Forces from Beyond

  “Why is he . . . ?”

  “Different drugs are kicking in as his system metabolises them,” said Melody. “Some . . . are more helpful than others. He can keep a rein on them, when he has to. Right now, he’s just enjoying himself. While he can.”

  She glared at Latimer, and for a moment JC thought the Boss might actually respond with a kind word, or a touch of compassion; but the moment passed. Latimer just looked steadily back at Melody, until Melody looked away.

  “He’s killing himself for you, Boss,” she said. “For the job. Putting his life and his sanity on the line . . .”

  “Aren’t we all?” said Latimer. “All that matters is, can he still function? We can’t risk his cracking up at the bottom of the ocean.”

  “He’s stronger than you think,” said Melody. “He’s had to be. But you’d better pray he can keep it together; because he’s still our best bet for taking down the Flesh Undying. Even after everything you’ve done to him and asked of him, he’s still a Ghost Finder.”

  “Don’t try pushing my guilt button, girl,” said Latimer. “I don’t have one.”

  JC remembered Latimer shooting her long-time secretary Heather in the head without the slightest hesitation. Latimer looked at him and smiled briefly, as though she knew what he was thinking.

  “We all do what we have to,” said the Boss. “To preserve what we believe in.”

  “But you’re not going down in the bathysphere,” said JC.

  “Yes, exactly!” said Melody. “Why aren’t you going down with us, Boss?”

  “Partly because there isn’t room,” said Latimer. “Partly because you need someone up here you can trust, to make sure they bring you back up safely. This is a Project ship and crew, remember. And there’s always the chance the Flesh Undying might send more of its agents. The ship will need me, then. But mostly I’m not going because I’m not crazy.”

  They all managed a small smile.

  “We could die down there,” said Melody.

  “Yes,” said Latimer. “You could. Try not to.”

  JC drew Latimer’s attention to where Natasha Chang and Captain Katt were standing together, some distance away. They weren’t talking to each other, but they were standing together, keeping a watchful eye on everything that was happening.

  “I had a word with Ms. Chang earlier,” said Latimer. “Just sounding her out, to see where her true loyalties lie.”

  “And?” said JC.

  “Don’t turn your back on her,” said Latimer.

  “I can honestly say I wasn’t planning to,” said JC. “Keep a careful eye on her while we’re down below. In case she takes it into her mind to tie knots in our oxygen lines, just for the fun of it. We might have common cause, but she is not on our side.”

  “Of course not,” said Latimer. “She’s Crowley Project. I will be right beside her, all during your time below.”

  “Don’t turn your back on her,” said JC.

  “Wouldn’t dream of it,” said Latimer.

  She calmly moved away, so she could just casually bump into Katt and Chang. Melody scowled at JC.

  “How much help could she be, realistically? One old lady on her own, surrounded by Project people with guns?”

  “Come on,” said JC. “This is Catherine Latimer we’re talking about.”

  Happy came back to join them. His mood had changed, or the chemicals had changed it for him. His face was full of shadows. His mouth was a flat line, and he darted suspicious glances at Goldsmith and Hamilton as they oversaw the loading of even more scientific equipment into the bathysphere. Happy moved in close to JC and Melody, dropping his voice to conspiratorial levels.

  “Can we really trust those two? How can we be sure they’re not putting a bomb in there?”

  “As you have already pointed out,” JC said patiently, “a bomb wouldn’t work against the Flesh Undying.”

  “It would work against us,” Happy said darkly. “If Katt or Chang decided they wanted to get rid of us.”

  “He may be a brain-damaged paranoid, but he does have a point,” said Melody.

  “Who’s brain-damaged?” said Happy.

  “We’re too valuable to kill off,” said JC. “If you’re really worried, Happy, why not listen in on what they’re thinking?”

  Happy’s scowl deepened. “Can’t. I’ve had to batten down the mental hatches, lock all the doors, and throw away the keys. I’ve suppressed all my abilities, to make sure the Flesh Undying won’t be able to see me coming.”

  “Then what use are you going to be to us, down there?” said JC. “Maybe you should stay up here, after all.”

  “No,” Happy said immediately. “If it should all go wrong, I can wake up in one hell of a hurry. I’m your last best hope. You are looking at me doubtfully, JC, as well you should. If I were you, I’d be very worried. About everything.”

  “I am,” said JC.

  “Good!” said Happy. “That makes me feel so much better. I’d hate to be this worried on my own.” He stopped and looked around. “Where’s Kim?”

  She’d gone again, when they weren’t looking. And, as usual, no-one had noticed.

  “I wish she wouldn’t keep disappearing like that,” said JC. “It gets on my nerves.”

  “Women,” Happy said wisely. And then winced and looked wounded, as Melody elbowed him in the ribs.

  For differing reasons, they all decided to watch the action around the bathysphere for a while. Goldsmith and Hamilton were standing before the open air-lock, consulting a checklist and arguing quietly with each other. They ran carefully through the list, twice, then tossed it aside and marched over to join JC, Happy, and Melody. The two scientists looked very professional, very focused. Exactly the kind of people you’d want to be in charge of your descent into the unknown. And then they went and spoiled it, by looking at each other and waiting for the other to speak first. Up close, they both looked like they’d been awake for far too long.

  “It’s all in place,” Goldsmith said finally. “Everything you’ll need for the journey. The equipment is set to run itself, it knows what it’s doing, so please don’t touch anything.”

  “We’ll be lowering you right on top of the Flesh Undying,” said Hamilton, in her most severe Nordic tones. “Which realistically means within twenty to thirty feet. If all goes well.”

  “There are so many imponderables beyond our control,” said Goldsmith, apologetically.

  “What happens if you get it right on the nose?” said Melody. “And we end up bumping into the Flesh?”

  “Best not to think about things like that,” said Goldsmith.

  “It’s not like you’d waken it,” said Hamilton. “One small steel ball, bumping along the side of a mountain?”

  “Why would it even notice?” said Goldsmith.

  “You’re both sweating,” Happy said accusingly.

  “It’s a hot night,” said Goldsmith.

  “No it isn’t,” said Happy.

  “There’s a phone cable connecting the sphere to the Moonchilde,” said Hamilton. “Use that for all communications. We couldn’t risk anything else. But even on a direct line, I would still advise you keep contact to a bare minimum. Just in case.”

  “How will we know when the work is done?” said JC.

  “The machines will know,” said Goldsmith. “Don’t worry, no computers; it’s all simple timers. The equipment will shut itself down once its various tasks are completed; and then all you have to do is phone home, and we’ll haul you back up.”

  “Do we have any weapons, for emergencies?” said Melody. “Any defences?”

  Goldsmith and Hamilton looked at each other.

  “Stop doing that!” said JC. “Whatever it is, just say it! We can take it!”

  “The bathysphere’s outer shell is strong enough to protect you from the p
ressure, and all natural dangers,” said Goldsmith. Like a parent assuring a child there isn’t really a monster under the bed.

  “You can electrify the outer shell if you should happen to encounter any threatening creatures,” said Hamilton. “But there shouldn’t be any. Nothing lives in the shadow of the Flesh Undying.”

  “What if there are Flesh creatures on guard duty?” said Happy. “It could happen.”

  “Try not to be noticed,” said Goldsmith.

  “But if something really interesting should turn up, the equipment will take photos,” said Hamilton.

  They nodded and smiled to JC, Happy, and Melody, looked at each other to check whether there was anything else they ought to say, then turned and walked briskly back to the bathysphere. With a definite air of having done all that could reasonably be asked of them. Captain Katt and Natasha Chang let them get out of the way, then came forward to take their place.

  “It’s time,” said Katt. “I feel it is my duty to ask. Are you sure you want to do this?”

  “No,” said JC. “But it’s the job. Besides, after everything we’ve already been through on this ship, we might actually be safer at the bottom of the ocean.”

  “Don’t stay down there one minute longer than you absolutely have to,” said Katt.

  “Damn right,” said JC.

  Chang beamed at them all. “Such an exciting adventure! The things you’re going to see . . . I wish I was going with you!”

  “No you don’t,” said Happy.

  Chang rounded on him. “Stay out of my head!”

  “I wouldn’t go in there on a bet,” Happy said loftily. “When did you last have it cleaned?”

  Chang deliberately turned her back on him, to give JC her full attention and her biggest smile. “Do find a way for us to kill the Flesh Undying, darling. I would love to have a kill that big on my résumé.”

  “And, you’ll have helped save the world,” said JC. “Probably a first for the Crowley Project.”

  Chang pouted. “You’re forgetting; I helped you stop Fenris Tenebrae, down in the London Underground.”

  “You were there,” said Melody. “But I don’t remember your actually contributing much. We did all the heavy lifting.”

  “Speaking of which,” Chang said brightly, ignoring Melody so she could concentrate on JC, “isn’t it time you were loading yourselves into the big, round suicide machine?”

  “It is time,” said Katt. “We have to do this. Now.”

  | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |

  JC and Happy and Melody gathered together in front of the small circular air-lock that was the only entrance to the bathysphere. They looked at each other, more than ready to let someone else go first, and in the end JC took the lead. Because in any dangerous situation, he always liked to be first on the scene. If only so he got to be the first to kick the bad guy in the nads, metaphorically speaking. He stepped up onto the rough wooden platform provided, ducked his head more than was comfortable, and squeezed through the opening.

  Inside, the sphere was seriously short of open space. It had been packed full of bulky scientific equipment, piled almost to the curving ceiling. Just enough room had been left in the middle for three chairs. JC stepped over and around various pieces of high tech, chose a chair, and sat down. It seemed to fit him well enough. He started to stretch his legs, then had to stop as he discovered there wasn’t enough room. Melody looked in through the air-lock, with Happy peering over her shoulder.

  “What’s it like in there?” said Melody.

  “The belly of the whale,” said JC. “After a really big dinner.”

  “Think I’ll go for a little walk,” said Happy.

  Melody took a firm hold on his arm and bundled him inside, with minimum violence. And then she entered quickly behind him, so he had no room to retreat. Happy struggled past the piled-up equipment, sniffing loudly.

  “If they’ve got all this, what do they need us for?”

  “In case it all goes wrong,” said JC. “We have no way of knowing what might happen once we get close to the living mountain.”

  “Let me out of here, right now,” said Happy. “There aren’t enough drugs in the world to make this seem like a good idea.”

  “Sit down and shut up,” said Melody. “You volunteered for this.”

  Happy looked at her. “I did? When?”

  “When I told you to,” said Melody.

  “Oh, well, that’s all right then,” said Happy. He sat down.

  Melody looked over the various equipment, taking her time. She didn’t appear particularly impressed.

  “Recognise anything?” said JC.

  “Most of it,” said Melody. “It’s all top of the range, state-of-the-art, and all that . . . Remind me to steal some of it later. We should be able to discover a lot about the true nature of the Flesh Undying with sensors this powerful.”

  “But?” said JC. “I take it there is a but?”

  “But . . .” said Melody, “Everything here was designed to probe and investigate the natural world. The Flesh is something else entirely.”

  “We have to try,” said JC.

  “Yes,” said Melody. “We do.” She sat down in the remaining chair.

  They sat quietly for a while, listening to the crew bustling around outside. JC fidgeted. He would have liked to be doing something, but there was nothing for him to do.

  “It smells in here,” said Happy.

  “That’s you,” said Melody.

  “Oh yes,” said Happy. “So it is. Sorry about that, people. It’s just the chemicals leaking out through my perspiration. And other things.”

  “Where’s Kim?” said Melody. “Isn’t she making the journey with us?”

  “I’m right here,” said Kim’s voice, apparently out of nowhere. “I’m with you in spirit. Like Happy, I think it best I conceal my presence from the Flesh Undying. So I’ve reduced myself to the barest essentials, hardly pressing down on the world at all. Besides, it’s cramped enough in here as it is without me floating around.”

  “Why not hide inside JC again?” said Melody.

  “Because that generates power,” said Kim. “Real power. The Flesh Undying couldn’t help but notice.”

  The three Ghost Finders sat in their chairs, keeping their hands and feet to themselves for fear of bumping something. There wasn’t room to get up and move about, so they just leaned this way and that and craned their heads back, to get a good look at everything. The ship’s light spilled in through two small port-holes on opposite sides of the bathysphere, pushing back the sphere’s dim and almost cosy glow. It only possessed one small light, set into the curving ceiling, but various pieces of equipment flickered with glowing readouts, along with several small monitor screens. More tech had been layered over the interior walls and ceiling, like silicon coral.

  Captain Katt stuck his head in through the air-lock, careful not to disturb his peaked cap. He looked the equipment over carefully and only then nodded to the Ghost Finders.

  “We’re ready to go. Last chance to change your minds.”

  “Oh good!” said Happy. He started to get up. Melody grabbed his arm and slammed him back into his chair.

  “You’re staying!”

  Happy looked at Katt. “I’m staying.”

  “Send us down, Captain,” said JC.

  “Good luck,” said Katt. “Guard the equipment, and try not to get yourselves killed.”

  He pulled back, and the air-lock closed. The sound of the heavy door slamming into position and locking sounded very final. The bathysphere rocked from side to side as it was jerked up into the air. JC grabbed onto the arms of his chair and swallowed hard. It felt like someone had just kicked the world out from under his feet. There was the sound of rattling cables and straining machinery, as the sphere was winched up. JC breathed steadily,
calming himself. Kim murmured softly in his ear.

  “I’m here, JC. I’m always here, with you.”

  They all hung on tightly, as the bathysphere was put out over the side of the ship and lowered toward the water. Light coming through the port-holes was cut off, replaced by night sky. The sphere swung slowly back and forth, offering brief glimpses of the Moonchilde. And then even that disappeared as the bathysphere plunged down into the ocean. All outside light was gone, replaced by complete darkness . . . the only sounds quiet murmurings from various piece of equipment. One monitor screen blazed brightly. JC looked at Melody.

  “Is it supposed to be doing that?”

  “Probably,” said Melody.

  “Are we nearly there yet?” said Happy.

  And down they went, into the dark, and the deepest part of the world.

  | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |

  For a long time, the three of them just sat patiently, waiting for something to happen. The sphere tilted slightly from side to side as it descended, but apart from that, there was nothing to tell them they were moving. No sense of progress, of getting anywhere. Just darkness without and flickering lights within. JC felt hot, then cold, and hoped it was all in his mind. Melody leaned forward in her chair to study the instruments before her and finally got up to lean over the monitor screens. She fiddled with the controls, muttering to herself.

  “They said not to touch anything!” said JC, just a bit urgently.

  “I know,” said Melody, not looking round from what she was doing. “I was there, I heard them. When has that ever stopped me? Okay . . . I’ve transferred the input from the short-range sensors to these monitor screens. So we’ll have some idea of what’s happening outside. It won’t interfere with reception topside.”

  She sank back into her chair, and they all stared fixedly at the monitor screens. They showed nothing but the dark.