“They are from hell itself,” the Captain muttered.
“I have seen some terrible lookin’ fish, but these swim on the top of the water like they are a-breathin’ air. I don’t know where they’d be from beside hell, Mr. Andrews,” said Abrams, agreeing with Captain Smith.
The flooding rose to three feet and had a bloody, oily sheen that surrounded the dead bodies of the rat-spiders. The firemen crushed several dozen of the disgusting creatures.
From a corner, white tendrils rose from the dark water, feeling along the wall blindly and stretching out thinly to reach for one of the men. The fireman stood, in shock, watching the slender, slimy appendages reach out for his face. He moaned.
“What is that?” Andrews shouted, “Man, get away from that thing.”
The fearful crewmember broke and ran toward the door, as the tendrils found nothing to grab onto. Had he looked over his shoulder, he might have tripped and fallen.
“Get out. Everyone out,” Smith ordered. The stunned shock was broken, and all the men ran from the room as Abrams sealed it.
Smith was relieved no one was hurt, but he could not erase the vision of the spider-faced rats swimming and the white tendrils that went after one of the firemen. It was more than he could accept.
Most seamen could tell tales about sea monsters. A quarter of the stories were true. Half of the stories were believed to be true by the drunken men who claimed the visions. These visages were not stories but were real, yet the monstrosities did not fit the usual creatures of sealore as they were not a big squid or mermaids. Maybe that is what made it all worse.
Right before the door closed, Smith saw the owner of the white tendrils: a horrible black beetle that released and contracted the tendrils from its shining, dark carapace. A worse outrage was that the creature had human-like, blue eyes, which showed intelligence as it regarded the men. The beetle knew it had missed its chance to grab the fireman but promised, in its gaze, that it would find another chance to get someone.
Smith walked to the side and vomited. No one remarked upon that.
“Mr. Andrews, what is your professional evaluation of the situation?” Smith asked. “Of the ship, not the creatures, please.”
Thomas Andrews turned sad eyes to the Captain and took a deep breath before he spoke, “The water cannot be pumped out. The damage is too great; the ship is doomed. She cannot stay afloat for more than two hours, Sir.”
“And of the rest….”
“Of the creatures, I cannot begin to suggest anything about where they have come from, why, or what they are about,” Andrews said, “but I wish I had not laid eyes upon the beasts.”
Smith nodded and motioned them to walk with him. He went back to the bridge, wondering what to say and what to do. In all his training and experience, he was not prepared for his ship to sink like this or to be attacked by monsters, something about those human-like, blue eyes….
His men stared, awaiting orders. Captain Smith’s eyes were far away, and he felt weak. Trying to think, he kept seeing the white tendrils, trying to grab the crewman.
“The life boats are to be uncovered. Send a distress call.” He sat down in a chair and lit a cigar, his eyes glazed over. He now could see nothing but the monster’s eyes watching him and taunting him.
It knew he had failed as a Captain. It was down in the hold laughing at him, making jest of his failure and enjoying it all. It was satisfied and pleased with another life’s dread and fear. It drank in sorrow. It probably lapped up tears.
“Captain, should we not load the lifeboats with… umm… women and children first?” Lightoller asked. He did not know what to make of the Captain’s disposition. He already felt that only the first ones in the boats stood a chance; they had too many passengers and crews and too few lifeboats.
Lightoller swallowed back his fears, focusing on his duties and what he had, all of his adult life, been trained for. If nothing else, he would do his job well. That is what a real man did in crisis. He was expected to survive to help others, and failing that, give his own life for those of women or children in need.
So be it.
“We have two hours, I should say. The damage is too great, and the flooding is massive. I said we could make it with two or possibly three compartments flooded and that we could float dead in the water and wait for rescue with four damaged, but men, five of the compartments are broken open.” Andrews told the other men.
“Five?” Lightoller repeated, eyes huge.
“So they have reported. Sirs, we simply cannot stay afloat with the five damaged. Again, we have two hours, and then we are going down. The Titanic will sink,” Andrews finished.
Captain Smith nodded as he stared into nothing.
Lightoller wondered what caused the Captain to turn this pale and give up, but he did not dare ask. It had to be more than the ship sinking.
Once given the order, Jack Phillips and Harold Bride tapped out QED. The QE meant to listen and pay attention; this was serious. The D meant distress. They typed MGY, the ship’s call sign. To other operators, this meant the mighty Titanic, the unsinkable ship, was sinking and needed help quickly. They also typed SOS for save our ship.
The closest ship, the Carpathia, could be there in four hours. They set a steady course and turned to render aid.
In less than two hours, Titanic would sink.
Chapter Four: The Unthinkable, Unsinkable
When the stewards and stewardesses beat upon the doors, everyone was mystified as to why anyone would be awakened at almost midnight. Men and a few women clasped robes around themselves and demanded to know why their sleep was interrupted. Some were irritated, and a few were furious, but no one expressed worry.
The stewards said there was some sort of problem and everyone should dress warmly, put on life belts, and go to the boat deck. Delora and Annie Phillips were most put out at being awakened and being told to go into the cold weather. If this were a drill, they would scream at someone for awakening them.
“This ship is unsinkable, so why should we put on life jackets? What a silly protocol,” Annie fumed, “I feel this is a terrible breach of manners, and I intend to write a stern letter, regarding this issue.”
“We are being told to bring everyone to the boat deck to board the lifeboats,” the steward said.
“Those little boats hardly seem safe,” Delora said.
Howard dressed quickly and told them he would meet them on the boat deck and that they were to follow orders. “It’s probably some mistake, but in case the circumstances are dire, it is best to follow orders until we see what is amiss.”
Delora nodded, “You are right, Howard. I am sure the Captain will give us a full account once we are on the boat deck. Let’s imagine it is a new adventure, lest we leave anything doable undone.”
Annie shrugged, “Let’s look and see what it is about but go have a cup of tea while we see what is wrong. I have no desire to go out into the chill.”
“Did we hit the big fish?” Howard asked quietly.
“Fish?” Delora almost yelped, “What on earth are you on about?”
The steward shook his head, “No, Sir. It is a bit of ice we bumped. There is no… umm… fish involved here.”
Howard ignored his aunts’ furious eyes. “Howard, why are you going on about a fish? Have you lost your senses? I have told you about these fantasies….”