They cruised at a depth of two hundred feet, maintaining a speed of thirty knots, none of the power driving the Nautilus being wasted in turbulence. At their depth, pressure negated turbulence. The submarine experienced reduced resistance to forward motion at depth. There was no propeller slippage and speed was easier to achieve and maintain than on the surface. Except when the decks tilted during a dive or an ascent, there was no sensation of movement whatsoever. In answer to a question from Finn, Sasha told them, in English, that despite carrying a crew of over one hundred, the submarine could be operated by as few as a dozen men in an emergency. He was very proud of his ship-he used the term “boat,” a direct translation from the Russian podvodnaya lodka, meaning submarine boat-and he was proud of his command of English. His military bearing was at curious odds with his appearance. He had started to grow his hair long and was doing his best to grow a beard. He wore a gold circle in his left ear and the cutoff sleeves of his jumpsuit revealed recent tattoos executed in an intricate, Oriental style with vivid reds, yellows, oranges and blues. A Chinese dragon covered his entire upper arm on the left side and his right arm was graced with a nude, almond-eyed woman whose hair fanned out to frame her entire body. The workmanship was exquisite.
“Shiro worked three hours on her,” he said, smiling. “I wonder if his sister looks at all like this. If so, I must somehow arrange to meet her one day.”
“I wonder if the little heathen would do one for me,” said Land.
“I am certain he would, if you were to ask,” said Sasha. “It seems to give him great pleasure, though it is hard to tell, he always looks so serious.”
“What do you think of all this, Sasha?” Lucas said.
The young Russian frowned. “All this?”
“Being a member of the Soviet Navy one day and a time pirate the next,” said Lucas.
Sasha smiled. “Time pirate. I like the sound of that. It is what we do, pirate time. How should I feel about it? I have been re-educated. I am, of course, aware of my previous loyalties, but they no longer matter. This is a new life. I am a new person. Captain Drakov has been very good to us. Mr. Benedetto has explained how he could have obliterated all our memories of what we were, but the captain would not allow that. He did not wish to rob us of our souls. He did not wish to make puppets of us.”
“Didn’t he?” said Finn.
“You met him; you saw what he is like,” said Sasha. “He is a great man, destined for great things. We are all a part of something much more important now.”
“And what would that be?” Andre said.
“You should ask the captain,” Sasha replied evasively.
“He didn’t want to rob you of your souls,” said Finn, “but he robbed you of the ability of making choices for yourselves.”
“That is not true,” said Sasha. “He helped us see to make the correct choices. And there are those among us who did not require re-educating. They were able to see clearly for themselves.”
“Which of the crew would those be?” Lucas said.
“Only the captain and Mr. Benedetto would know that,” said Sasha. “We were not told, so we would not feel inferior to those of our shipmates who were more perceptive than we.”
“Are you sure that’s the reason?” Finn said.
“Of course.”
“Very egalitarian of the captain,” Finn said, wryly.
Back in their cabin, Land stretched out upon one of the lower bunks and put his hands behind his head. “Maybe I’m starting to lose my mind, too,” he said, “or else this vessel truly is from some future time. I’ve never seen the like of it.”
“When you have exhausted all the possible explanations, Ned,” said Lucas, “consider the impossible. Try to imagine what it would have been like for a primitive caveman from the dawn of time to stand upon the decks of an iron steamship. If you can picture that, then put yourself in that caveman’s place and you will begin to understand what has happened to you.”
“This story Drakov told, about being able to destroy a city the size of Paris with but one of his explosives, can it be true?”
“Regrettably, Ned, it’s only too true.”
“Merde,” said Land. “A man with such power, he could bring the nations of the world to their knees.”
“Conceivably,” said Lucas, “but I don’t think that’s what he intends.”
“Why not?” said Land. “How could any man resist such a temptation?”
“In this time, with this submarine, Drakov could easily make himself the ruler of the world,” said Lucas. “However, doing something like that would make him too obvious a target for others like ourselves. He has to remain hidden. He has to keep moving. He has become the object of an unprecedented hunt, Ned. And there are weapons in the future far more terrible than those he has on board. What makes him safe is his mobility, not only through the oceans of the world, but through all of time, as well. We found him only with the greatest luck. Or perhaps he found us. Maybe he really is the tool of destiny.”
“You don’t believe that, surely?” Land said.
Lucas grinned. “I’m not even sure I believe in belief.”
“The trouble is,” said Andre, “there seems to be no way we can stop him short of sabotaging this submarine, somehow. Only how to do it and survive?”
“Where in our orders does it say we’re supposed to survive?” said Finn. “Maybe another team will get a crack at him. If they don’t botch the job like we did, then our worries will be over. Permanently.”
“What do we do meanwhile?” she said.
Lucas shrugged. “We wait.”
“If this fellow is truly so dangerous,” said Land, “why not just do away with him? Kill Drakov and this Benedetto, and the others will lack for leadership.”
“The only problem with that idea,” Lucas said, “is Drakov’s promise to kill us all if any one of our group stepped out of line. The three of us would be perfectly willing to accept that risk, but what about yourself and Verne?”
Land shrugged. “For my part, the risk don’t bother me a great lot. But do you think he would kill Verne? He seemed quite taken with him.”
“That may be true,” said Finn, “but if Drakov’s killed, who’ll protect Verne from the others?”
“Yes, that is true,” said Land. “We can’t decide without asking him. Maybe we’ll have a chance to kill this madman and escape. This boat must surface sometime.”
There was a knock at their door and it opened, admitting Benedetto. He took one step into the cabin and looked around at them, shaking his head.
“If you are intent upon hatching plots,” he said, “at least have the brains to do it in a manner that you cannot be overheard. This cabin is monitored, you know. It would not have gone well for you if someone else had overheard you, rather than myself. If you must have private discussions, I would suggest the engine room. It is rather noisy there. Of course, the crew will wonder what you are talking about and they will report it to the captain. If I were you, I wouldn’t bother. And I wouldn’t waste my time trying to incite any of these Russians to mutiny, either. It would be pointless. Now, if you don’t mind, I would really like to get some sleep. Do try not to stay up late. We will keep military hours aboard. Good night to you.”
He closed the door.
“There goes a most strange man,” said Land. “What do you make of him?”
Lucas shook his head. “Damned if I know, Ned. I’m starting to think you were right all along and everyone on board is crazy.”