we are going on a rescue mission to get back our admiral and captain. Bobby you will remain here on Seaview in command while I lead our team onto the island. Be aware that we are doing this in a civilian capacity and cannot count on any support from the Navy or the government. If you don’t want to be involved in this any of you can withdraw with no fear of reprisal. Just let me know and I’ll select someone else.”

The incredulous looks on each man’s face that Morton might even consider that one of them wouldn’t gladly volunteer for this mission was readily apparent. Chip smiled to himself, not the least bit surprised the men seemed affronted by his offer.

“I think I speak for us all Mr. Morton when I say we’re in,” Kowalski replied. The rest of the group nodded emphatically following Ski’s comment.

“Thank you men, I appreciate your willingness to take this on, as will the admiral and the skipper. We will be moving at best possible speed to the island running silent to hopefully avoid detection by the Chinese. Once we arrive, we will swim to the island and begin the search for our missing men. We will be fully armed and will take no chances as it pertains to neutralizing any threats to the admiral, the captain or ourselves. Given Shinera was willing to murder over 25 people just to hide the fact he’s taken the skipper and admiral captive I’m certain that he will have no compunction about eliminating any one of us on sight. Is that understood?”

“Aye, sir,” they replied in unison.

“Bobby, take us down to 1500 feet, rig for silent running and get us on our way to that island.”

“Yes sir,” O’Brien answered then turned and exited the cabin to make preparations to get them under way.

“Chief get as many detailed photos and maps we have of the island so we can pick our entry point. The rest of you get down to the armory and missile room and assemble our weapons packet and dive gear so we’re ready to dive the minute Mr. O’Brien pulls to a halt. Let’s move like we have a purpose. Dismissed.”

“Aye sir,” the remaining men replied then quietly exited the XO’s cabin to carry out their assigned tasks.

“Hang on Lee, the cavalry’s coming,” Chip said to himself as headed out the door to the control room.

QQQQQQ

Twenty minutes later after a painstaking trek through the jungle ensuring they left no trail for Shinera to follow, Lee spied what he was looking for and pointed it out to the admiral. “There sir, that looks to be exactly what we want. I think we can crawl in under those trees and get the rest we need.”

Nelson looked ahead to where Lee pointed and took in the downed trees and snarl of brush above it. If they could squirm in underneath it would be a good place to hide out, assuming there were currently no snakes or other denizens of the jungle that called it home. They hadn’t spotted any monitoring equipment but that didn’t mean it wasn’t there. Once they got into that space they would be trapped if Shinera happened on them.

“I think you’re right. There doesn’t appear to be anything else that would give us complete cover, though I’m not thrilled with having no other way out.”

“I know but given we need to get out of sight and odds are any cave or other outcrop we tried to use Shinera would most likely know about, this is the only option we have. You wait here and I’ll crawl under and see about making it a little homier,” Lee replied with a small smile.

“Be careful Lee, the staff told us there were venomous snakes in the jungle and the last thing we need to deal with is a snake bite,” Nelson answered.

“Yes sir, I’ll be careful,” Lee said as he knelt down and began working his way under the brush and logs.

As Harri stood guard he heard a number of curses and a couple of gasps in pain issuing from under the brush. Five minutes later, Lee pushed his way back out and moved over to the admiral.

“I’ve got it cleared out as best I can. Didn’t find anyone home for the moment so I think we should be safe from the indigenous residents of the island. It’s going to be tight with the both of us in there so I hope you’re not claustrophobic,” Lee said with a quick wink. “Before we go in, let me take another look at your leg and make sure we got the bleeding stopped.”

Harri nodded and slowly extended his leg for Lee’s inspection. As Lee checked out the makeshift bandage he noticed that it was wet, meaning the wound had probably started bleeding again. He pulled out a couple more strips of fabric and added another layer on top of what was already there.

He looked up at Harri. “Is that too tight?”

“No, it’s fine Lee. It just hurts.”

As Lee moved to stand, Harri put his hand on his shoulder to keep him from rising. “How are you feeling?” he asked as he inspected Lee’s neck and wrists. Both injuries were red and inflamed, most likely infected from being in the jungle. Lee himself looked as though he were ready to keel over given everything he had been through.

“I’m fine,” Lee responded then immediately started to cough, grimacing from the pain it caused. Harri could hear that Lee’s lungs were becoming more congested as the night wore on, no doubt a complication from the water he had aspirated.

“Uh huh, I just bet you are.” Harri pulled the water bottle out of his shirt pocket and handed it to Lee. “Drink.”

Lee took the bottle and smiled weakly. He took a couple of small sips and forced the liquid down, it felt like hot lava searing the inside of his throat. He handed it back to Harri. “You need to drink as well; you’ve lost a lot of blood.”

Harri took the bottle back and took a large swig then capped it and put it back in his pocket. Once that was done Lee extended his hand and pulled him to his feet and helped him limp over to their makeshift shelter.

“After you,” Lee said as he motioned towards the entrance.

Harri dropped to his knees and carefully worked his way into the tight space. Once inside and settled, he called for Lee to enter as well. There was no immediate response and Harri started becoming concerned. He was tempted to call out louder but didn’t want to tip their position if Shinera was in the vicinity. After a moment he heard rustling and Lee began working his way in.

“Where were you?” Harri asked.

“I spotted a papaya tree off to the side and grabbed a couple of fruit. I think since Shinera has aspirations of turning this island into a tourist destination, I seriously doubt he’s poisoning the water and food. Plus I get the impression he wants us fully aware when he kills us or I turn on you voluntarily and do the deed.” Lee replied with a hint of a smile as he passed Harri one of the fruit. “Eat up sir; we’re going to need our strength.”

They both made quick work of the fruit as they were famished having no idea when they had last eaten. As they finished up their meal they suddenly froze as they heard someone enter the jungle near them. They tracked him as he moved back and forth in front of their shelter then finally settled heavily on the top log.

“Come out, come out wherever you are,” called Shinera as he pulled out his handkerchief and wiped his face. He sat there silently straining to hear any hint of where his quarry had gone.

“You’re surprisingly good at this, gentlemen. I figured Crane would have left you behind by now Nelson. You’ve really got to be slowing him down,” he taunted further. He continued to listen intently for the slightest of sounds. After 15 minutes he stood up and kicked at the brush in frustration at failing to reacquire his prey after their sudden departure from the cliff top.

“Have you spotted them on any of the cameras yet,” Shinera asked apparently talking to someone on a radio.

“No sir, nothing yet. We lost them after they headed back into the jungle. They haven’t hit any of the main trails or any of the lakes,” a voice replied. Shinera growled unhappy to have temporarily lost sight of his ‘guests’. He finally picked up his rifle and began making his way through the jungle in search of his objective.

Lee fought hard to contain the grunt and looming cough as Shinera’s foot made solid contact with his ribs. He needed to take a breath but knew if he did so he would begin coughing and give away their position. As Shinera moved off, he chanced a couple of shallow gasps of air to keep from passing out.

The struggle to keep the cough at bay was becoming difficult. Luckily for him there was a sudden loud snap somewhere ahead of them in the jungle and Shinera bolted off rapidly to determine the source. Hearing him thrash through the brush in pursuit of the sound, Lee finally let loose a gut wrenching series of coughs that left him gasping for air as he cradled his now injured ribs.

QQQQQQ

“Status, Mr. O’Brien,” Chip inquired as he entered the control room.

“We are underway to Shinera’s island at flank speed holding at 1500 feet, estimated time of arrival is 2200 hours tonight. We are currently rigged for silent running and have not detected anyone in pursuit or anyone even alerted to our departure, sir,” O’Brien reported.

“Excellent Bobby. Chief, status of our rescue team.”

“All available maps, photos and satellite imagery of the island are available on the chart table. Kowalski has reported that all dive and other gear is prepped and ready for immediate deployment once the signal is given,” Sharkey relayed.

“Thank you Chief. All right let’s start looking things over and pick the best place to come on shore.”

The three men moved to the chart table and began examining the images to get a feel for the island and determine where they should begin their assault. Working through the multiple images Chip finally found what he was looking for. “Here, this looks as good a place as any. It’s located on the back side away from the boat dock; there’s a sloping sandy beach and what appears to be a narrow trail that leads back past the cliffs to the house but lots of jungle cover to hopefully get us there undetected.”

Sharkey and O’Brien quickly scanned the photo Morton laid in front of them. Bobby pulled out the chart for the island and checked the water depths near shore. “It looks good from the depth standpoint,” he said. “Looks like we have about 200 feet of water up to a mile out, then it shallows to about 90 feet at the half mile mark; I don’t think we want to go any closer than that.”

Chip nodded in full agreement. “I agree that’s not a bad swim and shouldn’t tire us out too much. The only thing that might be a little dicey is that reef if we hit it at a tide change; I bet the waves really rip over it. Chief, see if you can get the tide tables for that island.”

“Aye sir, be back in a flash,” Sharkey responded and moved to the nearest open computer terminal. He typed the island location information into the program and quickly printed out the results and passed them to Morton and O’Brien.

“According to this, high tide will be at 2320 tomorrow which fits in well with our arrival time, sir. We can leave Seaview around 2300 and begin working our way in to shore. By the time we get to the reef, there should be enough water over the top to make it easy for us to swim past.”

“Alright gentlemen, let’s go with that plan. Chief, I want the team well rested and ready to go once we’re on station. As soon as we arrive, we’ll reconvene and take a look at the actual conditions and modify our plans as needed,” Chip replied. “Until then grab as much rest as you can so you’re focused and ready carry this out.”

“Yes, sir,” O’Brien and Sharkey acknowledged then moved off to check on equipment and their course to the island.

QQQQQQ

Harri looked on in great consternation as Lee coughed uncontrollably. He was worried about his captain’s deteriorating condition and could feel the increased heat his body was putting off due to the growing infection in his lungs and from his wounds. He pulled out the water bottle and once Lee quit coughing he offered it to the exhausted man.

“No sir, thank you. I’m okay,” Lee said barely able to speak anymore.

“Take a drink Lee you need it, that’s an order.”

Lee resignedly took the bottle and got a mouthful of water. Knowing the excruciating pain that was to come he was reluctant to swallow. He slowly let the water seep down his throat until his mouth was empty; his eyes crammed shut as he tried to block out the pain. Once it was down he passed the bottle back ignoring the admiral’s unvoiced command to drink more.

“No, sir, no more it’s too painful right now.”

Taking a swig himself then securing the bottle back in his pocket Harri finally spoke. “Well we now know he’s not alone on the island; there’s at least one other person here watching the monitoring equipment while Shinera plays hunter. That complicates things a bit.”

“It does help us in that we know he isn’t monitoring the deep jungle much beyond the main paths, if what we heard was the truth,” Lee added. “If we can keep to the denser portions of the foliage then we should be able to move undetected. The next question is whether we hunt the hunter or try to make our way back to the house and signal for help.”

“I’m inclined to hunt the hunter but given our diminished physical conditions that may not be an option. Right now I think we should try and get a little sleep and then evaluate our options when we’re better rested,” Harri added.

Lee nodded his agreement. “I’ll take the first watch sir.”

Harri was about to protest knowing Lee needed sleep as much if not more than he did, but ultimately figured Lee wouldn’t rest well until he was more rested. “All right son, wake me in two hours.”

Lee nodded and settled back listening intently for any sound of Shinera’s return. He mentally worked through the various options available to them given what they knew about their current situation. Like Harri, he was definitely inclined to go after Shinera and end this once and for all. With him gone, he didn’t think that whoever remained behind would be inclined to take over the hunt unless they were affiliated with the PR or like Shinera had family that had been killed on the island. That was another variable, how many men did he have backing him up in this vendetta.

He knew Harri was going to be limited in how fast and how far he could move with his injured leg and while able to move rapidly he ran the risk of giving them both away with that damnable cough he had developed. The best option in his mind was to draw Shinera back to them where they could be in better control of the situation. He just wished he knew if Seaview had picked up his signal and if they were on their way. Without knowing that they couldn’t just lay low and wait for rescue they had to take the fight to Shinera.

QQQQQQ

As the first rays of the morning sun worked their way through the canopy and illuminated their hiding place, Harri awakened. He was momentarily at a loss to explain why he ached all over and was looking up at the underside of a tree when it all coalesced. He felt better than he had, more rested, but given how much light was filtering in he knew Lee had let him sleep far longer than the two hours he had stipulated. He quickly turned his head and spotted Lee still awake and keeping watch of the jungle beyond their lair.

“I thought I ordered you to wake me in 2 hours, Captain,” Harri growled at the man next to him.

Lee shrugged and pointed to his bare wrist where his watch normally resided. Shinera had relieved them both of that bit of jewelry from the outset to aid in their disorientation. Harri glared at him knowing full well his captain was capable of discerning just how much time had passed.

“You were sleeping so soundly, it seemed a shame to wake you,” Lee croaked out in his defense.

“You do us no good taking yourself to exhaustion. You need some sleep before it no longer becomes a discretionary activity Lee.”

“I may not have slept but I’ve been resting and actually feel pretty well rejuvenated. Plus my mind has been going a mile a minute trying to figure a way out of this and I doubt I would have been able to sleep much anyway. As it stands now, we have a far more formidable weapon rested and ready to take on Shinera,” Lee countered as he tapped his head indicating Harri’s brain.

Harri rolled his eyes at Lee’s flattery and attempt to avoid his ire. “Don’t think you will avoid our discussion over your most current failure to follow my orders,” he replied and had to bite back the smile at Lee’s expression, knowing Harri had just popped his balloon. “So what have you been contemplating all this time and what have you come up with?”

“We have no idea whether Chip picked up my transponder so the option of just hunkering down and staying put is not an option. I think we’re both in agreement that we have to go after Shinera and since we are less than agilely mobile we have to draw him to us. I’m sure he’s convinced that I’m ready to part ways with you following our experience back at the house and we should play on that. It’s obvious he wants to take us out personally so it’s unlikely anyone with him will shoot to kill.”

Nelson nodded his head in agreement. “So what do you have in mind, lad?”

“We need more weapons than our knives so we should fashion some spears, spikes, ropes and whatever else you can think of to even the odds. I can also build a couple of booby traps that will either slow him down or take him out altogether. Once we have that all set up, then I need to head out into the jungle draw their attention and pull them into our web,” Lee continued.

“That sounds like a good approach Lee. Let’s get to it and see if we can get that son of a bitch and give him a taste of his own medicine.” Harri said as he began easing his way out of their hideout. “You lie down and grab some sleep; I’ll start collecting things we can use for our trap. That’s an order Captain.”

“Aye sir,” Lee replied somewhat dejectedly. He knew he needed the sleep but he also knew they needed to get their plan set in motion as quickly as possible if they were to have any chance of surviving their time on the island. Once Harri had crawled out Lee lay down and closed his eyes, knowing he wasn’t going to be able to sleep long but even an hour would help.

QQQQQQ

Hearing a loud snap of a branch, Lee was immediately awake and alert; a skill he had developed over his time with ONI. He looked cautiously out from his cover and was relieved to find it was the admiral preparing their defenses. Having no idea how long he’d slept, Lee eased himself out of their warren to join the admiral.

As Harri heard the rustle from their shelter, he looked up to see Lee working his way out. It had only been about 90 minutes as best he could guess and was somewhat upset at himself for having awakened his captain. “Lee, sorry I woke you son. Why don’t you crawl back in and see if you can get a little more rest.”

“No thanks sir, I’m fine and we need to get this put together as soon as possible,” Lee replied his voice barely audible, as he surveyed all the branches and vines the admiral had collected. “How long was I out?”

“I would figure about an hour and a half; not nearly long enough.” Harri reached behind him and pulled out the water bottle and tossed to Lee. “Here, drink.”

Catching the bottle, Lee grimaced and shook his head no. “I’m not thirsty sir.”

“Drink some, Lee. I know it’s painful but we’re already dehydrated and you need to replace some of the fluids to at least hold it at bay.”

Lee grimaced once more, uncapped the bottle and took a swig. They were getting down to the last drops and would definitely need to find more in short order. He recapped the bottle and set it down by the admiral. He walked over to the pile of branches Harri had gathered, grabbed one and began shaving one end into a sharp point.

They both worked diligently making their weapons of spears and spikes. Once that was done Lee began rooting around the jungle until he found what he was looking for, a short stout log that they could attach some of their spikes to, suspend it from a vine and use it as a pendulum to take out an unsuspecting foe who stumbled into their trap.

While the admiral worked on securing the spikes to the log, Lee took some of the vines and threw them over a tree branch. He next worked on making slender ropes that would be used as trip lines to trigger the release of their weapon. Once Harri was done adding the armaments to the fob, Lee wrapped one end of the vine around it so it could be hoisted and suspended from the branch. He and Harri then began setting the trip lines and finally pulled the log up and secured it out of sight on a nearby tree ready to be released when someone broke the trip line. They quickly covered the trip lines and set up subtle markers so they could avoid them and hopefully not any pursuer.

They then created a series of noose traps on the jungle floor by pulling over limber saplings and securing them with trip lines attached to a noose that would capture unsuspecting feet if triggered. Next they positioned caches of stakes and spears along their path so they could have ready access to them once Shinera or anyone else gave chase.

It was nearly 1500 by their best guess when they finished up their preparations. They had been very careful to keep alert for any signs that Shinera or his men were working their way through the jungle in search of them. On a couple of occasions they had scrambled back into their lair at the sound of something large moving in the undergrowth.

“Well Lee it looks like we’re ready to start drawing Shinera in, are you ready to act as bait?”

“Yes sir,” Lee rasped out and then was consumed with bout of harsh coughing which left him feeling as though he had coughed up a lung. As he straightened up he wiped the tears from his eyes and the sweat from his brow.

“I think maybe I should go out looking for them,” Harri said as he laid his hand on Lee’s back and felt the heat emanating from his body.

“No sir, you’re hardly able to move with that leg wound. I’ll be all right, it’s just a cough plus I think he’ll be looking for me anyway as I’ve no doubt found you to be too immobile to risk dragging along. After all you allowed him to torture me longer than I allowed him to go after you,” Lee replied with a smirk.

“All right but you be damn careful son. I want you back in one piece, we have a mission to complete and I need my captain at the helm.”

“Aye sir,” Lee replied. “Why don’t you finish off the water and give me the bottle so if I come upon some fresh water I can refill it. Also I think any water source I find will be closely monitored and will draw the attention we want.”

Harri picked up the bottle and took a drink then passed it to Lee with one sip left. Lee grudgingly took the bottle and drained the last bit of water his throat still raw and sore. He collapsed the bottle, recapped it then shoved it in his back pocket. He grabbed one of their spears gave Harri a quick smile then moved off into the jungle to find Shinera.

QQQQQQ

Lee moved quickly and silently through the jungle much like a large cat stalking its prey. He eventually came upon what looked like a game trail. As he examined the trail he found spore which indicated that the thing most likely making the noises they had heard were feral pigs or wild boars. He just hoped there wasn’t anything bigger out their preying on them. The pigs were dangerous enough; a large carnivore could create real problems.

He decided to follow the trail in hopes that it would lead to a watering hole and he could refill his bottle and hopefully catch the attention of their ‘host’. Lee moved down the trail for some distance then spotted what looked like a clearing ahead. Cautiously he eased his way closer to the opening and discovered it was a small spring; the water looked clear and was probably safe to drink. He quickly started scanning the trees and ground around the pool looking for monitoring devices he knew had to be there. He spied at least three cameras positioned so they provided complete coverage of the watering hole; a small smile spread across his face.

Lee moved cautiously over to the pool pulled out his bottle and quickly filled it with water. ‘That should get some attention,’ Lee thought to himself. As much as he was loathe to do it, he drank the entire contents, his throat screaming out in agony as the cool liquid flowed down to his stomach. The surge of water into his system was an immediate relief and returned a measure of stamina to his exhausted body. He knelt down and refilled the bottle then shoved it in the back of his waistband.

Lee spotted another game trail on the opposite side of the pool and walked around to follow it back into the jungle. He moved as rapidly as he could and soon spotted a road through the branches. He scanned the canopy and again found cameras as expected positioned about 25 feet apart on either side of the trail. He trotted across the road then merged deeper into the jungle letting Shinera know that he was making his way towards the house.

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“Mr. Shinera, we’ve got Crane. He just visited the pool on the south end of the island and got a drink. We picked him up again as he crossed the main trail heading north towards the house,” Chase reported.

“Any sign of Nelson?” Shinera inquired.

“No sir, not that I could see. Crane was moving pretty quickly so if you said you tagged Nelson there’s no way he’s with him, not at that pace.”

Shinera smiled smugly and walked out of the room to collect his gun and his assistants; it was time to do a little hunting. “Just as I expected, he’s finally dumped the old man and is out for himself. Garrett, Chin, let’s set up a little welcoming committee for the good Captain.”

Both men picked up their semi-automatic machine guns and followed after their boss. It had been made abundantly clear to them that the ‘kill shot’ for both Crane and Nelson was his. If either one died before he got his shot the guilty man would most likely take their place.

They moved out of the house and took up positions just on the edge of the jungle so they would be set to hobble Crane once he made his move towards the main structure. Shinera walked out onto the porch in clear view hoping to draw the captain in for the grand finale of his game.

QQQQQQ

Upon reaching the edge of the jungle near the main house Lee shinnied up a tree to get the lay of the land. He was well camouflaged and wouldn’t be readily spotted by the men on the ground or the person monitoring the cameras. He watched as the two hired help hunkered down just inside the jungle opposite of his position and then saw Shinera saunter out on the porch no doubt trying to appear unaware that Lee was in the vicinity.

Lee’s plan now was to blunder out into the open at the furthest point from the armed men and draw their attention and their fire. Their accuracy at that distance with the guns he had seen would be limited and he figured he could get back into the jungle and on his way back to their hideout without a real threat of being shot. He slowly lowered himself down to the ground as he prepared to make his dash. As he prepared to drop into place he had to fight back the urge to cough; doing so now would undo all his plans. He dropped to the jungle floor and buried his head in his hands trying to quell the urge to cough feeling as though his chest was going to explode. After a couple of minutes he had finally beaten back the cough for the moment and was able to draw a deep breath. He unsteadily climbed to his feet and prepared himself for his dash.

“Okay Lee, just don’t trip,” he said to himself then burst into the clearing around the house apparently aiming for the back patio. As soon as he made his appearance the jungle was alive with the sound of gunfire. He watched in mild fascination as the bullets began kicking up the dirt closing in on his position. He immediately veered off back into the jungle, bullets tearing at the leaves and branches above his head. The game was now afoot, Lee thought to himself with some amusement.

His plan was to lead them in a roundabout course back to where Nelson was waiting. He just hoped he had the speed and stamina to make it all the way back. He also desperately hoped that Chip had received his message and he and Seaview were making their way to the rescue; he hoped.

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Harri was sitting quietly back at their camp trying to ignore the pain and growing heat in his injured leg. There was no doubt in his mind that it was infected since they really had no way to clean the wound. He was becoming less mobile by the minute and of less and less value to Lee as time passed. It was getting late, the sun was starting to set and he was beginning to worry about where his captain was and whether he had happened on Shinera as yet.

The tranquil evening was suddenly shattered as he heard the rapid report of gunfire in the distance. “Lee…” Harri said aloud. It was now obvious that Lee had engaged the enemy and was hopefully on his way back with them in tow. He just hoped he was in good enough condition to stay in front of them and out of range.

Harri pushed painfully up to his feet and began pacing as best he could across the area around their hideout. He moved to each of the surprises they had planned and ensured that the telltales for Lee were readily apparent while the trip lines and traps were adeptly hidden. Everything was ready all he needed was Lee and Shinera.

QQQQQQ

Lee ran stealthily through the jungle easily outpacing Shinera and his men. It became immediately obvious to Lee that Shinera was not used to traveling through the jungle and was struggling to keep up with him. He slowed his pace somewhat and had to make noise to keep them on track. Shinera may be a hunter but he was sure it was done from the comfort of a Jeep or an air conditioned hunting blind, not on the ground actually tracking and pursuing his prey.

As he moved through the undergrowth he discovered exactly what had made the game trails and as expected it was wild pigs. He had stumbled upon a large boar snoozing in the hollow of a tree. The boar shot immediately to its feet and charged Lee, its mouth open baring its formidable tusks. Crouched down to go under the downed log across his path he was unprepared for the animal’s attack. Already tired from Shinera’s treatment, his lack of sleep and his lengthy jaunt through the jungle he couldn’t move out of the pig’s way fast enough and it caught him in the side tearing a nasty gash along his rib cage as it ran by.

Lee bit back the scream of pain and managed to pull himself on top of the downed log and out of the angry animal’s way before it got turned around and came back. He could feel the blood flowing down his side and the scent of the blood further agitated the crazed pig below. Securing his position in the tree he pulled off his now torn t-shirt and quickly fashioned a bandage out of it to staunch the flow. The gash further exacerbated his sore ribs from Shinera’s kick earlier.

The pig continued to root and thrash around the tree below looking for a way to get to the prize above. There was suddenly a loud snap back the way Lee had come and the boar quickly spun around and headed off through the jungle towards the noise. Minutes later there was a high pitched scream followed shortly by a burst of gunfire. Apparently the boar had found Shinera and his men and had no doubt drawn blood.

Lee knew that during the time he had been treed by the boar Shinera had closed the gap between them. He had to get back on the trail and back to Harri before he gave out from exhaustion and blood loss. The makeshift bandage was not very effective in stopping the blood flow and he needed to get moving before Shinera was upon him. He cautiously eased himself back onto the ground his side screaming in pain with the movement required. He breathed rapidly through his teeth trying to tamp down the pain and to steel himself for the rest of the journey ahead.

He tried to tighten the bandage around his torso to slow his loss of blood then staggered on towards his goal. He was moving very slowly and making more noise than he liked, but it was the best he could do given his condition. The only thing in his favor at the moment was that it was nearly dark making it even more difficult for Shinera to track him. He just hoped the boar had slowed down his pursuers enough to let him get away.

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Shinera was tiring of the hunt and was ready for this game of his to be over. He had quite obviously underestimated his opponent and his ability to navigate and move so rapidly through the dense jungle. It was quickly growing dark and nearly impossible to follow Crane’s trail. As he contemplated turning around and returning to the house for the night he heard something large moving towards him and his men. The three looked at each other and smiled anticipating the imminent arrival of the captain.

Their anticipation immediately turned to horror as a large boar burst through the jungle in front of them and charged. Chin screamed out in terror and agony as the huge pig barreled into him sinking his three inch tusks into his leg. The frenzied animal locked its jaws tighter on its prize determined not to let this one get away; it shook its head savagely back and forth as it worked to incapacitate its prey. Chin continued to scream and pounded frantically at the animal in vain.

Shinera and Garrett stood dumbfounded and transfixed by the vicious assault on their companion. As Chin’s agonizing screams finally snapped the men out of their momentary stasis Garrett finally recovered enough to aim his gun and strafe the animal until it lay dead on the ground. The damage inflicted on Chin by the rampaging beast was extensive having torn the better part of his thigh apart and severing the femoral artery. He laid there on the ground, eyes wide with fear and shock gasping his final breaths as his life’s blood flowed out his leg.

Shocked by this sudden turn of events Shinera was ready to return to base and resume the hunt in the morning. As they prepared to leave Chase radioed them with an update.

“Mr. Shinera, I just picked up Crane about 300 yards from your position. He just crossed the north-south road heading west. It looked as though he was injured as he seemed to be staggering and appeared to have a bandage of some sort tied across his chest.”

Shinera stood there quietly for a moment staring at the dead man at his feet. Crane must have stirred up the boar and been attacked as well. He had to be nearly exhausted and now injured he would have to slow down considerably. “Copy that,” Shinera responded. “Have you seen anything of Nelson yet?”

“No sir. He must be lying low or incapacitated by the wound.” Chase offered.

“Very well,” Shinera replied. “We’ll head in Crane’s direction now. He must be trying to work his way down to the dock and boat. Let me know if you spot anything else immediately.”

“Yes sir. Chase out.”

“Come on lets end this thing now,” Shinera growled at Garrett.

“What about Chin’s body?”

“What about it? Once we take care of Crane and Nelson you can come back and get it if anything is left once the wild pigs figure out it’s here.” Shinera answered coldly.

Garrett felt an icy shiver skitter down his spine at the man’s total disregard for anyone. He turned and started to follow Shinera, the last thing he wanted to do was turn his back on the man as there was now no doubt in his mind he would be shot if he balked.

QQQQQQ

“We’ve reached our coordinates, Mr. Morton,” Lt. O’Brien informed the XO.

“Well done Bobby and in record time. Take us up to periscope depth and let’s take a look at what’s there,” Chip replied.

“Aye sir. Take us up to 90 feet,” Bobby ordered.

As Seaview began to rise Chip picked up the mic and clicked it twice clearing the channel. “Shore party; assemble in the missile room immediately.” As he listened to the confirmations to his call Chip moved to the periscope and looked towards the island to get a read on the current weather and water conditions. He could see a full moon climbing on the horizon and it was flood tide hopefully giving them sufficient depth to swim under the turbulent breakers rolling over the reef between them and the shoreline.

“Okay Bobby you have the conn. We’re going to make our way to shore. Once we’ve left, surface the boat and make a full circuit around the island; hopefully Lee or the Admiral will be in a position to see her and signal or make their way down to the beach. Have the deck crew keep an eye out for any sign. We are going to make a run at the house first and cut out the jamming device so we can communicate.”

“Yes, sir. Be careful Chip and bring them back.”

Chip smiled and clapped O’Brien on the shoulder. “Will do. Keep a light on in the window.”

Chip walked quickly down to the missile room where he stripped out of his uniform and donned the yellow wetsuit, he was leading this party and had to dress the part. He was hoping the admiral or Lee would spot him once they got on shore and would come to meet the team. When everyone was dressed and had all their gear they entered the escape hatch and exited the boat.

The swim in was a challenge as the rough surf pounded them as they crossed over the reef. Once clear they were able to quickly swim to shore and make it to the beach. As Chip stood on the beach he looked back out to sea and saw Seaview surface majestically from the depths bathed in the slivery moonlight behind the breaking surf. He grabbed the radio from his belt and attempted to contact the boat but apparently the jamming device was still in operation.

Getting no response to his hails Chip turned around and trotted across the beach to the jungle and along with the rest of the team stripped out of their wetsuits and readied themselves for the trek through the jungle. When the last man signaled he was ready they silently merged into the jungle and began making their way to the main house.

They crept cautiously forward through the foliage as they closed in on the house, making sure not to alert anyone of their presence. Reaching the edge of the clearing around the house, they unslung their weapons and watched intently for any signs of roving patrols or other means of monitoring. After 5 minutes had passed and they had failed to spot anyone, Chip finally gave the signal and they stormed the house.

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Lee stumbled forward through the jungle trying to keep his feet and his focus and to find his way back to Harri. He was becoming lightheaded and lethargic as his wound continued to seep blood and his body begged for rest. He finally broke down and forced more water down his throat trying to replace some of the fluids he had lost. He was obliquely aware that he was no longer moving as quietly as he had before, making it too easy for Shinera to follow. He was also now on a direct path back to their camp no longer trying to disguise his intended destination.

He was exhausted and wanted nothing more than to just lie down and go to sleep. The rational part of his mind that was forcing him forward knew that giving in to that urge would mean his end as he would either die from blood loss or be found and terminated by Shinera. He had to push on.

As best he could figure he was getting close to the perimeter he and Harri had established and he needed to be especially vigilant about where he stepped lest he be taken out by one of his own traps. He strained his eyes looking for the telltales they had laid out to keep them out of harm’s way, his only source of light the full moon now illuminating the jungle.

He staggered on hoping to hell that the admiral was all right and his injury hadn’t incapacitated him further as they now needed to rely on his strength to draw Shinera in and end this. He pushed forward barely able to lift his feet then tripped over an exposed root and fell heavily to the ground. His resolve all but gone he cried out in pain and frustration as his injured side contacted another root. Lee laid there stunned, seriously doubting he had the strength and will to regain his feet.

QQQQQQ

Harri was immediately alert at the sound of something moving towards him in the jungle. He moved as quickly as he could for cover and waited to see who or what would appear. After a few minutes he heard a loud snap then a strangled cry of pain as whoever it was hit the ground.

It sounded somewhat like Lee so he decided to take a chance and move from cover towards the noise. He limped quietly forward thankful for the light of the moon which allowed him to spot the telltales and avoid their traps. Clearing the outer ring he spied a form lying on the jungle floor. He could hear the raspy breaths and the occasional moan from the man and knew he was severely injured. He approached cautiously, continually scanning the jungle around him for signs of anyone else; once close enough he was able to see it was Lee.

“Lee!” he cried out as he knelt by his side. “Lee can you hear me? What happened?” Getting no response he carefully rolled him over onto his back and immediately spied the blood-soaked bandage around his ribs. Lee moaned in pain but didn’t open his eyes.

Lee’s skin was cold and clammy, his breathing rapid and shallow, his pulse rapid and weak; he was slipping into shock. Harri gently tapped Lee on the face trying to rouse him; he had to get him out of the open and under cover before Shinera found them.

“Come on son, wake up for me please.” Lee rolled his head from side to side and groaned again but hadn’t tried to open his eyes.

“Lee!” Harri said more forcefully, hoping his command voice would compel him to respond. “Come on Commander, pull it together! I need you up and moving. Do you hear me?”

Lee moaned again then started to cough, a harsh and tearing sound as his lungs strained to expel the growing fluids and deliver the oxygen his body so desperately needed. As the coughing subsided he slowly cracked his eyes and fought to focus on what was around him. “Admiral,” he croaked out in a barely audible whisper. “He’s coming…you have to hide. You gotta go, leave me.”

Harri sighed in relief as Lee rejoined the world. He palmed Lee’s cheek then slid his hand down to the juncture of his neck and shoulder and gave it a reassuring squeeze. “Not on your life son. You’ve done your part and brought him with you now WE need to finish this. I need you to try and get up. I can’t move you with this leg, can you help me?”

“So tired,” Lee replied drifting away mentally. “So tired.”

“Lee, focus on me; we need to get moving. Come on son, give me your hand and let’s get you up.”

Finally putting it all together Lee realized where he was and extended his hand to Harri. As Harri pulled, Lee pushed with all his might and finally found his feet. In the moonlight Harri could see the slow seep of blood down Lee’s side and knew he had to get him hidden and taken care of before it was too late.

“Okay put your arm around my shoulder and let’s see if we can make it back to the shelter….That’s it, nice and easy one step at a time. Come on son you’re doing fine.”

They slowly made it back to the center of their camp and Harri gently guided Lee to a tree in front of their hideout. He pulled off his shirt and tore it into strips and applied an additional layer of binding to Lee’s chest in hopes of stopping the flow of blood. As he tied off the last knot he heard a loud snap behind him and spotted Shinera and his man entering their ring of armaments. Harri had no time to get Lee stashed out of the way so he decided to leave him leaning against the tree and try and work his way in behind Shinera to take him out with a spear.

QQQQQQ

Shinera and Garrett made their way cautiously into the small clearing ahead of them. Crane had left an obvious trail as he fought to keep going after being wounded. Shinera stopped suddenly when he spied a man propped against the base of a tree in the distance. A self-satisfied smile spread across his face as he knew he finally had his quarry cornered. Scanning the area around the clearing there was no sign of Nelson, he assumed he had deserted his captain once it was obvious he was of no use. Garrett continued to scan the jungle nervously having the distinct feeling that they were being watched.

“Come on let’s go take care of the captain then we’ll head back for the night and return for Nelson in the morning,” Shinera said as he began moving forward.

Intent on claiming his prize he moved towards Lee paying no attention to where he was stepping until he felt a line tug at his boot then break. Without warning the log embedded with spikes came swinging down out of the trees. Shinera was quick enough to jump out of the way but Garrett was not that lucky as it plowed into him driving the spikes into his body and knocking him across the clearing to the jungle floor. He wouldn’t be getting up; the weapon had efficiently performed as designed.

Shinera froze in place afraid to move lest he set off some other booby traps. He scanned the ground around him looking for any sign that there were more things under the carpet of moss, sticks and dead foliage. He figured it was probably safe to back out the way he came so he would have to settle his score with Crane from a distance rather than chance encountering another rude surprise.

He raised his rifle cautiously and aimed at Lee’s body against the tree. As he prepared to pull the trigger a spear flew out of the jungle and hit him in the leg. He cried out in pain and dropped his rifle as he clutched at the gash in his thigh. He scanned the jungle rapidly trying to find the source of the spear. His eyes finally hit on Nelson standing off to the side, a look of satisfaction written across his face. Shinera grabbed his gun and fired in his direction forcing the man to limp off into the foliage.

“Well played Nelson, that’s two rounds to you, but not nearly good enough. I was completely drawn in by your ruse but it won’t be enough to save your captain or yourself.” Shinera let loose another shot at some moving plants hopefully backing Harri out of spear range. He knew he had to strike at Crane now while he was immobile and quickly raised his rifle and aimed.

“No!” yelled Harri as a single gunshot rang out. “Lee!”

Harri looked on in utter despair knowing his captain and son was dead and it was his fault. The jungle was silent except for a strangled cry as Shinera stumbled forward and sank to his knees looking in utter disbelief at the growing blood stain blossoming across his chest. He locked eyes with Nelson momentarily then toppled over, dead. Nelson stared in amazement at Shinera’s body then looked quickly around to see who had shot him. Seconds later he heard rustling in the jungle around him and was relieved to see Chip, Sharkey and Kowalski enter the clearing. Kowalski re-slung his rifle over his shoulder and smiled.

“Admiral,” Chip called out, the relief of finding them alive apparent in his voice. “Are you and Lee all right?”

As they moved towards them, Nelson called out. “Chip thank god you’re here. Stop where you are, there are a couple of noose snares in your vicinity and the last thing we need is an injured rescue party. Stay put and I’ll set them off.” As Nelson hobbled over to spring the traps, he looked down at Shinera’s body with disdain. “Game, set and match you son of a bitch,” he snarled quietly thinking of all those who had died or been severely injured in his quest for vengeance. He quickly triggered the trip lines on his traps and the trees suddenly snapped up as the tension on them was released making the rescue party sigh in relief at not being caught in their CO’s handiwork.

“Okay, it’s safe now,” Harri said nearly crumpling in relief. “I’ll live but Lee’s in bad shape, we need to get him to the boat ASAP.”

Chip and Kowalski made a bee line for Lee and dropped down on their knees beside him as the Chief moved to Harri’s side to check on him. Ski pulled off his pack and began pulling out the emergency medical supplies he had brought along. Chip reached forward touching Lee’s throat and felt for a pulse. Because of the torn skin and scabbing he couldn’t find one and his heart sank afraid that they had arrived too late. Much to his relief Lee moaned at the pain caused by Chip’s prodding around his neck for a pulse point. A sigh of relief rippled through the group.

Ski pulled out a flashlight and handed to Chip to shine on the captain’s chest. He did a quick assessment of the skipper and found all the symptoms of shock. He cut away the improvised bandage and they all grimaced at the ugly gash that travelled up his left side. He quickly wiped the wound with cleansing pads and then applied a pressure bandage to the seeping wound. Next he started an IV to replenish some of the blood the captain had lost.

As Ski tended to Lee, Chip contacted Seaview to have FS-1 dispatched to the island and on the runway ready for immediate takeoff when they arrived. He then contacted the rest of the rescue team to get a vehicle and stretchers as close as possible to their location to transport the injured men to the landing strip.

Once he finished with the captain, Ski next turned his attention to the admiral. “Sir if you would sit down here I’ll take a quick look at your leg and I can give you something for the pain.”

Nelson nodded and with Sharkey’s aid slid slowly to the ground. “Thanks Ski. It’s a nice bullet wound. Lee did the best he could but we didn’t have much to work with.”

Sharkey took the flashlight from the XO and shined on the admiral’s leg as Kowalski removed the sodden bandage. They all gasped a bit at the wound, infection was readily evident given the red and angry appearance. Ski adeptly cleansed the area around the wound and applied sterile dressings completing his task just as the rest of the Seaview rescue party arrived with the stretchers. After applying the last strip of tape he fished through his kit and pulled out a couple of pain pills and handed them to the admiral along with a bottle of water.

Harri quickly swallowed the pills and proceeded to empty the bottle quenching his thirst. “Thanks Ski, I really needed that. How’s the captain?” he asked as the team gently loaded the skipper on the stretcher.

“Not good sir, he’s in shock and seems to be having problems breathing.”

“That’s not surprising considering the fact he nearly drowned. Let’s get the hell out of here and back to Seaview,” Nelson ordered his concern for his captain and friend clearly written on his face.

QQQQQQ

As the final docking clamp clanged into place, the aft hatch was pulled open and Dr. Jamieson and his corpsmen hurried in to assess the condition of the skipper. The report from Kowalski didn’t sound good and he needed to get Lee under his care as soon as possible. He quickly did a vitals check of the captain and was immediately alarmed. “Get him to sick bay stat!” Jamie ordered. His corpsmen rapidly prepped the skipper for transport and exited FS-1. Jamieson followed them not even taking time to conduct an assessment of the admiral or speak to the returning team.

Harri felt the knot of dread in his stomach grow even larger as those actions spoke volumes as to the precarious nature of Lee’s condition. His concern was reflected in the faces of the rest of the rescue team as they too were shocked by the doctor’s response.

With the doctor and corpsmen gone, Kowalski prepared the admiral for transport down to sick bay. As he and Patterson began to lift the stretcher, Sparks called down to FS-1. “Admiral, Mr. Morton, I have Captain Fa of the Chinese Navy on the radio. He wants to know why Seaview has entered Chinese waters.”

“Pipe it down here,” Nelson replied. “Chip hand me the mic please.”

“Aye sir,” both men answered as they moved to complete their tasks.

“Go ahead sir, Captain Fa is on the line.”

“Captain Fa, this is Admiral Harriman Nelson of the SSRN Seaview.”

“Admiral Nelson?! You’re alive? We thought you had gone down with the others in the airplane crash.” Fa replied.

“Quite obviously that is not the case. Captain Crane and I were being held prisoner on the island by Dorian Shinera. Shinera admitted to me that he had the aircraft brought down to cover the fact that he had kidnapped us,” Nelson responded.

“To what end Admiral,” Fa inquired.

“Revenge. He felt that the captain and I were directly responsible for his brother’s death on a remote island off the People’s Republic a year or so ago.”

“Where is Shinera, now?”

“Dead. He was killed by one of the Seaview rescue party as he prepared to execute Captain Crane.”

“I see,” Fa replied. “How is it that Seaview is there now Admiral?”

“We had managed to escape from Shinera and get a signal out to Seaview. I apologize for Seaview not contacting you with the information, but they felt time was of the essence and did not want to chance any delays in coming to our aid. As it was they only just arrived in the nick of time.”

“I understand Admiral; better to beg forgiveness than ask for permission, eh?” Fa responded.

“Precisely Captain. As I said their only intention for being here was our rescue.”

“Do you require any immediate assistance from us Admiral?”

“No not at the moment, but thank you for asking Captain.” Nelson replied.

“You’re welcome Admiral. We will be dispatching aircraft and surface vessels to the island to assess the situation. If we have any questions regarding what we find we will be in touch.”

“Understood. If acceptable Seaview will remain in the area until our doctor has completed surgery on Captain Crane. He was severely injured in our dealings with Shinera.”

“Of course Admiral. Again if there is anything you require please let me know. Fa out.”

Harri let loose a huge sigh, relieved that Seaview’s unauthorized incursion into Chinese waters was not about to blow up into an international incident. He looked up at Chip and smiled as he wiped his hand across his forehead and mouthed a silent ‘whew’. Chip returned a subdued smile, he too relieved that they had dodged a diplomatic bullet.

“Well sir, are you ready to head down to sick bay?” Ski asked after a moment.

“Yes Ski, let’s go check on our captain.”

QQQQQQ

As they waited for the doctor to finish working on Lee, Harri, Chip, Ski and Sharkey assembled in the exam room. With both corpsmen and the doc in the OR, Ski started cleaning out the admiral’s wound so everything would go faster once someone could break free to tend to him.

“I’m glad to see you got Lee’s message Chip; we had no idea whether it made it through or not,” Harri said trying to divert his attention from the pain generated by Ski’s ministrations.

“Yes sir, so am I. How did you get the signal through? The jamming device was still operational when we arrived, but we never lost contact once we acquired it.”

“That was all Lee. He pulled that tracking device out of his mouth, shoved it in a plastic water bottle then we heaved into the outgoing tide. Lee had discovered the jamming device became ineffective about three quarters of a mile offshore and we hoped the tide would carry the bottle beyond that point,” Nelson replied.

“Great thinking,” commented Sharkey. Everyone nodded in agreement.

“Once you hit the island, how did you find us so quickly Chip?” Harri asked.

“That was almost anticlimactic, sir. Once we made it ashore we made our way to the house ready to take on any and all forces that were there protecting the house and the only person we encountered was the guy in the security room watching the monitors and feeding Shinera information. As we burst in on him he immediately surrendered. He gladly let us know your most likely location based on the transponder Shinera had on him. Here’s the million dollar question sir, why did Shinera kidnap you and Lee?” Chip inquired.

“Remember when the Angler went down and Lee and I went on that island to see if there was a connection?” Nelson asked.

“Yes sir. That’s where that PR test facility was and Lee was exposed to the drug that made him want to kill you, right?”

“Correct. Well the scientist in charge of that little bit of chemical engineering was Shinera’s brother. After I switched their fresh water intake from the clean lake to the tainted lake the rest of the occupants of the island killed each other according to Shinera. Shinera blamed us and was out for revenge.”

“You mean he wiped out nearly 30 people just to hide the fact he was going after you?” Ski asked incredulously. “That’s crazy and sick.”

“Yes, Ski I think that describes the man perfectly. I don’t think the Chinese were involved in this given their response to both the plane crash and our intrusion into their territory, nor do I think the PR had a hand in it because we would have been far more valuable to them alive. Shinera was carrying out his own personal vendetta against us.” Harri answered.

“Well sir, I’m going to head up to the conn and check on Bobby. If you’re up to it sir, you may want to give Admiral Starke a call and let him know you’re all right. I had updated him on the situation once the airplane had crashed, I’m sure he would love to hear you’re alive and in relatively good shape.” Chip said as he stood up and moved towards the door. “Please give me a call once Jamie’s finished taking care of Lee.”

“Thanks Chip, I’ll do that. When you get to the conn have Sparks put the call through, I’ll take it here.”

QQQQQQ

It had been nearly six hours by the time Jamie emerged from the operating room. He looked exhausted but the look on his face although concerned was far from grim. He quickly scanned the room and spotted the admiral resting on the exam table patiently awaiting his CMO to emerge with his report.

“How is he Jamie?” Harri asked immediately.

“It was close Admiral. He’d lost a lot of blood from the chest injury and the wound is badly infected, so he will be getting a heavy load of antibiotics for the foreseeable future. His throat is bruised and tender but it doesn’t appear as though there is any permanent damage to his vocal chords or throat due to the strangulation. His lungs are heavily congested and I need to watch that closely so it doesn’t develop into pneumonia. I’m also concerned about a heart arrhythmia that he has developed, I’ve given him medication to stabilize that and hopefully it will pass. Plus he’s just plain exhausted. Barring any complications he should fully recover. Can you enlighten me as to how he incurred these injuries?”

“I have no idea how he got the chest injury. He staggered back to our hideout and passed out before I could ask. Shinera didn’t act as though he was responsible for it so he must have run into something on his own. As far as his lungs, throat and heart, you can blame Shinera for that. He damn near drowned Lee in one of his ‘games’ then subjected him to electric shock in another and finally strung him up by his neck in the last You’ll probably want to check his eardrums because he was exposed to extreme sonic blasts and I thought I saw blood draining out of his ear.” Harri answered.

Jamie just shook his head in anger and dismay that anyone could do that to another human being. He sighed heavily and plodded over to the admiral to take a look at his leg.

“Why don’t you sit down and take a break Jamie. Ski cleaned out the wound well while we waited for you so all you should need to do is stitch it closed.”

Jamie looked over at Ski and smiled. “I’ll make a full time corpsman out of you yet Ski. Good job and thanks for taking the initiative.”

“No problem Doc. I knew you could use all the help you could get and I just wanted to be of assistance.”

“Believe me it is truly appreciated.” Will said as he sat heavily in the chair next to the exam table. “How’s the pain Admiral?”

“It’s tolerable Will. Take your time and recoup a bit; I’m not going anywhere.” Harri replied. As he spoke the two corpsmen wheeled Lee out of the OR and over to a bunk. He looked somewhat better but he was still ghostly pale and the presence of the fever was obvious from the sweat on his brow and cheeks. A pang of paternal concern boomeranged through his mind and he felt his throat constrict as he looked at the young man who had endured so much to keep him safe.

“All right Harri, let’s take a look at your leg and then you can get some much needed sleep. They’re going to settle the captain in a bunk and then you will be following him very shortly.”

Will pushed to his feet with an audible grunt. He grabbed a pair of scissors and sliced through the dressing Kowalski had applied to the wound after carefully cleaning it. Examining the wound he was quite impressed with Ski’s work. “Well done Ski,” Jamie said.

Nelson had to laugh as Ski actually blushed at the doctor’s compliment. The laugh changed to a momentary grimace as Will injected him with a local anesthetic. A few minutes later, Will began suturing the wound once he’d determined Harri couldn’t feel his work. Once done he administered another shot of antibiotics laced with a heavy duty sedative.

Feeling the onset of lethargy Harri glared at his CMO. Will smiled unapologetically to his boss and just shrugged. “You need some sleep Harri and this is the best way to send you off otherwise you’ll park yourself at Lee’s side and it will take a pry bar to get you to move. I’m going to keep Lee under for the next 48 hours so you’ll be back and alert before he is. Now once Frank and Mike get you settled, just lay back and relax.”

“Do I have a choice,” Harri halfheartedly snarled followed by a huge yawn.

“No, actually,” Jamie replied with a chuckle. “See you when you surface.”

QQQQQQ

It had been nearly three days since the rescue team had brought their COs back on board and only now was Lee giving an indication that he was ready to join the living. As he began to stir restlessly Jamieson called the admiral and XO letting them know Lee was finally coming around. Both men made it to sick bay at their best speed to be there when Lee awoke.

They all watched as he sighed deeply and shifted slightly in the bed as he moved towards consciousness. He was immediately pulled awake when a sudden round of coughing and the associated movement ignited all the pain receptors in his body highlighting each injury he had sustained. Jamie rushed to the bunk and helped Lee sit up to ease the cough and to breathe easier. As the coughing fit abated he groaned in pain.

Jamie grabbed the pillow from the bunk above and placed it behind Lee’s back and eased him down onto the bed. He quickly gathered Lee’s vitals as he recovered from his rather rude awakening. He grabbed a hypo and ampule from the cart next to the bed, pulled off a measured dose and injected the pain killer into the IV port.

The grimace of pain on Lee’s face slowly faded as the narcotic worked its way through his system. He released a relieved sigh and looked around the room, obviously quite pleased to be back on Seaview.

“Well good morning Lee. How are you feeling?” Jamie asked as he took Lee’s pulse.

“I don’t suppose you’d believe me if I said fine, would you?” Lee croaked out. “The admiral, is he alright?”

Harri stepped forward with a cup of water and handed to Jamie so he could give Lee a drink. “I’m fine son, the leg’s a bit sore but healing nicely. We’ve been worried about you.”

Lee gave him a small smile as he sipped the water. He grimaced as he swallowed but at least the pain in his throat wasn’t as bad as it was on the island. “I take it you got our message Chip. What about Shinera, did you get him?”

“Yes to both Lee. Rather inventive solution to the jamming problem,” Chip replied. “We got there just as Shinera was preparing to do you in. Kowalski made sure that didn’t happen.”

Lee nodded as he understood what had occurred while he was out. “Did Shinera really bring down that airplane or was he just blowing smoke?”

“No he had the engines rigged to explode and killed all those aboard just so he could hide the fact that he had kidnapped us.” Harri replied his face hard with anger.

Lee shook his head dejectedly. “I’m sorry sir; I know you had a friend on that plane. I can’t believe anyone would go to that extreme just for his perceived need for vengeance.” They all sat quietly for a moment as they considered the human toll of Shinera’s actions.

“Captain, I have a question for you regarding your injuries. How did you get the long gash on your side?” Jamie inquired.

Lee lightly placed his hand over the injury feeling the gauze and pads covering it. “I surprised a wild boar as I was making my way back to our hideout. Luckily for me it only got me with a glancing blow of its tusks and I was able to climb onto a tree trunk and get out of its way. As I was waiting for it to leave, Shinera and his men were coming up behind me and made some noise which drew the hog off. It ran off towards them and I think it killed one of the men because there were some horrific screams and then a burst of gunfire.”

“Well that explains why Shinera didn’t take credit for your condition when he arrived at our camp,” Harri replied. “Your trap worked like a charm Lee, it took out Shinera’s man, and gave me the opportunity to wound him with one of our spears. That slowed him down enough to allow Chip and party to come to our rescue in the nick of time.”

Lee looked over at his friend and surrogate brother and smiled. “My hero,” he said with a chuckle. “I knew you and Seaview would be there for us when we needed it most.”

“Thank Kowalski; he’s one hell of a shot. He picked off Shinera just as he was ready to take you out. It was much too close for comfort for me.” Chip replied as he laid his hand on Lee’s shoulder and gave it a squeeze. Lee smiled and was unable to bite back a huge yawn.

“Looks like it’s time for a little more shut eye Skipper,” Jamie said taking in Lee’s tired appearance. “I want you to sleep for a few more hours and then the admiral and Chip can join you for dinner once you surface again.”

Lee rolled his eyes, frowned and sighed in defeat. “I suppose that dinner is going to be something liquid isn’t it?”

“You’ve got that one right. I don’t think you would enjoy anything too solid with your throat as it is right now. I’m sure Cookie will come up with something tasty. In fact I will request he throw in a large chocolate shake to help cool your throat and replace some of the weight you appear to have lost during your adventure,” Jamie replied.

At that bit of information Lee’s expression lightened and he smiled. Even Chip looked excited at the prospect of getting one of those as well. “I’ll talk with Cookie on the way back to the conn to make sure we all get the same thing,” Chip offered smacking his lips.

“Always looking out for me, aren’t you Chip,” Lee chuckled.

“You betcha, bro.”

“So Jamie when can I get out?”

Jamie scowled at Lee then emptied the contents of the syringe in his hand into Lee’s IV. “Given all you’ve been through and all that’s wrong with you, you’ll be lucky to be out before we get back home. Sleep tight Lee.”

Lee returned Jamie’s scowl, settled back in bed and was quickly asleep much to the amusement of the other men in the room. Jamie then turned his attention on them. “Admiral I do believe you too have an appointment with your cabin and bunk or I can give you the same thing I’ve given our captain here. And Mr. Morton, don’t you have a boat to run?”

Harri rolled his eyes. “Aye Doctor, I’ll head back and relax; no needle required.”

“Sheesh Jamie, you’re getting pushy in your old age. If you need me I’ll be in the conn AFTER I put in our dinner order,” Chip replied with a wink and headed out the door.

QQQQQQ

It had been four months since their experience on Shinera’s island and Harri and Lee had completely recovered from their ordeal. It was an early Friday morning and Harri sat at his desk quietly sorting through his mail when came upon a letter from the Chinese Navy. He quickly slit open the envelope, pulled out the letter and began reading. As he read a sad smile began to play across his face. “Well I suppose that’s some sort of consolation,” he said aloud to no one in particular.

“What is?” asked Lee as he strode into Harri’s office laden with coffee and pastries.

Harri looked up at Lee and smiled, as he saw the name on the box of goodies the smile got even wider. “You know if Jamie catches you plying me with those sinful treats we’re both dead meat,” Harri joked as he rose from his chair and followed Lee to the conference table.

“Why do you think I wait until he’s gone before I tempt you? You know, you can just say ‘no thanks’ and I can feed your share to Chip.” Lee replied as he moved to pick up the box and leave.

“Freeze right where you are Mister!” Harri commanded then both men started chuckling as Lee opened the box.

“You are going to be the death of me, in more ways than one you know that, lad?” Harri chided as he made his move on a huge cherry cheese Danish.

“I seriously doubt that, sir.” Lee replied with a chuckle as he sipped on his coffee. “So what was ‘some sort of consolation’?

Harri moved back to his desk, a little trail of pastry crumbs following after, picked up the letter from the Chinese and handed it to Lee. “I got a letter from Captain Fa of the Chinese Navy. He wrote to let me know that the Chinese government had seized all of Shinera’s assets, not that that really makes a difference to him, but they are using some of the money to pay the families of those killed in the plane crash for their tragic loss. Also the government is taking over Shinera’s work on the restoration of the coral reefs. They’ve named the preserve the Zach Lindstrom Memorial Coral Preserve and named the various sections of reef after those who were lost in the crash.”

Lee perused the letter quietly. “That’s most unexpected and considerate. Given how impressive the recovery of the reefs we had seen was, it will no doubt turn into quite a legacy as time passes.”

They stood there in silent contemplation remembering the people they had met and had been killed in Shinera’s twisted quest to even the score. It hurt them both that they were indirectly responsible for what befell those lured out to the island. At least their passing would not go unrecognized and the Chinese’s promise to continue the restoration of the reefs would prove a fitting memorial.

After a moment Harri cleared his throat. “You know son I really don’t feel much like working today. What say we clear our calendars, provision the NIMR yacht and head out to the Channel Islands for a little bit of diving? I’m sure Chip wouldn’t mind watching the store.”

Lee smiled broadly and nodded in agreement. “That sounds like a fine plan sir. Though I do think it will cost us the rest of the pastries for Chip to be willing to take on those duties for the day, but it’ll be well worth the price.”

Harri laughed and concurred with Lee’s assessment. “Very well then son, I think we can afford that. You go break the news to Chip and I’ll see you in the lobby in 30 minutes.”

“Aye, aye sir,” Lee replied throwing the admiral a crisp salute then picked up the pastries and headed down the hall to make his delivery.

The End.

* Season One Episode “The Enemies”