Author’s note …. This story was prompted by a FB comment
from Diane and is based upon the character of ‘Corpsman Mallory’ from the
episode ‘The Death Clock’ season four.
Mirror, Mirror….
By
“We will
be rendezvousing with Seaview very shortly, Doctor.” Lee Crane half turned in
his seat to address the pretty Asian lady seated next to him in the FS1.
“That was
quick,” Dr. Su Lin, commented brightly, “this little craft is very impressive.”
In the
seat behind them Will Jamieson laughed, “You don’t need to tell him that, it’s
one of the Skipper’s favourite toys.”
Lee
smiled, “You’ll have to ignore our Doctor, he’s just jealous.”
Lee saw
the amusement on Doctor Su Lin’s face and grinned.
Seema Su Lin was the epitome of Asian loveliness. Her petite
figure and jet black, waist length straight hair was the perfect setting for
almond dark eyes and flawless beauty.
She was relatively young for her esteemed qualifications in the field of
Temporal Mechanics but she was generally acknowledged to be one of the foremost
experts in her field.
When
Harriman Nelson had enlisted her services to investigate the mysterious events
taking place in the
Suddenly
the little craft rocked in an unexpected swell, then
as Lee tried to correct it, the swell increased and the turbulent sea buffeted
them violently.
“Jamie,
radio Seaview and alert them, I can’t seem to hold her!” Lee yelled above the
roar of the engines as they were pushed to the limit of their power.
“Look!”
Su Lin shouted. Ahead of them the water
was swirling, the lights of the flying sub revealing a patch of blackness that
swallowed up the illumination. The sea
formed a gaping vortex that spun and twisted like an open mouthed snake.
Lee
struggled with the controls,
“We’re being dragged towards it … I can’t … stop her.”.
“Seaview,
this is the Flying Sub, come in, please.” Will Jamieson’s deliberately calm
voice echoed round the little craft as the internal lights went out and they
hurtled full speed into the bubbling, whirling black hole. As Lee fought to
control the craft, something came towards them from the mouth of the irregularity.
As it came closer he was startled to see a small yellow mirror image of FS1
shoot past, missing them by no more than six feet and then it was gone and all
became calm again.
Lee
flicked switches and the lights came back on.
“Is everyone okay?” he demanded and turned to look at them.
“Yes… a
bit shaken but I’m alright,” Seema answered.
“I’m
fine,” Jamieson confirmed, “but I can’t raise Seaview. I’ll try again.”
Lee
sighed as his world came back to normal then glanced at Su Lin, “That, I suspect,
is one of the anomalies that Admiral wants you to investigate.”
“Indeed,
but next time, not from the inside I hope.” Her humorous reply reassured Lee
that she had coped well with the unexpected danger.
“FS1,
this is Seaview, we read you.”
Lee flicked
on his neck microphone, “We’re coming in.
We’ve just experienced some sort of disturbance, did you pick up
anything on the sonar, is Seaview alright?”
“Morton
here, Captain. We monitored it but it
didn’t cause any damage here, Seaview’s intact.”
<><><><>
Morton
watched as the wheel on the flying sub hatched spun and Lee emerged, followed
by Dr. Su Lin and then Will Jamieson.
“Chip,
this is Dr. Su Lin.” Lee turned and smiled at the visitor. “Dr. Su Lin, allow
me to introduce my executive officer, Lt. Commander Chip Morton.”
Chip
frowned slightly as he assessed the woman and then as he shook hands with
attractive Doctor, he said ironically. “This is a pleasant surprise, we weren’t
expecting visitors.”
“What?”
Surprised, Lee stared at his friend. How
could Chip have forgotten the details of yesterday’s briefing?
Chip
Morton interrupted his thoughts as he turned to him and said, “Is the Flying
Sub okay? Any repairs needed?”
Lee shook
his head and replied distractedly as he tried to assess what it was that felt
different to him. “No, we were lucky and came through that thing better than we
could hope. It was a rough ride for a while though!”
Morton
nodded. “So what do you want us to do now?” he demanded shortly, his gaze still
lingering thoughtfully on their visitor.
Something
in his XO’s tone alerted Lee’s instincts even more to the palpable
unfriendliness he felt in the atmosphere.
Looking
around slowly at the rest of the men in the control room, he saw they wore the
traditional seaman’s attire of blue shirts and pants and not the red or blue
jumpsuits that the Admiral had specifically introduced to define them from
regular Navy personnel. More disturbing was the way crew were slouched in their
seats, some were murmuring together as their attention was obviously
concentrated on the female visitor. Chip was in his usual smart uniform but
with no tie…he always wore a tie on duty and his attitude towards Lee
was unsociable to say the least.
A softly
spoken enquiry disturbed Lee’s inspection as Will Jamieson asked. “Shall I take
Dr. Su Lin to her cabin, Captain?”
Lee met
his eyes and saw concern. Obviously, Will was also aware of something and was
making a silent appeal to him.
“Yes,
that would be an excellent idea, Doctor.” Lee turned to the Exec and asked as
casually as he could manage. “What accommodation is available, Chip?”
Morton
raised one cynical eyebrow as he asked, “Shall I arrange separate accommodation
for her?”
Lee looked at the exec with surprise as he noted the defiant
tone and contemptuous gaze. “Of course and please arrange for Dr. Su Lin’s bags
to be taken there for her. I’m sure she would like to freshen up, especially
after what we just went through.”
“Oh, no Captain, I would rather….” Seema tried to argue.
Lee thought she appeared nervous and uneasy as he interrupted
her. “Please Doctor, it would be good idea for you to
rest while I apprise the Admiral of the latest developments.” Lee looked at
Chip. “Mr. Morton, please arrange an escort for Dr. Su Lin.”
Morton
looked cynically at his captain and turned to where Chief Sharkey was talking
to one of the crewmen further along the Observation Nose. “Chief, take Dr. Su Lin and find her a cabin
will you?”
Sharkey
stubbed out his cigarette on the deck.
“Sure. You want to follow me.” He
turned to leave and Seema hesitated but after another reassuring glance from
Lee, she hurried after him.
Will
Jamieson, who had been glancing round the Control Room, commented
quietly, “I think I’ll just go with them and see she’s delivered safely.”
Lee
watched the departing figures for a moment. Sharkey had been slack in his
response, almost rude in fact and although he was wearing his regular uniform,
it was creased and dishevelled and he appeared unshaven, even more amazingly, what
was he doing smoking on duty?
“Chip,”
Lee motioned him to one side out of earshot of the bow lookouts. “What’s going on? What’s happened to you and
the crew while I was gone? Why didn’t
you warn us of that … that vortex or whatever it was? What’s the meaning of saying Dr. Su Lin
wasn’t expected? You were definitely informed of her arrival,
I was there when the Admiral told you about her joining us to investigate the
anomalies. That’s why I brought her back with me when I collected Dr. Jamieson
from
“What are
you talking about? You and Jamieson went
out specifically to take readings from the latest test. As for visitors, Nelson
said nothing to me. Don’t try and
pretend that the ‘old man’ knows you’ve brought your latest conquest aboard,
however you want to label her. He’s not
going to buy into another of your whims, not this time.”
Lee
looked at Chip with concern then mentally pulled himself
together, something was very wrong here and Lee was unable to discern what it
was exactly. Everything looked the same
but the feel of his boat was all wrong!
.
“I suggest you keep any further comments like that to
yourself! Right now I recommend you
smarten yourself up and get this crew sorted out, Mr. Morton. I expect to see
them alert and ready for duty, is that clear? Meanwhile I’m going to see the
Admiral. After that, you and I will
discuss what went on in my absence.” Lee ordered forcefully.
He had to
get to Nelson and find out what was off beam here.
“You
think so, Crane. Why this sudden insistence for protocol? Trying to impress the
lady? Why bother, she’s obviously
infatuated already! Or maybe you’re just
throwing your weight around because you’re frightened of losing your command;
you know very well I can do the job better, the men have more respect for me,
that why you feel the need to try and put down me whenever you can? You
couldn’t be more patronizing sometimes if you tried.”
Lee felt
his fists clenching in anger. His innate
sense of self-control and intuition made him restrain from arguing with his
exec, as he merely repeated grimly, “You’ve had your orders, Mr. Morton carry
them out. I’m going to see the Admiral,
He
started to walk towards the spiral staircase then paused as Chip said
sarcastically, “Aye, aye, sir, but I don’t think you’ll find the
Admiral’s much use right now, he’s resting, he had
rather a heavy lunch.”
Lee
glanced at Morton, and saw scorn reflected back at him. Not willing to hear
further derision he ran up the stairs.
<><><><>
Admiral
Harriman Nelson rushed down the spiral staircase as Seaview took another roll
to starboard, only just managing to hold on to the handrail and stay upright as
he reached the deck. He could hear orders being barked out by Chip Morton and
made his way unsteadily towards him as the boat bucked like a bronco beneath
his feet.
“What’s
the situation Mr. Morton?”
Chip
turned quickly and was almost thrown against the Admiral as the turmoil
continued. He righted himself and grabbed hold of the rail surrounding the
periscope platform. “Another anomaly just opened up, sir. We were too close and
it’s shaking us up pretty bad.” As if to give credence to his statement Seaview
went into another roll tossing them from one side of the deck to the other.
When
they had all managed to steady themselves again, Harry demanded, “What about
the Flying Sub? Did it manage to dock?”
“No
sir. They’re still out there in this.” Morton answered grimly. Turning to the
helmsman he ordered. “All back full. Get us away from that thing and come to a
full stop!”
“Mr.
Morton, sir?” Kowalski called from sonar. “I think we may have another
problem.”
Nelson
and Morton grappled their way to his position as slowly the giant submarine
became calmer.
“What
is it, Kowalski?” Morton demanded.
“I’m
not sure, sir. But for a few minutes there I had two FS1 echoes.”
“Two?
Are you certain?”
“Yes,
sir, I’m positive. Two identical traces then one just seemed to fade into the
anomaly.”
Nelson
snatched up the nearest mic. “
The
tense wait seemed endless but finally came the reply he wanted. “I have Captain
Crane, sir.”
“Lee?
Lee, are you alright?” Harry asked anxiously.
There
was a moment of static and then a familiar voice sounded faintly from the
speaker. “We’re okay, but what the devil was that we just came through?”
“Another
of those anomalies we’re here to investigate….” there was a loud crackle from
the speaker, “Lee? Lee, can you still hear me?”
“Find…Mallory
…doing…after docking….”
“Lee,
we can’t hear you properly there’s too much interference.” Nelson glanced at
his Exec and saw
confusion. “Just get
back aboard as quickly as you can.”
As
Nelson hung up the mic, Chip frowned and came forward. “Did he say, Mallory?”
Harry
nodded slowly and rubbed at his chin. “That’s what it sounded like.”
“Mallory? The corpsman, Mallory? What’s he got to do
with all this? He disappeared months
ago!”
Harry
didn’t answer Chip right away; instead he glanced towards the large windows
that made his creation so unique. His scientific genius was concentrated on a
theory that had implications he didn’t care for at all.
“Sir? Did you hear me?”
Nelson
turned quickly to the man at the sonar station. “Kowalski are you sure you saw
two FS1 signatures?”
Ski
looked up at the senior officer and nodded positively. “Absolutely,
sir.”
“And now? Only one?”
Kowalski
looked back to the board and after confirming his readings he answered firmly.
“Yes sir, it all reads normal now. It must have been an echo caused by that
thing out there. They should be docking in three minutes, Admiral.”
Nelson
turned away and thought for a moment more then looked at a still very confused
Exec. Placing a hand on Chip’s elbow, Harry led Morton forward. “Chip,” he said
softly, “I want you to have an armed guard report here right away and then
follow my lead.”
Chip
Morton was totally baffled now and stared at his C.O. “Armed guard, sir? Why?”
Nelson
waved an impatient hand at him and ordered, “Just do
it! We haven’t much time, trust me on this one,
I’ll
explain later. I just hope I’m wrong.”
Morton
hesitated only briefly and gave the appropriate orders just as the hail came
that the Flying Sub was docking and he moved forward with the admiral.
The
wheel of the docking hatch spun and the dark head of Lee Crane appeared as he climbed
up into the control room, swiftly followed by his passenger, Will Jamieson.
Immediately
the captain rounded on his first officer as he demanded harshly.” WHAT was the
meaning of leaving us high and dry out there, Morton?”
Chip
Morton looked astounded by the anger and stood straighter as he hesitated. He
glanced at the Admiral but Nelson was watching the two arrivals with
calculating eyes and ignored Chip’s subconscious appeal.
“We
were being endangered by the anomaly, sir, and I thought….”
“YOU thought!”
Crane interrupted loudly. “YOU thought you could finally be rid of me and get
my command at last! That’s what you thought, isn’t it, Morton?”
“Lee…
I… what are you talking about?” Chip coloured slightly as he saw the intense
anger and open hatred directed at him by his best friend.
“Don’t
try to play the innocent with me. I know what you’re up to, what you’ve always
been up to. Well, it won’t work, mister! I’ll have your rank for this!”
The
shock in the control room was palpable and Chip Morton’s outranked everyone
else’s.
The
Admiral stepped forward and ignoring the confrontation, asked softly. “Lee,
where is Dr. Su Lin?”
Lee
Crane heard the enquiry and dragged his attention away from the object of his
anger and directed stormy dark eyes to Nelson. “Who?” He demanded rudely.
“Dr.
Seema Su Lin, the Temporal Analogist, that you were fetching from the mainland
when you picked up Dr. Jamieson.”
Now
Crane turned his whole body towards the admiral and frowned. “Picked up
Jamieson? What are you talking about? WE went out to get the test results on
Professor Mallory’s latest test… don’t you remember?”
“Professor
Mallory?” Nelson questioned calmly.
“Of
course….” Crane was suddenly uncomfortable. Why was the Admiral daring to
question him? Why were he and Morton behaving so oddly? He looked about him more observantly. The
crew were dressed in the blue and red jumpsuits that he had manifestly rejected
as suitable uniforms for his boat’s crew. Chip Morton was shaved and dressed
pristinely and with a tie, he never wore a tie!
His first officer’s gaze concentrated on him strangely and Crane felt
his unease grow. Something was wrong here…
He
backed away slightly as he became aware of the crew’s stares and the armed
MP’s. He stumbled into Jamieson.
“Watch
what you’re doing man!” the Doctor complained impatiently as he pushed him
away.
“We
have to get out of here, something’s wrong.” Crane ordered as he grabbed the
Doctor’s arm. “Get back to FS1, NOW!”
“What?
Have you lost your mind?” Jamison demanded as he tried to free himself from the
captain’s grasp.
“Stay
right where you are gentlemen.” Harry’s clear command was accompanied by a nod
to the Master-At-Arms and three armed men came forward and pointed their
weapons menacingly at them.
“What
the hell is going on?” Dr Will Jamieson grumbled. “What’s all this nonsense
about? I want a large drink, a hot meal
and my bunk, in that order. Now get out of my way!” He moved forward but was
gently pushed back by one of the guards.
“Not
so fast Doctor. I’m afraid we will have to detain you a little longer and
probably in the brig.” Nelson announced unsympathetically.
“WHAT? Have you finally lost all sense of reason,
Harry?” Jamieson spluttered.
<><><><>
Will Jamieson was feeling
uncomfortable right now.
When they
had climbed out of the Flying Sub, something about the atmosphere struck him
immediately …cigarette smoke! He
was used to Harry smoking too much but when he glanced to his left and saw
Sharkey smoking on duty, he found it astonishing! He looked toward the main
control room and saw the crew dressed differently, with several of the men
slouching at their stations while others were openly paying brazen attention to
Dr. Su Lin. The general atmosphere felt distorted and inhospitable.
Will’s
unease increased as he watched the almost arctic way Chip Morton greeted them
or more particularly, Lee. He didn’t miss the predatory way the Exec eyed the
pretty scientist either. Indeed, several of the men on duty were grinning
lewdly with each other as they surveyed the female in their midst. When Morton
had ordered Sharkey to take her below, Will, had decided to personally see to
her safety until he knew what was going on. Lee had enough to worry about right
now.
“Chief,
you want to tell me what’s changed around here?” Jamieson asked as he
accompanied Dr. Su Lin and Sharkey along the corridor towards the officer
quarters.
“Don’t
know what you mean Doc, nothing’s changed.” Sharkey answered casually then
glancing at Dr, Su Lin and asked clumsily, “You want to share the Skipper’s
cabin or you want one of your own?”
Seema
stopped walking and looked shocked. “I…I don’t understand what you mean….”
“CHIEF!
That was extremely insulting. How dare you make such a remark?” The doctor
sounded off angrily.
Sharkey
held up both hands in supplication. “Hey, keep your shirt on Doc, I was just
askin’. Who knows what arrangements they want…no one tells me anything. Ain’t
like the Skipper brings his women aboard every trip, now is it?”
“Chief,
have you been drinking?” Jamieson demanded as he heard the insulting tone of
the C.O.B.
“Not
touched a drop since breakfast, I swear.” Sharkey grinned impudently.
Will
glanced at Dr. Su Lin and saw that he was not alone in his confusion. “I’m
terribly sorry,” he said to her softly, “I have no idea what’s going on, I assure you this is quite out of character for the Chief.”
“It’s
alright, Doctor….” Seema began but was interrupted by the arrival of another
seaman.
Kowalski
saw the beautiful woman from along the corridor and quickened his pace. Letting
out a long wolf whistle he stopped beside the Asian visitor. “Well, hello
beautiful. You’re just the answer to this Sailor’s dreams.” Ski smirked and
leant one hand on the bulkhead behind her head as he studied Seema closely.
“KOWALSKI!”
shouted Jamie again as he moved to Seema’s side and gently grasped her elbow
drawing her away. “Stand back. What do you think you’re doing?”
Ski
looked surprised and grinned impertinently. “Don’t tell me she’s yours, Doc.
Well, you old dog….”
“Forget
it Kowalski, she’s the Skipper’s.” Sharkey announced dryly.
Kowalski
sighed regretfully, as he cynically looked Seema up and down. “That figures, he
always manages to get the lookers. Does the old man know she’s here?”
Ski asked as he turned to Sharkey.
“You kidding? The Admiral will have a fit when he gets wind of
her. Crane certainly believes in pushing his luck.” Sharkey replied.
“Doesn’t
he always? Bet Mr. Morton isn’t happy either. Not after what happened before.”
Will, had
heard enough and launched into both men. “Enough! I don’t know what’s going on
here but I suggest you can that sort of talk and get one thing straight!
Dr. Su Lin is a guest aboard Seaview and will be treated with respect at all
times, is that clear?”
Sharkey and Kowalski looked at each
other in surprise. What had gotten into Doc? He sounded almost as if he was on
Crane’s side. Maybe he was still sober… ‘Yeah’, Kowalski thought, ‘that
could account for it.’
“Cool it,
Doc. No need to get all Navy on us…we get the picture. She’s the Captain’s
property and it’s ‘hands off’ for the rest of us, Joe’s. You
better go get yourself a drink real soon. You’re way too tense, Doc, way
too tense.” Kowalski grinned as he moved
away down the corridor.
Will
Jamieson watched him go in sheer disbelief. He didn’t know what was wrong but
something was definitely amiss. He would see the scientist safely to her
cabin, find Lee and hopefully get some answers.
“You’re
dismissed Chief, I will see to Dr. Su Lin’s accommodation myself.”
Sharkey
looked momentarily surprised but shrugged, “If you want, Doc. Guest Cabin 4’s
empty and its in officer’s country, so give her that one.”
“Just see
that the Doctor’s bag is brought to her cabin and left outside the door for
her.” Will ordered sternly.
Sharkey
shrugged and started muttering as he walked away.
Will,
gently moved with Seema along the corridor until they came to the cabin
suggested.
“Dr. Su
Lin, I don’t understand why the men are acting this way, I assure you it’s way out of character for them. I think you would be
safer out of sight for the moment.” Will, explained gently as he opened the
door and waited for her to enter.
“But Dr.
Jamieson….”
“Please,
it’s for the best. I will go and find Captain Crane and see if he’s managed to
find anything out. We will meet with you back here.”
Seema was
unhappy with his suggestion but could well understand his concerns; she too had
felt the charged atmosphere that had greeted them. Anyway, something was
gnawing away at her scientific awareness and she needed time to think it
through.
Pleased
that she was going to comply, Will advised, “Keep the door locked until I
return with the Captain, Doctor.”
She
nodded and said softly. “I think you had better call me, Seema, to prevent
confusion from all these titles, don’t you Doctor?”
“I guess that would help. Call me Will or as
the Captain has it…Jamie” Will smiled reassuringly as
he turned to go. “I won’t be long.” He
pulled the door closed and waited until he heard the lock being set and moved
away to find Lee.
<><><>
Crane
almost laughed out loud to himself as he crawled through the vents leading to
the Officer’s Quarters. He was still unsure as to what was wrong with this crew
but he had a vague idea and he didn’t like the implications! He couldn’t
believe that Nelson had been so gullible as to only assign only two escorts for
him and Jamieson. It had been easy
enough to overpower his guard on the way to the brig from the Control Room and
to crawl into the ventilation system. He
didn’t have much time, he realised that, already a search party was probably
being organised but he knew every inch of this boat, it would only take him
moments to reach the top of the spiral staircase that would take him back into
the Control Room. Crossing in the open
from there to the FS1 hatch would be more difficult but that would be a chance
he would have to take. He was glad he
wasn’t encumbered with the fool Jamieson, the man was useless anyway, he hadn’t
taken the opportunity to get away fast enough so let him escape by himself.
Cautiously
he raised the grid on the vent and glanced both ways down the corridor. Everything was quiet; it was now or
never. He dropped easily to the deck and
replaced the grid before making his way forward to the stairs. Descending a couple of steps he looked down
into the Observation Nose and then into the Control Room. O’Brien was standing duty officer and was
busy at the chart table. Good, his young
Lieutenant had always been an insecure little puppet, more than grateful for
the chances Crane had given him; this should make things a little easier.
As
quietly as possible he descended the steps and made his way towards the
entrance hatch. He bent down and began
turning the hatch wheel when a hand gripped his shoulder and O’Brien’s voice
ordered,
“Captain
Crane, stay where you are, sir.
Kowalski, get the Master At Arms up here.”
Crane
pulled away from his grasp and straightened, “What the hell do you think you’re
doing, O’Brien?”
“The
Admiral has put you under arrest, sir. I
must ask you to remain where you are until the Master At
Arms gets here. I don’t want to have to
restrain you forcibly, Captain.” Calmly
O’Brien put himself between Crane and the FS1 hatchway. He didn’t understand what was happening or
why but Nelson for some reason wanted Captain Crane locked up and Mr. Morton
had reinforced the order. Bobby would
see to it that the orders were fulfilled.
“You’re
not working for Nelson, you’re working for me, remember? He can give you nothing, play your cards
right and I’ll give you the Exec’s post in time, I’ve
said so haven’t I? Now get out of my
way!”
Crane
didn’t hesitate as he threw a punch at the Lieutenant, which took O’Brien
unawares and felled him. Before Crane
could move, Kowalski and two crewmembers seemed to come out of nowhere and he
found himself pinned to the deck. His
chance was lost!
<><><>
As Lee walked determinedly along
the corridor to officer’s country he met Kowalski walking towards him. He
faltered a moment, wondering whether to speak or not as the usually friendly
crewman gave no indicator of his attitude towards him.
Lee hesitated slightly but tried.
“Good morning, Ski. What duty are you
performing right now?”
Kowalski glanced impertinently at
his superior. “I’m on my way forward, to a watch change. Mr. Morton wants me on sonar.”
Lee nodded but felt
uncomfortable. Kowalski was obviously as
antagonistic as the others. He had to
get to Nelson and hope he could find out what was going on. “Very well, you can
attend your post.” He ordered.
Kowalski looked at him and sneered
as he turned away but not before he muttered, “Like I need your permission!”
Lee watched him hurry away and
sighed as he continued to Nelson’s cabin, he had to find out what was
going on around here!
He
knocked on Nelson’s door and waited for the command to enter. Now maybe he’d get some answers! As he entered Nelson capped the hip flask he
had been using to top-up his coffee.
“Ah,
Captain Crane, so good of you to report at last. I’ve just been informed by Mr. Morton that
not only have you failed to bring back the data you were sent out to get, you
have brought an unauthorised visitor aboard.”
Lee
frowned, “Admiral, I have brought Dr. Su Lin from
“Did I
invite you to sit?” Nelson demanded shortly as he ignored Lee’s question.
“No,
sir,” Lee frowned and stood back up; obviously the Admiral wasn’t going to be
much help either. He must be under the same influence as the others.
“Professor
Mallory is waiting for the data we promised him and now thanks to you
disobeying orders and making up your own rules again, I will have to explain to
him the reason behind the delay.”
“Mallory? Not the corpsman Mallory that was here
before?” Lee queried in horror. He had
begun to feel he wasn’t on the same planet as everyone else, now it was
distinctly possible they weren’t even in the same dimension! Suddenly pieces
started to fit. Maybe if he started demanding
answers instead of just asking for them he would get somewhere.
Nelson
waved an impatient hand in Lee’s direction, “He’s not a corpsman and of course
you’ve met him before, you were at the briefings!! You might remember he’s the
one paying handsomely for this opportunity to do his research and that is all
that matters.” Nelson fixed Lee with an angry stare, “Your friends in
“Admiral,
I demand you tell me what is going on here. What is Mallory doing here?”
Nelson
stood up unsteadily and leaned against his desk as he shouted, “YOU demand! You
have no right to demand anything of me, Crane! I may have been coerced into
accepting your presence aboard! But that doesn’t give you any authority over
me. I’m still the senior officer in charge and don’t you forget it!” Nelson sat
down again rather heavily.
“Admiral,
you don’t understand. There’s been a mistake. We are only here because….”
“Don’t
interrupt me, Commander. The only mistake here is you! I suggest you contact Professor Mallory at
the undersea lab and see if he wants those reading taken again and if he does
send Morton. He at least can follow orders. I won’t allow you to bankrupt me
just so
Lee leant
forward and said earnestly. “Admiral, you must listen to me. I can explain
everything if you’d just let me.”
“I doubt
you have anything I want to hear, Captain… just send her to me and I’ll decide
her competence.”
“But,
Admiral, sir … “ Lee tried again to get a word in.
“You are
dismissed, Crane.” Nelson ordered harshly as he drank more of the coffee and
began to study the papers on his desk. “Now get out!”
<><><>
“Chip,
hand the conn to Mr. O’Brien and hold our position right here for now. Then
join me in my cabin as soon as you’re free,” Harry said firmly as he glanced
around the confused faces of the watch as he headed for the spiral stairs, “we
need to talk.”
Chip
was just as confused as his men but adopted a formal attitude to offer some
confidence to them. “Aye, sir.” Chip turned to his junior
officer, “Mr. O’Brien, let’s do a station check.”
“Aye, sir.” The second officer replied evenly.
Just
five minutes later Morton knocked on the Admiral’s door and entered.
“Come
in, Chip, sit down. Let’s see if we can make some sense of all this.” Nelson
was sitting at a desk that was strewn with computer print outs and assorted
paperwork. He poured an extra cup of coffee and moved it across the desk to in
front of the seated exec.
“I’d
love to have any explanation you have right about now, Admiral. Like, why you
just locked up Captain Crane and Doctor Jamieson.” Chip replied as he reached
for the coffee.
Harry
laughed. “Well, I can only give you what I have, which isn’t much.” He leant
back in the chair and said. “You remember the Mallory incident?”
“Yes, sir. The corpsman that tried a few months ago to take
Seaview into another dimension. I
also remember what Lee told us he had him do there… namely, kill you.” Chip
shuddered as he remembered his friend’s horror at what had been a nightmare for
him. “How is Mallory involved again? Lee destroyed him and his machine.”
“We
assumed he had but I think it’s possible he merely retreated into the 4th
dimension and is working from there to achieve his aims.”
Chip
sat forward. “You can’t be serious, Admiral. Are you sure?”
“As sure as I can be. I have been reviewing all the data we have
and it does seem to clarify in part the unexplainable rifts in time are
occurring in this region. It would also explain the strange behaviour of our
returning Captain.” He hesitated momentarily. “Chip, I don’t think he is our
Lee Crane!”
“What?
Not our… My God!” Chip stared at him as understanding
dawned on him. “You think that they are from the other dimension. How?”
Nelson
went on to explain the meaning of Kowalski’s double sonar readings, the strange
behaviour of the two men and the mystery behind the anomalies they had been
sent here to investigate.
“If
you’re right, sir, and those two are anything to judge by then Lee and Jamie
are not in a good place. How do we get them back?” Chip asked roughly.
Nelson
stood up and paced as he concentrated his thoughts. “I totally agree but until
we know the circumstances over there, it will be difficult to mount any rescue
attempt.”
“So
how do we find out?”
“How?” Harry turned and looked at the concerned face of his first officer.
“We ask the Captain of course.” Nelson
smiled grimly.
<><><>
Seema Su Lin had
locked the door to her cabin at least thirty minutes ago and still the Captain
or Doctor had not returned.
She paced
impatiently as she waited. She had a
theory on their predicament but without the necessary data from the computer,
she was unable to prove her hypothesis. Not for the first time she considered
calling the control room on the intercom and requesting the data she needed and
not for the first time she rejected the idea. She doubted anyone would take her
seriously…but if she were to go there personally and demand the
printout, they could hardly refuse.
NO! Will Jamieson would be angry that she had
not followed his instructions. She stopped pacing and considered. She was a
grown woman, for heaven’s sake! She had been in situations much more dangerous
than this, she could take care of herself.
Quickly she
crossed to the door and unlocked it. She opened the door a little and glanced
out side. Her bag was sitting on the
deck. Why hadn’t someone told her it was there? She reached out and brought it
inside. Taking a deep steadying breath she looked out and glanced both ways
along the corridor, it was empty. Cautiously leaving her cabin, she closed the
door and made her way back towards the control room.
Several crewmen
that passed her on the way, made crude remarks and issued invitations, which
she knew certain males seemed to think suitable banter that would foster an
interest in them. She ignored them and kept walking briskly to her destination.
She stepped over
the sill of the rear hatch and carefully made her way through the control room
to approach the executive officer.
Morton turned
around as he heard the rise in general conversation. He quickly spied the
source of all the interest.
“Well, well, Doctor
Su Lin, what can we do for you?” He mocked as he leant one hip against the
plot table, crossed his arms negligently across his chest and raised one eyebrow
to study her slim figure in the soft yellow blouse and dark, form fitting
slacks, with undisguised interest. “Don’t tell me our Captain is neglecting you
already. That’s not like him at all!” There was a general round of laughter at
his remark but one swift look around the room from glacial blue eyes quickly
silenced the amusement.
Seema swallowed
dryly and answered. “I need some data from the computer, Mr. Morton.”
Chip narrowed his
gaze. “Do you indeed? And just what data would that be?”
“I would like to
see a computer printout of the details on the last anomaly, the one that
Captain Crane and the flying sub flew through just over an hour ago.” Seema
asked confidently.
Morton
straightened himself and put his hands on his hips. “Would you indeed? And just
what game are you playing now? Does Crane think this will convince the old man
that you’re a genuine scientist?” He shook his head as he dismissed her. “Go
back to your cabin, Seema…it won’t work on me anymore than it will on
Nelson but don’t worry I expect you’ll be allowed to stay…what Crane wants,
Crane usually gets!” Morton muttered as he turned back to the chart on the
table.
“Commander Morton, that was not a request! I am here at Admiral
Nelson’s behest and I expect you to cooperate with my work. I need those
printouts to begin my analysis, so please assist me by making them available …now!”
Seema spoke bravely with no trace of the trepidation that was shaking inside
her.
Chip Morton threw
down the pencil he was using and turned slowly to move in front of her. Seizing
her arm he said menacingly. “Just who do you think you’re ordering
around? You’re taking your part too seriously, lady! No one orders me
around on my boat!”
“YOUR
boat, Mr. Morton?”
Everyone’s eyes
lifted to watch as Lee Crane descended the spiral stairs, followed by Jamieson.
“Did I hear you
correctly… your boat? There was I thinking I’m the captain of Seaview.”
Lee said coldly.
Chip stepped back
slightly and released Seema’s arm as he glared at Crane. “You know what I mean.
How long do we have to pretend that your….”
“Take care what
you say, mister,” Lee advised angrily, “Doctor Su Lin is
an eminent scientist in her field and will be accorded the respect due to her
and all the help she needs to complete her work. Do you understand me,
Mr. Morton?”
Morton
ground his teeth together in an effort to control his own mounting anger. Blue
eyes flashed fury at the man he hated with a passion but he knew the time was
not right yet for outright mutiny, he would have to bide his time for a while
longer yet. Professor Mallory had assured him he would help
Morton attain his ambition if he made sure that Mallory’s work was
uninterrupted but when that time did come…
then he’d deal with Lee ‘bloody’ Crane!
Instead he
grimaced at the thinly veiled rebuke and answered. “If you
say so, sir.”
Lee saw the hatred
and had to stop himself from trying to make an appeal to the man who so closely
resembled his valued, trusted friend and executive officer.
Turning to Seema,
who was now flanked by Will Jamieson, he asked firmly. “What records do you
need, Doctor?”
Seema followed his
lead and made her request and watched as Morton went to the computer consul and
typed in a set of instructions. Within seconds print paper was issuing from the
giant machine. When it stopped Morton tore off the small stack of sheets and
handed them to her.
“That’s better,
Commander.” Lee said as he moved his head to Jamie and indicated they should
leave.
Jamie gathered
Seema and led her up the staircase.
“I’d like you to
make a comprehensive report of the readiness of all crew and equipment, Mr.
Morton and be ready to deliver it to me when I ask for it. In the meantime, you
have the conn. I will be in my cabin if
you need me.” Lee glanced around severely at all the watch who glared back at
him and then he made his own way up the spiral staircase. Away from the
loathing glares of the crew he left behind.
When
Lee reached the top of the stairs to find Jamie and Seema waiting for him. As Jamie made to speak, Lee said softly.
“Not here, my cabin.”
When they had all
entered and were seated, Jamie demanded. “Lee, what the hell is going on? Why
are the crew behaving so differently?”
“I think I maybe able to answer that, Captain.” Seema Su Lin
interrupted softly as she looked at Lee and he nodded slightly for her to
continue. “I believe we have not returned to your Seaview.”
Jamie turned to
her with obvious confusion. “Not…? What are you talking about? Of course we’re
on Seaview….”
“I said we are not
on your Seaview. We are on a
Seaview but not the one you think.”
Jamie looked at
Lee who was sitting on the edge of his desk, his concentration directed at
Seema Su Lin. “Captain, have you any idea what she’s talking about?”
Lee nodded grimly.
“I think I do, Jamie.” Crane turned back to the scientist. “Continue with your
theory, Doctor.”
Seema took a deep
breath, “I think we have somehow crossed over into another time continuum, or
dimension to be exact. I think we are on the wrong boat in the wrong universe.”
Jamie was stunned.
He hadn’t expected that as an explanation. He looked at Lee but did not see the
same shock he was experiencing. “Lee…this has to be a mistake… it can’t be
true.” But even as he said the words, the look on Crane’s face confirmed his
worst fears.
Seema also saw the
confirmation written in the Captain’s eyes. “Did the Admiral confirm this to
you, Captain?” She asked quietly.
Lee sighed as he
stood up and walked behind his desk and took his seat. “Not
exactly. He referred to the
experiments that Professor Mallory is conducting and I immediately
guessed what had happened.” Lee saw the frown on Seema’s face and explained for
her benefit.
“You see we’ve had
dealings with Mallory before. Almost six months ago, a corpsman named Mallory
had been allowed to work on board Seaview. It turned out his experimental
medical equipment was not what he claimed but was in fact a power source he had
adapted to open portals into the 4th dimension. He was conducting
his own experiments into the viability of parallel universes. His aim was to
provide a means by which he could travel between them and exert his control
over these realms. We only just defeated
him the last time but somehow he has managed to re-create himself in this dimension
and is using Seaview’s reactors here to power even bigger portals.”
“With what purpose
I wonder?” Seema puzzled
“I can only assume
with the same goal, to have free access to other dimensions. I fear he’s found
away of converging those dimensions. I have no doubt that he’s directly responsible
for all these anomalies that we are experiencing.”
Seema nodded.
“That would fit with the data I have managed to assess so far. It would explain
the portal we encountered and why your crew are so different to you. We have
crossed into a different dimension and I can only assume that the other craft
we saw is from this vessel and has gone to your Seaview.”
Lee nodded his
agreement, “That thought had occurred to me too.”
“What? You mean there’s two of us on another Seaview… but….” Jamie struggled
with the concept of the duplication of himself.
“Not us, Jamie but
alternative personalities we could have become… different personas if you
like.” Lee explained patiently. “Outwardly our appearance is the same but our
characters differ to each other in the way we behave.”
“I suppose that would explain a few things around
here and what I found going on in sickbay earlier.” Jamie murmured softly.
Lee frowned,
“Sickbay?”
Jamie shifted
uncomfortably in his chair as he looked at them both. “I was looking for you
and passed by sickbay. John and Frank were playing cards, nothing too unusual
about that except…” he hesitated, unable to reconcile what he knew of his
Corpsmen with what he had just seen “except that they had a patient with a
broken arm waiting for attention and they ignored him! I ordered them to attend
to him right away before I put them on report.” Jamie rubbed a hand over his
face and neck as he hesitated. “They just glared at me and wanted to know why I
was getting so ‘hot and bothered’…they set about their duties and at the
same time questioned me about my trip out with you, they wanted to know ‘if
Crane had managed to avoid killing anyone this time!”
Lee started to
twist the class ring on a finger of his left hand, a sure sign of his agitation,
as he thought about what Jamie had said. “Well, that’s about the same attitude
I observed.”
“Judging by the
contempt this crew seems to have for it’s captain,
it’s obvious they don’t have much respect for his character. Which means the
other Crane and Jamieson will not get along very well as soon as it becomes
apparent that they are not who your crew thinks they are.” Seema
murmured.
Lee laughed. “Probably not. By now I expect the Admiral has them locked
up and is wondering the same things we are.”
“But where is
Mallory? Can’t we just find him stop him like we did before?” Jamie questioned
worriedly.
“I’m afraid not.
From something the Admiral said I’m pretty sure he’s not aboard but in an
undersea lab close by. He’s just using Seaview’s reactors as his power source.”
“Then if we just
stop his power supply that will end this nightmare surely.”
Lee stood up and
started to pace a little. “Maybe it will stop his ability to create more
anomalies but it won’t change our position, Jamie. We will still be stuck here
unable to get back to our own boat.”
“So how are we
going to get out of this mess?” Jamie demanded.
Seema Su Lin had
been content to sit quietly and listen as Lee and Jamie discussed their
predicament with growing concern but now she spoke up confidently. “With the application of
science and logic, gentlemen. Science and logic.”
Seema told them softly as she spread the computer printouts over the desk and
started to study them.
<><><>
“Enter.”
Admiral Nelson called out as he sat behind the desk in his cabin, flanked by
his Executive officer, Chip Morton, standing just to his right.
The
Master-at-Arms and a guard entered, ushering between them Captain Lee Crane.
“Come
in, Captain, please sit down.” Harry watched as Crane glanced around the cabin
and noted the angry expression worn by the other man.
The
Captain hesitated but after checking that the only exit was blocked he slumped
moodily in the chair.
Nelson
looked at the guards and nodded, “You can wait outside.”
After
they had shut the door, the Admiral studied his prisoner. He resembled the Lee Crane he knew,
remarkably well. Same colouring, same features but this man wore an expression
of insubordination and his eyes sparked hatred as he concentrated them on the
two men in front of him. This made him easily distinguishable to Harry, from
the Lee he knew of as his Captain and friend.
“So
what is it you want?” Crane sneered, “I’ve obviously been brought here for a
reason, what is it? What do you want from me?”
“A few
answers, nothing too difficult.” Nelson answered. “Where is it you think you
are?”
“Not
aboard my own boat, I know that!”
Harry
looked up at Morton who stood passively but alertly at his right shoulder.
Returning his attention to Crane, Harry replied. “You seem very sure. I’m
wondering how you know.”
Crane
laughed scornfully. “The answer became obvious with your reception when we came
aboard, the crew’s attitude, made it easy to work out! The Nelson, I know would
never have the nerve to arrest me. I give the orders on my boat and
everyone else follows them. Nelson’s a token figurehead, most of the time he’s
just a simpering drunk.” He watched in amusement as the Admiral’s eyes flared
in temper and he clenched his hands together on top of the desk.
Harriman
Nelson narrowed his gaze as he listened to the other man’s announcement and
asked gruffly. “Why is that?”
“Why
is what? Nelson a drunk?” Crane mocked. “Because he’s weak! Because he built the most powerful
submarine on the planet and no idea what it was he had! Did he really think
that
“Surely
your Admiral objected and put up some sort of fight?” Harry demanded abruptly,
unable to stop himself feeling in some way personally insulted.
Crane
smiled slyly as he detected Nelson’s affront for his counterpart. “Much good it did him! He’s a only
scientist with an obsession to save humanity.” Crane leant forward, “What he
hasn’t figured out yet, is that most of humanity isn’t
worth saving. We gave him his rank as a courtesy title, a concession for his
co-operation, he’s just a lost voice that the world’s
passed by!” The captain ridiculed.
Harry
felt intense anger for the man in front of him and ceased to see any
resemblance to the ‘son’ he had become so fond of but he fought that dislike to
get the information he wanted. “And you and Morton?” Harry asked as he took a
sideways glance at the tense man at his side.
Crane
ginned lazily as he turned his attention to the Exec. “As for Morton, he hates
my guts, he wouldn’t care if I had died out here, and in fact he’d even prefer
it! Chip Morton wants to be Captain in
my place but of course
Clenching his jaw Chip listened to the goading tone of the other man
but kept his glacial blue eyes firmly fixed on him with the impassive
expression he was infamous for. This wasn’t the Lee Crane he knew as a brother,
he reminded himself.
Not
receiving the reaction he had expected Crane tried again to incite the silent
XO. “Not going to defend your ‘other self’, Morton?”
Harry
watched as Crane deliberately tried to inflame Chip. He smiled grimly to
himself, if he thought that was going to work, he didn’t know this Chip
Morton.
“Maybe
you don’t have a defence for a spoilt rich boy who expected his Daddy’s money
to buy him everything he wanted,” Crane sniggered derisively, “but not even all
that money could buy him a backbone.”
“Some
of us,” Crane continued, “had less privileges in life but even then he could
only manage second best to me every time.”
Chip
flinched despite his legendary self-control as he heard the hate filled
statement then quickly gathered his anger behind the mask of impassiveness he
habitually wore.
Having
heard enough of the insults this man used to wound others, Harry stepped in.
“What has Mallory do to with all this?” he demanded.
Crane
sat up fractionally straighter and frowned. “What do you know of Professor
Mallory?”
Harry
showed mild surprise, “Professor Mallory? You called him that before? Who is he
and what’s he experimenting on?”
Crane
looked suspiciously from one man to the other. “You don’t have a Professor
Mallory here…do you?” He quickly assessed.
Nelson
looked at Chip who raised one sceptical eyebrow but remained silent.
Crane
laughed confidently. “Seems I have the upper hand now,
gentlemen. You want information and I want my freedom. Let’s deal,
Admiral.”
Harry
drew a deep breath and pursed his lips thoughtfully. “What sort of deal can you
possibly broker with us that we will be interested in?”
“You
obviously want the return of your officers and I want to get back to my boat.
Between us we should be able to work something out.” Crane smirked, “Unless of
course my opposite number is already dead… in which case I’ll just stay here
and assume his place….”
“That’s
not an option.” Chip stated coldly.
Crane
looked up and grinned at the stoic figure. So, a flash of
genuine emotion at last. “Think you could stop me, Morton?”
“Without a single doubt.” Chip said uncompromisingly as he gazed
calmly at the intruder.
Crane
frowned and hesitated now. He considered the self-contained man carefully. Something intuitively told him that this XO
was not the man he had come to despise. This Chip Morton was a more dangerous
proposition all together.
Harry
smiled to himself as he saw the realisation impose itself on Crane. “As you can
see Captain, this universe has subtle differences to your own. Here, Captain
Crane is a man held in high esteem and we want him and his passengers back. If you wish to return to your submarine, I
strongly suggest you co-operate with us to achieve this, otherwise I will see
to it that you and your existence is buried so deep that you will never see the
light of day. Is that completely
understood?”
<><><>
After Lee
had given Seema some of the few facts from his initial meeting with Nelson, Lee
and Jamie left Seema to read through the data she had obtained from the
computer and use that ‘logic’ she was so sure was going to get them out of
here. They made their way to Nelson’s
cabin. As they stopped outside, Lee hesitated before entering. Turning to Jamie
he murmured, “Remember that this man isn’t the Harriman Nelson we know, don’t
be shocked by what you see.”
Jamie
frowned at Lee’s concern. Obviously he
had shown less control of his emotions than he realised. “I know I haven’t
adapted as quickly as you have, Captain but I’m learning fast.” He rested a
hand on Lee’s shoulder. “I may not be ONI, Lee, but I won’t let you down.”
“Coarse
you won’t, Jamie.” Lee assured him.
“In fact
you’d better let me take the lead in there. I’ve had more experience of drunks
than you have. They can take a bit of
handling.” Jaime smiled wryly.
Lee
nodded. He knew Jaime would cope better if he were doing something he was at
least trained for. Turning back to the
door, he opened it and entered without knocking.
Harriman
Nelson was slumped over his desk, in what appeared to be an alcoholic
stupor. Lee approached him and shook his
head sadly. Even though this man was not his friend and mentor he still felt an
affinity to him. He reached out a hand to Nelson’s shoulder and shook him.
“Admiral?
Admiral Nelson, wake up.”
Nelson
raised his head and with bleary eyes looked at the two men. “Crane?
Jamieson?” He sat up slowly and shook his head to
clear it. Gruffly he demanded, “What do you want? What’s the meaning of barging
in here like this? Get out, do you hear
me, get out I don’t want you here…I don’t want you anywhere near me….” Nelson
looked around for his whiskey glass and after spying it reached out a shaky
hand towards it.
“No,
Admiral, you don’t need anymore of that.” Jaime said quietly but firmly as he
removed the glass from Nelson’s reach. “How about some coffee?”
“Coffee?”
Nelson looked at the Doctor and frowned, “Coffee? Will, what are you talking
about? Don’t play games. Get yourself a glass and join me.” Again he reached
for the glass but Jaime handed it to Lee who went to the small bathroom and
emptied the half full glass down the sink.
“CRANE,
how dare you! Get out of my office….”
“Admiral
Nelson, listen to me. We are here to help you.” Jaime said firmly. He turned to
Lee, “Can you order up a big pot of strong hot coffee, we’re going to need it.”
Lee
picked up the phone on the desk and remembering who was supposed to be,
demanded the coffee to be delivered immediately.
As they
waited, Jaime and Lee dealt with Nelson. They manoeuvred the unsteady, angry
man into his shower, fully dressed and doused him in cold water. He bellowed
and swore at them but gradually simmered down as he began to shiver. There was
a loud knock at the door and Lee went to answer it while Jaime helped Nelson
out of his sopping uniform and into a thick warm bathrobe.
When they
were all seated back in the main cabin again, Nelson glared at them as he
sipped the warming brew. “I hope you both have a suitable explanation for all
this.”
“We have,
Admiral, I assure you but whether you believe it or not is quite another
matter.” Lee said quietly.
Nelson
looked at Jaime and demanded unkindly. “Have you gone over to his side now?”
Jaime
coloured a little but half smiled as he replied pleasantly. “I’m on the same
side I’ve always been on… the side of truth.”
Nelson’s
eyes flared. “What sort of answer is that… who’s truth… his.” and jerked his
head angrily to Lee. “You seem to forget, Doctor, if it wasn’t for me you
wouldn’t even have a job right now. After that seaman died due to your
bungling, it would have meant a court martial if I hadn’t used my
influence to prevent it. I saved you from ignominious disgrace! You owe me
your loyalty!”
Lee leant
forward in his chair and implored, “Admiral, we don’t have time for this.
Please listen. We have a story to tell you and we need you to understand,
because it’s the truth.”
Nelson
shook sis head and waved a hand to ward off Lee’s words. “I don’t want to
listen to you, Crane. I doubt you know the truth of anything. I’ve seen the way
you manipulate situations to your own advantage I was a fool to believe I could
keep Seaview for myself, I can see that now…all I ever wanted was to explore
the oceans doing scientific research but you and those hawks in
“Admiral!” Jamie interrupted. “How many years have you and Jamieson been
friends?”
“Jamieson? You mean, you and I, but
you know the answer to that… more than twenty years….”
“Then for
his sake, please listen….”
<><><>
“I
don’t get it, Chief,” Patterson commented as he surveyed the machine parts now
standing in the Missile Room.
“Well,
the thing is Patterson, these things don’t come with instructions, you know,
place tab A into slot A, you have to work it out as you go along.”
“I
didn’t mean that, I meant what does the Admiral want this thing put together
for anyway? Mallory was enough trouble
the first time, we don’t want him back.”
Equally
puzzled and slightly worried about the whole issue, Sharkey tried to hide his
anxiety by being brisk, “Look, Patterson, the Admiral wants it put together, so
we put it together, right?”
“Right, Chief.” He paused then asked simply,
“How?”
Nelson
who had entered unseen and had listened in amusement said, “Problems, gentlemen?”
“We’ll
sort it, Admiral, as soon as the electricians come up with the wiring diagram,”
Sharkey answered. “Err, Admiral, could I
have a word?”
“Surely,
Chief,” Nelson drew him to one side.
“What’s on your mind?”
“This, machine. You’re not going to use it, are
you?”
“Yes, Chief, that’s exactly what I’m going to do. You understand this 4th dimension
problem?”
“Yes, sir … err … that is, Mr. Morton explained it but what I
don’t get is how this is going to help us contact the Skipper, when he’s lost
somewhere out there.”
“I
don’t blame you, Francis, it’s not that simple to
understand. Simply put, we are going to use Mallory’s machine to open up a
vortex similar to the one that I am convinced the FS1 disappeared into. Then Captain Crane and his party, who are
trapped in another dimension, should be able to use it to return. Clear? “
“I
guess, sir, kinda like opening the door but what if the Skipper can’t get back
on his own, what if we have to go get him? ”
Nelson
laughed, easily, “Nothing is ever easy is it Chief?” Then he took pity on the obviously concerned
Sharkey and clapped him on the shoulder, “For now, let’s just see if the
electricians have sorted it out yet and I’ll give you a hand putting it back
together.
<><><>
Nelson
looked at both men with astonishment. Lee had finished telling him the most
fantastic tale he had ever heard… it couldn’t be true… but somewhere in his
heart he knew it was.
“I don’t
believe you! It’s some sort of trick, it has to be.” He blustered defensively.
“It’s not
and you know it! You must help us,
Admiral.” Lee said anxiously.
“I must
do nothing!” Nelson got up at paced. “I don’t to get involved in this lunacy.”
He was shaking now. He badly needed a drink.
“Admiral,
we’ve told you how this happened. Are you saying you won’t help us to put
things right?” Lee was incredulous. How could he deny them?
Nelson
turned to look at Lee then Will. These men were characteristically different to
the officers he had lost. They obviously valued honour and duty. When he had
listened to the way Crane had described his universe, his crew, his friends and
especially Nelson, he had felt envious of the pride and respect he had for the
other man. A thought suddenly occurred to him. What if…
He came
back to them carefully and asked, “Captain. Why are you so intent on returning?
You could have everything here that you had there.”
Lee
frowned in confusion and exchanged worried glances with Jamie.
Nelson
warmed to his argument. “I could make places for both of you here.” He turned
to Lee. “You could have Seaview, I will give her to
you. You’d have full command… I wouldn’t interfere. I’m sure we could work it
out….”
Lee stood
up suddenly and looked disbelievingly at Nelson. “Admiral, you can’t be
serious. We can’t stay here; we have friends waiting for us. We have to go
back, don’t you see that?”
“NO! I
don’t see that!” Nelson came forward and grabbed Lee by the shoulders. “Don’t
you understand, man… you could have it all, you could be the answer for me.”
Lee
released himself and stepped back. He looked compassionately at the Admiral but
remembered his true friends waiting for him on the other side. “Admiral, I’d
like to help but you must see that we can’t possibly stay, this crew will never
accept me as their captain. We don’t belong here. ” He smiled sympathetically. “If you will just tell us what Mallory is
doing and how we can stop him, we can perhaps help you along the way.”
Nelson
seemed to shrink before Lee’s eyes as he slumped down into a chair. “Why should
I help you? Do you think this other Nelson will be helping Crane and Jamison to
return?”
“Yes,
sir, I do. Admiral Nelson will be doing all he can for them. He will be doing
the right thing, he always does.” Lee answered softly.
“Maybe
that’s the difference between us then!” Nelson scoffed moodily.
“It
doesn’t have to be.” Jamie said quietly.
Nelson
glanced at him sharply and studied the Doctor’s concern. He saw the man’s
obvious compassion for him and felt demeaned by it.
He looked
at Lee and scowled. “All right! I’ll tell you all you
need to know but I won’t actively help you. If you insist on doing this, you’ll
have to do it without me. I don’t see why I should take any risks for men I
don’t know.”
Lee
looked at Jaime with profound regret. How had this man become the antipathy of
the man they knew and respected?
<><><>
Nelson walked
determinedly towards the brig as he contemplated his need to talk to Crane
again. Harry found the contrast between the friend he knew and trusted and the
man who masqueraded as him, strangely compelling. The scientist in him wondered
about the differences. Were they inherent or did the dimension that was part of
Mallory’s creative lunacy condition them?
He slowed as he
approached the metal barred door and nodded to the solitary guard.
“Well, well,
Nelson, couldn’t stay away, huh?” Crane sneered. “I thought you’d reconsider.”
“Oh, I haven’t
reconsidered anything. I was hoping you had. If you help us I will do
everything in my power to see you are returned or exchanged for our people.”
Harry replied firmly. “I’ll even get some medical help for the Doctor.”
Crane looked to
his fellow prisoner. Jamieson was sitting on the bunk with his head held in his
hands. He was suffering quite badly from his addiction. He badly needed a
drink; Crane could see the tremors were starting in his slender body. He laughed
scornfully, “I don’t think its medical help the good Doctor needs, a bottle of
scotch might make him feel better though.”
At the mention
of scotch Jamieson looked up. His bloodshot eyes sought out Harry’s as he stood
unsteadily. “One drink, please, just…just one drink….”
Crane stood up
angrily, “Don’t beg, Doctor! There’s nothing quite so
repulsive as a drunk begging for booze!”
Jamieson turned
angrily to Crane and lunged at him. “What would you know about it? You never
had a genuine need for anything in your life, nothing except glory!” Jamie
tried futilely to punch the Captain but was easily deflected and pushed to the
floor where he stayed, dejected and hurting.
Crane just
mocked the fallen man with his smile and then turned to see Nelson’s concerned
attention. “Don’t tell me you feel sorry for him, Admiral? Why? He’s nothing to
you, just the enemy. Why have compassion for a weak
man?”
Harry balled
his fists in annoyance but forced himself to relax. “You obviously have no such
compassion. Why is that? The Lee Crane I know would be caring for someone
weaker than himself! Helping a friend!” Harry said
dispassionately.
“Then he’s a
fool. My crew will eat him alive!”
Harry came
forward angrily, “Why? Why are you so different? Is it Mallory’s dimension
or….” he calmed a little, “or is it that you truly are just the antipathy of a
good man?”
Crane laughed
as he mocked the other man. “Good man? The only good thing about your Captain
Crane is he’s not here but I am! You
will have to negotiate with me Admiral, to get him back!”
Nelson ground
his teeth together and glared at the smirk on Crane’s face, he controlled an
impulse to reach out and wring the neck of the over confident intruder.
“I will not negotiate with the devil! Lee wouldn’t
expect me to….”
“Would he
expect you to abandon him?” Crane demanded harshly.
Nelson paused
and then turned on his heel and walked away.
“You need me,
Admiral!” The taunting voice called
after him, “You need me!”
<><><>
Morton
walked briskly through officer’s country and stopped outside his captain’s
cabin door. He was about to knock when he spied the name plaque fixed to the
shining metal… ‘Lee Crane, Captain’.
Morton grimaced, ‘Captain’.
Mentally he shook himself and knocking once, opened the door and
entered.
“Captain,
I have the report….” He stopped abruptly when he saw Dr. Su Lin seated behind
Crane’s desk.
“Well,
well… Doctor, what a surprise? Catching up some more paper work?” Morton
asked contemptuously as he closed the door firmly and sauntered towards her.
Seema
watched him carefully as he casually sat on the corner of the desk, within
touching distance of her.
“Captain
Crane is not here. He has gone with the Doctor Jamieson to see the Admiral.”
She announced firmly, moving away from him slightly.
“Has he
now? Well, it’s not a problem, he only wanted a report, I
can give it to him later.” Morton smiled as he purposefully reached out towards
her and captured a lock of her smooth hair.
“Crane, has always had an eye for beautiful
women. You want to tell me how you met our gallant captain?”
Seema
stood up from the chair and moved away uneasily. She had not mistaken the
sidelong glances of the executive officer and some of the other men aboard. She
was not unused to male attention or to masculine orientated environments but
the atmosphere here was definitely intimidating to a lone female. There was a
certain amount of casual disrespect that seemed aimed at the captain of this
Seaview and anyone associated with him. She felt vulnerable and was nervous
around men for the first she could remember.
“I think
it might be better, Commander, if you sought the captain elsewhere.” She circled the desk and edged towards the
door.
The exec
was too quick for her. He smoothly intercepted her flight and stood in front of
her, arms folded formidably across his chest. “Don’t rush away Doctor. What are
you scared of? If you’re going to be working as crew, don’t you think we
ought to get better acquainted? You haven’t seen me at my best,
I can be very friendly, when you really get to know me.”
“I’m not rushing
away. I just think it’s time I found the captain and told him about my….” Seema
faltered as she saw the gleam that entered the first officer’s eyes.
Chip
smiled, as he raised one eyebrow and he demanded softly. “Told him about your what?”
"Told him that I may have some solutions for the anomaly problems
that have been occurring.” Seema answered honestly.
“Is that
right?” Morton seemed to assess her and then asked shrewdly “Are you really a
Doctor of Temporal Mechanics and not just another one of Crane’s pickups?”
Seema drew herself up and said coldly. “I have a Doctorate from the
Chip
laughed with genuine amusement. “I believe you Doctor. Forgive my scepticism
but it’s unusual for our illustrious leader to be attracted to a woman with
beauty and brains. He usually likes his women pretty, eager to please
but not too academically inclined.”
Seema was
unsure how to respond to this statement. She constantly kept reminding herself
that Commander Morton was referring to another man entirely than the Lee Crane
she knew.
The exec
took a step forward and continued softly, “Which begs the question why someone
as intelligent as you is wasting time with him.
He has a short attention span you know. As soon as the next pretty smile
comes along his interest strays, I believe last month’s model was a red-head.”
Morton reached out and stroked his finger slowly along Seema’s chin. “Whereas I can be very attentive and considerate to the lady in my
life.”
She tried
to step away but he seized her arms and tightened his grip to pull her closer.
He studied her intimately and grinned as she tried to pull back from him
“What’s
the matter, Doctor? Don’t you feel inclined to be friendly? You might find it a
little wiser if you were nicer to me, you know? Admiral Nelson trusts me; we
understand each other. He built Seaview for his own personal use until
She
couldn’t resist asking. “What about
Captain Crane?”
Morton
scowled. “He won’t be around forever and when he’s … gone… I’ll be next
in line.” Chip pulled her into an embrace that had her arms trapped against his
chest. “If it’s Captains you go for, you should really
consider what I could do for you.”
“Please
release me Commander Morton!” Seema said frostily as she pushed against him to
free herself.
“Doctor… Seema,
you’re not being very sociable. Afraid Crane might return before we’re
finished? He doesn’t have to know, I could always lock the door….” Morton
continued smoothly, his interest heightened by the slight woman’s close struggles.
“Captain Crane, means nothing to me!”
Seema regretted the rash declaration when she saw his quick
understanding.
“Is that
true? Is it possible that Crane hasn’t put his brand on you yet?” Morton
demanded crudely.
“Please,
Commander Morton… let me go….” Seema strained her head back as Morton’s words
frightened her even more.
“Well,
well. Have I finally beaten him to something this time?” As she arched
backwards away from him, he bent his head to her neck and kissed the soft skin.
“Stop…
you’re hurting me…let me go immediately!”
“You
don’t really mean that. I know when a woman is just playing hard to get,”
Morton reached up and seized the back of her head and held her still as
eagerness lit his excited blue eyes and alarmed her still further, “but let’s not
waste anymore time with virginal modesty, you already have my full attention.”
“I assure
you I do mean it! I find you extremely offensive. Now, let me go!”
Morton’s
resentment suddenly took hold and he brutally twisted her hair as he glared
into her eyes, “Offensive am I? I’ve never had any complaints before. I wonder
if maybe you’re protests are just to stop yourself appearing too eager. I think
you want this as much as I do. Why don’t I prove that to us both?”
Seema
closed her mouth tightly and pushed with her hands at his chest as he crushed
her to him and cruelly captured her mouth with his. Morton backed her up
against the bunk and Seema toppled helplessly backwards but before she could
fight back, the officer pinned her down with his body and bent his head to hers
again and kissed her mercilessly.
Seema
struggled but his weight thwarted her resistance and she felt his hand move
insultingly over her body. She reached up a free hand and raked her nails
across his exposed cheek.
Morton
reared up, eyes glittered with intense fury as he put
a hand over the wound and rubbed his fingers over the scratches before lowering
them to glance at the blood streaks. “That wasn’t a nice thing to do, lady,” he
growled, “but I always like a challenge. Crane isn’t the only one who knows how
to tame a vixen!”
He bent
forward again over her frightened figure and cruelly ground his mouth on hers…
but suddenly she was free. She heard loud, angry voices and saw the XO dragged
backwards and thrown across the desk as Lee placed himself in front of her.
“Get out,
MORTON. Get out of my sight right now!”
Chip
Morton scrambled up and glared hatefully at the man who had stopped him from
claiming his prize. “You’ve done that once too often, Captain… taken
something from me that I want.”
Lee
ignored him and glanced back at Seema. “Are you alright? Did he hurt you very
much?”
Seema
shook her head and remained silent as she stood upright and shakily
straightened her clothing.
“How’s it
feel, Captain? Knowing that I was first this time? Call it payback for
all those times at the Academy when you lied and cheated your way through
everything… and
for Angie Hamilton, if you like!”
Despite
his aversion to this man, Lee, asked warily, “Angie?”
“Don’t
play dumb, Crane, it doesn’t suit you. You know full well what I’m talking
about… I had plans for Angie before you interfered and you knew it! But the
great Captain Crane just had to be first at everything!”
Lee
coloured slightly at the full implication of his doppelganger’s true
personality.
“Just get
out and don’t dare to bother Dr. Su Lin again… DO I make myself clear?” Lee
ordered ruthlessly.
Morton
hesitated only slightly and then straightened himself and jeered. “LOUD and
clear!” he moved towards the slightly ajar door and stopped. “My apologies,
Doctor. Maybe I shouldn’t have handled
the merchandise. It seems I failed to appreciate the ‘Captain’s Property Only’
label…”
Just as
Lee moved forward to throw him out bodily, Morton grinned derisively and left.
<><><>
Lee led
Seema into Nelson’s office and introduced her to the senior man as he gently
sat her down.
Immediately
Jaime noted her slightly shaking hands and the obvious bruising to her mouth.
“What’s happened?”
“Please
Doctor, it was nothing.” Seema assured him
Lee
rested a hand gently on her shoulder and said angrily. “I just stopped Morton
from attacking her.”
Seema
hung her head as Jamie gasped and knelt beside her. “Are you alright… did he
hurt you?”
She
looked up and smiled decisively. “No. I am quite all right. The Captain’s
arrival prevented anything serious from happening.”
“The…”
Jamie muttered an epithet to himself as he turned to Lee. “We have to get off
this boat!”
“We will Jamie, we will.” Lee
assured him.
Nelson
looked from one to the other of his visitors. He was shocked at the degrading
behaviour of one of his officers. How had things ever reached this level?
He saw
how Lee was carefully protective towards this woman and offered his support in
the light touch of his hand and the warmth of his smile when he looked at her.
Nelson
could see an honourable man that would never consider behaving so badly and
again this Lee Crane impressed him to the point of envy for the other
Nelson that was this man’s friend.
“I’m
sorry,” he murmured as he watched Lee give her coffee. “I don’t know how this
could have happened. I will of course take steps against….”
“No!
Please Admiral; don’t do anything, at least not yet. I was not hurt and besides
I was not the intended target.”
Jaime
frowned at her, “Of course you were. If Lee hadn’t arrived to stop him, he
would have….” he didn’t feel he could finish the sentence as his imagination
all too vividly played the scene to him.
Lee heard
the disgust in his friend’s concern towards her and recalled his own shock.
He had
gone to fetch Seema from his cabin to bring her to meet the Admiral, after
Nelson’s reluctant agreement to help them. He had been stunned at the sight
that greeted him. After he had pulled Morton away and seen Seema’s distress,
Lee had experienced extreme hatred for the other man. Only his strong
self-control had prevented him from beating the Exec to a pulp. When Morton had
tried to justify his actions as payback for some slight committed by his
opposite, Lee had felt only revulsion for both men.
“I don’t
understand, Doctor Su Lin. What other target could there be.” Nelson
questioned.
“Me.”
Lee answered quietly for her. “He intended to use Seema to hurt me!”
“Yes. His
hatred for you or for the man he believes you to be, transcends everything else… I was
a only tool to be used against you.” Seema said sadly.
There was
silence for a few moments then Seema took a deep breath and looked at Lee.
“Before…
well, earlier I was coming to look for you. I have made some startling
discoveries in my research, Captain. If we are to leave this dimension we must
do so in the next four hours or we may be trapped here forever.”
Her
word’s startled all three men out of their individual thoughts.
“What do
you mean?” Lee demanded.
“I have
studied the readings that the computer provided and with previous data supplied
to me by Admiral Nelson before my arrival, I have determined that the time
vortices Professor Mallory has been using are not stable. This means that in
the,” Seema looked at her watch, “five hours and twenty two minutes we have
been here, approximately 12 hours 49 minutes have passed in their dimension,
they are travelling away from us” She looked around the worried faces. “The
time difference is growing exponentially I’m afraid. This means gentlemen that
in two days here we could be as much as four months adrift. If we are here a
month, they will be 7 years into their future ”
The shock
hit Jamie and Nelson hard but Lee was already planning. “What do we need to
do?”
Seema
smiled, the Captain obviously had a cool head and quick comprehension, he would have made an excellent scientist!
“We need
to open a vortex at precisely 23.27 hrs and travel back through it. We will
meet them approximately 14 hours from their time now.”
“But how
do we do that?” Jamie asked, “Mallory is in a lab somewhere and he has the
controls.”
Lee and
Seema talked rapidly about the different possibilities and Nelson listened to
the exchanges. He was amazed at the quick intelligence of this Lee Crane. He
knew his man would not have the ability to hold a conversation of this
complexity with such an eminent scientist. A part of him was deeply jealous and
mourned the lost opportunities to which he had not been privileged.
“But you
can’t go down alone to a subterranean lab, with a mad scientist and expect to
defeat him single handed!” Jamie reiterated again. “Lee, be sensible, there has
to be another way.”
“None that I can think of. If I
go down to Mallory’s lair and can distract him long enough to set the controls…
you and Seema could get away.” Lee said to Jamieson.
“No,
Captain. That would mean you would remain here, trapped, with no hope of
return.” Seema answered.
Lee
looked at her concern and smiled softly. “I know Doctor but someone has to
stay. Don’t worry; I’ll be fine…this
isn’t so different from … home. Perhaps
I can win them onto my side in time.”
“Lee,”
Jaime came to stand by his friend, “this is no joke! You have an executive
officer that hates you, a crew that has no respect for you and no friends to
help you.” Jamie looked to the bent head of the seated Admiral and saw nothing
to encourage hope for them. “We all stay
or we all go, there can be no other way.”
Lee stood
up and adopted his Captain’s persona. “Doctor Jamieson, you will follow my
orders. You and Dr. Su Lin will go to FS1 and wait there. I will go and find
Mallory and get that vortex open. As soon as I do, you will take the flying sub
out and return home. Is that clear?”
Jamie
gritted his teeth against the commanding tone but knew better than to argue.
Lee had made his decision and that was that.
Turning away to slump in a chair, he answered morosely. “Aye, Sir.”
Lee
softened his stance, “Jamie, just explain it to Chip and the Admiral, they’ll
understand…”
“No they
won’t,” Jamieson sighed softly, “but they’ll accept it.”
Nelson
listened intently to the pain he could hear from both men and saw the
shimmering tears that rested unshed on Seema’s lashes. Suddenly he stood up.
“There’s another way.” He said gruffly.
Everyone
turned to him. “Admiral?” Lee questioned.
“In the
missile room, there’s a back up console that Mallory had installed in case of a
power loss or fault in the lab. It’s not as powerful and may not be sufficient
to activate a big enough vortex but if you divert the power couplings and set
the controls… it may be just enough get you out of here.”
Lee leant
forward on the desk and concentrated on the man in front of him. “Admiral, are
you sure?”
Nelson
shook his head reluctantly as he resumed his seat. “No, I’m not sure of
anything. The standby control unit will open something but how big or what
Mallory will do when he realises what’s happening I don’t know. He has some stored power in case of
emergencies of course, whether it will be enough to stop you, I’m not sure.”
Lee
smiled gratefully. “Thank you Admiral. Thank you for helping us. I know how
hard this must be for you….”
Nelson
looked up and just for a moment he felt the pride of the other Nelson, the one
Lee Crane admired and derived enormous pleasure from it.
As Lee
turned and issued orders to Jamie, Seema sat thoughtfully…
“Lee, it
is possible your Admiral Nelson will have come to these conclusions also. If
there were a way of sending him a signal… something he could understand, then
maybe we could coordinate both power sources on the vortex and open it further, that could help us to get through.”
Lee
concentrated and then murmured; “You say we are drifting apart from them,”
Seema nodded, “If
we did manage to send them a signal through a vortex in the next ten minutes
say, when would they receive it?”
Seema was
doing the mental calculations when Nelson interrupted. “One
hours 18 minutes from now.”
Lee
looked at him and smiled encouragingly. “Thank you, Sir.” Turning to Seema
again he asked. “That would give the Admiral the time he needed to couple up a
power supply to help us, wouldn’t it?”
“Well…
yes. Always supposing the Admiral….”
“He will
be ready, I’m sure of it.” Lee said confidently. “Besides, we have very few
choices here.” Lee got up and turned to the door, “Let’s move.”
“Wait,
Captain. There is still something we have not addressed.”
Lee
frowned as he turned back to Seema.
“We may
get away but there is nothing to stop the anomalies continuing as soon as
Professor Mallory acquires a new power source.” Seema explained.
They all
remained silent as the full implications became clear to them.
“Is there
a way to stop him permanently?” Lee asked.
Seema was
thoughtful, “Maybe, but it’s by no means easy and will involve some risk.”
Lee
nodded to encourage her to continue.
“We will
have to set the console here to create a feedback loop and as soon as the
professor opens his power controls, the power from here would overload his
system and create an unstable field. He would not be able to stop it and within
minutes it would reach a critical and explode… but….”
“But?”
Lee asked suspiciously.
“Someone
will have to ensure the power is increased steadily and not overridden or
interrupted, otherwise the field will collapse and we could all die….”
Lee took
this news soberly as he contemplated Seema’s solution. It would mean certain
death to Mallory but what the man planned for the dimensional disharmony of
human existence was worse. He was reluctantly willing to make a sacrifice to
end another man’s insane ambitions if it meant the survival of innocent lives.
“All right, Doctor, come with me now and we’ll set things in motion after we
have sent the message.”
As the
three turned to leave, Jamie looked at the haggard face left behind. “Wait!
What will happen here? I mean to this Seaview and crew?”
Seema
looked surprised. “They will remain of course.”
“Remain?
You mean they are not just a creation of one of Mallory’s machines?” Lee
demanded.
“No, of course not. I thought you all understood… each dimension functions independently
of the others. All dimensions do. Infinite numbers of possibilities exist and
they are all running parallel to each other but separately.” Seema could see
confusion still lingering and tried again. “Think of it this way… train lines
at a terminal, all running parallel but occasionally converging and crossing
each other, the trains that ride on the tracks are bound on one line but may
pass or cross the paths of others but never merge together. They all travel at
different time ratios, hence the variations in the time continuum.”
“So this
crew will go on as before.” Jamie confirmed uncertainly.
“Yes.”
“But what about their missing officers? Will they return after we’re gone?”
Seema
hesitated. “Possibly… but it is more likely that when the balance is upset by
our arrival back, unless they also use the vortex to return at the same time
they will simply cease to exist in either sphere.”
“You mean
they will die?” Lee asked urgently.
“Yes, in
a sense… their existence will just come to an end….” Seema finished quietly.
Nelson
looked at Lee and saw the new worry that challenged his honour. To save himself
and his friends would mean the expense of two other lives. Men who had no say
in their own fate. “You must do what you
have to, Captain. We all know, you cannot stay here and they will not be
welcomed there… the alternatives are few and none of them palatable.” Nelson
finished sombrely
Lee
looked intensely at this man for a moment then turned and left with Seema and
Jaime in tow.
<><><>
”Admiral Sir,
there’s a message coming through that small vortex thing out there.” called
Chief Sharkey through the intercom system.
“Transfer
it here.” Nelson ordered. Turning to Chip, he smiled contentedly. “Now at last
we may get the answers we need.”
<><><>
“Come.” Harriman Nelson called as he looked up
from the papers he was studying.
Morton
entered and crossed to the desk and stared down at the seated man as he
declared moodily. “Did you ask Crane to test Professor Mallory’s secondary unit
in the missile room? He’s being all ‘need to know’ about it. Won’t
let anyone in there but Dr. Su Lin and Jamieson. If you ask me he’s been
behaving oddly since he got back and now this…do you know what he’s up to?”
Nelson
kept his gaze averted as he answered firmly. “I know what Le…Crane is doing. I
gave him the orders.”
Morton
waited for a clearer explanation but realised it wasn’t forthcoming so he tried
again. “I have just had another call
from Professor Mallory as well, Admiral, demanding to know what’s going on. He
wants to speak to you or Captain Crane. Crane is avoiding him, understandably
considering he messed up this morning’s trials, but I don’t understand why you
won’t speak to him!”
Nelson
leant back in his chair and scrutinised his XO, the man he had known since
Morton’s first year at the Academy. He remembered the scrubbed face new recruit
as the only son of a millionaire industrialist. He had been spoiled when he
arrived but was intelligent and had worked hard at his training, looking for every
opportunity to excel and impress his superiors. His background and influential
father had helped but he had earned a certain amount of admiration for his
work, in his own right, from his peers and senior officers. Maybe he had just been a little unlucky to
have Lee Crane as his nemesis. Crane had challenged him at every turn,
resenting Morton’s moneyed background, never ceasing to ridicule his wealth and
managing to compete, fairly or unfairly, to disparage Morton whenever he
could. Harry realised that Morton and Crane had instinctively sensed a rival in
the other had set about demolishing each other’s reputations, each intending
himself to be the only alpha male!
The
scratches from Morton’s attack on Seema Su Lin were still livid on his cheek
and Nelson speculated as to when he had finally stepped over the line and taken
a less principled approach to his life?
“Admiral,
did you hear me?” Morton demanded brusquely.
“I’ve
been hearing a lot of things. Some not to my liking!”
Nelson answered harshly.
Morton
coloured slightly and stared back defiantly as he drew himself up to face
Nelson silently.
“Are they
true?”
“Depends
who’s doing the telling.” Morton replied tersely.
Nelson
slammed his hand down on the desk and shouted. “Dammit man, you attacked a
woman….”
“Not
true! She was willing… or would have been, if Crane hadn’t interfered!” Morton
shouted back defensively.
“Is that
why she scarred your face?” Nelson responded unsympathetically.
Chip
automatically rubbed the sore finger scratches on his cheek and turned crimson
with embarrassment. “She…I tried…” He turned away from the accusing stare of
the older man and took deep breaths. “Maybe I did misread some things,” he
admitted reluctantly as he turned back angrily, “but it was never about her. It
was about Crane… it’s always about Crane. He haunts my life with his
arrogance…” Morton gestured crossly at the seated Nelson. “You gave in! You
gave in to
Nelson
was shaken by his vehemence but had to admit that the blame for a lot of things
rested with him.
“Maybe
you’re right. I made some serious mistakes and this is the result.” He rested
his arms heavily on the table and continued absently, “Does one event, one
wrong decision change the rest of our lives irrevocably? Is there no possibility of redeeming our
honour and righting our mistakes?”
Morton
looked at Nelson suspiciously. What was
Nelson thinking about now? He didn’t appear drunk but that didn’t mean much,
he’d known Harriman Nelson to function when most other drunks couldn’t.
“Admiral?
What are you talking about?” Morton demanded irritably.
Nelson
hung his head. “I made a decision once, the wrong decision and it altered
everything. Took away what I believed in, took away my honour….”
Morton
was concerned now that the admiral had finally lost his reason.
“Have you
always made the right choices, Chip?”
The exec
bristled slightly with offence. “I made the choices that were available to me!”
Morton replied. “Sometimes they were wrong ones maybe but we can’t all be Lee
Crane’s and have the luck of the devil to help us come first at
everything!” He cursed his thoughts as they strayed again to the one man that
he felt had blighted his life. “What has he demanded this time?”
Nelson
sobered his thinking suddenly. Realising he had voiced his thoughts aloud he
looked tiredly at the tall Exec.
“It’s
nothing, nothing at all.” Shaking his head he concentrated again. “Now what was
the problem with Professor Mallory?
Morton
put his hands on his hips and narrowed his eyes momentarily, what had got into
Nelson. Why all this introspection on his life? What had Crane been saying to
him?
Morton
was about to explain when, from the desk intercom,
“Sir,
Professor Mallory is calling again.”
Nelson
looked at Morton who returned his gaze with resignation. “Put him through.”
Nelson picked up the desk phone, “Professor, what can we do for you?” He
listened patiently and nodded.
“The new vortex? Yes, I ordered it…no, nothing like that. I
was merely testing the installation you have aboard as part of a routine
maintenance programme….” Harry gripped the phone tightly as the searing anger
of the scientist echoed in his ear. “Very well, Professor as
you wish, I will see that it is made inoperative immediately.”
Still
listening, Nelson caught the confused expression of Morton at the outright lie
but continued to try and placate Professor Mallory.
“Yes,
unfortunate indeed. If you would choose to repeat your test, I’m sure there
would not be a problem this time….” He listened again then impatiently said,
“Yes,
yes, we can get the readings, no one is trying to sabotage your work,
Professor, I assure you but I have been looking over your research
submissions and I have a few questions….” Nelson listened again as the other
man obviously interrupted.
“I do
have some knowledge of the temporal theory you expounded but it doesn’t make
sense. Your need for such a tremendous power indicates a larger purpose than
just opening a window of investigation, I don’t know why I didn’t see it
before….”
Nelson
lowered the phone slowly as the other man ended the call.
“What was
that all about, Admiral? Why are you suddenly questioning the Professor’s work?
And why lie about what Crane is up to?” Morton demanded.
“I think
we have all been mislead to the true purpose of these
anomalous events, Mr. Morton. Professor Mallory has been using us and I let him
get away with it but I may still have the opportunity to redeem myself after
all….
<><><>
Lt. O’Brien was waiting for Lee as
he approached the missile room again. Lee had gone to his cabin to collect
Seema’s calculations after they had managed to send the short message through
the small anomaly they had opened.
“Err…Captain, sir…can I speak to
you?” He asked hesitantly and cast a nervous glance at Seema and Jamieson as
they came to meet him. “Alone, sir?”
Lee
paused then nodded to his friends, “You go back inside, and I’ll be along in a
minute.” Seema and Jamie seemed uneasy but did as he asked. Turning to the
second officer he said formally. “Well Lieutenant, what is it?”
O’Brien
frowned slightly at Crane’s abrupt tone but continued softly. “I think there is
something I should warn you about, sir.”
Lee was
unsure how to respond. O’Brien seemed to expect something from him…no…not
him! The other Lee Crane. “I’m sorry…Bobby… I
have things on my mind. Was there something…?” Lee waited for an indication of
how to proceed.
O’Brien
seemed unsure for a moment then after another furtive glance around he came closer and lowered his voice even more. “I thought
you’d want to know, sir, that Commander Morton is suspicious of your actions
and has set one of his men, Kowalski, to watching you. He’s also informed
Professor Mallory that he thinks you are setting out to sabotage his experiments.”
Lee
managed to keep the look of shock from his face. This boat was worse than he
had suspected. Men used to spy on each other, an Exec apparently with his own
private crew to do his bidding and a second officer who seemed loyal to Crane.
“Thank you,
Bobby, I’m grateful, I’ll look into it. That was very…loyal of you.”
“I’m your
man, Captain, that’s why you brought me aboard after all, to watch your back.
You must know I wouldn’t let you down, sir.” O’Brien reassured him.
Lee
looked at the young man and for a brief moment was reminded of a faithful
puppy. O’Brien was obviously fearful of
the man he thought was his captain. Anxious to get away from this situation, he
gave O’Brien a quick dismissal and turned to open the missile room hatch and
step inside.
Immediately
he heard raised voices.
“I was
assigned here by Mr. Morton himself, Doc. I stay till he tells me I can go!”
Kowalski was stating firmly.
“You
follow the Captain’s orders, Sailor!” Lee called out as he crossed the deck.
Kowalski
turned and mutinously glared at him. “Mr. Morton….”
“I know
what Mr. Morton ordered, Kowalski, and I’m countermanding that order, you can
leave.”
“But….”
“Are you
refusing a direct order from a superior, Kowalski? Are you sure you really want
to do that, even for Mr. Morton?” Lee asked menacingly.
Kowalski
hesitated. He hated this man. Crane had punched him the first time they’d met
and all Crane did when reprimanded by the Admiral, was laugh! Laugh and tell him he needed to stay away
from the ‘big boys’ if he couldn’t duck better than that! Kowalski was going to get even for that
insult and all the other ways Crane had belittled or embarrassed him since he
had arrived aboard. Kowalski was just counting the days!
Kowalski
clenched his fists and set his face in an insolent sneer. “I’ll just go report
back to Mr. Morton, Captain. Let
him deal with you.”
As Lee
watched the Sailor hurry to the hatch and wondered if perhaps he should have
kept him here but it was too late now and he wasn’t keen on hurting this crew
even if they hated his guts!
Jamie turned to Lee when they were alone and
asked. “Should I ask what that was all about?”
Lee sighed, “I’ll tell you later, Jamie.
Right now we have work to do.” He turned to join Seema at the secondary
consul and concentrated on all the things that needed to be done.
<><><>
Morton stalked his way down to the missile room after
Kowalski had reported that Crane had dismissed him and pronounced the missile
room off limits. Morton had been suspicious of Crane’s actions since he
returned with the woman. What the hell was he playing at now? Morton had heard
the Admiral when he had tried to explain away the appearance of the last vortex
that’s why he had sent Kowalski down to the missile room to watch what Crane
was up too as soon as he knew of Crane’s presence there. It had just been
reported to him that Jamison and Dr. Su Lin were in the Flying Sub, supposedly
to check something for the captain but Morton was sure he was up to
something else. Since Crane’s return this morning even Nelson was behaving like
a different man towards him. He was asking ridiculous questions about honour
and duty…as if he ever worried about such things. Nelson had given up and
unless he, Chip Morton, watched Crane closely, they could end up losing
everything! Not that he was worried
about Nelson, but he was damned if he would let Crane get the prize he wanted
for himself! Not this time, no sir! He
had been a plank owner from the beginning and sacrificed a promising career in
the Navy for this. He wasn’t about to let Crane walk in and steal it away from
him, the way he had with everything else… Seaview was going to be his. He’d even
kill if he had to!
He
approached the hatch and stopped a moment as he looked in. Crane was in front
of Professor Mallory’s consul and was resetting the power levels.
“What the
hell do you think you’re doing?”
Lee
turned from his work; he hadn’t heard Chip Morton’s approach, or at least the
person who looked like Chip. He had to
remember that this wasn’t Chip and couldn’t be spoken to like Chip.
“Get out,
I’m busy,” he told him shortly.
Morton
crossed the room to look over Lee’s shoulder, “You’re increasing the power
output, why? Professor Mallory ordered this unit deactivated. Why are you
disobeying?” Chip was ignored as Crane continued to set the controls. “Stop, if
you do that you’ll create an unstable vortex and the power feedback will
destroy Professor Mallory’s lab.”
“I
haven’t got time to explain right now, just trust me,” Lee answered.
“Trust
you, that’s a joke.
I’m not going to let you blow up the professor or this submarine,”
Morton grabbed Lee’s shoulder and pushed him away from the control panel as the
voltage started to increase.
Taken
unawares, Lee stumbled backwards banging his head on the torpedo racks, the
breath knocked out of him; he took a few seconds to revive. He only had minutes now to get the Flying Sub
away and ensure that Mallory’s lab was destroyed for good,
desperation lent him strength as he pulled himself upright. There was only one thing he could do, he
would have to overpower Morton before he could call for help or switch the
power back down.
“Alright,
Morton, let’s have it out, right here and now,” he goaded the exec, “I was
given this job because it was obvious to Washington that you would never make
the sort Captain they needed. Let’s see
if I can prove them right, or is attacking women all you have the stomach
for?” It was a gamble but he seemed to
have hit just the right note. Lee knew
that an angry man was less coordinated and an easier adversary.
“Why you
little … “ Morton turned towards him and Lee got his blow in first, punching
Morton on the jaw, he fell backwards but he caught himself on the bulkhead and
pushed himself forward to punch Lee hard in his ribs. Despite the sudden pain Lee retaliated with a
punch to Morton’s solar plexus’ and then as the exec doubled up winded and in
pain Lee hit him on the jaw. Morton went
down but swung a foot behind Lee’s leg and toppled him to the deck. He jumped
on the downed man and grabbed Lee’s shirt pulling him towards him. Punching
wildly Morton managed to land a few telling punches then put his hands around
Lee’s throat and squeezed. Lee felt the pressure and lifted a knee between
them, using it as a lever. He pulled at Morton’s forearms and forced him away
with his knee, finally breaking his hold.
Morton fell backwards as Lee gasped for breath and turned to face his
attacker. Morton lay on the deck and cast around for a
weapon of any kind. He spied a crowbar and reached for it as he rose to his
feet. Swinging it at Lee he managed to connect with the other man’s ribs again
although Crane’s arm managed to deflect it from doing serious damage but he
heard Lee groan with pain. “Did that hurt, Crane? I hope so because I’m going to
take you apart!” Morton growled as he came forward again but Lee feinted to the
left and managed to grasp the crowbar. Together they fought for it and finally
Lee managed to pull it from the other man’s hold. Lee threw it aside as he
punched out again and hit Morton hard in the stomach. Morton collapsed to the floor on one knee and
before he could move again Lee grabbed his hair, lifted his head and punched
him hard on the jaw. Lee released his hold, Morton fell to the deck and lay
still. Breathing heavily and horrified by what he had done, Lee bent over him,
“Chip, I’m sorry, I …” No, he had to pull himself together this was NOT Chip,
just another figment of Mallory’s twisted universe.
Dizzily,
Lee got to his feet, the pain in his ribs making it hard to breathe; Morton
could certainly pack a punch. He checked
the power output, which was rising steadily, he had only minutes left now to
create the portal and contact the Flying Sub telling them to leave. He turned
to the consul but as he picked up the mic everything spun round him. He had to
stay conscious; he had to ensure that Jaime and Seema got to safety.
Suddenly, as he felt himself fading, a pair of hands held him
upright. He looked at the man that was helping him. “Admiral?
I don’t understand…why are you here?”
Nelson
helped Lee to sit in a chair and smiled apprehensively. “I decided to do the
right thing I suppose. You have to get to FS1 and return with your friends.
I’ll stay here and make sure the power level rises sufficiently to cause the
feedback.”
“But,
Admiral …are you sure? Your government won’t thank
you, neither will your first officer.” Lee and Nelson looked to the man on the
deck who was just beginning to revive.
“I’ll
deal with all that, you need to get away.” Nelson helped Lee to his feet. “Can
you walk?”
Lee
looked at his determination and smiled. “I’ll make it. Welcome back, Admiral. I
knew you weren’t lost completely.”
Nelson
was surprised at the warmth in his tone and smiled broadly. “I guess it took a
friend to help me find my way.”
A groan
from the XO drew both men’s attention. Morton was coming round fast.
Nelson
pointed Lee towards the door, “Go! When I know you’re safely away, I’ll do
what’s necessary.”
Lee stood
to attention as best he could and saluted the other man, “Thank you, Sir and
good luck.”
Nelson
smiled proudly and casually returned the salute then impulsively shook his
hand, “Good luck to you…Lee. Now go before it’s too late.”
Lee took
one last look at Morton as he sat up and headed for the hatch. From behind him
he heard the Admiral’s voice. “Stay right where you are Mr. Morton. I have a
story so fantastic to tell you, you’ll probably think I’m mad but I have to
convince you if we’re ever going to move on….”
Lee
smiled as he left and made his way to FS1.
<><><>.
Lee stumbled along
the corridor, making his way forward beneath the Control Room until he reached
the rear cargo hatchway to the Flying
Sub. He slumped against the hatch, as the
pain and exhaustion from his damaged ribs as well as his other injuries,
threatened to overwhelm him and his surroundings once more started to
fade. Taking deep breaths he managed to
steady himself and turned the hatch wheel, falling over the sill to land on his
knees, almost doubled up in pain.
“Lee?” Will Jamieson’s voice roused
his senses, “What happened?”
Lee let Jamieson
help him to a seat, “No time for that now, we’ve got 4 minutes to get out of
here. Get yourselves strapped in.”
Seema buckled
herself into the back seat, “My calculations say we’ve got to hit that vortex
with as much speed as you can muster.”
Lee touched
Jamieson’s arm, as once more his surroundings began to fade, “Have you flown …
flown this lately?”
“Once,
with the Admiral.” Jamieson looked at the weakened man and took
a deep breath, “Tell me what to do and remember if I take your orders now,
you’ve got to obey mine when we get back.”
Lee managed a
small smile, he’d see about that, “Start the engines, then we’ll …”
As Will started
the engines, Seema unbuckled her seat belt and crouched down by Lee, “Lee, can you hear
me?” She glanced at Will, “What’s the
best thing to do?”
“You’re going to
have the bring him round, press your thumbnails into his ear lobes,” Will half
gave his attention to Lee and the other half to the engines as they roared into
life, a small part of his mind reflecting on the ludicrous situation. He should be taking care of Lee, who should
be flying this thing, and the scientist who should be guiding it was taking
care of Lee!
Lee winced as the
sharp pain brought him back to reality, “What … what was I saying?”
“I’ve got the
engines started, now stay with us, Lee, what do I do next?”
Lee reached
forward to work the automatic launch gear and as the giant doors opened beneath
them the flying sub dropped thought the air lock.
“I’ll take her,
I’m okay,” Lee stated. “There’s the vortex in front of us. Let’s hope the Admiral…Admirals…can supply us
with enough power to get us though.”
Ahead of them the
blackness intensified becoming a swirling, bubbling black hole. Lee revved the engines and the little craft
speed towards it. “When we get through,
radio Seaview and ask them to bring us in on a homing beam.”
They hit the
vortex at high speed and were immediately flung into its chaos.
As Lee once again
lost consciousness, Will shouted above the noise, “Seema, how do I get us out
of here?”
“You don’t, we’ll
be carried out on our own, just pray we get there before the vortex closes.”
“That
I can do.”
They were flung
from the mouth of the swirling chaos and saw the concentrated beam of power
that emanated from Seaview to the disturbance. It seemed to glow brighter as
they moved away and suddenly the vortex collapsed in on itself and darkness was
all that was left. Within seconds they found themselves once more in calm water. Will flicked on the radio,
“FS1
to Seaview. This is Doctor Jamieson.”
“Morton
here. Where are you, Doc?”
“We’re here…that
is back here. Captain Crane is hurt and I have no idea how to fly this thing!”
Morton looked
swiftly at the anxious face of his superior as Nelson looked out through the
giant windows into the murky depths.
Morton looked down
to the sonar scope and said confidently into the mic in his hand, “It’s okay,
Jamie we have you. Just engage automatic pilot and we’ll do the rest.”
As Chip and the
crew set about retrieving the Flying Sub, he watched as the Admiral paced the
space in front of the giant windows, clenching and unclenching his fists with
impatience.
Finally there was
the satisfying clunk that signalled the safe return of the small yellow craft.
Both Nelson and
Chip waited as Sharkey spun the locking wheel that opened the hatch cover. As
the C.O.B. raised it a dark head was seen rising unsteadily up the steps.
Chip reached down
to help Lee up the ladder, “Welcome back.
What happened to you this time?”
Lee looked at him
and said simply, “You did.”
Chip hesitated for
only a second before he continued to help his friend up. Quickly Nelson moved
to Lee’s side and held him upright. “It’s good to see you all home. Are you badly
hurt, lad?”
Before Lee could
answer, Jamie came to his other side and grumbled, “Bad enough but he’ll live.
Remember Captain, we have an agreement…I followed your instructions and now
you’ll follow mine, this is my area of expertise.”
Lee only smiled as
he allowed himself to be supported by Jamie and Nelson. He looked back at the
open hatchway and saw the apprehension Seema displayed as she climbed up. When
Chip reached out a hand to help her up the ladder she drew back slightly and
stopped, nervously she cast her gaze about and caught the Captain’s eye.
Lee smiled
reassuringly and nodded. “He’s not the
same man… none of them are.” Lee said softly as he
turned to smile at the Admiral then looked back at her. “We’re safe and back
where we belong. We’ve looked in the mirror for the last time.”